Photo: Kyle Bray/WBZ NewsRadio
FRAMINGHAM, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — Kevin Driscoll is sharing the history of the midnight ride of Paul Revere with his own personal tribute to the military officer.
After leaving his job in tech, Driscoll decided to become a ventriloquist. He, along with his puppet Jerry, is sharing the history of Paul Revere with the Bay State.
"Chances are, if Longfellow hadn't written that poem, nobody would hear about Paul Revere," Driscoll said. "If you do the research, you'll find out that in his obituary, the midnight ride was not mentioned. He was not famous during his lifetime."
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Driscoll, who portrays Revere, has written an entire show, complete with original songs and jokes to tell the tale. He has been intrigued by the art of ventriloquism since his childhood.
"I used to go see Jeff Dunham whenever he came to town. And when I was a kid, obviously, I was, I'm old, so the 1950s ventriloquism was a key thing on the Ed Sullivan show when they would have all these different ventriloquists on, and I always was enamored with the whole art of it and how a puppet could come to life like that," Driscoll remarked.
As a Massachusetts-certified teacher with decades of teaching experience, his "Paul Revere & Friends" interactive performance blends New England history with comedy, music, and his cast of puppets.
"I even go to these open mics and try to figure out how I could possibly, you know, get better and improve," Driscoll stated. "And I took some courses in comedy and I read every book I could get my hands on, and it was just such an amazing thing to be able to walk into a room and within five minutes people are laughing."
WBZ NewsRadio's Kyle Bray (@KyleBrayWBZ) reports.