Ricky Jay, Gifted Magician, Actor and Author, Is Dead at 72
He was not on the list.
.webp)
NEW YORK (AP) — Ricky Jay, a magician, historian of oddball entertainers and actor who appeared in “Boogie Nights” and other films, has died. He was 72.
Jay died of natural causes at his home in Los Angeles, according to his manager Winston Simone. Jay died Saturday.
Jay appeared in several films and television series, including as a cameraman in “Boogie Nights"; in “Magnolia” and “Tomorrow Never Dies"; and in HBO’s “Deadwood.” He consulted on “Ocean’s Thirteen” and “Forrest Gump” and collected rare books on unusual entertainers and performers dating back hundreds of years.
His one-man shows played to packed audiences, where his sleight-of-hand artistry impressed even fellow magicians. In one famous trick, he would pierce a watermelon with a card flung through the air.
He also wrote several books on games, magic and magicians, including “Dice: Deception, Fate and Rotten Luck.”
Jay was fond of stories of oddball characters, gamblers and con men in history, and wrote a book celebrating the artistry of Matthias Buchinger, an 18th-century German magician born without legs and hands.
Buchinger artifacts collected by Jay were featured in a 2015 exhibit at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art.
“The breadth of his knowledge and appreciation for magic and the allied arts was truly remarkable,” fellow actor and magician Neil Patrick Harris tweeted. “Such sad news, such a profound loss.”
Jay frequently worked with the playwright David Mamet, who produced his one-man show “Ricky Jay & His 52 Assistants.” That sold out all its New York City performances and won an Obie Award for off-Broadway theater productions.
A later Mamet-produced off-Broadway show, “Ricky Jay: On the Stem,” played to packed houses for six months. The Associated Press called it a “whirlwind, rollicking journey through forgotten New York history — with specific attention paid to the oddball characters who thrived decades ago on Broadway.”
Jay also appeared in Mamet films such as “House of Games,” ’'State and Main” and “Heist.”
Ricky Jay contributed to several projects in the music world, most notably the 2007 Sony release Ricky Jay Plays Poker, a box set containing a CD of poker-related songs (by Bob Dylan, Robert Johnson, Townes Van Zandt, Patsy Cline, Lorne Greene, Howard Da Silva, O. V. Wright, and several others), a DVD featuring Ricky Jay discussing and performing notable feats of card table deception, and a box of Ricky Jay playing cards.
He performed "The Fiddler" with Richard Greene on Hal Willner's sea shanty-compilation Rogue's Gallery: Pirate Ballads, Sea Songs, and Chanteys (2006), as well as "The Chantey of Noah and his Ark (Old School Song)" on its follow-up Son of Rogues Gallery: Pirate Ballads, Sea Songs & Chanteys (2013).
He appeared in the music video for Bob Dylan's song "Tweedle Dee & Tweedle Dum", from the album Love and Theft. During the production of the video, a screwdriver reportedly fell from the rafters and lodged in Jay's hand.
He appeared in the video for the Jerry Garcia and David Grisman single "The Thrill Is Gone", available on the DVD of the Grateful Dawg documentary.
Jay first performed in public at the age of seven, in 1953, when he appeared on the television program Time for Pets. He is most likely the youngest magician to perform a full magic act on TV, the first magician to ever play comedy clubs, and probably the first magician to open for a rock and roll band. At New York's Electric Circus in the 1960s, he performed on a bill between Ike and Tina Turner and Timothy Leary, who lectured about LSD.
During the 1960s and 70s, Jay lived in Ithaca, New York, performing while also intermittently attending the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration, but later moved to the Los Angeles area.
He quickly developed a following among magic aficionados, and a reputation for sleight-of-hand feats that baffled even his colleagues. In his 1993 New Yorker profile of Jay, Mark Singer related the following story from playwright David Mamet and theater director Gregory Mosher:
Some years ago, late one night in the bar of the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Chicago, [Jay] was performing magic with a deck of cards. Also present was a friend of Mamet and Mosher's named Christ Nogulich, the director of food and beverage at the hotel. After twenty minutes of disbelief-suspending manipulations, Jay spread the deck face up on the bar counter and asked Nogulich to concentrate on a specific card but not to reveal it. Jay then assembled the deck face down, shuffled, cut it into two piles, and asked Nogulich to point to one of the piles and name his card. "Three of clubs," Nogulich said, and he was then instructed to turn over the top card. He turned over the three of clubs. Mosher, in what could be interpreted as a passive-aggressive act, quietly announced, "Ricky, you know, I also concentrated on a card." After an interval of silence, Jay said, "That's interesting, Gregory, but I only do this for one person at a time." Mosher persisted: "Well, Ricky, I really was thinking of a card." Jay paused, frowned, stared at Mosher, and said, "This is a distinct change of procedure." A longer pause. "All right—what was the card?" "Two of spades." Jay nodded, and gestured toward the other pile, and Mosher turned over its top card. The deuce of spades. A small riot ensued.
