* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Magic New Zealand e-zine * www.watson.co.nz/ezine.html * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Issue Number: #143 Date: Sunday 3rd November 2002 Editor: Alan Watson www.magician.co.nz www.alan-watson.com e-mail: AW@Alan-Watson.com ================================ Hi here is the latest news ================================ 1. Editor’s Message 2. Magic New Zealand’s Awards Committee 3. About The Japan Cup 4. Florida State Magicians Convention 5. 1st SIAM magic Convention - Bangkok/Thailand 6. Vancouver Board Of Trade 7. Broken Wand - Emil Loew 8. Ted Russell Card Gun 9. Award Winning '6 Card Rap' 10. Tony Brook In Conversation with Walter Blaney 11. The Flicking Fingers Downunder 12. Advantages Of Having A Restaurant Magician 13. Ten Quick and Easy Trade Show Tips 14. Excess Baggage Within NZ 15. David Stone Lecture - South Florida 16. The Missing Spade & Appearing Garden Shovel 17. The Amazing ‘Orchante’ Saga - Page 130 18. Magic New Zealand e-zine archives 19. Subscription Management ------------------------------------ 1. Editor's Message ------------------------------------- Message from Alan Watson - The Magic One In this weeks issue we have the first part of three of the Tony Brook In Conversation with Walter Blaney – refer item 10. ------------------------------------- Check out the Magic New Zealand Hall of Fame webpage showing Richard Webster presenting Tommy Orchard (The Amazing Orchante & Kim) and Veronica their Lifetime Achievement Award  in recognition for their lifetime dedicated to excellence in the magical arts. Go to: www.alan-watson.com/halloffame.html If you’d like to send them a congratulatory e-mail on receiving this prestigious NZ award you can e-mail them at: tom@tvorchard.freeserve.co.uk ----------------------------------------------- Remember if you have any magic news drop me a line: AW@Alan-Watson.com ---------------------------------- 2. Magic New Zealand’s Awards Committee ---------------------------------- Message from Tommy Orchard (The Amazing Orchante)(UK ex-pat Kiwi) To The ‘Magic New Zealand’ Awards Committee, and their sponsors - Alan and Michele Watson. WE SINCERELY THANK YOU, for this ‘MOST PRESTIGIOUS AWARD’ that you have deemed to honour us with. We are absolutely delighted! Our thanks also to Richard Webster, who travelled halfway around the world to present the Award to us at our home, and for making it the important occasion it was. The committee, and Alan and Michele, could not have chosen a more ideal personage than Richard, who, as a bonus, just happens to be a very good friend as well! The award is now hanging, pride of place, in our lounge room and I must tell you that it looks fantastic, surrounded by its magnificent, heavy frame. Everyone admires, not just the superbly presented award, but also the fabulous frame itself, and it gives us enormous pleasure to inform all that the frame is of a beautiful New Zealand timber called Rimu (pronounced - Remoo). This award is also unique, in that it is the first, in N.Z.’s Show Biz’ magical History, to be presented outside of New Zealand. We are quite humbled by that fact! We have always, proudly, WAVED THE NEW ZEALAND ‘MAGIC’ FLAG, wherever we have voyaged in this wonderful world of ours. WE THANK THE NEW ZEALAND MAGIC COMMUNITY FOR WAVING BACK, IN SUCH A STUNNING AND MARVELOUS MANNER. TOM AND VERONICA ORCHARD -THE AMAZING ORCHANTÉ AND KIM - ------------------------------------ 3. About The Japan Cup -------------------------------------  Message from Tashiro Shigeru (Japan) The Japan Cup is an award which JCMA (Japan Close up Magicians Association) will present every year. The inaugural Japan Cup was presented in March 21st, 2002. It is designed to recognise contributions to the field of magical art by magicians around the world. The voting is carried out from January 1 to January 31 to choose the winner from the previous year. Anyone is eligible to vote either via website, fax or mail for a fee of \1,500 (Japanese yen, $15.00 for the residents outside Japan, including postal charge) and any donation appreciated. Each voter can freely name five names for each category for the Japan Cup as follows. 1. Best Close-up Magician. 2. Magician of the year. 3. Meritorious Service Award. Given to the person who did the most to promote the art of magic. 4. Magic Circle Japan Awards. Given to the greatest contribution to the Magic Circle Japan. 5. Media Award. Given to the best promotion of magic in print (lecture notes, books, or articles), imaging or broadcasting. All voters will receive a copy of the awards program that also contains articles, tricks, and essays from magicians in the world in Japanese and for the most part in English also. The collected fees are to be used in the promotion of the Japan Cup. Japan Cup Voting Committee: The Committee, whose members are selected geographically, represent all parts of Japan equally, collect the Japan Cup ballots. Then, the Committee decides the finalists based on the balloting. The Committee makes adjustments to equalize the voting between magicians within Japan and those outside Japan. The Committee arranges the booking of the awards ceremony. Awards are only given to those persons who can attend the event. Japan Cup Ceremony: The JCMA will give out the Japan Cup awards according to the decision of the Committee at the Japan Cup ceremony on the nearest Sunday to March 21* in Tokyo. During the Japan Cup awards presentations, all five finalists will make a speech and receive trophies at the event. Then the attendees of the award ceremony will then vote for the Japan Cup winner based on the general impression of the attendees and their knowledge of the reputations of the 5 (or more) finalists.(There could be two or more in any one category.) The final balloting will decide who is the winner of the Japan Cup. * The JPMA (Japan Professional Magicians Association) has their annual party on December 3. Numerically the date is 12/3 and is read One...Two...Three. This is in reference to the magicians patter prior to the denouement of a routine, "One... Two... Three." The Japan Cup date of March 21 or 3/21 is the reverse, "Three...Two...One." These three number sequences are easy to remember and held in high regard among Japanese magicians. However, as a general rule, we will have our Japan Cup Awards ceremony on the nearest Sunday to March 21 for the convenience to the attendees or finalists. Japan Cup: The Japan Cup winner* is given an elaborate custom made trophy of an approximate value \200,000 (about $1,600). The winners name and the year won is inscribed on the base of trophy for that year until a new winner is decided. When all the spaces are filled in, in 2100, the trophy will then be showcased in an appropriate museum. *Mr. Tomohiro Maeda was the first ever award winner in 2002. In addition to the Trophy, Mr. Maeda received a cash award of \1,000,000 (more than $8,300). The cash award may vary from year to year and is based on the number of voters in that year. A special gift: JCMA provides a special gift for attendees or donators. Next Japan Cup voting: For the voting, please use e-mail or FAX from January 1 to January 31, 2003. e-mail: japancupinternational@yahoo.co.jp / FAX +81-48-590-1667 Next Japan Cup ceremony: Date: March 23 (SUN), 2003 Venue: TOKYO FM HALL (Kojimachi, Tokyo) Fee: 9,000 JPY / 80.00 USD / 3,500 THB There'll be held "The Best Magician Festival" on 21st March, and the FISM2003 pre-contest on 22nd March, both of which will be presented by JPMA in Tokyo. There'll be a lot of fun during your stay in Japan on the weekend of March. Actually, late March is the best season to enjoy sightseeing in Japan. Many of the magicians who live all over Japan will assist your trip in Japan. If you have any enquiries, please check with me by e-mail or FAX. Hotel reservation are also available. For more details, please access the following web-site. www.japancup.net General manager for JCMA Tashiro Shigeru TEL: +81-48-593-2711 FAX: +81-48-590-1667 3-34 Kitamoto, Kitamoto-shi, Saitama-ken, JAPAN 364-0006 --------------------------------- 4. Florida State Magicians Convention ---------------------------------- Message from Don Drake (US) I will be giving my new lecture and show at the Florida State Magicians convention in Winterhaven, FL, on Memorial Day weekend. I am planning an 'across the South, coast to coast drive before and after Memorial Day. From about May 15 to June 15 I will be booking clubs that are within a 200 mile radius of I-10 or I-20 and probably returning along I-40. If any clubs are interested in my new 2003 FANTASY IN BLACK lecture (mostly all new stuff) please contact me. My phone, e-mail and snail-mail are listed below, and I will send you a lecture brochure. I will also be at The Magic Castle on April 6, so if any of the Southern California clubs would like to learn more about very visual and different lecture, please feel free to get in touch. Thank you for your my kind attention, DONDRAKE Don Drake 1412-A Santa Margarita St. Las Vegas, NV 89146-9306 Ph. 702-880-5370 E-mail: dondrake@aol.com, or dondrake@blackartsecrets.com Web: http://blackartsecrets.com ---------------------------------- 5. 