A sweet sailor...

Today I'd like to thank Rick Jenkins for adopting sweet Little Joe at this year's convention. This great dummy was made by George & Glenn McElroy of Harrison, Ohio, and was used by Mumford Platt of Cincinnati, Ohio. Vent Haven founder W.S. Berger corresponded primarily with Platt's widow, Ethel, who sold Little Joe to Mr. Berger for $125.00 in 1959.

Little Joe arrived at the Haven on November 7th of that year. Ethel kept in touch with W.S. and always commented about Little Joe. In a letter dated March 4, 1960, Ethel wrote, "Last fall when you purchased my Little Joe, I was both relieved to know he would be with someone who loved him, and I was pleased to receive your letter stating that he was quite content. Strange how one gets accustomed to these dummies who seem almost human at times when the right person is interested."

In the May 1938 issue of The Commentator (pp. 51-5), Platt wrote a very informative and educational article entitled, "I'm a Ventriloquist," where he states, "...my own instruction in the art was obtained from two small handbooks on the subject , one entitled Practical Ventriloquism by Robert Ganthony, and another on Ventriloquism, by Charles H. Olin."

I picked Little Joe today since he's a cute little sailor and Veteran's Day is this coming weekend. On a suggestion by a friend, the dummies up for adoption this week on our website are all 'military men.' Who can resist a guy in uniform, right? If you're interested adopting a dummy in uniform, click here!