Thanks to Tom Dahl...

Thanks to Tom Dahl for adopting Jay Marshall's "Lefty" at convention this past summer. Vent Haven's "Lefty" was made by Marshall in February of 1946.

W.S. Berger and Jay Marshall began corresponding in 1937. Jay wrote that he was attending Bluefield College in West Virginia and that he would be doing shows with his dummy "Henry" to keep up with the bills.

Jay joined the International Brotherhood of Ventriloquists very early in its history; he was #33 in the membership. Jay noted in a letter to Vent Haven in 1994 that he could always remember his IBV number because it was the same as Mr. Berger's house number.

Jay Marshall's career as a magician and ventriloquist is legendary. He also served on the Vent Haven Museum Board of Advisors for many years. You can read a bit about him here, but the better option is to find someone who knew him personally as the stories his friends and colleagues tell are full of wit and humor.

Jay Marshall passed in 2005 and Vent Haven had a special exhibit for him at convention that summer.