Magic New Zealand® E-zine

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* Magic New Zealand®
* Proudly sponsored by International Entertainment Ltd (New Zealand)
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Issue Number: #1616
Date: Sunday 25th April 2021
Editor: Alan Watson QSM
www.watson.co.nz
E-mail: editor@magicnewzealand.com
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Hi here is the latest news
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1. Editor's Message
2. May Issue Genii Magazine
3. IBM Convention Online 2021
4. FISM World Championship Of Magic & FISM NA
5. Magical Women With Connie Boyd
6. Magic Monthly "The Disclaimer"
7. Jeff Bibik On The Magic Word
8. Do You Want To Raise Your Magic To The Next Level?
9. Think - John Carey #116
10. No Stone Unturned - Paul Stone - Article #8
11. The Orchante Saga - Beginnings
12. E-zine Archives
13. Privacy Policy and Copyright Notice

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1. Editor's Message
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If you would like to read the Magic New Zealand e-zine in HTML format
go to: http://www.magicnewzealand.com/ezine-archive/2021-Jan-to-Dec-2021/1616-Apr25-2021.html

If you would like to write a regular column for Magic New Zealand or have some magic news drop me a line:
Editor@MagicNewZealand.com

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2. May Issue Genii Magazine
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Message by Richard Kaufman - Editor Genii Magazine

Get the latest every month by subscribing to Genii for as little as $35 at www.geniimagazine.com

On our cover this month is Joan DuKore, a pro magician who has worked steadily for decades in Las Vegas. Born in Hawaii, a ballet student for many years, she started learning to handle cards while most of us were watching cartoons on Saturday morning. Joan was a magician's assistant before eventually ditching the magician and taking his place. She works The Magic Castle regularly and David Regal interviews her about her interesting career.

This month "The Eye" changes eyes as we welcome Vanessa Armstrong as our new all-seeing oracle of news. With a deep bow of gratitude we thank Chloe Olewitz for all the work she did on "The Eye" and also in Genii over the past few years. She now has so much real world work that she can't keep up! Vanessa hits the ground running and I know you'll enjoy what she does with the column.

Elsewhere in these pages, David Regal (again with Regal!) explains a fine impromptu Cups and Balls routine in "Material Concessions"; Hannibal sings the praises of doing magic across the bar in "Happiness is the Road"; Jon Racherbaumer explores some out of this world mishegas in "Exhumations"; John Bannon mates with his playing cards in "Dealing With It"; Krystyn Lambert asks What Do You Create? in "Stage as Studio"; Jonathan Friedman brings you three magical miracles in "Magicana"; Vice President of the Academy of Magical Arts, Max Maven, brings us this month's "Knights at The Magic Castle"; Brad Henderson, Bill Wells, Tom Frame review tricks, videos, and books. This month we also say goodbye to the well-known Spanish card magician Ramon Riobóo with an obituary by Miguel Puga, translated by our pal Mike Elizalde.

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3. IBM Convention Online 2021
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Message by Shawn Farquhar (Canada)

Out of an abundance of safety we are doing our annual convention virtually.

The dates are July 8th-10th and we are filling three days with lectures, panel talks, interviews, contests, and shows.

In fact here's just a partial list of acts we have contracted to appear:

Full online shows from:
Justin Willman : Magic for Humans
Ben Siedman : Camera Tricks
Rune Carlsen : Magic Show Off

Interviews with:
Stephen Bargatze
Nate Bargatze
Mac King
Shin Lim
Casey Thomas

Lectures by:
Dani Daortiz
Henry Harrius
Boris Wild

Panel Talks:
Family Entertainment:
Ken Scott
Christopher T Magician
Joe Romano

Theatre Owners:
TBA

Featured performers:
Rachel Wax
Meadow Perry
Aspen Ortiz
Louie Foxx
Sanjee Vinodh
Elliott Hunter
Jay the Juggling Magician
Alex Zander
Nikola Arkane
Ice McDonald
Paige Thompson

And more to be announced...

More can be found at www.ibmconvention.com

The best news is it's super affordable as the cost for everyone is just $99 for the three day event and includes one full year of IBM Membership with the digital edition of the Linking Ring! That's right, if you aren't a member you will become a member at no additional costs and if you're already a member, then your member ship will be extended for a full extra year! Registration is FREE for all youth IBM members and they can also attend the three day Lance Burton Teen Seminar which will be held from July 5th-7th also online, which is also FREE.

