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: #1658
Date: Sunday 6th March 2022
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. March Genii The Conjurors' Magazine
3. Free Lance Burton Teen Seminar
4. The Magic Word Podcast - Scott Wells
5. Lives Of The Conjurers: Houdini And Spiritualism
6. Magical Women With Connie Boyd
7. News From The Academy Of Illusions
8. No Stone Unturned - Paul Stone - Article #50
9. The Milano Prediction - John Carey #152
10. Around The Lounge By Jeff Bibik
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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Congratulations Paul Stone upon contributing your 50th issue of 'No Stone Unturned' to the Magic New Zealand ezine, and we look forward to many more interesting stories from you!

If you would like to read the Magic New Zealand e-zine in HTML format
go to: magicnewzealand.com/ezine-archive/2022-Jan-to-Dec2022/1658-Mar06-2022.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. March Genii The Conjurors' Magazine
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Message by Richard Kaufman - Editor Genii Magazine

Join us for as little as $35 a year at www.geniimagazine.com and get digital access to every issue of both Genii and MAGIC ever published.

For the March issue we have something spooky for you: the new Houdini Séance at The Magic Castle. Jonathan Levit, one of the Trustees at the Academy of Magical Arts, gives us a look behind the curtain with an assist from Jim Steinmeyer and Benjamin Schrader, two of the architects behind the new version.

Would you pay $300 each for a regular deck of cards? Find out why some have, and how many of those now collectable packs are in the hands of Dominique Duvivier, who sets the record straight about his stash of Jerry's Nugget playing cards.

And this issue is packed with magic. Besides the Jerry's Nugget story, one of Dominique's tricks appears in this month's "Magicana" where Jonathan Friedman also conjures up a nifty coin routine. In "Dealing With It," John Bannon finds a couple pieces of gold in the "Oil and Water" plot. David Regal shares a pretty vanish in "Material Concessions". In Jon Racherbaumer's "Exhumations" you will find a four Ace trick that stands up to repetition. And Jim Steinmeyer shares an impossible card effect (or is it mindreading?) in "Conjuring".

Krystyn Lambert's "Stage as Studio" takes a hard look at props this month. In "Happiness is the Road", Hannibal shares a beer-soaked tale. Vanessa Armstrong's "The Eye" covers all the news. From the clubhouse on in the Hollywood Hills, Shawn McMaster looks back at the holidays in "Knights at The Magic Castle". And wrapping up this issue is our gang of intrepid reviewers in "Light from the Lamp', including Suzanne on videos, Nathan Coe Marsh with books, and Ryan Plunkett with the tricks of our trade.

As usual, the digital issue features videos, including performances from our columnists and some trivia from our editor. All that and more is on the inside of this, our 1,000th issue. See you there.

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3. Free Lance Burton Teen Seminar
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Message by Simone Marron
Lance Burton Teen Seminar Administrator

We are excited to announce that the Lance Burton Teen Seminar will be taking place in-person and live for two days before, and during the 2022 I.B.M. Convention.

The seminar is free to all I.B.M. Youth Members between the ages of 13 and 19. However, as space is limited, apply now, as spaces are filling up fast, and the convention is almost sold out. For more information and to sign up, go to bit.ly/LBTS2022, and download the application form on that page, complete it, and email it back to me at simone@marrons.us ASAP.

The Seminar dates are July 11-13, 2022, with extra hours during the convention. Learn from some of the greatest magic teachers in the world including Lance Burton, Jeff McBride, Larry Hass, and several surprise guests.

Additionally, the first forty I.B.M. Members under the age of 18 to register for the convention can register for free! Don't delay, as only a small amount of free registrations remain. Register for the convention at www.ibmconvention.com

We are so excited to be able to offer you this incredible opportunity this summer, and hope to hear from you soon.

