George Johnstone; Magician opened for Elvis
Hyfler/Rosner
Trudi Hahn, Star Tribune
August 7, 2004 JOHN0807
George Johnstone, a onetime assistant to magician Harry
Blackstone Sr. who entertained on the Ed Sullivan show,
opened for Elvis and "played the Palace" during a lifelong
career as a comedy musician, died Thursday in Burnsville of
complications of Alzheimer's disease. He was 85.
Born in Boston in 1919 as George John Johnston, his career
started at the age of 9 with the gift of a $1 Mysto Magic
Set. By 1936 he was competing at amateur nights in
neighborhood theaters. In 1939 he became one of several
assistants to Blackstone.
Blackstone noted and approved that Johnstone took an
interest in repairing and painting the great illusionist's
equipment, including the boxes in which pretty ladies were
sawn in half.
That was the assignment of Johnstone's future wife, Betty,
when she joined the show in 1941. They were already married
when George was drafted in 1942. Injuries during training
kept him from active Army service.
After World War II, Blackstone wanted him back, but it was
clear vaudeville was over. They settled in the Chicago area,
and at Betty's suggestion they started their own act for
nightclubs, Betty Johnstone said.
But nightclub audiences often stayed through two shows, and
one day a club owner asked them to alter their presentation
for the later one. Johnstone rehearsed tricks all day, but
when he messed up that night, he "joked [his] way out of it.
I found out I could make people laugh," he wrote in Magicol
magazine in 2001.
The comedy magic took off, and in 1950 a talent scout booked
the couple for "The Ed Sullivan Show" in New York.
"We didn't have a TV at that time," Johnstone's wife said.
"My parents and our daughters went to a bar and watched."
Right afterward, they played the Palace Theatre in Times
Square, another high-prestige venue. By 1956, the Johnstones
were invited to open for Elvis Presley on a Southeast tour.
At the time, Presley was a cola-drinking, soft-spoken,
polite kid, Johnstone wrote in 1993 for The Linking Ring
magazine.
In later years Johnstone went solo with his act, which he
called "a broad satire of magic." He was active until he was
about 75, when his style was no longer popular, his wife
said.
The couple moved to Minnesota about three years ago to be
closer to family.
He slipped a neat sleight-of-hand into a 1963 column in
which he mourned the waning of magic for "The New Tops"
magazine.
"I did not write the above column," he wrote toward the end.
"I copied it word for word from the N.Y. Evening Sun, dated
Nov. 5, 1910.
"The moral: Magic is the damnedest corpse you ever saw."
In addition to his wife, survivors include two daughters,
Marcia Jurgens of Arthur, Ill., and Jennifer Kula of
Lakeville; five grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
A celebration will be held from 5 to 9 p.m. Sunday at 9329
178th St. W., Lakeville.
Magician George Johnstone dies at 85
DATELINE: BURNSVILLE, Minn.
AP
George Johnstone, a magician-comedian who appeared on "The
Ed Sullivan Show" and who opened for Elvis, died Thursday in
Burnsville of complications of Alzheimer's disease. He was
85.
Born in Boston in 1919 as George John Johnston, his career
started at the age of 9 with the gift of a $1 Mysto Magic
Set. By 1936 he was competing at amateur nights in
neighborhood theaters. In 1939 he became one of several
assistants to Harry Blackstone Sr.
Blackstone noted and approved that Johnstone took an
interest in repairing and painting the great illusionist's
equipment, including the boxes in which women were sawn in
half.
That was the assignment of Johnstone's future wife, Betty,
when she joined the show in 1941. They were already married
when George was drafted in 1942. Injuries during training
kept him from active Army service.
After World War II, Blackstone wanted him back, but it was
clear vaudeville was over. The coupled settled in the
Chicago area, and at Betty's suggestion they started their
own act for nightclubs, Betty Johnstone said.
The comedy magic took off, and in 1950 a talent scout booked
the couple for "The Ed Sullivan Show" in New York.
"We didn't have a TV at that time," Johnstone's wife said.
"My parents and our daughters went to a bar and watched."
Right afterward, they played the Palace Theatre in Times
Square, another high-prestige venue. By 1956, the Johnstones
were invited to open for Elvis Presley on a southeast tour.
At the time, Presley was a cola-drinking, soft-spoken,
polite kid, Johnstone wrote in 1993 for The Linking Ring
magazine.
In later years Johnstone went solo with his act, which he
called "a broad satire of magic." He was active until he was
about 75, when his style was no longer popular, his wife
said.
The couple moved to Minnesota about three years ago to be
closer to family.
In addition to his wife, survivors include two daughters,
five grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
April Cool
<rel...@rcn.com> wrote:
> He slipped a neat sleight-of-hand into a 1963 column in which he
> mourned the waning of magic for "The New Tops" magazine.
>
> "I did not write the above column," he wrote toward the end. "I
> copied it word for word from the N.Y. Evening Sun, dated Nov. 5,
> 1910.
>
> "The moral: Magic is the damnedest corpse you ever saw."
I *loved* this part. Thank you, H/R.