Magic: Scientific Diversions and Stage Illusions including Trick Photography

Albert A. Hopkins,

Published around 1900 and detailing the workings of all kinds of big stage magic tricks. The author is especially fascinated by gadgetry, so there are detailed descriptions of how all kinds of machines built for illusions work. Nearly every page has an etching, showing ghostly apparitions, cutaway stagecraft, people eating while balanced on their heads, horses on treadmills, lightning duels, and on and on, all in a straightforward fashion. One fascinating aspect of the book is that you can see clearly how all of this would evolve in very short order into movie special effects– literally movie magic.

status	Copy #1 (3383): in
genre	Performance Arts » Stage Magic
publisher	Arno Press
publish date	1977
popularity	checked out 0 time(s)