Doug Henning 1976.

Born Douglas James Henning

May 3, 1947
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Died February 7, 2000 (aged 52)
Los Angeles, U.S.
Occupation Magician, illusionist, escape artist,
politician
Spouse(s) Barbara De Angelis
Debby Douillard
Douglas James Henning (May 3, 1947 – February 7, 2000) was a Canadian
magician, illusionist, escape artist and politician.

Contents

1 Early life
2 Career
2.1 The World of Magic specials
2.2 Other television appearances
3 Transcendental Meditation
4 Personal life
5 Death and legacy
6 Notes
7 References
Early life
Henning was born in the Fort Garry district of Winnipeg, Manitoba, and
began practicing magic at Oakenwald School in Fort Garry, later moving to
Oakville, Ontario.
His first experience in magic occurred when he was six years old, watching a
magician on television. He asked his mother, "... what made the woman
float in the air?" "Magic," his mother said. He went on to say that he still
remembered that feeling and wanted to re-create that same emotion he
felt.
He performed his first show at the age of 14 at the birthday party of a friend
and was inspired by his audience's spellbound reaction. Within a few
months of placing an ad in a local newspaper, Henning launched a series of
performances on local television in Toronto and as an entertainer at parties.
After Henning graduated from Oakville Trafalgar High School, he stopped
doing magic, not wanting to do it for a living. He felt that there were only
two kinds of magicians, "... magicians for kids, and magicians for nightclub
acts. I didn't want to be either kind."
So, instead, he enrolled and became a student at McMaster University in
Hamilton, Ontario, and studied psychology, in preparation for a medical
degree. It was there that Henning met Ivan Reitman, when he appeared in
the 1968 Reitman-directed production of Li'l Abner in the role of Lonesome
Polecat.
To support himself during this time, he worked at the Toronto International
Airport loading and unloading crates. He found the work to be too heavy
and tiring. So with the help of a female assistant, he formed the partnership
of Henning and Mars and performed at local bars and nightclubs.
Career
After graduating with honors with a degree in science and psychology,
Henning decided to take a couple of years off before entering medical
school to continue with his magic. Henning and Mars successfully performed
with the top entertainers in Canada and traveled from one end of the
country to the other.
He soon realized that he needed more theatrical training as well as the
principles of magic. He applied for a grant with the Canada Council Arts
Bursary in the theater division with a proposal that used the equation that
magic plus theater equals art. Henning was awarded a Canada Council for
the Arts grant for $4,000.
Pecknold as well as dance with a Canadian choreographer. He sifted through
magic literature in the hopes of developing an all-around magic education in
manipulation and being an illusionist.
After being awarded the grant for a one year study of the art of magic, he
studied mime under Adrian He visited the Magic Castle in Hollywood,
California, a private club for magicians. After an impromptu performance in
the Wine Cellar, he met resident magician and guru Dai Vernon, known as
"The Professor". Since the terms of the grant required Henning to study
magic, he got up the nerve later in the year to write the Professor and asked
him if he could take lessons with him. Thereafter, Henning traveled to
Hollywood to study with Vernon, then with another magic great, Slydini,
whom he considered to be his primary teacher of magic.]
With the intention of returning magic to its "glory days", Henning worked to
perfect his craft. Garnering financial support, he developed a live theatrical
show, Spellbound. It was there that he contacted his college friend Ivan
Reitman, who directed Spellbound. Along with music by Howard Shore and
co-starring actress Jennifer Dale, Henning created a musical that combined a
dramatic story and his magic.
Henning borrowed money for the project and spent $5,000 to build and
design illusions. They set up a backer's audition in Toronto. One man found
potential in the project and invested $70,000. It took so long to work out a
plot around his illusions, that there was time only for two dress rehearsals,
neither of which was in the theater.
The show opened at the Royal Alexandra Theatre in Toronto, where it broke
box-office records. Henning reworked the show after catching the attention
of New York producers and took it to Broadway as The Magic Show, with
songs composed by Stephen Schwartz. Debuting in 1974, the show ran for
four and a half years and earned Henning a Tony Award nomination.
Following his Broadway success, Henning approached NBC with the idea of
producing a television special. It was not until Henning suggested that he
would reproduce live Harry Houdini's famous and dangerous water-torture
escape—for the first time since Houdini performed it himself—that the NBC
executives signed him.
Henning spent the next eight months reworking his stage act for TV and
practicing the water-torture escape act. More than 50 million viewers tuned
in for the December 1975 broadcast of Doug Henning's World of Magic,
hosted by Bill Cosby.
In 1977, Henning co-wrote a biography of Houdini, Houdini: His Legend and
His Magic. He created illusions for an Earth, Wind and Fire tour in 1979, and
for two of singer Michael Jackson's concerts, including his 1984 Victory Tour.
In 1983, Henning was the producer and star of the Broadway musical Merlin.
In 1984, he began a solo show on Broadway called Doug Henning and His
World of Magic.
In 1985, a set of plush toys called "Doug & Debby Henning's: Wonder
Whims" were made by Panosh Place and copyrighted by Marvin Glass and
Associates. There were a total of six Wonder Whim characters. Each came
with an animal friend, a personalized story, and a magic kaleidoscope wand
of colors and patterns.
In 1986, Henning sold his illusions to David Copperfield and other magicians
to devote his time to Transcendental Meditation.
The World of Magic specials
Henning's first World of Magic special aired on NBC on December 26, 1975.
Henning successfully performed the water torture illusion, although he did
not break Houdini's time record. Produced by famed talk show host David
Susskind and sponsored by Mobil, the show ran live in the eastern United
States without commercials. The event was the first of seven annual
broadcasts, which would eventually bring Henning seven Emmy Award
nominations, including two back-to-back in 1976 and 1977 for World of
Magic.
In December 1976, Doug Henning's World of Magic II aired, again live and
with only two commercial breaks, on NBC. The theme for this show was
"Fire, Water and Air" and it was hosted by actor Michael Landon, with guest
star Joey Heatherton. The show included Henning vanishing an elephant and
also included a segment with special guest magician Ricky Jay.
On December 15, 1977, Doug Henning's World of Magic III aired live with
guests Glen Campbell and Sandy Duncan; the hyped illusion was "Walking
Through a Brick Wall".