Three of Jay's one-man shows, Ricky Jay and His 52 Assistants, Ricky Jay: On the Stem, and Ricky Jay: A Rogue's Gallery, were directed by Mamet, who also cast Jay in a number of his films.
A collector and historian, Jay was a student and friend of Dai Vernon, whom he called "the greatest living contributor to the magical art." He collected rare books and manuscripts, art, and other artifacts connected to the history of magic, gambling, unusual entertainments, and frauds and confidence games. Jay opposed any public revelations of the techniques of magic.
Jay was formerly listed in the Guinness World Records for throwing a playing card 190 ft at 90 miles per hour (140 km/h) (the current record is 216 feet (66 m) by Rick Smith Jr.). He could throw a playing card into a watermelon rind (which he referred to as the "thick, pachydermatous outer melon layer" and "the most prodigious of household fruits") from ten paces. In addition, he was able to throw a card into the air like a boomerang and cut it cleanly in half with a pair of "giant scissors" upon its return. In his shows, he often attacked plastic animals with thrown cards in "self defense".
Survivors include Jay’s wife, Chrisann Verges.
Writer
The Unit (2006)
The Unit
8.1
TV Series
story
2007
1 episode
Ricky Jay Plays Poker (2007)
Ricky Jay Plays Poker
7.3
Video
Writer
2007
Powers Boothe, Keith Carradine, Ian McShane, Timothy Olyphant, and Molly Parker in Deadwood (2004)
Deadwood
8.6
TV Series
written by
2004
1 episode
Ricky Jay and His 52 Assistants (1996)
Ricky Jay and His 52 Assistants
8.5
TV Movie
Writer
1996
The Secret Cabaret (1990)
The Secret Cabaret
8.3
TV Series
Writer
1990–1992
12 episodes
Learned Pigs and Fireproof Women (1990)
Learned Pigs and Fireproof Women
6.8
TV Special
Writer
1990
Actor
Giovanni Ribisi in Sneaky Pete (2015)
Sneaky Pete
8.0
TV Series
T.H. Vignetti
2019
8 episodes
Joseph Cross and Adelaide Clemens in The Automatic Hate (2015)
The Automatic Hate
6.2
Josh
Howard's son
2015
Laurie Metcalf and Niecy Nash in Getting On (2013)
Getting On
7.8
TV Series
Thoracic Surgeon
2014
1 episode
Tara Strong, Scott Menville, Hynden Walch, Greg Cipes, and Khary Payton in Teen Titans Go! (2013)
Teen Titans Go!
5.7
TV Series
Narrator (voice)
2013
1 episode
The End of 'Sluggers'
Short
2011
Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Dan Castellaneta, and Yeardley Smith in The Simpsons (1989)
The Simpsons
8.7
TV Series
Ricky Jay (voice)
2011
1 episode
Lost Masterpieces of Pornography (2010)
Lost Masterpieces of Pornography
5.7
Video
Narrator
2010
Panorama, VIP Harbor Seafood Restaurant, Los Angeles
Short
2010
Joseph Fiennes, Courtney B. Vance, John Cho, and Zachary Knighton in Flashforward (2009)
Flashforward
7.6
TV Series
Ted Flosso
Man in Warehouse
2009–2010
3 episodes
Tim Roth in Lie to Me (2009)
Lie to Me
8.0
TV Series
Mason Brock
2009
1 episode
Intense
John
2009
The Unit (2006)
The Unit
8.1
TV Series
Agent Kern
2007–2009
4 episodes
Rachel Weisz, Adrien Brody, Rinko Kikuchi, and Mark Ruffalo in The Brothers Bloom (2008)
The Brothers Bloom
6.7
Narrator (voice)
2008
Chiwetel Ejiofor in Redbelt (2008)
Redbelt
6.7
Marty Brown
2008
Tom Hanks, John Malkovich, Griffin Dunne, Steve Zahn, Colin Hanks, Ricky Jay, and Emily Blunt in The Great Buck Howard (2008)
The Great Buck Howard
6.4
Gil Bellamy
2008
Timothy Hutton, Dana Delany, Delroy Lindo, Jeremy Sisto, Mykelti Williamson, and Will Denton in Kidnapped (2006)
Kidnapped
7.6
TV Series
Roger Prince
2006–2007
4 episodes
Christian Bale, Hugh Jackman, and Scarlett Johansson in The Prestige (2006)
The Prestige
8.5
