Larry Grey
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Lawrence Grey (23 March 1895 – 5 May 1951) was an English magician known for his
card tricks Card manipulation, commonly known as card magic, is the branch of Magic (illusion), magic that deals with creating effects using sleight of hand techniques involving playing cards. Card manipulation is often used in magical performances, especia ...
. He also worked as an occasional actor and is known for voicing Bill the Lizard in
Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney ( ; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer, voice actor, and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the Golden age of American animation, American animation industry, he introduced several develop ...
's ''
Alice in Wonderland ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (also known as ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English Children's literature, children's novel by Lewis Carroll, a mathematics university don, don at the University of Oxford. It details the story of a ...
''.


Biography

Larry Grey was born on March 23, 1895, in
Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...
,
West Riding of Yorkshire The West Riding of Yorkshire was one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the riding was an administrative county named County of York, West Riding. The Lord Lieutenant of the West Riding of Yorkshire, lieu ...
, England. In his youth, he emigrated to the United States, where he began practising magic. One of his earliest tricks included Jumbo Cards, which inspired many of his later card tricks. Around 1918, Grey met
Dai Vernon David Frederick Wingfield Verner (June 11, 1894August 21, 1992), better known by his stage names Dai Vernon (pronounced alternatively as "DIE" or as "DAY" as in David) or The Professor, was a Canadian magician. Vernon's sleight of hand techn ...
on
Coney Island Coney Island is a neighborhood and entertainment area in the southwestern section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is bounded by Brighton Beach to its east, Lower New York Bay to the south and west, and Gravesend to ...
. At the time, Grey had just begun his career in magic but with little success and was only just managing to make a living.The Magician and the Cardsharp: The Search for America's Greatest Sleight-Of-Hand Artist by Karl Johnson (2006) Grey and Vernon decided to work together, initially setting up a booth along Kengsington Walk, in which Grey would sell small packs of cards and magic props while Vernon would cut silhouettes. During this time, Vernon and Grey lived together in a room on Coney Island. Vernon later taught him how to cut silhouettes, and they both worked together cutting silhouettes at the
Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
Exhibition An exhibition, in the most general sense, is an organized presentation and display of a selection of items. In practice, exhibitions usually occur within a cultural or educational setting such as a museum, art gallery, park, library, exhibiti ...
in 1919 and at a booth in
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
in the 1920s. In 1926, Grey and Vernon set up the Sleight-of-Hand Artists Club, their meetings were held in their Silhouette Studio on
Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...
. After meeting Vernon, Grey began to develop his performance style. His routines were often comedic and fast-paced. He was best known under his stage name, "The Dizzy Wizard", due to his zany personality. He eventually earned moderate success among magicians and was particularly noted for his card and sleight of hand magic. In 1940, he married Carlotta Dale Garrison, who performed alongside her husband as a singer. In 1941, Grey appeared in the film, '' Mr. Celebrity'', as himself performing magic tricks with Jumbo Cards. The film was about
vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment which began in France in the middle of the 19th century. A ''vaudeville'' was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a drama ...
performers performing in a boarding house. He also appeared in a few other films during his lifetime. Near the end of his life, Grey had his own magic theater. on the boardwalk at
Santa Cruz, California Santa Cruz (Spanish language, Spanish for "Holy Cross") is the largest city and the county seat of Santa Cruz County, California, Santa Cruz County, in Northern California. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city population ...
, and did a comedy magic act with his wife. He also made his most famous film appearance in
Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney ( ; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer, voice actor, and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the Golden age of American animation, American animation industry, he introduced several develop ...
’s ''
Alice in Wonderland ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (also known as ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English Children's literature, children's novel by Lewis Carroll, a mathematics university don, don at the University of Oxford. It details the story of a ...
'' in 1951 as the voice of Bill the Lizard. He died the same year.


Death and legacy

On May 5, 1951, three hours before he was due to perform a magic show in
San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
, and shortly after appearing in
Alice in Wonderland ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (also known as ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English Children's literature, children's novel by Lewis Carroll, a mathematics university don, don at the University of Oxford. It details the story of a ...
, Grey died, aged 56, after shooting himself in the head with a .38 caliber revolver three doors down from his home in
Oakland, California Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, California, Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major We ...
. He left a series of suicide notes found in a suitcase near his body which explained that he "couldn't go on any longer". According to his wife Carlotta, Grey had been depressed because his career had declined and he felt "washed up" in show business. His death was greatly mourned, especially by his good friend Dai Vernon, who said he was, "One of the greatest card performers who ever lived". Grey is mentioned frequently in columns written for the '' Genii'' magazine by Vernon.


Filmography

*'' Mr. Celebrity'' (1941) - Larry 'Cardo the Great' Grey *''
Alice in Wonderland ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (also known as ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English Children's literature, children's novel by Lewis Carroll, a mathematics university don, don at the University of Oxford. It details the story of a ...
'' (1951) - Bill The Lizard (voice) (Released posthumously; final role)


References


External links

*
Larry Grey
o
Magicpedia, an external wiki
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grey, Larry Male actors from Leeds English emigrants to the United States English magicians 1951 deaths 1895 births English male comedians English male voice actors Suicides by firearm in California Card magic Sleight of hand 20th-century English comedians 1951 suicides Comedians from Leeds