The Cambridge
News (UK) has a great piece on the long and greatly appreciated career of
magician Claude Perry. Mr. Perry entertained the students at John Falkner Infant School for 38
years.
But pupils at John Falkner Infant School will not have that treat to
look forward to this year – Claude, 84, has decided it is time to hang up his
magic wand.
He always got his young audience, aged four to seven, involved in his
conjuring.
“The tricks are geared for their age. There are tricks with silk
handkerchiefs, with paintings, with packets of seeds.
“I always finished up by pulling the rabbit from the hat. Against a black
opera hat a pure white rabbit shows up ever so well, but I’ve definitely given
up the show this year. The rabbit is getting on a bit – though he’s not 38!”
Headteacher Chris Ingham said: “I’ve been here 20 years, Claude was coming
here for 18 years before that and I saw no reason to change. We’ve enjoyed
having Claude and he has enjoyed coming here.
To the kids, Mr. Perry was a special treat, to their parents and former
students, he was a wonderful constant in a world of change.
The students likely did not appreciate the depth of Mr. Perry’s talent. He is
a member of the Inner Magic Circle and the International Brotherhood of
Magicians, he is also president of Cambridge’s Pentacle Club for magicians.
Those accolades did not compare to the reaction he received from his young
audiences once a year.
“The children look at him in awe. It is wonderful to look at their
faces when Claude is performing.”
One of his trademark tricks for older audiences is the Troublewit, an
intricate paper-folding trick from which he produces a vase, a fan, a party hat
and other shapes.
The paper notes, “some fellow magicians believe his 38-year booking at the
school may be a record.”
If it is not a record, it is certainly fitting testament to a performer who
has stood the test of time and never went out of date.
We wish Mr. Perry the best in his retirement and hope he will continue to
inspire and produce awe.
Certain articles cry out to be read. The February 1st edition of Communication Quarterly published a study report, “Get ‘Real’: Does Practicing Speeches Before an Audience Improve Performance?” was one.
Public speaking texts and instructors typically encourage students to practice speeches as a means of managing anxiety and enhancing performance. The effectiveness of various speech practice methods has received little attention. In addition, students who practiced their speech before larger audiences received higher evaluation scores than students who practiced before smaller audiences.
The other article is from Catherine Jones of Wales Western Mail. Its title “I’m with Stupid” is a real grabber.
Jonathan Goodwin is a 24-year-old escape artist who one day hopes to be a 25-year-old escape artist.
Unlike Billiard Ball production or Silk Fountain presentations, those who practice the theatrical art of escape (as opposed to fleeing felons) are required to innovate in some new death-defying manner.
For us Billiard Ball guys, we’re kind of tapped out at approximately four balls for each hand.
But for the escape artist, it is now commonplace to be securely bound, wrapped in really itchy wool blankets, tied to the back of a drunk spring-break student, and given only minutes to escape before the student falls from a hotel balcony in his drunken attempt to climb to another room.
So how extreme does Jonathan Goodwin take his craft in an effort to be seen and loved?
We are not making this up. You can read the article for your own self. Mr. Goodwin suggested to Channel 4 he “be sewn up inside a dead cow and have to escape through its backside.”
Channel 4 said they would not air the escape. We agree with them. Now, if Mr. Goodwin came out some other opening in the dead cow carcass, we could see how it might have educational purpose. Still you have to hand it to the guy (hopefully he has washed his hands), he’s on the edge.
Where do you go after pitching a live presentation of the old Sewed-Up Cow Carcass escape? By the way, we note U.F. Grant used to sell a similar escape so perhaps Mr. Goodwin’s idea is not that novel. [In fact, we saw two of Grant's Whale Intestine Whopper Escape on eBay just this weekend. One looked well-used but the other was still new and in its protective wrapper -- of course it will be bid up to some crazy amount thanks to the magic collectors].
Penn Jillette’s Advice: Make Sure Your Manager is Filthy Rich
Disclosure: We think Penn Jillette is funny, smart, and entertaining. If you
don’t think the same way, that’s alright. That’s America. If you do, that’s okay
too that means we’ll soon have a better America where everyone thinks like
us.
BankRate .Com interviews Penn Jillette in their latest on-line edition. He
talks about his love of Magic, performing, creating, entertaining, and poker. He
does not profess or exhibit a love of money in his interview and thereby remains
true to the magician we love (along with Teller).
Most recently, he has released a wonderful book titled “How to Cheat Your
Friends at Poker.” You can read our review later on Quinlan’s Inside Magic. He
also embarked on an additional career as radio broadcaster for CBS.
We gave a glowing (and flowing) review of his outstanding film The
Aristocrats where top comedians gave their rendition of a bawdy, rude joke.
BankRate .Com notes comedian Sarah Silverman caused a stir over her iteration in
which she claims Joe Franklin acted in an improper but funny manner with (or
near) her.
If you didn’t have a chance to see The Aristocrats at the theaters – or you
didn’t want to be seen walking into the theater to view an NC-17 rated film –
you’ll have a chance to watch in the comfort and privacy of your own multi-media
room soon. The DVD version is due out soon.
