{"title":"Jim Steinmeyer","description":"Jim Steinmeyer has invented many of the famous illusions used by leading magicians from Ricky Jay to Siegfried \u0026amp; Roy. He created David Copperfield's vanish of the Statue of Liberty and has also designed magic for six Broadway shows and many other productions, including Mary Poppins, currently playing in London's West End. He is the author of Hiding the Elephant, the Los Angeles Times bestseller, which Teller hailed as \"a radiant celebration of the genius, glamour, and gargantuan egos of stage magic.\"","products":[{"product_id":"the-glorious-deception-the-double-life-of-william-robinson-aka-chung-ling-soo-the-marvelous-chinese-conjurer-paperback","title":"The Glorious Deception: The Double Life of William Robinson, aka Chung Ling Soo, the Marvelous Chinese Conjurer - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn a biography woven from equal parts enchantment and mystery, master illusion designer and today's foremost magic historian, Jim Steinmeyer, unveils the astonishing secrets behind the enigmatic performer Chung Ling Soo, the \"Marvelous Chinese Conjurer\" -- a magician whose life of intrigue and daring remains unparalleled to this day. He learned his art during a revolutionary era in show business, just as minstrel, circus, and variety saloons were being stirred together and distilled into a heady new concoction: vaudeville. Soo's infamous death in 1918 astonished the world: he was killed during a performance of \"Defying the Bullets,\" his popular act in which he caught marked bullets on a porcelain plate. After his death, the deceptions began to unravel. It was discovered that he was not Chinese, but rather a fifty-six-year-old American named William Ellsworth Robinson, a former magicians' assistant, and the husband of Olive Robinson. But even William Robinson was not who he appeared to be, and for the first time, Jim Steinmeyer has uncovered the truth behind Robinson and the magic world's most glorious deception.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":67927525032159,"sku":"9780786717705","price":24.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/8958\/4607\/files\/cpijCmh0ee9780786717705.webp?v=1791262309"},{"product_id":"the-last-greatest-magician-in-the-world-howard-thurston-versus-houdini-the-battles-of-the-american-wizards-paperback","title":"The Last Greatest Magician in the World: Howard Thurston Versus Houdini \u0026 the Battles of the American Wizards - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eNow in paperback, the acclaimed biography of the magician's magician, Howard Thurston. \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"There is no greater expert on the history of stage magicians than Jim Steinmeyer. His deep knowledge of the subject, combined with a remarkable mastery of magical know-how, makes this book a smart, fantastic read. I can't recommend it enough!\"\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e--Neil Patrick Harris\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \"Steinmeyer produces an engaging full-length biography of the man Orson Welles called 'the master'...Steinmeyer recovers, from the shadows of his greatest rival, a figure whose grandiose productions were an American institution for almost 30 years.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e--Publishers Weekly\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Magician and author Jim Steinmeyer rescues a forgotten American icon from Houdini's shadow.\"\u003cbr\u003e--AARP: The Magazine\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Thurston may have been forgotten, but \u003cb\u003eThe Last Greatest Magician In The World \u003c\/b\u003eably resurrects his legend and his awe-inspiring magic.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e--The Onion A.V. Club\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"An erudite, challenging text full of difficult questions\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e--Kirkus Reviews\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eHere is the seminal biography of the magician's magician, Howard Thurston, a man who surpassed Houdini in the eyes of showmen and fans and set the standard fro how stage magic is performed today.\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eEveryone knows Houdini-but who was Thurston? In this rich, vivid biography of the \"greatest magician in the world,\" celebrated historian of stage magic Jim Steinmeyer captures the career and controversies of the wonder-worker extraordinaire, Howard Thurston.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe public's fickleness over magicians has left Thurston all but forgotten today. Yet Steinmeyer shows how his story is one of the most remarkable in show business. During his life, from 1869 to 1936, Thurston successfully navigated the most dramatic changes in entertainment-from street performances to sideshows to wagon tours through America's still-Wild West to stage magic amid the glitter of grand theaters. Thurston became one of America's most renowned vaudeville stars, boldly performing an act with just a handful of playing cards, and then had the foresight to leave vaudeville, expanding his show into an extravaganza with more than forty tons of apparatus and costumes. His touring production was an American institution for nearly thirty years, and Thurston earned a brand name equal to Ziegfeld or Ringling Brothers.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSteinmeyer explores the stage and psychological rivalry between Thurston and Houdini during the first decades of the twentieth century-a contest that Thurston won. He won with a bigger show, a more successful reputation, and the title of America's greatest magician. In \u003cb\u003eThe Last Greatest Magician in the World\u003c\/b\u003e, Thurston's magic show is revealed as the one that animates our collective memories.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":67975311655135,"sku":"9780399160035","price":27.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/8958\/4607\/files\/qTbLUkzdxb9780399160035.webp?v=1791849182"},{"product_id":"who-was-dracula-bram-stokers-trail-of-blood-paperback","title":"Who Was Dracula?: Bram Stoker's Trail of Blood - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe acclaimed author of \u003ci\u003eThe Last Greatest Magician in the World \u003c\/i\u003esleuths out literature's iconic vampire, uncovering the source material--from folklore and history, to personas including Oscar Wilde and Walt Whitman--behind Bram Stoker's lord of the undead. \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003ePraise for \u003ci\u003eWho Was Dracula?\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"A fantastic, well-documented story.\" --\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/i\u003e (starred review) \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"[A] well-researched and entertaining take on Dracula's origin story.\" --\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"\u003ci\u003eWho Was Dracula?\u003c\/i\u003e chronicles the misadventures of Bram Stoker and his numerous friends and colleagues, both famous and obscure, hoping to unearth the recipe for a truly iconic character.\" --\u003ci\u003eSan Francisco Book Review\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"\u003ci\u003eWho Was Dracula?\u003c\/i\u003e is a book you'll want to sink your teeth into.\" --\"The Bookworm Sez\"","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":67991204593887,"sku":"9780399168772","price":27.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/8958\/4607\/files\/F7-sCk-aqI9780399168772.webp?v=1791964242"}],"url":"https:\/\/blackandbarhe.com\/collections\/jim-steinmeyer.oembed","provider":"Black \u0026 Barhe Bookstore","version":"1.0","type":"link"}