Marshall Izen

Last updated

Marshall Izen was an American entertainer whose performances combined puppetry and playing the piano.

Contents

Early years

Izen was the son of Mr. and Mrs. Morris Izen who owned a shoe store on the northwest side of Chicago. When Izen was four years old, he began picking out melodies of songs on his grandmother's piano. At age seven, he developed an obsessive fear of the dark, which led to his parents' buying (based on a psychologist's advice) a pair of puppets, a stage, and a toy film projector for him. He went on to incorporate puppets into his performances. [1]

While Izen was a student, he entertained at parties, school functions, and meetings of women's clubs. [1] In 1950, he won a talent contest on the Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts program, [2] which led to a two-week engagement on stage with Godfrey at the Chicago Theatre. [1]

Izen was a graduate of Emmet Grammar School and Austin High School. He attended Northwestern University but left in 1943 to enlist in the U. S. Army, [1] serving in Europe with the 104th Infantry Division and entertaining troops. [3] After World War II, Izen studied at the Juilliard School of Music, following which he went to DePaul University, graduating with a bachelor of arts degree with a music major. [1]

Izen also pursued his interest in art, earning a scholarship to the Art Institute of Chicago while he was in grammar school and studying there later. [1]

Entertainment career

Izen debuted professionally as a supper-club entertainer in New York. He went from there to perform in supper clubs and night clubs across the United States. His act combined playing the piano and providing laughs for the audience, featuring segments in which he manipulated puppets on top of the piano while playing the instrument with one hand. [1]

He went on to retain the piano-puppetry combination later in appearances on television and in concerts. Izen made the puppets' costumes and the settings in which they appeared atop the piano, with the settings designed to complement the themes of the songs he performed. [1] Cast in plastic wood from clay molds, the puppets were patterned after well-known performers in opera and concerts. His more than 50 characters included a pianist with white hair who played a miniature Steinway. [3]

In 1959-1960, he was a regular on the children's TV program Wonderama in New York. In addition to playing piano and working puppets, he told stories and enhanced some of the stories and songs with chalk-talk illustrations. [1]

In the summer of 1960, Izen had his first concert tour, with 20 appearances at colleges and universities in the southern and midwestern United States. The performances consisted of part serious music and part his trademark combination of music, puppets, and humor. [1]

In the 1960s, Izen and Jane Norman were puppeteers for Tottle, a half-hour children's program on WCAU-TV in Philadelphia. [4] The show ran for five years [5] and, beginning in April 1962, it was also carried on WBBM-TV in Chicago. [6]

In the 1970s, Izen made a national tour sponsored by New York's PART Foundation in association with groups supporting the arts in cities in which he appeared. The concerts were oriented toward children ages 5 to 12. In addition to the usual combination of music, puppets, and comedy, Izen showed the youngsters how they could create puppets and other items for entertainment out of everyday materials, such as newspapers, that they could find at home. [5] He continued touring and giving similar programs in the 1980s, adding elements that introduced 20th century artists' work to the audience in an effort to "bring out the Picasso in the kids", Izen said. [7]

Izen made several albums for children for Columbia Records. [5]

Art and writing

Pastel chalk drawings by Izen were exhibited in art shows and were sold in stores, including I. Magnin in San Francisco and Los Angeles and Bergdorf Goodman in New York. [1] In the early 1960s, he began working with Hallmark Cards, creating puppets and cards for their children-oriented product line. [6]

Izen and puppeteer Jim West were co-authors of two picture books for children. [8]

Recognition

CBS-TV devoted an episode of the program Camera Three to Izen and his work. [5]

"The Adventures of Coslo", a mini-series broadcast on WTTW-TV in Chicago, won two Emmy Awards — Outstanding Individual Achievement and Outstanding Children's Programming — for Izen. [9]

Izen's The Isle of Joy, an animated film based on cutouts of Matisse, won the international CINE Golden Eagle Award, [9] and his 30-minute TV program won awards from McCall's magazine and Ohio University. [10]

The Dog Who Sang at the Opera, a picture book by Izen and Jim West, won the Parents Choice Award. [8]

Izen died on May 26, 2015, at the age of 90. [11]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Puppetry</span> Form of theatre or performance that involves the manipulation of puppets

