Ballas - Europe's Foremost Magician 

This post is devoted to a magician named George Ballas who, despite his scaling card proclaiming him to be "Europe's Foremost Magician" was, in fact, a local Philadelphia magician who likely never strayed further than the city limits. 

His scaling card (circa 1906-7) shows a young Ballas in stiff collar and bow tie using promotional cards supplied by Congress Playing Cards which note that they are "Best for social play." 

A search of Ask Alexander turned up a November 1906 ad offering his services as a magician. His address was listed as 2236 N. Chadwick St., Philadelphia which (after checking Google Maps) is an empty lot on the south side of the city. It had formerly been a row home. 

Other ads appeared in The Philadelphia Inquirer in the 1906-7 range offering his services as magician. 

An issue of The Inquirer for Oct. 21, 1906 shows Ballas performing at the 9th and Arch Street Museum where he was sharing the platform with an armless and legless freak, singers, ventriloquists and other small time performers. 

Little more is known about Ballas including when he died and under what circumstances. It's just confirmation that with a blank scaling card and with a printer's local help, evern a 40-miler can use showman's privilege to portray himself as "Europe's Foremost Magician." 

 

 Tony Spicer – The Joker

According to the dictionary Autolycus is defined as “One who is a snapper up of unconsidered trifles,” and this is a very apt description of our subject Tony Spicer, for as described in The Magic Circular, Tony Spicer was, “. . . a born collector of antique magical trifles which he has dressed up and used in his modern magical entertainments.”

This well-known British performer was multi-talented offering magic, ventriloquism, Punch & Judy and serving as a Toast Master. In addition he also wrote a regular newspaper column in the Southampton Echo. He was born in 1911 and lived in Birmingham originally, later moving to Southampton.

Here is his promotional playing card featuring a photo of the smiling Spicer with a fan of playing cards behind him. It notes his membership in The Magic Circle (London) and the Aladdin Brotherhood of Magicians. Just to be thorough he includes “author” and “lecturer” as two of his skills. Not being familiar with British playing card back designs I am unable to identify who might have produced this Bridge-sized promotional piece. It looks to be from the 1950s.

A review of The Conjuring Arts Research Center’s Ask Alexander database shows him to be a popularperformer at British magic club meetings, banquets and shows. In July 1939 Spicer was entertaining crowds at the popular seaside resort Littlehampton, the most populous civil parish in the Arun District of West Sussex, England. It lies on the English Channel on the eastern bank of the Arun River.

 

He appeared at the Associated Wizards of The South “Whizz” magic show in December 1972 on the same bill with Jeffrey Atkins, the late International President of the I.B.M. and organizer of many of the British Ring conventions, who performed “Dizzy Limit.” Dizzy Limit is the vanishing of a motorcycle and rider from inside a large crate. Spicer also appeared on the Presto Show in Wessex in 1967. On this show he impersonated a Chinese magician Chung Ming Fu. He also MC’d the show of the Portsmouth One-Day Convention in June 1973.

Spicer’s note of being a lecturer was quite true. He frequently lectured on the presentation of magic before fellow conjurors. One lecture titled, “Spice of Variety” was presented to Magic Circle members on the 17^th of March 1969. He told attendees that he hoped he was an entertainer and not just a presenter of a collection of magic tricks. He added, “Whilst tricks could be bought from the dealers, experience is what counted and experience could not be supplied by the dealer.” Freddie Brickman, who authored the Circular piece on Spicer wrote:

Simplicity was what he strived for and he at all times endeavour3ed to avoid complicated effects – the audience must clearly understand the plot of the effect and the performer must understand every necessary move in order to bring it to its logical conclusion. It was also very important to have an “out” ready in case of something going wrote – and something usually did go wrong at some time or other no matter how good and skilled the performer might be.

 

Shown below is Brickman’s report on the magic Spicer performed:

In January 1972, Spicer gave another lecture and performance at the Associated Societies of the South Convention where he spoke on “Old Props and Posters.” On Monday January 19, 1973 he performed at The Magic Circle offering a variety of effects involving cards, cigarettes, ropes and mental magic. They were all presented and enhanced by his collection of apparatus that he assembled over the years. Among his most cherish props were Will Goldston’s Hand Dagger Box, Harry Leat’s Coronation Card Box for the production of a full pack of cards; Walter Wandman’s Card Box and a cigarette box that delivered a cigarette into the performer’s hand ready for production. Again, he presented Hoffman’s Flying Cards to great applause.

