Ken Spencer...Vaudevillian Vent

Ken Spencer and 'Jerry' courtesy of VentHaven

I knew Ken Spencer. I was just a kid, but he made my first figure. More about that later. Biographically, Ken's life was at the very least, colorful.

He was born in Frontenelle, Iowa, August 30th, 1899. At an early age his parents drifted to South Dakota, in a covered wagon, and settled in Highmore, where his father held a claim, in the southern part of town. Ken saw Indians, wagon trains, prairie dogs, coyotes and rattlesnakes.

Later, he opened a small motorcycle business. The venture was not very prosperous, so he gave it up.

In 1919, he worked his way to Chicago, and secured employment in the Excelsior Motorcycle factory.

Excelsior Motorcylce 1918

Oddly enough, it was there he discovered, that a lady taught Ventriloquism in the Chicago Musical Seminary. The teacher was Marie Greer Macdonald, the president of the organization. The enrollment fee was $50.00, for lessons in "How to make a figure talk", and $50.00 additional for "distant voices".

Marie Greer McDonald

Ken became fascinated after reading the booklet issued by the school, so he enrolled. The teacher was a clever ventriloquist, but imparted very little material. Years later Ken grumbled to me, that it was a complete waste of time. Later, he prepared (as a protest I think) a little 'one sheet' on how to do ventriloquism and included it with every figure he made. "He was always saying everything you need to know about ventriloquism is on this little piece of paper."

Ken made his second attempt to master the art, and it bore good fruit. He contacted Harry Fetterer, a professional ventriloquist. Harry agreed to teach Ken, for $1.00 per hour, so he invested $188.00 on lessons embracing the various phases of ventriloquism. Ken also told me that at that time (1918) $188.00 was a fortune and regretted spending the money when he could tell you how to do it on his 'one sheet," giveaway. Through the years the fact that he paid a good sum of money to learn the craft really rankled his ire!

When he was proficient in the art, Harry introduced him to the amateur night circuit in the Chicago area. The circuit was very helpful, it gave amateurs a chance to overcome stage fright and to gain experience.

Ken would do his act, get heckled by the audience, and get hauled off stage in a wheelbarrow while being pummeled with tomatoes. (I saw that happen to Al Getler once)

But, he would pick himself up and do it again the next week. When he would come out the audience would often yell, "Get rid of the dummy, bring on the girls!."

Ken purchased his first professional figure from Theodore Mack & Son, then located at West Harrison Street, Chicago. He made such a nuisance of himself Charlie Mack put him to work roughing out hands. Eventually he decided to start making figures on his own. This was around 1934. He quit his job and turned pro.

Mack head, Courtesy Willinger collection

He performed in medicine shows, circuses, carnivals, churches, night clubs, was his own booker and finally organized, his own road show. He was famous for his original mechanical novelty production "Rubeville Five"......a barrel of fun.

The Rubeville Five

The Rubeville Five today at VentHaven

In 1963, after mowing lawns for a couple of months to save up money, I had purchased my first ‘Jerry Mahoney’ figure through Sears. I had watched Winchell for years on television, but it wasn’t until the early 60’s that I had discovered that a figure such as the Mahoney doll could be purchased commercially. I was 13 years old and mighty proud of that doll and actually can boast that my first professional show was with the Mahoney Juro figure.

The author, with his 'Jerry.'

It didn’t take me long before I started thinking about a professional figure. But, in those days, as a young boy, I had no idea where to look for a figure. Curiously, I had gotten a copy of the Finis Robinson catalog and would sit around dreaming about ordering a figure from Finis.

The infamous Finis & Co. catalog

My Father, a professional musician, had worked with vent Dick Weston on the fair circuits. (Yes, Dick started off as a 'corn field' artist!) Consequently, with my interest in vent, and my Father’s encouragement, I began corresponding with Dick in the early sixties. By this time he was headlining in Vegas. In one letter, I told Dick that I wanted a professional figure and that I was thinking about buying one from Finis. He wrote back and said, "Uh, i don't think that's a very good idea..." but he didn't reiterate. He did inform me that there was a “Very fine figure maker right in Minneapolis by the name of Ken Spencer.”

Clarence, Dick Weston and Aunt Martha

Dick passed along his number and I placed the call. Ken answered the phone and we set up a time when I would come to visit him and talk about his making a figure for me. I’m guessing this was some time in 1963.

My Mother drove me to Ken’s house. It was a modest home, located in South Minneapolis on Columbus Avenue. Ken invited us in, took us through the living room, through the kitchen, and back into a small work area. I estimate today, that the area was about 12 X 12 feet. There was one window, a small workbench and wood carving tools hanging on the wall above the bench. One other thing: there was a very old ventriloquist head sitting on the bench. I asked him about it and he said it was a head that was made by Charlie Mack.

Ken, a tall man with reddish hair, inquiring eyes, and always a slight smile on his face, was wearing a pair of farmer overalls and a plaid shirt. He pulled out a small 6X9 card that had a number of character heads on it.

I immediately selected a cheeky fresh kid and he indicated that he had one partially completed and would I like him to finish up that one for me? I said yes. He then asked me what features I wanted. I selected “automatic eyes,” (a weight connected to the eyes in the head. When you tilted the head to the right the eyes went left, to the left, then right. It actually worked quite well. I also added moving eyebrows. Each additional feature was 10 or 15 dollars extra. Total cost for this first figure? $115.00.Two weeks later, (yes two weeks) Ken called and the figure was ready. My parents had purchased him as a birthday present. I named him Simon Spencer and he is still a staple in my act today.

