The Always Amazing Johnathan

•March 18, 2010 • 1 Comment

I realized recently that it had been way too long since I caught the Amazing Johnathan show. This decision was possibly related to the opening of the newest franchise of ‘Pink’s’ hot dog stand on the Vegas Strip, located on the sidewalk in front of the Hollywood Planet Hotel.

To those in the know ‘Pink’s’ is a legend among hot dog lovers, and best of all, is just a short hop from the Magic Castle in Hollywood. At 2:00AM there are lines that form a block long to buy the best chili dog in the world, I realize this is a bold statement, however I will fight to the bitter end any debate or disagreement with this statement. Their hot dogs are messy, greasy, sloppy and unbelievably enjoyable  which is pretty much the case with the Amazing Johnathan’s show.

While Johnathan’s show may, like ‘Pink’s, be a tad low on the magical nutritional level, it is quite simply one of the funniest entertainments on the strip. It is living proof what can be achieved by a Road Warrior in his prime. There is also a surprisingly high degree of structure involved in the gags, bits, comedy and shtick that comprises his show. As a performer, I LOVE structure, and all the more when it isn’t paraded on the surface. Over the years, Johnathan has made his act tighter than most ten-minute silent manipulative acts even dream of.

I have seen ‘Amazing’ perform in all of his Las Vegas showrooms and his current home is the Harmon Theatre, which in spite of its name is less like a theatre than an ultra-cool nightclub. It has a great seating pattern and serves strong drinks. The staff all wear a custom tee-shirts that reads “F@#K YEAH,’ which perfectly sums up the spirit of the occasion.

Before the show begins, a roving video camera scours the audience and lingers on audience members just long enough to flash extremely politically incorrect statements about the ‘victim.’ The results are hysterical and get huge laughs; ‘A.J.’ knows his crowd and this is an audience that looks like it would rather catch H1N1 flu than a dose of political correctness. This way they know they are in the right place before the show even begins.

The show officially began with a ten-minute segment by Charlotte Pendragon. She began with a curious card in shoe routine, continuing with a four-ring Linking Ring routine. She closed with a sub-trunk routine, assisted by a stunning female assistant. Big props to Charlotte for being back onstage.

The Show really begins with the appearance of ‘Amazing’ and the party starts along with it. When you laugh once at Johnathan,the rest is history and you won’t stop laughing for the next 65 minutes. He can get more comic reaction from a raised eyebrow thanmost performers can with a trunk full of jokes and props. I’ve said it before and don’t hesitate in saying it again, Amazing Johnathan is the funniest comedy magician in the world, a one of a kind force of nature. If you don’t agree, you are probably the kind of person who craves a ‘Der Wienershnitzel’ hot dog as the finale to a night on the town.

I was particularly impressed by how many new one-liners and bits ‘A.J.’ had seamlessly added to his act. They were perfectly integrated into the show and kept things fresh, without changing the basic format, which works like clockwork. Sometimes it takes a great deal of wisdom not to keep tampering with something that works— until it doesn’t! I did notice that he had dropped any references or jokes about drugs in his show. As a performer, I found this very satisfactory, as their absence did nothing to detract from his impact, he just doesn’t need them.

One thing I did miss, however, was the opening segment with Psychic Tanya but I suspect that will return after Johnathan films his new TV special. The part of Psychic Tanya is played by the very talented Penny Wiggins. Penny just gets funnier and funnier each time I see her. She has the rather difficult task of playing giddy, blonde counterpoint to ‘Amazing’s’ uber macho/brash charm. I really must catch Penny’s solo comedy act ASAP as I have a definite feeling that in the very near future she will be whisked away by a TV producer for a sit-com.

What more can I say about the show, I think it is brilliant, and I would be delighted to see it again tonight. Of course, the ‘Pink’s’ chili dog wouldn’t be any handicap to that scenario! However in all honesty ‘Pink’s’ would only be the shredded cheese on top of the Vienna Dog (in a bandana) that is the Amazing Johnathan. If you haven’t seen this show it’s a must see on your next Vegas visit, unless of course you are a prude in which case Donny & Marie are at the Flamingo.

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Billy McComb: Thanks to the Godfather of Comedy Magic

•March 16, 2010 • Leave a Comment

I ultimately planned on becoming a comedy magician just after I decided not to follow in my father’s footsteps as a chartered accountant. It really wasn’t too tough a decision. I loved magic, and when it came to numbers I could make one and one add up to three quicker than a quantum physicist.

Growing up in post war England made being a comedy magician seem like a logical choice. With logic like that maybe I should have been a quantum physicist! Now, being an entertainer is my life but I have no real way of proving it.

One of the best parts about being a young magical devotee in London were all the great comedy magicians you could watch, absorb and learn from. As you are probably beginning to realize nearly everything I learned about comedy magic came from two people: Ken Brooke and Billy McComb. I don’t think you could find two better or more different teachers.

I want to take this opportunity to share some of the insights I learned from Billy McComb. They have shaped me into the performer that I finally became, after I realized I could never become Billy.

