Remembering Ricky Jay: Master Magician and Sleight of Hand Artist

With all the news sites that we check daily to find gems for posting on Jewish Humor Central, we somehow missed the obituaries for Ricky Jay, the master magician, sleight of hand artist, actor, and writer who died last November at the age of 72.

Born Richard Jay Potash in Brooklyn and raised in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Jay was known for his card tricks, card throwing, memory feats, and stage patter. He also wrote extensively on magic and its history.


As Anita Gates wrote in The New York Times,

Mr. Jay could hit a target with a single playing card at 190 feet and could aim multiple cards at a fresh watermelon, piercing its flesh time after time. But even moviegoers and television viewers who had little interest in magic had opportunities to see Mr. Jay in his 40 or so film and TV roles.

Over the decades he was a regular on talk shows hosted by Merv Griffin, Mike Douglas, Dinah Shore, Johnny Carson, David Letterman and Conan O’Brien and on various incarnations of “The Tonight Show,” beginning in the Carson era.

In this video he entertains an audience with his Cups and Balls routine, the oldest effect in the history of magic, while delivering a history lesson on the origin of the game.

Enjoy!

A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.

Born Richard Jay Potash in Brooklyn and raised in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Jay had parents ill-suited to the sort of obsessive, imaginative, erudite, and talented performer and writer he would grow up to be. He stated in the biographical documentary film “Deceptive Practice” (2012) that the “only kind memory” he retained of his parents, Samuel Potash and Shirley Katz, were from the time of his bar mitzvah. They asked what entertainment he would prefer for his bar mitzvah party. He requested Al Flosso, a Jewish magician born Albert Levinson, who headlined at Grossinger’s and other Catskills resorts.Read more: https://forward.com/culture/theater/414750/ricky-jay-performs-his-final-vanishing-act/

Born Richard Jay Potash in Brooklyn and raised in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Jay had parents ill-suited to the sort of obsessive, imaginative, erudite, and talented performer and writer he would grow up to be. He stated in the biographical documentary film “Deceptive Practice” (2012) that the “only kind memory” he retained of his parents, Samuel Potash and Shirley Katz, were from the time of his bar mitzvah. They asked what entertainment he would prefer for his bar mitzvah party. He requested Al Flosso, a Jewish magician born Albert Levinson, who headlined at Grossinger’s and other Catskills resorts.Read more: https://forward.com/culture/theater/414750/ricky-jay-performs-his-final-vanishing-act/

Born Richard Jay Potash in Brooklyn and raised in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Jay had parents ill-suited to the sort of obsessive, imaginative, erudite, and talented performer and writer he would grow up to be. He stated in the biographical documentary film “Deceptive Practice” (2012) that the “only kind memory” he retained of his parents, Samuel Potash and Shirley Katz, were from the time of his bar mitzvah. They asked what entertainment he would prefer for his bar mitzvah party. He requested Al Flosso, a Jewish magician born Albert Levinson, who headlined at Grossinger’s and other Catskills resorts.Read more: https://forward.com/culture/theater/414750/ricky-jay-performs-his-final-vanishing-act/

Born Richard Jay Potash in Brooklyn and raised in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Jay had parents ill-suited to the sort of obsessive, imaginative, erudite, and talented performer and writer he would grow up to be. He stated in the biographical documentary film “Deceptive Practice” (2012) that the “only kind memory” he retained of his parents, Samuel Potash and Shirley Katz, were from the time of his bar mitzvah. They asked what entertainment he would prefer for his bar mitzvah party. He requested Al Flosso, a Jewish magician born Albert Levinson, who headlined at Grossinger’s and other Catskills resorts.Read more: https://forward.com/culture/theater/414750/ricky-jay-performs-his-final-vanishing-act/

Born Richard Jay Potash in Brooklyn and raised in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Jay had parents ill-suited to the sort of obsessive, imaginative, erudite, and talented performer and writer he would grow up to be. He stated in the biographical documentary film “Deceptive Practice” (2012) that the “only kind memory” he retained of his parents, Samuel Potash and Shirley Katz, were from the time of his bar mitzvah. They asked what entertainment he would prefer for his bar mitzvah party. He requested Al Flosso, a Jewish magician born Albert Levinson, who headlined at Grossinger’s and other Catskills resorts.Read more: https://forward.com/culture/theater/414750/ricky-jay-performs-his-final-vanishing-act/

English Magician Julius Dein Pranks His Israeli Grandmother

Julius Dein is a London-born internet personality, with over 6.1 million online followers. Since his internet career began, his videos have been viewed more than 500 million times, with many of his pranks and social experiments attracting major media and television attention. Julius has one of the highest Snapchat followings in the United Kingdom, in excess of 350,000 Snapchat followers.

Dein, a North Western Reform Synagogue member who grew up in Hampstead Garden Suburb, said: "My aspiration is to perform street magic on TV shows."I absolutely love to perform. I love watching people freak out. It is like a drug." He attended JFS, a modern orthodox school that's the biggest Jewish school in Europe. 

Julius' pranks on the public are often positively received, being described as "hilarious" and news sites have covered some of his videos. One video, where Dein uses a fake 6 foot snake to scare people and record what the Daily Mail describes as "their hilarious reactions", went viral on Facebook, being shared over 148,000 times by June 2016. 

One of Dein's pranks, where he tried to convince strangers on the street that he was their long-lost son was described as a "hilarious stunt", but did note that not all victims took the prank well. The video received over two million views. 

In this video, Dein gives his Israeli grandmother a few scares with a pierced tongue, a bloody hand, and an exploding phone.

Enjoy! 

A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.