From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
American museum about ventriloquism
Vent Haven Museum
is an American museum of
ventriloquial
figures and memorabilia. It claims to be the only such museum in the world. The museum is located in
Fort Mitchell, Kentucky
, five miles (8.0 km) south of
Cincinnati
.
[1]
It opened in 1973.
[2]
The museum is open seasonally, May through September, by appointment only. As of March 2022, the museum was closed for construction on a new facility. The museum is scheduled to reopen on May 9, 2023.
[3]
History
[
edit
]
Vent Haven Museum was founded by William Shakespeare Berger (1878?1972), a Cincinnati businessman and amateur
ventriloquist
.
[4]
Berger amassed his collection of approximately 500 dummies from 1910 until his death.
[5]
The museum has continued to grow through donations of ventriloquism materials, and its collection has doubled in size since opening as a public museum in 1973.
[6]
Collection
[
edit
]
The museum's collection contains more than 1,000 ventriloquist figures from 20 countries, as well as hundreds of photographs and other pieces of memorabilia related to ventriloquism. The collection includes replicas of figures used by
Edgar Bergen
,
Paul Winchell
, and
Shari Lewis
, and authentic performance pieces used by
Jimmy Nelson
,
Willie Tyler
,
Jay Johnson
,
Terry Fator
,
Jeff Dunham
, and
Darci Lynne
.
[7]
[2]
The museum has four performance figures that reportedly belonged to
William Wood
, who died under unclear circumstances when the
tugboat
he and his daughter were on foundered in the
Gulf of Mexico
in 1908. The dummies were later recovered after washing ashore.
[8]
A 2013 episode of
Mysteries at the Museum
recounted the circumstances of Wood's death and the figures at the museum.
[9]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"Vent Haven Museum FAQ"
. Vent Haven Museum. 2008. Archived from
the original
on 2008-05-11
. Retrieved
2008-02-20
.
(webarchive)
- ^
a
b
"Overview"
. Vent Haven Museum. 2015
. Retrieved
2015-11-17
.
- ^
"Vent Haven Museum"
. Retrieved
March 13,
2023
.
Reopening May 9, 2023!!!!
- ^
"Vent Haven Museum FAQ"
. Vent Haven Museum. 2008. Archived from
the original
on 2008-05-11
. Retrieved
2008-02-20
.
(webarchive)
- ^
Day, Teresa (January 30, 2005).
Fun With the Family Kentucky: Hundreds of Ideas for Day Trips with the Kids
. Globe Pequot. p. 57.
ISBN
9780762734900
. Retrieved
2013-05-07
.
- ^
"Vent Haven Museum Capital Funds Campaign"
.
- ^
Smith, Steve; et al. (2007).
"Arts & Attractions"
.
Cincinnati USA City Guide
. Cincinnati Magazine. p. 22
. Retrieved
2013-05-06
.
- ^
Trav S.D. (October 24, 2014).
"More Creepy Ventriloquists: William Wood"
.
Travalanche
. Retrieved
March 12,
2023
.
- ^
"The Death William Wood, Hacker Spy, Skunk Ape"
.
IMDb
. October 24, 2013
. Retrieved
March 12,
2023
.
External links
[
edit
]
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