PADY BLACKWOOD (Master Puppeteer, Marionette Maker, and Consultant) The marionette puppetry of Pady Blackwood has been seen both on Broadway in Alice in Wonderland and off Broadway in Les Poupees De Paris, on television, in feature films, and on concerts stages with symphony orchestras around the world. Pady is currently the official puppeteer for TV's legendary Howdy Doody. He has had long associations with virtually all of the premiere puppet companies in the USA including the Krofft Brothers and Bil Baird's marionette theater in New York. Muppet creator, Jim Henson, called Pady, "one of the most gifted and innovative artists in the field of puppetry." In additional to his expert skills at operating marionettes, Pady also creates hand carved marionettes in the European Tradition. Pady has made many of the custom marionettes for Pinocchio's. |
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Co-owners Pady Blackwood (left) and David Eaton of Pinocchio's Marionette Theater talk while working with their mascot marionette, "Picolo," back in 2002. (JOE BURBANK, ORLANDO SENTINEL / May 9, 2002) Pady Blackwood was a Renaissance puppeteer. Jim Henson called him "one of the most gifted and innovative artists in the field of puppetry." During Blackwood's 60-year career, he made puppets come alive for television, movies and Broadway. In 2002, he co-founded Pinocchio's Marionette Theater, now located in Altamonte Mall, in order to introduce a new generation to the wonder of seeing "magic come to life." Blackwood, of Casselberry, died Tuesday (October 13, 2009) after suffering a heart attack. He was 70. Growing up in Kansas City, Mo., Blackwood had an early flair for performance. He began writing scripts and staging puppet shows as a child. Blackwood's talent was noticed by a traveling puppet troupe and he set out to pursue a career in New York City following high-school graduation. He studied under puppet masters Bill Baird and Sid and Marty Krofft throughout the 1960s and emerged as a recognizable industry name in the 1970s. Blackwood served as a double talent, because he designed and hand-carved marionettes in addition to being a puppeteer. His career took him all over the world. "Pady went where the work was. If there was no work, he would say 'something will come up.' And it always did," said his nephew Kraig Kensinger of Kansas City. Though he helped design, build and bring hundreds of puppets to life, Blackwood's claim to fame was being one of two surviving puppeteers for the classic "Howdy Doody" brand. Though Blackwood was not an original puppeteer for the show, he helped revive it in the 1970s and was the official representative of the brand until his death. Earlier this month, Blackwood was the guest of honor at the Central Florida Puppetry Guild meeting, where he showed off a new Howdy Doody marionette built by a friend. Attendees were entertained by Blackwood's stories well into the evening. "My uncle was a master storyteller and was very carefree and capricious," Kensinger said. "He really did live a charmed life." Blackwood's most recent work can be seen through Nov. 1 at the Orlando Puppet Festival at Pinocchio's in Altamonte Mall. He designed the puppets for the show Hansel & Gretel, and also voiced the pair's father. "People ask me how long it takes to learn this," Blackwood said in a 2002 interview with the Sentinel. "You never stop. It's like playing a stringed instrument. You practice and practice and practice." Blackwood is also survived by his brother Maynard Blackwood of Knox City, Mo., and many nieces and nephews throughout the country. Arrangements are being made by his family in Kansas City. Copyright © 2009, Orlando Sentinel |
Actually, Pady and I were good friends. He always genuinely happy to see me. He was as kind and gentle as everyone says he was. Rest in peace O master... |