History Main / Ventriloquism

* ''The Chase and Sanborn Hour'', featuring Edgar Bergen and his dummies such as Charlie [=McCarthy=] and Mortimer Snerd, was one of the most popular programs during the golden age of radio. That's right, ventriloquism on radio!

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Fillmore}}'': One case's culprits is a ventriloquist. It makes things difficult for Fillmore and Ingrid to find him in a crowded attic, as he throws his voice so they can't easily locate him.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'': In "Krusty Gets Kancelled", the ventriloquist Arthur Crandall and his dummy [[ShoutOut Gabbo]] drive Krusty off the air.

* Notable ventriloquists with pages on TV Tropes include:[[index]]

SuperTrope to DemonicDummy, which covers animated/evil ventriloquist's dummies. Related to AccidentalVentriloquism, thinking an inanimate object is speaking when voice belongs to an out-of-sight character.

* Inverted with one of ''Manga/{{Doraemon}}'' gadgets, the "Ventriloquism Doll". It will talk like the user and trick the listener(s)'s into believing what the doll said. However, should the gadget be stopped, the listener will immediately come back to sense.
* ''Manga/Fabricant100'': [[spoiler:The singer Roxy has no singing voice, the Fabricant she's partnered with sings behind the stage]].

* Rob Lucci, TheDragon in the "Water 7" and "Enies Lobby" arcs of ''Manga/OnePiece'', goes undercover in the Galley-La shipwrights' company as a stoic ship-builder who utilizes ventriloquism to talk through his pet pigeon Hattori. Once he's revealed to be a member of the Cipher Pol 9 agents' unit, he ditches this act and shows himself capable of normal speech.

* ''Franchise/{{Batman}}'': Villain Ventriloquist (who has also appeared in ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'') has a split personality who delivers his orders through his doll, Scarface. Scarface is notoriously incapable of pronouncing the letter B and instead uses "G", but in animated adaptations, this was considered too weird. (If correct.) Interestingly, the "Scarface" personality is the outwardly villainous one, and he frequently bullies the Ventriloquist. If the Scarface dummy is destroyed, then the Ventriloquist will appear cured until he builds another dummy. This led to a MythologyGag in the ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'' episode "A Better World": In an alternate universe ruled by KnightTemplar versions of the League, Batman's RoguesGallery was lobotomized via Superman's heat vision. The Ventriloquist briefly appears, and his Scarface dummy has the lobotomy marks instead of him.
* ComicBook/KidColt foe Dr. Danger was a highly skilled ventriloquist who combined throwing his voice with his mastery of magnet to convince people that he had a partner called 'the Invisible Gunman'.
** In ''ComicBook/TheLeperFromKrypton'', villain Ventor uses his skills as a ventriloquist to infiltrate Metropolis Prison, with the excuse of giving a performance with his dummies, and stealthily receive a sample of Lex Luthor's newly-engineered virus.

** Pre-Crisis Kryptonians notoriously had super-ventriloquism as one of their powers.
** In ''ComicBook/WarWorld'', Superman and ComicBook/{{Supergirl}} use super-ventriloquism to communicate with each other through the void of space.
** Post-Crisis continuity supposedly did away with that power, but Kryptonians can still talk to each other in airless environments, which would indicate it was quietly folded back into the lore.
** ''ComicBook/TheGirlWithTheXRayMind'': Played for laughs. Supergirl needs Lex Luthor's help, but she cannot go near anybody at the time, so she uses her super-ventriloquism to talk Luthor into helping her and to convince the warden to release him temporarily. Unfortunately, the warden believes Luthor is using some ventriloquism trick to fool him and gets him moved to a maximum-security cell.
* ''Franchise/WonderWoman'' [[ComicBook/WonderWoman1942 Vol 1]]: In the Golden Age Diana would occasionally throw her voice so it appeared that Diana Prince was talking to an out of sight Wonder Woman just around the corner or on the other side of an open doorway.

* ''Fanfic/TheGreatAlicornHunt'': During the Port Malfou ZombieApocalypse arc, Sweetie Belle uses the ventriloquism skills she picked up during one her previous adventures in order to escape the {{Lich}}.

