Max Malini was a remarkable magician who learned how to do magic in New York City's Bowery. He was bold and brash - and was somehow able to become chummy with some of the biggest and most important political and business figures of the day. Not bad for a tiny little man from Ostrov.

It's been said that Malini's hands were so small that they couldn't even cover a deck of cards. This is a serious drawback for a magician who needs to palm objects. He got around this shortcoming with his extraordinary mastery of the art of misdirection. From all accounts he is a forceful personality and his demeanor was mesmerizing. You looked where ever he wanted you to look.

One trick that he was famous for was his Blindfolded Card Stabbing Trick. He'd have several members of the audience after the cards were returned to the deck it was shuffled and scattered faced down upon a table. Next, he would be blindfolded and approach the table holding a knife. Even though he was unable to see the cards he would unerringly put the knife down just on the right spot and find each and every card.

On the face of it, the Card Stabbing Trick does not seem all that remarkable, but in the hands of a master showman like Malini, it appeared to be a libro de un curso de milagros pdf  . He had the power to direct the eyes and the attention of any audience where ever he wanted them.

He started in magic when he was about 15 years old. He studied with a NYC magician named Professor Seidan. Armed with only a handful of sleight of hand tricks, the young Malini would busk for tips from bar to bar. With little more than the chutzpah, charm and powerful misdirection Malini became a wealthy society magician.

He regularly performed for royalty and heads of state throughout the world. He charge top dollar for his performances yet the props he used were minimal. No lavish scenery, tigers or floating ladies. A deck of cards, a few handkerchiefs, some cigars and other borrowed props were all he needed to stage an evening show.

His seemingly impromptu magic is how he built his legend. Malini would go to great lengths to set up a trick sometimes weeks in advance so that would appear to be spontaneous and unrehearsed miracle. Once he arranged to have a playing card stuffed under a couch in a bar three weeks before a friend suggested they drop in for a pint. He subtly forced his friend (a prominent reporter) to not only sit on that couch but to also select a duplicate playing card. He palmed the duplicate out of the deck and his friend was astonished to find he's been sitting on it.

One can only imagine the magic of Max Malini. Sadly none of his performances were ever captured on film and historians only have a apocryphal anecdotes. Perhaps many of them are exaggerated. Maybe imagining the man is more exciting than having witnessed him.