(Hank) Moorehouse 1934 – 2011 - The Society of American Magicians

on. As a part of the process, their therapist thought it would be
beneficial for them to view their mother’s autopsy photos. He
went as far as getting a court order allowing the private viewing
of the photos. Jon and his sister drove into Seattle with their
therapist and were faced with the decision of whether or not
to view the photos. The therapist told them they didn’t have
to, but if they did, they would know the truth about what their
father had done. During the trial it was revealed that his mother
hadn’t been pushed down stairs; she was beaten to death by
their father. Knowing this, Jon and his sister opened the folder
that contained the pictures. Afterwards, the therapist drove
them out to Puget Sound and Jon stood on the edge of a cliff
and screamed for forty-five minutes. Jon was actually asked
to testify against his father in court. He remembers telling the
District Attorney that if it would help end the trial he would.
Their mother’s sister, Susan, fought for custody of Jon and
his sister and they eventually moved in with her in Southern California
a year later. Jon had made the little league all-star team
before he moved to Southern California, so he quickly returned
to Woodinville to play baseball. He stayed with the coach’s
family and it was there that he saw magic for the first time.
One of their neighbors was sixteen-year-old magician Michael
Groves. He did a show for Jon and performed coins across, a
matrix routine, Roth’s Portable Hole, and a sponge ball routine.
Jon was blown away and thought it was the coolest thing he
had ever experienced. Michael saw how happy the tricks made
him and taught Jon a sponge ball routine. Impressed with how
quickly he learned the routine, and seeing Jon’s excitement, he
took him to a local magic shop in Seattle and bought him a copy
of Modern Coin Magic by J.B. Bobo. Jon studied every word,
and the more he studied, the more he fell in love with magic.
Jon’s aunt also saw how Jon loved magic and introduced him
to the ex-boyfriend of one of her friends, a magician named Ken
Sands. Jon and Ken bonded quickly, developing a relationship
that went beyond mentoring: almost a father-son relationship.
Ken would show Jon magic, but not explain the methods until
Performing the Floating Rose
Jon had a chance to work them out. He made Jon work for the
secrets. More important, Jon picked up on Ken’s style of performance
and learned at a very early age that magic was just
a vehicle for communicating with people. This is the hallmark
of Jon’s performing style to this day. That’s not to say he didn’t
have other influences. Like many other budding magicians, he
would videotape magicians on TV and try to emulate them. He
was uncomfortable speaking on stage, so he worked to music.
When he was thirteen, he performed Kevin James’s Floating
Rose in a school show. He was initially perplexed when there
was no reaction at the end of the routine. He didn’t realize the
audience was just stunned by what they had seen. A few seconds
later they burst into thunderous applause. That encouraged him
to work on another routine for the next year. He virtually copied
Lance Burton’s Candle routine. He got a great reaction, but Ken
told him that he couldn’t keep doing other people’s material or
he wouldn’t grow as a performer. He had to come up with his
own routines.
Jon got the message and began creating talking routines
for stand-up performances. At the same time, he started
doing strolling magic for an agency that Ken referred him to.
Although he was only fifteen, he was a big kid and could easily
pass for eighteen or nineteen. He did magic for corporate clients
as well as private parties. One of the things that helped him get
referrals was that he might be hired for one hour, but he’d stay
for three hours. All of this performing brought him to the realization
that you can never mess up. The audience doesn’t know
what ultimately is supposed to happen. It’s all about having fun
with your magic and making people love it. As his mentor told
him, “Don’t become what you do; be who you are.” Ken Sands
owns a magic shop in Orange County and has continued to be
Jon’s biggest influence in magic and one of the biggest influences
in his life.
While living in Seattle, and during all of this involvement
with magic, Jon was even more involved with sports, playing
soccer, basketball, and baseball. He particularly excelled in
Dorenbos snapping a football
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