John Calvert (magician) facts for kids

Madren Elbern "John" Calvert (born August 5, 1911 – died September 27, 2013) was an amazing American magician and movie actor. He performed his magic shows on stage for eighty years! He traveled all over the United States and even around the world. Famous magicians like Siegfried & Roy said he inspired them. Even Bess Houdini, the wife of the legendary Harry Houdini, said John Calvert was almost as good as Houdini himself at being a magician.

John Calvert was also an actor who appeared in many movies. There's even a documentary film about his life called John Calvert – His Magic and Adventures. A group for young magicians in Boston, called S.Y.M. Assembly #29, is named after him!

Becoming a Magician

John Calvert was born in New Trenton, Indiana. When he was eight years old, his dad took him to see a magician named Howard Thurston. John was completely amazed by the show! Soon after, he did his very first magic trick for his Sunday school class. He made an egg appear from under another boy's coat!

When he was eighteen, John went on his first magic tour. He performed in small towns in Kentucky. His show was tiny, with just one helper and his dog, "Gyp the Wonder Dog." After the tour, he made a small profit of $2.65.

Growing His Magic Show

During the Great Depression and into the 1940s, John Calvert kept making his magic show bigger. He added more amazing illusions and hired more people to help him. He became well-known by doing exciting and sometimes dangerous stunts to get attention for his shows.

Acting in Movies

From the mid-1940s to the late 1950s, John Calvert acted in about forty movies. He even played the main character, a clever detective called "The Falcon," in three films. Later, in 1971, he played himself in a movie from Singapore called Mat Magic.

Traveling the World with Magic

Even while he was acting in Hollywood, John Calvert kept performing magic. In the mid-1940s, he used a Douglas DC-3 airplane to fly his show's equipment and helpers all over the world! In his later years, he traveled on yachts.

Awards and Honors

In 2007, a magic club called IBM Ring 257 named John Calvert their Magician of the Year.

His biographer, William V. Rauscher, called John Calvert a "real-life Indiana Jones." This is because John was known for surviving dangerous situations during his travels. Even when he was 100 years old, John Calvert still traveled a lot. He gave talks and performed his magic tricks.

For his 100th birthday, John Calvert was invited to perform his magic act in two very famous places: on Broadway in New York City and at the London Palladium Theatre in London.

His Family Life

John Calvert married his wife, Tammy, in 1982. He passed away on September 27, 2013, when he was 102 years old. He died in Bowling Green, Kentucky.

Movies He Was In

John Calvert appeared in many films. Here are some of them:

• 1943: Bombardier (as Calvert the Magician)
• 1944: Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves (as a Thief)
• 1944: Are These Our Parents? (as The Great Gaspar - Magician)
• 1944: The Mark of the Whistler (as Eddie Donnelly)
• 1945: Youth on Trial (as Jud Lowry)
• 1945: The Return of the Durango Kid (as Lee Kirby)
• 1945: Ten Cents a Dance (as Breezy Walker)
• 1945: Lawless Empire (as Blaze Howard)
• 1948: Devil's Cargo (as Michael Watley / The Falcon)
• 1948: Appointment with Murder (as The Falcon)
• 1949: Search for Danger (as The Falcon)
• 1952: Gold Fever (as John Bonar)
• 1956: Dark Venture (as John Kenyon)
• 1971: Mat Magic (as Mr. John Calvert) - This movie was a special team-up between Singapore and Hollywood.

See also

In Spanish: John Calvert para niños