I have heard such great things about this book, does Penguin have the publishing rights to it? If they do perhaps we should start a campaign to get them to reprint it?

Yes, it is a great book... I think Penguin could do as it is published by Steven Minch (Hermetic Press) and Penguin has him under their "hat"... Jan

Fantastic book. Was looking at it on my bookshelf just this morning and thinking I should give it a re-read.

I have contacted Penguin who confirm that they have the rights to the book. Hopefully it might start an idea to reprint it! You never know!

I have read at least a half-dozen studies of great mentalists of the past. I experienced this one as the best.

George

There are few books that I consider a "must-have." This is one of them.

Although I have this book, it really should be re-printed.

Perhaps we can petition Penguin for a re-print.
Penguin could request preorders. and if it is sufficient, make another printing run.

I have already contacted them, perhaps if a few more did so?

Several years ago, Richard Mark mentioned that he and Chris have enough good Fogel material for a second volume.

George

I knew Maurice Fogel. I have always considered him to be the greatest mentalist I have ever seen. A very powerful showman.

One of my favorite magic/mentalism books. Incredibly well done not just as a mentalism book but as a biographical book just to read in general. Think of something that is up there in being intriguing biographical reading as Dai Vernon's Revelations.

Excellent book!

At the time I knew Maurice Fogel in London there were a ton of well known magicians around at the time and I knew them all personally. There was Alan Alan, Ali Bongo, Corinda, Patrick Page, Dick Chavel and many, many more.

Around this time I was getting fantastic reaction from laymen with my card work (and in fact I still do) so I figured out that I knew what I was doing. However, all I got from the above names and others was criticism and snide remarks. Not one single word of praise from any of them. Yet laymen were going nuts over my work. It made me very bitter and set in a dislike of so called "magicians" which has prevailed to this day.

I still remember John Wade looking down on me at some event where magicians including himself were performing saying, "What are you doing here. You are not a professional. I have never heard of you"
When I started to appear on network TV show he approached me at the Magic Circle then yelled across the room to Billy Mc'Comb, "Billy, this is the guy who is taking the work of professionals away!".

So what does any of this have to do with Maurice Fogel? He was different from the rest of that shabby bunch. Not one single word of criticism and he seemed to love my card work. He always praised it. Once I mentioned to him that I was thinking of doing something different from card tricks and he snorted to me, "You're mad!"

I have no idea why I am typing out this story. I suppose I found it a stunning reflection of years gone by when all the so called big names of magic were trying to put me down (and quite a few of them were show business failures themselves) but this one man took the opposite tack and gave me the praise and encouragement that I knew was due to me. Maurice Fogel was a class act and a master showman.
Magicians can be very unpleasant people at times. Anyway, I am just thinking out loud. Thank you for indulging me.

Candlestick, thank you for sharing this story. While I indeed love the book, I never knew him but know some who did. Marc Salem worked with him a bit when he was younger and has shared great things with me about him being a real class act. I once met Patrick Page's son and daughter at a convention in St. Louis years ago and they told me how fond they always were of "Uncle Maurice" (they pronounced his name "Morris").

While I've not experienced being spurned by some of the greats as you have, I still relate to the subsequent sentiment it produced.

Interestingly enough I have had quite a few responses who relate to the sentiment I expressed. It shows a very unpleasant sign of insecurity among magicians. A sign of their own feelings of inadequacy I imagine. I do know that when Uri Geller came along and all the magicians were calling him a charlatan Maurice wanted to defend him. He was a class act. I think a lot of it stemmed from the fact that at one time he himself had been pilloried by the magic community over his claims of being able to read minds. Jealousy is a nasty emotion.

There is very little footage of Maurice at work. However, I was able to find this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KuAEzY5zVVk

Great find candlestick. Performing at Butlins as well!

Yes. I think that Maurice worked for Butlins for years and years. I think the stability of that particular booking kept him sane to a degree from what I understand. Show business can be a bit precarious at times!

I do have a memory of seeing Maurice perform live on one one occasion. I think Patrick Page was helping him backstage at the time. I was actually sitting next to Derren Brown's future manager at the time! The main thing I remember was that he had a few volunteers on stage and among them was the famous boxer Ted "Kid" Lewis who was quite elderly at the time. Ted dropped something or other on the floor and one of the participants started to pick it up for him. However, Maurice stopped the guy from helping sensing that it was a source of pride for the ex-boxer to be able to pick it up himself. He said quietly, "No. Let him do it"

I always remembered that.

Thanks so much for sharing this!

Come on Penguin Magic, do a reprint!

I don't want to hear it. A guy tried to sell his copy on here -cheap- couldn't sell it here.