1st SIAM magic Convention - Bangkok/Thailand ---------------------------------- Message from Yosi Notkowitz (Israel) I returned from the first SIAM magic convention in Bangkok/Thailand 11-13/10/02. At the convention joineded magicians from Thailand, Japan, Israel, USA, Spain, Malezya, Singapore, China, Slovanya, Prague, Australia. International magicians performed/lectured: Max Mavin who gave very good and simple ideas, Tina Lernet, Mike Caveney, Fukai & Kimika, Juan Mayoral, Fang Yintang, Victo Voitoko, Albert Tam, Ruis Liu, Yuiji Yamamoto, Birdeie Koyama 'Johny Hirose and Cyrill who performed a very high level & elegant stage show with dollars bill. As a western magician I liked the eastern style of Fang Ying Ting with his traditional Chinese fish aquarium routine and Xu Qiu from China with a wonderful flowers routine. ---------------------------------- 6. Vancouver Board Of Trade ---------------------------------- Message from Clive Court (Canada) I'm trying to draw the attention of the Vancouver Board of Trade to the entertainment options offered in other cities around the world. Most of our entertainment here is musical...singers, bands, etc. Nothing visual. They say you can't expect us to be like New York or London. But I'm saying what about Sydney or Auckland? Our Casinos offer nothing in the way of entertainment--most of the talk about making the city more fun is centred around extending drinking hours and the number of slot machines. They just don't get it. I get the impression that Auckland has had a wider range of non-musical entertainers come through in the past few years--especially at the Casino. Could you give me some examples for my pitch to the Vancouver Board of Trade? ---------------------------------- 7. Broken Wand - Emil Loew ---------------------------------- Message from Michael Shelley (US) Emil Loew, a magic treasure, passed away on October 7,2002 at the age of 92. Emil was a member of SAM for 62 years, the Dean of the Parent Assembly, the International Ambassador of the SAM, a life member of the SAM, an active member of Assembly 76, The Past President of Assembly 1, and was a member of SAM 100. In addition he was a member of IBM, a member of the Inner Magic Circle, and an honorary member of many magic clubs around the world. Emil was born in the Netherlands, and at age 6 his mother gave him a magic set. This was the beginning of his illustrious career in magic. Co Lioni, Louis Lam and Larette influenced him in his native land. In a hair-raising tail, Emil escaped the Holocaust and came to the USA in 1940. He began entertaining, shortly after his arrival in New York City, for the Red Cross, in clubs in the Catskills, and on cruise ships. Emil was involved with the NY American Theater Wing and the Stage Door Canteen. He also entertained for the armed forces at VA Hospitals, army hospitals. Emil traveled to Europe often and met such talented performers. "I wanted my fellow magicians in the USA to have the advantage of meeting these people, to learn from them, and possibly exchange ideas with them." This was the inspiration for Emil's Magic Lecture Tours. Over the years Emil arranged tours for Marconick, Jos Bema, Topper Martin, Pavel, Johnny Lonn, Samson, Ger Cooper, Fantasio, Pierre Edernac, Magic Christian, Peter Gloviczki, Erhard Liebenow, Claude Rix, Michael Bailey, and Alan Shaxon. Emil attended so many conventions and was so happy at all of them. At each convention he would meet with old friends and was able to converse with most of them in their native language. He would return with new tricks, new friends, and new ideas to enhance magic. Many of the magicians would have been houseguests or a guest to the numerous magic parties hosted by Emil and his beloved wife of 65 years, Trudy. In turn, when Emil and Trudy traveled to Europe their magic friends would give them the royal treatment. From the foreign lecturers and magic conventions he got the idea for his Magic Carpet Trips. On his first tour 120 people from all over the USA joined Emil to go to FISM in the Netherlands. Emil brought people to magic and magic to people as he continued to lead his magic tours. In return, Emil had Richard Ross, Terry Seabroke, and Fred Kaps come to the USA to perform at magic conventions. Emil was responsible for the first magic cruise, booking the talent at Tannen's Magic Jubilee, countless shows for the SAM #1, and for getting many magician's booked on the Ed Sullivan Show. For years Emil had two homes. One in NYC and the other on Miami Beach. Where there was Emil there was magic. A regular at the Dixie Magic Table, at Parent Assembly, and Sam 76 and 100 while in Florida. He was always ready to perform. "Did you see this yet?" Emil would ask, as he brought out his latest trick. Just a couple of weeks prior to his passing he was performing for the members of SAM 76 with a smile on his face. He did his last trick at his bedside for two magicians the day before he died. Emil said in his book, "The Joys of Magic," which he wrote at age 90, "magic has enriched my life." Siegfried & Roy wrote the forward to his book, a letter from Lance Burton thanks Emil for his help, so many memories; so many interesting people in magic filled his life. Emil, you have enriched the lives of so many magicians, I am glad that you shared so many wonderful stories, tricks, and your family with me. You certainly enriched my life and I shall always remember you. ---------------------------------- 8. Ted Russell Card Gun ---------------------------------- Message from Wayne McEwan (NZ) If somebody has a Ted Russell Gun they are not using I would like to buy it. Must be in good order. Wayne McEwan magicguy@xtra.co.nz ---------------------------------- 9. Award Winning '6 Card Rap' ---------------------------------- Message from Tim Ellis & Sue-Anne Webster (Aust) Just a note to let you guys know, we have FINALLY recorded the FISM Award winning '6 CARD RAP' as a CD single (complete with Dance Mix!) and it's available from our website at www4.tpgi.com.au/users/katzkin/2002WorldLectureTour.htm#merchandi se for US$5 post paid. It will also be on sale during our USA Lecture Tour Feb-March 2003. If you'd like Ellis & Webster to visit your club, email Danny Archer at Lecturenet@aol.com as soon as possible as dates are filling fast. --------------------------------- 10. Tony Brook In Conversation with Walter Blaney ---------------------------------- Message from Tony Brook (US) Part 1 The phrase, ‘World Class Entertainer’ can only truly be applied to an elite few notable magicians. In the vanguard of that group one name resonates with singular clarity. That name is Walter Blaney. In more ways than one Walter Blaney stands tall in the world of magic. His 6ft – 6inch frame houses the presence of a formidable performer, creative genius and the inventive mind of some of magic’s greatest stage illusions. Lance Burton, David Copperfield, Paul Daniels and Sylvan are just a few of the world’s leading magicians that have used Walter’s magical creations in their shows. David Copperfield is quoted as saying that one of his favorite illusions is none other than Walter Blaney’s – Ladder Levitation. Apart from having the excellent reputation within the international magic fraternity as an exceptional inventor of stage illusion methodology, Walter is a highly experienced and accomplished performer. When performing he uses the word ‘zaney’ and becomes Walter ‘Zaney’ Blaney. This reflects his zany image and exceptional comedic talent. His style of magic is extremely unique and highly original. From the moment he walks on stage wearing a Stetson and twirling a lariat he exudes charm and emanates that remarkable star quality that only a few talented Entertainers possess. Some of the world’s best magical personalities hail from Texas. Names such as Scott Wells, Bob Blau, Bobo, Bev Bergeron, Gene Anderson, Mark Wilson, Scott Hollingsworth, Steve Burton, MarcoM, Oscar Munoz, Howard Hale, Chuck Lehr, and Eric Evans spring readily to mind. There are many more. It will take too long to list them all. As Houston is my second home and as I also have close family and friends there I readily confess to a certain bias in