Ventriloquist Central - A Tribute To Ventriloquism » Ventriloquist Figure Building

Identifying Past Ownership of Ventriloquist Figures

Dan Willinger — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 09:27:00 +0000

This week I happened to get two emails from different direction but both really wanting to know about provenance. This is something that is very important to me because a collection that can show where the items came from is just so much more interesting.

The first question came from a fellow who had actually owned a Ken Spencer figure which resembled a Spencer figure which I owned and he wanted to know if there was a way of tracking his figure down. Unfortunately in that type of circumstance he would have to find the person to whom he had sold his figure and go from there.

The other question which came in to me wanted to know if I can trace ownership once I have the figure in my hands. That is a good question because in some cases the owners name will appear inside either the head or body of the figure. Frank Marshall signed just about every figure and in many cases wrote thye name of how the figure was made for and the date. He makes it very easy. Unfortunately this is not the case with many other makers.

I always try my hardest to find out any information as to ownership when I purchase a figure for the Ventriloquist Central Collection. That way when I list a figure for all of you to see you also find out where the figure originated from.

I would like to thank both of the people that wrote in to me for their questions. Remember I will always try and help you with any question you may have about our great art of Ventriloquism.

Dan
www.ventriloquistcentral.com

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Dan Willinger is a ventriloquism enthusiast and ventriloquist figure collector. He has been collecting for over 25 years. He created the Ventriloquist Central Collection. It now has over 100 ventriloquist figures and over 50 of them are Frank Marshall figures. Because of his love for the art of ventriloquism, Mr. Willinger created the website Ventriloquist Central. For more information about the website, go to: http://www.ventriloquistcentral.com

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A Donation to the Ventriloquist Central Collection from Albert Alfaro, Imaginarium Galleries

Dan Willinger — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 23:02:45 +0000

Albert Alfaro of Imaginarium Galleries donated this nice ventriloquist figure to the Ventriloquist Central Collection at the Vent Haven ConVENTion 2010.

Dan
www.ventriloquistcentral.com

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Frank Marshall Ventriloquist Figures from Down Under

Dan Willinger — Sat, 03 Jul 2010 09:30:00 +0000

A few weeks back, Colin Williams from Australia, sent in a photo of his Frank Marshall ventriloquist figures.

We asked for more information about these figures and he was kind enough to send us a little “history”:

I reckon the little guy on the right is a perfect example of ‘the master’s’ work; he was certainly a genius. He is all original, as you can tell (except the clothes) with beautiful paintwork and only the one movement. From my readings of Frank Marshall’s work, he felt he was able to carve more character in the face if he didn’t have the worry of multiple movements.

The girl doll was made for Australian professional ventriloquist Ron Blaskett (now aged 88). He sent several pictures to Frank in 1958 with how he wanted ‘Sandra Simpkins’ to look. I really believe this is the nicest female face I have seen. (the profile is great too) I think that many of the women dolls you see have the basic male characteristics, it’s only the wig which makes the difference.

In addition to the mouth, she has ‘rolling eye winks,’ and of course, original paint work. I am the third owner of the bigger guy, on the left. The owner before me had some repairs done and, by the look of it, a bit of a paint job too. He has moving, and cross eyes, winks, eyebrows and top lip.

I’m just sorry that you two weren’t able to go to the 2008 Convention, which I managed to get to. I was looking forward so much to meeting you both. How you can find the time to send info whilst this convention is on, amazes me; you are so thoughtful to those who can’t make it.
Best wishes from Down Under,
Colin

Colin, thanks for sending us this information to share with the readers of Ventriloquist Central.

And…since you’ll be unable to make this years Vent Haven ConVENTion, be sure to stay tuned because we have some extra special coverage planned for those who can’t make it. More about that in a few days.

Dan
www.ventriloquistcentral.com

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Ventriloquist Central Video Collecting Series – Frank Marshall Walking Body

Dan Willinger — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 09:29:00 +0000

Here’s a great look at a Frank Marshall walking body.

(If you have trouble viewing video, click here)

Dan
www.ventriloquistcentral.com

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The Face of Ventriloquism

Dan Willinger — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 09:30:00 +0000

Ok the title got your attention but what I was really thinking about are the faces of the ventriloquist figures in the Ventriloquist Central Collection.

