The story of
magic is as old as recorded history. The Westcar Papyrus,
written nearly 4000 years ago, holds a story of a
magician performing centuries earlier in the Pharaoh's
court. Magicians performed in the streets and
marketplaces of ancient Greece and Rome. Almost every
society has some form of magic. Some say that magic is
the most universal of the performing arts, because it
translates so easily from one culture to another.
Before the year 1750, most magic was performed outdoors
in marketplaces, in fairs, and on street corners.
Magicians had no stages of their own. Their shows were
limited to what they could carry with them—or what
their audiences were likely to have handy.
ANCIENT EGYPT Beheadings in the court
Nearly 5000 years ago, magic entertained the court of the
Egyptian king Cheops. A magician named Dedi cut off and
restored the heads of a goose, a pelican and an ox.
ANCIENT GREECE Magic on the street
Magicians drew crowds on the streets of ancient Greece.
One watcher wrote of seeing a man put three small cups on
a table. The magician then moved pebbles "one by one
under the cups, and then—I don't know how—made
them appear under one cup, and showed them in his
mouth."
INDIA The illusion that never was
The tale of the famed "Indian rope trick" goes
back more than 600 years. The story goes roughly as
follows: a magician suspends a rope in an outdoor
clearing. Then a boy climbs the rope and disappears,
calling down insults. The magician grabs a sword, follows
and disappears too. The audience hears screams as body
parts fall to the ground. Then the magician reappears,
climbs down, throws the bloody parts into a basket and
shakes it. The boy steps out of the basket unhurt.
Only one problem: as described here, it's impossible.
While magicians have reproduced some parts of the Indian
rope trick, the whole tale is most likely just a story
passed along by people who said they knew others who had
seen it. Many magicians have said that repeating it all
outdoors just can't be done.
EUROPE Magic for kings and commoners—and suspicion
While some European magicians performed in royal courts,
most worked in marketplaces, at fairs and on street
corners.
Though the illusions were quite popular, people sometimes
accused the magicians of witchcraft. To make it easier to
find "real" witches, Reginald Scot wrote
"The Discoverie of Witchcraft" in 1584. In it,
he revealed how magicians did some common illusions to
show that they used natural methods, not witchy powers.
By 1750, most magic we know of took place at fairs in
Europe. Several magicians had made a living there, but
then the fairs were scaled back and shortened. In
response, magicians started moving into the cities.
At first, magicians performed at inns and public houses,
or rented rooms for their performances. Eventually, magic
caught on with the upper classes. Magicians started
performing in large theaters and gained respectability
and status. Many magicians capitalized on the public's
interest in science, drawing people to their magic shows
with scientific sounding terms or combining their shows
with science lectures.
The great traveling show also arose in this period. The
network of small vaudeville theaters created another
venue for magicians. Magic shows of all sizes
flourished—it was a time of enormous development for
magic. Many of the trends that exist in magic today have
their roots in this period.
The science of finding a wealthy audience
In the late 1700s, scientific lectures became popular
with wealthy people in England. To capture that audience,
the magician Katterfelto added science into his act.
Before each show, he'd lecture for an hour on scientific
topics. Katterfelto used a solar microscope to show
thousands of tiny creatures hidden in a drop of water,
beer, milk or anything else he wanted to magnify.
Puttin' on the ritz to get high-class crowds
When you see a male magician dressed up in tails, you're
seeing the unofficial "dress code" made popular
by French magician Jean-Eugène Robert-Houdin in 1845. He
was one of the first magicians to dress in eveningwear
for his show, instead of the usual long, star-covered
robes. Robert-Houdin's new look helped upper-class
audiences feel comfortable, with a stage set up to look
like a friend's parlor.
The Egyptian Hall
Magic finds a permanent home in the city
When the Egyptian Hall was built in London in 1812,
"England's Home of Mystery" was mainly a
museum. Over the years, magic shows replaced lectures and
other programs until 1873, when magicians John Nevil
Maskelyne and George Cooke moved in permanently.
