JOHN ANGUS
THE AUSTRALIAN "DANTE"
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JOHN ANGUS |
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Oscar "Dante The Great" Eliason (1869 - 1899): A young American performer, born in Salt Lake City, who broke theatrical records during a record-breaking tour of Australasia in 1898-1899. His skill and personality was such that Eliason became the standard against which newspaper critics judged all other visiting magicians in the following decade. (3)
Frank Eliason - Brother of Oscar, he took over the touring show and adopted the name "Dante" in 1899 when Oscar was tragically killed in a hunting accident in Australia. He departed Australia in late 1904. The last reference located about Frank Eliason (4) reported that in August, 1911, he was performing in the United States under the name "Cunning" although this may be incorrect as there were other magicians using the name. Eugene Laurant (5) recollects meeting Frank some years after 1899, when Frank was "performing the Spirit Séance in vaudeville. It was a beautiful act, thoroughly mystifying. Even today I can say I have never seen the Séance more artistically presented."
Harry "Dante" Jansen (1883 - 1955): Danish-born illusionist who took the name Dante to world-wide fame. As "Jansen", he performed successfully (6) in Australia between 1912 - 1914, returning with an abortive attempt at the Sawing A Woman act in 1922, and then in spectacular style as "Dante" in 1933 and 1935. Jansen's new stage name was bestowed by Howard Thurston, who may well have recalled the fame and popularity of the late Eliason.
John "Dante" Angus, aka "Jack Angus" - As will be seen, the facts of Angus' life are sparse and littered with contradiction. In summary, he claimed to have been associated with the show of Oscar Eliason as a boy, obtained Eliason's props for his own show, and was therefore entitled to adopt "Dante" as his own stage name.
Angus also related to Keith Smith (7), "Early on, I realised that people found it difficult to remember my name which was foreign, and Dante was suggested by a theatre manager who said, "You perform an illusion which has to do with cremation. Why not call yourself Dante after Dante's Inferno? I did and I've performed under that name for the past seventy years."
This more plausible story is supported by a programme in the W. G. Alma files, circa 1930's, showing a young, beardless magician performing as "The Great Danzic".
Angus' claim that he worked with the Eliason show are not supported by any concrete evidence. Newspaper reports of the 'escape trunk', (actually a substitution illusion titled "Nanko") state that two oriental performers of dissimilar build, Nanko and Koko, dance a jig to quaint orchestral accompaniment before performing the double trunk illusion. One of these assistants was certainly Frank Eliason, the other remains un-named.
The issue of whether props were purchased from either Eliason's widow or from Frank Eliason is similarly not supported. It seems unlikely that Frank Eliason would sell the large parts of the show when he was continuing to perform both in Australia and overseas. In all likelihood Frank took the equipment away when he left Australia in 1904.
Programmes and advertising does show that Angus later presented some of the Eliason show's central illusions, namely "Madam Sans Gene", "The Beggar's Dream" and "Nanko". However these were not uncommon illusions, and Eliason's style was closely copied by many a band-wagon jumper. Eliason himself was following in the style of the great Alexander Herrmann, as were many magicians of the time.
At this stage, we can do little better than to quote Will Alma, whose research files contain this commentary:- 'Many statements in this report [Alma's files] have no foundation. Dante was a touring showman and had repeated his stories so often he believed them himself. He was born in Sydney. He did not buy the Eliason show. I have found no record of his having left Australia at any time. He was a very good magician, however, who had learned his craft the hard way on the show-grounds of the Commonwealth, at times performing 20 shows a day.' (8)
In July, 1933, Harry Jansen's son, Bill, was killed in a motorcycle accident in Brisbane. Only days later, when Angus advertised his own show in Queensland under the billing of "The Original Dante", Victor Hoblee of the Birch, Carroll & Hoyle Theatrical Management Co. took out advertisements to alert the public that Angus was not identical to Jansen. He also wrote to Jansens' manager, "it seems a disgraceful thing that a showman, such as Mr. Jansen, cannot be protected from such imposters as this man. Furthermore, to trade on public sympathy by wearing a black arm band is, in my opinion, a most cruel and callous action", with which sentiment one must surely agree.
Between 1941 and 1943 Angus was an army private. A flurry of words broke out in July 1943 when Angus appeared in Broken Hill. George Andrews wrote to the "Barrier Truth", claiming that Angus had plagiarised the show name "Sim Sala Bim" and deliberately made himself up to look "near to Jansen". To this, Angus replied that Jansen went broke at the Criterion Theatre in Sydney in 1933; a statement which flies in the face of facts. With comical bravado Angus also stated that "Jansen changed his name to Dante and then made good on my reputation."
If doubt remains that Angus was prepared to trade on Jansen's work, it can be removed by viewing a programme in the Alma files, where artwork from a 1935/36 Jansen brochure has been directly lifted and used by Angus.
He toured with Australian comedian Lucky Grills, and with the show of the great Australian country singer, Slim Dusty. In conversation with Mrs. Joy Kirkpatrick, Slim Dusty's wife and singing partner, she told me that Angus was a wonderful performer who never used a microphone but could have the audience's attention in a minute. He could be bad-tempered, but was a perfectionist and demanding on his assistants. Dusty's biography, "Walk A Country Mile" (9), says of Angus:-
"There was no cheap card act conjuring for Dante - he specialised in elaborately staged 'high class' magic, over which he presided with lofty elan. John Fleetwood Dante sawed women in half with style. We watch, jaws hanging, as he held an audience in his hand for ninety minutes. Then, as they burst into the final rounds of rapturous applause, he began the task of genteelly accepting their praise, and sending them home with his blessings. 'Thank you … good night … God bless you,' said the Great Dante as he moved first to the left of the stage, and bowed in his stiff correct manner. He glided back to the right, bowed again, waved, and then, as the applause reached its crescendo, moved to the centre for his final bow, looking like a prophet returned to earth in an evening suit. 'Thank you, Good ni- Jesus Ker-ist , are you bastards trying to bloody murder me?'. The bloke lowering the roller curtain had slipped and let go the rope - sending the heavy wooden rod thumping down on the Great Dante's head."
The same book also makes an interesting statement, that the Rosedale Hall near Sale has a carved signature backstage which reads "The Great Dante 1911".
John Angus was still performing in his old age, and was featured regularly in magazine articles during the 1960's and 1970's. Around August 1970 he performed on the "In Melbourne Tonight" television variety show, then later on "New Faces" and the "Ugly Dave Grey" shows. His appearance on "New Faces", a talent quest, was made just to show that he could still put on a good act, and he was brought back in the next show by popular audience demand. An existing video-tape shows a performer of the old school, demonstrating the Linking Rings with the confidence which comes from years of experience.
Angus' last public notice came in January 1975, in a half-page newspaper article (10) which quoted his age as eighty-nine, and repeated the old tales of touring with Oscar Eliason. Angus confessed that he still suffered from itchy feet. "That's why I live in a caravan", he said. "I've spent most of my life living on four wheels, and although I am nearly 90 I still hold a driving licence". It's nice to know I can still pull up stakes if I want to."
