Help us get to over 8,749 articles in 2024.

If you know of a magician not listed in MagicPedia, start a New Biography for them. Contact us at magicpediahelp@gmail.com

Difference between revisions of "Gustavus Katterfelto"

From Magicpedia, the free online encyclopedia for magicians by magicians.
Jump to: navigation, search
(Created page with '{{Infobox person | image = | image_size = | alt = | caption = | birth_name = Christi...')
 
m
Line 31: Line 31:
 
He usually prefixed his name with the title "Dr." or "Col.," and his fame was so great that he was eventually brought to the attention of George III of England, who asked to see this wonder-worker at a command performance.<ref>Conjuring by James Randi (1992)</ref>
 
He usually prefixed his name with the title "Dr." or "Col.," and his fame was so great that he was eventually brought to the attention of George III of England, who asked to see this wonder-worker at a command performance.<ref>Conjuring by James Randi (1992)</ref>
 
   
 
   
 +
He was inducted into the [[Society of American Magicians Hall of Fame and Magic Museum]].
 
== References ==
 
== References ==
 
{{Wikipedia}}
 
{{Wikipedia}}
 
<references />
 
<references />
 
{{DEFAULTSORT:Katterfelto}}
 
{{DEFAULTSORT:Katterfelto}}

Revision as of 02:54, 13 December 2011

Gustavus Katterfelto
BornChristian William Anthony Katterfelto
circa 1743
1799

Gustavus Katterfelto (or Katerfelto) (c1743-1799) was a Prussian conjurer and scientific lecturer.

Christian William Anthony Katterfelto (known as Gustavus) arrived at Hull in September 1776 and traveled around Britain until his death in 1799. He performed in London from 1780-84. The widespread flu epidemic of 1782 made him famous as a quack, when he used a solar microscope to show images of microbes he believed were its cause. These "insects" provided him with the catchphrase "Wonders! Wonders! Wonders!" which often headed his advertisements.

He also lectured and entertained using magnetism, electricity, and many other aspects of science. He claimed to have launched the first hot air balloon fifteen years before the Montgolfier brothers, and claimed to be the greatest natural philosopher since Isaac Newton.

Katterfelto was an accomplished conjurer, and hinted that his powers had a demonic origin.

He usually prefixed his name with the title "Dr." or "Col.," and his fame was so great that he was eventually brought to the attention of George III of England, who asked to see this wonder-worker at a command performance.[1]

He was inducted into the Society of American Magicians Hall of Fame and Magic Museum.

References

Wikipedia-logo.png This page incorporated content from Gustavus Katterfelto,

a page hosted on Wikipedia. Please consult the history of the original page to see a list of its authors. Therefor, this article is also available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License

  1. Conjuring by James Randi (1992)