Norman Houghton

Norman DeBlois Houghton (February 3, 1909 - March 4, 1998) was born in Montreal, Canada. His father was a pharmacist and part time photographer. They eventually settled in Toronto. Norm joined the Canadian Army during the World War II, where he spent most of his time in Italy.

Houghton became interested in magic after seeing a magician perform in a side show at a local fair when he was just twelve.

He was friends with fellow Canadians Sid Lorraine, Bruce Posgate and Howard Lyons. He became a regular at the early Fechter's Finger Flicking Frolic and Niagara-on-the-Lake events.

Hi first published effort "Twenty-First Century Silks" as Lorne DeBlois, was featured on the cover of the December 1936 issue of the Sphinx. Over the years, he contributed to many close-up effects to The Jinx, Ibidem, Pentagram, New Pentagram, Sphinx, Abra, Genii and Linking Ring. In the 1960s you could find his effects published as "Norman Houghton" in Abracadabra

Eventually, he became a regular at the Saturday Round Table which met in the basement cafeteria of the old King Edward Hotel. A group of close-up enthusiasts that included Derek Dingle, Elizabeth Warlock, Tom Ransom, Reg Holden, Mike O’Dowd and David Drake.

References

• The Sleightly Secret World of Norman Houghton by David Drake, Linking Ring, December, 1997