You have never seen a comedy magician take his comedy as seriously as Billy did, he gave the comedy in his act the same meticulous attention he gave his magic. Billy’s timing and delivery of a comedy monologue was that of a comedian, not just a magician with time to kill. His casual asides and offhand delivery were as precise as a Johnny Thompson dove steal.

There is no question in my mind that, but for his love of magic, Billy could have been one of England’s top comedians.  Billy has noted Jay Marshall as one of his inspirational mentor so maybe it‘s no coincidence that this same statement applies to Jay in the United States.

Before we talk about the McCombical approach to comedy, let me give you some of my ideas on comedy as it applies to magic. Having made a comfortable living for over thirty-five years performing comedy magic I’ll state one thing upfront: the comedy is tougher than the magic. It can take years to perfect a trick, but you might never learn to be funny.

There are no books that teach you the ABCs of being funny and it makes no difference how long you practice in front of a mirror. Only by performing to a live audience can you improve your laugh ratio and even with copious experience this doesn’t happen automatically. Along the way you need to take a lot of notes and then you have to put the notes into application.

If you want to save time and effort and be funny, it is much easier to be a humorous magician than to perform stand-up comedy. A humorous magician is someone who lets the situation create the comedy and then comments upon what happens.

Monologue comedy is a much more exacting mistress. A stand-up comedian chooses and uses his words with the same care a surgeon utilizes in choosing where and what he cuts.  Cut being the operative word. After fifteen years headlining in comedy clubs I can assure you the way comedian’s improve their acts is by cutting out unnecessary words.

The great Henny Youngman demonstrated this to perfection when he said: “Take my wife, please.”  He packaged a set up and punch line into just four words and ended up with a trademark joke that will live forever. Brevity is truly the source of all humor.

One thing I learned very quickly in the comedy circuit is how little respect the average magician and juggler receive from comedians. By the time I had started to learn the ropes I had begun to understand why this was the case.

Comics, generally speaking, think that magicians utilize stock lines and get away with stale material only because they have the magic to save their rear ends. It is certainly true that people tend to laugh during a magic show simply because they realize they are supposed too.I call this the “Patter Syndrome.”  Just what the heck is this thing called patter that pops up so often in magic literature? The dictionary defines it as: ‘Meaningless empty chatter: to speak rapidly and glibly or to repeat something quickly in a mechanical way. When a comedy magician wants to give a stand-up comedian a run for his money, he must throw away his ‘patter’ and in its place use words that are well chosen and conscious, and don’t even get me started on heckler stoppers!

Comedians spend a lot of time working on their character, which (believe me!) has nothing to do with improving any ungentlemanly or lady like traits. What they are doing is making sure they don’t sacrifice their performing persona just for a fast laugh. Comedy is only real, then, when you are.  Once the audience thinks that they know where you are coming from and who you are, then the comedy takes on an extra dimension.

I could go on telling you my thoughts on comedy, but I have a better idea. I want to continue by sharing some tips Billy McComb taught me over the years about performing comedy magic.  Billy had a secret prop and it is one you can’t buy in a limited edition, sterling silver version from the Joe’s Porper or Stevens.

McComb used a small digital tape recorder that fitted into his top pocket and he audiotaped almost every one of his performances. After each show he would listen carefully to the recording and make note of what worked and also how to make it work even better.

While listening to the recording Billy applied the Bob Hope rule. If there isn’t a laugh every thirty seconds then there should be.  This is one of the reasons that Billy worked well into his eighth decade and was able to open shows for Amazing Jonathan in Las Vegas into his eighties winning an audiences of crazed A.J. fanatics.  These were the kind of audiences were would give short shrift to most contemporary performers, let alone someone who looks like their grandfather.

In the age of videotape it is easy to forget how effective it is to concentrate just on your words and the audience reaction to those words.  In McComb’s case it was astounding how little you really needed the visuals while listening to his show. Billy had a simple rule, he told the audience what he was going to do, he described it as he did it and then he told them what he had done after he had done it.

Sometimes when people are laughing they don’t pay as much attention to the tricks as they might desire. This is such a simple technique that it’s almost impossible to grasp how effective it is until you try it for yourself.

One other practice that I’ve learned from Billy is keeping your jokes in a particular sequence and attaching them to specific tricks. This is a great way to keep your comedy fluent and yet consistent. It is tempting to think you can shift hunks of comedy around in your act, moving them from trick to trick. However it isn’t nearly as easy as it seems. It is much more effective to keep those comedy building blocks separate and solid.

When you get a sequence right, keep it that way. Many of Billy’s props had a list of punch lines written on them. Just knowing the list is there allowed him to relax and concentrate on his real job, which was telling jokes.  It enables you to relax and make things look effortless.

A reporter once asked movie star Gary Cooper about his technique as an actor. Cooper replied: “ Acting is great, just never get caught doing it.” It’s the same with comedy, make ‘em laugh but just don’t get caught doing it. The funniest jokes are the ones that seem to happen on their own. This is comedy 101.

Thank you, Billy. You were the Godfather of Comedy Magic. Without you I wouldn’t be the comedy magician I am today: in fact I might even have ended up as a chartered accountant, and that would have been no joke.


