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

this case, he had brought a cape for each child. After the
show ended, the kids scrambled into their Turley wear. The
father, too, insisted on his own gear, donning the top hat and
glasses and posing for pictures along with the kids and the
magician. Turley had also brought along copies of Woodrow
the White House Mouse, a children’s book that features a
character based on him
performing at a White
House party.
None of the people in
the room were familiar
to Turley. Nothing about
the circumstances or the
faces rang a bell. What
he did know was that
his audience enjoyed
the show thoroughly
and had a fun afternoon.
Mission accomplished.
When he arrived
back home, Turley’s
wife Makiko was
naturally curious about
the mystery guests. “So
who were they?” she
Turley in Woodrow the White
House Mouse
asked.
“Well, I don’t know,”
said Turley. He recalled
the scene. “There were
six kids. They looked like they came from all over the
world. There were two Asian boys, a little girl who looked
Ethiopian, a little Caucasian girl, and two babies. The dad
had a goatee. And there was a dark-haired woman taking
pictures.”
Makiko was incredulous. “That was Brad Pitt and
Angelina Jolie!”
The next time Turley was in a grocery store, a quick
glance at the magazine display confirmed that the large and
diverse family he had met was the globe-trotting Jolie-Pitt
clan.
Of course, the Jolie-Pitts couldn’t know that Turley had
no idea who they were, but it must have been refreshing to
be around someone who treated them as though they were
ordinary parents, who did not act obsequious or obnoxious
or star struck. In what surely must have been a first for the
family, Turley performed his entire act and left the hotel
without any evidence of his time with Brad and Angelina
– not one photo, not one autograph, no endorsements or references.
His brush with celebrity superstardom hasn’t changed
Turley. His intellectual and spiritual pursuits continue.
He is currently reading the works of Thomas Merton, a
Trappist monk known for his ruminations on social justice
and pacifism. Although he prides himself in not following
the herd and is proud of the fact that he didn’t recognize
Brangelina, Turley does now make a point of perusing
tabloids in the checkout line “just to keep up.”
Do you have an interesting story for the Pro Files? Send me
an email at james@jamesmunton.com.
AUGUST 2011 55