Part Four: A Bridge Across The Ocean

Bill Larsen was 38 years old when he made his first trip to Europe. In May, 1966, he and his wife of three years, Irene, flew to Paris. They spent five weeks touring the continent (with a stay in Germany to visit Irene's family) and met many key figures in European magic, in several instances starting friend, ships that would endure for decades.

The trip was eventually described in three convivial articles beginning in the May, 1967 issue of GENII. Bill did not get back to Europe for the FISM™ convention that summer, but that would be the last one he'd ever allow himself to miss. 

Also absent from the next FISM™ congress when it opened on July 5 was Dr. Dhotel, who had passed away one month before at 88 years of age.

This FISM™ convention was the largest to date, and the first to be held in Germany. Over 1,100 magicians came to the resort town of Baden, Baden. The President of the congress was Willi Faster, but severe health problems prevented him from attending, and Henk Vermeyden filled in as Honorary President. The Secretary, who had organized the five‑day event, was Werner Hornung, who was also the opening performer, doing a blind, fold drive that first afternoon.

More member societies meant more speeches; the opening ceremony (augmented by a symphony orchestra and a ballet troupe) lasted over two hours. The pomp and circumstance were interrupted by a shouted protest from the Spanish delegation, as that country's flag was not visible in the on‑stage tableau.

The talent included past champions Kaps, Buckingharn and van Dommelen, plus Denmark's madcap Jörgen Samson with all of those little tables, Erdenac of France with a superb routine using a single length of rope, and Germany's Punx weaving fanciful tales. A particularly fine reaction was garnered by Omar Pasha, a second generation Black Art act (whose successor was the hit of the most recent Las Vegas Desert Seminar).

There were lectures by such as England's Ken Brooke and Joro of Germany, as well as previous multi‑award winners Buckingham and Forton.

There was an exhibition of antique apparatus, and a lively weinfest.

The contest was more tedious than ever, with a veritable deluge of 165 entrants. In the July 22 Abra, Goodliffe summed it up as "many misguided fellows doing backpalming with cards, taking off gloves, pulling silks through their fingers, passing thimbles through their knees, in most cases extremely well but one sighed for something off the beaten track."

That, as it turned out, was precisely what won the contest:

GRAND PRIX:

Di Sato (Holland)

MANIPULATION:

1. Tel Smit (Holland)

2. Fred Sherry (Austria)

3. Jon Lönnquist (Sweden)

GENERAL MAGIC:

1. Joe Nynex (Germany)

2. Zelpi (Italy)

3. Ted Lion (Holland)

INVENTION:

I. Rigal (France)

2. Manfred Thumm (Germany)

COMEDY:

I. Jerry Bergman (USA)

2. Dr. Schramm (Germany)

3. Baron de Carlos (Spain)

GRAND ILLUSION:

1. Manfred Thumm (Germany)

2. Rita & Arno Van Bolen (Germany)

3. Pan Zero (Germany)

MICROMAGIC:

1. Horace (France)

2. Franz Biemans (Holland)

3. Dr. Schramm (Germany)

CARDS:

I. Piet Forton (Switzerland)

2. Tony Binarelli (Italy)

3. Ulf Agdur (Sweden)

Manipulation winner Tel Smit earned his prize with a much talked‑about act that included multiplying fire at his fingertips. Third place in that category went to Björn Lönnquist who would soon steer his clever work into comedy magic, and find success under the name Johnny Lorin Second prize in Cards went to Tony Binarelli, who would go on to a prolific television career in Italy. Manfred Thumm's act of effects per, formed under UV light by a disembodied pair of hands was called, appropriately enough, "The Magic Hands." He later founded a magic company with the same title, and produced his own conventions for two decades.

The previous co‑winner of the Grand Prix, Mr. Cox, was not permitted to compete; it was determined that he could not enter the contest with the very same act with which he'd won a prize three years earlier.

