Ninety years had passed before a suitcase, left unopened in an Australian family home, revealed its secrets and unveiled a unique archive belonging to English journalist Thomas Frederick Parnell. Known by his stage name Frederick Russell, Parnell became a pioneer in ventriloquism in the late 19th century and is regarded as “the father of modern ventriloquism.” He revolutionized the practice of miming speech from puppets and established the common practice of using a single comedic dummy as the puppeteer plays it straight. Parnell’s career as a jokester took him around the world, capturing images from Lake Tanganyika in East Africa to the Western Front.
A collection of his photographic prints was recently discovered in a descendant’s home in NSW, Australia, and has been catalogued, conserved, and is now set to go up for auction in a four-part series. Among the more than 360 photos in the collection are images of World War I from the front lines, the British navy at sea, and Armistice Day. These images, some press photographs, document moments from the war that are largely undated and unidentified.
The value of Parnell’s personal collection is difficult to estimate, but it is expected to attract international bidders at the upcoming online auction. Parnell’s family hopes that the images, which have never been seen before, will be acquired by museums or libraries to preserve and exhibit them. Meanwhile, the legacy of Parnell, who passed away in 1957, lives on through the ongoing exhibition of his photographs that tell the story of his travels and experiences.