Puppetry is a form of theatre or performance that involves the manipulation of puppets – inanimate objects, often resembling some type of human or animal figure, that are animated or manipulated by a human called a puppeteer. Such a performance is also known as a puppet production. The script for a puppet production is called a puppet play. Puppeteers use movements from hands and arms to control devices such as rods or strings to move the body, head, limbs, and in some cases the mouth and eyes of the puppet. The puppeteer sometimes speaks in the voice of the character of the puppet, while at other times they perform to a recorded soundtrack.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marionette</span> Puppet controlled from above using wires or strings

A marionette is a puppet controlled from above using wires or strings depending on regional variations. A marionette's puppeteer is called a marionettist. Marionettes are operated with the puppeteer hidden or revealed to an audience by using a vertical or horizontal control bar in different forms of theatres or entertainment venues. They have also been used in films and on television. The attachment of the strings varies according to its character or purpose.

<i>Mr. Squiggle</i> Australian TV series or program

Mr. Squiggle is an Australian children's television series, and the name of the title character from that ABC show. The show was presented on television in many formats, between its inception on 1 July 1959 and 1999, from five-minute slots to a one-and-a-half-hour variety show featuring other performers, and has had several name changes, originally airing as Mr. Squiggle and Friends. At its height, the program was one of the most popular children's programs in Australia and toured theatre and conventions, entertaining several generations who grew with the program. It became one of the longest-running children's programs on Australian television, despite originally only asked to fill a six week gap on the ABC's schedule.

<i>Kukla, Fran and Ollie</i> American television series

Kukla, Fran and Ollie is an early American television show using puppets. It was created for children, but was soon watched by more adults than children. It did not have a script and was entirely ad-libbed. It was broadcast from Chicago between October 13, 1947, and August 30, 1957. Comedienne Fran Allison starred, interacting with puppets, Kukla and Ollie whose puppeteer was the show's creator, Burr Tillstrom. After the original run, the team appeared in other productions over several decades.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bil Baird</span> American puppeteer

William Britton "Bil" Baird was an American puppeteer of the mid- and late 20th century. In a career that spanned over 60 years, he and his puppets performed for millions of adults and children. One of his better known creations was Charlemane the lion. He and his wife Cora Eisenberg Baird (1912–1967) produced and performed the famous puppetry sequence for "The Lonely Goatherd" in the film version of The Sound of Music. His son Peter Baird was also a puppeteer, and he continued his family's legacy until his own death in July 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Burr Tillstrom</span> Puppeteer

Franklin Burr Tillstrom was a puppeteer and the creator of Kukla, Fran and Ollie.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fran Allison</span> American Performer (1907-1989)

Frances Helen Allison was an American television and radio comedienne, personality, and singer.

Digital puppetry is the manipulation and performance of digitally animated 2D or 3D figures and objects in a virtual environment that are rendered in real time by computers. It is most commonly used in filmmaking and television production, but has also been used in interactive theme park attractions and live theatre.

Youssouf Coulibaly is a Malian puppet designer, puppeteer and storyteller from Mali.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roy Brown (clown)</span> American TV personality, puppeteer and clown

Roy Thomas Brown was an American television personality, puppeteer, clown and artist known for playing "Cooky the Cook" on Chicago's Bozo's Circus.

Michael Earl was an American puppeteer. A four-time Emmy Award-winner whose credits include Mr. Snuffleupagus on Sesame Street (1978–1981) and Dr. Ticktock in Ticktock Minutes, a musical series of PSA's on PBS he also co-created, scripted and wrote lyrics for that garnered 11 Southern Regional Emmys, a 1998 National Emmy for Best Public Service Announcements, a Gabriel Award, 2 Parents' Choice Awards and numerous other honors. Earl performed the original Shrek character in a motion-capture development test film for DreamWorks and puppeteered lead characters in Paramount Pictures' Team America: World Police.

William B. Fosser's puppet production Opera in Focus is a troupe which performs opera and musical theater with some of the world's most sophisticated puppets. The Opera in Focus puppet opera theater is located in Rolling Meadows, Illinois.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Puppet</span> Inanimate object or representational figure animated or manipulated by an entertainer

A puppet is an object, often resembling a human, animal or mythical figure, that is animated or manipulated by a person called a puppeteer. The puppeteer uses movements of their hands, arms, or control devices such as rods or strings to move the body, head, limbs, and in some cases the mouth and eyes of the puppet. The puppeteer often speaks in the voice of the character of the puppet, and then synchronizes the movements of the puppet's mouth with this spoken part. The actions, gestures and spoken parts acted out by the puppeteer with the puppet are typically used in storytelling. Puppetry is a very ancient form of theatre which dates back to the 5th century BC in Ancient Greece. There are many different varieties of puppets, and they are made from a wide range of materials, depending on their form and intended use. They range from very simple in construction and operation to very complex.

