Norman Rose (June 23, 1917 – November 12, 2004) was an American actor, film narrator and
radio announcer
An announcer is a voice artist who relays information to the audience of a broadcast media programme or live event.
Television and other media
Some announcers work in television production, radio or filmmaking, usually providing narrations, ...
whose velvety baritone was often called "the Voice of God" by colleagues. He was best known as the narrator's voice in the fictitious coffee grower's
Juan Valdez
Juan Valdez is a fictional character who has appeared in advertisements for the National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia since 1958, representing a Colombian coffee farmer. The advertisements were designed by the Doyle Dane Bernbach ad ...
Colombian coffee television commercials and the announcer-narrator of NBC's ''
Dimension X''.
[Saxon, Wolfgang. "Norman Rose, 87, Stage Actor and Voice of 'Juan Valdez,' Dies." ''The New York Times'', November 18, 2004.]
/ref>
Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
, Rose started acting while a student at George Washington University
, mottoeng = "God is Our Trust"
, established =
, type = Private federally chartered research university
, academic_affiliations =
, endowment = $2.8 billion (2022)
, preside ...
in Washington, DC. Rose honed his craft at the Actors Studio
The Actors Studio is a membership organization for professional actors, theatre directors and playwrights at 432 West 44th Street between Ninth and Tenth avenues in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded ...
Drama School in New York, then landed parts in plays on and off-Broadway.
Rose was the narrator for the satirical 1972 hit song ''Deteriorata
"Deteriorata" is a comedy record released as a single in 1972. It is a parody of Les Crane's 1971 spoken word recording of "Desiderata", the early 20th-century poem by Max Ehrmann. ("Desiderata" is Latin for "desired things"; "deteriorata" is a p ...
'', which was recorded by comedy group National Lampoon for the album ''Radio Dinner
''Radio Dinner'' is the debut album by the creators of the American satirical magazine '' National Lampoon''. It was released on Blue Thumb Records in 1972 after RCA Records had declined to issue the record. The humor on the album is steeped in t ...
''. He also recorded numerous books for the blind and narrated the 70th anniversary broadcast of the Academy Awards. He also was a drama instructor at the Juilliard School
The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most el ...
.
Radio
During World War II, he was recruited by the United States Office of War Information
The United States Office of War Information (OWI) was a United States government agency created during World War II. The OWI operated from June 1942 until September 1945. Through radio broadcasts, newspapers, posters, photographs, films and other ...
to work as a radio newscaster. After the war, Rose lent his distinctive voice to radio programs such as '' Dimension X'' and ''CBS Radio Mystery Theater
''CBS Radio Mystery Theater'' (a.k.a. ''Radio Mystery Theater'' and ''Mystery Theater'', sometimes abbreviated as ''CBSRMT'') is a radio drama series created by Himan Brown that was broadcast on CBS Radio Network affiliates from 1974 to 1982, an ...
''. He narrated the short film ''Harold and the Purple Crayon
''Harold and the Purple Crayon'' is a 1955 children's book by Crockett Johnson. Published by Harper Collins Publishers, it is Johnson's most popular book, and has led to a series of other books, as well as many adaptations.
Plot
The protagonist, ...
'' in 1959, and provided several of the voices on the 1963 CBS cartoon ''Tennessee Tuxedo and His Tales
''Tennessee Tuxedo and His Tales'' is an animated television series that originally aired Saturday mornings on CBS from 1963 to 1966 as one of the earliest Saturday morning cartoons. It was produced by Total Television, the same company that prod ...
''.
In 1948, Rose co-founded New Stages, an off-Broadway repertory company, with producer David Heilweil. New Stages presented the American debut of Jean-Paul Sartre
Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (, ; ; 21 June 1905 – 15 April 1980) was one of the key figures in the philosophy of existentialism (and phenomenology), a French playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer, and litera ...
's best-known play, '' The Respectful Prostitute'', prior to its Broadway run. Rose was an accomplished stage actor appearing in Broadway productions of ''Richard III'' and ''St. Joan'' and off-Broadway in ''The Brothers Karamazov
''The Brothers Karamazov'' (russian: Братья Карамазовы, ''Brat'ya Karamazovy'', ), also translated as ''The Karamazov Brothers'', is the last novel by Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky. Dostoevsky spent nearly two years writing '' ...
''.
From 1969 to 1974, Rose stepped in front of the camera to portray the same character—psychiatrist Dr. Marcus Polk—on two ABC soap operas (''One Life to Live
''One Life to Live'' (often abbreviated as ''OLTL'') is an American soap opera broadcast on the ABC television network for more than 43 years, from July 15, 1968, to January 13, 2012, and then on the internet as a web series on Hulu and iTunes ...
'' and ''All My Children
''All My Children'' (often shortened to ''AMC'') is an American television soap opera that aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from January 5, 1970, to September 23, 2011, and on The Online Network (TOLN) from April 29 to September 2, 20 ...
''). He also appeared in the soap operas ''The Edge of Night
''The Edge of Night'' is an American television mystery crime drama series and soap opera, created by Irving Vendig and produced by Procter & Gamble Productions.
It debuted on CBS on April 2, 1956, and ran as a live broadcast on that networ ...