On December 14, 1978, Doug Henning's World of Magic IV aired with the
theme "A Magical Journey Through Time"; however, due to numerous
problems that occurred during the telecast, this was the last special
broadcast live.
On February 15, 1979, there was a broadcast of the fifth World of Magic
special, which was taped at the Las Vegas Hilton.
Doug Henning's World of Magic VI, taped at Osmond Studios in Orem, Utah,
was broadcast February 22, 1980, on NBC. Bill Cosby made his second
appearance as special guest. Marie Osmond also appeared on the program.
Several revamped versions of illusions from earlier specials appeared. The
finale was an escape and reappearance featuring a huge Rube Goldberg
machine.
Henning's last TV special was World of Magic VII in 1982, which featured
guest Bruce Jenner[note 1] and several revamped versions of illusions from
earlier specials. The theme was Henning's magical house, with rooms
featuring magic from the past, present and future. In the show's finale,
Henning created the illusion of turning a black horse and a white horse into
a zebra.
At the end of each World of Magic performance, Henning addressed the
audience with the same monologue: "Anything the mind can conceive is
possible. Nothing is impossible. All you have to do is look within, and you
can realize your fondest dreams. I would like to wish each one of you all of
life's wonders and a joyful age of enlightenment."
Other television appearances
On December 13, 1977, Henning appeared as a guest on The Tonight Show
starring Johnny Carson. While Henning performed illusions and chatted with
host Johnny Carson and his other guests, he also plugged his new book on
Houdini and announced his impending marriage to Barbara De Angelis.
In 1979, Henning appeared on The Crystal Gayle Special, a variety program
starring singer Crystal Gayle and featuring, along with Henning, B.B. King and
the Statler Brothers.
In 1980, Henning appeared on The Muppet Show, where he performed
several acts. He demonstrated chink-a-chink for Kermit the Frog's nephew
Robin, segmented a Muppet monster into four pieces (and put him together
wrong), and performed The Metamorphosis: a bit where he swapped places
with an assistant who was locked inside a trunk.
In December, Henning appeared on The Osmond Family Christmas Special,
starring the popular brother/sister act Donny and Marie Osmond, as a guest
with such entertainers as Peggy Flemming and Greg Evigan, at the time star
of NBC's B.J. and the Bear.
On February 13, 1981, Henning made his seventh appearance on The
Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson. This show marked the first time that
Henning was Carson's first guest.