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Don Lawton: one of magic’s true gentlemen.

•March 9, 2010 • 4 Comments

It was my very first evening at the Magic Castle. Quite an occasion for any magician and to a twenty-one year old Brit it was very exciting indeed. I arrived at the front desk and introduced myself to the receptionist. She was very friendly and said she would page the host and have him give me a bit of a tour. I waited in front of the sliding bookcase and after a few minutes a tall gray haired gentleman wearing a tuxedo arrived and greeted me. That was the first time I met Don Lawton.

I didn’t know who Lawton was but he quickly introduced himself and told me to walk towards the bookcase and say “Open Sesame” to the small golden owl with the flashing red eyes. Once we stepped through the bookshelf/door I was astounded by the amount of people in the club. Don pointed out the “Close-up Gallery, the “Irma Room” and the steps to the Palace of Mysteries and was about to leave me to my own devices. Then he seemed to think better of it and said that if I waited till after he had introduced the next show he would give me the proper tour. I decided to wait. Five minutes after he left me, Don reappeared with a mug of beer in his hand and the tour began.

What a tour! We explored every room at the Castle including the library where Dai Vernon was sitting playing cards with two friends. Everywhere we went Don introduced me to staff and magicians alike and in ninety minutes I was made to feel as welcome as a person could ever feel. About every twenty minutes Don had to dash off and introduce a show, but he always returned with a fresh beer in his hand and picked up where he had left off. I was fully aware that he had other things to attend to but you would never have guessed it from Don’s manner. He showed a kindness and consideration for a new member that was way beyond the call of duty. He wanted my introduction to the Magic Castle to be done the right way. I later realized that this was a typical action from one of magic’s true gentlemen.

I very soon got to see Don Lawton introduce a show at the Castle and realized that this distinguished looking host was also a very funny man. I still remember the way he would stick his head through the curtains in the Close-up Gallery and say “Oh, Porter, which station is this? ” instantly letting the audience realize that the showroom really did look a lot like a Pullman coach on an old fashioned railway train. In the Palace of Mysteries Don would notice a drink in the hand of an audience member and ask if he could try a taste as he pulled out a six-foot straw! “My doctor told me to keep away from alcohol!” None of Don’s jokes sound as funny in print as they did the way he told them. The jokes were corny but there was a little glint in his eyes that let you know that not only did he realize they were corny but that was the way he liked them.

I had plenty of occasions to watch Don Lawton perform his full show at the Castle. I truly believe that I laughed just as hard at each performance. When Don started his act it only took one laugh and you were going to be laughing till the show ended. One-liners, sight gags and some very smooth magic were stacked together in such close proximity that the show had a life of it’s own. Don had mastered the art of comedy magic and every time I watched the show I learned something performing. However the fondest memory I have of my friend Don Lawton was the ninety minutes he spent making me feel at home in the Magic Castle. He really didn’t need to spend all that time but he did, he was just that kind of a person!

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McBride in Wonderground.

•March 6, 2010 • Leave a Comment

Let me begin by saying that I am a huge fan of Jeff McBride, not just McBride the magician and teacher, but Jeff the person. Jeff manages to be a traditionalist and a visionary at the same time. That is quite a feat! McBride’s latest venture is a revamped version of the ‘Wonderground’ project that he first launched at the Palace Station Casino last year. It isn’t an easy concept to define, it is much more of an environmental experience than a traditional magic show. However don’t think that doesn’t mean you won’t see some magic that will blow your mind.

The new home for ‘Wonderground’ is at ‘Olive,’ a modest Mediterranean restaurant and Hookah bar. The location isn’t on the strip but in the heart of the ‘real’ Vegas in which actual people live. This adds considerably to the impact and fun that the evening offers. Let’s be honest most of the Casinos in Las Vegas are about as loose and hip as a Thanksgiving Dinner with relatives who become boring before the turkey even arrives. The atmosphere at the last ‘Wonderground’ was more like a party, with the capacity crowd all having a blast, while enjoying some World Class magic.

The venue was divided into two basic performing areas; a parlor style room that was designed for close-up magic and its slightly bigger brother, which has always been rather quaintly referred to as platform magic. The main stage is in the larger heart of the venue and I was impressed at the lengths that Jeff had gone to in order to create a really effective performing area. At the rear of the stage was a DJ who kept the mood jumping throughout the evening. The music was loud enough to keep your heart and body jumping, without being loud enough to inhibit the numerous conversations that were a huge part of the enjoyment of the event. The main stage was the focal point in a very noisy room, but there was a real appreciation of the acts performing there. Once again I saw Jason Andrews perform and again he impressed me greatly as a future performer who will be a major force to reckon with in the very near future

I performed a short set on the main stage and had a blast. It was a much easier location for a silent act and I was very happy to have had those 11 years headlining in comedy clubs to give me the skills, not only to focus the audience but have them listening and paying full attention. All that, and I didn’t distract from the party spirit. I had a great deal of fun working to such an eclectic and vital audience. ‘Wonderground’ is scheduled to take place on the third Thursday of each month, and it will take heaven and hell to keep me away from the next one!

