Larry Jennings facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Larry Jennings
|
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born | February 17, 1933 Detroit, Michigan
|
| Died | October 17, 1997 (aged 64) Los Angeles, California
|
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Magician |
| Known for | Coin and card tricks |
| Spouse(s) |
B. J. Jennings
(m. 1990) |
Larry Jennings (born February 17, 1933 – died October 17, 1997) was a famous American magician. He was especially known for his amazing card tricks. Larry also had nine books published about his magic. He was a close friend with another well-known magician, Dai Vernon.
Contents
Discovering Larry Jennings
Larry's Early Life
Larry Jennings was born in Detroit, Michigan, on February 17, 1933. His parents were John Alfred Jennings and Eva Jennings. After his parents divorced, Larry spent time with his father in Detroit and his mother in Georgia.
At age 16, Larry joined the United States Navy in Detroit. He started his service on June 29, 1949. He was honorably discharged on April 22, 1953. After leaving the Navy, Larry moved back to Detroit. There he met and later married Nina Chauvin.
In 1956, while living in Windsor, Larry met Ron Wilson. Ron was a magician who lived across the hall. One day, Larry asked Ron if he had a deck of cards. Larry then showed Ron a trick he had learned in the Navy. Not knowing Ron was a magician, Larry asked if he knew any magic. Ron then showed Larry a trick called “Out of This World.” It completely amazed Larry. Larry asked Ron to teach him the trick. Ron told him to think about it instead. Larry eventually figured it out. Ron continued to teach him magic. He introduced Larry to the magic of Edward Marlo and Dai Vernon.
In the early 1960s, Larry Jennings and Ron Wilson met Dai Vernon for the first time. This meeting happened at a magic convention in Cleveland.
Larry's Magic Career
In 1964, Karrell Fox told Larry about the Magic Castle. Larry knew that Dai Vernon lived in Hollywood. So, Larry quit his job as an engineer. He and Nina moved to California. Larry got a job in plumbing repair. He quickly became friends with Dai Vernon. Larry studied magic under Vernon. In the same year, Larry's first magic ideas were published. They appeared in a letter from Dai Vernon in The Gen magazine.
In July 1967, Larry published his first set of lecture notes. They were called Lecture Notes On Card And Coin Handling. His wife, Nina, wrote these notes. In the same year, some of Larry's magic appeared in Dai Vernon’s Ultimate Secrets Of Card Magic.
In 1969, Larry traveled with Dai Vernon on a lecture tour in Japan. There, he met Hideo Kato, who helped them as an interpreter. In 1970, Larry published a second set of notes. These were for a special lecture he gave at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. Larry’s special issue of Genii magazine was also published in May 1970. The magic tricks were written by Jules Lenier. In this same year, Hideo Kato came to America. He studied card magic with Larry. Hideo wrote a book about Larry’s card techniques. It was called Larry Jennings-No Card Magic Nyuumon. The book was written in Japanese. It has not yet been translated into English.
Larry and Nina divorced in the early 1970s. In the mid-1970s, Larry met his second wife, Geri, in Los Angeles. They married and moved to Lake Tahoe. There, Larry started his own plumbing company. They later divorced. Also in the mid-1970s, Karl Fulves published a special two-part issue of Epilogue. It featured Larry’s magic.
Larry met B.J. in Lake Tahoe in 1977. She worked as a blackjack dealer at a casino Larry often visited. Larry also met Jeff Busby. Jeff would later release the book Jennings On Card And Coin Handling (1977).
In 1979, Larry was the special guest at the annual Fechter’s Finger Flicking Frolic. He gave a new lecture for the event. After this, Larry was invited to lecture in Japan. The Japan Lecture Notes were created for this trip. B.J. and Louis Falanga put them together.
In the early 1980s, Larry sold his business in Lake Tahoe. He moved to Newport Beach, California. He worked at the Magic Island. Larry was the resident magician there. He was also in charge of booking other magicians. He tried to get higher pay for the magicians. When management refused, he quit. Larry then moved in with James Patton. They often practiced magic together. Jim convinced Larry to give another lecture. In 1982, Larry lectured at the Magic Castle. He presented material from A Visit With Larry Jennings. Larry later worked for the Los Angeles Unified School District. He moved to North Hollywood. Also in the early 1980s, Larry went to France. He filmed his first magic videos for Pierre Mayer.
In 1986, Larry Jennings and Louis Falanga started L&L Publishing. In April 1986, Larry Jennings and Dai Vernon were invited to perform. This was at a magic convention in Mexico. Also in 1986, The Classic Magic Of Larry Jennings was released. It was the largest collection of Larry’s magic at that time. It contained over eighty tricks. This was quickly followed by Neoclassics (1987) and The Cardwright (1988).
Larry and B.J. were married on December 28, 1990. Michael Skinner was the best man. During the 1990s, Larry continued to share his magic. He released two new sets of lecture notes and five videotapes. In 1995, Larry received the Creative Fellowship award. This award was from the Academy of Magical Arts. Larry continued to visit the Magic Castle often. He performed magic both formally and informally.
After Larry's Death
Larry Jennings and B.J. lived in North Hollywood until his death. Larry passed away on October 17, 1997, at age sixty-four.
Since his death, Larry’s magic continues to inspire others. His tricks have been published in various magazines. Most notably, they appeared in Richard Kaufman’s book, Jennings ’67. This book is the largest collection of Larry’s magic since The Classic Magic Of Larry Jennings.
In 2020, Richard Kaufman wrote and published an even larger book. It is the second volume in a trilogy. Titled Mr. Jennings Takes it Easy, it focuses on Larry's easier card magic. This magic was developed between 1965 and his death in 1997.
Larry Jennings is also famous for making the "chop cup" trick popular. He and Don Alan were known for their special chop cup routines. History shows that Wheatley saw Larry perform his chop cup routine. This was at The Magic Castle shortly after it opened in 1963. Wheatley was so impressed. He asked Larry not to publish his method until after Wheatley's death. Larry kept his promise. He did not publish his routine until a year after Wheatley died. It was published in Genii Magazine, Volume 29, Number 7, in March 1965.
Awards and Honors
- Creative Fellowship from the Academy of the Magical Arts (1995)
Published Works
- Stabbed Coincidence (1977)
- The Coin And Beer Can (1977)
- Larry Jennings On Card And Coin Handling (1977)
- The Classic Magic of Larry Jennings (1986)
- NeoClassics (1987)
- The Cardwright (1988)
- Jennings '67 (1997)
- Up in Smoke (2005)
- Mr. Jennings Takes it Easy (2020)
