I am a get along guy. If
you were to look up "easy going" in the dictionary, you
would see my picture. And if you didn't, that would be okay
too. Because, I am easy going.
That's the exterior.
But brewing just beneath the surface of my kindly demeanor is one
of the most petty, jealous magicians you will ever meet. I would
love to be part of the elite in our magic world, but I won't
make it. I would like to think it is because the elite are like
me in their pettiness and jealousy, but I've met them and
they' seem awfully nice. It must be an act for surely they
have the same petty, dark soul as me.
That's the problem
with being an easy going magician. Our profession brings people
together rather than separate them according to skill or class.
So when I see the elite at a convention, after a show, or a
lecture, they seem to intentionally make themselves available for
real conversations.
I've met plenty of
politicians who say nice things but you know they are just
spouting the insincere patter they use constantly. "Hey,
it's good to see you. How have you been and how are things?
I'll tell you what, I wish we had more people like you with
us up in Washington. We could use the common sense, real-life
knowledge you have." Blah, blah, blah.
The elite magicians on the
other hand often mean what they say. Sure, right after a lecture,
they may want to encourage you to buy their DVD or special
gimmick; but that doesn't explain why they would go with you
and the gang to Denny's for pie and coffee. After all, the
sale is done. Those who would suggest they do this intentionally
because they love this craft and love talking about it are
naïve.
Penn & Teller are the
worst offenders of the "sincere, caring, and encouraging
elite." Right, they have their own theater, their own
long-term deal, successful books, television shows, and one of
the few feature films ever to include a scene of Filipino Psychic
Surgery. By all accounts, they should be complete jerks. Maybe
they are, but if you visit with them after the show — and of
course they always make themselves available — you encounter two
people who seem to love magic and enjoy talking with those who
love it like they do. They lay it on thick: They even respond in
a meaningful and helpful manner. Bastards!
Mac King is the same way.
Oh, there he is, Mr. "I'm successful and beloved by
magicians and non-magicians alike." He probably thinks,
"Hey, I know what I'll do. I'll stop by the magic
convention to mingle and talk with young practitioners to
encourage them."
How dare he? How dare this
member of the upper-echelon make us birthday party magicians feel
comfortable talking shop — he has to know we work in two
entirely different worlds but he acts like he cares.
Whit Haydn, Gay
Blackstone, Mark Wilson, Bev Bergeron, Lance Burton, Nathan
Burton, Melinda, Rick Thomas, and pre-accident, Siegfried… Continue reading Phony Magicians in our Midst
The BBC has a nice profile on Gloucestershire magician Colin Dymond on their web page this morning.
Mr. Dymond’s routine is based on the Magic of Recycling. “It’s a visual and messy show, we talk about what happens when batteries go onto landfill sites. I do a frog puppet that is made ill by toxins and chemicals,” Mr. Dymond said. “It’s about keeping the planet clean for us and wildlife and future generations.”
This routine has been successful in both conveying a message and getting gigs. Mr. Dymond will take his show to ten schools in the district. Council person Rosemary Todd, Executive Member for Sustainability and the Environment, said: “Children learn best when they are having fun and using magic is an ideal and memorable way to show them the value of the materials they recycle.”
Mr. Dymond has several themed shows. His website efficiently sets out his different routines and identifies the niches he can fill for his clients. He instructs workshops on juggling, balloon modeling, and magic for kids and adults. Mr. Dymond is also an accomplished ventriloquist, using vent figures to set the theme and teach a lesson.
Congratulations to Mr. Dymond for his ingenuity and well-deserved success.
Mike Weatherford of the Las Vegas Review Journal reports the public asks Nathan Burton two questions concerning his stunt playing out at the Desert Passage Mall. How will he relieve himself while locked in a glass box with seven showgirls for seven days? What does his wife think about the stunt?
Mr. Burton desires to keep secret his method for removing waste product from his innards. But he told CNN that his wife doesn’t mind the stunt at all.
“I’m still not in love with the whole stunt,” Sarah Burton said Wednesday. There is a thin line between ‘not minding’ and ‘not in love.’
Ms. Burton presumably trusts her husband but is nonetheless just inches away from the glass box — she coordinates getting the showgirls in and out of the box every four hours.
Magicians know Ms. Burton works with her husband in their act on the strip. Most recently, they have appeared in in “V – The Ultimate Variety Show.”
Don’t call her an assistant, though.
“People think of me as an assistant but I’m definitely not an assistant in my eyes,” she said.
So, does she mind that her husband, partner, is locked in close quarters with seven beautiful showgirls?
“I hated it. I absolutely hated it,” she said of the idea he hatched before the TV show came along. “I think it’s a stunt for a single man, not a married man.”
