| David Strassman | |
|---|---|
 Strassman with Chuck Wood | |
| Born | September 6, 1957 Los Angeles County, California, U.S. |
| Medium | Stand-up |
| Years active | 1980–present |
| Genres | Ventriloquism |
| Spouse | Lisa McLaughlin (ex) |
| Website | www.DavidStrassman.com |
David Strassman (born September 6, 1957) is an American ventriloquist, stand-up comedian, actor, and voice artist. He is best known for his ventriloquism act with Chuck Wood and Ted E. Bare.
Strassman, the second of four children, was born and raised in Los Angeles County, California. [1] His father, Harvey D. Strassman (September 19, 1922 – January 30, 2011), was a psychiatrist and medical academic of Jewish descent. [2]
A visit to Disneyland with his family prompted a young Strassman to ask his father to purchase some professional magic tricks that he performed for local neighborhood children. [3] Strassman took a ventriloquism class in junior high school as an elective, taught by local Chicago children's television host Steve Hart. [4] Strassman discovered he was good at it and could make money from his performances. [5]
Strassman studied acting at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York but returned to ventriloquism. He took to busking in Central Park in New York, Leicester Square and the Marble Arch in London and a brief stint in Paris. [6]
Strassman performed in New York's comedy clubs including An Evening at the Improv. [7] In 1980, Strassman (along with his main ventriloquist character Chuck Wood) appeared in Roger Corman's horror movie Humanoids from the Deep. [8]
In 1986, Strassman added remote controls to his puppet, Chuck Wood, using transmitters, motors, and servos derived from his hobby of flying remote control model airplanes. [9] He discovered a remote clutch system in a NASA facility that could be integrated into his dummies. [10] At the end of Strassman's act he gets into an argument with his dummy, Chuck Wood, and leaves the stage. [11] Chuck then appears to come to life with Strassman speaking into an off-stage microphone. [11] He debuted this routine on The Late Show with Arsenio Hall in 1989. [11] New York ventriloquist Stanley Burns used remote-controlled dummies in the 1950s. [12] [13]
In 1995, he performed on The Jerry Lewis MDA Labor Day Telethon. [14]
In 1996, he performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in Scotland. [15] He received the “Critics Award for Comedy” [16] and the Glasgow “Herald Angel award.” [17] Strassman continues to perform frequently throughout Australia, New Zealand, and Britain. [18]
Strassman had a television talk show called "Strassman" on Nine Australia, where his puppet character, Chuck Wood, interviewed celebrities. [19] [20] [21] Subsequent series were produced in England on ITV, and in New Zealand on TV2. [22] [23]
Strassman has 6 DVD titles. Strassman Live (1999) – Volume 1, [24] The Chuck You Tour (2003) - Volume 2, [24] Get Chuck'd Tour (2007) – Volume 3, [25] Ted E's Farewell (2010) – Volume 4, [24] Careful What You Wish For (2014) – Volume 5, [26] and iTedE (2018) – Volume 6. [27]
In 2010, he performed the play, "Duality," written and directed by Steve Altman, at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and in Los Angeles, CA. Duality is a two-character play about a mentally-ill ventriloquist, Jack, who talks to himself through a puppet named Zack. [28] Throughout Duality, Strassman's character "talks" to his ventriloquist puppet as it sits lifeless in a chair, he operates it manually with his hand in the back, and controls the puppet through wireless robotics. [29]
Strassman regularly visits children's hospitals with his characters while on tour, including hospitals in Wellington and Melbourne. [30] [31]
Strassman's show, Careful What you Wish For ran in Australia through April 2014. [32]
Puppet characters voiced by Strassman include: [33]
Strassman's non-puppet characters include:[ citation needed ]
MIX 106.3 FM Canberra
Ventriloquism is an act of stagecraft in which a person speaks in such a way that it looks like their voice is coming from a different location, usually through a puppet known as a "dummy". The act of ventriloquism is ventriloquizing, and in English it is commonly called the ability to "throw" one's voice.
