Thursday, September 26, 2024

Lost in the Shuffle Film: Review



Have you seen the movie, Lost in the Shuffle? I've posted about it several times here on this blog and mentioned it on my podcast. Have you seen it? Well, if you missed it, there is good news, you can now see it on Youtube.com or Amazon Prime. You will have to either rent it or buy it. I bought it, trust me, it's more than worth it.

What is this movie about? It's the history of playing cards, it's magic history, it's magic. In a way it feels like revealing our ancestry, because those of us who do card magic know it becomes part of your identity, part of who we are.  This is frankly a brilliant concept for a documentary. Shawn Farquhar is the main character driving the story. Along the way he speaks with other magicians and historians. He learns how the first playing cards were made. Why cards had a similar appearance through the ages. And mostly, he uncovers WHO these court cards represent. Because behind this mystery, is yet another mystery that is to be unveiled. To be very specific, it's about a potential murder mystery being locked into the images of playing cards for 400 years! 


Jon Ornoy is the producer of the film. Together, he and Shawn have created a fascinating story. Shawn as an onstage performer exudes enthusiasm. He is the same here in the documentary, his enthusiasm for the subject matter in infectious and you can't help but want to learn more and more as the story unfolds. He travels the Globe to uncover the secrets behind this age old murder mystery. Guest magicians include Alexandra Duvivier from France, Juan Tamariz from Spain, Michael Vincent from England and Richard Turner from America. 

I enjoy magic history documentaries as a general rule. This one is a lot of fun and has another twist to it, that you'll need to see to discover. You really need to take the time to watch this documentary. It's well worth your time and investment!!!

You can rent or buy Lost in the Shuffle on the following platforms: In the U.S. iTunes/AppleTV, Youtube, Microsoft/Xbox, Fandango at Home. Go here for a complete listing of LIVE events and where to see the movie online

Wednesday, September 25, 2024

Harry Sears -The Real Vanishing Magic? (transcript)

 


Our feature today is Harry Sears. He was born Harry S. Knight, December 28, 1885 in Washington D.C. He appears to be the only son of William and Grace Knight. The Knight family can be traced back to living in America  as far back as the 1600s. Seems the first KNIGHT to be born in America was named Charles. His parents are not listed onboard the Mayflower, but were in Massachusetts shortly thereafter. Now, Harry though being born in the Nations Capital, Washington DC, but actually grew up in the Philadelphia area. I haven’t been able to find who inspired his interest in magic, however, given his location, any number of magicians may have created the spark. My money is on Harry Kellar.


The earliest description of young Harry Sears, comes from a Jan 19th, 1924 issues of Billboard. In the column called, “Magical Highways and Byways” by Adam Hull Shirk, who at the time was president of the Los Angeles Society of Magicians. He writes, “I saw him perform when I was but a boy= and he was too. He was a clean cut fellow with a nice manner and charming personality. At that time, his magic was of the small order and included among other effects the Rise Wand, which in his hands was superior.”


The first time Harry shows up in the magic periodicals, his name is listed as Harry Sears Knight and he is a mere 18 years old. This was the July 1903 issue of Mahatma, and it says, “At Keith’s Harry Sears Knight, a young Philadelphian, makes his debut as a magician.” So this was no doubt his first big time vaudeville appearance. A short time later he appeared in the magazine again, this time it describes his future in magic to be very promising. Also through  Mahatma, we learn Harry is using an Aga levitation in his act. Here is what they have to say, “At Woodside Park, Seers, the magicians, presents AGA in a manner that is all to be desired. It is the best AGA that I have seen and is done in such a neat, clean and mysterious manner that is the subject of much comment among the patrons of the park. Sears is a young magician, who, in my estimation, has a brilliant future before him. He possesses address, skill, and ambition and i predict he will some day be in the future rank of the workers in the noble art of magic. he is an adept in the art of advertising and you hear of his Palace of Mystery as soon as you get inside the Park. It may not be amiss to add that the AGA illusion was built by the New York Magical Co, who also supposed the AGA now being exhibited in Atlantic City. Truthfuly speaking, it is far superior to the AGA illusion which caused such a sensation in New York that is can be called absolutely new.”


As I mentioned, the AGA, is a type of levitation illusion. Magicians often have many methods to create a specific illusion, and AGA refers to a specific type of levitation. And by all accounts, he had improved the method and ws really enjoying a lot of success with it.




(1906-07 Conjurers Monthly Magazine) Reports that Sears is now performing in England.

