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JIM BARBER IN THE ED SULLIVAN-THEMED SHOW “A REALLY BIG SHEW”
by JoAnn Smith – Editor - Laughlin Entertainer
reprinted by permission – Feb 15-21, 2006 issue

The cleverly formatted show, “A Really Big Shew” currently playing in the Flamingo Laughlin, dips into the nostalgia barrel a bit and recreates the look and feel of the old Ed Sullivan Show of ’50′s-early ’70′s TV. With Jerry Hoban in the lead as Sullivan, the show brings a variety of acts to the stage that would otherwise be tough to catch. Thus, a trained dog act sets up a juggler which sets up a ventriloquist which sets up an impersonator… and on and on.

Jim Barber has an act in the current line-up of the show that fits the Sullivan mode to a T. Barber is a ventriloquist who is also a singer, a stand-up comic and a dancer (sort of) all rolled into one guy.

Some of the Minnesota snowbirds who make their way to Laughlin at this time of year may remember Barber as the co-host of a children’s TV show out of Minneapolis called Breakfast with Casey Jones.

It’s been awhile since Casey sat down to a bowl of oatmeal and Barber has gone on to many other TV shows, USO tours and comedy club stops along his path. But he continues to turn full grown adults in his audience into kids as he amazes and amuses with his unique brand of the art of ventriloquism.

Jim Barber recently talked with the Laughlin Entertainer about his career, his craft and the act he performs in the show.

Q. How did you get you start in show business?

A. I started doing shows for birthday parties and things like that when I was 11 years old. Oddly, the girl whose birthday party was the first one I ever performed for came to my show the other night and brought her kids. Her mom was the first person to ever pay me. She turned me pro.

Q. Do you still have your first puppet?

A. My first puppet was like Ernie on Sesame Street. It was a foam shell that I’d cut to make the body; one of my hands was his hand. I was 10 years old when I made that puppet and no, I don’t have it any more. My first “real” puppet was Freddie. He’s living in a suitcase in my office – he’s retired.

Q. You do a most unique bit in your act in which you “swap heads” with the dummy. Doesn’t that hurt?

A. Nobody’s ever done that. It’s become a hook of mine over the years. It takes some physical control to get my body to do that. I think if I actually went to the chiropractor and he “fixed-me,” I’d never be able to do it again. It’s fun for me to watch the audience when I first come out. They laugh… then they’re whispering “How’s he doing that”… while rubbing their necks. I don’t think they hear a word I say.

Q. What is the state of ventriloquism in today’s entertainment scene?

A. There are more ventriloquists working now than when I started in this business. It’s an ever growing number. There is a ventriloquist convention in July in Fort Mitchell, Kentucky, and about 500 ventriloquists show up. It’s the most unique thing watching all these guys playing with dolls. Jeff Dunham and I (*as well as many other professional ventriloquists) help train the up and coming ventriloquists. We teach them the best way to perform to keep the art growing. Even though there are more and more working professionals today than in years past, there still aren’t too many that make it to TV. The Tonight Show and Letterman stick to the straight stand-up comics. Ventriloquism works better live.

Q. Any new characters in the works?

A. I’m always working on new ideas for my theater in Branson, Missouri. We’re in our third season with The Hamners. Local audiences may remember them as they were part of the cast of “A Really Big Shew” with a magic/bird show.

I’ve got several things I’m working on but I don’t know how long it will take to develop them. I’m working on things all of the time.

Q. What drew you to “A Really Big Shew?”

A. I’m one of the original cast members who has been with the show from the beginning. I’ve been everywhere with this show… Reno, Vegas… doing corporate shows all over the country. I help create the routines for Topo Gigio and I also to the voice. I believe in this show and I see it growing and continuing to grow. I think it could be something great. I have a lot of optimism for the future of this show.

Related Websites:

Laughlin, Nevada Entertainer Magazine
A Really Big Shew - Official Show Website

If the Ed Sullivan show was still on the air, both Jim Barber and The Hamners would no doubt be asked to appear with their unique brands of variety entertainment. The legend of America’s favorite TV variety show lives on with “A Really Big Shew,” starring Jerry Hoban as Ed Sullivan. Hoban played the famous TV host in the motion picture “Pulp Fiction” as well as on many network television series. The most recent rendition of the “Shew” is currently playing nightly at the Flamingo Hotel in Laughlin, NV. Jim Barber is among the featured acts and is receiving rave reviews for his impeccable vocal technique and his zany cast of characters. Barber also provides the voice of Ed’s pint-sized sidekick, Topo Gigio, the cute, little Italian mouse who became famous for his catch phrase, “Eddie… Kissa Me Goodnight!”

“A Really Big Shew” is the brain-child of producer Gene Siler and is officially licensed by the Ed Sullivan estate. It features the greatest variety acts performing today including The Hamners with their magical, exotic tropical birds. The Hamners also made a big impression on Laughlin audiences when they appeared here in 2004. The show has won the “Best Ongoing Show” award in Laughlin for the past two years in a row. Jim Barber was one of the original acts to appear on the “Shew” and has also joined the cast for productions in Las Vegas, Reno, and many other theaters and showrooms across the country.

Jim Barber appears at the Laughlin Flamingo from January 23 – February 17, 2006. Also appearing on the show is Bob Moore and his Amazing Mutts, and 20 year old piano sensation Lance Lapinsky in a tribute to the “killer” himself, Jerry Lee Lewis.

For more information on this entertaining production that is also available for corporate events and theaters nationwide, visit aReallyBigShew.com

In a full page story, MAGIC magazine Editor John Moehring praised The Hamner’s original stage escape illusion by stating“Vertigo is not only devilishly suspenseful, but it is perhaps the only stage escape that has a surprise climax that seems physically impossible.”

Moehring also complimented Jim Barber’s half of the show as“clever comedy and impeccable ventriloquism.”

The shows talented cast of dancers also received kudos in the review. “Choreographer A.J. Herd struts her stuff in a Broadway dance medley, “Downtown” Kenny Brown sings with elegance and soul, and Tim Lewis is a hoofer par excellence, proving as Dave (Hamner) has already told his audience, “these guys aren’t just a bunch of box jumpers.”

Moehring concluded his review by stating, “The blending of the talents of Jim Barber and Dave Hamner plays well in this show. And because Jim was a magician before he turned to ventriloquism, while Dave practiced ventriloquism as he first learned magic, the two performers have plans to add some new material to the show – that explores what these two talented guys did and didn’t want to be when they grew up.”

The cast and crew of the Hamner Barber Variety Show extend a huge “Thank You” to John Moerhing and everyone at MAGIC for including us in the special issue.

Visit MAGIC Magazine online for more information or to subscribe to this beautifully designed and printed publication.