Antwerp, November 2006: Our story begins in a Belgian pub, late, after a magician? gathering. The scene is familiar enough. Magicians are sharing magic, and between tricks they sip drinks. Only one man hasn? performed, and now it? his turn. Christian? unusual, thick spectacles drift low on his nose. He adjusts them with only his right first finger. Now he lifts a delicate box from his lap to the table and begins to remove its contents. A thick cloud of smoke envelopes the table. When the smoke dissipates, the magicians discover that ?brace yourself ?they are instantly a hundred years back in time, and five hundred miles east. This doesn? seem like a fantasy or figurative interpretation. They feel as though they have literallybeen transported. By Joshua Jay
For the last five summers, David Ben and Allan Slaight have hosted 31 Faces North at a small private school in downtown Toronto. From August 9 through 12, the curriculum was strictly magic. Lectures and performances were held in classrooms and free time spent lounging in the children? play area/kitchen. This year? 35 guests hailed from as far away as New York, Los Angeles, Switzerland, and Japan. The gathering is held in honor of Stewart James, perhaps the most prolific inventor magic has ever known. By Adam Rubin
The first thing you should know is that Ricky Smith is good with cards. Some of the people who acknowledge him as an underground prodigy are John Carney, Bill Goodwin, Jason England, and Gary Plants. Above ground, he is mostly known for a card control that uses a fan as a cover that Bill Goodwin and Gordon Bean published in Penumbra called the Cherry Control. When asked about other sleights he has invented, he says, ?ome moves that I am happy with are a spread control done on the table that leaves the card on the top, a replacement of a card from full right-hand palm to the bottom of the deck, a palm transfer from right-hand gambler? flat palm to left-hand full palm with the deck in the hands, a palm from the top of the deck into left-hand full palmŠamong other things.?BR> Dan Buck says, ?e? probably the only person on the planet who would show laymen tricks from Earnest Earick? book without fear of screwing up ?he? that good.? By John Lovick
After 500-plus shows, well over 200 performers, and four theaters, Monday Night Magic will celebrate the achievement of its official tenth anniversary on October 15, 2007 at St. Clements Theater on West 46th St., in the heart of New York City? theater district. It is ?he longest running Off-Broadway magic show?and has earned the distinction by its ability to move from one theater to the next, even as it held and built its audience. Monday Night Magic strides into its second decade confidently and with every indication of continued success. It has become the premier East Coast magic venue and a model for other productions. It provides a showcase and a platform for the presentation of the art and entertainment of conjuring. By Richard Steven Cohn
It? become known as ?he reset from hell??two hours of set up for a ninety-second routine. But practical considerations have not deterred Eric Buss from creating the comic explosion he calls, ?he Spring Snake Symphony.?If you didn? get a chance to see Eric perform RFH at The Magic Castle this past spring or were unable to experience it at MAGIC Live! this summer, you missed a truly mind-boggling and strangely-exhilarating experience. You missed what an art professor called, ?ure art, pure madness.?And what the author calls, ?irque du Soleil on Crack.?/P>By Geoff Williams
MAGIC celebrated a ?weet sixteen?anniversary by hosting the third in a series of ?nconventional conventions.?Returning to The Orleans Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, the event produced memorable moments, and plenty of surprises. This month, we offer a sixteen-page overview of the sweet sixteenth anniversary party thrown by MAGIC. By Alan Howard
This month you can get a sneak preview of Justin Kredible? upcoming on-demand TV show and the new ?ell-all?book on Siegfried & Roy. Also, you will learn about two soldiers who are building morale through magic, read about the American debut of two Dutch illusionists in their own show at the New Orleans Harrah?, spend ? Moment With?Jeff Hobson, and we remember Jerry Andrus.
