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JULY JUL Y 2014 201 4

MEET S.A.M. PRESIDENT KENRICK "ICE" MCDONALD AND I.B.M. PRESIDENT SHAWN FARQUHAR Page 36

July 2014 - M-U-M Magazine 3

MAGIC - UNITY - MIGHT Editor Michael Close Editor Emeritus David Goodsell Associate Editor W.S. Duncan Proofreader & Copy Editor Lindsay Smith Art Director Lisa Close Publisher Society of American Magicians, 18915 East Briargate Lane, #1F Parker, CO 80134 Copyright © 2014 Subscription is through membership in the Society and annual dues of $65, of which $40 is for 12 issues of M-U-M. All inquiries concerning membership, change of address, and missing or replacement issues should be addressed to: Manon Rodriguez, National Administrator P.O. Box 505, Parker, CO 80134 [email protected] Skype: manonadmin Phone: 303-362-0575 Fax: 303-362-0424 To fle an assembly report go to: www.mum-magazine.com

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Submissions for the magazine will only be accepted by email or fax.

VISIT THE S.A.M. WEB SITE www.magicsam.com To access “Members Only” pages: Enter your Name and Membership number exactly as it appears on your membership card. 4 M-U-M Magazine - July 2014

JULY 2014

M-U-M MAGAZINE

COVER STORY PAGE 36

S.A.M. NEWS

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From the Editor’s Desk From the President’s Desk

Newsworthy M-U-M Assembly News Good Cheer List New Members & Reinstatements Broken Wands Our Advertisers

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Cover Photo by Robin Dawes

THIS MONTH’S FEATURES

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Magic from a Member • by Mitch Geier Stage 101 Practium • by Levent Paranormal Happenings • by Charles Siebert, MD Nielsen Gallery • by Tom Ewing COVER STORY • by R.D. Michaels Looking Forward • by David R. Goodsell Hit the Road • by Scott Alexander Cheats and Deceptions • by Antonio M. Cabral Not Just Kid Stuff • by Jim Kleefeld Tech Tricks • by Bruce Kalver The High Road • by Mick Ayres For Your Consideration • by George Parker Ebook Nook: Master Notebook of Magic Informed Opinion • New Product Reviews Salon de Magie • by Ken Klosterman Inside Straight • by Norman Beck The Dean’s Diary • by George Schindler Basil the Bafﬂing • by Alan Wassilak

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10 M-U-M (ISSN 00475300 USPS 323580) is published monthly for $40 per year by The Society of American Magicians, 6838 N. Alpine Dr., Parker, CO 80134 . Periodical postage paid at Parker, CO and additional mailing ofces. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to M-U-M , c/o Manon Rod riguez, P.O. Box 505, Parker, CO 80134.


m o c . y h p a r g o t o h p y b e v f y b o t o h P

Michael Close

This is a unique and historic issue of M-U-M . It marks the rst time that the incoming president of The Society of American Magicians and the incoming president of the International Brotherhood of Magicians appear together on the cover of this magazine. (They are also together on the cover of the Linking Ring .) Kenrick “ICE” McDonald and Shawn Farquhar are great friends of almost twenty-ve years, so it was serendipitous that they ascended to the presidency in the same year, and in the year that the S.A.M. and I.B.M. decided to hold a joint national convention. ICE was on the cover of M-U-M in January 2010. You can read about what he’s been up to in this month’s cover story by R.D. Michaels. Following that story is an i nterview with ICE and Shawn conducted by Editor Emeritus David Goodsell. I’ve known ICE and Shawn for a long time, and I congratulate them on their achievement. If you are a longtime reader of M-U-M , you might want to skip the rest of this column and plunge right into the rest of the magazine; there’s plenty of good stuff to read. (However, you might want to keep reading just to be reminded of some of the material that has appeared in M-U-M over the past six years.) Because this issue of the magazine will be available to prospective new members of the S.A.M. at the combined convention, I want to discuss my editorial approach and what you can nd in this issue (and the previous sixty-six issues I’ve edited). Before I began my editorship of M-U-M with the January 2009 issue, my wife Lisa (who does the graphic design for the magazine) and I discussed the type of content we wanted to offer in the magazine. Our discussion resulted in four main areas: practical training in the major branches of magic (close-up, stand-up, stage, mentalism, and kid shows); real-world advice from professional performers; topics on magic theory that could be used as springboards for discussion at assembly meetings; and an emphasis on the importance of reading and an appreciation of the classic texts of magic. In addition, we’d include proles of contemporary performers, articles on magic history, commentary, and reviews of current products. For the practical training, we led off with Ian Kendall’s wonderful column, Basic Training (January 2009 – December 2011), which introduced readers to many of the core techniques of close-up magic. After Ian’s column concluded, we focused on stand-up magic with Levent’s Stage 101 column (January 2012 – December 2013). While this column focused on basic princi ples and how to apply them, Levent’s current column, Stage 101 Practicum, offers complete routines from Levent’s professional repertoire. A special treat for stage and stand-up performers was Scott Alexander’s column On the Shoulders of Giants (January 2013 – December 2013), which detailed the classic routines in the act of Denny Haney. (Scott’s current column, Hit t he Road, offers practical advice for the traveling magician.) Currently, Tony Cabral is offering techniques and training for the intermediate card magician in his column Cheats & Deceptions. (Incidentally, this month Tony tips a very useful method of card control, one for which I immediately found many uses.)

6 M-U-M Magazine - July 2014

And there was much more. For close-up workers we had Aldo Colombini (On the Loose, Anytime – Anywhere – Any Deck), Michael Perovich (Ellipsis, January 2012 – December 2012); Steve Marshall (Magic from 4F, January 2009 – December 2010, and I Left My Cards at Home, January 2011 – present), Chris Wasshuber (How to Make Your Own Playing Cards, February 2011 – July 2011), and Bob Farmer (El Roberto Enigmatico, January 2014 – present). For illusionists we ran Shop to Stage by Paul Osborne (Februar y 2009 – November 2011); Illusions of Grandeur by David Seebach (January 2010 – present). Mentalists had Mental Breakdown by Christian Painter (July 2009 – March 2014) and Messing with Your Mind by Christopher Carter (April 2014 to present). Larry White’s Specters & Secrets (January 2009 – December 2009) featured bizarre magic in the style of his great book A Devil of a Bar and Pub. Kid show magic has been well represented by Power of Bendi ng Air (March 2009 – November 2011) by Tom Vorjohan and Daniel Herron, Unli mited Possibilities (February 2010 – January 2013) by Jolly Roger, and Jim Kleefeld’s Not Just Kid Stuff (Januar y 2014 – present). (This month Jim offers for free the plans and graph ics for a prop that he could easily have charged money for.) Because most of the contributors to M-U-M are full-time or part-ti me professional magicians, the articles they contribute (even if they are training-based) are full of practical, real-world advice – the ki nd of advice that can save a lot of time and heartache. Of particular note in this regard was A Magician Prepares (January 2009 – January 2013) by the late Dennis Loomis. Dennis was a general practitioner; he had done it all, from escapes to illusions to school assembly shows to walk-around magic. His columns provided a post-graduate course in what you need to know if you want to make a living as a magician. They are an enormously valuable resource. Dennis was also a good friend of Doug Henning, and he offered some great stories about his friend in the column The Skinny Kid with the Overbite. If you’re interested in the history of magic, these columns are worth your time. Also worth your time are our regular history columnists Tom Ewing (Nielsen Gallery, January 2009 – present) and Ken Klosterman (Treasures from the Salon de Magie January 2012 – present). Most of our writers also understand that the practical and the theoretical go hand in hand, and they incorporate magic theory into their writings. Some columns address theoretical concepts more directly. I was very pleased when Charles Reynolds allowed me to serialize his lecture notes Observations in M-U-M . (This appeared as On Topic, May 2009 – March 2010). Charles’s assessment of what makes magic work is as clear and concise as anything I’ve read on the subject. Larry Hass, the associate dean of the McBride Magic & Mystery School, has contributed two valuable series of columns: Theor y and Art of Magic (May 2010 – April 2012) and Buildi ng a Show (Januar y 2013 – January 2014). Currently, For Your Consideration (January 2013 – present) by George Parker, who is also associated with Mystery School, and The High Road (January 2013 – present) by Mick Ayres offer insights into magic theory and the importance of character and script writing. There is much more to M-U-M , but I’m out of space. If you join the S.A.M. while attendi ng the combined convention (and I hope you will), you’ll nd a wealth of information in the back issues of the magazine (several year’s worth are available online). If you have questions, don’t hesitate to come up and talk to me. And have a great time at the convention! 

their families. Tevell said, “There are times when magic is about entertainment, and then there are other ti mes when it’s about Kenrick "ICE" McDonald changing the world. When I walk into a hospital room it’s Wow, it is nally here. Allow me to introduce myself; I am about changing the world!” Kenrick “ICE” McDonald, the national president of The Society Tevell tells of setting up to do of American Magicians. I am honored to be the president; I don’t a show in one of the hospital’s take this position lightly. I’m sure there will be issues that I can playrooms and a father saying solve and some that I can’t. During my term as president, one of to him that he wished his the major things that I would like to highlight is “the good will” son could see the show, but of the Society and its members. I want to showcase the wonderful he was going into surgery. programs available to our members, such as the Houdini Fund and Tevell talked to the staff and the Magic Endowment Fund. These funds are available to help ended up going down to pre-op with the family. Tevell did the magicians. Since I rst became involved with the national council Malini Egg Bag for the boy; when he nished, the boy smiled of the Society, I have talked about including and connecting and laughed. The parents started to cry and told him it was the with the younger magical artist. I have advocated infusing youth rst time their son had laughed or smiled in two weeks. Tevell into the Society and for those young people to take advantage of says, “Your magic must be about more than getting a check or self all the wisdom the Society has to offer. I would like to engage, gratication or it’s not really magic.” encourage, and embrace the young entertainers of our art. I also want to make this year “The Year of the Member,” celebrating the THE PRESIDENT’S YOUNG MAGICAL ARTIST members of The Society of American Magicians. OF THE MONTH Each month I plan to highlight two individuals on my president’s page. The section will be called the President Spotlight. There Kayla Drescher, a prowill be two categories. One category will highlight an individual fessional magician from the who performs for hospitals, charities, or similar organizations. New England area, has been The other category will highlight a young person who is striving performi ng magic for over a for excellence in the art of magic and the business of magic. The decade. She has performed on age range for the young artist will be sixteen to twenty-four; numerous television programs, exceptions will be made on a case by case basis. I will need your including Indianapolis’s Fox 59 help nding magicians to highl ight. If you know of an outstanding News, Connecticut’s Talking individual who will t into the either of these categories, please with Tom, and N BC’s The Today Show, where she won David submit the following information to [email protected]: his or her name, email address, and a brief explanation of why he or she Coppereld’s “Search for the should be highlighted. Next Great Magician.” Kayla continues to pursue her dream PRESIDENT’S SPOTLIGHT of pushing reality’s limits and sharing magic with the world. After graduating college with a degree in environmental THE PRESIDENT’S GOOD WILL PERFORMER science, Kayla made the decision to pursue magic professionOF THE MONTH ally. Since then, she has won numerous awards, including the Tevell Rose of Chicago, Winter Carnival of Magic First Place in Close-up. She can often Illinois, has been performing be seen performi ng behind a bar, on a college campus, or duri ng magic for more than twenty a corporate event. years. During those years, Through Kayla’s career, she has used her magic for fundhe has entertained well over raisers, charity events, and much more. Kayla has helped raise 100,000 audience members. money for the Wheelock College’s athletic department in Boston, Tevell has truly enjoyed Massachusetts, the Jimmy Fund, Devon, CT Rotary Club, New performi ng for each and every England Cancer Society, Hartford Children’s hospitals, and many one. There is a group, however, more! Kayla also loves organizing magic fundraisers, such as that is closer to his heart than all her multiple magic shows at Sheehan High School in Wallingthe rest; he has performed four ford, Connecticut, which raised over $9,000 for the music and art hundred shows for more than departments.  5,000 hospitalized children and


S.A.M. National Ofcers Dean: George Schindler, 1735 East 26th St.,

Brooklyn, NY 11229, (718) 336-0605, Fax (718) 627-1397, [email protected] President: Kenrick “ICE” McDonald, P.O. Box 341034, Los Angeles, CA 90034, (310) 559-8968, [email protected] President Elect: David Bowers, (717) 414-7574, [email protected] First Vice President: Jeffrey Sikora, (402) 3396726 [email protected] Secretary: Marlene Clark, 274 Church Street, #6B, Guilford, CT 06437, (203) 689-5730, Skype: marlene.clark, [email protected] Treasurer: Eric Lampert, (215) 939-5555, [email protected]

Regional Vice Presidents New England: CT MA RI NH ME VT

Joseph Cauleld (603) 654-6022, [email protected] North Atlantic: NY NJ Eric DeCamps, (718) 896-5861, [email protected] Mid Atlantic: PA DE MD VAWV DC Phil Milstead, (703) 481-5271, [email protected] South Atlantic: FL AL GA MS NC SC Debbie Leifer (404) 630-1120 [email protected] Central Plains: KY TN OH IN MI Steven A. Spence, (317) 722-0429 [email protected] Midwest: IL MN WI MO ND NE KS SD IA Shaun Rivera, (618) 781-8621 [email protected] South Central States: TX AR OK NM LA Michael Tallon, (210) 341-6959 [email protected] Southwest: CA AZ NV HI Ron Ishimaru, (808) 428-6019, [email protected] Northwest: WA OR UT ID CO AK WY MT James Russell, (360) 682-6648 [email protected] Canada: Rod Chow (604) 669-7777 [email protected] Society of Young Magicians Director:

Jann Wherry Goodsell, 329 West 1750 North, Orem, Utah 84057 (801) 376-0353. [email protected]

Living Past National Presidents Bradley M. Jacobs, Richard L. Gustafson, Roy A. Snyder, Bruce W. Fletcher, James E. Zachary, David R. Goodsell, Fr. Cyprian Murray, Michael D. Douglass, George Schindler, Dan Rodriguez, Dan Garrett, Donald F. Oltz Jr., Craig Dickson, Loren C. Lind, Gary D. Hughes, Harry Monti, Jann Wherry Goodsell, Warren J. Kaps, Ed Thomas, Jay Gorham, John Apperson, Richard M. Dooley, Andy Dallas, Maria Ibáñez, Bruce Kalver, Mike Miller, Mark Weidhaas, Vinny Grosso, J. Christopher Bontjes, Dal Sanders


Newsworthy 105TH SALUTE TO MAGIC SHOW MAY 17, 2014 BY DEAN GEORGE SCHINDLER The historic 472-seat Queens Theater was one of three buildings comprising the New York State Pavilion at the 1964 World’s Fair. On May 17, 2014, it was the venue for the 105th anniversary of the Parent Assembly 1 annual Salute to Magic . Fifty years ago, magicians were represented at the fair opening with a special “Magic Day” event produced by PA 1 and The Society of American Magicians. Twenty-ve years before that, the S.A.M. was active at the 1939 fair as well. The timing was perfect for the Salute to Magic show to help celebrate this golden anniversary. Audience members who led into the music-lled the ater were treated to a slide show of the old Fair as they awaited the Salute. The show began with a welcome by producer Ken Ferst and PA 1 president David Adamovich. A congratulatory letter from New York’s mayor Bill deBlasio preceded the introduction of a short lm by Herb Sher, which highlighted some of the close-up magic performed by our “Magician of the Year,” Sol Stone. Sol is one of New York’s h idden magic treasures. He has mentored dozens of close-up magicians who met on hundreds of Saturdays at various restaurant meeting places around the city. Although not a professional performer, Sol has created and developed magic for many of today’s well known artists, one of whom was Jeff McBride, who accompanied him to the stage, where producers David and Ken presented Sol Stone with his well-deserved award.

David Adamovich, Sol Stone, Jeff McBride, and Ken Ferst After a few words of thanks by Stone, Ken Ferst introduced emcee Jay Scott Berry, who indeed was a “master” of the ceremonies and set the tone for the electrifying show that followed. The full-house audience was ready for the stimulating opening act as Joe Devlin was introduced as the “Matador of Magic.” From his very rst “Ole!” the matador took command of the stage with the production of the statuesque Bronwyn from the ames of a burni ng trunk. She then climbed into the large basket mounted on a stand in center stage; after being skewered by blades she reemerged in a completely different costume. The act continued with Devlin’s version of the classic Razor Blade trick followed by one of his t wo signature effects – t he striking and poetic “Las Flores” ower effect. The Devlins closed with another pictur esque illusion in which senorita Bronwyn is magically suspended atop the neck of a guitar. The audience gave them well-deserved applause. David Oliver was the perfect act to follow. This gentleman of magic won over his audience with his comedy lines and enchanted them with the masterful, sleight-of-hand vanish and reproduc-


UPDATES FROM OUR S.A.M. MEMBERS

tion of a silk scarf. He then went into the audience and recruited two willing assistants for a most entertaining musical and visual presentation of the walking knot. Af ter instructing the participants, he changed into a bright, glittery, purple jacket, donned some sunglasses (as did his assistants), and performed a reDavid Oliver markable lip-sync presentation of Barry White’s “You’re The First, The Last, My Everything” that brought many laughs and gasps for the amazing rope restorations. His masterful handling of the spectators is to be lauded. David has not lost his touch; he closed with his well-known Linking Ri ng routine, which was as crisp and stu nning as ever. Known as the “Virtuoso of Magic,” the handsome Jay Scott Berry presented some smart manipulative moves with billiard balls and segued into rope and silk effects that culmi nated with a pretty and most artist ic presentation of a silk knot th rough a rope. Changing the pace, he found two spectators to assist in an original “destiny or chance” prediction effect. Using a young audience helper, Jay closed the rst half of the show with a most amusing and amazing presentation of the Floating Table. His patter and suave, dignied, emcee style sets him apart from the rest. Intermission time allowed four S.Y.M. youngsters the chance to shine in public, as they also did during their pre-show performances in the theater lobby. Kayla Caputo, George Danyluk, Adam Krevlin, and David Rosenstein made us proud. The second half of the show opened with recognition of Kamarr, who was one of the magic acts in the General Cigar Hall of Magic show produced by Mark Wilson in 1964. Kamarr charmed the audience with his still-comical Greek accent and Intermission performers Kayla Caputo a Magic Square. and Adam Krevlin The nal star performer was Jeff McBride. It would take many pages to describe the effects performed, but he did almost all of his well-established McBride classics, which have rarely been seen by lay audiences in New York. These include his mask and kabuki effects plus a street magic sequence and knots-off-silk routines with audience members. His dancing neon lights, now-famous Miser’s Dream with a youngster from the audience (the most entertaining ever), and an especially great performance of the water bowls all went perfectly. Naturally, this King of Kards closed with his card manipulations. The standing ovation at the curtain call told the story. If you were at the show, the spectacular program done by David Adamovich is a collectible. Ask MI Dal Sanders and his wife Cinde, who graced us with their attendance, how they enjoyed the evening.  Photos by Bill Wang

ASSEMBLY NEWS

July 2014

Volume 104, Number 2

Society of American Magicians Monthly News GO TO:

WWW.MUM-MAGAZINE.COM

and use the easy submission form to le your report

2

A MAGICAL CIRCUS

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — Corky LaVallee gave the teach-in, a continuation of last month’s thread magic. Tonight Corky utilized visible thread, demonstrating two routines. The rst involved a selected card that, after being repla ced in the deck, slid out from the deck. The other exhibited a match box that could stand up; when lying at, the drawer would open and close. Corky provided thread and cards for members to pract ice the slid ing card ef fect. Stu Bacon began the evening’s perfor mances with an amusing rendition of Jim Steinmeyer’s Cue Cards. Terrie Cardoza assisted Stu with a second effect consisting of a calendar with numbers on each day. Terrie chose her birthday and Stu dealt that number of cards. This was Terrie’s selected card. With a second deck Stu dealt the same number and the card matched the chosen one. Walt Johnson followed with two compelling mysteries. He rst presented the power of attraction between objects: a metal ring on a metal spring. Walt was able to remove and replace the ring on the spring but others who tried were unable to. Next Walt showed a bonded metal band. He amazed us when he transformed the band into a square gure and then into a circular shape. Hippo Lau presented Hippit y-Hop Rabbits. Corky returned and entertained with a silk-in-the-tube routine. After putting several colored silks in the tube, he announced he would transform them into a large bouquet of owers. Reaching into the tube, he pulled out a long string of silks tied together. Once the silks were removed, he did produce the owers. A fter writ ing a message on a large drawing pad , Rich Seguine opened the pad and a bowling ball suddenly fell to the oor, astonishing the members. Concluding his comedic act, Rich displayed his magician’s table: unexpectedly the two front legs fell off and then amazingly a pair of human legs appeared, holding up the front of the table. With Walt’s

help John Caris staged a bizarre version of Howard Adams’s Predicnic, an ESP card effect. Mary Caris enjoyed the magic and assisted in vanishing the cookies. —John Car is Golden Gate Assembly 2 meets rst Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. at Community Room of Taraval Police Station, 2345 24th Avenue, San Francisco. Contact Tamaka [email protected] (415) 531-9332 https://www.facebook. com/group s/249018441875771/ for more details.

6

MYSTICAL MAGIC IN MAY

BALTIMORE, MD� Following an under-a-minute discussion of the upcoming ea market and possible joint lecture with I.B.M. Ring 179, we got right into magic with Ira Kolman instantly unlinking two big (and ungaffed) safety pins that a spectator had just lin ked. Mental ist Oneil Ba nks took a shot at mental suggestion with two volunteers (Banachek’s Psychic Touch). He then discussed the effect. Howard Katz mystied us with an ESP cards prediction using a pair of dice; his card and those of the two spectators all matched. Peter Wood divined the one thought-of card in an all-blank deck, a possibly original effect. Eric Hoffman nally located his blank die and perfor med Die of Destiny. Andy London wowed us with a card prediction using his Lucky 13 deck. Joe Bruno wanted to show us something new and therefore picked “somethi ng really old,” an Ace assembly he invented ten or eleven years ago (similar to Peter Kane’s Jazz Aces, but a different method). He followed with another effect he invented in 1975 in which a card selected from among ten turns into a Joker. He tipped the effect; meanwhile we were all admiring his awless Elmsley counts. Craig Feinstein debuted his rst try at mentalism: locating the one signed/sealed envelope (of ve) containing an X written on one of the ve business cards; it took two tries but it worked. New member Jarod Raitsk y did

New member Jarod Raitsky about to predict the one coin Jeff Eline will leave on the table a classic coin prediction based on heads/tails elimination. Jay Silverman showed his Spectator Cuts to the Aces (similar to Nick Trost’s Revolving Aces). Apologizing that “the method is better than the trick,” Jeff Eline pulled numbere d cards out of six pay envelopes and successfully predicted the number a spectator had mentally chosen. We all thought the trick was as good as the method is clever. He followed by having ve spectators randomly select ve envelopes, all but one of which were then shredded. The surviving envelope contained a $5 bill (donated to the assembly). And nally, guest Mike Parkinson, after much coercion, had a spectator mentally name any card, which was then found in Mike’s wallet. Hmm... —Eric Hoff man The Kellar/Thurston Assembly 6 meets every rst Thursday at 8:00 pm at the Magic Warehouse, 11419 Cronridge Drive Suite #10 in Owings Mills, Maryland. 410-561-0777. Contact Andy London [email protected], www.baltimoresam.com for more details.

7

BACK TO NORMAL?

OMAHA, NE� Where has the Omaha Magical Society been this year? Due to the rapid-re season we’ve scheduled, one could be afraid of magic overload. Fortunately, this didn’t happen. For the very rst time that anyone can remember, within a one-week time

frame we had two lectures and a workshop. This started with an in depth study with Daryl in which he carefully addressed all of the steps in his version of Out of this Hemisphere. This was followed by many pointers on present ation and variation as he went through another complicated effect. The evening brought more magic as some of the students clamored for additional knowledge. Before the week ended Norman Beck came to town again to show us some neat stuff. Warren Buffett and Walter Scott were not in attendance although their hobbies included magic. Our regular May meeting followed with the theme of Children’s Magic. President Tom Zepf led some discussion about the recent AbraCorndabra in Des Moines, Iowa, that was attended by many of our members. For a Nebraskan, it was so convenient and such a great value for something only two hours from Omaha. Dean Walter Graham distributed our new directory and then Denny Rourke talked about a recent Broken Wand Ceremony for compeer Art Chapin, PastPresident.

The fez of Neil Bable Next, the parade of perfor mers started with one of our S.Y.M. members, Josh, followed by Neil Bable, Pete Petrashek, Walter Graham, Dick Sanders, Joyce Chleboun, Bob Gehringer, and Jeff Sikora . There was a wide variety of effects and each performer was offered an opportunity to select two tricks from the Warren Mattes estate.


Assembly News Jeff asked that we all keep in our thoughts some get-well wishes for an S.Y.M. member named Alex who is battling non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. We understand that he is hoping his bone marrow trans plant will keep hi m on the road to recovery. Our next meeting is our annual garage sale. We call this back to normal. —Jerry Golmanavich Omaha Magical Society meets usually at 7 p.m. on the third Monday of each month at the Southwest Church of Christ, near 124th St. and West Center Road, right across from where Hooters used to be. Contact jerr y golmanav ich golubki@ cox.net (402) 390-9834 www. omahamagicalsociety.com for more details.

8

TABLE HOPPERS

SAINT LOUIS, MO — April 24, 2014: Congratulations to President Randy Kalin, Vice Pres. Steve Barcellona, Sec./Treasurer Dick Blowers, Sergeant of Arms Greg Lewis, Chaplin Harry Monti, and elected board members Harry Monti, Sandy Weis, and Columbus Smith. Randy Kalin presided over a brief meeting with elections. There were interesting discussions about magic books and more. Gregory Green taught coin sleights. Randy taught a mental effect that was very a daptable. For this example, he used cards. Joey Lortz performed feats of prestidigitation. Coins were circulating throughout Larry Minth‘s body. George Van Dyke taught another great effect from M-U-M . We even had our visitors performing amazing feats with a yo-yo. April 25, 2014: Thanks to PNP John Apperson, an opportunity to raise funds for Assembly 8 by table-hopping was taken up by Randy Kalin, Joey Lortz, Steve Barcellona, Columbus Smith, Gregory Green, John Apperson, and Greg Lewis! May 8 was our annual magic auction! We brought in outside talent, Chris Rayman, to help auction off all of these gems. We had just about everything magical

Table hoppers

on the block that night! Yes, even a Zig-Zag Girl illusion in excellent condition! Meanwhile, Steve Corbitt rummaged for more patio blocks (outside joke). Steve Barcellona organized the whole auction and made sure it all went smoothly. Hats off to Steve! As always, we had no less than the best nancial minds, Dick and Mary Ann Blowers, set to the task of keeping track of all sales transactions. PNP John Apperson was exhausted from the bidding frenzy, started it off by purchasing the very rst item on the block, a porcelai n Card King! Everyone said that it was a great success and they laughed out loud at the comments that the auctioneers made to entertain the large group of buyers we had. This was another great Assembly 8 event. —Dan Todd Assembly 8 meets at Mount Tabor United Church of Christ located at 6520 Arsenal in Saint Louis, Missouri 63139. Contact Dick Blowers [email protected] (213) 846-8468 http://Assembly8. com for more details.

13

INSTALLATION AND BANQUET

DALLAS, TX� Assembly 13 held our annual ofcer installation and banquet at the Brookhaven Country Club on May 20, 2014. After a wonderful dinner, our meeting began by welcoming our newest S.A.M. members. Joey Byers received his Certicate of Membership and his pin from S.A.M. National President Dal Sanders. His daughter Ava also received her S.Y.M. credentials at the same time. MI Sanders then read and shared the Congressional Record that recognizes magic as an art to the assembly and presented Mayor Eric Hogue a Presidential Citation for his work getting this to the U.S. Congress. After that our new ofcers were installed by outgoing President Derrel Allen. The 2014-2015 ofcers of the Dallas Magic Clubs are President – Frank Seltzer, Vice President – David Knight, Sgt. at Arms – Joey Byers, Secretary – Dal Sanders, Treasurer – Reade Quinton. Outgoing DMC President Derrel Allen presented Mark Jensen with the Chuck and Joannie Lehr award for outstanding service to the Dallas Magic Clubs. Of course, this award is named after our Dea n, Chuck Lehr, and our Secretary/Treasurer Emeritus, Joannie Lehr, who both went above and beyond the call of duty for


many years. Then Derrel Allen was joined by incoming president Frank Seltzer and the two recognized S.A.M. President Dal Sanders with a nice plaque. Then Frank gave Derrel our thanks, a certicate, and a wand to commemorate his service as president this past year.

Mark Jense n recieves the Chuck & Joannie Lehr Award from Derrel Allen It was now time to announce the winner of the DMC stage contest. The contest was held in April and was judged on the T.A.O.M. contest rules. The ve nalists were Daryl Howard, Derrel Allen, Mike Squires, Joey Byers, and Kendal Kane. The winner of the Dallas Magic Clubs rst Magician of the Year Contest (at least the rst one for many years) was Mike Squires. With the business part of the banquet nished it was time to present the evening’s enter tainment. This year we brought in the amazing Martin Lewis for our show. He presented many of his classic routines, including his Golf Ball Bag (Egg Bag with a twist), Cardiographic, Crystal Gazing, Linking Rings, Tamasudare, and his Snowstorm routine. After a couple of standing ovations, the evening concluded, but we were in for more fun the next night (Wednesday) as Mar tin performed a special lecture at our regular meeting place. —The Scribe of the Scroll The Dallas Magic Clubs meet on the third Tuesday of the month at 7:00 PM at Crosspointe Community Center, Theater 166 in Carrollton, TX (go to www. dallasmagic.org for directions). Contact Frank Seltzer fhs3@ mac.com (214) 676-6440 www. dallasmagic.org for more details.

16

MARCH MAGIC

WORCESTER, MA� The weather has nally turned mild here in New England; it was time for another meeting. The barn is still under repair, but thanks

to Peter L. we have a wonderful meeting place at slot car raceway. This month we had a do-what-youwant theme; what a great evening it was. Scott led off with wonderful rendition of rope through neck and the Professor’s Nightmare – beautiful execution and wonderful history lesson. Our future new member Paul A. did some wonderful card work with an effect he called A Million to One. This amazed us all. Ken E., another future member, ended up as the designated assistant for the evening. Bob C. was up next. Bob amazed us all by taking the cap off a water bottle and having it penetrate the bottom of the bottle. Than ks Bob. Back to cards again: Dennis P. performed a card discovery using half the deck; it blew my mind. Jo G., known professionally as Joe Joe, did a great pred iction with a twist; it had a totally unexpected ending and a terric presentation. Welcome to the group Joe Joe. Up next was one of our more seasoned performers, Larry P., with a blank deck effect that was extremely entertaining. Joe B. was up next with some nger ring magic and selected signed card transposition. Jessie K. followed with a fantastic scarf vanish and trans position – well done, and a great change of pace. John S. Provided the assembled with a wonderful solid through solid card effect with a twist. You just have to see this. Clean up was left for Peter (chef); can’t wait to be back at the barn and dinner before the meeting. Peter had three cards selected and sealed in sepa rate envelopes. Peter divined each card correctly by sense of touch and smell. Thanks to all the performers and audience part icipants. —Joe Ber man Assembly 16 meets First Monday of the month, at The Magic Barn, 175R Main Street, Ashland, MA 01721. Contact Dennis Pimenta (508) 881-1818 for more details.

19

MAY‘S MAGIC BLOOMS IN HOUSTON

May’s HOUSTON, TX� meeting was lled with magic. This month’s contest was on impromptu magic. Jamie Salinas had Miles Root help with a great mental effect that had everyone talking afterward. Dick Olson’s borrowed and lit cigaret te was placed into his closed st, yet he remained unharmed. Scott Wells had Kim Lampkin assist as a one-dollar bill was folded and then unfolded into a mis-made

Assembly News dollar. Shane Wilson’s cigarette sleights were great! David Hinken unlinked two folded dollar bills with Scott Wells assisting. Bob Smith caused the four Aces to tur n face up and down as they were twisted around in his hands. David Rangel had a number called out and showed that his pocket change totaled to that exact value. Jeff Lanes caused a cigarette lighter to change from red to white as it was pushed into his st. Frank Price’s story of how ve Kings were changed into ve Aces became realit y in his hands. The judging was close, but the winne rs were Jamie Salinas – rst, Shane Wilson – second, and Bob Smith – third. Frank Price led our regular performance and had Kim Lampkin cut and shufe cards that were then dealt in two piles and then mixed up in a variety of ways. Regardless of the mixing, the top cards always matched in suits. Michael Thomas presented a Cobra “no-sleights” mental routine in which he discerned the location of a paper ball that was passed betwee n spectator’s hand s. Scott Wells’s six-hand poker deal saw him come out the winner in a most unique manner. Randy Stulken quickly shufed a deck and cut it into four piles; the four Aces were on top. Roger Johnson’s dollar bill penetration left no hole to be seen. David Rangel located the four Aces f rom a shufed deck one at a time in a magical fashion. Shane Wilson had Kim Lampkin try to catch a chosen card between her hands as they were dealt out one at a time. Kim saw her card dealt into her hand and thought she had it securely in her palms, but the card in her hands had changed, and her actual card was found folded up under her watch. Jamie Salinas’s “explanation” of how a red handkerchief was changed to white left us wondering. Chris Alonzo’s ne card handling saw Kings changed to Aces and then to a royal straight ush. —Miles Root Assembly 19 meets the rst Monday of every month at the Internationl Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees Local 51 Meeting Hall, 3030 North Freeway, Houston, TX. A teaching lecture begins at 7:30 pm with the meeting beginning at 8:00 pm. Contact Miles Root milesroot@ aol.com (281) 334-7508 www. houstonmagic.com for more details.

