Eighth in this year's Inspirational Canadian Magician Showcase, is Leif David!
|
|
|
Leif David: Inspirational Canadian Magician. |
Submitted by Brent Smith
Congratulations Leif! Keep up the great work!
Thank you Brent, for your excellent submission!
To learn more about Brent Smith visit his website at BrentSmithMagician.com and follow him on Facebook.
Fifth in this year's Inspirational Canadian Magician Showcase, is Chris Gowen!
|
|
|
Chris Gowen: Inspirational Canadian Magician. |
Submitted by Brent Smith
Congratulations Chris! Keep up the great work!
Thank you Brent, for your excellent submission!
To learn more about Brent Smith visit his website at BrentSmithMagician.com and follow him on Facebook.
The following is a guest post from Brent Smith.
--
A tribute to Micky Hades
I'm sad these days as my friend and teacher in magic Micky Hades has passed away at the age of 97. I call him a teacher because he never mentored me but his door was always open for me and I could ask any question. They say to be successful in something you keep you mouth closed and your ears open and I did just that with Micky but I also asked a lot of questions. I enjoyed our time together especially because Micky would always ask me questions about magic, history and all about magic posters, not because he didn’t know, but to test me and see if I knew what I was talking about and I do :)
Micky Hades was a man who embraced all aspects of magic: Performer, publisher, collector, manufacturer, inventor, author, editor and a pioneer of the art of magic. He was born of Ukrainian parentage on a farm in Alberta. He got started in magic when he saw the magician John C. Green. Micky had mundane jobs but realised magic is what he wanted to do so he studied and learned all he could on magic. He then joined a travelling sideshow which featured not only magic but also fire eating. He then joined larger carnivals like Conklin Brothers Circus and then Clifford Entertainers Vaudeville circuit. Micky then quit show business for a while and went into Silk Screening and then went onto being a fire prevention Officer in the Army. Then for 13 months he worked in the Gold Mines in Yellowknife in the NWT. There in the Arctic climate he invented the Micky Hades finger chopper 2000 feet below the surface of the ground. Imagine just how many of those he sold. Micky Hades Enterprises became Micky Hades International and became a name recognized throughout the world of magic.
Micky was behind the TV Show, Dale Harney's Magic Palace and Micky brought in all the top guys in magic at that time. Blackstone, Al Goshman, Paul Harris, Martin Nash, Slydini... the list goes on and on and on. I would get my dad to drive me down to Channel 2 and 7 TV Studios just to see Dale Harney with the worlds Top Magicians perform.
I miss that time in magic with no internet, without exposure on YouTube, magicians being babies online. Magic was real and everyone sacrificed and treated magic with great importance and value. When people don’t sacrifice much for what they have they do not treat it with great importance or value hence what some people are doing on the internet with exposure. Anyone who suffered for anything knows the value of what they suffered for.
Micky said to me once that you cannot make someone into a magician but they are born and that being a magician is a state of mind and a way of life. Micky never taught anyone magic, he never taught sleight of hand but he taught them the state of mind to make a living at magic. The only one I know of who Micky taught this to is John Kaplan.
Micky had many stories. How he told Martin Nash that he should call himself "The Charming Cheat" and that he should wear big gold rings and fancy suits. He had a great ZIG ZAG lady Illusion story, How he gave Doug Henning a job and he accepted the position of editor of the Young Magicians section of the Hade-E-Gram MagiZette and performed his first professional appearance at the Jubilee Auditorium in Calgary in 1965.
Micky had three Magic Shops, Vancouver, Seattle, and Calgary. They were eventually closed or sold off.
In 2015 Micky sold me his 500 piece magic Poster collection which some I will treasure forever. They are framed in my house and I still enjoy everyday.
I will miss Micky and the coffee time we had together, I will miss going to visit him and seeing what magic he still had for sale all of which the props I grew up with, I will miss the jewels and treasures I would find when Micky let me look through boxes. I will miss talking to him about illusions and I will miss talking to him about Magic Posters.
