Looking for Georgian Accent Info. (Atlanta, Macon: daycare, movies, college)

[shirleyp777]

I am an actor and I have a part this weekend to fill in for and am desperately seeking info. on Georgian accents. I would like to be able to type in the dialogue and have it read back with the accent so I could hear it. Unfortunately I do not have much money and am looking for services that might be free or close to it.

[Tdiddy0027]

Low country:
there-theyu
grits-griyuts
picture-piactuh
running-ruhhhnin

Up country (appalachian)
there- thar
grits-greets
picture- peecturrre
running-reenin

[aprilgroves]

The biggest trick is to not over do it...you'll look silly. Talk slow, be easy, and harness your inner peach!

In a pinch - you could watch the Forest Gump - some of that stuff is pretty good.

[maggiemay]

I think Robert Duvall's Southern accent in movies is the best. Not too overdone. Check out something to talk about and the one where he is a preacher.

[Grblpwr]

It really depends on what section of Georgia you want to sound like, the regions have very distinct accents. For example, my grandparents, from the Calhoun area, say stuff like the following (Over there: over thar (or yonder); Finger: fanger; Get on out of here: Getooonouttahenya) and speak slowly while using phrases like "Down the road apiece" (meaning "A little ways down the road").

My cousins from just north of Macon say (Daddy: Diddee), speak 100 miles per hour and say stuff like "I ain't studdin' that" (meaning "I'm not putting up with that").

Then you have Jeff Foxworthy who is from just south of Atlanta (about 10 minutes from my parents) and we all know what he sounds like.

I had some Nothern friends in college keep a running list of the "Georgia Speak" they heard and it contained many items that Jeff Foxworthy uses in his bit now (of course, this was before Jeff got famous with the redneck stuff) such as "Jew eat yet, No, Jew" or "Did you eat yet, no, did you", but you could also hear "Jeet yet" for "Did you eat yet".

My suggestion would be to watch some old Matlock reruns and follow Andy Griffiths way of speaking (his accent had mellowed some by then). I know he is from North Carolina but it is a good southern accent without sounding like an ignoramous (like that girl on CSI: Miami, she really grates on my eardrums). (And yes, my entire family is from GA and I lived there for many years myself and I still think the accent can make you sound like an uneducated redneck.)

Remember, in the south, ain't isn't just a word, it's a way of life.

[grover]

We are from the north. My wife works at a daycare, and when the kids are acting up, the southern ladies say , " Yalls is fixing fer sum trubble"

[JPD]

Say "recon" and "fixin ta" a lot and you'll be ok.

[cotton]

JPD, I recon you are right on, Hon!

Just got this today ... "The first Southern statement to creep into a transplanted Northerner's vocabulary is the adjective "big'ol," like big ol truck or big'ol" boy. Most Northerners begin their Southern-influenced dialect this way. All of them are in denial about it."

Listening to Matlock is a good suggestion.

[Twinkletoes]

You could also listen to Jimmy Carter. A little overdone, but some of his speeches should be easy to find.