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4. The Magic Word Podcast - Scott Wells
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Message by Scott Wells, M.I.M.C. with Gold Star

Zabrecky and Jason England on The Magic Word Podcast

Last week we reached a rather unique milestone with episode #666. While there is nothing demonic about it, we thought we'd have some fun and reach out to the medium at the Magic Castle séance, Rob Zabrecky. He has been the resident medium at large for over a decade. Moreover, he has received two separate nominations for Magician of the Year or the Parlour at the Magic Castle. Rob is a memorable performer with a rather unique, shall we say, quirky style. In this episode, Zabrecky talks about developing his on stage persona. You can listen to this episode wherever you get your podcasts. But for more information, videos, photos and more, please visit our website at: https://www.themagicwordpodcast.com/scottwellsmagic/666-zabrecky

And this week we bring you a wonderful conversation with Jason England. He is perhaps best known for his collection of gambling apparatus and his work with trying to learn the identity of S.W. Erdnase, author of "Expert At The Card Table." Jason has a lot of entertaining stories relating to gambling as well as the legendary con artist, Titanic Thompson. Again, you can get this wherever you download your podcasts, but for more info, please visit: https://www.themagicwordpodcast.com/scottwellsmagic/667-jason-england

And while you at the website, be sure to register to enter the contest for a chance to win one of three copies of the eBook "The Self Working Trick" by John Gaspard. This is a collection of 12 different Eli Marks mysteries, most of which have never been published before now. This contest is open to everyone in the world since it will be a digital edition. Go to the website today and enter. The contest will remain open until March 9th.

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5. Lives Of The Conjurers: Houdini And Spiritualism
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Message by Michael Solomon (US)

Professor Solomon has published Houdini and Spiritualism, the story of Houdini's crusade against fraudulent mediums. It is Volume Four in his Lives of the Conjurers.

For a description, go to:
https://www.wildabouthoudini.com/2021/08/lives-of-conjurers-houdini-and.html

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

Magical Women salute female magicians & Womens History Month 2022. Be WOWed by their successful women stories and women inspirational video. Learn how these girl power magic superstars have earned their spot in the female success club. Watch our playlists to learn magic life lessons and lady magician successful women motivation!

March 1-31, 2022 - Women's History Month 2022

Content:
00:00 - 00:12 - Introduction Magical Women salute Womens History Month
00:12 - 00:23 - Blast from the Past Series
00:23 - 00:39 - Winners Circle Series
00:39 - 01:01 - 21 Guest Star Talks & Sequels
01:00 - 01:15 - Weekly Magical Motivational Messages
01:15 - 01:28 - Call to action

https://youtu.be/5jLzrzcbJHo

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7. News From The Academy Of Illusions
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Message by Jay Scott Berry (Australia)

The emerging catch word for events in 2022 is "Hybrid*. Thankfully, we are coming out of two years of lockdown with a renewed focus on the Art and the different ways it can be presented. This year has seen major live conventions in Las Vegas and Blackpool as well as virtual ones, like last weekend's Magic Inn Convention. I'm directing, consulting and/or performing on some of the upcoming conventions and am actively pushing the Hybrid Model, which is a dynamic synergy of Live and Virtual.

Simply put, this is the new normal. Theatres, businesses, schools and individuals have fully embraced virtual events. So now, we have the opportunity to take the best of each, allowing for live and virtual performers at a convention as well as live and remote attendees. Even The Magic Castle, which is now open, is continuing its Virtual Shows. Jack Goldfinger has tapped me to Produce their April 2nd Virtual show. So, I'm very pleased to announce that Meadow Perry and Rod Chow will be my Co-Stars. All Magic Castle Members, no matter where in the world, can attend this, and all of their virtual shows. And even non-members can attend for a moderate entrance fee.

There are also two other headline stories this week. The first is the aforementioned Magic Inn Convention. Well over 100 attendees joined from all corners of the globe to see presentations by Shawn Farquhar, Suzanne, Håkan Berg, Simon Fisher-Becker and yours truly. There were Virtual Dealers Rooms, Contests, Prizes and more! It was an amazing undertaking by producer Jeffrey Clark and his team. That it turned out so successful bodes well for all similar events in the future, whether virtual or hybrid.

