Paul Wilchinsky, born on December 21, 1922, to Sol and Clara Wilchinsky, would grow up to become the most beloved ventriloquist of American children.
In a peculiar twist, Paul's dummy, Jerry Mahoney, would likely be more famous than he was, rivaled only by the legendary duo of Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy.
Paul entered the spotlight on the Edward Bowes "Original Amateur Hour" in 1948, followed by a review show featuring the winners of his radio program.
He began his television career on CBS's "The Bigelow Show" in 1948, then went on to star in "The Paul Winchell Show" in 1950, originally titled "The Spiedel Show," and finally, "Winchell-Mahoney Time" in 1965.
The latter show featured a clubhouse premise, with Jerry Mahoney and Knucklehead Smiff as the leaders, and music by bandleader Milton Delugg.
A groundbreaking innovation of Paul's was replacing the dummy's hands with those of puppeteers hidden behind the dummies in a crate.
Paul also took on many dramatic roles on television, sans his dummy sidekicks.
Moreover, he created the iconic voice of Tigger for the Walt Disney Company's "Winnie The Pooh" motion-picture series, based on A.A. Milne's famous books.
Paul voiced Tigger behind the scenes until 1999, when he was replaced by Jim Cummings, who also voiced Pooh after Sterling Holloway's passing.
He was also the voice of numerous other world-renowned cartoon characters.
Interestingly, Paul was one of the original inventors of an artificial heart, years before the first successful transplant, an automobile running on battery power, a method for breeding tilapia, and many other inventions that are still in use today.
