He is survived by his wife and former assistant, Debby. After my heart finally calmed down, time literally seemed to go into slow motion. It made me think about magic in a different way, Ramon says, I was just a performer. ", They were engaged within a week. "When I perform, I could love a million people, but I had trouble loving one person Debby's helped me overcome my fear of intimacy.". In each show, his illusions became increasingly complex. He returned often to visit family and to do the occasional performance. Doug Henning was born on May 3, 1947 in Fort Garry, Manitoba, Canada. His net worth has been growing significantly in 2022-2023. (Check out the Toronto Magic Companys work with the citys budding magicians), It was 1975, and 50 million viewers tuned in to watch the stunt on live television unheard of today, says Henning expert Neil McNally. Natural Law Party. Biography - A Short Wiki. He married Debby Douillard in 1981. He also dabbled in politics. WebThe magician Doug Henning died at the age of 52. When he watches performances, he tunes in not just to the magic but the way people respond to it. So we went somewhere and talked a long, long time, and I remember having this powerful feeling of recognition. WebThe ever-magical Doug Henning My wife refused to let me bring this poster home. Rene Clement wrote: I remeber years ago they did a dueling magicians parody supposedly Henning vs. Copperfield. His wife, Deborah, was at his side, Reuters reported. In fact, the script sucked and the characters were mostly uninteresting. Our website is made possible bydisplaying online advertisements to our visitors. Doug and Debbie Houdini Plaza 1986 Performance, Close Encounters of the Doug Kind: Part Three, Nathan Lane Discussing "Merlin" on Playbill.com, Remodeled James Earl Jones (Cort) Theatre Interior, Follow THE DOUG HENNING PROJECT on WordPress.com. I realize Steinmeyer has been trying to lead me to this point all along. WebHenning discovered TM while working on the Spellbound show in Toronto. Everyone idolized him, and the age of modern television and stage magic began then. Ramon had never performed original tricks before, but in Steinmeyers studio he understood for the first time how they were birthed. WebWife: Barbara DeAngelis (div. He walked through a brick wall, made an elephant disappear and switched places with a person who was locked inside a trunk. permissions/licensing, please go to: www.TorontoStarReprints.com. 03 of 10. When their mother was diagnosed with cancer, he spent several months caring for her in Toronto. Debby Henning was the wife, assistant, business partner and muse to illusionist Doug Henning. They don't teach you anything.". Indeed, part of Mr. Henning's popularity could be laid to his style of performing, one that immediately set him apart from the vaudevillian conjurers of the past. Copyright 1991-2023 Playbill Inc. All Rights Reserved. When Steinmeyer was 13, his father died, leading to what he describes as a hell of a year. As the family wrestled with grief, his mother encouraged him to attend a magic convention in Michigan with his friends, to plug into something that might distract or excite him. DOUG Henning the hippie magician who wowed the world with his amazing illusions on TV and on Broadway has died at the age of 52. To order copies of Despite his absence from the scene, the monthly Magic Magazine reported last July that Mr. Henning had been sighted at several magic stores around the country. During the early days, he practised at home for hours, says his sister, Nancy Henning. After Falling Under the Spell of Wife Debby, Doug Henning Hopes to Charm Broadway Again (Part.2) My friends said there was practically a flash of light, says Henning, 35. So as one of historys greatest conjurers of magic continues to explain and not explain the safe trick, I find myself wondering: If anyone can dig up the secrets behind many of Steinmeyers tricks, why is he so intent on hiding them? Doug Henning was born on May 3, 1947 in Fort Garry, Manitoba, Canada as Douglas James Henning. Was nominated for Broadway's 1975 Tony Award as Best Supporting or Featured Actor (Musical) for "The Magic Show.". But with Wakelings box, you can still see her feet sticking out the bottom, and beyond that, the box looks too narrow for a knee lift. When you gasp or scream in response to a card trick, its a hotwire to that emotion, to that sense of being incredibly pleased and feeling a sense, not only of surprise, but of wonder.. Discover today's celebrity birthdays and explore famous people who share your birthday. He begins a mesmerizing filibuster about the illusions evolution, citing his friend and mentor Alan Wakeling, who in the 1970s came up with an incredibly elegant design for the trick in which two audience members shackle the hands and feet of the woman, and instead of sawing the box in two, the magician stabs four blades through the sides. For example, the Mary Poppins illusion originated as an unrelated, sudden jolt of inspiration: a table that employs angled mirrors to conceal items within its folds. Looking like a hippie, he is credited with restimulating an interest in magic and illusion, introducing such tricks as Harry Houdini's famous "water torture escape" to a new generation. His answer, at first, is that he doesnt really like the question. Neil McNally and The Doug Henning Project 2017-2022 Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this sites author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Doug Henning was previously married to Barbara DeAngelis, a