Vent Haven has more than 750 historic and/or unusual ventriloquial figures — colloquially and sometimes controversially known as “dummies.”
The museum regularly gets international attention. It has been featured by the New York Times, National Public Radio, and numerous websites have listed it as one of the world’s 10 weirdest museums.
Yet Vent Haven also has potential interest as an art museum, a pop-culture and entertainment-history museum.
Featured Dummies
Red Flannels
Created by: Frank Marshall
Used by: Terry Bennett
Trivia:
- Red Flannels was the main figure of television vent Terry Bennett.
- Bennett and Red appeared together on the ABC children's television show Jobblewocky Place from 1954 through 1963.
- The original Red Flannels was a Turner figure. The figure in Vent Haven Museum was purchased by Bennett from legendary figure maker Frank Marshall early in Bennett's career.
- This figure is on display in Building One of the museum.
Jacko
Created by: George and Glenn McElroy
Used by: W.S. Berger
Trivia:
- Jacko was the favorite figure of Berger's wife Josephine.
- Berger had Jacko made to be used with the hurdy gurdy in an organ grinder act.
- Berger purchased Jacko for $125. He paid for the figure in five monthly installments of $25 each.
- This figure is on display in Building One of the museum.