The MAGIC used by Civil War Magicians

After I completed my series on Magicians of the Civil War era, I noticed that many of them did the same tricks. I wanted to give you some highlights of the types of things that could be found in many of the acts of the Civil War era magicians.


The Spirit Cabinet

There is an interesting similarity among the magicians from the Civil War period. A commonality of effects if you will. In other words, they stole from each other back then as much as today. In fact, I noticed a trend among magicians to purposely steal certain routines and then 'expose them'. Specifically, the routines presented by the Davenport Brothers. Their creation, The Spirit Cabinet, along with their spirit manifestations, or fake spirit manifestations showed up in the acts of; John Henry Anderson, Samri Baldwin, Prof. Harry Cooke and many others. Interestingly, the Spirit Cabinet would continue in the years past the Civil War and become a popular feature with Thurston, Kellar, Carter, Willard, Blackstone, Calvert and many others. Today it is being revived once again by Michael Ammar and his wife Hannah, who is the daughter of Frances Willard, the daughter of magician Harry Willard.


Second Sight

Here is an effect from the repertoire of Robert Houdin. He presented this trick with his son. While blindfolded, his son Emile could identify objects that his father held up which were in full view of the audience but unseen by his son. This same routine somehow, mysteriously ended up in the show of Compars Herrmann, who presented it along with his younger brother Alexander. Other magicians took the same trick and began to alter and adapt it. Chief among them was probably Robert Heller.

Today, second sight demonstrations are a regular part of a mentalists performance and sometimes seen in magic acts. The Evanson's come to mind as an excellent example of a modern couple presenting the Second Sight Blindfold act.

The Gun Trick
A very popular effect was notorious The Gun Trick or Bullet Catching Trick. This effect was used by John Henry Anderson with great success until he sold it to Wyman the Wizard who also had a lot of luck with it. Signor Blitz used it, but he was not always so lucky.  In one particular instance an audience volunteer loaded a button in the hole of the rifle and when it was shot the button ripped through the skin of Blitz's hand. Several close calls like this were enough for him to eventually remove it from his act. After the Civil War Alexander Herrmann added the effect to his show, as did William Ellsworth Robinson. Mr. Robinson was better known as Chung Ling Soo and was also one of the many individuals who was killed on stage presenting the Bullet Catching Feat. Today, in the 21st Century the effect lives on in the act of Penn & Teller.

The Suspended Lady

This is Robert-Houdin's Ethereal Suspension. I believe the first pirated version shows up in the act of John Henry Anderson who called it 'The Suspension Chloriforeen'. He picked up his copy of the trick from a former mechanic who had worked for Robert Houdin. Compars Herrmann was also using the Suspension Illusion as well. For those newbies to magic, though the effect might seem like a levitation, it is not. In a levitation a person apparently rises in the air. In a suspension, they are held or suspended in space. Levitations and suspensions are similar enough and generally fall in the same category in magic.

The Suspended Lady illusion actually dates back to at least the 13th Century and possibly further. Today it's commonly known as the Broom Suspension and has been used by countless performers (including me). This effect appears in the Tony Curtis Houdini movie, however I am not sure if Houdini actually ever presented the effect in his show. Richiardi Jr. had one of the most incredible presentations of the trick. It also is a highlight of the Le Grand David Show in Beverly Mass.



The Inexhaustible Bottle

Now here is a fantastic trick. Actually, all of the things I've mentioned so far are great and you'll note that they all are still used in some fashion today. Thankfully, modern artists have altered them to fit the times, but why throw out a perfectly good trick? The Inexhaustible Bottle is an illusion where a glass bottle is filled with water and rinsed out. Then any liquid called for can be poured from the bottle, typically alcoholic drinks. According to Houdini, the trick dates back to 1635 and an effect called the Inexhaustible Barrel. Basically it's the same effect but using a wooden whiskey barrel. Robert-Houdin claimed to have invented it and as has been seen before this effect showed up in the acts of many other performers. One in particular Compars Herrmann who used it during his show at the White House before President and Mrs. Lincoln and their guests.

David Devant, the great English conjurer updated the effect by using a tea kettle rather than a bottle. Later, Charles Hoffmann created an entire act around the effect and he became known as "Think A Drink Hoffmann". Today, the effect, in it's Tea Kettle form, lives on in the act of Steve Cohen, The Millionaire's Magician.

Other Staples
It will come as no surprise that the following effects could be found within the repertiore of Civil War magicians: The Cups and Balls, The Sucker Die Box, The Devils Hank/Napkin, Passe Passe Bottles, Flower Productions/Botania, The Genii Tube/Cornucopia, Early Versions of the Misers Dream in various forms, Rising Cards, Handkerchief productions/vanishes, Flag productions and more.

