Dot Robinson, Wife of Chung Ling Soo

Olive 'Dot' Robinson was the wife of William Ellsworth Robinson, known professionally as Chung Ling Soo. She was born Olive Path and had been with William Robinson since the very beginning of his career. She worked with him in his Black Art act. When he signed with Kellar, she was there and acted as assistant in the illusions. Later, when they switched over to work with Herrmann the Great, she continued on, performing the illusions as only she could. Her nickname was Dot, due to her small stature. And because of her size, it allowed for very deceptive illusions. Several sources, including Magic: A Pictorial History of Conjurers in the Theatre, mention that she was one of the greatest assistants to ever live. When William Robinson created the Chung Ling Soo character, he renamed his wife Suee Seen.

Her life was not all sunshine and roses however. Though everyone thought she was married to

Robinson, they actually did not marry until 1906.   Robinson had a reputation for being a womanizer and Dot overlooked it all those years. But after the marriage, his extramarital affairs strained their relationship.

In 1918, Chung Ling Soo/William Robinson was shot on stage of the Wood Green Empire Theatre in London while performing the Bullet Catching Illusion. He died as a result of his wound and was buried in London. Dot, remained in London until 1921 when she quietly returned to America. She moved to the Bronx and became a recluse, never again associating with her friends in the magic world.  She died November 13, 1934 from cancer.

Olive 'Dot' Robinson is buried in an unmarked grave in The Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx.  Other notables in the magic world who are buried there include: Alexander and Adelaide Herrmann, Max Holden, and Black Hermann.

Fellow magic historian, Diego Domingo is now working to raise funds for a grave marker for Olive Robinson. I learned of this at this years Yankee Gathering, when Diego gave a brief talk about Olive and the unmarked grave. As you know, I am a believer in caring for these graves of our brethren, and have contributed to the fund and would like to give you an opportunity to as well, if you so choose.

If you would like to contribute to the fund Checks should be made out to:

Funds have been collected and a new gravestone is in place.

More On Houdini and Kellar

More on Houdini & Kellar

Five years ago, I wrote an article about Harry Kellar and Harry Houdini, and then wrote a follow-up article on a different blog. I've decided to move that 'other' article over here for you to enjoy, but I'm also rewriting it a bit.  I am totally fascinated by these two performers. I can't get enough of Kellar and Houdini. The more I find out about each of them, the more interesting they become.

KELLAR of course was the first nationally famous magician born in America. Robert Heller and Herrmann the Great preceded him, but Heller was English and Herrmann was from France. If you want to go back further, you could make the case for Signor Blitz as he was quite famous as well, but again, he was from another country.  Kellar was born in Erie PA so he was a native born son. It's said that Harry Kellar was the inspiration for the character of the Wizard in the Wizard of OZ. Actually, I've only heard this said within the magic world. I have a biography of L. Frank Baum, the author of the Wizard of OZ and there is no mention of Kellar in the book. Still, that doesn't mean he wasn't the inspiration.

Kellar was around before the modern media, before radio/TV/internet/movies, and certainly no Social Media. In fact, in Kellar's time, it was rare to see a photograph in the paper, as that technology was still in it's infancy. Instead, there were line drawings or fancy fonts in ads that were being used. So how did Kellar sell his show? POSTERS, newspaper ads and word of mouth! Kellar has some of the most beautiful and highly collectable posters in the history of the theatre.  If you examine Kellar's posters you'll receive a 19th Century lesson on Branding that is still valid today. His posters had a consistent look and theme. Whether they displayed young Kellar or older Kellar, they were still done in the same style. Some posters featured Kellar performing his signature effects, others showed only Kellar...and usually a few of his devilish imps appeared in the posters as well.

There are a number of effects in Kellar's show that have always intrigued me, probably because I saw posters for them when I was starting out in magic and the images stuck with me. Two in particular were Flyto and OH!. Flyto was an illusion invented by Charles Morritt and it consisted of two upright rectangular cabinets on the stage set several feet apart. A woman would go into one and a man into the other and instantly they would change places.

OH! was kind of a challenge vanish. There was a chair, with a curtain cabinet around it. A Steel plate went under the chair to prevent someone from dropping into a trap door. The assistant who sat in the chair put her hand through the curtain which was held by a spectator from the audience, and the other hand held a ring which was attached to a cord held by another spectator. And under these stringent conditions the person in the chair still vanished without a trace! 

HOUDINI was not born in the USA, but he always presented himself as if he was. In his mind he was a mid-westerner from a little town called Appleton. Now, where Heller and Herrmann were Kellar's rivals, they had a different connection to Houdini. Herrmann was a distant relative (maybe). Houdini enormous respect for Heller, even going so far to track down the old magi's grave. He said of Heller, "he was the most versatile magician to ever life."

Houdini was not the inspiration for any fictional characters that I'm aware of, however, he was such an iconic figure in history that he became the inspiration for many people inside and outside of magic. Even today, they still make movies and write books about this fellow, so still he has a hold on the public's imagination.

Houdini predated the internet/social media and TV. But he was right there when radio and movies were in their infancy, and he used them to the best of his ability. He did a number of radio interviews and as far as movies went, he starred in movies as well as opened his own movie studio to produce his own movies and his own film development company.  He also used newspapers in ways that others had not with his sometimes scandalous photos (think naked jail escapes).  Through his outdoor escapes he created his own sort of 'social media', back then it was called 'word of mouth' and it was extremely effective.

Like Kellar, Houdini used posters to their maximum effect. He even had one poster that had devils on it, but he eventually went his own way when it came to the images on the posters. He emphasised drama, fear and emotion in many of his posters. The Water Torture Cell posters and the Milk Can, 'Failure Means a Drowning Death' and the Water Torture cells often had the depiction of a green giant putting Houdini in the cell. Pure drama!
  

In regards to his performing material I've always been intrigued with the escapes but lately it's his magic that is pulling me in. I never in a million years considered doing the East Indian Needle Trick. The It's an effect that has danger (real danger) and suspense and it appears totally impossible. It's frankly brilliant and Houdini recognized the trick for how powerful it was. He would do it in newspaper offices, he even did it on the stage at the Hippodrome Theatre, one of the largest stages in the world! Watch for it in my act, because it's coming.

