Date: Tue, 14 Oct 2008 12:54:29 -0400 From: "Steve Abrams" <sapuppets-AT-gmail.com> To: puptcrit-AT-puptcrit.org Subject: Re: [Puptcrit] Modified marionettes-"Bo Jangles" GregYES I had exactly the same reaction when I saw Bob Baker's Bo Jangles performance It was astonishing. A perfect gem. Im one of the many puppeteers with a background in dance and I totally believed this little marionette was a virtuoso performer Steve On Mon, Oct 13, 2008 at 6:53 PM, Gregory Ballora <gregballora-AT-sbcglobal.net>wrote: > One of the most amazing things that I got to see this weekend at > the Santa Monica Puppet Festival was our very own Bob Baker > performing his "Bo Jangles" character. Apparently it was officially > approved by Bill Robinson's widow, and it is a really beautiful > looking small marionette, but to see it dancing was astonishing to > me. Bob performed to a recording of Bo Jangles dancing and calling > out the steps as he did them. I know just enough about tap dancing to > know that Bob represented every step! It was the most amazing > marionette dance I have ever seen. And I doubt Bob ever put plastic > wood over his face. > Or the puppet's. > > Greg > > > On Oct 13, 2008, at 3:35 PM, Hobey Ford wrote: > > > I am very happy with my costume-less antique marionettes. They > > have kinetic > > memory. They know how to swing dance and will do it for you. My > > friend > > Clyde who discovered the Harlem Dancers in the random two > > marionettes I gave > > him, restored his figures and one night he was at his trailor at > > Merlefest > > where he was performing. We had decided that the male dancer was > > modelled > > after the sophisticated legend of the time Bill "Bo Jangles" > > Robinson and > > that his partner was also a ringer for Josephine Baker. Sue never > > named them > > but they do seem to be drawn after them considering Robinson and > > Baker's > > popularity at the time. Hastings 1939 NY Worlds Fair show was > > full of > > portrait marionettes. Back to Clyde, he was listening to the live > > radio > > broadcast of the festival back at his trailor and got out the Bo > > Jangles > > figure and danced him to the music. Then Jerry Jeff Walker who > > penned the > > song "Mr. Bo Jangles" took the stage and began singing it. Clyde > > let the > > puppet do its thing and he said later that all alone with the > > marionette he > > gave his best performance. The next day Clyde saw Walker walking > > through the > > back stage area and got his attention and showed him the Bo Jangles > > marionette. Clyde wanted to get Jerry to have his picture made > > with the > > marionette, but he refused relating that he had gotten into a lot > > of grief > > for the song because it depicted Bo Jangles as bum where as the > > real bo > > Jangles was not. The song it turned out was about a street tapping > > bum who > > had taken on Bo Jangeles moniker. Jerry Jeff Walker on the other hand > > wanted a photo taken with the Josephine Baker marionette and > > couldn't get > > enough of that puppet. So after 70 years of lying around in a > > trunks among > > a collection of 4000 marionettes. He was reunited with his partner > > in the > > act and met the man who made Bo Jangles name famous again all within 6 > > months after emerging from a dusty trunk, Sepia getting a plastic > > wood face > > lifted off, and reuniting with his partner, she having been > > camoflaged for > > 30 years as Jimmy Carter and her body hiding inside of a Santa Claus > > marionette. (including high heels)Not to mention it was Valentines > > day of > > black history month that I gave them to Clyde. What I cannot > > fathom is > > that Sue's cousin who had worked for the Metropolitan Museum and at > > the time > > of reconnecting with Sue was being interviewed by Dorlis G. for the > > book on > > Sue Hasting and knowing all of that and being an original member of > > the > > company, that she could alter those perhaps most famous Hastings > > figures ( > > because of their inclusion in Baird's "Art of the Puppet") into > > Jimmy Carter > > and a Black disco dancer in gold lame. Perhaps she considered them > > race > > puppets and disdained that, which would be the most generous > > explaination. > > She had also transformed another of the "race puppets". I really > > can't say > > for sure, but I can see a B&W Hitchcock movie all about it. > > Puppets can be > > very mysterious. > > > > On Mon, Oct 13, 2008 at 1:02 PM, Alan Cook > > <alangregorycook-AT-msn.com> wrote: > > > >> Hobey Ford's archeological adventures with a dozen Sue Hastings > >> puppets > >> make for an interesting story. Too many times, someone like Jessie > >> Morrow, > >> out of ignorance of the IMPORTANCE of maintaining the original > >> integrity of > >> certain puppets, can destroy something of historical/artistic > >> value, and > >> create an object of less interest. It would have been better if > >> she had made > >> new puppets, using the old ones as inspiration. > >> > >> That Hobey has been able to undo some damage and restore puppets to > >> something approximate to the original condition, is a real > >> contribution to > >> our collective history. > >> > >> Some other Sue Hastings puppets have been "modified" by at least > >> one other > >> person, alas. > >> > >> Sue Hastings is an important American puppeteer. As such, her > >> puppets have > >> more value than some anonymous amateur puppets which surface on e- > >> bay or in > >> yard sales. > >> > >> But sometimes even amateur yard sale puppets need to be preserved, as > >> examples of folk art, or rare examples of regional puppetry. > >> > >> Around 1979, I visited Grand Rapids, Michigan, to see some > >> marionettes > >> created for/by the WPA (Works Progress Administration) during the > >> Great > >> Depression. A local