Spicer died in 1980 at age 69 and his obituary noted that he was a full-time entertainer ever since leaving the Royal Navy. He left a wife, son and daughter. This popular entertainer of children and adults was certainly a colorful and interesting figure in magic. He was some who added spice to his profession.

 

Schrieber the Magician (No, not that one)

This post is devoted to an all-around magic fan, club joiner, collector, enthusiast and frequent performer from Minneapolis. His name was William Gustav Schreiber. As has been my practice in past posts, I am violating the true scaling card criteria to devote this post to our subject.

Schreiber was born in 1885 and there is no record of how he became interested in magic but the lively Minneapolis magic scene with its various magic shops and slew of local magicians must have swept him up. He was one of those magic enthustiasts who, when you search for him on Ask Alexander, comes up with pages and pages of "hits" for his appearances at local magic club meetings and shows. In "real life" he owned the Schreiber Company, a printing and loose leaf manufacuring firm.

I originally thought he had a scaling card but it turns out one was business card and the other a promotional giveaway. The business card shows Schriber doing a card trick in tuxedo and top hat and advertises his contact info and the informative note, "Alive in Minneapolis, Ask Any Policeman."

The revserve offers his services for all types of dates and asks, "Your Next Entertainment Why Not a Magician?

Of a bit more interest was his Diminishing Card Giveaway which appears as a large ace of hearts with his booking info on it and with the pass of a hand, turns into a much smaller version of the card. It came with instructions on the back for performing this miracle.

                                                                                 Instructions for the Diminishing Card.

For over 25 years he was a feature act with the Shrine Merrymakers as well as performing at local clubs and lodges. He was a member of various Masonic bodies, the Society of American Magicians, The Academy of Magical Arts and Sciences and the Houdini Club of Wisconsin. Although not a member of the I.B.M. he was a big supporter and frequent performer on the local club shows. He was also an early and avid attendee at Abbott's Magic Get-Togethers.

According to magazine reports, Schreiber had a very large collection of magic and theater in his home. During a June 1950 visit to Minneapolis by Jay and Francis Marshall, Francis wrote, "If there is anything in magic that Bill doesn't have in that basement theater of his, we couldn't name it." This included lovely bound volumes of magic magazines which he bound himself at his company.

According to one report, Schreiber must have levitated the famous actress and TV star Arlene Dahl, although it must have been when she was a youngster as her pay was only $5.00. The article noted she likely wouldn't admit to the levitation if asked at the time.

Throughout the early 1940s he appeared both as himself as as "Chin Low, Chinese Magician," a portrayal of Asian magicians that many consider inappropriate today, but which was in great fashion years ago. In February 1946 he sent a the TOPS Magazine, a photo of a 24-sheet billboard announcing his appearance in Winnepeg. It was likely a billboard for the Shrine show and not his personal billboard. In 1942 he registered for the draft as World War got underway. At the age of 57 it is unlikely he served.

Schreiber died January 22, 1957 at the age of 71. Obituaries appeared in The Linking Ring and TOPS Magazine and remarks about him were glowing. In TOPS they wrote, "Magicdom lost an enthusiastic devotee in the passing of William G. Schreiber. Known to many Magicians all over the country for his bubbling personality will be missed at the various magic conclaves he was wont to attend. Particularly will this be true of the Abbott Get-Togethers where he was one of the "regulars."

In The Linking Ring, a friend, noted, "many magicians will remember him for his shirt and cap made of playing cards and mouth organ, string of dollar bills with uncutting scizzors, three-foot long stocking pocketbook and his work at conventions when called upon." A one-column feature on his passing appeared in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune.

Survivors included his wife Selma, three daughters and four brothers. After his death, his entire magic collection was purchased and put up for sale by Bert Forsythe who operated The Magic Center magic shop at 1411 West Lake Street. He placed an ad to this effect in The Linking Ring.

Re-"Stock"-ing The Matter

First, my apologies for my long absence from this site. Life has been interesting since my last post and I'll leave it at that. I'm updating my May 16, 2017 post on the Dean of Cincinnati magicians, George W. Stock. Hence, the cute title.

