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By Brown, Gary and Michael Edwards
Recent postings on the alt.magic bulletin board focused on the conjuring books participants would most like to have with them if stranded on a desert isle. One participant noted that a conjuring book would be little utility on an uninhabited island -- after all, there would be no one for whom to perform. In addition, an absence of props would leave the poor stranded conjurer with few effects, other than, perhaps, a vanishing coconut illusion. Indeed, a shipwrecked magician would fare better with one of the many good historical works about magicians. The art of magic derives from a rich and diverse tradition, featuring performers whose lives were as colorful and entertaining as the programs they presented. This tradition, in turn, has been captured in some fine books, which not only make great reading, but are filled with ideas and techniques valuable to practicing magicians. So we thought that an overview of these works would allow readers -- shipwrecked or not -- to plunge into the annals of their craft General Histories The history of magic has long been a favorite subject for writers, scholars and magicians. Many of the resulting books are designed for laymen, offering interesting portraits of great magicians and remarkable tales of their lives. Such general interest books are easier to find, and are often less expensive. By contrast, works written with magicians in mind are generally costlier and available only through magic dealers. All of those discussed below are highly recommended.
Lively writing style and unusual subject matter render Ricky Jay's Learned Pigs and Fireproof Women one of the most entertaining books for those interested in magic history. Yet Learned Pigs offers both style and substance -- Jay is a scholar who unearthed some remarkable material for this beautifully illustrated book. Purists will argue that this is not strictly a book about magic history -- but its pages are filled with tales of bizarre and exotic performers including several conjurers.
In 1962, Milbourne Christopher, a noted magician, historian, collector, and writer, wrote Panorama of Magic, arguably the first coffee table-type book on the history of conjuring. Richly illustrated and extremely readable, it was reissued by Dover Books in 1991 as Magic: A Picture History and can often be found in general book stores.
A decade later, Christopher published his Illustrated History of Magic, a 452-page comprehensive look at the evolution of the magical arts. While this large-format, extensively illustrated volume does omit some notable magicians of the past, it remains one of the best general histories. Christopher knew what made a good magic book -- his personal collection housed over 4,000 books on conjuring.
David Price's Magic: A Pictorial History of Conjurers in the Theater, an encyclopedic work consisting of over 500 folio-sized pages, has become the bible of magic history. Price, a magician and historian, offers detailed accounts of the lives of hundreds of performers, many of whom are not covered in any other book. A terrific color section reproduces many beautiful magic posters and lithographs, and the work is filled with black and white photographs of performers. Available only through magic books dealers, A Pictorial History sells for about $60. If you buy one book on magic history, this is the one to get.
If one were to choose a history based on its title alone, James Randi's Conjuring: Being a Definitive History of the Venerable Arts of Sor cery, Prestidigitation, Wizardry, Deception, and Chicanery and of the Mountebanks and Scoundrels Who Have Perpetrated these Subterfuges on a Bewildered Public, in short, Magic! would have to be at the top of the list. Yet the work belies its title -- though well-written and beautifully produced, the book is not a definitive history. In fact, Randi begins the book with an apology for those wonderful performers he omits. Conjuring is also lacking in original scholarship -- Randi admits that he "shamelessly took" material from many of his bibliographic sources. But it remains a stylish, engaging and gloriously illustrated 314-page tour of the world of magic and its most noted performers, and includes a glossary, a listing of past and present magicians, an index of magic dealers, and a list of magic periodicals and organizations. Copies of Conjuring can be found for under $20 in most bookshops.
John Fisher's Paul Daniels and the Story of Magic is a little-known book about the history of conjuring. This well-written history, which is available in many bookstores for about $20, provides a spirited account of major figures in magic and some lesser-known magicians. The Story of Magic is lavishly illustrated with rarely-seen posters and ephemera. Autobiographies Though entertainment was their business, magicians from magic's Golden Age produced numerous autobiographies that were less than entertaining. Partly a product of the writing style of the day, as well as the result of a lives of deceit and exaggeration, these works tend to be ponderous, slow-moving accounts which make claims of dubious historical value. Nevertheless, many are worthwhile.
The archetype of magic autobiographies, King of the Conjurers, written by Robert-Houdin, provides a fascinating glimpse into the career of the father of modern magic. Some of the material in the book has proven to be apocryphal -- such as the story of Torrini, Houdin's alleged teacher -- but it is of little consequence. King of the Conjurers is simply great fun. Reprinted by Dover books, this work can be found easily and inexpensively in paperback.
Reflecting the author's difficulties with English and shameless self-promotion, Horace Goldin'sIt's Fun to Be Fooled is a cumbersome book laden with the egomaniacal ravings of this inventor-magician. Yet it provides insights into Goldin's career, including his legal battles over his alleged invention of the Sawing a Woman in Half illusion. By contrast, David Devant's My Magic Life presents quaint reflections in an understated style. Both of these rare books have been recently republished, and a resold by many magic dealers.
Perhaps no family had deeper roots in magic than the Bambergs -- seven generations of magicians reportedly dating back to the early 1700's. The last of the Bamberg conjurors, David, spent thirty-five years on the road as the world renowned Fu Manchu. His autobiography -- Illusion Show -- details his globetrotting adventures and provides a candid and perceptive look at life with one of the great travelling illusion shows. There is no hype here; this conversational book is what autobiographies ought to be. Orson Welles understandably called this "the greatest magic biography."