Maskelyne and Cooke brought audiences back by constantly
changing and adding to their show.
The big traveling show becomes popular, and Kellar was
big
Magician Harry Kellar was the first American-born
magician to create a blockbuster traveling magic show. He
toured around the world, mostly in the United States
after 1884.
Kellar had a staff of assistants and a show that filled
the stage. He sometimes "borrowed" popular
tricks from other magicians and repeated them in his own
style. He believed that the United States would support
only one big magician at a time. For his time, he was
that magician.
When Kellar left, his show went on
When Kellar wanted to retire, fellow magician Howard
Thurston bought his props and took over the show. Kellar
toured with Thurston in 1908, passing on the role of most
popular magician in America.
Thurston kept some of Kellar's illusions, but added his
own ideas to make the show even bigger. He made a car
full of people disappear. He levitated a woman out over
the audience and around the stage, eventually making her
vanish from the air. Thurston hired other magicians to
help him tour several versions of this popular show.
Short magic acts make the variety show circuit
In the late 1800s, most magicians got their start in the
variety shows of vaudeville. A typical act lasted only 10
to 12 minutes. But a magician could take that act on the
road for years.
Cardini
Cardini's card handling set a new standard
In Cardini's legendary vaudeville act, he played a tipsy
gentleman surprised by cards that just kept appearing in
his hands.
Coming back to life was a great trick–until he
really died on stage
The foremost African-American magician of the early
1900s, Benjamin Rucker, performed under the name Black
Herman, and was widely popular. Black Herman was good at
being buried alive. People paid to see his
"corpse," feel that he had no pulse, and watch
his coffin be buried. Days later, Herman would rise from
the dug-up coffin and lead the audience into the theater.
One night in 1934, Black Herman collapsed on stage and
died. But the audience wouldn't leave. Huge crowds
gathered outside the funeral home to see the end of the
"trick." Herman's assistant finally said,
"Let's charge admission. That's what he would have
done." So they did.
The fairer sex became fair game
P.T. Selbit
Magic never showed the "torture" of women
before 1921. In that year, magician P.T. Selbit shut a
woman in a wooden box, with ropes holding her down, and
cut the box in two. The audience loved it. Magicians
everywhere rushed to make their own, bloodier versions.
Why did it catch on in 1921? The numbing, brutal world
war? Anger over women's recent and often violent battle
for the right to vote? Whatever the reason, magicians
still twist, stretch and carve up women on stage.
When movies came along, the vaudeville theaters that had
supported so many magicians turned into movie theaters.
Most magicians had to look for new venues for work. The
popularity of magic waned.
Cantu
Nightclubs were one place magicians turned to, but it was
a different kind of work. Vaudeville performers traveled
around circuits of theaters, so they were always getting
fresh audiences. In nightclubs, the audience was the
same, so the act had to be different. Magicians had to
keep changing their shows and adding new material to stay
in demand.
Magicians soon discovered another way to
perform—television. Many people doubted that magic
could work on TV, because they thought viewers wouldn't
believe what they were seeing was what was really |
happening
on-stage. Mark Wilson and the other magicians who
pioneered magic on camera proved that it could work, and
it did. Over time, many magicians made a name for
themselves in this new medium.
Cantu was the first to make doves appear
Mexican magician A.J. Cantu became famous working with
doves. His magic inspired magician Channing Pollock.
Nobody did doves like Channing Pollock, though everybody
tried
Channing Pollock
In the 1950s, magician Channing Pollock set the standard
for producing doves from thin air. Better known for his
magic than for his film career, Channing Pollock dressed
formally, smiled only at the very end of his act, and
inspired magicians around the world. His handsome face,
serious air and graceful moves left nightclub audiences
spellbound. As he made doves appear, he seemed to be
shaping them from air with his hands. Magicians
everywhere copied his moves.
When their old venues closed, successful magicians like
Jack Gwynne had to adapt
In the mid 1930s, vaudeville was dying. Magician Jack
Gwynne knew that he'd need to take his show somewhere
else–hotel dinner dances and nightclubs. He reshaped
his show, making it longer and changing some effects to
fit having an audience on three sides. He was always
creating new shows to stay in demand.
