Dan Willinger's Blog

 


September Archives
Back to Blog Main Page

 

September 28, 2007

Bill DeMar's Joke Page
Dan @9:47am

One of the great funny men of the ventriloquist world is Bill DeMar. He has been a ventriloquist for over 50 years and has come up with some great material over the years. I am happy to say that Bill has his own joke page now on Ventriloquist Central so please have a look. You just might find a joke or two that you can adapt to your own act. Thanks Bill for joining us at Ventriloquist Central with your great humor.

Click Here For the Bill DeMar Joke Page

 

Comments welcomed.

Dan

Comments

 

 

0 Comments> > >

 

 

 

September 27, 2007

Paul Winchell
Dan @6:51am

In an effort to continually bring you fresh items of interest in ventriloquism, I am happy to announce that today Rick Tolomei kindly donated to Ventriloquist Central this wonderful original script for one of Paul Winchell's early 1960's shows.

As you know Paul Winchell was a true genius and so to be able to view one of his original scripts with his own markings is a real treat. You will be able to see how his talent was not just in the performance of ventriloquism but in the actual production of the art.

Thanks Rick for sharing this with me and the vent community and I hope you all enjoy reading this fine script.

Click Here To See Paul Winchell's script
 

Comments welcomed.


Dan


 

Comments

0 Comments> > >

 

 

 

 

September 26, 2007

Can You Believe It?!!!
Dan @11:57am

Can you believe it, we have just about reached the one year old mark for Ventriloquist Central. When I started this with my webmaster Steve, it was primarily to showcase my collection.  Little did I know that this site would blossom into the place you now have at your disposal. My love for the art of ventriloquism and of the figure makers has taken us into the forefront of the ventriloquial world and I want everyone to know we are here to stay.

I want to personally thank every one of the contributors to the site because without their generous help and donations this would not have taken place. On that note please remember we need YOU to keep this site growing so keep sending in those articles, pictures and videos for us to share,

Now as a gift for everyone, in celebration of our first anniversary, I have decided to suspend the fees for everyone to list items (figures, videos, memorabilia, etc) for sale on the Ventriloquist Marketplace.

Lately the Marketplace has been doing rather well and some nice figures have sold, so here is your chance to take advantage and sell your ventriloquial items that you no longer use or have grown tired of. Give the Ventriloquist Marketplace a try.

Click Here For the Ventriloquist Marketplace



So with that I say..... Happy Anniversary to all of us!!

Comments welcomed.

Dan


 

Comments


0 Comments> > >

 

 

 

 

 

September 23, 2007

Correction - Bob Wallace Catalogue
Dan @7:37am

Doug Preis member of the Bergen Foundation sent in this information for us so that everyone would have the correct information !!  His response:

"The only figures made by Bob Wallace ever used by Edgar Bergen were: Frowning Charlie...Sleepy Charlie (later turned into Old Man Charlie) and a "regular" Charlie...that Bergen used very rarely...and mostly for photo shoots.

Wallace never "finished off"...nor did Edgar ever animate...or use the Mortimer...or Effie from Bob Wallace. They remain solid blocks of wood to this day. The Bergen Foundation owns them. Other copies do exist. The Wallace family has a "set" as they were duplicarved.


The photos in the Wallace "brochure" are misleading...as the only figure pictured that was carved by Wallace...is the separate larger shot of Charlie with his mouth open. The other photos are pre-existing publicity shots of Bergen with his original figures. NOT Wallace's work."

 

Thanks Doug for the information.

 

Dan


P.S  Don't forget to catch Jeff Dunham's "Spark of Insanity" tonight on Comedy Central.

Comments

 

1 Comment> > >

 

  1. I saw Jeff's special Sunday. as usual, he was great. I also saw Jeff live in Prescott, AZ Saturday night, in person he is even better!

