A magical trove of Ricky Jay ephemera hits auction block

By LEANNE ITALIE
AP Entertainment Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — Conjurers and cheats, hustlers and hoaxsters. Those were some of the things that interested the grizzled Ricky Jay. The widow of the sleight-of-hand artist, card shark, author and scholar turned over nearly 2,000 curiosities he collected to Sotheby’s for an unusual upcoming auction. Jay died in 2018 at age 72, leaving behind a vast trove of rare books, posters, broadsides and other artifacts that honored many who came before him. The Sotheby’s Ricky Jay Collection is valued in total at $2.2 million to $3.2 million. Divided into 634 lots, it’s the focus of a live auction Wednesday and Thursday.