Meet Candy Kellar!

 Harry Kellar was a hugely successful magician a generation before Houdini who specialized in large scale illusions.  Like a surprising number of other great magicians, Kellar, who was born in 1849, ran away as a boy, in his case after accidentally blowing up the floor of the drug store where he was working!  (Does this story remind you of anyone, Joe?)  He got into magic as a youth by responding to an ad looking for an assistant to a magician, and went on to work his way up, despite assorted setbacks, to the heights of international Magical stardom, fame, and acclaim.  At the end of his career he handed over his whole show to Thurston.  I'm a little annoyed because I kind of wanted it.