(May 1907) Conjurers MM) Sears has just gone through Chicago with his big act. He has 5 assistants and a car load of baggage. Watch out, GOLDIN, for this fellow will soon beat your baggage record!



(June 1907 CMM) Houdini reports that Sears is now performing the Suspended Trunk Mystery at the Keith Proctor Harlem Theater. He adds that Charles DeBiere first introduced this effect to American Audiences. And Horace Goldin has been trying to prevent others from presenting it. 

This effect in full features a large cannon. A female assistant is placed inside the cannon and then it is pointed towards a large box hung high from the theater ceiling. The cannon is fired, a huge explosion is heard, a blast of fire and smoke shoot out of the cannon and suddenly the box is seen to move and twist as if something has hit it. The box is lowered and inside is another box. That box is opened to display another inner box. This 3rd box is opened and out pops the assistant who was placed into the cannon.  A wonderful illusion. The magazine also points that the Cannon part of the mystery was first introduced to the stage by Frederick Eugene Powell. Mr. Powell will be the feature on an upcoming episode of the podcast.


(Sept 1907 CMM) Sears is still touring the US to great acclaim. He then takes his show to Canada and does very well there. Next stop, England.


Now the Conjurers Monthly Magazine has been very good to Sears till now. But upon an appearance in England, a British newspaper quotes Sears as having performed a ‘Handcuff and Straitjacket act in America’. And the CMM is quick to refute those facts, even pointing out that Variety newspaper had reported what was in his show earlier in the year and there was no mention of any escape material. 


Sears was often compared to Horace Goldin the illusionist. In a July 22, 1907 Keith’s advertisement it has this promotion, “Up To Date Sensation, The Great Sears European Illusionist”. I suppose the mistake was easy to make, he was American after all, but had been performing for some time in England and headlining every where he went.  In 1907, `08, he was mostly in England. In 1909 Sears took his show over to Italy.


Next, from the pages of Stanyon’s MAGIC October 1908, we have a review of Sears, from the London Hippodrome, when he appeared the month before. I am going to edit some of this as Stanton has a habit of trying to describe how particular effects work, and I don’t give away secrets on this podcast, only history.


The show begins with a Curtain that rises showing stage well furnished with apparatus. First comes the Production of two Assistants in a Cabinet. The performer appearing with a rush, calls attention to a large cabinet in center stage. Cabinet, square shaped and mounted on four short legs, is provided with no less than eight doors, ie, a pair of doors, opening in center, on each side of it’s four sides. Sears begins by opening the eight doors, those at the rear last or after the side the side doors are open. He next jumps into the cabinet, and runs around to show all clear, then gets out and closes all the doors. Next, all doors opened and a lady jumps out of the cabinet. Then a male assistant is produced in exactly the same manner, 


Next act begins with a barrel without ends which is turned about for inspection, then placed on a low stand. Front end of the barrel covered with paper and held in place with a metal band. Barrel turned and rear end, now front, closed with paper in same manner. Another assistant then bursts from the apparently empty paper cover in a grand display. This was known at the time as the Barrel of Dioginees.


Next, a pretty spectacular effect in the form of an illuminated spiders web set center stage. Lady mounted on the center of the web instantly disappears. 


Now, a personality piece or an in one routine is presented, the Thumb Tie. Sears steps into the arena in search of a couple of volunteers. Two pieces of string  about 15 inches long,  a long stick, and a steel ring are handed out for examination. Thumbs also inspected. Thumbs are now crossed and one piece of string ties both thumbs together. Second chord goes the opposite direction and ties the thumbs again. The walking stick his held in a vertical position by a spectator, one hand near the top, one near the bottom, the ring is held by the other spectator.  Sears pushes hands against stick and somehow penetrates it and finds himself linked in this position. The the other spectator tosses the ring to Sears who catches it and likewise it becomes linked on his arm. And it should be pointed out, Thumbs are still tied this entire time. Next, he frees himself from the walking stick and from the steel rings. Sears then instructs the two people on stage to both clasp their hands together making a make shift giant hoop. Before they have time to think. Sears has linked himself onto their arms!


Strong magic continues with the Materialization of a Lady from the Performers side. Sears sits upon a low stool and a spirit form of a lady slowly emerges from his side , head first, and moving upwards and at a 45 degree angle. Both performers step out and lady exits the stage.


