Milbourne Christopher
| Milbourne Christopher | |
|---|---|
 Milbourne Christopher with Walter B. Gibson and Dorothy Dietrich's at a Houdini Seance |
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| Born | Baltimore, Maryland, USA 23 March 1914 |
| Died | 17 June 1984 [1] New York City, New York, USA |
| Occupation | Magician, historian, and debunker |
Milbourne Christopher (23 March 1914 [2] - 17 June 1984) was a prominent American illusionist, magic historian and author.
President of the Society of American Magicians, an honorary vice-president to the Magic Circle, and one of the founding members of the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry, Christopher authored a number of books, including a biography of Harry Houdini, and thousands of essays relating to magic and mentalism. [3] [4]
Christopher regarded those individuals who claim ESP or psychic powers to be actually using magic trickery. He wrote three book-length exposées regarding those he said were false seers or psychics: "ESP, Seers & Psychics"; "Mediums, Mystics, & the Occult"; and "Search for the Soul". Christopher also debunked parapsychology experiments and experimenters during his lifetime.
Ironically, despite his denial of the existence of psychic or paranormal powers, and like fellow magicians Harry Houdini and James Randi, both of whom also worked to expose false psychics and mediums, Christopher was accused himself by some of using paranormal powers to perform his own magic tricks and illusions.[5]
In April 2011, a sizeable portion of Christopher's collection of rare books, memorabilia and archival materials was sold at auction by his widow, Maurine Brooks Christopher, through the Martinka Magic Co. and magic auctioneer David Goodman.[6][7]
The Society of American Magicians honors his memory annually by presenting "The Milbourne Christopher Awards" to performing magicians and illusionists in various categories, including: the Masters Award, Lifetime Achievement Award, Mentalist Award, Literary Award, and a Newcomer Award.[8]
[edit] Books
- Christopher, Milbourne (1962). Panorama of Magic. New York: Dover. pp. 216. ISBN 0-486-20774-9. OCLC 62-51376.
- Christopher, Milbourne (1969). Houdini: the Untold Story. New York: Crowell. pp. 281. OCLC 4255.
- Christopher, Milbourne (1970). ESP, Seers & Psychics: What the Occult Really Is. New York: Crowell. pp. 268. ISBN 978-0-690-26815-7. OCLC 97063.
- Christopher, Milbourne (1973). The Illustrated History of Magic. New York: Crowell. pp. 452. ISBN 0-435-07016-9. OCLC 668533.
- Christopher, Milbourne (1975). Mediums, Mystics, & the Occult: New Revelations about Psychics and their Secrets. New York: Crowell. pp. 275. ISBN 0-690-00476-1. OCLC 1095102.
- Christopher, Milbourne (1977). Milbourne Christopher's Magic Book. New York: Crowell. pp. 240. ISBN 0-690-01677-8. OCLC 3088945.
- Christopher, Milbourne (1979). Search for the Soul: An Insider's Report on the Continuing Quest by Psychics & Scientists for Evidence of Life After Death. New York: Crowell. pp. 206. ISBN 0-690-01760-X. OCLC 5241692.
[edit] References
- ^ "Milbourne Christopher, 70, Magician On Stage And Tv". The New York Times. June 19, 1984. http://www.nytimes.com/1984/06/19/obituaries/milbourne-christopher-70-magician-on-stage-and-tv.html. Retrieved May 12, 2010.
- ^ "Social Security Death Index" 14 July 2010
- ^ Gerd H. Hoevelmann, Marcello Truzzi, and Piet Hein Hoebens, "Skeptical Literatue on Parapsychology: An Annotated Bibliography," in Paul Kurtz, editor, A Skeptic's Handbook of Parapsychology, pp. 449-490; Christopher's book is described on pp. 455-456.
- ^ Scot Peacock, Contemporary Authors, 2003, Gale.
- ^ Milbourne Christopher, Mediums, Mystic & the Occult (New York: Crowell, 1975) 233
- ^ Gingles, John, "My Secret Hobby -- & Favorite Escapes (Pun Intended)", from: John Gingles, Accidents of Luck - A Personal Memoir, Washington, D.C., 2007.
- ^ "Genii, The Conjurors' Magazine" March 25, 2011.
- ^ "MagicTimes News" - July 18, 2005
[edit] External links
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