Jackie Flosso, RIP

Jackie Flosso, one of the nicest people I've ever had the pleasure of knowing, has died.

When I was about 4, my grandmother took me to his shop and I basically continued to go there every weekend until I was 11 or so, and then I'd go back periodically.

I went up to his shop not long after I graduated college. I certainly couldn't expect him to recognize me, but he did, greeting me warmly, and reminding me that he had gotten me on television once.

I was 8 years old, and, as usual, in his shop, when a publicist for the about-to-be-released and soon-to-sink-without-a-trace movie The Magician of Lublin walked in. The publicist wanted a bunch of magicians to perform at the opening. Jack said "How about him?" and pointed to me.

I was invited, along with some other, more, well, seasoned magicians to come. I set up my little table and did a trick called The Magicians Insurance Policy and, being the cute-as-a-button kid I was, managed to steal the spotlight from all of the professional (and now really annoyed) magicians who had come hoping to get some publicity. I even did the trick for the radio, describing what I was doing as I did the trick.

He sold his shop (which had once been owned in part by Houdini) a few years ago and it lives on as a magic memorabilia auction site.

But I'll miss him.