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[[File: Namreh1.png|right|thumb|200px|[[ Herman L. Weber]]]]


'''Herman L. Weber''' (b.1900-d.1953) performed as ''Namreh'' (Herman backwards).
[[File: RichardPotter.png|right|thumb|200px|[[ Richard Potter]]]]
 
'''Richard Potter''' (b.1783-d.1835) is credited as the first successful stage magician born in the United States and as the first black magician.  


== Biography ==
== Biography ==
Reportedly, Potter was the son of an English baronet, Charles Henry Frankland, and an African American woman (some say "slave"). Frankland, however, died years before Potter was born.  Church records from Hopkinton, MA, list his father as George Simpson.  His mother's name was Dinah, who was a slave on the Frankland estate.  Potter went to England around 1798.  There is no record of his actual education.  He returned to the United States around 1801, probably with [[John Rannie]], a professional magician whom he started out working for as an assistant in 1802.


Herman Ludwig Weber was a nationally known magician who performed under a variety of stage names including “Namreh,” “Namreh the Great,” “Weber the Wizard,” "The Wizard Weber," and "Mr. Hocus Pocus.” A magician since age 18, he was a friend of other famous magicians such as [[Harry Blackstone Sr.]], [[Howard Thurston]] and [[Harry Houdini]]. Weber published several books about magic in his lifetime.
One of the earliest records of Potter advertising a show was in Boston, November 2nd, 1811 at the Columbian Museum. He advertised his show as, "An Evening's Brush to Sweep Away Care, or a Medley to Please."
 
Born in Allentown, Pennsylvania, United States, the son of Daniel George Weber and Bertha V. Ludwig, Weber later recalled that he first became interested in magic at the age of five or six when he saw a magic show at Central Park in Allentown. When he was seven, a magic catalog from Schwartz & Co., Reading, Pennsylvania further roused his interest in performing magic tricks.  An order to Sears, Roebuck and Co. brought him a set of tricks and his first magic wand for the grand sum of $4.98. In those years, Allentown was a hotbed of magic and young Weber received encouragement and advice from many older magicians. At the age of fifteen, he was giving magic shows in the front parlor of his house on North 17th street. Soon he was good enough to appear at the Hotel Allen.  


[[Herman L. Weber|Read more about Herman L. Weber…]]
[[Richard Potter|Read more about Richard Potter…]]

Latest revision as of 17:27, 1 November 2024

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Richard Potter (b.1783-d.1835) is credited as the first successful stage magician born in the United States and as the first black magician.

Biography

Reportedly, Potter was the son of an English baronet, Charles Henry Frankland, and an African American woman (some say "slave"). Frankland, however, died years before Potter was born. Church records from Hopkinton, MA, list his father as George Simpson. His mother's name was Dinah, who was a slave on the Frankland estate. Potter went to England around 1798. There is no record of his actual education. He returned to the United States around 1801, probably with John Rannie, a professional magician whom he started out working for as an assistant in 1802.

One of the earliest records of Potter advertising a show was in Boston, November 2nd, 1811 at the Columbian Museum. He advertised his show as, "An Evening's Brush to Sweep Away Care, or a Medley to Please."

Read more about Richard Potter…