History Main / BadImpressionists

** In "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS13E5TheBlunderYears The Blunder Years]]", a hypnotist makes Homer impersonate Creator/EmilyDickinson. Since [[FatIdiot Homer]] apparently has no idea who she is, he confuses her with Angie Dickinson, and his impression consists of him prancing around the room saying "Look at me, I'm Angie Dickinson! Out of my way!"

See StylisticSuck, and subtropes such as BadBadActing and HollywoodToneDeaf. This trope is not about bad [[{{Impressionism}} Impressionist]] painters.

* An early running gag on ''Website/{{Cracked}} WebVideo/AfterHours'' was Dan O'Brien using the exact same loud, screechy voice to impersonate various celebrities. Michael and Katie don't seem to be impressed (when Dan attempts to imitate [[Film/BackToTheFuture Goldie Wilson]], Michael retorts "You sound like a blender!"), but Soren is bowled over every time.

See StylisticSuck, and subtropes such as BadBadActing and HollywoodToneDeaf. This trope is not about bad Impressionist painters.

* Music/{{Eminem}}, a ManOfAThousandVoices whose vocal range is one of his strongest attributes as a performer, could easily have done a realistic impersonation of Creator/ChristopherReeve if he'd wanted to. Instead he gives him a MachineMonotone that serves to indicate his total lack of research - and therefore the fact that [[UnacceptableTargets it's not really personal]].

* A WebAnimation/YoutubePoop by Creator/{{NPCarlsson}}, [[https://youtu.be/YDd5wnE8lBQ Get Silly in Front Of a Brick Wall]], edits one existing example to ShoutOut to another while being an example in itself.

* In ''Film/{{Help}}'', Superintendent Gluck, trying to negotiate with a cult that wants to kill Music/RingoStarr, decides to impersonate Ringo over the phone, telling Music/TheBeatles that he also does an excellent impression of [[Creator/JamesCagney Cagney]]. He puts on an absurd [[UsefulNotes/Liverpool Scouse]] accent and peppers his sentences with then-popular mod slang.

* In ''Film/{{Help}}'', Superintendent Gluck does a bad impression of Ringo over the phone: "Hello, this is the famous Ringo, gear, fab. What can I do for you, as it were, gear, fab?"
** Not a bit like [[Creator/JamesCagney Cagney]].

** Also done with a one-shot sketch with Creator/AlecBaldwin as "The Mimic," who supposedly could imitate any possible voice, but it turned out he was completely incompetent, except for one impression. When Jameson the butler (played by musical guest Music/PaulMcCartney) goes to throw him out, Alec Baldwin says in a perfect [=McCartney=] impression, "But I'm you! You can't throw yourself out."

* ''Series/TheMuppetShow'': A rather strange example in season 2 as guest star Rich Little was an actual professional impressionist by career, but he is showcased doing impersonations of the Muppets which are downright terrible. His impression of Miss Piggy involves turning up his nose with a finger while saying "Hello Kermie" in a falsetto, his Kermit impression straight-up says "Kermit the Frog here," and his Fozzie impression is putting on a hat and saying "I'm a comedian, I'm the bear with all the jokes" while moving his hands jerkily. (Fozzie admires the latter impression but [[ObliviousToHisOwnDescription can't figure out who it's meant to be]].) Little's impressions of Hollywood stars fare just slightly better, but even these are called out in-show as bad by Fleet Scribbler.

-->'''Julien''':[[RoboSpeak "Yes. You. Do."]]
-->'''Maurice''':"Now that's just your robot voice."
-->'''Julien''':*sulky* "End. Transmission."

* In ''WesternAnimation/DanVs'' "The Ninja," Chris acts as a decoy for Dan by standing in the park and saying things like "I'm Dan! I get mad at everything, then I yell a lot. I sure don't appreciate my friend Chris."

** One is straightforward bad impressions of obscure celebrities including Sonja Henie (Jambi, a disembodied head in a box, spins around) and Rula Lenska ("Friends are here from Europe.");

* TheSeventies star impressionist, Creator/MikeYarwood, wasn't exactly untalented, but he did have a habit of making sure by finding contrived reasons to announce to the audience who he was going to "do", just in case they missed it. It becomesd apparent, watching archive film of his TV performances, exactly how much of his act depended on clever observation of the subject's body language and mannerisms, backed up by all the resources a TV make-up and props department could provide. Close your eyes, and the actual voices are variations on a theme of Mike Yarwood's own voice, with only sporadic hints of the person being parodied.

