Ricky Jay Magic Quotations

Dai Vernon, the greatest sleight of hand figure in the history of the art, rarely performed. But he invented magic and had an enormous influence on the whole range of sleight of hand. And so often, the magic he was doing was to fool other magicians.

I love amazing people. I love dazzling them. That's why I think performing magic is one of the greatest things a person can do.

I grew up like Athena—covered with playing cards instead of armor—and, at the age of seven, materialized on a TV show, doing magic.

Not only do I lie, I take real pleasure in lying, in the transmission of magic effects.

For me, the most exciting thing is to create good magic that's entertaining for an audience, and it would be lovely if a magician was fooled as well.

The pain is bad magicians ripping off good ones, doing magic badly, and making a mockery of the art.

I was considered a comedy magician. And - how do I put this without sounding egotistical? - it didn't take me long to realize that comedy magicians usually couldn't do comedy or magic.

Magicians from the nineteenth century threw cards distances, but I think I'm the first one who made a thing about using them as weapons.

To obfuscate the reconstruction of the effect - when a magician is fooled by another magician doing magic. In my career that's not been the major passion, but it's been the passion of a number of my mentors. The crowning achievement for them would be to create magic good enough to fool other magicians.