Magic facts

50 facts

There are seven kinds of magic:
1. The first one is natural magic, the magic of nature.
2. Talismanic magic.
3. Ceremonial magic
4. Invocative magic
5. Sympathetic magic
6. Illusionary magic
7. Divinatory magic

Types of magic performance

Magic performances tend to fall into a few specialties or genres.

A mentalist on stage in a mind-reading performance, 1900

Amateur magician performing "children's magic" for a birthday party audience

• Stage illusions are performed for large audiences, typically within a theatre or auditorium. This type of magic is distinguished by large-scale props, the use of assistants and often exotic animals such as elephants and tigers. Some famous stage illusionists, past and present, include Harry Blackstone, Sr., Howard Thurston, Chung Ling Soo, David Copperfield, Siegfried & Roy, and Harry Blackstone, Jr..
• Platform magic (also known as cabaret magic or stand-up magic) is performed for a medium to large audience. Nightclub magic and comedy club magic are also examples of this form. The use of illusionettes (small tabletop illusions) is common. The term parlor magic is sometimes used but is considered by some to be pejorative. This genre includes the skilled manipulation of props such as billiard balls, card fans, doves, rabbits, silks, and rope. Examples of such magicians include Jeff McBride, Penn & Teller, David Abbott, Channing Pollock, Black Herman, and Fred Kaps.
• Micromagic (also known as close-up magic or table magic) is performed with the audience close to the magician, sometimes even one-on-one. It usually makes use of everyday items as props, such as cards (see Card manipulation), coins (see Coin magic), and seemingly 'impromptu' effects. This may be called "table magic", particularly when performed as dinner entertainment. Ricky Jay and Lee Asher, following in the traditions of Dai Vernon, Slydini, and Max Malini, are considered among the foremost practitioners of close-up magic.
• Escapology is the branch of magic that deals with escapes from confinment or restraints. Harry Houdini is a well-known example of an escape artist or escapologist.
• Mentalism creates the impression in the minds of the audience that the performer possesses special powers to read thoughts, predict events, control other minds, and similar feats. It can be presented on a stage, in a cabaret setting, before small close-up groups, or even for one spectator. Well-known mentalists of the past and present include Alexander, The Zancigs, Axel Hellstrom, Dunninger, Kreskin, Derren Brown, Rich Ferguson, Guy Bavli and Banachek.
• Theatrical séances simulate spiritualistic or mediumistic phenomena for theatrical effect. This genre of stage magic has been misused at times by charlatans pretending to actually be in contact with spirits.
• Children's magic is performed for an audience primarily composed of children. It is typically performed at birthday parties, preschools, elementary schools, Sunday schools or libraries. This type of magic is usually comedic in nature and involves audience interaction as well as volunteer assistants.
• Online magic tricks were designed to function on a computer screen. The computer essentially replaces the magician. Some online magic tricks recreate traditional card tricks and require user participation, while others, like Plato's Cursed Triangle, are based on mathematical, geometrical and/or optical illusions. One such online magic trick, called Esmeralda's Crystal Ball, became a viral phenomenon that fooled so many computer users into believing that their computer had supernatural powers, that Snopes dedicated a page to debunking the trick.
• Mathemagic is a genre of stage magic that combines magic and mathematics. It is commonly used by children's magicians and mentalists.
• Corporate magic or trade show magic uses magic as a communication and sales tool, as opposed to just straightforward entertainment. Corporate magicians may come from a business background and typically present at meetings, conferences and product launches. They run workshops and can sometimes be found at trade shows, where their patter and illusions enhance an entertaining presentation of the products offered by their corporate sponsors. Pioneer performers in this arena include Eddie Tullock^[7] and Guy Bavli.^[8][9]
• Gospel magic uses magic to catechize and evangelize. Gospel magic was first used by St. Don Bosco to interest children in 19th century Turin, Italy to come back to school, to accept assistance and to attend church.
• Street magic is a form of street performing or busking that employs a hybrid of stage magic, platform and close-up magic, usually performed 'in the round' or surrounded by the audience. Notable modern street magic performers include Jeff Sheridan and Gazzo. Since the first David Blaine TV special Street Magic aired in 1997, the term "street magic" has also come to describe a style of 'guerilla' performance in which magicians approach and perform for unsuspecting members of the public on the street. Unlike traditional street magic, this style is almost purely designed for TV and gains its impact from the wild reactions of the public. Magicians of this type include David Blaine and Cyril Takayama.
• Bizarre magic uses mystical, horror, fantasy and other similar themes in performance. Bizarre magic is typically performed in a close-up venue, although some performers have effectively presented it in a stage setting. Charles Cameron has generally been credited as the "godfather of bizarre magic." Others, such as Tony Andruzzi, have contributed significantly to its development.
• Shock magic is a genre of magic that shocks the audience. Sometimes referred to as "geek magic," it takes its roots from circus sideshows, in which 'freakish' performances were shown to audiences. Common shock magic or geek magic effects include eating razor blades, needle-through-arm, string through neck and pen-through-tongue.