Those interested in rounding out the earlier years of the Bamberg saga should obtain Okito on Magic: Reminiscences and Selected Tricks written by David's father, Theo (Okito), and Robert Parrish in 1951. Only fifty-five pages of this hard-to-find book are historical; the balance contains instructions for performing some of Okito's most cherished illusions. But Okito's anecdotes and his personal observations on the classical magicians of the past -- however brief -- bring much of magic's golden age to life.
But magic's golden era wasn't only a world of grand illusion. August Rapp spent 60 years as an itinerant performer in America's rural South and Midwest. A conjuror, comedian, ventriloquist, juggler, puppeteer, and actor, Rapp -- at age 89 -- decided to write his autobiography. The result is the robust and highly entertaining The Life and Times of Augustus Rapp, The Small Town Showman. This is small town, small time magic as it really was in the early years of this century. Great fun!
Equally engaging is Dai Vernon's anecdotal autobiography He Fooled Houdini: Dai Vernon, A Magical Life. Bruce Cervon and Keith Burns have shaped Vernon's recollections of nine decades of magic into a wonderfully enchanting book. Reading it is like taking a stroll with The Professor as he shares the stories of his life: the people, the experiences, the magic. It's a charming book that you won't want to end. The fourth volume of the Vernon Chronicles series, He Fooled Houdini is generally available through magic shops. Biographies A growing area of magical literature, biographies focusing on the lives of particular performers make terrific reading and offer practical ideas for performing, patter and publicity. Those below are highly recommended.
One of several biographies about this colorful character, Will Dexter's The Riddle of Chung Ling Soo is an excellent study by an accomplished journalist and magician. Dexter presents an unparalleled analysis of Soo's death during the bullet catching trick. Recently reprinted by Supreme Magic Company, a paperback of this book can be obtained for less than $20.
Darryl Beckmann's The Life and Times of Alexander draws its strength from the charisma and experiences of its subject. The volume includes a reprint of The Life and Mysteries of Dr. Q, an odd book penned by Alexander. Some have observed that, because he was working closely with Alexander's family, the author overlooks some of the magician's scandalous interludes, including encounters with the criminal justice system. Although an attractive book, it has few color plates, which hardly justify its $100 price tag. If possible, try to pick up a used copy.
No one has had a greater impact on the performance of magic than the great French illusionist and innovator Buatier de Kolta. His Vanishing Lady, Multiplying Billiard Balls, Expanding Die, and Vanishing Birdcage are still performed today -- well over 100 years after their creation. Peter Warlock's Buatier de Kolta: Genius of Illusion is a fine history augmented by a previously unpublished biographical manuscript written by Mrs. de Kolta, nice illustration and the patents to de Kolta's magical inventions. It is nicely illustrated as well.
Warlock also coauthored -- with Eric Lewis -- P.T. Selbit: Magical Innovator, a solid biography of a prolific and creative illusionist. Selbit, who devised his stage name by spelling his surname -- Tibbles -- backwards, had tremendous success and devastating failures. It's all here: the illusions (Sawing Through a Woman, Walking Through A Brick Wall, The Mighty Cheese, Stretching a Woman, The Man Without A Middle, Through the Eye of A Needle, the Million Dollar Mystery), the colleagues and competitors, and the alcoholism that eventually took his life.
The Great Leon: Vaudeville Headliner by Mike Caveney paints an insightful and captivating portrait of Leon Levy, who rose from playing dime museums and carnival tent shows to become The Great Leon , one of vaudeville's great magic stars. Some 50 previously unpublished photographs help illustrate this inside view of the vaudeville stage.
Mike Caveney's Carter the Great may be the most detailed biography of a magician ever written. The book -- 375 oversized pages -- is beautifully produced, clearly written, and contains a wealth of material on Carter, his seven world tours, his illusions, his ownership of Martinka's, and the men and women who made up the world of magic from 1900 to 1936 or so. There are scores of photographs and illustrations, including 24 full color lithographs -- every Carter poster known to exist -- plus black and white illustrations of four posters that have vanished. Much of the material is drawn from Carter's personal collection -- letters, scrapbooks, notes, illusions, costumes, and posters -- which was purchased by Caveney and Bill Smith. This is a fascinating biography, a sumptuous history, and a fun read. The 1,000 copies that have been printed are priced at $85 each. But if you're serious about magic history, a collector of magicana, or simply relish a great biography, you'll find this a rewarding inve stment.
Robert Parrish's Words About Wizards is a slim volume of recollections about magicians Parrish knew or encountered between 1930 and 1950 . Don't let the size of this book fool you. In its 72 pages, Words About Wizards really brings to life such magicians as Blackstone, Okito, Charlie Miller, and Paul Rosini. A lovely and literate book, reading it is like viewing a collection of beautiful portraits.
More words have been scribbled about Harry Houdini than about any other magician in history. Remarkably, his definitive biography is yet to be written. But if you really must read a Houdini bio, look for an out-of-print copy of William Lindsay Gresham's Houdini: The Man Who Walked Through Walls or Houdini: The Untold Story by Milbourne Christopher. The latter -- despite lapses of hero-worship -- remains the best text to date. Alternatively, though colored by the fact that it was commissioned b y Bess Houdini, Harold Kellock's Houdini: His Life Story is a fascinating portrait. Often, these works can be found in used book shops.
( Drop the authors, Gary R. Brown and Michael D. Edwards, an e-mail to let them know your thoughts or to ask any questions.)
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