MAGIC'S MOST FAMOUS PARROT

Though this article is one we seemed to have missed in April, it is still well worth reading. In "The secret life of magic's most famous parrot," The OC Register profiles Luigi, the Spectacle Amazon parrot of Dana Daniels. "It is a packed house in the Palace of Mystery at Hollywood's Magic Castle – the most famous magic nightclub in the world. The crowd is here to watch a "psychic" parrot that does, well, absolutely nothing, to be honest. The parrot has amassed magic's top awards. Played Vegas and TV sitcoms. Even bought a sprawling house atop the hills of Orange – without lifting a feather. He launched the career of Dana Daniels, 47, who won "Stage Magician of the Year" at this week's Academy of Magical Arts Awards Show."

THE FORGOTTEN MAGIC OF LONG TACK SAM

KungFuCinema.com reintroduces us to Long Tack Sam, "Magician, acrobat, and vaudeville headliner and one of the first Chinese entertainers to achieve international celebrity. His peers and colleagues included Harry Houdini, the Marx Brothers, George Burns, Jack Benny, Laurel and Hardy, and many others. Long’s stage illusions and acrobatic skills were esteemed on five continents."  A new documentary on his life was released in 2004 and is now available on DVD from the Canadian Film Board. It is a truly magical film, melding family and history and cross-cultural pop entertainment into a delightful package. Fleming’s innovative use of animation to bring old photos and posters to life takes us right into Long Tack Sam’s life and times. Visit the official website. WATCH A PREVIEW OF THE FILM:

DAVID BLAINE VS THE GREAT BUCK HOWARD

After being showcased at various film festivals including, CineVegas and the Seattle Film Festival, a new trailer has appeared to promote "The Great Buck Howard." Newly noted is an appearance by David Blaine in the film which stars Colin Hanks, Tom Hanks & John Malkovich. WATCH THE NEW TRAILER: THANKS TO JKEPPEL FOR MAKING US AWARE OF THIS VIA A POST AT THE GENII FORUMS.

20+ MIRACLES USING THE IPHONE

Regular visitors to the Magic Newswire know that we have a soft spot in out heart for the iPhone and the various ways in which it can be used to perform magic. Because so many of our readers  are walking around with one of these in their pocket today, we thought it was time for a complete list of every such application and website that we've found so far.  Amaze your family and friends at the next holiday gathering when you show them what makes your iPhone special!  Let me know if we've left any out! MAGIC MATCH :: Pluck a REAL match from a digital matchbox in a puff of smoke, with this amazing iPhone app. Magic Match is an incredible digital magic trick to perform for your friends and family. ($1.99) iTunes Store Link ESP VISION :: A freely chosen ESP symbol is magically transferred to the magicians actual palm with the ESP Vision app. ($2.99) iTunes Store Link   MAGIC SHOW :: Screen prompts ask your  assistant to pick one of three objects and say the name of the object out loud. Without further ado you hand the person your iPhone and with music, a puff of smoke and some suspense the phone announces the selected object. ($2.99)  iTunes Store Link IMUNCHIES  from Hottrix ::  Here comes the answer to snack attacks. Your iPhone becomes a popcorn machine. The all-you-can-eat sensation! ($2.99)  iTunes Store Link IMILK  from Hottrix ::  A portable dairy farm for your iPhone and iPod touch. Drink milk and whip cream from the comfort of your pocket. ($0.99)    iTunes Store Link   IBEER  from Hottrix ::  Brew and drink beer on your iPhone and iPod touch. ($0.99)   iTunes Store Link     MARTY'S MAGIC CARD  ::   Spectator chooses a card and puts it back in the pack. By holding the phone against the pack, the card slowly appears. ($4.99)  iTunes Store Link MARTY'S MAGIC COIN  :: Performer rubs a real coin into the iPhone screen and then gets it back out again.($2.99)  iTunes Store Link   MAGIC TRICK  ::  An audience member is asked to choose any five cards from a deck of playing cards.  The magician takes one of the five cards and the iPhone predicts the result. ($2.99)  iTunes Store Link LEARN MAGIC EBOOK  ::  Beginner magician lessons for ages 8 and up. Written by professional magician Greg McMahan. ($4.99)   iTunes Store Link   MOBILE MAGIC XRAY  ::  Create the illusion of your hand or skull being x-rayed by your iPhone, then stand back and watch the audience gasp! ($4.99)  iTunes Store Link ITHOUGHT RECEIVER  ::  Pluck a REAL match from a digital matchbox in a puff of smoke, with this amazing iPhone app. Magic Match is an incredible digital magic trick to perform for your friends and family. ($4.99)   iTunes Store Link   IMPOSSIBLE   ::   The famous "Princess Card Trick" comes to the iPhone.  (FREE)   iTunes Store Link   SPIRIT PHOTOGRAPHY  ::   Kudos to Andrew Mayne for being among the first to explore ways in which magic could be done on the iPhone. Spirit Photography is our favorite even though it isn't an "Application" in the truest sense. (Note: Several fun pranks are also listed on Andrew's site)  (FREE)  iTricks Blog Link    ::   iPhoneTrick.com Link   Andrew explains in the following Video :    TOUCH TRIX :: Touch Trix software has developed twelve new iPhone effects that anyone can perform including Bullet, Melting, Charge, Shake, Error, Scan Finger Eater, Blow and more. (Free) Website Link Watch the Promo video below:

VANITY FAIR & THE MILLIONAIRE'S MAGICIAN

Vanity Fair recently interviewed "The Millionaires' Magician" for an article during a rare break in his three hundred and fifty performance per year schedule. Steve discusses the history of salon magic, the connection between magic and the internet, and where this ancient art might just be headed. Cohen joined us on the Magic Newswire in September after appearing on the cover of Genii Magazine. LISTEN TO OUR CONVERSATION WITH STEVE COHEN: DOWNLOAD THE MP3                 RSS FEED                GET IT VIA ITUNES Watch a profile of Steve Cohen on CBS Sunday Morning:

MORE MAGIC FOR THE IPHONE

Yet another magic related application has appeared at iTunes which will work on either the iPhone or iPod Touch. According to The Unofficial Apple Weblog, " Magic Show is an iPhone (or iPod touch) app created by a professional magician, Allen Valentine. He does an impressive stage show in Atlantic City, and he is passionate about the iPhone as well as his magic, so he combined the two." Their summary of the app : "You launch the app and the phone does some nicely rendered videos with a curtain opening and some show-bizzy music. Screen prompts ask your innocent assistant to pick one of three objects and say the name of the object out loud. Without further ado you hand the person your iPhone and with music, a puff of smoke and some suspense the phone announces the object the person picked. Yes, it can be repeated, and the effect would be pretty astounding for most people. Fun to try around the office cubicle, or at a bar, or anywhere really. "

MNW #74 :: MICHAEL AMMAR

  A long time friend finally makes an appearance on the Magic Newswire Spirit of Magic podcast. One of the best known performers in the world of Close-up magic, Michael Ammar shares his journey with you on Episode #74 of the show. Michael has produced more than forty magic video titles as well as numerous books and magazines. The Magic Magazine has referred to Michael as "one of 100 most influential magicians of the century."  He has performed at the Magic Castle on innumerable occasions and also performed for Johnny Carson.  In 1983,  Ammar became the second American in history to be awarded the Gold Medal for Close-Up Magic by the International Federation of Magic Societies (FISM) In doing so, he became the second American in the history of the competition to win this honor. Joins us now for our chat with our good friend, Mr. Michael Ammar.

DOWNLOAD THE MP3  :::::::  RSS FEED   :::::::  GET IT VIA ITUNES

OR LISTEN HERE TO OUR INTERVIEW WITH MICHAEL AMMAR:  

HORN HIKES VEGAS

The annual Las Vegas Great Santa Run was held on Saturday with both Seigfried and Roy in attendance, in spite of Doctors advice that Roy skip the trek due to recent recovery from the flu. Roy overruled his doctor’s orders and said he couldn’t disappoint the Santa teams according to the Sun. "So I decided to ignore what the doctor said and showed up anyway. Then once I was here, why not go for it?"  According to the Sun "Horn made the trek Saturday without having to lean on anyone or even using a cane as he did last year." He also walked twice the distance that he had the year before.  According to Robin Leach, this was due to the fact that they missed the turn for the shorter route. "Somehow we missed the turn at the half-mile mark and we continued on down the marked 5K run. Only when three Metro motorcycle officers wondered why we were going the long way did we realize we’d overshot the turn. Roy was too busy cracking jokes, posing for photos with fans and signing autographs — even for babies — to notice."

THE SPIRIT OF THE MAGIC CASTLE

Entertainment Today explores the Magic Castle in an article subtitled "The Magic Castle Has Houdini's Spirit." "The Magic Castle in Hollywood is world famous as a private club for magicians and magic enthusiasts. It is a showplace for the greatest magicians to perform, or young magicians to learn their craft. The best of the best appear (and disappear) to the delight of lucky visitors to the spellbinding destination," begins the piece which goes on to discuss the role of the Castle in repairing Houdini's star as well as the history of the Houdini seances. 

SANKEY RECEIVES LOUIE AWARD

In 1982, Tannen's Magic first began presenting an annual "Louie Award" to performers demonstrating an exceptional level of commitment and creativity in the art of magic. Slydini was the first performer to be so recognized and this year he's joined by none other than Jay Sankey. Other recipients include,  Dai Vernon, Frances & Jay Marshall, Harry Blackstone, Jr., Siegfried & Roy, Jeff McBride,  Carl Ballantine, The Pendragons, Paul Daniels, Channing Pollock, Harry Anderson, Silva,  Mark Wilson & Nani Darnell,  Dick Cavet, Harry Lorayne, Herb Zarrow, Bob Elliot, Johnny Thompson, Shimada, Michael Ammar, Andre Kole, Criss Angel, Marco Tempest, Neil Patrick Harris & Doug Edwards. Congratulations to Jay upon joining such illustrious company.