Houdini's Walking Through a Brick wall is another piece that is simply genius. Though I don't expect to Walk Through a Brick Wall anytime soon (it won't fit in my Van). And frankly, I have a new found respect for the Milk Can after having done a ton of research on it. The Milk Can restarted a stalled career for Houdini and then when he was ready to replace it with the Water Torture Cell, he found continual uses for the Milk Can.

It's ironic that Houdini and Kellar didn't really become friends until after Kellar retired. Houdini always looked up to Kellar. Houdini had a habit of looking up to 'father-figures'. Kellar fits this description, as does Harry Cooke & Oscar Teale.

The Houdini/Kellar relationship carries a valuable lesson.  No matter how famous you are, there are people out there that you can admire. These two performers, certainly both admired each other.

By the way, maybe the best photo of the two magicians together can be found online. I will post the link, because I don't know who owns this today and would not post it without the owners ok. https://new.liveauctioneers.com/item/33516298_portrait-photograph-of-houdini-and-kellar

Harry Kellar Poster

Harry Kellar is definitely one of my favorite magicians. He was one of the most beloved magicians of his time, though I think the Maskelynes' might disagree. His posters are highly sought after and they are always gorgeous. I honestly, never imagined I'd own a Kellar poster, but the photo above is MY Kellar poster!

This is a three sheet Strobridge Lithograph poster (84x40). I'm uncertain of the true date of the poster however. I have seen it listed online and in books as 1900 and 1903. And yet there is another poster, very similar to this one, where he is clearly younger, and that poster has dates of 1900 and 1907. I think that this poster to the left is likely 1907 as it looks like Kellar much later in his career.

It's kind of funny, most of the Kellar posters are filled with devils and imps and I get one of the few that doesn't include that iconic imagery, lol. But I've decided to include the imps just the same. How you ask?  I have been quietly collecting little devil figurines which I'll put on display right next to this enormous poster. I've got to get it framed and I can only imagine what that will cost. But it's going to look so incredible.

I don't have a huge poster collection, but I do have a few. I have a Fu Manchu, a Levante poster, one or two Virgil posters, a Kassner poster, two KIO posters from Russia, two George posters, and a few others that I can't think of off the top of my head. I also have a ton of modern day posters, all but 2 of the Le Grand David posters, Doug Henning posters, Copperfield and the like. But it's the lithos that are the most desirable. This Kellar is just breathtaking in real life!

UPDATE: Just an interesting aside, today at the Potter & Potter Auction, a signed photo of Harry Kellar's wife sold for $4800 and a Kellar In the Woods Poster sold for $13,000. AND there are a bunch of Kellar Posters among the Nielsen Collection which gets auctioned off in June.

Harry Cooke's Grave

I've been doing some research on Horatio Cooke recently. He has quite the life story which I covered briefly in an earlier blog article. I was rereading the magazine article that Mark Cannon wrote for the MUM back in April 2006. The article was incredible and it ended with Mark discussing the difficulty he had trying to locate the grave of Harry Cooke. He eventually discovered it with the help of magic historian, Diego Domingo. There is a great photo in the magazine of Mark kneeling in front of the grave.

I realized that I never included Harry Cooke in my The DeadConjurers blog. So I went online and found another photo in Find-A-Grave.com. The photo owner Don Lynch kindly gave me permission to use the photo that he took of the grave. Thanks Don!

But I also found something else of interest. I found the photo of a grave belonging to 'The Infants of HG Cooke and LM Cooke' in Illinois. I'm 99% sure this grave belongs to two children of Harry and Louisa. They lived in Illinois before moving out west to California. It's likely these two children died in childbirth.

Harry Cooke and his wife are buried in Rosedale Cemetery in Los Angeles, the same cemetery where Harry Kellar is buried. Incidentally, they were good friends.

Photo used with permission of Don Lynch

Remembering Kellar

Harry Kellar passed away 93 years ago this week on March 10th 1922. I've written about Kellar a lot on this blog and recently over at my other blog. We are fortunate that in the past few years some new books have come out on Kellar. The enormous Kellar's Wonders by Mike Caveney and William Miesel was the first to come out and it gives a very complete history of the life of Harry Kellar. A short time after another book was published called, The Amazing Harry Kellar: Great American Magician by Gail Jarrow.

Kellar was the first Dean of the Society of American Magicians and really the first famous American born Illusionist. In his life he would have seen Robert-Heller, John Henry Anderson, Alexander Herrmann, John Nevil Maskelyne, David Devant, Harry Houdini and of course, Howard Thurston. That's an incredible span of time to be able to see the acts of some of the most iconic people in magic history, and yet Kellar was among these iconic performers.

Had it not been for Kellar, we might not have had the Vanishing Birdcage here in America. Had it not been for Kellar the Kellar Levitation might still be known as the Maskelyne Levitation, lol. Ok, not everything Kellar did was honest. He certainly lived a full life with many incredible adventures, including loosing his whole act in a shipwreck! Yet he came back from loosing everything and became the #1 Illusionist in America.

RIP still, Harry Kellar.

Here are some notable moments in Kellar's life that I've written about in the past.

The Fakir of Ava

Harry Kellar and The Wizard of OZ 

Kellar's Shipwreck and Sunken Treasure

The Vanishing Bird Cage History

Kellar's Astarte Levitation

Kellar & Houdini

Passing of the Mantle of Magic

Kellar's LAST Mystery

Remembering The Passing of the Mantle of Magic

Today marks the 106th Anniversary of the Passing of the Mantle of Magic from Harry Kellar to Howard Thurston at the Fords Theatre in Baltimore MD. May 16, 1908 in Howard Thurston's own words,

"Before the final curtain had fallen Kellar led me to the foot- lights and in a most touching speech briefly mentioned his own career of forty-five years as a public entertainer, and finished with a generous and affectionate prediction of my future. Kellar had played Ford's Opera House for many years. He handed his arm around my shoulders, while the orchestra played 'Auld Lang Syne'. As the ushers carried many floral offerings to the stage, the audience sang with the music. Finally, the musicians stood, then the entire audience was on its feet repeating the refrain. Leaning heavily on my shoulder as the curtain dropped for the last time, Kellar cried—so did I."