favor of Texas magicians. I’m proud to call many of them my friends. If we were asked to elect someone who epitomizes the whole genre of Texas magical talent we would, without hesitation, choose Walter Blaney. David Copperfield put it very succinctly when he said, “ Walter, your talents as both a performer and an incredible inventor of illusions have made a real impact in the world of magic.” As a result, it will come as no surprise to anyone that Walter was appointed as an International Magic Ambassador for The International Brotherhood of Magicians and was officially commissioned as the Texas Ambassador of Goodwill by six Texas governors including George W.Bush. In the late 60’s Walter was also a US Congressional candidate. Apart from being a FISM prize winner and the winner of many other awards including the prestigious Siegfried & Roy Silver Lion Award, Walter holds the Order of Willard from The Texas Association of Magicians and is a Past President of that organization. He has been awarded a very high accolade from the Magic Circle - a MIMC with Gold Star. He is also a highly respected member of the Society of American Magicians and has been inducted into the S.A.M Hall of Fame. He is also President Emeritus of The World Alliance of Magicians and was its first President. His career has spanned over 50 years and he has performed all over the world, appeared on several leading Television shows and has played and lectured to great critical acclaim at many magic conventions. He has written many articles on magic and his chapter entitled ‘Bread & Butter’ in Dave Charvet’s The Banquet Magician’s Handbook is packed full of practical advice and is hailed by many as a masterful and valuable dissertation on the art of performing magic. In August 2000 at the Texas Association of Magicians convention in Dallas, Texas some 1800 other magicians and I saw Walter give a superb performance at the legendary Majestic Theater. It was an honor to rise to our feet and give him a richly deserved standing ovation. Although Walter and I are both members of I.B.M Ring 39 in Houston, Texas and of the S.A.M, The Magic Circle, The Panel of The Magic Web Channel and the TAOM we have, because of time and distance, not had as many opportunities to get together. So it was indeed a special pleasure to get together with Walter and spend a while conversing. Thanks a lot Walter for taking time in your busy schedule to converse. It is much appreciated. Let me begin by quoting you as saying that watching Harry Blackstone Sr. at the famous Majestic Theater in Dallas, Texas during your boyhood years created the desire within you to perform magic. Tell us a little about those early years. I guess I loved all kinds of entertainment as far back as I can remember. I saw a marionette show when I was six years old, and that became my first hobby. I was eight years old when Texas had its Centennial World's Fair in Dallas. In their Hobby Pavilion I exhibited my marionette stage, made from old apple boxes, and my handmade marionettes. I won third place and so was encouraged to continue. Then "Blackstone the Great" appeared on our beautiful Majestic Theater stage in Dallas, doing an hour show of 1001 Wonders four times a day between movies, for a whole week. I was nine at the time. I saw every show, and BINGO, I cut the marionette strings and from that moment on I became a magician. I figured I had wasted the first nine years of my life. I met another young magician who kept coming to see Blackstone every day. His name was Mark Wilson. I wonder what ever became of him ???? Seriously, Mark and I rode the streetcar into town each day all week to catch every show. Blackstone came back every two years, and we were always there. One year the Great Dante appeared for a week. Seeing these "Greats" hooked Mark and me on magic forever. Mark and I have remained good friends all these past 64 years or so. We often said it would be a real thrill to appear on that Majestic stage one day ourselves. Our dream was fulfilled at the Dallas 2000 TAOM Convention. It was even more fun for us because Mark's son Greg and my daughter Becky were also on the bill with us with their own acts. I got to present three of my original stage illusions, and I swear I could feel Blackstone and Dante watching us from the front row. I hope they were pleased with our performances. Yes indeed Walter, I agree, that was a very special TAOM convention for many of us. When people refer to magical greats they generally link them to one particular aspect. For example - Houndini and escapes, Cardini and manipulation, etc. When the conversation turns to Walter Blaney they talk about your levitation illusion. How and why did the most talked about levitation in magic come about? Going back to Blackstone Sr., in 1945 he came to Dallas with his big two-hour concert show. He featured the fantastic Maskelyne/Kellar/Thurston "Princess of Karnac Levitation". The thrill of seeing this great illusion is a memory that will never die. I have been enamored with levitations ever since. First, I spent $2.00 to buy the plans of "Grant's Chair Suspension", making it up from scrap lumber, and performing it through my high school years. Later in college I made a Super-X type suspension of my own design that allowed me to walk away and all around the floating lady, who was my new bride Joyce. It was made from water pipe, wood sticks and poster board, costing less than fifty bucks. But I used this illusion successfully on every show for fifteen years, from 1950-1965. While performing it one night in 1954, and at the moment of making "the secret move", I had a flash of inspiration...what if I did THIS, instead of THAT. As soon as the show was over I RAN to write down my idea. I then spent the next month making a small working model out of balsawood... two miniature stepladders, a simple board, all on a small platform. I levitated an eight-inch rather ugly plastic doll, long before there were cute Barbie Dolls. For the next ten years I would demonstrate my miniature illusion for many of my professional magic friends who came to appear in Houston, where I now live....Aldo Richiardi, Celeste Evans, Don Alan, Mark Wilson, Tom Palmer, Bev Bergeron, Lucille and Eddie Roberts and scores more. I was astonished that my trick fooled every single magician who saw it. And I never revealed its secret to anyone. Raising my three daughters and flying constantly to my banquet shows nationwide left me no extra time or money to build the real thing, until 1963-1965. When beginning construction I learned right off that it was going to be a lot harder to make a 120 pound live lady float in the air than a 12 ounce doll... a LOT harder. But after tons of money and many start overs, my "magnificent obsession" was perfected. I called it an "Anti Gravity Board", but that name didn't stick, and it became known as the Zaney Blaney Ladder Levitation. I premiered it at the Des Moines 1965 IBM Convention, and everyone was fooled. I was then invited to present it at about fifty magic conventions around the world, and as they say, "the rest is history". You and I share similar views on lateral thinking and especially its application to magic. You have taken this form of thinking to creative heights with many magical illusions such as – Sawing a Lady in Half and The Sword Cabinet. What is the trigger that motivates you to come up with these novel approaches? I'll tell you how to get ideas for a good new illusion. You study hard at a university. You get a chemistry professor with a boring, monotone voice that puts the class to sleep. To keep awake, you draw diagrams in your workbook of every new way you can think of to improve old illusions. That is where I drew plans for my Sawing a Lady in Half Illusion, and my Lighted Sword Cabinet. It wasn't until 1978, thirty years since that chemistry class, that I looked through my old workbook and chose to work on these two new illusions. I didn't invent the old Sword Cabinet, which was about 150 years old. And I didn't invent the "light principle". The old Magicland Catalog in Dallas advertised "Rajah's Tent", a small cloth tent with burning candles outside the back and two sides. A small bunny was produced from the seemingly empty tent. So I connected the dots, applied the light principle to what was the old, seldom seen, essentially dead Sword Cabinet, and VOILA, a new illusion was born. I also seated the hidden assistant a different way and made the table base virtually half as thick as the old boxes required. This, along with flashing lights outside each window, make it a real fooler even when the audience is up very close, as at a trade show in a client's exhibit booth. I never saw or heard