'' and ''Search for Tomorrow
''Search for Tomorrow'' is an American television soap opera. It began its run on CBS on September 3, 1951, and concluded on NBC, 35 years later, on December 26, 1986.
Set in the fictional town of Henderson in an unspecified state, the show focu ...
''.
In addition to his work as the announcer of numerous TV commercials, Rose was one of the voices of promotional announcements for the NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...
and later ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
television networks from the late 1960s through the early 1990s.
Films
Nicknamed “The Voice of God” by colleagues because of his deep, recognizable voice, Rose was often cast as something akin to God
In monotheism, monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator deity, creator, and principal object of Faith#Religious views, faith.Richard Swinburne, Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Ted Honderich, Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Ox ...
; conversely, he was the voice of "Death
Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...
" in Woody Allen’s 1975 comedy ''Love and Death
''Love and Death'' is a 1975 American comedy film written and directed by Woody Allen. It is a satire on Russian literature starring Allen and Diane Keaton as Boris and Sonja, Russians living during the Napoleonic Era who engage in mock-serious ...
''. Rose’s other film work includes Woody Allen's ''Radio Days
''Radio Days'' is a 1987 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Woody Allen, who also narrates the story. The film looks back on an American family's life during the Golden Age of Radio using both music and memories to tell the story. ...
'' and the narration for director Kinji Fukasaku’s ''Message from Space
is a 1978 Japanese space opera film directed by Kinji Fukasaku. It stars Sonny Chiba, Etsuko Shihomi, and Vic Morrow. Produced by Toei with a cost between the equivalent of US$5 and 6 million, it was the most expensive film made in Japan at ...
'' (1978), narrating the English dub of the 1968 Soviet Union production of ''War and Peace
''War and Peace'' (russian: Война и мир, translit=Voyna i mir; pre-reform Russian: ; ) is a literary work by the Russian author Leo Tolstoy that mixes fictional narrative with chapters on history and philosophy. It was first published ...
'' and Ishirō Honda’s ''Destroy All Monsters
is a 1968 Japanese ''kaiju'' film directed by Ishirō Honda, with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. The film, which was produced and distributed by Toho Co., Ltd, is the ninth film in the ''Godzilla'' franchise, and features eleven monster ...
'', as well as a newsreel announcer in Mike Nichols
Mike Nichols (born Michael Igor Peschkowsky; November 6, 1931 – November 19, 2014) was an American film and theater director, producer, actor, and comedian. He was noted for his ability to work across a range of genres and for his aptitude fo ...
’ ''Biloxi Blues
''Biloxi Blues'' is a semi-autobiographical play by Neil Simon. It portrays the conflict of Sergeant Merwin J. Toomey and Arnold Epstein, one of many privates enlisted in the military stationed in Biloxi, Mississippi, seen through the eyes of E ...
'' (1988). On screen he was seen in ''The Joe Louis Story
''The Joe Louis Story'' is a 1953 American film noir drama (genre), drama sport film directed by Robert Gordon (director), Robert Gordon and starring Coley Wallace, Hilda Silmms and Paul Stewart (actor), Paul Stewart.
Plot
Biographical film abou ...
'' (1953),'' The Violators'' (1957), ''Jump
Jumping is a form of locomotion or movement in which an organism or non-living (e.g., robotic) mechanical system propels itself through the air along a ballistic trajectory.
Jump or Jumping also may refer to:
Places
* Jump, Kentucky or Jump S ...
'' (1971), Sidney Lumet’s ''The Anderson Tapes
''The Anderson Tapes'' is a 1971 American crime film directed by Sidney Lumet and starring Sean Connery and featuring Dyan Cannon, Martin Balsam and Alan King. The screenplay was written by Frank Pierson, based upon a best-selling 1970 nov ...
'' (1971), ''Who Killed Mary What’s Her Name?'' (1971) and Martin Ritt's ''The Front'' (1976) (also starring Woody Allen). He also narrated the 1989 film documentary '' How Hitler Lost the War'', which was produced by David Hoffman.
Rose was also the offscreen narrator for the telecast of Mikhail Baryshnikov
Mikhail Nikolayevich Baryshnikov ( rus, Михаил Николаевич Барышников, p=mʲɪxɐˈil bɐ'rɨʂnʲɪkəf; lv, Mihails Barišņikovs; born January 28, 1948) is a Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic, Soviet Latvian-born R ...
's production of the ballet ''The Nutcracker
''The Nutcracker'' ( rus, Щелкунчик, Shchelkunchik, links=no ) is an 1892 two-act ballet (""; russian: балет-феерия, link=no, ), originally choreographed by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov with a score by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaiko ...
'' (1977), a production that has been repeated many times on television and is available on DVD.
Death
Norman Rose died November 12, 2004, at his home in Upper Nyack, New York
Upper Nyack is a village incorporated in 1872 in the town of Clarkstown, Rockland County, New York, United States. It is located north of the village of Nyack, east of Valley Cottage, south of Rockland Lake State Park, and west of the Hudson R ...
.
Filmography
References
External links
Blog of Death
*
''Los Angeles Times'' obituary
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rose, Norman
1917 births
2004 deaths
American male radio actors
People from Upper Nyack, New York
Male actors from Philadelphia
Military personnel from Philadelphia
American male television actors
American male stage actors
20th-century American male actors
People of the United States Office of War Information