According to Mr. Weatherland, the magician is financing the stunt to reinvent himself and sell a show called “Reality Magic.” David Blaine meets comedy magic.
You can watch Mr. Burton and his seven beautiful roommates on his webcam. There is no sound but it is still much more entertaining than the feed from David Blaine’s box.
While she may have hated it, then not loved it, and finally doesn’t mind the stunt; Ms. Burton is committed to making the most of the national attention. If one of the showgirls fails to show, she’ll don the costume and move in with Mr. Burton.
The San Bernardino County Sun is reporting this morning former Night Court star and life-long magician, Harry Anderson will appear at the Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts in Cerritos, California.
Mike Caveney, Tina Lenert, and Jay Johnson will join Mr. Anderson in “Harry Anderson’s World of Magic.” (Interestingly, the paper refers to Tina Lenert as a “mime artist”).
Mr. Anderson told reporters “Everybody in the show is a former member of the Left-Handed League. The group was around back in the 1980s. We were this little group of bandits who didn’t belong to the Magic Castle or any other legit magic club. We still get together every year and do shows like the one at Cerritos.”
Mr. Anderson says he cannot claim he is the best magician but he can say his television exposure has made him one of the best-known in the Art.
After leaving television, he and his wife Elizabeth started Sideshow, a magic shop in New Orleans.
“Even if I’m only playing to two or three people in the shop, it’s completely satisfying for me. Some days I get to perform all day long and pass on that excitement. There’s nothing like being in front of a live audience.”
This proves to us that he is a true magician. He starred on two long-running television shows, made a significant amount of cash, and started a magic shop.
Mr. Caveney is not only a kind and good man, but also an outstanding magician, lecturer, and writer. In fact, he wrote the 1993 bestseller, Harry Anderson – Wise Guy. That book as well as other great tomes are available at Mr. Caveney’s website, Magic Words. You can also read about both Ms. Lenert and Mr. Caveney’s considerable and multi-faceted talents.
Tickets for this weekend’s show range from $20.00 to $45.00. A recent check of one ticket broker, found the shows were close to selling out.
Visit the Performing Arts Center for more information. We wish we could be there. It sounds like a great show!
You can virtually visit Mr. Anderson’s magic shop here, but be forewarned, the site is barely exists. It has a link to Mapquest and two graphics. Clearly the web is not the medium Mr. Anderson has chosen for his expression. Based on the quality of his acting and stage work, we think that’s fine.
The master illusionist will appear in the Andy Williams Moon River Theatre June 13th – 26th.
Tom Wolff, the Moon River manager hopes Mr. Copperfield’s announcement will draw additional visitors to the already very popular vacation destination. “He is a huge name,” Mr. Wolff said. “There’s already so much great entertainment in Branson. We’re hoping Copperfield will be a name that will change people’s plans.” Ticket prices have not yet been announced.
Interestingly, the paper quotes Darren Romeo extensively on the impact of Mr. Copperfield’s arrival.
We say, “interesting” because we were not aware Mr. Romeo had returned to Branson for a run through December 2005 and possibly longer. His website has no information about his new year-round gig. The website does not even mention he recently appeared in Reno. The last venue mention is the Beau Rivage Casino in Mississippi. If you click the link for tickets, you’re taken to a page listing his Beau Rivage dates — from last year.
While the official Darren Romeo site may not be up-to-date, the two available fan sites (German and English versions) have posted the Branson engagement front and center.
But back to Mr. Copperfield’s impact on the once sleepy hamlet in the Ozarks. “From a magic point of view, he’s got a few things in the show that are just wow,” said Mr. Romeo, who readily cites Copperfield’s influence on him.
Then he goes a bit overboard in his praise: “Everything you see - whether it’s in Branson or Vegas -is inspired by David Copperfield.”
Could this be an over-statement?
We love Mr. Copperfield as much as the next magic website, but “everything?” We would actually suggest his mentors in magic, Siegfried & Roy could be properly credited for inspiring much of what is now seen on Branson and Vegas stages. Heck, we’d even throw in Lance Burton & Mac King as influences on the magic performed by today’s headliners around the world.
Mr. Copperfield does not perform any effects — as far as we know — involving Fig Newtons (Mac King), tigers (Siegfried & Roy), difficult sleight of hand (Lance Burton), or drag costumes (Steve Daly).
We could be wrong, though.
We recall reading a blog somewhere claiming Mr. Copperfield was contemplating a routine where he front and back palmed fruit-filled cookies, and vanished wild animals while wearing high heels. To her credit, consultant to the stars, Joanie Spina, convinced him to stick “with what got you here.”
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