The entire convention will be recorded and for a limited period directly following the event all those that registered will have access to stream the event since we realize as an international organization not all our members are in the same time zones!

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4. FISM World Championship Of Magic & FISM NA
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Message by Ryan Joyce (Canada)

What magicians need to know about FISM World Championship of Magic & FISM NA

Important April 2021 Updates for FISM World Championship of Magic and North American FISM Qualifying Championship Updates with Renée-Claude Auclair!

Table of Contents

0:00 - Welcome
0:43 - What are the 5 North American FISM Member Societies?
0:55 - North American FISM Qualifying Championship Explained
2:21 - Qualification to FISM World Championship of Magic
2:35 - Combined 2021 Convention
2:47 - 28th FISM World Championship of Magic
3:43 - How countries are chosen for FISM
4:52 - Pandemic Impacts
5:05 - Convention Hotel
6:10 - Magic Festival & Week of Magic in Quebec
6:45 - Can magicians still compete?
7:40 - Young magicians contest
8:28 - How to register

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TuY5N5_LkKI

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5. Magical Women With Connie Boyd
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Message by Connie Boyd (USA)

Lupe Nielsen discusses her journey to Las Vegas and her choice to commit and support Norm Nielsen and Nielsen Magic. Learn how she re-structured Nielsen Magic to become a flourishing business and how her relationship with founder Norm Nielsen developed.

Learn the story of Norm bidding the highest price ever paid (at the time), for a Houdini poster at an auction!

Lupe is a skilled close-up performer, a bartender-magician, a magic poster replica producer, the manager and fabricator of the Nielsen Magic high-quality product line, the wife of the late magic legend Norm Nielsen, a master craftsman wood worker and MORE. She is truly a magical woman in every context and it's an honour & privilege to speak with her and to learn more about her inspiring magical life.

Content

0:00 - 0:17 - Connie's introduction about Lupe
0:17 - 054 - Lupe's Magic move to Las Vegas
0:54 - 2:52 - Lupe's Las Vegas Mentor Mike Skinner
2:52 - 4:43 - Lupe's Start at Nielsen Magic
4:44 - 7:38 - Lupe's focus becomes Nielsen Magic
7:38 - 9:26 - Norm Nielsen Poster Houdini purchase
9:26 - 9:55 - Thanks to Lupe
9:55 - 10:51 - Call to Action, please subscribe
13:10 - 13:34 - End talk, call to action

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p2RnhItLNo4

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6. Magic Monthly "The Disclaimer"
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Message by Tom Dobrowolski

How would you like to get access to a monthly magic journal, The Disclaimer, which will contain three tricks to read and absorb? Previously unpublished magic from the likes of Curtis Kam, Jeremiah Zuo, Danny Cheng, Tom Dobrowolski and Richard Hucko as well as from occasional invited special guests like John Bannon?

How would you like to receive a hardcopy book of the year's Disclaimers (all 36 tricks and some extra material that didn't see the light of day in the magazine)?

How would you like to be invited to a Magic Shack Zoom Session every month? Come hang out, get the skinny on material not yet seen by any other magicians, goof off, watch us eat our respective dinners, you know, whatever you want... There are currently only ten spots available for this reward. So first come first serve. We will let you know when it fills up.

Find out how you can get all that and more by clicking:
https://ko-fi.com/thedisclaimer?fbclid=IwAR1juq0gKng8kiXZX4NEoucbpblhyweyUA-9lDsVdJJlfNonaY6HutvmhG4

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7. Jeff Bibik On The Magic Word
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Message by Scott Wells, M.I.M.C. with Gold Star

Jeff "The Amazing" Bibik is the resident bar magician at the Chicago Magic Lounge. This Chicago pub is becoming a mainstay in the local nightlife gaining more and more attention for its eclectic entertainment. And the first person to greet people when they enter through the laundromat is The Amazing Bibik behind the bar. Being a bar magician requires much, much more than sleight-of-hand skills, which Jeff has "in spades" as they say. He is funny, engaging and has what it takes to entertain and sell drinks.

In this week's podcast, you can hear Jeff talk about working restaurants and comedy clubs and corporate events from his beginnings in the Detroit, Michigan, area to his new home (since 1983) in Chicago. You can listen wherever you get your podcasts. But for more information, videos, photos, and to enter the contest, please visit: https://www.themagicwordpodcast.com/scottwellsmagic/607-jeff-bibik

Congratulations to Jim Jorgensen, our winner of the recent contest to receive "The Magic Graveyard" book by Al the Only. You still have one week to enter the contest for a chance to win a copy of "Magic Grandpa" by Alan Kronzek. Visit this week's blog to enter.

