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Jean Robert-Houdin was famous for the opinion that a magician is actually just "an actor playing the part of a magician."
Teller Jim Steinmeyer • Hiding the Elephant: How Magicians Invented the Impossible and Learned to Disappear
Still, it's hard to overestimate deKolta's influence on his generation of magicians. He began a cult of creativity that certainly inspired two remarkable performers who followed him onto the Egyptian Hall stage. One, David Devant, is remembered today as Britain's greatest magician. The other, Charles Morritt, is largely forgotten today, a
... See moreTeller Jim Steinmeyer • Hiding the Elephant: How Magicians Invented the Impossible and Learned to Disappear
Maskelyne insisted that their mechanical trunk didn't match his own, but steadfastly refused to expose his own secret to the court. A jury logically decided that the imitation trunk provided just as good an effect as Maskelyne's. He was ordered to pay the award, then privately admitted that it had all been worth it in free publicity.
Teller Jim Steinmeyer • Hiding the Elephant: How Magicians Invented the Impossible and Learned to Disappear
We now know, through reconstructions of the apparatus and research into his secrets, that Maskelyne's trunk was specially made so it could be opened by the man locked inside, but the Chief always remained silent on the issue, encouraging as much speculation as possible.
Teller Jim Steinmeyer • Hiding the Elephant: How Magicians Invented the Impossible and Learned to Disappear
The Alto Knights, Barry Levinson
Robert De Niro double stars, playing both main characters
As Houdini recognized some of his own skills and shortcomings, he came to hate his idol, who outclassed him. It was a kind of Oedipal complex; Robert-Houdin was the spiritual father in the art and Houdini was his literal namesake. Houdini wasn't unmasking Robert-Houdin, he was unmasking himself.
Teller Jim Steinmeyer • Hiding the Elephant: How Magicians Invented the Impossible and Learned to Disappear
