Leather Neck or Wedge Design

A good question was presented to me asking if I knew when Marshall stopped using the leather under the chin on the neck and went to his wedge design. This I think is a very good question but it may be one of those questions without a definitive answer.

Marshall used the leather under the chin on the neck exclusively through at least the late 1940’s. I have one Marshall that is dated inside the head 1948 that has the wedge design.

I don’t know any earlier figures that had the wedge design. Now Marshall did in fact use the leather on the neck up into the 1950’s because my friend Colin from Australia confirmed that Gerry Gee , Ron Blaskett’s Marshall figure, was carved in 1955 and that figure has the leather on the neck.

The figures that Marshall produced after 1950 all seem to have the wedge design but I am sure upon request the leather may have been used.

I would love to have some of you write in and give some light on this subject.

 

Dan
www.ventriloquistcentral.com

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Dan Willinger is a ventriloquism enthusiast and ventriloquist figure collector. He has been collecting for over 25 years. He created the Ventriloquist Central Collection. It now has over 100 ventriloquist figures and over 50 of them are Frank Marshall figures. Because of his love for the art of ventriloquism, Mr. Willinger created the website Ventriloquist Central. For more information about the website, go to: http://www.ventriloquistcentral.com

Copyright 2009 by Dan Willinger

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4 Responses to Leather Neck or Wedge Design

  1. Bob Isaacson says:

    Dan…my first Marshall, 1951 had no leather neck, neither did Danny O’day, 1945.

  2. bob abdou says:

    hey dan please excuse the poor writing have a new phone with a keyboard and l am still trying to learn it. the marshall figure l own made in 1931 has a leather mouth and a very primative headstick with a ring to make the mouth move. also he has rolling eyes. no eye shell lids ..l will send a picture once l get back . l am having breakfast with bob isaccson and chuck field here in chicago. l am performing my beatles.show. peace bob

  3. LeeDean says:

    I remember an early photo of Nelson on VH museum website that looked like it had the leather, but was wrong because Ray Guyll worked on figure and Danny did not have leather. Using windows photo gallery capability to blow up photo there was clearly no leather imprint in that photo of young Jimmy pointing at the early Danny probably taken 1945, so it had to be around 1945 for introduction of wedge design.

  4. George Boosey says:

    Oscar was carved for Peter Rich in 1947 and has the wedge design.

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