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8. Do You Want To Raise Your Magic To The Next Level?
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Message by Bob Loomis

I've written the guide I wish I had owned over half a century ago. It answers these questions:
Do you want to:

- raise your magic to the next level?

- investigate new areas of magic?
- get out of a rut with your magic?
- take your magic in a new direction?
If any of those apply to you then you need this book. Its aim is to save you a great amount of time and money in accomplishing those objectives. No, you'll not find the secret that will make you rich and famous in the book; BUT, you will discover where to look for it.
Whether magic is simply your hobby, or you earn your living from it, Successful Secret Searching will help you get the most out of our wonderful art. You can purchase it on Amazon.

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9. Think - John Carey #116
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Message by John Carey (UK)
http://www.johncareymagic.co.uk/

I've always been fascinated with the concept of a thought of card since I read about the Professor, Dai Vernon and how back in the day he went to New York City and floored many knowledgeable magicians with effects where cards were merely thought of. I've quite a few approaches to the problem, but the following is my favorite at this moment in time. There is a little advanced preparation, but don't turn the page as it's only minimal! Take out the 12 Picture Cards and place all of them except the Jack of Hearts on the bottom of the deck with a few number cards covering them. Place the Jack of Hearts on top of the deck. You can get into this easily during a session of tricks by earlier performing an effect with picture cards, like royal marriages or Nick Trost's matched picture cards. Do a couple of other tricks and then casually set this up during an offbeat.

Bring out your deck and execute an overhand shuffle, which automatically runs the Jack of Hearts to near the bottom of the deck and brings your stock of the other picture cards up to in and around the top third of the deck. Hand the deck to a spectator and have them give the cards one
quick shuffle. I mime an overhand shuffle here to demonstrate. This very subtly runs the stock of picture cards to the lower portion of the deck and brings the Jack of Hearts up to in around the top third of the deck.

"Shannon, a deck of cards is basically 52 pieces of paper comprised of number cards and?" Let them respond picture or court/face cards. "That's right. I think it's easier to visualize the picture cards as they have lots of colour and detail" Ask your helper to cut off about a third of the deck and shuffle. Then ask them to spread that packet with the faces towards themselves and think of a picture card and then assemble the deck and shuffle once more. "So you shuffled the deck, thought of a card and shuffled some more. Lock the image of that card in your mind please."

Think about this: Everything is true in that sentence above. The degree of fairness and conviction is high. They are thinking of the Jack of Hearts and it's now up to you what you do with it. Have fun!!!

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10. No Stone Unturned - Paul Stone - Article #8
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Message by Paul Stone (US)

I've had the opportunity and the honor of working with several magic greats and other show business legends. Over the next few weeks I am going to tell you a few stories involving these outstanding performers.

Without doubt, two of my very favorite performers were Hans and Helga Moretti from Germany. The Morettis, as they were known, were two of greatest stage performers and characters in magic.

Although Hans, with his shaved head and bearskin stage costume, gave the impression of being a fierce and rather unnerving figure, he was the nicest, kindest, and most gentle man you could ever hope to meet. And Helga, who was also a larger than life character, was a lovely lady.

Above all, the Morettis were consummate professionals; they appeared at more than fifty shows and corporate events for me, ranging from many major hotels in London's West End including the Grosvenor House, the Dorchester, and Savoy, to the world famous London Palladium Theatre, the home of variety shows.

The first time I booked the Morettis was for a corporate banquet at the Metropole Hotel in Birmingham, England. Also on the bill were a juggler, a Riverdance troupe, and a young magician who at that time performed a silent manipulation act. That young magician has since made a name for himself as a top entertainer on board all the major cruise lines and also in pantomime at the London Palladium. His name is Phillip Hitchcock.

The Morettis act featured their signature Paper Tree Suspension and another illusion called the Tibetan Cross, in which Hans was blindfolded, chained, and padlocked to a chair, with three crossbows aimed at his head. Hans had one minute to escape before the arrows fired. The idea was that Hans escaped just in time and the arrows hit a target directly behind where he was sitting.

