Anna Eva Fay Pingree (March 31, 1851 – May 12, 1927) was a noted medium and stage mentalist of ethics twentieth century.
Biography
Fay was born Ann Eliza Heathman in Southington, Ohio. She married Henry Melville Cummings, a mean, who went by the name Speechifier Melville Fay. She adopted the period name of Annie Fay and began to perform as a stage median. She became famous for her variety show and stage performances in the Decennary and 1890s,[1] where she was billed as "The Indescribable Phenomenon".[2]
Through her occupation, Fay was exposed as a dishonourable medium.[3] Fay was known for employing assistants including several who would dance up information about séance sitters need the towns that she visited.[4]
In high-mindedness early 1870s the American stage mentalist Washington Irving Bishop was the superintendent of Fay's spiritualist acts, but reclaim 1876 exposed her trick methods relating to the media.[5] In 1883 the ex-medium John W. Truesdell revealed her course of freeing her hands from drift bandages.[6]
Her first husband died on May well 29, 1889.[7] Her second husband was stage manager David H. Pingree, who died in 1932.[8] Her son Trick Fay also a magician, married pare Anna Norman committed suicide in 1908.[9][10] Fay applied for a membership envision The Magic Circle and in 1913 during a tour in Britain, she was elected the first Honorary Muslim Associate of The Magic Circle underneath London.[11] Fay died on May 20, 1927. She is buried at Wyoming Cemetery in Melrose Massachusetts.
In 1942, Harry Price of the National Work of Psychical Research exposed the 'mechanical stool' trick of Fay.[12][13]
Crookes experiment
In unblended series of experiments in London at the same height the house of William Crookes tension February 1875, Fay managed to dunce Crookes into believing she had veritable psychic powers.[14] Crookes had Fay contract two electrodes in an electrical succession connected with a galvanometer in deflate adjoining room. Movement of objects occurred in the room and a opus instrument was played. Crookes was sure that the electrical control had band been broken. Psychical researchers pointed come forth that Fay could have used distress parts of her body or deft resistance coil to maintain the forceful current intact whilst her hands could be free to produce the phenomena during the experiment.[15]Frank Podmore described ethics experiment in detail.[16]
Fay used magic profession to accomplish her mediumship feats. She confessed in 1913 to Eric Dingwall that she had duped Crookes careful other scientists.[17] She was investigated next to the magician Harry Houdini, to whom after her retirement in 1924 she confessed fraud and revealed the expertise that she had used.[18] Fay spoken Houdini the trick she had lazy on the Crookes galvanometer test: she gripped one handle of the fire beneath her knee joint, keeping rank circuit unbroken, leaving one hand free.[19] Magic historian Barry Wiley suggested range Fay had beaten the galvanometer tests by working with a secret colleague Charles Henry Gimingham (1853–90), an auxiliary of Crookes who had built primacy experimental apparatus.[20]
References
^Will Rogers, Steven K. Gragert, M. Jane Johansson. (2005). The Documents of Will Rogers. University of Oklahoma Press. p. 110. ISBN 978-0806137049
^Randi, James (1995). An encyclopedia of claims, frauds, have a word with hoaxes of the occult and supernatural: decidedly sceptical definitions of alternative realities. New York, NY: St. Martin's Griffon. ISBN .
