EXHIBIT: TOM TICHENOR TRIUMPHANT
& PEEKO PUPPETS PLEASE PARTICULAR PEOPLE

May 16 - August 3, 2008

In honor of Nashville’s International Puppet Festival, we invite you to enjoy this exhibit of selected Tom Tichenor Marionettes and Peeko Puppets. Enjoy the creativity and craftsmanship that went into the making of these historic puppets from Nashville Public Library’s collection. On the second floor, in the Courtyard Gallery. Read more about Nashville Public Library's puppet history.

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Tom Tichenor Triumphant!

When he was fifteen years old, Tom Tichenor began a tradition of puppetry at the Nashville Public Library. From 1938-1988, he etched an idelible memory of high quality entertainment in service to reading and learning. The Tichenor puppets and constructions exhibited are a fraction of those in the library's collection.

As a volunteer in 1938, Tichenor mounted his first production for the library. His mother, a seamstress, helped the fifteen-year-old create the costumes for Puss in Boots

Marco Polo Bear, Gerome the Gnome (who became Dippy Dwarf), and Felicia Fieldmouse were some of Tichenor's most famous puppets.

Cinderella is the most common fairy tale around the world. In 1947, it was a big hit for Tichenor when it ran for four months. More than 5000 children and adults delighted in it.

Three Billy Goats Gruff was a typical Tichenor adaptation of a classic. Tom also wrote many original puppet plays full of whimsy and wordplay.

Tichenor's architecture was also his art. Recycled cereal boxes, paper towel rolls, and other throwaways became the enchanting settings for his plays.

Toward the end of his career, Tichenor said with a grin, "I would say that I started out playing little boys, witches, old men, and old women. And here I am still playing little boys, witches, old men, and old women."

Tichenor favored animal puppets and cloth construction. Alice the Otter was an important early and original Tom Tichenor personality. She thanks you for celebrating him.

Peeko Puppets Please Particular People

Beginning in the 1950s, puppeteers Billie Logan and Elly Reed were a Chicago area staple for more than 40 years. Around their regular schedule of performances at Marshall Field's, the theatrical duo staged countless shows for schools, libraries, and civic clubs. Praised for their high quality programming, the women were equally painstaking in their craft.

Because of the Nashville Public Library's prestigious Tichenor legacy, in 2004, Wisconsin's Kohler Foundation made possible the gift of more than 70 Peeko puppets, complete with sets, props, stages, and vintage sound equipment. The Peeko Puppets perform regularly in Wishing Chair Productions shows.

Logan and Reed spent approximately 150 hours making each Peeko marionette. Their creativity, precision, and engineering produced beautiful puppets of consistent scale that move well and endure decades of use.

Peeko puppets tell traditional stories such as Goldilocks and the Three Bears, Hansel and Gretel, and Little Red Riding Hood.

Puppeteers Logan and Reed also created stock characters such as elves and woodsmen who could be adapted for various tales.

Peeko puppets have their own elaborately crafted worlds. This backdrop and fireplace were created for Logan and Reed's Santa's Toy Shop.

Logan's and Reed's promotional literature asserted, "Peeko puppets please particular people." We agree.