Ken Nordine was an American voice-over and recording artist, best known for his series of word jazz albums.
18 Facts About Ken Nordine
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The son of Theresia and Nore S Nordine, a contractor, Ken Nordine was born in Cherokee, Iowa.
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Ken Nordine subsequently attracted wider attention when he recorded the aural vignettes on Word Jazz.
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Ken Nordine began performing and recording such albums at the peak of the beat era and was associated with the poetry-and-jazz movement.
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However, it has been observed that some of Ken Nordine's writings "are more akin to Franz Kafka or Edgar Allan Poe" than to the beats.
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Ken Nordine hosted the weekly Word Jazz program on WBEZ, carried on other stations, from the 1970s for over forty years.
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Ken Nordine was in demand as a voiceover artist on commercials for several companies including the First Chicago Bank, Levi's, Gallo Wine and Magnavox amongst others.
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In 1988, Ken Nordine appeared on two selections from the album Stay Awake: Various Interpretations of Music from Vintage Disney Films: "Hi Diddle Dee Dee " from Pinocchio, and "Desolation Theme", from Pinocchio.
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In 1990, Ken Nordine was approached by Jerry Garcia of The Grateful Dead to be the anchor for their New Year's Eve radio broadcast from Oakland, California.
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Ken Nordine appeared as the narrator, credited as "The Stranger", in Philip Kaufman's 1967 underground comedy Fearless Frank.
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Ken Nordine was Linda Blair's vocal coach for her role in the 1973 film The Exorcist.
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Subsequently, Ken Nordine filed a lawsuit, saying he was not properly compensated for his work, eventually settling in 1979.
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Ken Nordine narrated several films for classroom use, made by Coronet Instructional Films in the 1950s.
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On television, Ken Nordine did a series of readings on a show titled Faces in the Window on WNBQ, and Fred Astaire danced to Ken Nordine's "My Baby" on a TV special.
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Ken Nordine provided the opening narration for the music video of "Can You Feel It" by the Jacksons.
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In 1986, Ken Nordine appeared on The Jay Leno Show as the storyteller.
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Ken Nordine worked with author Maurice Sendak on Sesame Street, providing the narration for the animated segments "Bumble Ardy" and "Seven Monsters".
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Ken Nordine provided the voiceover for NewTek's Video Toaster demo reels, such as the 1991 "Revolution".