Hi there, Pete from Ronjo.com here. About 20 years ago I saw and handeled a prop similar in effect to the Axtel Drawing Board that I would love to find again if anyone out there knows what it is. I will descibe it as best as I can but I only saw it briefly. It is an aluminum pole and you put a clear inflated balloon on top of the pole. The you draw a face on it with markers. The mouth on the balloon moves (talks, smiles & frowns). Done with a trigger switch (like a vent puppet) built into the pole. The act of using the triggers or triggers (they may have been two or three of them) made a wire with a red velvet "mouth" come out of the pole and it pressed against the inside of the balloon and it appears as if you drew the mouth on. If anyone knows who made or what it is called these I would appricate it. Thanks, Pete

If it was really all that good, it would still be sold, don't you think? Clever idea, but my instinct says there must have been major flaws.

Actually the one I saw was quite nice and qorked great. I do remember they were very expensive. It is my guess that a limited amount were made by hand and not mass produced by a company. We would like to maybe buy the rights to reproduce it (unless it is still out there somewhere).

Ronjo.....

Actually it was called "The Balloon Clown" and was made by my friend Craig Lovik. Very ingenious....no longer made. The simiarity to my Magic Drawing Board is intentional. He told me he was inspired by it, as many other magic inventors have been.

It had a fabric clown suit over the plastic pipe pole, two wires protruded from the inside of the pipe and held the corners of a two-lipped fabric shape. The pipe was collapsable down to half size so you could retract the wire / fabric mouth gimmick into the pipe. A pump was connected to the other end of the pipe.

1. Put a balloon onto the top end of the pipe neck (coming out of the clown suit)
2. Inflate the balloon through the pipe with the pump.
3. Draw a face with a marker onto the balloon but no mouth.
4. push the bottom half of the pipe upward, and eject the wires holding the fabric mouth into the inflated balloon. The wires were bent over so the mouth would touch the skin of the balloon in the correct place, if you drew it properly.
5. Moving the pipe in and out would create pressure on the two thin wires, and they would press the fabric lips against the inside of the balloon causing them to move as if talking. The opaqueness of the balloon kept the gimmick from being seen until it actually touched the skin.
6. At the end you could pull out the mouth and pop the balloon, or just put him away.

Lot's of "air head" puns etc.

The trick gave birth to another invention, that paid off well for Craig. The "Balloon Stuffer" became a product that he licensed to a big manufacturer that would allow them to put teddy bears and other gifts up into an inflated balloon, using this principal. Here's the patent http://www.freepatentsonline.com/image-5322101-1.html

Just one of many memories of Craig and his creativity. I'm not sure where he is now days, but his son Keith Lovik is making dummies, following in his tradition. http://www.lovikspuppets.com/

Ax

Wow, that sound neato! Thanks for the history lesson, Ax!

Steve,
Thanks for the description of the balloon clown and the balloon stuffer. I have the balloon stuffer. I also have a great character figure by Craig Lovik. I had no idea the ballon stuffer was his invention.

Oliver