Mr. Piffles, canine sidekick to Piff the Magic Dragon for nearly 10 years, died last Friday. Piff’s publicist made the announcement on Tuesday, which would have been the Chihuahua’s 17th birthday.
Piff the Magic Dragon is the stage name of John van der Put, a British magician and comedian known for mixing magic with sarcastic, self-effacing humor.
He and Mr. Piffles gained recognition after making the finals of “America’s Got Talent’s” ninth season in 2015. Though they didn’t win the competition, they won their own show at the Flamingo a year later, which continues nightly to this day.
“For over 15 years, I’ve had the privilege and the pleasure of being upstaged and outshone night after night by Mr. Piffles,” van der Put said in a statement.
The idea of a chihuahua assistant in dragon drag was not van der Put’s. In 2009, according to a tribute video, he hit a wall while developing his stage persona at a club during the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
“About halfway through, people kind of got bored of the dragon thing,” van der Put said in the video.
So his publicist suggested that he bring the club owner’s dog to the stage to assist. The gimmick worked, so he found one of his own for sale on Scotland’s version of Craigslist.
Though the dog could be a nightmare to deal with offstage, van der Put said, onstage, he was always a star.
“He came into my life when I had nothing, and set me on the path to a career I could only dream of,” van der Put said.
The comedian/magician plans to continue his Flamingo show with a new canine companion, Mr. Piffles 2.0, whom he had cloned from Mr. Piffles last year.
The Flamingo will also dedicate a special dog-friendly space, called Mr. Piffles’ Magical Playground, at 5 p.m. Tuesday.
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