During rehearsals Hans very deliberately measured exactly twelve paces between the crossbows and the chair and carefully marked the position on the stage with small pieces of white gaffer tape. Hans stressed to me and then once again emphasized how critical these marks were and that when his props were being set, they MUST be placed exactly on the marks, because it was a very dangerous trick.

That night the show started, and The Morettis were due to close the close. All was going well until Phillip Hitchcock finished his act with a ribbon fountain filled with thousands of pieces of white confetti. (He hadn't used confetti during the rehearsals, so this came as a complete surprise to me). We tried to brush the confetti off the stage, but that proved to be an almost impossible task, and one that was made harder by the Riverdance troupe, who only succeeded in spreading the confetti even further across the stage.

Just before the Morettis went on stage, I spoke to Hans and told him that I would try to place his props as close as possible to the way they were set in rehearsal, but it was very difficult to see the marks because there were now hundreds of small white pieces of paper on the stage.

Hans was not happy and told me in no uncertain terms that it was vital the props were set correctly; his life was on the line! At this stage I literally hyperventilated. We set the props as well as we could; for the next fifteen minutes I was a complete wreck.

Needless to say, Hans performed the escape to perfection and brought the house down. After the show I went over to Hans to apologize once again and tell him I was so relieved that he wasn't hurt. At this point Hans and Helga burst into uncontrollable laughter. "I was only having a joke with you," he said. "The position of my props wasn't actually so critical!"

At another huge gala event in the Great Room of the Grosvenor House Hotel on Park Lane (the Great Room holds around two thousand people for dinner), Hans and Helga arrived early in the afternoon to do a sound and lighting check. Helga said, "You are lucky that we are here today." I asked why, and she continued, "Well, last night we were performing the Tibetan Cross in Munich and one of the crossbows fired early before Hans could escape; one of the arrows hit him and was sticking out of his neck!

"I screamed and the audience went silent. By chance the steel tip of the arrow had shot into one of the links in the chain that Hans had been tied up with, and it had lodged so firmly that it was impossible to dislodge by hand. The tip of the arrow was right next to Hans's throat!"

I said to Helga, "So what would have happened if the arrow hadn't lodged in one of the chain links?' And then Hans, who had been listening to the conversation, said, "Mein friend, you would have had to book a juggler instead tonight!"

The last occasion Helga worked with Hans in one of my big corporate shows was also in the Great Room of the Grosvenor House Hotel. Unfortunately, by this time Helga had been diagnosed with cancer and very rarely performed with Hans, but she was such a special lady and a very dear friend of mine and she didn't want to let me down. Although in a great deal of pain, she made the trip over to London to appear in the show.

Hans and Helga, like the great pros that they were, always arrived at the venue early. In the Great Room they changed behind the stage area of the huge banquet room. They literally "set up shop," put up their own pipe and drape, and started rolling up dozens of newspapers for their Paper Tree Suspension.

On this particular evening the guests arrived in the Great Room for dinner at 7.30 p.m.; the Morettis were not due on stage until much later in the evening, at 11 p.m. As usual, I was the emcee and host for the whole evening. I was always on site and regularly checked up with Hans and Helga to make sure they were happy and had everything they needed.

Around 8 p.m. I went back to their changing area; Helga was the only one there. I asked if all was well and enquired where Hans was. Helga told me that he must have gone back to their bedroom for a few minutes. I checked back with them again at 8.30 p.m. and at 9 p.m. and still there was no sign of Hans. Helga didn't seem unduly bothered, so I wasn't either. However, when I again went back to the changing room at 9.45 p.m. and there was still no sign of Hans, I got a little worried. So I sent one of my team to go to their bedroom to see if he was in there and was okay.

Hans wasn't in his hotel room either! It was now 10.15 p.m. I decided I needed to talk to Helga and see what we should do. When I arrived in the changing room, there was Hans putting on his make-up. I asked if everything was alright and I enquired where he had been for the past two-and-a-half hours. He said, "Look, I'm not as young as I used to be, and my body is not as supple, either. The only way that I can still perform the Cardboard Box Illusion is if I sit in the box for three hours before the show!"

I was speechless, but on reflection I shouldn't have been surprised. The Morettis were just outstanding professionals and superb show people.

I remember Hans and Helga Moretti with great fondness. Whenever they appeared in any of my shows, they always arrived bearing gifts for my kids. They were the easiest people to work with and a delight to have in any show. And they were sensational performers who always brought the crowd to their feet.

