Ventriloquism got its start in ancient times, somewhere around the sixth century BC, it is believed, when it was used to supposedly communicate with the dead. The name "ventriloquist" means "belly speaker" in Latin. In the late 1800's, Fred Russell was the first to come up with a ventriloquism act which he performed with his dummy. Russell was known as the "father of modern ventriloquism." In 1938 Edgar Bergen and his dummy Charlie McCarthy came on the scene and became an international celebrity. He paved the way for many other successful acts like; Buffalo Bob Smith, & Howdy Doody, Shari Lewis & Lamb Chop, who became popular on television in the 1950's and 1960's.

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