The women in magicians lives are quite put upon. Dressing provocatively, handling the birds, being crammed into small spaces, feeling about in the dark for all the equipment. :-)

His comment about magicians practicing in this manner is true though.
There is a story of some of the great close-up artists, a master named Slydini who had been working on card appearances so long and so hard that once, someone had caught him in the shower and said, “Ha, produce a card now Slydini.”
To which he did, since he had been working on carrying a card in extreme situations.

Could be untrue, but he was considered one of the greats.