David Berglas
Encyclopedia
David Berglas is a psychological
illusionist and mentalist.
describes David Berglas as "One of our greatest living magical performers" and thanks him "-for his constant inspiration and generosity. Each show is indebted to his artistry and astonishing body of work. Thank you David".
In the 1970s Berglas invented what is sometimes referred to as the "Holy Grail" of Card Magic, known as "The Berglas Effect."
In 1999 he established a non-profit organization called the Foundation for Promoting the Art of Magic (FP-AM). In 2008 it was awarded to Uri Geller
,. and in 2009 to David Copperfield
.
and up to date, four other James Bond
movies.
series The Mind of David Berglas 1985/86, where he interviewed and entertained celebrity guests including Omar Sharif
, Christopher Lee
, Britt Ekland
, Peter Cook
and Max Bygraves
.
He has been honoured internationally by receiving top magic awards, including in 1980 the "Gold Plaque" in Sweden, in 1995 The Magic Circle's "Maskelyne Award", in 2005 the "Masters Fellowship" from the Academy of Magical Arts
, [Hollywood] and in 2008 the prestigious "Grolla" in Italy.
Also in 2008 he was bestowed the "Griffin Award" and named "Grand Master of Mystery" by PSYCRETS (The British Society of Mystery Entertainers).
On the 17th of January 2011, he was awarded the Lifetime Achievement in magic award from Joshua Jay and Andi Gladwin at the 2011 Session Convention in Gloucester.
He has written a substantial number of articles and lecture notes for the magical fraternity, including "The David Berglas File No.1" (1976) and the much sought-after tome, now out of print, The Mind and Magic of David Berglas - As Revealed to David Britland, 2002, Hahne Publications. This has become a collector's item and is selling for several times its original price.
2011 - He released a book with Richard Kauffman entitled "The Berglas Effects" - this is the book named after his famed "Any Card At Any Number" plot. The book has a foreword by Juan Tamariz, contains 3 DVDs and also includes a pair of 3D glasses.
, the world's leading supplier of professional magic sets. He is also uncle of South African artist Zapiro
.
Psychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
illusionist and mentalist.
Early Life
Berglas escaped from Nazi Germany and fled to Britain at the age of 12. He later joined US Army in WWII, as an intelligence officer, after lying about his age. He got interested in magic around 1947, when he met, and then was mentored by Ken Brooke.Career
In his 2009 Enigma show brochure, Derren BrownDerren Brown
Derren Victor Brown is a British illusionist, mentalist, painter, writer and sceptic. He is known for his appearances in television specials, stage productions and British television series such as Trick of the Mind and Trick or Treat...
describes David Berglas as "One of our greatest living magical performers" and thanks him "-for his constant inspiration and generosity. Each show is indebted to his artistry and astonishing body of work. Thank you David".
In the 1970s Berglas invented what is sometimes referred to as the "Holy Grail" of Card Magic, known as "The Berglas Effect."
In 1999 he established a non-profit organization called the Foundation for Promoting the Art of Magic (FP-AM). In 2008 it was awarded to Uri Geller
Uri Geller
Uri Geller is a self-proclaimed psychic known for his trademark television performances of spoon bending and other supposed psychic effects. Throughout the years, Geller has been accused of using simple conjuring tricks to achieve the effects of psychokinesis and telepathy...
,. and in 2009 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...
.
Films
He has acted as creative consultant on numerous major films including:- The 1967 version of Casino RoyaleCasino Royale (1967 film)Casino Royale is a 1967 comedy spy film originally produced by Columbia Pictures starring an ensemble cast of directors and actors. It is set as a satire of the James Bond film series and the spy genre, and is loosely based on Ian Fleming's first James Bond novel.The film stars David Niven as the...
, with Orson WellesOrson WellesGeorge Orson Welles , best known as Orson Welles, was an American film director, actor, theatre director, screenwriter, and producer, who worked extensively in film, theatre, television and radio...
, Peter SellersPeter SellersRichard Henry Sellers, CBE , known as Peter Sellers, was a British comedian and actor. Perhaps best known as Chief Inspector Clouseau in The Pink Panther film series, he is also notable for playing three different characters in Dr...
, David NivenDavid NivenJames David Graham Niven , known as David Niven, was a British actor and novelist, best known for his roles as Phileas Fogg in Around the World in 80 Days and Sir Charles Lytton, a.k.a. "the Phantom", in The Pink Panther...
and Woody AllenWoody AllenWoody Allen is an American screenwriter, director, actor, comedian, jazz musician, author, and playwright. Allen's films draw heavily on literature, sexuality, philosophy, psychology, Jewish identity, and the history of cinema...
.
- Tim BurtonTim BurtonTimothy William "Tim" Burton is an American film director, film producer, writer and artist. He is famous for dark, quirky-themed movies such as Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Ed Wood, Sleepy Hollow, Corpse Bride and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet...
's BatmanBatman (1989 film)Batman is a 1989 superhero film based on the DC Comics character of the same name, directed by Tim Burton. The film stars Michael Keaton in the title role, as well as Jack Nicholson, Kim Basinger, Robert Wuhl and Jack Palance...
with Jack NicholsonJack NicholsonJohn Joseph "Jack" Nicholson is an American actor, film director, producer and writer. He is renowned for his often dark portrayals of neurotic characters. Nicholson has been nominated for an Academy Award twelve times, and has won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice: for One Flew Over the...
in 1989
- George LucasGeorge LucasGeorge Walton Lucas, Jr. is an American film producer, screenwriter, and director, and entrepreneur. He is the founder, chairman and chief executive of Lucasfilm. He is best known as the creator of the space opera franchise Star Wars and the archaeologist-adventurer character Indiana Jones...
's WillowWillow (film)Willow is a 1988 American fantasy film directed by Ron Howard and produced/co-written by George Lucas. Warwick Davis stars in the film, as well as Val Kilmer, Joanne Whalley, Jean Marsh, and Patricia Hayes...
with Warwick DavisWarwick DavisWarwick Ashley Davis is an English actor. He is most notable for playing the title characters in Willow and the Leprechaun film series, as well as for his roles in Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi and the Harry Potter movies. Davis currently stars in the sitcom Life's Too Short, written...
- Stanley KubrickStanley KubrickStanley Kubrick was an American film director, writer, producer, and photographer who lived in England during most of the last four decades of his career...
's Barry Lyndon with Ryan O'NealRyan O'NealCharles Patrick Ryan O'Neal , better known as Ryan O'Neal, is an American actor best known for his appearances in the ABC nighttime soap opera Peyton Place and for his roles in such films as Paper Moon , Stanley Kubrick's Barry Lyndon , A Bridge Too Far , and Love Story , for which he received...
- Albert R. BroccoliAlbert R. BroccoliAlbert Romolo Broccoli, CBE , nicknamed "Cubby", was an American film producer, who made more than 40 motion pictures throughout his career, most of them in the United Kingdom, and often filmed at Pinewood Studios. Co-founder of Danjaq, LLC and EON Productions, Broccoli is most notable as the...
's Octopussy with Roger MooreRoger MooreSir Roger George Moore KBE , is an English actor, perhaps best known for portraying British secret agent James Bond in seven films from 1973 to 1985. He also portrayed Simon Templar in the long-running British television series The Saint.-Early life:Moore was born in Stockwell, London...
and up to date, four other James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
movies.
Television
He was one of the first magicians to appear on British television with his own show Meet David Berglas in 1954. Numerous other television series followed and were highly acclaimed in Holland, Sweden, Norway and Germany. In the 1970s he presented a one hour television special in Las Vegas. In the UK he caused a sensation with his Channel 4Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
series The Mind of David Berglas 1985/86, where he interviewed and entertained celebrity guests including Omar Sharif
Omar Sharif
Omar Sharif is an Egyptian actor who has starred in Hollywood films including Lawrence of Arabia, Doctor Zhivago and Funny Girl. He has been nominated for an Academy Award and has won two Golden Globe Awards.-Early life:...
, Christopher Lee
Christopher Lee
Sir Christopher Frank Carandini Lee, CBE, CStJ is an English actor and musician. Lee initially portrayed villains and became famous for his role as Count Dracula in a string of Hammer Horror films...
, Britt Ekland
Britt Ekland
Britt-Marie Ekland is a Swedish actress and singer, and a long time resident of the United Kingdom. She is best known for her roles as a Bond girl in The Man with the Golden Gun, and in the British cult horror film The Wicker Man, as well as her marriage to actor Peter Sellers, and her...
