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Otto Petersen

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Ventriloquist

The Resume

    (July 29, 1960-April 13, 2014)
    Born in Staten Island, New York
    Dummy was George
    Developed an X-rated ventriloquist act
    Frequent guest on the Opie and Anthony radio show
    Appeared in 'Comedy's Dirtiest Dozen' (1988) and 'The Aristocrats' (2005)

Why he might be annoying:

    He dropped out of high school to become a street performer.
    His first 'George' was destroyed by an irate listener who did not appreciate the following exchange-- George: 'You're ugly.' Otto: 'Tell him you're sorry.' George: 'Okay. I'm sorry that you're ugly.'
    He said, 'I guess I have a lot of rage and I get it out through George.'
    His lips moved noticeably when he did Gorge's voice.
    One write-up noted, 'When Otto & George co-hosted the Porno Awards in Las Vegas, they were later told that George offended the people in attendance. Now that's extreme.'
    He said about Twitter, 'I still don't understand it, but I'm on it.'

Why he might not be annoying:

    He was inspired by seeing Paul Winchell when he was seven.
    While performing in New York City on the streets and in the parks, he encountered John Lennon (who handed him two bucks and told him to give at least $1.50 to George, because he was funnier) and Peter Falk (who stayed through five shows, then gave him $50).
    He gave himself and George distinctively contrasting voices, which helped maintain the illusion of two speakers despite his poor lip work.
    He said, 'I like to think I have some wit. Some people just hear the cursing, though.'
    He demonstrated he could work clean and still get laughs with his appearance during 'Ventriloquism Week' on 'The Late Show with David Letterman.'
    Jim Norton said, 'Nobody made me laugh harder than him.'

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 3 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 5 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 15 Votes: 86.67% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 8 Votes: 25.00% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 2 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 13 Votes: 46.15% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 11 Votes: 45.45% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 7 Votes: 71.43% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 115 Votes: 61.74% Annoying