Ventriloquism & other variety arts & acts
While not magic, ventriloquism was a popular addition to many magicians acts from the Civil War era. Among the practitioners of this craft were Signor Blitz, Wyman the Wizard, Fred Bearns and others. Robert Heller added Punch and Judy shows to his repertoire. Blitz had trained birds. Robert Heller was a trained pianist and he added musical numbers in his show which gave it an elegance and sophistication that other acts lacked. Adding variety and skill sets beyond that of magic gave the Civil War era performers broader appeal. The tradition of adding other variety art forms to ones act continues today, though ventriloquism is rarely found in the acts of well known magicians. Rather, good ventriloquists have established their own shows minus any connection to magic.

Basically, the more things change, the more they stay the same. Well, in magic, they don't seem to change too much. Another way of looking at it is good magicians recognize quality effects and keep them! But I can't help but wonder, how many effects have fallen out of favor over the years which could be brought back, updated and still fool modern audiences?

The October 8th Heller Project

Allah Shaw, Charles Carter and Houdini at the grave of William Henry Davenport

Houdini during his life used to visit the graves of magicians. He often paid for their upkeep and clean up. One documentary on Houdini said that he would visit the graves of the past masters like others might visit the grave of a dead saint. I've also heard it said that Houdini liked dead magicians more than those living, lol. One things for sure, he did visit these sites and it's very likely that we know about some of them today because of him. I seem to have developed that same fascination for finding gravesites for magicians and that fascination is now turning into something called The October 8th Heller Project.

Robert Heller's Grave

To the left is a photo of Harry Houdini standing next to the grave of Robert Heller (William Henry Palmer) the great Victorian Age Magician. He was buried in the Mt. Moriah Cemetery in Philadelphia PA. Houdini discovered the grave after much searching. Within a few years after it's discovery the grave site had fallen into disrepair and SAM Assembly #4 in Philadelphia took it upon themselves to raise money to get the grave cleaned up. In the 1940s, SAM #4 again took it upon themselves to help with the restoration of the Heller site.

2011 marks the 133rd Anniversary of Heller's death/burial at Mt. Moriah and the condition of the grave area is apparently very overgrown and poorly maintained. Actually, for several years there has been NO work done to the cemetery at all. It's a disaster basically. Mt. Moriah is a very large cemetery and along with Robert Heller is the grave of famed historical seamstress Betsy Ross. A group called 'The Friends of Mt. Moriah' have come together and organized a number of clean up days. They are seeking volunteers.  I have decided to help them and line up magicians to participate as well.

My goal is to clean up the Heller grave and possibly the surrounding plots. The date of October 8th has been set for this clean-up. If you are interested in participating, please contact me at carnegiemagic@me.com and I'll add you to the list of people and will contact you via email with all the updates and information you'll need. You don't have to be from Philadelphia, but logistically the closer you are the easier it will be for you to get there. I'll be coming from Washington D.C.
You're help is certainly appreciated. If you would like to get an idea of what we will be up against, click the following link for the cemetery. I'm hoping our section is NOT so overgrown, but as of right now, I don't know.
http://www.abandonedbutnotforgotten.com/mount_moriah_cemetery,_abandoned.htm

Houdini at the grave of John Henry Anderson

Hurricane troubles

Hi Everyone,

The recent Hurricane that hit the East Coast this past weekend knocked out my Internet. As of today I still have no access to the Internet on my computer. Once its back up, I'll be giving you some exciting news regarding a recent article on my blog and I'll be sharing some info on one of Houdini's relatives that you might not know about.
Stay tuned!

NEW Houdini Book

The books on Houdini just keep on coming. I had an enjoyable conversation with a fellow performer tonight who is working on a Houdini book and then I got off the phone and noticed yet ANOTHER performer has written a book on Houdini. This time Dixie Dooley, the Las Vegas magician, escape artist has written a book called "Houdini Question Reality".

The book is 146 pages and is self published through Lulu.com. Self publishing is a great way for a first time author to get their words out there. Plus with the up and down (mostly down) book market, it might also be a safer way to go. You can order the book through Lulu.com and if you prefer you can actually download it straight to your computer!

To order http://www.lulu.com/product/paperback/houdini-question-reality/16611425

UPDATE: I decided to order the download version of the book. It takes a good 30 pages before you really get into Houdini stories and some of them are a little out of left field. Though Dixie makes no claim that they are true, just that he was told these stories. My favorite part of the book had to be Dixie describing his visit to the Houdini house in NYC. He is one of the few who got to go inside. It's a fascinating story to say the least. One downer though are the crude drawings of the interior that follow the story. I think perhaps having someone draft quality drawings of the floor plan might have been in order, or even doing it with a computer program. The hand drawn sketches are not the best.
Overall, it's an interesting book. A lot of things you've heard before, a couple things you might not have. It suffers from a number of grammatical and spelling errors and the photos leave a bit to be desired. But it's a quick read and proof that the Houdini stories just continue and continue!

SECOND UPDATE: I just heard from Dixie and he told me that the grammatical/spelling mistakes have been corrected. And he also said he added more photos! As a Houdini fan I enjoyed the book and honestly the story of his visit to the house alone is worth the price of the book.  If you haven't gotten it, please consider it. You can still get it as a soft cover book or as a .pdf download.