    Comments by Tony Silveus - September 24, 2007 @9:32pm

 

 

 

 

September 22, 2007

Bob Wallace Wood Carver
Dan @10:21am

One of the great mysteries that we all know about, and the actual answer that will always elude us, is who made the original Charlie McCarthy. It is known that Bergen of course purchased it from the Mack's shop but Marshall more than likely worked on it. How much work Marshall did we will never know. We do know that Marshall later on made a few Charlie heads that were close. One of the more famous ones is the figure that Stanley Burns used that had crossing eyes. It was a real close example of a Charlie head.

Edgar Bergen did, later on in his career, have duplicates of his famous trio remade by a wood carver named Bob Wallace. He was from Los Angeles so he was not far from Edgar who was living in Hollywood.

Wallace was a carver of store displays and his talent was superb. He did a great job of reproducing Charlie, Mortimer and Effie and in Edgar's hands you would have never known that they were not the original figures. Of course if you had the original figures side by side to the new carved figures there were differences.

Most of the reproduction Charlie heads that you will see for sale privately or publicly will be from castings off the Bob Wallace carved heads.

Since Ventriloquist Central is an informational web site, I am happy to share with the vent community the Bob Wallace Catalogue which shows the three Bergen characters along with some other amazing carving done by this talented man.

I want to thank Ray Guyll for sharing this great piece of Ventriloquist history with the vent community. I do hope you all enjoy looking at this amazing catalogue.

 

Click Here For Bob Wallace Catalogue



Dan


 

Comments


0 Comments> > >

 

 

 

September 21, 2007

Appraisal...Yes or No
Dan @11:45am

As a collector it is always asked if insurance is needed. My answer is that in most cases insurance is a must. A collector can certainly become insurance poor but key items in any collection must be appraised and then insurance taken. Those key items are usually irreplaceable.

A working ventriloquist also has to take insurance into consideration because as a tool your figure is the one thing that makes your income possible so you most certainly need insurance to cover any loss that may be incurred either by damage or theft.

In light of this I have decided that starting today, Ventriloquistcentral.com will offer you the opportunity to get an appraisal of your ventriloquist figure for you to use to obtain stated value insurance on your figure. It is an easy process so please follow the link below and I will guide you through a few steps to make this a possibility for you and your figures.

Click Here For Ventriloquist Figure Appraisal Information


Dan

 

Comments

0 Comments> > >

 

 

 

 

September 19, 2007

Natural Gas....Part 2
Dan @6:49am

I was very lucky to have a dear friend of mine, George Boosey, donate some great videos for me to share with the rest of the ventriloquial family. This is the second of those videos.

What you are about to see is a 31 year young Bob Isaacson with his pal Speedy in an educational series on Natural Gas. These were filmed back in 1966 and you get to see how great Bob is as a ventriloquist and you also see his wonderful Frank Marshall figure Speedy Wheeler. I know you are going to enjoy this so sit back for a few minutes and watch.

Click Here For Bob Isaacson video Part 2


Dan

Comments

 

0 Comments> > >

 

 

 

 

September 18, 2007

Jeff Dunham: Spark of Insanity - Today's the DAY!!!
Dan @6:31am

Today is the day that Jeff Dunham's "Spark of Insansity" DVD is available.  This DVD promises to be even better than "Arguing With Myself".

Get yours today.

Click Here for "Spark of Insanity"

 

Dan

 

Comments

 

0 Comments> > >

 

 


 

September 14, 2007

W.H.J. Shaw Figure
Dan @6:25am

Today I am happy to show you all one of the true rarities in ventriloquist figures. This figure was made between 1890 and 1910 by a figure maker named William Henry James Shaw. He was from Victoria Missouri and was a mannequin and window display maker. He also produced mechanical wax figures like the type figure you would see in Tussaud's Wax Museum. His catalogue also boasted that he made the world's best ventriloquist figures. These were made of wood and paper mache. His black figures were called " Laughing Negro" of course the Negro minstrel shows were going very strong so this was not out of place.