What was the Mantle of Magic? Essentially, it was nothing more than a business transaction between Kellar and Thurston. But that is too boring, so they put a theatrical spin to the whole affair and created this idea of passing Kellar's Mantle onto Thurston. For the 1907-08 Season, Kellar and Thurston toured the U.S. together.  All of the posters for the tour featured an image of Kellar's face in the upper corner and Thurston's face in the opposite corner. The final poster above, was the only one with a full sized image of both Thurston and Kellar, that I'm aware of.

I'm not sure how long Thurston continued using the Kellar endorsement after that iconic event. But it's clear he did continue to use "Kellar's Successor" for some time. 

Library of Congress Image

Today, all parties associated with the event are long gone. Thurston and Kellar have low since passed away. Even the Ford's Theatre in Baltimore is gone. But we have the posters, playbills and history to look back upon and fondly remember an important event in the annals of magic.

The Golden Age of Magic - In Bronze

I have posted many statues, sculptures, carvings, figurines and busts of magicians. But now it's time for the finest renditions of them all. Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you 'The Masters of Magic's Golden Age!

This series of museum quality, limited edition bronze busts are the creation of Mike and Mary Elizalde. This whole project came about because Mike wanted some museum quality busts for his own magic collection. Mike funded the entire project and they were produced through Spectral Motion, the company that he and his wife own and operate. Spectral Motion is among the world's leading creature and makeup effects studios with over 50 films to its credit. Headed up by Academy Award Nominee Mike Elizalde and his wife Mary, Spectral Motion is known for its astounding cinematic effects and an unblemished record of reliability, believability and superb quality. Let's take a closer look at these incredible bronze busts. I'll post them in historical order. 

Jean Eugene Robert-Houdin (b.Dec 7,1805 d. June 13, 1871) Known to all of us as the Father of Modern Magic. He was the great French Conjurer who we still revere today. Inventor of many incredible automaton like Antonio Diavolo and the Fantastic Blooming Orange Bush.  Also, creator of incredible magic like the Ethereal Suspension, which in updated forms is still presented today. 

Another of his iconic creations was the Light & Heavy Chest, which was used not only to amaze and impress but also to stop a tribal uprising in French Algeria.  

A full size statue of Robert Houdin resides in front of the Maison de la Magie in Blois France.









Alexander Herrmann (b. Feb 10,1844 d. Dec 17, 1896)
The GREAT Herrmann is considered by many to be the first in the line of the famed Mantle of Magic. He was also a Frenchman, like Houdin, but made his fame here in America. Originally, he worked with his brother Compars, until he went out on his own. Compars Herrmann was equally as famous in Europe as his younger brother was in America. The Herrmann's had a Mephistopholean appearance that added to their mystery and intrigue.

Though he had a very mysterious appearance, his magic and performance was filled with comedy. He was also known to do magic off-stage in public places. Perhaps we should credit Alexander Herrmann with being the creator of 'Street Magic'!

Herrmann died suddenly on a train in 1896. His wife Adelaide took over the show and was joined by her nephew Leon, who also bore a striking resemblance to Alexander.

Harry Kellar (b. July 11, 1849 d. March 10,1922) Here we have the Dean of Magicians. So called, because he was the first 'Dean' of the Society of American Magicians. Harry Kellar was the first nationally famous American born magician. The second in line for the Mantle of Magic, though technically, it really started with him, though some do put Herrmann first.

Kellar began his career as an apprentice to the Fakir of Ava. He went out on his own for a short time and eventually went to work for the Davenport Brothers. When he had a falling out with one of the brothers, he left them and took another employee, William Fay, with him. They toured North and South America and were heading to Europe when a ship wreck ended their tour.

Kellar found his way back to the U.S. and rebuilt his show and went on to  have a flourishing career. He and Herrmann, though not friends, shared a secret that I will reveal a bit later in this article.





HOUDINI (b March 24,1874 d. Oct 31, 1926) The most famous magician in the world, who wanted to be known as an 'escape artist' for much of his life, and then as an actor, producer and later as an author and scientific investigator. Eventually, he would return to magic in a grand way with his Three In One Show of Magic, Escapes and Spiritualist Exposures. Houdini is likely responsible for inspiring more people into magic than anyone alive. I know my own push into magic came from discovering Houdini. 

The creation of the Magic Detective Blog, really has a lot to do with Houdini. There are 172 articles on the blog that are either about or that refer to Harry. The next closest is Harry Kellar with 32. He is an icon, a legend and the bust of Houdini created by Spectral Motion captures Houdini in all his splendor. He looks confident, proud and defiant. It's a fantastic image of the Master Mystifier.

Howard Thurston (b. July 20, 1869 d. April 13, 1936) 
If we talk of the Mantle of Magic, Howard received the Mantle of Magic from Harry Kellar in a ceremony at Ford's Theatre in Baltimore on May 16th, 1908. In all truth, it had more to do with Kellar selling his show to Thurston, but it sure made a great publicity campaign and a tradition that has continued up until present time.

I always thought Thurston was a great performer. But I never quite knew the whole story until Jim Steinmeyer published an incredible biography on Thurston called, The Last Greatest Magician In The World. It is a must read for anyone interested in magic or magic history.

Thurston had been making plans to pass the Mantle of Magic onto one of his associates, Harry Jansen, known professionally as Dante. There was never an official ceremony however because Thurston died suddenly.






Chung Ling Soo (b. April 2, 1861 d. March 23, 1918) 
I must admit when I first looked over the list
of people who were selected for bronzes, the one odd one was Chung Ling Soo, at least to me. He was born William Ellsworth Robinson and in all truth, his inclusion in this list is well deserved. Robinson worked for Alexander Herrmann. Later, he worked for Harry Kellar. Robinson was the 'secret' that I referred to earlier. He worked for the rival magicians before his own rise to fame. He was known as the most knowledgeable man in magic during his time. He played an important part in the success of both. 