First Publicity shot with Simon Spencer

One thing I remember about that new figure. The paint. It was oil based and probably mixed from various house paints. In fact, even today, if I open the mouth of ‘Simon,’ I can still smell that paint as the inside of his mouth has the original paint on it. And the detail of the paint job was very vaudevillian. Large and bold brush strokes around the eyes, and mouth. Intense red for the lips. And of course, the rosy cheeks of the classic fresh kid.I have very fond memories as a boy, getting up in the middle of the night, and opening up the suitcase that held my Simon. I would just sit there with an overwhelming sense of pride of ownership over this first professional figure.

In brief I have just explained the process of getting a figure from him. In reality, I was at his house for over three hours that day. As a young boy, interested in ventriloquism, it was fascinating for me. My Mother, on the other hand, didn’t think he would ever shut up! Ken made no pretense about the ever decreasing supply of material for his figures. He would stuff the arms and legs of the bodies with “excelsior,” which was used for stuffing furniture in its day. He would wet it down, and then mold it to form the arms or legs. His sources for this material were dwindling and it upset him. Ken also used taxidermist eyes in his figures and was always complaining that they were getting difficult to find. This as well as procuring the right size wooden balls that he used for the eyes themselves. Remember, this was long before the internet and sources for material were hard to come by.

Ken had a template that he used for the head, which was three planks of basswood glued together. He would then draw on one side of the wood a template which was really a very general outline of a head. He would make up a half dozen of these blocks and take them to a woodcarvers shop in Minneapolis where they would cut out the basic form for him. He would then return to his shop, set a form in the vise and go to work.

He was fast. Very, very fast. I watched him rough out an entire head in about a 45 minutes one time. Absolutely amazing to see him work.

He was quite the story teller. He told me one time of meeting the Great Lester. They had some correspondence and had agreed to exchange each others act. So, according to Ken, he typed up his routines, sent them to Lester and Lester never returned the gesture!” Interestingly, all the time I associated with Ken, he always had a picture of Lester on his wall in the studio.

Ken was also an acquaintance of Edgar Bergen. He shared with me one time that he had Bergen out to his house and set up his act for the great ventriloquist. He went trough his Rubeville Five routine. Remember, he operated five figures some of them with his foot. He would cause heads to pop up and down out of the barrel. Ken always used to explain to me that he would do a gag with the figure on his knee, the audience would laugh and then a head would pop up out of the barrel and laugh as if just getting the joke. This would cause the audience to laugh again. According to Ken, “It was a great piece of business. I could get two laughs out of every joke.” He got the figure to go back into the barrel by hitting it over the head with a rolled up newspaper.

At the end of this chicanery, Bergen said:“ Ken, I do believe yours is the greatest novelty act in America today. The question is, what are you going to do with it?” Ken took a lot of pride in that comment from Bergen.

Here are some close ups of the Rubeville Five. Courtesy of VentHaven.

Now the question arises. "Isn't that rather racist?" Of course it is! It is also historical.

Ken never really changed his act and in the 60's he would go out and perform and the clients would be absolutely appalled at the racial content of his show. Ken could never figure out why. He was definately an unchanging product of his time.

In the late 60’s I had Ken carve me a duplicate Simon. I was absolutely astounded at the accuracy. This while he complained of growing cataracts. By the mid seventies his eyesight had gotten so bad that the figures he was carving were taking on enormous proportions. In addition to this, his memory was going. One time, I sold back to him a figure that he had made for me in the late 60's. About a month later I came by for a visit and he said: “Say Dave, this young fellow came by the other day and sold me back one of my dummies. You wouldn’t be interested in buying it would you?” I still have a good laugh over the fact that he had forgotten it was me that had sold him the figure in the first place.

Some more early photos of Simon Spencer with a young author.

Speaking of laughs, one time Ken demonstrated the distant voice for me. Now mind you, he was in his 80's so the voice wasn't as clear as in his younger days. Ken said, "You have to push the voice back in the throat. Hello, hello, hello, hello. "(voice was gravelly and not at all in the back of the throat)"hello, hello, hello, hello. Back in throat." (I was thinking at this point that there was so much phlegm coming up that he must of had bronchitis or something) "If I just keep doing this Dave, the voice will get very clear. Hello, hello, hello, hello."(cough, hack, cough, hack hack hack!!!!!) It makes me laugh thinking of it.

Ken was always busy. Often he had orders a year in advance. They would come from all over the country. I am not aware of how many figures he carved but I know there must be a lot of them out there gathering dust these days. They are truly beautiful works. Most of the original Spencer figures you find today have that antique vaudeville quality about them. That is how he learned his craft. But, with a new paint job, his figures operate and look today just as good as anything being made.

Interestingly enough, I have never had a single mechanical problem with my Ken Spencer figures. This in over 60 years of service. Quite a testimony to a master craftsman.

Both the characters you see below are staples in my act. Though carved over 60 years ago, thanks to the artistry of Austin Phillips they look as contemporary as any figure out there. On the left or first, Simon Spencer, next is Lars Gunderson.

Tom Ladshaw once called Simon a Spencer masterpiece. I am inclined to agree.

I was out of the country when Ken passed. It was a freak accident. He was in his 80's and up on a ladder changing storm windows on a second floor. He fell off the ladder and never recovered.

He was carving right until the end. He kept at it. I asked him once if he was happy being a ventriloquist? He said, "Happy? What has that got to do with it? I never made a plug nickel doing this." But he kept doing it and we are all the better for it.

Salute!

David Malmberg

Vent-o-Gram

Some biographical information taken from  "The Oracle", July-August 1960 issue

Many thanks to Lisa Sweasy and crew at VentHaven for photos of Ken.

Next on vent-o-gram, a conversation with Lynn Trefzger.

2026 Copyright Swampsong, LLC