Upcoming Articles and other stuff

In the new few days & weeks, I'll be posting a bunch of new stuff. I've got an article coming on the magic used during the Civil War which is proving to be a lot of fun to research. In September I'll have a biographical piece on Walter Truman Best, better known as MARO Prince of Magic. Also coming is a biographical piece on Anna Eva Fay. Plus, there may just be one or two new Houdini articles, but you'll have to wait for those.

Over at my DeadConjurers blog, I just added the graves of Samri Baldwin, the White Mahatma and Maro, Prince of Magic. Please go over and check those out. I believe most of the graves on that blog also show the location of the grave. There are a few exceptions because at least three people listed over there were buried at Sea, so no grave exists.

HELP NEEDED
I'm trying to get together a group of volunteer magicians to help with the clean-up of the grave of Robert Heller in Philadelphia. I've contacted a woman who is a member of the Friends of Mt. Moriah Cemetery, and she is helping me with that. If you are in the Philadelphia area or anywhere nearby and you might be interested in donating your time in the clean-up of the grave/grounds please contact me at carnegiemagic@me.com. I'll give more details as they come.

Happy Birthday Robert Heller!

Robert Heller Happy 182nd Birthday! Well, that is IF it's your 182nd birthday. It's been difficult to pin point the exact year of his birth. My research shows 1829, but others record it anywhere from 1826 to 1830. I've also seen the date as August 10th and August 19th, but I'm going with the 19th (only because the 10th has passed, lol)

It's because of this blog that I developed a fascination for Heller that continues to this day. He was a terribly interesting character. So far there are three blogs on him and I can tell you there will be at least two more down the road.

To celebrate his 182nd Birthday, I treated myself to a copy of 'Melody Magic' the book which contains all the music he wrote, along with pictures of his posters and a biography included as well.

I would like to visit Heller in Philadelphia soon. I know exactly where the grave is, though I understand the location of the grave is in a very bad part of town. That is distressing to find out.

Though, I still may go. I'll let you know...

Houdini and the Funeral Films

Sometime ago I was reading one of the Houdini Biographies and something jumped off the page at me. Houdini had made arrangements to have the Funeral of Harry Kellar FILMED. Then a while later I discovered that Houdini also had his friend Sigmund Neuberger's (The Great Lafayette) funeral filmed as well.

I had never heard or read that before and I wondered what happened to the footage. To that end, I have no answer. But I did uncover proof that not only were the funerals filmed but Houdini had the footage in his possession. In the May 1923 edition of The Sphinx Magazine, it records a visit by Houdini to the Los Angeles Society of Magicians. During his visit he put on a 'special entertainment' for the club by showing the films of the funerals of Harry Kellar and Lafayette. Also in 1923, Houdini showed the film of Harry Kellar's Funeral to the Parent Assembly in NY.

If my memory is correct, Theo Hardeen offered Sid Radner a rather large box of films but he was unable to take them. Could the funeral films have been in this box? Maybe, or maybe not...

GET THIS, On July 25th, 1935 the film resurfaced and was shown at the PCAM Convention in Hollywood! So I believe this film was NOT part of the box of films that Theo offered Sid Radner and in fact may still be somewhere in California! Bess Houdini lived in California in the 1930s, so perhaps the film footage was in her possession. The big question is, where is it now? I checked the listings at the SAM DVD Library and it does not show up there. Any ideas?

ON a slightly different note, I was watching the History Channel recently and they were discussing Thomas Edison and his inventions. They did a demonstration of one of his early wax recording devices. I was quite surprised to hear that the recorded voice was 'higher' in tone than the actual mans voice when he recorded it. I instantly thought of Houdini's wax recording and how it always struck me as somewhat odd that Houdini had such a high pitched voice. But I think it's safe to say that his voice may have been slightly lower than what was recorded. Those early recording devices though amazing were not perfect by any means. However, a high pitched Houdini recording is certainly better than NO recording.

Civil War Era Magicians Part 7

Ira and William Davenport certainly have that 'Civil War Era' look. They were two brothers from upstate New York. Probably influenced by the news of the Fox Sisters and the spirit manifestations they created, the Brothers developed an act of their own. In 1854 they introduced their Spirit Cabinet to America and along with the Fox Sisters, set the world into believing that contact with the spirits of recently departed people could be easily accomplished.

They did not fight in the war, but their direct connection to the Civil War is more than eerie. April 1861 while in Chicago , the brothers were conducting a seance, when a voice was heard coming from a spirit trumpet. This spirit voice declared a military conflict was taking place off the coast of South Carolina at Fort Sumter between the North and the South. This is a time long before mass media and news traveled slow.  Yet somehow this 'spirit' seemed to know what was taking place half way across the country.  The Davenport's spirit guides revealed the start of the Civil War before the actual news of the event arrived by telegraph! Though astonishing, this bit of information did not make them famous, as they already were famous. It caused those who believed in them to become more devout and those that questioned them to stand back and wonder how they were doing this. The Davenport Brothers continued to tour the Northern States during the War but departed for England in 1864.