Harry Thiery, who had won the top Manipulation award in Barcelona, won the Grand Prix. This time, he worked as "Di Sato," a leering demon character in stylized make‑up. The act involved the production of large gold coins, a vanishing treasure chest, and the levitation of a heavy gold ball that turned into a skull, all enhanced with billows of fog and abrupt changes in lighting and music. It was powerful, but a controversial choice for the big award. In the November GENII, Herb von Heldt wrote, "It's a weirdo, but it's also entertainment.'

FISM™ returned to Amsterdam in 1970, where on July 8 President Vermeyden welcomed 1,300 registrants from 33 countries. There were over 20 dealers.

There was, as one would expect, a boat trip, and also an out., door night party With music and dancing. Most things took place in the brand new Amsterdam Congress Centre, which had a 1,400 seat theatre.

In the gala shows one could see appealing cane and candle ideas from Fantasio of Argentina (by now living in the U.S.), and Germany's Joe Nex with the flower productions that had won the General prize three years before. Walter "Zaney" Blaney of Texas introducing his famed suspension to the European magic populace. 

The number of contestants was down to 105, but it was still a protracted affair, summed up in the August GENII as "Too many Zombies, canes and sympathetic silks." Micromagic was shown on closed‑Circuit black and white TV; the quality of transmission was still poor.

Two of the most unusual entries didn't win prizes. Italy's Zelpy, who had been second in the General field three years before, did an act as a plaster statue come to life, producing items such as handkerchiefs, also made of plaster, which thus shattered when tossed aside. Holland's Goochel‑Flip (who'd soon drop the Goocheo) did "Duplo‑Magic:' wherein props kept doubling. Some sequences used the ingenious Flipstick technique which, taught during his extensive lecture tours, found its way into many acts around the world.

Those who did win awards were:

GRAND PRIX:

Richard Ross (Holland)

MANIPULATION:

1. Tel Smit (Holland)

2. Christian (Austria)

3. Horace (France)

GENERAL MAGIC:

2. Valerie (England)

3. Ad Klein (Holland)

INVENTION:

1. Domi Nho (France)

GRAND ILLUSION:

2. Metro Magic Show (Holland)

COMEDY:

1. (tie) Topper Martyn (Sweden)

1. (tie) Armandi (Holland)

MICROMAGIC:

1. René Petrie (Belgium)

2. Los Mancos (Spain)

3. Arturo de Ascamo (Spain)

CARDS:

1. Arturo de Ascanio (Spain)

2. Tony Binarelli (Italy)

3. Dick Koornwinder (Holland)

An extra award was the Bols Prize for a separate contest held the first night, with ten entrants, sponsored by a liqueur company. The cash prize for the best routine incorporating their product went to Alice of Holland.

The winner for Manipulation was again Tel Smit. This announcement was greeted with catcalls from audience members who felt that, as with Mr. Cox at Baden‑Baden, his entry doing the same act with which he'd previously won should have been disallowed. 

Second prize in that category went to Christian of Austria. In the five years preceding this event he had won prizes in contests in Italy, Holland, Denmark, England and Czechoslovakia for his skilful act that included the production of giant fans of playing cards. He would go on to a pro career, and also form an association with the Piatnik playing card company With whom he would over, see the production of a range of high quality gimmicked decks.

Topper Martyn, normally seen juggling (on or off of ice skates), won the Comedy division with a deliberately disastrous routine that littered the stage with hundreds of props. He tied with Armandi, whose act also involved conjuring calamities, in this case handled with deadpan Composure. A special "Onkle Pepi" comedy award was given to Les Hommes which means "The Men" in French, although they were actually two men and a woman from Spain. This was an extra award; they had not entered the competition.

Another award‑winning Spanish team was Los Mancos ("The One, Handeds"), a close‑up act involving two men joined together, one contributing only his left hand to the operation, the other his right. The unusual concept and intricate choreography brought a lot of attention to these two representatives of a budding group of analytical poets who would become known as the Escuela Magica de Madrid. Their names were Juan Anton and Juan Tarnariz.