When I wrote of Stock and featured two of his wonderful scaling cards, one which showed him shaking hands with Thurston after entertaining the master magician by performing his full evening show at the Lyric Theater in the city, I should have mentioned that his father, John Stock, was also a touring magician.

 

The fronts of George Stock's two scaling cards

George W. Stock 

He didn't have a scaling card as they weren't popular or used during his lifetime, but here is some information on him. He was born in 1828 in Saxony, Germany. He toured Europe performing magic from 1840 to 1848, a relatively short career there. He emigrated to this country about that time and performed magic in local theaters and concert halls in the eastern U.S. and then moved to Cincinnati where he operated the Lafayette Hall on upper Race Street. His specialties were magic and vent.

On his 83rd birthday he entertained friends and by reports, was as competent and entertaining as he always had been. He passed away in 1911.  Interestingly, he was the first magician to extract a canary bird from an egg with a borrowed ring around its neck. I recall seeing a John Stock broadside in an old magic magazine on Ask Alexander, but couldn't locate it for this post. Perhaps some other reader or one of my Propelled Pasteboard authors can come up with it.

Finally, here is the footstone of George W. Stock who is buried in the Masonic Cemetery in Cincinnati. Cheers!

Traveling in Style with Cadillac Willie

When I first came across this card for Cadillac the Magician, it proved something of a mystery.  First, thorough searching of the Ask Alexander database revealed nothing about this performer, suggesting that, whomever he was, his career had eluded the near-encyclopedic coverage of magicians in the trade press.  

From the Coolopolis Blog

The Canadian gentleman who sold this card to me via eBay had met with "Cadillac Willie" and obtained a small supply of these cards which were used as a business card.  So the name "Cadillac Willie" rather than just "Cadillac the Magician" offered a clue.  And some web searching turned up a few sources, most particularly a blog with the fabulous moniker "Coolopolis."  According to that site, which had a nice obituary for this performer, Cadillac Willie Wilkerson got his name from the trademark Cadillacs that he regularly drove.  We learn that Willie hailed from Los Angeles, moved around a bit (spending some time in Detroit), and eventually settling in Westmount in Canada.  His son, a New York area fireman, was engaged to Aretha Franklin, allowing Willie, for a time, to hobnob with celebrities.  One commentator at Coolopolis describes seeing Willie perform at a festival in Montreal, attesting to his skills as a stage pickpocket working without stooges.  One newspaper report suggests that he previously had a career as a heavyweight boxer, but could dance gracefully and frequently worked as an emcee across the U.S.

From the Coolopolis Blog -Willie with his car

The Coolopolis blog also relates the following about a different card that Willie supposedly gave out:

One of his business cards had his image on one side and some sort of escort on the other. He explained that if a man's wife caught him with the woman's card, he could flip it over and say, "no honey that's just Cadillac Willie's card."

I don't know if that account is true, but that card would be quite the collectible.

I was able to turn up a closed listing on eBay in which a seller sold off Willie's magic equipment collection.  These well-used props seem somewhat typical for a magician who performed at a variety of nightclub-type venues, including liquor bottles, brightly colored tubes, and a mean-looking rubber snake.   (Among the effects pictured is a UF Grant effect called "Moxahalla" based on the rice bowls principles.)  The lot sold for less than $100.

The content of the postcard-sized keepsake seen above also captured my interest.  Having held an amateur radio operator's license many years ago, and recalling the CB radio craze of the 1970s, the card put me in mind of an item that ham radio operators call a QSL card.   QSL cards were used by radio operators to confirm by mail contacts made by radio -- ham radio operators treasured their collections of cards obtained from fellow radio enthusiasts from around the world.   And early mobile telephony tended to blend with radio operation, so that mobile phone owners would "monitor" certain channels.  So, it would seem that Cadillac Willie, given his fondness for car travel, also used some type of radio equipment to stay in touch when on the road.   And, in terms of combining the QSL card with a business card, a bit of searching on the web revealed that he would not have been the only magician to have done so.  Several examples follow.

