AUGUST 2014
MANON RODRIGUEZ
THE WEARER OF
MANY HATS
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
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AUgUst 2014
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 offices.
POSTMASTER: Send address changes to M-U-M, c/o Manon Rodriguez, P.O. Box 505, Parker, CO 80134.
Volume 104 • Number 3
THIS MONTH’s FEATURES
24 I Left My Cards at Home • by Steve Marshall
26 Blast from the Past
28 Nielsen Gallery • by Tom Ewing
30 Illusions of Grandeur • by David Seebach
32 Cheats and Deceptions • by Antonio M. Cabral
34 Hit the Road • by Scott Alexander
36 COVER STORY • by Mark Weidhaas
41 Tech Tricks • by Bruce Kalver
42 Combined Convention Photos
46 Not Just Kid Stuff • by Jim Kleefeld
48 The High Road • by Mick Ayres
50 For Your Consideration • by George Parker
54 Ebook Nook: The Card Magic of Nick Trost
58 Messing with Your Mind • by Christopher Carter
60 Informed Opinion • New Product Reviews
68 Salon de Magie • by Ken Klosterman
69 Inside Straight • by Norman Beck
70 The Dean’s Diary • by George Schindler
70 Basil the Baffling • by Alan Wassilak
MAGAZINE
M-U-M
Photo by Dale Farris Cover
Story PAGE 36
Poster Image by Bruce Kalver
Cover Photo by Lisa Close
S.A.M. NEWS
6 From the Editor’s Desk
8 From the President’s Desk
10 Newsworthy
11 M-U-M Assembly News
22 Broken Wands
35 Good Cheer List
69 Our Advertisers
46
42
Photo by Dale Farris
10
Editor’s Desk
In any organization, there are people who work behind the scenes, communicating with members and officers, and keeping track of the daily minutia that allows things to run smoothly. In The Society of American Magicians, National Administra-tor Manon Rodriguez is one such person. As the cover photo suggests, Manon wears many hats; she is the go-to woman for just about any situation that arises, and she handles these events with grace and good humor. The thing most members don’t understand about Manon is how to pronounce her name; it’s Man-oh, with the emphasis on the first syllable. As you’ll learn in PNP Mark Weidhaas’s article on page 36, Manon is also a very successful businesswoman who (along with husband, PNP Dan Rodriguez) has raised four talented children.Lisa, Ava, and I attended the combined I.B.M./S.A.M. combined convention last month, and it was quite a gathering, with more than 1,300 magicians attending. For me, the problem with a large convention like this is that I see more friends than I have time to adequately visit with. But it was really great to reconnect with old pals Lupe Nielsen, Dustin Stinnett, Seth Kramer, Joe Stevens, Christian Painter and Katalina, Christian Engblom, Danny Archer, Sandy and Susan Marshall, Lindsay Smith, Tom Ewing, and others too numerous to mention here.
One person whose work schedule kept him from attending was Mick Ayres, who received the Leslie Guest Award for Literary Ex-cellence for his continuing column, The High Road. Every month I find something of interest in Mick’s column; in fact, I perform two of his effects all the time. If you have overlooked his articles, go back and check them out. You’ll be a better magician for doing so. Congratulations, Mick.
This month you’ll find photos from the first two days of the convention. More photos will follow in the September issue.
Contests were a big part of the combined convention, but because three different organizations (I.B.M., S.A.M., FISM) were judging the acts at the same time, the announced results were a bit confusing (even for those who attended all the contests and the awards ceremony). I asked S.A.M. contest chairman Vinny Grosso to clarify the proceedings. Here are his comments and the contest results:
Confused about the contest at the combined I.B.M./S.A.M. convention? You are not alone. If you went to all six contest shows you witnessed a FISM North American Championship, a People’s Choice Award voting, an I.B.M. contest and an S.A.M. contest. This was much different than in 2008, when there was no affilia-tion with FISM at the combined convenaffilia-tion. It was also a different situation than that in 2011 when the S.A.M. hosted the first FISM North American Championships.
The key element that had to be dealt with was that the I.B.M. and the S.A.M. have members from all over the world; conse-quently, their contests are open to all of their members. FISM has created continental championships where only residents of those continents are eligible to participate. The combined convention organizers wanted to preserve the I.B.M. and S.A.M. contests, making sure they were open to all members, while also hosting the FISM North American Championships.
sixty contestants were judged by a FISM panel using FISM criteria. These contests produced two results: the North American Champions, in both stage and close-up, as well as which contes-tants (North American) would receive an invitation to compete at FISM. They were:
Stage – 2014 North American Champions Trevor & Lorena Watters (Canada), Christian & Katalina (USA), Trent James (USA), the Reed Sisters (USA), Trigg Watson (USA), and Tim Wright (USA)
Close-up – 2014 North American Champion Shin Lim (Canada), Michael Dardant (USA), Hannibal (USA), Alberto Lorenzo (USA), and Reuben Moreland (USA)
The FISM contest fee (but not the registration fee) is waived for the people getting invites to FISM. There were nine stage slots and six close-up slots available. Contestants had to meet a minimum score to be eligible. Four stage slots and one close-up slot were left unfilled.
The FISM panel of judges was also responsible for selecting the seven highest-scoring contestants in both stage and close-up (regardless of their country of origin) for the two contest finals shows. They were:
Stage – Cheol-Seong Choi (S. Korea), DenDen (Japan), PoCheng Lai (Taiwan), Hun Lee (S. Korea), Natalie & Eli (Switzer-land), Sheldon Wang (China), Trevor & Lorena Watters (Canada)
Close-up – Martin Braessas (Argentina), Michael Dardant (USA), Hannibal (USA), Shin Lim (Canada), Alberto Lorenzo (USA), Reuben Moreland (USA), Seol Park (S. Korea)
The finals were, in effect, both an I.B.M. and an S.A.M. contest. Each organization had its own panel of judges and each gave out its own awards. The convention also sponsored a People’s Choice award for the two finals show. The I.B.M., S.A.M., and People’s Choice produced some different results.
People’s Choice Awards: Close-up – Shin Lim (Canada), Stage – Hun Lee (S. Korea)
I.B.M. Awards: Close Up – 1st Place ($2,000) Michael Dardant (USA), 2nd Place ($500) Alberto Lorenzo (USA); Stage – 1st Place ($2,000) Hun Lee (S. Korea), 2nd Place ($500) DenDen (Japan). The I.B.M. did not award their highest honors, finding no one had met their criteria.
S.A.M. Awards: Close-up – High Score ($2,000) and Award of Merit Silver Medal ($500) Seol Park (S. Korea), 2nd High Score ($500) Reuben Moreland (USA); Stage – High Score ($2,000) and Award of Honor Gold Medal ($3,000) DenDen (Japan), 2nd High Score ($500) and Award of Merit Silver Medal ($500) Hun Lee (S. Korea). The Originality Award was also presented to Hun Lee.
