Bil Baird

Captivating Audiences with Artistry & Imagination

Bil Baird (1904-1987), one of the world’s most celebrated puppeteers of the 20th century, grew up in Mason City, Iowa, where his passion for puppetry began. Born in Grand Island, Nebraska, Baird moved frequently with his family due to his father’s career as a chemical engineer. At just eight years old, he received his first string puppet, made by his father, sparking a lifelong fascination. By age fourteen, Baird was crafting his own puppets and performing shows like Treasure Island in the attic of his family’s Mason City home.

Throughout his 60-year career, Baird redefined the art of puppetry, which he described in his book The Art of the Puppet as “an inanimate figure made to move by human effort (not mechanized) before an audience.” His puppets, often given exaggerated human characteristics, came to life through his imaginative storytelling and innovative designs. Baird’s influence reached audiences worldwide as he and his “little friends” performed in nightclubs, on city streets, Broadway stages, at World’s Fairs, and in television and film, including iconic moments like the puppet scene in The Sound of Music. He even ran his own puppet theater in New York City.

Today, Baird’s creative legacy is preserved and celebrated at the Charles H. MacNider Art Museum in Mason City. The museum houses the largest collection of Baird’s puppets and works, showcased in the permanent exhibit Bil Baird: World of Puppets. Visitors can explore the artistry and magic that made Baird a pioneer in puppetry and a beloved figure in the world of entertainment.

Biographical Timeline:

1904 Bil Baird was born in Grand Island, Nebraska. His father was a chemical engineer and his mother was an Oberlin graduate and pianist.
1918 The Baird family moved to Mason City, Iowa 1921 Baird saw Tony Sarg’s “Rip Van Winkle” performed in Mason City and became interested in puppetry.
1922 Graduated from Mason City High School, Mason City, Iowa
1926 Graduated from the University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa
1926-1927 Bil Baird studied theater arts, interior decorating, and life sketching at the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts
1927 Baird moved to Paris and played accordion in cafés at night and sketched during the day.
1928 He moved to New York City and began working with Tony Sarg, the leading puppeteer of that time. 1934 Baird formed his own company located at 50 Barrow St. in New York City and had his first performance at Chicago’s World’s Fair.
1937 Bil Baird married Cora Burlur and began a family and successful career together.
1940’s & 50s The Baird Marionettes gained international acclaim, performing in nightclubs, on Broadway, in Hollywood, on television, and for audiences all over the country.
1958 Baird was nominated for an Emmy for the television special “Art Carney Meets Peter and the Wolf”.
1962 The United States State Department sent Bil Baird and Company on a seventeen-week tour of India, Nepal, and Afghanistan performing “Davy Jones’ Locker” and a series of Bil Baird variety shows.
1962 As a result of the successful 1962 tour, the Company was sent on a ten-week tour of Russian cities.
1964-1965 Bil Baird’s marionettes performed at the World’s Fair in New York City. Bil Baird’s puppets appear in the “goatherd scene” in the film, “The Sound of Music”.
1965 The first prints of Baird’s book, “The Art of the Puppet” was released which drew inspiration from his travels and contacts with leading puppeteers of the world.
1967 Cora Baird died.
1967 Baird’s six-story puppet theater and workshop opened at 59 Barrow St. in New York’s Greenwich Village. It became the center of his many puppet activities and won an Outer Circle Award.
1970 The exhibit, “Retrospective of Baird’s Work” opened at Lincoln Center Library in New York City.
1975 The fifth float designed by Bil Baird appeared in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City.
1976 The first exhibit of Bil Baird’s work was displayed at the Charles H. MacNider Art Museum in Mason City, Iowa.
1977-1978 Baird created the music and lyrics for “Once Upon a Dragon” which opened in the 1500-seat house at Busch Gardens, Williamsburg, Virginia.
1980 Baird received the Medal of Achievement given by the LOTOS Club of New York City.
1980 “Bil Baird and Friends Exhibit,” highlighting the life and career of Bil Baird opens at the Theater Collection, Museum of the City of New York City.
1980 UNIMA (Union International de la Marionette) and Puppeteers of America honor Baird, Burr Tillstom, Shari Lewis, and Jim Hensen at the 13th World Puppetry Festival in a performance at Kennedy Center, Washington, D.C.
1981 “Bil Baird: World of Puppets” a permanent collection gallery opened at the Charles H. MacNider Art Museum.
1983 Bil Baird and Margo Rose, another noted puppeteer (native of Storm Lake, Iowa) were honored at the Brunnier Gallery, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa on the occasion of the 44th National Festival of the Puppeteers of America.
1985 Baird received the Distinguished Alumni Award for the University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa.
1986 An exhibit of Bil Baird’s Puppets from the Charles H. MacNider Art Museum in Mason City, Iowa was featured in the Cultural Center at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines, Iowa.
1987 Bil Baird died in March of this year in New York City.
1988 “The Bil Baird Memorial Exhibit” opened at the Charles H. MacNider Art Museum, Mason City, Iowa.

Bil Baird: Mason City's Master Puppeteer