Finally, a word or two about McBride himself, the master ringmaster who understood exactly what was happening. Amidst the apparent chaos Jeff was everywhere, making acute decisions that kept the party moving and grooving. It wasn’t just the magic he used as a subtle glue to create a cohesive evening, it was his genuine warmth and charm that made total strangers into a genuine group of kindred spirits. I think, I paid a $10 entrance fee that included two drinks; I don’t remember having that much fun for that little money since I arrived in Las Vegas.

Check out details on Jeff’s website http://www.mcbridemagic.com and join in the fun at the next ‘Wonderground’ gathering.

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Turning Sid into sorcerer.

•March 1, 2010 • Leave a Comment

Over the past thirty years, I have acted as a magical advisor on maybe a dozen television productions.  Being a magical consultant ranges from the best gig in the world to the very worst one. I want to share a story about the very best of these experiences.

I was sitting at home practicing my double lift when I got a call from Universal Studios. Steven Spielberg wanted a magical consultant for his new television series ‘Amazing Stories.’  I drove to the Universal lot (Yes, a drive on pass!) and received directions to a small office that was being used for pre-production meetings by the director.

Donald Petrie was the director’s name and he had been hand-picked by Spielberg to helm this project. It turned out to be the only episodic television that Petrie would work on as he immediately went on to direct some very major motion pictures.  Donald and I got on like a house on fire and sitting in a crowded and untidy office we poured over the script while he shared his vision of the project.

To my delight I discovered that I would get to appear in the show, in a brief cameo, playing myself. Let me share a really cool secret with you. If you get hired as a magical consultant make sure you talk your way into an onscreen role. If you do this then your entire magical consultancy fee is added to your S.A.G. contract. This means that you will get residuals on both your acting fee and your consultancy fee and as any actor will tell you the best part about residuals is that like diamonds they are forever.

The plot for the ‘Amazing Stories” episode was simple but really rather touching. Legendary funnyman Sid Caesar played an over the hill magician whose career goes out in style when he gets a ‘magic’ deck of cards. There was to be a combination of live magic and also some (for the time) very cutting edge computer generated effects. I was to co-ordinate the live-action magic and help integrate it with the camera tricks.

I was very aware that Sid Caesar was a comedy performer who cast a long shadow. However, arriving in the States in 1974 I had missed the ‘Show of Shows’ and didn’t catch up with it until videotape arrived on the scene. Therefore going into the project I knew that Caesar was legendary but wasn’t quite sure why. I soon discovered exactly why.

Sid Caesar seemed like a very quiet and nice man when I first met him in his Canyon home. This wasn’t exactly the way Sid had been described in either of the books I had quickly read about him since getting the gig. I was very pleased that the wild man had mellowed a little bit. Sid was very serious about the role as it constituted something of a revival in his career.

In his heyday, Caesar would wind down after recording his show at a local restaurant where he would drink a fifth of bourbon and two ‘criss-crosses’ If you don’t know what a ‘criss-cross’ is let me explain—it is a large porterhouse steak laid out on the plate with a slice of prime rib spread across it in a large X pattern. With that much cholesterol in his system it is amazing Sid lasted long enough to be having a revival in his career!

The walls of Sid’s house were covered with some of the finest artwork on this side of the Getty Museum. Sid was also wearing a fabulous new gold and diamond Rolex on his wrist. He was very obviously a successful performer who had invested his money wisely. However, my job was to turn Sid into a looser whose career had wound down and finished leaving him broke and disillusioned. I couldn’t see the wisp of a ghost of any of these qualities in Sid so I left that to the director and contented myself with working with him on the tricks and routines that he would perform in the show.

I had three weeks to make Sid look as though he had been performing magic for fifty years. He was a very patient student. Very quiet but very, very thorough.  Our first lesson was the appearing cane. I showed him the basic handling of the cane and said, “OK, give it a shot.” Seconds later there was a fountain of blood as metal cane cut through flesh. Our practice session ended at this point while extensive bandages were applied to Mr. Caesar’s palm. If you watch the show on DVD you will notice Sid has a bandage on his hand throughout the entire episode. Not the greatest start.

I also had to get my own little segment together for the show. The opening shot in the script consisted of a close up of me producing a white dove from a handkerchief. The camera would then pull back to reveal a magnificent set that looked like Magic Castle. Actually, the entire set had probably cost about the same amount to build as the Castle. Money was not in short supply for Mr. Spielberg’s first excursion into television.

I had cheerfully lied to my director and implied that I had been producing snow-white doves from handkerchiefs since my early childhood. I did what any expert would do; I hired another more specialized expert. I was lucky enough to talk Amos Levkovitz into working with me. Amos supplied me with the ‘know-how’ and a dove to work with. I hated that bird and everything about him; especially his scaly little claws that gripped my finger! How we suffer for art.

I practiced and practiced though and the results of my work are recorded in the opening shot of the show. Sadly my efforts were to little effect. The opening shot was very fast and I am merely a blur and the dove an even less noticeable blur. That’s TV for you—three weeks rehearsal for two seconds of screen time.

