Hello does anyone on here own a Lovik's ventriloquism figure? If anybody does, could you write a quick review or something? I'm really thinking about getting one, but I don't know much about the mechanics, I don't even know what features the figure includes!!! The website has almost no information!!! Anyone that wants to check out the website here it is:

http://www.lovikspuppets.com

I had one. It was a comical looking old man. He's not shown in any pictures on the website. The figure had a lot of character. One eye didn't close all the way. Other than that it worked fine. The controls were lever and line. I prefer rod controls.

Ok thanks! I was thinking about getting the Cody figure. Thanks for the feedback!

Hey,
While I have the question in mind, could you please explain the difference between lever and line, and Rod? I'm new to Dummies (I've been working with hand puppets) and would like to hear different opinions from ventriloquists.

Thanks,
Brody Robarge

Lever line controls have a line that attaches to a lever on the control stick. Rod controls have a knob that comes out of the stick. There's no string to break and for me it feels like more direct control.

Oh ok. Thank you.

I've had a few of his soft figures and a few hard figures. Actually, I can't say I've been disappointed with any of them.
I still have one, it's from one of his lower priced lines, I forgot what it the line was called, but it's "my leave out for quick practice figure".
My first figure was from the Maher Workshop run by Craig, which I foolishly sold years ago, (don't ask), and just recently (like a couple weeks ago) was able to buy another one from the same line and looks very similar - the main difference being that my first one had a slot jaw and this one has the living mouth, but if it had the slot jaw, they would be very close to the same, and the closest I'll ever get to having my first figure again.

Okay, I have to ask, thus revealing my complete newbishness... What's the diff between a slot mouth and a living mouth?

I have one...aside from self centering eyes and slot jaw mouth, It has added animations like winker, blinker, raising brows and crossing eyes. Its a cool figure. Mine has a weak mouth spring which I am working to have it replaced with a stronger spring.

In any case, the figure is really cool

Check it out in YouTube by searching for "Wanlu and Kurt in Sapul"

Hi Wanlu,is that the one that is on it's way to me? Can't wait!!!

Ralph, the slot jaw has the lines on the sides of the mouth like your probably used to seeing the most, the living mouth has no lines;

I see. Thanks for the pic.

My first hard figure was a Lovik figure. Made and signed by Craig Lovik. Nice figure. I still have him until now.

Now, the Lovik figures being sold currently on the web are made by Keith Lovik, Craig's son. (Craig retired from making figures many years ago.) Since I haven't seen and handled Keith's figures, I just don't know if the quality is the same as his dad's.

One of my figures is an old Craig Lovik with a living mouth. I'm busy converting its face to a custom and I've redone the jaw as a slot. The eye movement employs two cords and a rocker control and the mouth is on a rod control. I agree with Olivertwist, the rod control makes it feel more direct, but I grew up with a line control so, for me, it's six of one, half dozen of the other. The Craig Lovik living mouth was done by integrating a piece of soft leather or chamois into the design of the face and coloring it carefully so as not to make it stiff and unworkable.
The movement, however, seems, to me, unnatural (Remember the Gerry Anderson marionettes on TV--Supercar...Fireball XL5, etc? They had similar mouth movement). The lower lip goes up and down, but the rest of the jaw does not move. It is as if you figure had Botox injections.
Well...that's my take on it, anyway. Of course...the whole idea of a small person with slots running down from the corners of his mouth is awfully unnatural, too, now that I think of it!

I guess the other comment I'd make about the living mouth is that the mechanism is elegant in its simplicity. Should a living mouth spring break mid-show, you could still work the mouth directly. Basically, there are two pieces of wood at right angles with a cabinet hinge holding them together. Imagine the letter "T" with one of the horizontal sides missing and the hinge where they meet. A spring is connected to the horizontal piece at this point and runs down the left side of the T, where it is attached near the bottom. The horizontal piece is rounded at the far end to achieve the lower lip. The void below the lip, which is hidden by the leather, is not very deep, and the chin is part of the non-moving face. The leather piece is attached attached at the bottom and at both sides of the void below the lip and is blended into the face.
You can see, readily, that the movement of the mouth will be somewhat more limited than the movement of a slot-jawed figure, simply because the space below the lip is slight (I've redone the whole area, but, as I remember, it was probably only about half an inch to three-quarters of an inch),and because the leather will not stretch terribly far and will, over considerable time, stiffen up.

I have noticed that, if you watch Ebay, the "living mouth" figures come up every once in awhile. The one I'm reconstructing (There wasn't anything wrong with it...it simply wasn't a creature I could relate to) I got from a magician friend who purchased it back in the seventies or eighties. He'd seen me do my act and thought he'd like to try doing that as well. He used it twice, then decided vent wasn't for him, so he stored it in the basement until, a few years back, he was moving and thought, "Why should I keep lugging this around?" He called me and sold it to me for $100!

If you're in the market for a figure, both Ventriloquist Central and Puppets and Props have used figures of several types for sale, too.

Incidentally, in redoing this figure as a slot-jaw, I have kept Lovik's elegant internal workings design. That, to me, is particularly clever.

So, in summation, your honor: In my experience both Loviks make good vent figures. You can also shop around for used figures in several places, and have a shorter wait time for delivery. The living mouth seems to have been a fad rather than a trend. I've corresponded with a number of respected builders who don't much care for the living mouth, but shrug and point out that everybody's got an opinion. Rod controls are less likely to break, while cord controls feel more "right" to someone who grew up with 'em. Both have merits.

And I have gone on entirely too long here.

-Philip

That's the one

Craig Lovik coined the term Living mouth but it is actually an English mouth. This is how most figures from UK and Europe were made. Very few slot jaws were used overseas. Prior to Crag making the English mouth the term living mouth was not known. Just a little history.
Dan
http://www.ventriloquistcentral.com

Thanks, Dan! Love the history tidbits!

-Philip

Personally, I've always preferred the "classic" slot jaw myself. I never had a "living mouth figure", this one was on ebay, and a friend said he thought it looked close to my first figure with exception of having the living mouth instead of the slot jaw, so I bid on him.
The thing I always preferred about the slot jaw is that I think it's more visible as far as seeing the mouth opening and closing. With the living mouth, this one, and most pictures I've seen, there really is very little movement there, definitely no where near as visible as the movement of a slot jaw.

I have had quite a few of the Lovik living mouth figures and Dave you are correct about the mouth movement. Very little as compared to the Insull figures from England. The Insull figures mouth opens very wide especially if it has upper as well as lower lip. The mouth movement is very visible from the stage.
Dan
http://www.ventriloquistcentral.com

Hello does anyone on here own a Lovik's ventriloquism figure? If anybody does, could you write a quick review or something? I'm really thinking about getting one, but I don't know much about the mechanics, I don't even know what features the figure includes!!! The website has almost no information!!! Anyone that wants to check out the website here it is:

http://www.lovikspuppets.com

Um, I think I may possibly own one. That is, I'm trying to figure it out with help from the rest of the guys here on the forum.