Last, and certainly not least, was the 5th "Spotlight On" Webcast which Streamed Live across Facebook. In this episode, it was a true pleasure to recognise the extraordinary life and achievements of Diana Zimmerman, founder of the Magic Castle Juniors Program. Joining me in honouring her were an all-star cast that included Lance Burton, Nick Lewin, Christopher Hart, Ed Alonzo, Bill Smith and Steven Barnes. It was 100 minutes of priceless discussion and memories, which will now go into the Magic Castle Archives. The recording can be viewed on the Academy FB Page at www.FaceBook.com/AcademyofIllusions

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8. No Stone Unturned - Paul Stone - Article #50
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Message by Paul Stone (US)

As I write this article, I am still in England after presenting a talk with Lynette Chappell at the recent Blackpool Magic Convention.

Over the many years that I've been involved in magic, probably the one thing that has impressed me most is the ability to travel to pretty much any country in the world and come across a local magician.

And invariably they'll welcome you with open arms. I've been fortunate to make some really good friends this way.

Although I don't personally know any magicians from Ukraine, there are bound to be some, and our collective thoughts should be with them for the terrible situation in which they now find themselves in their country.

If you know of any magicians living there, or if you just would like to help, please email me at qualityevents@aol.com

The images we're witnessing on TV of so many frightened mothers and children fleeing from the Russian invasion are dreadful and very moving. I'm sure that any support would be welcome.

It would be nice to bring a little magic into their lives.

A few weeks ago, some friends of mine from over here in UK visited Las Vegas and I took them to see Mac King's Show in his new room at the Excalibur, and Mike Hammer's Show at the
4 Queens in Downtown Las Vegas.

Both these guys are old friends of mine, and I hadn't seen either of their shows for some time. In short, they were both outstanding.

Due to the pandemic, audience numbers are considerably down, especially for afternoon shows, and Mac only had a smallish crowd. But to his great credit, he gave his audience a brilliant show. His magic was strong, his comedy and timing impeccable, and his energy never let up. Mac is a professional to his fingertips and always on top of his game.

Mike Hammer may not be as well known to British magicians as Mac King, but for me he is as good as it gets. His style is very different from Mac's who plays predominantly to a family audience.

Mike's is an evening show, and his performance can best be described as edgy. But he never crosses the line and his repartee and the way he plays his audience is sensational. He has a lightning sharp wit, and his magic is fast moving, entertaining, and original.

Mike has stayed mainly under the radar but has been wowing audiences at the 4 Queens for over 14 years! And he still looks like a young guy! I'm hoping to bring him over to the UK in the future, if he ever gets a break from his Las Vegas shows!

Mike is also currently rehearsing for Criss Angel and Franco Dragone's (founder of Cirque du Soleil) new spectacular show called AMYSTIKA. Also at the Planet Hollywood, it is due to open on 11th March.

Watch this space for details!

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9. Five Thinko - John Carey #152
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Message by John Carey (UK)
http://www.johncareymagic.co.uk/

Five Thinko is a revelation of a genuinely thought of playing card that makes use of Multiplicity, or Multiple-outs as most commonly known. It was Dai Vernon who blazed a trail with this kind of work in the context of card magic.

You will require a deck of cards, a wallet and a banknote/bill. Set the deck up as follows: Place the Ace of Clubs on top, the Two of Clubs on the bottom, and the Three of Clubs reversed in the middle. Take the Four of Clubs and place it inside the zippered compartment of your wallet.
Finally, take a marker and write on the banknote "you will think of the Five of Clubs". Place the banknote writing side down in the note compartment of your wallet and set the deck back into its box and you are ready to perform.

