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Harold Alberto
| Harold Alberto | |
| Born | Harold McAuliffe August 14, 1882 Sydney, Australia |
|---|---|
| Died | June 10, 1964 (age 81) California |
| Nationality | Australian |
Harold Alberto (1882 - 1964) was a comedy magician, famous for his "More Water!" growing plant routine.[1]
Alberto started his performing career in 1902, billing himself as "The Gay Deceiver" and "The Droll Conjurer".
Alberto wrote to the Magic Mirror from Ontario Canada in 1912 that he "has changed his name to that given at his baptism, Harold McAuliffe".[2]
He joined Harry Rickard's Tivoli company with early tricks, The Miser's Dream and The Vanishing Lamp. He later furthered his career in England and America.
In the 1930s, he left magic to work in Hollywood as a technical adviser for special effects with First National and Warner Bros. pictures.[3]
The 1940 U.S. census shows that he was single, and a lodger in Abbey Hotel in Los Angeles.[4]
In the 1952 issue of the Tops, it was reported that Alberto had suffered a nervous breakdown and was in the Gardena Sanitarium at Gardena, California.[5]
Alberto committed suicide in California after years of struggling with severe clinical depression.
He was a member of theLos Angeles Society of Magicians for many years.[6]
References
- ↑ Who's Who in Magic: An International Biographical Guide From Past to Present By Whaley, Bart (1990)
- ↑ Magic Mirror, Oct 15, 1912
- ↑ http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/13672400?versionId=16196759
- ↑ http://blogs.nla.gov.au/the-eloquent-page/2013/02/25/sad-finale-for-a-droll-entertainer/
- ↑ Tops, February 1952
- ↑ MUM, AUGUST, 1964