Playing off the many people claiming to be the world's
greatest magician, in 1935 Gwynne successfully advertised
himself as "The World's SECOND Greatest
Magician."
Magic happens under your nose
"Close-up" magic is magic done for just a few
people. Magicians started to make a living with it.
Dai Vernon taught close-up to other
magicians–naturally
Before magician Dai Vernon came along, many magicians
liked to show off their skill with cards. Vernon taught
instead that card magic should look like something that
just happened, with no extra moves. He became a mentor in
person and through books. Vernon taught magicians to act
in their own style and make their work look natural.
In the 1960s, Dai Vernon came to the Magic Castle, a
private magicians' club in Hollywood. People moved to Los
Angeles just to study with him.
Slydini's close-up fooled the mind
Magician Tony Slydini mastered close-up magic through his
skill with misdirection–fooling the mind more than
the eye.
Don Alan's "Magic Ranch" showed close-up to
everyone
Don Alan
Close-up magic, by definition, is magic for just a few
people. But when Don Alan's "Magic Ranch"
series aired on American TV in 1962, he showed it to a
whole country. He had turned these "pocket
tricks" into an entire act with a beginning, middle
and an end. His timing and his build to a finale showed
that close-up could be as good as any stage show.
Don Alan appeared on the TV shows of Ed Sullivan, Steve
Allen, Johnny Carson and many others.
Mark Wilson proved that magic works on TV
Mark Wilson
When Mark Wilson tried to get a magic series for children
on national television in 1958, people told him that
magic "won't work on TV." But he never gave up.
He found his own sponsor in Kellogg's. "The Magic
Land of Allakazam" first aired in 1960; the first
sponsored magic series on American TV.
Wilson believed that magic needed three things to work on
TV:
• Always have a live audience
• Never have the camera cut away during a trick.
• Let viewers know that they see exactly what the
studio audience sees.
The magic of Mark Wilson and Nani Darnell inspired quite
a few youngsters to become magicians when they grew up.
Milbourne Christopher
Milbourne Christopher did variety magic specials on TV
Magician Milbourne Christopher performed in the first
magic show on national TV. He promoted his specials with
a grand effect at the end, making people stay tuned to
the end of the show. In this photograph he's doing a
dangerous bullet catch.
Doug Henning brought magic to a new generation
The talent and energy of Canadian magician Doug Henning
revived magic on TV. His look captured the spirit of his
time. And in his TV specials in the 1970s and 80s, he
presented magic with an open, childlike wonder that
delighted viewers.
Henning's magic on stage and his many live TV specials
helped make magic popular again. When it aired live on
December 26, 1975, "Doug Henning's World of
Magic" drew 50 million viewers–and became the
highest-rated magic special in the history of television.
Now magicians are everywhere, doing many different types
of magic. Comedy, card tricks, illusions, doves, escapes,
and even magic that defies definition—no matter what
kind of magic you want to see, chances are there's a
magician out there making it happen. Experience the many
flavors of magic.
Siegfried and Roy started the big magic tradition in Las
Vegas
Siegfried & Roy
Before 1980, Las Vegas was best known for legal gambling.
German magicians Siegfried and Roy made Vegas into the
home of magic. With their rare white tigers and other
animals, they worked up to starring in their own show at
the Stardust hotel.
In 1989, they moved into a theater built for them at the
Mirage and opened a larger-than-life show featuring
fabulous sets, lighting, showgirls, music, exotic animals
and illusion.
The pair met in 1960 working on a German cruise ship,
where Siegfried tended bar and did magic once a week.
After one show, Roy said, instead of making a rabbit
appear, why not a cheetah? Roy smuggled his pet cheetah
on board for the next cruise. This new act stunned the
audience and started a long and profitable partnership.
David Copperfield presented the magician as rock star
David Copperfield
Magician David Copperfield followed the TV success of
Doug Henning, but with a twist. Henning used the
flower-child symbols of the 70s. Copperfield adapted the
look of a rock star, usually presenting magic to rock
music. Other magicians have since adopted the look.
