Carl Ballantine
Encyclopedia
Carl Ballantine was an American
magician
, comedian
and actor
. Billing himself as "The Great Ballantine", "The Amazing Ballantine" or "Ballantine: The World's Greatest Magician", his vaudeville
-style comedy routine involved transparent or incompetent stage magic tricks, which tended to flop and go "hilariously awry" to the wisecracking Ballantine's mock chagrin. He has been credited with creating comedy magic and has influenced both comics and magicians.
, Illinois
. Nicknamed the "Jipper," he was inspired at age 9 by his barber who would do magic tricks with thimbles while cutting his hair. His first job was working as a printer. In the 1930s, Kessler was doing professional straight magic as "Count Marakoff" and "Carl Sharp" in Chicago, helping support his family, and later moved to New York City
, where he performed in night clubs and on television variety shows. In the early 1940s, he gave up "real magic" when he realized he could not be as good as some of his peers. According to his daughter, “one night, one of his tricks got screwed up, he said something to cover, and the audience laughed. So he started adding more.”
He switched to comedy magic and changed his name to "Carl Ballantine", after he noticed a bottle of Ballantine whisky
in an advertisement and decided it sounded "show-businessy and classy", and called the magic act "Ballantine, the World's Greatest Magician". He was billed as "The Amazing Mr. Ballantine" when he played the New York Capitol in 1950, and "The Great Ballantine" in The Ed Sullivan Show
and The Steve Allen Show
on television in the 1950s and 1960s. He was the first magician to play Las Vegas, appearing on a bill with Harry James
, Betty Grable
and Sammy Davis Jr. at El Rancho Vegas
in 1956.
Ballantine's first marriage ended in divorce. In 1955 he married actress Ceil Cabot (March 8, 1927 - January 24, 2000), with whom he was married until her death in 2000. Their two daughters, Saratoga Ballantine, who is an actress, and Molly Caliente Ballantine, an advertising sales executive, are both named after racetracks. Ballantine was known as an inveterate horse player and smoker of Cuban cigars. He died on November 3, 2009 at age 92 at his home in Hollywood, California.
Ballantine was cast in several movies, including Billy Crystal’s directorial debut, Mr. Saturday Night and in numerous television series, including the ABC
sitcom McHale's Navy
(1962–1966), in which he played Lester Gruber, one of the PT boat
sailors, starring with Ernest Borgnine
, Joe Flynn
and Tim Conway
. In 1973 he appeared as Dr. Hankim in The Girl Most Likely to...
. His last feature film appearance was in Aimee Semple McPherson
, a 2006 biopic about the female evangelist.
Ballantine made his only appearance on Broadway
as Lycus the slave merchant in the 1972 revival of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
starring Phil Silvers
.
' (AMA) Special Fellowship in 1973, Performing Fellowship in 1984, and the "Louie" Award from Tannen's Magic in 1985. In 2007, he received the 2006 Lifetime Achievement Fellowship from the Academy of Magical Arts. The award was presented by Steve Martin
, who calls Ballantine "the king of bungling magicians" in his memoir Born Standing Up
, and said in an interview: "Carl Ballantine influenced not only myself but a generation of magicians and comedians. His was also the most copied act by a host of amateurs and professionals." According to David Copperfield
, "Carl Ballantine created comedy magic. The combination of magic and comedy had perhaps been done before, but he truly defined it and made it his own."
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
magician
Magic (illusion)
Magic is a performing art that entertains audiences by staging tricks or creating illusions of seemingly impossible or supernatural feats using natural means...
, comedian
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
and actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
. Billing himself as "The Great Ballantine", "The Amazing Ballantine" or "Ballantine: The World's Greatest Magician", his vaudeville
Vaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
-style comedy routine involved transparent or incompetent stage magic tricks, which tended to flop and go "hilariously awry" to the wisecracking Ballantine's mock chagrin. He has been credited with creating comedy magic and has influenced both comics and magicians.