of a that little "Rajah's Tent" trick ever being sold or performed. But I do know there are over a dozen professionals successfully performing my Zaney Blaney Lighted Sword Cabinet today. As to my method of Sawing a Lady in Half, it looks similar to a Thin Sawing, but there is no switch of feet, and the lady's feet are alive, barefooted and real. I first made a mock up of my plans out of particle board and corrugated cardboard. I painted it to look like the finished product. I would then sit and stare at this "creature" in my den, over and over for several weeks, trying to decide if this was going to be a horrible White Elephant good for the scrap heap, or maybe the best Sawing method ever. I finally made the decision to build it. At that moment in time I luckily had a close magic friend with a workshop, Sam Gainer, who was also my CPA. Sam and I worked every weekend on the illusion for six months. I then brought this "Noah's Ark" contraption to my den, and worked another six months to complete it, at a cost of over $10,000 in cash outlay for materials alone, plus the year's work. For those who have seen it, I think they will agree it turned out not to be a White Elephant. Virgil and Julie became magic idols of mine after I saw their shows during college days. Later they became close friends. Virgil told me he did about six different ‘Sawings’ in his touring days, but liked mine the best. That's good enough for me. With so much love, care, passion and work put into my original illusions, I come to feel like they are my children. And I guess one is allowed to brag on his children now and then, especially if you're a damn Texan, right? Right. You bet it is Walter. Now, pulling a Rabbit out of a Hat has got to be the most stereotyped image that lay audiences have of magicians. With your unparalleled inventive mind, you have come up with a whole new twist on this classic. Let me ask you to tell us about some of your thinking on this? Before I premiered my Ladder Levitation in 1965, I was most known for my "Big-Rabbit From an Empty Paper Sack" production. I had introduced it at the 1960 TAOM Convention in Houston. It also fooled magicians everywhere, and it won various magic awards around the country. Here's its story. I had a Texas theme to my banquet act in the late 50's, and our Texas governor Allen Shivers saw my show and liked it. He was the first of six succeeding governors to commission me as our official Texas Ambassador of Good Will. I then thought of a premise for a new act within my act, a magic powder I called "Instant Texas". Anything you sprinkle it on grows "Bigger and Better, Like Texas". My magic wand would grow, using an Appearing Cane...a fan of cards, using Fan-To-See...a small flower, using a Botania...and another dozen such props. The climax trick would be to make a small two-pound bunny grow to a gigantic twenty-two pound rabbit, using a Flemish Giant, the world's largest breed. I spent a whole summer and a lot of money building a special table to hold the big rabbit; the top trimmed with fringe, jewels.... the works. A Plexiglas box held the small rabbit that would vanish as the large one appeared. I used my best magic thinking to create this illusion, and I was ready to begin rehearsal. The poor hidden rabbit was so uncomfortable in its load chamber. Its panting made the table fringe shimmy and shake, a dead giveaway. I was awkwardly trying to steal the load from high-up to a still higher-up position. The magic exchange actually took place on the floor, out of view of all but the ringsiders. Everything about my trick was conceived all wrong. I finally realized I had to destroy it all and start over. I was so frustrated I said, "Dammit, why is it so hard to create good magic? Why can't you just put a little bunny in a paper bag and pull out a big one." Why not, indeed! As I said that, I got that flash of inspiration as to a possible method. In one week, and at a cost of less than $100, I had it finished. The method was actually used on stage by Willard The Wizard, with Frances Willard assisting her famous father. Their effect was entirely different, and so the method seemed to have no connection with my effect. My good friend Frances to this day does not know the method I use in my rabbit production. It ended up being a magician fooler, and still very few magic friends know where that big rabbit comes from. I’ve seen your Texas Ambassador of Goodwill Certificate and a copy of a personal letter from no less a personage than former President George Bush in which, amongst other things, he writes, ‘ I can’t tell you how much everyone appreciated and enjoyed your appearance. They are still talking about it.’ That must be a one of a kind letter. It certainly must have been one of the highlights of your career. Yes, George and Barbara Bush became personal friends back in 1968 when I ran as our Republican nominee for a seat in the House of the United States Congress in one of our two districts in Houston. George was the elected Congressman in the other district, but he was running for his re-election as well. He was very kind and was able to help get additional money to my campaign from the Republican Campaign Committee. I ran a strong campaign and had a real chance of winning, even though my district was heavily Democratic. But alas, a funny thing happened to me on my way to Washington...I lost. But I gained the friendship over the years of two of the finest people I've ever known, President George Bush and First Lady Barbara. I was so pleased to be invited by George to entertain at their Christmas Party several years ago. I closed my act with my shirt removal trick as I always do, this time on George and Barbara's son Neal Bush, and they were just flabbergasted. It was SUCH fun. And I am a real fan of another son, President George W. Bush. When he was our governor he was the sixth one to make me his Texas Ambassador of Good Will. Do you get the idea I am kind of proud of our great state? Of course, and indeed you have every right to be so. Bob Hope, John Wayne, many other film stars and TV personalities and leading political figures have all appreciated your magical performances. Can I persuade you Walter to share some of the highlights of those wonderful memories ? One of the happiest parts of my now 52 year professional career in show-business is getting to know and perform with various celebrities. When you are a longtime fan of these stars, it's great when you find out they are just real, down to earth, regular people who have a passion and talent for what they do. First, in the magic world, I got to become good friends with many of my early magic idols, and later with current magic idols as well....Harry Willard, Virgil and Julie, MacDonald Birch. John Calvert, Robert Harbin, Jack and Ann Gwynne, Richiardi, Slydini, Fred Kaps, Ken and Roberta Griffin, John Booth, Senator Crandall, Jay Marshall, Paul Daniels, David Copperfield, Lance Burton, Marvyn and Carol Roy, Karrell Fox, Andre Kole... to name just a few that come to mind at the moment. Outside of magic it was a thrill working with many national celebrities…Elvis Presley, before he became a headliner on the Ed Sullivan Show; Edgar Bergen, who first entertained me every Sunday night on his Chase & Sanborn Coffee radio show; George Gobel, after his TV heyday; many of the "Big Band" leaders of the 40's and 50's, like Ted Weems, Henry King, Tony Pastor, Jan Garber, Shep Fields; Jerry Cologna, Bob Hope's sidekick, who I used in my Head Chopper. And the great John Wayne, who had just made his film "The Alamo". I especially remember working two nights at the packed Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles opening for Bob Hope. I loved Bob from his early Pepsodent Radio Shows, his Buick TV Shows, all his Roadshow movies with Bing Crosby, and his great World War II shows entertaining our troops. If I had a number one choice of who I wanted to meet and be on the bill with, it was Bob Hope. In my wildest dreams I never thought I would hear Bob Hope walking on stage after my act and in greeting 5000 cheering people, saying, "How about that Texas magician floating that lady in the air...I saw it backstage and still can't believe it". You want memories? THAT is a memory. To Bob Hope...Thanks for the Memory. When I appeared on The Tonight Show in 1973, Johnny Carson came in to the studio early for camera rehearsal especially "to see if this levitation he had read about in magic magazines for years could fool him". After seeing it Johnny walked over and said it did indeed fool him. We began "talking magic", and he told me his first illusion was Grant's Chair Suspension. I said, "Me too". He said his next one was Abbott's