Micky once said to me that if you really want to make a living at something have NOTHING to fall back on that way the fire under your butt stays lit. We both laughed at that for a long time.
The Micky Hades story is too incredible for this short newsletter so look for this book coming out of the Magical Life of Micky Hades in the New Year by his daughter Brenda.
Rest well Micky you are the reason I am what I am today and I have cherished every last second I had with you.
Thank you!!
Brent
--
Thank you Brent for sharing this heartfelt tribute to Micky Hades.
From the September 14th Facebook post by The Vanishing Rabbit Magic Shop:
Hi All Vanishing Rabbit Magic Shop Customers,
It has come to a point where I needed to address that we will not be opening a Brick and Mortar magic Shop but will remain as an online shop. I will be retiring soon and there is really no use in signing a two or three year lease especially when most landlords these days want a 5-10 year lease in Calgary. The magic community in Calgary is older and not interested in buying anything new as all the shelves are full but getting rid of their old stuff which doesnt keep a magic shop open. If you know of anyone looking to buy my remaining inventory Lets work out a deal !! Shipping from CanadaI closed my doors 3 months into covid, because my lease ran out, I waited until covid was over and tried to think outside the box by going to all the hobby stores in Calgary and asking them if they wanted to lease to me 6 feet in their store. Thats's 1 - 6 foot showcase, which I still own, and they all declined, which I still today do not understand. YES I even went and talked to Scott and Charlie at Don's Hobby shop to see if they wanted to put a magic shop back into their store and that was declined as well.
So I do not have much inventory left because of my incredible prices online but what I do have left will be slowy discounted even more and let go, then I will sell off my personal collection or vintage magic props, books, autographs and magic posters and my wife and I will head back to Barbados to visit friends until we get tired of it
I grew up in the best time in magic with Micky Hades, John Kaplan, Murray Hatfield, Scott Imler, Paul Alberstat, Shawn Farquhar and The Magic Palace with Dale Harney being filmed in Calgary where all the TOP Magicians came through to the local TV station, and the Micky Hades Fun and Film Festivals which I attended only a couple. I was one of the founding members of the IBM Ring 66 in Calgary by signing the original charter and enjoyed those meetings every month as it was all about friendship and sharing.
How did I get interested in magic?? Send me an email at vanishingrabbit@shaw.ca and if your right I will send you a 30% off discount card for the items I have instock
I dont see where magic is headed other than the now cookie cutter .....tattoos, beards, hats and playing cards. Have we not learned yet to be yourself in magic and not copy other people like Chris Ramsey sheeeeesh. I asked Micky Hades one day where he thought magic was headed and he said that in time it will all swing around again from what it is now to what it was. I hope it does, as magic when I grew up was the best !
For now I remain performing magic in a few restaurants and doing shows for families, friends and public and remain humble about the fantastic opportuinites magic has given me.
Later
Brent
A letter from a nine-year-old Calgary girl who's an aspiring magician to a famous entertainment duo is charming people around the world, after one half of Penn & Teller tweeted it to his two million followers.
Penn Jillette tweeted a photo of the letter — scrawled in pencil and adorned with drawings of playing cards and a rabbit in a hat — writing "Ever have the slightest question of why we do this? Hard to stop crying to type. Women are the future of magic!"
Read more and watch video of London performing the Cups and Balls.
Ever have the slightest question of why we do this? Hard to stop crying to type. Women are the future of magic! pic.twitter.com/3tv6dXW4GP— Penn Jillette (@pennjillette) October 13, 2017
Come Join us January 24th from NOON - 4pm. Bring a trick you have been working on or need more help with and we can work together to work out the kinks.
