The Collection of Jim Rawlins Part II

Bergen, Edgar. Edgar Bergen’s Flowering Rose Bush. New Haven: Petrie and Lewis, ca. 1939. A barren green plant slowly and elegantly blooms, bearing some dozen real flowers which can then be cut from the branches and distributed to the audience. With the original packing case bearing Edgar Bergen’s Charlie McCarthy address label, and with his name lettered on the lid in black paint. Owned and used by the most famous ventriloquist of all time, this mechanical marvel, developed and patented by J.A. Petrie, is one of the most sought-after products of his famous magic-trick manufacturing firm, Petrie and Lewis. Bergen used the props on numerous occasions, including an appearance on This is Your Life. Before his breakout success as a star of radio, screen, and television with Charlie, Mortimer, and Effie, Bergen made his mark on the Chautauqua and Lyceum circuits of rural America, performing as both a magician and ventriloquist.