puppeteer, well meaning, had recycled these > >> historic > >> figures, turning some into clowns. > >> > >> If you repaint a Rembrandt, it is no longer a Rembrandt, and much > >> harm is > >> done. Value is lost. > >> > >> After my calling this fact to the attention of the puppeteer who > >> modified > >> the WPA figures, I hope that she made no further modifications. > >> She seemed > >> apologetic. > >> > >> Hobey is right on, when he says a puppeteer can often learn by > >> studying old > >> puppets and their construction, > >> Earlier this year he visited our exhibit in Los Angeles at the > >> Craft & Folk > >> Art Museum, and had a chance to study puppets by several important > >> puppeteers. > >> > >> Hobey has a good eye when it comes to preservation of and > >> appreciation for > >> old puppets. He also understands the importance of written or > >> photographic > >> material, the available documentation, and the provenance. > >> > >> When old puppets are no longer in working condition, they can > >> still have > >> something to teach us---they still have value, like old folks in > >> retirement > >> homes, they have worthy memories. > >> > >> ALAN COOK > >> > >> > >> -----Original Message----- > >> From: Hobey Ford > >> Sent: Monday, October 13, 2008 7:29 AM > >> To: puptcrit-AT-puptcrit.org > >> Subject: Re: [Puptcrit] Hastings marionette details > >> > >> Sue Hastings took a class taught by Charles (Max?) Searle, Sarg's > >> builder, > >> but thought he was holding back the good stuff so she is said to > >> have told > >> Sarg so on one of his visits to the class, and went right over to > >> his > >> marionettes and examined them and satisified, left. She basically > >> imitated > >> his style but didn't get so techical with her mechanisms. She > >> became his > >> biggest competition. Dorlis Grubidge's book Sue Hastings Puppet > >> Showwoman > >> is very well researched and written. When I was trying to figure > >> out what > >> I > >> had been given by the State Theater, her book gave me hints and > >> clues. It > >> was so fun. Here I had this pile of boxes filled with marionette > >> stuff and > >> photos and scrapbooks, but it had all been recycled and there were > >> hints > >> that these boxes of birthday party gear had more to them. When my > >> friend > >> Clyde popped off Jimmy Carter's plastic wood face and found > >> "Sepia" the > >> harlem dancer's face we knew there was a mystery. It was puppet > >> anthropology. One of the coolest coincidences was this little > >> article by > >> Sue's couisin telling of taking one of Sue's puppets that she had > >> bought > >> years before on a visit to Sue on her death bed. By the > >> description I > >> found > >> the marionette and then with Dorlis' book I glanced at a date in > >> the book > >> which was that days date, Sue 's Birthday. So here I was holding > >> the last > >> puppet she came into contact with the day before she died and I > >> discovered > >> it on her birthday. Thus the title of the article "the secret > >> life of > >> puppets". They seemed to be waiting to be re-discovered. When > >> you operate > >> them stripped down of later post-Sue "modifications" Its like the > >> original > >> craftspeoples intentions reveal themselves. I think much can be > >> learned by > >> handling these old figures, which unfortuately is mostly impossible. > >> > >> > >> On Sun, Oct 12, 2008 at 5:52 PM, <puppetpro-AT-aol.com> wrote: > >> > >>> Thanks, Hobey. > >>> I also loved your article a while back about the other Hastings > >> marionette > >>> discovered/uncovered/recovered ! Very interesting stuff. Did Sue > >> Hastings > >>> learn from Max Searle, Tony Sarg's builder? > >>> > >>> > >>> > >>> > >>> Rolande > >>> > >>> > >>> > >>> > >>> -----Original Message----- > >>> From: Hobey Ford <hobeyone-AT-gmail.com> > >>> To: puptcrit-AT-puptcrit.org > >>> Sent: Sun, 12 Oct 2008 11:14 am > >>> Subject: [Puptcrit] Hastings marionette details > >>> > >>> > >>> > >>> > >>> > >>> > >>> > >>> > >>> Have a look at some photos of a Sue Hastings head and then a black > >>> character of Sue's as well. The knee joints were unusual for > >>> Hastings > >>> knees > >>> because of the ball and socket fit of the joint. It was > >>> originally a > >> black > >>> character but Sue's couisin Jessie Morrow used it in a Rip Van > >>> Winkle > >> show > >>> for empoyees at The Metropolitan Museum sometime in the mid > >>> sixties. I > >>> discovered the body was black beneath a coat of paint and under the > >> ribbon > >>> covered wax hands. The black head was an extra when I got it > >>> but on > >>> careful examination found that it belonged to this once black > >>> body. As > >>> with > >>> all the figures there was a lot of undoing of Jessie's > >>> modifications to > >> get > >>> down to original parts. I have around twelve figures and 20 or > >>> so heads. > >>> None were left intact by her cousin but were recycled into > >>> birthday party > >>> show figures. You can find the Cepia and Celephane figures at > >>> the photo > >>> gallery as well. > >>> > >>> http://www.hobeyford.com/album/hasting-marionette-details > >>> _______________________________________________ > >>> List address: puptcrit-AT-puptcrit.org > >>> Admin interface: > >>> http://lists.puptcrit.org/mailman/listinfo/puptcrit0AArchives: > >>> http://www.driftline.org > >>> > >>> > >>> > >>> > >>> > >>> > >>> > >>> > >>> _______________________________________________ > >>> 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 > >> > >> > >> > >> _______________________________________________ > >> 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 > > > _______________________________________________ > 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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