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April 2013 Newsletter |
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Comments from Dan |
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With spring just around the corner I
made the trip to the Northeast Motorcycle Expo which was being held
at the Shriner’s in Wilmington, MA. like to go and see some of the
new rides being unveiled and on this trip I really wanted to see the
new Indian now being built by Polaris.
Much to my dismay the Indian representative informed me the new
Indians will not be unveiled until Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in
August. I was bummed. But I did take a couple shots of a very nice
2011 Indian chief and some other very nice motorcycles.
I can’t wait for the warm weather to get here!!
Click here to see the pictures
Enjoy the rest of the newsletter.
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Ventriloquist Central Presents...
A Frank Marshall Tribute DVD
“The DVD arrived today
and its better than even I had expected. Great job!”
Chuck Lyons
Channahon, IL
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"Yes I did receive the
DVD and what a joy it was to watch. Extremely
entertaining and information packed. Another quality
product form Ventriloquist Central."
Cheers
Darren Carr
Comedy Ventriloquist |
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"Hello Dan...rec'd the
DVD of Marshall this p.m. Watched and listened to it
this evening. A very nice job. Plenty of great photos
and a nice history of Franks career. You & Steve made a
wonderful story for the folks."
Bob Isaacson
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Blogs You May Have
Missed On Ventriloquist Central |
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Pitch Point On Ventriloquist Figures
To most folk who do ventriloquism the
term pitch point doesn’t mean much. As matter of fact they more than
likely don’t know what pitch point means. So I thought I would share
this with you.... |
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Ventriloquist Figure Styles
So I have been thinking about what
style figure most people like best. Now isn’t that a loaded
statement? I myself am very fond of the cheeky boy style made
popular in U.S. by Frank Marshall and in England by Len Insull. Of
course Insull’s use of the English mouth really does change the look
but Insull did call it a cheeky boy....
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Long or Short Head Stick on Ventriloquist Figures
I have talked about the length of head
sticks on ventriloquist figures before but I had a couple inquiries
about the long head sticks recently so I thought I would touch on it
again for those new to the Ventriloquist Central fold....
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Charlie McCarthy From The Movies
I was contacted very recently and
asked if I had ever seen this picture of a young Edgar Bergen and
his partner Charlie McCarthy. I had to tell him that in fact it was
the first time I had ever seen the picture. It is a great one
because it appears this is the Charlie that Bergen used in the movie
Charlie McCarthy Detective, which showed him with moving eyes....
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Tim Cowles “Nosey” Style Wood Carved Figure
As you all know Timothy Cowles has
been producing ventriloquist figures for a long time and recently
went into the carving of wood figures and has come up with a few
very fine characters including a very special fellow for the
Ventriloquist Central Collection. I of course will share that with
you when he arrives here....
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Charlie McCarthy Radios
With the huge radio popularity of
Charlie McCarthy in the 1930′s the Majestic Radio Corporation
released radios with the unforgettable character Charlie sitting on
the front. These radios were made of Bakelite, an early plastic, and
came in two colors. They were made by the thousands but today are
rather scare and are now very collectible....
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| Of course we had many
other blogs last month, so be sure to check them
all out, just in case you might have missed one.
March Archives
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Missed one of the monthly Ventriloquist Central
Newsletters?
Here
are the Archives!
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“The ULTIMATE Guide To
Building Your Own
Ventriloquist Figure, Volume 1”
"Steve's course is very
good too! You can actually see projects being worked on
and see how he handles them instead of just reading
about it (not that the books aren't worth having too!)."
Gary Koepke
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“The ULTIMATE
Guide To Building Your Own Ventriloquist Figure, Volume 1” is a
step-by-step system from start to finish, so you can create your
very own ventriloquist figure. Now you can become a
ventriloquist figure builder. This guide will answers all your
questions, show you all the short-cuts, and give you a quick and
easy paint-by-the-numbers way to making your own ventriloquist
figure-- even if you don’t think you can do it.
"Hi Steve,
I purchased the “The ULTIMATE Guide To Building Your Own
Ventriloquist Figure, Volume 1”, from you last year and
have finished my dummy now.
It has not taken that long to do but I have only been
able to do little bits to it here and there so thats
where the months have gone.
I would love to take this opportunity to thank you for
putting this course together. Building a dummy has been
a long term ambition of mine right from child hood when
I used to make cardboard dummies.
Now all I need to finish the one I have made from your
course is to clothe him. As soon as I have clothes for
him I will send some photos for you to see.
Any way thanks again and look forward to hearing from
you in the future."
Regards
Shane West
www.unclezoobee.co.uk |
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"The DVD course is
everything your advertisement claims it to be! It is
truly worth much more than the amount asked! Thank you
very much."
Theo Roos
South Africa
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"Steve, I purchased
your Ultimate Guide To Building Your Own
Ventriloquist Figure Vol.1 DVD's just over five
months ago. Let me first say, these are a MUST HAVE! I
have always wanted to build my own figure and your DVD's
gave me the confidence to get started as well as
valuable information with the whole process! I took your
advice on using the Fast Mache' method and it works!
That advice in itself saved me a lot of frustration
since this was my first time at figure making. I now
know I can begin my second figure and it will be even
more exciting than the first one. The information in the
Ultimate Guide DVD's are invaluable! I enjoy watching
them over and over again to gain more insight on figure
building. I can't wait to get into the mold making
process and duplicate one of my own figure heads! The
Ultimate Guide DVD's were exactly what I was looking for
and needed! Thanks so much for creating them. You truly
are an inspiration to me with all the nuts and bolts of
information you share in order to produce a
ventriloquist figure."