The S.A.M. gave DenDen from Japan the Gold Medal Award of Honor. This is only the second time a gold medal has been awarded for stage. The previous recipient was George Saterial in 1999. The gold medal has been awarded twice in Close-up: Johnny Ace Palmer in 1988 and Eric DeCamps in 1995. This makes the gold medal winners part of a very exclusive club. There was an expert panel of judges for the S.A.M. Stage Contest: Stan Allen, David Kaye, Casa Kim (the Korean College of Magic), Tina Lenert, and Brian South. DenDen’s act is unique and expertly performed. It was the belief of the panel that it’s destined to be a classic in magic.
Michael Close
Kenrick "ICE" McDonald
President’s Desk
Thank you for all of your support this year by attending the I.B.M./S.AM. combined convention. Led by the combined co-chairmen and their committees, the convention was a wonderful experience. Moving a crowd of approximately 1,300 attendees from place to place was done with precision, and I congratulate you. A special thanks to Randy Kalin and his team for assisting with the transportation to and from the airport, as well as other destinations throughout the city.
I was extremely proud of the turnout of the young artists who attended; your presence didn’t go unnoticed. I would like to encourage all of you to keep watching the Society for new and exciting programs for young artists. Stay tuned for more conven-tion coverage next month.
As I mentioned in earlier articles, this is the “Year of the S.A.M. Members.” I am giving members the opportunity to let us know their issues and concerns regarding The Society of American Magicians. During the next three months, starting this month (August), I want to hear from you. The objective of this campaign is to come up with ways to improve local assem-blies, regional outreach, and the connection between the national council and its members. Due to the number of members in the Society, I ask that everyone limit their comments to a small paragraph. Please do not write a book; it will not get read. I ask that you respect the process, while letting us know what’s on your mind. The national council will list the issues submitted and will figure out, based on the list, how to address said issue, or whether or not to address the issue. However, if this is going to work, there are some rules that must be followed:
1. Do not address any issues that don’t directly involve you or that you do not have firsthand knowledge of – no hearsay.
2. Do not address personal issues that have nothing to do with the Society.
3. Do not be mean spirited or use any blue language. If we receive any comments that contain any such language, your comments will not be considered.
4. Comments sent in anonymously will not be addressed. You must include your full name, membership number, your assembly number, and be a member in good standing.
Please send your comments to me at [email protected]. I am pleased to announce a new achievement award that goes along with one of my themes for this year, “Honoring our Members.” The award will highlight and honor individual S.A.M. members and their achievements. The regional vice presidents will select and submit an individual from an assembly in his/her region. I will award that individual with a Presidential Certificate, the second highest award given by the S.A.M.’s national president. In extraordinary cases, a Presidential Citation, the highest award given by the S.A.M.’s national president, can be requested by
and arrange for it to be awarded to the member. Each month the honorees will be highlighted in M-U-M.
The Society of American Magicians has launched an official Facebook page that is exclusively for the members. Yes, there are a couple of Facebook pages out there; this one is called “The Official S.A.M Member’s Facebook Page.” This page is designed to get the latest official information from the national council to its members, facilitate member-to-member communication, and to be a direct line from members to the national council. Only members in good standing will be allowed to post and receive messages. There will be guidelines that are consistent with the standards of the S.A.M.
THE PRESIDENT’S GOOD WILL
PERFORMERS OF THE MONTH:
Dick Brookz and Dorothy Dietrich, for the unselfish care and upkeep of Houdini gravesite.
On September 27, 2011, Dick Brookz and Dorothy Dietrich, owners of the Houdini Museum in Scranton, Pennsylvania, replaced the bust of Houdini at the Houdini gravesite, at their own expense. It had been destroyed by vandals a few years earlier. Dick and Dorothy have invested quite a bit of their time and money into maintaining the gravesite for the past several years. During the S.A.M. national council meeting held in Boca Raton, Florida, in November of 2014, the Society unanimously voted to approve a motion for the S.A.M. to take over care and maintenance of the gravesite. We are currently looking into repairs needed to restore the gravesite. We would like to thank Dick and Dorothy for all the time, work, and money they have contributed to this effort.
THE PRESIDENT’S YOUNG MAGICAL ARTIST
OF THE MONTH:
Harrison Lampert
Harrison Lampert has been perform-ing magic for the past fourteen years. Starting in the Society of Young Magicians, he is now a life member of the S.A.M. Harrison has competed in some national conven-tions and was given the opportunity to judge one of them. He graduated from Temple University with a BA in theater, and performed in various plays and comedy
S.A.M. National Officers
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)
339-6726 [email protected]
Second Vice President: Richard Bowman,
719-527-0678, [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,
Regional Vice Presidents
New England: CT MA RI NH ME VT Thomas D. Gentile, 413-533-7653, [email protected] North Atlantic: NY NJ Eric DeCamps, (718) 896-5861, [email protected]
Mid Atlantic: PA DE MD VAWV DC
Arlen Z. Solomon, 215-443-7908, [email protected] South Atlantic: FL AL GA MS NC SC James M. Driscoll, 770-603-9266, [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: Lon F. Mandrake, 604-591-5839,
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
clubs in Philadelphia. He moved to Los Angeles, where he was cast in The Incredible Burt Wonderstone. Harrison was also accepted into the Groundlings School, where he has been studying improvisational and sketch comedy for the past four years. Along with studying at The Groundlings, he has also performed in several improv shows there, including his own stand-up, sketch, and magic show that he wrote, directed, and performed. He is proud to say that he has the longest titled show in Hollywood and possibly all of Los Angeles. He has also been writing and producing his own short sketches, one of which, The Legends of the Hidden Temple movie, was featured on the Entertainment Weekly website. Magic has always been a part of his life; he has been able to pull from it and incorporate it into his comedy. He used his magic background to make the very popular Magician vs. Wild sketch.
2014 Milbourne Christopher Awards I.B.M./S.A.M. Banquet, Friday, July 4th
The Milbourne Christopher Foundation was estab-lished to encourage excellence, originality, and leader-ship in the magical arts and to help keep conjuring on a level with the other most popular entertainment forms – dance, drama, comedy, and music. Headquartered in New York City, the foundation sponsors the annual Milbourne Christopher Awards to spotlight the best magic has to offer contemporaneously in performing, writing, publishing, and invention.
Milbourne Christopher, author or editor of more than twenty books on magic and extra-sensory percep-tion, was named national president in 1957-58, after a term as head of the New York Parent Assembly 1. He created and starred in the first prime time network television magic, which aired on NBC and on European
networks in 1957. Earlier, in 1951, he revived M-U-M as a separate publication and edited it for five years. Chris-topher died in 1984 at the age of seventy.
The Christopher Foundation award winners are selected by a panel of judges comprised of leaders from the magic community. William V. Rauscher functions as chair. Other judges include Thomas A. Ewing, Raymond J. Goulet, Tony Clark, and Michael Miller.
Winners
• Illusionist Award – Alex Ramon • Mentalist Award – Joseph Curcillo • Close-up Award – Dani DaOrtiz • Visual Magic Art Award – Rick Heath • Masters Award – Dale Salwak
• Literary Award – Jim Steinmeyer
• Lifetime Achievement Award – Stan Kramien
Willam Rauscher with award winners.
