Milt Larsen
Encyclopedia
Milt Larsen is a writer
, actor
, performer, lyricist, magician, entrepreneur
, speaker
and the creator of The Magic Castle
, a private club for magicians and enthusiasts.
, which is still in publication. In 1999, Magic magazine selected the Larsen Family as one of the 100 most influential magicians in the 20th century.
Larsen told Glover about his father's idea of a clubhouse for magicians, and Glover agreed to Milt's proposal to transform the Lane mansion on Glover's property, below The Yamashiro, into The Magic Castle, a nightclub for magicians and home of the Academy of Magical Arts
.
Larsen leased the property and restored the Victorian period
mansion to house the club. His brother Bill, at the time a CBS
television staff producer of The Danny Kaye Show
and others, helped promote the club among his network show business connections, recruiting members. When The Magic Castle opened its doors in 1963, Bill came on board as President of the Academy of Magical Arts and Sciences, and was soon joined by Irene Larsen, in the promotions department.
He also created the Mayfair Music Hall in Santa Monica, California (a Victorian British music hall featuring live stage shows) (1973–1980), The Variety Arts Theatre - Los Angeles (1977–1990) and Caesars Magical Empire at Caesars Palace Las Vegas (1995–2004).
audience participation TV show Truth or Consequences
(1956–1977) starring Bob Barker
.
He also wrote the Malibu U
television series (1967) and audience participation shows starring Vin Scully and Jim Nabors.
Milt Larsen and collaborator Bobby Lauher wrote the book for the stage musical Victory Canteen
starring Patty Andrews of the Andrews Sisters fame. Songs were written by Mary Poppins
songwriters Robert B. Sherman
and Richard M. Sherman
.
Richard Sherman and Larsen wrote words and music for the comedy musical Pazzazz! (book by Larsen, Sherman and Joseph Hoffman). The musical had its world premiere at the Granada Center for the Performing Arts in Santa Barbara, California in June 2008. It was produced by Larsen and his wife Arlene. A capsulized version of the musical was presented at Walt Disney's El Capitan Theater in Hollywood (February 2010).
Richard Sherman and Larsen created a satirical record album which has since made the transition to CD: Smash Flops, featuring tongue-in-cheek songs like "Bon Voyage, Titanic", "General Custer", and features "Congratulations Tom Dewey", which was used for the theme song in the stage production Give 'Em Hell, Harry!, a one-man stage play about United States President Harry S. Truman
starring James Whitmore
, later made into an Academy Award nominated film (1975). They also wrote the comedy classic LP, now a CD, Banned Barbershop Ballads (which includes tunes like "Watch World War Three on Pay TV").
Frequent collaborators include John Shrum
, Dr. Thomas Heric, Richard M. Sherman
, Carol Marie, Verne Langdon
, Tom Glover, and Ralph Edwards
.
Larsen served as a creative consultant for the motion picture Bedknobs And Broomsticks
(Disney Studios - 1971).
He has appeared as an actor on television's Hart To Hart
(1981, "Murder Up Their Sleep"), and had an uncredited cameo appearance as a spectator in Bedknobs And Broomsticks. He appeared as the back and hands of actor Raul Julia
as Gomez Addams, performing his tablecloth yank at the end of Gomez and Morticia's Tango dance in Addams Family Values
(Paramount Pictures
- 1993). His table-cloth pulling gag has been seen in many TV shows and films.
Larsen hosts a weekend radio show on CRN Digital Talk Radio called Hear Them Again for the First Time, featuring rare antique personality recordings from his vast collection of 78 rpm recordings. (2006–present). www.crntalk.com 4–5 pm Sundays.
He is a well known theater historian and owns many important collections including extensive archives of Ed Wynn, Eddie Cantor, Earl Carroll and others. His collections include books, films, recordings, scripts, orchestrations and sheet music from the early days of the variety theater.