This example that you see is all original but the tar baby paint has been touched up. The body, head stick and clothing are all original and period to this figure. He has a wonderful free floating head with a great locking mechanism to hold it in place but yet allow the free float. Side to side self centering eyes and moving leather mouth. You will look far and wide to find a better example of this type ventriloquist figure.

Click Here To See W.H.J. Shaw Figure

 

Dan


 

Comments

1 Comment> > >

 

  1. Thanks for showing this Shaw figure. As you know Great Lester's loss of his two Shaw figures is what lead him to find the Mack wood workers to get them to make him a figure. Since I've been historically interested in Lester for a long time it is interesting to see what a Shaw looks like.  And you're right this is a fine example.

    Comments by Joe Lopez - September 14, 2007 @9:39am

 

 

 

 

September 12, 2007

Natural Gas...
Dan @6:27am

I was very lucky to have a dear friend of mine, George Boosey, donate some great videos for me to share with the rest of the ventriloquial family. This is the first of those videos.

What you are about to see is a 31 year young Bob Isaacson with his pal Speedy in an educational series on Natural Gas. These were filmed back in 1966 and you get to see how great Bob is as a ventriloquist and you also see his wonderful Frank Marshall figure Speedy Wheeler. I know you are going to enjoy this so sit back for a few minutes and watch.

Click Here For Bob Isaacson video

Dan

 

Comments

2 Comments> > >

 

  1. Thank you for sharing this! Very smooth performance. That fact that it was done with multiple takes made it a seamless production.

    Comments by Paul - September 12, 2007 @10:55am


     

  2. That was GREAT! If I am not mistaken, we were shown that video back in my third grade class.

    Comments by Chuck & Dante - September 12, 2007 @9:22am

 

 

 

 

September 11, 2007

Guest Blog

"You're Horrible" !!!
By Bob Abdou

As performers, we live to hear audiences laugh and clap. Sometimes the money is not the important thing ( note: sometimes) especially when you have the audience eating out of your hand. This feeling comes often to some entertainers and to some, it is
an occasion that only happens in a lifetime. Whenever it happens to you, cherish it cause it doesn't happen every time.

This brings me to my point, what would you do if you did a show and the client told you that you were 'horrible" and they told you why? What would be your response?


1) Apologize and give a discount

2) Apologize, take the check and leave quick

3) Don't apologize, demand a check, leave quick and don't look back

4) Don't apologize, demand a check, leave quick and spit on their lawn as you leave

5) Apologize, ask for the check, leave quick, don't look back and never let anyone ever tell you those 2 words again


This actually happened to me many ( many many ) years ago but I learned a valuable lesson from that show..... I might not be as good as I think I am. Have you ever thought about that before??? I have and I think about improving after every show. It saddens me when I watch a new vent ( what is worse someone who has been doing vent for many years) at the convention performing on open mic or the senior contest and they are not very good. After their performance the audience claps as a kind gesture, but what goes thru the vents mind when they hear the clapping after a poor performance??? You can draw your own conclusion but I won't sit and watch a vent think about continuing a poor performance. I will approach this vent and maybe give some suggestions or even write some funnier material for him/her. They don't have to take my advise, that is their decision but I make it my business to try and help them realize that after the convention comes the "real world" and the 'real world" will not clap when they watch a poor performance. A poor performance is followed by no clapping, booing or even worse someone tells you that you were "horrible"
I often think about the many many vents that have dropped out of the business, do you think this is one of the reasons??

There is nothing worse then hearing "You're Horrible" after a performance, well maybe that you're dog died and your 1st wife wants a divorce. That actually happened to me but that is another story. My point is this, watch for these key points to see if your performance is worth watching. (this suggestions are for comedy vents)


1) the audience laughs when you bring out your puppet and you haven't said one word yet

2) You are into 3 minutes of your routine and the audience still has not stopped laughing yet

3) You are smiling, giving eye contact to the audience and love performing for them and they realize that

4) After the show all you hear is how "terrific" you were and want to book you for a party!!
 