Top row: Alex Ramon, Joseph Curcillo,
Dani DaOrtiz. Middle Row: Rick
Heath, Dale Salwak, Jim Steinmeyer.
Left: Christopher Award Winners
(absent - Stan Kramien)
Photos by Dale Farris
Newsworthy
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ASSEMBLY NEWS
Society of American Magicians Monthly News
August 2014 Volume 104, Number 3
GO TO:
WWW.MUM-MAGAZINE.COM
and use the easy submission form to file your report
2
FINISH CLEAN SAN FRANCISCO, CA— Tonight’s lively teach-in, taught by Corky LaVallee, revealed several versions of the Ambitious Card routine. First he demonstrated the simplest method using a double lift. Next, Corky caused a signed card to appear on top of the deck. He then applied a triple lift for a more sophisticated method. Yes, it’s all about method.
Tonight’s theme centered on laundry. What kind of magic can be performed with this theme and its many byways? Besides laundry soap and cloth, rope can be used and even coins, which of course are needed at the laun-dromat. Rich Seguine provided humor with a bubble-blowing act. Rich then followed with more serious magic – Tommy Wonder’s excellent Rubick’s Card effect. Hippo Lau, assisted by Nathan Ng, staged a selected, signed card effect. After the card was replaced in the deck, it disappeared from the deck and was discovered in a laundry soap box with the phrase “finish clean” printed on it. With a white handkerchief Stu Bacon exposed the secret of a left-hand-ed hanky that requirleft-hand-ed a special method to tie a knot in it. Rob Shapiro entertained with his white and red ropes routine. Tying a knot in the white rope, he caused the white knot to move to the red rope, whereupon the knotted segment of the red rope became white. Nathan presented his superb memorized card effect. Stu and Rich assisted by selecting cards. First Nathan spread the deck face up and memorized the sequence of cards. Then Stu’s card was replaced in the deck, and Nathan identified it. Rich followed by selecting a card and then replacing it in the deck before the deck was spread face up. The mage easily recognized Rich’s card. Corky returned to stage his laundry theme effect. Displaying a stack of glasses, he poured clear water into the top glass. Once the water reached the bottom glass, the liquid had become yellow. The liquid in the glass above was green
and red in the next glass above. Corky utilized the red liquid as a dye and dyed a white cloth white and then changed it into blue. John Caris, assisted by Rob, performed John Scarne’s Six Cent effect. John divined which of Rob’s hands held a penny and which a nickel. Mary Caris enjoyed the evening’s show and assisted with the cookie vanishing act. —John Caris
Golden Gate Assembly 2 meets first Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. at Community Room of Taraval Police Station, 2345 24th Avenue, San Francisco. Contact Corky LaVallee [email protected] (415) 648-1382 https://www.facebook. com/groups/249018441875771/ for more details.
4
LECTURE ON THE HISTORY OF MAGIC IN PHILADELPHIA
PHILADELPHIA, PA— Our May meeting featured two practical workshops on paper money magic and rope miracles in addition to a most informative and entertaining lecture on The History of Magic in Philadelphia
George Hample started things off with a hands-on workshop on paper money magic during which he taught the handling of many fine effects including his very own Counterfeit Bill Effect as well as Beswitched. Across the way from George, Charles Murter presented a fine workshop on rope magic during which he taught a number of variations on The Professor’s Nightmare as well as the Block on Cord effect.
Following these excellent workshops, National SAM Historian Tom Ewing brought the History of Magic in Philadelphia alive through a lively presentation which incorporated a slideshow, vintage photographs, theatre programs and even actual effects created right here in the City of Brotherly Love. Tom shared with us the history of the Yogi Club and the Houdini Club as well as the origin of SAM Assembly 4 which was named after Philadel-phia Patent Attorney Charles
Wo-bensmith who was a close friend of Germantown native Walter Gibson. Tom also discussed the numerous magic shops to which the city was once home, Houdini’s use of the city to expose false mediums, and Assembly 4’s 1938 Banquet honoring Thurston which was attended by not only Thurston, but also Walter Gibson and Harry Blackstone, Sr. Tom explained how much Harry Black-stone, Sr. enjoyed performing in Philadelphia annually through the 1950’s and how our very own Adele Friel Rhindress joined his act for the very first time here in the city on October 6, 1947, at the Walnut Street Theatre. Adele, who was present for the lecture and who is beloved by all, rose to her feet in recognition and was given a rousing round of applause. It was a great evening which we ended as we typically do by visiting our favorite local diner where the fun continued. —Peter S. Cuddihy Assembly 4 meets the third Thursday at 7:00 p.m. at the Bustleton Memorial Post, 810 (American Legion) 9151 Old Newtown Road Contact www. sam4.org/ for more details.
6
MAGICAL DOINGS IN JUNE BALTIMORE, MD— New member Mike Parkinson was welcomed into the assembly and duly invested with his S.A.M.
accoutrements. After briefly discussing a possible future lecture, it was on to magic. Peter Wood, declaring himself “a 33% mentalist,” went on to divine three different cards thought of by three different spectators from three different decks. It looked like 100% mentalism to us. Guest Charles Covington showed us “a little something with coins,” passing silver dollars one by one through a small ceramic cup with an even smaller bottom hole. He then did a fine bare-handed Coins Across. Mentalist Oneil Banks, pointing out that ESP cards can look more impressive to a lay audience than regular cards, went on to predict all five selected by a spectator.
Joe Bruno performed a comic four-card You Do As I Do that Baltimore’s Frank Thompson used to drive people nuts with (in June’s M-U-M, p. 50). He followed with another puzzling card effect and graciously tipped both. Tony Anastasi showed how to make “a mental trick” out of an all-backs deck (and used a rarely seen paddle move with a card). Jarod Raitsky brought out a deck of cards so ancient looking we were all afraid to touch it. But it was a new deck printed to look old, and he went on to reveal all three of his volunteers’ cards. Jeff Eline put the four Queens to work
to find his spectator’s card. He then showed some well-practiced silver dollar work with the set he purchased at last month’s Mark Mason lecture. Mark Wolfire “sawed a joker in half” and
Our Very Own Elusive Moth, Adele Friel Rhindress, performing with Harry Blackstone,
Sr.
