Ventriloquism
For the Batman villain, see Ventriloquist (comics).
Ventriloquism is an act of deception in which a person (a
ventriloquist) manipulates his or her voice so that it appears that the voice is coming from elsewhere. The Greeks called this
gastromancy. The act of ventriliquism is
ventriliquizing.
The most familiar type of ventriloquist today is a
nightclub performer sitting on a stool with a wooden dummy on his lap. This comedic style of ventriloquism, however, is a fairly recent innovation. It began in the days of
Vaudeville in the late
19th century. The vaudeville acts did not concentrate on
humor as much as on demonstrating the ventriloquist's ability to deceive the audience and his skill in switching voices. For this reason, many of the performers used multiple figures, switching quickly from one voice to another.
Jules Vernon was one of the more famous American vaudeville ventriloquists who used multiple figures. Englishman
Fred Russell pioneered the use of a single figure with his dummy Coster Joe. Perhaps the most famous vaudeville ventriloquist, however,
The Great Lester, used only one figure,
Frank Byron, Jr., and it is the Great Lester's success which paved the way for the one ventriloquist-with-one-figure routine which is so common today.
Ventriloquism was immensely popular in the middle of the
20th century, thanks in great part to the work of one of the Great Lester's students,
Edgar Bergen. Bergen popularized the idea of the comedic ventriloquist. Bergen, together with his favorite figure,
Charlie McCarthy, hosted a radio program that was broadcast throughout the
1930s and early
1940s. It was the #1 program on the night it aired. Bergen continued performing until his death in 1979, and his popularity inspired many other famous ventriloquists who followed him, including
Paul Winchell, Jimmy Nelson, and
Senor Wences.
Jay Johnson co-starred on the
sitcom Soap with his dummy Bob.
Many ventriloquists attend conferences such as the
Vent Haven ConVENTion and
I-Fest to hone their skills and to connect with others in their performing community. These gatherings offer performances, competitions, panel discussions, and workshops for beginners and professionals alike.
One difficulty ventriloquists face is that all the sounds they make must be made with lips slightly separated. For the bilabial sounds /b/, /p/, and /m/, the only choice is to replace them with others. The dental sounds /v/, /t/, /d/, and /n/ can replace them successfully enough that, if spoken quickly, it is difficult to notice a difference.
*
List of ventriloquists*
Ventriloquism In a Month*
Ventrilo-Quick*
Axtell Expressions Puppets*
Vent Haven Museum: Ventriloquist Museum*
Vent Haven ConVENTion*
I-Fest*
Lovik's Puppets*
Strassman Site*
Real Life Godzilla*
Ventriloquism 101 DVD Course
