He is considered one of the greatest conjurers of all time, responsible for almost all of the 'great tricks' in magic today. Had played Belgium (1846, 1849, 1853), London (18), Germany (1853, twice), and Algeria (1856), the last bringing him out of retirement at the request of the French government.Ī prolific inventor, including The Orange Tree (1845), Light and Heavy Chest (1845), Shower of Plumes (1845), Le carton fantastique (1848), Aerial Suspension (1849), Diavolo Antonio (1849), and possibly both silent code (1849) and Stop Trick.New edition of this treatise on cheating in card games, first published in 1861, with illustrated explanatory figures, in black, in text.īook published by the most famous French illusionist of the 19th century, nicknamed the 'father of modern magic', Jean-Eugène Robert-Houdin (1805-1871). Called 'The Father of Modern Magic' since as early as 1909 (by Hilliard). Founder-owner-director Theatre Robert-Houdin in Paris 1845-1852 when he passed it to his brother-in-law, Hamilton, although continuing to perform there until retired in 1854. Pro illusionist and sleight-of-hand artist. Soon after his marriage to Cecile Houdin in 1830, he adopted 'Robert-Houdin' as his stage name and had it legalized on 10th September 1856.Īpprenticed as a watchmaker in Blois, he learned magic c1827 from accidental purchase of the 2-volume 1792 edition of the Dictionnarie Encyclopedie des Amusements des Sciences, Mathematiques et Physiques, which included tricks copied from Ozanam, Guyot, Decremps, Pinetti, etc.Ĭlaimed he had received advanced lessons in 1829 from Torrini.

Robert houdin books