Ralph Fowler performing his famous hand-produced
restored it backwards, while we all provided musical accompaniment to “We Will Rock You,” certainly one of the weirder moments of the evening (Axel Hecklau’s One: Twist). Howard Katz had his spectator cover a spread of cards with a close-up mat (“this is better if you can’t see it ... like most of my magic”), then ascertained the spectator’s selection with his back turned. Jay Silverman had four different volunteers shuffle five cards each, then merely think of one. Collecting the cards and shuffling them, he then divined each thought-of card (an oldie, a Paul Fox effect?). Ralph Fowler closed the evening with his well-known home-made Haunted Matchboxes. —Eric Hoffman The Kellar/Thurston Assembly 6 meets every first 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
JUST WHAT I NEED! OMAHA, NE— The June meeting of the Omaha Magical Society was our annual garage sale. This year was a veritable smorgasbord of items, ranging from DVDs, books, and close-up effects to a hand chopper and some other stage effects. In all, tables were set up by six magicians in what I sometimes I consider a “magic exchange.” Let’s see who is no longer doing what. After about an hour and a half of ne-gotiating, the “dealers” closed up shop. Perhaps someone bought an
item to be used at our next meeting, which is themed “close-up magic.” The Omaha Magical Society has been fortunate to have a large donation from the estate of local magician Warren Mattes that has been used to generate income and provide incentives for prospec-tive performers at meetings. This
collection of goodies has been further enhanced through the generosity of Dave Arch, who has donated magic that he no longer uses. We’re hoping that prudent use of these items will expand the talents of Omaha Magical Society members. —Jerry Golmanavich Omaha Magical Society meets usually every third Monday at 7 p.m. at the Southwest Church of Christ near 124th St. and West Center Road, right across from where Hooters used to be. Contact jerry golmanavich golubki@ cox.net (402) 390-9834 for more details.
13
A GREAT NIGHT OF MAGIC INCLUDES A BASEBALL
TRICK
DALLAS, TX— President Frank Seltzer called Assembly 13 to order and initiated the business portion of the meeting. Soon after business was finished, the night’s performances began with Doc Grimes asking Fran Hatzenbuhler to remove eight cards from the deck and to pick one. Fran’s card was returned the middle of the packet and Doc split the packet into two groups of four cards. John Hatzenbuhler confirmed that the selected card was in the packet. Then Fran „invisibly“ pulled her card from John’s grasp. In the end, Fran’s card was magically removed from John’s packet, which now contained three cards.
Ian Richards performed another card trick by asking Geoff Grimes to select a card. Doc selected a card and returned it to the middle of a half face-up/half face-down deck. Ian then split the deck and shuffled; all the cards were now facing the same direction. After instructing, Doc waved his hands over the deck and all cards appeared face up with the exception of Doc’s.
Diamond Jim Tyler performed a numerology routine. Mike Blum was given a grid of numbers and instructed to circle one number and cross out the other numbers in the row and column. This was repeated this until all the numbers were either selected or crossed off. Mike’s final selection equaled thirty-four. Meanwhile, Diamond Jim made his own predictive magic square whereby summing a variety of patterned quadrants also equaled Mike’s freely-se-lected sum of thirty-four. Finally, Diamond Jim asked everyone who was the most famous player of the Texas Rangers. The group responded unanimously that it was indeed Nolan Ryan. Jim removed his outer shirt to display a Rangers baseball shirt, proudly display-ing the name and number (34) of
Nolan Ryan on the back.
George Ferrin followed with card mentalism and Ian Richards supplied his own deck of cards for the trick. Ian split the cards into four piles and selected a pile and thought of a card from his pile. After instructing Ian to deal, count, and cut the cards, George correctly revealed to Ian and everyone else that the chosen card was of the Seven of Spades.
Wrapping up the evening’s per-formances, Derrel Allen signaled a heart-shape with his hands toward club member favorite Fran Hat-zenbuhler and then he proceeded to produce coins from the heart. —The Scribe of the Scroll
The Dallas Magic Clubs is S.A.M. Assembly 13, chartered on October 4, 1924 by MI President Harry Houdini. Meetings are held the third Tuesday of each month at 7:00 pm at Theater 166, 2425 Parker Road, Carrollton, Texas 75010. Contact Dal Sanders dal@ magicsam.com (214) 902-9200 www.dallasmagic.org for more details.
17
LAST MEETING BEFORE THE SUMMER
SPRINGFIELD, MA— Our June meeting is our last before September rolls back around, but more important, it was our last with Bob Carroll in town. Bob and his wife Deb are packing up and heading to California. We’re all sad to see them go, but wish them all the best as they start this new chapter of their lives.
Tonight’s theme was parlor magic, so naturally there were a lot of card tricks. Tom Gentile started us off by having a card selected and remem-bered. He then donned a “metal-mind-reading cap” with a phone attached, and had the person who selected the card mentally send him the identity of the pasteboard. A third person, on the other end of the phone, then correctly named the card. Rich Pinsonnault was next with a production of coins from within a handkerchief –
clean, clear magic at it’s best. Peter Lennis shared a four-Ace production that he came up with (working title: Aces), in which the Aces were placed in separate spots in the deck by a volunteer, yet without any visible movement on Peter’s part, they collected together again. This was very direct and baffling, a wonderful new idea. Dillon performed Dazzling Diamond, a close-up version of Tenyo’s What’s Next. Basically, a card was selected and another card was shown to be a prediction of what the selected card would be. As Dillon rotated the single prediction card, it kept changing to different predic-tions until it finally matched. Jeff Pyzocha performed Tenyo’s Tower of Dice, a baffling little illusion. PJ Pinsonnault performed a multi-phase routine in which coinci-dences seemed to happen over and over.
Eddie Kazar, current holder of the prestigious (and self-pro-claimed) title of Worst Magician in the World, read the minds of several people and was able to tell them where they would most like to visit in the world. Finally, Leonard Nadeau performed a trick he learned from the late, great Aldo Colombini in which ropes penetrate each other and link at the middles as they pass under a napkin. —Karen Gibson
Dr. I.R. Calkins Assembly 17 meets the first Friday of every month at 7 pm at RP Magic Shop/ Moto X Equipment; 69 East Street, Ludlow, MA. Contact Rich Gilbert [email protected] (413) 210-5725 www.assembly17.org for more details.
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HOT MAGIC IN HOUSTON HOUSTON, TX— The tempera-tures are rising in Houston along with some of the hottest magic you will find. We have Michael Dardant lecturing on June 10 and then Daryl will be here on July 8. Scott Wells keeps the great lectures coming our way. Our annual BBQ picnic was a great
Seller Bob Buczkowski with buyer Noah Ryan and
Dave Arch
Diamond Jim Tyler shows Mike Blum some Numerology
Bob Carroll and his Farewell Cake
Assembly News
success with good attendance along with fun magic as well.
Our performances began with Marti Stein, who simply removed a full-sized shovel from a rather average-sized paper bag. The shovel looked pretty good from my front row seat as well.
Rick Hebert had a deck thor-oughly shuffled and mixed several times before he mixed it again and then restored it instantly. Two fairly selected cards were then lost in the deck and amazingly found by Rick. He was looking for feedback on this one, and several of us gave him some positive feedback.
David Hinken showed us two metal tubes that were screwed together, with a quarter separat-ing the open junction between them. Quarters were then placed into one end of the tube and caused to penetrate one at a time through a series of moves. Looked like a nice pocket trick to carry around.
Roger Johnson shared an effect using a small wooden tube and die. The die was firmly locked into placed with a wooden dowel, yet s o m e h o w managed to free itself, even when the dowel’s ends were firmly held in place. Roger is great with his stories as well.
