02574cam a22003853u 4500 64789 UtSlPG 20260610134508.0 m cr n 260607r2021||||utu|||||o|||||||||||||| d UtSlPG en iso639-1 PS Wellman, Manly Wade, 1903-1986 Bratton's Idea Salt Lake City, UT : Project Gutenberg, 2021 1 online resource : multiple file formats text txt rdacontent computer c rdamedia online resource cr rdacarrier Produced from Comet December 40 Release date is 2021-03-11 Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net "Bratton's Idea" by Manly Wade Wellman is a short story written in the early 20th century, likely during the mid-1900s, that intertwines elements of science fiction with dark comedy. The narrative centers around an aging janitor named Old Bratton, who is obsessed with creating life through electricity. His ambitions and experiments take an unexpected turn when he acquires a ventriloquist's dummy, Tom-Tom, and infuses it with life through his mechanical inventions, leading to a series of chaotic and dangerous events in the world of show business and organized crime. In the story, Old Bratton's endeavors to animate Tom-Tom result in unintended consequences when the dummy gains a twisted form of sentience. As Tom-Tom embarks on a crime spree after Bratton's death, he wields his unwitting abilities to command a gang and orchestrate kidnappings, including that of the beautiful Shannon Cole. The tale unfolds with Ben Gascon, a ventriloquist, trying to uncover the connection between his former partner, Bratton, and Tom-Tom's sudden malevolence. As a cat-and-mouse game ensues between Gascon and the doll, the story explores themes of creation, ambition, and the darker sides of sentience, culminating in a climactic confrontation where the true nature of life and morality is sharply questioned. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Original publication data not identified Science fiction Man-woman relationships -- Fiction Robots -- Fiction Inventions -- Fiction Los Angeles (Calif.) -- Fiction Giunta, John, 1920-1970 Produced from Comet December 40 https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/64789 105612 105612