2. “Who are you calling a dummy?”:
Ventriloquism and Puppetry as Popular Entertainment from
Charlie McCarthy to Avenue Q.
3. “Bob”
✤ From the hit TV show, Soap
✤ Created and voiced by Jay
Johnson
✤ Wood, cloth, and plastic
✤ Permanent collection, National
Museum of American History
(NMAH)
4. Exhibition Content
✤ Showcase the pop-culture appeal of ventriloquism and puppetry from the Golden Age
of Radio to today
✤ Contain approximately two dozen artifacts
✤ Puppets
✤ Muppets
✤ Ventriloquist figures
✤ Marionettes
✤ Playbills, posters, advertisements
5. Target Audience
✤ Very broad appeal
✤ The pre-World War II “greatest generation”
✤ Baby Boomers
✤ Echo Boomers
✤ Generation Y
✤ Anyone who has been captivated by puppetry or ventriloquism
6. Main Themes
✤ Celebration of the art of ventriloquism and puppetry
✤ Enduring popularity of the art form
✤ Willfull suspension of disbelief
✤ Need for escapism in entertainment
✤ Adaptability of low-tech entertainment in an increasingly high-tech
world
7. Charlie
McCarthy Figure
✤ Wood and cloth
✤ Created by Edgar Bergen
✤ Widely recognized figure
✤ Star of vaudeville, radio and
television
✤ Radio: suspend disbelief
✤ Permanent collection, NMAH
8. Howdy Doody
Marionette
✤ Wood, plastic wood, cloth,
leather
✤ Created by Buffalo Bob Smith
✤ The Howdy Doody Show,
1947-1960
✤ Strong pop-culture impact
✤ Permanent collection, NMAH
9. Lamb Chop
Sock Puppet
✤ Wool, cloth, plastic buttons
✤ Created by Emmy Award
winner Shari Lewis
✤ Television career: 1957-1995
✤ Legacy lives on in Mally Lewis
✤ Acquire via loan from the
estate of Shari Lewis
10. Kermit the Frog
Muppet
✤ Cloth, cardboard, and plastic
✤ Most recognizable puppet of
last 50 years
✤ Star of television and film
✤ Addressed racial and ethnic
differences
✤ Permanent collection, NMAH
11. Exhibition Organization
✤ Thematically ✤ Figure/puppet/
marionette manipulation
✤ Ventriloquism and puppetry
through history ✤ Willful suspension of
disbelief
✤ The art of ventriloquism
✤ Popular appeal
✤ How it is done
✤ Timeline
✤ What makes an act
successful ✤ The next generation
12. Exhibition Design Considerations
✤ A variety of media ✤ Explore the relationship
between entertainment and
✤ Artifacts technology
✤ Audio
✤ Video
✤ Interactive Learning Stations
✤ Hands-on learning
✤ Touch the materials
13. Exhibition Team
✤ Lead Curator ✤ Department of Education and
Interpretation
✤ Division of Music, Sports &
Entertainment ✤ Office of Exhibition Services
✤ Office of Public Affairs ✤ Department of Public
Programming
✤ Project Management Office
✤ Technology Services Center
14. Exhibition Publications
✤ Catalog
✤ DVD included
✤ Intro by Jay Johnson
✤ Website
✤ Podcasts
✤ Reinforcing the suspension
of disbelief
15. Sponsors
✤ The Jim Henson Foundation ✤ NBC (Television and Radio)
✤ National Radio Hall of Fame ✤ United Service Organizations
(USO)
✤ Museum of Broadcast
Communications ✤ Entertainment Industry
Foundation
✤ Vent Haven Museum
✤ CBS (Television and Radio)
✤ ABC (Television and Radio)