The show was moving smoothly from pre-production to filming when something seemed to begin to go wrong.  Sid Caesar just slowed down on us. Everything he did was at half speed. It started to cause problems as page after page of dialogue were discarded and secondary storylines just disappeared. The director was upset, the writers were upset, the other actors were upset and still, Sid slowed down more and more. It was very strange indeed. The more upset people got; the more Sid slowed down. The only person who remained totally immune to the growing sense of doom and despair was Caesar.

Was the “Mr. Magic” episode of Amazing Stories the disaster everyone predicted? Not in the least– it became something of a classic and is considered to be one of the best in the entire series. The reason for its success was simple: it was Sid. The performance given by Sid Caesar was brilliant and his timing perfect. His pacing allowed him to inhabit that role as if it were the real him. He created a character that seemed stunningly real in a world of fantasy. I had a very serious lesson in acting and performing and began to realize why Sid Caesar was an icon in the comedy world.

Well, this was twenty-two years ago and my residuals are down to about the cost of mailing the check to me but I remember that time very fondly. The very best part of this story is that since that day in the Universal soundstage I have never once had to balance a beady-eyed dove on my finger!

 

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Plain Sailing, well sometimes!

•February 28, 2010 • Leave a Comment

I am often asked about the best way to get work onboard a cruise ship. Curiously enough I am almost never asked about what to do when you have got your first job working on a luxury liner. It is a very different world out there on the high seas, and it needs to be approached carefully and systematically to ensure that you get booked back again.

I wrote a very tongue in cheek column for the Linking Ring a couple of years ago on this topic. I got some wonderful reactions from pros that were involved in this kind of work. They appreciated how much real information I delivered between the lines in the article and enjoyed the way I turned the topic on its head to achieve my goals.

However, I suspect that I may have been a little oblique for others reading the piece so I decided to remove my tongue from my cheek and retackle the subject in a more straightforward manner. There have been several books published on this topic but I can’t help feeling that they often stressed the obvious at the expense of the practical. I will give you the ‘Nick Lewin Crash Course’ in the next few paragraphs.

Cruise ships are the nightclubs of this era of entertainment. In the old days a performer would schlep around the country to different cities so that he would be able to work to different audiences. Now the ship does the schlepping and the audiences change because of the itineraries. The performer still has to get to his venue of course so sign up for your frequent flyer clubs.

I performed on my first cruise ship in 1969 and have continued to embrace this arena of work ever since. The business has changed greatly recently and the working conditions have improved vastly. The larger cruise ships now contain showrooms that rival your local Performing Arts Center. The sound, lighting and stages are very sophisticated and if you know how to, can be used to dramatically improve your show.

Generally speaking to get a booking on a ship you are going to need to travel two 45-minute shows. It doesn’t mean you will actually get to perform two 45-minute shows but you might. I am writing this column in the Grand Lobby of the Queen Victoria where I was booked to do one show. On a ship your show is usually repeated twice so that early and late seating dinner guests can catch them with ease.

At least, that is how it should have been on this particular three day run. However nothing runs quite that smoothly in real life. As I was going through my tech rehearsal the Production Manager informed me that there had been a magician who had already performed that cruise. He had featured a Torn & Restored Newspaper, which is the closer to my show. I immediately adjusted my show and changed my closing effect to the one from my second show. No problems.

After I finished my shows I was told that in fact they would need me to perform 15 minutes the next night in a variety show. No problem—I can dodge bullets for 15 minutes! However the next day at my tech rehearsal I was informed that the singer had lost her voice and could I do 35 minutes to close the bill. It worked out very well, but the entire business required a great deal of flexibility.

I described this episode in some detail but in verbal shorthand I could just have said ‘Prepare to be flexible.’ Let me run down a few other key ideas keeping them brief and pithy. There are no rules in life only suggestions however I would like to point out that these suggestions are based on quite a bit of experience.

There are certain tricks that have been just done to death on cruise ships. The vast majority of passengers cruise frequently, and they have become very familiar with certain tricks. The Cruise Director (Your Boss) will likely want to scream if he sees a set of Linking Rings, a Card Sword or Baffling Bra. Worst of all is the Bandana/Banana trick, which is now as overdone as a slice of burned toast. Something is really missing from the bit when the surprise element has been removed.

There is nothing wrong with these tricks, of course, but they have become shipboard cliques and should therefore be avoided. One of the very real problems facing a ‘fly on’ magician is that he is very limited in the hand baggage he is allowed to take on the airplane. You have to (often contractually) carry you’re the majority of your props as hand baggage so we become very limited in our choice of material– it has to fit the bag! Therefore some careful thought needs to go into what you perform and how you pack it.

Most of the time you will have an excellent tech crew who will do their very best to help you providing you give them a good written rundown on what you want them to do. You need to be really articulate during your rehearsal. If you don’t have a proper technical cue sheet then a fifty-dollar bill will be ample inducement for your tech to write one for you and give it to you on a CD for future use.

If you want to use live music for your show it is also very cost effective to have the bandleader write charts for you and it can certainly enhance a show to feature some live music in it. I customize my music CD and burn them fresh for each show. You really can’t expect the sound tech to jump backwards and forwards on a CD.

