Houston ventriloquists to appear at Rotary, Holiday Open House - Your Houston News: News

Phil Nichols and Bosworth the Crow

Houston ventriloquists to appear at Rotary, Holiday Open House

By Brad Meyer | Posted: Monday, November 19, 2012 11:59 pm


At least two of the featured speakers at today’s Conroe Rotary Club meeting will be real dummies.
Professional ventriloquists Phil and Melissa Nichols, and their pals, Bosworth the crow and Ick the germ, are the featured speakers at the Conroe Rotary Club meeting at noon today at First Baptist Church of Conroe, located at 600 N. Main Street.

“We’ll be doing a short program to help promote the upcoming Holiday Open House coming in December,” Phil Nichols said. “We have been doing a lot of movie special effects, puppetry and animatronics, but the puppet are always popular at live events.”

The brother and sister team got into ventriloquism at an early age. Their expertise with puppets and specialty makeup led them to a career in show business, primarily in film and live stage productions.
“We worked on Disney’s film ‘Powder’ and ‘Ace Ventura II’ as well as numerous other films,” Phil Nichols said. “We’re currently doing the special effects for ‘Toxic Avenger’ at the Alley Theatre in Houston.”



Ad poster for the Vent Show

The duo will be featured at the Holiday Open House from 1-5 p.m. Dec. 8, sponsored by Stage Right at the Crighton Theatre in Conroe. The family event features a variety of entertainment, crafts, activities and two shows by Phil and Melissa Nichols.
“We haven’t done a lot of public ventriloquism shows lately,” Phil Nichols said. “But it’s coming back as a popular form of entertainment, so we’re renewing our act and working on expanding our lineup of puppets.”

The pair learned the art of ventriloquism from the internationally known performer Edgar Bergen. They create their own puppet characters that they use on stage.
“Learning to throw your voice isn’t really that hard,” Phil Nichols said. “The hard part is developing characters and learning to change voices rapidly and keep the material fast-paced and fun. That can be a challenge.”

The popularity of zombie and horror films has created significant competition in the special effects industry, he said. While the pair continues to work in the industry and has a line of specialty zombie makeup popular at Halloween, they are hoping to get more stage time in ventriloquism.

Melissa and Charlene Peckerwood

“I’ve created dozen’s of dummies over the years, but I only use two at the moment – Bosworth the crow and Corky the smart-aleck boy,” Phil Nichols said. “Melissa has a dummy called Charlene Peckerwood and Ick the germ.”
The entertainers will give a holiday-themed performance at the Rotary meeting today highlighting the upcoming Holiday Open House hosted by Stage Right in December. The event is scheduled to start after the Kiwanis Christmas parade in downtown Conroe.
For information on Phil and Melissa Nichols, visit www.texasvents.com and their special effects studio website at www.facadesfx.com.
Admission to the Holiday Open House at the Crighton Theatre, located at 234 N. Main Street in Conroe, is $5 and tickets can be purchased at the door. For information, call 936-441-SHOW or visit www.stage-right.org.


Houston ventriloquists to appear at Rotary, Holiday Open House - Your Houston News: News

Catching the Bug

CATCHING THE BUG- creating ICK The Germ
by Melissa L. Nichols

I came up with a design for a figure I wanted Phil to build for me. An unusual little fellow, who came from underneath the microscope. Being a bit of a germophobe in a world of germs, I thought it would be funny to poke fun at one of my skeeves by creating a talking germ, who could give an 'insider's' perspective on germs, viruses and all the nasty things that lurk within.



Ick is a bit on the cheeky side, and often makes light of the human misery he and his fellow microbial compadres inflict upon us. In a world of antibac this and that, his humor is much understood. We fear germs of all kinds from colds, to bird flu, to a zombie virus, so there is much material to pull from.

So I conceptualized him as a cartoon character, from which Phil could pull for his design. The end result was fantastic! Below are the in process images for my new pal who makes his Texas Vents debut in our Holiday Hilarity show at the historic Crighton Theatre in Conroe, TX in December, 2012.