Thanks Again!
Ron Cataldo
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“The ULTIMATE Guide To Building Your Own Ventriloquist Figure, Volume 1”
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Just For Fun |
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Classic Edgar Bergen
with Charlie, Mortimer and Effie
Click here to see this
clip
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Ventriloquist
Marketplace |
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The Ventriloquist Marketplace |
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bit of activity on the
Ventriloquist Marketplace. In fact, one figure I listed
sold within a couple of hours of listing it, so be sure you keep
checking it out.
"Our Ventriloquist Marketplace works
and works consistently when items are priced right."
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Here are a
few of the items that are listed on the Ventriloquist
Marketplace:
Basswood Ventriloquist Project
PROFESSIONAL MIKE PALMA 42" VENTRILOQUIST FIGURE
"Selberg" Reggie..Loaded + Extras
Old Man Ventriloquist Figure
Selberg Puppet Body
PLUS MANY MORE!!!
Be sure to check these and other
items on the.... |
Ventriloquist Marketplace |
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Pictures of Figures Added to the Website |
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Jerry Mahoney and Knucklehead Smiff Ventriloquist Figures
Over the years I have had quite a few of the Jerry Mahoney and
Knucklehead Smiff figures go through my hands.. I was contacted
again about a pair of figures and of course I said I was interested.
The seller and I agreed on them becoming a part of the Ventriloquist
Central Collection and soon they arrived....
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Rene Old Man Ventriloquist Figure
I was very excited to acquire another very rare and early Rene
figure and wanted to share him with you. Rene’s figures today are
made of neoprene with a molded head stick but back in the late
1960′s and early 1970′s he used wood for the head stick and also
used plastic wood....
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Ventriloquist Central Videos
Here you can view videos of ventriloquists of all kinds
from the amateur, the semi pro and the pros. Just about
anything to do with ventriloquists and ventriloquism,
you’ll find here at Ventriloquist Central Videos. |
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VentriloquistCentralVideos.com
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Videos From
Ventriloquist Central |
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Ventriloquist Central Video Collecting Series – Johnny Main’s Waldo
Figure
Here’s a video of showing Johnny
Main’s Waldo figure created by Frank Marshall. He was Carved by
Frank Marshall in 1959 for Johnny Main. This was one of Johnny’s
main figures in the early to late 60′s. He has slot jaw, side to
side self centering eyes, winkers/blinkers and raising eyebrows. A
great character!!
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Ventriloquist Central Video – Early 1940′s Frank Marshall Figure
Here’s a video of a very nice Frank
Marshall ventriloquist figure. This is a full size figure and dates
from the early 1940′s.
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Ventriloquist Central Video Collecting Series –
Cartoony Style Pinxy Figure
Here’s a video of a very nice Pinxy.
This Pinxy fellow is just about as cartoony a style as you will
find. Everyone loves this guy.
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Ventriloquist Central Video Collecting Series – Terri Rogers’ Figure
Here’s a video of Terri Rogers’
“Shorty Harris” Insull ventriloquist figure. This happens to be
Terri’s back up head of Shorty Harris. Terri used his mouth and
raising eyebrows and did not use much else as movements although the
figure had more functions.
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Ventriloquist Central Video Collecting Series – 1950′s Frank
Marshall Nosey Figure
Here’s a video of another example of a
Nosey style figure from Frank Marshall. This fellow was carved in
1952 and is a wonderful example of Marshall’s work.
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Ventriloquist Central Video Collecting Series – Female Brian
Hamilton Figure
Here’s a video of a female Brian
Hamilton ventriloquist figure. She has the McElroy body, hands,
harness and her functions are all around weighted eye movement,
winkers/blinkers and of course slot jaw.
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"What Would You Do If
Your
Ventriloquist Figure Were
Stolen Or Destroyed?"
Here's The
Best Way To Protect Your Investment
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For Those Interested In
The Art Of Ventriloquism
“The
Ventriloquism Historical Information Collection, Volume 1.”
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Final Thoughts |
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I was sitting in the midst of the Ventriloquist Central Collection
and it came to me that I was without question a collector of
Ventriloquist Figures and not a dealer. You must remember that I was
a true dealer of antiques for almost 30 years prior to becoming
involved with the ventriloquist figures. I had no problem adding a
profit on to what ever item I would purchase and then put it up for
sale.
I did in fact sell a lot of ventriloquist figures when I first
started because I was new to the item and to get more of them I had
to sell. I quickly realized that I was buying and selling other
antique items but I was not selling the figures. As matter of fact
when I did sell a ventriloquist figure it really bothered me. I
never had that happen with any other item I had ever bought.
Now the only time I will sell a ventriloquist figure is when I have
purchased one as an upgrade so the lesser one I will put out for
sale. Occasionally I will purchase some figures that I know will be
sold and those to me are an exception to the collection.
I found that I have a craving and to satisfy that craving I must
purchase another figure. The craving happens almost as soon as I
have placed the newest acquisition into the collection. Is this
called an addiction? It sure sounds like it because you just can’t
satisfy the want . Even when I have acquire a new Marshall I get so
excited because it is the maker I like best but as soon as I have it
I want another.
So that is the sure sign you are a collector. You buy to keep not to
sell.
Till next time,
Dan
P.S.
You can
have a chance to see the Ventriloquist Central Collection, click
here...
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©2013 VentriloquistCentral.com |