Bring out your cards from the box and execute a false cut, without exposing the reversed card. Ask a participant to cover the deck with either hand. "Mick, today we are going to attempt a little mystery of the mind. Your mind, not mine! Also I will wager the contents of my wallet and if I fail with this you keep the wallet and its content. Imagine five playing cards, the Ace, Two, Three, Four and Five of, err, Clubs. Imagine seeing them out in front of you, big and bold in the air". Before delivering this monologue take out your wallet and open it showing money inside and leave it opened on the table. "Imagine those cards just fading slowly away until just one card is left, a card formed entirely in your mind and imagination. What card are you thinking of?"
All your work is done. Let's deal with the variables:

Ace of Clubs - have them lift their hand and turn over the top card and conclude.

Two of Clubs - have them lift their hand and turn the deck face-up to reveal their thought of card.

Three of Clubs - have them lift their hand and spread the deck across the table, revealing their mental selection reversed in the deck.

Four of Clubs - Ask your participant to open up the zippered compartment of your wallet and remove the contents.

Five of Clubs - Comment on how earlier that day you had a premonition and wrote something down. Have them remove the banknote and turn it over and read out your prediction to successfully conclude a meeting of two minds!

That's pretty much all there is to this. Work at a calm and unhurried pace and you will have a thought of card revelation that will serve you very well.

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10. Around The Lounge By Jeff Bibik
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Message by Jeff Bibik (US)
www.Bibik.com
www.ChicagoMagicLounge.com

Meet Kayla Drescher

It's been a couple of busy weeks at the Chicago Magic Lounge, sold out shows and happy audiences. Our current Artist in Residence is Kayla Drescher doing her evening show "Magic In High Heels". The show features many of Kayla's signature pieces, including a psudo psychometry with drinks that ends with the final thought of drink being produced! It's a fun show that moves at a nice clip and runs every Wednesday night through March.

While she's in town she's also been doing some nights at the bar, bringing her back to some of her roots. Kayla's story began in the tiny town of Wallingford Connecticut in the US. She told me she has always been interested in finding out how things work, exploring nature, and learning about science and math. Her first magic shop visit was at age 7, and she quickly met a mentor in Bill Andrews. Bill was a well-known magician in the Connecticut area and was also the president of the SAM 1987- 88. Bill started a SYM assembly which provided a strong and positive influence for many young magicians in that area.

Kayla began doing shows at a young age, doing birthdays, contests and talent shows and even working the annual Salute to Magic show in New York City at age 12. However, she but put magic aside when she went off to college to earn a degree in environmental Science. She quickly learned that road was not for her, and went back into magic. This is when she started sharpening her bar skills with 2 years of tending bar to give her time to develop her routines and the thick skin needed in this work!

Seeking more opportunity she went west, first to Vegas, which also was not the fit she was seeking and she stayed only a year there. I asked her if she got any work in Vegas, and her first offer was to do walk around magic poolside - in a bikini! (Let me tell you, I've done this and it's not easy, or in my case pretty) Los Angeles has been a better fit. She quickly became a regular at the Magic Castle and has become deeply involved in improv comedy, a valuable skill for magicians.

Opportunity knocked again, and she began touring with Champions of Magic. This very successful international touring show has travelled the globe and Kayla toured for 4 years. During her time with the show she's been to all 50 states, as well as Mexico and Canada. The Canadian shows were always in winter, a smart marketing move as there were no other touring shows at that time of year, guaranteeing huge audiences.

The down side was the cold!! Many of these shows were in ice arenas, so dressing rooms were the hockey player's locker rooms. Most magicians haven't spent a lot of time in sports locker rooms (including me!) but Kayla assured me you don't forget that smell! Ah, show business! She'll be returning to LA soon to continue her studies, so catch Kayla at the Chicago Magic Lounge, and wear your high heels!!