When I arrive on a ship and have some idea of what I will be performing, I also burn a CD that contains my running order, sound cues, lighting cues, introduction and also a couple of JPEGs of my latest working photo. Let the production manager print out the files and you walk into the rehearsal looking like a pro. After your show is finished don’t be afraid to buy the techies or band a drink to show your appreciation, it isn’t just polite but it’s good business.

Don’t forget that ships move—that’s how they get from port to port! If your table is on wheels then have the stage manager use black sandbags to avert disaster. Other disasters can occur, if you have dancers or another act following you on the bill, if you leave liquids or slippery props onstage after your performance. Yes, cards can be slippery! If a dancer slips on something you left onstage you could cause them to fall and break an ankle or worse.

This is a short list of some excellent ways to look your best and get the job done when you work on a ship. Oh, one more tiny point, any vessel big enough for you to be working on is a ship and NOT a boat. This is important terminology and getting it wrong makes you look like an idiot.There are plenty more tips that I can share if you would like to hear them. My email is nicklewin1@me.com so drop me an email if this is of interest.

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An Audience with the Coney Island Fakir

•February 27, 2010 • 2 Comments

I recently wrote about the excitement of waiting for the postman to deliver that package from the magic store. I was amazed and delighted that so many people responded in a positive manner. Almost without exception everyone who emailed me took the time to mention his first real magic store. You remember your first real magic store; that’s the one where the owner actually knew your name and only recommended tricks that might actually suit you!

I had the most fleeting of meetings in a magic store back in the seventies. I was staying in a very dilapidated hotel in New York and had just taped an episode of the popular children’s show “Wonderama.” The taping had shaken my nerves till my teeth rattled. I had never been exposed to overexcited New York pre-teens before and they had been quite a shock to my system.

Having never spent any time in New York I was determined to visit its two most famous magic stores. I had a pocket full of taxi money and was ready to go. To be honest I was very disappointed when I arrived at Tannen’s; I mean it looked fine, very brisk and organized but something was missing. There didn’t seem to be a lot of heart plus the good tricks were not on display. They didn’t like being asked too many questions either which is a pain.

Nothing to excite a magician who spent his early years, in London with Ken Brooke in his legendary “Magic Place.”   Fortunately, I had saved the best for last and I was in for a treat when the yellow cab driver dropped me off in front of Al Flosso’s magic store. The moment I walked into Flosso’s shop I just stood there gulping for air! It was, without doubt, the least tidy, most messy and astonishingly disorganized place I had ever seen. It was wonderful and I loved it. There were just piles and piles of books and props stacked from floor to ceiling in every direction the eye could see. Years later when I served as a magical consultant on Steven Spielberg’s “Amazing Stories” part of my work was to create a magic shop.  I simply recreated Al’s amazing emporium and it worked perfectly for the show.

As I looked around the stacks of magic I introduced myself to Mr. Flosso and told him I brought special regards from Ken Brooke. As usual, this acted as a perfect opening mantra and Al and I began to talk magic. I don’t remember much that we spoke about but I know I enjoyed his company. At one point Flosso turned to me and said, “Did you need anything special?” I looked around the prop filled shop and expecting to get a little laugh I said, “How about a nailwriter.” It was the smallest prop I could think of and I meant it as a joke. Al Flosso was instantly off and running and dived into a stack of boxes, removed one, retrieved three smaller boxes from within it. He removed an old manila envelope from the smallest of the boxes and then shook a nailwriter onto my palm. I was very impressed. The store may have looked random and disorganized but Al knew where everything was. I loved that.

Before I left the store Flosso told me I HAD to get a spotted can trick; it was “A natural” for me.  That’s the dumb trick where the spots come off the can and end up on the silks. I had my doubts, but Al said I had to get it so I did. I never saw Al again but years later finding the spotted can in the back of my cupboard I put it in my act. Flosso was right of course; it was a natural for me and I still use a variation of it almost every show.

There are plenty of great videos of Flosso performing his Coney Island Fakir show on YouTube. It is pretty much essential viewing for any true comedy magician to watch Al perform his unbeatable version of the Miser’s Dream with a kid from the audience. He was truly a master of the magic arts. You might want to start your YouTube search with this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qcA_WB6liz4 

 

 

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Steve Dacri: In your Face!

•February 26, 2010 • 2 Comments

I have known Steve Dacri for probably three decades and he is a good friend. However, last night was the first time I have ever seen him perform. Now that may seem strange to some people, but it is standard procedure for me. I can’t quite explain it, but it really does seem a nice way to separate friends, colleagues and magicians.

Last night I went to the opening of Steve Dacri’s new Show; ‘In Your Face.’ The show is being featured at the ‘Big’Hilton (Elvis’ old hangout!) right here in Las Vegas at 7:30 pm. every Wednesday evening. I am confident that it will quickly build into a powerhouse crowd magnet.

Steve is a veteran performer, who knows all the buttons to press and pull to impress a lay audience and he uses them systematically to achieve his success. He has charm and talent: plus a slightly a slightly vulnerable presence hidden deep below the ‘In Your Face’ brashness. With Steve you quickly know you’re in the hands of a true entertainer.

