That penny swindle in issue #123 made more friends than enemies, at least. The secret is "timing" and assurance. As no coin changes hands behind the back you must count 1-2-3 before bringing them back into view. But when you show the victim he has won or lost, there is no time lost in putting them back out of sight again. The N.Y. Knights of Magic certainly belong in high brackets, for their public shows, judging by that on Jan. 22 at the Barbizon-Plaza Hotel Theatre filled the seats and satisfied the people who paid. Sensible, too, is the policy…
There's an object lesson in the reading of the news clipping (Boston American, Sept. 13, 1940) reproduced at the end of this Editrivia. Elwin ("Le Conjuror") T. Shaw's technique for making blase reporters and columnists interested might well be followed by many others. The Walter Gibson just incarcerated in the N.Y.C. bastile for advertising a Seventh Day Adventist meeting by motoring through the city's streets with a picture of Hitler, IS NOT magic's Walter Brown Gibson, alias Maxwell Grant, confidant biographer of The Shadow. Just thought we'd put it down to squelch those ever-present "boys" who haven't enough engagements to…
Hallowe'en time is with us again, or maybe I should say "Houdini Day". I wonder how many of the boys took advantage of the chance to do a benefit show and be certain of press recognition due to the Houdini tie-up? We were going to put handcuffs and leg-irons on our cats but Sid Lorraine kept us on the time honored track by donating a couple of pumpkins for them. It probably will get to many readers too late, but we just learned the gag. Those "salesman's campaign (Presidential) buttons" which show a picture of BOTH candidates allow the "fence-walker"…
Magic should have a shrine for its relics. True, there are a few with enough reverence for their life-long hobby to acquire ancient pieces of apparatus and objects personally associated with "the greats" but it is all disjointed. Only a national group, in unity, could permanently house and care for such a collection. I doubt if there is any magus who hasn't got tucked away somewhere his first "pull" or homemade gimmick that is cherished because of the memories it brings back. I know I still have those first color changing cotton hanks which didn't match in size together with…
Time out for business: The Jinx does not accept paid advertising. Therefore we have had unparalleled response from dealers because we do not advertise other retailers. For this reason we've left out even our own address and subscription prices from most issues. Only because of requests we print these data: The Jinx is edited and published by Theo. Annemann, Waverly, N.Y., U.S.A. The subscription rates are; 8 copies for $1. By first class mail $1.12. By tube, $1.24. These prices apply to the entire world. (That's that for another 52 weeks. Ed.) Magicians should forget about any tricks pertaining to…
Buzz-buzz (meaning phone). "Yes?" (meaning us) "The board of directors calling, sir." "Yes." (tremulously but with thanks for the 'sir') "Professor Humdrum speaking." -- "Well?" -- "We know you do your best, and we stand for an awful lot, but why do you lay yourself and us wide open to "come-backs" as of that S.A.M. public night on November 18th?" "You mean ---" --- "You know what we mean. You should time your Editrivia better, maybe take lessons from Fulton Oursler who gets Liberty magazine on the press from four to six weeks ahead of publication dates." "But we never…
The Jinx - Issue of October 12, 1940 We're going home in the spring. For thirteen years we've existed in New York City, the last five at the same address. Our Waverly, N.Y. spot for mail was kept, since that first advertisement in The Sphinx about fifteen years ago, because it was easily remembered and also because we sort of expected to return there one day. Countless times we've explained why we were living 200 miles from the mail deposit box. Countless times we'll probably wish we were back among our friends to "talk tricks" "do tricks" and ask "Who's…
"Sim Sala Bim," my friends, Walter Gibson, Harlan Tarbell, William Larsen, John Mulholland, for your generous aid with Editrivia during my absence from the factory. "Thanks to you" is Dante's interpretation of those title words to his show which opened in New York on Sept. 9 and can be seen at the Morosco Theatre every evening, including Sunday, matinees Wednesdays and Saturdays. Our comment is being held over for next week's issue so that it can be complete in every possible detail. We'll still be far ahead of other magical reviewers. Before going farther let us think for a moment…
If ever there was an example of showmanship and downright personality making itself a success - that example is Dante. We've been a great advocate of David (Fu-Manchu) Bamberg and we've certainly extolled his merits here while lamenting conditions in this country that make it hard for a theatrical venture to succeed. Dante came to New York with a deprecating air. He wandered (?) westward, bought himself a piece of property, and, ostensibly retired. Rupert (Danton) Howard, for all that we boys knew, had the show. Dante came back. Mrs. Jansen and Mary remained in seclusion. Without so much as…
Dr. A. M. Wilson, he who published and edited The Sphinx for thirty years, once put into print a most biting remark, to wit; "The shores of time are strewn with the wrecks of failure in the magic game, the majority of whom had no adaptability or were wrecked on the rocks of sameness." Now that the first metropolitan-type of excitement has passed we New Yorkers can sit back and accept Dante in a position no other magician has been able to fill. He hasn't done it in the latter bracket for the show reeks of Thurston and depends entirely…