THE MANHATTAN MAGICIAN p.3.

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	Scenes from Steve Clarendon's 1985 film STEPS with Ben Robinson. At left, the film maker is seen in the final cut. Developed over 18 months, Robinson and Clarendon were the first to present an MTV-style film presenting the magician's art. Largely shot outdoors for real people, their film was 12 years ahead of TV magicians the media now (in 2002) embrace as "cutting edge." The 1985 premiere was in the SoHo Triplex where Robinson was the House Magician from 1983-1985.

1985: His first national TV guest shot with Regis Philbin. Below, an early publicity photo from the Central Park Children's Zoo, 1984. Photo: Bill Regan

1985: Robinson makes the Metro cover of The New York TImes for producing a rabbit for hospital children on Easter Sunday at The Cornell Medical Center.

1983: Two famous New York locations, Gracie Mansion, then the home of Mayor Edward I. Koch, who roared "You are a superb magician!" when seeing Robinson at the Resources Council (right) Halloween show at Cooper Union for the conservancy of the mayoral residence. Above, Robinson at the famous disco, Studio 54. He is seen doing his act during a Jerry Rubin "networking party."

1982: Jason's Park Royal, his night club debut at a club owned by Richard Nixon's psychotherapist. The magician is about to make a lighted cigarette vanish in his clenched fist.

1982: Assisting his idol Doug Henning on Henning's last TV special, Doug Henning on Broadway. Taped at the Ed Sullivan Theatre, this was one of the most exciting moments in Robinson's life. He says, "Doug and I were friends from the moment I pestered him for an interview in 1974 and he saw that I was serious about becoming a magician. His recent death left me empty."

The stage, TV, movies, commercials, club gigs, famous folks, and avant-garde artists . . . they all play a part in this 20-year story. What of Robinson in 2003? He genuinely believes that it takes 20 years to make a magician and quips, "Now I am just beginning." He says 2002 has been a tough year globally, but is optimistic about the future. And adds "I telepathically talked to my friend Harry Potter the other night and he said that the world needs magic even if sometimes the world doesn't realize it."

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E. R. Rose is a freelance writer based in Switzerland. She saw Ben Robinson perform at The Roxy Studio-Bar in Zurich in 1987 and never forgot it. Via the Internet, this story was compiled over 6 months.