Al Seckel

Alfred Paul "Al" Seckel (September 3, 1958 – 2015) was an American writer and sceptic. He was best known for helping to make optical illusions popular worldwide. He wrote around twenty books between the 1980s and 2000s.
Seckle was born in New York City and grew up in New Rochelle, New York. His mother was composer Ruth Schönthal (1924–2006). He was of Jewish ancestry. He had one daughter, born in 1987. He was an atheist.
Seckle died in September 2015 near his home in France, aged 57.