Sadly, Hans and Helga are now no longer with us. But I feel very fortunate to have known them and to have worked with them so often. I will certainly never forget them.

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11. The Orchante Saga - Beginnings
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Written by the late Tommy Orchard (The Amazing Orchante)

'Eddie Low -'The Voice In a Million' Prelude

Friday afternoon last (18th of October, 2002), I had a surprise visit from fellow New Zealander Richard Webster, a friend whom I haven't seen for eighteen years - 1984 to be exact; I had returned home to New Zealand, from Sydney, Australia, where we were living at the time, for my mother's funeral. Richard (accompanied by his son Nigel, who resides and works in London) made a 'very special trip' to Doncaster, staying for several hours. The time just flew as we
gossiped and mused over past memories. According to Veronica, I did most of the yakking. No kidding - what a surprise! For those of you who don't know who Richard Webster is (you should be ashamed of yourselves), I'll enlighten you in a future episode. For now, I can tell you that he has written 75+ books that have been translated into twenty different languages, How's that! During our/my reminiscing, the name Eddie Low cropped up, hence the title of this episode.

A New Zealand Icon

I can't remember when Eddie Low and I first met, but it would have been some time during the early Sixties. Back in 1972, Eddie, his girlfriend and Veronica and I, went to see Neil Diamond's outdoor performance at the Western Springs stadium in Auckland. I'm fairly certain that it was his first ever overseas concert - the start of a worldwide tour that culminated at the Greek theatre, Los Angeles, where the live double album, 'Hot August Night' was recorded. Apart from Neil Diamond's fantastic band, that created so much excitement and fabulous music, and Neil's incredible voice and songs that reach right into your soul, the night was made even more memorable when the heavens decided to open up - it absolutely chucked it down, a relentless downpour upon the thousands of fans. What the weather threw at us, Neil Diamond, not about to be out done, threw double, musically - we sat there, soaked to the skin, enthralled, cheering and screaming with everyone else! What a professional! What a night!

Eddie, born blind on May 14th, 1945, grew up at a blind institute where he began learning music and playing the piano from the age of six. He had three eye operations when he was seven, which gave him a small amount sight in his left eye. He says: "It was really good, at least I wasn't banging into everything so much"! Yeah, right mate, but you were still 'banging' everything in sight - excuse the pun, back in the old days!

When he turned eight, he joined the blind brass band at the institute as second cornet player, during which time he would pick up any instrument he could lay his hands on, and learnt to play it! Today, he is a multi - instrumentalist, and plays piano, trumpet, guitar, organ, violin and bass. With all the multitrack facilities available in a recording studio, Eddie can be the singer and backing voice(s), as well as the complete band, all in one. Saves a fortune in recording costs!

While at the institute, Eddie won many talent quests and when he was thirteen, he formed a group with two friends; they called themselves - 'The Three Blind Mice'. At the age of Fifteen, another eye operation partly restored the sight in his left eye, although he is still totally blind in the right eye. He left school, and formed another group: The 'Trutones', The lead singer was a blind girl - her father managed them.

Eddie's showbiz career got off the ground when he joined his brother, who was playing in a band in an Auckland club. The rhythm guitarist had left and Eddie took his place; John Rowles joined the group as a bass player. A few years later, 1967, John gained international superstar status when he was taken to London and recorded the song: 'If I Only Had Time'. John celebrated his 21st birthday as the song climbed the charts to reach No.1 in England, New Zealand and Australia. The song was a smash hit 'across the pond', in America, as well.

To Be Continued

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12. E-zine Archives
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Back issues of the Magic New Zealand e- zine go to:
www.magicnewzealand.com

Click on the red button centre right "Archives"

When you enter the archive the e- zines are in issue order in folders for each year and are Coded, e.g. 001 Nov06 1999.txt first three numbers (001) denote issue number, then the date (Nov06) and the last figures the year (1999)

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13. Privacy Policy and Copyright Notice
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Our subscriber list is NOT made available to any other companies or individuals. We value every subscriber and respect your privacy.

You can subscribe to or unsubscribe from the Magic New Zealand® E- zine at: www.magicnewzealand.com

Magic New Zealand® E-zine is published each Sunday.

The opinions and statements expressed therein are those of the individual contributors and not necessarily those of Magic New Zealand®. Neither Magic New Zealand® nor Alan Watson QSM vouch for the accuracy or reliability of any opinion, message, statement, or other information reported via Magic New Zealand® E-zine.

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