Francis the Famous

This post falls into the category of some performers featured on this blog who had their own scaling card but about which very little is known. Our subject is Francis G. Cuttle. A thorough search through Ask Alexander, Ancestry.com and newspapers.com (something any conjuring historian of worth should utilize), I was able to turn up a little background. This is odd for someone who billed himself as “Francis the Famous!”

Cuttle’s card features his photo with the caption above it, “The Young Wizard.” He does look fairly young in the picture. To the left is his signature and, like many show people in the early part of the previous century, inquiries could be addressed to the New York Clipper, the newspaper for all things show business. The reverse side is not by one of the larger commercial card companies, but is attractive and pink in color.

Cuttle was most closely associated with Columbus, Georgia. In October 1930, the magicians of Atlanta, Georgia gave their fall benefit show in the auditorium of the Women’s Club. It was sponsored by the Atlanta Child’s Home. The bill was filled with local magicians including DeVaughn (a female magician); Mac and Frances; Albert Harrington, Homer Hulse, Dr. F.E. Van der Veer; Julian Boehm; and others.

No, Cuttle was not on the bill, but The Linking Ring covered the event in their November issue and noted that after the show the magicians had the pleasure of meeting Francis G. Cuttle of Columbus, Georgia who had heard of the show and traveled 200 miles to attend. He was identified as an, “ex-magician,” who was known in his professional days as, “Francis the Famous.” That’s it.

We also know Cuttle was married. According to The Atlanta Constitution, his wife, Annie Robinson Cuttle, died Monday December 18, 1934, after a long illness. She was born in Lowell, Mass., and her body was returned there. She had lived in Columbus since 1910. And one last interesting note – she was survived by her husband Francis and one brother — wait for it — William E. Robinson of Atlantic, Mass. No, not THAT Robinson, but an interesting twist to a story without a lot of details. Cuttle now arises from near obscurity to near visibility among Propelled Pasteboard's panoply of prestidigitators.

Tom Ewing

Jerome E. Cook – Magical Enthusiast

This blog is devoted to a gentleman who by most standards never reached the level of professional or perhaps, even semi-professional. Maybe he was only an amateur, but it is clear he loved magic, performed at club shows and even created a startling little coin trick that even today would amaze.

Cook had a scaling card (below), of course, or we wouldn’t be writing about him. It features his name and contact information over an eight of hearts. His address is given as 47 Sidney Place, Brooklyn, NY and there are contact phone numbers. The reverse side of the card is one of the old Steamboat “999” cards produced by Russell & Morgan, the company that eventually became the U.S. Playing Card Company. The back design was first introduced in 1883 but neither the card, nor Cook, date from that period.

 

He was born June 7, 1901 in Brooklyn to his father Alexander and mother Alice. As a young man, he was briefly enlisted in the Army near the end of World War I. His draft card shows him attending the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn and being inducted on Oct. 11, 1918. His rank was private and he was honorably discharged two months later on December 9, the war having ended on November 11th. 

There are many Jerome Cooks, and while I tried to ensure that our subject Jerome E. Cook, was located on the hunt, some likely hits may, in fact, not be him. In 1923, Billboard reported that the New England Conjuror's Association held their big show on October 27. President Paul Noffke opened the show with card tricks and then on the stage show appeared one Jerome Cook who was described as impersonating a, “simon-pure Blue-Jay tramp offering various deceptions in pantomime.” Our guy? Perhaps.

Then at the February 1925 meeting of the S.A.M. Parent Assembly, here comes Jerome Cook again accompanied by Paul Noffke and representing members in Springfield, Mass. Houdini presided at the meeting. Is this our Brooklyn boy? Unlikey, but perhaps.

One thing we do know for certain, is that our Jerome E. Cook was in Pittsfield, Mass. in May 1930, and performed a fascinating coin stunt for U.F. Grant.

Grant wrote about it in The Sphinx for that month. He wrote:

"It is certainly a pleasure to be really baffled on a new trick, but when a man calls on you and baffles you on three new ones, one right after the other, why it is a sensation of once in a lifetime, and I was the victim and the gentleman that called on me was a Mr. Jerome Cook of New York City. These are his original tricks which he has worked for some time, but I am the first Magician to witness them. He borrowed a half dollar from me and balanced same on the back of his first two fingers, and holding the balanced coin right under my nose, it suddenly started to revolve while in the upright position, then it stopped and started revolving in the opposite direction; then he returned my half dollar which appeared as good as when I loaned same, and there were no threads used. Really, in my mind, the best coin stunt of late years and very weird looking."

