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I am a performee still called Captain Dick, the name I and my ventriloquist figure friends have performed under for roughly 30 years. I still do an occasional show. I began performing as a folk singer in the 1960's.

Then came the "Captain" thing. People do keep asking about that. Some years back, I was working as a story teller. I had worked my way through college deep sea fishing and had long been an avid sailor. At the time I had been living on a sailboat with Mrs. Captain for some ten years. Anyway, it seemed appropriate to specialize in performing and telling sea stories for yacht clubs. The persona of "Captain Dick" fit.

Later, I added ventriloquism to the act, using an old sailor, "The Old Salt", as my partner. So for many years, Captain Dick and The Old Salt were a local performing institution, and the name has stuck and carried over into my many shows. I only do the sea story act occasionally these days, but usually perform more general material as Dick Wightman and Friends, with my sidekicks Barney, Fred and Woody!