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Ventriloquist

Bob King

Frank Marshall built him the smallest working dummy in the world to get him away from Detroit's rowdiest drunks. A few years later that same small size got Bob through a torpedoed ship and three days on a raft.

A 1930s newspaper clipping headlined Ventriloquists at Magicians' Convention, showing Bob King seated at left holding Tiny, The Great Lester at right, and Frank Marshall standing behind holding a Charlie McCarthy figure
Bob King (the caption spells it "Bobby King") with Tiny, alongside The Great Lester and Frank Marshall at a magicians' convention. From a Davenport Democrat and Leader clipping, via Ventriloquist Central Blog.

Here's a story that starts at a rowdy table in a Detroit night club and ends on a life raft off the coast of South America, and the whole thing turns on a dummy built small enough to ride in a doctor's bag. Pull up a chair. This is Bob King. This is Tiny.[1]

The trouble with a regular-sized dummy

Before the war, Bob King, full name Robert W. King, made his living working the Detroit night clubs and the rougher drinking places that never made anybody's tourist map.[1] His act was table to table: sit down with the customers, let the dummy talk back to them. Good idea on paper. In practice it fell apart nightly, because somewhere around the second round some meddlesome drinker would grab the dummy right out of Bob's hands, want to work the jaw himself, and turn the whole bit into a stranger doing a bad ventriloquist impression of a bad ventriloquist. The dummy's timing went out the window along with the illusion.[1] As the man who wrote the story up put it at the time: the dummy was worse than the drunkard.[1] That's not an act. That's a bar fight with a wooden third party.

Frank Marshall's fix

Bob brought the problem to Frank Marshall in Chicago, the same shop that would go on to build faces for half the working vents in America. Marshall's diagnosis was simple: a big dummy in a small, close-up gathering loses the illusion the second somebody gets a good look at it. What Bob needed wasn't a better routine. It was a smaller dummy.[1]

So Marshall built him one: a bright, sassy little figure with eyes set just off-center so he seemed to be watching and thinking even when he was still, and a latent smile tucked into the corners of his mouth that never quite went away. They named him Tiny. He shipped to Detroit and was a hit the moment he arrived. The ladies at Bob's tables thought he was cute, practically alive, and they took his side against any drunk who tried to grab him. Between numbers Bob could fold Tiny up and drop him straight into a coat pocket, which is not a sentence you can write about a full-sized dummy.[1]

"The dummy was worse than the drunkard."

Tiny goes to war

Then the war came, and Bob went into the Navy. Tiny went with him, riding in a small cowhide case built like a doctor's bag.[1] Their ship helped convoy troops for the first invasion of Africa, and on the way back it was torpedoed off the coast of South America. Bob was standing at his post on a five-inch gun when the blast hit. He lost teeth and took fragments in several places. As the ship started to go down, he ran for his bunk to save whatever he could carry. What he carried out was Tiny.[1]

Bob and four other men spent three days adrift on a raft in the South Atlantic. Tiny came out of his little case more than once during those three days, still smiling, still working, doing the only job a dummy has ever had: making a bad situation feel a little less bad. When the rescue finally came, Bob needed real repairs. Tiny went back into his case without so much as a lost splinter.[1] Marshall never built him for the sea. He just happened to fit the job.[1]

The story Rudy Vallee put on the radio

Writer Charles D. Stewart told the whole thing as "The Saga of Tiny" in the Milwaukee Journal on August 9, 1945, and The Oracle, the IBV's own newsletter, reprinted it five years later so the rest of the ventriloquist world would have it on record.[1] It reached a bigger audience than a club newsletter, too. Rudy Vallee, the bandleader who years earlier had put the unknown Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy on network radio for the first time, aired "The Saga of Tiny" on one of his own broadcasts. The IBV's own writer called it a big boost for the brotherhood, and by the spring of 1951 Vallee had joined the IBV himself.[2]

A Frank Marshall boy figure in overalls and a straw hat, the figure Ventriloquist Central's tribute page uses to illustrate Bob King's entry

The figure the record remembers

Ventriloquist Central's own tribute page keeps Bob King's memory to one line: "Figure: Tiny, made by Frank Marshall, as were his other figures. Performed circa 1940s." This is the photo they run beside it, a Marshall boy built in the same house style.

Photo via Ventriloquist Central
A close-up of a Frank Marshall figure's face, redressed in a blue and white sailor suit collar

The closest anyone has gotten back to Tiny

Collector Dan Willinger tracked down a Marshall figure close enough to Tiny that he redressed it in a sailor suit as a tribute, right down to the small "doll hands" Marshall used on the original. It isn't Tiny. Nobody claims it is. It's the nearest anyone has come to seeing him again.

Photo via Ventriloquist Central Blog

Still working, still Bob

He kept at it. In the spring of 1956, fellow vent Billy Davis wrapped a 22-week night-club tour through Wichita, Shreveport, Dallas, Oklahoma City, and Denver and reported meeting Bob King along the way, one of enough working vents on that circuit, Davis joked, to hold a miniature convention of their own.[5] A decade after a torpedo and a life raft, Bob King was still out there working rooms with a dummy in a case.