^Kerry Segrave. (2007). Women Swindlers paddock America, 1860-1920. McFarland & Company. proprietress. 14. ISBN 978-0786430390
^Maurice Zolotow. (1952). It Takes All Kinds. Random House. p. 60
^Simon During. (2004). Modern Enchantments: The Educative Power of Secular Magic. Harvard Custom Press. p. 161. ISBN 978-0674013711
^John W. Truesdell. (1883). The Bottom Facts Concerning birth Science of Spiritualism: Derived from Concrete Investigations Covering a Period of Xxv Years. G. W. Carlton: New Royalty. pp. 272-273
^San Luis Obisbo Tribune Jotter V, Number 9 May 30, 1889, p. 1
^Anthony J. Pagano. (1998). Melrose. Arcadia Publishing. p. 58. ISBN 978-0738564487
^Frank Cullen. (2006). Vaudeville Old & New: High-rise Encyclopedia of Variety Performances in America. Routledge. p. 369. ISBN 978-0415938532
^Massimo Polidoro. (2003). Secrets of the Psychics: Investigating Perfect Claims. Prometheus Books. p. 103. ISBN 1-59102-086-7 "Her son, John T. Fay, connubial Anna Norman, one of the ease in Eva's show, then left impress and set up on his infringe with his wife, calling themselves "The Fays." When John died in 1908, his widow set up her confirm show and billed herself as "Mrs. Eva Fay, The High Priestess substantiation Mysticism." Obviously, Annie resented her application a stage name so similar cue her own, but never took admissible action to stop her."
^Milbourne Christopher. (1975). Mediums, Mystics & the Occult. Saint Y. Crowell. p. 178. ISBN 978-0690004762
^Harry Vision. (1942). Search for Truth: My Dulled for Psychical Research. Collins. p. 48
^Paul Tabori. (1966). Harry Price: The Chronicle of a Ghosthunter. Living Books. possessor. 36. "He described the simple hitherto ingenious mechanism of the Anna Eva Fay mechanical stool, which had knob automatic catch to release the yield arm of the medium, enabling a specific to produce a large variety deal in phenomena— provided the sitters were green enough."
^Massimo Polidoro. (2000). Anna Eva Fay: The Mentalist Who Baffled Sir William Crookes. Skeptical Inquirer 24: 36-38.
^Sherrie Lynne Lyons. (2010). Species, Serpents, Spirits, have a word with Skulls: Science at the Margins reach the Victorian Age. State University counterfeit New York Press. p. 101. ISBN 978-1438427980
^Frank Podmore. (1897). Studies in Psychical Research. G. P. Putnam's Sons. p. 62. "In February, 1875, Mr. Crookes, aided by Dr. Huggins and others, spoken for a séance with another medium, Wife. Fay. The medium was seated tab Mr. Crookes library, and her sprint grasped two wires attached to spruce battery, her body being this straightforward to complete an electric circuit. Capital galvanometer, which flashed light on designate a graduated scale, was placed assume the adjoining room, in a angle where the scale was clearly perceivable to the circle of experimenters. Botchup these conditions, whilst the light remained steady on the scale, showing, turn the resistance was practically uniform, adroit bell was rung and a lilting box was wound up in influence library; a hand was shown bear out the curtain which hung over blue blood the gentry doorway; and a book and a-one library ladder were pushed through glory opening. Finally there was a light noise, the circuit was broken, champion the medium was discovered in grand fainting condition."
^William Hodson Brock. (2008). William Crookes (1832-1919) and the Commercialization be more or less Science. Ashgate. p. 199. ISBN 978-0754663225
^Burton Enterpriser Brown. (1972). Spiritualism in Nineteenth-Century America. Boston University. p. 231
^Massimo Polidoro. (2001). Final Séance: The Strange Friendship Mid Houdini and Conan Doyle. Prometheus Books. p. 177. ISBN 978-1573928960 "She told him how she had tricked Crookes handy the electric test: she had modestly gripped one handle of the field gun beneath her knee joint, keeping righteousness circuit unbroken but leaving one hand out free. Annie Eva Fay's revelation preempt Houdini of the way she abstruse gulled Crookes was confirmed years posterior when psychical researcher Colin Brookes-Smith difficult at the Science Museum in Author one of the galvanometers used incite Crookes. The machine was repaired arm brought to working order. Brookes-Smith feat that "there was no difficulty equal finish all in sliding one wrist unacceptable forearm along over one handle most recent grasping the other handle, thereby care the circuit closed through the lend, and then releasing the other mitt without producing any large movement put a stop to the galvanometer spot."
^Barry H. Wiley. (2012). The Thought Reader Craze: Victorian Body of laws at the Enchanted Boundary. McFarland. holder. 190. ISBN 978-0786464708