Honoring Ken Klosterman
Yankee Gathering XIII was held November 11-13, 2010 at the DoubleTree Hotel in Westborough, Massachusetts, USA. The Yankee Gathering is is one of the premier magic collector conventions in the U.S. and the world. The three-day schedule of events included Lectures, Performers, Auction, Dealers, Exhibits, a Banquet, a Flea Market.
Also presented were historical magic performances by Scott & Britni Morley beautifully re-creating the act and personas of Harry & Bess Houdini, William V. Rauscher with an entertaining and informative presentation of magic effects from the past (ably assisted by Lisa Patire, Joe Patire, and Alan Wassilak), Leland Faulkner expertly presenting the nearly-lost vaudeville art of chapeaugraphy, and David Ben (assisted by Julie Eng) with a full stage show of conjuring wonders.
The Guest of Honor at this Yankee Gathering was Ken Klosterman of Loveland, Ohio, USA. One of the leading magic collectors in the world, his collection includes more than 8000 magic books and 4000 historical pieces of magic apparatus, including the Light & Heavy Chest used by Jean-Eugène Robert-
Houdin in 1856 to help quell the revolt of the Marabouts against the French in Algeria. Klosterman’s collection is beautifully displayed in his famous Salon de Magie, located in an old mine shaft on his 250-acre horse farm.
He has performed magic professionally both with a dove act and as “Ken & Judy” with his wife, Judy, as his assistant, in feature shows and TV spots locally and at conventions throughout the USA. He was president of the International Brotherhood of Magicians in 1995-1996. He is a Life Member of the Society of American Magicians. He has been a contributing author to The Yankee Magic Collector, he wrote the book Rising to Any Occasion (a magic forcing book), and he has written articles for the magic periodicals Magic-Gram, The Linking Ring, and Apocalypse. A distinguished member of the magic community for more than 50 years and a leading magic collector and historian, we were delighted to salute Ken Klosterman as our Guest of Honor at this Yankee Gathering.
At the Gathering, we were privileged to once again have a number of engaging and educational lectures from world-class experts in magic history and collecting. We give our deepest thanks to them for sharing their time and knowledge with us:
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William V. Rauscher, GOEBEL: The Man, The Magician, The Collector |
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Robert Albo, Small Cabinet of Wonders (a deeply moving farewell by Dr. Albo to his collection) |
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Chris Woodward, “Lucille”: A Child Prodigy |
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Vincent Golden, Hidden in Plain Sight: Magical Collections of the American Antiquarian Society |
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Charles Greene III, Giving New Life to Old Posters: Vintage Poster Restoration |
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Bill Spooner, In Search of Eugene Hellman |
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Tom Ewing, Sorcar — Maharaja of Magic |
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Dean Arnold, The Fays: Tragedy and Trials |
