Magic Collection of Jim Rawlins Part III

Blackstone, Harry (Henry Boughton). Fredrik the Great and Blackstone Broadsides. American, 1919. Two pictorial broadsides advertising the stage magic shows of Fredrik the Great and Blackstone – one and the same person. Double-sided plexiglass frames. Images 19 x 6 ¼”. Minor chips and old cellotape stains. The text, images, and design of each of these broadsides are identical, save one element: the performer’s name. The earlier piece uses the name “Fredrik the Great,” and the later “Blackstone.” Harry Blackstone (1885-1965) used the Fredrik the Great stage name for a time, until anti-German sentiment during WWI made him think better of it. He changed his name to Blackstone and rose to fame as American’s most popular illusionist.