22

LOS ANGELES ELECTION INITIATIONS AND SHOW

LOS

ANGELES,

CA —

The

enjoy the foods and treats prepared by Chef Bill Yamane. With members reseated in our theater, the show present ed by our new members began. Brian Regalbuto opened the show with a short history and science presenta From Left: E. Thomas, S. Jennings, T. Messeroll, M . Savin, J . Engman, K . Halling er, tion about “forks,” and then performed J. Richmond Seated from l eft: Jeremy an interesting Williams, Brian Regalbuto, Hugo Avila levitation with the Southern California Assembly same. Jeremy Williams next gave was honored to have S.A.M. a very polished presentation with National President-Ele ct Kenrick a set of three card effects. Closing “ICE” McDonald and S.A.M. the show was Hugo Avila who also National Treasure r Eric Lamper t, demonstrating his skill with ca rds; visiting from Philadelphia, both he also performed a nice coins attend our May 19, 2014, meeting. across effect. Eric also toured the S.A.M. Hall It was another very successful of Fame and Magic Museum and very enjoyable evening of on the previous day. The May magic for the Southern California Assembly meeting always carries Assembly. — Steven L.Jennings a full agenda with the election of Southern California Assembly assembly ofcers, the initiation of 22 meets the third Monday each neophytes, and a show featuring month at 8:00 PM, St. Thomas new members scheduled. The More Parish Hall, 2510 South rst item of business was a rst Fremont Avenue, Alhambra, reading for Jeremy Williams, a California Contact Ed Thomas S.A.M. national member applying [email protected] (213) for Assembly 22 membership. 382 8504 for more details. Our secretary, PNP Ed Thomas, and Nominations Chairman John Engman then conducted elections for the 2014-2015 assembly ZOMBIES, NAZIS, AND THE VULCAN MIND MELD ofcers. Michael Perovich was unanimously elected as our incoming president. Congratula- ATLANTA, GA� Merritt tions to Mike and all of the newly Ambrose gave the monthly TIP elected assembly ofcers. lecture on ring and rope magic. The action then moved to the He taught his street routine and area in our meeting hall that had how it could be presented for both been set up for the S.A.M. initia- close-up and stage. tion ceremony. The Southern CaliDebbie Leifer hosted the fornia Assembly has for its entire members’ performances. Mal eighty-three-year history used the Simpson used mentalism, with full-form initiation ceremony. This a little NLP, to predict a famous ceremony was developed by the person Merritt Ambrose would S.A.M. national council in its ea rly later name. He then used the days and has changed very little Vulcan Mind Meld to help predict since its inception. This ceremony a total of numbers written down is intended to be the nal step in by variou s audience members. becomi ng a full member of the Rick Hinze “magished” with Assembly 22. As one of the very West Evan’s signed quarter, and few assemblies that still use the made the quarter vanish and full-form initiation ceremony, we reappear under West’s hand. He conduct the ceremony complete then vanished another quarter in a with robed costumes and regalia Styrofoam cup. as described in the ritual manual. Using heat sensitive cards, West This ceremony provides those Evans found a selection which was initiated with a long-remembered almost the Three of Diamonds. insight into the tr ue signicance of Striving for perfection, he then the S.A.M. and the importance of knocked off the center diamond their membership. pip, maki ng the card the corre ct Three neophytes were initiated; Two of Diamonds selection. The Jeremy Williams, Hugo Avila, and pip fell t o the table as a r uby-colBrian Regalbuto. All three suc- ored jewel. cessfully completed their initiaMurl Harmon memorized a tion and have become “Illustrious borrowed , shufed deck. A card Compeers.” Congratulations to all. was randomly removed by an Following the initiation ceremony, onlooker and Murl, with a couple a short intermission was taken to of tries, looked at the spread deck

30

and named the missing card. Joe Turner also borrowed a shufed deck of cards from someone. He ended up w ith Murl’s “Zombie Apocalypse” deck, but still managed to do some excellent magic with the four Aces, and nished by magically nding the mate of a selected card. Dan Garrett also borrowed a shufed deck, in order to maintain the theme. He used the four Jacks as a “search engine,” showing how they instantly went out and “captured” two free selections in different parts of the deck. He also predicted a random card that Mal Simpson merely thought of, and nished with a performance of Shawn Farquhar’s new Comedy Magic Book Test. Jim Driscoll challenged himself with a card effect that was attempted and failed by a recent lecturer. Jim replicated the effect perfectly…including the failure. But he redeemed himself by revealing the card at the end. Perhaps we were set up. —Dan Ga rret t, Guest Scribe Assembly 30 meets the second Tuesday of the month at Piccadilly Cafeteria, I-85/North Druid Hills Road, Atlanta, Georgia

31

SPRING IS IN THE AIR

INDIANAPOLIS, IN� Spring has nally arrived, so what better theme for our May meeting then “Spring and Flowers.” Afte r some brief announcements concer ning the action-packed summer that is planned for Assembly 31 and Ring 10, President Taylor Martin introduced us all to our newest member, Nicholas Geigle. Talk about dedication – Nick drives all of the way from Illinois (where he lives) to Indianapolis in central Indiana (close to a two-hundredmile round trip) to attend our magic gatherings. A tip of the top hat to you, Nick. Mike Root kicked off the evening by perfor ming a ower product ion using his w ife’s Botania. Although Mike did a wonderful production, he bemoaned what he considered to a weakness of the Botania gimmick. He believes that the shape of the cone itself suggests to the audience that the owers are concealed within the cone. He asked for some suggestions from his compeers on how to cover this aw. His request sparked an outpouring of useful suggestions. This discussion once again was evidence of the stre ngth of S.A.M. We saw compeers always ready to help their fellow magicians in order to strengthen the art of magic. President Taylor next dem-


Assembly News onstrated for us his method of making napkin roses. It’s all in the little tears that make the petals appear lifelike. Next up was our newest member, Nike Geigle. He shared one of his favorite card tricks using a deck of cards, his business card, some disappearing/appearing ink, and a ame. His was a clever handling of this effect guaranteed to astonish his audience. Finally, President Taylor and the First V.P. each shared a story of how magic can go terribly wrong while performing live – a tting conclusion to an enjoyable springtime evening. —Steven A. Spence Assembly 31 meets the rst Monday of each month at 7:00 p.m. at Irvington United Methodist Church, 30 Audubon Rd., on the east side of the City unless otherwise announced. If the rst Monday conicts with a holiday weekend, we postpone the meeting one week. Contact Taylor Martin [email protected] (317) 431-1320 for more detai ls.

32

DEALER DEMO AND MORE AT MAY’S MEETING

LYNCHBURG, VA� May brings the warm end of spring and blooming plants everywhere. It also brought a lively turnout for Lynchburg’s assembly meeting. After a few business items, V.P. Mike Kinnaird updated members regarding the Relay-for-Life event coming up in less than t wo weeks. More than a few members have volunteered to perform and look forward to adding magic to a worthy cause. The feature of May’s agenda was a dealer demo by our local magic dealer, Greg Coudoures. Greg brought a variety of magical goodies from his Smith Mountain Lake Magic & Science shop. There were an abundance of effects with cards, coins, and mentalism. The meeting continued picking up the theme for the month “Packs Small, Plays Big”; several members provided demonstrations. Bob Staton showed his own version of Cardiographic and was generous to share innovative details that he had worked in. Glen Rae presented a nice handling of a Jim Steinmeyer effect: Number, Number, Number. Cards always pack small; the trick is to make it play big and Glen did a nice presentation towards that objective. John Jennings continued the theme-related magic by presenting a rope effect written in Tarbell , in which a rope that is wrapped around his neck passes through his neck.

And thus the gathering of Lynchburg compeers welcomed in the warm weather with a very nice assortment of magic planned and presented. —John Jen nings The Hersy Basham Assembly 32 meets the third Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. at Thar p Fu neral Home, 220 Breezewood Drive, Lynchburg, VA. Contact John Jennings investigate[email protected] (434) 851-6240 for more details.

35

NEW ZOO REVUE

POUGHKEEPSIE, NY� After some bits of business which included what Saturday would be good to have the club’s picnic in August, tonight’s theme was titled “New Zoo Revue.” Some of you will nd that name familiar. For those who don’t, please Google it and consider it a free media history lesson. You’re welcome. Basically, tonight was meant to be a reminder of past lectures that stood out for people for various reasons, and why they did. Marty Steinberg started off the night’s remembrances by saying how the Silly Billy lecture stood out for him. By empowering the audience, they turn from being merely spectators to participants in the magic, where the magic has more meaning for them, and therefore a much more meaningful experience. Frank Monaco also brought up Silly Billy by reminding us that Silly Billy exemplies what he preaches. Frank also mentioned Murray Hateld for one of the effects that Frank performs. Joel Zaritsky referenced Jay Scott Berry’s lecture of how to build a show by reminding us of the mnemonic: SPIF- Spectacle, Personality, Intimacy, and Finale. Also sounds like a really good rst date, doesn’t it? Ryan Dutcher reminded us that Silly Billy got some good ideas from the club, so it was a good night for all around. Terry Morgan brought up Jay Sankey’s belief that magicians are like chefs, and that they should make their “recipes” actually “theirs.” By simply changing the effect’s props or presentation, a perfor mer can put their own spin on a trick instead of just doing what someone else has already done. How boring is that? Professor Platypus mentioned Jay Scott Berry again, of how there can be magic in everything. You just have to look for it. Put yourself into the trick instead of just doing it. Also, how importa nt it is to teach the next generation of performers in order to keep the art alive. By teaching someone


Caption: Joshua Jay and club secretary Connie Elstun new, you can re-discover why you became interested in magic in the rst place. Plus, by teaching someone, you focus on wh at you’re doing yourself, and may conrm that what you’re doing is good, or it may lead to introspection and nd out that there could be a bett er way. We all need that glance i n the mirror from time to time to see if the reection is crystal clear, or if it’s fuzzy and needs a cleaning. —Dar ryl Bielsk i The Assembly 35 meetings are held at Milanese Restaurant in Poughkeepsie, NY. Typically, meetings are held every 2nd Tuesday of each month. Meetings begin at 7:30 pm. Contac t Joel Zaritsky [email protected] (845) 546-1559 www.sam35.com for more details.

37

TRIPLE HEADER MAY WITH JOSHUA JAY

DENVER, CO� May 2014 was a triple header for the Mile High Magicians Society! We started the month with a close-up teach-in providing our membership with exceptional magic lessons and instruction. The format was the same as in past years. The four instructors were Gene Gordon (who presented card magic), Rodney Housely (who taught a few stellar coin moves), Jeff Jensen (who instructed a handy ring and string routine), and President Matt Brandt (who came prepared with a t humb tip to t each a few impromptu basic s). Each had their own table and area with the members rotating from instructor to instructor for approximately twenty minutes. The event was well attended. And talk about well attended, next on the May agenda was our sold-out public close-up show called „Magic Monday Madness,“ featuring six of Denver‘s strongest close-up performers. Dave Elstun, Matt Brandt, Rod Spade, Gregg Tobo, Gene Gordon, and Tommy Walker took to their mini stages, each at a different and un ique room at the magnicent and historic

Lumber Baron Inn and Gardens. This facility is an authentically refurnished 1890s Denver mansion. The event was well advertised to the public; just like our stage show in the fall, we use the funds collected to pay for great lecturers, presenters, and special events. Our nal leg of this gra nd month was an evening with Joshua Jay. We had a privileged large group who was fortunate to see Joshua Jay‘s brand new lecture, which included fourteen effects. Some of his materiel was inspired by Joshua‘s third love, that of being a lm buff and enthusiast. His second love is magic, while his rst is his assistant, high school sweetheart, and future wife, Anna. He used the magic and movies theme with a lm called The Usual Suspects in mind. Then from atop a chair he performed a remarkable Chinese coins on a ribbon trick and then taug ht it. He presented his acclaimed Trick of the Year called Inferno. Of cou rse, all he had to do was burn up a deck of cards, magically, of course. The second part of his lecture concentrated on magic theory a nd he used triad coins to visualize his theory. As a multiple year Secretary of the club I, Connie Elstun, found this part icular lecture to be one of the best that I have acqui red in the last fteen years. His any card, any page book trick was just fantastic. —Con nie Elstu n Assembly 37 meets the second Thursday of the month at Riverpointe Senior Center in Littleton CO. Contact Connie Elstun connie@comedymagicbunny. com (303)933-4118 www. milehighmagicians.com for more details.

47

ELECTION OF OFFICERS AND MAGIC!

ROCHESTER, NY� The May meeting brought the election of new ofcers into our club. They are: President – Mike Ihrig, Vice President – Nick Young, Secretar y – Joel Gree nwich, and Treas urer – Jeff Blood. Congrats! We talked about our upcoming June picnic, the Broken Wand Ceremony held for Dean Charlie Struck, a Facebook presence, and then on to the magic! President JP Lacey used the Professor‘s Nightmare to symbolize the merging of members into one cohesive club. Very well thought out and received! Prof. Rem displayed and attempted to teach a bit of nger magic from a Jim Steinmeyer book. What nger is remaining? The index! Mark Toker perfor med one of my favorites: Triumph. There is just a mystery

Assembly News to the audience when the selected card in revealed as the only face-up card in the face-down deck. He also memorized the deck and put it back into suit and numerical order! Nick Young displayed ve ESP symbols, of which one was sealed in an envelope. On another envelope, he wrote a prediction and they matched! Very thought provoking. Jeff Blood, through a series of cool messages from different locations on his person, revealed a selected card, which nally ended up in his pocket! Very funny and it held much audience appeal. Dan Grayson performed a very quick coin appearance. The coin was purchased at a gold exchange store very inexpensively. The shiny silver coin displayed a moon landing and had a nice look and feel. He also performed pocket trafc light, in which a spot jumps from one card to another. A great, easy to carry trick! John Guerin took a couple of decks of cards lying on the table and performed an impromptu card revelation. It shows how a good magician can think on his/her feet. Mike Ihrig performed a spelling bee trick from The Wild Deck by Jim Kleefeld. From a mini poster of animals, one is selected. One card is dealt for each letter of its name and the card after last reveals that animal. Finally, longtime member John Adams performed one of his patented effects: Hopping Halves. His patter and technique are indeed awless and brought rousing applause. After a couple of questions on „talking“ coins, the meeting was adjourned to be taken up again at Dunkin‘ Donuts. Next month: the picnic! —Mike Ihrig Assembly 47 meets on the third Tuesday September through May at St. Joseph‘s School, 39 Gebhard t Rd, Peneld, NY 14526 7:00 PM Contact Mike Ihrig ihrigmagic@ aol.com (585) 377-1566 www. sam47.com for more details.

49

RAFFLE AND MAGIC

FT. LAUDERDALE, FL — The evening’s festivities began with a most successful rafe. Members of the club donated old and vintage magic tricks. Each part icipati ng member then gave $5 to enter the rafe. After our names were put on our bills, they are randomly selected with each winner choosing a trick or effect of their choice. I believe we raised $75 that will go into our treasury and help to pay for a future lect ure or event! We were blessed to have the usual suspects perform, the likes of Gene Fein, Henry Epstein, Manny Riskin, and Mel Boskin; a

few were really extraordinar y. First the great Al Callus perfor med Silent Treatment. Incredibly, Al made a selected card appear in his mouth! Well shut my mouth! Next, President Billy Byron did a red and yellow card routine with predicted matching numbers that was spellbinding. The magic was running rampant, just rampant, as Billy would say. Next the young wizard Mark Rossbach told a spectator to think of an insect. The spectator did so and unbeknownst to Mark or anyone else I might add he chose a buttery. Master Mark then took a dollar bill, folded it origami style into a buttery to astonishment of all in attendance. Next Joe Freidman and Mike Easler both did mentalism card tricks that were magnicent. And nally Mel Panzer did a great card effect that at rst gave the appearance of going horribly wrong. Mel, being the great actor that he is acted as nervous as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs, when at the last second he revealed he had indeed pulled it off under the most difcult circumstances! Assembly 49 meets at the Tamarac Community Center, Tamarac FL on the fourth Thursday at 7:00pm. Visit www. fortlauderdalemagicsociety.com for more information or contact Billy [email protected]

from Knoxville, Ed Ripley, who was working with Shank Kothare preparing for thei r FFFF show the following week. I was at FFFF this year and saw their performance. I can tell you they did a great job and were very well received there. To top the evening off, Steve Spence did some excellent magic for our club. Fun was had by all. —Stephe n Bargatze Assembly 50 meets at Harvest Hands which is at 424 Humphreys Street, Nashville, TN 37203. Contact Mike Pyle magic@ py-logic.com (615) 477-6639 for more details.

51

MAY FLOWERS!

PEORIA, IL� Our May meeting began with President Rodney Nordstro m giving business updates regarding upcoming events, including the Farmer’s Market, the show at the Riverfront Museum, a possible segment with Mark & Gret chen from W HOI-TV, the teaching session and Houdini Tribute in October, and the Bradley basketball halft ime show. Rodney and Michael Baker gave a review of the Abracorndabra convention this past weekend. The magic theme for tonight was Flower Magic. Michael Baker began by demonst rating and describing a spring ower segment he once used. This involved a small folding screen that continued to produce owers and nishe s with VISIT FROM RVP a shower of several dozen owers. Michael also demonstrated a trick NASHVILLE, TN� This month with matches. we had a special visit from SAM Paul Buob came very well Regional Vice President Steve stocked with the many ower Spence, all the way from India- devices he uses in his stage show. napolis. Steve got to sit in on our This involved appearing roses, club’s crazy ways of doing things. owers to silks, color-changing owers, light-up roses, and a oating rose, among other ideas and props. Paul also showed a few ideas with silks. Grant Golden brought a new Botania, which he recently purchased, adding to his growing collection of Botanias. He also demonstrated a Garden of Flowers A fun night with Steve Sp ence shawl, and discussed We started the meeting with great ideas for improved handling. tricks from our two youngest There was conversation, members, David and Albert. You drinks, dinner, and more couldn‘t tell by the magic they did magic at a nearby restaurant. that they are youth members. Both —Michael Baker of these young men performed Assembly 51 meets 3rd Mondays some really good magic. We at Schnucks, 4800 N. University, also had our resident kid guy Peoria, IL Contact Michael Baker and kid at heart "Magic Wayne" [email protected] (205) Clemons perform. We enjoyed 612-3696 http://peoriamagicians. having another special guest com/ for more details.

50

52

MOTHER’S DAY

— May SAN ANTONIO, TX 1, 2014, Brother John Hamman Assembly 52 held its monthly meeting at La Madeleine Restaurant. Vice-President Ray Adams called the meeting to order. We had a great turnout tonight with the theme being Mother’s Day. Welcome to friend, fellow magician, and guest Ted Derr inger, Jr. The Assembly’s installation of new ofcers banquet will be held on June 7, 2014, at Pompeii Italian Grill. Congratulations to the new incoming ofcers for 2014-2015: Ray Adams, President; Joe Libby, Vice-President; Doug Gorman, Secretary/Treasurer; and James Dusek, Sergeant-at-Arms. Starting off the open performances tonight was Vice-President Ray Adams who did a great color changing silk and candle routine. Paul Mims performed Bob Swadling’s Matchboxes. Ed Solomon told a story about motherhood, and Doug Gorman entertained with Joshua Jay’s Inferno. Michael Tallon was our close-up perfor mer for the evening. He opened with Aldo Colombini’s Mini Maxi, in which three selected cards of three different sizes matched perfectly with predictions of three different sizes. After a couple more astounding card effects, he moved into beautiful coin work, the highlight of which was a routine that blended together Coins Across, Coins Through the Table, and Wild Coin. He closed with David Roth’s Tuning Fork, which had us not only watching carefully, but listening intently as well. We can always count on Michael, with his polished technical skills and wonderful showmanship, to delight his audiences. He certainly delighted us. Thanks, MT for a great show. Door Prize winners were Paul Mims, Ray Adams, and Michael Tallon. Paul won Fenik’s Mexican Revolution, Ray won Mutan z from Bob Farmer and Roy Walton, and Michael won Miracle Monte from Shigeo Takagi. Brother John Hamman Assembly 52 meets at 7:30 p.m. on the rst Thursday of the month at La Madeleine Restaurant, located at 722 N.W. Loop 410. The rest aura nt is inside Loop 410 on the access road between Blanco Rd. and San Pedro. For more information, contact [email protected].

56

ANNUAL BANQUET

DAYTON, OH� In place of our May Meeting, we had our annual


Assembly News assembly banquet. It was held at the Cove Springs Grange Hall in Troy, Ohio; we had seventeen members and fourteen guests in attendance. After a great meal prepared by Christopher‘s Catering, we were entertained by the vocal talents of Jaeleen Davis from Bay City, Michigan. A big thank you to Paul Burnham and Jo Ann Kinder for planning this event; a great time was had by all. —Matthew David St anley Assembly 56 meets at various locations. Contact Paul Burnham [email protected] (937) 474-0647 for more details.

77

2 with the hole restoration was a standout, stand-up piece, his classic force called the attitude force, the put and take move and nally a big nish with his method for the Signed Card to sealed deck with the card in correct place, brought anot her drove of buyers to his table at the conclusion. He was informative and very funny! Until next time, we will see you at the di ner.—Lou Johnson Long Island Mystics Assembly 77 meets at 7:30PM on the second Monday of the month at The Community United Methodist Church. For more information, check www.limystics.org or contact Lou Johnson at loucircus@ aol.com (516) 978-7735.

MARK MASON AMAZES

MASSA PEQUA, NY� Our business meeting was quick to give as much time as possible for our guest from the UK, Mark Mason. From the moment Mark arrived and had his product table set up, he attracted at least twenty people over to hi m like a powerf ul magnet. His demo of his coin work was money in the bank and he hadn‘t even started his lecture. Once he took the oor, he tipped almost everything as to how his inventive mind works. Reboxed was so visual and direct it made for a perfect opening effect. Stuck up Monte is Mark’s “go-to” opener and had a great theme; when the money card became the signed selectio n, we knew that that was “money!” Old standards took on new life like the origami illusion of tearing and folding a $5 bill into two. (I‘ve known that from one of Karl Fulves’s books) What amazed us was when the “two” $5 bills transformed into a $10 bill.

95

STRING MAGIC

88

MAY REPORT

— Our May ANN ARBOR, MI meeting was packed with excitement on many levels! First and foremost, Marvin Mathena was inducted into the Michigan Magic Hall of Fame on April 11 in Colon, Michigan. The Michigan Magic Hall of Fame currently encom passes twenty-two members, representing talent such as Kevin James, Hank Moorehouse, and June Horowitz. The plaque honoring recipients is permanently on display at the American Museum of Magic in Marshall, Michigan. Five guests were introduced: Gene Fogel, Jack and Shirley Markley, Howard Goldfaden, and Ron Hoole. Our very popular swap meet/ ea market then commenced as nine folks hawked their mysterious wares. Six members had magical treasurers for sale, guaranteed to make you a star! The vendors were Gary Segadi, Randy Smith, Marvin Mathena, John Russell, Jim Folkl, and Jim Ruth. Additionally, guests Jack and Shirley Markley, from Anderson, Indiana, offered original magic creations. The last partici pant was member Karl Rabe,

Mark Mason make s the NEWS with magic! Mentalists fell in love with the pract icality of Word in a Million: an any word, any language, book test that Mark spent a great deal designing it to be simple for anyone to use. Mike Kirby‘s incredible effect X-act card at any number fooled David Coppereld and rightfully so. No moves and very direct. No Tear Newspaper

who displayed (under the title “Karl’s Museum”) magic he had as a child, including items that were handmade. Needless to say, none were for sale, holding so many memories from childhood. However, his table t in nicely with the evening’s theme and really brought all of us back to the “good old days”. —Jim Folkl Assembly 88 meets 2nd Wednesday. each month at 7pm, Faith Lutheran Church 1255 E. Forest, Ypsilanti MI Contact Jim Folkl Folkinimagic@yahoo. com (248) 8514839 http://www. aamagic.org/. for more details.

Marvin Mathena Michi gan Magic Hall of Fame Ind uctee


VANCOUVER, CANADA� The May, 2014 meeting was held at the home of Jens Henriksen in Crescent Beach, BC. Dennis Hewson opened with a one-handed slip knot taught to him by Eric Lenz, and then put the rope into Trevor Watter’s hands and pulled out a string of knots. Ray Roch perfor med a ring on a cord. Glen Labarre had Dave Watters pick a card, and then stunned everyone by visibly causing that card to securely loop onto a string on Glen’s neck. Glen then handed out for everything for inspection, including the deck of cards with the selected card no longer

Rod Chow uses string to communicate between the minds of Ray Roch, Jeff Chris tensen and Dave Watters to Trevor Watters present. Jens Henriksen showed a cord with a ring looped on, and then magically pulled the ring off the cord. Rod Chow adapted Tony Binarelli’s Super Mentalism Deck by Card Shark i nto a performance using string by using the string to amplify the thought of card from three different minds to another mind, such as in the old tie two cans together by string to communicate. Lon Mandrake caused a rope to penetrate through his hand. Henry Tom closed the evening by taking a used coupon and transforming it into dental oss, then using that dental oss to perform Gypsy Thread. —Rod Chow The Carl Hemeon Assembly No.

95 meets the rst Tuesday of each month at members’ homes. Contact Rod Chow rod@rodchow. com (604) 669-7777 www.sam95. com for more details.

104

IN WITH THE NEW � AN ELECTION AND A DIAMOND SHINES ON

WITCH CITY, SALEM, MA — The May 7 meeting of Assembly 104 followed the Bill Towne School of Magic Class, capably conducted by Len Lazar. This class was noteworthy for the student sitting in: tonight’s lectu rer Steve Reynolds, picking up a few of Len’s nuances with the pasteboards. The meeting was productive on two fronts. On one, we learned that our November 15 SAMCON hotel plans for the Doubletree Hotel, in Danvers, Massachusetts, are progressing well. On the second front, our new webmaster, Compeer Blake Barr, announced several improvements in the works for the sam104. com website. Perhaps the biggest news of the night came from Vice President Eddie Gardner, who announced his sale of the venerable Diamond’s Magic to Compeer Vince DeAngelis. This is a win-win for the New England magic community that evoked hearty applause. With the future of brick and mortar magic shops in jeopard y across the country, local magicians are now assured of an old fashioned, full-service magic experience (and free coffee) for many years to come. At this election meeting, the nal roster for the coming year was determined: Co-Presidents will be Bill Jensen and Rob Snider; Vice President, Ed Gardner; Second Vice President, “J” Hubbard; Treasurer, Debbie Loscutoff; Secretary, Bob Forrest; Sergeantat-Arms, Bill Marotte. Installation will follow, with ample dining, in June.

Guest lecturer Steve Reynolds sits in on a School of Magic class Our lecturer for the evening was cardician Steve Reynolds. Steve is a seriously dressed magician who

Assembly News might be mistaken for a banker if not for his ever present decks of cards. His low-key manner and three-piece suit conceal a vested interest: subtle card switches and ditches made possible by some creative use of vest pockets. In addition to Steve’s clever, Topitlike treatment of the garment, he offered some highly visual transformations and an unusual variation on the Torn and Restored Card. In the Reynold’s handling of the latter, a single card creates the entire effect. And this tiny miracle, which begins with a Paul Harris inuence, allows that single card to be signed as well! Steve brought us quite a few different ideas in a Triumph-based effect and other standards, but what stood out in his overall approach to cards was his use of blocking techniques, psychological controls, and ex ploitation of the spect ator’s “Inattentional Amnesia” during a perfor mance. This repres ented the heart of his philosophy: affecting what a spectator “thinks” he sees, to create a more magical experience. It was well worth “seeing.” —Bob Forres t Assembly 104 meets on the rst Wednesday of each month, September-June, 7 p.m., at the First Baptist Church of Salem, 292 Lafayette Street, Salem, Massachusetts. Contact Bob Forrest captainalbrightsq1@ comcast.net (339) 227-0797 www. sam104.com for more details.

108

MAGICAL HAPPENINGS

SOMERSET, PA� President Gary Weimer opened the meeting with announcements and upcoming events. After, it was on to our theme of making magic. Our S.Y.M. group made a magic trick after Dan Miller performed his version. The kids made theirs in the rst part of the meeting and then several were brave enough to perform when they had theirs completed. Each tried out a different patter which was an indication that they were thinking creatively. The adults talked of various different venues we would like

Somerset SAM Ofcers before benet show

to perform at and are is doing well and working to accomplish looking forward to that. Also fellow club coming to the June member Louis Paul lecture with Shoot showed a redesigned, Ogawa. Wes Iseli improved version of reported on his the old wilting ower upcoming benet comedy effect, The show for a local Crazy Lazy Daisy. It is a young lady named wonderful piece to put in Jaeda at the Rucka kids show that plays to ersville Elemena lot of laughter. tary School on the Our latest meeting had evening of May 9th. John Gyllenhaa l and Kara Ewing get Game Show a former member who President George Night started at SAM 112 is retiring from magic, Buckley taught our bring his magic items for S.Y.M. teach-in for purchase because he want ed them David Facer performing the May on sponge balls with some to stay in the hands who would Miser‘s Dream, Roy Pordo wonderful insights and handling use them to brighten people’s vanishing two half-dollar coins, taught by Dan Rowan and Wes lives with the wonderful world of and Ric Ewing reversing his Iseli. George opened the business magic. —Dan Miller hands while holding a magic wand portion of the meeting with repor ts The James Swoger Assembly 108 and then vanishing the wand. on upcoming lectures by Daryl in meets at Wheeler Bros. every Douglass Kovacich borrowed Richmond sponsored by t he I.B.M. third Monday at 6:00 pm for SYM two eas to horizontally suspend Ring. He also asked for input on a members and 7:00 pm for SAM a piece of rope. Jerry Barrilleaux possible lect ure by Jason Ladanye. members Contact Dan Miller perfor med a comic Torn-and-Re- It was decided that with the Shoot [email protected] stored Newspaper, and nally Nate Ogawa lecture on the 6th of June (814) 733-4978 for more details. Wilson demonstrated his routine that we would have to pass on any of cascading cards called Niagara other offerings for June. George Falls with a comedy ending. reported on the new (and very The contest was all in fun, of welcome) subscription rates for GAME SHOW NIGHT course, but rst and second place MAGIC magazine. George then winners, David and Zappo, were reminded members of the conPLEASANT HILL, CA — Roy awarded truly valuable prizes vention dates for the Kidabra, the Pordo and Zappo kicked off this provided by our friend and bene- I.B.M./S.A.M. combined, the Felmonth‘s instructional program factor, Paul Gross, owner of the lowship of Christian Magicians, with a pair of card tricks using Hocus Pocus Magic Shop. and the Magician‘s Alliance of gaffed cards. Roy went rst, With the contest completed, ac- Eastern States conventions. The demonstrating Reverso. In this tivities continued with further business meeti ng was closed at packet trick , a card switch takes demonstrations of magic with 8:20 p.m. place in the spectator‘s pocket. David Facer performing a The magic theme for the month Zappo followed with a variation mentalism feat with cards, Zappo was Destruction and Restoration. of the Ambitious Card routine. doing Anniversary Waltz, Bob Tom Olshefski started the evening Instead of rising to the top of the Holdridge surprising us with with a signed and guarded card deck, a signed card inexplicably a magical block on a rope, and traveling from one pack to another. appears in various places around Nate Wilson invisibly switching He continued by causing a card to the room, including the wallet selected cards between his hands penetrate a spectator’s hand and or pocket of different audience and a spectator‘s. then performed a wonderful torn members. Props were then handed Guests are welcome at our and restored card. His patter and out to each member, and practice meetings; so make a point routining were entertaining and sessions were conducted under the of dropping in next time. awless. Wes Iseli was up next supervision of Roy and Zappo. —Bill Ma rquardt with his routine of a Mike Bent Then it was time for our annual Diablo Assembly 112 meets on the paper tear. Next Wes perfor med Game Night contest with Kara third Wednesday of every month at The Magical Indestructible Ewing acting as emcee. In this the VFW building in Pleasant Hill, Rope routine from his profession game, members volunteer to California Contact Larry Wright stage show. He then performed answer a randomly selected [email protected] a Karrell Fox/Tom Mullica torn question about magic. With a (925) 685-5129 www.sam112. and restored card routine followed correct answer, the member com/ for more details. by a teach-in on the effect. Next chooses a closed paper bag conup was Bethany Hall with her taining an unknown but complete version of John Fedko‘s Beads prop for a magic trick to be of Prussia. The string on an MAY RESTORATION perfor med in competition wit h the other contestants. A wrong answer provides the contest ant with a CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA� bag contai ning an incomplet e After a one month hiatus, our prop. Eight magicians were brave May meeting found Assembly enough to enter the contest. 115 members gathered together The competition began with at our new meeting location at the Zappo vanishing several items Pepsi-Cola Plant in Charlottesfrom a large foulard. John Gyllen- ville, Virginia. Members in attenhaal came next with the Gozinta dance were George Buckley, Wes Boxes, in which the laws of physics Iseli, Daniel and Bethany Hall, Ed seem to change when a small box Schmitz and his son Edward, Dan removed from a bigger box is then Rowen, Everette Anderson, Tom used to contain the bigger box. Olshefski, and Nathan Clauss. The remaining acts included George reported that Mark Davis Princess Beads of Prussia

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Assembly News enchanted necklace was broken, the beads placed into a magic wand, and with the utterance of the magic word restored for a young princess. George Buckley perfor med his Clippo Bunny effect and then showed the set of four comedy cut-no cut scissors he had produced for his birthday part y shows. A mazing magic and joyful la ughter wa s enjoyed by all. —Bethany Hall Assembly 115 meets at the Pepsi-Cola Bottling Company Building at, 1150 Pepsi Place, Charlot tesville, VA 22901. Contact George Buckley gbbuckley@mac. com (434) 409-2643 http://www. facebook.com/SAMAssembly115 for more details.

118

GRANI TE STATE CONJURORS

NASHUA, NH� The Granite State Conjurors held our May meeting at Diamond‘s Magic in Peabody, Massachusetts, where we met the new owner, Vince DeAngelis. Congratulations to

Vince DeAngelis welcomes the Granite State Conjurers to Diamond‘s Magic Eddie Gardner on his retirement and a heartfelt thank you for his years of friendly service. And congratulations to Vince. Here‘s to a long magical relationship! Assembly 118 meets on the third Wednesday of each month at 7:00 p.m. at Black Sword Estate, 126 Perham Corner Rd., Lyndeborough, NH 03082 Our venue rotates, so contact us rst. Contact Robert Granville sam. [email protected] (603) 505 8749 http://sam118.com for more details.

one-ahead method of predicting multiple objects. Jim Percy followed up with Diction. Vic Tarquini revealed a chosen card had tur ned upside down in a deck. Chris Bontjes performed My Word and demonstrated his mini version of Pepper’s Ghost, which he displayed with other magic at the S.A.M. exhibit at the US Science and Technology Exp. Photos of the event are posted on his Facebook page. Andy Dallas closed out the meeting by predicting one of three chosen cards, The Kozar Prediction, and a book test. See ya at the meeting. —Ken Barham Andy Dallas Assembly 120, meets on the 3rd Wed. 7pm, (except Nov. and Dec.) For location call Jim Percy at (217) 494-2222 or Ken Barham Sec, 2318 Winchester Dr, Champaign, IL 61821. (217) 841-5616 email: Kebra [email protected]

131

CUPS AND BALLS

DANBURY, CT� President Magic Mo, whose health is improving, almost made tonight‘s meeting. Our ofcial photographer, Walter B., is recovering from a fall and should be at next meeting. Methodist Church‘s Fall Festival will be held on October 4, 2014, so be ready for two shows on that date. Our lecture tonight was presented by a local magic histor ian, published author, and member, Joe Lantiere. Joe presented a brief history of the classic Cups and Balls, followed by a hands-on demo. Techniques and patter were discussed followed by a selection of various cups from Joe‘s personal collection: brass, spun aluminum, hand-engraved sterling silver, and turned hard woods. Many of our members came prepared with their

S.Y.M. are to be discussed. —Mar tin Steinberg Assembly 131 meets at the Methodist Church on Clapboard Ridge Rd. in Danbury CT, around back on the third Monday of Month, 7:30 PM. Contact magic marty magicmarty@aol. com (845) 797-8363 Danbury Top Hatters Facebook for more details.

Steve Sander passed out a survey asking for input on theme nights, etc. From the Treasurer: “We’re sound, period.” And on to the magic, with nearly half the assem blage having signed up to show their talents. First up, Jim Canaday, whose Magic Portal website is a treasure trove of references on everything magic, carnival-related, juggling, and more. He surprised a couple of volunteers with a variation WOMEN IN MAGIC on The Web, using a one-cent postage stamp instead of the — Dal dreaded spider. Next, Mike Yost FORT WORTH, TX Sanders reported on his visit to showed the complete rope-andWashington, D.C., represent- ring routine he does during his ing the S.A.M, with Congress- street magic. man Pete Sessions. Dal was very One of those folks who frequentexcited that the House of Repre- ly show up at magic gatherings sentatives now has a Congressio- was John Levy with the oft-heard nal Record recognizing „The Art comment, “I kind of got out of it, of Magic.“ This is a tremendous but I’m tr ying t o get i n again.” He honor for all magicians. showed he’s well on his way with This evening‘s program was an in-the-hands Triumph. Women in Magic, featu ring Cinde Nine-year-old Logan followed Sanders recalling the history of with a quick display of The women magicians, on being a ma- Coloring Book. (Logan? Well, gician‘s assistant, a nd her per sonal one name was good enough for journey as a clown, balloon art ist, Houdini and Blackstone.) Dan and face painter. Tracie Stein Tong, who’s a lot older tha n Logan, talked about her career as a dancer revealed how a stacked deck can and performer tying in to her let you spell any card – and tur n it career as a magician‘s assistant. up. Wally Feather found a missing Larry Heil contr ibuted the life ex- dollar in a balloon – expensive pectancy of women in magic, com- darn trick means popping two menting that many live into their balloons each time. 90s and beyond; Pam Jenkins, a nd Tin City Magic manager Tony Vanessa Ayala contr ibuted stories Chaudhuri and his wife showed of their experience to the lively off a new mental effect in which discussion. the familiar ESP symbols match Bruce Chadwick presented some placed randomly in a plastic „Tricks Old and Seldom Seen“ rack. Another new item at the from the Walter Blaney collection, shop is a hot-rod bar resembling a part of his Ladder Trick. Bruce stretched-out Rubik’s Cube. demonstrated the Miracle LevitaV-P Sander took a while to tion Hoop and told the history of mentally choose which colored this amazing piece. marker would be right to match a Geoff Grimes and Hal Hudgins spectator’s drawing, but the costly part icipated in the „Teach a piece of electronic equipment did Trick“ demonstration. Geoff the job. With much less expensive perfor med the Mentalism Lock props – paper cups and a railroad and Hal his Marked Cards trick. spike – yours truly used an iPad —Cindy Bighorse -Chadwick to show what trouble can happen The Fort Worth Magicians Club with when a cup conceals the met at The Bruce Chadwick spike. Then he poured water f rom Illusion Warehouse Contact cindy the empty cups and jabbed the Bighorse-Chadwick cabighorse@ spike into one to make the water gmail.com (817) 846-4062 http:// vanish. www.fortworthmagiciansclub. Closing the show, Tony (the org/ for more details. other) Dunn did a clever ThreeCard Monte. The directions, with his usual clarifying illustrations, will appear in the June Linking WHO NEEDS A Ring . —Don Dunn LECTURER? Assembly 150 meets the second Tuesday of each month at FORT MYERS, FL — Afte r a Myerlee Manor, Fort Myers. quintet of great lecturers served Contact RichardHPayne@aol. up miracles and moves over the com for details, or check our ve months of “season” here in website at: w ww.FMMAONLINE. southwest Florida, members had ORG no trouble providing our own “content” for the May meeting. GOOD LECTURES AND FUN During a quick business session, IN THE SPRING President Tom McVey and Veep

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MENTALISM THEME

Joe Lantier e

CHAMPAIGN, IL� At this month’s meeting, we discussed using the Fluid Event Center for our Get-Together in 2016. Our topic this month was mentalism. Kiera Percy opened the magic with Name That Card, Mental Logs, and a demonstration of the

own sets. The hands-on demo was a well-received addition to the lecture. Great lecture in all. Our summer BBQ date and place will be set by next meeting. Our Chinese buffet magic gathering date is still to be set. Talks to share another lecture with Standford


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Assembly News Tim Conover, and, more recently, Chris Kenner, Homer Liwag, and our friend David Coppereld. When Dan was performing Martin Lewis’s Cardiographic at a convention eons ago, David asked him for a private session to see Dan’s presentation. Dan’s linking pin routine, which is on his Close-Up Connivery video, was published in Michael Weber’s book Lifesavers with Michael’s handling. Dan shared some fun magic with us including cards and coins. He also demonstrated his marketed effect Heartz – with heart shaped sponges - which many of our members were eager to add to their collections. Jay Scott Berry, originally from Reno, Nevada, visited in October. He opened with some coin magic and later a long colorful streamer appeared from his seemingly empty hands. One of his principles: Start clean, end clean. Jay’s upbeat energy kept many in our group engaged. Jay is also a musician and writes his own music. A number of his effects used The Mystics and Daryl his marketed of a wooden box, a ring , and a Cloaking Device, which has uses wand. The ring goes into the box, such as vanishes, appearances, the wand goes through the closed and even a bill switch. The gang box, and the ring magical ly ends also purchased his diamond-cut up on the wand. Bill Cornelius silks. The members were happy showed that he had ten cards. He Jay visited. had a participant pick ve cards. Dan Hauss, from Philadelphia, It is patterned after a poker hand. is lively, energetic, and funny. He The magic did not go well, so he lectured in November 2013. Dan said, „I did not show up.“ Eric told us that whenever he bought Davis presented some cards, all a trick he wanted to change it; Kings and Queens, four each. He then he began to create his own shufed them, then picked one and effects. Dan creates a lot of magic had a participant pick one. They but doesn’t perfor m all of his matched. He did this four times. creations. His single rubber band „Can‘t keep perfect pairs apart.“ that penetrates his hand had us —Judy Steed bafed. He taught us the secret Assembly 157, The Mystic and it’s on his DVD Rubber Magicians of Beaver Valley, Thruhand (a clever pun on Robert meet the second Thursday of Houdin). His Sugar Block in which every month at the Towne Square a quarter ends up i n a sealed sugar Restaurant i n Beaver, PA. Contact packet was writ ten up in M-U-M . Judy Steed heyjude1943@msn. He also performed his Rattled com (330) 525-5389 for more and Growing Ring. Oh, and we details. have to mention that David Blaine perfor med one of Dan’s cre ations on his TV special. It’s called Lit. A card vanishes from a deck and SEPTEMBER TO DECEMBER later, a paper matchbook is opened and has transformed into the 2013 UPDATE selection. Shazam! In December we held our annual SCOTCH PLAINS, NJ — September 2013 brought Dan holiday party, which is always a Garrett to our assembly. Dan, a sell-out. Great food and drinks Past National President, is from were enjoyed while some members Atlanta and is well-known in did some strolling magic. Special magic convention circles, and thanks to the gentlemen who has shared time with Duke Stern, perfor med onstage: Vice Preside nt BEAVER, PA� The Mystic Magicians of Beaver Valley (Assembly 157) had their meeting with Vice President Don Moody presiding in place of the Preside nt. Tom Chidester reported that there are three prospective applications for membership. Eleven members of the Mystics were present for the Daryl lecture on April 30, 2014. Daryl presented a very entertaining as well as instr uctive program. He joined several members at the Outback Restaurant before the lecture. Bill Cornelius announced that he has received the „Alliance of Harry Houdini Award“ for his thirty-ve years as a member of the S.A.M. Dick Recktenwald entertained as emcee for the performances. Don Moody performed The Kenard Mystery, which consists

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Nice job, Don! Al Chiaverini closed the evening with a beautiful card penetration and ended his performance with Grand Slam, a great basebal l-themed routine with baseball cards and an autographed baseball. What fun! So...till next time...Magic, Unity, Might! —Dean F. Devitt Assembly 172 meet on the fourth Tuesday of every Gene, Scott, Norman - Having some month (except December) fun at the Holiday party at 7:00pm at the St Lucie Lanes on Route 1 in Port Scott Leavitt, Greg Ferdinand, St. Lucie Contact Dean F. Devitt Gene Soucek, Norman Rosen, and [email protected] (772) 332 our headliner, Jason Katsikis. Do 8412 for more details. visit our assembly when you are in town! —Christopher J Smith Assembly 161 meets at the Stage MAY DAY House Restaurant, 366 Park Avenue, Scotch Plains, New Jersey 07076 (908) 332-4224. On HIGHTSTOWN, NJ� Our rst the second Monday of the Month meeting in May landed on the rst 6 pm Dinner - 8 pm Lecture day of the month – May Day. The Contact Christopher J Smith theme of the night was Ring and s a m - 1 6 1 @ c o m c a s t . n e t ( 9 0 8 ) String, which was the basis for a 850-8765 www.sam161.org for workshop present by Reba Strong. more details. Reba regularly performs magic and clowning under the name Silly Reba. Her magical career is quite interesting because it started with APRIL SHOWERS AND ALL her as a spectator, while working as a bartender. The place where THAT STUFF she worked had hired a magician dressed as a leprechaun, to PORT ST LUCIE, FL — April started a little early this year for entertain the patrons. At rst, the compeers of the Donald E. Reba just watched, but she soon Lea Assembly here in beautiful decided that she would like to Port Saint Lucie with an afternoon learn some magic tricks so t hat she show at the Saint Lucie Lanes could entertain her customers. Annual Family Day and Car Thirty-three years later, Reba is Show. We opened the show at h igh now the one teaching others how noon on April 19 at the Lanes in to entertain. our regular meeting room. With Matt Musgrave, Harley Salas, Nick Bradley, and Al Chiaverini providing nearly forty-ve minutes of awless magic to what all considered to be a really great crowd, the afternoon ew by for perfor mers and spectat ors alike. April 22 was our regular meeti ng and once we dispensed with the business for the night, the real fun started off with Al Chiaverini and a short auction of several items he wanted to ensure got into good hands. James OffenReba Strong hartz followed Al with a routine on „How to Cheat at Poker.“ The workshop was her opportuHe dealt several winning hands nity to teach her ring and string from a randomly shufed deck, routine. To facilitate the learning, assembled the four Aces, and left Reba brought along practice everybody dazed and confused. rings and strings for each person I don‘t think anybody‘s going to who wanted to work along. This be playing cards with him soon. was not just show and tell; you Longtime member Don Smith were going to have to work at seemed a little confused when told this workshop. Ring and string he had signed up to perform, but routines have always fascinated he turned the tables on everybody me. Even after you have seen the with a variation on The Chicago secret, the ring still seems to pass Opener and a great silk routine impossibly through the conning based on Slydini‘s Not a Knot. pieces of stri ng. It just looks like

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Assembly News magic. I asked Reba what were t he keys to her over thirt y years of success, to which she replied, “always have fun” and “never insult your assistant or audience.” That is great advice to entertai n by. Coco kept with our theme and followed with a ring and silk routine. Our amazing Randy perfor med what he calls the “Geometry Teachers Nightmare.” It is an effect based on a small puzzle that he bu ilt in a st age size. This puzzle of eight pieces has an area that never increases, even after a ninth and then tenth piece are added. Mathematically impossible, but that’s magic. Rocco performed a trifecta of effects. First he performed his biting sensation, then a prediction of a thought of card, and nished up with a rock-paper-scissors effect. Zak nished the night’s perfor mances with a packet trick called Poker Deal that ends with a royal straight ush. This was not the only Assembly 181 meeting this month, as we have scheduled a second assembly meeting on the fourth Thursday of the month at Tommy’s Inn in Millstone, New Jersey. At this meeting, Robert Francis, the “Dork of Deception,” lectured on busking and street magic. One club, two assembly meetings a month – I hope that you will visit us one day. —David Zboray Assembly 181 of Hightstown meets the rst Thursday of every month, September thru June at the First United Methodist Church , 187 Stockton Street, Hightstown, NJ 08520. Doo rs open at 7:00PM. Contact Stephan Sloan lands10@ optonline.net (732) 757-5337 http://www.magicsam181.com for more details.

188

"ORIENTAL" MAGIC

OREM, UT� Our theme for the month of May was “Oriental Magic,” a reference to the type of magic performed by the likes of Okito and Chung Ling Soo. (No offense is intended by the use of the ter m.) Theron Christensen started off with Troy Hooser‘s Charming Chinese Challenge, a very nice routine in which three Chinesestyle coins penetrate through a red ribbon. Kerry Summers then came front and center with three large at black rings that each changed to a rainbow pattern and then back to black, with the help of an exotic fan. He then t ied four ropes into loops, which he then linked and unlinked in a mysterious way. He nished by per forming his “Chinese Whatsit”

(Pom-Pom Pole) routine in which pom-poms strung on a tube behaved in a manner outside the laws of physics. Daniel Schaffer performed his version of a single coin through a silk handkerchief, followed by Steve Dawson’s presentation of Dean’s Box. Jason Carling vanished a small silk handkerchief, which he caused to reappear in a box being held by a spectator (or what was left of the box once it fell apa rt). Ron Carrasco made a few almost-unforgivable puns related to funerals as he showed a large piece of paper illust rati ng various caskets. As he folded the paper, the caskets grew smaller until it changed into a trash receptacle (Dick Stoner’s A Grave Mistake). Then, after failing to nd a selected card, he gave the shirt off his back to nd it. Daniel next attempted to nd a card while blindfolded. Had it have worked, it would have been great! He made up for it later by nding another chosen card among three random selections. Theron returned with a mind reading effect using cards, nishing with the selected card in his pocket. Dave “Magical” Johnson showed a packet of cards with objects on them, then correctly predicted the object selected by a spectator. —Steve Dawson Assembly 188 meets the second Thursday of each month at the Courtyard Jamestown, 3352 North 100 East in Provo, Utah. Contact Brian South brian@ teachbymagic.com (801) 916-2442 www.utahmagicclub.org for more details.

200

UNFINISHED MAGIC

SEATTLE, WA� The Emerald City Wizards met the evening of April 3, 2014, to perform effects we’d been working on but weren’t quite polished yet. Ben Eskenazi and his dad, Marty, told the Wizards about their plan to perform magic to nursing and retirement homes. Seeking input from others, two rules emerged. The rst: keep it simple! Wizard Leader, JR Russell, recounted how, after he had performed his best stuff, someone in the audience said: “JR, next ti me play some Country-Western.” Despite the bittersweet humor, the second rule is: these audiences are most appreciative of magic. With a “special” card deck carried ninety miles expressly for him, Ben Eskenazi had a Wizard select a card and Ben i mmediately predict ed that very card! Ralph Hunzinger shared a potpourri of magical works in progress,


including Newton’s Miracle, an anti-gravity device that changes the speed of objects passing through it. Next were Numerology blocks that always add up to the same result. Lastly there was the Vanishing Box prototy pe in which roses transform into daisies. Michael Jacobs performed a sweet card trick in which a Queen appeared where we least expected it. Roger Sylwester then twisted Michael Close’s Erma la Fource routine to spectacularly predict a random card choice. Roger shared how he tested this routine with tricky student audiences in California. Dan Kennedy displayed four card avatars (red and black royals) who performed a hanky-panky soap opera based on Bro. John Hamman’s Gemini Twins. Larry Dimmit followed with a prediction card miracle, The Teacher Knows. Jay Boiselle, a newcomer, invited us all to shop at his Seattle Juggling and Magic Shop. Chris Carlyle had ve Wizards select cards and then, by ve different means, he named all the chosen cards. Mike Battistoni, another newcomer, introduced himself and related his Magic Castle experiences. Bill Murray asked a Wizard to cut any number of cards from a deck and using Juan Tamariz’s Mnemonica, he predicted not only the number of cards selected but all their names. Mark Paulson then told how, on the Tonight Show, Ricky Jay had produced a royal ush that was beyond any rational explanation. But then, in an instant, Mark produced the identical royal ush; also beyond explanation. Terry Burlison performed the Ninja car d trick using the Elmsley count. Following this, JR Russell led a tutorial on this most useful card maneuver. Rounding out the evening, Reymarx Gereda bafed us with a repeating, computer-like knowledge of how many cards a Wizard cut. —Ric Ruidl Assembly 200, The Emerald City Wizards meet the rst Thursday of each month at 7PM at a branch of the King County Librar y, WA. Please check web site for meeting locations. Contact Chuck Kleiner chuckkleiner@ yahoo.com (206) 236-0608 www. emeraldcitywizards.org for more details.

206

AUSTIN CELEBRATES ANOTHER SUCCESSFUL MAGIC AUCTION

AUSTIN, TX� The World Famous Magic Auction – it’s an Austin tradition. Every year – generally around April – conjurors

from throughout Texas gather together to trade stories, perform new tricks, and (most important) to buy magic equipment. The Austin magic community organizes the event, with magicians and their spouses meeting for weeks beforehand to catalog and package the auction items. Everyth ing from the largest stage illusions to the tiniest gimmicks goes on sale. This year’s event was held April 5, 2014.

Edward Boswell displays a new acquisition from the Austin mag ic auction The Assembly’s April meeting, held a couple weeks later, was also devoted to the auction – but as more of a post-operative review. Assembly members discussed what went well, what could be improved, and showed off their new acquisitions. Auction chairwoman Trixie Bond ran down the numbers, explaining that auction attendance was down somewhat, with just over a hundred buyers. But despite fewer magicians, revenues held more or less steady from the previous year. Ms. Bond credited the charismatic auctioneers for much of that success, including David Hira and Grant Walsh from Dallas, and Scott Wells from Houston. Several local magicians, including Kent Cummins and Brad Henderson, also helped with the stage auction. Ms. Bond also noted that a at-screen video monitor was a popular addition this year. The monitor displayed a live feed from the stage auction, but was set up in the sepa rate room for the silent auction. This allowed buyers to watch for their favorite stage items, while continuing to peruse smaller close-up tricks and collectibles from the silent auction. Ms. Bond said organizers are considering an earlier auction date for 2015. This is to avoid overstretching the resources of the Austin magic community, which will host the Texas Association of Magicians convention in 2015. Several members also displayed new acquisitions during the assembly meeting. Edward Boswell performed a startling Hot Rod effect, one in which the

Assembly News colored stones on the bar change multiple times. He acquired the effect in the silent auction. Assembly member Shelby Parsons showed off a new card trick. Veterans Kent Cummins and Ron Cartlidge also displayed new props. —R.A . Dyer Assembly 206 meets at the Omni South Park Hotel, 4140 Governors Row, Austin, Texas Contact Jake Dyer [email protected] (512) 658-0017 http://sam206.com/ for more details.

215

MAY HAPPENINGS

LOUISVILLE, KY� May was an active month for the Louisville Magic Club. The seventh annual The Magic and the Wonder , a show benetting Kosair Charities & Kids Center for Pediatric Therapies, was held on May 18, 2014, at the Kentucky Center for the Arts. Performing were Dan Sperry, Aaron Radatz, Stephen Knowles, Dinky Gowen, and Patrick and Janice Mil ler. The next evening was the monthly meeting of the LMC. About forty members were present and welcomed new members Carson Harral and Myron (Ron) Fribush. Then Dan Sperry taught and entertained for an hour and a half with magic and stories from his perfor mances. Among the effects that Dan taught were the production of a dove from a sketch pad on which he had just drawn a picture of a dove (and many good handling tips); production of real worms from a bag of Trolli gum my worms; a balls from mouth routine; a borrowed bill that shows the embedded words “made in China” when held up to a light source; a Russian- roulettewith-cookies routine in which a razor blade has been inserted into one of the cookies; Remember to Floss, a routine with razor blades and dental oss; various uses of a can of citrus air freshener; and tips on traveling with live birds. Dan has developed his own unique style of magic and denes himself as an “anti-conjuror.” He has become well known in the eld of magic, having performed at the Magic Castle, on the TV hit series Masters of Illusion , on season ve of NBC’s America’s Got Talent in early 2010, in The World’s Greatest Magic Show for three years in Las Vegas, and he is the only illusionist to ever be awarded the title of most original magician on FOX’s World Magic Awards. The annual LMC picnic is on August 23; and the annual fundraiser show, It’s Magic, is on Sept

12. —Roger L. Omanson Assembly 215 meets at 7:00 p.m. on various dates, but usually the rst Tuesday of each month, at the Kosair Community Center on Eastern Parkway. Contact Roger Omanson [email protected] (502) 296-6577 website: www. lmcmagic.com for more details.

263

NON�STOP PERFORMING

— Greet ings BIG FLATS, NY fellow magi; it’s been a while since I posted our club’s activity. Please accept my apologies. Our April meeting was well attended. We spend a half hour greeting and lling each other in about recent events, then, a business meeting, hopefully brief, and then we do what all magicians love to do. We try to create wonder, no easy feat when performing for other magicians. Club secretary, Tim Cleary was hoping for some important critiquing with a new effect he acquired: The Nut Waltz, a form of cups and balls, in which three walnuts vanish from his hands only to appear under an upsidedown glass covered with paper. A few constructive criticisms were offered and graciously accepted. Sir James (Jim Turner) claimed to have memorized a deck of cards; he shufed them and still named a series of them rapidly. How did he do it? A marked deck. He patt ered well and we almost swallowed it. Grandpaw Willie was there and showed his collection of his own handmade horse-nail jewelry. Bob Cobb was up next and pulled out the four Queens had them replaced randomly back in the deck face up in a face-down deck, He pulled out the Queens and the ca rd next to it. That card turned out to be a King of the matching suit. Mike Stanley perfor med the color changi ng chips for a young visitor. Our resident card man Ralpho (Ralph Candelori) always delights us with new and complex card mysteries. If I were to describe what happened, I’d need a few pages, but as always very entertaining. Mike Lavarnway, got us thinking about not past recollections but the possibility of time travel and future recall. A prediction was made or was it a note from the future? A spectator cut the deck and discarded half, then repeated until one card remained and that was written on the note. Phil Messina was up next and masterfully executed the Three Card Repeat. He followed that with a packet trick called Amaz ing Ace. Len Saukus pushed three colored silks into a mesh tube on ly to pull

out a feather ower with those colors on it. John Macelli entertained with the Baby Hummer card trick – just wonderful. President Doug Welch dazzled us with an effect made for earth day: a trick with the message to “Stop Pollution.” He then performed one of his favorite pocket effects called Dizzy Dominoes Outdone. Some of the members continued to perform even after the meeting was ofcially closed. Some magicians just can’t stop performing. And that’s the way we like it. The Twin Tiers Magic Club Assembly 263 meets the fourth Monday of the month @ 7:00 pm at the Hillview United Methodist Church, Hillview Drive, Big Flats NY. Contact Tim Cleary at [email protected]

266

MAGICAL MAY MISHAPS

LAKELAND, FL� Jerry walked in with his hand bandaged and “attention to detail” Ed noticed that Jerry’s hand was bandaged and his “little nger seemed to be missing.” Jerry is a woodworker and most us know of at least one woodworker with a missing nger, so all were in sympathy with Jerry who didn’t want to talk much about it but just said he had lost it working on a new magic project! After a short business meeting during which the meeting night was discussed, the magic began. Card tricks were done by all but Jerry. Jim Zachary did one of his famous “marketed” tricks and even Beverly, (who hates card tricks) did a card t rick. We missed Al and Elmo because Al had an anniversary and Elmo was under the weather. Jerry got up to perform his late st effect and explained that it had gone wrong at home but he had it working now! A volunteer was selected to help; Jerry brought out a guillotine nger chopper! Some of us then started to suspect the con Jerry had played on the group! Jerry performed the effect awlessly three times, on his magician assistant, on a waitress, and on a waiter at the IHOP. He then removed the bandage and revealed it was part of a macabre scam to sell the nger guillotine. Fun was had by all and the meeting broke up around 9:00 p.m. If you are close to Lakeland, FL, on meeti ng night come and enjoy the macabre! —Ed McGowan Jim Zachery Assembly 266 meets the second Wednesday of the month at 7pm at the Lakeland I-Hop at Rt-98 and I-4 Contact Al D‘Alfonso keeper0499@ embarqmail.com (321) 4373814 for more details.

277

THE PMMC BLOWS UP! STROUDSBURG, PA� We hope

we got your attention with the headline. The Pocono Mountains Magic Club met again in May and the theme of the night was Inatable Magic. Anything that you can blow up can be used . First off, the Toman family introduced everyone to the newest member of the magic club, Isaiah James, born on May 12, 2014 to Austin Miller and Tabby Mcarthy. Ryne Gade played our emcee this month; we have instituted a new program – each month we elect a new emcee for the platform perfor mance part of our meeti ng. This gets everyone involved, and we get to practice our emcee ski lls as well. Ryne began the performances with a version of Daniel Garcia’s Archery in which an arrow (Ace of Spades) is thrust into the deck and magically changes into a previously chosen card. Jay Kraft was up next with a routine he put together that week. A card was chosen, a corner torn, and a balloon blown up. The card was magically thrust into the balloon. The balloon was popped, freeing the card and the corners matched per fectly. Mark Mysterrio was up next and did a version of the chosen card in the balloon with a totally different present ation and a tota lly diffe rent method. I love the fact that our guys have different magic backgrounds that allows for such diversity in our performance portion of the night .

S. Patrick and 14 day old Isaiah James Next was the Magic of Ricardo who showed us his latest project. It was an actual Zombie Balloon complete with a place on the balloon sculpture for the zombie gimmick to be placed. He then created an adult balloon sculpture that has all of us rolling on the oor laughing. You have to see it to believe it! S. Patrick was up last and perfor med a routine he hasn‘t perfor med regularly in over


Assembly News twenty-one years. Even he was surprised when he calculated how old the trick actually was. Jay Sankeys Airtight was even perfor med by David Copper eld on a TV special many years ago. A card is chosen and signed, and the deck shufed. S. then showed us some clear balloons, chose one, and then slammed the entire deck of cards inside the balloon. S. then blew up the balloon and shufed the cards by shaking the balloon. The balloon was squeezed and one card was pulled through the wall of the balloon. The card was the original signed card. Thanks to all our platform performers as well as our close-up perfor mers who kicked off our meeting earlier. Everyone did a great job! —S. Patrick Toman The PMMC Meets on the 3rd Friday each month at the "Art Space Gallery“, 18 N. 7th St. Stroudsburg PA. 18360. Contact S. Patrick [email protected] (570) 242-6821 www.pmmc.webs. com for more details.

292

BREAKI NG IN A PRI VATE MAGIC BAR

GREELEY, CO� In May, our assembly had the honor of

being the rst group to enjoy a handsome bar designed to accommodate bar magic. We met at Danielle and Paul Noffsinger’s home. The working bar stage area had just been completed on their lower level. The room had a pool table and a lovely collect ion of magic posters, both Hunter S. Thompson and magic memora bilia, and shelves of magic books. Jim Pope ran a brief business meeting with updates on the post ponement of the Magic in the Rockies convention for 2014. We

an informative discussion of fair rates to charge, and of justications for donated shows. The meeting theme was “plastic,” but an option was added to perform a ve-minute “bar magic” routine. Paul Noffsinger opened, explaining the nale to his Triumph cardrevelation effect. He then did a fast card and color change (Poker Test 2.0 by Erik Casey). We enjoyed a card-prediction routine devised by Lloyd “Worley the Wizard” Worley. It combined an Out to Lunch revelation followed by a deckvanishing box. Teagan Brown did a great p i c k p o c k e t routine that loaded a spectator’s signed coin into the spectator’s own shirt pocket. Rich Nakata presented a From left, Paul Noffsinger, James Lopez, whole slew of Bob Lopez, and Lew Wymisner fantastic Tenyo plastic tricks, were sad to hear the news, but including a splendid Tenyo soft hope this break can bring it back coin routine. He concluded with bigger and bet ter in the future. We some self-working mathematical welcomed a guest, Bob Lopez. The card effects. “Show Reports” section included Taking advantage of the assem-

bly’s resources, Jim Pope asked for help in developing false cuts to be done both on the table and in the hands. Lew “The Great Loudini” Wymisner presented his collection of many different variations on plastic and other Color Vision boxes, including a “blind” electronic version. He explained a basic move by Ed Marlo that made the peek seamless and uid. “The Amazing James” Lopez perfor med a bar routine includi ng Paul Vigil’s Sympathy (for the Devil) Cards, and Cha rlie Miller’s Dunbury Delusion card effect, an all-time favorite that has spawned some twenty published variants and alternatives. He closed with a J. B. Bobo routine involving four coins in a glass, two in the hand, and one in the p ocket. The helpful take-away was to slow down and really engage the audience. It was a delightful meeting, with lots of magic in a classy venue. —James Lopez The Dr. Ronald P. Dutton Assembly 292 usually meets at Kenny‘s Steak House, 3502 West 10th Stree t (corner of 35th Avenue) at 11:00 A.M. (lunch optional), on the second Saturday of the month. Contact Jim Pope jlp1616@ comcast.net (970) 339-3277 www.SAM292.com for more details. 

Good Cheer List Please take a minute to spread a few words of cheer with a card or note to one of our less fortunate members. Send additions, changes, or deletions to: Anthony Antonelly, Chairman, Sick and Convalescent Committee, (215) 820-3192 ext. 1512. [email protected] Daniel Cudennec “Dany Trick” 225, Stang-ar-Veild’an-Traon, Mellac-29300, Quimperle, France Dan A. Dorsey 98 Woodvalley Dr. Fayetteville, GA 30215 Charlie Gross 16745 Gertrude Street, Omaha, NE 60136-3023 Roy Horn c/o Siegfried & Roy 1639 N Valley Drive, Las Vegas, NV 89108 Bob King 304 Suburban Court, Rochester, NY 14620

Stanley R. Kramien Anthony Murphy 11205 SW Summereld Dr. 11 Angel Rd., Apt 161 North Reading, MA 01864 Tigard, OR 97224-3391 Nahmen Nissen PO Box 1856 Richard Laneau 4020 55th St. N. Colfax, CA 95713-1856 St. Petersburg, FL 33709 Allen Okawa 2101 Nuuanu Ave., Tower 1, George Gilbert Lott 1725 Great Hill Rd. #2203 Guilford, CT 06437 Honolulu, HI 96817

Pat Ryan 43 Fairbanks Rd. Churchville, NY 14428 Matt Savin P.O. Box 7693 Alhambra, CA 91802-7533 Mario Susi 6 Bristol Rd. W. Peabody, MA 01960 Jack White 4288 Arguello St. San Diego, CA 92103

Frank J. McNaughton, Sr 1926 Apple Street, Williamsport, PA 17701

Jim Relyea 241 W. Lakeshore Rockaway, NJ 07866

James J. Morrisey 24 Grove St. Wayland, MA 01788

Jim Zachary 2801 South Creek Drive Harry Riser 11755 N. Michigan Rd #313 Mulberry, FL 33860 Zionsville, IN 46077


New Members & Reinstatements Reinstatements The following applications a nd reinstatements for Associate Memberships and Assembly Memberships have been received. For good cause shown, in in accordance with Article II, Section 3 of the Constitution of the Society of American Magicians, any member in good standing may object to the acceptance of any new Associate Member (Assembly Memberships have already been approved by the Assembly to which they will be afliated). Any objection should be directed to the National Administrator. Administrator. Livonia, MI Rivera, Zareth Jacobs, Chad Kansas City, City, KS Aungpe, Dino St Louis, Louis, MO Roberts Jr, Bradley E Wheatley Heights, NY Jave, Douglas Taylors, SC Bally, Frederick Indianapolis, IN Routh, Josh New York, York, NY Johnson, Mark Ballwin, MO Beck, Eric M Mableton, GA Sacco, Aj Tulsa, OK Kaliszewska, Zoa Adelajda Chicago, IL Bell, Michael Cambridge, MA Salva, Peter Cedar Park, TX Kanzelberger, Leo Scranton, Scran ton, PA Breitenmoser, Natalie Shorel ine, WA Sanz, Danny Degersheim, Switzerland Kennedy, Steven Palm Bay, FL Breitenmoser, Retonio New Orleans, LA Scheifee, Jeremy Degersheim, Switzerland Knowles, Frank Wauwatosa, Wi Brenneman, Blake Melbourne, FL Schwall, David Winston Salem, NC Kosakura, Steve Pomona, NY Brown, Matthew Tustin, CA Scott, Richard Calne, Wiltshire, Wiltshire, UK Kraft, Fred Kingston, Kingst on, WA Brown, Paul Nanticoke, Nanti coke, PA PA Sellers, Kenneth Howell, MI Lai, Po-Cheng Tucson, AZ Brown, Teagan Taichung City, Taiwan Shields, Randall B Fort Collins, CO Lampkin, Kim D Hoopeston, IL Buck, Dave Houston, TX Smith, Jacob Lynnwood, WA WA Lee, Hun Austin, TX Byers, Joseph Incheon, Kyunggi-do Korea Soto, Robert Coppell, TX Leshen, Lee Mayaguez, PR Carini, Kathy New York, York, NY Stapleton, Brian Rancho Cordova, CA Marsh, Larry Allen Park, MI Carter, Tyle Colorado Springs, CO Stein, Ariel Columbus, OH Martinez, Circe Scarsdale, NY Choi, Cheolseung Las Vegas, Vegas, NV Sullivan, James Seoul, Seoul Korea Martinez, Brandon Garland, TX Copin, Bruno Anchorage, AK Swyt, Sue Marcq En Baroeul, France Mccoy, Maury Dublin, OH Credidio, Paul Anthony Austin, TX Szewczyk, Ricky Del Ray Beach, FL Mcdonnell, Thomas J Macomb, IL Crowley, William J Wynnewood, Wynnewood , PA Templeton, Jerry Wauwatosa, WI Mcgrath, John Westerville, OH Davis, Patrick Bridgend, UK Thomas, Kirk New York, York, NY Mcgriff, Michael J Bronx, NY Dutcher, Ryan Vallejo, alle jo, CA Thorne Iii, Charles Lyell Hopewell Jct, NY Melnyk, Rob West Wyomin Wyoming, g, PA PA Eckland, Kenneth T Willowbrook, IL Tong, Damian Lancaster, MA Middlebrooks, Weldon Pasadena, CA Ephraim, Jesse Arlington, TX Torrenson, Roy Tore Keller, TX Mulrooney, Charles Mandal, Norway Eskenazi, Gregg Westeld, NJ Towey, William Mercer Merce r Island, WA O‘connor, Heather Philadelphia, PA PA Farmer, Robert Manhattan Beach, CA Von Strong, Tom Tempe, AZ Orriola, Victor R Vacavi lle, CA Gordon, Peter Lancaster, Lanca ster, PA Weiss, Jonathan-Taylor Scarsdale, NY Park, Woong Sunninghill, Berkshire UK Goss, Hans Seoul, Seoul Korea Korea Westgate, Robert Houston, TX Parkinson, Michael Donald Temple City, CA Greenberg, Don E Baltimore, MD Williams, Jeremy New Waterford, Waterford, OH Perricone, Alexander Temple City, CA Greenwell, Jeff Avenel, NJ Willis, Chad Lakewood, Lakewo od, WA Pinckney, Darrell C Powell, OH Hernandez, Bill Glenmont, NY Wilson, Betsy Stratford, CT Putnam, Adam Livermore, CA Hollander, Andrew Saint Louis, MO Windsor, Randy Philadelphia, PA PA Regalbuto, Brian A Farmington, MO Hsueh, Billy Downey, CA Wolre, Mark Surrey, BC Canada Rhoades, Harlin Baltimore, MD Hubbard Ii, Ron Midland, TX Wright, Tim Oak Ridge, TN Riley, Robert St Marys, OH Hudy, Jason Baton Rouge, LA Yamagami, Aki noshin NEW APPLICATIONS

Tokyo, JAPAN Yamagami, Yoshinosuke Tokyo, Yang, Jaehyeoc k Gumi-Si, KyungsangbukDo Korea South Zehnacker, Russell Bear, DE Zimmerman, Douglas Loveland, CO