At 3:00PM Owner/Magician Brent Smith will give a 30 Minute lecture on Thumb tips and How to use them correctly and then Immediately after he will perform a 30 Magic show for everyone to enjoy and maybe find some special guests to Join us
If you want to come tickets are $20.00 for the day and you must call to reserve a seat as we have limited space in my shop.
Pop, water and Doughnuts will be supplied as well as a GREAT Door Prize
Read more and buy tickets.
As curio shops go, Brent Smith’s Vanishing Rabbit is all things magical. Attached to the ceiling is a series of old billboards advertising the greats through the ages – Houdini, Sorcar, Mandrake and a young Doug Henning as Chou Chou (pronounced Shoe Shoe), the clown who actually sold shoes for a living.
Inside Mr. Smith’s store, a creepy-looking Charlie McCarthy puppet sits above display cases filled with easy-to-perform tricks and novelties, including the ever-popular Fart Extinguisher.
“It’s a big hit with the kids,” Mr. Smith says as he emerges from behind a counter holding a deck of Svengali playing cards. “I sell a lot of cards, too. Magic is really hot right now.”
Read more.
Join Chris Westfall, Anthony Lindan, Stephen Forrester, Brent Smith, Brent Miller, Atsushi Ono, and special Guests for a 1 day MEGA Magic Saturday JUNE 27th. Shows, Auction, Competitions, and lectures will all be happening. Registration is NOW OPEN . For all the details, registration packages and VIP Passes go to www.MEGAMagicSaturday.com
Read more and register.
When talking about summer, magic and children, the first name that always comes to my mind is Sorcerers Safari Summer Camp. Sorcerers Safari is a sleep-away camp in the Haliburton Highlands about 2 1/2 hours north of Toronto. This year's camp runs from Tuesday August 30th to Sunday Sept 4th, 2011. The camp is coordinated by Mike Segal and boasts an amazingly talented and experienced staff!Not interested in a sleep-away experience?
To register or for more information, visit SorcersSafari.ca.
Take a peek at the highlights from last year's camp!
Oh, Magic Camp from Rotten Pictures on Vimeo.
If you're looking for something in Western Canada, check out Mega Magic Camp with Sean Watson and Brent Smith in Calgary from August 22nd to August 26th, 2011.
To register or for more information, visit MegaMagicCamp.com.
In the Ottawa area, Eric Leclerc runs English and French language magic classes during the summer. His 2011 dates haven't been posted yet. Keep checking his website for more information.
Scott Dietrich is offering the chance of a lifetime to 20 lucky Halton children (ages 8 – 12). Halton Magic Camp is not your ordinary summer camp, over one week your child will be immersed in the magical arts while their confidence and creativity explode; something Scott is proud to have witnessed over and over again at his camps.Greater Toronto Area
Some of the Sorcerers Safari Summer Camp crew will also be teaching magic in Toronto area day camps. Some of these day camps are offering an introductory magic classes for the entire camp summer and some of the camps also offer a 'Magic Course/Specialty' that run on particular dates.
At present, the participating day camps are:
For more information about the magic taught at the day camps, contact Sorcerers Safari Summer Camp. For more information about the camps in general, or to register, contact the day camps directly.
- Bayview Glen: offers a general magic activity 3 days a week for the full summer
- Zodiac: offers a specialty magic program (a 2 week program, twice over their 8 week summer course)
- Crestwood (warning, website autostarts a video with sound): offers a general program 4 days a week for the entire summer
When: 3 Saturday Nights - April 2, April 9th, April 16thFor more information, contact The Vanishing Rabbit.
Time: 7-9pm
Where: The Vanishing Rabbit Magic Shop
Join Award Winning Magician BRENT SMITH for 3 Nights of Essential Card Magic Sleights. Learning card magic is like building a house. Everything starts with a strong foundation of basic building blocks. These won't we your Grampa's Card Tricks.
This 3 night course will start you at the beginning of card magic and take you to a working professional level.
Learn the core skills (the ones that get used over and over again in thousands of tricks) from a well trained Award winning Magician
