Mechanics and puppetry of full-size horse puppets

Some time ago I posted about the most life-like animal puppet I've ever seen: the horses from the play War Horse.

In this TED talk, creators Basil Jones and Adrian Kohler of Handspring Puppet Company explain how they created these astonishing full-sized horse puppets. They also provide a demonstration of how the puppets and puppeteers work together.

[ Thanks Jason! ]

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Book: The Boy Mechanic Makes 150+ Toys

The Boy Mechanic—Popular Mechanic Makes Toys is a follow up book to the original The Boy Mechanic: 200 Classic Things to Build. Both books are a collection DIY projects culled from early editions of Popular Mechanics Magazine. What an amazing magazine that once was! Designed to maintain a vintage feel, these projects are sure to inspire action and ingenuity. The book features more than 200 toys and game projects that require only basic tools to create.

Some of the projects in this book include:
• Toy donkey that nods and wags its tail
• Child's playhouse
• Miniature windmill
• Magic tricks, including the "X-Ray" cards and the mystery coin box
• Homebuilt canoe
• Diving tower
• Motors and engines

Some of the projects are pretty ambitious; it will help if you have experience reading blueprints and making things without complete step-by-step hand-holding. What the book lacks in detail, it makes up for in breadth and adventuresome spirit. This book is for adults as much -- maybe even more -- as it is for kids.

Here's where you can get The Boy Mechanic Makes Toys: 159 Games, Toys, Tricks, and Other Amusements.

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