Montreal magic nostalgia

From Perfect Magic:

It got me thinking about (Magic) Tom and what he did for magic and for us. He donated a large Trophy to Magic Montreal, and a smaller one for the winner of the Magie Montreal Trophy which was awarded every year at our Magic Convention. Richard Sanders was the first one to win it. Every winner has a place  with his name engraved on it on the big Trophy which can be seen in our shop. We gave out other awards too. This should bring back a few memories if you were there.


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• Jeff's looking more at home in his “trusty sweater vest.”
• Welcome to Dan Morrissey (of Morrissey Magic) to the stage!  We’ve missed you Phoebe and Dan!
• Welcome to Phil and Evelyn Matlin (of Perfect Magic, Montreal) to the stage!
• Mentioning Joan Caesar, past president of the IBM and founder of the Canadian Association of Magicians! 
• Added bonus:  Welcome to Len Cooper’s family! Bernice, Len’s wife, as well as his children, Jack and Sandy Cooper!

Talk about one big magic family!

Mysterion, Steffi and Adam visit Perfect Magic

From Perfect Magic:

If you buy a magic trick or learn it through a video or book, and you fool someone, or an even a whole audience, the trick worked, it did what it was supposed to, but did you? That’s the question. Everyone has a different approach to magic. That’s what makes it so much fun, but if you just fool someone and leave them wondering and trying to figure it out, I don’t think it’s enough. They should feel thrilled, excited, astonished, delighted and a whole host of other adjectives. The trick can’t do that by itself. You are the one that makes that happen.

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Perfect Magic on Magicians and Politicians

From Perfect Magic's blog:

For a brief moment I had a flashback to a Magic Convention.  Dai Vernon, the 80 plus year old legend, with a lot of knowledge and experience. He was a living legend and everyone was trying to get to him, but he wasn’t interested in them. He was only interested in Phil, yes, Phil Matlin, because they were both honky tonk and ragtime piano players and Dai loved that music. even more than magic.

Women were not prominent on the magic scene back then. That’s changing too.

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Perfect Magic interviews Spidey

From Perfect Magic:

Spidey must have been around 17 years old when he first came to Perfect Magic. His striking feature was his passion for magic. His enthusiasm was contagious and refreshing. He had plans for himself. Did I think he would succeed? It doesn’t matter much what I thought. He thought he would succeed. That, I believe, has a great deal to do with his success as a magician today. He didn’t just sit back and wait to succeed. He worked at it. Spidey was here the other day and I asked him If he would write a post for my blog.  And he did. I was most impressed with it. I asked him 3 questions to base his post on. How old he was when he started, what was his first trick, and if he had any tips for young magicians starting out. Here is his reply.

“Hey Evelyn,

so here are the answers :)

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So how do you know what's good?

From Perfect Magic:

When we opened Perfect Magic, before the internet, we bought what we thought was good from suppliers we trusted. There was not this smorgasbord of magic that there is today. Every single day we receive new items to consider. At one time there was Mak Magic, Morrissey Magic, Abbott’s, Fun and a few others that manufactured products here in Canada or the U.S.A and Supreme in England. Now very little is made here. It’s hard to compete with China or India. Some of the stuff is good, some is not. But when you read the write-ups, everything is the greatest ever. So how do you know what is good.

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A question from the floor

Updated at 16:00 the consensus so far:

• The Browser's Den of Magic: oldest existing magic shop
• Perfect Magic: oldest existing magic shop under single owner (the people that opened it are still running it)
• IBM Ring 17 - since 1941
• IBM - co-founded by a Canadian in 1923

What is Canada's oldest magic institution?

