Norman Murray Carrington Walters (11 November 1901 – 22 January 1988), who used the

mononym A mononym is a name composed of only one word. An individual who is known and addressed by a mononym is a mononymous person. In some cases, a mononym selected by an individual may have originally been from a polynym, a word which refers to one o ...

Murray, was an Australian escapologist and illusionist, who found international success between the 1920s and 1950s and settled in Britain.

Biography

He was born in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, Australia, the son of William Carrington Walters. Some sources suggest that his full birth name was Leo Norman Maurien Murray Stuart Carrington Walters, "Magic Murray", ''Blackpool Museum''
Retrieved 23 December 2020 though official records generally show him as Norman Murray Walters. As a boy, he saw other illusionists and escapologists, including

Houdini Harry Houdini (, born Erik Weisz; March 24, 1874 – October 31, 1926) was a Hungarian-American escape artist, magic man, and stunt performer, noted for his escape acts. His pseudonym is a reference to his spiritual master, French magician ...

, and practised his own routines by handcuffing himself to his bed each night until he managed to free himself. He found work crewing ships, developing and performing his act in cities around the world when docked, and adding

illusions An illusion is a distortion of the senses, which can reveal how the mind normally organizes and interprets sensory stimulation. Although illusions distort the human perception of reality, they are generally shared by most people. Illusions may oc ...

to his act as well as escapology (a word that he claimed to have coined, though in fact it had been used earlier by Houdini). He performed in the United States, India, South Africa and South America before arriving in Britain in 1926.Roy Hudd and Philip Hindin, ''Roy Hudd's Cavalcade of Variety Acts'', Robson Books, 1998, , pp.129-130 He told one interviewer that "the feat he was most proud of was being secured to the track of the Peking-Shanghai Railway ten minutes before the Shanghai Express was due to leave the station. He escaped when the train was only 100 yards away." "Murray the Escapologist", Untold Lives, ''British Library'', 6 September 2018
Retrieved 23 December 2020 Arriving in Britain almost unknown, he soon began topping

variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

bills, and was seen as the successor to Houdini, who had recently died. He developed a full evening theatrical show, and was billed as "Murray - The most amazing, sensational and mysterious man of this or any other age." "Man of Magic - The Keith Abson Collection", ''Lawsons.com'', 25 May 2018
Retrieved 23 December 2020 His stunts included escaping from a straitjacket while suspended from a crane above Piccadilly Circus, being thrown out of an aeroplane over the

Bristol Channel The Bristol Channel ( cy, Môr Hafren, literal translation: "Severn Sea") is a major inlet in the island of Great Britain, separating South Wales from Devon and Somerset in South West England. It extends from the lower estuary of the River Seve ...

while locked inside a mailbag, and being locked in a safe and thrown into the sea. He continued to tour the world, performing before

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

in Germany in 1939, before having to flee the country by bicycle to

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

at the outbreak of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

in order to avoid

internment Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simpl ...

. He married in London in 1942, and worked in Britain and Scandinavia after the end of the war, before retiring from performance in 1953. He then set up a

magic store A magic store (also magic shop or magician's supply shop) is an establishment which sells materials for performing magic tricks. Magic shops often also sell practical jokes and novelty items, and frequently serve as informal gathering places for a ...

, Murray's Magic Mart, in

Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside resort in Lancashire, England. Located on the North West England, northwest coast of England, it is the main settlement within the Borough of Blackpool, borough also called Blackpool. The town is by the Irish Sea, betw ...

, England, which he ran himself until it closed in 1986. Murray died in Blackpool in 1988, aged 86.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Murray 1901 births 1988 deaths People from Melbourne Australian magicians Escapologists