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Standup comic and magician The Amazing Johnathan, also known as John Edward Szeles, recently passed away on February 22 following a long battle with heart disease. Szeles was 63 years old at the time of his death.
Fellow standup comic Penny Wiggins wrote on Facebook:
“Jonathan Szeles (Amazing Johnathan) has passed away at around 11:30 pm 2/22/22. My heart is broken. One of my best friends, one of the funniest humans I’ve ever met. I loved him so very much and will never forget this wonderful, amazing, kind, funny, great person.”
On February 21, John’s wife Anastasia Synn had said that her husband was not responding and had apparently reached the final stage of his life after an “absolute nightmare” week.
Anastasia said that her husband was strong and had requested his close friends to stop texting and calling him while he was under hospice care. She continued:
“I don’t think we thought this day would ever come because he is so strong and has beaten it so many times. Thank you for all the well wishes, but as the news spreads, it’s getting overwhelming and I’m going to have to take a step back. I love you and thank you for your support.”
Everything known about The Amazing Johnathan
Born on September 9, 1958, The Amazing Johnathan’s comedy and magic acts mostly consisted of hijinks, interactions with audience members and quite a few legit magic tricks.
John began his career performing on the streets of San Francisco and appeared in The 8th Annual Young Comedians Show in 1983. Besides being the host of the 1991 game show, Ruckus, he also appeared on various talk and variety shows from the mid-80s to mid-2000s.
His only performance as an actor was The Obligatory Holiday Episode of The Weird Al Show. He later appeared multiple times on the talk show Late Night with David Letterman and had many specials on Comedy Central like Comedy Central Presents, Lounge Lizards, and more.
Szeles appeared in the 2005 documentary The Aristocrats and became a household name in Australia because of his performances on Channel 9’s Hey Hey It’s Saturday. He was also the author of a how-to book on practical jokes called Every Trick in the Book.
The Detroit, Michigan native then opened the Amazing Underground in 2008, a members-only indoor drive-in movie theater located within his warehouse facilities in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Szeles also performed regular shows at the Harmon Theater in Las Vegas in 2011 and was a recipient of the Best Comedian Award from the Las Vegas Review Journal. He later received the Comedian of the Year from Nevada Magazine and was also the host of an online talk show called Burn Unit in 2013.
Fans pay tribute on social media
Ever since 1983, The Amazing Johnathan gained recognition as a magician and stand-up comedian. The public expressed their grief on Twitter when they heard about his death:
John is survived by his wife of eight years, Anastasia Synn. The pair tied the knot on June 7, 2014.