A version of The Magic Show was mounted in Toronto at the Queen

Elizabeth Theatre. The purpose of this show was to film in front of a live
audience of several thousand people for broadcast on CBC Television.
Henning came back to the show that had made him a star, and many
changes were made for this new production. Notably, most of the cast was
changed, specifically the role of Cal, now performed by Didi Conn. Some
script changes were made (the night club was now known as "Chez Manny"
and the older, drunk magician was now named "Van Zyskin"). Some of the
songs in the Broadway version were also changed (notably the risqué lyrics
of Charmin's lament), or replaced totally, such as the song "Solid Silver
Platform Shoes" (the once popular shoe style, by then out of fashion), which
was replaced with "It's Gonna Take a Magician." The film version of the
production was only aired once on Canadian television, but released on DVD
decades later.
Henning was featured in television commercials during 1984 to promote the
Plymouth Voyager minivan.
In 1993, he released a video for the Canada Natural Law Party, made up of
excerpts from his World of Magic specials along with newly recorded linking
dialogue detailing his philosophy of how the world's problems could be
solved by meditation and yogic flying.
Transcendental Meditation
In the mid-1980s, Henning retired from the stage and had an increasing
interest in Transcendental Meditation. He received a Ph.D. in the Science of
Creative Intelligence from the Maharishi University in Switzerland.
In 1992, Henning and Transcendental Meditation founder, Maharishi
Mahesh Yogi, drafted plans for a $1.5 billion-dollar project called "Maharishi
Veda Land" near Niagara Falls, Ontario, that would "combine astonishing,
unique visual and sensory effects, state-of-the-art 3D imagery, and ultra
high-tech entertainment technology with his best original magic illusion
secrets". Attractions were to include a building suspended above water and
a journey into the heart of a rose, but at the time of Henning's death the
project's status was uncertain.
Personal life
Henning married Barbara De Angelis in 1977. Their marriage ended in
divorce in 1981, and Henning married Debby Douillard in the Ladies' Dome
in Fairfield, Iowa, in December of that year.
Death and legacy
Henning died aged 52 in February 2000 at Cedars Sinai Medical Center in Los
Angeles, five months after being diagnosed with liver cancer. His ashes were
scattered in the Pacific Ocean off Redondo Beach, California.
In 2005, a handwritten letter from Henning to James Randi was placed for
auction on eBay, unbeknownst to Randi. When Randi learned of it, he
announced on his blog that the letter had been "stolen" from his files. A
week later, Randi wrote that he "managed to have the sale stopped" and
that the letter was back in his possession, but did not elaborate on further
details of the controversy. Randi claimed that Henning had immersed
himself so thoroughly in TM that he "abandoned regular medical treatment
for liver cancer, continued to pursue his diet of nuts and berries, and died of
the disease."
On June 8, 2010, it was announced that Henning would receive a star on
Canada's Walk of Fame. His "Zig Zag Girl" illusion is housed at the American
Museum of Magic.
A book entitled Spellbound: The Wonder-filled Life of Doug Henning by John
Harrison was released in 2009 to good reviews.
Notes
Caitlyn Jenner's name at the time was Bruce Jenner.
References
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ISBN 978-0-446-87328-4. Retrieved November 23, 2008.
"Earth, Wind and Fire: The whirlwind". The Gazette. Montreal, Que. January
7, 1988. p. E3.
Lacey, Liam (September 18, 1985). "Whimsical drama makes Henning's tricks
a treat". The Globe and Mail. Toronto, Ont. p. T.10.
Arkatov, Janice (September 1, 1984). "Henning has wonder up his sleeve".
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"Henning TV Special A Smash". The Linking Ring. The International
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