Kellar, Harry (Heinrich Keller), & William Fay | Probably the earliest surviving Harry Kellar poster

Kellar, Harry (Heinrich Keller), & William Fay

Profs. Fay and Keller. Prof. W. M. Fay's Dark Séance. Cincinnati: Strobridge & Co., [1874]

Color lithograph poster ( 21 1/4 x 18 1/2 in.; 541 x 472 mm). The title of the Fay and Keller act is mounted as a cancel over the original billing of the Davenport Brothers, the engagement details are printed separately, probably with wooden types, and tipped to the poster; a little wrinkling and two short tears in lower text. Matted, framed, and glazed.

Very possibly the earliest surviving Kellar poster, prior to his changing his name from Heinrich Keller to the more familiar Harry Kellar. 

Kellar joined the stage spiritualist act "The Davenport Brothers and Fay" in 1869. Four years later, he and William Fay left the Davenports to strike out on their own, taking the secrets of the act with them: "The climax of the séance included objects treated with luminous dye—then a novelty—so the audience could see them floating in a dark room" (Magic). The present poster, billed for a performance at the Grand Teatro Nacional in Mexico City beginning April 5, 1874, was part of their highly successful tour through Central and South America.

REFERENCE:

Exemplars, p. 198; Magic, p. 248