MAGIC CASTLE BUYER NAMED

Message from Bill Bowers: " I’m pleased to report that detailed discussions for a new lease for the Academy on the Magic Castle have now begun in earnest. While the sale of the entire 10 1/2 acre Glover Family property is still in escrow, and we cannot predict with certainty when the transaction will be finally completed, the prospective buyers are in negotiations with us concerning the Magic Castle lease. The group purchasing the property is lead by Sean MacPherson, a very successful, highly regarded, and well-known owner and operator of hotels and restaurants in both New York and Los Angeles. In New York, Sean owns and operates The Waverly Inn, The Maritime Hotel, The Bowery Hotel, The Jane Hotel, Lafayette House, The Park Restaurant, and others. For those of you who would like to see, firsthand, some of Sean MacPherson’s local projects, you can visit Jones or Swingers in Hollywood and El Carmen or Bar Lubitsch in Los Angeles. I expect to have more news to pass along as our negotiations progress and be certain that we will keep the membership updated on developments as they become available for release."

MAGIC'S BIGGEST SECRETS REVEALED!

Kudos to Silly Billy for doing this! When I contacted David after posting this, he sent these comments on the background of the video: "In planning my DVD project, Seriously Silly Live, I knew I wanted to include short films that were funny. I had this great idea for the masked magician to teach the coloring book, using all the awkward phrases from the original episodes. I put together a crew and drove to Pennsylvania where I knew about this warehouse. My dancer, Gabrielle LaPlante did a hilarious job of dancing. She is the best part of this film. We shot this in May and the warehouse was really hot. Plus I was in that masked magician suit and I was dying! One advantage though, I was able to give my dancer instructions while we shot because you couldn't see my mouth move!"
The Return of the Masked Magician from MagicNewswire.com on Vimeo.

MNW 60 :: DANIEL GARCIA

If you subscribe to the Magic Newswire Podcasts via iTunes or via our RSS feed, then you were the first to receive our latest show featuring Underground Magician, magic creator and magic consultant Daniel Garcia.  As a consultant to David Blaine and a creator of many of the effects so hotly discussed within our art today, Daniel Garcia has a lot to say. What did he think of the final product after seeing the recent David Blaine "Dive of Death" special in which he was so intimately involved? What is his opinion on the major online magic retailers? What inspires his creative process? All this an more in our interview with Danny Garcia on the Magic Newswire's 60th episode!

LISTEN TO THE DANNY GARCIA INTERVIEW :

OTHER WAYS TO LISTEN: ITUNES ::    MP3

HTML 5 PLAYER ::

Show Danny some love by purchasing one of his many effects from Ellusionist.com. The latest release is the amazing BentTouchSlink. Watch the video here:

In case you wonder how bad a "broken foot" can be, here's an xray of Danny's injury after repair. Can you say, "Man I dread airport scanners now!"

STEVE FORTE CHARGED IN GAMBLING CON

According to NJ.com, "Four men were indicted today on charges that they planned to use surveillance equipment and computers to steal tens of thousands of dollars from a high-roller player in various private games hosted in a hotel room at the Borgata Hotel, Casino and Spa in Atlantic City." Among those arrested was magician and casino consultant Steve Forte, the author of  Forte is the author of "Casino Game Protection," which discusses "advantage play" and various electronic methods of cheating in the casino environment. The four allegedly swindled a player identified only as "JH" for more than $75,000 using a hotel room that had been " outfitted with high-tech surveillance equipment that was monitored from another, nearby room. Cameras, audio equipment and computers are alleged to have been used to swindle over $75,000 from the man. Marked cards and strategy-running computers were to be used in conjunction with hidden ear pieces and various monitoring cameras." Forte was featured on the cover of Genii Magazine in October of 2005 with an 18 page biography of Forte called "Catch Me If You Can."  Steve Forte: Gambling Demonstration

