Magic Book
1st Edition
Published on 15. October 2009
Book
Hardback
670 pages
978-3-8365-0977-0 (ISBN)
Description
The scientists of showbiz. Magic has enchanted humankind for millennia, evoking terror, laughter, shock and amazement. Once persecuted as heretics and sorcerers, magicians have always been conduits to a parallel universe of limitless possibility - whether invoking spirits, reading minds, or inverting the laws of nature by sleight of hand. Long before science fiction, virtual realities, video games, and the Internet, the craft of magic was the most powerful fantasy world man had ever known. As the true pioneers of special effects in human history, magicians have never ceased to mystify by perpetually making the impossible possible. This book celebrates 500 years of the dazzling visual culture of the world's greatest magicians. Featuring over 1,000 rarely seen vintage posters, photographs, handbills, and engravings in one 640-page volume, it traces the history of magic as a performing art from the 1470s through the post-WWII years.
Through sensational images and clear and insightful accompanying text, "Magic" explores the evolution of the magician's craft, from its early street performers to the brilliant stage magicians who gave rise to early cinematic special effects; from the 19th century's "Golden Age of Magic" to groundbreaking daredevils like Houdini and the vaudevillians of the early 20th century.
Through sensational images and clear and insightful accompanying text, "Magic" explores the evolution of the magician's craft, from its early street performers to the brilliant stage magicians who gave rise to early cinematic special effects; from the 19th century's "Golden Age of Magic" to groundbreaking daredevils like Houdini and the vaudevillians of the early 20th century.
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Persons
TASCHEN editor Noel Daniel's most recent book is Circus 1870-1950 (2008). After graduating from Princeton University, she studied in Berlin on a Fulbright Scholarship. She received a master's in London and was the director of a photography art gallery before becoming a book editor. She lives in Los Angeles. Mike Caveney is a writer, publisher, collector, and professional magician who has published over 50 books on magic history. He has also written the biographies Carter the Great (1995) and Kellar's Wonders (2003). Caveney has performed in more than 20 countries and appeared on the NBC series World's Greatest Magic. He has been an avid collector and performer for more than three decades. Jim Steinmeyer is the author of many books on magic history and practice, including Los Angeles Times bestseller Hiding the Elephant (2004) and The Glorious Deception (2006). He has created deceptions featured by leading magicians such as Doug Henning, David Copperfield, and Siegfried and Roy, and critically acclaimed illusions for the Broadway hits Mary Poppins, Beauty and the Beast, and Into the Woods. Ricky Jay is considered one of the world's great sleight-of-hand artists. He is also distinguished as an actor, historian, and best-selling author. His Learned Pigs & Fireproof Women and Jay's Journal of Anomalies were both named New York Times "Notable Books of the Year," and he defined the terms of his art for the Cambridge Guide to American Theatre and the Encyclopedia Britannica.