Mark Melchor produced a gigantic straw from a McDonald’s Happy Meal. This was followed with a Rubik’s Cube effect in which the cube was restored to normal with a simple flip in the air. Jamie Salinas borrowed Roger Johnson’s watch and handed it to America for safekeeping. He then changed its time by a called out number of minutes. When checked, he was right on time.
David Rangel had any card and suit called out. He dealt out the cards onto the table face down and then narrowed the selection down to just one named card. When the cards were revealed, all were blank except for the called-out card, even the original deck from which they came. Max Bradshaw vanished the four Kings one at a time, and then revealed them in a magical way for a nice flourish finish. —Miles Root
Assembly 19 meets the first Monday of every month at the International 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 [email protected] (281) 334-7508 houstonmagic.com for more details.
21
BACK-TO-BACK LECTURESWEST HARTFORD,CT— Our May and June meetings saw back-to-back lecturers.
In May, Kent Axell presented his “Things to Consider” lecture, with a focus on mentalism. Some of his key concepts included; “Brutal honesty” with your effects; Emphasis on the “puzzle” aspect; Implicit v. Explicit instructions to a spectator. He offered a tip for doing Crazy Man’s Handcuffs: raise the finale to eye-level, rather than at crotch-level.
He did some effects using the Aronson stack, an Invisible Deck variation that involves the audience. He played a “game” with Dan and Jason – a variation of Out Of This World. Other effects: Poker Face, using a
duplicate and a Mexican Turnover, Art Fraud, wherein three people draw a secret image and a fourth examines them, finishing with the mage drawing a picture based on that fourth person’s “thoughts,” plus many others.
And in June, Francis Menotti presented his „Shuffles & Scripts“ lecture, starting with a „shuffle“ routine – a clever skit with voice patterns matching the shuffling.
Some of his other effects: a prediction called Vivid; a coin through shirt illusion aka Materi-alistic; a gag routine called Anti-Prediction; a wonderful predicting effect using the calculator app on a spectator’s cellphone (this used a swindle known as the „toxic“ force); Fax, which uses a duplicate to make a signed card appear anywhere; and Smack, which uses a „singular double“ life.
After the break, he told us some disaster stories and how he got out of them. He did Bill-Ver, in which a dollar bill transforms into a silver dollar and back. He taught us the basics of a proficiency-build-ing exercise for the club called „Shift Or Get Off The Pot.“ He finished with a three-part effect called Sync wherein he repeatedly
found the mate of a selected card. —Dana T. Ring
Assembly 21 meets 2nd Monday of every month (except December) at Angelo’s on Main, 289 South Main Street, West Hartford, CT Contact Dana T. Ring dana@danaring. com (860) 5239888 www.ctmagic. org for more details.
22
THE AWARDS BANQUET LOS ANGELES, CA— The Southern California Assembly 22 has traditionally held a banquet each June to install its newly elected assembly officers and to present awards and trophies to those members who have excelled in a variety of performance cat-egories during regular assembly meetings. This is always a highlight of the assembly year and is well attended by members, spouses, friends, and guests, who come not only for the official events but for the socializing, a great meal, and a very entertain-ing magic show. S.A.M. Hall of Fame & Magic Museum President John Engman served as toastmas-ter for the evening’s festivities.
Prior to the meal, Steve Jennings and Kim Hallinger conducted the “Turning of the Plate” ceremony for two of our assembly members who had passed away during the past year: Roland E. Hill and Toni Perrine. This ceremony dates back to the early S.A.M. annual banquets in New York City before the S.A.M. became a national orga-nization. The Southern California Assembly has, during its eighty-three-year existence, continued to use traditional S.A.M. ceremony rituals and is proud of the S.A.M. history and heritage.
Stevens Steak & Seafood in the City of Commerce, California, has served as our banquet restaurant for a number of years and is a Los Angeles institution. Past National President Ed Thomas installed the 2014-2015 assembly officers, after which both outgoing president Tom Meseroll and incoming president Michael Perovich briefly addressed the assemblage. With the conclusion of this assembly business, emcee John Engman started the show.
Opening the show was Harrison Lampert, a talented young assembly member who recently moved to L.A. from Philadel-phia. Harrison’s act was full of humor and magic and set the mood for all the fun that was to follow. The second performer was another young and very talented Los Angeles area magician, Jeffrey Black. Jeffrey enter-tained with an act of stand-up card magic effects, exhibiting his
considerable skill with a deck of cards. Closing the show was Joe Monti, a Los Angeles professional magician with international per-formance credits. Joe’s act was full of gags and antics that kept his audience in constant laughter. His magic included a signature piece, Three Card Joe.
When the show ended, the final event of the evening took place: the awarding of trophies and cer-tificates to deserving members of the assembly. Some of these trophies date back many decades and contain names of some of magic’s finest magicians. It was another great evening of Assembly 22 magic. —Steven L. Jennings Southern California Assembly 22 meets the third Monday each month at 8:00 PM, St. Thomas More Parish Hall, 2510 South Fremont Avenue, Alhambra, California Contact Ed Thomas m a g i c m r e d @ e a r t h l i n k . n e t (323213) 382-8504 for more details.
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LYNCHBURG’S FOCUS ON WALK-AROUND MAGIC LYNCHBURG, VA— We welcomed three first-time visitors to our June assembly meeting: Wyatt Bryant (age nine), brother Evan Bryant (age seven), and their dad, Chris Bryant. Wyatt seems to be the one bitten by the magic bug, but they all showed a keen interest. The meeting started with John Jennings teaching a few effects with ropes; then Wyatt demonstrated his own “stiff rope” effect.The theme for the month was “Walk-Around Magic.” Bob Staton got things started along that line by showing an Aldo Colombini pre-diction effect. Colored balls were selected from a bag; the color of the last one remaining being held by the performer was discovered written on the back of a business card that was handed out before the presentation started. Bob also performed a sleight-of-hand trick with two coins and finished with two separate small rings that amazingly linked together. Bob was generous enough to share his handling of the rings with the group.
Mike Kinnaird was on hand to perform a Three Card Monte routine; well, that was after showing that his “One Card Monte” just wouldn’t work. Mike also showed a nicely handled bit of magic with rubber bands. Our visitor Wyatt also performed an effect with one of the rubber bands in which it jumped from finger to finger.
John Jennings continued the
theme-related magic by present-ing the Invisible Zone (a Tenyo manufactured item). He added a quick illusion of pushing a finger through his ear. A great thing about both of these effects is that they require no set up whatsoev-er. There was additional discus-sion of what makes good walk-around magic and a magic-filled evening drew to a close. —John Jennings
The Hersy Basham Assembly 32 meets the third Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. at Tharp Funeral Home, 220 Breezewood Drive, Lynchburg, VA. Contact John Jennings (434) 851-6240 for more details.
35
MAGIC - VIDEO STYLE POUGHKEEPSIE, NY— Our speaker tonight gave us an insight into the world of television that we would not have known otherwise. For several months, earlier this year, our own Derrin Berger worked as a consultant on Tru-TV’s The Carbonaro Effect.
