Press Releases

Local "Mannequin American" to Appear at Waukesha Winter Jamboree

WAUKESHA, Wisconsin (January 15, 2007) — He has been described as “a hammer with a voice, looking for someone to pound on.”

He pulverizes his victims in the process of educating them during corporate seminars or while lecturing to them during convention keynote speeches. Or sometimes, he entertains them to the point of tears at comedy venues.

He is Chip Martin, and he lives in Waukesha ... in a suitcase.

Martin is a puppet … or as he prefers to be called, a "Mannequin American."

Martin has appeared at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas and on Entertainment Tonight, Good Morning America, The Today Show and many other television shows, theaters and clubs throughout the country. On Friday, January 19th, he will make a single show, "hit and run" appearance at the Waukesha Civic Theatre as part of Waukesha's Winter Jamboree festivities.

"My agent obviously messed up," Martin said during an exclusive interview.
In truth, the special Waukesha show has been a long time in planning and will culminate with the performance being recorded for a DVD that will be produced and available for sale sometime in April.

Martin is the number one sidekick of comedian and master ventriloquist Dale Brown, who also serves as president of Brown & Martin, Inc., a very successful Waukesha-based marketing, public relations and IT firm that serves companies across the country.

Brown describes his success as an entertainer as a “hobby that got out of hand.” Martin describes it as "dumb luck." Whichever it is, the duo finds themselves riding a wave of popularity as ventriloquism is enjoying a revival of sorts. This is in part, due to a full week of ventriloquists on David Letterman's show, a successful Broadway show about ventriloquist featuring Jay Johnson of Soap fame, and ventriloquist Jeff Dunham's Comedy Central DVD recently reaching triple platinum status making it the largest selling comedy DVD in recent history.

"We've been working steadily for over 20 years," Martin said. "So I don't know what all the sudden fuss is about. All I know is that I just doubled my price … which means I now get two six-packs."

Martin will be appearing with a cluster of other characters who have become mainstays in Brown's stage shows. Waukesha's audience will meet Bertha the Bag Lady, Shaggy Dog, Louie the Jockey and others.

Well known comedian Ron Dentinger will open the show which starts at 7:30.

Tickets are $9 and can be purchased at the WCT box office or by calling 262-547-0708.

Dale Brown to Perform Benefit Program in Waukesha for the Winter JanBoree - Tickets on Sale Now!

6.29.2006

His hobby becomes lucrative career!

A few weeks ago a picture of my shop was printed on the front page of The Wall Street Journal. And more recently a scene from my shop was featured on the reverse side of the front page of Brown & Martin’s newsletter. It doesn’t get much better than that!

Dale Brown has been a ventriloquist since the age of 12. His dummy, "Chip Martin", is not only Dale’s ventriloquist partner but also Dale’s business partner. The puppet is the "Martin" in "Brown & Martin". Brown & Martin Inc. is a public relations and marketing firm. Dale’s puppets are very popular in the custom newsletters Brown & Martin creates for itself and nine other companies. "Bob Board" (on the far right in the photo) happened to be hanging around my shop getting some minor repairs when the photographer for The Wall Street Journal stopped in and that’s how "Bob" ended up in the picture for the WSJ.

If I made a list of the top ten people who played most important roles in the success of Maher Studios, Dale Brown would be on that list. Not only did he author several of Maher Studio’s best selling publications, but his business advice and support was crucial. His friendship is priceless. So I was excited when I learned a Wisconsin publication, Small Business Times, which has a circulation of about 45,000, is currently recognizing B&M with a cover feature. What a great fun cover photo of "Chip" and Dale (no pun intended). The article is about how, after 22 years, their firm continues to work to keep some "fun" in what can be a very stressful business. It is a delightful and informative read. You can see the cover and read the article here: http://www.biztimes.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=homepage.welcome

Dale told me in a recent e-mail: "We do all this serious and successful marketing for very large companies, but it’s the puppets that always get the media’s attention. The reporters always ask, ‘But why would a company want to use a puppet character to deliver a serious message?’ The answer, of course, is the same as why a reporter comes to my office in the first place ... puppets attract attention and do more than communicate messages. They make things memorable and fun. Small Business Times had decided to put ‘Chip’ on the cover before they even talked to me. I’m sure they thought the puppet would attract attention."

Brown & Martin is located in Waukesha, Wisconsin. Web site: www.bmpr.com . For information on Dale’s keynote programs and banquet entertainment: http://www.dale-brown.com.

# posted by Clinton Detweiler @ Thursday, June 29, 2006

Ventriloquist Convention
On July, 16, 2005, at the 29th Annual National Ventriloquist Convention, Dale joined some of the nation's top ventriloquists on a panel to discuss ways vents can reinvent themselves and their acts. From left to right, Bob Rumba, Dan Horn, Jeff Dunham and Dale.

Business owner and professional ventriloquist Dale Brown was recently interviewed by Candice Bergen for an upcoming broadcast of "60 Minutes." The program aired in July 2005.

Brown was interviewed at the 2004 International Ventriloquist Convention where he was a featured lecturer. "Sixty Minutes contacted me prior to the Convention to set up the interview," Brown said. "They had run across my web site and were interested in our firm's history of using ventriloquist puppets as serious communications tools in the business world."

Having grown up in the shadow of Charlie McCarthy, Bergen was selected by CBS to be a contributing correspondent for 60 Minutes on a piece about ventriloquists. She has first-hand knowledge about how and why people can quickly develop bonds with puppet characters. That "bond" is the basis for Brown's success.

"The most effective communication is done on a personal level," Brown said during his interview for 60 Minutes. "And puppets are more personal than corporations." "Employees, distributors and customers find it easier to relate to our characters than to corporations. They trust them to be truthful and expect them to provide some laughter. That's why they pay attention to what the characters have to say," he said.

The Puppet Is Not Held To The
Same Standard As A Person
Brown's ventriloquist characters appear at corporate functions, frequently asking executives poignant questions that audience members would like to have the nerve or the opportunity to ask. Some of the characters also communicate via newsletters. "We currently produce eight different newsletters which are edited by characters that were specially created for individual companies," Brown said.

"Interestingly, Candice said she understood how a puppet's individuality could be effectively communicated via the written word just as her father used them to communicate on the radio. You don't have to see the character to appreciate its personality or point of view," Brown explained. "The magic is that the puppet is not held to the same standard as a person. It can acceptably cross lines that would be unacceptable for a person to cross," Brown added.

Brown also uses ventriloquist characters in parts of his motivational keynote speeches that he delivers to convention audiences across the country. "The puppets are simply tools that we use to enhance the effectiveness of the message," Brown said. "After one of my convention programs last year an audience member came up to me and said, 'I laughed until I learned.' That pretty well sums up how our characters effectively help to make messages meaningful and memorable. And it's probably why 60 Minutes contacted us," Brown said.