My response was #5 above and if you saw me spit, I had to cause I had a cold :)
 

Bob Abdou (Mr Puppet) performing one of his stage shows
Bob Abdou performing one of his stage shows
 

 


Peace,
Bob Abdou
www.mrpuppet.com

 

Comments

 

0 Comments> > >

 

 

 

September 10, 2007

More About "McElroy Magic"
Dan @10:14am

I was very thrilled that Greg Claassen allowed me to offer this fantastic book to the vent community through Ventriloquist Central.  My Webmaster Steve nor myself have profited a single cent in this venture. We truly believe that every person interested in the art of ventriloquism should have this book so to make it a special thing we gave our bonuses with it. Every dollar that was paid through this web site went directly to Mr. Claassen and he deserves every penny. I think you must have this book and if you don't you are really missing out. So order yours today and find out what the magic is all about.

We have surpassed the 15 books " McElroy Magic" by Greg Claassen which we originally offered when the book first became available. That means you will no longer get the "Ventriloquist Central Website Photo CD's" but if you purchase the book through Ventriloquist Central you will still receive a couple extras including the audio interview of Greg and myself (a 46 minute interview) and the CD containing the McElroy pictures. These are available no where else and you get them just for purchasing the book through this site.

So order yours today and find out what the magic is all about!!!

Click Here For Information About "McElroy Magic"



Dan

 

Comments

1 Comment> > >

 

  1. Dan, I am very happy that I ordered the book through you. I was in the process of ordering it (the book) from another web site when I received your email about the free stuff. I did not realize that you all did not profit from the deal, so for that I say thank you! I really enjoy looking over the cd's, your collection is amazing! Thanks again.

    Comments by Chuck & Dante - September 10, 2007 @5:49pm

 

 

 

September 7, 2007

More Figures For Sale
Dan @3:25pm

I have added a couple figures from my collection to the Ventriloquist Marketplace. 

First is an extremely fine rendition of a Marshall "Cheeky Boy" done by Conrad Hartz. I have had quite a few of Conrad's figures but this one to me is the best I have seen so far of this style figure made by him. Incidentally Mr. Hartz has retired this style figure so you can no longer purchase one directly from him.

Second, is a Tim Selberg, who is notably one of the premier figure builders today. Unfortunately for all of us to get a figure from Tim today is a challenge to say the least. You will wait a very long time. Here is your chance to purchase one of the best style figures Tim has done.
 

Click here for the Ventriloquist Marketplace to see figures


Dan

Comments

 

0 Comments> > >

 

 

 

 

September 6, 2007

Collecting Ventriloquist Figures
Dan @6:44am

I have recently received a few emails as well as a couple live conversations concerning the acquisition of ventriloquist figures especially Frank Marshall figures and the fact that they are not going into the hands of people that would make good use of them. I was kind of shocked to say the least by these questions because in today's ventriloquial world, for the most part, the use of soft puppets has taken over.

Now I am a firm believer that a ventriloquist should use a hard figure but that is just my personal opinion. I grew up as a child watching Paul Winchell and Jimmy Nelson so for me the consummate ventriloquist uses a hard figure.

Lets get back to Marshall figures. It was brought forward to me that I am cornering the market so that no one else can have a Marshall. Well that just is not the truth. There are still plenty of Marshall figures out there and if you turn over enough stones you will find one. Then you must be ready to pay the price because they are no longer an inexpensive figure and certainly too much for a beginner to spend.

A beginner today would be much better suited with a figure made by the likes of Dan Payes, Albert Alfaro, Kem Poyner or Tim Selberg.  If the person wanted a wood carved figure then Conrad Hartz or Brandt Gilmer would be the way to go.