He was the founder and President of the Society for the Preservation of Variety Arts, (1975–1990, Los Angeles)
He is a member with gold star MIMC of London's Magic Circle; Lifetime Achievement Award Academy of Magical Arts; President's Citation Society of American Magicians; Member International Brotherhood of Magicians; Blackstone Award, World Magic Awards; Lifetime Achievement Award Los Angeles High School; Entertainment Arts Award, Hollywood Arts Council; DramaLogue Publishers/Critics Award and others.
On September 15, 2006, Milt and Bill Larsen Jr. were honored with a Star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame
on Hollywood Boulevard
, in Hollywood, California.
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
, actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
, performer, lyricist, magician, entrepreneur
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
, speaker
Public speaking
Public speaking is the process of speaking to a group of people in a structured, deliberate manner intended to inform, influence, or entertain the listeners...
and the creator of The Magic Castle
The Magic Castle
The Magic Castle, located at 7001 Franklin Avenue in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles, California, is a nightclub for magicians and magic enthusiasts, as well as the clubhouse for the Academy of Magical Arts. It bills itself as "the most unusual private club in the world."-Nightclub:The Magic...
, a private club for magicians and enthusiasts.
Early life
Larsen and his brother, the late Bill Larsen Jr., were both in television and grew up in a family of magicians. Their father, William W. Larsen Sr., was a performing magician and Los Angeles defense attorney. Their mother, Geraldine, was an early TV pioneer children's entertainer known as The Magic Lady. In 1936 Larsen's parents published Genii, the Conjurors MagazineGenii (magazine)
Genii, The Conjurors' Magazine is the longest-running independent magazine devoted to magic and magicians in the history of the art. It was founded by William Larsen, Sr. in 1936, and run by his descendents until 1998, when it was sold to The Genii Corporation, headed by well-known magic author...
, which is still in publication. In 1999, Magic magazine selected the Larsen Family as one of the 100 most influential magicians in the 20th century.
The Magic Castle
The Larsen Brothers' father died in 1953, his dream of a place for magicians to gather and swap trade secrets over drinks unrealized. In 1961 Larsen met Tom Glover, the owner of the hillside property which included the Hollywood restaurant The Yamashiro.Larsen told Glover about his father's idea of a clubhouse for magicians, and Glover agreed to Milt's proposal to transform the Lane mansion on Glover's property, below The Yamashiro, into The Magic Castle, a nightclub for magicians and home of the Academy of Magical Arts
Academy of Magical Arts
The Academy of Magical Arts is a California non profit mutual benefit corporation organized and devoted to the promotion and development of the art of magic.Although begun in 1952 as a loose association of magicians by William Larsen, Sr...
.
Larsen leased the property and restored the Victorian period
Victorian architecture
The term Victorian architecture refers collectively to several architectural styles employed predominantly during the middle and late 19th century. The period that it indicates may slightly overlap the actual reign, 20 June 1837 – 22 January 1901, of Queen Victoria. This represents the British and...
mansion to house the club. His brother Bill, at the time a CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
television staff producer of The Danny Kaye Show
The Danny Kaye Show
The Danny Kaye Show is an American variety show hosted by Danny Kaye that aired on CBS from 1963 to 1967 on Wednesday nights. Directed by Robert Scheerer, the show premiered in black-and-white, but later switched to color broadcasts...
and others, helped promote the club among his network show business connections, recruiting members. When The Magic Castle opened its doors in 1963, Bill came on board as President of the Academy of Magical Arts and Sciences, and was soon joined by Irene Larsen, in the promotions department.
He also created the Mayfair Music Hall in Santa Monica, California (a Victorian British music hall featuring live stage shows) (1973–1980), The Variety Arts Theatre - Los Angeles (1977–1990) and Caesars Magical Empire at Caesars Palace Las Vegas (1995–2004).
