Ryan Pilling builds a "lazy" magic table

From Playing Big:

My goal for this project was to have a small side table for my show that is extremely portable. This “lazy” table can easily fit in a briefcase, because of the dirty little secret… you only need to carry half of it!

All you need is this easy-to-make table top, which will attach to your standard microphone stand commonly found in 99% of the places I do shows. Worst case scenario, you fly into town and can’t find one in the venue… they can be bought or rented in a heartbeat.

Read more.

HWDYKM answers: part 2

The second post in a short series of answers to those true or false questions asked in the post "How well do you know me?"

Question two:  True or False?

The person behind the curtain at Canada's Magic is / has been on the executive of CAM.

Question three:  True or False?

The person behind the curtain at Canada's Magic is / has been on the executive of IBM.

None of you thought that I'm executive material for CAM and 16% (one) of you thought I've been on the executive for IBM.  Fact of the matter is, I've not been (and am not) on the executive for either of these organizations.  Which means, among other things, I'm not Joan Caesar.  (Prior to this poll, at least one person thought that I was -- high praise indeed!)


Question four:  True or False?

The person behind the curtain at Canada's Magic was born in Western Canada.

Question five:  True or False?

The person behind the curtain at Canada's Magic was born in Central Canada.

Question six:  True or False?

The person behind the curtain at Canada's Magic was born in Eastern Canada.

One person thought I was born in Western Canada, one in Central Canada and no one thought I was born in Eastern Canada.  One of you is correct.  I was born in Central Canada.

How are you scoring so far?

Anyone out there want to change your guess as to who I am?

Spidey Akkelian in the press

From the Perfect Magic Facebook page:

Post by Perfect Magic.

Toronto: There's magic at the Ex in 2014!

There's magic at the CNE again this year!

Majinx is back at Kids' World with Professor Wick's School of Magic and Illusion.

And Kreskin is at the Variety Stage.  From The Ex:

From the hard news formats of CNN, ABC and FOX NEWS to the ingenious madcap comedy of David Letterman and outrageous humour of Howard Stern, Kreskin has become a household name. Nationally recognized as a teenager as “The World’s Youngest Hypnotist”, he went on to become a mesmerizing entertainer and a major player in criminal investigations and anti-terrorism initiatives. For the past 11 years, he has been featured on CNN on New Year’s Day to discuss his predictions for the months to come.

Read more.

Toronto: Getting together with Steve Valentine

From the Browser's Den of Magic:

WHAT: Steve Valentine Get-Together
WHERE: Browser's Den
WHEN: Saturday August 23rd, 2014
COST: FREE 

For those interested enough to attend this event, Steve Valentine promises to perform some of his best-selling routines which won him prestigious back-to-back Magic Castle awards. He'll also share a few of the secrets that made him a great magician. Witness powerful effects using objects like: Playing Cards, Coins, and cloth (You must see this one, to believe it!)

Fresh from his recent appearance playing four completely different villains in Disney flicks, Steve Valentine visits Toronto for a free special Get-Together spending time with all the Toronto magicians after heading up to Sorcerers Safari Magic Camp.

And...

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Frederic Demarais dans la semaine

From the Perfect Magic Facebook page:

Post by Perfect Magic.

Houdini in the Amherst News

From the Amherst News:

On Aug. 3, exactly 118 years after Houdini’s visit to Amherst, MacNab took people on a tour of Houdini’s time spent in Amherst.

The tour made four stops, and each stop featured magic by Margaret Steele, a magician from Peekskill, New York, who has performed magic throughout the world, most recently performing in China. 

The first stop was directly behind the First Baptist Church on Victoria Street where the back parking lot meets Amherst Town Square.

Read more.

[via Wild About Houdini]

Congratulations PCAM winners!

Congratulations to Gwyn Auger and Billy Hsueh for their respective wins at PCAM this year!

Does anyone have the official list of contest results?

Winner of Best ASSISTANT for #pcam2014 is me!!!!! Thanks Frank for putting me in your act! #magiclife #goldmedal pic.twitter.com/mCCxbG0yHQ
— Gwyn Auger (@magicassistant) August 4, 2014

Placed First in the Pacific Coast Close Up Competition :) i loved every moment of it.
— Billy Hsueh (@MagicofBilly) August 4, 2014

Random thoughts about "An honest liar"

From special correspondent Derek, who was at the screening of "An honest liar" on Friday night:

• The film sketched Randi's early career and then moved on to detail his high-profile debunking of Uri Gellar, faith healers, the channeling movement and paranormal research. It concluded with the deception is his own life: the identity fraud committed by his partner.
• It shone a light on the ethics of disproof by deception.
• It contrasted his public face proclaiming honesty, and his private face where he kept a couple of big secrets.
• It's interesting, go see it!

In addition:

• Randi performed a quick rope tie routine.
• There was a meet and greet as well as photo ops.
• Birthday cake was involved.

England: Shawn Farquhar

From the Perfect Magic Facebook page:

Post by Perfect Magic.

Winners to see "An honest liar"

A quick reminder that "An honest liar" is playing various times at Toronto's Bloor Cinema until August 21st.

The contest to win tickets to see "An honest liar" in Toronto tonight closed last night at midnight.  Here's the official list of entrants:

1. Dan McLean Jr
2. Mark Campbell
3. Magic Mike Segal
4. Mark Lewis
5. David Olson

I digress for a moment and encourage everyone to read the entry by Mark Lewis.  I wish I could offer a prize for best entry!

