This exhibition unfolds the history of ventriloquism from the darkness of witchcraft to present-day performing art. Take a cultural journey from the writings of Plato to America’s Got Talent and enjoy an eye-popping array of ventriloquial figures from the 1800’s to the present day. These include many iconic characters, such as Edgar Bergen’s Charlie McCarthy, who made the cover of Time Magazine in the 1940’s, and Paul Winchell’s Jerry MaHoney, who starred in a national TV show in the 1950’s. Other star characters on display are Emmy-award winner Shari Lewis’s Lamb Chop and ventriloquist winners from America’s Got Talent.
The mechanics inside ventriloquial figures predate much of today’s animatronics and this exhibit shows how the ventriloquist activates them. QR codes throughout the display allow visitors to view videos.
Valentine Vox (condensed from Wikipedia)
Vox is a British-born American ventriloquist and author known for his scholarly book on the history of ventriloquism, I Can See Your Lips Moving: the history and art of ventriloquism, which traces the practice back some three thousand years.
As a performer his career spanned over 50 years with appearances in venues around the world in theaters, cabarets, and on television. Besides English, he has performed his act in both Japanese and German. In 1981, he staged the first exhibition on ventriloquism at the Victoria & Albert’s Museum of Childhood in London.
From 1995 to 2000, he performed in his own show, More Magic on the Las Vegas strip, doing both ventriloquism and magic. He also founded the International Ventriloquist Association, of which he became the director, and for nine years he organized an annual ventriloquist convention in Las Vegas that brought together some of the biggest names in ventriloquism, including Jay Johnson, Jimmy Nelson, Ronn Lucas, Jeff Dunham, and the legendary Paul Winchell.
On exhibit at Sahara West Library from August 11 - November 1, 2026
Monday: 10:00AM – 8:00PM
Tuesday: 10:00AM – 8:00PM
Wednesday: 10:00AM – 8:00PM
Thursday: 10:00AM – 8:00PM
Friday: 10:00AM – 6:00PM
Saturday: 10:00AM – 6:00PM
Sunday: 10:00AM – 6:00PM
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