J. R. McNair

J. R. McNair
Born	John R. McNair circa 1894 Bovina Center, New York
Died	December 19, 1953 (age 58) Binghamton, New York

J. R. McNair, known as "Musical Mac", was a semi-professional magician.

He worked on the staff of WNBF radio staff as a singer of Western and hillbilly ballads and as a cowboy-style monologist from in 1929 until 1939. He also worked for the Vail-Ballou Press Inc. starting in 1921.

His lifelong hobby though was magic and he was the inventor of a number of tricks.

In 1939, after his retirement from radio, he became a semi-professional magician, entertaining, at schools and club meetings.

He was a the SAM, charter member of the IBM and of its Binghamton Ring No. 79 (which now bears his name) and and charter members of MAES.

He was also an IBM Territorial Territorial Representative for New York State in 1947. He helped form the Tri-Cities Magic Club and for three years printed its monthly newsletter GIMAC.

An early publicity photo from 1926 can be seen at the online exhibit "The Many Faces of Magic" from the Conjuring Arts.