BELIEVE AUDIENCES LOOK FOR MAGIC

The Las Vegas Sun chimes in on the varied reports related to audience feedback regarding Criss Angel : Believe with an article today entitled, " ‘Believe’ audience looking for magic in show’s previews." The article says that changes are indeed needed but that overall audience reaction is not as harsh as has been reported by other media outlets. According to the article. Angel specifically referenced a few of the changes needed. "He said the show’s music has to be adjusted, too, to allow for applause in areas where no one anticipated people to cheer." "People are having a very hard time responding to me getting cut in half because, you know, they’re applauding my death and they don’t want to do that," he said. "I’m going to come here tomorrow at noon and … I will work with the director and try to kind of change the routine a little bit." "I think we’re in really good shape," Angel said. "People don’t stand (and applaud) if they hate something. People don’t stand if they feel that they didn’t get their money’s worth." (photo by Tomask Rosa)

THE MASKED MAGICIAN RETURNS

The new weekly series "Magic's Biggest Secrets Finally Revealed," airs a preview tonight at 9pm EST with the show premiere on Monday October 7th. Isn't this just a rerun of the original specials that aired in the late 1990's? Nope... Watch the clip below for a preview. (Removed now that the show has aired.) We'd also ask that magicians and fans of magic express their ire by boycotting the show's sponsors and the network as a whole.

SIEGFRIED AND ROY TRIBUTE

A tribute to Siegfried and Roy was held at the London Palladium on Sept 28th. Featured performers included,Jeff Hobson, Kalin & Jinger, Soul Mystique, Jason Byrne, Vik & Fabrini, Luis de Matos, Tomsoni & Co., Ayala & Tamya,  Raymond Crowe, Wally Eastwood and Norm Nielsen. More info can be found at MagicCares.com.  Siegfried & Roy Tribute :: London Palladium from MagicNewswire.com on Vimeo.

DAN HAUSS & DAN WHITE RECOGNIZED

Dan Hauss and Dan White received a bit of recognition for their role as consultants on David Blaine's latest special in an article from Philly.com. "Dan Hauss and Dan White were behind the matchbook/card trick that illusionist David Blaine performed on his "Dive of Death" special last week. Hauss, of Bensalem, and White, of Center City, developed the transposition trick and showed it to Blaine in his New York apartment earlier this year. While the "Dive of Death" was a dud, this trick wowed the New Orleans family for whom Blaine performed it, and Hauss and White receive royalties from Blaine as well as from "Lit" tricks sold in magic shops. Hauss declined to reveal how much Blaine paid the guys for their magicians consultant services, saying only "We made good money off it." Hauss and White regularly take their act to the bars around Center City on weekends"

CRISS ANGEL ON CLOUD NINE :: BELIEVE SELLS $5 MIL

According to Las Vegas Weekly, "Tickets for Mindfreak magician Criss Angel’s new live show are “disappearing” even faster than some of the incredible illusions he performs. Cirque du Soleil officials told me at the Luxor last night (Friday) as the curtain went up on the very first preview of Believe that they’ve sold a mind-boggling $5-million worth of tickets right out of the gate!" As far a memorable moments from the show, they say that "one illusion where he battles a monster that comes to life from broken parts on the stage is an extraordinary highlight. Fans were still talking about that in reverential tones in the casino an hour after the curtain came down on Night 1 of his 10-year run there!"

ELOQUENT EGGS & DISINTEGRATING DICE

A new exhibit featuring the work of Rosamond Purcell has opened at Carnegie Melon University. "Eloquent Eggs & Disintegrating Dice" opened last Wednesday at the Silver Eye Center for Photography. It focuses on various photographs of disintegrating dice and the surfaces of eggs from various animals. The project was inspired by a decomposing and crumbling dice collection belonging to magician Rick Jay. According to "The Tartan," "Jay asked Purcell to record the “dying of the dice.” The dice are made out of celluloid, which is a notoriously unstable substance, unlike plastic which can last a very long time. Purcell’s suite of photographs captures the texture and the vibrant colors of dying dice."