Fourteen items are covered this month by Gabe Fajuri, Peter Duffie, and John Lovick, including: ?Dean? Triangle by Dean Dill ?EM> Handcrafted Card Magic by Denis Behr ?EM> Interlace by Richard Sanders ?EM> Seven Effects from Jesse Feinberg ?EM> LadyBug by Paul Vigil ?EM> Levent? Super Salt Pour Gimmick ?EM> Digital Graffiti: the Sleight of Hand of David Peck DVD ?EM> Brainstorm in My Pajamas  by Ronald J. Dayton and Kotah ?EM> Talk About Tricks DVDs by Joshua Jay ?EM> Stuck! DVD by Greg Rostami
Harry Houdini to Fredrick Powell This month? letter reminded us that the act of passing history down from one generation to the next is not a new practice. What is surprising is that, in this letter, Houdini is not the teacher; he is the student. By 1918, Harry Houdini had reached the pinnacle of success in his chosen field, and his fame extended around the globe. His dream was to one day write the complete history of magic, and a large part of his research involved corresponding with magicians from earlier generations. Fredrick Eugene Powell was a rich source of first-hand information about the great magicians of the late 19th century. The letter reproduced here is but one installment from a series of letters. Here then are the questions that were foremost on Houdini? mind some 89 years ago.
This month, Josh Jay features four original pieces from Christian Chelman? repertoire. Each one shows a slightly different side of Chelman? work. Among magicians, he is known for his bizarre magick presentations. But he? also a busy professional and performs commercial magic ?even gambling material ?for his lay audiences. More often than not, he mixes intricate, bizarre presentations with more conventional styles.
Tweens, children nine to thirteen years old, are the most difficult age group to perform magic for. No matter what you show them, they don? suspend their disbelief. And they won? let you get away with anything. They must prove to you and to their friends that they know how you do all your tricks. But tweens have an Achilles heal. If you tell them a strange story, one that is nearly believable, and then prove it using magic, they will believe you. Maybe not 100% belief, but certainly enough to give them pause. As an example of this, David Kaye shares a routine from Terry Parrett, which involves a scary story of voodoo and telepathy.
The premise for this month? offering from David Starr is Squisher, which is based on the classic ?ringer?effects and their variations that have been a staple in magic for many years. David has always liked the thought of a ?uman wringer,?and eventually came up with this very visual and fun approach.
Monsieur Bloom offers two tricks this month. In the first, you roll up your sleeves and show a cigar. ? have a good way to stop smoking in three seconds,?/EM> you say, then point to your empty wrists. ?? sorry. I had to sell my watch to buy my last cigar, but you can time me, because it won? take more than three seconds.?/EM> In a single movement, the cigar is gone. ?nd as I told you,?/EM> you say, ?t didn? take more than three seconds.?/EM> You point to your left wrist and the audience now realizes that a watch has appeared there. For the second effect, imagine you are at the bar with some friends and spot a glass filled with straws. You ask someone to choose a straw and have him sign it on the paper wrapper or on the straw itself. The straw is returned to and mixed in with the other straws. The glass is placed on the bar, and very slowly a straw rises out of the glass. It? the signed straw. You undoubtedly recognized one of the oldest tricks in the book, the wand in the bottle. But, if you do this version, no one will think of the old one. The objects are items logically present at the bar, and everything can be examined. Two tricks for the price of one this month.
October marks the end of the Fingers?third series of columns, and what better way to end this fun project than with a collaboration of two Finger-fellows. Thomas Fraps and Helge Thun explain how to turn a deck of cards into an instant camera and visually develop a picture of a selected card. The ?icture?is given to the spectator as a souvenir along with, hopefully, a nice memory. In ?licking Failures,?Thomas tells two amusing stories about tricks that went wrong and the lessons he learned.
Diagnosis: Overdose. A condition in which the magician does not know when or how to end his performance. The audience participant is overwhelmed by having to experience too much magical stimulation. This often occurs in the form of under-rehearsed routines or technically inferior performances. This can lead to the audience mentally checking out and the performer having delusions of grandeur.
Any competent performer can hide secret actions in one way or another, but Tommy Wonder had the ability and dedication to even eliminate any sense of hiding. Watching him perform, one didn? even get a ?re-conscious?sense of secret things or funny movements. This is extremely subtle, but the effect was astonishing. How did he do it? I believe this effect came from Tommy? intentional application of two principles: that (1) every action in a piece should be well-motivated, and (2) the audience? attention should be directed at every moment.
As a magician, you hold a special power. Provided that you have practiced and rehearsed good material that entertains an audience, you hold the power to brighten the day of just about any person in the world with something unique and fun, at a moment? notice. How many other professions or hobbies hold that power? I can think of very few. And like anyone who holds power, you have to use it wisely. We could all use a little check-up every now and then, so here are a few ways to make sure that, like any responsible superhero, we?e using our power only for good.

Quantity: