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The American Studios
The American Studios was a theatrical supplies business and magic shop owned and operated by Dariel Fitzkee.[1] Located at 1060 Folsom Street in San Francisco, it was also the publisher of several of his books, and a magic dealer by mail. Fitzkee started The American Studios in late 1925, at first handling only small drapery and scenic installations, but by 1928 it had become...
...a full-service theatrical supply company, offering theatrical scenery, stage settings, drapes, decorations, stage equipment, counterweight systems, sloats (wood slats used for backdrops), and hardware.[2]
The American Studios also provided Fitzkee a way to feed his magical hobby. Magicians in the San Francisco area, having seen the ads, started stopping by the "The Magician's Den" Fitzkee had formed inside the shop.[3] In the March 1928 Sphinx, Fitzkee had advertised "The Superlative Pack," including the address for The American Studios but not the name. The ad included the note: "Selling occasional exclusive effects only. Positively not a dealer."[4]
Apparently, it took him less than a year to change his mind.
The first magic advertisement from The American Studios came in The Sphinx in February 1929.[5]Ads appeared almost monthly in several publications for over a year, until April 1930, when the last ads for the American Studios appeared.[6] Suffering from the Great Depression, the business closed, and in February 1931, Fitzkee ran a two-and-a-half page ad in The Linking Ring listing the inventory for sale "at close-out prices."[7]
References
- ↑ The Linking Ring, Vol. 88 No. 10, October 2008, p. 73
- ↑ David R. Goodsell, Finding Dariel Fitzkee: The Man with the Trick Brain, 2008, p. 74
- ↑ David R. Goodsell, Finding Dariel Fitzkee: The Man with the Trick Brain, 2008, p. 77
- ↑ The Sphinx, Vol. 27 No. 1, March 1928, p. 47
- ↑ The Sphinx, Vol. 27 No. 12, February 1929, p. 589
- ↑ David R. Goodsell, Finding Dariel Fitzkee: The Man with the Trick Brain, 2008, p. 87
- ↑ The Linking Ring, Vol. 10 No. 12, February 1931, pp. 1552-54