So, what was this fantastic coin stunt? Thanks to the file of instructions on Ask Alexander, we know it was marketed as, “Revolvo - The Hypnotic Half-Dollar.” The instruction sheet with complete descriptions of how it is accomplished is provided below. 

It was accomplished with a nearly invisible, rotating sloted coin holder that is concealed between the two fingers and into which any ordinary half dollar can be inserted. Instructions for concealing the gimmick are provided. It was a great seller in Max Holden’s booth at the Fort Wayne I.B.M. convention in 1930. 

Cook may also have been a member of the International Magic Circle as he is mentioned in an issued of Seven Circles, once again accompanied by Paul Noffke. Our guy? Who knows? I could find no death certificate or notice in any of the magic magazines. I was able to confirm that he was a member of the I.B.M. and so, I close this post with the speculation that he was an enthusiast – a creative one I’ll give you – but yet another conjuror who felt compelled to create a scaling card for himself as he pursued his passion for magic.

Tom Ewing

Teddy Dowler – The “Codologist.”

When I came upon his wonderful card in my collection I immediately had two questions. First, of course, was, “Who is Teddy Dowler?” And, second, “What is a Codologist?” If I was better informed on British magicians I would have known immediately. 

However, after a bit of research on the wonderful website Ask Alexander I had answers to both questions. Arthur “Teddy” Dowler was a British comedy magician who was very popular from the 1930’s until his death January 17, 1953 at 58 years of age. He was born December 30, 1894, at Stoke-on-Trent, England. Importantly, Dowler was co-founder with Harry Stanley of Unique Magic Studio which was absorbed by Supreme Magic in 1970. He was also the creator of the Legs Table. 

His card (below) features his name on the front, his self-appointed title, and has him living at “Sandringham” 25, Hope Road, Shanklin, I.W. The reverse does not feature a playing card design, but rather a photo of Dowler holding a rabbit and wearing a tuxedo with an enormous flower on his lapel. In each corner are the four playing card pips. Below, and to the left are the words, “Up to his tricks again!”

I wondered whether his title, “Codologist” had anything to do with fish (or perhaps Fish and Chips), but I believe I found the answer in The Collins English Dictionary. They identify the term as being informal Irish and describe “codology” as, “the art or practice of bluffing or deception.” Thus, Dowler must have been a practitioner of bluffing or deception. It makes sense. Dowler was among a contingent of magicians from Britain who came over to the States for the 1939 I.B.M. convention in Battle Creek, Michigan. The group sailed over on the S.S. Normandie and had their photo taken on deck.

He was in famous company that included John Ramsey, Edmund Younger, Mr. and Mrs. Les Levante, Cedric, Dr. H. Park-Shackleton, and others. Upon landing they were greeted at the gangplank by Charles Larson and Herman Hansen. On the voyage over these magicians had presented a stage show, a dry-run for a similar presentation at the upcoming convention. Dowler returned to the states as one of the first magicians from abroad to attend the Abbott’s Get-Together following World War II. He brought his wife with him and presented a, “typically English comedy style” act.

During this same trip, Dowler brought with him an improved version of Abbott’s popular effect “Disecto,” where a volunteer’s arm is sliced through with a movable blade without injury. The previous version featured a main portion of the chopper which hid the knife as it slit through the volunteer’s arm. This new version contained on very long opening that ran practically the length of the chopper through which the blade could be clearly seen slicing down on each side of the trapped arm. It took a great effect and made it even better. It was advertised, of course, immediately in Abbott’s catalog.

Dowler is identified most often as being the resident magician and MC at the Black Lion, Trent Vale, Stoke-on-Trent. He placed a fun advertisement for the place in the June 26, 1937 The World’s Fair. The ad notes that the Black Lion is, “150 miles from London (and worth the run!) 43 miles from Birmingham, 36 miles from Manchester, 53 miles from Liverpool and only 3 miles from the Theatre Royal Hanley.” The ad further states, “Teas, snacks, &c. ready any time, bowling green, salad served undressed for nudists, we even serve crabs. Magicians Made Merry – Showman Shriek Satisfaction. So come along all of you.”

