Sad news. The Magic Compass reports that friend and legendary escape artist Norman Bigelow passed away on Sunday after a long fight with leukemia. According to his wife Janet, he was comfortable, without pain and home where he wanted to be.Norman Bigelow was a leading and innovative escape artist. He was born August 12th 1944, and as a teenager apprenticed with The Great Reno. He went on to develop his own spectacular original escapes, such as his famous and frightening Doors of Death (right).
Norm was also a passionate Houdini scholar who was never afraid to take on the more controversial aspects of the great magician's legacy. In 1983 he self-published Death Blow, which introduced many to the Houdini murder theory. In recent years he wrote a follow-up, The Original Houdini Murder Theory, along with new offerings, Houdini's Final Message To The World and Mind Reading.
A sad loss to the world of escapology and Houdini scholarship.
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Very sad news.
ReplyDeleteAn original thinker.
Not afraid to think outside the box.
We will miss the conversations and emails back and forth with this amazing man.
He went places other feared to go or could not imagine.
We will find a way to pay tribute to this escape icon.
Dorothy Dietrich and Dick Brookz
Please contact me at your soonest convenience.
DeleteLet me introduce myself my name is Theophile E. Lapre,
Ted.
I am a man who likes to do picking I have found some items belonging to a long time great, Norman George Bigelow. International Brotherhood of magicians card multiple different sets of cuffs small pit kit wand and many other items these all belong to him his case that he carried some of these things in you are on the side of the road in a pile of Steel be thrown out with a sign it said free I gather these things as fast as I could I just open the box today to find the card and the Brotherhood. I'm looking for someone who cherish these things for the rest of their time and possibly pass on so one of America's great Illusionist escape artist to be honored the proper ways if you are people who would do such please contact me these items are not free are these items should be cherished my phone number is 603)523-7493
I have found many of Norman's items including his International Brotherhood of magicians multiple handcuffs his head gear from underwater Escape please contact me at 603)523-7493 ask for Ted
DeleteQuite a shame. When Houdini died it made headlines worldwide. Norm passes and I can hardly find a mention anywhere aside from a few magic websites.
ReplyDeleteNorm never quite made it to Houdini's level of worldwide fame, and 99.9% of us never will. When David De-Val passed away, it didn't make headlines either. World fame goes beyond being an escape artist; you have to be an entity, a force that captures the imagination of the public. May he R.I.P.
ReplyDeleteIt's called charisma.....Houdini had it.... All other who tried to emulate him as an escape artist did not.
ReplyDelete