Writing career
Larsen was a writer for the classic Ralph EdwardsRalph Edwards
Ralph Livingstone Edwards was an American radio and television host and television producer.-Early career:Born in Merino, Colorado , Edwards worked for KROW-AM in Oakland, California while he was still in high school...
audience participation TV show Truth or Consequences
Truth or Consequences
Truth or Consequences is an American quiz show originally hosted on NBC radio by Ralph Edwards and later on television by Edwards , Jack Bailey , Bob Barker , Bob Hilton and Larry Anderson . The television show ran on CBS, NBC and also in syndication...
(1956–1977) starring Bob Barker
Bob Barker
Robert William "Bob" Barker is a former American television game show host. He is best known for hosting CBS's The Price Is Right from 1972 to 2007, making it the longest-running daytime game show in North American television history, and for hosting Truth or Consequences from 1956 to 1975.Born...
.
He also wrote the Malibu U
Malibu U
Malibu U is the name of a short-lived American variety TV series that aired in the summer of 1967. Ricky Nelson starred as the dean of a fictional college called "Malibu U," where the biggest popular music stars of the 1960s performed once a week. The show lasted for only seven episodes, going...
television series (1967) and audience participation shows starring Vin Scully and Jim Nabors.
Milt Larsen and collaborator Bobby Lauher wrote the book for the stage musical Victory Canteen
Victory Canteen
Victory Canteen is a musical comedy play with script by Milt Larsen and Bobby Lauher and song score by Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman. The play opened on January 27, 1971 at the Ivar Theatre and ran for seven months. The show featured Sherry Alberoni, Patty Andrews, Lorene Yarnell,...
starring Patty Andrews of the Andrews Sisters fame. Songs were written by Mary Poppins
Mary Poppins (film)
Mary Poppins is a 1964 musical film starring Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke, produced by Walt Disney, and based on the Mary Poppins books series by P. L. Travers with illustrations by Mary Shepard. The film was directed by Robert Stevenson and written by Bill Walsh and Don DaGradi, with songs by...
songwriters Robert B. Sherman
Robert B. Sherman
Robert Bernard Sherman is an American songwriter who specializes in musical films with his brother Richard Morton Sherman...
and Richard M. Sherman
Richard M. Sherman
Richard Morton Sherman is an American songwriter who specializes in musical film with his brother Robert Bernard Sherman....
.
Richard Sherman and Larsen wrote words and music for the comedy musical Pazzazz! (book by Larsen, Sherman and Joseph Hoffman). The musical had its world premiere at the Granada Center for the Performing Arts in Santa Barbara, California in June 2008. It was produced by Larsen and his wife Arlene. A capsulized version of the musical was presented at Walt Disney's El Capitan Theater in Hollywood (February 2010).
Richard Sherman and Larsen created a satirical record album which has since made the transition to CD: Smash Flops, featuring tongue-in-cheek songs like "Bon Voyage, Titanic", "General Custer", and features "Congratulations Tom Dewey", which was used for the theme song in the stage production Give 'Em Hell, Harry!, a one-man stage play about United States President Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman was the 33rd President of the United States . As President Franklin D. Roosevelt's third vice president and the 34th Vice President of the United States , he succeeded to the presidency on April 12, 1945, when President Roosevelt died less than three months after beginning his...
starring James Whitmore
James Whitmore
James Allen Whitmore, Jr. was an American film and stage actor.-Early life:Born in White Plains, New York, to Florence Belle and James Allen Whitmore, Sr., a park commission official, Whitmore attended Amherst Central High School in Snyder, New York, before graduating from The Choate School in...
, later made into an Academy Award nominated film (1975). They also wrote the comedy classic LP, now a CD, Banned Barbershop Ballads (which includes tunes like "Watch World War Three on Pay TV").
Frequent collaborators include John Shrum
John Shrum
John Shrum was an NBC Television Senior Art Director.John Shrum was born in Los Angeles, California and attended the Chouinard Art Institute. Upon graduation, he became involved in the advent of television at KTLA-TV studios...
, Dr. Thomas Heric, Richard M. Sherman
Richard M. Sherman
Richard Morton Sherman is an American songwriter who specializes in musical film with his brother Robert Bernard Sherman....