Dowler also placed an ad in The World’s Fair on December 24, 1938, promising readers there was, “no Cod” about his Christmas wishes. One time Dowler starred with Maurice Fogel on the same bill at the Dudley Hippodrome. The reviewer in Abra, Jack Shepherd, apologized for calling Dowler a magician because of his self-anointed “Codologist” title, and also apologized to Fogel for calling him a magician because Fogel “went mad” if anyone referred to him in that manner.

Of course, I never had the opportunity to witness Dowler since I was only two years old when he passed away. I’m sure he was hilarious and well-loved by both audiences and his fellow conjurors. He was another brilliant thread in conjuring history gathered once again and woven into the tapestry of Propelled Pasteboards.

Tom Ewing

Stanley Hunt – Continental Conjuror

This post features a popular magician whose presence on the magic scene spanned three continents. Sometimes when I’m researching these magicians, I check Ask Alexander and get, perhaps, two or three hits. When I scanned for Stanley Hunt, “Bob’s Your Uncle” as the Brits say. There were literally dozens and dozens of references to him and all very complimentary.

An active and popular performer, he began life in England, moved to the United States, and then emigrated to Australia. On all three continents he was admired and beloved. His card represents an ace of spades with a caricature of him inside the large ace, shooting cards from hand to hand. The back is designed by Dougherty Playing Card Company and is identified as a narrow size red angel No. 68 Squeezer. 

His full name was Arthur Stanley Hunt and he was a member of the Magic Circle M.I.M.C. He moved to New York around 1928-29 and quickly made a name for himself on the magic scene. He was a member of the S.A.M., #1714, and later of the I.B.M. 

On April 22m 1930, Hunt appeared on a Ladies’ Night show of the Parent Assembly. Also on the bill that night were William Meyerberg, Past National President B.M.L. Ernst, William Wisnew, Willard “The Man Who Grows,” and others. Hunt presented a vanishing glass of milk, color changing deck of cards and a cut out of a dog who identified selected cards by wagging his tail. He also performed the Magic Stamp Album.

The trick involving the dog deserves additional background. It was created by British magician J.F. Orrin but popularized by Hunt. It soon was offered by Max Holden and called “Reckless Rupert.” The dog sniffs the deck and by wagging his tail, identifies which card or cards were selected. Apparently it was a laugh riot.

 

When not performing magic Hunt was head of the shoe department of Abraham & Strauss, a large department store in Brooklyn. He must have been good because in 1935 he was engaged by Myer Emporium Ltd., of Melbourne, Australia as merchandise manager for all of its shoe departments. Hunt sailed for Australia in June of that year. 

On his way out of town he was hosted by Los Magicos, the Los Angeles magic club in the home of magician and book collector Earl Rybolt. He stayed with the Myer company for 32 years rising up through the ranks to become Chairman of Directors in 1964.

Hunt was a co-founder of I.B.M. Ring 84 in Melbourne and held many positions. He never sought the presidency because of the press of business. Even in retirement he avoided office because half of the year he spent in Melbourne and the other in Queensland where he had a second home in what was called “Surfer’s Paradise” a kind of Miami of Australia.

Ian Baxter, writing in his obituary in The Linking Ring said of him, “Stanley Hunt was skilful and humorous; he realised the power of magic to entertain, and he knew the value of simplicity in effects and methods. Who wouldn’t laugh at his slick rendition of Edward Victor’s “Eleven Card Trick?” And Stanley had a few specialties of his own: The Color Changing Waistcoat; the famous Stamp Album; the Hunt Spoon vanish; his witty dice stacking routine. The list goes on and on.” He was an Order of Merlin member of the I.B.M. with number 11447.

Hunt died October 18, 1977 at the age of 75. Obituaries appeared in all the major magic magazines and the conjuring profession lost another bright light.

George McAthy – “Mandroop the Magician”

How many times have you heard the phrase, “It’s a small world”? Well, it really is true. Recently my wife was walking with her friend Kay, and Kay was talking about a lunch with some longtime friends of hers. She related that she had just found out for the first time that the husband’s father had been a magician and ventriloquist. There are so many magicians, that the chances of my having ever heard of him were very slim. However, the fact he was also a ventriloquist told me he was much more than just a dabbler in the hobby as a ventriloquial figure is an expensive investment. I asked my wife to find out his name. When I read the email and saw the name “McAthy”, I thought to myself, “Mandroop”!

