Acting

'Whispering' Jack Smith

Born 29 May 1896 · New York City, New York, USA · Died 13 May 1950 at 53

His distinctive "whispering" vocal delivery, for which he became famous, was caused when he fell victim to a poison gas attack during World War I. His voice never fully recovered and, unable to sing at full volume, he instead learned to make the best use of early microphone technology to record his soft vocal style.