Our Experience May Differ: Dr. Mark Kaschube – Magician – Dentist
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| Impacted-Mouth Coil Removal Procedure |
The Morris Daily Herald features front-and-center with the story of Dr. Mark Kaschube’s Annual Halloween Magic Show accompanied by the slug-line “Wicked Fun.”
This
struck us ironic or true. Sometimes when our mouth is filled with
appliances, partially numbed, constantly dried, wedged and contorted,
beneath an alum-covered dental dam, our nitrous oxide-affected mind
wanders to places beyond the 2000 watt light looking for our “happy
place.” Is our dentist enjoying her own special “wicked fun”?
If so, shouldn’t she be covering our co-pay?
Some
would suggest — as they have in our group-therapy sessions as late as
yesterday — we shouldn’t assume our appointments with our doctor mean
anything to her. She takes no pleasure in hurting us. In
fact, she has to cause us pain to prevent us from having pain
later.
Still, call us paranoid (and we know you and your
little clique call us that and worse) but we think she does take a
perverse pleasure in causing us pain. Maybe it’s the dog-collar
she makes us wear and that she works out of her mini-van.
We digress.
Dr.
Kaschube recalls with fondness a disturbing image. “I remember when I
was a kid and I was having my braces done on my teeth. My orthodontist
? Dr. John Bonaguro, in South Holland, Ill., where I grew up ? had six
chairs in his room, with kids sitting in them, facing away from each
other,” Dr. Kaschube said. “And he would walk in between the
chairs ? his audience ? and he told jokes, and he was funny, and had us
all laughing.”
“It was actually fun to go to the dentist,” he
said. “And later I worked for him part-time, not knowing then that I
was honing my skills. But I also learned from him that you can be a
dentist and still be open and funny with your patients. You can make it
fun to go to the dentist, believe it or not.”
We’ll take his word for it.
“I
suppose all kids get bit by the ‘magic bug’ at some point in their
childhood,” he said. “With me, though, it happened when I was five
years old. And it stuck.”
The Dentist Magician uses the allure
of magic and illusion appeals to a childlike fascination in everyone,
separating the real from the imaginary, causing those in the magician?s
audience to choose between what they think they know and what they
think they are seeing.
“It?s a suspension of disbelief,” he
explained. “With magic, it’s neat to just relax and let your brain take
a break. You see the seemingly impossible suddenly appear possible.”
Like when our dentist gives us Rohypnol (“roofies”).
“As
a magician,” he said, “one of the greatest things is someone in the
audience yelling out to you, ‘Do it one more time!’ They feel this
burning need to believe what they?re seeing, even though their rational
mind tells them it can’t possibly be real.”
Over the years, his act has grown. His magic act has traveled from Las Vegas all the way to Europe, and he has performed on the Bozo the…
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It’s Two Weeks Away: Motor City Close-Up Convention No. 9
The 9th Annual Motor City Close-Up Convention takes place two weeks from now.
Those of you who regularly attend the convention know what a great time it is and this year's line-up is awesome!
For the past eight years, the Motor City Close-Up Convention has
featured an outstanding line-up of magicians recognized and respected
for their performing style, creativity, and skill.
This year the tradition will continue with four exceptional performers, Gazzo, Paul Green, Lonnie Chevrie, and Nathan Kranzo.
Be sure to join in on the fun and attend what is turning out to be
the premiere close-up convention in the Midwest. All events take
place at the Ramada Inn of Taylor, Michigan, located four miles east of
the Detroit Metropolitan Airport at I-75 and Eureka Road.
Phone (734) 283-2200 for room reservations and other hotel
information. Register right now. You can find more convention
information by going to the convention web site.
There will be four lectures, two optional workshops and three
close-up shows. Both, Gazzo and Paul will be conducting workshops. The
workshops will fill up quickly. Sign up for the workshop of your choice
as soon as possible.
GAZZO
is one of the world's most entertaining and experienced street workers.
He has performed on stages all over the world including festivals,
nightclubs, and world famous cruise ships — including the QE2.
From cruise ships to Las Vegas showrooms, Gazzo has wowed them all.
His brand of comedy is perfect for almost any situation, and his skills
as a performer of the impossible are beyond even the wildest of
imaginations. Gazzo is a favorite at the Magic Castle in Hollywood.
His rare appearances at magic conventions are always a hit.
This will be a chance for you to experience a performance from a
magician and entertainer who is rightly regarded as one of the best
there is. "When you see Gazzo perform, you're getting 200%. He's
100%magician and 100% comedian.
The two aspects of his character simultaneously feed and devour each
other to produce a riotously entertaining street act that would burst
Merlin of Camelot's eyeballs and the spleen of insult comedian Don
Rickles." – Ed Parrish, Magic Magazine
PAUL GREEN
is a working close-up magician. From private parties for the Hollywood
elite; Beverly Hills restaurants; to Trade Shows for Fortune 500
companies, he has done it all! For over 30 years, Paul has been a
regular performer at the Magic Castle. He has appeared at conventions
from Las Vegas to Australia. He specializes in making magic memorable
for audiences in the real world. Does Paul have the experience? You bet
he does!