Draper, UT Kirschner, Michael Fort Lee, NJ Kolb, Anthony Vienna, IL Kothare, Shank Mount Julliet, TN Lee, Delbert Yreka, CA Leonard, Paul (Andy) St. Louis, Louis, MO REINSTATEMENTS Lindvig, Bruce A Scottsdale, AZ Alexander, Gale M Luong, John New Milford, CT Lakewood, CO Artle, Earl J Lyford, Trey Highlands, NJ Brooklyn, NY Austin, Jake Machny, Elizabeth Colorado Springs, CO Ville St Laurent, QB Barrett, Mike Canada Long Island City, City, NY Marchionda, George Black, Bruce Niagara Falls, ON Canada Peyton, CO Mayers, Richard Boone, Frederick D Springeld, MA Ocoee, FL Melendez, Benjamin Camp, Jack Roselle, NJ Hillsboro, OR Nordstrom, Rodney Chamblerlin, Michael Peoria, IL Arlington, Arlin gton, VA VA Paxson, Donna Copeland, Jeff Henderson, NV Winston Salem, NC Portala, Eli Dicharry, Ryan Toledo, OH Saint Gabriel, LA Pruitt, Joe Dudley, Kathleen Denver, NC Blue Mound, IL Ranalli, David Ewing, Ric Indianapolis, IN Pittsburg, CA Rico, George Ezenwa, Rev Fr Josaphat C Monterey Park, CA Turnbridge Wells, Wells, KENT Saylor, James UK Prescott, AZ Fiorentino, James L Sherman, Aaron Philadelphia, PA PA Danbury, CT Flint, Bryan Skye, Victoria Ellington, CT Roswell, GA Folkl, James Spagnola, Janice Bloomeld Township, Township, MI Niagara Falls, NY Gotmer, Alfred A Spangler, Steven D Rochester, MN Littleton, CO Grayson, Daniel F Stuessy, Ted J Rochester, NY Cherry Hill, NJ Guida, Patrick Trombetto, Daniel Portland, CT Danbury, CT Hannibal, Christopher Vandenberg, Byron Ford Indian Trail, Trail, NC Coralville, IA Hansell, Christopher Violette, Scot Lebanon, Leban on, PA PA Baker City, City, OR Harness, Rebecca Weidner, Joshua Eureka, MO Granite City, IL Hicks, Michael White, John C Jackson, MI Centerville, IA Jia, Kui Wicks, Roger Los Angeles, CA Woodstock, OH Jones, Eric Woelfel, Arnol d Philadelphia, PA PA Cromwell, CT Karavolos, Mark Young, Joseph Westwood, Westwo od, NJ Big Stone Gap, VA VA Kercher, Rick


Broken Wands MICHAEL E. ABSTON (JULY 23, 1954 – APRIL 24, 2014)

Michael Edward Abston was born in the small town of Rockwood, Tennessee. He received a Bachelor of Music degree from Middle Tennessee State and began work as a band dir ector. He was in that position when he encountered the uglier side of the job – politics and bureaucracy. Thankfully for the rest of the world, he left his trumpet and students behind and started work in an unlikely place – Ripley’s…Believe it or Not! Mike‘s rst and only wife, Marion, supported his vocational change, so he started work at the Ripley’s attraction, which had a magic shop attached to it in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. He worked there and was trained by famed demonstrator Ron Conley. In no time, he excelled as a magic demonstrator, even demonstrating and selling tricks to a young boy named Lance Bur ton. Mike owned his own magic shop in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and continued to do shows on the side. Soon enough, he and Marion had his only son Travis, who Mike often said was his only true magic. Marion travelled as her husband’s assistant as they did shows in malls, festivals, and ea markets. He was a founding member of I.B.M. Ring 234, the Charles Towne Mystics in Charleston. Mike found a home for twenty-ve years at Ken Fletcher’s Magic Masters stores. He worked in nearly every store in that chain, from Washington, D.C. and Chicago, Illinois, to Underground Atlanta, Georgia, and the Jax Brewer y in New Orleans. He worked in the Virgin Islands at St. Thomas and even briey in Hawaii. He spent his longest time in the Las Vegas location at the Caesars Palace Forum Shoppes. Magic Masters, like Mike, is no longer with us; when the last shop closed, Mike briey brie y worked in the Caesars Caesar s Magical Empire shop until that attraction was closed as well. He then worked for a while at the Las Vegas pro shop The Magic Emporium until it was sold to Denny and Lee. Mike went to work next for Perry Maynard’s Las Vegas Magic shops, becoming a regular xture in both the Stratosphere and Riviera s tores until his untimely passing. To say he will be missed is an understatement; he will never be forgotten by those he left behind. Mike Abs ton is survived by his son Travis, his ex-wife Marion, his brother Jeff, and his sis ter Susan. – Kevin Mar tin


ROBERT BLUEMLE

Robert L. “Bob” Bluemle, 80, retired attorney and magician, died Thursday, May 8, 2014, surrounded by family in Williston, Vermont. The son of Orville Wesley Bluemle, Bluemle , newspaper editor, and Marguerite Fadely, court clerk, organist and pianist, Bob spent his youth in Anderson, Indiana, and Phoenix, Arizona. He earned his bachelor’s degree and MBA at Indiana University, where he served as Student Body President and was voted outstanding graduating senior in 1955. He received his Juris Doctor from the University of Michigan Law School in 1959. In 1960, Bob moved back to Phoenix with his wife, actress Sarah Jane Miller, where he launched a long and successful career in securities and tax law and raised two daughters , Tiffany and Elizabeth. Elizabet h. Known for his lightning-fast wit, mischievous sense of humor, and dashing sartorial style, Bob’s greatest passions were magic, travel, photography, writing, and family. At the age of ten, Bob discovered Bert Easley’s Magic Shop, and a young magician was born. Known to fellow performers as Dr. Juris and to children as “Magic Uncle Bob,” Bob specialized in close-up magic and mentalism. He was an active member and ofcer of the International Brotherhood of Magicians, The Society of American Magicians, and Ring 55 in Phoenix, and was a regular contributor to magic periodicals, including the Linking Ring U- M. He also wrote lm reviews and articles on and M- U-M travel, as well as an unpublished biography biograp hy of European magician Dr. Stanley Jaks. Bob’s college stint as emcee of a USO show sparked his love of travel that included visits to over a hundred countries. In 2001, Bob moved from Phoenix to Burlington, Vermont, to be closer to his family. He was predeceased by his daughters’ mother, Sarah Jane Miller, and his second wife, Carol Bidstrup. Bob’s family is grateful to the amazing Dr. Karen Sokol and to his many wonderful caregivers at Shelburne Bay, particularly his trusted fr iend and caregiver Elizabeth Wathugi, and the Vermont Respite House for their caring car ing suppor t of Bob in his nal years and days. days . WILLIAM EDWARD EDWARD RYDER ALEXANDER SR .

William Alexander Alexande r of Louisville, Louisville , Kentucky, died May 12, 2014, at age seventy-nine. He served four years in the US Army before working as a US Air Force physicist and aerospace engineer at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in

Broken Wands Ohio for over thirty years. He was a Life Member of the S.A. M., a member of the I.B.M. I.B .M.,, and a member of the Louisville Magic Club, serving as its Sergeantof-Arms. Bill Alexander began magic as a hobby in junior high school; by the eleventh grade his magic performances had become semi-professional. At age nineteen, Bill privately performed for Louisville’s Don Redmon, an internationally famed magician. As a result, Don sponsored Bill’s membership into the I.B.M. During his college years, he continued to perform at nightclubs and in hotel bar rooms, as well as hospitals, schools, colleges, churches, and in private homes. When Bill retired in 1990, he was wa s aver aging over one hundred magic shows per year. He performed in many locations, including includi ng the states of Ohio and Kentucky, Belize, South America, and Ocho Rios, Jamaica. Sur vivors include his wife, Mary, and children Noreda Denise, William Edward, Jr., Norman Douglas, and Ivanora Odessa. RONALD “RONNIE” RECKSEIT (NOVEMBER 17, 1931 – MAY 22, 2014)

Ronnie Reckseit belonged belonged to S.A .M. for more than ftyseven years; during duri ng that time he was a valuable member membe r of both PA 1 in New York and Assembly 274 in Florida. He always participated in after-meeting shows and was ready

to emcee when needed. In school he was always the class clown. Ron grew up in New York and worked as a salesman for his father before going into the service ser vice during the Korean War. War. While s tationed in i n Japan for two years as a staff sergeant, sergeant , he donned his red velvet jacket and along with two other magicians performed for our servicemen. He was awarded several commendations for his work. Once back at home, Ron went into show business, working cruise ships for the Royal Caribbean Line and Carnival lines, where he met his wife Jackie. They had three children. Recksei t did a funny comedy magic act with the accent on laughs. He had a few signature si gnature effects ef fects such as a “Tissel-Tassle” Chinese Sticks routine, and a comedy rope escape. He also added humorous mental effects to his repertoire. Ronnie established a business in St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands, renting mopeds and cars to cruise ship tourists visiting the island. After several years, the Reckseits came home and lived both in Florida and New York. Ron loved to play golf and won tournament s both in Westchester and in Boca Raton. Until illness took him in April, he was still making people laugh at retirement homes on the East Coast. We’ll miss his jokes and stories, but he can always be seen on YouTube. A broken wand ceremony was performed by Dean George Schindler at his funeral May 25, 2014. 

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A CUT ABOVE THE PROFESSOR’S NIGHTMARE BY MITCH GEIER � ASSEMBLY 81 Effect: I’m sure most of you know Bob Carver’s classic trick The Professor’s Nightmare. Here is a routine that starts from a single length of rope on a spool. The spectator assists you in cutting three ropes of equal length. You then change them in to three ropes of different lengths, which can be examined. You then change the unequal ropes into three ropes of equal lengths, then back to three of different lengths, and back again to three ropes of equal length. You end with three equal ropes that the spectator can examine and take home. Method: During this explanation, I will add the patter that is necessary to explain the effect and misdirect the audience. You will need to add additional patter to make this effect your own. I will also explain this effect as it is done by a right-handed person. I will assume that you already know the moves for the standard Professor’s Nightmare routine. Start with a rope that the spectators can examine and prove to be solid. The rope may even be cut directly from a spool of rope. The length of rope you start with should be equal to the distance from ngertip to ngertip of your outstretched arms. I do a rope escape before this routine and I use the rope for that escape. This avoids the necessity of having the ropes examined and gives credibility to the strength of the rope. Do the standard “cut and restored” move (Photo 1), creating a loop on the bottom and a loop on the top. Ask a spectator to cut those loops and one nal cut to get rid of any extra length left (Photo 2), which creates three equal strands of rope (or so they appear). You have created, by using the “cut and restored” move, the Professor’s Nightmare gimmick right in front of the audience and with the spectator’s help.

From this position, take the medium rope with your opposite hand (probably your right hand) and show it to the audience as you say, “I’ll take this rope and roll it up in my hand.” This will give you misdirection for dropping (from the top Photo 3 of your hand to the bottom of your hand) one end of the short rope in your left hand (Photo 4). No one will notice this, if properly executed. With your right hand, start folding up the medium-length rope into your left hand, with both ends eventually coming out of the top of your left hand. You are holding this bundle in a way that shows three ropes, with three ends on top and three ends hanging down. The reality is that you have coiled the medium rope into your hand and both of its ends are on top. The short rope, because you moved its end, now runs straight through the hand; the long rope is looped, with both ends coming out of the bottom of your hand. This looks correct to the spectator because he sees the proper number of ends above and below your hand.

Photo 4

Photo 1

This creates the illusion of a short rope and two long ropes. Now prove that you have a short rope by slightly pulling the lower end of the short rope down by an inch or so. Do not remove the short rope from your left hand just yet. As you pull the short end, notice which top end moves downward. Now pull up that short rope an inch or so by its top end; you can now freely move the short rope up and down in your hand. “This is just an illusion,” you say as you pretend to roll the short rope down into your hand with your thumb while pulling it from the bottom with your other hand. This is just acting, because the [Note: Slydini published the idea of starting with a long short rope is the short rope (free and clear); you are not really piece of rope and apparently cutting it into three equal lengths rolling it up with your thumb at all. You may now remove the in his book Slydini Encores (Long and Short of It, pages 85-89).] short rope from the top of your hand and give it to the spectator At this point, a small rope is looped around the long rope as you say, “This really is a short rope.” The spectator will be (Photo 3); in their looped condition they equal the length of the shocked to see that one of the three equal pieces is now a short medium-length rope. You can now do the standard Professor’s rope. Nightmare count, rst counting a single rope as “one,” then At this point, you have a coiled up medium rope with both taking the looped ropes and leaving the single one as you count ends coming out the top of your hand and a long rope folded “two.” You then recount the single rope as “three.” in half with both ends coming out the bottom of your hand. Photo 2


As you patter, your upcoming actions follow exactly what you say. “I’ll take this end from the bottom (a long rope end) and place it on the top. I’ll take an end from the top (a medium rope Photo 5 end) and place it to the bottom. This creates the illusion of a long rope and a short rope.” To prove this to the spectator, you now pull one end of the long rope and move it back and forth through your hand. Remove the long rope from your hand and give it to the spectator while commenting about the length of the rope. The spectator’s attention on the long rope provides the perfect misdirection to release the medium rope (which was coiled in your hand), allowing it to uncoil to its full length. Turn your attention to this rope and say, “And this one falls somewhere in the middle,” as you hand him the medium rope. The ropes that are left in the spectator’s hands can be examined (and they should be examined) because they are ungimmicked and ready to be used in a standard Professor’s Nightmare routine. I’m not going to explain the details of the Photo 6 Professor’s Nightmare routine here, because it is so well known and documented. From here, go into your standard Professor’s Nightmare routine; when you get to the point of lining up the ends (just before you stretch the three unequal ropes to become equal lengths) you will want to introduce a ploy that sets the spectator up for the conclusion of this routine. During the routine you act very fastidious and concerned about the frayed ends of the ropes (thanks to Ice McDonald for the frayed idea). Cut some small pieces off the ends (whether they are f rayed or not). This concern and trimming of the ends will add to the illusion at the conclusion of the effect. Complete the Professor’s Nightmare routine by pulling the ropes into equal lengths and immediately transforming them back into a short rope, a medium rope, and a long rope. Again, the spectator has three ungimmicked ropes in his hands to examine. Start the nale of this effect by asking for the short rope, the long rope, and medium rope. You will now do the slow stretching part of the standard routine. Create the Professor’s Nightmare loop, wrapping the short rope around the long rope. Stop yourself and reverse your steps by saying, “Remember Photo 7 how I took the ends of the rope and matched them up before? I’m not going to do that now,” as you bring down the top end of the long rope. This is a deceit, because you brought up the short rope to create the Professor’s Nightmare loop but you “reverse” three ropes, which are ungimmicked and of equal length. This yourself by dropping down the end of the long rope (Photo 5). is a great way to end the Professor’s Nightmare routine. The hidden loop that was created still remains. Remember, when doing this routine, keep up the ploy of Now you are in a perfect position to do a visual stretch of concern over the frayed ends. Each time that you stop to trim the ropes by pulling on the three bottom ends. However, before a little bit off the ends, it justies the nal clean up where the doing the stretch, you must continue that fastidious ploy of evidence is destroyed. You should also practice the false count always cutting off the frayed ends. Gather up the three lower that is used with every Professor’s Nightmare routine. It is the rope ends into your right hand with the three upper rope ends believability of that count that makes the Professor’s Nightmare that are already in your left hand (Photo 6). Your hands are such a strong effect. very close together at this point and your hands are pointing The cutting of the frays and the nal cut are all ideas that towards the spectator. Have the spectator snip off some of the I recently added to this routine. In the 1970s, at a bar during frayed ends before you stretch the ropes to equal lengt h. break time at a magic convention, Jose De La Torre, Doug From here do the standard Professor’s Nightmare count Keller, and I were discussing some improvements to the Proand keep up the ruse by trimming the ends again. This time, fessor’s Nightmare routine. From this discussion, the idea of because you have the standard loop of short rope holding a long doing the Professor’s Nightmare routine in reverse was created. rope, you must cut that loop (Photo 7) while trimming the ends. This effect is in reverse, because this routine starts with ropes It is very easy to do and a standard move that is often used in of the same length (and least from the spectator view), not from cut and restored rope effects. When the loops are cut (and there the typical different three lengths that magicians usually start are actually two loops to cut through) and the short pieces are from. Jose described some of his ideas in his book, Magic of trimmed away and discarded, the spectator can be left with Havana.  July 2014 - M-U-M Magazine 27

Stage 101 Practicum By Levent pencils had two needle points instead of one, which made the attachment to the hand more stable and secure. Sadly, the one that I have in my collection has only Take for example the late, great Charlie one needle point, but overall the construcMiller, who used to do a delightful routine tion quality is rst class. For the record, on stage with a prop called the Royal the magician who invented the removable Rising Pencil. Manufactured by the long cap gimmick for the pencil trick was the defunct Petrie Lewis magic company, the vaudeville magician Nate Leipzig. He had rising pencil prop consisted of two parts: shown it to the New England magic dealer a wooden pencil with a small brass cap Henry Hardin, who subsequently put it on permanently attached to one end and a the market without Leipzig’s consent. gimmick consisting of a duplicate brass Getting back to Charlie Miller and the cap. This cap gimmick could be secretly Rising Pencil, the basic effect is that he placed over the cap that is on the end of placed a pencil on the palm of his hand and the pencil. Soldered on the top of the made one end of it rise upward. That degimmicked cap was a pair of very short scription alone makes it hard to believe needle points that ran parallel to the top of that this could be an appropriate trick for the pencil. the stage, let alone something that is enterIn performance, the magician secretly taining. But as the saying goes “the play’s palmed the gimm ick and passed out the the thing.” In the hands of a master like pencil for examination. The conjurer then Charlie Miller, the Royal Rising Pencil retrieved the pencil and secretly added the was quite a delightful routine. gimmicked cap onto the end of the pencil. The right hand was held palm upward in a cupped position. The left hand placed the cap side of the pencil against the eshy area of the palm, near the base of the thumb. The needle points were then slightly embedded into that eshy area. The pencil was then laid down against the attened palm, while the needles were oriented with the points up towards the sky and hooked into the loose skin. Then, as Close-up of Rising Pencil gimmick the pencil rested at against the upturned palm, the right thumb moved outward and At the beginning of the trick, Miller downward, which caused the skin on the invited two ladies onto the stage, with one palm to become taut, which in tur n made standing on either side of him. He then let the end of the pencil (opposite the cap) rise them examine the pencil while he secretly upward. palmed the cap gimmick. He retrieved the I don’t know the exact origin of the pencil, secretly attached the gimmick to rising pencil trick, which was called The it, and placed the pencil above his ear, so Obedient Pencil in the nineteenth century. that it remained in view while keeping his But when I was a kid I used to see a cheap hands unencumbered. Miller reached into version of it in magic shops; it was made his coat and retrieved an imaginary spool by sticking a bent pin into a pencil eraser of invisible thread. Using pantomime, and gluing it into place. I don’t see them he pretended to unroll a lengthy piece in magic shops anymore, but today they of thread and gave each woman an end sell a version of it with a voodoo doll to hold. While getting the volunteers to that is based on a trick called the Hindu hold the ends of the imaginary thread, he Talisman, which is from the 1921 book would give them comic directions such as, Quality Magic by Okito. You occasionally “Please stand with your feet together, back see other tricks that utilize the pin-on-the- leg straight, front knee slightly bent.” Ulti palm principle. As far as I can tell, the P&L mately, Miller directed the two spectators Royal Rising Pencil was the best one ever to hold the taut “invisible thread” in front made for two reasons. First, the removable of him, parallel to the oor. The pencil was cap gimmick allowed for the examination removed from behind his ear and the need le of the pencil. Second, most of the P&L points were secretly engaged into the pal m

CHARLIE MILLER AND THE PENCIL

LEVENT’S MAGIC WALLET TRICK This month I will explain a routine that has been in my working stage magic repertoire for long time. It was previously explained a few years ago in the German language periodical Magische Welt . The text below has been greatly revised, expanded, and is in English. Before I go into the trick, I would rst like to offer a few thoughts.

THE PLAY’S THE THING In Shakespeare’s Hamlet , a ghost visits Prince Hamlet and tells him that his uncle, King Claudius, in order to ascend to the Danish throne, has secretly killed his father (the former King) by pouring poison in his ear. Hamlet then conceives of a clever scheme to conrm if this act of regicide is true. His plan is to present a theatrical play with his uncle in attendance. In the play, the character of a king will be killed by having poison poured into his ear. By observing his uncle’s reaction to that scene, Hamlet hopes to determine if his father was indeed murdered by his uncle. Thus in Act 2, Scene 2 of Hamlet , the young prince utters: “the play’s the thing/Wherein I’ll catch the conscience of the King.” I bring this up, because the “the play’s the thing” is something that often comes to my mind as I work on new magic routines. However it would more appropriately be phrased as follows: the play’s the thing/Wherein I’ll hold the attention of the crowd.” Please note that when I use the above word “play,” I am really talking about the “plot” of a trick, or what is typically referred to as the “routine.” To me, the routine describes what happens in terms of drama, comedy, and the things that directly connect with the audience. The “effect” of a trick describes what transpires in a magical sense. So in my personal nomenclature, the effect is what mysties and the routine is what entertains.


of his left hand. Miller then pretended to disappear. After a bit of byplay, the object hook the invisible thread under the end of reappears and is returned to the spectator. the pencil and by making the pencil rise as I think that one of the appeals of such a he lowered his hand, he created the illusion routine comes from a form of schadenthat a thread was making the pencil stand freude in which the audience enjoys the erect. There are more clever touches to this volunteer’s (temporary) misfortune. I say four-minute-long routine; if you are inter- this because even today my eighty-sevenested in learning about it, you can see it on year-old mother still laughingly recalls The Greater Magic Video Library Volume the distress of a volunteer during a magic show she saw as a young girl in Crimea 18 DVD. The point in mentioning Charlie Miller during the Soviet era. As she recalled, and the P&L Royal Rising Pencil is that the magician borrowed a watch from a the engine that makes a trick entertain- spectator and the audience roared with ing is the routine, provided, of course, laughter when the magician destroyed the that the performer has the talent to deliver man’s watch with a ham mer. The volunteer the goods. In the case of this trick, the was extremely upset until the fully restored entertainment is derived from Charlie watch reappeared in a loaf of bread. Incimaking two spectators go through all dentally the watch to loaf of bread trick sorts of obviously silly procedures with an appears in the 1876 book Modern Magic by imaginary thread. A nd the mystery comes Professor Hoffmann. Among comedians, from the fact that a pencil is reacting to a there is a saying that “comedy is tragedy nonexistent thread, thus defying gravity. plus time.” In terms of comedy magic, I Take, for instance, the routine known would posit that “tragedy is comedy, when as Slydini’s Flight of the Paper Balls. The the tragedy is not happening to you.” This basic trick is that a magician repeatedly type of routine is a good example of this. makes paper balls disappear by secretly In the middle of the 1980s I began to throwing them over a spectator’s head. At perform at comedy clubs and wanted to its core, it is a small close-up trick, int ended do a routine in which I borrowed money to fool one person. But when Slydini did it and made it disappear and reappear. At by seating a lone spectator on a stage and that time many professional magicians having the rest of the audience see the ball were performing the Burnt Bill into Wallet y over the befuddled volunteer, it became routine that was made famous by the enormously entertaining and easily visible British magician Terry Seabrooke (1932to a large audience. In a subtle way, 2011); I did not want to do the same routine the mystery comes from the audience’s as others. Also in 1987, I saw the David amazement that the volunteer is actually Mamet lm House of Games in which fooled by such a seemingly simple trick. they had an unusual denition of a “con I have witnessed many such examples man.” In that lm a “con” or “condence of magicians taking simple tricks and man” was called that because he rst gave magnifying their entertainment value by his condence to the victim, before he the application of a clever routine. Sadly, gained her condence and cheated her. In I have also seen the opposite, whereby other words, the con man gives his trust, a great trick is subsumed and weighed or gives something of value to the victim down by an ill-considered routine that was as a ruse to show that he is trustworthy. devoid of entertainment. Then the victim trusts the con man, who later swindles her. I don’t know if this is how it works in the real world, but I was STUDYING PLOTS fascinated by the psychology of this ruse Being a professional magician, I nd from the Mamet lm; it was the main inthat I am constantly on the lookout for spiration for the following routine. new routines to develop and include in my Unlike the other classic money routines, show. For me, the best source for research this is not a transposition effect. Instead is old magic books. The best tip that I can it is a routine that makes the audience offer when reading the old books is that think that I am a fast-talking con man sometimes the method of the trick is not who is trying to swindle a spectator out as important as the plot. So I often search of his money. In the past ten years I often for a new kind of plot that I don’t currently followed my Magic Wallet Trick with the have in my working repertoire. Miser’s Dream routine, which had some One classic magic plot that appears pickpocketing in it. in the literature is a routine in which a This routine is easy to do; it requires magician borrows a valuable object from a specially modied Himber wallet, which a spectator (such as a nger ring, a pocket I will explain in due course. You need to watch, or money) and makes the item force a card and you must also know how

to perform Mike Kozlowski’s 100 Dollar Bill Switch, a standard move that allows you to switch one folded-up bank note for another with a thumb tip. Finally, in my lectures I often tell magicians that “laughter is the best misdirection.” This means that when you have to do a secret move, you can often cover the move by telling a joke, because the spectators are distracted while they are laughing. As you will see, I use this laughter misdirection technique twice in t his routine. Effect : The magician holds a pack of cards; he approaches a female spectator in the front row and asks her to select a card. He tells her to hold the card for a few minutes and says that he will return t o her later to nish the magic trick. The magician discards the rest of the deck and picks up a leather wallet, showing it to be empty. He nds a man in the audience and asks to borrow a onedollar bill. The magician places the dollar bill into the wallet and closes it. He asks the woman who is holding the chosen card to breathe on the wallet. The wallet is opened and the dollar bill has magically doubled into two dollar bills. The magician goes to the man in the audience and gives him both dollar bills, telling him to keep the money. The magician then says that he would like to repeat the trick, but with a bill of a higher denomination. The magician borrows a twenty-dollar bill from the same man who had originally lent the dollar bill and places the twenty-dollar bill into the wallet. The magician then goes to the woman (who is still holding the previously selected card) and asks her to again breathe on t he wallet. W hen the magician opens the wallet, it is seen that the twentydollar bill has changed into a playing card. The card is removed from the wallet and shown to match the card the woman had been holding. The magician takes a bow and acts as if the trick is over. He humorously ignores the man in the audience who has now lost his twenty-dollar bill. Finally, the magician takes back one of the dollar bills that the man in the audience had received earlier in the routine. The magician magically transforms the dollar bill into a t wenty-dollar bill and ret urns it to the man, thus completing the trick. Preparation : You need several thumb tips, several bills of various denominations, a Himber wallet, a deck of cards, and one duplicate card that matches the card that will be forced. A Himber wallet is a wallet that has two compartments, allowing you to switch one item for another. In my routine, I need to make the wallet change one item


Stage �� Practicum Routine: Pick up a deck of cards, approach a woman in the audience, and say, “Madam I would like you to select a card.” Using any method you choose, force the card that matches the one that you loaded into your Himber wallet. Let us say that you have forced the Four of Clubs. After she selects the force card, say, “Please look at your card and memorize it. Don’t show Levent wallet modiication your card to anyone else; just hold the card until I return to you, three hours to another, twice. To make a two-way from now.” wallet into a three-way wallet, you need to Discard the pack of cards, pick up the modify that wallet by cutting away some Himber wallet, and address the audience of the leather so that the leather ap is only saying, “Ladies and gentlemen, I would big enough to cover a single playing card. like to present to you my favorite magic Before the show you put a duplicate of the trick in the whole world – the Magic Wallet force card under the ap and push it down Trick.” Open the wallet so the audience so that the card is completely hidden by sees the empty compartment. (Note: The the leather ap. Two one-dollar bills are other compartment secretly holds the placed on top of the card. playing card and t wo bank notes.) In your prop case, out of view from the Find a man in the audience who is at audience, is a series of thumb tips. The least fteen feet away from the woman thumb tips are held against the wall of the with the card and say to him, “You sir, case with thick elastic. Folded up in each please lend me a one-dollar bill for a thumb tip is a bank note of a different de- moment. Don’t worry about a thing; I nomination, such as a ve-, ten-, twenty-, guarantee that you might get your money fty-, and one-hundred-dollar bill. I also back.” suggest that you have an empty thumb tip Take his dollar bill, walk away from attached to the case as well. Written inside him, and move near the woman holding the oor of the prop case are the numbers the card. When you are a little distance 5, 10, 20, etc. so that you can instantly from him, talk to the man who lent you the know which bank note is in each tip. Also money and say, “Sir, it is very important to keep a toy cap gun inside your case. notice that at no point during this trick do I switch your dollar bill for a different bill. So please take the time now to memorize the serial number of the bill.” (Of course, from fteen feet away, he will nd it im possible to see the numbers on the bill.) Visibly place his dollar bill part of the way under the leather ap of the wallet, so that exactly half of his bill is hidden under the ap. Show the audience that his dollar bill is still inside the wallet. Close the wallet and go to the woman who is still holding the force card and say, “Madam, please breathe on the magic wallet.” After she breathes on the wallet, open it up so Thumbtip arrangement inside case


that the other compartment is revealed, saying, “Because of this lady’s magic breath, this man’s dollar bill has doubled to two one-dollar bills!” In full view of the audience, slip out the two one-dollar bills from the wallet, making sure that you do not disturb the playing card hidden under t he ap. As the audience applauds because of the transformation, walk over to the man who lent you the money and say, “Here sir, this money is for you; please keep it.” Hand him the two bills with your right hand while your left hand holds the open Himber wallet close to your chest. The wallet should be sideways, with the open side of the wallet facing your body and the leather aps uppermost. Now comes an import ant part of the trick; you must adjust the card and note in the wallet without the audience being aware. This requires misdirection that is created by laughter. Right after you gave the man the two one-dollar bills, bring your right hand up to the wallet. Using the right thumb, secretly slip out the card hidden under the leather ap by about one and a half inches, so that the card is sticking out a bit, but still held in place by the leather ap. (This sequence is shown in the photos below.) Say to the man, “Let’s do this trick again, but this time, lend me a hundreddollar bill.” This line always gets a big laugh. At the moment the audience laughs at the fact that you are asking for a great amount of money, close the Himber wallet and reopen it against your chest so that the other compartment is now open and facing you. This is the compartment with the man’s original dollar bill sticking out from under the leather ap. Use your right thumb to push the note completely under the leather ap so that it is hidden, after which you can turn the wallet around and handle it freely so that the audience thinks the wallet is empty. The key is that the big move happens when the people laugh; you should never look at your hands or the wallet when the move is executed.

Now you must get the higher denomination bill from the man. Say, “Sir, it doesn’t have to be a hundred-dollar bill; as long as it is bigger than a dollar bill, it will be perfect.” Get the money from the man. Let’s assume that the man gives you a twenty-dollar bill, say, “Thank you, sir. Watch as I place your twenty-dollar bill inside the magic wallet.” Quickly fold the man’s twenty-dollar bill into quarters and place it under the leather ap, making sure not to expose the crumpled one-dollar bill hidden under the ap. Display the twenty-dollar bill in the wallet to the entire audience and walk over to the woman who has been holding the force card this entire time. Show her the twenty-dollar bill in the wallet and close the wallet, saying to her, “Madam, please breathe on the wallet.” After she does so, open the wallet so the other compartment that contains the card is exposed and say to the entire audience, “Ladies and gentleman, this a miracle; that man’s twenty-dollar bill has magically transformed into the Four of Clubs.” Visibly remove the Four of Clubs and say to the woman, “Madam what card did you select?” She says, “The Four of Clubs!” Take her card and show the audience that both cards are the same, saying, “Ladies and gentleman, the cards match!” Take a deep bow as if the entire trick has been completed and have a happy smile on your face, knowing that you have swindled the man in the audience out of his twentydollar bill! Of course, since you previously doubled his one-dollar bill, your actual prot here is really nineteen dollars. But make no mention of this, because it is not important to the audience; they just know that the poor victim’s twenty-dollar bill has changed to the chosen card. Calmly walk over to your prop case, saying, “Okay ladies and gentlemen, it is time to move on to a different magic trick.” This will get a big laugh because the full audience will believe the man will never get his money back. As the audience

laughs, drop the cards and wallet into your prop case and attach the thumb tip containing the folded-up twenty-dollar bill onto your right thumb. (Obviously, if you had borrowed a fty-dollar bill, you would have put the thumb tip containing the ftydollar bill on your thumb.) Once the thumb tip is securely on the right thumb, pick up the toy gun in the left hand, but don’t let the audience see that you have a gun. Say, “There is only one problem with this trick.” Quickly aim the gun at the man who lent you the money and shoot at him once as you say, “Now the problem is solved.” Drop the toy gun into your case, walk close to the man, and say, “Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to present to you my favorite magic trick in the whole world, the Déjà Vu Mystery. For the Déjà Vu Mystery, I would like to borrow a twentydollar bill.” Stand next to the man, look at his face, and say, “You sir, please lend me a twenty-dollar bill!” This line will get a certain laugh because the rest of the audience knows that the poor man will get swindled again. Say to the man, “All I really need is one of the dollar bills that I doubled earlier tonight.” Take from him one of the dollar bills that you gave him a few minutes ago. At this point you have two ways to end the routine. If you are doing this trick before a small audience, do the following: Take the one-dollar bill and say, “Don’t worry sir, all your problems will be solved by magic,” as you fold up the one-dollar bill and switch it for the t wenty-dollar bill that is in your thumb tip. Once the audience realizes that the dollar bill has transformed into a twenty, they will begin to applaud, at which time you turn to the woman and say, “Madam, I would like to return to you , the twenty-dollar bill that you had lent me.” Once the audience laughs, give the man back his twenty-dollar bill and say, “Ladies and Gentlemen could we please have some applause for our volunteers.” Take a bow.