The newspaper that ran the magicians'-convention photo spelled his name "Bobby King" that day, sitting him alongside The Great Lester, the veteran who taught Edgar Bergen his own trade, and Frank Marshall, credited right there in the caption with making the original Charlie McCarthy. Both names, Bob and Bobby, turn up for him across these old pages. Same man, different typesetter's mood.[3]

One more claim about Tiny is worth passing along, carefully. Collectors who handled a Marshall figure closely resembling him in a 2015 auction repeat a line from the catalog: that Tiny "was actually awarded a medal from action seen in the war."[6] I can't prove the Navy pinned a medal on a block of basswood and paint. But after three days on a raft keeping five men's spirits up, I understand why nobody who heard the story argued the point.

maker Frank Marshall convention, 1930s The Great Lester aired the story Rudy Vallee met on tour, 1956 Billy Davis figure Tiny

Most figures in this archive got famous on a stage or a television set. Tiny got famous on a life raft. Frank Marshall built him to solve a problem in a Detroit bar, and the U.S. Navy is the reason we know the rest of the story at all. That's the part of this trade I never get tired of: you build the small, practical fix for the problem right in front of you, and every so often it turns out to be built for something a whole lot bigger.

Freddy Fiddlesticks, the Ventriloquism.org spokesdummy

They built Tiny small enough to dodge a drunk's grabby hands, not a torpedo, but eyes set just off-center like that will get you through anything, even a raft.— Freddy Fiddlesticks, spokesdummy

Sightings in the newspapers

27 dated notices between 1938 and 1943. Each links to the scanned page at the Library of Congress. Browse all Career Snippets