Raymond Alan Whyberd was an English ventriloquist, television entertainer, and writer. His career spanned over half a century, though he was most popular from the 1950s until the 1980s. He was associated primarily with the dummies Lord Charles and Ali Kat and later with the puppets Tich and Quackers.
Peter Brough was an English radio ventriloquist who became a well-known name to audiences in the 1950s. He is associated with his puppet Archie Andrews.
Wenceslao Moreno Centeno, known professionally as Señor Wences, was a Spanish ventriloquist and comedian. His popularity grew with his frequent television appearances on CBS's The Ed Sullivan Show during the 1950s and 1960s. Later, he became popular with another generation of fans on The Muppet Show.
Dummy is a 2002 American romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Greg Pritikin. The film stars Adrien Brody as an ex-office worker who becomes a ventriloquist. It also stars Milla Jovovich, Illeana Douglas, Vera Farmiga, Jessica Walter, Ron Leibman, and Jared Harris. It premiered at the American Film Market on February 21, 2002, and received a limited theatrical release on September 12, 2003.
Jeffrey Douglas Dunham is an American ventriloquist, stand-up comedian and actor who has also appeared on numerous television shows, including Late Show with David Letterman, Comedy Central Presents, The Tonight Show, and Sonny with a Chance. He has seven specials that run on Comedy Central as well as two Netflix specials among others. He also starred in The Jeff Dunham Show, a series that ran in 2009. He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and holds the Guinness Book of World Records record for "Most tickets sold for a stand-up comedy tour" for his Spark of Insanity tour.
Nina Margarita Conti is a British actress, comedian, and ventriloquist.
Charley and Mimmo is a traditionally animated children's television series that aired on YTV between 1999 and 2002.
Ronn Lucas is an American ventriloquist and stand-up comedian.
Kevin Johnson is a professional ventriloquist, comedian, and magician.
Jay Johnson is an American ventriloquist and actor, best known for playing Chuck Campbell on Soap.
Terry Wayne Fator is an American ventriloquist, impressionist, stand-up comedian, and singer. Born in Dallas, Texas, he developed an interest in ventriloquism from a young age, developing both this and a talent for singing. After initially performing with two bands, Fator eventually conducted solo performances, combining ventriloquism and singing with comedy. He gained national recognition for his talent when he won the second season of America's Got Talent, which helped to boost his career.
Franklin Taylor Mason is a comedian, ventriloquist and musician.
A puppet is an object, often resembling a human, animal or mythical figure, that is animated or manipulated by a person called a puppeteer. Puppetry is an ancient form of theatre which dates back to the 5th century BC in Ancient Greece.
James Edward Nelson was an American ventriloquist who appeared on television in the 1950s and 1960s. He is most famous for commercials for Nestlé chocolate featuring Farfel the Dog. He also hosted a children's show sponsored by Nestlé.
Kenny Warren is an American ventriloquist, comedian, and author. He has appeared on television shows such as What's My Line? and To Tell the Truth and also has performed with comedians such as Jerry Seinfeld and Rodney Dangerfield.
I'm No Dummy is a 2009 documentary film about ventriloquism directed by Bryan W. Simon and produced by Marjorie Engesser through Montivagus Productions. It premiered at the 2009 Seattle International Film Festival before being released to the United States by Salient Media and NBCUniversal in 2010.
Timothy Selberg is a sculptor of three-dimensional carved mechanized figures, most of which are specifically used in the performance of ventriloquism. Selberg and his team at Selberg Studios, Inc. create handcrafted and custom carved works of art for collectors and entertainers.
Valentine Vox is a British born American ventriloquist and author known for his scholarly book on the history of ventriloquism, I Can See Your Lips Moving: the history and art of ventriloquism, which traces the practice back some three thousand years.
Darci Lynne Farmer is an American ventriloquist and singer. She has been credited with the revival of ventriloquism, earning praise and numerous accolades for her work.
| Authority control databases: Artists |
|---|
