The Incredible Joseffy

 

I just finished Ep. 111 of my podcast, and this time I covered Josef Freud, better known as Joseffy. What an amazing character. I mentioned on the podcast the delay of this episode and how it predated the Bamberg and Velma episodes. Here is why.

When I discovered the Letter to the Editor by Montraville Wood in the Conjurer's Monthly Magazine, regarding a possible 'theft' of one of Wood's creations, and that thief being Joseffy, I had to dig deeper. I was sure I would uncover something else, somewhere. I went through every book I had and went through AskAlexander.org and came up with nothing else.

I really do not think Joseffy stole Wood's trick. I think he might have upgraded it, and or improved it. And sure, he might have asked Wood. But As I point out on the podcast, there is a clear difference between the two hands, Woods and Joseffys. And I do not believe in anyway, that Wood can claim the Talking Skull as being his. That device was extremely complex and Wood never made a Talking Skull. So his claim is invalid.

I can't help but wonder if there is a letter or two between Houdini and Montraville Wood describing the situation. The original letter to the editor was in The Conjurers Monthly Magazine after all. BUT alas, I do not have access to such things. IF there is one, it's in someone's collection.

One thing I did do, was a very brief bio on Montraville Wood, the inventor of Houdini's Milk Can escape, among other smaller props. And I found his grave, so you can check that out on http://deadconjurers.blogspot.com/2025/08/the-grave-of-montraville-wood.html

Montraville Wood

A Peek Into the Life of Kreskin

 

Recently, the Amazing Kreskin passed away. This is a man who, in public, always balked when someone referred to him as a magician. He stayed away from the idea of a magic, though that is what he was, a specialized magician, known as a mentalist. Conversely, he also did not like to be known as a psychic.

I'm old enough to have seen Kreskin on TV and in person numerous times. I always found him quite remarkable. There were times I found him quite brazen in his methods knowing full well what he was doing, but his approach was different. And I found him far more entertaining than most mentalist. (Modern mentalists, please don't take offense in that, we have MARVELOUS Mental performers today) In fact, I was led to believe that he stole his act from Dunninger. I few pages from Stewart James first opus had a list of Dunningers routine's and they matched up pretty close to Kreskin's set list.

I had assumed that Kreskin started in the late 60's early 1970s maybe. But he was already a house hold name by the 1970s. He had his own TV show. He definitely took Dunninger's mantel away, which explains the animosity towards Kreskin from the Dunninger family. I don't know what Dunninger himself thought, but I can't imagine it was good.

But if we are honest, we must bring up another name, Robert Nelson. He was a magic shop owner and publisher of many many books and booklets on Mentalism. He also sold mental gadgets and gimmicks. Nelson Enterprises began in 1921 and his first book on mentalism, Sensational Effects, was published in 1928. Kreskin, whose real name was George Joseph Kresge, was not even born yet. So basically, all the information that would have explained Dunninger's act was already published long before Kreskin came around.

And if I might add to this, I have personally seen part of Joe Dunninger's collection of apparatus and I can attest to the fact that he purchased items from Robert Nelson! So I'm not sure it's fair to say Kreskin stole Dunninger's act.  I have seen video of Dunninger and his personality and Kreskin's are very very different. (though I did see a post on Facebook that said Dunninger did the crazy handshake long before Kreskin....that I have NOT verified yet)

What I have learned recently was that Kreskin began around age 19 or 20, in the 1950s to perform his mental act! He certainly took a page from the Dunninger career by appearing on TV and radio, but you can't fault him for that. 

On August 16th Potter Auctions is going to have an auction of items belonging to Kreskin. Looking over the lots it's clear that he had an interest in magic and magic history. I know he used magic props on occasion on TV, but NEVER presented them as magic tricks, he always used the mental angle. 

He was truly amazing in many ways. I'll be bidding on the auction. Later this year I'll reveal the new Kreskin painting which will be for sale.

Velma Queen of Illusion

 

Episode 110 of the Magic Detective Podcast features the lady above, Velma Nahum. What a charming story she has. And what a wonderful career she had. She was a fearless innovator. The only female magician in her area (NYC) at the time. And she made the most of it. She was on To Tell the Truth, What's My Line, The Merv Griffin Show, The Mike Douglas Show, Conan' Obrien, David Letterman and many other talk shows in the United States and in Canada.

I encourage you to listen to the podcast, because you can hear Velma tell many of the stories herself. She had quite a few stories, some of which I couldn't repeat, lol. Not because they were bad, but just, well, might ruffle some feathers. One I did let slip through was her opinion of Kuda Bux, who she thought was full of it. What a faker! lol. Clearly she was not fooled by him in any way shape or form. 

She was doing trade show work in the late 1960s and 70s. And she was very popular. Plus, as she said, she was the only one. I don't want to give away here whole story here. I just wanted you to see some photos of her in action.

She's a good example of adapting to the times. She developed several acts in order to stay busy. And she was in demand during her time. She certainly deserves a place among the pioneering females in magic!