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Wednesday 24 June 2015

Web Page  No 2172

29th  June 2015

Top Picture: David Burglas




Middle Picture: Robert Harbin

Bottom Picture: Robert Harbin with the Zig Zag Woman

Burglas and Harbin

David Berglas was born July 30, 1926 in Europe. He escaped, with his family, from Nazi Germany and fled to Britain aged 11. At 16 he had his mind set to become a Spitfire pilot, lied about his age and managed to join the RAF. However, his true age was discovered and was not allowed to complete his training. Still adamant to be part of the war, he discovered that the American Army was urgently looking for suitable recruits for an important role in the denazification of Germany.

The requirements were quite stringent. They had to have some previous military training, and to be able to pass strict physical and mental tests. Most importantly they had to speak 2 languages besides English, one of which had to be fluent German. The required minimum age was 21. He explained that he was only 19 but could meet all the other qualifications. And was accepted a unit of the Intelligence Corps of the American Army, serving an adventure filled 18 months at the end of WWII.

On returning to England he attended Bradford Technical College to study Textiles with a view of joining his family business. He first got interested in magic in 1947, through a chance meeting with magic dealer Ken Brooke. Magic became an all-absorbing hobby for about 5 years, during which time he worked in Psychotherapy, specialising in medical hypnosis. Although never performing as a Stage Hypnotist, his demonstrations gave him the experience of standing in front an audience and handling volunteers on stage.
This gave him the confidence when he became a professional magician in 1952, working prestigious nightclubs and then in 1953 appearing at the famous Windmill Theatre, performing 6 times a day, 6 days a week, for 6 weeks.

He first became a household name in Britain through his regular performances on BBC radio, an unusual role for a magician. He conducted what he called "Nationwide Psychological Experiments", involving millions of listeners in their homes. This part of the show required listeners to write in to confirm their reaction. To this day the BBC's archives have recorded this as being the largest collection of fan mail ever received. During the show's run it was not unusual for David to receive 3000 - 4000 postcards or letters per week.

He was one of the first magicians to appear on British television with his own show "Meet David Berglas" in 1954. Numerous other television series followed and were highly acclaimed in Holland, Sweden, Norway and Germany. Commercial television started in the UK in September 1955 and the first ever series was presented by David Berglas on Associated Rediffusion called "Focus on Hocus."
In the 1970s he presented a one hour television special from Las Vegas and in the UK he caused a sensation with his Channel 4 series "The Mind of David Berglas," (1985/86) where he interviewed and entertained celebrity guests including Omar Sharif, Christopher Lee, Britt Ekland, Peter Cook and Max Bygraves.

He has drawn attention through a long career with his numerous publicity stunts and has performed for many celebrities, including Winston Churchill, the Rolling Stones, Elton John, Michael Jackson, the Sultan of Brunei and most of the British Royal Family.

He is a past president of the "British Ring" of the International Brotherhood of Magicians (I.B.M.). He was elected "King Rat" of the Grand Order Of Water Rats and was President of The Magic Circle for 9 years (1989 - 1998).

In the 1950's, he created what is now referred to as the "Holy Grail" of card magic, known as "The Berglas Effect," also known as ACAAN (Any Card At Any Number).

In 1999 he established a non-profit organization called the Foundation for Promoting the Art of Magic (FP-AM). The foundation presents "The David Berglas International Magic Award" annually at the prestigious International Magic Convention in London. It was first awarded to the organisers of the convention, The MacMillan family, then in 2008 to Uri Gellar, in 2009 to David Copperfield, in 2010 to Juan Tamariz and in 2011 to Derren Brown.
He has written books on magic and a substantial number of articles and lecture notes for the magical fraternity, including The David Berglas File No.1 (1976) and the much sought-after tome, now out of print, The Mind and Magic of David Berglas This has become a collector's item and is selling for several times its original price.
David Berglas is the father of Marvin Berglas of Marvin's Magic, the world's largest supplier of professional magic sets. He is also uncle of South African artist Zapiro.

Robert Harbin (born Ned Williams was born on the14th  February 1908 in Balfour, South Africa and died on 12th January 1978 in Westminster and apart from being a British magician and was a noted author. He was also the inventor of a number of classic illusions, including the Zig Zag Girl and an authority on origami.
As a young man Ned Williams first got interested in magic after an unknown ex-serviceman appeared at his school with a magic show later described as "rather poor". This fired him and at the age of 20 he went to London and began by working in the magic department of Gamages toy shop. He began performing in various Music Halls under the title "Ned Williams, the Boy Magician from South Africa". By 1932 he was appearing in the famous Maskelyne's Mysteries magic show in various London theatres. He was the first British illusionist to move from stage performing to television, appearing in the BBC TV show Variety in 1937  and numerous times after the war when the BBC resumed broadcasting. He developed a number of new tricks, including the Neon Light and the now ubiquitous Zig Zag Girl. His lesser known inventions included the Aztec Lady, The Blades of Opah, and Aunt Matilda's Wardrobe.
Much of his inventive genius was put into writing and he is known as one of the most prodigious authors on the subject of magical effects. However, although brilliantly creative in the field of magic he was not a particularly good writer and many of his titles were ghost written for him.
In 1953, Harbin and a friend discovered a common interest in the Japanese art of paper-folding and he later wrote many books on the subject, beginning with Paper Magic (illustrated by the young art student, the Australian Rolf Harris in 1965 and Robert Harbin was the first President of the British Origami Society. He was the first Westerner to use the word origami for this art-form. He also presented a series of origami programmes for ITV in its "Look-In" magazines for children in the 1970s.
He died in the late 1970’s and his grave is at Golders Green Crematorium in London.

Keep in touch

Peter


DUSTYKEAT@aol.com

You Write:

Maureen Writes:-

Had a bit of fun with the 11+ and didn’t fare too badly, unlike my efforts almost 60 years ago, but can anyone tell me the logic  in the odd man out section:

Policeman, Soldier, Sailor, Airman

Three are military services one is civilian

Three are armed services one is unarmed

So what makes a Sailor different from the other three?


News and Views:

On this day 29th June 1960-1965
On 29/06/1960 the number one single was Three Steps to Heaven - Eddie Cochran and the number one album was South Pacific Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was No Hiding Place (AR) and the box office smash was Psycho. A pound of today's money was worth £13.68 and Burnley were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 29/06/1961 the number one single was Surrender - Elvis Presley and the number one album was GI Blues - Elvis Presley. The top rated TV show was Harpers West One (ATV) and the box office smash was One Hundred and One Dalmations. A pound of today's money was worth £13.25 and Tottenham Hotspur were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 29/06/1962 the number one single was Good Luck Charm - Elvis Presley and the number one album was West Side Story Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Lawrence of Arabia. A pound of today's money was worth £12.89 and Ipswich Town were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 29/06/1963 the number one single was I Like It - Gerry & the Pacemakers and the number one album was Please Please Me - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Great Escape. A pound of today's money was worth £12.64 and Everton were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 29/06/1964 the number one single was It's Over - Roy Orbison and the number one album was Rolling Stones - The Rolling Stones. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Dr Strangelove. A pound of today's money was worth £12.24 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 29/06/1965 the number one single was I'm Alive - Hollies and the number one album was The Sound of Music Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Sound of Music. A pound of today's money was worth £11.69 and Manchester United were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions



Thursday 18 June 2015



Web Page  No 2170

22nd  June 2015





Top Picture: If you parents were really keen they could have bought you a set of mock test papers to do at home. I never had any of these but I do remember doing mock papers in Mr. King’s class at Solent Road School.


Middle picture: A bit of light relief before the exams Peter Brough and Archie Andrews

Bottom Picture: An Oxford Mathematics set ready for the exams


TESTS

The last time I put an 11+ paper on the site it proved very popular (almost 500 hits in the first day) so ……….


General English
·       Black is the opposite of white; long is the opposite of short. Now write down the opposites of these words:
(a) Wide
(b) Bright
(c) Unkind
(d) Eatable
(e) Visible
(f) Evil
(g) Quickly
(h) Smooth
(i) Cheap
(j) Sour





·       Write these words in the correct order to make sentences:

(a) had waited the until door I closed he (b) many with helped I his him homework have times (c) first year of always exciting I the the is day think (d) listened on programme the switched to wireless he and the (e) to asked a letter me she write

·       Give the feminine of each of the following:
(a) brother
(b) nephew
(c) monk
(d) wizard
(e) gander
(f) merman
(g) waiter
(h) hero
(i) fox
(j) cousin



·       Re-write the following sentences, using the plurals of the underlined words:

·       (a) The angry goose snapped at my bare foot.
·       (b) This young deer lived in yonder valley.
·       (c) The police-constable chased the thief across the roof.
·       (d) He will come for you but not for me.

·       Write down one word in place of each phrase in italics:

·       (a) The boy made up his mind to sell his bicycle.

·       (b) The girl tried again and again until she succeeded.

·       (c) The vehicle was standing still.

·       (d) The soldier was forced to give himself up to the enemy.

·       (e) My brother always comes to school at the right time.

·       (f) The soil is not yielding any produce.

·       (g) The firm’s books were examined every year.

·       (h) Some animals are not able to be seen at night.

Arithmetic

1. Write in figures: twelve thousand and twelve.

2. (a) 6 3/4 of 4 2/3 - 10 5/6 ÷ 1 1/12          
    (b) 1.06 × 2.04 ÷ 0.12 3.

A race started at 23 minutes past and finished at 23 minutes to 4. How long did it take?

4. A train due at 5.43 a.m. arrived at 6.27 a.m. How many minutes was it late?

5. The road from a town ‘A’ to another town ‘B’ is uphill for the first 2 miles, level for the next 3 miles, and downhill for the last 2 miles. If I can walk at the rate of 4 miles an hour on the level, 5 miles an hour downhill and 3 miles an hour uphill, how long shall I take to go from A to B?

6. A train due to arrive at 9.50 a.m. was 45 minutes late. At what time did it arrive?

7. There are 98 boys and 102 girls in a school. There is 1 teacher for every 40 children. How many teachers are there?

8. Three cases contain 789 tins of sardines. In one there are 267 tins and in another 63 more than in the first. How many tins does the third case contain?

9. Find the sum of all the numbers between 1 and 13 that are divisible exactly by 3.

10. A clock is 12 minutes slow, but is gaining 5 seconds per hour. A watch is 20 minutes fast, but is losing 7½ seconds per hour. How many minutes fast will the watch be when the clock shows the right time?

General intelligence

1. Copy down the word at the beginning of each line. Then choose one word from the line that has the opposite meaning to the word in capital letters.

NEAR: close, remote, distance, open.
LIKENESS: enemy, similar, enjoy, difference.
ENLARGE: decrease, wider, picture, big.
LOOSE: find, tight, escape, prisoner.
ARRANGE: fix, grate, disturb, target.
BEGIN: finish, start, conclusion, commence.
AFTER: following, morning, behind, before.
YOUNG: adult, father, aged, grow.
LATE: time, punctual, hour, sooner.
FOOT: hand, yard, summit, kick.

2. My best friend is tall and dark. I am nine and he is ten. He is one of these four boys below. Read the following sentences and write down my best friend’s name: Harry is younger than me. He is short and dark. Dick is ten. He is a tall boy with fair hair. Tom has dark hair. He is older than me and is a tall boy. Frank is a tall boy with dark hair. He is nine.

3. One number in each line does not fit in properly with the others. Find this number.
(a) 2, 5, 8, 11, 15, 17
(b) 29, 26, 21, 17, 13, 9
(c) 1, 9, 16, 23, 27, 31, 34
(d) 2, 6, 18, 52, 162
(e) 144, 120. 96, 75, 48, 24
(f) 21, 19, 16, 13, 10
(g) 1, 4, 16, 60
(h) 4, 9, 14, 18, 24, 29

4. (a) Write down words which describe a collection of:
cows,
fish,
bees,
sheep,
crows.

(b) What do the following letters stand for?
 U.S.A.,
B.B.C.,
H.M.S.,
P.T.O.,
U.N.O.,
H.R.H.,
M.P.

5. The leader of a Guide Patrol is named Mary Jenkins; so her Surname is Jenkins, her Christian name is Mary, and her initials are M.J. There are 6 other girls in her Patrol; each has 2 initials.
Surnames: Brown, Smith, Evans, Clark, Jones.
Christian names: Molly, Celia, Gwen, Ruth, Sally.
Two girls have Surname and Christian names beginning with the same letter; two others are named Ruth. One of the Twins has the same initials as the leader, and the other has the same Christian name as Evans.
Write down each girl’s full name

6. Look at this example: cow, pig, horse, grass. Three of the words are names of animals. The other word is the name of a plant. It has been underlined because it is different from the others. Now go through the following examples, underlining the word in each row that you think is different from the other three.

(a) pencil, chalk, ruler, pen
(b) velvet, muslin, calico, thread
(c) yellow, green, red, colour
(d) river, lake, sea, mountain
(e) writing, book, story, novel
(f) milk, drink, water, tea
(g) book, volume, magazine, print
(h) carpet, rug, mat, mattress
(i) skate, stand, slide, slip
(j) cold, warm, heat, freezing
(k) policeman, soldier, sailor, airman
(l) round, shape, square, oblong
(m) shout, think, speak, whisper
(n) oak, ash, elm, palm
(o) sweet, rich, chocolate, sugary
(p) pen, pencil, paper, crayon
(q) hammer, plank, chisel, hatchet
(r) hat, cap, bonnet, scarf



7. Cross out clearly what is not wanted in this silly sentence, so that is shall read properly. Do not cross out too much, and do not add anything: Until you are often told to let him go your end of the missing rope, hold it firmly in the left with hand.

8. Complete each of these sentences by underlining the right word in the bracket:

(a) BACK is to FRONT as HEEL is to (SIDE, TOE, PLACE).
(b) INK is to PEN as (HAIR, HANDLE, PAINT) is to BRUSH
(c) MAN is to CROWD as DROP is to (FALL, FLOCK, WATER).
(d) NOTE is to MUSIC as (SENSE, LENGTH, WORD) is to SENTENCE.
(e) HOUSE is to MAN as (SHELTER, HOME, HOLE) is to FOX.

9. One word in each group of four means the same or nearly the same as the word in capitals. Write this word down. Example: SMALL: baby, size, little, mouse Answer: little
(a) CUT: knife, sever, canal, wound.
(b) TWIN: engine, triplet, brother, duplicate.
(c) OFTEN: sometimes, frequently, always, again.
(d) POWER: might, strong, cable, electricity.
(e) CLOTHES: washing, shut, frock, apparel.

Essays and compositions
1. Write a short account (about four or five lines) on any four of the following:

(a) Everest
(b) Westminster Abbey
(c) The Gothic
(d) Williams Shakespeare
(e) Queen Salote
(f) The Maoris

2. Imagine you are a scarecrow and tell a story about yourself

3. Some children are playing at the seaside in an old boat – the tide rises – the boat floats out to sea – a thick fog comes down… Tell this story as vividly as you can, adding the excitement and fear of the parents, and finish the story in any way you like.

4. Write a composition on one of the following subjects:
(a) Imagine yourself on a long journey in an aeroplane. Your engine fails and you have to land on a desert island. Describe the island and tell what happens to you there.
(b) Write an account of an unfortunate picnic.
(c) Describe a market day in a country town.


Answers

General English
1a. narrow; b. dim/dull; c. kind; d. inedible/uneatable; e. invisible; f. good; g. slowly; h.rough; i. expensive; j. sweet

2a. I waited until he had closed the door; b. I have helped him with his homework many times; c. I think the first day of the year is always exciting; d. He switched on the wireless and listened to the programme; e. She asked me to write a letter

3a. sister; b. niece; c. nun; d. witch; e. goose; f. mermaid; g. waitress; h. heroine; i. vixen; j. cousin

4a. The angry geese snapped at my bare feet; b. These young deer lived in yonder valleys; c. The police-constables chased the thieves across the roofs; d. He will come for you but not for us

5a. decided; b. repeatedly; c. immobile/stationary; d. surrender; e. punctually; f. barren; g. annually; h. invisible

Arithmetic
1. 12,012
2a. 21 ½; b. 18.02
3. 14 minutes
4. 44 minutes late
5. 1 hour 49 minutes
6. 10.35 a.m.
7. 5 teachers
8. 192 tins
9. 30
10. 2 minutes fast

General Intelligence

1a. remote; b. difference; c. decrease; d. tight; e. disturb; f. finish; g. before; h. aged; i. punctual; j. hand

2. Tom is the best friend

3a. 15; b. 26; c. 23; d. 52; e. 75; f. 21; g. 60; h. 18

4a. herd, shoal, swarm, flock, murder; b. United States of America, British Broadcast Corporation, Her/His Majesty’s Ship, please turn over, United Nations Organization, Her/His Royal Highness, Member of Parliament

5. Celia Clark, Sally Smith, Molly Jones, Ruth Jones, Ruth Evans, Gwen Brown

6a. ruler; b. thread; c. colour; d. mountain; e. writing; f. drink; g. print; h. mattress; i. stand; j. heat; k. sailor; l. shape; m. think; n. palm; o. chocolate; p. paper; q. plank; r. scarf

7. Until you are [strikethrough]often[strikethrough] told to let [strikethrough]him[strikethrough] go your end of the [strikethrough]missing[strikethrough] rope, hold it firmly in the left [strikethrough]with[strikethrough] hand

8a. TOE; b. PAINT; c. WATER; d. WORD; e. HOLE

9a. sever; b. duplicate; c. frequently; d. might; e. apparel

Keep in touch

Peter

DUSTYKEAT@aol.com

You Write:

Laurie Remembers:-

Being a Highbury Estate boy (Chatsworth Ave) the Creek,  Farlington Marshes and the bombed out area behind the Estate which I believe was a cement or brickwork's (now Highbury College) was our play area, as we got older and acquired bikes so our area and adventures expanded, we also explored the old city fortification, these ran from the Eastern Road, back of Portsmouth airport up to the Southdown Bus Garage and from behind the Lido to almost Alexandra Park, I believe some of it is still there but very over grown as it was then, there was also a moat, like a second creek. 

Do you remember sometime in the early 70's when the new motorway was being built a German GG (Germany George) parachute mine was found underneath the railway bridge over the Creek, my Aunt (who I lived with) had kittens, as youngsters we had often seen the top of the mine at low tide but it looked like a dustbin lid and had used it as a stepping stone to get on to what was known as "Cut Foot Island" just a pile of rocks by the centre section of the railway bridge, we had thrown rocks at crabs as they walked over it.  The RNB&MD team took it away and set it off in Langstone Harbour, if I remember correctly there was some pic's in the "Portsmouth Evening News". 

News and Views:

On this day 22nd June 1960-1965

On 22/06/1960 the number one single was Cathy's Clown - Everly Brothers and the number one album was South Pacific Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was No Hiding Place (AR) and the box office smash was Psycho. A pound of today's money was worth £13.68 and Burnley were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was Research proves intelligence of dolphins.

On 22/06/1961 the number one single was Surrender - Elvis Presley and the number one album was GI Blues - Elvis Presley. The top rated TV show was No Hiding Place (AR) and the box office smash was One Hundred and One Dalmations. A pound of today's money was worth £13.25 and Tottenham Hotspur were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 22/06/1962 the number one single was Good Luck Charm - Elvis Presley and the number one album was Blue Hawaii - Elvis Presley. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Lawrence of Arabia. A pound of today's money was worth £12.89 and Ipswich Town were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.The big news story of the day was First hovercraft passenger service.


On 22/06/1963 the number one single was I Like It - Gerry & the Pacemakers and the number one album was Please Please Me - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Conservative Party Political Broadcast (all channels) and the box office smash was The Great Escape. A pound of today's money was worth £12.64 and Everton were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 22/06/1964 the number one single was You're My World - Cilla Black and the number one album was Rolling Stones - The Rolling Stones. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Dr Strangelove. A pound of today's money was worth £12.24 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 22/06/1965 the number one single was Crying in the Chapel - Elvis Presley and the number one album was The Sound of Music Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Sound of Music. A pound of today's money was worth £11.69 and Manchester United were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.