David Perry, a computer virus expert, is a part-time magician.
Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic
— Arthur C Clarke
Even as David Perry, global director of education, Trend Micro, seats himself in a chair, he rapidly starts describing how he started learning how to do magic tricks. “As a child I got really sick and I was hospitalised and then was recuperating at home when my brother’s teacher, who is a priest, came to see me. He taught me some simple magic tricks.”
Growing up in Southern California in a town favoured by surfers, Perry says that in the 1960s there wasn’t anything more uncool than being a child magician. Perry, undaunted by that, joined a club called the Long Beach Mystics, for children who aspired to learn magic tricks.
“Everyone from that club today is a professional magician,” says Perry, who, after trying his hand at various careers (including acting school; he hoped to be an actor one day), is today a computer security expert. “From the age of 12 to 18,” he says, “I did a lot of magic, and then I stopped, as it was getting harder and harder to do magic.” Advances in technology meant that people had in their own hands the ability to impress and create “magic” anywhere they wanted.
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“When I was six,” says Perry, “my heroes were astronauts. All the computers it took to put man on the moon were slower than a mobile phone is today.” Perry gives a quick demo on his iPhone to prove his point. He sings an impromptu ditty accompanied by music played on the phone. And then he adds, ruefully: “How can a magician compete with technology? There are special effects everywhere.”
According to Perry, the golden era of modern magic was from 1890 to 1920. And Jean Eugene Robert-Houdin, a Frenchman, is considered the father of modern magic. Robert-Houdin hosted “Soirées Fantastiques” rather than tame “magic shows”.
He would dress up in a tail coat and top hat, a costume which is to date emulated by many magicians. Harry Houdini, famous for his ability to pull off the most daring magic tricks and escape from what looked like impossible situations and contraptions, named himself after Robert-Houdin.
Now Perry, after a hiatus of almost 25 years, is back to doing his magic tricks. Says Perry, “I walked into a store that sells magic tricks and I picked up two advanced tricks. The store manager did ask if I knew how to do magic.” Perry’s interest in magic, he says, endured, as he finds parallels with his hobby and his day job. He says, “Magic is performed by misdirection. Email fraud is also about misdirection.”
Perry says that being a magician has taught him sleight of hand, logical thought process and excellent hand-eye co-ordination. “Doing all the magic stuff and then going to acting school taught me how to tell stories. People respond to stories and not dry data. And the ability to do that helps me in my job now.” More importantly, Perry says that he does magic for his own enjoyment.
Perry recommends that if anyone is interested in becoming an amateur magician they should start by buying books that teach magic tricks. “I own at least 70 books that teach magic.” There are clubs like the one Perry attended as a child, that also teach magic. But many talented magicians such as Robert-Houdin and Houdini made up new tricks as they went along, and guarded their secrets zealously.
Perry too makes up tricks depending on what catches his fancy. “I have made a trick based on power point presentations. There is another trick I made that uses two Tibetan prayer bowls.” Explaining why his tribe keeps the trade so secretive, he says: “The secret of how a trick is done isn’t the main point, but it’s how well you perform a trick that matters.”
Where do magic and the magician stand today, when even TV serials have special effects built-in? Quoting a famous contemporary magician, Jamy Ian Swiss, Perry says that “magic is unique among art forms, as in it you engage in the conspiracy with the performer to be defrauded”, and adds: “There is a renewed interest in magic.”
Perry mentions the rise of artists like David Blaine and David Copperfield who are as famous as any celebrity. “In every casino in Las Vegas there is a magic show. On Broadway on Mondays there is a magic show.” And then he goes on to say, “Magicians like Marco Tempest use technology. His magic uses a cellphone’s optics. New technology is making a new kind of magic.”
Perry is done talking about magic, but not before he says one last thing: “I would love to visit Kolkata to see all the magicians there.” Perry, who is on his first visit to India, did his research before coming and says, “In the city of Delhi there must be thousands of magicians and shops that sell magic tricks. You just need to look carefully.” I leave him promising to do just that.