Issue 23 - November 08
Josephine
Langley Lady Ventriloquist, The Story of Mrs Edward Howarth
Dr Roger Woods and
Maurice S Howarth
Available from the author: Roger
Woods, 12 Curven Edge, Helmshore, Rossendale BB4 4LP
Price: £12
Chances
are you have not heard of Josephine Langley; I certainly hadn’t. She was a
ventriloquist who worked in the British music halls, who began her professional
performing career nearly a century ago, around the time of the onset of the
First World War in 1914. Her work encompassed a number of vent routines: from
tableaux of groups of dolls - worked pneumatically by a series of pipes, tubes,
bulbs and bladders - to the more familiar knee dolls. The story as told
continues to keep the readers’ interest, as Josephine emigrated to the
Magician-historian
Dr Roger Woods, together with help from Josephine Langley’s son – Maurice S
Howarth – has produced a charming booklet which introduces the story of this
little known vaudeville entertainer. It is very nicely illustrated, with
exceptionally well-reproduced photographs and reproductions of Josephine, her
dolls, and the lost world she inhabited. Her son, Maurice, followed in his
mother’s footsteps where his speciality was a Lefty-style hand figure called
“Josephine” as an affectionate tribute to his mother – again colourfully
illustrated. What comes through is a warm family story of continuity and regard;
Maurice continued with his mother’s work, and Josephine herself learnt the art
of ventriloquism from her brother Jimmy.
I
think this book suffers a little from its brevity. I would have liked to have
read more on Josephine’s apprenticeship with her brother; how she broke into
the Variety circuit; how, and where on earth, she acquired the extraordinary
mechanical figures, (including a six-foot tall soldier doll that would walk
across the stage and exchange sentry boxes with Josephine in a “Changing of
the Guard” routine); and, perhaps not directly pertinent to the story of
Josephine the performer, more on those bootlegging adventures in America.
The
publication does manage to open a small window into this fascinating world and
succinctly conveys something of Josephine’s achievements, where there must
have been no insignificant sense of mystery and magic, as her assortment of
figures, dolls and dummies came to life in the antiquated yet romantic,
provincial theatres of Imperial Britain. DL
What’s Hot:
Charming and well-produced
What’s Not: I wanted to read
more!
Star Rating: ***
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