Magic New Zealand® E-zine

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* Magic New Zealand®
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Issue Number: #1691
Date: Sunday 30th October 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. Paul Daniels Magic Collection For Sale
3. Paul Daniels Auction Details Are
4. Broken Wand - André Kole
5. Interview With A Vampire On The Magic Word Podcast
6. Magic Museum Bellachini - Episode No. 8
7. No Stone Unturned - Paul Stone - Article #83
8. Tales From The Fantastic Magic Center - #16
9. Bluffer! - John Carey #177
10. News From The Academy Of Illusions
11. E-zine Archives
12. 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: https://www.magicnewzealand.com/ezine-archive/2022-Jan-to-Dec2022/1691-Oct30-2022.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. Paul Daniels Magic Collection For Sale
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Message by Debbie McGee (UK)

BBC News

Debbie McGee to sell off Paul Daniels magic props

Debbie McGee is selling off £200,000 of illusion tricks and props that belonged to her late husband Paul Daniels.

The collection includes cards, wands, his top hat, equipment used on his BBC show, and a letter from Harry Houdini.

An illusion box, which would be filled with swords with McGee inside, is expected to fetch £12,000, while 500 vintage magic posters could sell for £60,000.

The items are being auctioned by Special Auction Services in Newbury.

Paul Daniels died in 2016 aged 77 at his Berkshire home, a month after being diagnosed with a brain tumour.

Special Auction Services said the auction included the "biggest collection of magic posters ever to be sold in the UK".

Director Thomas Forrester said: "Magic appeals to everyone of all ages. It has the ability to transport you back to childhood and to the time when you first saw magic being performed.

"Paul Daniels gave that sense of amazement to his audiences throughout his illustrious career and we are honoured and privileged to be selling his fabulous collection."
Daniels collected vintage posters and other related items during his travels around the world, which date back to the 1800s.

There is a poster of legendary magician Chung Ling Soo, estimated at £2,500, and a letter from Harry Houdini to Liverpudlian magician Will Goldston, estimated at £1,200.
They were all stored at the house Daniels and McGee shared in Wargrave, Berkshire.

McGee told Hello magazine: "For the magical world to have even a little something of Paul's is a big thing.

"I don't need to hang on to all of this - my memories are what I have."

The auction will take place on 23 and 24 November.

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-berkshire-63312607

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3. Paul Daniels Auction Details Are
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Message by Debbie McGee (UK)

The details of the auction are:

23rd and 24th November 2022 Special Auction Services Newbury, England

It is of course like most auctions now online specialauctionservices.com

Telephone 01635 580595

The director dealing with the collection is Thomas Forrester

Email: thomas@specialauctionservices.com

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4. Broken Wand - André Kole
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Message published in Facebook - Joe M. Turner (US)

André Kole was among the most creative and influential illusionists of the 20th century, inventing routines that were ultimately purchased by David Copperfield. Kole's own career was built largely on his Christian faith and his desire to use his gifts to evangelize the world. This he did through Campus Crusade for Christ and multiple international tours over the decades.

I saw him perform live a few times and had the opportunity to speak with him personally a couple of times. He was a brilliant, devoted, creative Christ follower.

André Kole died this week. He has heard the words which I hope one day to hear: "Well done, my good and faithful servant."
Rest well, sir.

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Robert J. Gurtler
On October 17th, 2022 Robert J. Gurtler passed away peacefully in his sleep after a long and valiant battle with Alzheimer's.

A native of Mesa Arizona, he had just recently turned 86. Professionally known as André Kole, he became world renowned as not only a performer, but one of the foremost creators of magical effects. His genius was utilized by stage and television stars David Copperfield, Siegfried & Roy, Doug Henning, as well as countless other magicians throughout the world. At seven years old one of his father's business associates showed the young Bob Gurtler a coin trick, which sparked his interest. By fourteen he created The Gurtler Magic Company.