Marshall figures today are now in the world of real art and to me they should not be used and abused. An original Frank Marshall figure should be lovingly cared for and displayed and carefully shown to people, explained to the novice about how he (Frank Marshall) created and watched the vents of his time perform and how he chose to progress to the point where his figures were the figure of choice by all the greats in ventriloquism.

Now there are still a couple ventriloquists that use Marshall figures today. Kenny Warren and Bill DeMar both still use their Marshall's and they are great ventriloquists. But how many others are still out there performing with them.

Not too many.

I decided that when I started Ventriloquist Central that I would share my collection with everyone and anyone that would like to see what the old figures look like. There is no other site, that I know of, that makes figures available individually so that you can see them up close. I give complete descriptions and multiple shots of every angle of these great figures so that you can see exactly what they are all about.

I want to give as much to the vent community by sharing my figures with everyone. Granted you can make an appointment and go to the Vent Haven Museum and have a great time looking at the figures, but here you can come anytime, 24 - 7 and look at them in all their glory.

We have been very busy on the web site but I will tell you there are more figures that are in the collection that will be coming soon for you to see. That is a promise.

Do I have enough figures as was said by one person?

The answer is a big NO.

As a collector you will never have enough. I hope that someday I will become this century's W.S. Burger and judging by his example I am on the right track, but I do have a long way to go. I just do not have enough.

I hope to acquire more so, when you tire of that figure please drop me a note. They should be with my collection so that I can share them with the world !!!
 


Dan


 

Comments

3 Comments> > >

 

  1. Dan, add Jimmy Nelson, Dave Fleming, Jerry Goodspeed and Bob Isaacson to the list of ventriloquists still using Marshall figures. I'm sure there are others. These are the ones that come to mind.

    Comments by Al Stevens - September 7, 2007 @7:12pm


     
  2. Dan, Using an antique figure in a performance today still has that special nostalgic feel. Though I have modern wood figures, whenever I use my circa 1918 Mack figure (painted by Frank Marshall) I feel I'm transported back to that period when vaudeville was the hottest thing in entertainment. I maybe one of the only few who still use old figures now, but I tell you it really feels great giving life on stage to a classic Mack figure this new century.

    Comments by Ony Carcamo - September 6, 2007 @3:56pm


     
  3. Dan, Very good post. Those that say you are cornering the market are just jealous. If people wanted to use a Marshall to perform, they would, period. Hence, the examples you indicated of those folks performing today with their Marshall figures.

    I love working with my Dan Payes figures and who know someday, they may become collectible.

    Comments by Larry Harris (ComicVent) - September 6, 2007 @7:58am
     

 

 

 

September 5, 2007

Figures For Sale
Dan @11:31am

As a collector of ventriloquist figures every so often it gets to the point where you must sell to be able to keep buying. I have reached this plateau at the present time. I have therefore decided to sell a couple figures from my collection.

The first is a Super Len Insull figure with a rare face. He is a loaded figure with side moving self centering eyes, winker/blinkers, wiggling ears, upper lip and lower lip movement. He is dressed in a great blue pinstripe suit. A must figure for the collector or he could be used to perform.

The next figure I have for sale is a Kristin Peterson figure , Oddballs and Orphans, which is just a sweet little fellow. He has only a slot jaw movement but his face is so cute he would be an instant hit. He comes completely dressed too. Kristin's figures are very hard to come by and this little guy is just as cute as can be.
 

Click here for the Ventriloquist Marketplace to see figures
 

Click here to see the figures on eBay

 

Dan


 

Comments

0 Comments> > >

 

 



 

September 1, 2007

"McElroy Magic"... Audio Clip

If you order your copy of "McElroy Magic" through Ventriloquist Central, you will receive TWO fantastic Bonuses!  One of which, is an interview (more like a conversation) with Greg and myself. 

Click Here and listen to a brief audio clip of that interview

Dan

Comments

 

0 Comments> > >

 

 

Back to Blog Main Page