Random draw results:

  

  

Congratulations to Mike, Dan, and Mark Campbell!  I've sent you an e-mail with the name of the contact person and instructions on how to claim your tickets.  Enjoy the show tonight and be sure to tell me all about the Q&A with Randi!

Thank you all for playing!  A special thanks to Hannah from Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival for generously making these tickets available to you!

Trevor and Lorena in the Vancouver Sun

From the Vancouver Sun:

Powerful magic can be found in the unlikeliest of places. Trevor and Lorena Watters, a couple from North Delta, were crowned North American Champions of Stage Magic earlier this month, winning them entry to the 2015 World Championships of Magic in Rimini, Italy. The Sun reached the pair between illusions to discover how magic brought them together and what tricks they’re conjuring up for next year’s contest.

Q: What drew you both to magic?

Read more.

Win tickets to see "An honest liar" in Toronto

Great news! I have been offered three pairs of tickets to give away to my readers, to attend "AN HONEST LIAR" at the Friday, August 8, 6:30pm screening in Toronto, Canada.  (I understand that there's a Q&A with Randi at that screening.)

I will be holding a random draw for each pair of tickets.  (There will be three winners. Each winner will receive a pair of tickets.)  The draw results will be posted on Friday August the 8th.


To enter:

1. Leave a comment on this post, telling me your favourite Amazing Randi memory (from a personal encounter, an interview, a performance etc).  (You do not need to be a magician to enter the contest.)(Your favourite memory could be entering this contest!)
2. Leave your name, along with a way that I may contact you (e-mail address, phone number, website, Twitter handle etc.) so that I can notify you if you win.
3. If you win, you must be willing to provide your full name and contact information for me to share with Hannah from Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival.

The fine print:

• To participate in the contest, you must be 18 years of age or older.
• One entry per person.
• This giveaway is open to Canadian residents, excluding residents of Quebec. (Je m'excuse!)
• This giveaway is void where prohibited by law.
• If you experience difficulties leaving a comment, you may e-mail it to me for posting.  (I am not responsible if your e-mail is misdirected or gets stuck in my Spam folder.)
• You must be able to use the tickets as offered.  (No cash value will be offered if you cannot use the tickets.)
• Photo ID will be required to claim the tickets at the Bloor Hot Docs Cinema box office prior to the show on your way into the screening.
• The odds of winning depend on how many people enter the contest.
• Contest closes on Thursday August the 7th, 2014 at 11:59pm EST.

With thanks to Hannah from Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival for generously making these tickets available to you!

Toronto: An honest liar

Updated at 14:40:

• Contest details can be found at this post: Win tickets to see "An honest liar" in Toronto

I'm hoping to set up a ticket give away for this documentary.  Details to follow.

From Hot Docs:

AN HONEST LIAR
August 8- 21

James “The Amazing” Randi is an 85-year-old magician and escape artist who has been enchanted with illusions from a young age. Dedicating his life to learning the tricks of the trade, Randi became a sensation who toured the world, always honest about being a “liar, cheat and charlatan.” When people start using the same tricks but calling themselves “psychics”—like spoon-bender Uri Geller or “faith-healing” like televangelist Peter Popoff—Randi is angry and afraid for the people who are duped.  

James "The Amazing" Randi will participate in a Q&A on August 8, at 6:30 p.m., moderated by NOW Magazine's senior film writer Norm Wilner. 

Read more and buy tickets.

Bob Cates in The Record

From The Record:

Bob Cates, champion juggler of fire sticks and sharp knives, stood at The Hot Corner.

Third base on a baseball diamond somewhere outside Ottawa.

All is not fair at the county fair. Not in the fall of 1998.

"Behind me was a hay machine, threshing away," recalled Cates, now a 43-year-old Hespeler resident and 2014 Canadian Comedy Awards nominee for best variety act.                          
Read more.

Montreal: Patrik Kuffs

From the Perfect Magic Facebook page:

Post by Perfect Magic.

James Jordan on Global News

From Global News:

Montreal: Asi Wind performance

In addition to Asi Wind's Toronto lecture date and his lectures in Montreal and Ottawa, he's also doing a show in Montreal!

From The Comedy Nest Event Brite page:

Asi Wind - Monday August 11th

Buy tickets.

[via Perfect Magic]

HWDYKM answers: part 1

Last month, I posted some statements about me for you to guess as true or false.  Today is the first in a short series of answers to those true or false questions.

According to Google, there were over 150 views of the post.  Six of you dared to guess.

I was reminded by Sammy, that "... some of us know who you are and would skew the results."  (I was also reminded that the results may not have been skewed in my favour!)

Fair enough.


Question one:  True or False?

The person behind the curtain at Canada's Magic is shorter than the average of the heights of Richard Forget, Ryan Pilling, James Alan and David Acer.

Four (66%) of you correctly suspect that I'm not that tall.  (Which makes me wonder who the other third of you think I am.)  While it's true that we grow some of our magicians real tall in these parts, I'm not one of them.  (I echo the thoughts by Doug, who commented "Wait, people can be taller than David Acer?!")

How are you scoring so far?

Browser's Den magic club day

From the Browser's Den of Magic Facebook group:

Tomorrow, August 2nd is (free) MAGIC CLUB DAY at the shop.
All are welcome!
Club meets from 2:30pm to about 5:00pm. 

Read more.