Another charter member of that school With a somewhat quieter style, Arturo de Ascanio, won awards for both Close‑Up and Cards. Running third in the latter category was Dick Koornwinder, who would go on to become one of the first trade show magicians in Europe, also inventing a number of popular marketed tricksnot all of them produced with his authorization.

The Grand Prix went to a fresh, faced young fellow from the Nether, lands, Richard Ross, who presented his coin manipulation routine with a soft, gracious charm. In the opinion of some, it was too soft for a championship act.

At the business meeting there were bids from several countries to host the next FISM™ convention. Austria and Switzerland and made strong proposals, but the French contingent was selected and it was announced that the next congress would be in Versailles.

As the 1970S continued, Amen, can awareness of FISM™ grew, in no small measure due to Bill Larsen's enthusiastic GENII. His reports on the Amsterdam and Paris conventions each ran nine pages, and during this period he did profiles and cover stones on a significant number of European conjurors.

(In 1974, Bill formalized this inclusionary policy by revising the GENII subtitle to The International Conjurors' Magazine. This attitude has been maintained by the current editor: There were performers from six nations featured on the covers of this publication during 1996, and features and contributions representing over a dozen more.)

There were other factors in the Americans' growing interest in FISM™. Emil Loew, who'd moved from Rotterdam to New York in 1941, organized a "Magic Carpet" tour that brought a big group to the 1970 congress. He ran another in 1973, as did Bill and Irene, who led a tour largely consisting of Magic Castle members from the West Coast. (They would continue to do this for the next several FISM™ conventions.)

The congress of 1973 did take place in France, but back in Paris, produced by Maurice Pierre with Fernand Coucke as President and Henk Vermeyden as Secretary. just under 1,500 from 33 countries were in attendance. The dealer room had 16 displays.

The events began on July 3 at the huge Salle Pleyel, which contained several theatres including a 2,000 seat hall. This proved to be a fine facility, except for its lack of air‑conditioning which made for an unpleasant environment until the weather cooled down on the third of the convention's five days. The opening ceremony was noteworthy for its pace; the traditional presentation of gifts from the heads of member societies was run briskly, With no speeches. This was abetted by a bevy of cancan dancers.

Although the convention was not held there, on Friday the fabled palace at Versailles was the location for an elaborate luncheon buffet, with the conventioneers transported the 15 miles in four private train cars and greeted by AFAP members led by Jean Poisson, all in elaborate period costume. There was also a bus tour of nocturnal Paris that culminated in a visit to a museum exhibition of Robert Houdin material.

Among those featured on the gala shows were past favourites such as Kaps, Niberco and Buckingham, the latter by now past 70 and still sharp; he was presented with a medal from the city of Paris. Comedy was provided by Britain's All Bongo and Billy McComb, and the returning Scandinavian contingent of Martyn, Samson and Lonn. For large-scale magic there was Jeffrey Atkins of England presenting The Radium Girl, and Dinardi of France filling the stage with feather flowers produced with alacrity.

The suave, aristocratic bearing of Italy's Silvan netted him a special Presentation award from the Paris club, The Magic Castle was represented by Dick and Diana Zimmerman with their act themed on circles. The booked close‑up performers included cutting, edge American talent, Ricky Jay and (transplanted Brit) Derek Dingle. Shimada and Deanna appeared in two gala shows. In one they did their classic dove act; in the other they presented a newly developed routine performed in traditional Japanese attire, involving productions of parasols of increasingly larger size. In the July 14 Abra, Donald Bevan described the response to this team as an "explosion."

Jay Marshall was drafted as a last‑minute fill‑in to emcee the closing gala. The show was beset by delays that put the monolingual host in an awkward position. Fortunately, he was able to bring out his partner, Lefty, and his reputation was saved.

