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The Magic Cafe Forum Index :: Flavors from the past... :: Al Flosso (0 Likes)

Good to here.

Kenardo1 New user 72 Posts	Posted: May 18, 2004 01:12 pm 0 As a high school student many years ago, I recall with great fondness my visits to Al Flosso's magic shop on 34th Street in New York City. He sold me my copy of Bobo and would help me with learning sleights from it every time I visited. He was also very concerned that I did not spend my last dime in his store and that I had enough money to get home. He definitely was one of magic's most unforgettable characters!
jaystyles New user San DIego, Ca 28 Posts	Posted: Jun 28, 2004 03:06 am 0 Man that's crazy. I grew up in Brooklyn, New York I moved out about 4 1/2 years ago to Join the Navy. I was like 16 when I started visiting His shop. Al Was funny doing some Magic but you saw a glimpse of every move he made. I bought tons of stuff at his shop. He had a lot of collector items. But he will be missed Jay
Bill Wells Elite user Lexington, VA 457 Posts	Posted: Nov 3, 2004 05:50 am 0 On my unfortunately infrequent trips to New York, I always managed to visit Flosso's. One wonderful memory when I was in the shop was Al yelling to me "Turn around and meet Bozo the Magic Clown". I turned to see the smiling face of Dunninger. Anybody and everybody would show up in Flosso's!
JL608 Regular user 192 Posts	Posted: Feb 20, 2005 03:04 pm 0 I made some of my first "major" purchases from Flosso-Hornmann (by mail order) back in the mid '60s. I have many fond memories of the long wait for the postman, waiting for the latest miracle to arrive (Mouse House, Zombie, Sucker Die Box, and so on). Wish I could've visited the shop just once. Joe
David Todd Inner circle 2338 Posts	Posted: Apr 28, 2005 03:08 am 0 For those of you who love Al Flosso and Al Flosso stories, check out this post by Whit Haydn about a visit to Flosso's : http://www.themagiccafe.com/forums/searc......=3793188 (it's a great post from Whit , making an important point on the thread it's contained in , but it stands alone as a snapshot of Flosso's personality . This type of magic shop owner doesn't seem to exist anymore ) Quote: When I was young, I went into a magic shop. There weren't glass counters filled with stuff, in fact, although old posters and 8 x 10's were on the wall and strange magic props were on shelves, there was nothing with a price tag, and no signs identifying anything. The gruff old guy behind the counter greeted me with, "What do you want?" "I'm looking for a billiard ball holder." "What do you want to do with that?" "I want to use it to steal a billiard ball." "You do billiard balls? Let me see something." He gave me a ball and shell, and I did some moves. After watching for a minute without any expression, he said, "Yeah, I got one somewhere" and turned and went rummaging through some cardboard boxes. He came back with some bent wire soldered on a safety pin. "What's it worth to you?" "A lot." "It's 45 dollars." I must have looked really crestfallen. He said, "How much you got?" I said fifteen dollars. "You give me fifteen for this?" I said, "Sure." He tossed it on the counter. "Its yours. Two bucks." It was Al Flosso.
Jon Stetson Veteran user 329 Posts	Posted: May 3, 2005 01:22 am 0 Quote: On 2004-06-27 23:06, jaystyles wrote: Man that's crazy. I grew up in Brooklyn, New York I moved out about 4 1/2 years ago to Join the Navy. I was like 16 when I started visiting His shop. Al Was funny doing some Magic but you saw a glimpse of every move he made. I bought tons of stuff at his shop. He had a lot of collector items. But he will be missed Jay I think you may have mistaken Jackie for Al.
jslandesmd New user 4 Posts	Posted: Nov 23, 2010 07:30 pm 0 Went to Al's shop with my dad as a kid. He sold me a coin wand, which I still have. It was pretty expensive at the time (in the 60's)--maybe $25. While there, a rather large man in an overcoat, with a big cigar and derby hat walked in. We were introduced to him--Louis Marx--the famous toy manufacturer. As a kid of maybe 10 years old, I was not impressed, BUT in retrospect, it was an amazing encounter!