STAGE LOGIC When I do shows in a large theater, I end the routine a bit differently, the reason being that a dollar bill is similar in appearance to the other US denominations. The transformation of the bill cannot be seen unless I do the trick close up or for video cameras and projectors, and I don’t like to use video screens. The theaters that I work usually hold between 1,000 and 1,300 seats, so I found a way to do the trick that will seem very strange, but I swear it absolutely works. I take the money from the man and I tear the bill in half. As I do so I say, “Sir, don’t worry. I did not tear your money in half; this is only an optical illusion caused by psychotropic drugs. This illusion is caused by the fact that I make the tearing sound with my mouth.” I bring the money near the microphone and tear it again while moving my mouth as if I am making a sound effect. As the audience laughs at the ridiculousness of my lame attempt at making them believe that the tearing is an illusion, I quickly fold up the pieces and switch the dollar bill for the twenty-dollar bill. While I unfold the twenty, I say, “This man’s torn one-dollar bill has restored into a twenty-dollar bill.” The audience applauds the restoration of the bill while I return it to the spectator. As a think ing magician, I know that it is illogical for a torn one-dollar bill to restore into a twenty-dollar bill. But for the people in the large theater, the visual image of four pieces of a one-dollar bill transforming into a solid twenty-dollar bill is strong enough to overcome the fact that it makes no sense. In my many years of performing, I have learned that in the theater the artist creates the situation to such a great extent that the audience is happy to relinquish all control of reality or logic to the performer. In fact, this is the real reason why people believe in the ghost in Hamlet , and it is the real reason why people love to attend the theater.  © 2014 Levent Cimkentl i


Paranormal happenings By Charles Siebert, MD

ANIMAL PSYCHICS We are going to go a little off topic this month and discuss the realm of animal psychics. No I am not talking about the kind who claims to be able to communicate with your long lost pet, or connect with an animal’s soul through reiki or therapeutic touch. This month we are going to talk about the animals themselves who have the psychic abilities. Right now (or maybe it is over, depending on when you are reading this) is the sporting event that people all over the world go crazy for – the World Cup. For those mostly Americans who don’t know what I am talking about, the World Cup is a month long soccer tournament held every four years to determine which country has the best team in a thirt y-two-team eld whittled down over the previous four years from 204 teams; over seven hundred million people worldwide watch the nal game. Now back to the crazy part. Worldwide, animals are being used to predict the winner of sporting events and even the weather on Groundhog Day. The most famous of these psychic predictors has to be Paul the Octopus, who predicted Germany’s seven out of eight wins as well as Spain’s win in the nal game of the 2010 World Cup. Paul was a common octopus hatched in 2008 at the Sea Life Centre in Weymouth, England; he was moved shortly thereafter to a tank at the Sea Life Centre in Oberhausen, Germany. He quickly became a visitor favorite with his “inquisitiveness” with the patrons. His method of divination was a two-box method; both boxes contained a mussel or an oyster, a favorite food. Each box was decorated, either with the ag of Germany or whatever country they were playing against in the match to be predicted. Whichever box Paul opened was his prediction. While it is certainly possible that it was just luck that he picked Germany most of the time, there are other more plausible theories. Other experts propose that chance alone is not the only possible explanation for Paul’s choices. He could


be choosing boxes syst ematically – if not Poland is not as strong a soccer team as on the basis of football expertise, perhaps Germany, and they ended the tournament on his evaluation of the countries’ ags. in the bottom of their group without a win. Paul’s species (Octopus vulgaris) is almost Not to be outdone, China has declared their certainly color blind, but they can distin- heir to the psychic crown, a panda cub from guish brightness, size, shape, and orienta- the Chengdu Research Center. According tion. They are drawn to horizontal shapes, to the Wall Street Journal , “Chinese state and indeed, there are horizontal stripes on media reported that the giant panda conthe ags he has chosen. The German ag servation center in the south western consists of three equal horizontal bands province of Sichuan has ‘invited’ a panda of black, red, and gold; it was Paul’s usual cub to predict the results of matches in the favorite. Octopi have very good memories; 2014 tournament. It is unclear if the panda it is quite possible that guessing right the has responded to the invitation, but reports rst time got Paul his food, so the next suggest the cub will predict the outcome time he saw the pattern of Germany’s ag, of matches either by picking food marked he picked it again, knowi ng he got food the with a certain national ag or by climbing rst time. But the ag of Spain, with its a tree ying a ag.” broad yellow stripe, and the ag of Serbia, Lest you think that it is only nonwith its contrast of blue and white, are Americans who would be involved in more vivid still, possibly explaining why such craziness, here is a headline from Paul picked those countries over Germany. this year’s football Super Bowl: “Top Two Psychic Animals Disagree on Super Bowl Winner. Ape vs. Manatee! To The Death!” Eli the Ape lives at the Hogle Zoo in Salt Lake City, Utah, and makes his predictions by running into a papier-mâché helmet decorated with the insignia of one of the two teams. It’s not clear how Eli’s powers as a sports oracle were rst brought to the attention of the zoo, but the primate has been maki ng the right calls since 2007. It should be noted that after making his prediction, Eli and family smashed and ate both helmets. Buffett the Manatee Paul the octopus has predicted the correct Super Bowl Unfortunately, Paul the Octopus’s reign winner six years in a row. A resident of as king of the animal predictors was short the Mote Marine Laboratory in Sarasota, lived, since the life span of octopi are short, Florida, who has never been in the wild, only about two years. Paul died in October Buffett made his pick by swimming to one 2010 of natural causes at t he age of two and of two cards placed in his tank. a half, when all three of his hearts stopped While these incidences of “psychic beating. But he would not be forgotten. animal powers” are (I hope) not taken too Paul was cremated; his ashes were placed seriously by most people, there have been in a gold urn inside of the statue seen in cases involving animals and the parathe photo. Paul the Octopus’s nal record normal that took on more serious notes. of twelve out of fourteen matches will be a These include the famous Gef the talking hard act to follow. mongoose from Britain’s Isle of Man in Paul the Octopus’s success has spawned the 1930s, to Jaytee, a terrier mixed breed many imitators. There was Citta, the Indian dog that could psychically tell when her elephant from the Krakow zoo in Poland owners were coming home during the who became the oracle for the European 1990s. Jaytee was also from Britain. CoCup Championships in 2012, beating out incidence? We will delve deeper into these a donkey named Mary. Citta’s method of in upcoming articles. Till then, stay well choice was picking melons placed above a and stay skeptical. (But you don’t have to nation’s ag, and she backed her country be cynical!)  of Poland in most of her picks. However,

The Nielsen Gallery Vonetta - Portrait

Dimensions: 3-Sheet 39.5" x 87.5" • Lithographer: Allen and Sons, Belfast Date: Circa 1910 • Nielsen Rating: Rare This month’s poster features “The Incomparable Vonetta,” the world’s only lady illusionist, whose billing modestly declared her act as, “…all that brains, beauty, talent, and lavish expenditure of capital can accomplish!” While her star blazed brightly on the British music hall stage for only eight years, during that time she was wildly popular with a unique act of lightning quick changes, dancing, and illusions. She began life as Etty Thompson, the youngest of six children – three boys and three girls – of Elizabeth and George Ion Thompson. She was born in North Yorkshire, England, on August 14, 1878. As a young girl she showed a talent and love of interpretive dance. In 1904 she married a theatrical impresario named Thomas Monaghan. Etta started in show business as a member of a pantomime company as a vocalist and specialty dancer during 1904-05. In 1906, she made her appearance as Vonetta, “Quick Change Artiste and Illusionist,” with the Moss Empires with a starting salary of at £18 per week. She made such an impression with her act that by 1907 she was appearing at London’s Hippodrome Theater pulling down £60 a week. The act was designed to occupy a half hour and eventually featured twenty-four quick costume changes, a series of poses representing classical studies such as “The Birth of Venus,” “Cleopatra,” and “The Bath of Psyche,” and Etta’s own creation, “The Passion Dance.” Several illusions were also included; the entire troupe was composed of ten people. It was also at the London Hippodrome back in 1907 that she introduced a new oating box illusion in which she was locked in the box that began to oat and jump about in mid-air. Shortly afterward, Vonetta entered either from the wings or the auditorium, the box oated down and upon being opened, disclosed a young girl dressed as a buttery. It utilized the black art principle. An account of her act was provided by the late Will Dale of Glasgow, Scotland, who recorded it for posterity in 1914. Magic historian Eddie Dawes, who has researched Vonetta’s career extensively, drew from Dale’s account in an early research monograph published in 1982. Dawes wrote: “She came on in male evening dress, smoking a cigarette, and performed the Smoke Vase. Then retiring behind a screen for a second, she reappeared as a Spanish dancing girl and went into her quick change act of twenty-four costume changes. Her next item was the Twentieth Century Silks spiced with comedy from one of her assistants. She then did the Rice Bowls; after producing the water, she poured it into 34 M-U-M Magazine - July 2014

a shown empty jar from which she then produced a large display of silks. The Mutilated Parasol came next and then the Rice Bowls were lled with sand from which she worked the Kellar Growth of Flowers, producing real owers that were distributed to the audience. “Vonetta now introduced her famous Casket and Locked Golden Trunk illusion. At the side of the stage, reposing on a stand, and in full view of the audience from the rise of the curtain, was a large golden trunk. A lady assistant went down into the stalls and a gentleman was requested to tie his handkerchief around the girl’s wrist for identication purposes. The girl entered an oblong casket; after shutting the door three swords were thrust through the top. They were withdrawn, the door opened, and the girl seen to be unharmed. The door was closed and immediately reopened to reveal the casket empty. A rope was lowered from the ies and the gold trunk lifted across. Within was a second trunk containing yet a smaller trunk from which, before the trunk had touched the stage, an arm bearing a handkerchief was pushed through the lid, which when opened, disgorged the girl. Vonetta concluded with Flags of All Nations that ended with the production of two enormous sprays of ags from which she produced three girls. The act ran thirty-ve minutes.” In 1910, she also began appearing under a different name, Countess de Russe, with a troupe of ten people. It is not known whether this was her Vonetta act under another name or an entirely different act, because no record of effects exists. She was still performing under this name in January 1914. The outbreak of World War I in 1914 ended her career as an illusionist. While her husband continued in theatrical management, her son Alfred and brother George enlisted and other troupe members went off to war. In the 1920s and ‘30s she dabbled in other careers, including lm, singing, dancing, and selling furs and costumes. In 1922 she resurfaced as Countess Wilet with a Revue of Art and Magic featuring her trademark costume changes playing theaters in Scotland. She settled in Glasgow and over the years made occasional appearances at magic events hosted by the Scottish Conjurers’ Association which, in 1924, made her an Honorary Member. Vonetta, “Scotland’s Only Lady Magician,” friend of Houdini, Lafayette, and Chung Ling Soo, died on June 30, 1964, at the age of eightyve.  —Tom Ewing

KENRICK 'ICE' MCDONALD Imagination - Compassion - Excellence

By R.D. Michaels So you think you know ICE McDonald? Think again. Yes, he has been featured on a half-dozen covers and in dozens of articles in magic magazines, and has also starred on national and world television. ICE has received numerous awards and has performed in nearly a dozen countries. But there is much more to the man than his accomplishments in the eld of magic. ICE made his magical appearance on Wednesday morning July 6, 1960, at 1:46 a.m. His father was a Baptist preacher, and the family business was preaching and ministering. At the age of ten, ICE received his rst magic kit from a second-hand store; it was missing several pieces. Young Kenrick had to use his creative skil l to gure out the missing parts of the kit. We know ICE’s imagination was so wild that many times his parents found him on top of a thirty-foot tree in his backyard performing to an imaginary audience. ICE was reared in a strict Christian home, so activities such as singing, dancing, and other entertainment outside of church activities were not tolerated. ICE speaks of a time when his mother heard strange noises coming from his room. When she opened his bedroom door, she saw her youngest child performing for an imaginary audience, and then becoming the audience applauding for the performer! She would often just shake her head and continue with her housework. It would seem that ICE had a good idea of what he wanted to be and where he wanted to go, but that would be an illusion. As ICE recalls, “I would love for people to think I had a rm direction during my younger days, but I must be truthf ul. Prior to the tenth grade, I was the class nerd – a glasses-wearing, several-steps-behind-everybody-else nerd. Don’t get me wrong. I was talented, but ognized by my spiritual family. But, under this appearance of the coolness didn’t come until my sophomore year of high school. coolness, I am still the biggest nerd.” How ironic that my stage name is ICE – the embodiment of cool. Due to the watchfulness of my parents, it took a long time for me Here is a letter to ICE from Josephine Rufn (a friend of to shake the nerd-iness. I couldn’t watch ‘worldly’ television pro- twenty-six years): gramming. Even with the magic, in spite of the fact that my father Hi Kenrick: I can’t believe it’s been over twenty-six bought my rst magic kit, I had to be discreet when performi ng years since we rst met. I remember that rst meeting magic. There was a time when the church frowned on the practice one evening after choir rehearsal when you approached of magic, and this is still the me to introduce yourself. I was a new member of the case in some churches today. choir and was happy to have such a pleasant welcome. “Being a born-again At that time you told me about your interest in “magic” Christian, I face this issue and talked about some projects you were pursuing. At even today. Before I became rst I thought this was just your hobby. Little did I know somewhat famous, I felt that years later you would become known worldwide for like the church’s unwanted your skills in the magic world. stepchild. The church As our friendship gre w, you began to tell me more leaders wouldn’t allow me to perform when guests about yourself. Remember one day when you asked were present, but brought me to be in your magic show? I thought, “I’ve never me in to entertain children considered doing anything like this before. Most of all, during some family events. can I do this?” Well, you had con dence in me; through The bishop at my current your thorough teaching and patience, I did do it. In fact, I think I did a pretty good job! From that rst experi church made that a dim ence of working with you professionally, you have added memory when he invited me so much to your resume: magician, writer, producer, to entertain 15,000 church editor, and more. members. My God-given Early high school photo Kenrick, as a friend , you have always treated people talent had been fully rec-


with respect; your word is truly your bond. You have been such a motivating, supportive, and caring friend through the years, and I want you to know how much I appreciate it. I just wanted you to know how much your friendship means to me, how proud I am of your accomplishments, and how blessed I am that you are in my life. Love, your "sis," Josie

Hank Moorehouse was the rst to invite ICE to perform at a convention, an opportunity ICE will never forget. He has presented countless performances and lectures for magicians around the world. A recent memorable appearance was in Travamdrum, India, at the Global Festival of Magic. He and a thousand other magicians released a thousand doves to mark an event called Magic for Peace. ICE has received many awards and accolades, including citations for his performances for various organizations throughout the world. His national television credits include the closing spot on an episode of Masters of Illusion. He is included in Magic Heroes: The Lives and Legends of Great African-American Magicians and he has produced a t ruly important historical work: The African-American Masters of Magic . ICE has been married for over twenty years to Paris Renea McDonald; they have three daughters who, although not taking up magic, have done (and will do) some remarkable things. “It’s lonely at the top” is a cliché heard when one is exing his or her “success” muscles. He or she is “numero uno,” but that achievement has come with a price. As the band Three Dog Night tells us: “One is the Loneliest Number.” Different context – nice musical interlude! When an artist reaches a certain level of success, do relationships with friends and family suffer? ICE replied, “When striving for success a person can lose the special connections with those close to you. Sometimes it does get lonely, but my connections with my closest friends have not suffered.”

Although I knew that you dabbled in magic during your youth, I was proud to witness the “rebirth” (i.e. the second coming) of your magical career – as a suave, dapper, young gentlemen with sleight-of-hand skills that wooed the crowds (a cool G’ if I ever saw one). The interesting part was that the “rebirth” wasn’t a fad or a phase for you. You became drawn to it, captivated by it, and before long, I recall you starting Reggie Smallwood to design and build your own illusions, leaving the local magic store tricks for your peers to purchase and perfor m. At such time I thought to myself, “This just might be what you were born to do – what God had so generously blessed and gifted you to do.” Over the next few decades, your creativity and mastery would continue to rise and evolve, taking you places you never imagined. Thro ugh all the sold-out performance s, standing ovations, awards, and accolades, what I appreciate most is that you stayed grounded and alway s kept it real. To your adoring fans, you were “ICE.” However, among your family and friends, you’re still the same frien d, son, brother, husband, and father we’ve always known you to be. For me Kenrick, I couldn’t have found a better best friend. Flashing forward to the present, it will be an exciting moment to witness your being sworn in and presented among your peers and colleagues, who selected you as the best person for the job. I feel honored to have been witness to (and to have personally experienced) your journey up to this point. I mean “to this point” because I know you’re not through “doin’ your thang” by a long shot. You’re more engaged in your journey and aspirations today than I’ve ever seen, and the sky’s the limit.

Here is a letter to ICE from Reginald Smallwood (a friend of forty years): Dear Kenrick: I thought I might drop you a few lines to express my thoughts in regards to your forthcoming appointment to lead one of the most prestigious and respected societies in the world of magic arts, The Society of American Magicians. It blows my mind that it’s already been some forty-one years since we rst met up that fateful afternoon on the outdoor basketball courts at the Golden Hills recreation center in San Diego. With you as a sharp shooter and me as a scrappy defender, we engaged in some pretty erce battles at the tender age of thirteen. It’s funny how such rivalry, at that time, transcended into such friendship and brotherhood throughout the years. During our high school years, I really grew to ap preciate your sense of showmanship and air for enter taining. Whether it was in the band room, in the school’s foyer plaza, or performing on the fty yard line during a halftime show, I could always count on the fact that you would bring it every time, and leave everything on the eld. You were a great soldier to march into battle with back then, and that still holds true even today. Those good ol’ days made for some of the most memorable times of my life.


Hence, as “my brother from another mother,” I con gratulate you in being elected to this most honorable position. I know you’ll treat this ofce with the utmost respect, and humbly serve all S.A.M. members with integrity, truth, and character, and always with their best interests in mind. Thus I say to your peers, you elected the right man for the po st. You’ve always been a r m believer in teamwork, and I hope the ne members of the S.A.M. will embrace this paradigm in 2014-2015. I’m condent you’ll collectively accomplish great things, taking the S.A.M. to new heights never before thought possible. In closing, I can only imagine the responsibilities and demands your newly appointed position will impose upon you. Nonetheless, I look forward to celebrating by way of our long-time tradition: a bucket of Buffalo wings, a stack of celery and carrots drenched in ranch dressing, and some ice-cold strawberry soda. Ah – a feast t for two brothers (from other mothers). Peace, Love, & Congrats 2 U Bro’ Reggie Smallwood

ICE’s reaction is interesting when it comes to the race issue. Because he is “high prole,” he seems to have kept his thoughts on race to himself, sharing them with a few others, but privately. “I am very observant. I hear and see a lot, but I just don’t comment much when it comes to racial issues – at least not publicly.” He has often been asked about race and the struggles of being an African-American magician. He is often the sounding board for other African-American performers, not just magicians, who have faced or who are experiencing racial tensions in the entertainment business. How does a talented performer deal with these problems? ICE’s pragmatism screams softly: “Keep performing and with excellence.” His rationale is rooted in reality. “You can’t control what people think or feel about you. You can only control what they see when you perform. If that’s the only control you have, then it’s your job – no, duty – to be the best ‘you’ possible. “For the record: I believe jokes that are racist are neither funny nor tolerable. The racial issues people face daily are not going away. I know t hat not everyone is colorblind. I just don’t have time for those individuals. People often ask me how it feels to be a black magician. I will often smile and say that it feels the same as being a tall magician or a magician with big eyes. This is who I am; and now check out this new effect! I think the way each individual handles the situation is what makes the difference. I have tons of magician friends who are not African American. They see me, not the individual aspects of my being. I do the same. We see the souls of each other.” There is a different element to this year’s S.A.M. presidency: Kenrick “ICE” McDonald is the rst African American in the Society’s 112-year history to hold this position. ICE reects on this: “I know that this is a milestone, but my presidency will not be dened only by this. I have earned the privilege to be the S.A.M. president, not because I am African American, but because of what I, during my twenty-ve years as a member, have done to make the Society the best it could be. People can nd out what positions I held before becoming ‘The Most Illustrious’ and that is ne. What is not ne is to have members dene me only as ‘the rst African-American president.’ I want to be one of the national presidents who helps make the Societ y better ever y day.”

During the last three years, ICE has expanded his business and creative interests by start ing a lm division within his enter tainment company. He is still creating fantasy: lm fantasy. The past seven months have been busy for ICE – feature lms will do that. Written and directed by ICE, Death of an Innocent Swan is currently in the lm festival circuit. ICE had produced some short lms and some lecture DVDs, but he wanted to have a go at putting a piece of his ction on the screen. He wrote the script, cast the work, produced, and directed what was originally a twentyminute lm. ICE, as most who know him w ill attest, is an noyingly uncomfortable with anything that seems to be l imited, so he and his business partner, Bill Kress, decided to mature the lm into a full-length movie. “I was blessed that everything fell into place,” commented the usually more loquacious ICE. When pressed about his next lm projects, ICE admits that there is “a magic movie” on the list. Here is a letter from Paris McDonald to the members of the One of ICE’s goals is to correct some areas the lm industry S.A.M.: has overlooked in general. “Why is it that so many great magicians have never had their stories told?” he asked. “True, I love the Dear Members of the S.A.M.: I am writing to you to make sure that you are aware of a valuable gem in your creative side of making movies, but another main reason is that midst: Kenrick “ICE” McDonald. You know all about I want to present what drives me: magic. How that is done? Well, ICE magically, but I am writing this letter to let you works are in progress!” know about Kenrick McDonald the man, not ICE the magician. Kenrick is a man of great honor, character, and integrity. He is a devoted Christian and family man. Inside his intimidating exterior is a man who is compas sionate and who genuinely cares about others and their welfare. At the core of his being, his anchors are God, family, and magic, in that order. As a devoted Christian, Kenrick is dedicate d to pursue a moral life and responsibly embrace the demands of such a life in every aspect and in everything he does. He is very careful about how he is portrayed and will do anything to protect his reputation. He has turned down gigs and sponsorship due to the unethical behavior of the organizer or agent. He purposefully avoids dealing with people who lack ethics, integrity, or a moral compass, since he considers these t raits key to a person’s character.


Ice and his wife Paris

Kenrick poses these restriction s on himself because he is concerned not only with taking the correct moral position, but also with pursing his commitment to do what is best. Kenrick’s professional and artistic integrity to the art of magic and his personal integrity to his life as a Christian are not independent of each other. He is committed to represent both to the best of his ability. His personal relationships with his friends and colleagues are important to him. He will trust and respect others until he is given a reason not to. Even then, they are given the benet of the doubt. Kenrick has an innate desire to help others; he seems to be compelled to do it. Whether it is counseling a friend with personal problems, lling in when a babysitter falls through, or just lending an ear to help a friend work through his frustrations, he is there for those close to him. He has often lost sleep over other people’s problems. Kenrick is a man of commitment; once he commits to something, he gives it his all and has the expectation that others involved will do the same. He often nds himself overwhelmed because of his pledge to do everything possible for everything that he has committed to. As Kenrick’s wife, we are genuinely best friends. I honor him for his work ethic, both in business and in his personal life. He works diligently every day to be a good husband and father. I have seen him make many sacrices to do what is morally right rather than to simply get ahead. I am proud of the man that he is. I am proud of his talent and his determination, which led him to become the national president of The Society of American Magicians. I must thank you, the members of the S.A.M., for electing and recognizing the talent, the abilities, and the man: Kenr ick “ICE” McDonald.

ICE with Shawn and Lori Farquhar

guy. We met, and we became close friends…cousins, really. There are certain people who were just born to do magic, and there are people who struggle to nd their place in magic. ICE is of the rst type.” And ICE replies: “Please extend my deepest, heartfelt congratulations to some of my dearest friends in magic and in ‘real life,’ International Brotherhood of Magicians President Shawn Farquhar and his family. Shawn, Lori, and their daughter Hannah are close friends of mine; Shawn and I have been friends for almost two-and-a-half decades. It is something great that two long-time friends (we see each other as cousins) become national presidents of two of the greatest mag ic organizations in the world at the same time. As national presidents we will also share the covers of each organization’s magazine during the same month. This is yet another rst! Can we say ‘unity?’ Can I get an ‘amen?’” In his January 2010 M-U-M article about ICE, Paul Critelli wrote: “ICE continues t o grow. His foresight of where the art must aim permits nothing but optimism about the inclusivity for all – regardless of age and background – who would join the family of magic. His hope is to bring reality to the maxim ‘youth is our futu re.’ For Kenrick ‘ICE’ McDonald, magic – i n all its forms and expressions – is as vital as air.”

Paris McDonald

Shawn Farquhar, the 2009 FISM Grand Prize Champion and the new president of the International Brotherhood of Magicians, recalls his rst contact with his close friend, ICE. “It is easy to remember the exact day I met ICE. It was the Fourth of July in Las Vegas in 1991. We were both performing at the Rivera as Perhaps his wife Paris expresses it best: “It is not just in his part of The Society of American Magicians Contest of Magic. I blood. It is in his DNA. Helping and t eaching and magic – they remember how he stood out from the rest of the people. He had are all in his DNA.”  a conviction about what he was doing. I knew I had to meet this


LOOKING FORWARD DAVID R. G OODSELL I NTERVIEWS K ENRICK “ICE” MCDONALD

AN D

SHAWN FARQUHAR Introduction : If we were to believe in astrology, as some might, we might think that this July the stars and planets will line up just right so that two professional magicians, and good friends, can assume leadership of the world’s two largest magic organizations. ICE McDonald will assume Harry Houdini’s old job as National President of The Society of American Magicians, and his good buddy, Shawn Farquhar, will become the esteemed International President of the International Brotherhood of Magicians. Of course, it could have been the other way around, because both have belonged to both organizations for many years. We thought you might like to get to know them better. – DRG DRG: Shawn and ICE, it is quite rare that good friends, who are also top professionals in magic, share their presidential year. That’s a real bonus for you and for us. How did the two of you come to be friends? ICE: Shawn and I were competitors in the stage competition at an S.A.M. convention in 1991. He, Lori, Paris (my wife), and I met while we were waiting in a hallway together. We kept bumping into each other throughout the convention and clicked immediately. It was an instant bond, as though our spirits recognized each other as brothers. Shawn: We found that we loved the same elds of magic; but more important, we were completely comfortable sharing ideas without fear of each other. We’ve been friends ever since. DRG: Both of you are successful, not just as performers, but also as businessmen. You could have been successful in any number of other professions. Why magic? ICE: I started out as a magician, but


when I married and started a family, I felt the need for more security. I went to work as a technical illustrator/AutoCAD (computer aided drawings) engineer. I interpreted blueprints, and then drew the items using the computer. But I loved magic and would perform magic at night and on weekends whenever I could. I began making excuses at work so I could take magic gigs, and I soon was earning more with magic t han at my “profession.” I had to make a decision; I chose magic. Shawn (smiling): What ICE didn’t tell you is that he was a very successful male model. Yes, that’s right. ICE was a male model. In fact, he won awards for his strutti ng on the runway! DRG: That explains why ICE is always impeccably dressed – a regular fashion statement. I doubt if he even owns a pair of jeans! What about you, Shawn; did you try other elds? Shawn: In my case, I didn’t choose magic as a profession; magic chose me. I can’t imagine ever doing anything besides being a magician. My success is because I truly didn’t want to do anything else, and I had to nd a way to do what I love so much. Being a full-time magician in Canada is a difcult task, so I tried many small jobs in an effort to survive: pizza cook, broiler cook, bartender, electrician, construction framer, and even a stint for North West Biological and Chemical Laboratories. These were not career

choices; they simply enabled me to continue to do magic. Then, in August of 1984, on my way to work, I stopped at the bus stop and put up a little plaque I had engraved. I then went back to my house and went back to sleep. The next day I started my career as a professional magician. The small plaque read: “On August 30, 1984, Shawn Farquhar said to hell with it and never went to work again.” I was twenty-two years old and have never held a typical job since. DRG: Clearly, both of you have achieved great success in a eld where many feel the call, but few are really chosen. How did this come about? How did you learn? ICE: I loved magic as a child, which my friends thought was cool, but probably was just a phase. Most of the adults I was around were from church, and some wondered if I was playing on the dark side! I was not involved with a club and I did not have a mentor. Of course, that was unfortunate in some ways, but also good. A mentor’s guidance could have helped me avoid some difculties, but, on the other hand, I developed skills I otherwise might not have. Shawn: My beginnings were inspired by my father, who was a great amateur magician. But it wasn’t until I moved to Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, that I began to grow fast in magic. It was here that I met the members of the Victoria Magic Circle, International Brotherhood

of Magicians Ring 183, amateur and professional magicians alike who were willing to share their ideas and help to nurture young people like me. That led me to attend magic conventions and to compete in magic, which opened my eyes to other magicians, great magic, and new friends. Many of these friends, like ICE, are today’s stars of magic. DRG: Both organizations are interested in bringing young magicians into their ranks. It is not an easy task. How do we get them to see that the Internet is not the only place to learn magic? ICE: My rst afliation with a group of magicians was in San Diego. It wasn’t a Ring or an Assembly, but just a bunch of magicians that hung out. I learned a lot from my friends. Then I joined I.B.M Ring 21 in Hollywood, California, and Assembly 22, also in Hollywood. That was about twenty-ve years ago. So, while I was not mentored in my early years of magic, I came to realize the value of having someone encourage me, help me, and challenge me. That is what an Assembly and a Ring can do. I am very interested in mentoring, helping young magicians (and older ones as well) be the best they can be. That’s one thing the S.A.M. is attempting to do with The Society of Young Magicians (S.Y.M.) for youngsters, and the magic program for college students (S.A.M.C.) for those eighteen to twenty-ve years of age. As these programs ourish, more and more young magicians will become aware of them. Of course, they will still learn from the Internet. But it’s like they say: there is nothing like live entertainment – and there is nothing like live mentoring. Shawn: I certainly agree. It is true that the youth appear to be getting their informat ion from YouTube and websites. I think this is a great loss because they’re not learning things correctly. I’m not a traditionalist. I believe in change; and I believe in the digital revolution. But I think that the contact with a mentor is very important. I am proud that my local Ring has a mentoring program, and over the years I’ve mentored many ne magicians. I know that other Rings are actively involved in this sort of thing, as well. Events like the W.O.W. for the S.A.M. and the Lance Burton Youth Seminar for the I.B.M. have proven that, given the opportunity, young people will come to magic events to learn as a group. As we continue to offer them value, they

will be encouraged to return. DRG: In addition to youth programs and an emphasis on mentoring, what other goals do the two of you have for your year in ofce? ICE: Like Shawn, I believe that the digital revolution can be a good thing. It tells us that the S.A.M. and other social organizations need to change with the times. We need to develop a more active Internet presence. This is especially important to a rapidly increasing percentage of society. We need to live where they live, through interactive websites, blogs, and Twitter. It is like performi ng. You must k now your audience. You must be able to tell when an effect is no longer working for your audiences and change is needed. I also believe that we must regain personal contact with our members. We must let them know that their membership is not taken for granted and that the national ofcers care about them. This is not unrelated to the concern over the Internet. It can be a great tool in helping us regain that personal contact. And, of course, I am concerned about ethics in magic. The S.A.M. will be looking hard at the ethics standards for our society and for magic as a whole. I am just grateful that I have an op portu nity to help out. Shawn: As an international touring performer, I have the unique opportu nity to spread the inuence of the I.B.M. even further. I would love to see the I.B.M. have Rings in places like Argentina and Norway; I plan to visit other Rings that don’t get visits very often, like Malta and Holland. Rings play a very important role in the I.B.M., and the growth of these Rings is one of the paramou nt goals of my term. I think this goes along with what ICE said about letting our members know we care. I want to add more value for international members. So over the coming year I’ll be producing one-day free magic festivals around the world courtesy of the I.B.M., exclusively for I.B.M. members. These one-day festivals are called Magic JAMs: J – just, A – about, M – magic. Just About Magic will be fun-lled one-day events with lectures and shows by I.B.M. members for I.B.M. members for free. DRG: We are about out of time, my friends. But I thought we would wrap up with one last question. What was your most rewarding moment?

ICE: There were two. The rst was performi ng to a standing ovation in an arena before 15,000 people. That was breathtak ing. The second took place several years ago. I performed a charity show in a cancer ward. When I arrived, the room was lled with the sound of breathing machines and sick babies crying. When I was done, those sounds had been replaced by laughter and smiles. I can’t explain that feeling, but there is nothing like it. Shawn: Mine was also a healing moment, I think. On a cruise ship to Alaska, I went for a walk around the deck after my show and met a passenger standing by the rail. We talked about my show and the meaning behind some of the effects I presented. We talked late into the night. A year later I received a letter from him explaining that the night we talked he had planned to jump overboard. He felt his life had become unbearable, and he wanted to give up. He had seen my show, and after our talk he changed his mind and changed his life. He wrote to tell me that he had bought Royal Road to Card Magic, as I had suggested. He had learned a few card tricks and met his future bride in a coffee shop because he performed some magic to impress her. He was writing to thank me. DRG: Any  nal comments? ICE: Just a last word about my friend, Shawn. Beyond his professionalism, he is sensitive to the needs of others, almost to a fault, and completely loyal to his friends. He doesn’t use the words “can’t” or “impossible.” I am blessed to have him as a friend. Shawn: I have met only a few people who are as passionate about magic as I am. When ICE talks about magic, it’s not just t alki ng about magic – it’s preaching about it. His love of magic is evident in everything he does. To paraphrase his quote, if you were to cut him, he’d bleed magic. DRG: Thank you both. It seems clear to me that we are in for a good year. 

David Goodsell is Editor Emeritus of M-U-M magazine, and a Past National President and Honorary Member of the S.A.M. He has been a member of the I.B.M. since 1966 and of the S.A.M. since 1967. His feature articles and reviews appear frequently in the magic literature.


Hit The Road With Scott Alex ander , Puck , Jenny A lex ander, and A dam Ace

BREAKING THE SOUND BARRIER Music can play an important role in the success of your shows. Music adds automatic production value. It gives the show a sense of excitement and fullness. If you use musical routines in your show, chase music for the end of tricks, and music while the audience volunteers are walking up to the stage, you can cover any lag times and make the pace seem quicker and more snappy. Watch any of the old David Cop pereld specials. After almost every trick he has a snappy piece of music that wraps it up nicely and cleanses the palate, making way for the next effect. If you’re not using music in your show, you are missing out on a great opportunity. But a lot of people feel that they don’t want to bother tr aveling with sound equipment and then have to have someone run it for them. I was one of those people. Well, technology has come to the rescue, making traveling with sound in your show a much simpler process. Just a few years ago, traveling with sound equipment was much more cumbersome than today, especially if you were working in a venue that has no speakers or amps. Lugging that stuff around could be a real drag. But luckily there are a great variety of portable music playing devices and smart phones and tablets that have apps that can run your music via a remote control. Combine this technology with a good portable speaker system and you are your own traveling rock and roll concert! I will go through some of the products I have used successfully to give you an idea of what is available to help you put together your own traveling sound system.