George "Mandroop" McAthy's Throw-Out Card

From the time I got involved in magic at the age of twelve, I had seen the name George McAthy mentioned in the magic magazines and in magic shop catalogs. I told Kay that he was very well known during his years in magic. How well known? Well, when I typed in the name McAthy on the Ask Alexander search engine, I got 1,119 matches in 521 documents! That’s well known.

George “Mandroop” McAthy was born on May 24, 1910 in Oswego, New York. His interest in magic started after witnessing a magic show of Howard Thurston, America’s most famous magician. Edgar Bergen was the inspiration for his interest in ventriloquism. McAthy lived in several towns growing up in New York, and had several mentors such as Gene Gordon, and Elmer Eckam who helped him and encouraged his interest in the art.

His first big break was working as an assistant on the show of Cliff Lesta. Lesta let McAthy have a spot in the show doing a ventriloquist act. George relocated to Pennsylvania and while attending an I.B.M. convention in Beaver Falls, he met a girl whose parents had an interest in magic, Harry and Zola Pavey. Her name was Mary Lou, and a short time later, Mary Lou became Mrs. George McAthy. After a few years, the McAthy’s moved to California. George and Mary Lou had two sons, Gary and Greg.

While George McAthy worked outside of magic for a time, he went on to become very active as a magician and ventriloquist in many different aspects of those arts; he wrote numerous books on magic and ventriloquism, as well as developing many magic effects. George also constructed, refurbished, and repaired ventriloquial figures. His main figure that he used was named “Corny”. Corny went on to some measure of fame as a movie star according to this article from The Linking Ring for September 1957.

George also worked for several magic shops in California including Thayer’s Studio, Abbott’s in Hollywood, and Merv Taylor’s store. This ad ran in The Linking Ring for December of 1945.

McAthy formed a partnership with Tommy Windsor in the 1940’s. Tommy marketed the tricks, tips, and ideas that George came up with. George had great ideas for doing comedy magic. (Did I also mention he performed as Hokey the Clown?) The great TV comedy and gag-writer Robert Orben said “It was McAthy’s early books on magic patter that persuaded him to take up a writing career”. George McAthy was the founder of “The Deceptive Order of Prestidigitatorial Entertainers Society", or "The D.O.P.E.S.". George and Tommy published a magazine called the Dope Sheet.

McAthy as "Hokey the Clown" and an issue of the Dope Sheet.

George McAthy was considered by his peers as one of the nicest people in magic. While everyone who met him expected to meet a man full of jokes and wise-cracks, on the contrary, George was a quiet and retiring individual. The late Eric Lewis, in writing about McAthy said, “My original mental image had been of a man who might be difficult to make friends with; the truth was a man who it was impossible NOT to be friendly with”. The Linking Ring for September 1947 had great things to say about George.

When I sent Kay some images and information that I had on George McAthy, she sent them on to her friend, George’s son Gary. He was really interested and amazed that anyone would remember his father. George McAthy had passed away on September 7, 1971. It had been a long time. Gary and Kay made arrangements for him and his wife Sally to come to my home to see my collection and to talk more about his father.

Ventriloquists including George McAthy and his son Gary from The Linking Ring for October, 1949.

We spent several enjoyable hours going over the items I had on his dad, and he talked about his memories of his father.  We talked about his dad’s connection with Tommy Windsor, and I showed him my magic collection devoted to Tommy, as I had seen him perform when I was a kid.

From the left: Sally and Gary McAthy, Jay Hunter, and Kay Chave.

One final thing I would like to mention. Kay had said Gary looked a lot like his father after she had seen pictures of George that I had shown her.  Boy, was that an understatement!

George McAthy in the left photo, and his son Gary McAthy standing next to the guy in the Hawaiian shirt.

My wife Susan and I would like to thank Gary and Sally McAthy for coming to our home and making it such a memorable day. Also, a REALLY big thank you to our friend and neighbor Kay Chave for making that day possible.