Remembering Doug Henning, superstar illusionist turned politician

From the mid-’70s to the early ’80s, Toronto-raised master illusionist and escape artist Doug Henning was inescapable. With his long, wavy locks, walrus moustache, colourful outfits, and perky new-age demeanour, he cut quite a contrast from the vaguely sinister tuxedo-clad, top-hatted magicians that previously ruled the field.

“Doug is unique in that he didn’t copy anyone before or after him,” he says. “He made a firm impact on audiences of the time, and because of this, he is a permanent part of magic’s DNA.” Henning was approached by Broadway producers Edgar Lansbury and Joseph Beruh about bringing a version of the show to New York. “After this, there was no looking back for Doug,” says McNally. Reworked and retitled “The Magic Show,” it opened in 1974 at the Cort Theatre and enjoyed a four-year-run.

Henning left the magic business in 1986. “He felt he had achieved his goals in performing and he wanted to move along to other challenges,” says Nancy. He sold off all his illusions – props, sets and secrets – at auction to devote his time to Transcendental Meditation. TM devotees claim that the silent meditation technique promotes relaxed awareness, stress reduction, access to higher states of consciousness, and reduces heart disease and high blood pressure.

WTF is up with the sideways photos? Let me guess...'Not tilting your head is soooo 2010's.'

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