Robinson also has a connection to Thurston. He allowed Thurston to show Leon Herrmann his version of the Rising Cards, and when it amazed Herrmann, Thurston publicized himself as 'The Man Who Fooled Herrmann'. The meeting would never have happened without Robinson however.

When Robinson went out on his own, he failed miserably. It wasn't until he came up with the idea of doing an Chinese after seeing Ching Ling Foo, that things really took off for him. So convincing was he in his performance that the public was unaware that Soo was really an American. They truly bought into the idea that he was Chinese. He even used an interpreter when he gave interviews. He is the only real life magician who gets a spot in the movie 'The Prestige'. He also had one of the most tragic deaths in the history of magic having been killed while performing the dangerous Bullet Catching Feat.

All of these busts are a little over 12 inches tall. They are made of bronze and are available for purchase. They were produced in limited quantities of 40, so there isn't a huge supply, but there are some that remain. They are all on display at the Magic Castle if you are interested in seeing them in person. If you want to purchase one of these wonderful works of art, realize you are not buying a mass produced bust from Target or Walmart. These are museum quality and exceptional pieces. If you are interested in purchasing one, and I really encourage you to consider this investment because once they are gone, they will be gone for good. Below is the flyer which has all the information for purchasing. You can reach them at (818)956-6080 or by email at orders@spectralmotion.com

Special thanks for Mike and Mary Elizalde for providing all the wonderful photographs and for your great contribution to magic.

Maid of the Moon Addition

I wrote an article on an intriguing levitation illusion that had been presented by both Harry Kellar and Alexander Herrmann. It was called Astarte or the Maid of the Moon. I had also posted a video of Doug Henning recreating the illusion for one of his TV specials. Well, at the Los Angeles Conference on Magic History 2013 this illusion was recreated by John Gaughan. And in the January 2014 Digital version of Genii Magazine you can watch a video of the illusion. It is beyond incredible. You  have to check it out! It is a real thing of beauty!

The Man Who Fooled The Best Minds In Magic

It all began in this carriage house in NYC. An amateur magician fooled the best minds in magic. The performances were held on the second floor right near the windows on the left. A small stage was erected and there were chairs available for twenty people. The performances were invitation only. Those who attended were a virtual who's who in the world of magic. They all walked away puzzled and amazed.

The man who put on these shows was Dr. Samuel Cox Hooker and his show was legendary. Years ago, I remember reading through a copy of GREATER MAGIC and coming upon a description of his show and wondering what all the fuss was about. Then in 1993 the Los Angeles Conference on Magic History recreated the show using the original apparatus. In 2007, the conference brought the show back for a repeat performance. I spoke to a few people who attended and the word I heard the most was "I have no idea". Obviously, whatever Dr. Hooker had created was a timeless mystery just as remarkable today as it was nearly 100 years ago.

Both Genii and MAGIC Magazine did extensive articles on Hooker and I've pulled some of my information from those sources as well as a few other places. This great mystery that Dr. Hooker created was not a single trick nor was it a single method. It was numerous puzzle pieces that came together to create what has been called 'The Hooker Rising Cards'. But Dr. Hooker preferred to call his show 'Impossibilities'.

Dr. Samuel Hooker

The show first began in 1915 in the carriage house behind his home on Remsen St. in Brooklyn. I believe the initial show was just a demonstration of his Rising Cards. But Dr. Hooker's Rising Cards were unlike anything anyone had ever seen. The show would begin by handing out a houlette for examination. A houlette is a small holder for playing cards, and according to the book Greater Magic, the Hooker houlette was made of glass. Next, a new pack of cards was borrowed from a member of the audience. The cards were shuffled and then placed into the houlette. Then, any card called for would rise out from the pack! But that was just the beginning. Next, cards were selected, signed and put back in the pack and it then put back into the houlette. The selected signed cards would rise. The houlette was moved to different part of the table to disprove any connection to the table. In fact, the houlette could be handed out for examination again and again. Finally, a large glass dome was placed over the houlette and the cards not only rose up like before, but now they floated higher and higher within the glass enclosure. Eventually, all the cards flew from the houlette and that was the conclusion of the original show.

Harry Kellar was witness to the show in 1914 when it was in it's early stages. It was clear to Kellar even then that this was a remarkable feat. Kellar would attend again a couple years later and by this time Dr. Hooker had added another feature, a bear head he called

Militiades III in action

Militiades III. When the show began the Doctor would speak to the bear and it's eyes would open and it's head would move. He could ask the bear questions and the mouth would move in response. According to an article in the San Diego Union from May 26, 1918, the magicians in the audience seemed fairly unfazed with those antics. But then the bear head levitated in the air and moved about. Dr. Hooker passed his hands around the floating bear head and then passed a hoop around it. All the while the bear head, which he called Militiades after an Athenian chieftan, continued it's facial animations. The newspaper article said the magicians were completely dumbfounded by this. The name Militiades, according to the article by Jim Steinmeyer in Genii Magazine April 2008, was inspired by the Athenian General and a children's book from Hooker's youth called 'The Adventures of Militiades Peterkin Paul'. So his bear head became Militiades III.

When Kellar saw the performance he related to Dr. Hooker just how amazed he was and that he had no idea how the mystery was accomplished. Dr. Hooker then invited Kellar to peer behind the curtain, so to speak, and revealed the workings of this marvel. Kellar was so taken with the wonderful illusion that he eventually asked Dr. Hooker if he could have it for his own home. According to the book, Kellars Wonders by Mike Caveney and Bill Miesel, Dr. Hooker agreed to allow Kellar to build the illusion for demonstrations at his home but swore him to complete secrecy.  There was a catch however. Hooker would not build the effect for Kellar. He told Kellar that he would have to create it on his own and not use a magic builder in the process. This meant that Harry Kellar had to go off his memory of what he saw and experiment with various things in order to build it for himself. He did begin work on it and hired another mechanic to help, but never completed the work.

