Ventriloquist Central - A Tribute To Ventriloquism

I was lucky enough to run across this old article about Bernie Kallman. He’s the gentleman that I purchased the Marshall/McElroy ventriloquist figure that is now in my collection. It’s the same figure that was once owned by Bob Neller.

Enjoy the article.

Click here to see the Marshall/McElroy figure.

Dan
www.ventriloquistcentral.com

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All writings here are copyrighted by Dan Willinger and Ventriloquist Central. You may not use them without written permission but you may link to the posts or give out a link to the posts.

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It has been over a month that we have run the poll on going to convention or not and the totals stayed pretty much the same for the entire time at 70% not going to 30% going. I am sure that the increased cost of fuel had much to do with this outcome.

We decided to replace that poll with a new one and here it is…..If you were given a choice of having only one figure and the two figures to choose from were a Frank Marshall figure or a McElroy brother’s figure which would you choose? Now I know the monetary choice but try not to let that swing your decision. Go to the figure collection pages and look at both maker’s figures and then decide. This should make an interesting poll.

Dan
www.ventriloquistcentral.com

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I’d like to take this time to extend a heartfelt thanks to Dan and his wonderful wife Helen.

On June 5th, I had my first visit with Dan. I was working on the Maasdam for Holland America cruise lines and the turn around port was in Boston every other week. Dan came down to the terminal, picked me up and took me to his home to see his collection of figures and he has a collection let me tell you. It was an amazing thing, seeing figures from virtually all the best builders. I felt very fortunate to be able to handle figures from all of them!

As we all know Dan has the biggest collection of Marshall figures but there are lots of others. Of particular interest to me was “Happy” which I grew up watching on Canadian television as a child, Brian Hamilton’s “Fats” figure, a wonderful Brant Gilmer figure that I was most impressed with and the one I really wanted to see, Lee Dunn’s first “Johnny”. In fact, during my second visit at Dan’s home I spent most of the time handling “Johnny”. I love the way this figure handles…unfortunately Dan will not part with him and I can’t blame him.

I also got to see Johnny Main’s figures. Johnny visited with my wife Tammy and I when I was working in Niagara Falls back in the early 90’s and we stayed up all night visiting coffee shops and talking about vent and the business. He was a kind man and it is nice to know his figures are in a place where they are appreciated and where others can appreciate them as well.

I also was able to spend time with their son Jason who is a talented closeup magician and we had a great time sharing some trade secrets.

I had a wonderful visit and learned a great deal about figures and their history (the highlight was meeting Helen).

Both Dan and Helen are genuine, caring people and the ventriloquist community is all the better for having them. This was just the start of what will hopefully be many visits.

Thank you Ventriloquist Central.

Mike Robinson,
June 22, 2008

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A mystery has been swarming for some time since I first published a picture of Brian Hamilton holding a female head he built in the McElroy style. More on the mystery figure to follow.

Stay tuned for the update but prior to the update coming you can look at her by clicking on this link.

Click here for Mystery Figure

Dan
www.ventriloquistcentral.com

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I feel it is my duty to alert everyone to things like the fraudulent auction on eBay yesterday. I only wish I could do more for the ventriloquist community. I immediately recognized the Mortimer picture as having been a figure that was owned by Bill Nelson and he had a very hard time about 8 months ago with this scammer trying to sell using Bill’s pictures. He and I thought this guy was taken down but unfortunately he reared his head again.

Last time he had hacked into Bill’s bidder list and was using them to do the fraudulent sales. This is why I wanted everyone to know not to bid. This hacker is good and once he has your eBay name he somehow is able to get your password and then repeats the procedure.

Always remember the add age ” If it sounds too good to be true…..” You will never find a Mortimer Snerd figure for a starting price with no reserve for 99 cents or 9.99. It just isn’t going to happen. Also any sale that asks you to contact them outside of eBay for a quick buy price, well the bells and whistles should be going off.

I appreciate all those that emailed me thanking me for the update but I just want everyone to be safe in this internet world in which we all now play.

