I love amazing people. I love dazzling them. That's why I think performing magic is one of the greatest things a person can do.
Ricky JayRead
I grew up like Athena — covered with playing cards instead of armor — and, at the age of seven, materialized on a TV show, doing magic.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects the speaker's unique childhood and early talent for performance art, likening it to the mythical goddess Athena.
Ricky Jay's quote captures the essence of a creative upbringing, where he draws a parallel between himself and Athena, the goddess of wisdom and warfare, suggesting that he was equipped not with traditional armor but with the playful and imaginative tools of a child's game. The mention of materializing on television at a young age highlights the early onset of his career in magic and performance, emphasizing how creativity and talent can manifest in unconventional ways right from childhood.
Themes
CreativityChildhoodMagicPerformanceImagination
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be shared in a discussion about the importance of nurturing creativity in children.
More from Ricky Jay
All quotes →Dai Vernon, the greatest sleight of hand figure in the history of the art, rarely performed. But he invented magic and had an enormous influence on the whole range of sleight of hand. And so often, the magic he was doing was to fool other magicians.
Ricky JayRead
I'm much more interested in lesser-known eccentrics and characters and performers. Like Matthew Buchinger, who was born in Germany in 1674, had no arms or legs and yet did magic, and had 14 kids, and made the most extraordinary calligraphy.
Ricky JayRead
For me, the most exciting thing is to create good magic that's entertaining for an audience, and it would be lovely if a magician was fooled as well.
Ricky JayRead
Like every art form, there are jealousies and angers and competitiveness in magic. But there's camaraderie among magicians, whether you perform it for a living or you're an enthusiast.
Ricky JayRead
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