Magician's who saw Hooker's incredible miracle included: Harry Kellar, Houdini, Charles Carter, Adelaide Herrmann, W. J. Hilliar,  Dr. James Elliott, Guy Jarrett, Theo Bamberg and many others. In 1929, Dr. Hooker decided to revive the show but felt he was too old at this point to perform. So he taught the routine to John Mullholland and Dr. Shirley Quimby who presented it for another round of performances. According to Ted Annemann in the Jinx #87, 1938, the effect was bequeathed to Mullholland and Quimby. Annemann quotes The Sphinx of Sept 1936, "for performance from time to time as opportunities occur." However, I don't think the apparatus for the illusion was actually given to Mullholland, rather the opportunity to present the effect. It doesn't appear that Mullholland ever presented the effect after the run in 1929.  The apparatus for the Hooker Rising Card Illusion remained in the Hooker family and eventually with Hooker's grandson who sold it to John Gaughan.

The Hooker Rising Card was presented at two different Los Angeles Conference on Magic History. John Gaughan restored the original apparatus and together with Jim Steinmeyer, they did their best to recreate a routine based on Hooker's work. The original routine as presented by Dr. Hooker was somewhere between an hour and 90 minutes. The version presented at the magic history conference was twenty minutes. But according to all accounts, the magic of Dr. Samuel Hooker continued to bewilder the best minds in magic of today just as it had done during magic's Golden Age.

One additional note that I found interesting. It turns out that Dr. Hooker, who was a chemist by trade, and a very dedicated amatuer magician, is related to a modern day magician, Paul Romhany.

A Piece of Kellar & Houdini History

Norm Nielsen and Harry Kellar

The image above is a wonderful 8 sheet Kellar poster, now in the collection of Norm Nielsen. According to Lupe Nielsen, it may be the only 8 sheet Kellar poster of this image known to have survived. The incredible poster has quiet a story.

Apparently, this poster was a gift from Harry Kellar to Harry Houdini. The poster hung in the home of Houdini, 278 W 113th St NYC. The poster was originally mounted on linen and actually stayed in the house longer than Houdini.  In the 1980s, Dixie Dooley was in NYC and stopped by the old Houdini House. Unlike most visitors, he actually got permission to enter the home and was able to tour Houdini's old home. While on the tour, the owner showed Dixie a table full of posters and gave them to him as a gift. The above poster was among those he acquired and remained in his possession until he sold the large Kellar poster to Norm Nielsen in the 1990s.

According to Lupe, "no restorers wanted to touch it." So they placed it into a giant frame protected by a piece of Plexiglas in the front. It is now in the Nielsen Magic Poster Collection.  The poster was printed by Strobridge Litho, Cincinnati 1894.

*The photo credit belongs to Lee Alex (www.leealexmagic.com) who graciously gave me permission to reproduce it here. I also received permission from Lupe Nielsen to include it, as it is part of the private Nielsen Magic Poster Collection (www.nnmagic.com) By the way, Dixie Dooley talks about this poster in his book Exploits and also in Houdini Question Reality, two books he wrote available on Lulu.com.

Mattmuellar the Wizard

As far as posters go, the above image is one of the most striking magic posters ever created. I still recall the first time I saw this poster in real life. It was at the American Museum of Magic many years ago and I was dumbstruck by it's beauty. It was at this point that my fascination with Charles Mattmuellar began.

He was born Feb 12, 1878 in Cleveland Ohio. His first magic show was a bit of an impromptu thing where he presented a 'spirit cabinet' like effect for some friends. He was eight years old at the time. His mother forbid him to pursue the magical arts, but he did anyway. Eventually, his father recognized the talent that the young boy had and Mattmuellar the Magician was born!

In grade school Charles became known as Karl because of the number of other students in his class named Charles. The name stuck and he kept it for the rest of his life. As a magician, he would first use his last name Mattmeullar and then for a very short period use the name Alexander, after his idol Alexander Herrmann. However, when Karl had the opportunity to move into the Lyceum circuit, he was encouraged to alter the name again because there were already a multitude of 'Alexanders' in the show business world. Karl chose the name Germain, after the Marquis of St. Germain, a mystery man and mountebank. At first a mistake in spelling in an advertisement caused the name to be  spelled  'Germaine' with an 'e' on the end but eventually he dropped the 'e' and used Germain. He would also eventually drop the term 'magician' in favor of 'the Wizard' to round out the name.

Though in the early days his mother was against her son doing magic, she eventually got involved. It

(Ken Klosterman collection)

was his mother who apparently handled his money, at least in the beginning and did so well investing it that Germain was able to live off it throughout his life. His sister Ida became part of his act, becoming an assistant when he presented his mind reading routines.

Finally, and probably most importantly,  it was his father Charles Mattmuellar Senior who deserves a great deal of credit in the success of his son. His father helped build the famous Germain Flower Growth Illusion, using both carpentry skills and wood carving skills. They would build many versions and adaptations of growing flower tricks over the years. One of their creations was the forerunner of the Square Circle effect and a clever improvement to the Kellar Flower Growth routine which was then adopted by other performers.

I would imagine his father also built the first Wooden Block Thru Board Illusion and many of the other signature effects, possibly even the Germain Spirit Lock. I do know for a fact his father built the Germain Spirit Dial, which was a popular effect with magicians of the time, but Germain's prop was built by his Dad. The Flower Growth and the Spirit Dial can both be seen in the photograph to the right. Ken Klosterman owns a great deal of the Germain props and has a very extensive collection of Germain posters. I believe a second Germain Flower Growth is in the David Copperfield Collection, given to him as a gift from Mr. Klosterman. And recently, I learned the Germain Spirit Lock resides in Tim Moore's Magic Collection.

There is much to share about the life of Karl Germain as he truly was an amazing Wizard. At another time, I'll delve deeper into his effects and in a future article I'll share some stories of his life and the tragic turn near the end of his life.

