This subject may be threaded in and around the forum weaves of knowledge and thoughts.

However:

How did you come across Axtell Expressions?
What struggles did you have deciding on which puppet out of so many to get?
What was your reaction when it arrived?
What kind of plans did you project before and after the purchase?
Or just in general share your thoughts on your first Axtel puppet. Feelings, thoughts, or what evers.
Or are you new and are in the first chapters of your adventure?

I think it would be cool to hear how you all got your first Axtell Expression and why.

Of course. What are you doing now with the first one?
Hummmmm.....

I first saw a black and white collage of the Axtell puppets in an entertainer's magazine. That was probably 1985? Not sure. I loved the look but I was a puppeteer and not a ventriloquist at the time. But I kept showing the photo around and asking people which was their favorite.

20 years ago (next month) I married and got the bear as a wedding present from Gene Cordova, who I had talked to many times about the Axtell's. I loved the look and once I got it I loved the feel and the audience reaction. The bear is still my main puppet and was in two shows this morning! (It isn't the original bear. I've done about 4,000 shows since then.)

Wow! How cool! Thanks for sharing.

Almost 5 years ago, after I retired from working at the Post Office for 37 years, I started doing magic shows again, after about a 20 year layoff. About a year after that, I bought a Dragon shoulder puppet, that was somewhat limited with what I could do with him. That puppet sat on a shelf for over a year. I again became interested into ventriloquism, which was also an unfulfilled passion of mine many years ago. After doing a really short routine with the dragon puppet, I really wanted to give ventriloquism a go.

One day while surfing the internet I came across Axtell Expressions, and their line of puppets. This was a little over 3 years ago. What really caught my eye, was the vent hands free Toucan puppets. Being a Disney lover, this puppet brought me back to one of my favorite attractions at Disney World, The Enchanted Tiki Room, and the birds that live there.

Thanks mostly to the ventriloquism lessons on Axtell's site and people like Tony Border, I felt somewhat confident to really get into ventriloquism and also into buying a vent, Hands Free Toucan Puppet.

Unfortunately, this was soon after Ron's passing. There were no Hands Free vent puppets in the USA. There were several Magic 1 puppets, but I did not want one of them. Steve told me there was 1 in England. I then bought that puppet and Steve had him flown back to the US, and then to me. Of course, I was impressed with the way this puppet looked and how he reacted. I guess you could say it was love at first sight.

My first show with this puppet, Taco, was actually on 7/16/2009. What a big hit. Since that first show with him, I have developed a very popular routine with Taco.

Even though, I now have several other Axtell Puppets, it's hard for me to abandon my Taco routine. Being a magician, I do my Taco routine first, which also consists of him doing 3 magic tricks, I then go into my magic show. My Taco routine covers about 20 minutes, and this rest of my show about 30 minutes.

WOW Chris! Great story. Love the shared memories. Thanks for sharing.

I'm unemployed right now. I do volunteer work with special needs children in my church--www.seacoast.com. One day I decided to do some research on puppetry and venting. Everything I saw was for regular stage puppets though.

Google search led me to Axtell and I saw a link for the YouTube p-p-p-p-platypus give away and entered. A few days later I checked my email and saw I'd won.

I'm still learning the vent thing but most of my friends and the kids at church all love Wade the Platypus and Chester the Possum which I ordered when I had a job for awhile.

I know that God has to be leading this.

Thanks
Rog

I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made. I know that fully well.
Ps. 139 [NIV]

Super Rog. I mean Super....Rog. When God has the reins all you got to do is hang on for the ride. Thanks for sharing your special memories. It is so neat how things happen.

I got started in late September, 2010, by ordering the crow, baby bird, MDB, and bird-arm because there was a 15% off sale that month (and I had only a day or two until the sale ended).

Just prior to that spending spree, I had decided on a paradigm shift: spending hundreds (now thousands) on Axtell puppets was going to be my "charity" offering to the local community(ies); previously I had viewed buying puppets as a "business" expense, as I use puppets in schools to teach character education to hundreds of kids every week.

I had accumulated some decent $30-ish ape and monkey puppets (my theme at the time) earlier in 2010, as even though I had seen the Axtell Cheeky Monkey and Bongo Gorilla online (and coveted them), I thought spending 10 times that amount for an ape puppet from Axtell was a little iffy. So it was just a matter of deciding that spending a lot more for an Axtell was worth it to me.

By April, 2011, I had accumulated 18 more Axtell puppets (in addition to the first 4 mentioned above). As of today (June, 2012), I have 28 Axtells. There are only a handful more that I would like to purchase at some point: Cheeky Monkey, Seal, Rat, Horse (head only). Except for the MDB, which I have yet to master or feel comfortable performing with yet (even though I've had it 1 1/2 years), I've used every puppet in at least a dozen performances. My Big Bear, Hang-On Monster, Cry Baby (not for under 6!), Bulldog, Chicken (Fred), Gator, and Possum are my most ask-for characters.

The Ooohs and Aaaahs from the kids when I bring out an Axtell make it worth it.

Wow! My Goodness Rick! Your memories are shouting Axtell. {:->
Thanks for sharing.

