The Fakir of Ava

Ever wonder how some of the greats in magic got their start? We know Houdini was inspired by both Dr. Lynn and the book The Memoirs of Robert-Houdin. And Robert Houdin had seen street conjurers in his youth which began his fascination with magic. What about Harry Kellar? Well, it seems young Harry Kellar could have gone a number of directions. As a  boy he was apprenticed to a druggist, but that didn't work out and Harry went to NY. In New York, he met a Reverend who wanted to adopt Harry and put him to school to become a minister. This seems like the course his life would take until one day the Reverend took Harry to see a magician named The Fakir of Ava. Well, after that singular performance Harry decided he too wanted to become a magician. A short while later he moved not far from where the Fakir lived and one day answered an ad in the newspaper for an assistant for  the Fakir of Ava. The Fakir told young Harry that many boys had been by to apply for the job but none was selected. He said he let his dog do the choosing. Well it turns out the dog took an immediate liking to Harry and he got the job!

The Fakir of Ava was really Isaiah Harris Hughes and was born in Essex England on December 25, 1810. He moved to America and took the name of a previous employer and became The Fakir of Ava. Hughes traveled across the US during the Civil War and did quite well. He developed a type of show called 'The Gift Show' where he would give out basically inexpensive door prizes to audience members. This scheme really helped his business and he was able to retire with a good deal of money.

During his time as a traveling magician he performed many standard tricks of the time. A playbill from his show lists the following tricks as part of his evening of entertainment:

• The Enchanted Canopy
• The Aeriel Bank or Mysterious Treasury in the Air
• Hindoo Cup Trick
• The Mephistophole’s Hat
• The Card Printer
• The Fairy Star
• The Great Orange Trick
• The Chinese Plate Illusion
• How to Cook an Omelet, and Produce Game and Ring
• The Bank Note and Enchanted Candle
• The Flying Watches
• The Enchanted Fishery
• The Express Laundry
• The Wonderful Hat
• The Witches Pole or the obedient Mysterious Blood Writing on the Arm
• Vanishing Cage, Balls and Game
• Laughable Ribbon and Paper Trick
• The Great African Box and Sack Feat (Mysterious Appearance and Disappearance)
• The Sealed Packet Or Wonders of Supernatural Vision
• Angel’s Flight through Mid-Air!

As an avid fan of magic history I can decipher some of the routines from the show. The Aeriel Bank would have been a production of money from the air, like a Misers Dream or perhaps a version of Houdin's Crystal Casket. The Mephistopholes Hat OR The Wonderful Hat was probably some sort of Hat production, where items would appear from a hat. The Witches Pole is interesting as this effect is done today, but not with blood, instead a word appears on the arm from burnt ashes. Vanishing Cage is likely the vanishing birdcage created by DeKolta and copied and performed by most magicians of the time. I can't help but think the Great African Box and Sack Feat is probably some version of the Maskelyne Trunk trick.

Harry Kellar stayed with the Fakir of Ava and worked has his assistant for a number of years. When The Fakir felt that Harry was ready to go out on his own as a magician, he gave his blessing and off Harry went.

The Fakir of Ava died on May 24th, 1891 and was buried in Forest Lawn Cemetery in Buffalo New York. Along with the Fakir of Ava, President Millard Filmore is also buried in Forest Lawn. Here is the New York Times Obituary for the Fakir of Ava. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9A0CEED6163AE533A25756C2A9639C94609ED7CF

The website for the cemetery is http://www.forest-lawn.com
By the way, the first time I saw a picture of this grave was a photo that Houdini took of it (at least I'm pretty sure of that). I can't for the life of me track down where that photo is located. I checked a bunch of the biographies and other magic history books but I can't seem to locate it anywhere. Any suggestions?

photo by Dave Pape

WILD ABOUT HARRY: Houdini: A Biography

WILD ABOUT HARRY: Houdini: A Biography: "By John Cox

John Cox has written an online biography of Houdini and as usual it's fantastic. Please check it out for yourself.

The Magic Detectives

Before I became the Magic Detective (a name given to me by Mark Daniel), there were a number of others. One of the first was Harry Blackstone Sr.. His Magic Detective began as Radio Serial which ran from 1948 to 1950. These were 15 minute adventures in which actor Edward Jerome played the part of Blackstone the Magician and shared exciting stories from his life. These were written by the man who was also responsible for another popular radio serial called The Shadow. The author was none other than Walter Gibson.

Gibson was also a confident of Thurston and Houdini as well as many other magicians. His Blackstone radio series was complimented by a Blackstone the Magic Detective Comic Book series as well.

Here is an episode the Blackstone The Magic Detective for you to listen to. If you are interested in listening to more of the series please visit the website
http://www.radiolovers.com/pages/blackstonethemagicdetective.htm 
And if you like you can purchase all 55 known audio recordings of Blackstone The Magic Detective from The Miracle Factory http://miraclefactory.net/zenstore/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=3&products_id=85

The next magic detective was David Bamberg, who performed under the stage name Fu-Manchu. David came from a long line of magicians, and his father Theo Bamberg performed under the stage name OKITO.

David made a series of three Spanish language films in which he solved crimes using magic. The films were The Ghost of the Bride (El Espectro de la Novia), The Headless Woman (La Mujer sin Cabeza), The Black Ace (El As Negro) and all were made in the 1940s in Mexico. These are available through The Miracle Factory at http://miraclefactory.net/zenstore/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=4_19&products_id=14

The next two magic detectives were Bill Bixby and Hal Linden and they both who had their own TV series. Bixby's was called "The Magician" and ran for one season on NBC back in 1973. I'm pretty sure that Mark Wilson was the consultant on this one as Bill Bixby dresses in the same costumes that Mark wore. I vaguely recall this show from childhood, but fortunately the SciFi/Syfy Channel ran the series a few years ago.

Bixby played a character named Anthony Blake and drove a White Corvette equipped with a PHONE! (this was long before cell phones). As I recall there were a number of scenes shot in the famous Hollywood Magic Castle. 

Bill Bixby continued to be a big supporter of magic even following the cancellation of this show. He was a member of the Magic Castle and appeared on a number of magic related TV specials.

Hal Linden played a magic detective along with Harry Morgan in Blacke's Magic. This ran for thirteen episodes on NBC in 1986.

Hal Linden has the classic look of the magician, like a Mandrake or a Cardini. Unfortunately, I can't help but wonder if the consistent use of this kind of dated imagary is what killed the show. Magic appears 'out of date' and frankly, sometimes magic is out of date or out of touch.

I'll bet money that the consultant on this show was Harry Blackstone Jr.. The show's logo looked just like that used by Blackstone Jr. the Magician. I remember seeing Hal Linden on TV promoting the show and doing some magic and he was pretty good. Here is a clip from opening of Blacke's Magic...

But as far as I can tell, the very first magic detective was none other than Harry Houdini. In his 1923 film Haldane of The Secret Service, Harry goes after the bad guys and in the process gets tied up, chained up and bound in every way imaginable.

Houdini is the star, the director and the producer of this movie. It's interesting that he used his old moniker of "World Famous Handcuff King" in the promotion of the movie. I think it's pretty clear who the star of the movie is by looking at the image to the left.
Haldane of the Secret Service is available on the Houdini DVD compilation by Kino, along with The Master Mystery, The Man From Beyond, Terror Island, and clips from The Grim Game along with some archival footage.
http://www.kino.com/video/item.php?film_id=896