Among the many fancy titles you might hear tossed around in the world of magic, you’ve got illusionist, conjurer, and the real tongue-twister: prestidigitator. This last term, which sounds far posher than it really is, came about in the 19th century thanks to a chap named Jules de Rovère (and no, that’s not a fancy French cheese).
Not much is known about this mysterious figure, aside from the fact that he gets a cheeky mention in Robert-Houdin's writings! Thibault Ternon took it upon himself to dig deep into the enigma that was Jules de Rovère. This fellow started off dazzling crowds with magic tricks, then swapped his top hat for a lab coat to showcase physics experiments. By the end, he was knee-deep in esotericism, claiming to possess some rather dubious healing powers (probably best not to test that, eh?).
This book, boasting over 80 pages, chronicles the rollercoaster life of this intriguing character, packed with documents that have never seen the light of day until now—thanks to Thibault’s painstaking digs through both public and private archives.
Delve into the chaotic life of Jules de Rovère, a trailblazer in the conjuring game, through this captivating read.
In these pages, you'll uncover tales from Jules' childhood, his early days as Mr. Jules, and even the birth of the term "conjurer." After a chapter dedicated to his magical antics, you’ll get the scoop on his family life and how he morphed from a magician into a magnetiser (not quite the same as a fridge, mind you).
This book lays bare the saga of this legendary artist, complete with several appendices and a treasure trove of archival documents making their debut here.
