Ken Trombly, a lifelong magic enthusiast – his over the top Bar Mitzvah party in Newton, MA in 1962 had a magic theme that he is still trying to live down – is also a serious collector of vintage posters, broadsides, antique photos and other magic ephemera, and has sought out original material on Jewish magicians, particularly Harry Houdini. He has given talks on magic history for a number of Washington DC area groups, as well as magic history conferences in Chicago, LA, Boston and London. The proprietor of magicposters.com, Ken previously consulted for the BBC on a documentary on the life of Harry Houdini, which featured a number of items from his collection. His talk promises to be of interest to devotees of popular entertainment, American culture and Jewish history in particular.

Like chess masters, stand up comedians and Nobel prize winners, Jews have long dominated another field, that of magic. From Jacob Philadelphia, who is believed to be the first Jewish baby born in the American colonies, and who would be a star all over Europe; to 19th century superstar Alexander Herrmann, who traveled by private rail car, and whose mephistophelean visage became the archetype of the magician; to Theo Bamberg, who was one of five generations of Dutch Court magicians; to Max Malini, who came to America with nothing and entertained kings and presidents with just a pack of cards and common objects; to Ehrich Weiss, the son of a rabbi, who would transform himself into Harry Houdini, whose amazing story spoke to millions of immigrants at the turn of the century, and still inspires books, films and much more today.

In person and on Zoom

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88314594440?pwd=MUxDZGVCdDdFajgwV3N4ajl0K2pMQT09
Meeting ID: 883 1459 4440
Passcode: 724848