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John Van Camp
John Van Camp (January 15, 1877 - ? ) born at Rochester, Pennsylvania, began performing magic in 1901. He was also a ventriloquist and assisted by his wife. [1]
Van Camp, also known as Jack, was famous for working with pigs and was known as "The Barnyard Magician" [2]
In 1913, he performed in Australia[3] and New Zealand[4]. His show included a torn and restored paper routine, canaries making an invisible flight to their cage, the production of a little pig from a hat. The show ended with a boxing bout between two little pigs.
In later years, he invented the 'Pig Slide,' seen at seaside resorts and fairs. Three baseballs for a dime were paid by spectators to throw. If they hit the right spot a door opens and pig came out. They would slide down and runs back in. [5]