Archive for July, 2003

Rick Maue – Teaching/Showing/Helping

Since 1976, Rick has been dedicated to the genres of magic termed ?Haunted Magick? and mentalism. He doesn?t do tricks, he doesn?t do a lecture of tricks. He does a lesson in performance and his use of mentalism seemed to be more of a medium by which he conveyed the very important lessons of how to perform, how to direct an audience?s attention, how to have confidence in your presentation and ? although unsaid ? how to perform in away that gives you pleasure as well as astounds your audience.

Mr. Maue?s background was in corporate sales for over twenty years and the well-organized lecture exhibits the undeniable fingerprints of an author trained in conveying a message that sells. As he points out, ?selling is not a bad thing.? In fact, it is what we as magicians or mentalists should be doing. In a slight variation of Robert Houdin?s aphorism, we are salespeople selling magic as magicians.

Magic, Mr. Maue points out, should be personal. You need to leave your audience knowing something about you so that they cannot only rebook you but also so they care about what they are seeing. We are not performing tricks off the shelf in the same manner as any other magician with sufficient cash reserves; we are truly trying to make an impression on our audience that they are seeing magic, not a magician.

The effects Mr. Maue presents are original and fresh. If you attend his lecture, and I recommend you do, you must stay for the second half where he does an incredible card in wallet/card in pocket routine. I watched very carefully and was blown away. It is a gutsy and new approach to something we have all done and yet never really knew why. The effect is as it should be. You tell your audience that you previously selected a card and placed it in your wallet. You then ask the audience member to think of any card in the deck, find it and return it to the deck. Within seconds, you remove the card from your wallet and find the exact same card within the…
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Errors and Omissions – We Regret the Error

Not Idle

In the November 3^rd edition of Inside Magic, it was incorrectly reported that Harry Houdini died as a result of choking on a tuna sandwich. Mama Cass Elliot of the Mamas and the Pappas died from a tuna sandwich.

Houdini died from improperly cured corned beef. Inside Magic regrets the error.

In the December 25^th ?Christmas?
edition of Inside Magic, it was erroneously reported that Santa Claus
uses magic to appear at shopping malls all around the world at the same
time. In fact, Santa does not appear ?all around the world? because there are countries where Christmas is not celebrated, like Japan or Connecticut. Inside Magic regrets the error.

Danny Spain – Not Mentioned

The Centers for Disease Control (?CDC?) have confirmed that disease can be passed by re-using or sharing thumb tips. The CDC notes that the thumb is ?often the dirtiest digit on the hand.? There is no added protection by a small silk or mushed up cigarette in the thumb tip. ?Just say ?No?? is the CDC?s word to magicians. When
you share a thumb tip or buy a used thumb tip, you?re essentially
sticking your thumb wherever fifteen or twenty magicians have stuck
their thumb.

In this very column, it was incorrectly reported that Houdini died from eating ?an improperly cured corned beef sandwich.? Houdini actually died from sepsis from a ruptured appendix causing peritonitis. His appendix was allegedly ruptured when punched by a Montreal Art Student. The student, however, did have the smell of corned beef on his breath when questioned by Montreal authorities. Inside Magic regret the error.

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Marty Hahne’s Guest Column – Important People

Imust admit, I work better under a deadline. I usually have writer?s block up until the last minute, then a column idea will pop into my head.

However, I was having trouble thinking of what I would write for this issue. Thankfully, a letter arrived in the mail just the other day, and provided the inspiration I needed to get this column done.

Here?s what the letter said:

“Your Halloween magic show was outstanding. Both children and adults were thoroughly entertained. The committee can?t wait until we have you back for the Christmas party!

One woman who saw your show came up to me to thank us for having you entertain. She was with her little daughter. She said this was the first time they had both smiled in a long time. She had lost her sister in the World Trade center attack. Tears welled in her eyes as she spoke to me. I think this really says it all. Even if we only make a difference in one persons life for a short while, we have accomplished our goal. I know for a fact you touched many others. You put magic into our lives that day.”

You can imagine I had tears in my eyes too, as I read that letter. It really made me think about why we perform for our audiences.

The particular show that resulted in such a nice letter was just one of several I did during the busy Halloween weekend. I know that sometimes in the hustle and bustle of getting to shows on a tight schedule, we lose sight of the reason we?re in the business of entertaining.

With the new year upon us, I?m going to make a resolution to remind myself how important even a simple magic show can really be. In the grand scheme of things, a little magic show may not seem too important, but this letter has reminded me how important our job really is.

I don?t want to make it sound like I sometimes go out and just go through the motions. I do try to do the best job I can, each and every time I perform. But sometimes due to a busy schedule, we?re tired, or stressed out, and we don?t have to best attitude going into a show.

At times like these, I ?ve found that quite often the audience will bless me. In reality, I should be the one doing my job, and entertaining and blessing the audience. Here?s an example.

A couple of years ago, we finishing up a busy week of shows. We then had to pack a lot of equipment and get on a plane to fly to Singapore, for two week?s worth of shows. I was very tired, and just wanted to get home and start packing for our trip.

Our last show that night was at an elementary school for kids and parents. The turnout was fairly small, and we thought we would just get through this last “unimportant” show, so we could get ready for our “important? trip overseas.

Just before our performance, the principal held a moment of silence, for a young, popular teacher who had passed away a week earlier. After the moment of silence, there were a few other items on the agenda, then our show began.

Usually, when working in a school cafeteria with a stage, we like to leave the house lights on, to better see the audience, and make it easier to call up volunteers. However, this…
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