Date: Sun, 6 Jan 2008 18:44:09 -0700 From: "Steve Millward" <millwarden-AT-gmail.com> To: puptcrit-AT-puptcrit.org Subject: Re: [Puptcrit] School Tours All this talk of school tours has brought back great memories and a question to me. Somewhere around 1955 or 56, I saw a wonderful marionette show by a traveling puppeteer (whom I suspect was with a national school assemblies program) at Alameda Jr. High School, in Pocatello, Idaho. I had been interested in puppets since I was very young, but this was my first experience with a live marionette show. I wonder if any puppetcritters might know who this artist was. I obviously don't recall his name, but I vividly remember the following about him: He had a trapeze clown, a great Elvis, and a Minnie Pearl marionette. Elvis was pretty new then, but this puppet's "Hound Dog" stole the show with his gyrating hips. I still remember one of the jokes the Minnie Pearl figure used: "Here is household tip for you. Have you ever gotten postage stamps stuck together so badly that you can't use them? The next time that happens to you, simply run a hot iron between them. You can then mail that iron to anywhere in the country!" Funny how I still remember that over 50 years later (especially since I often forget where I laid my glasses 5 minutes ago) Anyhow, if anyone has any idea of who this performer was, I would really appreciate hearing from you. Thanks, and Happy New Year Steve Millward Pocatello, Idaho. On Jan 6, 2008 5:42 PM, Jim Menke <jim99jr-AT-gmail.com> wrote: > No one can imagine what it is like to do those school assembly tours until > they have done one. I did 4 years of them back in the 50s and early > 60s.Twowere in Kansas, Iowa, Missouri, one was in the southwest - > Florida, Georgia, > N & S Carolina and Virginia and New York State (I was drafter in the > middle > of this last tour. All were with a full marionette stage and a partner. > They > were 45 minute story shows - Hansel and Gretel; Snow White and Sleeping > Beauty. > > The agents had no concept of what it takes to do a full marionette show > with > the setting up, doing the show, taking down and then travel to the next > school. We would be booked for 2 or 3 schools in a day, some times with a > 75 > mile drive between shows. One agent told me that if we were running late > to > simple stop the show, go out in front of the stage and tell the audience > how > the story ended. I simply could not do that. The shows were done live - no > tape recording except for music - so I worked up a short version of each > show to fit the schedule. > > It was wonderful training for a performer, but was difficult on the body > and > social conditions. We were seldom in one town for a day. After the last > show > of the day we drove to the next town to be ready to get to a school at > 7:30 > or 8 AM for the first show of the day.This made a social life impossible. > The only rest was on a weekend and ofter we were booked into somspecial > circumstance on a Sat. or Sunday. This would go on from September through > the following May with a week and a half off at Christmas - 12 - 15 shows > per week.Travel was difficult especially in bad weather. There was one > time > when the grear shift handle (it was a manual transmission station wagon) > broke off and we had to drive to the next show in first gear with no > backing > up. I got to a garage where the man drilled a hole in what was left of the > shift handle and stuck a rod in it until we got to the show and then a > repair shop.Anoother time in Florida we speent the weekend in Ft. Walton > Beach while a hurricane blew around us. The agane insisted that we be > there > for Monday morning in case the school opened. > > Because of the physical hardships and hotel arrangements (we often got to > a > hotel and only one room would be available), it was not practical to have > a > female as the other puppeteer. > This was the 50s and 60s so sharing a room was unthinkable. > > Of course working that closely and being with each other constantly led to > some verbal fights and then we would have to do a show as if things were > wonderful. > > Finally, I decided that I wanted a home life and no real travel. It was > training I could not have gotten any other way so don't really regret it, > but living at home was wonderful too. > > -- > JIM MENKE PUPPETS > open your mind > fantasies unwind > > www.jimmenkepuppets.com > _______________________________________________ > List address: puptcrit-AT-puptcrit.org > Admin interface: http://lists.puptcrit.org/mailman/listinfo/puptcrit > Archives: http://www.driftline.org > _______________________________________________ List address: puptcrit-AT-puptcrit.org Admin interface: http://lists.puptcrit.org/mailman/listinfo/puptcrit Archives: http://www.driftline.org
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