Vintage & Used Magic Apparatus    Andalusia, Alabama   334-202-3757

Elmer Newman, 89, of Decatur, Alabama, died December 29, 2007. He held I.B.M. number 20187 since 1965 and was a member of the Order of Merlin and Huntsville, Alabama's Ring 194. Elmer loved magic and performed as "Newdini.” He is survived by his wife and faithful assistant Elizabeth.

Dr. John Reed

John was very much alive in this publicity photo.

In the early days, John would call Bob Chadwick at Merhs Magic shop in Birmingham Al. and order the latest magic trick. Bob would put it on the Greyhound Bus and John would pick it up at the bus station in Hartselle that afternoon. The trick would be in his show the next day. He was notorious for performing a new trick without practicing it or reading the instructions. On one occasion he did a show at Burleson Elementary School and talked me into helping him with the Arrow Head Illusion. Of course he hadn't practiced it. After my head was in the box, he began pushing the arrows in (without lowering the bag that protected my face). I clipped the arrow between my fingers that was about to hit me in the eye and wouldn't let him push it in. I guess he didn't hear me screaming. He pulled all the arrows out and started over, this time lowering the bag and the trick worked fine. I never let him forget it. He gave me this cartoon with a picture that he had taken of Fran and I as part of a wedding gift.

In 1961, my cousin Dwight and I went to the Rodeo Theater in Hartselle Alabama to see a Famous Magician. It was Elmer J. Newman, the Famous Newdini. During the show, Newdini got Dwight up on stage to help him perform the Chinese Linking Rings. We talked about that trick for years and tried to figure out how he did it. I met Elmer in the Early 70’s and discovered that he was the magician that I had seen as a child. He lived just 10 miles from my house. His magic room had more magic than any magic store that I had ever been in. He always had something for sale. When John and I would visit, our favorite line was "how much". One of my prized possessions is the P & L Phantom Tube and the Chinese Linking Rings that he used in the first magic show that I saw. I still perform them in my show today.

This is me at Dave Price’s Egyptian Hall Museum. About once a year, Elmer took John and I to visit Dave in Nashville. On this day, April 1972, I bought an original Kellar Portrait one sheet for $55.00 Two Thruston Panels for $25.00 each and a half dozen window cards of Blackstone, T. Nelson Downs and Cardini for $17.00 each. WOW!

I met John at school. We both went to Morgan County High but he was a few years younger than I so we never knew each other. We had a talent contest at school and John won 1 ^st place. He beat a very talented girl, Kay DeKalb, who is now a well known Christian entertainer. I never new that there was anyone in my town that was as interested in magic as I was. It was John that introduced me to Elmer Newman.We became life long friends only his was too short. John collected everything magic.

In the 80’s John opened "The Tomb of Mystery" which was his personal collection of magic (and stuff he bought from me and Elmer) as well as some very unusual collectables and artifacts. He had a real shrunken head, a letter written by Charles Manson and a pair of handcuffs that belonged to Houdini. John liked the weird stuff. He even used a snake in his show instead of a rabbit. One day he ask me if I wanted to see something really shocking. Of course I said "shock me". He showed me a photo album of pictures that had mysteriously disappeared off the local Coroner's desk a number of years early. These were gruesome pictures of violent deaths of people that I had personally known. John wasn’t really into that kind of thing but it was something unusual that someone offered him and he bought it.