-->'''Homestar''': ''(leaning over, in a low voice)'' Well... well... Nancy and I... economics... well... rap music... jellybeans... well... we... probably had a... pet...\\

-->"Now, my Creator/WoodyAllen impression: ''(voice stays exactly the same)'' I'm a neurotic nerd who likes to sleep with little girls."

'''[[WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons McBain]]:''' Beautiful [[WesternAnimation/ToyStory Woody]] impression.

* ''Series/TheMuppetShow'': A rather strange example in season 2 as guest star Rich Little was an actual professional impressionist by career, but he is showcased doing impersonations of the Muppets which are downright terrible. His impression of Miss Piggy involves turning up his nose with a finger while saying "Kermie" in a falsetto, his Kermit impression straight-up says "I'm Kermit the Frog," and his Fozzie impression is putting on a hat and saying "I'm a comedian, I'm the bear with all the jokes" while moving his hands jerkily. (Fozzie admires the latter impression but [[ObliviousToHisOwnDescription can't figure out who it's meant to be]].) Little's impressions of Hollywood stars fare just slightly better, but even these are called out in-show as bad by Fleet Scribbler.

* ''WesternAnimation/FetchWithRuffRuffman'' [[PlayedForLaughs Played for Laughs]] in "Ruff's Big Break" when Bridget and Rosario host a [[HandPuppet puppet show]] at a hospital. Rosario's impression of Ruff clearly doesn't sound anything like him, as Rosario just sounds ridiculously wacky, loud, and scratchy. The real Ruff was so stumped by this, that he wonders out-loud if that's meant to sound like him or [[WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons Marge Simpson]].

* On ''WesternAnimation/TheMagicSchoolBus'', Carlos' attempt to be TheAhnold leaves something to be desired.

* On ''WesternAnimation/TheMagicSchoolBus'', Carlos' attempt to be TheAhnold leaves something to be desired.

* A running joke on both versions of ''Series/WhoseLineIsItAnyway'' is that Creator/ColinMochrie isn't the best impressionist in the world. Taken to an extreme during one infamous "Questionable Impressions" sketch, where his Creator/CraigTNelson impression is... his own voice, completely unaltered. (Both are Canadian.) Maing it even funnier is how he announces it's Craig T. Nelson:

* ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' gives up [[WesternAnimation/SupermanTheAnimatedSeries Superman's]] attempt at covering for Batman when the latter goes missing. His voice was perfect (thanks to super muscular control of his larynx), his attempts at Batman's mannerisms were not.

* A running joke on both versions of ''Series/WhoseLineIsItAnyway'' is that Creator/ColinMochrie isn't the best impressionist in the world. Taken to an extreme during one infamous "Questionable Impressions" sketch, where his Creator/CraigTNelson impression is... his own voice, completely unaltered. (Both are Canadian.)

-->''Julien'':[[RoboSpeak "Yes. You. Do."]]
-->''Maurice'':"Now that's just your robot voice."
-->''Julien'':*sulky* "End. Transmission."

* In the '''WesternAnimation/{{Rugrats}}'' episode “Angelica Breaks A Leg’’ Angelica does impressions for Didi, while she does attempt to sound like Arnold Schwarzenegger, her impression of ''WesternAnimation/{{Popeye}}'' is just her saying “I am what I am, and that's all that I am” in her normal voice.

* King Julien's impression of Mason (a chimp) in ''WesternAnimation/ThePenguinsOfMadagascar'' is bad enough ("Ook ook! I sure do love the tire swing!"), but when asked to do one of Private (a penguin)... "Ook ook! I sure do love a stinky fish!" His impersonation of Maurice is slightly better; he puts on a deep voice, stretches his ears out to the sides, and says "Uh, hey, everybody, stop having fun%%PLEASE DO NOT SINK HOLE THIS TO STOPHAVINGFUNGUYS%%, because I am boring!" Maurice protests that he doesn't talk like that:
-->[[RoboSpeak "Yes. You. Do."]]
-->"Now that's just your robot voice."
-->*sulky* "End. Transmission."