Lance Burton turned classical magic success into a big
Vegas show
At first, Lance Burton's magic was a classic, 12-minute,
silent routine with doves and cards. He kept working in
Las Vegas for years, improving and adding to his act. In
1995, he opened a large, lavish show in a theater built
just for him. With his mix of classical magic and big
illusion, Burton's show is a major attraction.
Lance Burton fell in love with magic when he was five
years old and a magician made coins appear from Burton's
ears. Even now, he refers to invite children to join him
on stage.
Goldfinger and Dove dance with high-energy magic
On stage, magicians Goldfinger and Dove are always in
motion. They don't seem to be performing magic so much as
dancing it into existence. They make impossible things
happen–cards appear, silks flow from nowhere and
torn papers are made whole–with an unmatched energy
and enthusiasm.
One of Goldfinger and Dove's early appearances on TV came
with Sammy Davis, Jr., who said of their act,
"Goldfinger and Dove have flash, man."
Max Maven knows what you're thinking
Max Maven
If you went to see world-famous mentalist Max Maven,
you'd see him tell people things they were thinking that
seem impossible for anyone else to know. With psychology,
memory and the power of suggestion, he seems to read
minds. He also writes, invents new magic and consults for
other magicians. Most people know Max Maven best for the
interactive effects he has created for TV.
Athletic and fast, the Pendragons are masters of the big
illusion
Magicians Jonathan and Charlotte Pendragon are most
famous for their version of Houdini's
"Metamorphosis." Jonathan is tied in a sack and
locked in a chest. Charlotte stands on the chest and
tosses up a curtain. Suddenly Jonathan is standing there;
she's in the chest. When Houdini did this trick, he was
out of sight for only three seconds. The Pendragons do it
in a split second. Jonathan and Charlotte Pendragon use
their incredible athletic strength to perform magic that
no one else can do. Jade presents magic with grace,
elegance and beauty
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Jade The magician Jade has a range of performing
styles, including but not limited to traditional Chinese
magic. She changes a small bowl of rice into water,
brings paper butterflies to life, and creates a snowstorm
on stage. Her grace and skill as a magician have earned
the respect of her peers–she is the first woman to
win the coveted Gold Medal from the International
Brotherhood of Magicians.
Jade fell in love with magic in high school, when she
walked into a magic shop on Fisherman's Wharf in San
Francisco. They thought at first she was too shy, but she
convinced them to give her a job and grew from there into
a talented professional magician.
Penn & Teller call themselves the "bad boys of
magic"
Penn & Teller performing Casey and the Bat
Magicians Penn and Teller have perfected their creative,
original and irreverent style. They can seem to show you
how a trick is done and still leave you baffled.
For example, their version of the magician's standard
cups and balls–with clear cups–also comes with
quick talk, smooth teamwork and moves that you simply
can't follow. Even at the end, you won't know how they
did it.
In one of their illusions, pictured here, Teller tries to
break free before Penn finishes a fast reading of Casey
at the Bat and stands to take a bow, releasing the rope.
In Portugal, Luis de Matos does magic on TV
Luis de Matos
If you ask someone from Portugal to name a magician,
they'll probably name Luis de Matos. He turned his early
love for television into a career presenting magic. While
only in his 20s, he'd already starred in and produced
several series of magic shows–more than a hundred
shows. De Matos performs illusions, escapes, close-up
magic and even shows tricks viewers can use to win bets.
Tina Lenert blends the arts of mime and magic
Tina Lenert
Tina Lenert prefers not to be called a magician. But on
stage, she uses magic with other arts, like mime or
music, to tell a story. In her best-known routine, she
plays a cleaning woman who's tired and unhappy. When her
mop magically "comes to life," it offers
flowers, romance and the chance to live her dreams.
Tina Lenert followed a strange path to magic. She has
played guitar (rock and classical), surfed with a tandem
surfing team, and left a secretarial job to become a
mime.
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crazy interactive therapy