Samri S. Baldwin

Next we have Samuel S. Baldwin, who went by Samri Baldwin and his stage moniker was 'The White Mahatma'. He was born in Cincinnati Ohio in 1848. Baldwin is credited for taking the question and answer techniques used in seances and turning them into a mentalism feat for the stage. So clever were his techniques that many are still used today.

His interest in the mystery arts came from watching and then following the Davenport Brothers around. Eventually, Baldwin was able to duplicate the feats presented by the brothers.  During the Civil War he joined the Ohio 83rd Infantry Regiment, Company B. He was the drummerboy for the regiment. After the war was over in 1865, Samri Baldwin began his performing career. He would continue to perform until his death on March 10th, 1924.

Next we have Fred Bearns, known as 'Bearns, The Monarch of All Ventriloquists and High Priest of Magic'. Not much is known about Bearns except he joined the 14th New York State Militia during the Civil War. He was captured and held prisoner in Richmond Va. After the war he used the billing, "Returned Prisoner of War from Richmond, with his Most Charming Experiments in Magic and Ventriloquism". No photo or poster remains of Fred Bearns to my knowledge.

Harry Kellar's first boss, The Fakir of Ava, was really Isaiah Harris Hughes and was born in Essex England on December 25, 1810. He moved to America and was quite a successful performer. He did well during the Civil War, though he did not enlist or fight.

Hughes presented a 'Gift Show' similar to what Wyman the Wizard, John Henry Anderson and others were using at the time. This technique seemed to work for him as the NY Times Obituary says he died a wealthy man.

Last on my list of Civil War era magicians is someone I've written about quite extensively, William Henry Palmer, better known as Robert Heller. Mr. Heller worked as a magician and musician prior to the Civil War. In the 1850s he was forced into a sort of early retirement from magic and moved to Washington D.C. and became a Music Professor.

Around 1861, as the Civil War started, Heller began to get back into magic. By 1864 he opened on Broadway with a hit show called "Sallie Diabolpue". Please click the link on his name to read more about the incredible Robert Heller. I have a three part article on Heller and a fourth and possibly fifth part coming later in the year.


There is no doubt I will have missed a number of magicians who also had some part to play during the Civil War. I'm actually amazed that I found as many as I did and it seems like more information on others pop up daily. This however will be the final blog on the magicians of the Civil War.  I hope you have enjoyed this historical journey. For those of you who would like a little more, there will be one more Civil War related article about the MAGIC of the Civil War magicians.

Civil War Era Magician Part 6

photo from the Mark Cannon Collection

This next magician is the real deal in regards to a Civil War magician. He served in the Union Army. He had a connection to Lincoln unlike anyone else. He was, a teacher, an inventor, a carnival showman, magician, escape artist, soldier and one remarkable individual, but I'm mainly going to focus on his relation to the Civil War.

He was born Horatio Green Cooke on February 1, 1844 in the town of Norwich, Connecticut. As a youth his family moved around a bit finally settling in Iowa. In 1862 the second year of the Civil War, Horatio, who would go by the name Harry, enlisted in the Union Army.

He went from being a private in the Union Army to being selected to be one of Lincoln's Federal Scouts.  In 1863, he fell under the command of Major General Ulysses S. Grant during the Siege of Vicksburg. The surrender of Vicksburg by the Confederate Army gave control of the Mississippi River to the Union Army, and basically split the Confederacy in half. This event, along with the Battle of Gettysburg, were the turning points in the war for the Union.

R. Ingersoll, Gen Hancock, E. Stanton, Gen Sherman, A. Lincoln

On May 1st, 1864, Harry Cooke was ordered to appear before Edwin Stanton, the Secretary of War in Washington D.C.. When he arrived  he found that along with Stanton, was General William Tecumseh Sherman, General Hancock, Robert Ingersoll and President Abraham Lincoln. They had heard of the young scouts unusual ability to free himself from restraints and were curious. So he was tied up with fifty feet of rope. After he was securely tied, Cooke asked Lincoln to walk ten feet away. Then he asked him to return and before Lincoln got back, Cooke had freed himself from the confinement! According to the Los Angeles Evening Express Newspaper, Lincoln was amazed and jubilated. Lincoln said to Cooke "Here my boy, keep this to remember Uncle Abe by" and Lincoln then handed Cooke a two dollar bill. Harry Cooke kept that two dollar bill his entire life.

John Singleton Mosby - The Grey Ghost

In the Fall of 1864, Harry was assigned to join General Sheridan in Winchester VA. On October 19th, Harry Cooke and six other scouts were captured by Mosby's Raiders under the command of  'The Grey Ghost', John Singleton Mosby*. Mosby was notorious for his stealth-like raids against Union forces. When his band of raiders captured Harry Cooke and his fellow scouts they took from them all their possessions. In Cooke's pocket was a personal letter from Lincoln appointing him to the position of Federal Scout, a cherished memento. In Mosby's eyes Cooke was a spy and was sentenced to be hanged along with his other scouts. They were to get an early morning hanging, but their final evening on earth would be spent tied to a tree. Being the escape artist that he was, Cooke quietly freed himself from the ropes, and then proceeded to free his fellow prisoners and return back to the Union side under the cover of darkness. The prisoners split up on their return and three swam across the Potomac and the others made their way through the woods. Only two of the scouts made it back safely, and Cooke was one of the two.

Fords Theatre /Library of Congress photo

Harry had always been bothered by the theft of his Lincoln Letter by Mosby's Raiders and decided to try and get a copy from the President himself. In April 1865, Cooke went to the White House in Washington to see Mr. Lincoln. Upon arriving at the White House he was told that Mr. and Mrs. Lincoln had left for an evening at Fords Theatre. Harry Cooke went to Fords Theatre, where the President and First Lady were watching the play "Our American Cousin". A short time after Harry Cooke arrived a loud shot rang out, and well, the rest is history. Cooke was there, in the audience, as John Wilkes Booth shot the President and then jumped to the stage and out the back doors of Fords Theatre.

It's hard to say when Harry Cooke got his interest in magic or where he learned to escape from ropes. One thing is certain, he had an ability to escape like no one before him, and few since. Unlike the other Civil War Magicians I profiled Harry Cooke did not perform during the war, except for the rope escape demonstration before President Lincoln and his friends.  After the Civil War ended Horatio Green Cooke became "Professor Harry Cooke" and worked as a professional magician and 'Celebrated King of the Spirit Exposers". Years later he would become President of the Los Angeles Society of Magicians and would obtain the new moniker 'the oldest living magician'. His favorite trick throughout his life was the Linking Rings and apparently his routine was one to wonder over.

On May 1st 1924, at the young age of 80, Harry Cooke duplicated his feat of escaping from 50 feet of rope for the Los Angeles area magicians. During this exhibition, Harry Cooke wore his blue Union Army uniform, the same one he wore during the Civil War. The result was exactly as it had been 60 years earlier when he presented the stunt before President Lincoln and his cabinet, HE ESCAPED! A short time later Horatio Green Cooke passed away on June 17, 1924.

Harry Cooke later in life. He is on the left, the one with the hat.

I must admit I never had heard of Horatio Green Cooke until Mark Cannon told me about him. Sadly, Cooke, like many magicians, had fallen through the cracks of time and had been forgotten. Mark knew about him because he received Cooke's personal scrapbook from Cooke's very own daughter! He has since written several articles on Harry Cooke and given lectures on Cooke's life. About the only information I had on Cooke was a short single page article that Mark had written on Cooke in MUM Magazine. Then I began digging deeper and I found Cooke's name popping up in much older magic periodicals. The internet provided a few surprises like the a Civil War record showing that Cooke was part of the 28th Regiment, Iowa Infantry. Census records showed the various places he lived. Gradually other pieces to the puzzle began to come together through newspaper archives.

Then I got an even bigger surprise, a relative of Harry Cooke contacted ME! That really spurred me on to finish this and help her learn more about her Great Great Uncle. The above family photo is from Harry Cooke's Great Great Niece. I also discovered a second much longer and extensive article about Harry Cooke that Mark Cannon had written after I did a lot of the research. It would have been nice to have this info early on as I might have finished sooner, but it was fantastic information and far more than I found.

For the record, Mark Cannon is in the process of writing a biography of Harry Cooke. I don't think he has a date set on when it will be finished.  Mark was also gracious enough to let me use the photo of Harry Cooke with the linking rings that is at the top of the blog. Mark certainly deserves the credit for reintroducing the world to Horatio Green Cooke and I look forward to the day his book is completed!

UPDATE: I just found out that there was a film made of Harry Kellar and Harry Cooke. It was taken by Mr. Ford of the Ford Film Company and was shot in California. According to the Kellar Book by Mike Caveney and Bill Miesel, the footage still exists and portions can be seen on the A&E TV Special "The Story of Magic" and also the PBS special "The Art of Magic". I must admit that I don't recall seeing Harry Cooke on video before, but I have seen very brief film footage of Harry Kellar.

UPDATE 2: I believe a copy of the film was given to the SAM. However, a search of the SAM DVD Library does not show this footage.

*My art teacher in High School was related to John Singleton Mosby.

NEXT: A Few More Civil War Magicians

Civil War Era Magicians Part 5

John Wyman Jr.

Our next magician who conjured in America during the Civil War seems as though he deserves a bigger place in the annals of conjuring than he has. His name was John W. Wyman Jr. and he performed professionally as Wyman The Wizard. He was born in 1816 in Albany NY and according to several magic history books, he was the most successful magician of his time from a financial perspective. I think that Signor Blitz would take the honor of being the most well known of that time, especially with his dozen + imitators. Though a number of newspapers dispute that fact and say that Wyman was THE most popular. Either way Wyman apparently made the most money, and unlike Blitz, Herrmann, Anderson, Heller and others he was American born!