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

Another Adagio/ Dancer act which used Jon Doyle's fitness studio, that we worked with quite often, were the 'Duo Arabesque'- Marilla and Ibraham; she was Australian and he, Lebanese. "The bloody Arab" Marilla used to called him - fondly. It was strange how often we would work with the same act(s) in the various RSL's, Leagues and other clubs, especially when you consider the vast number of clubs, and the seemingly limitless number of artistes, of all kinds, who were working the Sydney circuit. We became good friends with Marilla and Ibraham, particularly after we had both been booked by my old mate Gilbert Thong, to work in Noumea, New Caledonia for a couple of weeks. Gilbert, who hails from New Caledonia, was the promoter who gave me my first over-seas bookings around the South Pacific Islands, way back in the 'dark ages' .
Like most Adagio artistes, Marilla and Ibraham would appear on-stage wearing a cloak and/or cape of some sort, then take it off with a flourish, to reveal quite skimpy costumes which showed
off their physiques - the 'Body Beautiful'; the very nature of this type of act demands it in any case. Both partners are always in fantastic shape (hence the continuous fitness and body
sculpturing/training regimes) and, more often than not, the females, like their male counterparts, worked topless. This little exposé is to set the scene for an incident that had Marilla in tears.

Gilbert decided to fly us out to a little Island situated off the East Coast of New Caledonia, miles out in the Pacific Ocean - Lifou Island, to perform our show/acts for the natives. Talk about being isolated from civilisation - and the hotel? The 'rooms' were several, typically native, round shaped grass bures, set-up in a compound; bunk style beds with mosquito nets - thank God, and the running water was strictly limited, so you had to try and do your No. 2's and flush the toilet before it was shut off until the next morning, as were the generators that supplied the electricity! I guess that if you were used to doing the 'nature walks' bit, camping out in tents. etc. We weren't!

The show, held in a large tin shack, which also served as the local community centre, was absolutely jam-packed with happy, laughing, and excited natives, whose clothing looked like it had come, at best, from a jumble sale, at worst, a rubbish dump! At least they were wearing something! They used to run around naked until the early missionaries arrived; their Bible banging teachings changed practically all of the islands inhabitants throughout the South Pacific into Christians. I guess that in some ways, it had its benefits - they were no longer cannibals!

On with the show. As Veronica and I had two different acts, we went on first - performing our magic show. At one stage, I got a little boy up to do the old vanishing lit cigarette in the
handkerchief - I always borrowed my volunteers coat, it has a far bigger impact than a measly handkerchief. This little boy wasn't wearing a coat; he had on what seemed to be a brown coloured cardigan - that was until I asked him to take it off so that I could perform 'The Magic'. As he removed it, it turned inside out, to reveal that it was, bright red! The outside 'brown'
colour was - dirt! As I 'vanished' the cigarette, the cardigan kept trying to crawl away on its own volition. So did I!

Then it was Marilla and Ibrahim's turn to entertain the happy throng. As their background music came on, they strode out onto the floor (there was no stage), and removed their cloaks. Initially there was a hushed silence, then quiet giggling, as they start performing their various routines, which really was something quite beautiful to watch as Ibraham showed his strength
with his one-arm lifts etc., with Marilla gracefully posing in a variety of positions. We could hear tittering from the audience virtually from the start of their act, but when some of the Adagio positions entailed Marilla doing the splits, the crowd started screaming with laughter.

Neither of them could understand what was so funny but as the true professionals that they were, they carried on and finished their act. We didn't know either, what had caused the laughter during their show, until Gilbert told us. It started practically from the time that Marilla dropped her cloak, because they could see her boobs; then, because of Marilla's very skimpy G-String, they could, "See the white girls 'thing"! Poor Marilla burst into tears of embarrassment, then anger, until she came to realise that the friendly natives on remote Pacific Islands just don't 'see'
things quite the same way as mature, discerning audiences do, in sophisticated nightclubs etc.

We came on once again to finish off the show, performing our signature 'Fakir' presentation: Fire Eating, Bed-of-Nails, Sword-Swallowing and the 'String Thing' (psychic surgery), during
which another little incident occurred, which gave Marilla a great sense of 'sweet revenge' and satisfaction!

Continues Next Week

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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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Privacy Policy And Copyright Notice
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Magic New Zealand® E-zine is published each Sunday.

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