Conversation so far:
how did Steranko learn about illusion?
By his account, Steranko learned stage magic using paraphernalia from his father's stage magician act.
where did he perform his illusions?
Up through his early 20s, Steranko performed as an illusionist, escape artist, close-up magician in nightclubs.

Question: When did he get into music?
Self-contained rewrite: When did Jim Steranko get into music?