He had the honor of having performed for President Abraham Lincoln four times. Apparently Mr. Lincoln was a big fan of magic as he had seen, Blitz, Compars Herrmann and now Wyman the Wizard! David Copperfield has in his museum, the very coins that Wyman the Wizard used to pass through the hands of Abraham Lincoln during one of his performances before the President. Wyman lived on 6th St in Washington D.C. for a period of time. And his regular performance spot was a place called The Odd Fellows Hall, which was located at 419 7th St N.W Washington, almost exactly half way between the Capital Building and The White House. I assume that his close proximity to the White House and his celebrity status helped him obtain his numerous appearances before not just President Lincoln, but also President Martin Van Buren and President Millard Fillmore.

Odd Fellows Hall in Washington D.C.

According to Houdini, Wyman had one particular attribute that made him popular, he was honest! This is an important fact to remember because Wyman presented what were called 'Gift Shows'. Basically, all the tickets that were sold to his shows had numbers on them and every ticket received a prize depending upon the number. Wyman apparently gave out some really good quality items, among them, watches, table sets, family bibles, silver plated ware and more.

I can't find any record of Wyman having performed for the soldiers during the Civil War, but four performances for the Commander in Chief are enough to put him in this category as a Civil War Era Magician. He very likely performed for members of the military and their families at some point. Prior to the war he was a popular attraction in the Southern States and even out west on Mississippi River Boats.

Like several of his fellow conjurers of the time, one of the features of his act was 'The Gun Trick'. What made his Gun Trick special is that he bought it from John Henry Anderson. He apparently also purchased Anderson's Floating Lady which was a pirated version of Robert-Houdin's Etherial Suspension. Besides magic, Wyman also was an accomplished ventriloquist and mimic and even presented automatons.

The American Civil War began in 1861, but also in 1861 there was almost a Magical Civil War between Wyman the Wizard and Compars Herrmann. This Civil War being started in the press with a challenge from Wyman to Compars Herrmann. In the challenge, Wyman disputed the claims of Herrmann to be performing 'original material' and offered the sum of $25,000 to the winner of a magical duel. Ten of his best tricks would be performed by Herrmann, and ten of Herrmann's best tricks would be performed by Wyman. The challenge would be public and the winner would get all the money plus the box office receipts. The outcome of the Magical Civil War? It never happened because Herrmann ignored Wyman completely.

Besides living in Washington D.C., Wyman also lived in Philadelphia and eventually purchased quite a bit of property in Burlington NJ where he retired. He died in Burlington and was buried in Fall River, MA. in 1881 (the hunt is on to find his grave!)

One interesting historical note, Wyman kept a scrapbook of his career. After Wyman's death this scrapbook was sent to George M. Cohan who claims he never received it. So this very valuable historical item was 'lost in the mail'. I can't help but wonder if it has ever turned up?

NEXT: Horatio Cooke, Civil War Era Magician

Civil War Era Magicians Part 4

Our next conjurer hails from Deal, England and was born Antonio Van Zandt in 1810. His stage name was Signor Blitz and he was so popular that there have been over  a dozen other people using his name!
In fact, one of the most famous historical incidents in Blitz's life may have actually happened to one of his imitators, though I personally believe it did happen to the real Signor Blitz.*

President Lincoln's Summer Home

The incident took place near the Summer White House, this was a house used by Lincoln during the summer months to escape the heat. Today it's called 'Lincoln's Cottage'. In early July 1863, President Lincoln took a break from his duties to watch a rehearsal of the upcoming July 4th parade. Numerous people stood along the street watching the rehearsal and in the crowd was none other than Signor Blitz.
The sly magician reached out and produced a bird from the hair of one of the girls in the parade. This had the effect of stopping the parade as a number of people started to gather and watch the impromptu performance of the magician. Among his magical feats was producing an egg from the mouth of the President's son, Tad Lincoln.

A fellow from the crowd formally introduced the President to the magician. Lincoln replied "Why, of course, it's Signor Blitz, one of the most famous men in America. How many children have you made happy, Signor Blitz?" The magician replied "Thousands and tens of thousands". The President then said "While I fear that I have made thousands and tens of thousands unhappy. But it is for each of us to do his duty in this world and I am trying to do mine." This exchange took place just as the Battle of Gettysburg was finishing up and Lincoln had not yet heard the news of which side won the battle.

Though Blitz did tour the world with his show, it was Philadelphia that he called home. According the Blitz's own Autobiography, Philadelphia became the principal depot for the sick and wounded during the War. Because of this, Blitz donated his services many times to the soldiers. In his own words, "My exhibitions were remarkably popular with the soldiers. Constantly I was written to, and personally solicited by the surgeon and his assistants, or ladies of the committees, for my services. Occasionally some convalescent patient would procure permission to call, and entreat me personally, in behalf of his comrades, to come and amuse them; a request I am thankful I never refused."