Super-X. I again said, "Me too." And I described how it gave me the flash inspiration for my Ladder Levitation. I offered to show him the "modus operandi" backstage, away from everyone else. He was so excited when he saw the method. That night on the show he gave me a full minute introduction, and after my performance, he and Ed McMahon talked about it for another full minute. Needless to say I loved Johnny Carson. And my heartfelt thanks to Milt Larsen for setting up my booking. I immediately got to do other TV shows, floating Dinah Shore on her Dinah Show. She was a warm, friendly and most attractive lady. Dinah was 56 at the time, but appeared to be only 36. I also levitated Kitty Carlisle on Garry Moore's show, and she was another charming and classy lady. Garry Moore loved magic and magicians, and we "talked magic" off and on during rehearsal. On the Merv Griffin Show, Merv was a delightful man. He told me he knew his people had told me what to do, what lines to cut, and "all that crap", but that he was boss, and I should just go out and do my thing my way and have fun. I did, and it was a successful appearance. When NASA first came to Houston our mayor, who had seen my banquet act many times from the head-table, chose me to entertain the Mercury astronauts, the space scientists and 4000 Houston VIP's at a big barbecue welcome party. It was probably the best audience I have ever had in my over 3800 banquet appearances. Twenty-five years later Admiral Alan Shepard called me and asked if I could entertain the Mercury astronauts and their wives at their 25th reunion, as I was the first entertainer they saw when coming to Houston. There would be just eighteen people in this "Right Stuff" group. I said I would love to do it, and I would refuse any fee, since they were all my heroes. I just asked for a photo signed by the remaining six astronauts, which I got...and Gus Grissom's wife Betty signed for him. What a splendid group this was. I floated Scott Carpenter's wife Maria on the Board, just five feet from this small, intimate group. They asked that I stay for the rest of the evening, as they considered me a part of their "family" that night. What great fun getting to know each of them on a one to one basis. I must have repeated the birdcage vanish for John Glenn a dozen times, as he especially loved that trick. And I had everyone hanging spoons on their noses. Their signed photo on my wall serves up that evening's happy memory. ---------------------------------- 11. The Flicking Fingers Downunder ---------------------------------- Message from Tim Ellis & Sue-Anne Webster (Aust) Also, THE FLICKING FINGERS DOWNUNDER is getting closer. If you would like to attend this incredible weekend of magic in either Melbourne (April 12-13, 2003) or Sydney (April 19-20) please email TODAY to express your interest. For Melbourne - email TIM ELLIS katzkin@tpg.com.au For Sydney - email SEAN TAYLOR taylorsmagicshop@aol.com Special guests, lecturers, and performers at the weekend will be: Ben Profane, Thomas Fraps, Rainer Pfeiffer, Helge Thun, Gaston, Pit Hartling, Manuel Muerte and Nikolai Friedrich. Cost is ONLY $200 for the ENTIRE WEEKEND - However, if we don't have 50 people sign up before December 6, the event will not take place. (So far, Melbourne has only 20 people signed up). For more information, and to read all about the FLICKING FINGERS incredible credentials, go to: www4.tpgi.com.au/users/katzkin/FingersDownunder.htm ---------------------------------- 12. Advantages Of Having A Restaurant Magician ---------------------------------- Message from Jeff Ezell (US) Hi Everyone, I am sending you the flyers from the Scott Hollingsworth lecture regarding Tips for getting Restaurant work and Tips on Trade Show work. Jeff Ezell Advantages of Having A Restaurant Magician It gives you an edge over the competition: It is difficult to determine exactly what makes someone choose one restaurant over another. It just might be that little something extra that tips the scales. The addition of a tableside magician ensures that many people will cast a favorable eye in your direction due to the amount of value they are getting for their discriminating dollar. Increases Customer Traffic On Slower Days: Through various forms of advertising, e.g. lobby cards (I provide), word of mouth etc., your guests will learn of the magician performing in your establishment. Many of them will make it a point to come back on that particular day. More Frequent and Repeat Visits: Since restaurant magicians are relatively unique, your guests’ visit will be more pleasurable and memorable. A good percentage of them will return to dine with their friends so they can see a magician. Adds Prestige: Intimate entertainment adds that certain “touch of class” to any restaurant atmosphere. It’s not at all uncommon to hear guests comment “What a great idea!” or “They really thought of everything!” Accommodations For Special Events: Often time’s people dine out to celebrate special occasions such as birthdays, anniversaries, promotions etc. The house magician can extend personal greetings on your restaurants’ behalf in turn making your guests feel they were special on their special day. This almost guarantees word of mouth advertising that money could never buy. Coverage for Unexpected Delays:  In the rare event that something goes wrong and an order or check is delayed in getting to the table, the magician can be sent to that table to buy a few minutes while the problem is being rectified. In almost every case, the guest will never even be aware of a delay. Promotes a Family Environment:  With the exception of providing booths and high chairs most restaurants have no accommodations for young children, therefore parents face a potentially tiresome situation in bringing children to a restaurant. This creates the risk of losing parents of young children as their clientele. The tableside magician is, once again, the perfect remedy for this situation. A little magic and some personal attention are sometimes all a youngster needs to feel like it’s “his” or “her” restaurant, too! A Great Deterrent for Walk-Outs: Restaurants that run long waits do lose a certain percentage of those waiting; some just give up, get up an leave. A competent magician can stop by the waiting area and virtually make time fly for those guests who have not yet been seated. In most cases, they will stay anyway because they want to see the magician. Free Advertising for Your Restaurant: Magicians are always doing private shows and public appearances. It would be common practice to promote the fact that I appear at your establishment on a regular basis. There is usually a significant number of people in the audience who’ve enjoyed my work but have neither the occasion or the money to hire a magician. But, since everyone goes out to eat at one time or another, they would love the opportunity to see me perform again. Once again, bringing more people to your restaurant. ---------------------------------- 13. Ten Quick and Easy Trade Show Tips ---------------------------------- Message from Message from Jeff Ezell (US) 1. Each show should run about 12 minutes 2. Set the number of shows per hour before the show date. 3. After each show, reset for the next show and leave the booth area. No socializing in the booth. (It makes you look unprofessional) 4. Your sound system should be at a volume as low as possible so that you can still be heard without being totally annoying. 5. As soon as possible, meet all the surrounding booth exhibitors and invite them to your booth to see your show. 6. Stopping the crowd is great. Blocking the isle is bad. 7. Never work in the isle. Always stay in your booth area. 8. Check on the fire code. Most conventions will not permit any type of fire effects. 