Those who saw the theater version, recall the invitation to submit their own
twist on the twisted joke.
The response was apparently overwhelming and Mr.
Jillette says the new release could have overwhelmed purchasers. “The
Aristocrats” is insane, because the movie itself was an hour and a half, and the
extra features are two hours.”
Mr. Jillette is right to be excited by the response to his movie.
“This is the second best movie of the year on The New York Times list, and it
was done without any studio involvement whatsoever, zero. It was not rated by
the MPAA.
“I’m not saying every person in the country can come up with enough
money to buy two midrange DV cameras, a Macintosh and a Final Cut Pro — I don’t
want to be the way Hollywood is and act like, “Why doesn’t everybody have a
chauffeur?” But at the same, when your budget can be $50,000 instead of $5
million, you made a big change in what that art form is.
“The fact that “The
Aristocrats” was done as cheaply as it was is a huge breakthrough in film.”
Bankrate: Was $50,000 what it was done for?
Penn Jillette: Really hard to say. No one knows. It was my
money, and I wasn’t paying attention. – advertisement -
Bankrate: But it was in that ballpark?
Penn Jillette: Yeah. And, huge amounts of money were spent
to clean up the sound and the video and make it so it could be released without
embarrassment. But I’m not counting that. I’m just saying, what it took to sell
it to Sundance was five digits. And it doesn’t matter whether it was $90,000 or
$20,000, five digits is the important number there…. Continue reading Penn Jillette Branches Out, Close to Roots
This morning’s edition of the LA Daily News features
renown ventriloquist Jay Johnson’s move from Broadway to Los Angeles.
Mr. Johnson is known for his high-profile gigs including a run on the classic
ABC Prime-time lampoon Soap.
The 55 year-old performer credits his friend and magician Harry Anderson for
the show’s name, Jay Johnson: The Two and Only!
The show incorporates his vent figures Bob, Darwin, Squeaky and Nethernore.
Mr. Johnson is quick to point out dummies do not like to be called “dummies.”
They consider it politically incorrect and prefer the more accurate and
less-hostile “wooden Americans.” He explains the reason for the new nomeclature.
“In the show, I tell the story about how the word became associated with
ventriloquist puppets, but it just didn’t seem like an apt description. BB King
calls his guitar Lucille. He doesn’t use some ‘dummy’ word.”
“The old term was ventriloquist’s figure. I always thought that was too long
to say, and I used to joke that the only ventriloquist’s figure I knew was Shari
Lewis’.”
Mr. Johnson has been doing what he does with the wooden American’s since he
was six. His current show received impressed the usually cynical Broadway critic
commune. The show sounds excellent in style and substance. Mr. Johnson uses an
array of characters to entertain and provide his view of history and legacy of
ventriloquism.
There are few new ventriloquists on the circuit, Mr. Johnson said. He “claims
to know most of the ventriloquists on the performance circuit, but he hasn’t
seen any new blood in a long time.”
He is undeterred, however. He’ll keep the dream of all wooden American’s
alive. “I’m sort of militant about ventriloquism anyway,” Mr. Johnson said. “In
the past, rarely has it been performed well for my taste. A lot of times, it’s
passed over as the magic trick you buy at the magic store and practice three
times and that’s it. I don’t believe that’s true of magic or of
ventriloquism.”
You can catch the show through February 19th at the beautiful Brentwood
Theatre on Wilshire in LA.
“Beginning March 10, Jeff Gordon’s familiar “fire and flames” No. 24 DuPont
Chevrolet will vanish. Darren Romeo, a master illusionist, will incorporate
Gordon’s car into each of his 2006 performances at the Welk Resort Theatre
located in Branson, Mo.
The talented magician will make the car disappear during his shows held at
the theater beginning in March in an illusion titled Two Men Living Their
Dream.
“I admire Jeff mostly because he is a man who always believed that nothing is
impossible, and that is how I have lived my life, ” said Romeo, Siegfried and
Roy’s only protegee. “Jeff always wanted to be a race car driver, and I always
wanted to be a magician. My parents made huge sacrifices for me to live out my
dream, just as Jeff’s parents did for him.
“And now, every audience that sees my show will experience a great
impossibility and a wonderful life lesson, too.” Gordon, who began racing
quarter-midgets at the age of five and is now a four-time NASCAR Cup Series
champion, believes the audience will experience a journey during each show.
“Magicians and illusionists have always amazed me, and Darren is no
exception,” said Gordon. “I’m not surprised that NASCAR’s popularity has led to
this opportunity. “The audience should expect a wild ride during Darren’s
performances this year.”
Adding a NASCAR element to each show seemed to be the next logical step.
“We have realized for a long time that a large percentage of Branson visitors
are NASCAR fans,” said Joe Sullivan, executive producer of Welk-Sullivan
Productions. “We are delighted to have an opportunity to include an element in The Darren Romeo Show that will be fun and exciting for people who enjoy
NASCAR and particularly Jeff Gordon and his No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet.
“We are looking forward to working with DuPont, Pepsi-Cola and the other
sponsors to maximize their exposure in the Branson market and to create an
entertaining experience for NASCAR fans at the Welk Resort Theatre.”
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