S. W. Erdnase is a pseudonym used by the author of The Expert at the Card Table, a book detailing sleight of hand, cheating and legerdemain using playing cards. Still considered essential reading for any card magician, the book, known also as either the Bible or, commonly, just Erdnase, has been in continual publication since 1902. Erdnase's true identity is one of the enduring mysteries of the magic community.
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S. W. Erdnase was most likely a way for the author to conceal his real identity so he wouldn't be arrested but so that people could figure out his real identity later. S. W. Erdnase spelled backwards is "E. S. Andrews" leading many investigators to search for people named Andrews as possible candidates.
Martin Gardner has proposed that a small-time con man named Milton Franklin Andrews was the author. Others argue against Andrews being Erdnase because the known examples of his writing are very much inferior to the polished writing of The Expert at the Card Table.
Andrews was wanted by police for questioning in relation to a murder inquiry. When the police found Andrews he shot himself dead after fatally shooting his female companion. Andrews was only 33, as stated in The Man Who was Erdnase.
Some argue that Erdnase was probably a well educated, locally prominent individual, hiding behind an alias to protect his social standing. The most prominent individual mentioned in this regard is a mining engineer named Wilbur Edgerton Sanders, proposed by magician and private detective David Alexander. (Note that "S. W. Erdnase" is an anagram of "W. E. Sanders".)[1] Genii Magazine devoted a large portion of its September 2011 issue to an exploration of Alexander's theory, providing substantial circumstantial evidence that links Sanders to Erdnase.
Todd Karr has identified a Midwestern-based con artist and business swindler named E. S. Andrews who was active around the turn of the century and whose biography and range of known locations seems to fit Erdnase's.[2]
Juan Tamariz has advanced the theory that Erdnase was written by the Peruvian magician named "L'Homme Masque" (The Masked Man), who lived in Europe.