The pivotal moment of his life came when at twenty five he was challenged to investigate the miracles of Christ from the point of view of an illusionist. This led to the next fifty plus years touring his show, 'André Kole's World of Illusion' in all fifty states as well as eighty countries under the banner of Campus Crusade for Christ International. He not only presented a full evening magic and illusion show, but audiences were given the opportunity (if they wished) to hear and witness through a unique presentation, why he believed Jesus Christ was exactly who he claimed to be. Robert (André) shared the Gospel with an estimated ten million people in live performances, with approximately a million of those indicating their choice to follow Christ via comment cards.

There is currently a full length documentary and a limited docu-series being produced with Robert (André) as the central character focussing on another aspect of his career, investigating and debunking supernatural phenomena and paranormal activity.

Robert is survived by his wife Kathryne, daughters Robyn and Stacey, his son Tim, and his grandchildren Dustin, Dillon, Colin, Camden, and Skyler. As well as his brother Dr. Richard Gurtler and his family. Loved by thousands around the world, Robert will always be remembered as the Magic Warrior for Christ.

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5. Interview With A Vampire On The Magic Word Podcast
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Message by Scott Wells (US)

As we finish our "month of boo" there is no better time than now to have an Interview with a Vampire. Last week we had an Interview with a Witch and the week before was an Interview with a Wizard. We kicked off the month with a couple of ghost tours all of which leads us to a chat with Don Deich aka "Vlad." We learn about this Gothic Magician and how he came to embrace his character, how he finds his costumes, and where he ventures off to at night. It is interesting to learn about the sub-culture of those who find this, um, uh… "life style" to be their thing. With the interest in the new American television series based on Anne Rice's "Interview with a Vampire" plus all the horror films that abound this time of year that feature blood sucking vampires, it is appropriate timing for this episode.

You can listen to this episode wherever you get your podcasts. But for photos, videos, links and more information, please visit: https://www.themagicwordpodcast.com/scottwellsmagic/721-vlad And if you like our podcast, then please help us by leaving a five star review on your favorite podcast carrier along with kind comments on why you enjoy The Magic Word Podcast. Also, be sure to subscribe to the podletter so you don't miss out on who is coming up from week to week plus recommendations from the archives.

Happy Halloween!

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6. Magic Museum Bellachini - Episode No.8
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Message by Wittus Witt (Germany)

The most famous bearers of the name Bellachini are now presented. But I should add that there were also some magic books whose authors called themselves Bellachini. A magic box also bore the name Bellachini. From 18 December, my museum will now bear this name.

I had the idea for the museum for many years, but it took time to realise it. It was necessary to find a good location that was also easy to reach. I already had a shop in mind, but then this terrible virus came into our lives and many plans had to be put on hold.

By chance, I discovered an empty restaurant in the middle of Hamburg at the beginning of this year. I immediately applied for it. On 30 March, I was able to sign the contract. At first, the rooms still served me as an art gallery, which I have been running for 10 years. In November, I show the last exhibition with paintings by a well-known painter from Hamburg. Then I have exactly three weeks to redesign the rooms and fill them with my exhibits.

I had been looking for showcases since March and I actually found some very nice museum showcases.

Since the end of the 1980s, I have shown over 30 exhibitions in museums and other public houses. I photographed many exhibition spaces afterwards. I looked at these photos again to see how the "professionals" decorated the exhibition spaces.

I thought for a long time about which colours to use for the rooms. Finally, I decided on a nice dark blue for the walls. I will paint the wooden parts of the showcases green. Both colours go well with magic props. These colours appear several times in several museums I have been to.
Here you can see some pictures from past exhibitions:

https://hamburger-zaubermuseum.com/Der_Kurator.html

That's all for today. Next time I'll report on the exhibits I'll be showing.

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7. No Stone Unturned - Paul Stone - Article #83
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Message by Paul Stone (US)

The Neon Museum in Las Vegas is without doubt a unique venue. It houses marquee signs from many of the classic Vegas Hotels and Casinos of the past 50 years.

