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Entertainment  

Words make us Canadian

When Howie Mandel played a Boston doctor on the 1980s medical drama "St. Elsewhere" it wasn't the medical jargon he struggled with — it was his Canadian accent.

"I can't tell you how many times they stopped filming on 'St. Elsewhere' because I said 'intes-tyne' instead of 'intest-tin,' or I said 'dra-ma' instead of 'draw-ma,'" says the Toronto-born "America's Got Talent" judge.

"They just kicked the Canada out of me."

Over Canada's 150-year history, the Canuck English accent has varied in sound and strength, depending on the region. And it comes through more in certain words — like about, mouth, pasta, lava and avocado.

Though the accent can be subtle at times, it can be a hard one for some homegrown actors to shake when they're playing non-Canadian characters.

"You can't say 'drama' or 'pasta' or 'story,'" says Vancouver-born comedy star Seth Rogen, whose AMC series "Preacher" is into its second season.

"I consciously have to not talk like a Canadian, if I'm playing an American character. There are only four or five words for me that really have become an issue."

"Big Little Lies" star James Tupper of Dartmouth, N.S., says he "went home in tears" while trying to shake his spirited accent in drama school.

"I just couldn't hear it," he says. "I would say, 'It's not very fa-her to the ca-her.' They would say, 'It's not very far to the car.' I just didn't hear it and it took me forever, but I finally did learn the variations in my tongue and how to make an American sound, and I feel confident with it now.

"But I'll tell you what — when I go home, the wild Nova Scotian that lives in me comes out."



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