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Farooq Qaiser</span> Pakistani artist (1945–2021)

Farooq Qaiser was a Pakistani artist, newspaper columnist, TV show director, puppeteer, script writer, and voice actor. He was known as the creator of the fictional puppet character Uncle Sargam introduced in 1976 in children's television show Kaliyan. Farooq was also a cartoonist, newspaper columnist and wrote for the newspaper Daily Nai Baat in Lahore and under the pen name "Meethay Karelay".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brad Williams (puppeteer)</span>

Bradford Cody "Brad" Williams was an American puppeteer, designer and teacher. He died from injuries sustained in a car accident at the age of 42.

Ryan Dillon is an American puppeteer who has worked as an ensemble muppeteer for the Jim Henson Company since 2005. He also played Cooper and Paul Ball for the interactive series Sesame Street TV for Xbox Kinect, and appeared on all four seasons of the new CBeebies and co-productions of Sesame Street, The Furchester Hotel, and The Not-Too-Late Show with Elmo as Elmo. In March 2017, Dillon was nominated for the Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in Children's Programming.

Thomas Hager Tichenor was an American puppeteer, most noted for creating the original puppets for the Broadway musical Carnival!.

Paul Vincent Davis is an American puppeteer. For over 30 years, he served as Artist in Residence at Puppet Showplace Theater in Brookline, Massachusetts. In the 1980s, UNIMA-USA awarded Davis five Citations of Excellence for his work.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bernice Silver</span> American puppeteer and activist (1913–2020)

Bernice Silver was an American puppeteer and activist, known in her field as "the Queen of Potpourri", referring to the combination of puppetry, storytelling, music, and politics in her open-mic performances.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 "A Success in New York, Local Boy Prepares To Start Concert Tour". Suburbanite Economist. Illinois, Chicago. June 29, 1960. p. 10. Retrieved 13 April 2019– via Newspapers.com.
  2. ↑ McHatton, Martha (April 13, 1950). "Indianapolis on the Air". The Indianapolis News. Indiana, Indianapolis. p. 20. Retrieved 13 April 2019– via Newspapers.com.
  3. 1 2 "Marshall Izen To Appear At St. Mary's". The Winona Daily News. Minnesota, Winona. July 13, 1960. p. 11. Retrieved 13 April 2019– via Newspapers.com.
  4. ↑ Shull, Bill (2015). Philadelphia Television. Arcadia Publishing. p. 71. ISBN   9781439652183 . Retrieved 14 April 2019.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Marshall Izen treats area youngsters with Detroit Youtheatre performance". The Times Herald. Michigan, Port Huron. February 10, 1974. p. 48. Retrieved 14 April 2019– via Newspapers.com.
  6. 1 2 "It Started With Horror Movie!". Suburbanite Economist. Illinois, Chicago. April 18, 1962. p. 17. Retrieved 14 April 2019– via Newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ "Award Winning Puppeteer Returns To Mishler Theatre". Tyrone Daily Herald. Pennsylvania, Tyrone. February 18, 1991. p. 7. Retrieved 14 April 2019– via Newspapers.com.
  8. 1 2 Alleman, Annie (February 12, 2016). "Puppeteer to bring 'Aesop's Fables' to life". Napierville Sun. Illinois, Napierville. pp. 1–9. Retrieved 14 April 2019– via Newspapers.com.
  9. 1 2 Wolf, Robert (January 10, 1986). "'Rags, Bags, Dragons' Lets Kids Try Hand at Puppetry". Chicago Tribune. Illinois, Chicago. Archived from the original on 14 April 2019. Retrieved 14 April 2019.
  10. ↑ "Pianist-Humorist Booked For Dec. 1 Performance". Battle Creek Enquirer. Michigan, Battle Creek. November 21, 1965. p. 10. Retrieved 14 April 2019– via Newspapers.com.
  11. ↑ "MARSHALL IZEN". The New York Times. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.