Back
in 1958 my friend and ventriloquist Kenny Warren was a twelve year old boy who sent
for a ticket to attend a broadcast of “The Paul Winchell Show.” Kenny being
only a kid didn’t realize that he wasn’t supposed to just go back every week
for the next seven weeks once the learned the way there; so that’s what he did.
On Sunday he’d dress up in his sport jacket to look like a grown up and head
out. It was a long trip for a small kid to first take a bus from East Flatbush,
Brooklyn to the train and then transfer to yet another one...and then one more
to his destination, The ABC-TV Studio at 7 West 66th Street in Manhattan. Surprisingly no one tossed him out, The pages at the
studio actually waved him in “Oh it’s you; come on in,” and he’d watch the
rehearsals as well as the show as it went on the air for all the nation to enjoy.
But that is not the coolest part of his story; you see Winch took a personal
liking to the kid and little Kenny kept going back week after week during that
spring of 1958. Now Winch’s initial interest could also have been his
understandable concern about this kid who made the trip to Manhattan all the
way from Brooklyn to be there because Winchell did ask to meet Kenny’s parents.
So at one point they came with Kenny and appreciatively thanked Winchell for
what he was doing for their son who had a fascination for ventriloquism. Kenny
tells me that Winch was humbled by their thanks. “When he met my parents he
said to them "One day this kid will knock me off the bench!" Yet another
exceptionally kind gesture.”
Winch
liked to joke with the camera men and would throw his voice mimicking the sound
boom with the directions “Dolly in; dolly in,” and the guys would pull in the
microphone boom for an unplanned close up. You might be interested to learn
that when Winch did his character Oswald Goody-Goody he did not lay on his back
to invert Oswald for the camera, but had the camera lens itself turned so as to
show the image upside down. “I recall the TV cameraman twisting the lens turret
and then closely and steadily focus in on Winchell's chin (who had Oswald's
little suit covering his face)...The final result when seen on TV was wonderful!
Winchell enjoyed doing it, I recall...He'd smack his lips and intentionally
stick out and move his tongue in an intentional manner; it was hysterical!”
Without Kenny
asking him, Winchell made Kenny his young protégé. He would go over to Kenny
during times when the technicians were busy and say “Here; look. This is how
you do the labials; put your tongue right where your upper palate meet your
teeth like this. See?” Winch would also show him how to manipulate Jerry to get
a life like movement. After his live telecasts many of Winchell's audience
members would gather by the parking garage across from his TV studio to await
his departure. Winchell would distribute (free) color postcards as souvenirs
which featured his "Circus Time" photo of himself with Jerry. On the
reverse side was his (and Jerry's) printed autographs. He would often kibitz
with the gathered crowd. "Winchell approached me one Sunday and asked if I
would like to have his photo (an 8x10 glossy of the famous Winchell and Mahoney
taken by the famous James J. Kriegsman Studios). I immediately asked if he
would sign it and of course he obliged. I still have that framed personally
signed photo proudly on my wall! It reads "To Kenny, Good luck with your art
... Paul Winchell/Jerry Mahoney". Now that's a wonderful personal good
luck wish indeed! I'm sure it's an unusual, short message".
Winch
gave Kenny W.S.Berger’s Vent Haven Museum address in Kentucky and when it
arrived in the mail, Kenny proudly wore his IBV pin on his lapel! He tells me
Winchell drove a big blue new model Oldsmobile and within it was a large reel
to reel tape recorder, custom mounted onto the interior's floor console. This
was of course a very impressive and cool thing to see back then. Kenny was
photographed with Winchell using his own little Argus black and white film camera
not only proudly standing next to Winch, but also photographed alone holding
Jerry or Knucklehead. That took a tremendous amount of trust and confidence on
Winchell’s part.
Winch
remembered Kenny years later and contacted him asking to try and help find someone
to video tape record an east coast interview he'd done. This was without Jerry.
By the way, as we all know, Winchell's old TV shows' kinescopes were destroyed.
Winchell won the law suit and collected a very sizable amount of financial
compensation from the Metromedia Corp. But Winch knew that the money couldn't
replace the priceless memories (filled with countless hours of hard work) that
would've been passed to on generations of children and the Judge agreed.
Kenny
Warren was there when who but Jimmy Nelson was on the show for a wonderful
segment in which Jerry Mahoney and Danny O'Day switched voices for a
specialized routine. On that day Kenny asked Jimmy for an autograph and Jimmy
said “Sure give me your address and I'll send you one.” Well we assume that as
busy as Jimmy was he simply forgot, realizing that Jimmy was the type of person
who would never disappoint a fan let alone a child fan. I mentioned all this to
Jimmy not long ago, and he remembered doing that show and I reminded him that
he made a promise a very long time ago. Shortly thereafter Kenny got a signed
autographed picture with a note saying “Sorry it took so long to get this to
you.” Kenny Warren is truly twice blessed by the greats within our ventriloquist
community!
Kenny was
there this day too!
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