A very popular tourist attraction, its success has resulted in the museum needing more space to display these iconic signs. So, this week they are holding a series of fundraising events.

And one of these events is taking place at the Jungle Palace, the original home of Siegfried & Roy. The property has stood empty since Siegfried & Roy moved into their 'Little Bavaria' residence several years ago.

Specially for this event, the Jungle Palace has been filled again with many of Siegfried & Roy's original artifacts that once adorned this impressive building.

There are two events planned, both of which are sold out. The first is a VIP Black Tie Evening Reception for 200 guests, each paying $1000 a ticket, and the second one is a series of one hour escorted tours, at $100 a ticket, which have more than likely been bought by Siegfried & Roy's loyal fans. This will probably be their last chance to view this magnificent property, as it will no doubt be sold before too long.

I have some amazing memories of the Jungle Palace, including a superb Dinner Party there, hosted by Siegfried & Roy for just 10 guests. It was one of the Auction prizes to raise funds for their SARMOTI Charity donated by Siegfried & Roy at the Royal Gala Dinner that I produced at the Landmark Hotel in London in 2008 to honour these giants of magic, in the presence of H.M. Princess Michael of Kent.

The winning bid was made by a well-known British magician, Jerry O'Connell, and together with his wife Marion, we joined Siegfried & Roy's leading lady, the Evil Queen, Lynette Chappell, for an unforgettable evening. Siegfried & Roy even brought in a couple of their lions, which were no more than 20 feet away from us throughout Dinner. Thankfully they were behind glass, they are magnificent animals, but absolutely huge!

Criss Angel's new TV Show series, 'Magic with the Stars' began airing last week on the CW Channel. In each episode, two celebrities train with professional magicians and are tasked in one week with mastering three categories of magic, one Close-up effect, one Parlour effect and one Illusion, in front of a panel of judges including Criss, and Master Magician Lance Burton.

The highest scoring celebrities are invited back to a finale, where they compete for the 'Golden Wand'.

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8. Tales From The Fantastic Magic Center - #16
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Message by Kent Cummins, Director (US)

More Midnight Ghost Shows: Kara-Kum!

"We are here for your pleasure, for your entertainment…..and for your money!" That was the introduction by Kara-Kum from the roof of the concession stand at a drive-in theatre in Baton Rouge, Louisiana in the late fifties. I was there with my friend John Schexnaydre, another teen magician who helped me with my magic shows.

The sensational newspaper advertising promised the materialization of Lady Godiva and the appearance of the "Crawling Thing of Planet 13, Live On Stage and In the Audience!" Add the horror movie on the big screen, and that sounded like an amazing evening!

Well, the "Lady Godiva" bit was apparently a plastic horse like they had in front of shopping centers for kids to ride, and "Lady Godiva" was a young girl in flesh-colored tights. (To be fair, this was the fifties…and they could not have gotten away with an actually nude girl on stage.)
The "Crawling Thing of Planet13?" John and I recognized it as a swirling firework disk, similar to what we had bought at firework stands long before seeing this show. Despite the sensational advertising, we were not terrified.

We went up after the show to meet the magician, and were informed by a male assistant that "Kara-Kum does not speak English…but thank you for coming." We knew that he was a Polish magician, but we strongly suspected that he just didn't want to deal with a couple of teenage boys. (I don't blame him!)

Kara-Kum didn't provide much pleasure or entertainment…but he did get our money!
Inspired by how little effort it took to produce a Spook Show, John and I created our own version: The Halloween Horror Hop! I'll tell you more about that next week.

The Fantastic Magic Center is dedicated to preserving and sharing the art of magic. Check out my free weekly podcast at:

www.FantasticMagicCenter.com
kent@magichotline.com

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9. Bluffer! - John Carey #177
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Message by John Carey (UK)
http://www.johncareymagic.co.uk/

Producing, say, the Aces from a spectator shuffled deck is an interesting problem. This approach is pretty much all bluff and smoke. Have any Ace on top of the deck and have the other three Aces scattered in different parts of the deck.

