John Nevil Maskelyne

His name was John Nevil Maskelyne. He was an English Magician who performed in the 19th century. He was noted for being inventive. Among other things, he invented the pay toilet. He was trained as a watchmaker and became interested in performing as a magician after seeing the Davenport Brothers. After seeing them perform their “Spirit Cabinet” and discovering their fraudulent methods, Maskelyne stood up and challenged the brothers (which happened often during their performances) but Maskelyne added a twist that would make him famous. He declared he would duplicate their methods for all to see. So, he built his own “Spirit Cabinet” and premiered it in Cheltenham in June, 1865 to much acclaim. He was a sensation. Boosted by the response he received from the audience in Cheltenham, Maskelyne decided to become a professional magician. He ended up performing on the stage at Egyptian Hall in London from 1873 until 1904… an unprecedented run. Maskelyne had a knack for discovering principles of illusion and is most noted among magicians for this invention: The Levitation.

Promotional Poster for Kellar's Levitation

Here’s how Maskelyne’s levitation looked:  A costumed assistant was strapped to a wooden plank that was laid across two chairs.  Very slowly the chairs were removed but the assistant remained suspended and slowly rose and descended in the air. Eventually Maskelyne stood behind the individual and passed his arms above the levitating assistant and even passed a solid hoop over the levitating assistant. This effect fooled magicians and lay people alike. 

Magicians are often a jealous bunch and many others tried to take credit for this invention or even steal the plans for it.  One such magician was American, Harry Kellar who essentially stole Maskelyne’s levitation and brought it to America.  Another magician who contributed to the advancement of the levitation was Guy Jarrett. As years passed other slight improvements and variations were added to the levitation. To me, though, the most significant step forward that recreated Maskelyne’s moment of fooling audiences and magicians alike was invented in the late 1950′s by Walter “Zaney” Blaney. His Ladder Levitation fooled everyone, including a very knowledgable magician named Johnny Carson.

Ken and Walter Blaney in 2002

Walter Blaney is a tall Texan magician who has performed for Texas governors and United States Presidents.  He is the Texas Ambassador of good will and has performed over 3400 banquet shows! Quite an accomplishment! Many world famous illusionists (like Lance Burton, Brett Daniels, and David Copperfield) have used his illusion inventions in their professional show for years. Walter performed his ladder levitation on the “Tonight Show” with Johnny Carson, the Merv Griffin show, and actually levitated Dinah Shore on her show. Through a series of events, I was able to purchase Walter’s Ladder Levitation. I ended up going to his home in Texas and spending some time with him. I learned more about levitation in one day than I had in a lifetime of reading about it. Walter was the most amazing host and I thoroughly enjoyed his stories of magicians from the past and how they inspired him to create.  I first performed the “Zaney Blaney Ladder Levitation” in 2002 and it has been in my show ever since.  I’m attaching a video below of Walter performing his levitation on “The Tonight Show” with Johnny Carson so you can see a true professional perform this amazing illusion.

I performed an amazing version of the levitation in my show in October of 2009.  My daugther levitated several feet in the air, then disappeared in mid air and reappeared in the back of the room!

I also have attached a video of my good friend and teacher, Walter “Zaney” Blaney. Enjoy watching this true professional perform: