Fantasio
Born
Ricardo Roucau

(1936-10-03)October 3, 1936
Buenos Aires, Argentina[1]
DiedOctober 30, 2017(2017-10-30) (aged 81)

Ricardo Roucau (3 October 1936 – 30 October 2017) was a magician commonly known as Fantasio.[2]

Roucau became interested in magic at an early age after seeing Fu Manchu perform in Argentina.[3]: 279 

Roucau previously performed as Ricardo and then as Larry, before being warned in 1961 by John Scarne that the name would not work for a magician trying to make it in America.[2] He also performed with his wife as 'Larry and Daisy'.[1] Roucau adopted the name Fantasio after noticing it on a box of playing cards.[2]

Roucau was known for his handling of walking sticks and lit candles, which he would make materialise during his act.[3]: 279  Roucau was a prolific inventor,[1] and Mike Caveney believes that Fantasio's appearing and disappearing props were at one point the most popular magic props in the world.[4]

Roucau performed at the Desert Inn in Las Vegas, and the Latin Quarter and Radio City Music Hall in New York City.[5] He also appeared on The Hollywood Palace and The Ed Sullivan Show.[5]

Roucau and his wife Monica won second place in General Magic at the 1979 Fédération Internationale des Sociétés Magiques (FISM) competition[6] and Rocau won second place in Comedy Magic in the 1994 FISM competition.[7]

Fantasio was a lifetime member of Ring 45 and Assembly 280. In 2010, he was named Dean of Assembly 280.[8]

Published books

  • Magic with Canes and Candles (1970)
  • My Canes and Candles (1990)

References

  1. 1 2 3 Willmarth, Phil, ed. (June 1996). "Fantasio: Master Magician and Inventor". The Linking Ring. Vol. 76, no. 6. pp. 55–57.
  2. 1 2 3 Ibañez, Maria (December 2017). Kaufman, Richard (ed.). "In Memoriam Fantasio". Genii. Vol. 80, no. 12. p. 11.
  3. 1 2 Randi, James (1992). Conjuring. New York: St. Martin's Press. ISBN 0-312-08634-2. OCLC 26162991.
  4. ↑ Caveney, Mike (September 2014). Allen, Stan (ed.). "Classic Correspondence from Egyptian Hall Museum". MAGIC. Vol. 24, no. 1. p. 15.
  5. 1 2 Swiss, Jamy Ian. "Take Two #48: Fantasio". www.magicana.com. Retrieved 2023-02-16.
  6. ↑ "FISM Winners 1970- 1979". fism.org. Retrieved 2023-02-16.
  7. ↑ "FISM Winners 1990 - 1999". fism.org. Retrieved 2023-02-16.
  8. ↑ DelVecchio, Rick (May 2010). "Ring 45 (Miami, Florida) 2010 Installation and Awards Banquet". The Linking Ring. Vol. 90, no. 5. pp. 32–33.


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