, Carol Marie, Verne Langdon
Verne Langdon
Verne Langdon was an American musician, composer, singer, songwriter, keyboardist, record producer, actor, makeup artist and writer...
, Tom Glover, and Ralph Edwards
Ralph Edwards
Ralph Livingstone Edwards was an American radio and television host and television producer.-Early career:Born in Merino, Colorado , Edwards worked for KROW-AM in Oakland, California while he was still in high school...
.
Other activities
In 1956 Larsen produced his first all-star magic revue "It's Magic!", with a new edition playing West Coast performing arts centers annually. Still enjoying a continuous run, the revue is co-produced by Terry Hill. Various editions of the show play West Coast performing arts centers from Bellingham, Washington, to San Diego.Larsen served as a creative consultant for the motion picture Bedknobs And Broomsticks
Bedknobs and Broomsticks
Bedknobs and Broomsticks is a 1971 musical film produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by Buena Vista Distribution Company which combines live action and animation and was released in North America on December 13, 1971...
(Disney Studios - 1971).
He has appeared as an actor on television's Hart To Hart
Hart to Hart
Hart to Hart is an American television series, starring Robert Wagner and Stefanie Powers as Jonathan and Jennifer Hart, a wealthy couple who also moonlighted as amateur detectives. The series was created by writer Sidney Sheldon and produced by Aaron Spelling and Leonard Goldberg...
(1981, "Murder Up Their Sleep"), and had an uncredited cameo appearance as a spectator in Bedknobs And Broomsticks. He appeared as the back and hands of actor Raul Julia
Raúl Juliá
Raúl Rafael Juliá y Arcelay was a Puerto Rican actor.Born in San Juan, he gained interest in acting while still in school. Upon completing his studies, Juliá decided to pursue a career in acting. After performing in the local scene for some time, he was convinced by entertainment personality Orson...
as Gomez Addams, performing his tablecloth yank at the end of Gomez and Morticia's Tango dance in Addams Family Values
Addams Family Values
Addams Family Values is a 1993 sequel to the 1991 comedy The Addams Family. The film was written by Paul Rudnick and directed by Barry Sonnenfeld, and many cast members from the original returned for the sequel, including Raúl Juliá, Anjelica Huston, Christopher Lloyd, and Christina Ricci...
(Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
- 1993). His table-cloth pulling gag has been seen in many TV shows and films.
Larsen hosts a weekend radio show on CRN Digital Talk Radio called Hear Them Again for the First Time, featuring rare antique personality recordings from his vast collection of 78 rpm recordings. (2006–present). www.crntalk.com 4–5 pm Sundays.
He is a well known theater historian and owns many important collections including extensive archives of Ed Wynn, Eddie Cantor, Earl Carroll and others. His collections include books, films, recordings, scripts, orchestrations and sheet music from the early days of the variety theater.
He was the founder and President of the Society for the Preservation of Variety Arts, (1975–1990, Los Angeles)
Awards and memberships
He is a member of AFTRA, SAG and BMI, eight years on the Board of Governors, NARA; and is a was member of the Board of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce. (2004–2010)He is a member with gold star MIMC of London's Magic Circle; Lifetime Achievement Award Academy of Magical Arts; President's Citation Society of American Magicians; Member International Brotherhood of Magicians; Blackstone Award, World Magic Awards; Lifetime Achievement Award Los Angeles High School; Entertainment Arts Award, Hollywood Arts Council; DramaLogue Publishers/Critics Award and others.
On September 15, 2006, Milt and Bill Larsen Jr. were honored with a Star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame
Hollywood Walk of Fame
The Hollywood Walk of Fame consists of more than 2,400 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along fifteen blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, California...
on Hollywood Boulevard
Hollywood Boulevard
-Revitalization:In recent years successful efforts have been made at cleaning up Hollywood Blvd., as the street had gained a reputation for crime and seediness. Central to these efforts was the construction of the Hollywood and Highland shopping center and adjacent Kodak Theatre in 2001...
, in Hollywood, California.