During the Golden Age of television, the Spanish-born Wences, whose real name was Wenceslao Moreno, bickered and bantered with his puppets while he drank, smoked and juggled.

His character Pedro was a gravel-voiced head in a box, born out of necessity when Mr. Moreno's ventriloquist's dummy was accidentally damaged and only the head was spared. He created Johnny by scrunching up his fist, drawing a mouth where thumb and index finger met and draping a blond wig over the top.

Mr. Moreno would talk to his puppets with his face right in theirs, as if daring the audience to watch his lips, which, of course, never moved. He would stuff a hankie in Johnny's mouth and have the puppet speak with a muffled voice while he himself smoked a cigarette. Then he would give Johnny a drag, and the puppet -- that is, Mr. Moreno's hand -- would somehow emit perfect smoke rings. There were no jokes, just what one writer has described as "bizarre, farcical, Spanish-accented patter."

Mr. Moreno was born in Penarada, Spain, and discovered his gift for mimicry in grade school, where he would entertain his classmates. When he came to the United States in 1934 he was just "another ventriloquist with a dummy," as he put it. But two years later, en route to Chicago, his act was transformed when his dummy, Pedro, was crushed in a baggage car accident. Wences bought a box, stuck the head inside and, onstage that day, inquired if he was OK. Pedro replied, in a voice as gravelly as Johnny's was squeaky: "S'awright!''

In between his many Sullivan show appearances, Mr. Moreno entertained four presidents, toured with Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis, did a Broadway show with Danny Kaye and played every casino in Vegas. He had a precise, economical act: nineteen minutes with a one-minute encore. He would ask the promoter for only a card table and a glass of water. He continued touring into his early 90s. © 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

- - - - - - - - - - - -

  Get a printer-friendly version

  E-mail a friend about this article

- - - - - - - - - - - -

Search Salon

- - - - - - - - - - - -