John Northern Hilliard
Encyclopedia
John Northern Hilliard was the author of a best-selling book on magic
, Greater Magic.
Through Eugene Field
he obtained his first job as a reporter on the Chicago Press at the age of 17. He covered the Chicago World's Fair
in 1893, the surrender of Sitting Bull
, and the bloody Johnson County War
in Wyoming
. On December 17, 1896, he was a dramatic critic for a Rochester newspaper. He was the last person to see magician Alexander Herrmann
aka Herrmann the Great alive before his untimely death on board a train heading to Bradford, Pennsylvania
.
After moving to the New York Telegram he met magician Howard Thurston
and became interested in magic himself. In 1925 he joined Thurston's magic show as an advance man and for the next 10 years toured America, meeting the most talented magicians of his day and recording their creations. He "edited" T. Nelson Downs's book The Art of Magic; he is generally considered to be its author. After his sudden death in 1935 his book, Greater Magic, was published by Thurston and publisher Carl W. Jones in 1938.
Magic (illusion)
Magic is a performing art that entertains audiences by staging tricks or creating illusions of seemingly impossible or supernatural feats using natural means...
, Greater Magic.
Through Eugene Field
Eugene Field
Eugene Field, Sr. was an American writer, best known for his children's poetry and humorous essays.-Biography:...
he obtained his first job as a reporter on the Chicago Press at the age of 17. He covered the Chicago World's Fair
World's Columbian Exposition
The World's Columbian Exposition was a World's Fair held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. Chicago bested New York City; Washington, D.C.; and St...
in 1893, the surrender of Sitting Bull
Sitting Bull
Sitting Bull Sitting Bull Sitting Bull (Lakota: Tȟatȟáŋka Íyotake (in Standard Lakota Orthography), also nicknamed Slon-he or "Slow"; (c. 1831 – December 15, 1890) was a Hunkpapa Lakota Sioux holy man who led his people as a tribal chief during years of resistance to United States government policies...
, and the bloody Johnson County War
Johnson County War
The Johnson County War, also known as the War on Powder River, was a range war which took place in April 1892 in Johnson County, Natrona County and Converse County in the U.S. state of Wyoming...
in Wyoming
Wyoming
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
. On December 17, 1896, he was a dramatic critic for a Rochester newspaper. He was the last person to see magician Alexander Herrmann
Alexander Herrmann
Alexander Herrmann was a French magician, better known as Herrmann the Great. He was part of the Herrmann family name that is known as the "first-family of magic". Those who witnessed Herrmann the Great perform considered him the greatest magician they ever saw...
aka Herrmann the Great alive before his untimely death on board a train heading to Bradford, Pennsylvania
Bradford, Pennsylvania
Bradford is a small city located in rural McKean County, Pennsylvania, in the United States 78 miles south of Buffalo, New York. Settled in 1823, Bradford was chartered as a city in 1879 and emerged as a wild oil boomtown in the Pennsylvanian oil rush in the late 19th century...
.
After moving to the New York Telegram he met magician Howard Thurston
Howard Thurston
Howard Thurston was a stage magician from Columbus, Ohio.-Life:Thurston had the largest traveling magic show for the time, requiring more than eight entire train cars to transport his props across the country...
and became interested in magic himself. In 1925 he joined Thurston's magic show as an advance man and for the next 10 years toured America, meeting the most talented magicians of his day and recording their creations. He "edited" T. Nelson Downs's book The Art of Magic; he is generally considered to be its author. After his sudden death in 1935 his book, Greater Magic, was published by Thurston and publisher Carl W. Jones in 1938.