Great Illusionists

Dawes work is the most successful and interesting meld of history of stage magic and history of science, medicine and technology I have yet found. This book is packed with leads to interesting research projects focusing on the relationship between entertainment and science. Highlights include: Ch 5, Dawes examples demonstrate that the relationship between quackery, entertainment and "legitimate" medicine is not the straightforward set of compartmentalized disciplines that both historians of the sciences and historians of popular culture and entertainment have presumed; Ch 6, Dawes research clearly shows how not only was magic influenced by Science, Technology and Medicine (STM), but STM was influenced by magic performance, as exemplified in the case of the adoption of inhalation anesthetic; Ch 7 Dawes here focuses on the relationships between technology, optics and entertainment that contributed to motion picture development. There is also mention of magicians and science education which provides and interesting connection between the traditionally disparate areas of science and entertainment.This book ranks in my top 10 all time favorites.