HERB'S MAGIC
  • Magic Items & Cards
  • Magic Guide NYC
  • Magic in New York Blog
  • About
  • Contact
  • Antiques
  • Mailing List Sign-Up

Kenneth Silverman, Author of "Houdini!!!" Passes Away in New York

7/8/2017

0 Comments

 
A number of online sources have reported the death of Kenneth Silverman, perhaps most known in magic circles as the author of Houdini!!!: The Career of Ehrich Weiss. Silverman, a professor of English at New York University, was a noted biographer who was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1985 for his book The Life and Times of Cotton Mather. His other biographies included Lightning Man: The Accursed Life of Samuel F. B. Morse; Edgar A. Poe: Mournful and Never-Ending Remembrance, and Begin Again: A Biography of John Cage.

Magician George Schindler, Dean of the national Society of American Magicians, wrote on Facebook: "It is especially difficult to lose a boyhood friend. Kenneth Silverman died peacefully at age 81 in New York. He was one of the few remaining members of Peter Pan’s magic club of the 1940’s. . . .The magic community mourns his loss."

Silverman was born in Manhattan and as a teenager performed as magician Ken Silvers. The Peter Pan magic club, which was sponsored by the New York City Department of Parks, was a nexus of magic among young New Yorkers for decades and included many figures who eventually became influential in magic and remained friends for decades. Silverman was a life member of the Society of American Magicians and was a member of Parent Assembly, the local New York City chapter of the S. A. M., for more than fifty years.


Silverman's 1996 book on Houdini received a lengthy New York Times review written by Teller, who pointed out the many new threads of information about the escape artist that Silverman discovered in his extensive research. "To uncover so many previously unknown details of the master mystifier's life would be enough to merit applause," Teller wrote. "To examine Houdini and his world with such originality and depth deserves a standing ovation."

According to an obituary on the blog ​Wild About Harry Silverman is survived by his partner Jane Mallison, by his two children, Willa and Ethan, daughter-in-law Ronit, and three grandchildren: Benjamin, Eve and Isaac.

In 2006, after David Blaine's underwater endurance performance on the outdoor plaza at Lincoln Center, Silverman explored the history of public magic events in an opinion piece he wrote for The New York Times. It can be read here.
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    A Blog About New York's Magic Scene
    Buy Vintage & New Books, Cards, Tricks and More at herbsmagic.com
    Picture
    Out of Print Classic - Buy it at Herb's Magic
    ​
    Join the mailing list for Herb's Magic and the Magic in New York blog (click here).

    Interviews With Magicans

    Steve Cohen
    ​Michael Feldman
    Denny Haney • Scott Alexander & Puck
    Kainoa Harbottle
    Axel Hecklau
    Jimmy Ichihana
    ​David and Leeman
    ​Chris Mayhew
    Jordi Magomero
    Simon Painter (Producer)
    ​David Roth
    ​David Roth on Ricky Jay
    Jeff Prace
    Mike Super
    Garrett Thomas
    David Williamson

    ​
    Interviews by Herb for Parent Assembly 1 Channel
    Mario Marchese
    ​Xavier Spade

    Archives

    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    July 2016
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014

    RSS Feed

please follow us on twitter