To: puptcrit-AT-lists.driftline.org Date: Tue, 26 Sep 2006 01:00:09 -0400 From: biersblackwood-AT-aol.com Subject: Re: [Puptcrit] Where's Pretty Polly Surprised to hear that the crocodile is thought to have "faded out." I've seen it, or evidence of in, in Punch & Judy style shows performed now in the UK, Australia, the US, and France. It's such an effective puppet character, especially when it snaps its jaws. A stereotyped character called Jim Crow-- really a representation of a minstrel show character which entertainer Dan Rice performed live on stage in the early 19th century-- has indeed fallen almost entirely by the wayside, though the puppet version is still brought out in shows in the UK on rare occasions. Black characters survive in Punch & Judy shows today, but neither the characters nor the features of the puppets would be deliberately stereotyped in any mainstream show I can imagine. Fred Greenspan has an African American wizard named Shallaballa in some of his shows, and he also uses Pretty Polly, the fair damsel who catches Mr Punch's eye. Except for those attempting to re-create something of the Piccini/Collier/Cruikshank P&J experience, most Punch professors dropped Polly years ago. In Scotland at one time though, as George Speaight related, the show was known as "Punch & Polly." Sean K. www.punchandjudy.com -----Original Message----- From: roarkcd-AT-yahoo.com To: puptcrit-AT-lists.driftline.org Sent: Mon, 25 Sep 2006 20:56:43 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [Puptcrit] Where's Pretty Polly Here's a quick question for all of the P&J Professors out there: In his wonderful graphic novel _The Comical Tragedy or Tragical Comedy of Mr. Punch-, Neil Gaiman suggests that Punch's mistress, Pretty Polly, is no longer a part of the show (he mentions a Jim Crow character and a crocodile that also faded out). Yet, Pretty Polly is very much on Punch's mind in the script published by Player's Press (which is readily available). Do any of you still use Polly as a part of your show? Much Obliged (atsawaytadoit!!) Carolyn "Courage in Women is often mistaken for insanity." __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com _______________________________________________ List address: puptcrit-AT-lists.driftline.org Admin interface: http://lists.driftline.org/listinfo.cgi/puptcrit-driftline.org Archives: http://www.driftline.org ________________________________________________________________________ Check out the new AOL. Most comprehensive set of free safety and security tools, free access to millions of high-quality videos from across the web, free AOL Mail and more. _______________________________________________ List address: puptcrit-AT-lists.driftline.org Admin interface: http://lists.driftline.org/listinfo.cgi/puptcrit-driftline.org Archives: http://www.driftline.org
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