Madren Elbern "John" Calvert (August 5, 1911 – September 27, 2013) was an American magician and film actor. He performed on stage (including Broadway) for eight decades both in the United States and worldwide. Siegfried & Roy cited him as an inspiration, and Bess Houdini said that he was second only to Harry Houdini in "play(ing) the part of a magician.", by Ed Koch, at the Las Vegas Sun; published September 28, 2013; retrieved July 5, 2014
He was also an actor who appeared in numerous movies and was the subject of a biographical documentary entitled John Calvert – His Magic and Adventures. The Society of Young Magicians (S.Y.M.) Assembly #29 of the Boston area is named after John Calvert.
Early years Calvert was born in New Trenton, Indiana and became fascinated with magic at age eight when his father took him to see the magician Howard Thurston perform in Cincinnati, Ohio. Shortly afterward, he performed his first trick for his Sunday school class - he made an egg appear from under another boy's coat.
He made his initial magic tour when he was eighteen, performing in town halls in Kentucky backroad towns. His small troupe consisted of one assistant and "Gyp the Wonder Dog". He returned home with a $2.65 profit.
Depression era to the mid 1940s During the Great Depression and into the 1940s, he continually increased the size of his magic show, adding illusions and personnel. He gained notoriety by performing daredevil stunts for publicity.
Acting career From the mid-1940s through the late 1950s, he performed in approximately forty films, including starring roles in three Film Classic releases, in which he portrayed a debonair detective known as "The Falcon". He also played as himself in a Singaporean Malay movie in 1971, Mat Magic.
Fifties-onwards Calvert continued performing magic during his Hollywood days. In the mid-1940s, he transported his show's equipment and personnel worldwide in a Douglas DC-3 airliner, and in later years on yachts especially his own designed 120-foot yacht Sea Fox.
Sea Fox In July 1959, the Royal Australian Navy tugboat HMAS Emu rescued the badly-damaged Sea Fox off of Australia's Northern Territory. On board were Calvert, a chimpanzee named Jimmy the Chimp, and Filipina singer Pilita Corrales. Sea Fox was further damaged during repairs and abandoned on Elcho Island."Radio Contact Made With Damaged Yacht", The Canberra Times, (Tuesday, 7 July 1959), p. 25."Rescue Boat speeding to Sinking Yacht", The Canberra Times, (Wednesday, 8 July 1959), p. 3."Tug On Way To Damaged Yacht", The Canberra Times, (Thursday, 9 July 1959), p. 1."Yacht to get free tow", The Canberra Times, (Saturday, 11 July 1959), p. 1."Navy Tug Tows Sea Fox To Elcho Island", The Canberra Times, (Monday, 13 July 1959), p. 6."Yacht Must Not Leave Unless Seaworthy", The Canberra Times, (Tuesday, 14 July 1959), p. 7.The Age Special Representative, "Sea Fox Crewman says "Stunt was Planned"", The Age, (Wednesday, 15 July 1959), p. 3."Actor's Yacht Found To Be Unseaworthy", The Canberra Times, (Thursday, 16 July 1959), p. 3."Sea Fox Lost, says Actor; Damage set at 100,000 Dol.", The Age, (Thursday, 16 July 1959), p. 3."Yacht Beached at Elcho", The Age, (Thursday, 16 July 1959), p. 3."Legal View On Sea Fox Costs To Be Sought", The Canberra Times, (Friday, 17 July 1959), p. 5."Damaged Sextant to Blame for Sea Fox Confusion Actor", The Age, (Friday, 17 July 1959), p. 5."Official Denies Responsibility For Yacht Damage", The Canberra Times, (Saturday, 18 July 1959), p. 5."Sea Fox faces the scrap-heap", The Canberra Times, (Thursday, 3 December 1964), p. 25.
Awards and accolades In 2007, IBM Ring 257 named him Magician of the Year.
His biographer, William V. Rauscher, has called Calvert a "real-life Indiana Jones" because of his reputation for surviving dangerous circumstances in his travels. Even at age 100, Calvert traveled extensively, lecturing and performing magic.
Calvert was invited to perform his magic act both on Broadway in New York City and at the London Palladium Theatre on his 100th birthday.
Personal life Calvert married his wife Tammy in 1982. He died on September 27, 2013, aged 102, in Bowling Green, Kentucky.
Filmography Year Title Role Notes1943 Bombardier Calvert the Magician Uncredited1944 Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves Thief Uncredited1944 Are These Our Parents? The Great Gaspar - Magician 1944 The Mark of the Whistler Eddie Donnelly 1945 Youth on Trial Jud Lowry 1945 The Return of the Durango Kid Lee Kirby 1945 Ten Cents a Dance Breezy Walker 1945 Lawless Empire Blaze Howard Uncredited1948 Devil's Cargo Michael Watley / The Falcon 1948 Appointment with Murder 1949 Search for Danger 1952 Gold Fever John Bonar 1956 Dark Venture John Kenyon (final film role)1971 Mat Magic Mr. John Calvert Produced by Cathay-Keris studio, this film marked an early creative collaboration between Singapore and Hollywood.
References
External links
Photographs of Calvert, plus one poster Official website