Charles Raymond Reynolds (September 9, 1932 – November 4, 2010) was a behind-the-scenes magician involved with virtually every element of magic production — inventing illusions, producing and direction of magic acts, helping performers perfect their acts, and writing on the subject. Reynolds was born in Toledo, Ohio, and as a child, he saw

Harry Blackstone, Sr. Harry Bouton Blackstone (born Henry Boughton; September 27, 1885 – November 16, 1965) was a famed stage Magician (illusion), magician and illusionist of the 20th century. Blackstone was born Harry Bouton in Chicago, Illinois. He began his ...

perform. Reynolds was immediately drawn to magic, starting with a Gilbert

Mysto Josephine MacDonald Josephine MacDonald, also known as Josie Mac, is a police officer of GCPD, first appearing in ''Detective Comics'' #763 (December 2001), created by Judd Winick and Cliff Chiang. Josie Mac had a promising career ahead of her, ...

Kit. He majored in theater at the University of Michigan, and earned his master's degree there, too. He undertook a number of jobs in media and journalism. Charles met Doug Henning while writing an article on magic, and Henning hired him as a consultant. He was chief magic consultant for Henning's popular network TV magic shows, which ran from 1975 for nearly a decade. He did other work with Henning, including ''

Merlin Merlin ( cy, Myrddin, kw, Marzhin, br, Merzhin) is a mythical figure prominently featured in the legend of King Arthur and best known as a mage, with several other main roles. His usual depiction, based on an amalgamation of historic and le ...

''. Charles also worked frequently with

Harry Blackstone, Jr. Harry Bouton Blackstone Jr. (June 30, 1934 – May 14, 1997) was an American stage magician, author, and television performer. He is estimated to have pulled 80,000 rabbits from his sleeves and hats. Early life Blackstone was born in Three Riv ...

, the son of his childhood hero. He designed numerous illusions for Blackstone, Jr., including assisting him in cutting his wife in half with a buzz saw for the Broadway production of ''Blackstone!'', and creating a new levitation illusion for a live show in Las Vegas. He invented two different ways to make an elephant vanish, and made a horse and rider disappear. Charles produced and directed productions all over the world and in various media — live, film, and television, wrote and co-wrote extensively on magic, collected notable magic memorabilia, and lectured at the Smithsonian. He died of liver cancer at the age of 78 at his ( Greenwich Village, New York County, New York, United States) home. He was survived by his wife Regina.

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