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==Death==
==Death==

⚫
On May 12, 1889, Bishop became unconscious for the second time in one of his demonstrations while performing at the theatrical society known as [[Lambs Club]]<ref>[http://www.themagicdetective.com/2011/03/strange-life-death-of-washington-irving.html "The Strange Life & Death of Washington Irving Bishop"]. Retrieved 12 June 2016.</ref> in [[Manhattan, New York]],<ref>http://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/morbid-monday-the-magician-killed-by-an-autopsy</ref> he was taken upstairs to a bedroom, where he died. A physician who knew of Bishop's rare coma condition by the name of Dr. John A. Irwin,<ref>http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9B04E4D71538E233A2575AC2A9609C94639ED7CF</ref> who (according to an episode of ''[[Mysteries at the Monument]]'') was known as the "scientific [[Jack the Ripper]]", kept silent because, for years, he wanted to study Bishop's brain with an [[autopsy]]. Bishop's death certificate gave the cause of death as [[catalepsy|hysterocatalepsy]].<ref>Wiley, Barry H. (2012). ''The Thought Reader Craze: Victorian Science at the Enchanted Boundary''. McFarland. p. 130. ISBN 978-0786464708</ref>
On May 12, 1889, Bishop became unconscious for the second time in one of his demonstrations while performing at the theatrical society known as [[Lambs Club]]<ref>[http://www.themagicdetective.com/2011/03/strange-life-death-of-washington-irving.html "The Strange Life & Death of Washington Irving Bishop"]. Retrieved 12 June 2016.</ref> in [[Manhattan, New York]],<ref>[http://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/morbid-monday-the-magician-killed-by-an-autopsy "Washington Irving Bishop: The Magician Killed by an Autopsy"]. Retrieved 12 June 2016.</ref> he was taken upstairs to a bedroom, where he was reported to have been in a coma and died at noon the next day. However, Bishop was alleged to have suffered from cataleptic fits, remaining in a trance state for many hours, he even carried a card on him that explained no autopsy should be performed on him until at least 48 hours after his alleged death. The card was never found on his body.<ref>Christopher, Milbourne. (1990 edition, originally published in 1962). ''Magic: A Picture History''. Dover Publications. pp. 142-144. ISBN 0-486-26373-8 </ref><ref>Wiley, Barry H. (2012). ''The Thought Reader Craze: Victorian Science at the Enchanted Boundary''. McFarland. pp. 128-130. ISBN 978-0786464708</ref>

⚫
A physician who knew of Bishop's rare coma condition by the name of Dr. John A. Irwin,<ref>http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9B04E4D71538E233A2575AC2A9609C94639ED7CF</ref> who (according to an episode of ''[[Mysteries at the Monument]]'') was known as the "scientific [[Jack the Ripper]]", kept silent because, for years, he wanted to study Bishop's brain with an [[autopsy]]. Bishop's death certificate gave the cause of death as [[catalepsy|hysterocatalepsy]].<ref>Wiley, Barry H. (2012). ''The Thought Reader Craze: Victorian Science at the Enchanted Boundary''. McFarland. p. 130. ISBN 978-0786464708</ref>


Bishop's mother Eleanor and his wife both claimed that he was not dead, but in a trance state whilst the physicians examined his body. They claimed that he was murdered by [[surgical instrument]]s during the autopsy. They alleged that he had suffered from cataleptic attacks and could remain in trance up to 52 hours. These claims were denied by physicians who had examined the body.<ref>Anonymous. (1889). ''A Widow's Strange Story''. ''[[The Milwaukee Journal]]''. May 15. p. 1</ref> Eleanor brought charges against the physicians but the case ended in a [[hung jury]] and nobody was charged.<ref>[http://www.themagicdetective.com/2011/03/strange-life-death-of-washington-irving.html "The Strange Life & Death of Washington Irving Bishop"]. Retrieved 12 June 2016.</ref>
Bishop's mother Eleanor and his wife both claimed that he was not dead, but in a trance state whilst the physicians examined his body. They claimed that he was murdered by [[surgical instrument]]s during the autopsy. They alleged that he had suffered from cataleptic attacks and could remain in trance up to 52 hours. These claims were denied by physicians who had examined the body.<ref>Anonymous. (1889). ''A Widow's Strange Story''. ''[[The Milwaukee Journal]]''. May 15. p. 1</ref> Eleanor brought charges against the physicians but the case ended in a [[hung jury]] and nobody was charged.<ref>[http://www.themagicdetective.com/2011/03/strange-life-death-of-washington-irving.html "The Strange Life & Death of Washington Irving Bishop"]. Retrieved 12 June 2016.</ref>

Revision as of 23:56, 12 June 2016

Washington Irving Bishop, also known as Wellington (1855-1889) was an American stage mentalist. He started his career as an assistant under the muscle reader J. Randall Brown, but was most well known for his performance of the blindfold drive.[1]

Career

Bishop was born in 1855. In the early 1870s, the Bishop was the manager of Anna Eva Fay's spiritualist acts, but in 1876, he exposed her trick methods to the media. He became an anti-spiritualist performer and wrote a book exposing the trick methods used by psychics.[2]

Bishop had exposed the tricks of Fay in an article for the Daily Graphic. His article accused the physicist and spiritualist William Crookes of being duped by Fay. Crookes defended Fay in a letter that was printed in the article. Bishop began performing the Fay act to the public with an explanation for all her tricks.[3]

Bishop later became interested in thought-reading after he attended a show by J. Randall Brown.[3] Brown later hired him as an assistant.[4]

In 1880, he published a one shilling book called Second Sight Explained.