Milton
2006
Last Days (2005)
Last Days
5.7
Detective
2005
Powers Boothe, Keith Carradine, Ian McShane, Timothy Olyphant, and Molly Parker in Deadwood (2004)
Deadwood
8.6
TV Series
Eddie Sawyer
2004
10 episodes
Incident at Loch Ness (2004)
Incident at Loch Ness
6.4
Party Guest
2004
Danny DeVito, Gene Hackman, Delroy Lindo, and Rebecca Pidgeon in Heist (2001)
Heist
6.5
Don 'Pinky' Pincus
2001
Sigourney Weaver, Gene Hackman, and Jennifer Love Hewitt in Heartbreakers (2001)
Heartbreakers
6.2
Dawson's Auctioneer
2001
State and Main (2000)
State and Main
6.7
Jack
2000
Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny in The X-Files (1993)
The X-Files
8.6
TV Series
The Amazing Maleeni
Herman Pinchbeck
Albert Pinchbeck
2000
1 episode
Philip Seymour Hoffman, William H. Macy, Philip Baker Hall, Jason Robards, and Jeremy Blackman in Magnolia (1999)
Magnolia
8.0
Burt Ramsey
Narrator
1999
Hank Azaria, Janeane Garofalo, William H. Macy, Paul Reubens, Ben Stiller, Kel Mitchell, and Wes Studi in Mystery Men (1999)
Mystery Men
6.1
Vic Weems
1999
Pierce Brosnan, Teri Hatcher, Jonathan Pryce, Michelle Yeoh, Judi Dench, Desmond Llewelyn, and Cecilie Thomsen in Tomorrow Never Dies (1997)
Tomorrow Never Dies
6.5
Henry Gupta
1997
Hacks (1997)
Hacks
4.7
The Hat
1997
Julianne Moore, Burt Reynolds, and Heather Graham in Boogie Nights (1997)
Boogie Nights
7.9
Kurt Longjohn
1997
Campbell Scott in The Spanish Prisoner (1997)
The Spanish Prisoner
7.2
George Lang
1997
The Ranger, the Cook and a Hole in the Sky (1995)
The Ranger, the Cook and a Hole in the Sky
6.4
TV Movie
Hawkes
1995
Magiskt (1993)
Magiskt
TV Series
Magic film clip
1993
3 episodes
The Ring of the Musketeers
TV Series
Kerns
1992
1 episode
David Hasselhoff, Cheech Marin, Alison Doody, and Thomas Gottschalk in Ring of the Musketeers (1992)
Ring of the Musketeers
3.5
TV Movie
Kerns (as Rickey Jay)
1992
The Water Engine (1992)
The Water Engine
6.6
TV Movie
Ratty Inventor
1992
Civil Wars (1991)
Civil Wars
6.8
TV Series
Lenny NiCastro
1991
1 episode
The Thrill Is Gone (1991)
The Thrill Is Gone
TV Movie
Dealer
1991
Joe Mantegna in Homicide (1991)
Homicide
6.9
Aaron
1991
Don Ameche and Joe Mantegna in Things Change (1988)
Things Change
7.0
Mr. Silver
1988
Lindsay Crouse and Joe Mantegna in House of Games (1987)
House of Games
7.2
George (Vegas Man)
1987
Gerald McRaney and Jameson Parker in Simon & Simon (1981)
Simon & Simon
7.0
TV Series
Bird
1983
1 episode
A Midsummer Night's Dream (1982)
A Midsummer Night's Dream
7.8
TV Movie
Philostrate
1982
Music Department
A Midsummer Night's Dream (1982)
A Midsummer Night's Dream
7.8
TV Movie
music effects
1982
Additional Crew
Tom Hanks, John Malkovich, Griffin Dunne, Steve Zahn, Colin Hanks, Ricky Jay, and Emily Blunt in The Great Buck Howard (2008)
The Great Buck Howard
6.4
technical consultant: magic
2008
Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Don Cheadle, Matt Damon, Andy Garcia, Casey Affleck, Elliott Gould, Scott Caan, Bernie Mac, Carl Reiner, Eddie Jemison, and Shaobo Qin in Ocean's Thirteen (2007)
Ocean's Thirteen
6.9
consultant
2007
Christian Bale, Hugh Jackman, and Scarlett Johansson in The Prestige (2006)
The Prestige
8.5
technical advisor: magic
2006
Edward Norton, Jessica Biel, and Paul Giamatti in The Illusionist (2006)
The Illusionist
7.5
technical advisor: magic
2006
Hilary Swank in The Affair of the Necklace (2001)
The Affair of the Necklace
6.0
technical consultant
2001
Danny DeVito, Gene Hackman, Delroy Lindo, and Rebecca Pidgeon in Heist (2001)
Heist
6.5
technical consultant
2001