Ebay was contacted by me and others I am sure, and the listing was taken down in just a few hours after being listed. I also contacted the seller whose name had been used and told him he had to contact eBay to change his user name and password. Hopefully this will not happen again very soon.

Dan
www.ventriloquistcentral.com

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All writings here are copyrighted by Dan Willinger and Ventriloquist Central. You may not use them without written permission but you may link to the posts or give out a link to the posts.

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I simply must alert everyone that there is a scam artist who is trying to sell a Mortimer Snerd figure on ebay and it is a scam sale. If you look at this link you will see this figure.

http://tinyurl.com/48abq9

It is a wonderful figure but the add is totally false. DO NOT BID !! AGAIN CAUTION DO NOT BID!!! This scammer has a method of getting your name and password so stay away!!!

Dan
www.ventriloquistcentral.com

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All writings here are copyrighted by Dan Willinger and Ventriloquist Central. You may not use them without written permission but you may link to the posts or give out a link to the posts.

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Dan,

Being in your vent figure room was absolutely breathtaking! It felt like visiting a whole new magnificent world. Being among your vent figures, seeing the care you put into them, and sharing in what they mean to you was an experience that will always affect me greatly.

I can’t thank you enough, not only for letting me visit you and your figures, but also for helping to make vent figures a very important representation of art in this terrific world of ours.

-Gary Pappas

Gary, it was my pleasure having you come to see the ventriloquist figure collection and I would like everyone one to know that it really is my pleasure to have you come and visit with me. Make sure you contact me when ever you are in the Boston area so that we can connect.

Dan
www.ventriloquistcentral.com

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I am always looking for those elusive antique ventriloquist figures and when I saw this great ad from Revello Petee I had to post it for all to see. What a great looking figure this fellow happens to be.

Do you or anyone you know happen to have one of these great figures?? I would love to know so that I can chase and try to get him for my collection.

Please everyone keep me in mind when you see or hear of any antique ventriloquist figure that may be for sale or even possibly for sale. As the saying goes you can never have too many !!!!

Dan
www.ventriloquistcentral.com

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All writings here are copyrighted by Dan Willinger and Ventriloquist Central. You may not use them without written permission but you may link to the posts or give out a link to the posts.

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It is hard to believe that just 2 hours from my house is Vent Haven 2. I have visited Dan’s website many times and I have enjoyed looking at all the figures he has collected. I kept telling myself that someday I will give him a call when I am in the area and see if I can see them for myself. Well, that someday was today! I travel on the road doing school shows and I stay in a lot of hotels. So when I realized that I was close to Dan, I gave him a call to see if I could drop by and see his figure collection. I don’t know why I felt funny about it. I guess because I thought I would be intruding. I left a message and told him I was in the area and asked if was alright to stop by to see his collection. Dan called me back a few minutes later and couldn’t have been more gracious. We made the appointment for the afternoon after my show.

Years ago, we moved to Las Vegas to seek fame and fortune. After a few years there, we realized that I gave up a lot of shows in New England and we moved back to Massachusetts. So we packed up all our stuff and hauled a trailer back home. As we were traveling east, I said to my wife, “Deb, I would love to visit Vent Haven and see the figures.” So we called the museum and asked if was alright to stop and see it as we were close. The curator said sure but that she closed at 5 pm. So we found the street and headed down to see the museum. However, I never realized that the street was so narrow and it really had no place for a U-Haul trailer to park. Now the hard part, I couldn’t turn the van and the trailer around to get back up the street. I had never pulled a trailer this big and it was impossible to maneuver it around. I had to unhitch the trailer and back it up so I could put in back on my van. By this time, I was tired, dirty and sweaty. I looked at my watch and it was 4:45. We got in to see the figures but it was quite an ordeal.

As I was driving to Dan’s house, I was like a kid again. I remembered the first time I walked into Tannen’s magic shop in New York and saw my first ventriloquist figure sitting in a case begging me to take him home. I was thinking about Vent Haven and my other visits there and how amazed I was at the history of all the figures.

