The Amazing Kreskin, Legendary ‘Mentalist’ of TV’s Golden Age, Dazzled Audiences for Decades

Divining subconscious seeds, Kreskin first appeared on TV in 1964, kicking off a string of appearances that ran, with some pauses, through the rest of his life.

Lars Hagberg/The Canadian Press via AP, file
George Joseph Kresge Jr., better known as 'The Amazing Kreskin,' at Toronto in 2007. Lars Hagberg/The Canadian Press via AP, file

George Kresge is being remembered with smiles by those who owned black-and-white TVs. Famous as the Amazing Kreskin, his act harkens back to a time of the three networks signing off for the night, and artists riding Vaudeville-inspired schtick into America’s living rooms.

When Kreskin was born at Montclair, New Jersey, in 1935, fame wasn’t as easy to achieve as it is with the advent of cable TV, the Internet, and social media. The Great Depression and World War II meant he had his work cut out for him to become a household name.

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