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Charlier was magician in the late 1800s. A specialist in card magic, he is best known for creating the Charlier Cut and a card-marking system using pin pricks.
Biography
Charlier is only reputed to have performed in public once on January 25th 1882, at the Neumayer Hall, Hart Street, London. Mostly he gave lessons and exhibitions of card magic at private homes.
Professor Hoffmann first met him in the mid 1870s from an introduction, possibly by Hellis. Hoffmann descibed this “Polish Gentleman” as one of the greatest of living card experts. The others who took lessons or were acquainted with this gentleman said that he was from Alsace, another pupil, Samuel Heilbut, was told he was Russian. The mysterious gentleman could pass as being from any number of countries as it was reported that he spoke nine to ten languages fluently. Most thought he was French as this was the language he frequented lapsed into when speaking English, but he did not appear to speak English with a French accent. By the same token some friends said that he had a fondness for using scraps of Turkish in conversation. In Britain he was known simply as Charlier; Trewey, a French illusionist recollected that he met someone very similar in appearance in Nice in 1874 called Monsieur Arelier, it was also noted that Henry Ridgley Evans was informed that a conjurer call St Jean appeared in San Francisco two years later performing under the name Carabaraba who also fitted the description.