He continues, "How the poor fellows loved to laugh, and drive away their pains and cares! It certainly appeared of more advantage to them than medical attendance. Whenever it was known that I was to appear, unusual excitement prevailed. Men whose limbs had been amputated but a few days, although forbidden by the physician, begged to be dressed, that they might attend; and the same was the case with the feeble and exhausted, who were confined to their beds; who, when reminded of the imprudence and danger, replied, 'A good laugh will raise our spirits, and bring about a speedy recovery.' 'Is not laughing good for health?' said one unfortunate man, who lost a leg and was suffering from a gunshot in the arm; he reminded the surgeon that there was no medicine like laughing."

One more thing of note that I think is important, Signor Blitz presented 132 shows before 63,000 soldiers. This was in Philadelphia, which means he performed for the Union Army, but there is no doubt that a few wounded Confederate Soldiers were in the mix as well.

His act was made up of magic, trained animals and ventriloquism. As with other magicians of his time, his favorite feat was the dangerous Bullet Catch. However, a number of close called persuaded the magician to remove it from his show. The last one was when an audience member took out a six shooter and proclaimed "if you can catch one,  you can call all of them!". Fortunately, Blitz was able to stop the man from shooting.

Signor Antonio Blitz lived to be 67 and died in 1877. He is buried in Cypress Hills Cemetery, which is right around the corner from Machpelah Cemetery where Houdini is buried.

*The reason some scholars believe that this incident was with a Blitz imposter/imitator was that this adventure does not appear in his autobiography. 

NEXT: Wyman The Wizard -Civil War Era Magicians Part 5

Civil War Era Magicians Part 3

In part 1 of this series, I told you about John Henry Anderson, The Great Wizard of the North who was actually Scottish. He was one of the early performers to present the Rabbit from Hat Trick. Anderson went into debt during the Civil War because he was unable to pull in the attendance needed for his shows. After a difficult run-in with the people of Richmond VA who didn't take too kindly to his title, "The Great Wizard of the NORTH" he stayed mostly in the Northern States and catered to Northern Audiences.

Next was a true southerner, William Augustus Reich, better known as Guss Rich, The Wizard of The Blue Ridge. Gus played drums in the 26th North Carolina Regimental Band and thus was part of the Confederate Army. His performances outside of his regular duties raised money for the Confederate Soldiers. He survived the war and lived a long life.

This time we visit another European who happened to be touring the United States just as the Civil War broke out. This person was Compars Herrmann, the elder brother of Alexander Herrmann. Compars was very well known all over Europe for his special brand of conjuring. In 1861, he came to America and began to perform in New Orleans. As the Civil War broke out Compars headed north to New York.

Unlike his competitor, John Henry Anderson who struggled during the War to bring in crowds, Compars was setting attendance records. Interestingly, both John Henry Anderson and Compars Herrmann used pirated Robert-Houdin props in their show. However, Compars had a huge advantage over Anderson in that he was also adept at sleight of hand. This ability set him apart from his competition and made him a must-see attraction.

In November of 1861, Compars Herrmann was in the Nations Capital to perform. The National Republican Newspaper wrote this about his performance, "This extraordinary magician gave his first entertainment in this city at the Theatre, last evening. The house was crowded to repletion by a large and fashionable audience. Mr. Herrmann in his performances fully realized all the wonderful things that have been said about him, and left the impression upon the minds of the audience that they had seen "Old Nick" himself." (Old Nick was another name for The Devil)

East Room of the White House in the 1800s

During his stay in Washington D.C., Compars Herrmann was invited to perform at the White House for President Abraham Lincoln and his invited guests. This took place in the East Room of the White House where many celebrities have performed over the years. At one point during his show, Herrmann handed a deck of cards to President Lincoln asking the President to shuffle the cards. President Lincoln handed the cards to his Secretary of War and said "This man shuffles the cards for me at present".

Compars Herrmann's assistant during this engagement was his 18 year old younger brother Alexander. Together they presented 'The Second Sight Routine' no doubt just like Robert-Houdin and his son Emile used to present.

In 1862, Alexander Herrmann went off on his own to perform and Compars remained.  Compars performed throughout the Northern States during the Civil War and in 1863 he left America and headed to England. It seems that Alexander didn't come back to America until 1869, after the Civil War had ended.

NEXT: Signor Blitz Another Civil War Era Magician.

Civil War Era Magicians Part 2

Yesterday I mentioned my small connection to the Civil War and the fact that I have several historical items from that time period. Above are three lead bullets that I found back on my farm and still have today. I'll try and locate the Union Army Belt Buckle before this series of articles is over.

Today though we explore yet another magician with a connection to the Civil War. This time one of the lesser known magi, William Augustus Reich, born on July 16th, 1833 in Salem North Carolina. He would later shorten his name to Guss Rich.