Next we have three leather cases, each in the form of a drain pipe provided with a lid, the smallest big enough to hold the lady, are first shown, then nested together and swung in the air. A square canopy just large enough to hold one person standing, is now stood over carpet in front of a 4 fold screen.  The entire thing is now enclosed by the 4 fold screen. There i one door in the front of this screen that allows Sears to step into the cabinet, he quickly shows that it is empty and exits. A male assistant steps into the cabinet and the door is closed. Then the entire thing is hoisted into the air. A small door opens during this process allow the audience to see the boots of the male assistant. The door is closed. Sears fires a pistol, which was a common practice at this time and the cabinet is lowers. Now inside is a female assistant, and the maie is produced from a cabinet far down the stage from this action. BTW, the pistol was a starter pistol, used for the SOUND, and drama. Think of it taking the place of a magician saying ‘abracadabra’


In the final sequence, a female assistant mounts a pedestal, She is given a large umbrella to shake about. Suddenly the umbrella falls to the floor and the lady has vanished. Next, nest of three leather cases lowered, outer one opened and the two inner ones removed. Nest of two set on floor, one box removed from within the other. Final box, lady is produced to huge applause. ENCORE - Lady put into square box with lid on each oh four  sides, all lids hinged at the bottom. lids closed and box put on table. Box hoisted in air, pistol fires, doors fall open, box is empty and lady appears in large cabinet set near wings. Tremendous, and well deserved applause followed.  That sounds like a great show!



In 1910, Harry Sears took out his most ambitious project, a show that he called “the Blue Pearl” From the pages of The Magical World periodical it says, “This majestic spectacle employs no less than 45 people in it’s action, while elephants, camels horses, snakes, and more , help to create an atmosphere of Oriental realism. The show is good and likely to prove a popular success.



The Great Lafayette, born sigmund neuberger perished in a theater fire on may 9th, 1911. Sears and Lafayette were performing during the same time. They were friendly competitors  and Sears was often compared to Lafayette. When Lafayette perished in teh fire, Sears and his entire troupe attended the funeral and at a later date the all made a pilgrimage to the grave of Lafayette in Edinburgh. 


Sears during his career had been compared to Carl Hertz, Horace Goldin, and The Great Lafayette, all strong performers in their own right, which makes me believe that Sears himself was just as competent a performer as those three gentlemen. And he was clearly ambitious. Let’s look again at The Blue Pearl.  This comes from the pages of The Magical World


 The \Blue Pearl," a mystical pantomimic phantasy in five scenes.

Scene 1 discloses a busy bazaar in the principal street of Benares. Merchants sell- ing their wares, customers buying, Devotees, Fakirs, dancers, natives, guards, &c. The scene had an absolute scent of the East, it was so realistic. In this scene one

•of t h e natives gave imitations of animals, &c, very cleverly. Then we had Indian •dances, an Indian fakir stopped a crowd of Europeans and performed the Egg Bag; trick and the Indian Basket trick. In this scene -one of the snakes escapes and nearly bites one of the maids, who is saved by the priest, with whom she falls in love. Scene 2 is the interior of the Temple of Siva, where priests and slaves are offering jewel's, &c. to their god. The Rajah enters on a pilgrimage to see the wonderful " Blue Pearl," the eye

<if the god Siva. He covets the pearl and determines to steal it. Two British soldiers blunder into the Temple and try to loot it. but they are surprised by the priests and

 slaves, who give chase to the soldiers. The Rajah, finding the Temple deserted, succeeds in stealing the pearl, and escapes unseen. The priests returning notice its absence, and are distracted and appeal to their High Priest, who goes into a trance and sees in a vision the enactment of the theft. Then he instructs the priest to follow the Rajah, get into his service, and steal from him the pearl. In this scene a cauldron emits huge clouds of vapour and on this the vision is seen, as on a lantern slide. Scene 3: The road to Bahar (evening). In this scene there is a

procession of animals and attendants, and the full strength of the company is seen, but there are no illusory effects. Scene 4: The borders of the Sacred Jungle (night). The Rajah enters at the head of his caravan, and, seeing as he supposes a roadside fakir, he demands to see his tricks. The fakir per- forms several tricks, including the rope trick. In this the boy climbs the rope with the rapidity of a monkey, and as soon as he is out of sight the rope falls to the ground and the boy comes running from the back of the crowd, who are watching the fakir. Then the Rajah wishes life brought back to the skeleton of one of his favourite dancing girls. The skeleton at once becomes a beautiful girl, a n d executes a graceful dance. T h e Rajah is enraged and tries to kill the fakir, who in his anger causes the princess to

disappear from n palanquin, a n d t h e priest snatches the pearl, but is discovered by the Rajah, who orders his execution by having his head crushed beneath an elephant's foot. The slave girl who loves him pleads for his life, but to no purpose. The High Priest (the fakir) at the last moment gives convincing proof of his powers and saves the priest, a n d t h e Rajah, overcome with fear, gives up the pearl, which is restored to its proper place in Siva's eye. Scene 5: The King of Mystaria and his court are enter- tained in the palace of a famous illusionist, who also uses his power to prevent the death

of the King by a desperate anarchist, who forces his way into the throne room. In this scene Sears comes on in evening dress and performs his principal illusions.”


