MNW #311 :: JAY SANKEY

I am thrilled to have as my guest on this podcast one of the most creative minds in magic, Jay Sankey. Among many other topics, we discuss the impending release of his latest project Bending the Real. Jay originated the 'bending movement' in the fall of 2009 and because of his unique performance style, this has become Jay's most anticipated project ever! Jay describes 'Bending the Real' as an inspired collection of low sleight deceptions, each designed to mess with human minds from a different sensory or rational angle. Stay tuned to the very end of the broadcast to find out how you can get a FREE copy of Bending the Real!

LISTEN TO MY CHAT WITH JAY SANKEY:


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MAGIC-CON VIDEOS

Thanks to JB at Theory 11, we're able to share some of the videos from this year's Magic-con including this one:

MAGICIAN MICKEY GETS A PERMANENT HOME

Thanks to disZine, we learn that Mickey Mouse is prepared to move into a permanent home on Main Street USA in Disney's Magic Kingdom where the Disney Mascot will present himself as a magician. From the article:

Town Square Theater, located on Main Street, U.S.A. will be the new home of Magician Mickey Mouse. Guests can go backstage to visit Magician Mickey in his rehearsal room, but it doesn’t stop there; Disney Imagineers have created a truly magical experience that guests will be immersed in the moment they step through the doors.

MNW #310 :: GARY VAYNERCHUCK

We step out of the box a bit with this special episode of the Magic Newswire podcast. Gary Vaynerchuck has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, GQ, and Time, has appeared on Late Night with Conan O'Brien and Ellen. He also makes regular appearances on Fox News, MSNBC, CNN and the major network news outlets. Vaynerchuk has been described as "the first wine guru of the YouTube era", "the wine world's new superstar", and by Rob Newsom, a Washington State wine maker, "outside of Robert Parker, probably the most influential wine critic in the United States".  Gary is also a best selling author of three books focused on the concept of personal branding and the power of social media and the internet in doing so.  He joins us on the Magic Newswire to discuss his latest book "The Thank You Economy." Gary says, "I feel that we're living through the biggest culture shift of our time. The internet, itself, is 17-years-old. It's just hitting the social part of its life. It's just like growing up. As you get to 13, 14 and 15, you want to go out and go to parties. That's what's happening right now! The internet is growing up." Find out why this should matter to you!

LISTEN TO MY CHAT WITH GARY


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HAPPY BIRTHDAY HOUDINI!

I am obviously posting this a few hours early here in the US, but we certainly want to recognize the birth of one of magic's most iconic figures, Harry Houdini, on March 24th, 1874. Thanks to Joe Fox, and his pointer to the site of  Mr. John Cox, we've heard that Google might just recognize the date and Houdini's 137th Birthday, with one of their classic logo Doodles which you can preview here before it appears at Google.com tomorrow. Happy Birthday Harry!  

Please visit our friends at WildAboutHoudini.com for more info!

ELIZABETH TAYLOR PASSES AWAY AT 79

The amazing actress Elizabeth Taylor passed away early this morning after being hospitalized for conjestive heart failure. Yes, there is a magic connection. Here's a video of David Copperfield performong "Air Coppers" for Ms. Taylor at a televised birthday celebration:

HOUDINI'S LAST LIVING ASSISTANT

On March 20th, the last living assistant to Harry Houdini was lost to us.

This from an article in the UK Telegraph:

During her year with the “World-Famous Self-Liberator”, she played the role of the scantily-clad “Radio Girl of 1950”, a 1920s impression of what radio would be like several decades later.

In the autumn of 1925, in what turned out to be his last American tour (he died a year later), Houdini would start his act with a large mock wireless set which he opened front, back and top, exposing the internal mechanism to show that there was nothing there before closing it again. A voice would then announce: “Miss Dorothy Young doing the Charleston” — which was her cue to pop one foot out of the radio followed by the other one.

Read the complete obituary here.

MNW #309 :: IBM 2011

On June 28th, the International Brotherhood of Magicians will gather together for their 83rd annual convention in Dallas, Texas. Chase Goforth, Scott Wells, David Sandy, Lance Rich, Roger Miller and I get together to talk about why you should care. Are big conventions relevent? If so, why? If you have to choose one convention to attend this year, why would it be this one? Remember that it you regsiter for this year's IBM before April 1st, you'll get a $50 discount on the total price of registration! IBM 2011:


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HAVE A SANDWICH WITH VANISHING INC!

Here's something new from our friends at Vanishing Inc Magic! Do you want to know what the future of card magic looks like? After this, you will! Tony Chang is on the cutting edge of card magic The fluidity of handling, the relaxed approach, and the visual aesthetic of these two extraordinary card effects embody the future of card magic. Be ahead of the curve and learn these techniques right now. This tutorial is our longest to date, and Mr. Chang teaches you each piece in careful detail. The running time and the high quality of magic makes this worth more than any DVD we’ve seen in recent times, and it’s yours for just ten dollars.

RICK THOMAS WATCHES HISTORY REPEAT

In today's column from Mike Weatherford, he discusses the various casino closings that Rick Thomas has witnessed over the years.

Rick Thomas isn't superstitious. And he doesn't want you going around thinking he is a curse to vintage-Vegas casinos.  (snip)

Nice try, Rick. We won't be distracted by your historical sleight-of-hand. This is the magician who left a solid afternoon berth at the Tropicana in 2005 because he feared it would close (these fears admittedly were grounded by management's unwillingness to offer him more than a month-to-month contract).

So he went to the Stardust, which closed instead.

READ THE COMPLETE ARTICLE