Working in the magic industry, I got to meet and hang out with Harry a few times. He had a mouth as filthy as his brain was clever. He would sometimes be so foul that I would have to leave the room! But he was unquestionably an amazing performer.
Sadly I never got to see him in his club in Nola, although I saw him perform parts of the act that he did there at other venues. After Katrina, he was eventually so ticked at the incompetent Nola city management that he sold everything and moved to Asheville.
His passing has been taken very hard at the Magic Castle and among many in the industry. We don't get a whole lot of cross-over star power - right now I guess Neil Patrick Harris and Steve Valentine are the only magicians currently working a lot in mainstream film and tv. (Penn & Teller, sure, but their mainstream work is still magic-industry related.)
Anyway, just chiming in to mark Harry's passing. I guess I last hung out with him in 2014 at a party. Saw him again at another event but didn't get to converse.
RIP Harry the Hat