In His Own Words
“You ask in The Billboard, issue January 6, if the “movies” have killed
the Punch and Judy Show. I say no. If Punch is done by an artiste
who can use the ‘reed or squeaker’ and has conception of character
work, it will always be a big hit.
When a good reed worker who can be heard all over a picnic ground starts the Punch ‘voice’, just notice how the ‘kids’ (big and little) will run to see the show.
However, I am sorry to say that some men are ‘doing at’ Punch who are not and never will be Punch men, with the result that once their show is seen it is never again for that picnic or church. Their idea of Punch is to stick a couple of figures on the stage and knock their heads together.
Now I am on the road all the time with my partner, Harry Foye. and our show consists of magic, paper tearing, ventriloquism and Punch. We have just come in from Rhode Island and start this week for the western part of Massachusetts, and then go to New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
We layed off during the holidays and I had more work than I could attend to with my Punch show at $20 to $25 at each show. My show runs from thirty minutes to one hour. The late Frank Pryor could give a show lasting an hour and fifteen minutes with Punch and keep the audience interested all the time.
You ask if Al Flosso is the last of the oldtimers. I can name a few oldtimers
who are still going, as follows: Larry Corbett, of Brooklyn; Hudson
and Hudson, ‘Billy’ Lynch, Joseph Yarrick, the magician, who introduced
the ‘Magic Kettle’ on the big time; Al Ellis, Oscar B. Steele,
Punch Irving, ‘Doc’ Barry, B.F. Rose,Billy Crawford, Sig Sautelle,
and as I have been doing Punch for twenty-five years, perhaps
I can qualify as an oldtimer.”
Above is the only direct quote of Charles McCarty available. It
is from the last of 3 clippings on page 61 of his scrapbook. The
clipping has no date (est. circa 1922), no headline and no source
is indicated.