Over the history of Ring 59 there have been 3 men who have held the position of Dean: James "Jimmy" Holmes, Chester "Chet" Karkut, and Nelson Nicholson. Upon the death of our original Dean, Jimmy Holmes, an annual award was set up in his memory.
Jimmy Holmes was born in 1892 in Bradford, England. From 1935 until his death, he was a resident of Ansonia. A foreman at the Kerite Corporation, he served in WWI as a sergeant in the engineers. He was a charter member of Frederick Eugene Powell Ring 59 and an early member of the SAM. In addition to magic, he was an expert teacher of baton twirling. A contributor to numerous magic magazines, he was highly regarded by his peers and was a life member of Ring 59. There is not one meeting of Ring 59 that I can remember when Jimmy did not perform. He was well know for his rendition of "One Card Pete" and his ability to find all manor of things hidden in a spectator's pocket, from yards of paper to nylon stockings to baby bottles. You would more often than not find him at a table during refreshments beating the daylights out of a half dollar using a standard drinking glass. No matter how hard he hit it, I never saw a single glass break. He was a kind and generous man and I had the pleasure of visiting him in his home on several occasions. He was always generous with other magicians, especially the younger members of our ring.
Jimmy died in 1980 after a short illness. He had performed magic until shortly before he died. The week preceding his funeral and burial had been very rainy. The day of the burial was beautiful and sunny. One of the funeral home personnel remarked to me on how fortunate we were to have such beautiful weather. I dead panned him, "This man is a magician. All these men you see are also magicians. Do you think we would have allowed anything else?"... You should have seen the look on his face.
Our current Dean, Nelson Nicholson, has asked that I distribute this information to our members with the intention of generating some nominations for the award this year.
DEAN JAMES HOLMES MEMORIAL TROPHY
The Dean James Holmes Memorial Trophy shall be presented annually to the member of Frederick Eugene Powell Ring 59 of the I.B.M. who best displays the qualities of brotherhood, service to the ring and community, and continued growth in the field of magic.
The member must be in good standing, having been a member for at one year at the time of selection. His or her name shall be submitted to the Dean of Ring 59 by any other member of the ring in good standing, with a letter of recommendation stating the reasons for the nomination.
Selection shall be made by a committee of three. The committee shall be composed of the current Dean of Ring 59 and two other members in good standing, appointed by the current Dean, who shall remain anonymous. Members of the committee shall be appointed after the nomination deadline.
Letters of nomination may be submitted to the Dean of Ring 59 by mail, beginning with the first ring meeting of the new calendar year. All letters of nomination shall be received by the Dean no later than the first Friday of July. The committee shall make their selection and the presentation shall be made at the Annual Installation & Past Presidents' Banquet each November. The committee shall not be obligated to present the award in any year in which, in their opinion, none of the submitted nominations meet the necessary qualifications.
All letters or other testimony used for the selection of the recipient, are to be treated as confidential, and no list of nominees will be publicly available at any time. At the conclusion of the selection process all nominating materials shall be destroyed.
The recipient shall receive a certificate and shall for the period of one year, host the Dean James Holmes Memorial Trophy. Prior to his or her receipt of the trophy, the recipient's name and the year in which her or she received the award shall be added to the list of past recipients engraved on the trophy. Should the recipient cease to be a memberof Ring 59, for any reason, or fall from good standing, they shall surrender the trophy to the safe keeping of the President for the remainder of the year.
Letters of nomination may be sent to:
Nelson Nicholson
579 Derby Milford Rd
Orange CT 06477
Special thanks our archivist, Joe Lantiere, for helping with the compilation of this information.
Jimmy Holmes was born in 1892 in Bradford, England. From 1935 until his death, he was a resident of Ansonia. A foreman at the Kerite Corporation, he served in WWI as a sergeant in the engineers. He was a charter member of Frederick Eugene Powell Ring 59 and an early member of the SAM. In addition to magic, he was an expert teacher of baton twirling. A contributor to numerous magic magazines, he was highly regarded by his peers and was a life member of Ring 59. There is not one meeting of Ring 59 that I can remember when Jimmy did not perform. He was well know for his rendition of "One Card Pete" and his ability to find all manor of things hidden in a spectator's pocket, from yards of paper to nylon stockings to baby bottles. You would more often than not find him at a table during refreshments beating the daylights out of a half dollar using a standard drinking glass. No matter how hard he hit it, I never saw a single glass break. He was a kind and generous man and I had the pleasure of visiting him in his home on several occasions. He was always generous with other magicians, especially the younger members of our ring.
Jimmy died in 1980 after a short illness. He had performed magic until shortly before he died. The week preceding his funeral and burial had been very rainy. The day of the burial was beautiful and sunny. One of the funeral home personnel remarked to me on how fortunate we were to have such beautiful weather. I dead panned him, "This man is a magician. All these men you see are also magicians. Do you think we would have allowed anything else?"... You should have seen the look on his face.
Our current Dean, Nelson Nicholson, has asked that I distribute this information to our members with the intention of generating some nominations for the award this year.
DEAN JAMES HOLMES MEMORIAL TROPHY
The Dean James Holmes Memorial Trophy shall be presented annually to the member of Frederick Eugene Powell Ring 59 of the I.B.M. who best displays the qualities of brotherhood, service to the ring and community, and continued growth in the field of magic.
The member must be in good standing, having been a member for at one year at the time of selection. His or her name shall be submitted to the Dean of Ring 59 by any other member of the ring in good standing, with a letter of recommendation stating the reasons for the nomination.
Selection shall be made by a committee of three. The committee shall be composed of the current Dean of Ring 59 and two other members in good standing, appointed by the current Dean, who shall remain anonymous. Members of the committee shall be appointed after the nomination deadline.
Letters of nomination may be submitted to the Dean of Ring 59 by mail, beginning with the first ring meeting of the new calendar year. All letters of nomination shall be received by the Dean no later than the first Friday of July. The committee shall make their selection and the presentation shall be made at the Annual Installation & Past Presidents' Banquet each November. The committee shall not be obligated to present the award in any year in which, in their opinion, none of the submitted nominations meet the necessary qualifications.
All letters or other testimony used for the selection of the recipient, are to be treated as confidential, and no list of nominees will be publicly available at any time. At the conclusion of the selection process all nominating materials shall be destroyed.
The recipient shall receive a certificate and shall for the period of one year, host the Dean James Holmes Memorial Trophy. Prior to his or her receipt of the trophy, the recipient's name and the year in which her or she received the award shall be added to the list of past recipients engraved on the trophy. Should the recipient cease to be a memberof Ring 59, for any reason, or fall from good standing, they shall surrender the trophy to the safe keeping of the President for the remainder of the year.
Letters of nomination may be sent to:
Nelson Nicholson
579 Derby Milford Rd
Orange CT 06477
Special thanks our archivist, Joe Lantiere, for helping with the compilation of this information.