Ick gives us his tips for holiday hygene, and sings the "Twelve Plagues of Christmas" (and original song written by me), and advises us all to give the gift that keeps on giving, which in his case happens to be: laughter.



The rough sculpture for ICK by Philip L. Nichols, Jr.



ICK in latex, out of the mold and ready for paint.



Texas Vents Holiday Vent Show December 8th!

HOLIDAY HILARITY

Come out and see our seasonal sensation, "Holiday Hilarity" as Texas Vents Philip L. Nichols, Jr. and Melissa L. Nichols take part in the annual Holiday Open House at Stage Right, a theatrical community.  Our show will be performed on the main stage at the historic Crighton theatre in Conroe, TX.

We will be doing two shows, so bring the family and kick off the holiday season with love and laughter!

Here is the schedule of events:

Event: STAGE RIGHT Holiday Open House

Date: Saturday Dec. 8 from 1-5 pm

 

 

Location: Crighton Theatre, 234 N. Main St., Conroe TX 77301, The theatre is located in downtown Conroe.

 

Times :

2 pm Puppet and Ornament making in Santa's Workshop (next door to the theatre)

2:30 pm TEXAS VENTS VENTRILOQUST SHOW-"Holday Hilarity"

3 pm Bravo Company Showcase

4 pm TEXAS VENTS VENTRILOQUIST SHOW-"Holiday Hilarity"

4:30 pm Pictures with Santa

 

 

MURDER FOR DUMMIES photo cavalcade

Here is a photo cavalcade of images from MURDER FOR DUMMIES:

Mean old Aunt Agatha and her Nurse Christie

Vera Charlemame arrives

Gloria Vanderby, Larchmont the butler, and Vera break out into an
impromptu dance number

Glora welcomes Corky and Lester

Everyone gathers after dinner to be entertained by Lester

Tension between William Vanderby and Vera Charlemame

Lester prepares to do his routine for the Vanderby family and guests

William Vanderby is stabbed!!

Tension between William and his sone Quentin

Major Catsup stabbed!!!

Moving the major to the boat house

Aunt Agatha knows a secret!

Sybil and Lester w/ Corky worry about who is to be murdered next

Sergeant Papert and Detective Bainbridge arrive on the scene

Despite the hangover, Vera loves a good mystery 

Corky vows to discover the identity of the killer

The climax of the play

Lester and Corky perform at the Rainbow Room

Corky relaxes on the set

Gloria is winded after her dance number

Lester and Corky

Lester shows Sybil the secret of ventriloquism

Nurse Christie is driven to drink by her employer

Vera always larger than life

Vera is sweet on Corky

MURDER FOR DUMMIES WORLD PREMIERE

Sergeant Papert is a fan of Corky's.

MURDER FOR DUMMIES-

"Murder For Dummies: a murder-mystery comedy in two acts by Philip L. Nichols, Jr. " had its world premiere on September 13th, at Houston's Country Playhouse.  Phil is a well known director there, and is also directing a production of Frankenstein  for the October slot.
Murder For Dummies was a huge success being cheered by audiences!

Major Catsup was stabbed on the living room sofa...who dunnit?

Phil, who wrote the play stars in the role of his main character, the Great Lester Winchell, a radio star ventriloquist who is invited to a posh country manner to provide entertaiment for the weekend gathering of Millionaire William Vanderby and his family. Set in 1930, and cast with a cavalcade of wacky characters, it is a funny whodunnit!

Vera wishes Corky a good night.

The very same weekend Lester and Corky arrive to entertain at Vanderby Manner, Hurricane Clementine hammers the area trapping the party indoors, and that is when ...a murder happens!  One, two, and three murders occur! It is up to The Great Lester and his pal Corky to solve the mystery and save the day!  Featuring film actress Yankie Grant as Vera Charlemame, a has been actress with a thing for Corky, the laughs never stop coming!

In the spirit of "Charlie McCarthy Detective" and "Clue", this is a comedy farce that will leave you laughing!