* ''Film/DeadOfNight'' features a ventriloquist with a SplitPersonality (played by Creator/MichaelRedgrave) who ends up in the madhouse.
* ''Dummy'' is a little-known romantic comedy starring Adrien Brody. He plays a "lovable loser... who finds his inner voice through ventriloquism." The DVD includes commentary by ventriloquist/comic Creator/JeffDunham as well as a tutorial in ventriloquism.
* ''The Great Gabbo'' was an early sound film. The movie follows a brilliant ventriloquist "The Great Gabbo" who, as he spirals down into madness, increasingly uses his dummy "Otto" as his only means of self-expression -- an artist driven insane by his work. Gabbo's gimmick is his astonishing ability to make Otto talk -- and even sing -- while Gabbo himself smokes, drinks and eats.

* John Carson, from the film ''Film/TheMiracleWoman'' uses his dummy to voice his feelings about Florence Fallon. It's fairly nerdy and cringe-worthy, but it still comes off as sweet.
* Hawkhead has one in ''Film/RocketBoy''. It just loves to talk while Hawkhead is drinking a glass of water.

* A ventriloquist is telling DumbBlonde jokes. Lots and lots. Then, a blonde woman in the room jumps up and shouts:
--> '''Blonde''': I've got enough of these insults! Blonde women like me aren't like that! That's just a stupid cliche, and you're simply an asshole!\\
'''Ventriloquist''': I'm very sorry lady, I didn't want to insult you, and let me assure you, I have nothing at all against blondes, and of course I know that blondes in RealLife aren't dumb like that -\\
'''DumbBlonde''': I'm not talking with you, I'm talking with that little dirtbag sitting on your lap!

* In the children's series about the talking dog called Himself by Kenneth and Adrian Bird, our canine hero comes up with a plan to raise money without giving away his ability; have his owner Timothy pose as a ventriloquist. Everyone's impressed by Timothy's ability to 'throw his voice' to his pet dog while eating and drinking on stage. At one point a jealous rival guesses the truth and demands Timothy be arrested for fraud, only for it to be pointed out that you can't charge someone for putting on a fake talking dog act when the dog really can talk!
* On the [[Literature/{{Discworld}} Disc]], there's Agnes, whose manifesting witch powers in ''Literature/{{Maskerade}}'' give her the ability to throw her voice (''really'' throw it, not just the usual illusion) and harmonize with herself.
** The phrase "gottle of geer" is used a couple of times in the Discworld novels. In ''Literature/TheTruth'', Foul Ole Ron says it in a scene where he's effectively (though not technically) being used as a ventriloquist's dummy - it's actually his dog talking, at least whenever he seems to make sense, but [[WeirdnessCensor everyone knows dogs can't talk]]. Of course, the "gottle o' geer" part could be Ron himself talking, as it makes about as much sense as most of his lines. Otherwise, it's Gaspode {{lampshad|eHanging}}ing. Elsewhere in the same book, when a stable boy hears Gaspode, he claims to be another stable boy throwing his voice.

* ''Literature/{{Goosebumps}}'': The kids in the "Literature/NightOfTheLivingDummy" series take up ventriloquism as a hobby. Then they find out the dummy is talking on its own…
* In ''Problem at Sea'', an Creator/AgathaChristie short story, Literature/HerculePoirot discovers that the murderer had faked an alibi using ventriloquism. He killed his wife, then talked to her from outside the closed door of the room and projected her voice coming from the inside, then left in the company of other people.

* Creator/WilliamGoldman's ''Magic'', later adapted into the [[Film/{{Magic}} film of the same name]].
* In the original ''Literature/ThePhantomOfTheOpera'' novel by Gaston Leroux, the Persian declares that Erik is the best ventriloquist in the whole world. He must be, because he uses this skill to do a lot of {{Practical Joke}}s, including convincing Opera Singer Carlotta (an all the Opera’s audience) that she croaked like a toad. Also he uses it to convince people he is a real ghost, because they hear his voice clearly, but don’t see anyone.
* In "The Scrambled States of America Talent Show," the lower peninsula of Michigan uses the upper peninsula as his dummy. After the talent show, he does this again, but without a dummy.
-->'''Michigan''' ''(lower peninsula, "throwing his voice")''''':''' Ohio, give Michigan your donut.\\

* ''Literature/TheWonderfulWizardOfOz'': The Wizard:
--> "Oh, I am a ventriloquist," said the little man. "I can throw the sound of my voice wherever I wish.

* One episode of ''Series/EightSimpleRules'' had Rory with a dummy that he had be given by the school psychologist to help with his "issues" so it was generally rude and insulting. It turned out that he had just found it and wanted to play with it.