Next we have an actual review OF the show which appeared in the pages of the Magical World. This is from a performance at the Finsbury Park Empire Theater, Feb 13th, 1911.

 “This stupendous and magnificent production, redolent of the Orient, with all its fabled mystery, is by far the most superb magical spectacle ever witnessed on the variety stage of Europe. The cost enormous ; detail perfection; stage craft and setting beyond praise; yet from a magical point of

view reveals little of material novelty that the clever showman Sears had not already shown us on his previous visit to England. Animal mimicry, the egg bag, Indian basket and rope tricks, are performed by others, genuine natives from the East, we are told. This is in perfect keeping with the majestic colour scheme pervading the act. It is not until the final scene, where the King of Mysteria holds court that the real magician is introduced in the person of Sears himself, attired in bur own conventional evening dress. His first act is to produce a male assistant from a tub, now familiarized as that of " Diogenes." Then three cylindrical cases are brought for- ward, each fitting within the other and provided with lids. All are shown empty, and…

 raised in the air. A platform, about a yard square, standing on four legs, is next introduced. This supports four brass uprights and canopy. A fourfold screen is displayed, lifted, and placed completely around the up- rights. From this improvised cabinet a girl is produced who executes a Russian dance. Some quick-fire effects follow, in which the lady assistant is put into a trunk and elevated into the air. Sears enters a cabinet at the " Wings," lit by electric lamps, to appear the next instant behind a large fan opened out at rear of the stage. In place of the lady in the elevated trunk, a 5001b. weight is discovered, which a second or two later is burst open to display a small boy within. The lady herself appears in the centre one of the three suspended cylinders, while the male assistant appears in the cabinet at the side of the stage, recently vacated by the Wizard. The final illusion consists of building a box upon a table, placing an assistant within, and causing the

inevitable disappearance.




I should point out that in many magic magazine articles Mrs. Sears is mentioned as having not only an important part in the show, but credits her with much of the success of the program.


Around 1913, we see our last mention of Harry Sears in the magic magazines for several  years. This is the ‘dark period’ as I call it where I’m not exactly certain what he is doing. I’ve pieced together some things, but it’s only a small glimpse into this time period. One major thing that took place was that while they were on tour in England in 1910, Edyth gave birth to their son Desmond. Perhaps, after returning to the US, Harry scaled down the size of the show to keep working, but stayed closer to home to create some stability for the family.


In 1917, Harry registered for the draft for World War 1. Here we find out some interesting information. First, he used his real name, Harry Sears KNIGHT, although he added in parenthesis, (known as Harry Sears). His occupation says, “actor / producer”. And under place of employment it says, “changes frequently due to working on different circuits” He is apparently, still performing in 1917 and 18 and living in the Bronx. But he doesn’t appear anywhere on the 1920 Census, so he may have been out of the country or perhaps relocating and missed the census.


It isn’t until 1920 and then again in 1923 that his name appears in a magic magazine. But this time not as a touring performer, but as a member of the Golden Gate SAM Assembly in California. So he has moved to the West Coast.  As late as 1924, Sears still had an interest in magic, having visited the Thayer Studios and sharing some of his recollections of being on the road.


There is also a curious endorsement of a magic product by Harry Sears in one of the magic magazines. So we can assume he still had his notoriety, but what happened to him???



Turns out the Sphinx broke the news, but it was a short paragraph with no other details. It seems that Harry Sears, World Traveling Illusionist, bought a Gold Mine, the Old Victor Mine. Sears incorporated a business and changed the name of the mine to The Calavaras Central Gold Mine to be specific. This was in 1926. If you had asked me, “What magician purchased a Gold Mine during the 20th Century” I might have said, THURSTON, but nope, it was Harry Sears. I can only assume he sold all the properties of his show and along with the money he had made over his short career performing, he purchased a Gold Mine. Sure why not. That’s what everyone does, lol.


During the 1930s , Sears became President of the Mining Association of California. In this position, he sued the State of California on a number of occasions over various disputes.