9. A display clock indicating your next show can be an important tool. 10. Introduce yourself as a Trade Show Entertainer or Performer. Avoid the term “Magician”. ---------------------------------- 14. Excess Baggage Within NZ ---------------------------------- Message from Shad Rutherford (NZ) Flew recently with my equipment and found out something that could be of interest to other flying performers (within NZ) I usually have around 60kg of baggage including unicycles and get charged about $40 for excess baggage each time I fly within NZ Apparently after Nov 1st when the cheap airfares are available the airlines are changing how they charge for this....now it's per piece of extra baggage then it'll be per kg of excess Currently we're allowed 25kg, after Nov 1st we'll be charged $5 PER KILOGRAM OF EXCESS.....so for me that would have been a bill of $175 each way....ouch!! The alternative is to send equipment ahead as freight Or....pack a smaller show Hope this helps....so no-one gets stung Of course this could have just been a nasty ill informed bureaucrat pulling my chain so check it out for yourselves ...before you arrive at the airport and get an unexpected shock bill Ciao all ---------------------------------- 15. David Stone Lecture - South Florida ---------------------------------- At the request of Assembly 274 President, Harold Greenbaum, I am sending a reminder to the magic community of this coming Monday's lecture by one of France's premier magicians, David Stone. Highly recommended, be among those who had an opportunity to seehis only South Florida lecture.... Lecturer Direct from France David Stone Hosted by SAM Assembly 274 Sam Schwartz Assembly Monday, November 4, 2002 7:00 P.M. JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER 801 DONNA KLEIN BLVD. BOCA RATON, FL 33428 (561) 852-3200 No charge for Assembly 274 members All guests pay $10.00 each Incorporating all forms of magic, David Stone is one of France's premier magicians. It'll be a lecture people will be talking about for a long time to come. You won't want to miss it and regret not having attended. ---------------------------------- 16. The Missing Spade & Appearing Garden Shovel ---------------------------------- Message from Wayne Rogers (NZ) "HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO . . . THE MISSING SPADE & APPEARING GARDEN SHOVEL" It is now 6 years since these two magic effects were first launched onto the magic market through Hank Lee's Magic Factory. Over the years dealers like Hank have "sold a ton of them" so it's time to celebrate! Here is a brief history of the concepts and development, plus anecdotes and routine presentations from several users of the two effects. The MISSING SPADE and APPEARING GARDEN SHOVEL were conceived during 1996 while I was experimenting with the Appearing Pole principle. A year earlier I had started working with Poles while making props for McDonalds in New Zealand. My first Pole project was an Appearing School Road Safety "Stop" sign and this lead to other ideas where various components were added to the basic straight pole to produce recognisable items. At that time I was performing in my close-up act an item from David Taylor Magic in New Zealand. That effect is called Saucy Horsey. The climax was the surprise reveal of a picture of a garden spade. I decided to make a 3-dimensional Spade to replace the picture. After many hours of experimenting with bits of Appearing Pole and other materials, I made the first production Spade. A brilliant suggestion from magician friend Jon Zealando early on, lead to a change in the construction. No other major design changes have been made since then. In the marketed Missing Spade routine, a vinyl "prediction" banner unrolls to reveal the Three of Spades, but the chosen card was actually the FOUR. So there is obviously one spade missing. The magician appears to have made a mistake! But the effect is brought to a surprise climax when realistic garden spade is produced from behind the banner. There are no body loads. It's all in the banner. The prototype was shown to Chuck Jones and the late Ricki Dunn who were both touring New Zealand a that time. Their reaction encouraged me to continue working with the pole products. There were a few cosmetic changes made to the Spade in the first year of production. One component that altered was the shape of the blade. In New Zealand, the most common garden spades have a rectangular blade, and so the original Spade was made that way. Later the round shaped blade was introduced as it is more common in the US. Now a days both versions are always available. The Appearing Garden Shovel was devised around the same time, and both the Spade and Shovel were originally covered in wood grain contact plastic, plus a small section of black sign writing vinyl. Contact plastic tends to go brittle over time and has poor adhesion compared with a high grade sign vinyl, so the Spade soon lost it's wooden look in favour of the silver vinyl most people will be familiar with. The long handled Shovel was also fully covered with vinyl and the wood grain effect applied by myself. The Garden Shovel was also the first Pole product on the market with a SOLID END. This additional subtlety was first published in my book Out Of The Pole Vault in 1998 and has since been incorporated into other Appearing Poles on the market. When I decided to write about the development of the Missing Spade and Appearing Garden Shovel, I invited some of the performers who owned these props to contribute an anecdote or routine idea. Here is a selection of those contributions. This great story came from DAVE BOYD of Australia. "I had just picked mine up from the Post Office, of course I had to open the parcel and check out my new toy. Like every one, I was thrilled with quality and the potential it offered. I rolled it up and drove off to continue my shopping. My next stop was the hardware shop. I walked up to where an assistant was talking to another customer, to check if they had a special wood fixer I wanted. The other man was asking for a small spade that would fit into a small space in his four wheel drive vehicle, he was explaining that it folded up, she was at a loss to what he wanted. I knew what he was after. An ex-army type trenching shovels. I said I think I know what he is after, I have one outside in my van, wait there, I will bring it in and show you. Of course I brought in Wayne Rogers’ Shovel, inside a rolled up Coles plastic shopping bag. Their faces had to be seen to be believed, when I pulled out this huge shovel. The bloke said Christ! where do I get one of those? I said New Zealand, but I think the price would be more than you want to pay. What you are after, is at the surplus store in Church Street. I turned and walked out of the store, putting the shovel back in my van. By the time I returned, Lynn the assistant had half the staff around her as she was relating the story. Of course they all wanted to see this mysterious shovel. As it so happened I was performing at the local RSL Club that night, so I said,” If you want to see it come to the club tonight." I hadn't planned to use it that soon, but had to after that incident. The audience loved it. It was worked to death in almost every show from then on. There are so many ways you can bring it into a show as a sight gag etc. I was using the Appearing Shovel, not the Missing Spade. One of the ways I performed it was as the missing spade routine, but without the roll down card banner. I feel it has more impact coming out of the bag, rather than from behind a large card. I used a one-way deck of the six of spades. It was in the bag with the spade. I took them out of the bag, and had a person pick a card. The five of spades was forced, I "mind read" that it was the six of spades, and got quite upset when he said it was the five. I stated that it had to be the six, spreading the pack and showing that they were all the six of spades. He showed me his card, which of course was the five. By this time the audience where killing themselves laughing, thinking I had mucked up, despite the fact that every card was the six of spades. In desperation I claimed that one of the spades must still be in the bag. On opening the bag I pulled out the shovel saying,” Here it is. One of the spades has fallen off!" There was a stunned silence for about three seconds, then the applause started. As they say, the rest is history. Wayne, you have my undying thanks for such a great prop." Dave Boyd, Magic Mountains Mr. Magic www.magicianandclowndatabase.homestead.com From WOLFGANG RIEBE South Africa . . ."Hi Wayne I have your Missing Spade. Nearly all the routines (in my act) are my own variations and original ideas. However, one of the only tricks I use exactly as supplied is your Missing Spade. It is direct and simple and very powerful, and always gets a good surprise reaction and laugh. I can't really add anything to it! Wolfgang Riebe www.wolfgangriebe.com MARTIN LEWIS wrote . . . "I still use the Missing Spade occasionally. It's a splendid effect. I use it as a gag, pulling it out of my bag as the punch line of a joke. It gets howls! I know it deserves better but there you are. As for the bit of business, well I would rather that be kept quiet, it's too good. But I'll tell you . . . (Sorry, I can't reveal any more!) Thanks Martin. Martin Lewis, Magikraft Studios www.magikraft.com In Australia, SEAN TAYLOR’S patter goes something like this: "A lot of people ask how I come up with such weird magic, the answer is I tend to think about it 24 hours a day, in fact some of my favourite tricks come to