I was greeted by Dan with a handshake and welcomed into his gorgeous home. I felt like I was in a museum. It was amazing. As we walked into the area where the figures are arranged, my jaw dropped. I was in Ventriloquist Heaven. Unbelievable! It was like going back in time! I was stunned. I had never seen so many figures in one room. They were all placed in chairs around the room. Each one cuter then the next. I couldn’t believe my eyes! I really can’t tell you how much that meant to me. Charlie, Mort, Marshalls, Hamiltons and McElroy figures were everywhere. Some of them were even hiding under the large pool table.

Dan and his wife were very nice and discussed in great detail about some of the figures that I wanted to know more about. I really wanted just to sit down and play with them all. Luckily, I kept my distance. Dan would have had to throw me out if I started that.

This was one of the biggest thrills I have had since doing ventriloquism. Sure, they are nice to see in a museum but to see them on a private tour in someone’s house was a real treat! I felt privileged to be invited to see this amazing collection. I hope I can make the trip again. It was worth the trip to see this collection of fine figures. I hope I can be invited back. Thanks Dan!

Bob Carroll

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Bob it was a great pleasure for me to give you the personal tour of my collection. One of the highlights of collecting is being able to share what you have collected with others. So that being said anytime you are in the area it would be my pleasure to have you stop by. This invitation goes for all of you out there as well. PLEASE contact me if you are going to be in the Boston area and come on over for a little while and enjoy seeing the ventriloquist figure collection. It would be my pleasure!!!

Dan
www.ventriloquistcentral.com

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As everyone knows I am an eBay-a-holic. I search that site constantly for ventriloquist figures and I have to admit that for the past few months it seems that there has been very little to surface in the way of really nice figures. There have certainly been some repeat listings of figures that have been posted more than once and those as well have gone un-purchased. I find it most interesting that right now the conversion figures seem to be ruling the roost for eBay sales with amazing prices.

As everyone knows I really have a hard time with the conversion figures being sold as pro figures but I do believe there is a definite place for them in the trade. I certainly think that they are worthy of mention because a great amount of time is put into converting them from a toy and into a “Semi Pro Figure”. A set of eyes with moving mechanism must be inserted, sometimes raising eyebrows and of course a head stick. A wig must be cut and attached too. Then a body must be fabricated to fit the new pro style head. And of course repainting to try and give them a more pro look. Over sculpting will change the face but be careful not to take them from one temperature to another or leave it in your hot trunk. When the over sculpt cracks off you just might find the toys original face. What gives me the most problem is looking at the figure and seeing Juro’s Charlie McCarthy face or Howdy Doody’s face or Groucho Marx’s face but now being called a pro figure? As I have said in the past a toy is a toy and a new buyer in the trade should be informed up front about what they are purchasing. And most of all the pricing should be in line with what the item really is.

You can purchase many books about building ventriloquist figures and then go to www.braylu.com you can get all the parts you need to convert one of these toys yourself. I believe you can even purchase one of these toy heads already converted for you for less than $100.00 right on this site. Braylu also sells some terrific bodies with vacu-form fronts done on solid wood frames with the routed head hole already done for very little money.

My biggest problem right now is that I have seen some of these conversion figures recently sell on eBay for over $1300.00…. YES… that is a correct price. Seems like a fortune for a toy to me but what do I know. I am just a collector. For this type of money a wonderful antique vent figure can be purchased or one of many other REAL pro figures can be found.

Anyway as the old saying goes let the buyer beware and you should always contact the seller of the figure you are about to purchase on eBay, and ask in no certain terms what you are buying.

I know this will cause a fire storm but I just could not help myself and had to talk openly about my feelings on this subject.

Dan
www.ventriloquistcentral.com

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All writings here are copyrighted by Dan Willinger and Ventriloquist Central. You may not use them without written permission but you may link to the posts or give out a link to the posts.

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