Who was T. Nelson Downs?

Thomas Nelson Downs (1867–1938) was an Iowa magician known as the “King of Koins”. A former railway telegrapher, he built an act almost entirely from coin magic, made the Miser’s Dream his best-known routine, and appeared at the Palace Theatre in London. He published Modern Coin Manipulation in 1900, retired to Marshalltown, Iowa, in 1912, and is buried there under a gravestone that calls him the King of Koins.

Where did T. Nelson Downs come from?

Downs was born on 16 March 1867 in Iowa. Most references give Marshalltown, the town where he grew up, while others give nearby Garwin. He is often called Tommy Downs.

As a teenager, he took a job as a telegrapher at the local railway station. The work left quiet hours at the telegraph key, and he used them to practise with coins and cards.

How did he become the King of Koins?

In 1895 he left telegraphy to make a living from magic. Unusually for the time, he built his act almost entirely around coins, and he took it into vaudeville. He became known as the “King of Koins”, and at the height of his career he is said to have palmed as many as 60 coins.

What was the Miser’s Dream?

The Miser’s Dream was Downs’s best-known routine. He seemed to pull coin after coin out of thin air, and his book describes the version with coins caught in a hat. Producing money from the air was not a new idea: Professor Hoffmann’s Modern Magic (1876) already describes a “shower of money”. You can read more about the routine in our history of the Miser’s Dream.

Where did he perform?

Downs went from the American vaudeville stage to London, where he appeared at the Palace Theatre, at one point for 26 consecutive weeks. He also performed for royalty, including Queen Victoria and the Prince of Wales, who later became king.

He also performed the Afghan bands, a paper-loop trick that other stage magicians of the period used too. Our guide to the Afghan bands trick shows how it works.

What did he write?

His first book, Modern Coin Manipulation, was published in 1900. It covers the Miser’s Dream, the front and back hand palm, coin passes and vanishes, and mechanical devices made to imitate the Miser’s Dream. He later published The Art of Magic.

Did he know Houdini?

Yes. Downs and Harry Houdini first met at the Chicago World’s Fair in 1893 and became friends. For more on Houdini, read who was Harry Houdini?

What happened in his later life?

In 1912, aged 42, Downs retired from the stage and returned to Marshalltown. He ran a theatre on Main Street and opened a combined stage and motion-picture theatre nearby. His health declined from around 1935, and he died in Marshalltown on 11 September 1938. He is buried in Riverside Cemetery, and his gravestone calls him the King of Koins.

What should you look at next?

• Modern Coin Manipulation by T. Nelson Downs. A free, complete 197-page PDF of the 1900 George Routledge & Sons edition, with the Miser’s Dream, palms, passes, vanishes and coin combinations. The pages are scans, so the text isn’t searchable.
• Self Working Coin Magic by Karl Fulves. 92 tricks with common coins and paper money, including how to pluck a seemingly endless number of coins from the air, with 251 illustrations.

For coins that look the part, browse our replica coins, or start with our guide to the classic palm.

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