* In one episode of ''Series/TheBigBangTheory'' Howard finds a ventriloquist dummy Bernadette used in a talent show, and she creeps him out with it

* In one episode of ''Series/GreenWing'' Sue White gets a dummy, which insults everybody around her and she swears blind it's got nothing to do with her even though (as Caroline points out) they can see her moving her lips. When Sue breaks into Holly's locker, the dummy is sitting on a bench and tells her "she shouldn't do that". Sue argues with it before stuffing it in the locket.
* In an episode of ''Series/ILoveLucy'' Lucy has to convince someone that Lawrence Welk was in the room, so she crouches behind a Madam Trussard's wax Welk seated at the table and says his catchphrase, "Wonderful, wonderful." Thuen, unbeknownst to Lucy, the real Lawrence Welk shows up and sits at the same place.
* During one episode of ''Series/MarriedWithChildren'', one of Kelly's rivals in the BeautyPageant does ventriloquist act for her talent performance[[note]] -- or, more accurately, tries, as Kelly's friends undermine it with a magnifying glass aimed at the dummy, causing it to start smoking before the performance is complete and the contestant in question ending up being too busy blowing out the smoke to finish the act[[/note]].
* A minor character on ''Series/TheMarvelousMrsMaisel'' is a ventriloquist whose bit is informing the audience that his dummy died right before the show, then tearfully explaining what he would have said and what the dummy would have said to him. In his second appearance the ventriloquist has a second dummy who complains that the guy still hasn't gotten over the death of the first dummy and keeps his corpse perched on his other knee.
* One skit in ''Creator/MorecambeAndWise'' had Eric have a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JV3q3f1v8UI giant dummy]] that he couldn't operate properly due to the size.
* Edgar Bergen and Charlie [=McCarthy=], guesting on ''Series/TheMuppetShow'':
-->'''Edgar Bergen:''' Oh, you don't know what you're saying.\\

* The ''Series/MurderSheWrote'' episode "Where Have You Gone, Billy Boy?" has the trope of the cripplingly shy ventriloquist whose dummy does his talking for him, without making it a DemonicDummy.
* Episode "Belly Speaker" of ''Series/MurdochMysteries'' had a murder suspect capable of ventriloquism. His DemonicDummy was super creepy.
* An episode of ''Series/NightCourt'' had a visiting ventriloquist who annoyingly talked without moving his lips, even though he didn't currently have a dummy. He was finally inspired to create one based on the bailiff Bull.
* ''Series/PeeWeesPlayhouse'': In later seasons, Pee-Wee had a puppet called Billy Baloney. The gag here is that Pee-Wee ''doesn't even try'' to be a ventriloquist. Matchbox produced both a replica of Billy and a ventriloquist dummy of Pee-Wee himself, and using both at the same time could lead to a MindScrew.
* Burt's son Chuck & Bob Campbell (played by Jay Johnson) in ''Series/{{Soap}}'' was a ventriloquist. In the same series, the character Bert attempts ventriloquism when he tries to convince people he has been turned invisible by aliens.
** Chuck was never seen without Bob (the dummy), ([[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GKRFmpWLTwg except when people separated them,]]) they wore the same outfits and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DwDbd4jQpkA many of the characters forget that Bob isn't real.]]
** When Chuck meets his step-aunt, Jessica Tate (Katherine Helmond), Bob stares at her magnificent bosom and says "Nice jugs." Chuck would never do this.
* On ''Series/SquareOneTV'', there was a ''Mathnet'' episode in which a ventriloquist had gone catatonic, and could talk only through his dummy.
* Alan on ''Series/TwoAndAHalfMen'' uses a dummy, much to everyone's dismay.

* Zack's hobby of the week of ventriloquism in ''Series/TheZackFiles'' episode "You Don't Say" leads to him literally losing his voice because it [[OrganAutonomy developed a mind of its own]] and wants to leave him. At one point it mocks all his friends using Zack's voice coming out of random objects to make them mad at him.

[[folder:Newspaper Comics]]
* One ''ComicStrip/TheFarSide'' strip featured a ventriloquist in the Old West having his arm patched up by a doctor, who is saying something along the lines of "Well, you're gonna be OK, but I can't say the same for your little friend there; 'course, I hear he was the one who mouthed off to those gunfighters in the first place." Sitting nearby is the ventriloquist's dummy, riddled with bullet-holes.
** A different one has a man swimming onto a FarSideIsland, where he is greeted by a cheerful ventriloquist... and his panicking dummy, who desperately tries to warn the newcomer of his ventriloquist's cannibalistic tendencies.
[[/folder]]

* On ''Wrestling/{{SHIMMER}} Volume 46'' New York Knockout used ventriloquism to make it sound like [=LuFisto=]'s "manager" [[CompanionCube Peegaboo]] hated her client.[[/folder]]

** Rudy Vallee, who gave Bergen his big break, commented on-air "People have been asking me why I put a ventriloquist on the air. The answer is, 'why not?'" Bergen's success had never depended on his technical ability, which was not actually that good (his lips move pretty obviously, which Charlie {{lampshade|Hanging}}s now and then), but on his comic ability and timing - both of which were excellent. Listeners didn't care that they couldn't see him, just that they were laughing.

* ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' had the Ventriloquism wizard spell, which allowed the caster to throw his voice.

* In the musical ''Theatre/{{Chicago}}'', Billy Flynn and Roxie Hart do a number with Roxie on Billy's lap as the dummy and Billy as the ventriloquist.

'''Billy''': Not neeeee!

* The second ''VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorney'' game has a witness named Ben and his puppet [[PunnyName Trilo Quist]].

* Richard of ''Webcomic/LookingForGroup'' Uses a Ventriloquism spell to hilarious effect in [[http://www.lfgcomic.com/page/5/ this scene.]]

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Beetlejuice}}'' got tired of the obviously bad Ventriloquism, and decided to possess the doll to make it more interesting.
* In one episode of ''WesternAnimation/{{Doug}}'', Doug enters the talent show with a ventriloquism act, while his friend Skeeter plans to play the ocarina. Of course, [[HilarityEnsues disaster happens]], Skeeter's ocarina is swallowed by Roger's cat, and Doug's puppet breaks in the middle of his act. Thinking fast, Skeeter puts his head through the curtains, pretending to be the head of the puppet, and the two wow the audience with Doug's suddenly amazing ventriloquism skills.
* One of the culprits in a case of ''WesternAnimation/{{Fillmore}}'' was a ventriloquist. It made things difficult for Fillmore an Ingrid to find him in a crowded attic, as he was throwing his voice so they couldn't easily locate him.
* The episode "Ventriloquist Barney" of ''WesternAnimation/TheFlintstones'' has Barney using his newfound ventriloquism skills to make Fred think Pebbles can talk. [[BerserkButton And he doesn't take the joke very well.]]
* ''WesternAnimation/GarfieldAndFriends'' had an episode with an alien that looked like a ventriloquist's dummy, and was sold to Jon for an act of his. He didn't reckon on being exposed to the major weakness of his species: [[spoiler:Cartoon termites]].
* A short for ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeagueAction'' hung a lampshade on the fact that [[{{Creator/MarkHamill}} Mark Hamill]] not only reprised his role of the Joker, but also his role of the Trickster as well as the Swamp Thing for the series. In it, he plays himself, kidnapped by Joker and Trickster, and he uses ventriloquism to turn them against each other to distract them long enough for Swamp Thing to rescue him.
* Shaggy would sometimes use ventriloquism to fool the [[MonsterOfTheWeek guy-in-a-mask]] in ''WesternAnimation/ScoobyDooWhereAreYou''.
* In ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' episode "Krusty Gets Kancelled", ventriloquist Arthur Crandall and his dummy, [[ShoutOut Gabbo]], drive Krusty off the air.
* Jokey Smurf in '' WesternAnimation/TheSmurfs1981'' episode "[[Recap/TheSmurfsS6E19GargamelsDummy Gargamel's Dummy]]" shows he has a talent for ventriloquism when he frightens Brainy (twice) with the eponymous dummy.
* The 1960s ''[[WesternAnimation/SpiderMan1967 Spider-Man]]'' cartoon had Spidey using ventriloquism to beat a team-up among the Green Goblin, Electro, Vulture and [[CanonForeigner Dr. Noah Boddy]] by imitating their voices and making them fight each other.

* Notable ventriloquists with pages on TV Tropes include:
[[index]]

[[folder:Anime and Manga]]

SuperTrope to DemonicDummy, which covers animated/evil ventriloquist's dummies.

* The 1960s ''Franchise/SpiderMan'' cartoon had Spidey using ventriloquism to beat a team-up among the Green Goblin, Electro, Vulture and [[CanonForeigner Dr. Noah Boddy]] by imitating their voices and making them fight each other.

* Jokey Smurf in ''WesternAnimation/TheSmurfs'' episode "Gargamel's Dummy" shows he has a talent for ventriloquism when he frightens Brainy (twice) with the eponymous dummy.