Derrin met Michael Carbonaro at Tannen’s Magic Camp in 1992; they kept in touch over the years. A text from Michael to Derrin on December 30, 2013, asked him what time zone he was in. That was the beginning of Derrin working on the show.
There were some heavy-hitters also working in the show; Derrin described the schedule that they all had to work under. They had to come up with many, many bits and get them all filmed in a very short time. Not to mention just getting used to working with all the different people on the show. With virtually no days off, everyone was there to eat, sleep, and do this show. But that’s TV.
It was a fascinating look into how a television show is put onto the air. As with any endeavor, a group dynamic has to develop before anything substantial can be done. I think back to what Billy Welu, the Professional Bowler’s Association Hall of Fame member once said: “Trust is a must, or your game is a bust.” Everyone working on the show had their strengths and weaknesses, so it took some time before everything congealed, but that is what eventually made the show stronger. That is what col-laboration is all about, whether it’s a magic show or something else.
A main idea that Derrin made to us was that sometimes the simple idea beats the clever idea. Don‘t just do an effect as you read how to do it, but explore how to make it better. Make it your own. Make it an effect that your audience will remember. Give them a „magical“ effect, no matter how simple it may
be to perform. The „end“ result for your audience is more important than how it was done. Watch The
Carbonaro Effect to see how this
plays out in the real world. Thank you Derrin for giving us all a real eye opener! —Darryl Bielski Assembly 35 meetings are held at the Milanese Restaurant in Poughkeepsie, NY. Typically, meetings are held every 2nd Tuesday of each month, beginning at 7:30 pm. Contact Joel Zaritsky [email protected] (845) 546-1559 sam35.com for more details.
38
CARDS, COINS, RINGS, AND STORIES
KANSAS CITY, MO— Assembly 38 met on May 20, and was called to order by President Rod Sipe. The evening’s magic was a potpourri of props, person-alities, and performance styles that John Hicks, whose clever card work and easygoing presentation never fails to please, opened. Bob Goodin, another performer with a low-key persona and a pow-erhouse battery of remarkable effects, followed him. The young Ms. Amber Laguardia, definitely our prettiest stage personality of the evening, assisted him with his card magic.
Then it was Shaun Rivera treating us to magic with coins. There seems to be no end to what can be done with a few half dollars and an Okito Box. Nicholas Theos showed us just how adroit one could become within only a year of entering the world of magic. Don Becker, just back from Iowa’s AbraCornDabra, regaled the assembly with „Tales from the Northern Farmlands,“ and a show-and-tell of nondescript souvenirs he brought back. Trevor Carso mystified us with his ventures into the world of mentalism and his adroit presentation of paper balls over an assistant’s head. The vintage Merv Taylor rings which Becker had brought back from Iowa garnered a lot of interest.
Then it was off to our after hours not-quite-five-star-grill where we stayed up late doing card tricks.
Our June 19 meeting was called to order by president Rod Sipes. Our primary business item was choosing a new vice president. Congratulations to Jason Moore, who was elected. Jason was also our first up of the evening perform-ers, and gave us pointers on the care and keeping of sponge balls. John Hicks presented a twisting and printing card effect, and he mystified us with a miniature plunger.
Shaun Rivera did a trick that
involved tearing up other people’s money. Then it was street-per-former Daniel Jackson doing cups and balls with surprise loads of oranges.
In light of the nearness of the Fourth of July, Don Becker showed the assembly a flag Blendo that goes back to the days of a 48 star flags. Fresh from a tour with the United Stated Army, visitor Joshua Theo showed us the history of Three Card Monte, described his Army experiences with exemplary linking ring moves, and closed with his version of Pro-fessor’s Nightmare. Bob Goodin’s card and dice work, always profes-sional as well as exceptional, was well received as usual.
Our closing performer was young sleight of hand virtuoso Tyler Karso, who’s act included an “Out of This World” type trick. There is never enough space to do justice to each performer. Here’s hoping a “Thank You and Well Done!” to everyone may suffice. —Don Becker
Assembly 38 meets at The Improv Coffee House and Theater, 4010 Pennsylvania Avenue, Kansas City, MO on the 3rd Tuesday of every month. Contact Don Becker [email protected] (816) 886-6780 for more details.
47
CLOSE-UP CONTEST AND MAGIC PICNIC
ROCHESTER, NY— [Close-up Contest continued from last report.] Don Aman performed a puzzling transportation of a ring to a puzzle box. Mike Dede performed a Chop Cup routine, a card transformation, a penny transformation, and card on ceiling. Sante DiCarlo performed the classic Oil and Water. This beautiful routine was followed by a card being selected from a deck, only to have it be the only card with a different colored back. The winners were: Mike Dede 1st Place and $100, Joel Greenwich 2nd Place and $50, and Mike Ihrig
3rd Place and $25.
The year ended with the gentle warm breezes under the pavilion in Penfield, NY, as thirty members and guests gathered for food, con-versation, and magic! Magician turned chef Dan Grayson manned the grill where huge burgers and hot dogs were cooked to order. A special dessert was supplied by local baker Jonathan of Jon Jon’s Bakery. Many thanks to Mark Toker’s mom, Leslie, for making that happen!
After the group was filled with food, it was on to magic! Newly installed Sergeant At Arms Mark Toker performed a beautiful coin routine and ended with a signed card to mouth. Jimmy „C“ performed a miracle with Morgan silver dollars. He later performed a trick in which silks knotted on a ribbon mysteriously fell off when commanded. Mike Ihrig ended with Danny Archer’s Telemental. The picnic was a huge success, do to the dedication of Professor Rem and wife, Mary, Mike Ihrig, Dan Grayson, our food providers, magicians, and guests! Thank you so much! Have a great, safe summer! —Mike Ihrig
Assembly 47 meets 7:00 P.M. on the second Tuesday September thru May at St. Joseph’s School, 39 Gebhardt Rd., Penfield, NY. Contact Mike Ihrig ihrigmagic@ aol.com (585) 377-1566 www. sam47.com for more details.
51
GRAB BAG NIGHT PROVES TO BE A SUCCESS! PEORIA, IL— The June meeting began with updates on upcoming events, including the River-front Museum show, the Heart of Illinois Fair, Farmers Market, the Teach-in, and the Houdini tribute. We learned the date for the Diamond Jim Tyler lecture will be September 18.
Jerry Tupper won the first of our incentive program $50 prizes. Congrats, Jerry!
Next, we went straight to the magic part of the evening with our theme: Grab Bag. Grant Golden had gathered a nice array of various magic tricks that were all hidden in bags. Each attendee was given a bag by a drawing, and each had a few minutes to study their trick and then perform it.
Jay Zentko was able to make a silk vanish and reappear with a unique gimmick, not often seen. Regis Kormick demonstrated rope through neck and body. Michael Baker made coins appear in two small cups, and Jerry Tupper performed Comedy Split Deck.