DENNY PORTABLE SETUP Back in the day when I was learning the ropes of touring with the Denny and Lee Show, I would not only help out Denny as an onstage assistant, handing off swords and helping him oat his lovely assistant Minh in the air, but I was also the sound guy. I would run the sound backstage. In


the early ‘90s there was this new fangled Show Cues. This is an app that I have on device called a Mini Disc player that took my iPad; it runs my music and I love it. over the position formerly held by cassette I have the ability to edit my music tracks tapes. Denny decided to use it as his music on the y. I love this because I am always playing medium. (Anyone under thir ty- adding new things to the show and ipping ve will be thinking, “Cassette tapes... stuff around due to varying venues and what are those?”) Regardless, this little audience types. The iPad itself becomes device was the precursor to the MP3 the display, showing me what track is player. The genius of Denny’s portable playing and what track is up next. I bought setup was having a wonderfully small and an additional pocket remote that allows me compact way to play sound cues. That is, to put the iPad offstage and run the music as long as the venue had an existing setup completely from my pocket with a push of with ampliers and speakers. Since most a few buttons. I can advance and skip and of the gigs Denny was playing were in even control the volume of the tracks. It is hotel ballrooms, this setup was perfect. great! If you can tap into the house sound His setup consisted of a small four- systems using the appropriate cables, channel mixer purchased from Radio either one of these systems work great. Shack that had a quarter-inch input that the Mini Disc player was plugged into. The SPEAK EASY output from the mixer was an XLR cable that simply patched into the correspondBut let’s say you are working a venue ing male XLR cable that was running to that doesn’t have any house sound system. the house sound system. All he needed to Then I would highly recommend that you ask the venue to provide were two working carry your own set of speakers. If you have microphones on cords. Denny talked into never done it before, I know this sounds one microphone. We unplugged the other like a big hassle, but it really isn’t as commicrophone from its cable and used that plicated as it sounds. For years I hesitated cable to connect the Mini Disc player to carrying my own sound system because, our mixer. We played the tracks, which quite frankly, I felt it was just a pain in the went from the Mini Disc player into the ass. little mixer and then into the house system. I wanted to just roll in with my little box We could fade in and out using the mixer. of tricks, get the money, and roll out. Then This type of setup still works today, but Puck and I had a conversation about the now we have more sophisticated ways to importance of production value and music play music. and how it really does enhance even the There are systems like the MP3 Tech, most humble of gigs, turning it into a m ini which is a player that manages MP3 les production show. Music has an inherent and plays them back in any order you quality that instantly causes feelings and like. This type of system allows you to set emotions in the audience, even if you are different playlists and manipulate them. working in the multipurpose room of a There is often a LED screen that shows nursing home or on someone’s living room you your tracks and which ones are coming rug. Music automatically creates the mood next. You can operate the whole thing and atmosphere of a real show. using a remote control in your pocket. Or, I also hesitated in carrying my own mian even more stealthy set of ankle trans- crophone since it was just another technical mitters lets you advance tracks simply by hassle I didn’t want to deal with. But I clicking your heels together like Dorothy have found that it is not really that big of in The Wizard of Oz . Puck swears by the a deal. Puck turned me on to a really cool, MP3 Tech, which was created by magician super-tiny microphone system that I have Kerry Pollock. started using and I love it. Next month I will go into detail about the easy-to-travelwith microphone and speaker setup that I SHOW CUES use and where to get all these wonderful I have been using the iPhone and iPad little apps and gadgets I have been talking application put out by Carl Andrews called about. So, keep your ears open! 

Cheats � Deceptions (For Entertainment Purposes Only) By Antonio M. C abr al

Ted Annemann’s A Card in Hand (The Jinx, No. 80) is one of the great imprompt u card tricks of all time. If the name doesn’t ring a bell, it should. Someone chooses a card and it’s lost in the deck. Then you show the top card and hand it to your participant to ostensibly nd her own card. You instruct her to stab the card face down into the deck but not to let go of the card. You check the cards on either side of where she stabbed – no luck. The magician makes a magical gesture and the card in her hand changes into her selection. This is one of the most basic applications of a double lift you can nd. It’s also one of the most powerful. It’s also one of those tricks you can make the mistake of forgetting about as you progress along in your card magic studies and get caught up in Ace assemblies, false shufes, and other, more complicated things. A number of months back I realized I’d made that very mistake; I decided to revisit the trick and put it into my bar repertoire. In pondering the trick, it occurred to me that I could actually have someone stab to her selection out front (which, by itself, is a very good trick) and get a one-two punch out of both tricks in tandem. This combination has been getting very good responses, so I thought I’d share it here.

TWO IN THE HAND Start by removing the Joker or the Ace of Spades (I use the Ace of Spades) and placing it in a convenient place; I usually place it face outward in the breast pocket of my jacket, or, if I’m feeling particularly jaunty, in my tie clip. Have two people each select a card; control one of the selections to the top and the other fth from the top. There are numerous ways to do this, but I use a combination of an under-the-spread cull and an overhand lift shufe. As far as I know, this handling is original with me. It’s not groundbreaking, but it’s practical (and versatile). Here is the handling. Begin by spreading the cards (as I like to say, “…in the time-honored card trick fashion…”) and have your rst participant


point to a card. Break the spread with the selection on top of the left-hand portion (if you’re right handed) and raise the left hand to let him note and remember the card. Bring the hands back together and cull the selection under the spread as you turn to your second participant. I say, “Did you get a good look at his card? Well, forget it. You’re going to get your own!” Continue spreading for the second selection and cull three more cards under the spread. (For some reason, I nd the process ows more smoothly if, after culling the rst selection, I spread one or two cards and then cull the next three.) Ask the second participant to point to a card. Once she’s made her choice, show her the selection as you did with your rst participant, and cull it under the spread. You now have a ve-card block riding under the spread; when you square up the cards this block will end up on the bottom. As you square up, move your right hand back toward your body slightly. This will in-jog the block as it goes to the bottom. As you talk to your participants, scooch your left ngers under the deck and tilt it up in the left hand in preparation for an overhand shufe. (A little trial and error will show you can do this without disturbing the jog.) Take the deck by the ends with your right hand; pull on the jog with your right thumb to take a break over the block. Begin an overhand shufe by chopping off ten or eleven cards. As you go to chop off the next group of cards, pick up the rst bunch behind the right hand’s cards so that it joins the cards below your break. Now simply shufe off to the break and throw the remaining cards on top. (For a complete description of the lift shufe, see Card College 2, p. 257.) It sounds complicated when explained step-by-step like that, but in practice this is a very quick and efcient control. Each card is touched, looked at, the cards are squared up and given a short shufe, and everything’s where it should be. The rst selection is on top of the deck and the second selection is fth from the top. This cull/lift shufe combination has become one of my go-to control techniques when working walk-around and behind the bar. Okay, back to the trick. “At this point, you’re probably wondering how I’m going to nd your cards…I’m not going to;

you are! You’re both going to nd each other’s…Don’t look so nervous! I do it all the ti me; it’s a piece of cake!” For the sake of description, I’ll assume you earlier set aside the Ace of Spades. Retrieve it from your pocket or wherever and place it face up on top of the deck. Turn to your rst participant. “Here’s all you do: take this card and stick it somewhere in the middle. This doesn’t have to be exact – a little high or a little low is ne. Just don’t push it all the way in or I’ll have three of these things to nd!” Take the Ace by the inner end and, to illustrate, tilt the deck so that the faces are towards your participants and poke the ace into a couple of different places in the deck. Leave it sticking out as you tilt the deck back horizontal and have your rst participant remove the Ace. This entire action should mimic the look of performing a Push-in Change, because later on, you’re going to perform a Push-in Change. Hold the deck by pinching the inner end between your right thumb and ngers and have your rst participant stick the Ace face down into the outer end of the deck. Holding the deck like this ensures that he won’t accidentally (or on purpose) push the Ace all the way into the deck. Once he’s done that, place the deck back into dealing grip and spread down to the protruding card. As you do this, cull the fth card from the top (the second selection) under the spread as you comment on where the Ace ended up. Once you reach the protruding card, break the spread and use the rig hthand cards to ip the Ace face up, still out jogged, on the left-hand cards. Now briey square the right-hand cards back on top of the now face-up Ace and feed the culled card directly underneath the ace. Regrip to take the upper packet in overhand grip and lift off all the cards above the Ace. Push the Ace off on top of the right-hand cards and thumb off the next card into the rst participant’s hand. Reassemble the deck with the Ace face up on top. The preceding is admittedly illogical, because if you just wanted to cut at the Ace, you could have cut at the Ace. To justify the procedure, I say, “You could’ve placed that card above any of these cards, (referring to the cards as you spread through them) but you placed it right above this one (as you lift off the upper half to indicate the card below the Ace)”. In addition, the squ aring

and re-gripping of the upper half should be a full description of the Push-in Change.) under the inserted card instead of over it. brief enough that it appears that the cards This will leave the rst person’s selection For whatever reason, it seems to add to the never come to rest until the portions are sticking out of the deck instead of the Ace. deception. The use of the Push-in Change separated. It doesn’t make ironclad sense, Have your second participant remove for A Card in Hand so that the audience ap but it makes enough sense that it won’t be the card. You hold the deck as before, parently sees the card right up until the last questioned in context, and it won’t be re- and have her push the card into the outer second is the brainchild of Jason Ladanye membered later on. end of the deck. She’ll naturally begin to (It’s All in the Hands, Condent DecepHave the second participant name let go once she can’t push the card in any tions). her card, then gesture with the Ace at further, but quickly say, “Actually, hold on Both halves of this trick (the card the rst participant to have him reveal it. to that.” She’ll hold on to the card as now stab and the transformation) are terric Use that moment of attention away from you come away with the deck and cleanly impromptu card effects in themselves, you to reverse the top card of the deck cut to where she inserted the card (which, but together they reinforce each other in (the rst person’s selection) against your of course, you couldn’t do before). Use the a very satisfying way. The key to A Card leg. Replace the Ace face up back on top right-hand cards to ip over the top card in Hand is to get the audience invested in of the deck directly on top of the face-up of the left-hand half (which is where she the apparent card stab effect, so that the rst selection without ashing the reversed expects the selection to be from before). transformation takes them by surprise. card. By the time attention is back on Ask, “Did we get it?” Upon hearing By actually performing that effect and by you, you should have a face-up double “no,” you look puzzled, and show the offering to repeat it, you get them fully with the Ace on top and the rst selection bottom card of the right-hand portion. focused on that outcome, at which point beneath it. Upon hearing another “no,” gently ask, you hit them with a real miracle. OccasionJust as they’re recovering from the rst “What was it?” When he names his ally, I’ll get someone who – for whatever effect (and it’s a strong one), look at the selection, smile and say, “Oh, we got it!” reason – doesn’t trust me; when I hand second participant and say, “Your turn!” and point to the card in the second par- him the Ace the rst time he’ll look at it Repeat the instructions and apparently the ticipant’s hand. She won’t need any more to see if it’s still the same card. If I were demonstration from before, only this time prompting to look at it. just performi ng A Card in Hand by itself, you lift off the face-up double and insert it The rst half of this trick – the card that would blow my ending. Here, they get into to the outer end of the deck in a couple stab using the cull – is an old idea. My cooled out by the fact that everything is on of places. As you tilt the deck back to hori- handling here was inspired by Darwin the up and up. By the time the card does zontal, perform a Push-in Change, secretly Ortiz’s routine Test Your Luck (which rst change, it’s back to being a surprise. plunging the Ace ush into the deck. appeared in his Ephemeral Lecture Notes), Give it a try; I hope you enjoy it.  (See Card College 4, pages 820-822, for specically the loading of the culled card


Not Just K id Stuff By Jim K leefeld

PERSONIFY THE PROP Imagine for a moment that you are reading this on a calm, cool, tropical island, with a breeze blowing off the ocean and the sound of the waves lapping at the shore. Imagine that you are stretched out in a chaise lounge with a tall, cool drink by your side. Someone walks behind you and the scent of coconut drifts your way. Did you really picture all of that in your mind? Did you see the sand, hear the waves, and smell the piña colada? If so, you probably had to work at it. Many adults would probably not even try to imagine any of what I described. You may have just read through my imaginary scene wondering where that stream of text was headed. It’s not your fault if you did not create any real sensations a moment ago. It’s because you are an adult. You probably reacted the way most adults do. You read, absorbed my words into information, and processed it logically. As an adult, you may have lost much of your imagination or creativity. You could imagine that beach setting, but you would have to go back, reread it, and concentrate. A child would not have to do that. He would have been right there in the moment with the words, imagining right along. Children are inquisitive, creative, and imaginative to a degree that we adults sometimes forget. They never have to thin k about being creative or try to imagine something. It ows naturally through them as a part of their existence. As we grow older, we learn logical behavior, make critical decisions, and process an extraordinary amount of mundane and repetitive tasks. The many bits of mindless minutiae that we encounter day after day help to slowly erode our imagination. What is that weird new sound the car is making today? Should I get my brakes checked? Will this be a vital repair? How much will it cost? Practical considerations like these are a constant reality of adult life. They condition our brains to think logically, not creatively. If you honestly heard an unusual noise while you were driving your car, would it benet you in any way to


imagine that someone had replaced your consider presenting a children’s magic engine with a gaggle of geese? show without capitalizing on it. Even If adults are creative and imagina- children who have moved past believing in tive, they must often be so in a controlled real magic will still take part in exercises manner. Many magicians develop their of imagination and creativity. Want proof? own tricks, routines, and shows because Go watch a good magician who uses a vent they have learned how to channel their routine in his act. Kids may laugh and creativity in a way that is productive. If applaud at the magic but still not believe it. you sat and thought about inventing a They may exhibit all the necessary polite new trick, you might be able to come up behaviors of an adult audience, but still roll with something clever, imaginative, and their eyes at the “trick” of it all. But when creative. You have learned how to combine he brings out the puppet, they will fall ideas and look for inspiration, how to instantly into the gotcha trap of watching determine what is creative, and dene two performers. The puppet has life. what is imaginative. Your memory bank of That bundle of cloth and vinyl becomes creative images from art, books, lm, tele- a character. Kids will come up after the vision, and popular culture give you some show and ask to talk to the puppet. added assistance. I use a Wolf’s Magic trick called Blow Children, however, do not need to Yur Stack in my Character Show. The prop place themselves in a creative mode. It is consists of a box made to look like a large automatic, even uncontrolled. Their minds piece of Swiss cheese and a small plush soar with a plethora of images from their mouse gure that pops up and down. The own world. Many of those images are fake mouse is a simple toy, with no articulation creativity or forced imagination, deliber- whatsoever. It rises out of the prop and ately placed there through advertising and returns back into the prop. That’s all. But media programming. Ask a child to draw that one prop gets more comments and ada picture of a clown and she is much more miration than anything else in that show. likely to draw Ronald McDonald than Kids almost always le out of the school Emmet Kelly or Pierrot. What do elves auditorium saying “Say hi to Morris,” or do? They bake cookies inside a tree. How “I hope Morris gets his X-Box back.” I use do camels behave? Why, they smoke ciga- a different prop in my Mystery Show, a rettes, of course. wooden box with a fake fur weasel inside. But children still enjoy the fanciful A simple lever on the back makes it appear images and impossible conditions that as if the weasel pops up and down, lifting come from cartoons, picture books, and the lid of the box. It is a different effect, animated lms. In their play, they easily a different prop, and a different character make up stories about characters, real than Blow Yur Stack, but the results are or imagined. Turtles y, trees talk, and the same. Kids com ment on the weasel box fairies ride unicorns over the rainbow. more than any other routine. At one show In a child’s world, imagination is real. It I used an Axtell Bird Puppet with t he Bird is a viable way of thinking. Ask a child Arm Illusion, in which you put on long about his Halloween costume. He will say, gloves and it looks like the puppet is sitting “I’m a pirate!” He will never say, “I look on your arm. I once overheard an elevenlike a pirate,” or “I am dressed in pirate year-old telling his mother about the show. clothes.” The linguistic difference is a He used these exact words: “Then a bird signicant indicator of the child’s state of came out of the box, ew around the room, mind. A child’s internal thinking is “I am landed on his shoulder, and talked to him.” a princess,” not “I am pretending to be a The boy had mis-remembered reality in princess.” Their imagi nation is temporar- favor of his imagination. ily melded into belief in their mind. This The key to these memorable magic belief is uid and changing, but real. They tricks is personication. When you may switch from a pirate captain to a rst introduce such an object, give it a name, mate or from a superhero to a villain in the add some patter about its behavior, and blink of a n eye, but at each moment they speak to it as you would a person. Personify believe in the realit y of their thi nking. the Prop. Children have so much more imagiLet’s use the Fraidy Cat Rabbit as an nation than adults that it is hard to even example. You call your black rabbit plaque

Freddie. You show the door frame, but call separately. Discard the blank top half of it a house. Tell the kids that he sometimes the picture. The third picture is a one-inch gets scared. Then you open the door of wide frame with the center removed. your Fraidy Cat prop and show the black Stack these three pieces of board rabbit has changed to white. You speak to together and glue the thin frame onto the the painted wooden board as if it were a whole picture. Insert the half-panel loosely person, and offer t o help “h im.” You open in place and then glue the wider frame on the door and show that the rabbit picture top of the thin frame. Figure 2 shows the has turned to black. When you remove layered assembly. Be sure not to get any it and turn it around, you don’t just say, glue on or near the penguin bottom panel. “There is his tail.” You tell the kids, “Look he’s hopping away. Wave goodbye.” Giving a prop the characteristics of a person is what makes it engaging, memorable, and fun for children to watch. Because of children’s innate capacity for imagination, they cannot help but believe that the prop is truly a character. When you personify a prop, you make it memorable. Even a at cardboard picture of an animal, when given a name and moved around, becomes a character. Farmyard Frolics has a cat, Pet Store Pranks has a rattlesnake, and SPS’s Bookworm has a worm. Run, Rabbit, Run has a rabbit, or maybe a bear or wolf or dinosaur. If you use any prop like this, give the animal gure a name. Talk to it like you would a person. Write a script that involves true dialogue between two Figure 2 characters. When you personify cut-outs like these, you grab the attention of a young audience, engage them in the plot This piece should be able to slide freely and build an event they will remember. If up and down within the thin frame. The you treat these simple props the same way wider frame will keep it from falling out. that a great ventriloquist treats his gures, You may need to add a second thin frame then the kids in your audience will get as a spacer, or trim the penguin section, involved in the routine. or otherwise adjust the pieces before you Here is an example of how to personify glue them together to make sure the small a prop. You will need three drawings done piece slides freely. When you are done, on plain cardboard or illustration board, you can slide the penguin’s bottom down such as are shown in Figu re 1. Comic book to show him standing upright, or slide it up backing boards or foam core would work as to show him upside down, as illustrated by well. The back piece shows the top half of Figure 3. To make the magic effect work, a penguin on the top half of the picture and you show the prop, turn it toward s yourself the same top half of a penguin rotated 180 and then deliberately turn it upside-down. degrees on the bottom half of the picture. The panel will secretly slide to the bottom, making the penguin look right side up again. When you turn it back to face the audience they expect the penguin to be upside down, but see that it is still right side up. For a nale, you will add a hidden sh to the back. Print a busy Figure 1 patter n on plain paper The second drawing shows the bottom and glue it to the back of the prop. Print half of a penguin drawn on the bottom a duplicate busy pattern on another sheet, half of the picture. Leave a half-inch frame cut it in half diagonally, and glue that to the around the entire picture. Then cut out back of the card, but just along the bottom the complete frame and the penguin piece and left edges. This will make a secret

pocket on the back of the card. Next print a comical sh picture on cardboard and glue the same busy pattern to the back of it. Flip it face down and slide the sh into the pocket on the back of the penguin prop as shown in Figure 4.

Figure 3

Figure 4

To present the magic, you could bring out the prop, continually ip it over, and have it always show a right-side-up picture. But the magic and the routine will be innitely better if you engage the children’s imagination with personication. Here is a script example of how to personify the prop. “Would you boys and girls like to see my pet penguin? I’ll get her. Her name is Penny.” Lean over the back of your table. Knock three times and call, “Penny.” Repeat this action three times. This will get a laugh because it is a reference to the popular TV show The Big Bang Theory. Bring out the penguin picture and address the character as if it were a live character. “There you are. Were you getting warm down there?” Turn to address the audience. “Penny is used to the Antarctic where the temperature is always below freezing. She thinks it is harder to catch sh in warm weather. She has been prac ticing her shing. Do you want to see her try out her shing technique?” The audience will call out yes. Turn the board to face you, with its back towards the audience. The busy pattern there should keep the audience from seeing that there is a pocket and a cut-out sh on the back. “Penny, do you remember


Not Just Kid Stuff that I told you how to get the biggest sh? You do? (Pause.) That’s right. I said you will have to dive upside down so you c an go deep. Well, let’s see you do that.” Carefully turn the board end for end so it is upside down. Let the panel slide to the bottom so the penguin still appears right side up. A little friction of your ngers on the panel will slow it down and keep it from talking. Look up and address the audience while you turn the board around to face them. “There. See how well Penny listens. She’s diving upside down so she can go deep and get a really big sh.” The audience will tell you that the penguin is right side up. Turn it back towards yourself and act surprised. “Penny! Are you afraid of the deep water? I told you that you have to swim upside down to get a big  sh. Now, don’t be afraid. Just get back in the water and swim upside down.” Slowly and carefully turn the board upside down, again letting the panel secretly slide to the bottom. Look up and then tur n the board toward the audience. “She’s doing it. She’s swimming upside down so she can get to the really deep water and nd the biggest…” Stop as you hear the children yelling that the penguin is not upside down. Turn the board back toward yourself. “Again? You are not upside down,


Penny. You will never catch a big sh like that. You have to listen to me and practice if you want to catch a big sh. First, turn upside down.” Turn the board slowly and carefully end for end, but this time pinch the panel so it stays at the top. Turn the board around to face the audience so they can see that the penguin is upside down. “You see, boys and girls, Penny does know how to listen. This time she’s going to go deep and get a really big sh.” Turn the board towards you, letting the panel secretly slide down. “You listened well. Now you stay upside down. That’s one way to swim deep and catch a big sh.” Turn the board back towards the audience so they see that the penguin is right side up, but look at them, not the picture. “Now, watch this, boys and girls, Penny will be able to catch a…” Stop talking when the kids tell you the penguin is right side up. Then lean over and look at the picture. “Penny Penguin! You did not listen.” Secretly grip the sh cut-out from behind with your right hand, while still holding the board with your left hand. “Why don’t you want to swim upside down? How do you think you can catch any big sh if you are not going to swim into the deep part of…” As you are talki ng, move the board away to the left, and turn your head, also to the left,

as if you are trying to see and talk to the penguin. Keep your right hand perfectly still as you pull the board away from it. This will expose the sh held in your right hand while you “discuss” obedience with the penguin picture. The kids will see the sh and begin yelling. Quickly look back to your right hand and react, as if the sh had suddenly and magically appeared. “A sh! No wonder Penny didn’t want to swim upside down! She already has a great big sh! How about a round of applause for Penny!” What a lot of fun from a simple cardboard picture. This routine will get strong reactions from kids because they identify with the picture as a character. Because of your words and behaviors, the penguin becomes real, alive. Imagine how dull this trick would be if you said, “I have a picture of a penguin and I’m going to turn it upside down and then make it magically turn back right side up.” The story and the routine become so much more engaging and entertaining if you Personify the Prop. By the way, if you want to make your own Penny Penguin trick, I have all of the artwork in a folder of jpegs; I’ll send you a complimentary copy at your request. Just email me ([email protected]). 

Houdini on the Web

and lm clips. Houdini Adventures #1 is available in the iTunes App Store for free.

We are all aware of www.magicSAM. It’s a Numbers Game com, the place where our members can Although not all magicians are good at math, they are check in to see what still fascinated by numbers. At the 4F convention this is new and benecial year, at least ve people, including math fan Obie O’Brien, to the compeers of the mentioned the Grey Matters Blog. Although not all magic, Society. I regularly there are a lot of puzzles and math tricks to peruse. search the web for Recently, the website posted some free math magic books magic sites that offer different and interesting takes on all that have some very good, long forgotten effects. Set your things magical. I found some great nds a nd would like to browser to www.headinside.blogspot.com. share them with you. You are probably aware of the Houdini Museum in It’s in Your Pocket Scranton, Pennsylvania, run by Dorothy Deitrich and Dick Brooks; they keep the Houdini name going as a labor If you have a smart phone, chances of love. The museum is a fun place to visit if you are ever are it never leaves your hand. Magicians almost always have something else in the area. There is also an online Houdini Museum (no relation with them all the time; I am talking to the Scranton facilities) that has some extremely inabout their favorite packet trick. Want teresting articles about our longest presiding president. a place to keep both together? Founded in 2004, San Diego magician Tom Interval has MiPocket Stick On Pocket is just created a blog of great topics and interesting nds about what it says. Stick it on the back of Houdini. The website was originally started to discuss your smart phone and you’ve created a articles in the New York Times relating to Houdini, but it pocket to store business cards or your favorite packet trick. has grown to include such topics as the previous owner of The real magic is the way things stay inside the pocket. Houdini’s home, the building where Houdini was born, The material is stretchy and holds everything inside but is and the Houdini scrapbook collection. You never know soft and exible enough to take things out. what will pop up on the site. If you have my Professor Marvel’s Crystal Ball App, I encourage you to set your browsers to http://houdini- it’s the perfect place to store the cards needed for the t rick. museum.wordpress.com/ and get immersed in its content. MiPocket Stick On Pocket is available for under $10 at Michael’s Crafts and Toys R Us. Or just Google it; it’s all Houdini’s Comic Escapes over the Internet. Houdini is the subject of a new comic book available on your iDevice. Houdini Adventures #1 takes you to London as Houdini aids Scotland Yard in solving a crime. This audio enhanced comic book is a fun read and reveals one of Houdini’s secrets. You have to pay to learn the other secret. Forget the fact that Houdini looked nothing like the Superman-looking guy on these pages. Also forget the sexy outts that this tall shapely Bess is wearing. It is a cool comic to look through and is enhanced with sounds, voice, fun facts about Harry,

Houdini’s Altered Reality Houdini AR is not really magic, but it is something fun to play with. Download the free coasters; then point your iDevice at the coasters and watch 3D objects appear. You can walk all around these objects. I’ll bet an out-ofthe-box thinker will come up with ways to turn these cool objects in to magic tricks. Houdini AR is free in the iTunes App Store for iDevices as well as in Google Play for Android devices. 

Bruce is always on the lookout for computer magic, iPhone/iPod Touch apps, and tech toys that can be used in magic applications. If you have any suggestions for future columns, write to Bruce at [email protected].


The High Road script writing, character development, and act construction for the modern conjuror

By Mick Ayr es

“I am a buttery. I am not a buttery collector. I want the experience of the buttery.” – William Stafford, poet

As conjurers, we tend to begin our education at a young age; there is usually a magic kit involved. We study each trick until we learn everything the kit has to offer. However, that isn’t enough; we want to know more secrets. So, we read all the books we can nd and buy every trick we can afford until our resources and nances are nearly exhausted. Still, our thirst for more magic knowledge is not slaked in the least. Then we discover there is a magic club that meets in town. The members greet us with open ar ms and welcome us into the fold. Still, the craving for more secrets and tricks is relentless. Then the guys in the club share about an upcoming convention, and it’s like we hit the mother lode. Dealer rooms are packed with boxed-up miracles just waiting to be opened. Performers lecture and expound upon innovative ideas and tricks. Everywhere we look are wonders that appeal specically to the conjurer that hides deep within us all. These events are so popular there is no longer a weekend during any calendar year that doesn’t offer an enticing magic seminar or convention somewhere. Today’s conjuring enthusiasts have no excuse for a lack of tricks in the arsenal. Sounds wonderful, doesn’t it? It can be; but for anyone interested in raising his or her performances to another level, it is wise to look at this from another angle. First, consider the demographics of the average magic convention for a moment. The majority of attendees are amateurs who dream of being on stage, commanding the attention of packed theaters. Perhaps ten percent are part-time performers who pick up the occasional gig to supplement their income. Just a handful of magicians from this latter group are the


professionals who perform for a living. These are rough estimates, but it means about ninety percent of the people at any convention are hobbyists. There’s nothing wrong with that; every professional magician in our industry has worn those shoes at one point or another. Now consider the average magic dealer at a convention. He is there to sell merchandise to as many people as possible. This means his target market is the hobbyist who will impulsively purchase the newest cool trick or the latest video. Magic dealers are not wrong for exploiting this situation to make money; in fact, it is a wise business decision. Haven’t we all, at one point or another, fallen prey to the siren call of the dealer’s room? Next, consider the lecturers who frequent convention after convention, offering their newest creations. They depend on merchandise, video, and book sales to make their attendance worthwhile. Since a lecturer’s market is understandably targeted upon the hobbyist, their continued popularit y and appeal is dependent upon fresh, clever material. Some lecturers offer so many “new” effects one begins to ask: “Where does anyone nd the time to create these wonders and eld-test them in front of a ‘real’ audience (meaning, an audience that is not comprised of his peers within the business)?” Finally, consider this: Professionals in the conjuring business rarely search for their show’s next effect at a magic convention. If you are performing shows for a living, then you already have an act. What a professional seeks from the convention experience is feedback from his peers. He wants fellowship with people who know that magic is not about naming someone’s card; it’s about the lost being found and the broken restored. It’s about changing the laws of physics, twisting reality, reversing time, and getti ng something from nothing. A professional magician loitering in a dealer’s room is only there for the nostalgia

and to chat with some old friends. To the merchants, he is not the droid they’re looking for. All of this brings us back to where we started – with a fellow hoping to take his magic to another level. As a performer, you must study your target audience with the same intensity as a dealer at a convention and cherry-pick your effects with that audience in mind. If you only perform for the local magic club or at the annual neighborhood block party, there is a world of difference in the selection of appro priate tricks. For example, your friends at the magic club want to be seriously fooled because once someone learns enough about the basics of conjuring, ex periencing wonder is a rare delight. Your neighbors are going to treat you like a prophet without honor anyway, so the diversion of a simple, entertaining mystery will ll their cup. In the magician’s world, skilled technique with playing cards is to be admired and praised. In your neighbor’s world, a Svengali Deck is sleight of hand. If your target audience is not made up of magicians, then don’t consider effects that were designed with them in mind. Look for mysteries that will appeal to the rest of the world. To nd those, many working professionals believe you will have greater success by searching the classic books of magic such as those written by Harlan Tarbell, Henry Hay, Henning Nelms, J. G. Thompson, and John Hilliard – or the modern texts by John Carney, Tommy Wonder, and Mark Wilson. The root ideas and theatrical presentations offered by any of these authors far outclass the one-hit wonders that seem to ood the market today. Most professionals in our industry are willing to share a bit of time and information with others, as long as the request is made respectfully. Dai Vernon, Juan Tamariz, Larry Jennings, and Johnny Thompson were (or are) known for being cooperative, as long as the request is made

politely. An amateur who obnoxiously demands the attention of a professional simply because “we’re part of the same brotherhood” risks divorcing that professional from his or her approachability. Make your questions brief and specic. A generic question begets a generic answer. Remember that most professionals attend conventions to socialize with friends and network with their peers. This means they want to use their limited time wisely; getting buttonholed by strangers can rapidly make the minutes disappear. In general, professionals understand what it is like to be enthusiastic and hungry for information that can improve a career, so unless the pro is a total nibs he or she will pause and answer politely, even if that answer is “no” or “later.” Finally, if asked, be ready to share specic information about your work efforts so far. One way a professional can tell if his time is well spent is when he can tell you are serious and willing to put in the necessary work. No one wants to throw good seed on rocky ground. Raising the level of our conjuring presentations requires us to be smart about our audience’s demographics. It means keeping our eyes wide open. It requires specic ideas of what we’re looking for. Surprisingly, the information and teaching we need will often come from where we least expect it. Whether your conjuring passion is focused on magic or mentalism, you may nd the mystery that follows to be a welcome addition to your tool bag.

this presentation, there is a bit of preparation. You will need two decks of cards, one red backed and the other blue backed. Cut the Five of Clubs to the top of each deck. Next, place the Five of Spades ten cards from the top. Now, switch the top cards of each deck; that is, put the red Five of Clubs on top of the blue deck and vice versa. Finally, slide the blue deck with the red card on top into the red card case. Put the remaining pack in the other card case and pocket them both. You are ready to begin. To perform, address a guest and say, “I’d like to show you something special with a deck of cards.” Reach into your pocket and remove both decks. Look surprised at the sight of two packs and say, “Well, I do try to co me prepared. This w ill work with any deck so which do you prefer, red or blue?” You will use whichever color is chosen; drop the other deck back in your pocket. For the sake of explanation, let’s say she chooses the blue pack (that is, the deck that is in the blue card case). Remove the cards from the case; put the case off to one side and table the deck face down. Pick up a piece of paper and write down “Five of Clubs.” Fold the paper and hand it to the guest as you say, “I just wrote something special. We will have a look at it later. For now, please put it awa y some place safe.” Do not mention the color of the pack; just trust that your guest has eyes and is currently using them. Turn the pack face up and give it a brief tabled shufe without disturbing the order of the ten cards that are now on the bottom. When nished, turn the deck over and hold it face down casually while you say, COLOR MY WORLD “There are fty-two cards in this deck. I want you to nd a card that is special A prediction is written down. A deck to you alone. To keep things fair, we will of cards is shufed. A guest takes the deck keep the cards face up so everything stays and removes one card that she considers honest. No tricky stuff.” special. The prediction is opened and read; Turn the deck face up and spread it matches her special card precisely. What through the pack. Take roughly ten to makes her card so special and predictable? twelve cards into your right hand and drop The rest of the cards in the deck are backed them face up on the table. Take another ten with a different color. You are absolutely to twelve cards off and drop them on top clean at the nish. of the tabled cards while saying, “We gave This effect is odd, simple, and bafing. the deck a fair shufe and now we’ll give It is odd because it begins with two decks it several random cuts – casino rules, you of cards but only one is used during the know.” Take a third group and drop them presentation. It is simple because it is ver y onto the tabled cards. As you spread the close to self-working. It is bafing because deck to take the fourth group of cards, much of it happens in the guest’s hands. you should be able to easily spot the Five While there are no sleights involved in of Spades. Take all the cards to the right

of the Five of Spades and drop them to the table. You now have exactly ten cards remaining in your left hand. Drop them onto the tabled pile and square everything up. Hand the face-up deck to your guest and say, “We’ve done the fair shufing and legitimate cutting, b ut we really don’t need an entire deck to do this trick. Let’s thin it out. We need a random number; it is best to use one that is special to you. If I’m not being too personal, tell me: how old were you when you rst drove a car?” Let’s say she answers, “Sixteen.” Respond by saying, “Okay, please deal sixteen cards to the table.” When she is nished, pick up the new pile, hand it to her and say, “We’re going to u se one of these sixteen cards as your special card. Since we’re only looking for a single card, let’s use the number you chose to create a single digit. The number sixteen has two digits, a one and a six. Add those together and you get a total of seven . Please deal seven cards to the table. Place the seventh card off to one side. What is your card? The Five of Clubs.” You just performed a face-up variation of the 10/20 force; even better, you did so while avoiding that dreadful request to “choose a number between ten and twenty.” Say, “Your choices and actions have isolated one card, special to you, from the remainder of the deck. Remember the paper you hid away earlier? Would you open it and read it for us all to hear? The Five of Clubs!? I was hoping things would turn out this way.” Lay the prediction note on the table. Pick up her Five of Clubs, turn it fa ce down, and toss it casually on top of the open note. Say, “Think back to the beginning of this mystery. Do you remember when I said this would work with either de ck?” Pick up the deck, turn it face down, and dribble all the red-backed cards directly onto the table in a loose pile next to the Five of Clubs and the prediction. Smile and say, “I just want to prove my point.” She is going to dive for the cards anyway, so you may as well let her inspect them.  Color My World copyright 1979. Mick is a conjurer, tunesmith, and tale-swapper. He can be reached at: [email protected].


For Your Consideration By George Parker

EXERCISES IN STYLE Last month I had a wonderful dinner and evening in Amsterdam with Doc Eason. At some point I told him that I typically create multiple scripts for one routine in order to be able to present the same routine for construction workers as well as for a room full of college presidents. His eyebrows raised; he was interested in the why, what, and how of it. We went to see a show and didn’t have time to elaborate. So I thought I’d write about it in this month’s issue. The initial inspiration for creating multiple scripts came from a theater show I saw back in the early ‘80s. The title was Exercises in Style . It blew me away because it struck more than one chord with me. The play was performed by one man and very few props. But I had seen that approach before. The special part was that he told one short story about thirty-ve times in different ways. I mean, how Zen can you get?! After the play, I talked to the actor and learned that the play was based on Exercises in Style (1947) by Raymond Queneau. It’s a collection of ninety-nine retellings of the same story, each in a different style. It’s still available on Kindle, as well as a paperback. Seeing this play and reading the book helped me a lot, both professionally as well as personally. I nd it extremely useful to be able to express myself in more than one style. It helps me to perform for a wide variety of audiences and engage them. More so, it’s a very productive way to work on original approaches to an effect. I will rst talk about Queneau’s work. Then I will describe my always-ready-togo card to box routine and challenge you to experiment with different styles, premises, and scripts.