10 Facts About Magicians

Here are ten facts that you probably didn’t already know about magicians:

1. The most famous member of the Magic Circle is Prince Charles. He joined the club in 1975 after performing the famous Cups & Balls trick for members.
2. The fastest magician alive is Eldon Wigton who performed 225 tricks in 2 minutes for a World Record attempt in 1991. I met him while performing in Ohio and he told me that one day he plans to break his own record!
3. At least fifteen magicians have died from performing the famous bullet catch illusion (including Chung Ling Soo, pictured below). Crazy. Dead. Fools.
4. The largest magic club in the world (International Brotherhood of Magicians) has close to 25,000 members.
5. Reginald Scot wrote the book The Discovery of Witchcraft in 1584 to prove that magic was not real. The book was his protest against witches that were hung because they were suspected of being the “real deal”.
6. Matthew Buchinger (self portrait on the right), a popular 18th century magician was born without arms or legs and was just 29 inches tall. He was a magician, calligrapher and musician who played the flute, trumpet, and more. He even managed to find the time to father eleven children. Clever dick.
7. Harry Houdini chose his stage stage name as a mark of respect to the father of modern magic, Robert-Houdin.
8. The phrase “died on stage” was taken to the extreme by Coulew of Lorraine in 1613 when he was clubbed to death by an angry audience member using one of his own props!
9. The only magicians to have stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame are Harry Houdini and David Copperfield.
10. Magicians are good inventors. For example, English stage magician John Nevil Maskelyne invented the pay toilet and his grandfather, Jasper Maskelyne invented the typewriter keyboard.



Publications
Out of Print

• The Sphinx
• The Conjuror's Monthly Magazine published by Harry Houdini
• The Jinx published by Ted Annemann
• The New Jinx
• The Cauldron published by Charles Cameron
• The Invocation published by Tony Raven
• The New Invocation published by Tony Andruzzi and later by Docc Hilford
• Oracle published by Larry White and David Goodsell
• Mind Over Magic published by T.C. Tahoe
• Goodliffe's Abracadabra 

Currently Published

• Magic Magazine
• Genii
• The Linking Ring published by the International Brotherhood of Magicians
• M-U-M published by the Society of American Magicians
• Vibrations published by the Psychic Entertainers Association
• Reel Magic multimedia magazine published on DVD
• Inside Magic, online magazine
• Smoke & Mirrors E-zine
• Magic Roadshow Journal of Magic - Monthly online publication

 Interesting Facts About Magicians

The word magic is derived from the Persian word "magus" which designated a priestly class. Magic has many names! It is also called conjuring, hocus pocus, sorcery and wizardry, to name some of the most common.

The most dangerous trick in magic is the Bullet Catch. This effect, in which a marked bullet is fired at the performer who catches it between his teeth, has killed twelve magicians and wounded many more.

Harry Houdini died on Halloween in 1926. This brilliant magician and escape artist was the first man to fly an airplane in Australia -March 16, 1919.
The great film director Orson Wells had a lifelong interest in magic. During World War II he had his own magic show that he presented for members of the U.S. armed forces. His assistants at times included such stars as Rita Hayworth and Marlene Dietrich.

Matthew Buchinger, one of the premier Cups and Balls performers of the 18th century, was born without arms or legs and was 29 inches tall.

Charles Dickens was an enthusiastic amateur magician. In August 1849, in one of his most ambitious performances he introduced himself as "The Unparalleled Necromancer Rhia Rhama Rhoos, educated cabalistic ally in the orange groves of Salamanca and the ocean caves of Alum Bay."

David Copperfield is the first living magician to have a star on the famous Hollywood Walk of Fame. The only other magician so honoured is Harry Houdini, who received a star after his death.

The Levitation Illusion was first performed in Greek dramas as early as 431 B.C.

The ancient Greeks were great admirers of magic, erecting statues of their favourite magicians. Homer even mentions conjurors in his epic poem, The lliad.

