Abracadabra – Library Conjures Up the History of Magic

Presto! A magic library has opened south of Herald Square, featuring books on all areas of conjuring history.An elevator ride from the bustling street leads to the Conjuring Arts Research Center, the only publicly accessible, fully staffed, nonprofit magic library in America.Harry Houdini later in life expressed interest in starting a magic school and library in the city. A century later, founder William Kalush has accomplished this vision.Want to know which illusionist first sawed a person in half or which Albany-born magician performed for Abraham Lincoln’s guests at the White House? You now have a central place to find answers to such questions, after making an appointment to visit. Mr. Kalush said he hopes the center will draw writers, historians, collectors, scholars, enthusiasts, film producers, and performers who are seeking to study the history of magic and its vibrant connection to the present.The collection is catalogued online at www.conjuringarts.org.Strolling past Houdini’s lock picks and leg irons or seeing large cartons of marked decks of cards near posters of miraculous burial escapes, one realizes this is no ordinary place. How many conference rooms boast a parabolic mirror used to make items float? Shelves brim with 9,200 books on all areas of magic history, from card and coin manipulation to every conceivable type of prestidigitation. There are even sections devoted to bibliographies of magic and fictional works relating to magic. A trove of instruction sheets, scrapbooks, magicians’ correspondence, manuscripts, and other primary source material are arranged in rows of black binders.Although much material is of interest to sleight-of-hand specialists, Mr. Kalush’s aim is democratic: “You shouldn’t have to be a rich collector to read material about magic history.”A rare-book room features hundreds of leather-bound volumes including one printed in Venice in 1520 on arithmetic that shows how to read three friends’ minds at the same time. Nearby sits a 16th-century medallion featuring Hieronymus Scotto, the first card magician whose face is known.Donor levels at cultural institutions are often designated by humdrum titles such as “patron” or “benefactor.” The Conjuring Arts Research Center’s are named for legendary influential cardmen: Charlier, Hofzinser and Erdnase.Membership privileges include access to “Ask Alexander,” the most comprehensive magic history database ever assembled.Mr. Kalush’s goal is to scan every magic book, letter, broadside, interview – in short, everything related to magic. “I know we can do this. It’s not infinite,” he said.In anticipation of this daunting project, he bought unbound runs of magazines over the years, so they would be easier to scan.The office is bustling with a full-time staff that includes a head librarian, membership coordinator, digitizer, computer technician, and translator. The advisory board includes a noted historian of recreational mathematics, David Singmaster; a magician who is a member of the experimental theater troupe Wooster Group, Steve Cuiffo; an attorney who is a student of Slydini, Philip Varrichio, and internationally known magician David Blaine.The center held its first fund-raiser in November at the Cutting Room. Mr. Kalush eventually hopes to link with universities, other libraries, and museums for lectures and classes.Mr. Kalush said it is now an optimal time for magic research. Technology has increased the speed and amount of information available and the study of popular culture, years ago seen as not worthy of academic attention, is more accepted, he said.Another of the library’s features is Munito, an in-house dog and mascot, named for a 19th century dog that could do tricks. The conjuringarts.org Web site notes that Munito spends his day “researching digestion of cards.”

Abracadabra – Library Conjures Up the History of Magic

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