'Dollar Bill' Coruba Folds a Dollar Tree

By Liz Page

WEST KILL – He has a slight of hand and a knack for folding one dollar bills into a myriad of shapes. His most recent is a tree. "No one has done a tree before" said "Dollar Bill"Coruba.

As a magician, he was inspired to start folding bills, using the art of origami.

He was traveling through from West Kill where he resides, excited about the tree and wanting to give js and update, just in time for Christmas. Okay, we missed the Christmas issue.

Anyway, he wanted to show the tree and has also learned to do a bow tie but his most famous is the revolver. He also showed me the Empire State Building, which in my mind looks more difficult to fold than the tree.

The folded bills are his calling card and he has been perfecting his skill for 40 years, starting out as a member of the Society of American Magicians. He is constantly working to make new designs and unique designs.

He has given out many of his bills. I am four dollars richer. He said there is magic in money and it is a good way to get a conversation going. People of all ages enjoy his designs.

Of course he has published a book The Art of Folding Money and The Magic of Folding Money.

He is retired from being a magician and merely folds the money for the joy of it. He hasn't kept track of all the dollar bills he has handed out, but one of his more famous was a bunny he designed called "Buck Rabbit" that was used in 1979 by Playboy magazine.

He can do more than 100 different folds and he said he has invented more folds than anyone.

People find out about these designs through word of mouth. He gets a chance to share his creations nearly every day. He doesn’t leave his name or contact information because the folded bills act as a calling card. “You don’t have to,” he said. "It’s my love." Coruba added it’s not just a matter of making them, but “giving them away” as conversation pieces. “The gun will shoot you in any conversation.”