$6,000
Thurston, Howard. Thurston the Great Magician. Noah’s Vision. Cincinnati, Strobridge Litho., ca. 1910. Eight-sheet (77 x 109”) color lithographed billboard advertising the production illusion from Thurston’s show in which “an avalanche of life,” materialized from a cabinet the magician had shown empty only moments before. Expert restoration and over-coloring. A-. One of three known examples. Howard Thurston became America’s leading magician in 1908 when he assumed the “mantle of magic” bestowed upon him by Harry Kellar. Thurston had been a vaudeville star who toured the world with his own company before purchasing Kellar’s show. For the next 28 years, until his death in 1936, Thurston reigned supreme as the best loved and arguably, most famous magician in the United States. He developed a repertoire of colorful, funny, and amazing stage-filling illusions that inspired and entertained generations of theatergoers.
Auctioneer:
Potter & Potter
Date:
2013-02-02
