It seems that every so often the same questions crop up again about figure making and therefore it seemed like a good idea to put all the information in one place for easy reference. To better organize the resources, I'll attempt to divide them between:
These are the books on making a hard figure which I know of. If you know of any others, please email the information to me at gkoepke@bellsouth.net.
There are several books on figure making that deal with making figures out of anything except wood. Most are wood dough, although, Ray Guyll's book covers another type of composition and John Osborne’s book covers wood dough, fiber glass, paper mache, and wood. Joel Leder's books cover fiberglass and Mike Brose covers a variety of compositions. Some makers make a mold and then cast the head from the mold while other's actually apply the composition (wood dough) over an armature and model and carve it to the way they want it to look. No matter what the head is made of, the basic principles of the movements is the same with the attachment of the mechanism to the head the primary difference.
Figure Making Can Be Fun by Michael Brose. Actually, I suspect this book started as Mike's site on figure making and grew into this volume. Great stuff here and I'm thrilled to say that he mentioned me within it's pages. Very detailed "how to's" on molding and mechanics many of which have never been published elsewhere as far as I know. One of those great references every figure maker or wannabe should have on his bench especially with all the the different methods covered. Can't wait to see all the figures that I'm sure will come out of this book. The direct link to the book page is http://www.puppetsandprops.com/DummyBooks.html
Joel Leder's Series by Joel Leder. This is actually 4 books and growing! It started as an excellent set of lecture notes from his lecture on cloning your vent partner that he presented during the convention in Las Vegas (1997). The lecture was called 'Dummy Insurance' and was such a hit Joel has done a lecture each year since and added a set of notes as well. So far there is a set on creating a clay model of the head, making a mold, casting the head, and installing mechanics which go into detail on moving mouth, eyes, winkers, and moving eyebrows. The final installment on painting the figure and building the body is now finished as well. Yes, it costs more than most of the figure making books, but it's not just one book either. The notes are available from Joel so email him at dummyproduction@cs.com.
How To Make Your Own Ventriloquist Figure by Ray & Barbara Guyll. Mold making using RTV molding material and casting a head of 'Light Cast'. One of my favorite books by one of my favorite makers. Instructions on moving mouth and eyes and for the body and such. I like this book so much that I now carry it for sale. Email me at gkoepke@bellsouth.net for details.
How To Build A Ventriloquist Dummy by Brant Gilmer. Brant gives a brief overview of the carving process and some good tips on techniques. Basically not much on how to actually carve, but if you already know how to carve you should be able to utilize this book beautifully. Instruction on moving eyes and mouth. Sorry to say that I hear this book is no longer available from Brant.
How To Build A Dummy by John Osborne. Wood carving, wood dough, paper mache, and fiber glass using molds. Moving mouth and eyes. Not sure where it is currently available, you may try the Puppeteers of America Store... I know it used to be available there.
Make Your Own Dummy by William H. Anderson. I believe this was the first book devoted to building ventriloquist figures. The approach in this book is applying wood dough over clay head instead of making a mold. Detailed instructions for moving mouth and eyes. Simple instructions on putting in winking eyes, moving eyebrows, raising upper lip, etc. Available from Maher Studios, Box 420, Littleton, CO. On line catalog at http://www.maherstudios.com or you may wish to see if he sells these direct. Contact William Anderson at 5212 Elisa Drive, Racine, WI 53406.
Ventriloquism For Fun & Profit by Paul Winchell. Had two chapters on making the head, 2 chapters on movements (mouth & eyes), a chapter on building the body, and a chapter on painting. Good instruction plus his wonderful instruction on vent in general. I don't know who carries this now as I bought mine in 1970 from W.S. Berger. Check your library or Jerry Layne.
