Jeff Busby

Jeff Busby
Born	Jeffrey William Busby February 23, 1954
Categories	Books by Jeff Busby

Jeff Busby was a publisher of highly-regarded newsletters, props, and a few small booklets including Arcane and Epoptica

Biography

His career deteriorated when he was able to deliver only 8 of the 15 promised installments of the The Braue Notebooks (re-edited versions of portions of Fred Braue's notebooks), which had been published without the knowledge of Braue's descendents. No money was ever refunded.

While he was originally located in the Bay area of California, and partners with Matt Corin (who fled the United States while awaiting trial on a drug charge, and who later died in a car accident) he moved to Wallace, Idaho, where irate customers would find it difficult to locate him.

He has been blind in one eye for many years, thus the "sparkle" in the eye of his caricature done by Don Albrecht has a hidden meaning. In recent years he has listed his supposed ailments in a series of paranoiac and bizarre ranting e-mails in which he claims to have had a stroke and now be confined to a wheelchair. He claims that a sinister cabal of other magic publishers and dealers conspired to ruin his business, something he actually managed quite capably on his own.

He married Vicky, the daughter of Ray Grismer.

At his home in Wallace, Idaho, beloved husband, son and brother, Jeffrey “Jeff” William Busby, 59, passed away Feb. 10, 2014. He was born Feb. 23, 1954 in Arvida, Quebec, Canada; Jeff is the son of Colin “Buzz” and Mary (Halasz) Busby.

At age seven, Jeff borrowed a library book on stage magic and was astonished to discover, "I could lie and cheat honestly." Jeff contributed his first article to a magic publication in 1969, a new technique that won the prize for "Best Card Trick of the Year." By age 17, his sleight-of-hand performances earned him a reputation as a "magician's magician," baffling well-known experts with his creations.

Jeff attended and graduated from Oakland High School of Oakland, Calif. in 1972. He then attended Merritt College, Laney College and the University of California, Berkeley.

Jeff formed his own company in 1974, initially selling antiquarian books. Since then, he has written and published more than 500 articles, 50 plus books and monographs; receiving many prestigious awards for his work. One of magic's foremost historians, Jeff 's writings are woven with history, giving the reader a full understanding of how the technique or theory is intertwined with the past.

Jeff was a security consultant to numerous casinos in California and Nevada, teaching how to detect cheating methods. He also lectured on Counter Deception and the Detection of Deception at Navel Postgraduate School, Monterey, Calif. and in the Washington, D.C. area.

Jeff married Victoria “Vicki” Grismer on Oct. 15, 1988 in Guasti, Calif. They moved to the Silver Valley in 1991 from Oakland, Calif.

He owned and operated Jeff Busby Magic of Wallace -- an international mail order business for professional magicians all over the world.

Nothing about Jeff was ordinary. He had passion and a unique way of looking at things. Not one to take short cuts, Jeff put his heart and soul into everything he did. Audiences found his performances moving and memorable.

Jeff loved and enjoyed spending time with his beloved wife Vicki, their beloved hedgehog “Pokey”, and enjoyed listening to all kinds of music. An avid reader, he loved to learn and share his knowledge with others.

Jeff is survived by his wife Vicki Busby of the family home of Wallace; his parents Colin “Buzz” and Mary Busby of Oakland, Calif.; his brothers and sister Colin Busby and (Melody Tannam) of San Leandro, Calif., Margaret Lianne (Rick) Murray of Missassauga, Ontario, Canada and Stuart (Patricia) Busby of Rancho Cordova, Calif.; He is also survived by several nieces and nephews and his beloved hedgehog Pokey.

References

http://www.shoshonenewspress.com/obituaries/article_cb2a4002-982c-11e3-8af0-001a4bcf887a.html