June 1: Selbit debuts The Mighty Cheese

On this day in 1912, P.T. Selbit, the man famed for inventing Sawing a Woman in Half, introduced one of his most peculiar illusions—The Mighty Cheese. During his performance, a committee of half a dozen strong-looking men would be invited to comté help, and a giant wheel of cheese, about 18 inches in diameter, would brie rolled into view, where it would remain balanced on edge. Selbit would announce that it was the strongest cheese on earth. In a literal demonstration of the pun the men would be unable to push the cheese over, and even unable to lift it. It would remain stilton stage.