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The Story Behind

The Incredible Dr. Jaks


The 28-year history
of a
book that wouldnt die . . .

Copyright 2014 - Leo Behnke

Designed by

Book Group
Las Vegas

The Story
Stanley Jaks was a magician who became famous in
Germany and Switzerland, then became even more
famous when he emigrated to the United States. He
was gifted man, filled with the perfect combination
of artistic sense, personal worth, physical dexterity,
imagination, and a sense of humor.
His magic interest started with card and pocket
tricks, progressed to stand-up magic in nightclubs
and theatres, and then had the upheavals of a world
war change his tricks and his style to fit a smaller
stagethe top of a dining table. He was one of the
rarest of magicians in Europe, a close-up performer.
He and Dai Vernon were close in time in this new
concept of conjuring, but thousands of miles apart
in space.
It was about 1934 that he was hired full-time to do
his tricks right under the noses of hotel dinner guests
in San Moritz, and he started his unique style that
created two intriguing fields of magic presentation.

One of his first innovations was to put his props


inside a hollow book that was so beautifully bound
that it could grace the shelf of any world-class library.
He called it his book of mysteries, and it was filled
with mysterious objets dart that were manipulated in a
magical manner.
When he came to the U.S. in 1946 he brought his
famous book with him, and began to fool American
diners. With his accent, his stylish charm, and a way
of twisting magic effects to get the most wonder
out of them, he was immediately being invited and
booked in the homes and cabarets of the social set.
After a few years, Jaks began to see changes in
the future of magic theater, so he began changing his
presentations. Again, his appeal and skills put him
into a higher class of entertainment, one that carried
him across the country and internationally. He had
retired his book and now concentrated on lectures
and demonstrations of mentalism.
Finally, as happens even to magicians, Stanley
Jaks came to the end of his intriguing and gifted life.
He passed away in January of 1960, and the physical
objects of his magic went in various directions.

The Book
His beloved Book of Mysteries began its trip through
various magic owners, including friends of Jaks, a
couple of attorneys, and a magic manufacturer. At

last, in 1987, Robert L. Bluemle had the beautiful


book in his hands. Inside the leather-bound book
were two trays of compartments that held the various
magic props. He commissioned a jewelry photographer
to shoot close-up shots of the books exotic and artistic
items in bright color, and he became even more
caught up in the life of Siegbert Stanley Jaks.
A short time later he contacted Leo Behnke in Los
Angeles, and they began to put together the life of
Dr. Jaks. Bob would write the biography, and Leo
collected the tricks and rewrote them so they were
all in a matching style.
For over two years they gathered material, not
only biographical facts but photos of Jaks and his
friends in Europe and America, all the variations of
his tricks, and most of the cartoons and artwork that
Jaks used in his magazine articles, advertising, and
correspondence.
During this time, Bob also put together a lecture
about Jaks and his fabulous book of miracles that was
illustrated by slides of the props. This was presented
to various magic clubs, and was also a feature of the
November, 1988, issue of M.U.M., the magazine for
the Society of American Magicians.

Through the following years Bob maintained
his interest in Jaks by continuing to collect photos
and information, but the press of work and a divorce
made his time much more valuable. He finally moved
to Vermont in 2001 to be closer to his two daughters,
and started to enjoy a retired life.

On 8 May, 2014, Robert Bluemle passed away at


the age of 80, and it looked as though the book about
Jaks was doomed to vanish forever. Ken Klosterman
heard about the finished but unpublished manuscript,
and contacted Leo about publishing it in the memory
of Bluemle. Leo agreed, and after 28 years the book
was put into final shape for printing and distributing.

Two Editions
There are two editions available to close-up magicians,
mentalists, historians, collectors, or those who like
an intriguing story about a fascinating character.
Although each book has the identical text and medley
of 70 of Jakss tricks, each cover has its own design.
TRADE EDITION
The book of 296 pages is bound in a dark
red cloth matching the leather of Dr. Jakss
original book, matching headbands and
footbands, with gold titles on the spine
and the front cover. It also has a 24-page
section of full-color photos, and complete
directions for the 70 Dr.Jaks tricks.
COLLECTORS EDITION
This copy is printed the same as the other
edition, but is bound in dark red leather and

is decorated in gold and black to match the


cover of the original Book of Mysteries.
There are endbands at the head and foot of
the spine, a special bookmark and a Dr. Jaks
bookplate are enclosed, and a colophon is
tipped-in with the signatures of both Ken
Klosterman and Leo Behnke. Each copy is
numbered as one of fifty copies, and is
enclosed in a red cloth-covered slipcase.
Both editions are available for sale from
the publisher:
Ken Klosterman
6600 Smith Road
Loveland OH 45140

After 28 years, the Dr. Jaks book is finally available


so all members of the magic arts can read about, and
appreciate, what the man did for our profession. He
changed and paved the way for future practitioners
of those two arts to be considered artists, as well as
earn larger fees. Those two fields of conjuring are the
artistic presentation of close-up and the legitimate
presentation of mentalism.
Thank you, Dr. Stanley Jaks . . .

The publication date of these very special


books is 1 December, 2014.

The Incredible Dr. Jaks


trade edition:
collectors edition:

$79.00
$169.00

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