Comments on: How Many Ventriloquist Figures is Too Many??

By: Dennis Meeks

Dennis Meeks — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 02:55:54 +0000

Hi Pete and all,
I have two Semok figures and Alan just did a repair job and repaint on a figure that I purchased here in Central Florida. Anyway, one of my figures,although presently disguized as a clown, looks Very much like the demonstration figure on Semok’s web site. As it turns out, my figures were made by Alan in 1982 and 1983. Pete I think you were there when I purchased SKIP at the ‘83 ConVENTion.

Dennie

By: Bill Smith

Bill Smith — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 21:03:34 +0000

Even though the molded face ITSELF may be the same, don’t forget they each have to be painted, so no two paint jobs will look exactly alike, thereby altering the look of the face.

By: Dan Willinger

Dan Willinger — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 20:44:08 +0000

Hi Pete !! I think you misunderstood what I was saying. You have a Semok Papa figure and I have a Semok Papa figure. They are from the same mold and the face is the same. Castings taken from the same mold are the same. Heads cast from different molds are of course going to be different. Now I was also talking about collectibility and any figure done by Al Semok is collectible because they are rare. I hope I have clarified myself. Thanks for the comment!!

By: LeeDean

LeeDean — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 19:20:47 +0000

Obviously there had to be two Red Flannels as shown by Jobblewocky video. In the 1990s Bob Isaacson facilitated acquisition of the original and others to Vent Haven, and he would know where Terry Bennett’s widow, Joy, is in FL, and what happened to the other or copy of main figure, and Dan Willinged can locate and acquire that one for collection.

By: Lee Dean

Lee Dean — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 17:50:52 +0000

One final thought (Steve, correct me if I’m wrong, but I think I remember this), I think I leaned this in art class at Baylor in Texas that if you make a mold of say a premier example of a Nosey, pour it, let set up, then make a mold of that one, and do that again over and over, the copies keep getting smaller. If that is the case, no mold copy is truly an exact copy.

By: Lee Dean

Lee Dean — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 17:22:38 +0000

Regarding Semok, see his site at http://homepage.mac.com/asemok/about.html#anchor394030 that “[w]e can make exact fibreglass replicas of your vintage figure, or very close replicas in traditional basswood.”

By: Lee Dean

Lee Dean — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 15:56:18 +0000

Take a look at Jobblewocky Place, last part of http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C3KSOfarQD4 to see Terry Bennett’s main Marshall look alike which was probably duplicarver copy but not identical.

By: Pete Michaels

Pete Michaels — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 12:06:47 +0000

Dan;

I beg to differ. Semok figures faces are NOT the same.
Papa looks nothing like Gitch or Gunther or Wade Smoothly.
You’d have to look at photos of them side by side, and you’d see the differences.