I must admit that even though all the faces are different there is a commonality which spans a vast majority of the figures and that is that the look is kind of that boyish, impish, cheeky look.

Now that does not mean they are all cheeky boy figures but just that from the early 1900’s through until I would say (my opinion) the 1980’s most of the figure makers did this style face and it was the most popular. It was done by Mack, Marshall, Pinxy, Spencer and Coats.

It does seem that once we get to the 1980’s and beyond there is a much more varied look in the faces you see in the vent figures.

I have not purchased many figures from the later part of the twentieth century because of my “wood” fetish but lots more varied faces done in the cast figures and the custom built figures.

Just look at some of the faces done by Bill Nelson or Dan Payes. These are so different than what you could purchase as a ventriloquist fifty years ago.

I guess I am going to have to start adding some of these more unusual faces to the collection.

Dan
www.ventriloquistcentral.com

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Guest Blog – Restoration of a Pinxy Ventriloquist Figure – By Steve Hurst

Dan Willinger — Sat, 12 Jun 2010 09:26:00 +0000

I was contacted by a Lynn Hoskins to do a restoration on a ventriloquist figure. When he sent pictures of the figure, at the time I couldn’t decide who the maker was. It kind of had a Marshallesque look to it, but the leather upper lip and lower jaw kind of threw me.

I asked my partner Dan if he has any ideas. He said it did have a Marshallesque look to it, but he thought it might be a Pinxy because he also copied Marshall in some of his techniques.

When Lynn first contacted me, he said one of the eyes was busted and there was a small tear in the leather on the chin. I told him I would be happy to restore it for him.

I asked him what he planned on doing with the figure and he stated that it had been his Dad’s figure. His Dad had performed in the service with “Archie”. Lynn stated he wanted to use “Archie” in his business by doing some training and performing.

When I received Archie, I started taking him apart to see if I could figure out who the maker was. I knew that Pinxy usually put his name on the bottom of the neck.

However, when I took the head out of the body and check the bottom of the neck….no Pinxy. At this point, I started to get excited thinking this may be a Marshall and preceded to take the head apart.

Once I had the head apart, I was surprised to see “Pinxy” carved in the back of the head. Dan was right….so I called him immediately to tell him the news and ask if he had every seen or heard of Pinxy carving his name in the back of the head, to which he said no.

After I started going through Archie seeing the condition he was in, I contacted Lynn and told him that if he really wanted to perform with Archie, he was in dire need of a paint job. The paint had faded to a very pale looking face over the years. Lynn agreed.

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Steve, thanks for sharing this Pinxy restoration with us.

Dan
www.ventriloquistcentral.com

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Mr Bookman’s Frank Marshall Ventriloquist Figure

Dan Willinger — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 09:30:00 +0000

I always love to show Frank Marshall’s work and this rendition from Frank is no exception.

This is a most wonderful completely original Frank Marshall figure which was purchased by Howard Bookman back in the late 1920s. He is a full size figure which stands 38″ tall and he is also a catalogued figure in the 1931 Frank Marshall ventriloquist catalogue. He is listed in Frank’s catalogue as V18-Sailor.

The sailor suit is original clothing as well as this figure has everything original to him including the dirt. I had to leave him because he is in just perfect original condition. His paint, wig, glass eyes are all splendid and untouched.

The head on this figure is slightly on the larger side for the body but Frank did that as I do have other examples that are like this too. His original calling card is inside the head along with Mr Bookman’s card. I think he is just a great example of Frank’s early work.

Click here to see Mr Bookman’s Frank Marshall Ventriloquist Figure

Dan
www.ventriloquistcentral.com

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Guest Blog – Pastor Scott Bryte

Dan Willinger — Sun, 06 Jun 2010 09:30:00 +0000

My lovely wife and I will be celebrating our 25th anniversary this summer, and decided to commemorate that great and joyful milestone by taking our grown son and daughter and our son’s fiancee’ on a cruise to Bermuda.

As soon as we figured out the we would be taking a cruise that sailed out of Boston, I called Dan Willinger who graciously invited us to visit Ventriloquist Central.