New Edition of MAGIC 1400s-1950s by Taschen

Remember that GIANT magic book that Taschen printed a couple years ago that cost $200? The book was so large, you had to have a special desk just to hold it. In fact, one enterprising individual, Lupe Nielson, is building the very desk that is on the cover of the magazine! By the way, Lupe also sells these tables on her website. These tables are of the highest quality and will be a piece of furniture you'll cherish for ages. Plus, one of the few tables that can hold that giant book!

Well, Taschen is putting out another edition, a slightly more manageable copy at 9.9 inches by 15 inches, hardcover in a slipcase, 544 pages, for $69.99. The great news is, it's supposed to be available sometime this month (May 2013).

This was a must have in it's giant size, so I would say it's a super must have in it's slightly smaller size. To order a copy direct from Taschen, go to http://www.taschen.com/pages/en/catalogue/popculture/all/44810/facts.magic_1400s1950s.htm

Oz, The Great & Powerful...Magician

A new movie debuts today called 'OZ, The Great and Powerful' and is a prequel to the popular movie The Wizard of Oz.  The story began as a book, The Wonderful Wizard of OZ (1900) by Lyman Frank Baum.

L.Frank Baum was born May 15, 1856 in Chittenango NY. He had been a life long lover of theatre and tried unsuccessfully to have a career in theatre. His writings did much better for him, though he did take his story The Wonderful Wizard of OZ and turn it into a theatrical play called The Wizard of OZ.

In the original story, the Wizard is a traveling magician who works for a circus. Through a freak accident on a balloon ride, the wizard finds himself in the land of Oz. His full name was Oscar Zoroaster  Phadrig Isaac Norman Henkel Emmanuel Ambroise Diggs which abbreviated spells out
"O.Z.P.I.N.H.E.A.D", he shortened it further to simply OZ.  He becomes the ruler of OZ probably because of his magical abilities and his name OZ written across his hot air balloon.

During the same period of time, the preeminent magician in the United States was a fellow named Harry Kellar. He had been a world traveling magician, but after the deaths of the English magician Robert Heller and the European magician Herrmann the Great, Kellar had the title all to his own.

Heinrich Keller (Harry Kellar) however was born here in America, in Erie PA on July 11, 1849. He was not a circus magician, but he certainly was a traveling magician. He apprenticed under the Fakir of Ava, then went out to manage the famous Davenport Brothers. He left the Davenports and took William Fay with him and they started their own act, traveling through Mexico, South America and beyond. However, on their way to Europe, the ship they were on hit rocks and sunk, taking all the money Kellar and Fay had made on their trip, as well as their costumes and props for their show and leaving them at the bottom of the sea.

Bad luck would not plague Kellar forever and he eventually came into his own. In 1900, the year the Wonderful Wizard of OZ was published, Kellar was the #1 magician in the country.

I've heard it said that Kellar was the inspiration for the character of the Wizard of OZ. Mike Caveney, the well known magician and magic historian has said this in interviews. But I checked his book called "KELLARS WONDERS" and I didn't see any reference to it (though it's possible I missed it).

The connection is mentioned in the Gail Jarrow book on Harry Kellar called "Harry Kellar Great American Magician", although she says that readers of the book 'The Wonderful Wizard of OZ' will recognize the wizard as being like Harry Kellar.

I recall watching the movie 'The Wizard of OZ' as a kid and remembering fondly the character played by Frank Morgan, the Professor Marvel character and later the Wizard. The movie character always stuck with me and when I later got interested in magic and came upon Harry Kellar, I wondered if Kellar was like the Professor Marvel/Wizard character that I had seen in the movie. But honestly, Frank Morgan while in the character of Professor Marvel in the movie looks more like the magician Dante (and Dante was a very popular magician at the time the movie was made).

I am not sure where this idea that Kellar inspired the WIZARD character came from. Though I vaguely recall the idea of the connection was attributed to Martin Gardner. I think it's highly likely that Kellar could have been in the inspiration based on the fact that Baum was a huge theatre buff, Kellar was the big name at the time and the illustrations by William Wallace Denslow are a dead ringer for Kellar. If nothing else, perhaps the illustrator Denslow was inspired by Kellar and that is why the pictures look so much like him. I even have a photo somewhere of Kellar wearing a white jacket like the one on the Wizard illustration, but I can't seem to find it right now. I do believe that Kellar figured in there somewhere during the creation of the original book.

There is one other thing to consider and that is the word WIZARD. Magicians of that time were calling themselves: magicians, conjurers, manipulators, illusionists, escape artists, professor, and similar names. The word 'Wizard' was more commonly used in the mid 1800 with folks like John Henry Anderson known as The Great Wizard of the North, and John Wyman Jr. known as Wyman the Wizard. In the 20th Century there was one wizard that I can think of, Germain the Wizard. Perhaps one of these men also played a part in the inspiration of the character!

Finally, look at the poster below, it kind of looks like something out of the Wizard of OZ with flying monkeys and munchkins!

UPDATE: WildaboutHoudini.com has an article on the Houdini connection to the OZ movie which is excellent as always.

Harry Kellar's Spirit Cabinet Pt1

Harry Kellar, the Dean of Magicians was well known for his Spirit Cabinet trick. In fact, Kellar worked for a time for the Davenport Brothers, the creators of the very first Spirit Cabinet illusion. When Kellar went off with William Fay to perform on their own, they kept the effect in their show. When they traveled throughout Mexico, rather than carry that bulky and heavy piece of equipment with them, they left the Cabinet behind at each location and had a new one built for each new town they played. So there should be Kellar Spirit Cabinet's all over Mexico!

Houdini coaxed Kellar into coming out of retirement for one more Farewell Show at the New York Hippodrome in 1917.  Kellar gave his Spirit Cabinet to Houdini at the conclusion of that event. This Spirit Cabinet was a 'new' cabinet and not the one he toured with years before. The Kellar Book by Mike Caveney and Bill Miesel says so on page 498. Later, in the New Conjurer's Magazine Vol 1, in 1945, Hardeen ran an ad selling off a number of the Houdini/Hardeen equipment, at the top of the list was the Kellar Spirit Cabinet. The ad even says it had been used by Frederick Eugene Powell and also by Hardeen.

