Jar of Fools Jar of Fools Jar of Fools is a once-weekly comic strip by Jason Lutes that was compiled, first into a two-part anthology, and then a graphic novel. The work has received praise from "The New York Times Book Review", "Spin", "Wired", and acclaimed comics creator Chris Ware. "Jar of Fools" is the story of a tormented magician named Ernie Weiss (likely based on Harry Houdini, whose name was originally Ehrich Weiss). His brother, Howard, has died and he has become estranged from his girlfriend, Esther O'Dea. The story of the comic retells Ernie's struggles to get himself back on track
The Illusionist (2006 film) loosely on "Eisenheim the Illusionist", a short story by Steven Millhauser from Millhauser's 1990 collection "The Barnum Museum". Together with "The Prestige" and "Scoop", "The Illusionist" was one of three films in 2006 to explore the world of stage magicians. Magic consultancy and technical advice during the production was supplied by James Freedman, Ricky Jay, Michael Weber and Scott Penrose. Director Neil Burger wrote, "Starting in pre-production, James (Freedman) became a major collaborator; brainstorming, designing and refining everything from small sleight of hand tricks to major narrative set pieces. He worked with Edward Norton preparing him for his stage performances