JW: How much do you practice?

 

NF: If I practice every day regularly at the same time it begins to feel right. I discovered that lately, actually. I practice with the same props I perform with. I don't practice much during the day, but before I actually go on stage I do the act three times, from the beginning to the end, and then from the end to the beginning so I'm ready to go out there and start. My act is 5-1/2 minutes of juggling in 14 minutes on stage. The rest is the audience participation, so I can do a good warm-up in 20-25 minutes.

 

JW: What are the most impressive tricks you've seen other performers do?

 

NF: I like very much a routine with six big balls I saw Ignatov do in Paris. I was very impressed with the height he used, and he did them with perfection. And I've seen Sforza in Italy do 11 rings on a unicycle. That was really something! He did about 20 minutes, running around the ring with five and six small batons, four soccer balls with one bouncing on his head. He's a fanatic, he practices all day. But when you do all that stuff in an act you do drop a lot. He juggles for himself and doesn't care much about the audience.

 

JW: Are there tricks YOU would still like to learn?

 

NF: I'd love to learn a trick I saw Rastelli do in a movie. He did a routine with five billiard canes, single, then double. He stops four and throws the fifth one very high to catch in a balance on his foot. To finish that he throws it up and catches it in a balance on the tip of his nose. That man practically invented juggling! He made jugglers what we are today. I'd like to do that for myself. I don't think the audience would appreciate it, but it's very difficult.

 

I also do little things for myself, like throwing a cigarette and catching it in my mouth and juggling three long wooden matches when they're lit.

 

JW: Where do you figure your career is headed from here?

 

NF: I think I can do this for another 10 years because physically I feel very strong. But eventually I'll have to do more gags. Soon I want to start some kind of charity work. I want to get together with some other entertainers and form a kind of association to raise money for charity.

 

I've traveled all my life by myself, and to tell you the truth, you get very lonely. I had to do three months in Turkey once and I'd quit show biz if I had to do that again! Eventually I'd like to do an act with a friend, someone like my son or Pepito Alvarez, who I grew up juggling with.

 

JW: You have a son who juggles?

 

NF: Yes, Romano juggles, but he's 16 and wants to be a graphic designer. He's got personality to sell because he grew up around show business. He goes on and gets a standing ovation every time he works. He did a few shows here in Las Vegas. He's got so much personality! Now he's working the boxes like Kris Kremo. He looks straight at the people and says "Come on!" He's really got it! I could offer him a lot, too, because I know a lot of people in the business.

 

JW: What is your formal education?

 

NF: Traveling. That's been my education. I never went to school except for six weeks in school once when the police came after my father. But my mom and dad taught me to read and write. I speak 6 languages and mess around with Japanese. I read and write Italian, French, Spanish and English. My father never went to school and my grandfather never went to school. But we learned to speak different languages, traveled the world and never needed much of anything.

 

JW: Do you have any other career skills? 0 NF: Boxing. I was young, 19 or 20. I did this on my own for the macho side of myself. I just came out of the circus and was full of energy. You have to do something with your time. I did 19 fights. I also played soccer a lot, and had two operations on my knee because of it! I played with professional people for a long time. I like swimming and I like jogging. I took part in some races in London and Paris.

 

JW: Is it true you have some sort of eye trouble?

 

NF: In fact I have a dystrophy of the optic nerve which doesn't allow me to drive or play golf. It's from birth - the nerve that connects from the eye to the brain never developed. I'm very short­sighted and only see peripherally. It probably pushed me toward juggling because you have your hands and props close to you. Soccer's never been a problem either because the ball is big.

 

JW: Do you have any great juggling stories you like to tell on yourself?

 

NF: In London with the Black and White Review I used to do summer concerts. One morning we came back so late I left my two bags on the porch after a night concert. The next morning the trash people came and threw my two bags in the truck!  I got up early in the afternoon and got ready for the night show and was looking everywhere for my props.

 

I finally came to the conclusion that I left them outside, and checked with the trash people. I eventually got in touch with the workers, who told me they thought the bags were trash. But all my musical arrangement, costume and props were in there - my whole show was in there! So I called my boss and he said there was no way he could replace me within two hours. I ended up using three toilet plungers taped with gold paper, three lacrosse balls and five oranges. For balls I picked up two soccer balls and a plastic ball I found in my back yard. And the rings were old rings three different sizes! I bought myself a pair of jogging shoes and worked as an athlete.

 

That's how I worked for a week until I got some props sent in from Paris. I was concentrating so hard that I dropped less than with my own props! That was some experience!