Gus was a tinsmith by trade. In 1860 he gave his first performance of a magical nature to a large audience at the Ole Salem Concert Hall. A year later the Civil War broke out and Gus became the drummer in a 26th North Carolina Regimental Band part of the Confederate Army. When not with the 26th Regiment he and his fellow band members put on performances to raise money for the confederate troops. The feature of every show was 'GUSS RICH - The Southern Magician!'.

On April 8th, 1865, the 26th North Carolina Regimental Band was captured by the Union Army and imprisoned along with other Confederate Soldiers. To their surprise, the following day they were released. Why? General Lee had surrendered to General Grant at Appomattox and this began the end of the Civil War. Gus Rich returned to his hometown of Salem NC.

After the Civil War, Gus adopted the moniker 'The Wizard of the Blue Ridge' and continued to perform magic until 1914 when he gave his final performance. He passed away in 1917.

Interestingly, the Wizard of the Blue Ridge still lives on today in a special magical play written by Max Howard called 'The War Wizard'. I had the good fortune to see Max present this at a magic convention a number of years ago and was enthralled with the Magic of Gus Rich! In May 2010, MAGIC Magazine did an article on The Great Southern Sleight of Hand Show, aka The War Wizard play by Max Howard.

NEXT: Compars Herrmann, Civil War Era Magician

Civil War Era Magicians Part 1

In America we are celebrating the 150th Anniversary of the beginning of the Civil War. The Civil War, also known as the 'War Between the States' lasted from 1861-1865.  Over 1 million people died, both soldier and non-soldier as a result of the war. The numbers are staggering and impossible to comprehend.

I live not far from the Manassas Battlefield, where a number of the key Civil War Battles took place, and in fact, as a kid I used to ride horses around the Battlefield. I grew up on a farm in Fauquier County Virginia and was told that there had been a Union Army encampment on our property. One day while treasure hunting with a metal detector we found tent stakes, lots of bullets, a stirrup for a saddle and even a Union Army Belt Buckle, so indeed it was true.

I often wondered what magicians were around during the Civil War and it turns out there were quite a few. There were many who lived 'during' the years of the American Civil War, but I'm only going to mention a few who had direct contact with events or people of the Civil War.

First up is John Henry Anderson.  Mr. Anderson was not an American and did not fight in the War. He was born near Aberdeen Scotland in 1812. He began his career as a magician with the moniker 'The Caledonian Conjurer'.  Later, he changed his moniker to "The Great Wizard of the North" and was quite successful. He performed throughout the British Isles and toured the European Continent as well.

His first visit to America was in 1851. He had recently acquired a number of pirated Robert-Houdin effects and toured with them quite successfully. One of his features since his early days and one that was not part of the pirated Robert-Houdin material was the infamous Bullet Catching feat, a very sensational effect which is notorious for having killed numerous performers since it first debuted. Anderson performed the trick successfully throughout his career. The Great Wizard was a hit in America and his tickets sold for a premium. By all accounts his first tour of the U.S. was a smashing success.

His next tour of the U.S. was in 1859 and he started on the West Coast bringing in a whopping $25,000 in just a couple months time. By July of 1860, The Great Wizard is on the East Coast and at one of his shows his audience questions him about the coming election between Lincoln and Douglas. Anderson called upon his fake spirit guides to sound out seven knocks. Seven, the exact number of letters in Lincoln's name! The crowd went crazy. Though, had they paid attention, they would have realized that Douglas also had seven letters in his name. A fortunate ad-lib that worked in The Great Wizards favor.

Though things were good in 1859 through mid 1860, as the tour progressed John Henry Anderson began to feel the effects of the conflict between the states. Business was drying up all over the eastern U.S.. When Anderson arrived in Richmond he discovered he was not welcome! The Virginians did not take too kindly to his posters proclaiming the arrival of "The Great Wizard of the NORTH". The word NORTH in one of the Southern States was a bad word to say the least.

The Civil War broke out shortly after his visit to Richmond and The Great Wizard tried to continue with the tour but it was a loosing proposition. Even when he took the tour westward that didn't help either. Business in the states was drying up everywhere.

As a last ditch effort, John Henry Anderson returned to NYC and hired an author to write a version of Shakespeare's TEMPEST but with an emphasis on pro-Northern ideals. He would call this play 'The Wizards Tempest'. He hoped to win over at least the Northern audiences with his new venture. After the first night it appeared he had a huge hit on his hands. But news that the war was not going well for Union Soldiers seriously hurt business. After a few weeks the show was closed and John Henry Anderson found himself $3000 in debt. He worked out arrangements to repay his debts and went to England, leaving his family behind. Unfortunately, by 1866 he had no choice but to declare bankruptcy.

During the course of his performing career John Henry Anderson made over $700,000. He gained and lost fortunes many times over his lifetime but the tough conditions during the American Civil War wiped him out completely. He never returned to America and never saw his family again. He died in England on February 3rd, 1874 and was buried in Aberdeen Scotland.

Houdini at the Grave of John Henry Anderson

NEXT: Guss Rich, Civil War Era Magician