Brock Cassidy did the One Ace Trick, Grant Golden showed a
Rod Sipe and Trevor Kosar contemplate paper ball
Assembly News
wand and silk trick. Rodney Nordstrom had a Die, Rod and Tube penetration, and also performed Devil’s Nails. Kyle Bassett made salt poured from a shaker change to a ball and then demonstrated rope through neck.
Barb Griffin showed three cards and one disappeared. Grant Golden then read the risqué patter that Barb was wise enough not to use. Bob Sumner showed a torn and restored bill. Michael Couri performed with a deck that caused selected cards to vanish. Brad Borland performed a growing wand and a rattlesnake prediction effect.
Many comments were heard that this was a fun meeting. Several of us gathered at a nearby restau-rant for dinner, drinks, and more magic. —Michael Baker
Assembly 51 meets the third Monday of each month, beginning at 7:00pm at Schnucks in the Metro Center, 4800 N. University in Peoria. Contact Michael Baker [email protected] (205) 612-3696 http://peoriamagicians. com/ for more details.
52
INSTALLATION OF OFFICERS BANQUET SAN ANTONIO, TX— June 7, 2014, Brother John Hamman Assembly 52 held it installation of officers banquet at Pompeii Italian Grill. After a great meal of lasagne, grilled chicken breast and chicken parmesan, outgoing President Don Moravits distribut-ed awards to several members for their contributions to the assembly meetings. He then installed the new officers. Congratulations to: RayAdam, President; Joe Libby, Vice-President; Doug Gorman, Secretary/Treasurer; and James Dusek, Sergeant-at-Arms. Before Don introduced the
entertain-ment for the evening, incoming President Ray Adams presented Don with a plaque expressing the assembly’s appreciation for his service as its president.
Our guest entertainer for the evening was David Hira from the Dallas/Fort Worth area. David thoroughly entertained us with his fast-paced and humorous presen-tations, making use of a number of club members and guests to enhance his show. He even thrilled the storytellers among us with a beautiful presentation of the floating table. Thanks to David for a wonderful show, and thanks to Don Moravits for bringing him to us. It was a wonderful evening enjoyed by all, and many thanks go to Don and Dahnene Moravits and Ray Adams, who put together this awesome night.
Brother John Hamman Assembly 52 meets at 7:30 p.m. on the first Thursday of the month at La Madeleine Restaurant, located at 722 N.W. Loop 410. The restaurant is inside Loop 410 on the access road between Blanco Rd. and San Pedro. For more information, contact [email protected]
59
RINGS AND THINGS/A STAR-SPANGLED AFFAIR PORTLAND, OR— Our May club meeting was off to a great start as president Mel Anderson kicked off the meeting with the theme, Rings and Things. Art Manning made accolades to the cast and crew who participated in the May 24 Elks magic show. The night’s teach-in commenced with John Edsall and Randy Stumman demonstrating for the member-ship several effects that had rings and other things used for magical purposes. After a short snack break, people took time to look at the props for sale by Bob Eaton from a fellow member’s estate sale.
Our performers for this month’s ShowTime were Randy Stumman, Tom Waldrop, Mel Anderson, and a guest from Las Vegas, Greg.
The June 25th meeting started out with a bang. What a great night of magic we all expe-rienced. The teach-in was „Magical Items in a Bag.“ This was put together by President Mel Anderson. The members were broken into four groups and were
given a bag of mis-cellaneous props and items to make magic routines. Everyone in the group got to choose an item in which he could make a magical effect. Everyone got
into the act; it was a real group building exercise and magically great time.
We inducted three new members, including Ron Boyd, Frank Dudgeon, and Jack Buchalter. We had several guests as well. Next we got a reminder of our annual club picnic at Randy Stumman’s home. Everyone needs to bring a dish, their favorite beverage, and meat if they wish. It will be magical day. There was a discus-sion about the new sound system that the board would like to purchase. This presentation was done by Randy Stumman. The discussion detailed several different systems and prices. The members agreed that there is need for a sound system for the club to do public shows as a group. An amount of around $600 was approved by members for the board to choose and purchase the new sound system.
The night continued with ShowTime. The theme was patriotic effects. We had several members who demonstrated their skills using magical effects with a patriotic theme. It was a star-spangled affair.
Our club will be dark for July and August, and return to our regular schedule in September with our annual swap meet. Wishing all a magical summer. —Andy Turner Assembly 59 meets at the Beaverton Elks Lodge. 3500 SW 104th Beaverton,Or Contact Andy Turner mysteriesofmagic@ gmail.com (503) 975-6139 sam59portland.org for more details.
72
ANNUAL CLOSE-UP CONTEST
SACRAMENTO, CA— The May meeting of Assembly 72 hosted the combined SAM/IBM Close-Up Competition for 2014. There were four contestants,
Don Banks, Joe Chez, David Dayton, and Richard Alyward. All four acts were well received. The winning act was by Richard Alyward, with Joe Chez coming in second. —Gary Berard
Assembly 72 meets the fourth Wednesday of the month at
7:00 PM. We meet at the Ronald McDonald House, 2555 49th St., Sacramento, CA. It is located behind the UCD Med Center in Sacramento. Contact Gary Berard [email protected] (916) 803-0346 for more details.
77
COMEDY REIGNS AT ANNUAL DINNER MASSAPEQUA, NY— We had our annual dinner at DJ’s Interna-tional Buffet in Garden City, NY (a winner in my book). The room had a decent-sized stage in the corner that was a bit high but workable. After an hour or so, newly elected President Mitch Goodkin took the mic and welcomed everyone and proceeded to hand out a lot of cer-tificates to many of our members for their efforts and generosity of their time. They called PP Steve Rodman and Treasurer Jeff Miller up to the stage and presented a framed certificate of thanks for their commitment to helping The Long Island Mystics. Linda Robbins, Bartholomew Simpson, and Carol Klein received cer-tificates in thanks to their per-formances for Birthday Wishes: a non-profit organization which helps children who are homeless. Rounding us out were Pat Darienzo, Mel Boskin, Allan Ru-binstein, and Jose Merced (absent) who were thanked for their perfor-mances for the Disabled American Veterans. More important, our raffle prizes donated by Warren Berkowitz and The Magic Burger Restaurant Business brought in a nice amount to benefit more events and work for the Mystics.
For show time, Pat Darienzo emceed the evening with ease. Up first, Mystics member Harry Mandel opened the show with nice stand-up magic, including comedy mentalism and a comedy rope tie. Comedian Eric Haft performed a tight and topical set and closed with one of the best Robert De Niro impersonations I’ve ever seen. To
Michael Baker performing at the Farmers Market
Richard Alyward - Close-Up Winner
From Left: James Dusek, Doug Gorman, Joe Libby and Ray Adams
Top Row: Allan Rubinstein, Pres. Mitch Goodkin, Steve Rodman, Linda Robbins. Lower row: Bartholomew Simpson, Carol Klein, Pat Darienzo and Jeff Miller
close the evening, fresh off from his stint on America’s Got Talent, we had corporate entertainer (and friend to the Mystics), illusionist, ventriloquist, and comedian all-in-one, John Pizzi! He rocked us with three different figures and even showcased his invention with a photo of Steve Rodman on a flat screen monitor that became a vent figure. We laughed at every eye roll that it made. Hysterical. He even brought up our sound man Alfred and turned him into a figure. It was a great fun show and we‘re looking forward to next year.
