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Harry Usher
| Harry Usher | |
 Cover of Genii with Francis (1940) | |
| Born | Harry Thomas Usher November 17, 1891 New York City, New York |
|---|---|
| Died | October 29, 1950 (age 58) Hollywood, California |
Harry Usher (b.1891-d.1950) did a Second Sight act with his wife Francis as The Ushers.
Biography
Harry Thomas Usher, also known as "Hal," was born in New York City. He worked for a time as a sideshow act in places like Coney Island. In the early part of his career, he worked in Chinese costume as "Ah Foon" a title given to him by the original "Ah Foon", George Little.
By 1927 The Ushers had become vaudeville headliners doing magic and second sight act called "Fifty Years from Now". They worked on the B.F. Keith-Orpheum circuit.
He and Francis retired from the stage in 1935 to go into the horoscope business in Venice, California. The Ushers published astrological forcasts from 1931 (dated 1932) until 1950 (dated 1951), the year of Harry's death. They also produced two different series of magic tokens with horoscope signs on them, which are listed in Kuethe magic token booklet.[1][2][3][4]
At the time of his death, he was the president of the Hollywood Comedy Club, a group of old-time vaudeville performers. He succumbed to a heart attack shortly after giving a reprise of his classic act with his wife Frances.
References
- ↑ Programmes of Famous Magicians (1937)
- ↑ Cover, Genii Magazine, Vol. 5. No. 4, April 1940, The Ushers, page 105
- ↑ Obit Genii 1950 November
- ↑ Magic: A Pictorial History of Conjurers in the Theater by David Price (1985)
- The Linking Ring, Vol. 9, No. 2, April 1929, The Ushers, page 108
- The Bat, No. 84, December 1950, Harry Usher, Vaudeville Star, Succumbs at 59, page 755
- The Linking Ring, Vol. 30, No. 10, December 1950, Broken Wand, Harry Usher, page 109
- The Linking Ring, Vol. 80, No. 3, March 2000, Vaudeville Magicians, by Bill J. Weldon - Frances and Harry Uscher, page 54
- The Linking Ring, Vol. 88, No. 2, February 2008, WOMEN IN MAGIC U, by Michael Claxton - Frances Usher, page 77
- Harry Thomas Usher (1890-1950) obituary in the Springfield Union of Springfield, Massachusetts, October 30, 1950, the Associated Press.