self-help author. WebWife of. There are two walls of reference materials: books about magic, of course, but also books about furniture, graphic design, screenplays, and antique apparatus. Well, thosehe points to a stack of notebooksare all that. He was always pleasantly surprised by the reception, Nancy says. He was 52 years old when he died. "So I tapped him on the shoulder and he turned around and we looked at each other. Dougy almost fell off his chair. He treasures the wonder that comes with being fooled in an artful way. As well, Debby starred in several summer theater musicals (including Fiddler on the Roof and Applause) and studied mime, jazz dance and singing. The two actors join the cast of the international hit musical in St. Louis, Missouri. The truth of how magic works is that most of us dont know because we dont wantto know. The people are so pure. The energy ramps up once the doors open, the dressed-up crowd rolls in, and the performances start. This clever prop allows the British nanny to pull gigantic items from her carpetbag, including a hat rack and full-length mirror. In the studio with us are two of the trick tables. Magic is something that happens that appears to be impossible, he said in an interview with The Times. I Henning was approached by Broadway producers Edgar Lansbury and Joseph Beruh about bringing a version of the show to New York. Its important to me to create the largest wonder, Henning told The Times in 1984 before appearing at the Los Angeles Music Centers Ahmanson Theater. On December 6, Doug and Debby were married at the University. Two other Steinmeyer illusions soon made a Henning TV special, and Henning eventually offered him a job helping launch Merlin on Broadway. In the Magic Castles showcase room, the Palace of Mystery, Greg Otto performs a comedy-laden routine (When a heckler pipes up, Otto looks toward the crowd and replies, I thought I told you to stay in the truck.) before Kyle and Mistie Knight deliver a classic big-stage performance heavy on audience participation. Its also, The date was October 9th, 1985. Before long, he developed what was known as a medicine pitch act, in which he played an old-timey snake-oil salesman and incorporated tricks into demonstrating his various cures. Doug was a guest and entertainer and Debby was a volunteer worker. They become cynical and jaded, especially in modern-day society. The feet are fake, he explains. Steinmeyer went and saw a performance by George Goebel, a veteran magician with a grand-scale stage act. As is customary for first-time guests, Im given the password that, when spoken aloud, opens the hidden door into the castle. "I will not have that in our house," she said. My heart was racing. His first wife, Barbara DeAngelis, was a TM instructor, and when Doug married his second wife, He was a writer and actor, known for The Magic Show (1983), World of Magic (1977) and Doug Henning's World of Magic (1976). Will the greatest illusion designer in the world tell us his secrets? A lot of people lose that. The mellow magic man famed for his trademark shaggy hair and tie-dyed shirts had suffered from liver cancer for five months. So when I abandon something because its not working, I can go back and find it. No one is sneaking a look at their phone, and no one resists the timeless astonishment that has come from magic audiences for decades, from Charles Morritt to today. In the 80s Henning also created illusions for others, including Michael Jackson, Earth, Wind & Fire and the Toronto rock band Lighthouse. He posed for photographs, signed autographs and then disappeared once again. Steinmeyer does it all. Self-Driving Cars Wont Save Us Anytime Soon, Memes Could Save Us From Superintelligent Machines, Why Train Derailments Are Happening All Around Us. It was that performance with that guy. They havent been touched by cynicism. He also tried to help the maharishi develop a series of theme parks to be known as Vedaland with pavilions devoted to enlightenment and transcendental meditation--first in India, then in Orlando, Fla., then in Niagara Falls, Canada. May 1, 2023. Steinmeyer immersed himself in Chicagos magic-shop subculture, popping in on Saturdays, hanging around, and talking to other magicians. Its become like, lets talk about magic as a puzzle. I definitely owe a big chunk of my career to Jim, he says. Andrew Gans presentation-ready copies of Toronto Star content for distribution Here is all you want to know, and more! For magic to accomplish the impossiblemaking something disappeara flaw in the magic has to be hidden, like a trick mirror or special compartment. Republication or distribution of this content is Steinmeyer demonstrates a version of the sawing-in-half illusion. Part of the challenge is that a trick has to tell a story, because magic above all is about storytelling. Steinmeyers older brother, Harry, nine years his senior, had a drawerful of abandoned magic props, and when Jim was about six, he says, I found that drawer.. This story has been shared 125,059 times. Over in the larger Parlor of Prestidigitation, Bill Abbott presents a mashup of puppetry and magic featuring a lustful monkey. It was a box-office success during its two-week run at the Royal Alexandra Theatre in 1973. Seven Doug Hennings World of Magic TV specials aired throughout the late 70s and early 80s, helping to make Henning a household name. The Magic Castle rules call for people to stow their phones, and there are no TVs. Doug Henning (1981 - 2000) his death.

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