From Lee Asher's Twitter feed:

@canadasmagic I think @theBrowsersDen is Canada's oldest magic institution. Maybe @jay_sankey @SorcerersSafari or someone else can confirm?!
— Lee Asher (@LeeAsherMagic) November 11, 2014

@canadasmagic @theBrowsersDen I should preface by saying oldest Canadian magic institution "still open".
— Lee Asher (@LeeAsherMagic) December 2, 2014

The importance of magic shops

It's no secret that I'm a big fan of brick and mortar magic shops.  Not only are they the first place many kids get bitten by the magic bug, it's also a place enthusiasts can go for encouragement and coaching by people in the know. A nurturing community is formed in a local shop, which can't be duplicated through the internet.

(You'll notice that two brick and mortar shops are invested in keeping the community of this site alive.  Please remember to thank them, the next time you're there.)

Don't have brick and mortar shop in your area? Consider supporting one through their online shops. (I direct your attention to two of the wonderful sponsors of this blog, Perfect Magic and The Browser's Den of Magic!)

The emphasis in the excerpt below, is mine.

From Perfect Magic:

As many of you know, magic shops are closing all over the place. Many shut down in the U.S.A. and some in Canada as well.  There were not a whole lot to begin with. It’s so easy to look up  what you want on line, find the cheapest price and order.  I can’t say that I blame anyone for doing that. But there may be a cost to the saving of money, especially in magic. 

Click through to read Evelyn's thoughts on the matter.

Report: Asi Wind at the Comedy Nest

From Perfect Magic:

We don’t get out a whole lot. We used to when we were younger, but now, after a day at the magic shop we are happy to go home and relax. But Asi Wind, New York  Mentalist and Mind-Reader, was giving a one man show at the Comedy Nest at the old Montreal Forum and we wanted to see him as we had heard about him of course but never had seen him.

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Montreal: Mario the Magician

From the Perfect Magic Facebook page:

Post by Perfect Magic.

A timely reminder from Perfect Magic

Post by Perfect Magic.

Review: Magic at the Comedy Nest

From Perfect Magic:

Magicians had a real treat last Sunday evening, if they managed to get into the Comedy Nest. Although there were magicians who came to see the show, most of the audience was comprised of lay people. 

David Acer was the M.C. and was his usual funny self.

Loran, from Quebec City, had a beautiful act, serious, artistic and a pleasure to watch.

Vincent Pimpare did a comedy hynotism act. It was an unexpected break from the usual hypno act and had the audience laughing, so it fit right into the Comedy club setting.

Richard Sanders did a great bill to lime with a lot of hilarious detours along the way. He has a way of making the audience feel as if he is really one of us. He connects well.

Romaine. What can I say about Romaine.  Dressed in tails and a top hat, and slightly tipsy, (part of the routine, of course) he wowed the audience with his continuous production of cards, multiplying billiard balls, and the real magic of Vaudeville days, which mosts of the audience had never seen and they showed their appreciation.

Jonathan Burns did some very funny stuff. My favorite was Cards Across with cheese slices (you know the ones, wrapped in cellophane) instead of cards. Funny stuff. 

And then there was the audience.

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Review: David Acer, John Carney, Michel Huot and Rafael DiCaprio at the Comedy Nest.

From Perfect Magic:

As I wrote on the Perfect Magic Facebook, too bad for you if you didn’t go to the Comedy Nest in Montreal last Sunday night. For us, Phil and I, it was like old home week and brought back warm and pleasant memories of Magie Montréal. We had tried to phone Mephisto, aka Wym Vermeys, who was our partner in that venture but couldn’t reach him. He called the day after the show and said he was in Florida. He was heartbroken that he missed it.

David was terrific as the MC. He did many funny bits, which I know all who were there will use, magicians or not! He didn’t do any magic but some good comic mind reading stuff.

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Do you remember Le Grand Marcis of Magic?

From Perfect Magic:

Le Grand Marcis, Maurice Choquette, was one of these people. He had a little magic shop on de Bienville when we met him and he gave weekly magic courses and had a great following. We were friends with him and he was kind enough to translate many of the popular card tricks for us when we first went into business.  I have a copy of Wild Card  ”Les cartes “frimées” which  he did for us “Traduction et adaptation française faite par “Le Grand Marcis” 1977 and many others as well.

also:

It would be great if his students could write in and provide us with information about him, anecdotes, when he started, when and where he moved his shop to. I think it was Park Avenue. If you were a student of his, let us know. Maybe you should have a reunion. Let’s hear from you. let’s get a little history going here, and if you want to write it in French, ça va!