, Peter Cook
Peter Cook
Peter Edward Cook was an English satirist, writer and comedian. An extremely influential figure in modern British comedy, he is regarded as the leading light of the British satire boom of the 1960s. He has been described by Stephen Fry as "the funniest man who ever drew breath," although Cook's...
and Max Bygraves
Max Bygraves
Max Bygraves OBE is an English comedian, singer, actor and variety performer. He appeared on his own television shows, sometimes performing comedy sketches between songs...
.
Honours
- President of the International Brotherhood of Magicians (British Ring) 1976-1977.
- In 1979 he was voted "King Rat" of the Grand Order of Water RatsGrand Order of Water RatsThe Grand Order of Water Rats is an entertainment industry charity, and brotherhood, based in London. The Water Rats were founded in 1889 by comedian Joe Elvin. The first King Rat, as the head of the charity is termed, was music hall singer Harry Freeman. Comedian Dan Leno joined in 1890 and was...
, the world's leading show business charity organization.
- He is a past President of The Magic CircleThe Magic CircleThe Magic Circle is a British organisation, founded in London in 1905, dedicated to promoting and advancing the art of magic.- History :The Magic Circle was founded in 1905 after a meeting of 23 amateur and professional magicians at London's Pinoli's Restaurant...
(1989–1998)
- On Christmas Day 1991 he was surprised by Michael AspelMichael AspelMichael Terence Aspel, OBE is an English television presenter, known for his reserved demeanour and rich speaking voice. He has been a high-profile TV personality in the United Kingdom since the 1960s, presenting programmes such as Crackerjack, Aspel and Company, This is Your Life, Strange But...
when he became the subject of television's This Is Your LifeThis Is Your LifeThis Is Your Life is an American television documentary series broadcast on NBC, originally hosted by its producer, Ralph Edwards from 1952 to 1961. In the show, the host surprises a guest, and proceeds to take them through their life in front of an audience including friends and family.Edwards...
.
- The Magic CircleThe Magic CircleThe Magic Circle is a British organisation, founded in London in 1905, dedicated to promoting and advancing the art of magic.- History :The Magic Circle was founded in 1905 after a meeting of 23 amateur and professional magicians at London's Pinoli's Restaurant...
presented him with the coveted "Gold Medal" in the year 2000, which was only the sixth ever to be awarded since 1905.
He has been honoured internationally by receiving top magic awards, including in 1980 the "Gold Plaque" in Sweden, in 1995 The Magic Circle's "Maskelyne Award", in 2005 the "Masters Fellowship" from the Academy of Magical Arts
Academy 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...
, [Hollywood] and in 2008 the prestigious "Grolla" in Italy.
Also in 2008 he was bestowed the "Griffin Award" and named "Grand Master of Mystery" by PSYCRETS (The British Society of Mystery Entertainers).
On the 17th of January 2011, he was awarded the Lifetime Achievement in magic award from Joshua Jay and Andi Gladwin at the 2011 Session Convention in Gloucester.
Books
In 1967 he released his best-selling Dutch book David Berglas onthult...bijna alles (David Berglas reveals...nearly everything), published by H.J.W. Becht's Uitgeversmaatschappij N.V. and in 1988 A Question of Memory (with Guy Lyon Playfair), published by Jonathan Cape Ltd. (ISBN 0 224 025570).He has written a substantial number of articles and lecture notes for the magical fraternity, including "The David Berglas File No.1" (1976) and the much sought-after tome, now out of print, The Mind and Magic of David Berglas - As Revealed to David Britland, 2002, Hahne Publications. This has become a collector's item and is selling for several times its original price.
2011 - He released a book with Richard Kauffman entitled "The Berglas Effects" - this is the book named after his famed "Any Card At Any Number" plot. The book has a foreword by Juan Tamariz, contains 3 DVDs and also includes a pair of 3D glasses.
Fact
David Berglas is the father of Marvin Berglas of Marvin's MagicMarvin's Magic
Marvin's Magic is a producer and dealer of magic products in the United Kingdom.It was founded in 1987 by Marvin Berglas, son of David Berglas, and is the world's largest magic company....
, the world's leading supplier of professional magic sets. He is also uncle of South African artist Zapiro
Zapiro
Jonathan Shapiro, born 1958 in Cape Town, is a South African cartoonist, famous as Zapiro, whose work appears in numerous South African publications and has been exhibited internationally on many occasions...
.