me in the middle of the night. Like last night, I had this terrible dream that this hideous guy was coming towards me in the dark holding just one single playing card, it was horrible, in fact it had such a weird effect on me I went out and had this banner made at my local sign shop just in case I needed it. Yep, its quite remarkable, the hideous face in the dream was so vivid I'd recognise it anyway, and amazingly, he's here tonight. Stand up Mr Hideous (pointing to a guy in the audience) Yes, it's you sir. No don't come out I wouldn't want to scare any small children. I'll come towards you. Now, as you were holding a card in the dream I had better get you to take one. Now I'll flick them like this and you can say stop when you get the urge, of course if you had the urge the last thing you'd say would be stop. I'll just hold my deck towards you and you can stick your finger in it. That's going to sound strange to any New Zealanders standing outside! Maybe I'll spread them and you can reach out and grab it. Hang on, that sounds worse. Right you've got one, don't show me, I saw it in the dream, I know which one it will be anyway. Stay there and I'll go back and let the banner unroll, Shout your card out when I count three, 1, 2 , 3. Spectator calls out: "The four of clubs," The fo . . . . the which? You mean the three surely? So not only are you hideous but you messed up the trick! your card was the four and not the three? so there's one spade missing? Must be this one! (produce the spade), As the applause dies down, "Phew, dug myself out of that one!" Hope this helps, must have performed it over 300 times now including for a spade making company! Hell, I've killed four of them!" Sean Taylor, Taylor's Magic Shop, Sydney Also from PAUL O’NEILL in Sydney, comes a very detailed account of how he has adapted the original routine. "I bought the Appearing Spade from you at the 1998 Sydney Convention. Congratulations on a great trick. I found the vinyl banner didn't quite suit me so I had another one made from thick white material. I got my local T-Shirt maker to silk screen the artwork on it for me. It is slightly wider and looks exactly like a playing card (3 spades complete with indices) except one spade is missing in the centre. I found this forces the audiences eyes up and back on me. I bought a plastic spade at a discount store which is about 30 centimetres high and painted it up to look exactly the same as the Appearing Spade. In short, I force the 3 spades and explain it will be on the banner. When I drop open the banner they instantly see the spade in the centre is missing which gets a good laugh because it looks funny. I then produce the small spade from inside my coat (another laugh). I then ask if the people up the back can see it and say "sorry, it's a bit small. How about this one" and produce the Appearing Spade from behind the banner. The interesting thing is, I am holding the open spade behind the banner for at least a minute before I produce it. Nobody has ever glimpsed it early because I keep the attention on me and the spectator. After I show the banner with a spade missing, the audience doesn't pay much attention to it as I pull the focus back on me. I also found having the small spade as the first production builds up the laugh for the final production. By producing it this way I find everyone thinks it is a real spade. Paul sent some additional notes after making another banner depicting the 4 of Spades. The top left spade symbol of the 4 spots is the one missing. "I hold the banner in my left hand. By having that spade missing, the blank space is next to my body and level with my chest. It is easy to hold the small spade over the blank space without looking awkward. It is also very easy to move the audiences eyes back over to me. If you hold the banner in your right hand it would be better to have the spade on the other side blank. The material is like a calico type. I am not sure as I just went to my local giant fabric store and looked around until I found the right type. It is fairly dense to minimise the back light silhouette problem. The banner design is the same as your original except it is wider. I haven't played around with other designs because I am quite happy with that one." Paul O'Neil www.esp.com.au PHIL (trust me) CASS, Australia's no. 1 comedy magician wrote: "Hi Wayne. I'm guilty of really loving the effect but not being comfortably able to work it in to my present act . . I wont be selling it because its too good not to have it. Sooner, rather than later, I'm gonnna make it work for me . . . trust me. Phil Cass www.philcass.com DAN GARRETT really knows how to "express" himself in email as anyone who has read his contributions to the internet magic community will know. Dan had the Missing Spade filmed as part of a promotional video. Unfortunately the only part of the effect that remained was the final reveal from behind the banner. The other footage lay "on the cutting room floor". I replied to Dan's letter with: "Thanks. You could have used a real spade for that clip!" He came back with, " . . . I know , but the unedited footage looks magical! (:}D) Dan Garrett I don't sell many of my products in New Zealand because they’re in my own act! But a few special friends have used them. MIKE EASTERBROOK in Whangarei is one. "I've used the Missing Spade a bit, and I remember at a Pizza Place restaurant in Waipu of all places, doing something there and having a few cards selected then revealing them in different ways i.e. Tree of Hearts, Long Card, Card on Ceiling etc Then I went for the last one, the four of spades. Did a quick color change of the Ace to a Two and asked if that was it. The person said "More!" I unrolled the banner . . . and he said "One more". I then produced the Spade. There was this big gasp and a big round of applause! It was a great reaction . . . Mike Easterbrook New Zealand's Jon Zealando has his own unique routine with the Appearing Shovel that he would prefer other New Zealand performers not to know about! Here is Jon Zealando's Circus Shovel Routine. "You require the large handled paper carry bag supplied with the Shovel, reinforced internally with book covering plastic film, plus an additional double wall about half way down one side (ala egg bag.) This conceals the shovel blade and allows the bag to be inverted and lightly held with one hand. I roll a rubber chicken or any funny collapsible item up with the shovel, into as tighter package as possible, tying with a thin but strong string. Compress the corners in to make it look like an old used bag, perhaps containing a lunch. Introduce it as such: "The clown's lunch . . . Let's see what’s in it". I generally use vent or mimickery to make the rubber chicken production as funny as possible so the gag seems to be self-contained and quickly over, i.e. finished. I’m left with the bag upside down in one hand, then offer it as rubbish, but quickly place it over a spectator's head. I use some old bar gags, then say it reminds me of my time in a circus. I was known as the Elephant Boy, having to walk behind the elephant in the big parade in case the elephant had a little "accident." But sometimes he missed!! Then I had to become the Circus Pilot. Do you know what a Circus Pilot does? No? Pretend to shovel up the elephant's "large accident" - You pile it here, and pile it there. Well, that's what the Circus Pilot does. Would you like to meet the Circus Pilot? Call out the pilot and a clown or stage hand comes on. Give him the shovel and the bag, and as he goes, tell him to put the shovel back in the bag." That's the bare bones of it. Other New Zealand performers, please not use this gag." Jon Zealando ABB DICKSON has this to say . . . "Thanks for the opportunity to be a part of the commentary on The Missing Spade! I always try to combine effects that use a magical production item, because I feel that simply 'pulling something out' for the sake of just revealing it, is not as strong as a 'surprise appearance!' That said, my first use of the Missing Spade was with a paper folding effect by American Magician Dick Stoner called "Grave Mistake." In that effect, which centers around a drawing of a funeral casket . . . The paper is folded a number of times, to reveal smaller and smaller drawings. It is, in itself, a funny bit of business for the talking magician, but to me needed an extra punch for a finish. It seemed logical to me, that at the conclusion of the effect (just when the audience thought that the punchline had been delivered) I would just take the applause . . . letting the paper unfold again to it's full size. During my 'bow' I took the opportunity (and under cover of the full sheet of