When Edgar Bergen was out in Hollywood performing in movies with Charlie McCarthy it was no problem for him to have Charlie attired in the best of cloths as they were all custom made for him. I can’t say for sure that Edgar was able to keep all the clothing but I assume he would because who else would have been able to wear the costumes. I do know he had a room in the house which just had Charlie’s clothing so the wardrobe must have been extensive.
His top hat was made by Barrons of Hollywood and they are still in business today and I have recently been told they sell the top hat that fits Charlie McCarthy for $350.00. Considering that the hat has to be hand made I don’t think that is too bad a price.
Charlie’s head wore a size 6 1/4 which to find an existing silk top hat in that size is a near impossibility today. That is a child’s size hat and a child would only have had this type hat if he was from a very well to do family. Not many were produced hence the rarity of this size especially in the United States. Over in Europe there is a much better chance of finding one as there were many more aristocratic families there with children that would have been formally attired.
I have seen many size 6 7/8 which can be used but a piece of foam must be placed inside around the brim to take up the extra room. That is what Bob Isaacson did to make the top hat fit on the Charlie now residing in the Ventriloquist Central Collection.
A Reminder:
Don’t forget, tonight is is my interview with ventriloquist Pete Michaels on BlogTalkRadio at 6pm eastern, 5pm central, 3pm pacific. For more information go to:
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/ventriloquistcentral
Dan
www.ventriloquistcentral.com
***************************************************
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 2010 by Dan Willinger
NOTE: You may use this blog article provided you run it with the bio box intact. Please email a copy of your publication with the blog article in it to: webmaster@ventriloquistcentral.com
