“But it’s not fair!” (And in these cases, the word fair is generally pronounced as a long, annoyingly drawn out, “fay-yerrrrrrrr.”) You know someone has exhausted any semblance of a reasonable, rational argument when their answers become, “But others are doing it, too.”, “Why are you ganging up on…”, “No one can prove this wasn’t […]

There are many, many examples of good coming from horrific bad. I think it’s a testament to human nature to find some good in a bad situation. Sometimes that comes in the form of a phrase that otherwise would seem crass, as in the example I used for the subject of this post. In the […]

How many of these books do you have in your library: Stanyon, Magic (periodical, 15 vols., complete) Tarbell, Tarbell Course of Magic Stanyon, The Stanyon Serials, (l-21) Downs, The Art of Magic Hilliard, (Sequel to above now being published) Sachs, Sleight of Hand Maskelyne and Devant, Our Magic Hoffmann, Modern Magic Hatton and Plate, Magician’s […]

Twinkies, the epitome of junk food, may be on its deathbed. At least that’s the possibility suggested Dr. W.C. Douglass upon word that Interstate Bakery filed for protection under Chapter 11 Bankruptcy laws. (Interstate Bakery is the nation’s largest wholesale bakery.) Interstate blames it’s money woes mainly on the Atkin’s Diet craze, while analysts suggest […]

Mon dieu. This post has nothing to do with politics and/or religion per se; just the parallels between them and current magic discussions. There now — you may safely proceed. I’d like to say I hate political discourse, but that wouldn’t be accurate. I love discussing politics. And religion too, believe it or not. In […]

If you’re lucky, you remember the first time you saw real magic. I mean the kind of magic that twisted your brain in knots to the point you’d cry, were it not for the fact you were smiling so hard. For me, it was like the first precipitous drop on the Zephyr at the Ponchartrain […]

“You took that out of context!” Ever hear that? Ever say that to someone else? If I were to ask you to name something often taken out of context, chances are pretty good you’d mention the Bible, and rightfully so. (As a Christian, know that I am on record as stating as absolute fact that […]

On the surface, secrets seem to be the most important thing in magic. It’s a brave man who would argue against the importance of secrets, but I’d suggest to you that secrets do not occupy the number one spot on the list of what’s most important in the world of magic. What is magic? I’ll […]

Long, long ago, in a galaxy far, far away (called “My Youth”), my best friend’s dad bought a new toy and he wanted to show it to me. It was called a Betamax, and it was magic incarnate. Here was a machine, big and heavy, that took in a plastic cartridge and allowed you to […]

Since this blog is just getting started, and I just spent some time answering a question from someone just getting into this bizarre little world of magic, I’ll combine the two into this post. Getting started in magic — whether close-up, stage, or anything in between — is best begun in the same manner as […]