paper) to reach beneath my coat and grab the 'folded shovel.' I would then reveal it from behind the paper with a line, " . . . I'll soon be digging my own grave!" SURPRISE! The appearance of the Spade was so strong, that I purchased the Garden Shovel version to use in my speeches to corporate clients. I don't try to hide the shovel under my coat, as extending the handle is a bit of a job! I use the paper bag that came with the trick, but have added an additional 'interior gimmick.' I have cut a thin piece of plywood just the size of the bottom of the bag, and have screwed to it a toilet paper holder! I find that the holder is just the ticket to keep the folded and rolled handle of the shovel in place, and the weight of the plywood easily holds the bag 'to the floor,' as I prepare for my 'one handed production.' Again, I combine the production of the shovel with a paper folding effect, this time using a 'Corporate Blueprint For Success.' I walk out with a workman's hard hat on, carrying the bag with a rolled blueprint sticking out of the bag. I take out the blueprint, and go through my 'speech' folding the rather complicated blueprint as I go. At the end of the bit, the folded blueprint reads "Success!" and again, I let the paper unfold as I receive my applause. As I bow, I let the paper unfold in front of the bag, and I use the cover to reach in and grab the blade of the shovel. The plywood 'holder' easily allows me to pull the shovel upward, letting the handle unroll and I am able (thanks to the cover of the paper) to let the handle fully close as I lift the shovel high in the air... and step in front of the bag on the floor to 'hide it from view.' " . . . A Groundbreaking Idea!" Abb Dickson FAY PRESTO, comedy magical entertainer from the UK, uses a number of my props and loves the Appearing Shovel. She has some valuable tips to share. "The 'tips' I wanted to pass on: Travel with the pole or whatever rolled up, it receives far less damage. A hairdryer pointed down the ways for a few minutes will help restore its spring (memory) And a couple of those plastic spring clamps available in several sizes, usually with orange swivel jaws, (In the UK they carry the trade name Rolson) are excellent for holding the shovel or pole rolled up when ready for action. They are much easier to dislodge than a rubber band. Performed it for the Princess Royal last Tuesday. She loved it!" Fay Presto The final contribution was actually the first received some time ago from the Anderson family in the US. Hope Anderson, who edits Junior Forum for the IBM Linking Ring magazine, bought the Appearing Shovel. Her Mother Helen wrote: "Hope loves her shovel! She performed with it for the first time yesterday in a growing flowers routine. The audience stared in great disbelief when the shovel came out of that bag! Hope passed me the shovel, and after the show was over I carried it out to the car. It didn't fit! I couldn't lay it lengthwise, because we had a bunch of other equipment to get in! I tried this way and that way, and finally got it in diagonally! I almost called David to come with the other car to take the shovel home! It was really funny, because Hope had planned a great place in her table for it, and had planned how to pass it to me, but we hadn't thought about how to take it home without re-folding it!! Just had to share that funny story about how your shovel is really larger than it seems!! Also, the woman whose house Hope performed in was so convinced that this was a real shovel she was concerned that it might "bang" her wall! Thanks, Wayne, for a great effect!" The Andersons, Helen, David, and Hope So there you have it. Six years of the Missing Spade and Appearing Shovel, and still going strong. Special thanks to dealers like Hank Lee, George Schindler and Morley Budden . . . all major movers of my products. Further stories and peformance tips (and orders) are always appreciated. Please drop me a line. Wayne Rogers Chicane Enterprises Ltd, Auckland, New Zealand. www.nzmagic.com --------------------------------- 17. The Amazing ‘Orchante’ Saga – Page 130 ---------------------------------- Message from Tommy Orchard (The Amazing Orchante)(UK ex-pat Kiwi) Eddie Low - A New Zealand Icon THE VOICE IN A MILLION A Talent scout from an Australian booking agency arrived in New Zealand, on the lookout for singers to take back to Australia. Starting his nationwide search in Auckland City, he toured the whole country, finishing up back in Auckland, where the two best singers in the land were, right from the start, Eddie Low and John Rowles. He signed them up to a three-month contract; They left the band and flew out for Melbourne. That contract was extended for another three months. At the conclusion of the agreement, Eddie and John went to Sydney for a holiday, before returning home to New Zealand; but they stayed in Sydney and formed a band instead - ‘THE SUNDOWNERS’. I wonder where they got that name from – a movie perhaps? The band members were two ‘kiwis’ - Eddie and John, two Aussies and a Dutchman. A year later, John decided to go solo, and Eddie got an offer to join the fantastic ‘QUINTIKIS’ Show band. That’s when the New Zealand public really started to notice Eddie Lowe, “The Boy with the Golden Voice”, as he was known then. Eddie constantly toured back and forth between New Zealand and Australia with the ‘Quintikis’, and it was during a Country and Western tour of N.Z. that the late Joe Brown, famous N.Z. promoter and record producer - he ran the: ‘Nationwide Radio Search For Stars ’ (which is where I got my start back in 1960), and the: ‘Miss New Zealand Contests’, asked Eddie if he would consider going solo, under his personal management. Eddie said he would think about it. ‘THINK ABOUT IT’? Dear God! Every entertainer in New Zealand, without hesitation, would have given their ‘eye teeth’ for an offer like that, from Joe Brown! They produced a record on Joe’s label - Eddie’s first, it was: ‘CRYING TIME’; then Eddie went back to Australia with the ‘Quintikis ’. In the meantime, Eddie’s rendition of ‘Crying Time’ became an Instant Smash Hit, rocketing up the music charts at a phenomenal rate! Three months later, Eddie arrived back in New Zealand as a solo artist; ‘A NEW STAR HAD BEEN BORN’! For years, the guiding light behind Eddie’s success was Joe Brown, and his son Dennis, who took over the reigns of the ‘Joe Brown Enterprises’ Empire, when his famous father died. Joe Brown’s strong conviction that New Zealand had the equal, if not the better of overseas talent, was borne out, not only by favourable agreement from visiting world famous entertainers, but also from strong public support. He had no trouble in arranging lucrative contracts for his artists - who performed in all the major entertainment Capitols throughout the world! Tonight, Eddie could be singing in a nightclub in Auckland, tomorrow at a dance in Invercargill. Next weeks engagements may include a weekend of stints in Fiji, or Tahiti, or both, followed by a solid month or two working various clubs in Sydney Australia, which is now ‘home’ to Eddie, likewise many other N.Z. entertainers. That included ourselves, for 10 years, until we ‘stretched our wings’ and departed for England. Most people think we were mad to leave the wonderful weather, the wide open spaces and blue skies of Australia ( Apart from the fact that we were only a hop, skip and a jump from New Zealand), for the infamous cold, damp, bone chilling weather and grey skies of England. But, I can’t complain too much. Britain, in fact all of Europe, and beyond, has been very good to us. We have many friends here, and my ‘brother’ - Martin Baird, NOT by blood - BY choice - is as good a friend and mate, as any red-blooded ‘kiwi bloke’ could ever hope for! Yes, I know, I've wandered off the beaten track – again! Eddie Low had conquered New Zealand and had become established throughout the South Pacific. Now, in 1973, he was ready, willing and invited, to Music City USA – Nashville Tennessee, to represent his country N.Z; to meet the finest talent in country music, to record in the top studios on music row and, to appear on the ‘International Country Music Award Show’ and also, as a Guest Artist on the famed: ‘Grand Ole Opry show’, in the Ryman Auditorium. -CONTINUES - ------------------------------------- 18. Magic New Zealand e-zine archives ------------------------------------- Back issues of the Magic New Zealand e-zine go to: www.watson.co.nz/ezine.html Both the User Name and Password MUST be entered in lower case to gain access. User Name: magic Password: kiwi When you enter the archive the e-zines are in issue order and are coded. 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