The most famous Chinese magician of all time, Chung Ling Soo, was really an American named William E. Robinson. He was mortally wounded in 1918 doing the Bullet Catch trick on the stage of the Wood Green Empire Theatre in London and died the next day. Only then did the world discover that he was not Chinese.

During World War II, the magician Jasper Maskelyne hid the Suez Canal and Alexandria Harbor from the Germans and helped the Allied Forces win the war in Africa. In the book Top Secret, Maskelyne tells of his war experiences and of the time when he performed at the Empire Theater in Cairo, Egypt as "The Royal Command Magician." Few people actually realized that the performance was a front for the British intelligence service.

Magicians were very much involved in the birth of the movie industry. Not only were many magicians exhibitors of films, but many were involved as performers and producers. Harry Houdini made several silent films and was the creator of many special effects; magician George Melies bought the Robert-Houdin Theatre and exhibited the first motion picture seen in Paris.

The author of the 14 most recent James Bond thrillers is a magician. John Gardner, retained by the estate of Ian Fleming, the creator of the Bond character, was a professional magician before he became an author.

David Copperfield is the highest paid magician being named on fortune 500's list.

The worlds fastest magician is Eldon D. Wigton (Dr. Eldoonie). He performed 255 tricks in 2 minutes
on April, 21 1991

Eliaser Bamberg, the 18th-century Dutch magician, was known as "The Crippled Devil." He had lost one of his legs in an explosion and wore a wooden leg. The story goes that Eliase) had hollowed out his wooden leg and used it as a secret hiding place for his magic props.The worlds strongest magician is Ken Simmons,
He can bench press over 500lbs

Famous Celebrities who are (were) also Magicians:
Johnny Carson, Don Johnson, Woody Allen, Dick Cavett, Dick Van Dyke, Milton Berle, Cary Grant, Bill Bixby, Jimmy Stewart, Steve Martin, Muhammad Ali, Bob Barker, George Bush, Jerry Lewis, Charles Dickens

MAGIC. . . .

The hand is not really quicker than the eye. The skill of the magician is in getting an audience to focus its attention where he wants it at a specific instant. The success of magic lies in the ability to create illusions that have the appearance of reality.

For thousands of years it was believed that magicians or sorcerers were able, by use of supernatural powers, to gain control over natural forces. Magic was, therefore, closely allied with religion. A king's personal magicians were supposedly able to make it rain, ward off enemies, prevent and cure diseases, cast spells on an invading army, and most significantly gain the favor of the gods.

From the days of ancient sorcerers to the present-day feats of such master illusionists as Harry Blackstone, Jr., Doug Henning, and David Copperfield, magic as entertainment has surpassed the appeal of magic in religious ritual. There are ancient Egyptian records giving details of performances before Pharaoh Cheops, who died about 2494 BC.

When in the 4th century Christianity became the dominant religion of the Roman Empire, it turned against all magicians. They were outlawed nearly everywhere. Later, in the Middle Ages, magicians were caught up in condemnations of witches, sorcerers, and devil worshipers. They were often jailed and sometimes executed. Not until the Renaissance did it become possible for traveling entertainers, such as jugglers and other wonder workers, to perform before royalty, nobility, and even bishops if not always for the public. By the 16th century there were professional magicians doing card tricks, reading minds, and making objects disappear.

There are today many books of magic that show anyone with manual dexterity how to perform tricks. During the Renaissance there were no such instruction manuals. Illusionists passed the secrets of their trade from one generation to another.

Books on magic began to appear late in the 16th century. One of the earliest was published in France in 1584: 'The First Part of Subtle and Pleasant Tricks' by Jean Prevost. The first book in English came out in 1612: 'The Art of Juggling'. Debunkers of magic also published. In England Reginald Scot issued the book, 'The Discovery of Witchcraft' in 1584 to expose the sleight-of-hand artists of his time.

By the 18th century magic as entertainment was well established in Europe. One of the most famous illusionists was Baron Wolfgang von Kempelen. In 1770 he devised an automated chess player that took on all challengers. Benjamin Franklin played against the machine in 1783 and lost.

Pulling a rabbit from a hat is a classic symbol of magic, yet in truth has rarely been a part of any magician's show. By some accounts, the idea of pulling a rabbit from a hat was part of a publicity stunt. Created by a British magician, the effect capitalized on the public's interest in a woman who claimed to have given birth to a litter of rabbits.

Kuda Bux, the mentalist most famous for his Blindfold Drive and other blindfolded feats, eventually lost his sight to glaucoma.