Not at all silent, and nothing to do with ducks

This dapper chap is 19th-century French genius Joseph Pujol AKA Le Pétomane. Following a disturbing swimming experience in his youth he discovered that he could suck water up through his ass and shoot it out again, a revelation which ultimately led him from his humble life as a baker to top billing at the Moulin Rouge. As a 'fartiste' his repertoire included imitating animal noises, playing the flute, reproducing 'La Marseilleise' and blowing out a candle from a distance of several yards - all with his ass. A contemporary physician diagnosed him as having a 'musical anus' and he counted Jean-Paul Sartre among his fans.

What I love most about Le Pétomane is not only that he did a fart impression of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, but that he performed it in front of royalty and Sigmund Freud. And he held his finger up for silence as he did it. Plus he had a dope moustache.