Patrick Culliton mentions this ad in his Nov 1993 Genii article called "Where The Magic Went". He states that no one knows what has happened to The Vanishing Donkey and the Black and White Illusion that were also listed in that advertisement. However, there is no mention of the Kellar Spirit Cabinets whereabouts.

I have found a record of the Hardeen/Kellar Spirit Cabinet, I'm calling it that to differentiate between it and others. It was sold to Dr. Carl S.Frischkorn of Norfolk, Virginia, known as Karland the magician. This appeared in the April 1945 edition of the New Conjurers Magazine. I also found out that Dr. Frischkorn was a member of SAM Assembly #32 in Lynchburg. Norfolk and Lynchburg are NOT close to each other by any stretch. There is also an IBM Ring in Norfolk that at one time was named after Dr. Frischkorn, but apparently they have since renamed it. OK, big question, where is THAT cabinet today??? I'm still hunting and perhaps it resides somewhere between Norfolk and Lynchburg, or perhaps it was sold to a collector? Don't know yet, but I'm searching.

Kellar's 'Original' Spirit Cabinet that he used in the U.S.  would have been sold to Howard Thurston in the big sale. And Thurston only kept a couple of the Kellar pieces in his show, one was the Floating Lady and the other was The Spirit Cabinet.

Here is an interesting twist to the story. In the Sept 1923 issue of The Sphinx on page 195 a magician by the name of Walter Ross, professionally known as Nazami the Mentalist claims to have had in his possession the ORIGINAL Kellar Spirit Cabinet. According to the little blurb it says the cabinet weighed over 600 lbs and Ross intended to start a tour of Vaudeville with the prop. Hmm, did Thurston sell the cabinet or is this another 'original'?

Now I vaguely recall reading that Joseph Dunninger owned a Spirit Cabinet belonging to someone famous, but I want to say it was the Davenport Spirit Cabinet, though I could be wrong, it very well might be where the Kellar cabinet wound up.

But my big question is, does anyone know where Kellar's Spirit Cabinet resides today? Have any of the Mexican Spirit Cabinets ever showed up? I think I might know...stay tuned for part 2.

Maid of the Moon Illusion

I have always been intrigued by the poster above, but was never quite sure what the actual effect of this illusion was. 'Maid of the Moon' was a creation of three people William Robinson,  Benjamin B. Keyes of Boston and Will B. Wood. The original idea belonged to Wood who filed for a patent in 1889, but both Keyes and Robinson added things to the concept to take it from a novelty to an amazing act. The original name for the illusion was 'Astarte'.

The illusion first appeared in Harry Kellar's show, as William Robinson and his wife Dot were both working for Kellar at the time. It was a revolutionary illusion for the time. The effect is a levitation where a woman floats upwards and can move up and down, left or right and even spin her body around and turn somersaults. The method was exposed in an article in the Chicago Herald newspaper, but it didn't stop Kellar from performing it. He would eventually alter the name of the illusion to Astarte-Maid of the Moon.

In 1892, William Robinson and his wife Dot left the employment of Harry Kellar and went to work for Alexander Herrmann. It's obvious by the poster, that Robinson either built the Astarte illusion for Herrmann or took it with him when he left the employment of Harry Kellar as it was included in Herrmann's touring show under the title 'Maid of the Moon'. I could not find a Kellar poster advertising Astarte, though he did advertise other levitations over the years. The Herrmann poster for the illusion is breathtaking, and honestly, more beautiful than the effect really is, but I'm judging it by modern standards and perhaps for it's time it too was incredible.

In Kellars Wonders by Mike Caveney and Bill Meisel, there is a picture from the original patent papers showing the elaborate mechanics of the trick.

Astarte was dropped from Kellar's show during his never ending quest for the ideal levitation. It was likely dropped from the Herrmann show after Alexander's death. As better and more realistic levitations were created, Astarte was soon forgotten. That is until 1980, when Doug Henning added Astarte to one of his World of Magic TV Specials. In this special he used Loreen Yarnell as his floating subject. The video below shows Doug Henning presenting Astarte. Enjoy!

By the way, the above poster is also on the latest issue of Magicol Magazine.

Rare Houdini Picture

I don't recall seeing these photos before. They are not super rare, as in unseen, but certainly not some of the more popular images. Above is Bess, Houdini and Kellar in California. Below is another image of Houdini outside of Kellar's house in California.

Kellar's Sunken Treasure

I've always been intrigued with the story from Harry Kellar's life where he lost all his props in a shipwreck. It's an exciting story and a tragic one and frankly a turning point for Harry Kellar. I had read the account in KELLARS WONDERS by Mike Caveney and Bill Miesel, and the story is also found in the new book THE AMAZING HARRY KELLAR GREAT AMERICAN MAGICIAN by Gail Jarrow. But upon digging, I've discovered some of the details are incorrect.

The shipwreck happened on the evening of Friday August 13th, 1875, not the 18th as listed in the KELLARS WONDERS book. According to the various magic history accounts I've read the ship hit rocks near the Island of Ushant in the Bay of Biscay. This was the region of the shipwreck, but I've discovered some more specifics which give a better idea of exactly where the ship ran ground. First however, let me share with you a little back story that leads up to the shipwreck.

TIME LEADING UP TO SHIPWRECK

After leaving the employment of the Davenport Brothers, William Fay and Harry Kellar joined forces in the Spring of 1873 and began to tour the United States. Calling themselves Fay & Kellar, probably because William Fay was older than Harry and it was a case of age before beauty. Harry Kellar would do the act that he learned while working with the Fakir of Ava and then the conclusion of the show would be a recreation of The Davenport Cabinet, or what is known today as The Spirit Cabinet. The act apparently was not an immediate success as lack of money left them occasionally stranded.

