Celebracadabra Premier!

Watch the first episode a full week before the launch on April 27th! Read the complete Press Release Here. video.vh1.com

An Evening With James Randi & Friends

From the Londonist, we are treated to an article bearing the above title reporting on the recent appearance of James Randi at Conway Hall which opens with the statement, "The day after mediums marched on Downing Street, to protest against their possible ruination by legislation, it seemed apt that some of the finest proponents of scientific scepticism held their own gathering." Randi spoke at the event for more than an hour during which time he showed clips on the exposure of Psychic Surgeons”, discussed the work of the James Randi Education Trust, and talked about his $1 million challenge. (Photo by Andy Ihnatko)

UPDATE :: Magicians 2, Pirates 0 !

As posted on April 16th, James L Clark, the founder of Black's Magic Group & Street Magic Magazine has decided to launch a personal war on anyone prating magic and making it freely available in an unauthorized manner.  In a detailed post at the Genii Forums, Clark responded to the thread with an update on his efforts and an outline of his purpose and motivation. In the post, James says, "After turning my interest on another site, I was able to negotiate a win/win solution where some 18,000 members will be cut off from a forum that collectively (which is far more egregious than say a torrent site where individuals must search for what they want rather than having it served up to them) has worked together to pirate thousands of titles from Richard's books (yes, they scan them from front to back and post them as PDFs) to DVDs produced with gimmicks, wherein the latter was diagrammed and details for manufacturing have been provided. The site owner and I actually get along well, and in this case, he's not a college student who already knows everything, but rather a grown man who has similar interests to my own. We were able to agree on many things, and that resulted in us looking for a solution together, which I'm happy to report is moving forward. Two down."

First Look! David Blaine Lions

The gang from Theory 11 are back with another "anticipation" marketing plan. This time they are promoting a new David Blaine "Splt Spades" deck, aka "The Lions," to be released tonight at 11 pm. Stay tuned to their website for details they say... but ... well.. I am getting a bit tired. Hell, I rarely use anything other than a traditional Rider or Bee deck when I am doing an effect. I love flourishes and beautiful card designs, but outside of  our community, few have ever seen them. I continue to be one of those traditionalists that say to themselves, "If it doesn't look like a common object, people will likely think it's gimmicked." Will I buy one..? Probably. But it is more likely to find a nice cozy home on my shelf next to Vernons's 80th Birthday cards, Mullica Tom Foolery's, my Magic Castle Cards, my other Blaine, Ricky Jay, Ghost, Centurions and Tiger decks where they will remain in pristine condition. Never to be used to perform but rather as interesting sidenotes in the history of playing card design. Today, most people are comfortably familiar with Bee, Bycicle and the varied promotional cards that most magicians would be ashamed to be seen with bearing the logo of their favorite libation or cute little kittens. As much as I may love the look of such "traditional" playing cards as the Bicycle Holiday, League (aka Propeller,) Angel Backs, Squeezers, Tally Ho Circles, and Aristocats, I am equally unlikely ever to bee see performing an effect with a deck of such design unless somone pulls them out of a drawer and hands them to me  saying, "Show me something." I feel much the same about beautiful and complex card flourishes, but will spare you the pain of that sermon until another time.  

Add a Little Rock & Roll to Some Grapes & You Get Magic!

Given my personal appreciation for a nice glass of wine, I was particularly appreciative after receiving an email from Robert in Atlanta. In his message, he made me aware of a new way to enjoy one of my passions during dinner, without being asked to pick a card.  At first glance, the story that was sent to me would seem that a passion for the art of magic had inspired someone to create a winery, but the  actual roots are found in the spirit of Rock & Roll.  "Sleight of Hand Winery" was inspired by the Pearl Jam song of the same name. Like the dreamer that is the subject of the ballad, Trey Busch, formerly of Dunham Cellars and Basel Cellars in Walla Walla, has started to belnd a bit of magic with some Rock & Roll. According to the article sent to me by Robert, Busch was also found inspriation for the winery's image on the web. "I found this great Web site of vintage magic posters and thought 'those would make great labels, so I hired a concert poster designer I knew in Seattle to make us our label using the older vintage magic posters as inspiration." Embracing the Bordeaux tradition of "vin de garage," the Walla Wall based winery is has updated their website to conform with their magical roots. Our first vintage with the Gewürztraminer (Magician) and the red table wine (Spellbinder) are négociant projects," Busch explained. "I put the blends together on both of these wines using multiple lots of wines from several other wineries to really make a 'style' of wine that I thought would appeal to a lot of people. Both wines are food wines - low oak profile, low alcohol, and both wines are fruit forward with super soft tannins."   

Houdini Returns to Broadway

"Houdini Musical, by Elfman, Yazbek and Andersen, Coming in 2010" say Broadway.com. "Houdini" will present the story of the magician's inability to satisfy his obsessive quest to challenge the limitations of being human,Houdini deals with the human yearning for astonishment and miracles and the quest to defy death. The show will be produced by David Rockwell & Scott Sanders with Sanders (The Color Purple) doing the set design.  Jack O'Brien will direct. Oscar nominated composer Danny Elfman  is set to develop the score for the musical with the goal of opening in early Spring of 2010. Other articles discussing this production can be found at Theater Mania and Broadway World.

Believe in BELIEVE!

It's official! As Robin Leach let slip in an article that we previously blogged about, the new Circque de Soleil show at the Luxor will be called,  "Criss Angel, Believe." We'll let you get the complete story from Criss himself:   Read the complete Press Release. Read an article on the show from the Las Vegas Sun.

Nathan Burton Moving Up

Magician Nathan Burton is slowly moving towards the evening time slot in the Flamingo Theater as he moves from the 3 pm time at the V. "New set, more neon; He’s Flamingo ready" quotes Flamingo President Don Marrandino as saying, “He has a track record of drawing good crowds. I don’t think it will be long before he’s a nighttime headliner. It could happen sooner than you think." Nathan couldn't be happier. “I was talking to my mom about that and she said, ‘Did you ever think when you were growing up in Fort Smith and performing shows for kids that you would end up on a 30,000-square-foot billboard on the Flamingo on the Strip in Las Vegas?’ ” 

Black's Magic Takes on the Pirates!

James L Clark, founder of Black's Magic Group & Street Magic Magazine has fired what he promises to be only the first attack in an ongoing campaign against those who pirate magic. Thanks to a post in the Genii Forums by Magician Tim Ellis, we were made aware of the story by a headline stating, "One exposure site feels the pain..." According to the entry Magic Unlimited, After identifying a site that was purchasing Magic DVD's and other literature, and then making it freely available to its' members, Clark contacted the site owner and attempted to convince them to cease such activities. After being told where he could go with that idea, Clark contacted the local field office of the FBI in the state in which the site owner lived and the young man in question then received a visit from Bureau Agents. Since then, the site has closed and Clark has begun to identify other site with whom he will pursue similar steps. Nicely Done James!

Criss Angel Vanishes From Binghamton

Plans for Criss Angel to stage a disappearance from an imploding building as part of the next season of his A&E show Mindfreak has vanished from the schedule. An article from the Binghamton Press Bulletin provides details in an article entitled, Magician's disappearing act to bypass Binghamton. The plan involved the demolition of the 119-year-old Ross Building which is scheduled for demolition in early May. "The city is trying to bring down the aging structure in the safest way possible," Mayor Matthew Ryan says. "There will be no implosion." An executive producer for "Mindfreak" confirmed Tuesday that the show had considered a Binghamton building for an Angel special, but was unavailable for further comment.