Sigourney Weaver, Gene Hackman, and Jennifer Love Hewitt in Heartbreakers (2001)
Heartbreakers
6.2
technical consultant: con games
2001
Dennis Quaid, Natasha Richardson, and Lindsay Lohan in The Parent Trap (1998)
The Parent Trap
6.7
technical consultant
1998
Campbell Scott in The Spanish Prisoner (1997)
The Spanish Prisoner
7.2
technical consultant
1997
Congo (1995)
Congo
5.3
illusion creator
technical consultant
1995
Tom Hanks in Forrest Gump (1994)
Forrest Gump
8.8
illusion wheelchair designer
1994
Jack Nicholson and Michelle Pfeiffer in Wolf (1994)
Wolf
6.3
technical consultant
1994
Julia Roberts and Nick Nolte in I Love Trouble (1994)
I Love Trouble
5.3
technical consultant
1994
Leap of Faith (1992)
Leap of Faith
6.1
consultant: cons and frauds
1992
Dan Aykroyd, River Phoenix, Robert Redford, David Strathairn, Mary McDonnell, and Sidney Poitier in Sneakers (1992)
Sneakers
7.1
sleight of hand consultant
1992
The Magic Balloon (1990)
The Magic Balloon
7.3
Short
technical consultant
1990
Lindsay Crouse and Joe Mantegna in House of Games (1987)
House of Games
7.2
consultant: confidence games
1987
Martin Sheen, Helen Shaver, Malick Bowens, Harley Cross, Lee Richardson, Elizabeth Wilson, and Harris Yulin in The Believers (1987)
The Believers
6.1
technical consultant
1987
Robert Redford in The Natural (1984)
The Natural
7.4
technical consultant
1984
Gerrit Graham in New Magic (1983)
New Magic
6.5
Short
magic advisor
1983
Teri Garr, Raul Julia, Desi Arnaz, and Griffin O'Neal in The Escape Artist (1982)
The Escape Artist
6.1
technical advisor
1982
Thanks
Derek DelGaudio in Derek DelGaudio's In & Of Itself (2020)
Derek DelGaudio's In & Of Itself
8.2
special thanks
2020
Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Dan Castellaneta, and Yeardley Smith in The Simpsons (1989)
The Simpsons
8.7
TV Series
in loving memory of
2018
1 episode
Invent Nothing, Deny Nothing: Five Guys from Mamet's HOMICIDE
6.7
Video
special thanks
2009
That Moment: Magnolia Diary (2000)
That Moment: Magnolia Diary
7.6
Video
thanks
2000
Self
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon (2014)
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon
7.1
TV Series
Self
2014
1 episode
House of Games 25th Anniversary Q&A
Video
Self
2013
Breathe Life Radio TV
TV Series
2013
David Letterman, Regis Philbin, Barbara Gaines, Biff Henderson, Alan Kalter, and Paul Shaffer in Late Show with David Letterman (1993)
Late Show with David Letterman
7.0
TV Series
Self - Guest
1994–2013
2 episodes
Ricky Jay in Deceptive Practice: The Mysteries and Mentors of Ricky Jay (2012)
Deceptive Practice: The Mysteries and Mentors of Ricky Jay
7.1
Self
2012
Moguls & Movie Stars: A History of Hollywood (2010)
Moguls & Movie Stars: A History of Hollywood
8.5
TV Mini Series
Self - Sleight-of-hand Entertainment Historian
2010
1 episode
60 Minutes (1968)
60 Minutes
7.4
TV Series
Self - Conmen Expert (segment "Pigeon Fever")
2010
1 episode
Invent Nothing, Deny Nothing: Five Guys from Mamet's HOMICIDE
6.7
Video
Self
2009
Gag Reel - Homicide
Video
Self (uncredited)
2009
D.L. Hughley in D.L. Hughley Breaks the News (2008)
D.L. Hughley Breaks the News
6.1
TV Series
Self
2009
1 episode
Redbelt: The Magic of Cyril Takayama (2008)
Redbelt: The Magic of Cyril Takayama
Video
Self
2008
Redbelt: Behind the Scenes
Video
Self
2008
The Kennedy Center Honors: A Celebration of the Performing Arts (1998)
The Kennedy Center Honors: A Celebration of the Performing Arts
6.7
TV Special
Self
2007
After Hours with Daniel Boulud (2006)
After Hours with Daniel Boulud
7.9
TV Series
Self
2007
1 episode
David Mamet on 'House of Games'
6.2
