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Mature Focus: Harry Monti, master of magic..

Mature Focus: Harry Monti, master of magic..

     Sheila Frayne Rhoades writes an informative article for West Newsmagazine…

Manchester resident and magician Harry Monti, 78, often is referred to as “St. Louis’ godfather of magic.”

Born Harry Monteith, Monti is well known in the world of magic as a stage and close-up magician, escape artist and creator of magic props, and for his vast knowledge of magic history. He has mastered hundreds of tricks and has enjoyed an amazing career.

Monti said his interest in magic began at the age of 6 when he learned a trick from a comic book.

“I eventually discovered real magic shops, practiced and joined magic clubs,” he explained.

As a teen, Monti saw his idol, Harry Blackstone, Sr., never realizing that years later he would become a colleague of the great magician.

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Tinker, tailor, soldier… illusionist? When the CIA tried its hand at magic..

Tinker, tailor, soldier… illusionist? When the CIA tried its hand at magic..

By Tom Scocca for Boston.com .. 

“The instant the performer sees the spectator take a cigarette, cigar, or pipe, he takes the packet of matches from his pocket, tears off one match, and holds packet and match ready to ignite the match,” the magician John Mulholland wrote in a manual in the 1950s. “He does these things openly because what he does can only be looked upon as a friendly and courteous gesture.”

Mulholland’s instructions were written not for stage magicians, but for the covert operatives of the CIA. At the height of the Cold War – in the era of nuclear missiles and submarines, amid the tangled cloak-and-dagger maneuverings of espionage and counterespionage – the agency was also secretly doing something else. It was trying to learn to do magic…

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Q&A with Tricked Magician Ben Hanlin..

Q&A with Tricked Magician Ben Hanlin..

Kristin Brzoznowski and TV Real interview Ben Hanlin of TRICKED fame..

 Ben Hanlin, the host of ITV Studios’Tricked, spoke with TV Real about the universal language of magic and about what sets him apart from other magicians in the field.

Trickster Ben Hanlin has been conjuring up mischief with his own unique blend of magic and entertainment. In the series Tricked, produced by ITV Studios for ITV2, he pranks unsuspecting celebrities and members of the public alike, and their reactions are captured on hidden camera.Tricked is distributed as a format and finished show by ITV Studios Global Entertainment.

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Illusionist Talks Club History

Illusionist Talks Club History

Thanks to Adam Uzialco and The Daily Targum for this article on Steve Bagienski, co-founder of The Magician and Illusionist Society,

Steve Bagienski uses magic as a tool to connect people and create entertainment for his audience.

Bagienski is a co-founder of The Magician and Illusionist Society, a University club dedicated to the honing and performance of sleight of hand, deceptive illusions and psychological trickery. He is a professional magician and Rutgers graduate.

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