Evening star., 1932-04-03

crowded The house Tor Mr.. PoWetlS
performance was made up of practicfng
magicians. Many who, in order to at
tend, had had to cancel their own per-
formances, came on the evening trains
and returned to Boston, Chicago, Balti-
more and, hundred other places on the
midnight.
When the lights went out and the
house grew quiet, Dean Powell walked
out on the stage, and, during the well
coming applause, threw his gloves into
the air where they turned into doves.
All over the house could be heard hum
as the magicianS in the audience turned
to the girls on their right, who get sawed
in half, or those on their left, who float
in air, and murmured, Perfectly done"
Dean Powell next produced enough flow
ers to fill a large-size basket. During
this trick, as if in response to leader,
the entire audience burst into applause
over a pretty piece of technique, which
only magician would detect-and then
later gave the trick itself half that much
applause. It was clear by the end of this
second effect that these men had trav-
eled so far in order to see the beautiful
craftsmanship of master, rather than
the tricks themselves
The performance went on. Money
was discovered where it always is during
a magic show and never is at any other
time; coins were plucked from the air,
and picked out of hats, and snatched off
the top OF very bald pate. Many other
featS of magic, such as shooting a bullet
through girl who smiled the while, were
performed. An outsider would never
have known, except by bursts of applause
at unexpected times, that this was not
an ordinary audience
IntermiSSion found the lobby crowded
with business rivals and close friends,
many of whom had been kept apart by
their travels for 10 or 20 years. When
the call came for the curtain, the man
with the magician's correspondence
school course stood talking to the smil-
ing, quick-motioned Belgian, who never
botherS to vanish" a canary bird with
out sending its cage along.
The performance continued, and mys-
terry after mystery was unfolded. Things
were shown that had not been done in
New York for so years, and other tricks
that had never been done north of Mexico.
And it all ended as so many magic shows
used to end, by the surprising production,
upon the report of a pistol, of a girl
holding large flag. That was the end,
and yet it was not the end, for Mr.. Powell
was still on the stage receiving the audi
ence when IL o'clock came-and his 73d
birthday.
A MOTHER time the Society of Ameri-
can Magicians brought the beloved
master, Harry Kellar, from his retire
ment in Los Angeles to show one of his
celebrated acts at performance in New
York At the conclusion as Kellar stood
bowling to the tumultuous applause OF
the delighted audience Houdini, who had
arranged the whole show, took him bT
the arm and led him even closer to the
footlightS. GAS this is Mr.. KellarS last
appearance" he said, "and since we will
never again meet him in public, we, the
magicians, are not going to wait until
he has passed into the great beyond be-
fore presenting him with our flowers.
May he be with us for long time, but
we will give him flowers while he is
with us"
A sedan chair was brought out, Mr..
Kel1ar was placed in it and some of the
leading magicians of the world lifted the
chair and bore him off the stage as other
famous workers of magic spread path
way of flowers.
Men of other professions are always
astonished by the hospitality that the
magicians of one land offer those of an
other. If you announce to a man Of
magic in foreign country that you also
are magician he will almost Immediate
ly ask if you need money, if you have a
place to stay, if you will not have your