What critics had to say about Phil's ventriloquial skills: 

"Philip L. Nichols, Jr., is a marvelous ventriloquist named Lester Winchell and is delightful to experience with his doll, Corky O’Nelson."- Buzz Bellmont/ local theatre blogger.

Phil Nichols is The Great Lester w/ Corky O' Nelson.

"Doing triple duty as playwright, Lester Winchell, and Corky O’Nelson, Philip L. Nichols, Jr.’s ventriloquism skills are front and center in the production. Trained by Edgar Bergen, he fantastically delivers the ventriloquist illusion. I can’t recall ever seeing ventriloquism performed in real-life until this show, and I found myself particularly amazed by how well Philip L. Nichols, Jr. can throw his voice." -David Clarke/Broadway World.Com

The Great Lester explains the art of ventriloquism to Heiress Sybil Vanderby who
has a crush on the ventriloquial super star.

Video clips from this performance will be available on the TEXAS VENTS YOUTUBE CHANNEL very soon!

BOSWORTH runs for President!

TEXAS VENTS Artistic Director and Ventriloquial Entertainer Phil Nichols
and his fine feathered friend Bosworth the crow make a 2012 presidential bid.
Covering Bosworth's fledgling campaign efforts was local FOX26 affiliate reporter
Ned Hibberd who did this wonderful piece:

Dummy Throws Hat in Presidential Ring: MyFoxHOUSTON.com

Ned Hibberd-reporter

HOUSTON - Bosworth wants your vote for President in 2012. Even though he’s just a puppet - and he’s not really on the ballot.
“I thought, hey, if they need to put a dummy in the White House, let's put a real dummy in the White House,” said the bushy-eyed southern crow,
in a thick southern accent. “With me, you already know who's pulling on my strings.”
That would be Houston ventriloquist Phil Nichols. On a lark, he threw his dummy’s hat into the ring –
stocking a YouTube channel with videos of Bosworth’s campaign positions.
Nichols tells FOX 26 News he’s amazed at the response.
“I just can't believe it. You know, a couple weeks ago I said let's have my puppet run for President and see what happens.”

BOSWORTH for PRESIDENT!

BOSWORTH and his Ventriloquist, Philip L. Nichols.

Yes, that's right folks! That wise-cracking Crow from the old south has decided to throw his hat in the ring for the office of Crow-mander In Chief! 

Look for his stump speech and campaign ads on our youtube channel, and follow his campaign exploits as he takes on the competition and the issues with his own brand of southern fried humor!



BOSWORTH in 2012!

Bosworth flaps his wings

"Get me to the Caw-Caw-Caucus!"- Bosworth

Hatching the plan- the birth of a bird (Bosworth the Crow)

by Philip L. Nichols, Jr.



Bob Trent with Roscoe


When I was a young lad growing up in Central Illinois the big thing to do was to go to the county fair. One year at the fair a famous regional ventriloquist named Bob Trent was performing with his pal Roscoe. I went to see him taking my little pal Charlie with me. During his act he included Charlie and I. It was a great moment.  He passed on in 2000, and in his honor and for your entertainment pleasure I would like to present to you the making of Bosworth my wise cracking crow. 

I knew I wanted him to be a hard figure. I prefer using hard figures for ventriloquism. I acquired many manuals on dummy making and studied them over.

clay sculpture of Bosworth

Then I began. His head was sculpted out in Klean Klay.

Resin casting with the
working mechanisms.

A latex mold was made and a resin casting was poured up, which was mechanized for his raising eye brows, moving jaw and moving eyes.

I had Buzz at Braylu cast up a headstick and ball and socket transition neck in black resin.

His body was made of wood and covered with cardboard and fun fur. His wings are hinged and can flap for a bit of a gag.

Bosworth coming together.

I crudely carved his feet out of pine and screwed them onto his body. He is painted with acrylic paints, his mouth is lined with red felt and red neoprene craft foam. 

Feathers and black fun fur were used on his head and wings.
I use and old Mortimer Snerd straw skimmer hat with a new hat band and a size 4 vest I bought for him at Wal-Mart. 

welcoming Bosworth to the world.

Bosworth was welcomed into the world, and has been something to crow about ever since!