Life and career
Kessler was born in ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
. Nicknamed the "Jipper," he was inspired at age 9 by his barber who would do magic tricks with thimbles while cutting his hair. His first job was working as a printer. In the 1930s, Kessler was doing professional straight magic as "Count Marakoff" and "Carl Sharp" in Chicago, helping support his family, and later moved to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, where he performed in night clubs and on television variety shows. In the early 1940s, he gave up "real magic" when he realized he could not be as good as some of his peers. According to his daughter, “one night, one of his tricks got screwed up, he said something to cover, and the audience laughed. So he started adding more.”
He switched to comedy magic and changed his name to "Carl Ballantine", after he noticed a bottle of Ballantine whisky
Ballantine's
Ballantine's is a range of blended scotch whiskies distilled by George Ballantine & Son Ltd in Dumbarton, Scotland.The Ballantine's flavour is dependent on 50 single malts, four single grains and in particular the fingerprint malts from Miltonduff and Glenburgie...
in an advertisement and decided it sounded "show-businessy and classy", and called the magic act "Ballantine, the World's Greatest Magician". He was billed as "The Amazing Mr. Ballantine" when he played the New York Capitol in 1950, and "The Great Ballantine" in The Ed Sullivan Show
The Ed Sullivan Show
The Ed Sullivan Show is an American TV variety show that originally ran on CBS from Sunday June 20, 1948 to Sunday June 6, 1971, and was hosted by New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan....
and The Steve Allen Show
The Steve Allen Show
The Steve Allen Show is an American variety show hosted by Steve Allen from June 1956 to June 1960 on NBC, from September 1961 to December 1961 on ABC, and in first-run syndication from 1962 to 1964....
on television in the 1950s and 1960s. He was the first magician to play Las Vegas, appearing on a bill with Harry James
Harry James
Henry Haag “Harry” James was a trumpeter who led a jazz swing band during the Big Band Era of the 1930s and 1940s. He was especially known among musicians for his astonishing technical proficiency as well as his superior tone.-Biography:He was born in Albany, Georgia, the son of a bandleader of a...
, Betty Grable
Betty Grable
Elizabeth Ruth "Betty" Grable was an American actress, dancer and singer.Her iconic bathing suit photo made her the number-one pin-up girl of the World War II era. It was later included in the LIFE magazine project "100 Photos that Changed the World"...
and Sammy Davis Jr. at El Rancho Vegas
El Rancho Vegas
El Rancho Vegas was a hotel and casino on the Las Vegas Strip . It was located at 2500 Las Vegas Boulevard, at the southwest corner of Las Vegas Boulevard and Sahara, and opened on April 3, 1941. Up until 1942, it was the largest hotel in Las Vegas with 110 rooms. The hotel was destroyed by fire in...
in 1956.
Ballantine's first marriage ended in divorce. In 1955 he married actress Ceil Cabot (March 8, 1927 - January 24, 2000), with whom he was married until her death in 2000. Their two daughters, Saratoga Ballantine, who is an actress, and Molly Caliente Ballantine, an advertising sales executive, are both named after racetracks. Ballantine was known as an inveterate horse player and smoker of Cuban cigars. He died on November 3, 2009 at age 92 at his home in Hollywood, California.
Ballantine was cast in several movies, including Billy Crystal’s directorial debut, Mr. Saturday Night and in numerous television series, including the ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
sitcom McHale's Navy
McHale's Navy
McHale's Navy is an American television sitcom series which ran for 138 half-hour episodes from October 11,1962, to August 31, 1966, on the ABC network. The series was filmed in black and white and originated in a one-hour drama called Seven Against the Sea, broadcast on April 3, 1962...