At some point he sold the Gold Mine and started a new business, supplying the pipes needed for mining. This bit of information came from the 1930 US Census. UP until that time he was listed as a Gold Mine Owner.


Years later in 1960 the Calavaras Gold Mine went up for sale, Sears attempted to purchase it ,but he didn’t have enough money to cover the back taxes.



It appears that a few months after trying to repurchase the Calavares Gold Mine in 1960, Harry Sears passed away, it was June 4th 1961. In his newspaper Obituary, there was no mention of Harry Sears ever having been a magician or even associated with it. It does record that he had owned the mining company.


Harry Sears Knight, is buried in Woodlawn Memorial Park, Colma California, in San Mateo County. He was 75 when he passed away.


(this was episode 103 of the Magic Detective Podcast)





Thursday, September 12, 2024

Book Review - Practical Advice On the Creation of Magic and More

 


I now hold in my hands, a copy of The Inventive Magician's Handbook w/Props by Judge Gary Brown, and please try and ignore anything you've read or heard me say previously. I had a feeling I was going to be a big fan of this book when it came out because I had many conversations with Gary during his process of writing it. I even saw some of the tricks long before he thought he'd be writing another book. But even with these little glimpses, I was not prepared for what came in the mail.

I knew from the beginning, a professional magic book that came with the props was going to be huge. The last time that happened was the original Tarbell Course in magic when it was a mail order course. You're not receiving as much stuff as the Tarbell Course, but what you get are a number of very clever magic effects that are unusual and fun to perform. This is PART of what you are receiving. The actual content of the book is multi-layered. You'll read about the history of inventiveness or creativity in our art. You'll learn techniques and strategies that various creators use to create their effects. You get several chapters on Gary's own tricks, where he explains the process of creation, and then gives you the full description of the effect, along with the handling and the script. The general idea behind the book is to help you, the reader, understand that you don't have to settle for what's out there in magic, or tired old tricks that have been seen a million times, but rather you can invent new plots, new presentations, and new routines by using these various tools that Judge Gary suggests. 



If you think he's going to teach you how to reinvent the wheel, or come up with brand new never before methods for tricks, he's not. He will address that. But he will also address the far easier approach to developing fresh material. Case in point, he included a routine based upon a Max Maven idea. He has permission from Max's estate to include this. It's an absolutely brilliant routine that you will LOVE. But more than that, once you see how to completely revamp the original routine, you'll understand how to do so yourself. 

As for the props, you are receiving a separate package with all the props needed from the book. You won't  need to supply anything for the tricks, with one exception. The chapter on Hypercards will require you to provide your own playing cards. Hypercards is not really a trick, but a magical give-away that you can custom create yourself. So with a few old playing cards and some scissors you can make one of the optical wonders. All of the routines, have scripts, but these are not the standard fair where the script is basically explaining the moves the magician is making. Rather, these are well thought out, audience tested stories, that push the narrative and the trick along from beginning to the final moments. To demonstrate the power of these stories, they could stand alone without the props and still be interesting. But WITH the props you add meaning to what you are presenting. 

There is one negative with the book and that is the limited quantity that have been made. A great number of books printed and available are already gone, having been sold during the brief pre-sale. They had to stop the pre-sale because books were going so fast. Frankly, It was an expensive book to produce. Larry Haas, the publisher, spared no expense in producing a first class book and prop kit. The tricks in the prop kit are printed with original artwork. And then neatly packaged, each with it's own protective envelope.  That adds more time and effort into the production of the final item. And the book itself is lavishly illustrated, it simply looks amazing. You'll have no problems following along to learn the routines. A bonus is also included, videos of Gary performing the various effects so you can see yourself, what they are supposed to look like. But trust me, you'll want to try them if for no other reason than to understand that underlying method of their creation. But they are so novel, you will WANT TO TRY these effects, because of how clever they are.


The book went beyond my expectations. It's an enjoyable read and you'll have fun with the included tricks. But mostly, it's extremely valuable to learn and understand the principles of inventiveness so that you can later use them in your own magic life. The Inventive Magicians Handbook w/Props is a breath of fresh air and a resource that every magician needs if they want to stand out from the crowd. They go on sale Oct 1st 2024, and are only available through TheoryAndArtofMagic.com. Don't wait. This book will sell out FAST! 

I recently interviewed Gary about his book for my podcast, you can hear that episode here. https://magicdetectivepodcast.com/e/ep-104-author-interview-judge-gary-brown/