David Parr

The stars of The Magic Cabaret, P.T. Murphy and David Parr, were recently featured on Rick Kogan’s show The Sunday Papers on WGN Radio in Chicago. If you missed the live broadcast, click the link below for an mp3 version of the interview. You can play it right here on the interwebs, or you can download the file and listen to it on ye olde iPode. David and P.T. even do a bit of groovy psychic magic that you can participate in while you listen!

Sunday Papers Uncut

Enjoy!

Wednesday, May 12, was a special evening at The Magic Cabaret. That night, everyone present was introduced to Adele Friel Rhindress, assistant to one of the greatest magicians of the Golden Age of magic.

Harry Boughton was born right here in the Windy City. When Harry and his brother Pete embarked on careers in show business, their last name was spelled Bouton, but it was under a different name that Harry would become famous. Some say it was a name inspired by a South Loop hotel; others say it was borrowed from a brand of cigars. In any case, the world would come to know him as Harry Blackstone:

Adele toured with Blackstone Sr. in the late 1940s and into 1950. Here is a photo of her, onstage in the Blackstone show:

The caption reads “Adele Friel, Blackstone’s ‘Elusive Moth’ 1947-50.” (Adele was featured in an illusion called The Elusive Moth.) And here is Adele, onstage with P.T. Murphy and me at The Magic Cabaret:

In addition to being a vivacious lady and a complete sweetheart, Adele has written an autobiography about her days on the stage, to be published by Chicago’s own Squash Publishing. It promises to be a fascinating firsthand glimpse behind the scenes of one of the great touring magic shows. Can’t wait to read it!

The Magic Cabaret is featured in the December/January issue of Shore magazine with a fab article about the Chicago magic scene, past and present. Thanks to journalist Claire Bushey for sharing the magic! Click on the images below for a closer look.

Haunting History brings the Spirits Of Halloween to the Dawes House!

What do you get when you combine a gorgeous turn-of-the-century mansion with the impish imagination of magician David Parr? You get Haunting History, a unique interactive Halloween experience, equal parts history and mystery!

Explore the corridors of the Charles Gates Dawes House, completed in 1895, and enter a shadowland where fact and folklore intermingle in surprising ways. Each room offers an encounter with the strange and supernatural: objects move of their own accord; cryptic messages are conveyed by invisible hands; hidden thoughts are revealed. What bewitching mystery waits around the next corner? There’s only one way to find out: follow David Parr.

You’ll find that Mr. Parr is uniquely qualified to host an evening in celebration of the mysterious. In addition to his skills as an actor and magician, he brings to the role a dash of gallows humor, a penchant for the macabre, and an uncanny eye for the odd aspects of the past. Urban legends, poltergeists, and psychic powers are his Halloween treats, and he’ll share them with you!

“Halloween is my favorite holiday,” says Parr. “But it seems like most Halloween activities are aimed at children or teenagers. There are plenty of grownups who enjoy dressing up in costumes and listening to ghost stories as much as I do. Why let the kids have all the fun? It’s our turn.”

Which is Mr. Parr’s way of saying that no one under age seventeen will be admitted to Haunting History. It’s Halloween for grownups!

Haunting History takes place at the Evanston History Center at The Charles Gates Dawes House: 225 Greenwood Street, Evanston, Illinois. Admission: $20 (EHC Members Night, October 27, Admission for EHC Members: $15) Tickets are limited, so call right away to reserve yours! For tickets and information, please call the Evanston History Center: (847) 475-3410. No one under age seventeen admitted.

Thursday, October 22, 7 pm
Friday, October 23, 8 pm
Saturday, October 24, 7 pm, 8 pm, 9 pm
Thursday, October 29, 7 pm, 8 pm
Friday, October 30, 7 pm, 8 pm, 9 pm, 10 pm
Halloween: Saturday, October 31, 7 pm, 8 pm, 9 pm

A followup to Showstoppers Showcase: The twin rabbits in this photo are having a family reunion. The bunny on the right is the one I received in my original Mattel magic set at age seven. It’s the only piece remaining from that set. The bunny on the left is from the Mattel magic set I purchased at the Magic Collectors’ Association conference earlier this year. I’m sure these two Leporidae have much to discuss!

Another magical rediscovery: The photo below shows the first magic props that I purchased for myself, when I was eight years old. The Cups & Balls is one of the oldest effects in magic, and this colorful set of Cups & Balls was manufactured by the S.S. Adams Company, makers of magic and novelties for 100 years. I bought it in a souvenir shop at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, circa 1970 – 71. I spent so many hours practicing this effect in front of a mirror, it is still etched in my memory.