Several times during the evening while watching Steve, I was reminded of Doug Henning. By Steve’s straightforwardenthusiasm for his magic and the act of sharing it with an audience. There was a simplicity that pushed the magic to the fore, rather than watching someone who wants you to be more impressed with them than the tricks.

There was AV to enhance the show (It was Henning I first saw use this technique, many moons ago) which certainlyis effective, I have long used video to help focus an audience at certain points during my show. One early clip of Dacri on the classic ‘Candid Camera’ television program is a glorious bonus to the show and brought the house down.

Dacri should feel really proud of his new show and venue, I don’t think it will take him long to hit his stride and come up with a show that will dazzle his audiences and develop into a long-term success. With Steve’s show, unlike other magic shows on the strip; when I left the showroom I left it feeling proud to be a magician.

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Guest Post from Susan Lewin: Magic Anniversary.

•February 23, 2010 • 1 Comment

February marks Nick and my 36th wedding anniversary and to honest I have no idea where he is.  When people ask me I say, “He’s somewhere; the Caribbean I think.”  If you are the significant other of a magician you get used to living a very bizzare lifestyle.  Usually I don’t tell people my husband’s profession unless I wish to shock them: then it’s fun to see the look on their faces.  “My husband is a magician, no NOT a musician, a magician.”

One would think that I would be a great lover of magic, but I assure you that I’ve never understood the complexity of it nor do I wish to.  Nick says, “You know more about magic than most people could dream of knowing.”  What I cannot understand is why  magicians memorize tricks and illusions,

perform them one step ahead and in in reverse, often telling jokes and in front of hundreds sometimes thousands of strangers.  I do, however, find magicians in general interesting people.  They are sensitive, intelligent and have a different perspective on the world.  I’ve met many of the greats like Dai Vernon, Ken Brooke, Billy McComb, Ron Wilson, Maurice Fogel, Kuda Bux, Johnny Platt, Bruce Cervon, Albert Goshman,  Alex Elmsley, Terri Rogers, Norm Nielsen, Johnny Thompson, Seigfried and of the list goes on.  To me the most interesting facet of the breed is their childlike enthusiasm for magic and life.

When I met Nick in London 37 years ago I was not thinking that my life was about to change.  I just liked him as he was tall, attractive, friendly and very generous.   Eventually he told me what his career plans were.  He was all of 20 at the time (although he told me he was 25).  By the time I found out the truth it was too late.  As Nick likes to say, “We met in a revolving door and have been going around ever since.”

Nick asked me if I would like to travel the world with him and I said “Yes.” I had come London to find him; I just did not know it was Nick who I was looking for until the trains crashed and the fireworks set off.  We were married in St. Nicholas church in Thames Ditton, UK about one year later.  The relationship has worked out well and produced two smart and beautiful adult daughters, 3 sweet dogs, many cats, hamsters, three hedgehogs and eight residences.

If I were starting all over would I change anything?  Not really.  But I would offer some very clear words of advice. Take note of what people tell you, but listen to your higher self.  It is you who has your best interests at heart.  Be loyal to your friends and family: it’s a tough world out there.  Choose your battles carefully.  Eventually we all mellow out, but it is difficult to understand at first and there is a lot of competition out there.  Work on your act and keep it fresh.  If you are a comedy magician make sure that you include one high quality complex magic trick in your act: something that will make the audiences say “Wow!”

Living life with a magician is not for the faint hearted.  You have to have nerves of steel, inner strength, and be ready to deal with the reality of daily life when they are living in the other world: the world of dreams, show business and impracticality. It was a surprise to me that magic would become my destiny, if only indirectly, but you just never know what will happen in life.  Happy

Anniversary Nick and many more: “It feels like yesterday, and as you know, yesterday was a very long day.” (written in2009.)

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A Walk In Soho With Ken Brooke

•February 23, 2010 • Leave a Comment

Soho is a lively, seedy, fascinating little urban island in the center of London. Every street is awash in pubs, clubs, coffee houses, and striptease joints. In the late 60’s you would often see undesirable looking characters ‘tossing the lady’ on top of upturned orange crates: tossing the lady is just one of many names for this particular street hustle.

Last year on the streets of Stockholm, I watched it played with three matchboxes. No matter which variation is used the results are the same; the money passes into the hands of the operators and stays there.

When I took the fifteen-minute walk from Piccadilly Circus to ‘Ken Brooke’s Magic Place’, for my next magic lesson, I always enjoyed the intoxicating sights, smells and sounds of this exotic area. While cutting through the Berwick Street market, I would often stop and watch the three-card tricksters ply their trade, I was never tempted to gamble because any money I did have was earmarked for that special magic prop that was going to throw my act into overdrive. Forty years later, I am still looking for that prop!

One day while I was visiting Ken, we made a trip to the street market to buy the assorted fruit that would later that night find their way under the cups in the ‘cups and balls’ routine he would be performing.  Noticing my fascination with a three-card trickster at work, Ken took the time to teach me the real secrets of the hustle. We bought two cardboard cups filled with hot sweet tea and he said; “The first way to spot what’s going on is to not be so close to it that you can’t see anything.”  What wisdom lies in that concept!