Paul Green was awarded the Lecturer of the Year Award from the Academy of Magical Arts at the Magic Castle in 2002.
His DVD on the Classic Force is "the" essential learning tool for
gaining the skill for this devastating sleight-of-hand tool. His DVD,
In the Trenches, has been touted around the world as being filled with
some of the strongest magic available. Paul is one of magic's great
teachers, and you will be adding his material to your own personal
repertoire.
Above all, Paul Green is a friendly and approachable guy. He loves
talking about magic with everyone. This is your chance to meet him and
learn from him.
LONNIE CHEVRIE
can draw a standing ovation from a crowded room with the snap of his
fingers. With a seemingly simple flick of the wrist, he can astonish an
adult or delight a child.
Sound like magic? It is.
A two-time winner of the Texas Association of Magicians Best
Close-up Magic award, Lonnie Chevrie is West Texas foremost magician
and sleight-of-hand artist. Today, Lonnie's talents seem to extend
beyond the conventional boundaries of magic.
His digital dexterity allows him to defy the laws of physics,
whether he's working with coins, a deck of cards, or creating a
sleight-of-hand illusion with ordinary everyday objects. Because of his
magical skill and charismatic personality, neither of which is an
illusion, the award-winning magician enjoys a strong following.
His popularity keeps him busy performing regularly. Watching Lonnie
perform his special brand of close-up magic can be mind-boggling. Now
it's your turn to witness the sleight-of-hand magic of this soft-spoken
gentleman with the engaging smile. Experience the skill and magical
talents of LONNIE CHEVRIE. You will be amazed!
NATHAN KRANZO
is a full time magician from Flushing, Michigan. His main focus is
close up magic. Nathan studied Industrial Design, Special Effects, and
Movie Making at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh.
Besides performing for real people, Nathan is also highly sought
after by magicians as a lecturer. He has performed and lectured all
over the United States and Europe. His original performance material
has been published in national and worldwide publications, such as
Genii Magazine, Magic Magazine, The Penumbra, Channel One, Half Baked,
and The Linking Ring.
Nate is part of The Next Generation of Magic. He thinks "outside the
box." This is exemplified by his amazing work with everything from
cards and coins to breath mints and tan lines. Let Nathan teach you how
to think "outside the box" and have fun doing it.
Some of the dealers signed up already include: Hank Moorehouse, Mint
Magic, Gordon Miller, The Magic Shop, Uncanny Kevin, John Born, and
more to be announced later.
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Jerry Andrus – “The Thomas Edison of Magic” – Featured
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| Jerry Andrus |
The Newhouse News Service pumped a feed on one of our all-time heroes.
Jerry
Andrus signed our instructions to Linking Pins back in 1974 and we’ve
kept it ever since. When we replaced the pin set, we tossed the
instructions and kept our personalized version.
The Jerry Andrus
depicted in the article on today’s wires is a strange man, with crazy,
half-completed inventions littering his “Castle of Chaos.” The
100-year-old ivy-covered home is described in almost Dickens-esque
prose:
Peeling stucco on one corner reveals a
crumbling foundation. Sheets of plastic and old curtains block the
windows, some shaped like keyholes. From the street, the place looks
abandoned. Certain wintry branches of candles on the high chimneypiece
faintly lighted the chamber: or, it would be more expressive to say,
faintly troubled its darkness. The only way in is through the back
door, where the bell produces alien tones that summon 87-year-old Jerry
Andrus. With a great flourish, he waves his arms toward the dark,
unheated interior.
Okay, all but the last sentence is
from the article, the third-to-last sentence describes the inside of
Miss Havisham’s house in Great Expectations. Still, it fits the
theme.
The reporter goes on in vivid-detail to describe the
room “jammed floor to 10-foot ceiling” with tools and gizmos. He
tells the reader “no more than three people can fit in what once was
the dining room of the house Andrus has lived in since childhood. Even
then, they must walk single file along a 2-foot-wide trail worn into
the hardwood floor. The path ends in a small clearing surrounded by
mountains of debris. Buried somewhere is a manual typewriter Andrus
last saw about 1970. Years ago, junk filled the living room and blocked
the front door, which hasn’t been opened since the Kennedy
administration.”
The author shows appreciation for Mr. Andrus,
however. He suggests trying to explain the magician “to the
uninitiated is like trying to describe the color blue.”
You should read the full article to drink in the full-bodied description of Mr. Andrus and his life. We cannot do it justice here.
He
is hailed by Milt Larson and Rick Killion for his skills and
knowledge. “People consider him the last of the living legends,”
Mr. Larson says of one of the oldest members in the Academy. “Most
tricks are based on old principles. He does things that are difficult
to explain. You’ve got to see them. He pulled off an optical illusion
where a giant mask that was on the stage suddenly appeared over the
audience and scared the hell out of everyone.”
The story ends with a poignant piece.
He
pulls out other illusions he invented and explains them, one by one.
Finally, he packs them away and leans back in his chair. He holds out
his right hand. His thumb trembles. “Don’t know how much longer I’ll be
able to do this,” he says. “That tremor isn’t going away. And my memory
isn’t as good as it used to be.”He glances around…
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