VENTRILOQUISTS UPSET ABOUT SCHIZO IMAGE

VENTRILOQUISTS UPSET ABOUT SCHIZO IMAGE

LAS VEGAS, Nev. (Wireless Flash) -- Ventriloquists aren't just throwing their voices these days -- now they're throwing their weight around to improve their image. A group known as the International Ventriloquists Association will hold its annual convention next week in Las Vegas, and president Valentine Vox admits the group's 300 members will be discussing how to improve the public's perception of the art form. He says many TV shows and movies portray ventriloquists as schizophrenics controlled by their own dummies -- which gives the impression ventriloquism is a mental condition, not an art form. Vox says he has yet to meet a ventriloquist with a multiple personality disorder and claims many modern voice throwers use their talents as social workers, teachers and even ministers.