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[[File: JNHilliard.png|right|thumb|200px|[[ John Northern Hilliard]]]]


[[File: AliBongo1.png|right|thumb|200px|[[Ali Bongo]]]]
'''John Northern Hilliard''' (1872 - 1935) was a Rochester newspaper man  and clever amateur magician.
 


'''Ali Bongo''' (b.1929-d.2009) was a British comedy magician who had an act in which he was known as the Shriek of Araby.
== Biography ==
== Biography ==
Bongo performed his first magic trick at the age of 5, which he learned from the children’s page of The Times of India. He wrote many books on magic, many containing tricks of his own. As well as writing them he also illustrated them in his instantly recognizable style. He acquired the Ali Bongo name from a character he played in a national youth club pantomime as a teenager.  
Hilliard was dramatic critic with The Chicago Herald and later on the staff of The Rochester (N. Y.) Post Express. After moving to New York, he met [[Howard Thurston]] while a reporter on The New York World and became interested in magic. John was credited with securing the master magician with his first engagement on the stage. Several years later Thurston induced Hilliard to give up his newspaper work and become his personal representative.
 
Bongo was one of the most popular stage magicians in the 1960s. At the height of his stage career he had his own BBC TV series, Ali Bongo’s Cartoon Carnival. He acted as magic consultant for many TV shows and musicals, including the [[Paul Daniels]] Magic Show for the BBC. He was also for many years associated with [[David Nixon]], one of television’s earliest celebrities.
 
Ali traveled throughout the world as a consultant to many internationally famous magicians, including [[David Copperfield]] in Las Vegas.


Bongo was involved in a serious car crash in June 2003 on his way to perform at a charity function.  
With the urging of [[Floyd G. Thayer]], John starting writing for [[Thayer's Magical Bulletin]] magazine. In 1925, Hilliard became an advance man for The Thurston show. During this time he accumulated notes on what he was learning about magic. In 1932, Carl Waring Jones urged him to turn his notes into a book, offering to publish it. But Hilliard suddenly died of a heart attack in 1935 while in a hotel room in Indianapolis.


[[Ali Bongo|Read more about Ali Bongo...]]
[[John Northern Hilliard|Read more about John Northern Hilliard…]]

Latest revision as of 10:23, 20 February 2026

Previous featured articles are located in Category:Featured Article

Proposed candidates are listed in Category:Featured Article Candidate

John Northern Hilliard (1872 - 1935) was a Rochester newspaper man and clever amateur magician.

Biography

Hilliard was dramatic critic with The Chicago Herald and later on the staff of The Rochester (N. Y.) Post Express. After moving to New York, he met Howard Thurston while a reporter on The New York World and became interested in magic. John was credited with securing the master magician with his first engagement on the stage. Several years later Thurston induced Hilliard to give up his newspaper work and become his personal representative.

With the urging of Floyd G. Thayer, John starting writing for Thayer's Magical Bulletin magazine. In 1925, Hilliard became an advance man for The Thurston show. During this time he accumulated notes on what he was learning about magic. In 1932, Carl Waring Jones urged him to turn his notes into a book, offering to publish it. But Hilliard suddenly died of a heart attack in 1935 while in a hotel room in Indianapolis.

Read more about John Northern Hilliard…