(1962–1966), in which he played Lester Gruber, one of the PT boat
PT boat
PT Boats were a variety of motor torpedo boat , a small, fast vessel used by the United States Navy in World War II to attack larger surface ships. The PT boat squadrons were nicknamed "the mosquito fleet". The Japanese called them "Devil Boats".The original pre–World War I torpedo boats were...
sailors, starring with Ernest Borgnine
Ernest Borgnine
Ernest Borgnine is an American actor of television and film. His career has spanned more than six decades. He was an unconventional lead in many films of the 1950s, including his Academy Award-winning turn in the 1955 film Marty...
, Joe Flynn
Joe Flynn (US actor)
Joseph A. Flynn was an American character actor. He was best known for his role in the 1960s ABC television situation comedy, McHale's Navy. He was also a frequent guest star on 1960s TV shows such as Batman and appeared in several Walt Disney film comedies...
and Tim Conway
Tim Conway
Thomas Daniel "Tim" Conway is an American comedian and actor, primarily known for his roles in sitcoms, films and television. Conway is best known for his role as the inept second-in-command officer, Ensign Charles Parker, to Lt...
. In 1973 he appeared as Dr. Hankim in The Girl Most Likely to...
The Girl Most Likely to...
The Girl Most Likely to... is a black comedy with slight psychological thriller elements written by Joan Rivers and starring Stockard Channing and Edward Asner. The film was released on November 6, 1973 as a made-for-television movie broadcast on the ABC Movie of the Week...
. His last feature film appearance was in Aimee Semple McPherson
Aimee Semple McPherson (film)
Aimee Semple McPherson is a feature length dramatic biopic about evangelist "Sister" Aimee Semple McPherson.The cast includes Mimi Michaels, Rance Howard, and Kiera Chaplin. Richard Rossi wrote, directed and also acted in the film. Rossi shot the film with a $300 consumer camcorder...
, a 2006 biopic about the female evangelist.
Ballantine made his only appearance on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
as Lycus the slave merchant in the 1972 revival of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart....
starring Phil Silvers
Phil Silvers
Phil Silvers was an American entertainer and comedy actor, known as "The King of Chutzpah." He is best known for starring in The Phil Silvers Show, a 1950s sitcom set on a U.S...
.
Awards and honors
He won the Academy of Magical ArtsAcademy of Magical Arts
The Academy of Magical Arts is a California non profit mutual benefit corporation organized and devoted to the promotion and development of the art of magic.Although begun in 1952 as a loose association of magicians by William Larsen, Sr...
' (AMA) Special Fellowship in 1973, Performing Fellowship in 1984, and the "Louie" Award from Tannen's Magic in 1985. In 2007, he received the 2006 Lifetime Achievement Fellowship from the Academy of Magical Arts. The award was presented by Steve Martin
Steve Martin
Stephen Glenn "Steve" Martin is an American actor, comedian, writer, playwright, producer, musician and composer....
, who calls Ballantine "the king of bungling magicians" in his memoir Born Standing Up
Born Standing Up
Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life is a memoir, released November 20, 2007, by Steve Martin, an American author, actor, comedian, executive producer, playwright and screenwriter...
, and said in an interview: "Carl Ballantine influenced not only myself but a generation of magicians and comedians. His was also the most copied act by a host of amateurs and professionals." According to David Copperfield
David Copperfield (illusionist)
David Copperfield is an Emmy Award-winning American illusionist, and was described by Forbes as the most commercially successful magician in history. Copperfield's network specials have been nominated for 38 Emmy Awards and won a total of 21 Emmys...
, "Carl Ballantine created comedy magic. The combination of magic and comedy had perhaps been done before, but he truly defined it and made it his own."
External links
17- Carl Ballantine. Magician's Hall of Fame. MagicWebChannel
- " Masters of Illusion: Jewish Magicians of the Golden Age". Exhibition at Skirball Cultural CenterSkirball Cultural CenterThe Skirball Cultural Center is an educational institution in Los Angeles, California devoted to sustaining Jewish heritage and American democratic ideals. Open to the public since 1996, the Skirball Cultural Center is dedicated to exploring the connections between 4,000 years of Jewish heritage...
April 28–September 4, 2011, Press release