Next meeting is September 8, 2014, with a whole new line-up of lectures and fun and informa-tive meetings. See you all then. —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. Contact Lou Johnson [email protected] (516) 978-7735 www.limystics.org for more details.
88
MAGIC AND THE INTERNET ANN ARBOR, MI— Our June meeting had a surprise guest, Mr. Steven A. Spence, Regional Vice President Central Plains. Steve is on tour throughout the Midwest, introducing himself to the as-semblies he represents. Addition-ally, Steve laid out the Society’s plans for future training initia-tives at the national level for local officers. Assembly member Ray Wojciechowski recently was an award winner at the “Southern Fried Laughter Conference 2014,” which was held in Atlanta, Ga. Congratulations Ray, and a big guffaw for your accomplishment !
Our scheduled event for the evening was a lecture, “Magic and the Internet,” presented by member John Russell. John has been doing magic for more than fifty years and has taught Internet marketing strategies from New York City, to Los Angeles, to Singapore. His lecture demystified cyberspace and helped take our magic to the next level, as he explained why “if you’re not online, you don’t exist!”
We learned how to have a web presence, a Facebook page, and how to use a Twitter account. Also, John discussed where to buy and sell online with no fees, make money selling other people’s stuff, connecting with fellow magicians around the world, and promoting ourselves at little or no cost. John is passionate about magic’s relevance to the Internet and it showed, judging from the group’s undivided attention and multitude of questions. The audience came away with a ton of practical Internet tips and applica-tions to the business of magic. His lecture is highly recommended to anyone desiring to market their magic. Thanks John for gener-ously sharing your expertise with fellow magi.
The summer months prove exciting with July scheduled for a non-business meeting (picnic/ magic show) and August tagged for our annual corn roast (picnic/ magic show). The fall will kick off with a lecture by Barry Mitchell, “The Entertaining Encourager.” —Jim Folkl
Assembly 88 meets second Wednesday each month at 7pm, Faith Lutheran Church, 1255 East Forest, Ypsilanti, Michigan Contact President Bill Brang havewandwill travel2002@yahoo. com (313) 9371577 www.aamagic. org for more details.
94
LESSONS IN MAGIC AND COMEDY
SILICON VALLEY, CA— Our June meeting consisted of a show and lecture by Nick Lewin. First he performed for about a half an hour for an audience that included magicians and non-magicians, children and adults. After the show he gave a lecture for the magicians that included topics such as creating a powerful running order, audience participa-tion, sound and lighting, texture, timing, opening and closing effects, combining comedy and magic effectively, and many other aspects of making a magic show commercial and impactful. He also taught some of his original effects and routines to demonstrate these points, including: 20210s, Coin in Vanishing Bottle, Mental Trilogy, Ultimate Card in Envelope, Ultra Cards Across. He also offered his commercial handlings of classic effects such as Color Changing Silks, Card in Wallet, and Ring Flight. He also featured an invalu-able mini-study on the handling of playing cards and other small props in order to make them more visible and effective to larger audiences.
The night after the lecture, Nick presented two workshops. The first was a master class in which he went into great detail on his Mental Trilogy routine and his combination of Paper Balls over the Head and Electric Chair. He also gave quite a bit of detail on his own Bill in Lemon routine. Emphasis was on the details and thought behind the details as much as the moves and patter. During the second workshop, attendees each performed a routine or effect, a work in progress, and received thoughtful, meaningful critique and advice.
S.A.M. 94 members continue to entertain for Magic Mondays at Morocco’s Restaurant. June performers were Alan Leeds, Joe Caffall, John Jones, and Sy Hoff. Coming up in July are Phil Ackerly, Alan Leeds, John Jones, and Sy Hoff. —Joe Caffall
We do not currently have a permanent meeting location. Please email Joe Caffall at [email protected] for meeting information. We meet on the second Monday of each month. Contact Joe Caffall jocaff@ comcast.net (408) 375-1905 for more details.
95
ASSEMBLY 95 MAGIC GALA AND GIMMICKED CARDS VANCOUVER, CANADA— The June, 2014 meeting was held at the magical home of our most senior, albeit amazingly youthful member, Anthony Young. Henry Tom stepped up to take the monthly minutes and notes in the absence of Rod Chow. Trevor Watters showed everyone “The S.A.M. #95 Magic Gala at the Magic Festival” poster, which he so beau-tifully and creatively designed based on an outline by Rod. The Magic Festival is a week-long event produced by Assembly 95 Dean, Shawn Farquhar, which is in its second successful year of “Bringing Magic to the Masses”, scheduling at various venues many shows from several magic organi-zations and individuals for the lay public and magicians. Assembly 95 is proud to produce a gala show featuring Canada’s three qualified IBM/SAM/FISM 2014 North American Championship of Magic competitors: Henry Tom in Stage with his Comedy Dental act, Rod Chow in Close-up with his Money Magic act, and Trevor & Lorena Watters in Stage with their Comedy Dual act. Also starring in the same show are Jeff Chris-tensen as emcee, Ray Roch with his shell/pea game and “Impos-sible Box” routine, and Assembly President Lon Mandrake with his
stunning mentalism.
The theme for the evening was gimmicked card magic. Anthony Young showed five cards, four red and one black, and had everyone at the meeting clip one position to see if anyone would be able to clip a black card. After everyone placed their clip, Anthony flipped over the cards, and to every-one’s surprise, it was just one jumbo red card. Ray Roch did a very clean torn and restored card trick. Shawn Farquhar did The Jealous Kings, in which the faces of four cards disappear one at a time and then all reappear onto one card. Dave Watters handed out four cards to everyone, and then after tearing the cards in half and shuffling in different ways, found the matching card. Lon Mandrake showed Shawn some cards, and his choice then disap-peared, and turned blank on both sides. John MacMillan did a four card trick in which the spectator copies his moves, but always end up different from his cards. Dennis Hewson showed a Ten of Spades and a King in a wallet, but when he took the cards out, the face of the Ten became blank and ended up on the face of the King. Henry Tom did Tony Chris’s Haunting, a hands-off haunted card effect that can be done while you are quite far away from the deck. —Rod Chow
The Carl Hemeon Assembly No. 95 meets the first Tuesday of each month at members’ homes. Contact Rod Chow rod@rodchow. com (604) 669-7777 www.sam95. com for more details.
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STATE MAGIC CONVENTION WEEK
ORLANDO, FL— President Mark Fitzgerald opened the meeting welcoming visitors to our meeting. Mark mentioned all the members that the Famulus
news-John Russell
The S.A.M. 95 Magic Gala at the Magic Festival
poster designed by Trevor Watters / Rod Chow