RAYMOND QUENEAU’S STORY The story Queneau tells is simple: The narrator gets on the “S” bus, witnesses an altercation between a man with a long neck


and a funny hat and another passenger. He plaited was his bonnet, a nd he, a puny colt then sees the same person two hours later – (how sad the neck he bore, and long) – at the Gare Saint-Lazare getting advice on was now intent on his quotidian chore. The adding a button to his overcoat. bus arriving full, of somehow getting on I will copy the “Litotes” (a gure it.” Mathematical : In a rectangular paralof speech in which understatement is employed) version below in its entirety and lepiped moving along a line representing add the opening lines of other versions to an integral solution of the second-order show you the basic idea. differential equation...” Litotes: “Some of us were traveling Noble: At the hour when the rosy ngers together. A young man, who didn’t look of the dawn start to crack, I climbed, rapid very intelligent, spoke to the man next to as a tongue of ame, into a bus, of the him for a few moments; then he went and S-line of sinuous course. I noticed, with sat down. Two hours later I met him again; the precision and acuity...” he was with a friend and was t alking about clothes.” CARD TO CARD BOX Dream: “I had the impression that everything was misty and nacreous around There are many wonderful versions me, with multifarious and indistinct appa- of this effect out there. I applied my ritions, amongst whom however was one SurvivalVersion® theory (see the April gure that stood out fairly clearly, which and May 2014 issues) to this plot and came was that of a young man whose too-long up with an always-ready-to-go version. I neck in itself seemed to proclaim the glue a twice-folded card to the non-lid side character at once cowardly and quarrel- of the box, so the lid covers up the opening some of the individual...” after I take the deck out. The action of Precision : “In a bus of the S-line, taking the deck out of the box is enough ten meters long, three wide, six high, at to make people believe the box is empty three kilometers and six hundred meters otherwise. And putting the deck back in from its starting point, loaded with forty- after performing this routine reinforces eight people, at 12:17 p.m., a person of the that belief. Putting the cards back in may masculine sex aged twenty-seven years, take just a little bit of practice, but it’s easy three months, and eight days, one meter, to do. You can perform this as a standseventy-two centimeters tall and weighing alone effect or as the nale of any other sixty-ve kilograms...” card trick. Let someone select a card and have The Subjective Side: “I was not dis pleased with my attire that day. I was inau- it signed. Take off half of the deck as gurating a new, rather sprightly hat, and an if you’re going to shufe the cards and overcoat of which I thought most highly. stretch out your left hand (Figure 1). Ask Met X in front of the Gare Saint-Lazare...” the spectator to put her selection on top of Ofcial Letter: “I beg to advise you the half in your left hand. You’re going to of the following facts of which I happened control the card to the top while shufing to be the equally impartial and horried the cards by means of the lift shufe. witness. Today, at roughly twelve noon, I Figure 2 shows you how you put the half in was present on the platform of a bus which your right hand on top of the half in your was proceeding up the rue de Courcelles left hand. You start to overhand shufe in the direction of the Place Champerret ... Exclamations: Goodness! Twelve o’clock! Time for the bus! What a lot of people! What a lot of people! Aren’t we squashed! Bloody funny! That chap!” Philosophic: “Great cities alone can provide phenomenological spirituality with the essentialities of temporal and im probabilistic coincidences. The philoso pher who occasionally ascends into the futile and utilitarian inexistentiality of an Figure 1 S bus...” Sonnet: Glabrous was his dial and

Figure 2 Figure 5

Figure 3

like you would normally do, but you steal away the top ve to ten cards of the half in your left hand (Figure 3). When you rst practice this, you may steal fteen or more cards. That number will slowly decrease after practicing, until you get it down to just a few. Keep shufing the cards until you reach the break. Then put the block of stolen cards on top. The selection is now on top. You can repeat this if you want. But I usually let someone in the audience shufe the deck as well by saying, “Ah, you don’t trust me? Please go ahead…!” I do a onehanded top palm with my right hand and give the deck to a spectator. When I take the deck back I add the palmed selection on top. What you say next depends on your script, but it will allow you to do a Mercury fold. You hold the deck as in Figure 4. Figure 5 shows you the exposed view with the left hand in the process of folding the card once. The card hits your right thumb and you immediately fold the card a second time. Hide the card under the deck. The whole procedure takes half a second. But don’t rush it or your movements will be noticed. Put the deck away while keeping the selection palmed in your left hand. Take the box and put it on your hand; the

Figure 4

non-lid side down. This hides the folded selection. Open the lid (Figure 6). The audience sees a folded card. Reach in with your right rst nger. Your second nger goes under the box (Figure 7). You pull out the palmed, folded selection and show it. When your ngers pull out, the lid will fall back and cover the card that’s glued in the box. Put the deck back in the box while the audience checks the signed card.

Figure 6

Figure 7

STYLES OF PERFORMING My directors often required of me to deliver lines in wildly different styles. I may have to deliver a script in Italian style, which means doing it extremely fast. They would ask me to deliver it like I was trying to seduce a girl or like I was in a courtroom, in a schoolyard, or in a library (shh!). In the course of doing this, we would always discover gems that added texture to the nal delivery. So experimenting with a wide variety of styles while you’re rehearsing helps you to come up with fresh new ideas for all aspects of your routine: script, style of delivery, method, choice of props, the way you dress, and so on.

For example, if you performed the cardto-box effect at a Renaissance fair, you might use the ancient, worn, and cracked Bicycle 1800 Vintage series cards. You can create a story about a damsel in distress. When I think of Jim Carrey in The Mask , I can create a script about that tiny little object I’m obsessed with and can’t nd. I can see myself performing the effect on stage using all of the stage. I would put the box at one side of the stage, and then go to the other side of the stage, moving the way the Mask moves. Then I would have a card selected, Mercury fold it, and tiptoe, in a big, Mask-like manner, to the box on the other side of the stage. I would need to create a holdout to hide the folded card, so I could make big gestures with open hands while picking up the box. I would then show the card in the box, steal the selection from the holdout, and reveal the card. Obviously, there’s no limit to the styles in which you can perform the card-to-box plot. Let me leave you with some short lists to get you started. See what comes up if you imagine performing the card to box in that style. My only advice at this point is: push it to an extreme level, just like Queneau did. Don’t hold back, or you will miss the gems. Then apply those styles, and more, to your own routines and see what happens to your scripts, methods, props, and delivery. Maybe you’ll end up with two or three different styles and scripts for your favorite effects. What would the script and delivery style be if you would perform it: on the street, for the Queen of England, in a bar early in the morni ng, for a group of dentists at a convention, for a ladies night out, for spoiled kids, on a boat during a Gay Pride Parade in Amsterdam, in a home for the elderly, in the locker room of the Green Bay Packers before the conference cham pionship game, at a wedding party for a sobbing couple… What would the script and delivery style be if you would perform it: like Al Pacino in Scarface , Keanu Reeves in The Matrix , Julie Andrews in The Sound of Music (for the children), Sandra Bullock in Speed , Neil Patrick Harris in How I met your Mother , David Duchovny in The X Files, Anthony Hopkins in Silence of the Lambs, Zoe Saldana in Avatar … What would the script and delivery style be if you would perform it: like a poet, a carpenter, a lawyer, a preacher, a hobo, a football player, a taxi driver, a conductor, your neighbor, your grandfather, a whiz kid, a heckler, an accountant... Have fun! 


EBOOK NOOK Excerpt From:

Bob Wagner's Master Notebook of Magic Written By:

Figure 3

R.D. Wagner

Description:

Ebook, 194 pages Available From: www.llepub.com Bob Wagner’s Master Notebook of Magic is an idiosyncratic book; it ew under the radar of many magicians. Some may have been put off by the way the material was presented: the text is handwritten, and while it is perfectly legible, it’s not what you expect to see in a magic book. (Unfortunately, for space reasons it just wasn’t practical to reproduce this handwritten text in the following excerpt.) The magic, however, is uniformly excellent, with material for close-up and stand-up. When I purchased my copy many years ago, one of the rst things I made note of was the excellent method for making up a card index. Construct a pair of these with non-tear Tyvek paper and you’ll have something you’ll use for the rest of your life. The excerpt for this month’s Ebook Nook consists of a long stand-up routine made up of two hunks: a well-constructed ring and rope routine (using two rings) and a humorous sequence of knot-tying effects. They can be used individually, but they make a nice combination when used together. Learn this, construct a presentation that makes sense for you, and you’ll have a major hunk for your stand-up routine. My thanks to L&L Publishing for allowing this excerpt to appear in M-U-M . – Michael Close

RINGS OF THE NIBELUNGS BY BOB WAGNER Effect: A complete routine in which a length of rope and two solid steel rings are handed for examination. The rings mysteriously penetrate on and off the piece of rope. Then the performer gives his im pression of different t ypes of people t ying knots in a piece of rope. Still the rings pass on and off the rope at will, and  nally become linked. The rings and rope are again passed for examination.


Figure 1

Needed: Two single metal rings, six inches in diameter, from a small set of linking rings; two linked rings from the same set; a piece of rope about four and a half feet in length; a box constructed of one-eighth-inch plywood. It is divided into two sections by a shelf (shaded in Figure 1). The lid has a cloth hinge on the front edge and the box is lined with felt to deaden sound. The box is used to switch sets of rings on top of the table. Slide the two single rings below the shelf, put the linked set above the shelf, and close the lid. The sleights (in order of appearance): Because of the host of moves required, the sleights are explained separately rst. The routine follows. 1. The Penetrating Ring (Wagner): Take the piece of rope and hold it in the left hand as in Figure 2 with the loop under thumb (shown by dotted lines). Take ring in the right hand and slide it under loop and the thumb in left hand (Figure 3). As you do this, pull the loop back (Figure 4) with the thumb and ngers of the left hand. This can be done in one motion of placing the ring in the left hand. (Left hand is omit ted in Figure 4.) With the index nger of the right hand, poke the rope down into crotch of left thumb at the point indicated by the arrow (Figure 5). The right hand now grasps end of rope at B and deliberately places it through ring. Continue pulling end B slowly as the last two ngers of left hand switch their position to beneath the rope instead of

Figure 2

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

above the rope. (See Figure 6 and compare it with Figure 5.) Continue pulling end B slowly until the small loop pulls through ring, apparently penetrating it (Figure 7). As soon as this happens, again clamp the last two ngers of left hand on top of the rope as they were in Figure 5. Now tur n the left hand around so the spectators see your view; grasp end B in the right hand and place it through the ring from the front (Figure 8) and let it hang. Now slowly return the left hand to its original position. Very, very slowly pull end B with right hand. The ring will once again penetrate the rope; this time for real (Figure 9). 2. Liko Pang Rings On Rope: Drape

Figure 10

center of the rope 3. Bob Wagner’s Reverse Liko Pang Move: Release the rope with your left hand and set your hand in the same fashion as it was for the Liko move. Raise the rings with the right hand so that the hanging rope drapes over left hand index nger and thumb (Figure 13). Lower the two rings with your right hand, but let your left thumb ride up between the two rings (Figure 14). Continue pulling the rings straight down. When the two ends of the rope approach your left hand, grip the ends of the rope and with your right hand yank a couple of times on the rings. They will appear to both be on the rope, when in reality one of them is free.

Figure 13 Figure 8

Figure 11

Figure 9

the center of the rope over your left hand with the ends hanging down (Figure 10). Explain that it would be impossible to place the two rings on the rope at the center. With this, take the rings together in the right hand and hold them above your left hand. Lower the rings between your left index nger and thumb and continue pulling t hem straight down. This will automatically pull down a loop of the rope (Figure 11). Continue pulling until the ends of the rope are pulled close to the left hand. At this point, stop, remove the rings, and replace the rope in its original position over the left hand

(Figure 10). But now you show how this can be done. Be sure the end of the rope closest to your body is slightly higher than the other end. Raise the rings above your left hand as before, but before you lower them, remove your left thumb from under the loop. Just pull it back as you lower the rings in the same manner as before. As the rings cross your left palm, replace your thumb under the loop of rope as it was before (Figure 12). Continue pulling the rings slowly downward until the ends of the rope are pulled close to the left hand. At this point, grab the ends of rope with your left hand; with your right hand yank a couple of times on the rings to show they have linked themselves onto the

Figure 12

Figure 14

Raise your right hand and lower your left. Then let go of the rope with your left hand and grasp the two rings. The right hand releases its hold and grasps only the ring that is closest to your body. Pull the ring straight down along the rear of the rope and, when it is about halfway down, pull the ring to the right. It appears to come off the rope. 4. Steinhauer’s Two On, Then One Off Move: Let the free ring slip over the right arm and rest there. The right hand grasps the end of rope closest to your body and lifts it up. The left hand raises the ring along the rope to the position shown in Figure 15. Lower the right hand outside the


EBOOK NOOK

Figure 15

Figure 16

Figure 17

Figure 18

ring and clip the rope below the ring between the r ing and little ngers (Figure 16). The left hand folds the ring back over the right wrist (Figure 17). The left thumb is inserted in the loop between the ring and little ngers of right hand and pulls the rope down and to the left. This action pulls end A out of the ring and into the left hand (Figure 18).


With both hands, tie the two ends of the rope in a square knot, leaving about two inches of each end protruding from the knot. Pull the looped rope around until the knot is at the side of the loop. With your left hand, take hold of the ring that is over your arm and pull it down to your wrist, whereupon you take hold of both rings together and pull them off your right wrist. The right hand continues to hold on to the rope. Display the two rings linked on the rope, then let go of the rings and twirl the rope around in a circle in front of your body. As the rings swing around in a complete circle, grab them with your left hand. Hold the rings parallel to the oor and drop the loop of rope through from the top. This action will free one of the rings. Take the rings in the right hand perpendicular to the oor and with the left hand grab the bottom of the loop of rope and lift it up taut above the rings. With the right hand let go of the linked ring and pull the unlinked one free. 5. Knot Tying Demonstration: Slide the ring into the bottom section of the box on the table. Untie the knot in the rope, remove the other ring, and hang it on your left arm at the elbow. At this point the performer will give his impression of different people tying knots in a piece of rope. Then the ring routine will continue and conclude. (The knot tying interlude, which can be used as a routine by itself, is explained in great detail following the presentation of the r ing routine.) At the end of the knot tying interlude you will be left with a fake knot at the center of the rope. The right hand removes the ring from the left arm and deposits it in the lower section of the box on the table. At the same time, pick up the two linked rings from the shelf of the box. The audience will think you simply picked up the other ring and will not be aware that the rings are linked. Thread the rings on the rope. Hold the rope horizontal with the rings at the right end. Pull on the ends of the rope as you let the rings slide across the rope toward the left, and the knot will disappear as the rings slide over it. 6. Ring and Rope Release: Let the two rings slide down the rope into the left hand, which releases its end of the rope and lifts the two rings up to the position in Figure 15. (The only difference is that you are holding two rings instead of one.) Lower the right hand outside the ring and clip the rope below the ring between the fourth and little ngers (Figure 16). The left hand folds the two rings back over the right wrist (Figure 17).

The left thumb is inserted in loop between the ring and little ngers of right hand and pulls the rope down and to the left. This action pulls end A out of the rings and into the left hand (Figure 18). Thread end A through the rings from the back towards the audience (Figure 19) and tie the two ends of the rope together. The rings are apparently linked on the rope loop (Figure 20). Reach down with your

Figure 19

Figure 20

left hand and twist together several times the two strands of rope that are hanging down. Then with the left hand reach up and grasp both rings above your right wrist. Holding on to the rope with your thumb and index nger of the right hand, let go with your little nger and with your left hand pull the two rings forward over your right hand and off your arm. When the rings are off of your arm, stop your left hand and raise your right hand straight up above the left until the rope becomes taut. Don’t pull hard. Let go of the rings with your left hand. If the rope was twist ed properly, you can let the rings hang gently from the loop as if they are knotted on. Re-grasp the rings with the left hand and pull them both downward. If you jiggle the rope slightly, the rings will pull free of the loop. Let the rings slide over the left arm and hold the loop of rope in your left hand with the knot at the bottom.

7. Instantaneous Rings Knotted on Rope (Wagner): Hold the knotted rope loop in your left hand with the knot at the bottom and the t wo rings hanging on your left wrist. Your right hand reaches through the rope loop with the palm upward and grabs the two rings. With the palm still up, pull your right hand and the two rings back through the loop of rope. Pull downward to the right at an angle of about forty-ve degrees with the oor. If you pull with a quick jerk, as the rings come off of your left hand, the rings will be t rapped in a tag tie at the knot on the bottom of the rope loop. It will appear as if they were instantaneously knotted to the rope. Presentation : “I would like to have you examine this length of rope and these two rings. Make sure that they are quite ordinary in every way.” Hand out the rope and the two rings to t hree different spectators in the audience. Take back the rope. Move 1: “I am going to demonstrate to you the power of the imagination and the magic of dreams. Please toss me one ring. All I want you to do is to use your imagination to make believe you see the rope penetrating right through the ring; it looks like it does. Again, just imagine you see the ring pass right through the rope, and in your mind it actually does!” Moves 2 and 3: “May I have the other ring please? Most people believe that in order to place the two rings on the rope, I would have to place them over an end. It would be impossible to place them on the rope at the center. But in dreams anything can happen.” The t wo rings penetrate onto the rope. “They can even be placed on at the center and removed at will.” One ring comes off the rope. Move 4: “Watch as I place both rings on my arm and tie a knot in the rope, forming a closed loop. Only in the imagination can this happen!” The two rings penetrate onto the loop of rope; you then twirl the rope. “Make a wish...” Drop the rope through the rings. “...and it always comes true.” Remove the ring from the rope and slide it into the bottom section of the box on the table. Move 5: “There is another way to remove the ring from the ropes, and that is to untie the knot.” Untie the knot, remove the other ring, and slide it over the left arm to your elbow. “Speaking of knots...” Here the performer gives his impression of different types of people tying knots in a piece of rope. The instructions and patter are below. After the knot segment, the ring routine continues. “With the aid of these two rings (switch

rings) and your imagination, just like all your troubles, the knot vanishes.” Move 6: “And the power is great. Watch! Just twist the rope and make a wish.” Pull the two rings off of the loop of rope. Move 7: “But not many people know that a knot once tied has within itself a strange and wonderful power that can bind two rings such as these .” Pull the two rings through the loop with a jerk, linking them on the knot. “But alas, when you untie the knot the dream fades.” Untie the knot and drape the rope over the left arm. “But even in reality, dreams come true.” Spin the rings on your right index nger. Grab one ring and let the other drop, showing it to be linked to the rst. “I hope yours do, too.”

clockwise direction perpendicular to the oor. When you are ready to tie the knot, lift end A with your left hand; with your right hand swing end B up under the length AC, on the performer’s side. Grab end B between the index and middle ngers of your right hand. Let go with your left hand and display the knot.

KNOT TYING DEMONSTRATION [Note: All page numbers given here are references to Abbott’s Encyclopedi a of Rope Tricks (ERT). Seven knots are described therein. Variations of those knots are described below.]

Preliminary Knot: The Lightning Knot on page 20 of ERT . 1. Cowboy: Hold end A, hanging down, in the left hand. The right hand throws a circular loop parallel to the oor, below end A (Figure 1), and lifts up, raising the loop around end A (Figure 2). The left hand holds still and drops end A, thus forming the knot (Figure 3). The right hand retains its hold on end B. 2. Swinger: This is a variation of the One-Handed Knot ( ERT , page 19). Hold the rope as in Figure 4. Twirl end B like an airplane propeller, but slowly, in a

3. Elevator Operator: Hold the rope with the thumb and index nger of your left hand at A and the thumb and index nger of your right hand at end B (Figure 5). Cross end A behind end B and put the last three ngers of each hand inside the loop from the back (Figure 6). Stretch your hands apart (Figure 7). With your left hand, lift loop C up behind end A and pinch end A between the m iddle and r ing ngers (Figure 8). Lift your right hand, keeping the rope stretched, so that the rope is in a vertical position with t he right hand above the left. Turn your left side toward the audience. Raise your right hand even higher as you release your left middle and ring ngers. Hold the left hand still and keep raising your right hand. A loop (the elevator) will climb up the rope. When it gets near the top, drop the loop off the last two ngers of your right hand. Now repeat the entire operation again, except when you raise your right hand for the elevator to rise, instead of releasing your left middle and ring ngers, keep pinching the rope between those two ngers and, instead, release end A with your left thumb and index ngers. This time a knot will climb up the rope. 4. William Tell: Hold end A in your left hand; hold end B in your right hand. Bring end B around behind end A (Figure 9). Open your left index nger and put end B in the crotch of the index and middle ngers. Now pull end B down and under your left thumb (Figure 10). Continue pulling end B towards you, like pulling back an arrow in a bow, as the loop gets smaller (Figure 11). Before the loop, or target, gets too


EBOOK NOOK

small, stop and apply pressure with your left thumb against your middle ngers, pinching the rope and preventing it from sliding any more. With your right hand, pull on end B, stretching the rope in the direction of the arrow in Figure 11. Suddenly, let end B slip out of your right ngers. End B will shoot through the loop. As it does, the left hand opens its middle, ring, and little ngers and holds the rope only with the thumb and index nger. A knot should be hanging at the middle of the rope.


5. Royal Mounted Police Chief : This knot is similar to the Cowboy Knot, except you keep end A short and instead of throwing the circular loop parallel to the oor, you throw it per pendicular to the oor and thr ust your left st through the loop toward the audience. A handcuff-like knot will form on your left wrist. Let go with your right hand and grab end A with your thumb and index nger. While holding end A with your right ngers, reach down and with the same hand lift the knot off the left wrist. When the left hand is pulled free, the right hand drops the knot while still holding on to end A to display the knot on the rope. 6. Wishful Thinker: Hold the rope with end A in your left hand and end B in your right hand. Lay end B across end A and, with your left thumb and forenger, pinch the two ends where they cross at C (Figure 12). Let go with your right hand, reach down, and grasp the loop at D with your ngers underneath and your right thumb through the loop in the direction of the arrow. Lift loop D and drop it over end A (Figures 13 and 14). The right hand grasps end A while the left hand holds end B. Drop the middle of the rope; no knot appears. Repeat the same movements a second time; still no knot appears. The third time, you apparently follow the same movements, but this time you follow Figures 15, 16, and 17. Notice that your right thumb goes through the loop the opposite way. This time, at the end, when you drop the middle of the rope, a knot will appear. 7. Mr. Forgetful: Chefalo’s Vanishing Knot is explained on page 30 of Abbott’s Encyclopedia . Figures 18, 19, and 20 show a variation. In the patter that follows, the knot is referred to as “four knots.” The rst knot is tied as in Figure 18. The second knot is tied as in Figure 19. The right hand holds ends A and B while the left hand grasps the bottom loop and turns the whole rope in a clockwise direction 180 degrees. The rope is upside-down as in Figure 20. The right hand lets go of the ends, and then takes end B and threads it through knot C and knot D, as you call these the third and fourth knots. Continue holding end B in your right hand and let go with your left. Jiggle the rope up and down and the knots will slowly unravel and disappear. 8. Mr. Exaggerator: Three knots are tied as in Any Number of Knots ( ERT , page 23). The knots are untied as described in Gone Again ( ERT , page 35). 9. Freeway Knot Tier: This is G.W. Hunter’s Puzzle Knot ( ERT , page 17). The knot is apparently tied without letti ng go of the ends of the rope. 10. Mr. Efciency: This knot is tied in the rope with one hand. Hold the rope in your right hand as in Figure 21. The palm is toward the left. Now lift your right hand and bring it smartly down, turning your palm down, as you follow the motion shown in the insert of Figure 22. When your hand reaches the position shown, abruptly stop it. Your index nger can strike the rope but it is not essential. A large loop will form above your hand and the bottom end of the rope will kick up through the loop, forming a knot. 11. Mr. Perfection: This is the Tenkai Rope through Neck ( ERT , page 58). 12. Mr. Accidental: This knot is The Magic Shoelaces ( ERT , page 31). Patter: “Did you ever notice that everyone has his own special way of doing things? No two people do things alike...even little things like tying an ordinary knot. With your imagination and my ability to tie a simple overhand knot, I would like to give you impression of different types of knot tiers.” Tie the preliminary

Lightning Knot. “First we have the cowboy from Texas tying a knot with his lariat. (Tie knot 1.) This is my impression of a swinger having a swinging good time – tying a knot in a piece of rope. (Tie knot 2.) Here’s an elevator operator – going up. Second oor, ladies ready-to-wear, jewelry, ears pierced while you wait. (Begin knot 3. The loop ascends the rope, but no knot forms.) Here’s the same elevator operator tying a knot in a piece of rope – going up! (The loop ascends the rope and the knot appears.) “Next, William Tell shooting an apple off of his son’s head while tying a knot in a rope. (Tie knot 4). The Royal Canadian Mounted Police always get their man – and a knot in the rope at the same time. (Tie knot 5.) Here’s a wishful thinker tying a knot in a piece of rope. (Begin knot 6. The rst time, no knot appears.) A wishful thinker tying a knot in a... (Again, no knot appears.) Oh, I forgot. A wishful thinker simply makes a wish. I wish I had a knot!” (The third time, the knot appears.) “Mr. Forgetful ties a knot in a piece of rope and then so that he won’t forget that he tied the knot, he ties a second knot. Just so that he doesn’t forget about the second knot, he ties a third and a fourth knot. (Tie knot 7). But even after tying four knots in the rope, sometimes he forgets that he tied them, the rope forgets it’s tied in a knot, and the knot forgets that it is a knot. That’s what’s known as a forget-me-knot!” (The knot disintegrates.) “Next we have Mr. Exaggerator. He can’t tie a single knot in a piece of rope without exaggerating and telling everyone he tied three knots at the same time. (Tie knot 8). The freeway knot tier can only t ie a knot while he’s driving on the freeway. Perhaps some you passed him on the way here this evening. He gets on the on-ramp, goes over the overpass, under the underpass, and off the off-ramp with letting go of the steer ing wheel.” (Tie knot 9, going in and out of the openings in the rope in accordance with the patter.) “Mr. Efciency doesn’t need two hands to tie a knot in a piece of rope. In fact, he can tie a knot with one hand tied behind his back. (Put your left hand behind your back.) Watch...Mr. Efciency tying a knot with one hand.” (Tie knot 10). “In order for Mr. Perfection to tie a knot, he needs a perfect set of instructions. (Make believe you are recalling the instructions as you tie knot 11). Let’s see, A goes over B; B goes around C; and C goe s through D. At this point, I either end the demonstration or I get a knot in the rope.” (Pull the knot through your neck.) “Finally, we have Mr. Accidental. He cannot tie a knot in a piece of rope to save his life...except accidentally. He ties his shoelaces in a bow, and during the day the ends get tangled in the bow. At night, when he tries to untie them, he gets a nasty knot – accidentally.” (Tie knot 12 and return to the ring routine.)  (Drawings by Lawrence Steinhauer)


INFORMED OPINION LATEST PRODUCT REVIEWS Compiled and Edited by W. S. Duncan A SERIES OF U NFORTUNATE EFFECTS DVD BY BEN TRAIN AND CHRIS MAYHEW

lm with commentary by Train and Mayhew, and the obligatory outtakes. The Special Features disc has the layman-safe version Distributed by Murphy’s Magic Supplies of the lm and a wonderful visit and interview with Judy and Price $39.95 Tom Dawson. Judy and Tom are playing-card collectors and the backbone of 52 + Jokers, the premier playing-card collectors association. They have a real passion for the subject and share REVIEW BY MARC DESOUZA examples from their collection, as well as information about the When I rst heard about this new history of playing cards. Finally, there is a beautifully designed DVD, I was very excited to watch it. And and printed booklet that has biographies of the cast and crew, happily it delivered on its promises. A credits for all of the effects taught, and written explanations for a Series of Unfortunate Effects is a project couple of the tricks. I really enjoyed everything about this project perpet rated by Ben Train and Chris and highly recommend it to you. I hope they are already planning Mayhew, but they are aided and abetted Another Series of Unfortunate Effects . by a host of their friends both in front of, and in back of, the camera. If there is THE ART OF PRESENTING MAGIC TO TEENAGERS more to come from this team of collabo- THREE-DVD SET rators, put in your order now. BY DANNY ORLEANS As a reviewer of products for this Available from: www.DannyOrleansMagic.com magazine, I am often sent DVD products Price $129.00 to view and report on. I can tell you that there have been a number of times that I have dreaded t hat process. REVIEW BY JIM KLEEFELD Despite the fact that the effects might be well worth learning and even when the on-screen talent is reasonably entertaining, This three-disc set follows up on the explanations are generally rather dry, almost like reading a Orleans’s last effort, The Art of Presenting Magic to Children . It consists of textbook. In fact, I have threatened, half jokingly, to establish a new rating system called the “Z scale,” with each Z representing a neat and attractive set of three discs the number of evenings it took me to get through the disc, because lled with a wealth of material. There I fell asleep. I am happy to report that this project got no Zs and are several videos and a great deal of there is a good reason why. printed matter (well, PDFs, to be precise) I had Train and Mayhew in to do a dual lecture at my house that show, clarify, and teach how to craft last year. It was one of the best planned and delivered lectu res I’ve a stand-up show for teens. First, you get seen. They established characters, interplay, and structure. They to see Orleans present a live, forty-ve performed and explained some very ne magic and along the way minute show to an audience of about talked about a number of theoretical and performance issues. a hundred kids, roughly ages eleven All of it was done in a playful and entertaining way. I expected to seventeen. Following this is a video nothing less from this DVD project. with a thorough explanation of the tricks and routines. Next is a This is a movie. Not one that is going to win an Academy lengthy video commentary on the show with Danny and profesAward, but head and shoulders above anything that you’ve seen sional educator and child psychology expert Michael Brandwine in magic. The featured players include Train and Mayhew, along discussing what behaviors and techniques are being used to create with some other talented Canadian magicians, including Chris the best possible show for this age group. Also included on the set Westfall, Jeff Hinchliffe, and Glenn West, all of whom perform is a studio interview of Orleans by Mac King. and teach some great card magic. West’s color-changing deck The show Orleans presents is excellent and should be viewed is certainly a stand-out and one I have already started working carefully with an eye towards his approach to teens, and his on, and Hinchliffe shows some superlative thinking in both of selection of material. He stresses the importance of selecting his routines. Lee Asher (a Canadian by marriage) and Bill Abbott carefully. As John Carney has said, the difference between a pro(playing a really creepy character) make special appearances. It is fessional and an amateur is the number of choices he makes. You a low budget lm, but it doesn’t really look low budget, and there may not want to replicate his routines, but you can learn a lot is a fun plot and everyone seems to be having a great time with it. about choosing the right tricks as well as presentation of those It moves along at a fast pace and they have integrated the magic choices by watching how he scripts them and by listening to his well. There is a second version of the movie included that leaves rationale. He begins with some silent body magic, odd tricks out the explanations, so you can show it to your laymen friends. I and quirks of mime that the audience focuses on intently. Then haven’t watched it yet, but I will li kely share it with some Muggles he explains a little about what he will present, and moves into a this summer. Spot Card/What’s Next routine. He uses some instructional patter Within this beautifully packaged set you will nd two discs. to move into Torn and Restored Napkins, and segues neatly into The rst disc includes the lm, an alternate version of the full Paper Balls over the Head. He follows with a Pseudo-psychome-


try routine wherein he divines which of his four helpers put what object into which of four paper lunch bags. He closes with a fairly standard Dove Bag production and Genii Tube silk transposition. Between each segment, he is constantly giving elucidating patter about how magicians take advantage of natural psychology through misdirection. These patter segments help the students to feel like they are participating in an educational lecture rather than a kiddie magic show. The videos are professionally shot with multiple cameras, expertly edited, and have slick transitions. In addition to the videos, there is a folder full of written material. One of the les is his complete show script word for word, accompanied by annotations of his actions and behaviors. The script is so thorough it takes twenty-one pages to detail the forty-ve-minute act. Six of the written les are complete instructions on how to make some of the props and equipment he uses. Eight others are information les itemizing various performance techniques, alternate trick suggestions, resources, and more. There are also ve “bonus” videos with additional tricks, routines, even a vintage Orleans act from 1992. The Art of Presenting Magic to Teens is aptly titled. Orleans is intelligent, thoughtful, and knowledgeable about the age group. He does not just perform magic, he presents it. And he treats his performance like an art. Over and over he stresses the differences between presenting a show for teens and one for children. His advice is solid, practical, and vital to a successful performance. He certainly does not approach this with the do-it-get-paid-andget-out attitude that many performers have towards young adult groups. Anyone who works shows for the eleven-to-seventeenyear-old crowd should watch and study this important set for the valuable advice it holds. While I highly recommend this product as a whole, there were a couple of points where Danny and I would disagree. I would not have closed this modern and educationally oriented show with a dated and old-fashioned dove production and magic shop prop. After an adult-like routine of torn and restored paper napkins and a cerebral mental routine using found objects and ordinary lunch bags, he brings out a top hat, a zippered cloth bag with a red tassel, and a chromed Genii Tube lled with colored silks. It feels like a step backwards from where he has been heading throughout the show. Even the volunteer helping him looks awkward and uncomfortable handling these traditional magic shop props. My other point of contention is that while his show is quite successful at his venue (and I have no doubt that he comes across very well whenever he works this crowd), his style and approach simply will not work for everyone. His routines work partly because he is older and conservative in both dress and manner. If you are younger, brash, active, have a cool or hip persona, or dress wild and wacky, you may need a very different approach. I speak from experience, because I have been marketing to teen groups for many years and have a very different type of show. My young adult shows, Tales From Beyond and Ohio Spirits, are dark and mysterious with a ghostly, almost sinister air and I get lots of repeat bookings. Despite our different approaches, I did pick up several very valuable tips from this set. Danny Orleans has assembled a terric package of information t hat is well worth the price and your i nvestment of time. Anyone who works shows will want to buy, view, review, and study this wonderful compilation of material on working with t eenagers. If you do most of your shows for children, you will be surprised and pleased to nd ways in which you can expand your market and get more shows by offering to work for this older group. If you perform mostly for adults, you will be

pleased to nd that much of the material here is solid informat ion about presentation that can be applied to that age group as well. There is a ton of material to absorb here, and I suggest you view it in segments with some time in between to absorb the details and process your thi nki ng. The Art of Presenting Magic to Teenagers is a signicant work that could substantially increase your base of practical information. If you do shows, get it, study it, and learn from the lessons. LIAR : THE ULTIMATE COMEDY LIE DETECTOR R OUTINE TRICK BY R OBERT BAXT

