Wolf Messing
Encyclopedia
Wolf Grigorevich Messing Méssing; 10 September 1899, Góra Kalwaria
( Ger), Poland
– 8 November 1974, Moscow
) was an alleged psychic
and telepathist
that eventually became a stage performer and entertainer, who performed on stage in the USSR, with psychological experiments like "mind reading" of the audience. Meritorious Artist
of the RSFSR (1971).
to the USSR before World War II. He claimed that his abilities came to the attention of Joseph Stalin
. According to Messing, he was able to broadcast mental suggestions in order to alter people's perceptions. In the interview to the P. Oreshkin, Messing said:
He died in hospital, on November 8, 1974. He had successful surgery on the femoral
and iliac
arteries, but for some unknown reason death occurred in a couple of days, after kidney failure and pulmonary edema
. He was buried at a "Vostryakovskoe" cemetery in Moscow.
's series of Max August novels, beginning with The Point Man in 1980, and continuing through The Long Man and The Plain Man.
Góra Kalwaria
Góra Kalwaria is a town on the Vistula River in the Mazovian Voivodship, Poland, about 25 km southeast of Warsaw. It has a population of about 11,000 . The town has significance for both Catholic Christians and Hasidic Jews...
( Ger), Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
– 8 November 1974, Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
) was an alleged psychic
Psychic
A psychic is a person who professes an ability to perceive information hidden from the normal senses through extrasensory perception , or is said by others to have such abilities. It is also used to describe theatrical performers who use techniques such as prestidigitation, cold reading, and hot...
and telepathist
Telepathy
Telepathy , is the induction of mental states from one mind to another. The term was coined in 1882 by the classical scholar Fredric W. H. Myers, a founder of the Society for Psychical Research, and has remained more popular than the more-correct expression thought-transference...
that eventually became a stage performer and entertainer, who performed on stage in the USSR, with psychological experiments like "mind reading" of the audience. Meritorious Artist
Meritorious Artist
Meritorious Artist , also translated as Merited Artist, Deserved Artist or Distinguished Artist or Honorary Artist or Honorable Actor) is an honorary title in the Soviet Union, Russian Federation, Union republics, and Autonomous republics, also in some other Eastern bloc states, as well as in a...
of the RSFSR (1971).
Biography
Born to a Jewish family, Messing fled from GermanyGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
to the USSR before World War II. He claimed that his abilities came to the attention of Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
. According to Messing, he was able to broadcast mental suggestions in order to alter people's perceptions. In the interview to the P. Oreshkin, Messing said:
He died in hospital, on November 8, 1974. He had successful surgery on the femoral
Femoral artery
The femoral artery is a general term comprising a few large arteries in the thigh. They begin at the inguinal ligament and end just above the knee at adductor canal or Hunter's canal traversing the extent of the femur bone....
and iliac
External iliac artery
The external iliac arteries are two major arteries which bifurcate off the common iliac arteries anterior to the sacroiliac joint of the pelvis. They proceed anterior and inferior along the medial border of the psoas major muscles...
arteries, but for some unknown reason death occurred in a couple of days, after kidney failure and pulmonary edema
Pulmonary edema
Pulmonary edema , or oedema , is fluid accumulation in the air spaces and parenchyma of the lungs. It leads to impaired gas exchange and may cause respiratory failure...
. He was buried at a "Vostryakovskoe" cemetery in Moscow.
Appearances in fiction
Wolf Messing is a major character in Steve EnglehartSteve Englehart
Steve Englehart is an American novelist. In his earlier career he was a comic book writer best known for his work at Marvel Comics and DC Comics, particularly in the 1970s...
's series of Max August novels, beginning with The Point Man in 1980, and continuing through The Long Man and The Plain Man.
Further reading
- Topsy Küppers: Wolf Messing – Hellseher und Magier. Langen/Müller, München 2002. ISBN 3784428800
- Nagel, Alexandra: Een mysterieuze ontmoeting…: Sai Baba en mentalist Wolf Messing/A mysterious meeting...: Sai Baba and mentalist Wolf Messing, published in Tijdschrift voor Parapsychologie/Journal for parapsychology 368, vol. 72 nr 4, Dec. 2005, pp. 14–17
See also
- TelepathyTelepathyTelepathy , is the induction of mental states from one mind to another. The term was coined in 1882 by the classical scholar Fredric W. H. Myers, a founder of the Society for Psychical Research, and has remained more popular than the more-correct expression thought-transference...