2018-05-14

Harry Blackstone

    Harry Bouton Blackstone Jr June 30, 1934 – May 14, 1997
When I was a kid mom would go to the Airforce base a short distance from our house and get us all manner of toys.

There was a 'thrift store' from which she made these purchases and they were an aspect of childhood enrichment I'm sure other kids did not enjoy as much of ... or as often as we did.

In those treasures from across Aviation Avenue in Hanahan, SC were all manner of interesting things which kept us occupied for hours on end.

Usually there was a magician's set ... and I recall having several growing up.

Naturally, in my fertile over powering imagination I fantasized being the stage magician to which everyone would gravitate to enjoy my unbelievable feats of prestidigitation. In reality, I likely was about as skillful as I was at most other things at that age ... slim to none.

Anyway I would make it a point to watch various performing magicians in an attempt to glean what I could — which was typically nothing — from their acts.

One of those was Harry Blackstone.

Harry Bouton Blackstone Jr. was an American stage magician who wrote books and performed on televison during this timeframe. It is said that he pulled upwards of 80,000 rabbits from his hat and various other articles of clothing.

He was a designer of illusions whereas my career as a magician was simply an illusion itself. He is one of those colorful characters who added to that which ultimately became me.