Their luck would change however. Kellar secured some dates for them in Cuba. At the Albisu Theatre in Havana it was said they made over $3000 during their first night on stage. Success continued for them on their tour of Cuba. From there the two went to Mexico and again met with great success. To cut down on their travel expenses they hit upon the novel idea of leaving the Spirit Cabinet behind in each city they played and simply had a new one built when they got to their next destination. Back in this time, the Spirit Cabinet was just that, a very large wooden cabinet. There was nothing faked or gimmicked about it so having the locals build a new one was easy.

Royal Mail Steamship Boyne

From Mexico they sailed on to South America and toured all over the country. The tour of South America was successful with the exception of a couple weeks in December 1874. By July 1875, the South American tour was complete and Fay and Kellar got on board a steamship called the BOYNE and set sail for London. They had smooth sailing across the Atlantic Ocean and made it safely to Lisbon, Portugal.

On Wednesday August 11th, the steamship Boyne set sail from Lisbon for London and there were no problems with the weather until Friday morning when a thick fog set in. At this point they plotted a course which would take them 15 miles west off the coast of Ushant Island. They checked the depth of the sea at 5pm and it was 450 ft deep. Another reading was to be taken at 7:15pm when the forward lookout alerted the captain that rocks were spotted. This information comes from a book called "The Shipwrecked Mariner" dated 1875. The book says "Captain Macauley, who was on the bridge, immediately ordered the engines to be stopped and the helm put hard aport." However, the ship hit the rocks right off the coast of the Island of Molene.


The captain commanded that the lifeboats be lowered and safely got passengers and crew into the boats in a orderly fashion. The book says that this happened 'without confusion'. The lifeboats full with passengers and crew were taken to the Island of Molene. Once the passengers were safe on the island, the captain actually returned and stayed with his ship. The next morning, Saturday August 14th, the ships crew returned via the lifeboats to the Boyne in an effort to salvage what they could.
A few bags belonging to passengers were recovered but most were lost. The Shipwrecked Mariner states that within an hour of hitting the rocks the water level was over the deck and that divers discovered the rocks completely penetrated the bottom of the ship. The Boyne was finished and so were the hopes that Fay & Kellar would be able to retrieve their show equipment and valuables.

TREASURE

According to Harry Kellar's book A Magicians Tour "he had  two chests of curios from Mexico and South America, including stuffed birds, images, a Mexican Saddle mounted with solid silver, a Mexican suit that cost $500, and specimens of the gold and silver currency of every country he had visited. He also had about $8000 worth of cut and uncut Brazilian diamonds". The estimated loss amounted to around twenty-five thousand dollars. Given that this baggage has been underwater for 137 years, I wouldn't think that the clothes or much of the curios would still be recoverable. However, gold and silver coins and diamonds, you bet!

If the diamonds alone were worth $8,000 back then, they'd be worth over $100,000.00 today. 

I would have to say that the drawing of the shipwrecked Boyne, along with the knowledge that the ships final resting place was off the coast of the Island of Molene gives a pretty good description where the shipwreck remains. Unfortunately for me, I'm not a diver. But if you find it due to my help, I'll happily accept a finders fee :)   

UPDATE
It would appear (see comment by Joseph P below) that some of the gold and diamonds had been found by the crew during salvage efforts. One of the articles states the crew was helping themselves and when they were discovered, they tossed the items back into the sea. The men were arrested.
Another attempt to bring up the valuables was attempted but it produced nothing. According to the article in the Otaga Daily Times, Oct 26th 1875, it was believed the treasure had either been secretly removed or sunk so deeply into the sand as to be near impossible to find.
So it appears that Kellar's treasure was either pilfered by the crew or probably lost forever. 

References
Besides the Kellar books mentioned in the article, I also used 'The Shipwrecked Mariner' page 232.
And a large section of this blog article was taken from a previous blog article I wrote on William Fay.

New HARRY KELLAR Book

It seems that every month there is a new book about Harry Houdini, but it's pretty rare to see a book for the general public on any other magician. Recently, Jim Steinmeyer put out an excellent book for the public on Howard Thurston. Now there is a brand new book called The Amazing Harry Kellar Great American Magician by author Gail Jarrow.

This book is published by Calkins Creek/Boyds Mill Press and is a great book about the first really famous American magician. It's really more a biographical picture book but it has plenty of story to go with it. The book is 96 pages and is filled with 27 full color photos of Kellar's posters, as well as many other b/w images of Harry Kellar and other famous magicians of the time. The book contains all the major stories from Kellar's life, like the drug store explosion from his youth, the ship wreck where he lost all his props, and the passing of the mantel of magic to Howard Thurston. The book does not gloss over the way Kellar obtained many of his illusions and automatons. Ms. Jarrow does a fine job showing just who Mr. Kellar was and why he was an important figure in show business and magic history.

The book came about because Lisa and Rich Gensheimer introduced Ms. Jarrow to the world of Harry Kellar. Lisa and Rich are film makers who are working on a documentary film about Harry Kellar called "American Mystic: The Magical Life of Harry Kellar" which is due to come out very soon. Mike Caveney and Bill Miesel, the authors of the almost 600 page book KELLARS WONDERS, were involved in the project as well.

To me it's exciting that young readers will get to learn about another character from the world of magic besides Houdini. And don't get me wrong, I'm thrilled with every book on Houdini that comes out. But Kellar is among my top 5 favorite magicians and his story deserves to be told. There just aren't a lot of books out there on Harry Kellar. Besides the two mentioned in this article, the only other book on Kellar I can think of is the one that Kellar wrote, A Magician's Tour, which was redone twice, once by Magico and then again by Phil Temple & Robert Olsen. On a personal note, I'm thrilled with The Amazing Harry Kellar Great American Magician because I will add it to the list of books I cover in my educational reading programs for schools.

The Amazing Harry Kellar Great American Magician is a fantastic book for young readers, adults, and especially magicians. It would certainly make a great gift for anyone interested in magic or interested in the history of the theatre or entertainment. Hey and for the Dad into magic, a great Father's Day Gift!

The book retails for $17.95 and is available through Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble stores.