The baby looks great. How does the head turn? Is your hand in the head and can the mouth(s) be moved.

Thanks! Your hand stays in the baby's mouth the whole time. You can move the mouth for baby talk, then when you turn your hand around (inward) the crying face shows to the audience. It's so funny! Just wiggle the head left to right while you cry WAAAAAAHHHH!!!

Ax

So....it's been 8 years since those early posts.... and hundreds of entertainers are now using the CRY BABY. So.... tell us about the reaction you get with it!

Ax

I find the crybaby is a great way to involve the father of a birthday child. I bring him up and talk about the late nights of rocking the birthday child as a baby, or feeding the baby, or the late night drives in the car to try to get the baby to sleep. Then I bring out the crybaby and as I hand him to the dad he starts to cry.

Tony, that is an outstandingly clever idea. Borders on genius. Father of the birthday child beware!

My favorite birthday is a birthday safari, with several Axtell animals. The baby is then baby Tarzan and I do the father bit, but it turns out that Tarzan is not comfortable around humans. He feels more at home with apes. Many fathers will demonstrate an ape's beating of the chest, etc. If not, the kids will gladly act like an ape.

The dialogue is like this after the late night feeding patter...

Vent: In fact, I want to take you back in time to one of those nights when dad here took care of you as a baby. I brought in a baby just to demonstrate.

(bring out baby) This is baby Tarzan. He was raised in the jungle by apes.
Tarzan, I want you to meet the birthday child's dad.

Tarzan: He's a stranger.

Vent: What?

Tarzan: He's a stranger.

Vent: That's okay. This is a great place to meet some new friends. Look at all the friends here today to celebrate _________'s birthday. In fact, this gentleman is going to hold you and show how he took care of his own child when he was a baby.

Tarzan: Okay. (hand baby to dad and then start the cry. Bring baby back to your side. I have the dad on my left so I'm between the baby and the dad. The baby starts on my right vertically and then is horizontal as I turn to hand him to the dad.)

Vent: What's the matter!

Tarzan: He's a stranger!

Vent; But he's playing the part of your dad.

Tarzan: He doesn't look like my dad.

Vent: What does your dad look like?

Tarzan: My dad is a gorilla! He's really hairy. He's almost as hairy as my momma!

Vent: This man is not a gorilla.

Tarzan: He's scary.

Vent: Sir, Tarzan is really scared. I know you used to take care of your child when she was scared at night. Would you mind helping out Tarzan? All you have to do is act like a gorilla. Just for a second. Boys and girls, can you act like a gorilla, too?
There, Tarzan. How do you feel now?

Tarzan: It's like a family reunion! (hand Tarzan back to the dad and he starts to cry again!)

Vent: What's the matter?

Tarzan: He tickled me!

Vent: He tickled you?

Tarzan: He's still tickling me!

Vent: He's not even touching you! Where does it tickle?

Tarzan: IN MY DIAPER!

Vent: Uh-oh. I think I better take care of the baby. Let's give Dad a great big hand for going ape at his child's birthday!