The presence of the magician in cinema is about as old as the medium itself, and it should be of no surprise considering film’s inception and the many early figures that shaped its production and exhibition. Naturally, the b-movie purveyors, side show hucksters and run of the mill exploiters of the 40s through 70s saw plenty to capitalize on in regards to magic and those that performed such acts. Such films as the Tyrone Power film noir NIGHTMARE ALLEY (1947), the Vincent Price starring 3D horror shocker THE MAD MAGICIAN (1954) and Herschell Gordon Lewis’s blood soaked opus THE WIZARD OF GORE (1970) paved the way for the much more bombastic, big budgeted magic films of today like THE PRESTIGE (2006) and NOW YOU SEE ME (2013).