Video
Self
2007
Ricky Jay Plays Poker (2007)
Ricky Jay Plays Poker
7.3
Video
Self
2007
Gus Van Sant and Michael Pitt in Making of Last Days (2005)
Making of Last Days
5.2
Video
Self
2005
Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman in MythBusters (2003)
MythBusters
8.3
TV Series
Self
2004
1 episode
Conan O'Brien in Late Night with Conan O'Brien (1993)
Late Night with Conan O'Brien
8.2
TV Series
Self - Guest
1998–2002
2 episodes
Jerry Garcia and David Grisman in Grateful Dawg (2000)
Grateful Dawg
7.2
Self
2000
That Moment: Magnolia Diary (2000)
That Moment: Magnolia Diary
7.6
Video
Self
2000
Maury Povich in Maury (1991)
Maury
4.0
TV Series
Self
1998
1 episode
Mysteries of Magic
TV Movie
Host
1997
Ricky Jay and His 52 Assistants (1996)
Ricky Jay and His 52 Assistants
8.5
TV Movie
Self
1996
Jay Leno in The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (1992)
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
5.3
TV Series
Self
1996
1 episode
Hustlers, Hoaxsters, Pranksters, Jokesters and Ricky Jay (1995)
Hustlers, Hoaxsters, Pranksters, Jokesters and Ricky Jay
7.6
TV Movie
Self
1995
The Secret Cabaret (1990)
The Secret Cabaret
8.3
TV Series
Self
1990–1992
12 episodes
David Letterman in Late Night with David Letterman (1982)
Late Night with David Letterman
7.5
TV Series
Self - Guest
1990
1 episode
Learned Pigs and Fireproof Women (1990)
Learned Pigs and Fireproof Women
6.8
TV Special
Self
1990
Na siehste (1987)
Na siehste
5.8
TV Series
Self
1989
1 episode
The Wil Shriner Show (1987)
The Wil Shriner Show
7.0
TV Series
Self
1987
2 episodes
Nightlife (1986)
Nightlife
5.6
TV Series
Self
1987
1 episode
The Paul Daniels Magic Show (1979)
The Paul Daniels Magic Show
7.4
TV Series
Self
1985
1 episode
The Main Attraction (1983)
The Main Attraction
TV Series
Self
1983
1 episode
Dinah Shore in Dinah! (1974)
Dinah!
7.1
TV Series
Self
1979
1 episode
Canada After Dark
TV Series
Self
1978
2 episodes
Starbuck in Rock Concert (1973)
Rock Concert
8.5
TV Series
Self
1978
2 episodes
90 Minutes Live
5.8
TV Series
Self
1977–1978
4 episodes
Jim Nabors in The Jim Nabors Show (1978)
The Jim Nabors Show
4.8
TV Series
Self - Guest
1978
1 episode
Mike Douglas in The Mike Douglas Show (1961)
The Mike Douglas Show
7.1
TV Series
Self - Magician
1972–1977
3 episodes
Saturday Night Live (1975)
Saturday Night Live
8.0
TV Series
Self
Patron
1977
1 episode
Michael Parkinson in Parkinson (1971)
Parkinson
7.3
TV Series
Self
1976
1 episode
Doug Henning's World of Magic (1976)
Doug Henning's World of Magic
7.7
TV Special
Self - Special Guest
1976
ABC Late Night (1973)
ABC Late Night
8.1
TV Series
Self
1973
1 episode
Johnny Carson in The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1962)
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
8.5
TV Series
Self
Self - Guest
1969–1970
2 episodes
Archive Footage
Billy Connolly in Billy Connolly Does... (2022)
Billy Connolly Does...
8.1
TV Series
Self (archive footage)
2023
1 episode
Money, Explained (2021)
Money, Explained
7.0
TV Mini Series
Self - Magician (archive footage)
2021
1 episode
TCM Remembers 2018 (2018)
TCM Remembers 2018
9.6
TV Special
Self
actor (archive footage)
2018
Diálogos de cine
TV Special
Kurt Longjohn (archive footage)
2008
Tomorrow Never Dies: Deleted and Extended Scenes Introduced by Director Roger Spottiswoode
7.0
Video
Henry Gupta (archive footage)
2006
James Bond: A BAFTA Tribute (2002)
James Bond: A BAFTA Tribute
6.7
TV Special
(archive footage)
2002
Tomorrow Never Dies: Storyboard Presentations
6.0
Video
Henry Gupta (archive footage)
2002
No comments:
Post a Comment