Turn the deck face-up and casually spread off about a quarter of the deck including an Ace and hand it to spectator 1 for shuffling. Hand out two further packets, each containing an Ace to two further helpers, leaving you with a packet that contains an Ace on top. Shuffle that Ace to the bottom and then back to the top as the group shuffles their packets. Table your packet to the left and then have each of the other three packets tabled in succession to the right of it, forming a row of four packets.

"Let's see how well you guys shuffled!" Pick up the packet furthest to your right and turn it face-up. Casually hand to hand spread as you comment and compliment the spectator. Your prime motive here though is to sight the Ace in this packet and Hofzinser cull it to the rear/top of the packet. I sometimes talk about how many more reds there are than blacks or vice versa. Flip this packet face-down and table it in the row. Repeat exactly the above actions with the two other packets. If you luck out and an Ace is already on top, then you don't need to do anything. If an Ace is in an awkward position for culling I sometimes simply cut it casually to the top with a double undercut.

"So each of us has shuffled our packets. Do you guys believe in fate or destiny or that sometimes things are just meant to be? On the count of three each of us will turn over the top card of the packets we shuffled." They do and the Aces are revealed. Pour a cold beer and then do an assembly ;-) Notes: Attitude is the key word here. Act casual and remember, they don't
know what effect you are going to do. Above all and as always though, have fun!

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

I'm often asked who my favorite magicians are. My answer will vary, depending upon if it's a magician who is asking. After all, the average layperson only knows a few of the major names of the Art and will therefore expect me to answer with Penn & Teller, Copperfield, Blaine or Angel. In the UK, they also know Paul Daniels and Darren Brown. But very few outside the Art know the names of my actual favorite magicians. One of those was Earl Nelson, who, sadly, passed away this week.

Earl was working at Hollywood Magic when I started in '78. His calm demeanor and slow artistic style made an instant impression. It was the first time I saw Card Magic vs Card Tricks. Couple that with his elegant Ring & Ribbon moves, and the impression was indelible. I maintained a friendship with him for many years, always making an effort to see him perform at The Castle. For a while, he was the even House Magician there. When I talk about Standing on the Shoulders of Giants, Earl is certainly one of them. So, here's a virtual standing ovation to Earl Nelson, one of my favorite magicians, and one of the great unsung heroes of the Art.

This week also saw the completion of another full Website and Sizzle Reel project. Dustin Adcock has been following my Lectures and Downloads for many years. Recently, he signed on for Private Zoom Training. He's already an accomplished magician, with a solid repertoire of skills upon which to build. One of the weak links, however, as with many magicians, was his website. He fully acknowledged losing potential gigs after the client went to his Site. With holiday shows already booking, we decided to give his website and overall promotion a full makeover. Et Voila! Presenting a State-of-the-Art, Six Page, fully Responsive Site, with all the latest bells & whistles, designed to instantly impress all potential clients: www.SleightlySouthern.com

And finally, as mentioned last week, some of our students are learning the Classics, including The Linking Rings. This was one of the first effects I bought, as a teenager, so I've been performing it for 50 years. I've settled into three different Routines, using from 2 to 6 Rings and drawing upon Richard Ross, Dai Vernon and other greats. As always, I add my own elements, moves and style. In teaching, I always look to create a Signature Routine for the student. We are also adding in the single Ring & Silk Effects from 'Circularity', on my 'Get Reel' Digital Download. This adds another dimension to any Linking Ring Routine.

I vividly recall one night long ago, in the Magic Castle Library. Dai Vernon was the only other person there, chomping on his cigar and reading a random book. Without warning, he looked up at me and said, "This fire and fog stuff is all fine and good, but don't forget, you gotta learn the classics!" I was surprised, and thanked him. Then, just as quickly, he went back to reading. So now, as I dutifully pay homage to the Professor, by passing on his 'Symphony on the Rings' Routine, I like to think that, maybe, just maybe, he's looking down from the Magic Castle in the Sky, smiling with approval.

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

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