During his shows similar to Brown, Bishop would ask a member of his audience for an object to be hidden in a secret location, he would then hold the hand or wrist of the person and ask them to think of its location. Bishop would then search to find the object.[3] Bishop performed such famous "thought reading" demonstrations all over the world. He claimed no supernatural powers and ascribed his powers to muscular sensitivity (reading thoughts from unconscious bodily cues).[5]

He arrived in London in 1881 where he was tested by William Benjamin Carpenter who commented that his talent may be great use to the study of psychology.[3] George Romanes noted that Bishop was "guided by the indications unconsciously given through the muscles of his subjects."[3][6]

Death

On May 12, 1889, Bishop became unconscious for the second time in one of his demonstrations while performing at the theatrical society known as Lambs Club[7] in Manhattan, New York,[8] he was taken upstairs to a bedroom, where he was reported to have been in a coma and died at noon the next day. However, Bishop was alleged to have suffered from cataleptic fits, remaining in a trance state for many hours, he even carried a card on him that explained no autopsy should be performed on him until at least 48 hours after his alleged death. The card was never found on his body.[9][10]

A physician who knew of Bishop's rare coma condition by the name of Dr. John A. Irwin,[11] who (according to an episode of Mysteries at the Monument) was known as the "scientific Jack the Ripper", kept silent because, for years, he wanted to study Bishop's brain with an autopsy. Bishop's death certificate gave the cause of death as hysterocatalepsy.[12]

Bishop's mother Eleanor and his wife both claimed that he was not dead, but in a trance state whilst the physicians examined his body. They claimed that he was murdered by surgical instruments during the autopsy. They alleged that he had suffered from cataleptic attacks and could remain in trance up to 52 hours. These claims were denied by physicians who had examined the body.[13] Eleanor brought charges against the physicians but the case ended in a hung jury and nobody was charged.[14]

Burial

Bishop is buried in Brooklyn's Green-Wood Cemetery. As a tribute to the son she believed was murdered, Eleanor Fletcher Bishop has the inscription "The Martyr" carved above his name on his headstone, an eerie post script to a famed mentalist's last and most tragic illusion.

Publications

References

  1. ^ Brown, Derren. (2007). Tricks of the Mind. Channel 4 Books. p. 52. ISBN 978-1905026357
  2. ^ During, Simon. (2004). Modern Enchantments: The Cultural Power of Secular Magic. Harvard University Press. p. 161. ISBN 978-0674013711
  3. ^ a b c d e Lamont, Peter. (2013). Extraordinary Beliefs: A Historical Approach to a Psychological Problem. Cambridge University Press. pp. 173-178. ISBN 978-1-107-01933-1
  4. ^ Price, David. (1985). Magic: A Pictorial History of Conjurers in the Theater. Cornwall Books. p. 452. ISBN 978-0845347386
  5. ^ Luckhurst, Roger. (2002). The Invention of Telepathy: 1870-1901. Oxford University Press. p. 63. ISBN 978-0199249626
  6. ^ Romanes, George. (1881). Thought-Reading. Nature 24: 171-172.
  7. ^ "The Strange Life & Death of Washington Irving Bishop". Retrieved 12 June 2016.
  8. ^ "Washington Irving Bishop: The Magician Killed by an Autopsy". Retrieved 12 June 2016.
  9. ^ Christopher, Milbourne. (1990 edition, originally published in 1962). Magic: A Picture History. Dover Publications. pp. 142-144. ISBN 0-486-26373-8
  10. ^ Wiley, Barry H. (2012). The Thought Reader Craze: Victorian Science at the Enchanted Boundary. McFarland. pp. 128-130. ISBN 978-0786464708
  11. ^ http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9B04E4D71538E233A2575AC2A9609C94639ED7CF
  12. ^ Wiley, Barry H. (2012). The Thought Reader Craze: Victorian Science at the Enchanted Boundary. McFarland. p. 130. ISBN 978-0786464708
  13. ^ Anonymous. (1889). A Widow's Strange Story. The Milwaukee Journal. May 15. p. 1
  14. ^ "The Strange Life & Death of Washington Irving Bishop". Retrieved 12 June 2016.

Further reading

  • The Strange Life & Death of Washington Irving Bishop
  • Trevor H. Hall (1964). The Strange Case of Edmund Gurney. Duckworth. pp. 80–87.

Template:Famous Magicians

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