There were nine lectures, not unusual for a major convention by American standards but a notable quantity for Europe. A screening of films from the early special effects pioneer (and magician) George Mélès was presented by his widow. instructional movies were also shown, by such as Erhard Liebenow of Germany, whose film concerned his trademark close‑up work with poker chips.

A total of 150 competitors made for another lengthy contest. The sessions for Cards, Micromagic, Invention and Mentalism were held in separate quarters, run simultaneously with portions of the stage contest. (How the judging panel handled this conflicting scheduling is not known to this writer.) Even with this overlap, ping schedule, the same complaints ensued. Bill Larsen wrote in the July GENII, "The contests must be cut down by having eliminations. Magic is great but enough is enough and the weaker acts should be dropped before the final days.'

Among the entrants were three distinctive Dutch acts who did not win awards but did make strong impressions: the conceptual clowning of Flip, Ted Winkel with a witty routine themed on medals, and a mimble‑fingered kid named Ger Copper

In addition to the the formal awards, the judges made special mention for originality to an impish 21‑year‑old from Czechoslovakia, Peter Krejcik, for his productions of oversized balls from a top hat. (The following year he got married, and his wife joined the act. Now billed as Petrick & Mia, they repatriated to the United States in 1979.)

The contest acts, both stage and close‑up, were shown on closed‑circuit television. This time the quality was good, because the acts were being taped for a planned series, and it was the live feed from their system that was shown on the monitors. The professional equipment and camera‑work made a great difference.

The outcome looked like this:

GRAND PRIX:

Richard Ross (Holland)

MANIPULATION:

1. Christian (Austria)

2. Peter Gloviczki (Hungary)

3. Alexander (Italy)

GENERAL MAGIC:

I. Toreno (Norway)

2. Domi Nho (France)

3. Jan Torell (Germany)

INVENTION:

1. Lipp (Germany)

2. Cox (Germany)

COMEDY:

1. Haraldini (Germany)

2. Topper Martyn (Sweden)

GRAND ILLUSION:

1. Katawu (Italy)

2. Jo Patrick (France)

3. H. Kazan (Holland)

MICROMAGIC:

1. Camilo (Spain)

2. jean Merlin (France)

3. Bill Zavis (United States)

CARDS:

I. Juan Tamariz (Spain)

2. André Robert (France)

3. Tony Cachadina (Spain)

 

Christian scored in Manipulation once more, having added productions of long‑stemmed roses to his card act. In second place was Peter Gloviczki, who impressed with the in‑hands multiplication of large silver balls. Coming in third was Alexander, who went on to a career specializing in mentalism.

In the General Magic category, Toreno later developed a reputation for his intelligent writings on stage, craft. Domi Nho featured a Zombie routine where the ball changed co or in mid‑float. Jan Torell demonstrated a range of original eye‑popping visuals using silks, jumbo cards and large dice.

The Close-up armada of the Madrid School continued. Tamariz, having replaced his partner Juan Anton with a harmonica, laid claim to the top Card prize, while his genteel friend Carrillo won in Micromagic. Coming in second in the latter category was jean Merlin of France, whose jaunty manner masked a serious student and who would soon gain acclaim for his amazing explorations in rope magic. In third place was Bill Zavis, an American stationed with the United States Information Agency in Belgium, who offered a novel Cup & Ball approach.

Richard Ross became the first (and thus far only) person to win the Grand Prix twice in a row. Since Amsterdam, both act and artist had evolved considerably. If some had questioned his championship status three years before, there were no such feelings now. Presented with an engaging, gently self-assured manner, the new act built to a delicate manipulation sequence using pocket watches dangling from chains, and also contained what would be, come an influential Linking Ring routine, done using only four rings with a slow, deliberate handling in place of the jangling discord that had characterized most ring routines of the past few hundred years. In Ross' hands, this looked like real magic.

 

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