I wouldn’t want to get into trouble with my family by saying that a billiard room filled with 150 painted wooden faces was the highlight of my vacation. Maybe I should only say that is was A highlight (a major highlight)..

It was a humbling experince as a dummy carver to be surrounded by the masterful work of Theodore and Charles Mack, Frank Marshall, the legendary McElroy brothers, Gilmer, Guyll, Insull, Isaacson, Hamilton, Brown, Spencer and so many others.

I felt like I was in the Louvre with all the ropes down. It was a treat beyond describing to be able to handle a McElroy, look inside wooden heads to see mechanics from breath-takingly simple to the staggeringly complex, and to examine minutely the brilliant knife work on some unfinished Frank Marshall marionettes!

My deepest thanks to Dan and Helen for their generous hospitality, and to their magician son Jason for his amazing up-close slight-of-hand card demonstration.

Scott Bryte

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Scott, it was out pleasure.

Dan
www.ventriloquistcentral.com

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Pastor Scott Bryte’s Sparky Ventriloquist Figure

Dan Willinger — Sat, 05 Jun 2010 09:39:00 +0000

It was my pleasure to have Pastor Scott come to see the Ventriloquist Central Collection. He had a wonderful time seeing the figures and actually looking at some of the mechanics in the figures of the past. He told me he was very impressed with the simplicity of some of the movements and how they has stood the test of time. He planned on incorporating some that he had seen into his own work.

I was thrilled because Scott decided to donate his Sparky character to the Ventriloquist Central Collection. So that this figure can be seen by everyone I have taken these pictures for you and they will be on the site under Ventriloquist Central Collection, maker Pastor Scott Bryte.

This figure is the largest figure in the collection standing over five feet tall. His head is carved out of pine and so are his hands. The figure has side to side self centering eyes, slot jaw and blinkers. His head opens in the front so that you can place ideas in his head and it also lights up. The back of his head opens fully to access the mechanics which I also must say are beautiful. The hands are removable from the body and are held on with locks. The body has a rocking clavicle (think Foy Brown) so that Sparky can look straight down when he is seated or in standing position.

Click here to see Pastor Scott Bryte’s Sparky Ventriloquist Figure

Paster Scott is a great carver and if you want a figure carved in wood he can make you just about anything and he also loves to do caricature carvings. He will carve a face to look like your own. This is a great talent for sure. He does sell figures and we have a few of his smaller figures listed on the Ventriloquist Central Marketplace or you can certainly contact him and discuss your needs.

You can get his contact information on the “Hard Figure Makers” page.

Dan
www.ventriloquistcentral.com

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Alfred LeMare Ventriloquist Figure

Dan Willinger — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 09:31:00 +0000

In today’s collector world of ventriloquist figures there are a few very rare figures and one is the Alfred LeMare.

This builder worked in the 19th century and created his figures of both paper mache and wood. The example you see here is 100% original having never ever been worked on or restored. Even the clothing on him is original to this figure.

He has drop jaw, side moving eyes and fright wig. Unfortunately the fright wig is not connected and I will have to fix that. The original crepe hair is very ratty as well. I am sure most of you that look at this figure will say it should be restored but that is not going to happen.

He is a superb example of this makers work and is a full size figure standing 38″ tall which is also rather rare. His hands are carved wood and except for paint loss are in great shape. The paint on his face is also original and even though there are a substantial amount of chipping I would never touch this guy. Advanced antique collectors appreciate this type of originality in an item.

His body is also made of paper mache which is molded and wood for the bottom board. The head stick attached to the bottom through an original brass plate. The eyes are wood balls which have been painted. The arms and legs are the original muslin which has been stuffed but since they are not opened at all I do not know what was used for the stuffing. The lower legs are cast paper mache and retain the original paint. Upper portion of the legs is muslin.

When I first purchased this figure I was not sure it was a LeMare but upon receipt of the figure with some help of other experts we have determined it to in fact be his work.

Click here to see Alfred LeMare Ventriloquist Figure

I hope you enjoy seeing this very rare ventriloquist figure which has become part of the Ventriloquist Central Collection.

Dan
www.ventriloquistcentral.com

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NOTE: You may use this blog article provided you run it with the bio box intact. Please email a copy of your publication with the blog article in it to: webmaster@ventriloquistcentral.com

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