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Researching Magic Tom Auburn

A writer is researching Magic Tom Auburn for a piece and is looking to connect with people who have memories or information to share.  More information can be found at Perfect Magic.  See below.

From Perfect Magic Then and Now:

The other day a gentleman, unknown to us, came into the shop. He, too, wanted to keep Tom Auburn’s name and memory alive. He’s a writer and he is passionate about history and about Magic Tom and he is writing an article (on real paper) which will appear in the Quebec Heritage News, which is an English language Quebec  Magazine.

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Cool couple: Evelyn and Phil Matlin

Happy (upcoming) 55th wedding anniversary Evelyn and Phil!  And happy birthday Evelyn!


From The Canadian Jewish News, "Montreal Weddings" supplement (pg 12 and 13):

When Evelyn and Phil Matlin’s eldest daughter, Ronna, was playing in the basement, she discovered her father’s long forsaken magician’s suitcase. The year was 1964 and the curious 6-year-old begged him to perform magic at her birthday party.

This event sparked the revival of an inherent skill that Phil had honed in his youth, and to this day the world of magic plays an integral role in the family’s life.

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An update from Perfect Magic

Keep your eye on the Perfect Magic Facebook page and Twitter account.   They have some exciting news to announce this week!

As of now, we are offering you DOWNLOADS. http://t.co/1GEvRAp4Af. All on our email list will be receiving a detailed flyer shortly. #magic
— Philip Matlin (@Perfect_Magic) September 17, 2013

More Magie Montréal

Evelyn Matlin over at Perfect Magic has a follow-up to her wonderful tribute post, remembering the performers from Magie Montréal.

From Perfect Magic:

Last week my blog was a tribute to performers, now deceased, at Magic Montreal, a two-day Magic Convention  that Phil Matlin of Perfect Magic and Vim Vermeys ran for 19 years. I mentioned that I didn’t find photos of all of them, but I managed to find a few more that graced our stage.

Read more and see photos.

Remembering the stars from Magie Montréal

Evelyn Matlin over at Perfect Magic has a wonderful tribute post, remembering the performers from Magie Montréal that are sadly no longer with us.

From Perfect Magic:

When I started writing this I didn’t realize how many magicians that made Magie Montréal, the great and fun loving convention that it was, had passed away. This blog is a tribute to them, to the performers  who graced our stage and close-up tables that are no longer with us. I don’t have photo’s of them all.

Read more and see photos!

Welcoming a new patron: Perfect Magic!

Welcome to our newest sponsor, Evelyn and Phil Matlin from Perfect Magic!

In Montreal in 1976, Perfect Magic was founded as a mail-order company run out of a basement, selling their own original products.  In short time, they grew out of their basement and into a retail property of their own.  They expanded their catalogue with more original products.  In 1979, they collaborated wtih C.W. Vermeys to launch the very first Magie Montréal convention!  Magie Montréal ran annually until 1998.

In the words of David Acer, "Today, Perfect Magic continues to be a highly respected manufacturer, distributor and retail outlet, supplying tricks and accessories to magicians around the world."

If you haven't already, check out their blog, Perfect Magic Then and Now, where Evelyn shares wonderful stories from her 30+ years of experience in the magic business.  If you keep tabs on their Facebook page or Twitter feed, you will be notified when new blog posts are up.

Did you know that Phil is also a professional ragtime piano player?  Browse through his YouTube channel! I enjoy both of his CD's, Ragtime Daze and Ragtime Magic.

I had the pleasure of meeting both Evelyn and Phil at this year's Spring CAM-JAM.  They are warm, and wonderful people!

Thank you Evelyn and Phil, for your constant support of the Canadian magic scene and your sponsorship of this website!