William Wood (ventriloquist)
William B. Wood (c. 1862–1908) was an illusionist and ventriloquist, who toured South America and Europe with his own company, sometimes called "The Kellar of South America." He was born in Pennsylvania in 1861 or 1862 and began a career in illusions and ventriloquism in 1886 with his wife. After his wife retired in 1906, Wood continued touring until his accidental death on January 20, 1908, which was explored unsuccessfully for foul play.
Early life and marriage to Edna Wood[]
Not much is known about Wood's early life, but it is generally agreed that he was born sometime between late-1861 and mid-1862 in the small town of Shamokin, Pennsylvania. He likely gained interest in ventriloquism as a child, but did not start his professional training until his mid-20s. Sometime around 1886-1888, William Wood married Edna Wood (maiden name unknown), and had a child in 1887.
William B. Wood | |
|---|---|
 William Wood with his dummies, sometime between 1900-1908 | |
| Born | c. 1862 |
| Died | January 20, 1908 Atlantic Ocean |
| Years active | 1886-1908 |
Notable work | The Pistol Shot Vanish illusion, US415084 and US415085 illusion patents |
| Spouse(s) | Edna Wood (m. 1880s) |
| Children | 1 (daughter) |
Career and performances[]
Wood received his stage training under the tutelage of Harry Kellar circa 1886, with whom he traveled until 1890, when he branched out for himself. His wife was the original "Edna, the Human Orchid" as a member of Kellar's company. She joined him during his South American trips until 1906, when failing health forced her retirement. William, with permission from the original Edna, brought in a replacement, Bertha, who was later an assistant in his show.
His most famous effect was the "Pistol Shot Vanish", in which he would cause his assistant, Bertha, to vanish with a pistol shot. Wood and his company also, on November 12, 1889, created and patented[1][2] a levitation he called "Edna" in which a lady would be lifted up in mid-air and stay there, during which she walked, turned around, turned over while in the air. After Wood's death, the magician Adelaide Herrmann used this illusion under the name of "The Maid of the Moon".[3]
During the climax of his career, he was widely publicized and advertised as the "Kellar of South America" due to his training from the true Kellar and his normal trips to South America. Unfortunately, his career was slowly beginning to decline, and after his wife's retirement, he began to fade into obscurity.
Death and legacy[]
In 1908, William Wood and his twenty-year-old daughter were on their way from Frontera, Mexico, to Il Progresso, Yucatán, on a large tug boat called the Cuneto Bulnes, when the ship foundered. On the night of January 20, a violent tropical storm arose and the ship had a schooner in tow. The tow line was cut and the little vessel tried to ride the storm out unhampered. It is related as a curious circumstance that when the vessel foundered the captain and crew managed to save themselves while Wood and his daughter, the only passengers aboard, were lost. William Wood and his daughter's bodies were never recovered. Their baggage, consisting of fifty trunks besides other property, was also entirely lost.[4]
Some alleged they were killed by pirates and others that they were killed when sailors broke into Wood's equipment to search for the clues to his Pistol Shot Vanish". When caught, a struggled ensued, they overpowered him and threw him overboard to drown. In the Magician Monthly (April and May 1908), it was reported that the S.A.M. adopted a resolution urging the Government authorities and to President Roosevelt to investigate Wood's death (although he was not a member of SAM) as there appeared ample ground for the suspicion that foul play had been resorted to. Later the State Department replied that there was no evidence of foul play.
Their luggage however washed up on shore and was recovered but no trace was ever found of the Woods. One of Wood's theatrical trunks had survived and been shipped to Mrs. Wood but she was so distraught that she had it shipped to the Wood's friend Frederick Eugene Powell. When Powell died, he left most of the trunks to John Petrie. Wood's trunk consisted of some large ventriloquist figures together with a number of lithographs depicting "Woodita" (a fantastic balance), "La Mariposa" (the human butterfly) "Edna" (the girl from the flames) and a stock portrait of Wood for his proposed Mexican tour (with the legend "The Real Devil" in Spanish beneath his picture).[5]
References[]
- Variety (March 1908)
- THE NIELSEN GALLERY WOOD, THE WORLD'S GREATEST VENTRILOQUIST, by Richard Hatch (great-nephew of Wood's manager Hastings Clawson), MUM, July 2006
- Article Did Anyone Steal the Floating Lady? by John Booth in Genii 1980 February
- 1908 deaths
- 1862 births