August Roterberg (1867–1928) was born in

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

, Germany and

emigrated Emigration is the act of leaving a resident country or place of residence with the intent to settle elsewhere (to permanently leave a country). Conversely, immigration describes the movement of people into one country from another (to permanentl ...

to the United States around 1883 as a teenager. He started out selling magic by mail order, and then opened a magic store in Chicago. It was housed in the lobby of the "old"

Palmer House Hotel The Palmer House – A Hilton Hotel is a historic hotel in Chicago's Loop area. It is a member of the Historic Hotels of America program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The Palmer House was the city's first hotel with elevators, ...

. Roterberg is credited for the advent of the modern age of magic

publishing Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...

. His books were the first written in the English language expressly for

magicians Magician or The Magician may refer to: Performers * A practitioner of magic (supernatural) * A practitioner of magic (illusion) * Magician (fantasy), a character in a fictional fantasy context Entertainment Books * ''The Magician'', an 18th-ce ...

. Roterberg's books were published by a magic dealer specifically for sale in magical depots, rather than for wide distribution to the general public. He ended up selling his mail order business in 1908 to Ralph W. Read and his shop to Arthur & Carl Felsman in 1916. Roterberg is best known as a magic inventor and is credited with inventing the "Multiplying Billiard Balls" trick. He retired around 1917 and moved to California, where he lived until his death.

Published works

* ''The Modern Wizard''(1895) * ''Latter Day Tricks'' (1896) * ''New Era Card Tricks'' (1897) * ''Card Tricks and How To Do Them'' (1902)

References

External links

*
Photo of August Roterberg and Houdini

August Roterberg - American apparatus manufacturer
* ttp://members.tripod.com/magicref/booksjr/roterberglatterday.htm August Roterberg : Latter Day Tricks bibliography German magicians 1867 births 1928 deaths Sleight of hand Card magic Emigrants from the German Empire to the United States {{magic-stub

Published works

See also

References

External links