Mike Brose Heads and stuff. Mike has just recently started selling molded fiberglass heads that already have the mouth and trap door cut out and the mouth fitted for the head. That's a big headache out of the way and a quality head that should last a long time. This particlular head reminded me of Frank Marshall's work in the photo's. Price was great too! Although I haven't seen it on his site, I have seen feet and hands that were molded by Mike as well. The direct link to the head page is http://puppetsnprops.homestead.com/HeadCastings.html With this head and Mike's book, I would think one could turn out a quality figure that could suite someone for a lifetime.
William Anderson Kits. Anderson offers partially completed heads and body parts. I have not used them myself, but have seen them and know several vents who have built nice looking figures from them. Contact William Anderson at 5212 Elisa Drive, Racine, WI 53406.
Captain Dick's 'Henry' Kit. Designed by Dick Wightman and originally produced by a toy company and then produced by Dick himself. Was a wonderful kit and a lot of fun to build and use. Some vents have made some wonderfully creative changes to the 'Henry' kit to make it their special creation. Unfortunately the Captain is no longer making the kits, but you may be able to find a copy of his first "Logbook" which had some early instructions for making the figure.
Assembling 'Henry' Video by Captain Dick Wightman. Dick called his video organization "Rough as a Cobb Productions" and it is. No frills here, but solid information. I believe I bought the first tape and the section on painting the figure alone was worth the price of the tape! The Captain no longer sells this, but if you find a copy it will be worth your while to pick it up.
Leichtung Workshops. Some nice tools and some specialty tools as well. Plans for toys, furniture, etc. For a catalog write Leichtung Workshops, 1108 N. Glenn Road, Casper, WY 82601 or phone: 1-800-321-6840.
Wood Carvers Supply, Inc. Great source of quality knives, tools, duplicarvers, books on wood carving, and books on modeling heads in clay. What I've ordered from them has been quality and good service. For a catalog write Wood Carvers Supply, Inc., P.O. Box 7500, Englewood, FL 34295-7500 or phone: 1-800-284-6229.
Woodworker's Supply. I've only ordered books from them, but they seem to be reliable and fast on delivery. Carry tools, hardware, finishing supplies, etc. for the serious woodworker. For a catalog write Woodworker's Supply, 1108 North Glenn Road, Casper, WY 82601 or phone: 1-800-645-9292.
Tim Selberg. Not only is Tim one of the finest figure makers ever, he's a nice guy too. He makes available glastic eyes, molded hands, feet, bodies, etc. Contact Tim at selberg@concentric.net
Tallina's Doll Supply is primarily a doll making supply company, but has a great selection of eyes and even wigs for smaller figurs. For a catalog write Tallina's Doll Supply, 15791 S.E. Hwy. 224, Clackamas, OR 97015 or on the web at http://www.dollsupply.com/.
Dick Blick Art Supplies. They carry some carving tools, some mold making products, basswood blocks, artist oils, etc. Definitely aimed at the commercial art supply trade, but have several things which would apply towards figure making. They have several stores around the country, but also do a lot of mail order. For a catalog write Dick Blick, P.O. Box 1267, Galesburg, IL 61402-1267 or phone: 1-800-447-8192.
Mike Brose has put together an EXCELLENT site on building a hard figure at http://www.puppetsandprops.com/home.html. He's also written a book on the subject which is excellent. Check out the details on his web page and I'll be adding some info on it shortly myself. Mike works professionally making molds and such and this gives an excellent presentation on getting professional results. I only wish I had this info 30 years ago when I was first trying to learn!
Making Puppets with Verna by Verna Finly. Verna is one of the greatest of the soft puppet figure makers. She's made some of the most wonderful characters around such as Jeff Dunham's 'Peanut' and if you attend any ventriloquist convention you'll see her influence everywhere. These tapes were edited from a live workshop she gave on making soft figures and consists of two VHS tapes, patterns to go with the puppets she makes on the video, and a sheet of resources. It's very well done and I think that anyone could follow her instructions and make a soft figure they'd be proud of. Not sure of where to get this at the moment, but am trying to find a source.
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