T. Van Russell: Canadian Trixster by Way of England

When I came upon this striking card for T. Van Russell, I was intrigued both by the card itself and by the person's name which sounded very "high class."  Sort of like the author and poet T.S. Elliott. And so, when I began to dig into this Russell fellow I found, as if often the case, that this was his stage name. I also discovered that this talented performer was VERY well known in magic, and especially by readers of The Linking Ring, publication of the International Brotherhood of Magicians. Ladies and gentlemen, meet Tom Bowyer.

Bowyer was borh in Wolverhampton, England June 15, 1902. He died in Toronto, Canada November 25, 1949, and during his short 47 years on earth he accomplished a great deal. Perhaps his dearest friend was Sid Lorraine, Canadian magician and magic icon. For more than 26 years they carried on a constant relationship both in writing and in person discussing magic, designing magic, debating magic and arguing about it, but never with rancor but always with kind friendship. His scaling card features a coat of arms with top hat, wand, cane and a playing card with a ribbon beneath that reads, "Deceiver Deluxe." It also promotes Vogue playing cards and especially the 831 back design of a black scotty dog in plaid scarf and tam.

Tom Bowyer                                                  Sid Lorraine

Bowyer came to Canada at a very early age with his parents and his first job was as an office boy for the Canadian Pacific Railway in Vancouver. Lorraine didn't know when his friend first became interested in magic but speculated that Bowyer's friendship with Allan Lambie, another well known Canadian magician set the hook. A 1921 issue of The Sphinx noted that (let's call him Tom from now on) Tom was reported to be the secretary of Vancouver Society of Magicians. Sid and Tom first met in 1923 after Bowyer traveled east to Montreal and then on to Toronto.

The local Toronto magic club was called "The Order of the Genii" and when Tom turned up there he wowed club members with a polished 10-minute act featuring cigarette manipuilations followed by an hour of close up magic. While in Toronto Tom met a lovely young woman named Margurite Warren and when she moved to Winnepeg, Tom moved after her and they married March 29, 1924.

At that time the I.B.M. was in its infancy and the President, Len Vintus lived in Winnepeg. Tom started helping Vintus with the club newsletter by proofing, writing and setting type. At this time The Linking Ring was a mimeographed newsletter. Tom quickly joined the I.B.M. and became member number 11.

It was as a book reviewer for The Linking Ring that Bowyer was best known and for years he reviewed books with his monthly column titled, "Book Reviews by Number Eleven." According to Sid, Bowyer was particularly good at reviewing submissions because he actually read every word of every book and actually learned the material and tried it out on audiences and other magicians to determine if the effects played as well as the authors promised.

Tom published a number of great effects which ran in The Linking Ring and many of them were designed to be performed for children. He also contributed articles to The Jinx, Hugard's Magic Monthly, and others. His "Tom Bowyer Repeat Bill Trick" was carried by magic dealers everywhere. Perhaps his most famous creation was "The One Man Impossibility" a card/mental effect that was sold by Thayers and directly from Tom.

In this effect, any spectator is summoned on stage, placed in a chair and blindfolded. A large sheet is placed over them and spectators in the audience select ten different cards (free choice) from the deck. Tom would then ask the covered spectator to name the first, second, third cards and so on until he or she had "mentally" identified each card. The medium under the sheet was not a stooge and was always 100% correct.

Tom appeared on the cover of The Linking Ring in January 1933 and was featured in a nice write-up. In 1933, Billboard Magazine magic columnist Bill Hilliar noted that Tom had just concluded 41 weeks of 15-minute programs over radio station OKY in Winnepeg. During the show Tom taught simple magic tricks and offered puzzles. He challenged anyone concerned with exposures to prove the tricks and puzzles he offered rose to that level.

Eventually Tom drifted away from public appearances of magic toward more intimate settings. His job in the Investigation Department of the Canadian National Railways took most of his time. His editorship of the book review column came to an end over some editorial disputes over his comments during reviews.

Sometime in 1947 or 48 he sufferd a breathing attack that sent him to the hospital. Apparently he had Emphysema and needed lots of rest. Sid visited Tom in the hospital. Entering the room he found a steaming tea kettle beside his bed (to help with his condition) and always a joker and ever with the positive quip, Tom explained it was a new idea he had for reading sealed envelopes. Eventually his condition worsened and he breathed his last November 25th.

Writing his obituary in The Linking Ring, Sid Lorraine said, "Magic has lost one of her most loyal fans and I have lost the best friend I ever had."  A quote from Tennyson closed the obituary - "God's finger touched him and he slept."