Women in Magic

Women have done quite a bit of fortune-telling, crystal-gazing, and mind-reading, especially during the vaudeville era. Many were flash-in-the-pan acts, but one who lasted for over fifteen years—often as a headliner—was Leona LaMar, “The Girl with 1,000 Eyes.”

Starting a career in magic around 1948, she presented colourful bird act that was presented elegantly, beautifully, garnering high praise for her glowing performances. She was also an integral part of her and her husband's electrifying act—setting the stage for Mr. Electric and Carol to emerge.

When she wrote in her 1944 high school yearbook that she wanted to be a performer, Ruth Taylor had little idea that her wish would come true. Her natural out-going personality and flare for the stage, forged her and her husband a successful career in magic.

While her father may have sparked the initial interest in magic by performing some delightful sleight-of-hand, and perhaps a hopeful beau captured more attention by producing a bouquet of roses from fire for her, this magician found her true calling as a stage performer, all on her own.

It was tough to pick just one. I could feature thousands of performers who have assisted magicians, and each one would have a separate story to tell. But to stand in for them all, I’ve selected Velvet Mandrake, who for nearly forty years worked alongside one of our most celebrated illusionists, Mandrake the Magician.

She enjoyed a brief but highly successful career in the Forties as the Midwest's Leading Lady Magician. She had a two-hour show with illusions—and wisely featured the production of a huge rabbit named Johnnie, which often afforded her great publicity pictures for the local newspaper.

Mary Ann has to be one of the busiest women in magic. As a performer, she is, of course, a model for female magicians; but it is her creative use of magic as a financial teaching tool that can be an inspiration for any performer.

While it is true that printing up business cards and investing in a set of linking rings does not make one a magician, there are certainly worse things in life than having a brief fling as a conjurer. So meet Marietta Poole, who can represent all her sisters who never achieved great success in magic.

One of the first female members of The Magic Circle, Paula Baird was a skilled manipulator, and consistently impressed both lay audiences and her peers with her flawless magic. Meet this two-time FISM award winner and find out how she charmed the crowd with card manipulation, despite following Cardini.