Ed Marlo: Behind the magic

In 'Malone meets Marlo,' local magician pays tribute to his mentor in DVD set

July 06, 2009|By Kevin Pang, TRIBUNE REPORTER

Edward Malkowski is a man known to few outside his field, but he was part of an arcane subculture in Chicago, one that few Chicagoans knew existed: magic performed with playing cards.

Malkowski, who called Chicago home, went by Ed Marlo. You've likely never heard of that name, either. But he was the most prolific author of card tricks -- hand-writing and publishing nearly 4,000 magic tricks, methods and sleight-of-hand techniques over a half century, up until his death in 1991. The material -- his work and that of other magicians' -- was enough to fill a dozen phone books. And any magician worth his salt would tell you Marlo was a genius, a pioneer, a virtuoso with a deck of 52.

But this story isn't just about Marlo, rather one of teacher and student. Of one man owing his mentor for the success he's achieved and, in return, paying tribute to his teacher in the highest regard possible: by introducing his work to a new generation. That protege is Bill Malone, and the South Side native has released a 12-hour, 6 DVD set for magicians called "Malone Meets Marlo," the most comprehensive collection of Marlo tricks assembled on film.

"What was to be a project thanking Marlo for what he gave me," Malone said, "ended up with me owing him even more. It was like sitting with my mentor all over again."

Close-up magic is exactly that: magic performed with cards or coins up close -- as opposed to sawing a woman in half or producing rabbits.

Said Eugene Burger, a magic historian and performer: "Close-up magic as we know today really did grow up in Chicago."

Burger cited many factors, starting with a daily meet-up of magicians in the 1940s through mid-'50s known as the Chicago Magic Roundtable. Every day, upward of 50 magicians would gather at a restaurant called Drake's (long gone) in the Loop to share tricks. TV show "Magic Ranch" starring Don Alan, filmed in Chicago and syndicated across the country, also popularized close-up magic as an accessible hobby for amateurs.


"Close-up magic performed in bars broke through the theatrical fourth wall," said Simon Aronson, a Chicago magic inventor and Marlo student. "It allowed the performer and spectator to deal one-on-one in an impromptu setting."

At its height, a half-dozen magic bars flourished in Chicago. New York Magic Lounge and Schulien's were The Second City and i.O. of magic. Names such as Heba Haba Al, Matt Schulien and Johnny Paul were legends in their circle.

When he was 18, Malone was performing seven nights a week at a bar on 61st Street and Pulaski Road called Little Bit O' Magic. Unlike those who were mesmerized as children during visits to a magic shop, Malone wasn't interested until he was 17, when a friend, demonstrating his dexterity with cards, spread a deck on a table and flipped all 52 over with a flourish.

"Ever since, magic is the only job I've ever had," Malone said.

Earning $25 a night, Malone was schooled in working a crowd. He quickened his draw for the witty repartee. Raised in the Back of the Yards neighborhood, Malone thought he knew plenty about magic.

That was until 1978, when a friend fooled Malone with tricks using sleight of hand techniques Malone had never seen. When Malone pressed for a source, the friend said he was learning from Ed Marlo -- whom Malone knew by reputation. Marlo sold underground how-to manuscripts, but only in person. It was top-flight material that Marlo didn't want made available for public consumption. The exclusivity intrigued Malone.

"My first card book from Eddie was like a drug deal in an alley," Malone said. "We pull up in a parking lot, he opens his trunk, I hand him the money and he gives me the book."

As the 20-year-old Malone was walking away, Marlo, in his raspy, soft-spoken voice, invited the young magician to join him inside the restaurant.

Ed Marlo, born in 1913, was raised in Humboldt Park.

"We never went out with anybody else," said 92-year-old Muriel Marlo, who grew up on the same block as her late husband and now lives in Waukegan. Eddie and Muriel were a team, she said: He'd write the tricks in longhand; she'd type every word.

One thing Muriel and Ed Marlo's students would agree on: He was never without a deck of cards. At movie theaters, he'd practice on his lap. When he could sneak a break from his job at a tool and dye factory, Marlo would fuss with cards, jotting ideas on the back of time cards. He kept cards under his pillow for when ideas struck at 3 a.m.

Each Saturday, Marlo would lead a round table at The Palladium, a Lincoln Square restaurant. Malone said he'd arrive 45 minutes early to get the coveted seat next to Marlo. Only later, when Marlo was struck by Malone's dedication, would the two meet individually at a restaurant in Logan Square called Tony's. They would meet each Wednesday for typically six hours, but sometimes as long as 16.