Distributed by Murphy’s Magic Supplies Price: $49.95 REVIEW BY DAVID GOODSELL

As Robert Baxt explains on this instructional DVD, the idea of a lie detector whose alarm is controlled by the performer or his off-stage assistant has been around a long time. The performer asks a helper from the audience a number of questions; sup posedly, if the answers are true, nothing happens. If the helper is lying, a bell rings, a light ashes, a buzzer sounds, or sometimes a combination happens. By asking questions that are fun ny when the spectator “lies,” laughs occur. That is, it should be obvious that it doesn’t matter if the helper is lying or not, the performer controls the sound of the lie detector. Examples: Are you good at your job? Answer, “Yes.” Buzz. To a little kid: “Are you married?” Answer: “No!” Buzz. Are you a good boy/girl? Buzz. Or, for example, the performer says, “You know, I’m one of the greatest magicians in the world.” Buzz. “In the country.” Buzz. “Alright! In this room!” Maybe Buzz, maybe not. You get the idea. With the DVD you receive a special device that lets you control the sounding of the alarm without being detected. On the included DVD Bob explains several ways this can be used and shows you how to make a variety of props for the device. One that might appeal to you is the DETECTOR, which is a hand-held device with a long sign on the end of it that says “DETECTOR,” made from a ashlight and some craft foam. It looks like it might be the real thing. If you are into steam punk, Bob has a nifty device for that, as well. In any case, there are enough options to please most everyone. Bob kicks off the demonstrations with a nice video of Mike Bliss working with a kid on a cruise ship show. His “Detector” is a hand-held lantern that buzzes and ashes when a “lie” is told. This is really quite funny, and shows what can be accomplished if you nd a kid with the right personality. Bob also presents several of his own video clips that show how it plays not only with youngsters, but also teenagers and adults. Finally, if you open Bob’s DVD folder on your computer you will nd a twenty-four-page PDF with many of the same ideas and gag lines. These will help you plan your own routi ne. Be forewarned, some of the lines are pretty risqué, but Bob has warned you of those, and so have I. While none of the routines involved a magic trick per se, it would be easy to adapt it to a chosen card, etc., and weave that into the conclusion of the routine. It is a little pricey at $49.95, but what you are paying for is an item right from Robert Baxt’s


professional show. It is tested. It is successful. It is good comedy. If you put this into your own show, it is likely you will consider the price a bargain. MANOJ BOTTLE DVD BY MANOJ K AUSHAL

AND PROP

Distributed by Murphy’s Magic Supplies Price $24.95 REVIEW BY MARC DESOUZA

most miraculous of effects. Over the years many devices have been introduced to replace the card box. Chief among these is the Himber wallet. But again, this required introducing an ancillary prop into the routine, which drew unwanted attention and potentially diminished the effect. After all, if one needed to isolate a card for some reason, why not just place it face down on the table instead of sealing it away in a wallet

There have been a number of coin or cap in or envelope? bottle effects that have been released in These problems have now been solved; Antonio Romero has the last ve or six years. Most of them managed to replace the card box with, well, a card box. That look fairly similar and have similar is to say, he’s replaced the old metal or wood card box with a methods. There are usually trade- gimmicked box that appears for all intents and purposes to be a offs in “conditions” for each of standard Bicycle card box. You can even keep your cards in it. them. Here is a different approach It has a magnetic ap that allows you to freely handle the to the plot. A borrowed coin, ring, “empty” box without fear of the hidden object maki ng an untimely pen, or similar sized object can be appearance. This ap is dislodged ala the Chop Cup by dropping made to instantly penetrate into a plastic the box onto the table. A couple of inches is all it needs; done water bottle held in full view. Here are casually it should not raise the slightest bit of suspicion. Once the some points to note. The actual object is in ap falls it is magnetically locked in place. So you can have a the bottle, even an object larger than the mouth of card selected, placed into the card box, then, after the approprithe bottle. The object can be signed. The bottle can be examined ate amount of time misdirection, the card can freely be dumped before and after (okay, a cursory look before the penetration). You out on the table. No one will be any the wiser that it has just been can have water in the bottle and pour it out before the effect. switched for the other card. Because it locks magnetical ly and still After looking at the package, before viewing the DVD, I was allows the magician to move the ap from one side to the other at ready to hate this. The “props” supplied are minimal: ordinary your whim, you can pretty much do any routine with the Romero things that you can easily get at an ofce supply store or hardware Box that you could do with a traditional card box. store. They could have just released this as a DVD or a download. And because it is magnetic, it can also be used to pick up small Once I started watching the DVD, I quickly changed my mind. shimmed objects from the table or even the spectator’s hand, These are startling visual effects. Objects just seem to pass making it a very versatile prop indeed. The box won’t stand up through the bottle. You need to cut it open to get the object out in to anything more than visual perusal, so it can’t be handed out many cases. If not, you could use the bottle several times before for examination. But it’s a common everyday object; if properly you need to prepare another. When you have to prepare a bottle, handled it shouldn’t raise the slightest bit of suspicion. depending on which handling you choose to use, it can be done It resets in an instant; in most cases the reset even be done in thir ty seconds or less. There are no moves to learn, just a little right in front of the audience. My only complaint is that it’s made knack that is easily acquired. You can get up to speed in less than of cardboard, so it will wear the same as a standard card box. one hour (heck, maybe even less than ten minutes) to make this Because it is slightly thicker than a standard deck of cards it will effect look good. not t in a card clip. So you’ll just have to be extra careful with Kaushal has done a marvelous job in teaching all of the it. Otherwise, if you’ve been looking for a substitute for the tradihandlings. From setup to performance, everything is crystal clear tional card box, the Romero Box will t the bill nicely. and easily understood. This is not something you would likely use in your regular show repertoire, but what a great “impromptu” MC SANDWICH TRICK effect for your friends and coworkers, especially with summer BY MICKAEL CHATELAIN upon us. I really like this product and think you will too. Highly Distributed by Murphy’s Magic Supplies Price $35.00 recommended. R OMERO BOX UTILITY ITEM BY A NTONIO R OMERO

Available from: www.RomeroMagic.com Distributed by Murphy’s Magic Supplies Price $60.00 REVIEW BY PAYNE

The card box is a utility prop that is probably as old as card magic itself. As old and distinguished as its lineage is, it is a prop that is rarely seen or used these days. Perhaps it is viewed as an outdated and antiquated device that, due to its anomalous nature, immediately draws undo attention. This is sad, because it is a marvelous device that, when used properly, can accomplish the


REVIEW BY W.S. DUNCAN

Advertisements for magic tricks with playing cards like to proclaim that the method doesn’t use roughand-smooth prepared cards. That proclamation has become so common that it’s something of a joke among smart workers. Recently, a disclaimer has also begun to appear saying the mechanism doesn’t use double-stick tape. MC Sandwich doesn’t use double-stick tape, or rough-and-smooth. Sadly, it would be considerably improved if

it did. MC Sandwich uses another old-as-the-hills mechanism, updated with modern parts (which to be fair are amazingly light and thin), to hide/vanish a playing card. This allows you to perform Bill Goldman’s Monkey in the Middle sandwich effect using a “different method.” Note that I did not write “a better method,” or a “less expensive method.” Those who know Goldman’s effect (Darwin Or tiz uses it to end his A mbitious Card) will appreciate that this is a very strong effect. If you’re not sure, a quick search of the Internet will provide video clips to see MC Sandwich. It’s visually impressive. The problem is that the new technology used here is in no meaningful way better. The special “something” that makes the trick work protrudes from the surface of the cards, and can be felt as you run your ngers across their faces, so you probably wouldn’t put the cards into someone’s hands unless you feel like you are really in control. And unlike rough-and-smooth, there is a tiny (about a playing card’s thickness) space between the cards that would not be there with rough-and-smooth. Additionally, while ambient room noise will almost certainly cover it (because laymen probably won’t associate the sound with playing cards), you can hear an audible click as the mechanism works (even over the sound of the TV across the room and the other person who is also typing as you write your review). The gaff is fun to play around with, but after doing so, I can think of no effect that can be done with these cards that can’t be done with double-stick tape or rough-and-smooth cards. The only advantage of this gaff, that I can see, is that when you handle the cards people who know about rough-and-smooth and double-st ick tape won’t see the tells associated with those methods. Since real audiences don’t see those things anyway, I can’t imagine why I would choose this method over those. I do a sleight-of-hand version of this effect (a variant of David Regal’s Primate). It’s not a difcult trick to do without gaffs. Adding the gaff used by Mr. Goldman makes the trick impossibly clean and eliminates even the minor technical demands imposed by Primate. I can’t recommend taking this trick backwards in method, especially when it costs $35. DEFIANCE DVD AND PROPS BY MARIANO GONI

Distributed by Murphy’s Magic Supplies Price $40 REVIEW BY JIM KLEEFELD

prop and watch this DVD t o d iscover how to give it a better (or different) presentation. If you think you have seen all the tips and know all the secrets to oating a bill, you are wrong. There are both methods a nd effects here that are new, novel, and among the most puzzli ng I’ve ever seen. Can you toss a playing card or credit card towards your spectators, have it spin towards them, stop in mid-air, and continue spinning while you pass a hoop around it? Goni demonstrates this. On the video, Goni teaches his set-up for oating a bill and the handling for many variations. I guarantee that a couple of them will raise your eyebrows and make you go “hmmm.” Imagine visibly oating a wad of tissue paper in the ai r, and slowly bringing a lighter towards it. Now imagine that the paper explodes in a ball of re and immediately transforms into a crumpled bill that is still oating in mid-air. This effect looks great. Besides the basic instructions, there are plenty of tips and suggestions. Goni discusses audience management, backlighting, clothing considerations, working outdoors, hook-ups, anchors, and more. You are bound to discover some great suggestions you can use in your performance, even if you do not switch over to the oating gimmick included in this package. Oh, and about that. It is a little larger and longer than many others of this ilk. You can still secure it to your clothes, but you may have to wear a jacket to cover the bul k. Some of Goni’s methods involve having the gimmick secured someplace other than on your person, which brings me to the potential snag. The most puzzling and magical effects here require secret prepa ration. That is, you have to pre-set the gimmick in a room without your spectators seeing you do so. In addition, many of those same methods and set-ups have serious audience movement limitations. The spinning and oating credit card looks fantastic on lm, but will work only if you, the spectators, and the set gimm ick are all in specic locations. The illusion of oating (and possibly your gimm ick) could be destroyed if one of your spectators moves around. Goni sets this up and explains it well in his living room with no one around but the camera operator. Can you demand conditions like that for your performances? Like many of the new wave of magic effects from the past couple of years, this effect looks stunning from t he particular camera shot. Getting it set up and working for live people may be a whole different ball game. The clear, clean video instructions are well-shot and professionally edited, but in this case the ne camera work only serves to stress the fact that you are watching, well, camera work. That is, the trick looks great from one specic angle and distance. There may be times, places, and settings where you can make your oating look as good as it does on this disc. But real-world workers will nd the physical requirements very limiting. Bottom line: If you are into ITR work or want to seriously study close-up oating techniques, this is well worth your consideration. If you are looking for a true miracle you can take anywhere, this isn’t it.

Mariano Goni is a clever and deep thinker. He has released several notable products that demonstrate creativity and effort. Deance should add to his reputation and CAKES AND ADDERS TRICK might enhance your ability to oat or BY R ICKY MCLEAD AND GARY DUNN levitate any number of small objects. Distributed by Murphy’s Magic Supplies You will have to work a bit for it, though. Price $33.50 poker size/$41.70 jumbo cards Basically, you are getting a familiar but improved gimmick and some seriously REVIEW BY DAVID GOODSELL helpful lessons in its application. This version of the miniature oating gimmick is adjustable, repairable, and rellThis clever and effective children’s routine had its origination able. It has variable tension, can be used to oat heavier objects in a Fred Kaps card trick. Mr. Dunn witnessed the great Mr. Kaps further distances and is mountable on objects, walls, tables, perform it at a lecture and saw the potential for the routine that he, clothing, and more. If you have a favorite oating effect that uses and his pal “Tricky” Ricky, have been performing for some time. a bill, a cigarette, or a playing card, you will want to examine this The full routine, with necessary gimmicked cards, is released


through World Magic Shop. It is ideal for a child’s birthday party show. The performer says that for his fth birthday he had a big cake with ve candles on it, and he shows the faces of ve colorful (poker-size) cards, each with a colorful birthday candle on it – except the last one. It has a picture of a snake. With suitable fun, the snake card is disposed of and the performer recalls his fourth birthday, when he had a cake with four candles. But one is that pesky snake card again. This continues until only one card is left, and it turns out to have, not a candle, and not a snake, but a picture of a bir thday cake. In the DVD routine “Tricky” Ricky concludes by pointing out that the birthday cake does not have any candles on it. He just happens to have a package (a can) of candles. When he opens it, out pops three spring snakes! Yes, there is all the standard fun with the kids, for Ricky is a seasoned performer. The trick is a good one, and with each reappearance of the pesky snake card, un known to the performer, of course, the kids go nuts pointing at the snake. Please note that the snake can does not come with the trick. What you do receive are the well-made cards, and the instructional DVD. Cakes and Adders packs small, plays big, as they say, and is a fun addit ion for a small-fry show.

Paul Harris. What could go wrong? Mr. Fiedler’s classic concept has been artistically re-rendered by the talented Mr. Wong and produced by the ever prolic Mr. Harris. At long last the props make sense. The large die has been replaced by a parcel – a plain white box covered with labels and postage. This is ope ned to nd a nice red-and-yellow, striped gift box inside. The gift box is opened to reveal a deck of cards, a length of rope, or whatever bit of magic you wish to introduce next. In the classic Gozinta fashion, after the trick is over, the prop is put into the parcel box, which is then placed into the gift box, which is then put back into your case. A day after receiving this for review I tried it out in a free show we do here in Seattle every month. I used it to introduce David Regal’s Mindball, which ts nicely inside the box with plenty of room to spare. As I put the ball back into the box, I didn’t say anything to draw attention to the fact that the boxes were going back together i n the reverse order. When I ended up wit h the gift box now on the outside of the parcel box it had arrived in, it got a marvelous “what the heck?” reaction from the crowd, with one kid actually crying out, “Wait, that was on the outside!” I really like this trick. I don’t know about you, but for me there are far more patter and storyline possibilities with a parcel and a gift box then there are with a large cardboard die. I was far more attracted and excited by this conguration of the props than I had ever been with the original version. The boxes are well designed. The red-and-yellow striping of the gift box perfectly camouages the size discrepancy that happens when it becomes the outside box. The parcel provides LUBOR ’S GIFT TRICK you with the perfect justication for introducing the box in the BY LUBOR FIEDLER Available from: PaulHarrisPresents.com rst place. You just received this new item in the mai l. What could Distributed by Murphy’s Magic Supplies be more perfect than that? Yes, the boxes are still made out of Price $99.95 cardboard. But it’s quality material that has been laminated, so it should stand up for years of careful use. If you’re one of those performers who are rough on their props or haphazardly throw REVIEW BY PAYNE things in your case during your show, buy a spare. I am pretty sure that nearly everyone You get a DVD with the care and handling of the prop as well who is reading this review has a set of as a couple of routine suggestions. But I’m sure with this logical Gozinta Boxes somewhere in their collec- adaptation of these boxes you won’t have any difculty coming up tion of magic props. I’m also pretty sure with new and novel routines of your own. that while some of you might use them from time to time, most probably don’t. I ICONIC DVD AND PROPS know I toyed with them for a while before BY SHIN LIM relegating them to the bottom drawer of Distributed by Murphy’s Magic Supplies my Cabinet of Disused Curiosities. We all Price $80.00 marveled at the topological cleverness of these impossible little plastic boxes, but REVIEW BY MARC DESOUZA try as we might, we could never come up with a suitable presentation, let alone a logical justication for Welcome back to arts and crafts time introducing the prop into our performances. For most of us, it with Shin Lim. In this not inexpensive simply remained a curious and out of place puzzle. package, you receive a DVD, two very This became even more problematic when the boxes were realistic iPhone 5s (one plastic, one metal), made into an oversized die and the box it came in. There simply and a variety of bits and pieces you will was no reason for such an object to exist in the real world. Thus use to create the gimmicks for the six main its introduction alone raised suspicion. Even the kicker ending of effects and the bonus effects described having the die change into an even more incongruous box of tea within. There is extensive DIY work at the end couldn’t provide this prop with the logical justication required and you will need to purchase that so many of us look for these days when contemplating adding additional materials, including more fake a routine to our programs. iPhones, if you wish to perform all of the But for those of you who loved the idea of this trick and who effects. searched in vain for all these years for a suitable version to put Most of the effects are very visual and some of them are very into your act, seek no more. The presentational problem has at good. You can make the Apple logo move around on the surface long last been solved. Lubor’s Gift is a magical gift to us all. It’s a of the phone without touching it or cause the camera on the phone fantastic collaboration between Lubor Fiedler, Andrew Wong, and to vanish from one end and reappear on the other. You can take a


bite out of the side of the phone and make it visibly reappear, in the silver or gold iPhone 5. There are some the manner of the Quarter Bite trick popularized by David Blaine extra things provided that will required a many years ago. bit of DIY to get into working condition Borrow an iPhone and “accidently” drop it on the ground. You so that you can actually accomplish the show the cracked screen; you then shake the phone and it visibly effect. On the DVD, which has the same restores. Cause a phone to vanish or change into another object. rambling, freeform style of teaching that All of this and more are possible with this product. we have come to know from Shin Lim, he Again, it will ta ke considerable time, effort, and more money to goes through the arts and crafts required construct these gimmicks. Shin Lim teaches you all of the details to create the gimmicks and then explains of construction and some of the handlings in his usual rambling how to use them. style (which drives me nuts, if you hadn’t already guessed that by From a technical standpoint, the DVD now – hasn’t this guy ever heard of a script?). The video is shot is just okay. I really dislike the TV screen on his now familiar “set,” but thankfully this time, Shin provides he has to his side that we are supposed to look at for close-up more detailed close-ups of the construction. views of some of the work. The close-up shot is just not close-up There are some terric ideas here, but it seems like some of enough. Otherwise, the video and audio are just ne and serve the these effects are not quite nished. You will need to do additional purpose. I t hink that if he act ually scripted the explanations, they R&D, as well as tweaking the handlings and performances. If you could be done in half the time. are willing to put in the t ime, effort, and thinki ng, you could have My big beef is with the trailer. He does the effect in the trailer some great magic that will bafe and entertain your audiences. with an iPhone that is actually working and he changes screens before the transformation to a clear iPhone. This is simply not possible, and is an out and out cheat. Lim has been cal led on this SHOCK TWIST TRICK before; if he continues to create traile rs showing unworkable conBY GARY JONES ditions, I will no longer purchase or review his products. Price: $20.00 Concerning the performance teaching portions, the one thing Distributed by Murphy’s Magic Supplies this hinges on is switching out the borrowed phone for the gaffed set-up. Lim’s switches are not very good. I don’t think any of REVIEW BY DAVID GOODSELL them would pass scrutiny in most performance situations. If you The performer shows four cards of the can come up with a good switch and a good method of reproducsame value, but of differing suits. Pointing ing the borrowed phone or restoring it, you would have a killer to the top one, he asks if the spectators effect. If you are willing to commit to nding ways to overcome would like to see it turn over. A bit of those issues, I would recommend this to you, because it is a good humorous byplay follows, then magically, starting point with a cool prop. It is just not nished yet. one by one, the cards do, indeed, turn face down. The nal card is placed face up on DEFLECT TRICK the face-down packet. The other three BY SULKOR cards magically turn face up! Finally, the Distributed by Murphy’s Magic Supplies performer shows that the cards, which Price $35.00 have been clearly seen to have blue backs, now have four different colored ba cks! REVIEW BY NORMAN BECK This is a strong trick and very entertaining. The DVD shows a real-time presentation as well as full In Deect we have another one-trick instructions. Jones is also very thorough with his coverage of the DVD. This one comes with enough Elmsley count, explaining how it can have further applications, parts to construct ten gaffs, plus a card as well. Credit is given to a Derek Dingle effect from the 1980s. box that you must put together. I am The DVD runs only ten minutes, but that is all you will need for getting tired of tricks that you must put a great, walk-around packet effect. You receive the DVD instructogether. I think that if you sell me a tions and necessary cards, a couple of which are special. This will trick, I should be able to take it out of the be twenty dollars well spent. box and start working on learni ng it. In the case of Deect , you can’t do that. You ICLEAR DVD AND PROPS are not even given a deck of cards with the DVD, only the card box. I would also point out that BY SHIN LIM Distributed by Shin Lim in order to do this effect you must be careful and save the plastic wrapper that Bicycle cards come in. Price $49.95 I don’t understand the thinking behind this product. If you sell me a trick that can’t be done with the props you provide, and you REVIEW BY MARC DESOUZA expect me to go out and buy a specic brand of cards to match Shin Lim has worked our ngers to the bone with playing your gimmick, and I have to assemble the product, and I have to cards and smoke. Now he tackles iPhones. In this simple, clear be careful and keep the plastic covering of the deck, you might effect (ouch), he borrows an iPhone, places it on the spectator’s charge me less than $35. hand, and tu rns it into a clear iPhone. Variations to the basic effect The instructional DVD has no instructional audio, only music are also explained. This is good visual magic, but with a price and subtitles. I also felt short-changed by the lack of instruction. to pay. First, the clear iPhone looks beautiful and is a compel- I am the sort that likes to see actual real-time, live performances ling prop that people will want to look at. It is available to match of tricks.


So what is the actual effect? You write something on the side no expense in your efforts to entertain them. of the card box on the plastic wrapper, and it visibly changes You receive twenty-two cards, one gimmick, a rubber band, a with a shake of the box. The actual change can be one of your template for the gift box, and a bilingual (English\French) set of making. You could write “Four of Spades” on the side and after instr uctions. Rells for this effect are available for $9 and contain a little shake, it will read something else. Speaking as a regular forty replacement cards, making the trick pennies to do. This is a worker, I would never put a trick in my pocket that requires that small price to pay for the gift of holiday magic it bestows. I maintain the integrity of the plastic covering that is designed to be thrown away when you open the deck. But then again, I would THE CARBONARO EFFECT TV SHOW never use Ring Flight or invisible thread. I don’t like things that BY TRUTV break at inopportu ne times. Available via app for Android and iOS devices From viewing the short video on the DVD, the trick appears to work. But I will never know, because they didn’t send every- REVIEW BY W.S. DUNCAN thing that is needed to perform it. I think for $35 they should. The change of the writing looks ne, but I am not happy about the rest I recently watched the 2012 documentary Deceptive Practice: The Mysteries and Mentors of Ricky Jay on Netix. In it a reporter of it. There are better ways to spend your money. describes the time Mr. Jay performed for her the classic Malini effect of producing a large block of ice. They had been together GIFT OF THE MAGI TRICK for many hours, with Mr. Jay never leaving her side, before the BY DAVID ACER Available from: www.MarchanddeTrucs.com block of ice appeared on the t able where they were having lunch. Price $25.00 – rells $9.00 The profound impossibilit y of the effect made her weep. I mention this, because I kept thinking back to that while watching the promotional video recently sent to us from truTV of their new show REVIEW BY PAYNE The Carbonaro Effect . Christmas, it seems, comes a little The show (full episodes of which can be seen online at www. early this year, or perhaps a tad late. truTV.com) is a hidden camera show like Punk’d or Scare Tactics. Either way, if you’re a restaurant worker However, there is one major difference: it doesn’t suck. Most or do a lot of strolling gigs for the hidden camera shows trade on making people look foolish, and holidays you’ll want to pick up this gem. seem pretty mean-spirited. If that’s been your assessment of the A stack of almost business card size genre, I’d encourage you to give The Carbonaro Effect a chance. cards (2¼ by 3¼ inches) are brought out. Thanks largely to the affable host/performer Michael Carbonaro, Each card bears the image of a Christma s instead of feeling embarrassed ( Punk’d ) or frightened (Scare (or if you’re working a corporate party, Tactics), the folks who appear on this show are presented with “holiday”) tree. It is pointed out that said puzzling wonders that leave them smili ng and reassessing their tree is bereft of presents. The magician hands a helpful spectator world. a pen (or she can use her own) and has her initial the star of the The methods are akin to those used by David Blaine or Criss uppermost tree card. This card is then pulled from the rubber- Angel, in which standard effects like Card to Wallet are extended banded st ack and placed face down on the spectator’s hand. The with the sort of mechanisms used when you control the stage. For helper is then told to close her eyes and imagine the morning of example, in one segment, Michael is working behind the counter the secular, nondenominational, winter-solstice holiday of his at a postal service and he produces a bowling ball from a small, choice and all the presents she wishes to receive on that special at package, much to the astonishment of the person who handed day. The sound of sleigh bells ringing is heard. The spectator then him the box. In another he’s behind the register at a grocery store; opens her eyes, turns over the card, and, to her surprise, nds the when he checks the carton of eggs a customer hands him to scan, once-barren tree now sports a vast array of gaily wrapped gifts, he nds one of the eggs cracked – by the baby chick hatching or at least the boxes they came in. The magician then takes the from it. card from the spectator and magically plucks a box from it. This The doorman at a hotel is left wondering what sort of dimenis handed to the spectator to open. Inside she can nd a trinket, sional rift he sidestepped when Michael accidentally locks himself a piece of candy, or a small remuneration. The memento and the in the trunk of his car, and then a few moments later walks out of initialed card are then presented to the spectator to retain as a the hotel behind him, explaining that he had a spare key in his keepsake. The magician continues on his appointed rounds secure room. But the most puzzling might be the one in which a woman in the knowledge that he has successfully spread another quotient checking into her hotel nd that the picture she handed to the nice of holiday cheer. young man behind the counter belongs to a gentleman she’s never Yes, it is yet another version of the classic Out to Lunch met, who turns out to be standing behind her in line with her ID principle; this routine was rst released in David Acer’s most in his wallet. recent book More Power to You. If you have that volume, you In a world where folks frequently cite “reality TV” as have everything you need to do this trick, except for the cards. evidence of the downfall of Western Civilization, it’s nice to see If you have the book, Mr. Acer was kind enough to provide you that someone is using the tools of our craft, and of the medium, with a template to have the cards printed up. But who has the time to create wonder, puzzlement, and delight. Visit the website, or or inclination to do that? Besides, the artwork on these cards is a download the app for your phone or tablet, and see some moment s lot nicer than the illustrations that came with the book. Plus these of amazement that will make you smile. Highly recommended.  cards are a lot nicer than anything you could print up on your computer or have a local print shop produce, at this price point. If you wish to have your product reviewed, please The cards are printed in full color on heavy, glossy cardstock, send it to: Bill Duncan, P.O. Box 50562, which should leave the spectators with the feeling that you spare Bellevue, WA 98015-0562



Treasures from the Salon de Magie By Ken Klosterman

IMRO FOX PIGEON COFFERS

The effect of apparently cutting off a bird’s head and restoring it was performed by priest-magicians in the time of the pharaohs. Some historians have argued that the transposition of the heads of two birds was in fact the rst magic trick ever to be described in a written record, even before the Cups and Balls. By medieval times it was included in a number of descriptions of performers at courts and fairs. Instead of simply presenting it as a straightforward decapitation and restoration of two birds, Fox played the trick as a comedy of errors. He is credited with originating the idea of mixing up the removed heads of a black bird and white bird afte r their “removal,” and then showing that the heads had been replaced on the wrong bird. Fox, of course, righted the situation, and, to the delight and guffaws of his audiences, ended the trick with each bird alive and well and sporting the properly feathered skull.

Imro Fox was credited with popularizing the role of a true comedy magician. Whereas jokes had always been secondary to magic before Fox’s arrival on the scene, the style he originated is said to have opened the door for a completely new form of magical performance: the one-man comedy act. A stocky, bald German with a thick, dark mustache, Fox was born Isidor Fuchs in Bromberg, Germany, on May 21, 1862. He came to the United States in 1874 and learned to be a chef – or at least a cook. His magical career began in 1880 in WashingThe coffers Fox used to perform much of the t rick’s dirty work ton, D.C. Stories differ on how he entered show business with his were likely built by Martinka and Company of New York City comedy magic act, but the most often repeated one is that while at the end of the nineteenth century. Resembling soup tureens serving as the chef at the Hotel Lawrence, a traveling vaudeville meant for use at a formal dinner, the eight-sided ovals measure troupe discovered he performed magic and asked him to take the ten inches long, ve inches across, and about seven and a half place of a magician in the troupe who went off on an alcoholic inches high. Each cover has a small opening that contains a fake binge. Reluctantly, Fox agreed, although he had never been on bird’s head. Similar coffers were sold by several r ms, i ncluding stage before. Davenport’s of London, and were used by various performers. With fear and trembling, Fox, wearing an ill-tting suit, made In the Le Roy, Talma, and Bosco version of this trick, a rooster his rst appearance on stage with a deep bow and broke the and a duck had their heads exchanged in a sketch titled, “Bosco’s ice by the following allusion to his very bald pate: “Ladies and Ludicrous Mishap.” Chefalo did the same. In modern time s, David gentlemen, why is my head like Heaven?...You give up? Good! Coppereld revived the Le Roy trick, exchanging the head of his Because there is no parting there.” Amid the shouts of laughter pet duck Webster with that of a rooster. The duck trick was one of occasioned by this conundrum, Fox began his card tricks and the the features of Coppereld’s show for several years. rest is history. After Fox, the props shown here were owned successively by Tricks with animals suited Fox’s performing style. The op- Dick Richards and Charles “The Great” Dagmar, and then came portunities to carry on witt y banter provided by unpredictable to the Salon de Magie by way of Alston Cockrell of Jacksonville, menageries were countless. Thus the Pigeon Coffer trick was an Florida, who was known as Mars the Magician.  outstanding performance piece for him.


INSIDE STRAIGHT

OUR ADVERTISERS A House of Fire B. Happie Entertainment Burgoon Magic George Parker Hermetic Press Jim Kleefeld Joe Mogar - Magic Stars John C.Staneld Kardwell International, Inc. LaRock's Fun & Magic Outlet Magic Summit MiX16 Apps by Gregor Krasevec Nielsen Magic S.A.M. Convention 2015 S.A.M. Life Membership S.A.M Twitter Show-Biz Services The Magic Bakery T. Myers Tony Cabral

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CLOSEOUT SALE www.johncstanfield.com

BY NORMAN BECK STEAK �HOUSE� � VERY RARE For years I have heard the adage that the key to a successful business is “location, location, location.” I don’t believe it. A couple of weeks ago, we went to Buffalo Gap, Texas. Buffalo Gap is a little southwest of Abilene, and due east of You Can’t Get There From Here. It is, in fact, smack dab in the middle of nowhere. The reason for going there was the wine and food summit put on by the Perini Steak House of Buffalo Gap. I want to put this in perspective: Buffalo Gap is a town of 467; they draw over ve hundred people to this event and every year it sells out in less than thirty minutes. Why? You can buy food and wine in lots of places. Why would you go to the end of the earth and spend hundreds of dollars to eat? You would only ask that question if you haven’t met Tom and Lisa Perini and t heir staff. If you met them, you would understand. The formula on paper is simple: provide a great product and perfect ser vice at a fair price in an atmosphere that you can’t get anywhere else. The fact that you are in the middle of no place is okay. People will nd you and pay you for whatever it is you have for sale. In 1995, The New York Times selected the Perini Steak House mesquite smoked peppered beef tenderloin as the mail-order gift of the year. Think about that for a minute. The best gift in the entire United States came from a small town that, until now, you had never heard of. On September 11, 2001, Mr. Perini was in Washington, D.C., to cater the congressional picnic at the White House. In 2009 Saveur listed the Perini Steak House as one of the twenty-four reasons to love Texas. I got a taste (pardon the pun) of how the Perinis do business while attending the summit this year. I passed out from the heat, and they took care of me and drove me back to my car. I wrote a letter thanking them for their kindness, hospitality, and food. I thought we were done. They had done something nice for me; I sent a letter thanking them in return. So we are done, right? Wrong. I got a return thank-you letter in the mail (thanking me for my letter) along with a gift card entitling me to stay at the ranch house some weekend. Will I use it? Yes. What did it cost them? Nothing. What did they gain? A customer for life. You can’t do any better than that. When you fall below a customer’s expectation, you lose t hem. When you meet a customer’s expectation, you are among the norm. When you exceed a customer’s expectation, you own them. I was talking to Bill Malone the other day. He was booked to do one forty-ve-minute close-up show and the client asked him to do two. Did Bill argue? Of course not. Bill did two shows. Let’s say you are booked for a walk-around magic gig from 6 to 9 p.m. You work from 6-9, but another magician worki ng with you star ts at 5:45 and stays u ntil 9:30 so the people who got to the event late can see some magic. Next year, if they need to book talent, they will remember who put in the extra effort. I go one step past that in what I call the “by the way” approach. I mention to the client (in an offhanded manner) that some people came late and I stayed and performed for them as well. I only make the comment if it can be done in a graceful manner. The end result is that the extra step goes a long way in helping you be remembered. Google the Perini Steak House and you’ll see what I am talking about. Should you ever go there, tell them the magician sent you; they will know who you’re talking about. (P.S. Order the rib eye.) 


The Dean's Diary By George Schindler

CONVENTIONS IN JULY For many years, I have had the fun of providing PR for our convention when we had show tickets to sell to the public. The work part is setting up and getting press releases out to the various newspaper and magazine calendar listings, which is done a month before we get to town. Two weeks later we try to contact radio people to set up interviews, and we always promise to do magic on the radio. At the very last minute, the day before the convention, faxes, emails, and phone calls to TV assignment desks are in order. And then we wait to see who, if anyone, shows up. When the news people get there, the real fun begins. Sometimes two or more show up at the same time and we need to escort them personally. Nina takes one crew and I take the other. The best place to meet them is in the dealer’s room, which is full of color, magic, and camaraderie. When we nally get some air time that evening or the following morning, we hope they read the handout about our shows during the week. News photographers generally take the same photos: Losander oating a table or Harry Allen opening a aming wallet. The TV people have fun when we make them “assistants.” We can always push


a sword through their necks or get them involved with a Kovari Head Twister. And then there is always the nal vanish of the TV reporter behind a six-foot silk. We have gotten TV studio press on early morning shows (usually at 6 or 7 a.m.) by promising them a priest who does the Three Shell Game (Father Cyprian) or an interview with the incoming president telling them how great their city is for a convention. I always adlib by pushing a cigarette into the reporter’s ear and out of his mouth - gross but funny. Most of the dealers are more than accommodating. I remember Fukai asking a confused Rita Rudner (in his Japanese accent), “What’s the matter; don’t you understand English?”

Harry Allen and his wallet

In Las Vegas we had convinced a Spanish-language station to do several segments. We got Hope Anderson to do her Pom-Pom Sticks routine in Spanish, which aired around the world to people not anywhere near our theater. I remember a crew in Florida showing up early in the morning before anything was open. We allowed them to pan around the room looking for tables that were not covered. They wanted to see some magic. Luckily Bev Bergeron was with me, and he offered the reporter a chance to “levitate” him. Bev lay down on his back on the oor and I covered him with a tablecloth while he secretly rolled over onto his stomach. I directed the reporter to make some magical gestures; the camera focused on his rise off the oor. Under the cloth Bev did a few push-ups. It is an old clown bit, but we didn’t expose it. He carefully descended before we were caught. I shouldn’t tell you about the radio show in Louisville when, instead of a few minutes, WFPL gave us a full hour. Bruce Kalver, David Garrard, and I were doing great until I got an urgent message from my prostate gland. There is a short segment of that great interview during which only two of the three magicians are speaking. Our lm l ibrary has a composite lm (#1367) of some of the f un clips we’ve collected over the years. Perhaps you are i n one of them. 

MUM,07-2014.pdf

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