Magic Alex

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Magic Alex (actually Greek Αλέξανδρος-Ιωάννης «Αλέξης» Μάρδας Alexandros-Ioannis "Alexis" Mardas , English John Alexis Mardas ; born May 5, 1942 in Athens , Greece ; † January 13, 2017 ibid.) Was a Greek electrical engineer who worked for the close Environment of the Beatles belonged, where he worked, among other things, as a department head of Apple Electronics . He owed his nickname "Magic Alex" to John Lennon , who was initially very enthusiastic about his technical knowledge.

Live and act

London

Alexis Mardas was considered a technical prodigy in his Greek homeland. Alexis Mardas left Greece at the age of 21 to move to London . In the just awakening capital of pop music, the electrical engineer ran into Brian Jones , who was the same age . The guitarist hired tech-savvy Alexis for some live shows for his band The Rolling Stones . Mardas, who now called himself Alex, was supposed to coordinate the light show with the music. In the orbit of the Rolling Stones, Mardas met the gallery owner John Dunbar , who ran the Indica Gallery , an art gallery with an attached bookstore. The Beatles also went in and out of the gallery; Paul McCartney was even financially involved in the project. When Mardas exhibited and demonstrated his gadgets at the Indica Gallery, he met John Lennon. Lennon was particularly fond of the Nothing Box designed by Alex , which was available for £ 25. The box was advertised as follows in an ad: “This box flashes and that's all. You can't turn them off unless you use an ax to help. The eight light-emitting diodes flash for one year in no discernible order. Then the box is dead like a mackerel and cannot be repaired. ”Lennon bought a Nothing Box to be stimulated by it on his LSD trips. From then on, Alexis Mardas was part of the Beatles' following as "Magic Alex".

With the Beatles

When the Beatles decided on a whim to buy a Greek vacation island, Magic Alex led the negotiations. While the Beatles were making their film Magical Mystery Tour , Magic Alex entertained the bus crew with folk tunes. When the Beatles visited the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in India , Magic Alex was on the plane. And when the Beatles started their multimedia company, Apple Corps , Magic Alex became the department head of Apple Electronics . The Beatles set up a workshop for him on Boston Place, Marylebone Station.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ The Beatles Bible: Alexis Mardas (Magic Alex) ( Memento of the original from January 18, 2017 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.beatlesbible.com
  2. ↑ Alexis Mardas poios itan o gkoyroy ton beatles .
  3. ↑ The Beatles Bible: Alexis Mardas (Magic Alex) ( Memento of the original from January 18, 2017 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.beatlesbible.com
  4. ↑ Beatles Associate 'Magic Alex' Dead at 74 .
personal data
SURNAME Magic Alex
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Mardas, Yannis Alexis (real name); Mardas, Alexis; Mardas, John
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Greek electrical engineer
DATE OF BIRTH May 5, 1942
PLACE OF BIRTH Athens , Greece
DATE OF DEATH January 13, 2017
Place of death Athens , Greece