We walked to the back of the crowd and Ken pointed out the two lookouts that were standing at a discrete distance from the action. They were watching for any policemen or other unwelcome additions to the scene. Then he enlightened me about the rest of the ‘crew’. There were the phony punters who seemed to be winning wads of money at the game and the friendly passerby who encouraged the mark to make his bet. He often pointed out helpful hints such as, “Look, the corner of the card is bent!” At first glance, it looked as though he mark was gambling against just one man however that was about six people short of the truth. This was a whole group of people all working together to separate just one rube from his cash.  It was like the Anneman theory of the acceptability of using an entire room full of stooges to astound one genuine spectator.

We stayed there a while and watched the Swiss watch precision of the set-up; you wouldn’t think it would work but it did, time after time. Never underestimate people’s greed and their desire to beat the odds. While walking back to Ken’s magic studio I asked him about what magic I was going to learn that day. “You should already have learned it, son.” Said Ken. “The reason those blokes make money and most magicians don’t is because they’re well-rehearsed, and they know exactly what to do to get the job done.”

I pretended to understand but didn’t really. It didn’t really sink in until a few years later when I was, as Ken would say, starting to make a little brass.

It was fun hanging out in the magic studio with Ken where you could enjoy the company of a steady stream of visiting magicians. One of the true joys was in watching the way Ken would sell his product to his clientele. When it came to relieving strangers of their cash he could give the three-card trick merchants a run for their money.

Ken would build up a crowd in the studio and then pitch magic just like the street vendors who sold ‘genuine’ brand name perfume from a suitcase on Oxford Street. The suitcase helped keep these hustlers one-step ahead of the law. While pitching their perfumes these street merchants would imply that the goods had ‘dropped off the back of a truck’. This was much better for business than letting the punter realize that they were nicely packaged counterfeits that smelt like exactly what they were: water mixed with alcohol and a little coloring.

Ken Brooke never had to worry about the quality of what he sold: the magic he sold was always of the finest quality. This didn’t stop him from pitching his goods as if he was ready to pack up his cash and props into a suitcase and disappear at the drop of a hat. This made the whole process all the more fun to watch and participate in.

One of the surefire ways that Ken would ensure a large sale was by refusing to sell a particular trick to someone.  “I’m not bloody well selling it to you!” He would say to a startled customer. “It’s too good a bloody trick to waste on you. You couldn’t do it properly you’d only bugger it up. I don’t care if you offer me a hundred quid. Buy this one it’s so simple even you can’t mess it up.”  Very often the customer would buy many other items waiting for Ken to relent. Meanwhile, every other customer would buy the ‘forbidden’ effect if for no other reason than they could.

Ken was a wonderful salesman and a true master at the art of sales. I sometimes wonder if he didn’t enjoy the act of selling magic more than just performing it. He was at his very best during a magic convention holding court at his dealers stand. It was always easy to find Ken’s stand in the dealer’s room; just look for the largest crowd. More than one dealer complained bitterly upon discovering that his stand was next to Ken’s.

Sometimes after a day in the magic studio, the inner group would get to join Ken for a ‘pint’ at his favorite pub ‘The Duke’ on Berwick Street. On rare occasions, this favored group might even be treated to a glimpse of the inner clown that lived within Ken’s everyday persona. Unsuspected by many was the fact that Ken was an avid practical joker. It was his seemingly serious demeanor that made him so hysterical when you watched him pull his various stunts.

The first time I was exposed to this side of Ken Brooke was when I was accompanying him on a short ride on a short tube ride on London’s underground train system. “You sit here Nicky and just watch, don’t say or do naught.” Said, Ken who then removed a hand full of loose change from his pocket and walked over to a vending machine that dispensed chocolate bars. He placed a six-penny piece into the machine and pulled open the drawer containing the candy bar. As he opened the drawer there was a clatter of cash that appeared to fly out of the drawer. With a look of surprise and a muttered, “Bloody Hell!” he bent over and picked up all the coins from the ground and put them into his pocket. He then came over and sat down next to me with a slightly guilty look on his face. “Now watch, Nicky.” He said. Sure enough, several people who had observed the incident came over to the machine and put their coins into the machine and then hopefully pulled out the drawer but were obviously disappointed when all they received was a bar of Cadbury’s milk chocolate. We sat on the bench doing our best not to erupt into giggles. Looking back maybe Ken was the real creator of ‘Street Magic.’

Ken had several other stunts he liked to perform for the amusement of himself and his companions.  One involved a roll of wallpaper that somehow managed to unroll from the top of the staircase on a red double-decker bus and created havoc with the passengers trying to avoid stepping on it and damaging it. All the while Ken would be bleating, “No, No, don’t step on it, it’s for my living room!” The sight of rush-hour passengers tip-toeing around the unraveling paper was made all the more hysterical by the look of panic on Ken’s face and his voice cracked into a near falsetto as he said, “My wife will kill me if it gets damaged!”

Yes, it was a lot of fun being entertained by Ken in his magic studio but it was even more fun sometimes when you got to go ‘Out and About’ with Mr. Brooke.

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