In 2007/2008 I was just starting to get back into working with puppets. I had used hand puppets off and on in the past. I was looking through the Net and stumpled upon Axtell Expressions. I was looking for full body puppets. WOW! Such neat looking puppets. I fell in love. I scraped together some money to purchase one of the smaller puppets. I really didn't know how much I would use it, so I did not want to spend much. Since I have small hands I ordered Baby Benny Bird. Named him Beck Er Bird. Oh, Man! I loved him and he was a huge hit at church during the children's moment. Plus I used him as a greeter at a bicycle helmet give away a year later. I had purchased the illusion arm a year after getting Beck Er Bird. That illusion arm is a fantastic tool. I have had more fun with Beck Er Bird sitting on that arm.
2011 I got the possum. Oh what a Hit he was! Dodger DeCar was becoming the favorite at Church.
2012 I have gotten the Seal,Skunk,PA system, Customized Storyteller (had the World's Oldest Man's Hands),and Customized Willie the Kid's little sister.
Each time I have received a package in the mail it was like Christmas. Each puppet was a WOW factor. They are so neat. To this day, I am tickled that I stumbled through the Net and landed on Axtell Expressions. I think Steve and his Axtell Crew do a wonderful job. They Rock!

Working in the children's ministry at church I became interested in puppets and went to a puppet workshop in Sacramento CA. Maybe sometime between 1993-1996?

One Way Street and others where giving various workshops on ventriloqusim and magic. I remember Tony was there doing some magic tricks for us.

That day I came home with a couple of puppets. One was a little girl bird which I used at my preschool.

Last year I was again interested in puppets and came across Axtell's site. I loved the puppets. Later I found out my little bird was a Axtell puppet.

I was looking for a girl or boy puppet to use and to learn Ventriloquism, which I have always loved even as a child.

Well after watching Kimmo and Charlie on the Axtell site I fell in love with Willie.

I saved some money and now my Willie will be here in a couple of weeks. Very much looking forward to seeing him. Hoping we will have that "Magic Moment" when we meet for the first time.

Now my list keeps getting longer of the other Axtell puppets I'd like to get in the future.

I was introduced to Axtell's website by my friend and former performing partner Dan Sutherland. He had several Axtell puppets. I was primarily a puppeteer though with a few little magic routines I did. Then Dan got sick, and had to have surgery. I took over for him as Youth and Children's pastor. When he returned he gave me an Axtell Dodo (Dudley). When I opened the box and saw him it was the "Magic Moment." The voice and bond was instant.

But when would I use him? Dan again got sick and had to miss a show, so I literally got thrown to the wolves and had to perform with Dudley. He was a huge success. That was Halloween 2011.

Since then I've added Cornelius the Crow (a vegas lounge performer) and Koko the Magical Gorilla (who gets insulted if you call him a monkey) and a bird arm illusion. Ventriloquism is like a drug, the more you do it, the more you want to do it.

Dan and I have now parted ways from performing together, but I treasure that friendship and thank him everytime I pull Dudley out of his box for our weekly Children's Church program. (Although sometimes he gets a little jealous when the other two get pulled out instead.)

Pam and Kevin,
Thanks for sharing. Both are cool memories to be held deep in your heart.
How cool that you both kind of got Axtell puppets in the beginning.

These stories are so wonderful thanks. KIDabra magazine is reading them too, and will use some of them in an issue of the magazine featuring 30 years of Axtell. Ax

You are so welcome Ax.
Your puppets are so neat. The workmanship and the time involved shows in pictures, let alone up close and personal.
I am so glad I started this thread. I thought the stories and the memories are really cool. The forum Vents tell it like it is.
After all we are one big Venting family. {:->

So, he's got a natural tux- what about a bow tie too? How's his lunge act coming along?

Corny was actually the one I chose to enter the Terry Fator scholarship contest with. His act is slowly (and I mean very slowly) coming together. First he has to learn how to sing without all the kids covering their ears.

My first Axtell was about 1995, Wow 17 years ago! He was Pedro the Parrot. I had bought a magic prop that I just wasn't happy with so I was told I could take it to the Magic Circle Dealers day where the company would be and I could get a refund or a swop. Well the first thing that caught my eye was the parrot but it was £100 !!! I'd never spent that much on a prop for my magic show, I hadn't been doing it for that long. In the end I decided that because I had £50 credit then I only had to spend £50. I think I've spent a lot more than that now! i still have his body but he has a new head!

I started with a stiff rope routine and added noises to the parrot and eventually got up the courage to do ventriloquism. I was amazed at how even the older kids were fooled, I forgot that they rarely get to see ventriloquists on the TV anymore.

My next purchase was DinoStar who I have as a Dragon, I got him because my Son loved dragons.

But I think the puppet that I hassled Steve over the most was the Orang-Utan! I decided that I was going to have a Chimp but then I thought that an Orang-Utan would be even better, I have always loved Orang-Utans, so I emailed Steve to ask if they were going to make one and he said that he was planning on making Orangs and a Gorilla. Wow great news. But they were just in the planning stage, I'm not sure if Steve had even started on the sculpting .

I don't know how many emails we exchanged about when he would be ready but I think Steve must have been desperate to get mine out because he even forgot to sew the label in it!

Since then I have had all sorts of strange creature bearing the Axtell name come and go from my house, all have been superb, some have not fitted my style, some have gone in swops for other Axtell but every year Steve's work gets better and better, I can't wait to see what the next 17 years brings.