  1. 1938Jul 14 Ventriloquist Bob King was booked to appear at the Capitol theater's stage show, headlined by Johnny Perkins, alongside the 12 Dancing Delovelies, Ruth Petty, and the Titan Trio (Capitol theater, per the paper dated 1938-07-14). page
  2. 1938Jul 14 Ventriloquist Bob King was booked for the stage show at the Capitol theater the week of July 14, 1938, alongside the 12 dancing Delovelies, Ruth Petty, The Titan Trio, and headliner Johnny Perkins. page
  3. 1938Jul 14 Ventriloquist Bob King was booked for the stage show at the Capitol theater, on a bill with Johnny Perkins, the 12 Dancing Delovelies, Ruth Petty, and the Titan Trio, alongside the film 'Always Goodbye' (1938-07-14 newspaper). page
  4. 1938Jul 14 Ventriloquist Bob King was booked for the week's stage show at the Capitol theater (per July 14, 1938 newspaper), on a bill headlined by Johnny Perkins with the Delovelies dancers, Ruth Petty, and The Titan Trio. page
  5. 1938Jul 15 Bob King's ventriloquist act was part of the stage show at the Capitol theater (per July 15, 1938 paper), headlined by Johnny Perkins, alongside the Dancing Delovelies, Ruth Petty, and the Titan Trio, accompanying the film 'Always Goodbye' with Herbert Marshall and Barbara Stanwyck. page
  6. 1938Jul 15 Bob King's ventriloquist act was part of the stage show at the Capitol Theatre, headlined by Jovial Johnny Perkins, alongside the Dancing Delovelies, Ruth Petty, and the Titan Trio, reported July 15, 1938. Capitol Theatre page
  7. 1938Jul 16 Bob King performed a ventriloquist novelty act as part of a stage show, sharing the bill with Johnny Perkins as master of ceremonies, Ruth Petty, the Titan Trio, and Jeanette Hackett (newspaper dated 1938-07-16). page
  8. 1938Jul 16 In a stage show reviewed in the 1938-07-16 newspaper, Bob King performed 'a ventriloquist novelty act' on a bill that also included Johnny Perkins as master of ceremonies, Ruth Petty, the Titan Trio, and Jeanette Hackett. page
  9. 1939May 29 Bob King, described as 'famed in the ventriloquist world,' was billed on the Loew-Poli vaudeville show opening Wednesday at Poli's theater in Waterbury, alongside the Four Robeys, Bis and Buddy Rogers, Wayne Sisters, and Downing and Dale (per the Waterbury newspaper dated 1939-05-29). page
  10. 1939May 29 Bob King, described as famed in the ventriloquist world, appeared on the Loew-Poli vaudeville bill at Poli's theater in Waterbury, opening Wednesday, May 31, 1939 (per newspaper dated 1939-05-29), alongside the Four Robeys, Bis and Buddy Rogers, Wayne Sisters, and Downing and Dale. page
  11. 1941Feb 7 Bob King, described as a 'mindreading ventriloquist,' performed in the all-star floor show at Northwood Inn (Old Madrid, Detroit) as reported in the Detroit Evening Times, Feb. 7, 1941, alongside dancers Walter and Jean Brown and singer Audrey Warner. Detroit Evening Times page
  12. 1941Feb 7 Bob King, billed as a 'mindreading ventriloquist,' was featured in the opening night of a new all-star floor show at Northwood Inn (Detroit), Feb. 7, 1941, alongside Jana Carmen, Walter and Jean Brown, and singer Audrey Warner. page
  13. 1941Feb 14 Ventriloquist Bob King (OCR rendered as 'Rnh King') and his figures Tiny and Hajababa were held over in the Northwood Inn floor show, appearing alongside emcee June Carmen and Maestro Ray Carlin's orchestra. page
  14. 1941Feb 14 Bob King, ventriloquist, appeared with swing singer Auriree Warner at Northwood Inn around February 14, 1941, bringing his figure 'Hajababa' as part of the act. page
  15. 1941Feb 14 Bob King, ventriloquist, was scheduled to appear on Tuesday at Northwood Inn along with swing singer Auriree Warner, per a newspaper dated 1941-02-14. page
  16. 1941Feb 15 Ventriloquist Bob King performed entertainment alongside swing singer Audree Warner at Northwood Inn, as reported in a 1941-02-15 newspaper item. page
  17. 1941Feb 15 Ventriloquist Bob King, appearing at Northwood Inn, provided entertainment alongside swing singer Audree Warner, with his figure Hajababa (described as able to tell the serial number on a bill or a social security number) and another figure named Tiny. page
  18. 1941Feb 15 Ventriloquist Bob King performed at Northwood Inn (as reported in a Feb 15, 1941 newspaper), appearing alongside swing singer Audre Warner. page
  19. 1941Feb 15 Ventriloquist Bob King performed at Northwood Inn, appearing with swing singer Audre Warner, as reported February 15, 1941. page
  20. 1941Feb 17 Ventriloquist Bob King appeared at a Homemakers' Club entertainment event (auditorium, fifth floor) alongside swing singer Audree Warner; both were currently appearing at Northwood Inn (reported Feb 17, 1941). page
  21. 1941Feb 17 Ventriloquist Bob King, currently appearing at Northwood Inn, was announced as entertainment for a Homemakers' Club meeting on Feb 17, 1941, with swing singer Audree Warner; Bob King's figures were named Hajababa and Tiny. page
  22. 1941Mar 28 Ventriloquist Bob King performed comedy 'to the point of hilarity,' introducing a string of dummies and mixing magic with his vocal manipulations, sharing the bill with mimic Jay Jason and the Pearl Magley Girls dancing to Lyle Carlyle's band (per a 1941 review, venue not stated in this clipping). page
  23. 1941Mar 28 Ventriloquist Bob King performed a comedy act introducing a string of dummies and mixing magic with his vocal manipulations, reviewed in a 1941-03-28 newspaper alongside mimic Jay Jason and the Pearl Magley Girls dancing to Lyle Carlyle's band. page
  24. 1941Apr 4 Bob King, billed as ventriloquist, appeared in the lineup at Saks' Show Bar with Kay Vernon (blues singer), Yvonne and Wayne (ballroom team), the Pearl Magley dance line, and Lyle Carlyle's band, per a 1941-04-04 newspaper. page
  25. 1941Apr 4 Billed as a ventriloquist appearing in the lineup at Saks' Show Bar, alongside Kay Vernon, Yvonne and Wayne, and the Pearl Magley dance line, with Lyle Carlyle's band (newspaper dated 1941-04-04). page
  26. 1943Aug 17 Bob King, a ventriloquist, was torpedoed three times as a merchant marine sailor and had been missing for nine months, according to a 1943 newspaper item about a magic shop customer whose picture hung on the wall. page
  27. 1943Aug 17 Bob King, a ventriloquist, was reportedly torpedoed three times as a merchant marine sailor and had been missing for nine months, per this 1943 Hamtramck-area news item. page

Sources

  1. Charles D. Stewart, "The Saga of Tiny," The Milwaukee Journal, Aug. 9, 1945, reprinted in The Oracle (International Brotherhood of Ventriloquists), Sept.–Oct. 1950 issue — scanned document, Jimmy Vee collection
  2. The Oracle (International Brotherhood of Ventriloquists), May–June 1951 issue — scanned document, Jimmy Vee collection
  3. "Frank Marshall, Bob King and The Great Lester," Ventriloquist Central Blog, reproducing a Davenport Democrat and Leader clipping
  4. Ventriloquist Central, "Ventriloquists of the 20th Century" tribute page
  5. The Oracle (International Brotherhood of Ventriloquists), May–June 1956 issue, page 7 — scanned document, Jimmy Vee collection
  6. Willinger Collection dispersal, Session 2, Lot 52 catalog description, AuctionZip, 2015; see also "A Tiny Frank Marshall Figure," Ventriloquist Central Blog