Orson Welles in Wonderland

As I posted last year, my parents worked with Orson Welles in Las Vegas in 1956. The Great one fancied himself as a magician as well as genius. That would be for others to decide. From the reviews it appears that his goals exceeded his grasp, which given his history seems appropriate. He did however lease props from my folks for his show and both of them assisted on a nightly basis for at least three weeks. I know that because here is the contract they had for their services.

The venture apparently started off a little rough. It was at first a seventy-five minute show, featuring big illusions and dramatic readings. It looks like it did not take long to trim it down to a more manageable length. Here is the first review in the Variety.

The girl assistant mentioned is of course the amazing Phyllis Kirkham. In case you have not seen the earlier post, here is another look at the effect featuring her.

I also found this second shot of Dad on stage in the background while Welles appears to be using the police in Vegas as part of the act. I think this might be a segment of  the mind reading routine that the review refers to. I can't identify the apparatus on the table, it could be a record player, radio or phone equipment. Anyway, this was just a little more of the stuff I found on the Vegas adventure with Orson Welles.