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Comedy for
dummies
Ventriloquist takes humor to new
heights, er, lows
Pulse Online 12/30/05
By ED CONDRAN
Pulse Correspondent
Legendary self-deprecating
comic Rodney Dangerfield's most famous line was inspired by a lack of
respect, but the late seminal humorist never knew what it was really like
to be truly dismissed.
 Perhaps
he would have if he were a ventriloquist. Comics who work with dummies get
fewer props, so to speak, than the much-maligned Carrot Top. Otto
Peterson, a ventriloquist, who performs as Otto and George, knows what
it's like to be regarded as a novelty act.
"Those who do what I do get looked down on," Peterson said while calling
from his Edgewater home. "Ventriloquists are regarded as the lowest form
of life in the business. But I've been doing this a long time since this
is something I love."
The affable Peterson has been performing with his wooden dummy George for
31 of his 45 years. The Staten Island, N.Y., native started as a street
performer in Manhattan. While entertaining in Central Park in 1976
Peterson recognized an amused member of the audience, who tossed $2 his
way.
"It was John Lennon," Peterson recalled. "He was with Yoko (Ono) who
didn't laugh at all. But he laughed. He came up and said, "$1.50 is for
your puppet and the rest of its for you since he was funnier.' It was
amazing. He was so approachable. I wish I had a camera on me then."
By the early '80s, Peterson moved his act to clubs. In order to play
venues he decided to alter his schtick. "To get into places I had to work
blue, which was an adjustment," Peterson said. "I had to work dirty to get
the other comics off my case. It worked out." Much of Peterson's amusing
act is built around insults hurled at him by the inflammatory George.
"It's all very dysfunctional," Peterson said. "George tells me I'm a piece
of garbage. He tears at my confidence. It works with the audience."
Peterson, who will perform this weekend at the Comedy Shoppe in the
Sheraton hotel in Woodbridge, has always been one of Howard Stern's
favorite guests. "That's cool, but it's a tough show for me since you
don't get the visual parts of what I do since Howard is on the radio.
Howard's been great to me," he said.
Aside from working the clubs, Peterson has been acting in short films such
as "Christmas UFO" and "American Dummy." The latter also featured comics
Jim Norton and Lewis Black.
"I want to make shorts like the Three Stooges did," Peterson said. "I'm
not Woody Allen. I'm not writing, directing, editing and all of that, but
I get help and pull these films off, which is a heck of an
accomplishment." |
