Lettie C. Schubert, 77; Puppeteer and Mentor to Future Muppet Performers
from the LA Times
In the display window of a San Francisco portrait shop, a feather and a canine hand puppet became a tourist attraction in the 1960s. The playful wisp of a drama caused so many sightseeing buses to double-park that the city threatened to shut down the nightly shows.
The gloved hand that brought crowds and whimsy to Grant Street belonged to Lettie Connell Schubert, whose talent for organizing regional and national puppet festivals and teaching workshops made her a leading figure in American puppetry.
“She was a tremendous force and a major part of our history,” said Alan Cook, curator of the Conservatory of Puppetry Arts in Pasadena. “She was a really inspired performer and the best person at critiquing that I ever met.”
Schubert, who was diagnosed with cancer six months ago, died of liver failure March 21 at her home in Mill Valley, north of San Francisco, said her husband, Gage. She was 77.
When she wasn’t performing with her two favorite alter egos — a dog named George and a fairy called Twinkle — she was often mentoring up-and-coming performers.
Among those who benefited from her gentle critiques was a teenage Frank Oz, the future voice of Cookie Monster and Miss Piggy. Oz told The Times that Schubert was “one of the influential people” in his life.
“A Manual of Hand Puppet Manipulation,”
Technorati Tags: Lettie Connell Schubert, puppet festivals, puppetry, Conservatory of Puppetry Arts, Frank Oz, Cookie Monster, Miss Piggy
