At the beginning of his career as a comedian, Don 

Knotts was a ventriloquist.  When he eventually grew 

"tired of playing straight man for a hunk of wood ... he 

tossed the dummy overboard off a ship in the South Pacific. 

He swore that he could hear the dummy calling for help as 

the ship sailed on, leaving him bobbing helplessly 

in the waves." (Wikipedia)