My general feelings about the Cafe’ are probably best expressed graphically: 

There was a time I checked into their hallowed hallways at least once a day, but over time I grew weary of that pompous ass Brooks (and that’s a LOT of pomposity) and the generally sour mood that permeated the groups. I now stop by on most weekends and browse a little, but that’s it. I no longer post – actually I can’t since I am banned – just read a few areas.

His attempt to create internal blogs, called The Buffet, has been, to put it kindly, a disaster. As I write this, Paul Chosse hasn’t posted since August, Brooks and Curtis Kam haven’t posted since early November. Even Bill Palmer hasn’t posted in over a week, which is a lifetime for him.

In January of this year Brooks added:

Magic Friday by Jamie D. Grant
Every Friday a trick will be taken out into the real world – Read here for a complete review.

I don’t know Jamie Grant, but I do know you’ll find some of the best reviews I’ve seen in a long time in his column. Not only are his reviews spot on, but his choice of material is excellent. Tricks like:

• Ringer
• Signed Torn and Restored Post-It Note
• Torn and Restored Transpo
• Hundy 500
• Ultimate Three Card Monte

as well as others are covered and covered well.

Jamie, at least publicly, seems to have not caught the superiority virus that seems to afflict most of the staff. I hope that continues. It’s damn refreshing.

If you can stand the stench that is the Cafe’, I highly recommend this diamond in a pile of insufferable manure.

Take care………

A thought on mentalism:

It seems like we are seeing more and more mentalism effects. I think there are two reasons for this:

• 1. The effects appear to be easier to do than straight magic.
• 2. It’s easier to sell to today’s audiences.

Each of these could be the basis for a long article and we may well explore them another time, but today I want to talk about prediction tricks. You know, some pretender pulls out an envelope and says I have a prediction here and the rest of the routine is take up proving the prediction is correct. I don’t know about you, but both of my cheeks have fallen asleep by the time it’s over. Avoid the simple prediction. A layman is not some simpleton, incapable of rational thought. They know where you are going and the mystery is nonexistent.

I realize that most mental effects could be considered a prediction, but delay that fact as long as possible and you’ll get a much better response from your audience. I guarantee it!

Take care……… 
 

Things and people I actually like

I know this area is reserved for my personal bitch sessions, but there are a number of things in magic I do like – some of them a lot. It’s just that it’s easier to get passionate about ignorant fuckers like George F. Bush or congenital douche bags like Mario and Paul than it is to appreciate the good things we all have around us. For better or worse, here are the some good things that come to mind:

Tim Ellis and his blog, Magic Unlimited with Ellis & Webster –  I admire his energy and his honesty. His “fakers” page is must reading. I ALSO highly recommend his DVDs – even if you don’t learn anything (and you will), they are incredibly entertaining.

Glenn Bishop – Yeah, I know Glenn can be frustrating, at times, with his vanishing and re-appearing blogs, and he’s more than a little mercurial, but it his passion for what he does that I so greatly admire. I wish he would learn to ignore his critics and concentrate on his friends and fans, but I genuinely understand that is WAY easier to say than to do. Just don’t go away and stay away Glenn – magic needs guys like you.

Dick Osterlind – There are many magic books and DVDs, where I feel like I didn’t get the whole tamale. Kind of like a cook leaving out an essential ingredient in a recipe. It’s OK, but something is missing. I’ve always felt that Dick really tips in is books and on his DVDs. Like anyone that has produced as much as he has in recent years, some stuff is better than others, but it’s always will thought out and meticulously explained. You never feel screwed when you buy his stuff – and that, my friend, is a huge statement.

Jake at RNT2 – Although I consider Jake a friend, I just realized I have no idea what his last name is. If you frequent the magic boards, you know that the whole “collector class” prop business is a giant pissing contest. I long ago, quit trying to determine who’s right and who’s wrong, but I do know, I’ve always been treated well by RNT2. Jake recently had a heart attack, but he’s back at work now and I wish him the best.

Many Magic Clubs – It’s actually pretty darn easy to criticise the local clubs – inept performances, internal politics and the fact that anyone under ager 65 sits at the kiddie table. If the truth be know, it is these people that really support this hobby and the businesses trying to make a living from magic. They are there for any magic related events in the area and if you’re willing to look past the few highly visible ass holes, I’ll bet your find some great people to talk to and learn from. Give it a try.

Some of the recent magic books – I think we’ve been really fortunate on some of the recent output:

• Harry Riser’s new book
• John Bannon’s Dear Mr. Fantasy
• The book on Paul Potassy
• The reprints of many of the Kaufman “classics”

Guess I better go drink a bottle of vinegar and get back to my usual sour self. I’m not sure who’s writing this……..

I recently attended a show by a local magician, Dan Sperry, held in a theatre not far from where I live. Dan is a young man with wild spiked hair and very mod clothes. It’s not really my kind of act, but I do try to support any local magic action if at all possible.

Actually, the show wasn’t bad. The audience was about half kids, I would say and even though a lot of his material was more advanced he tried to play solely to the kids. Personally, I think that was a mistake, but it was his call.

Anyway, at some point he called up a kid that I would guess was about nine. The boy was a holy terror. He totally destroyed what should have been one of the highlights of the show – his Miser’s Dream. The kid ran behind the table and was totally uncooperative. A more seasoned performer would have done a quick bit and gotten the little hellion off of the stage. Dan pressed on and on and on. When the bit was over, the kid wouldn’t leave – his mother finally had to come on stage and get him.

My point? I was sitting next to some ass hole the was laughing at everything the kid did. I couldn’t understand. Then I realized it was his old man. Pitiful, just pitiful. I’m always amazed when parents will let their kids be so rude and thoughtless and make things miserable for everyone else.

I’m getting old……

Take care………

Time to award the i/m Disposable Douche Award again

As we’ve mentioned previously, the i/m DD is not given frivolously or lightly. It must be earned by continuously being a pompous jackass – a rude and boorish person, incapable of decent human emotion or compassion. In other words – a world class DICK!

Today’s recipient is a man of unquestioned qualification for this prestigious designation. We are fortunate that he so freely exhibits his dickosity to one and all. I commend to you his latest bit of rancour:

http://geniimagazine.com/forum/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=14;t=006265

Yes friends, Mario Carrandi is our honoree. As one who has dealt with Mario for many years, let me assure you that he is no johnny-come-lately to dickdom. No sirree bob, he’s been a horse’s ass since day one, only improving with age and growing in his chosen craft.

Here’s a tip of our hat and a drop of the trou to you, Mario – i/m’s latest Disposable Douche.

I’ve been going through a magic funk recently, thinking there is absolutely nothing good in magic.

• Clubs are dying.
• New tricks are stale rehashes.
• Damn few decent books.
• The new DVDs S-T-I-N-K
• All but a few performers are lame with a capital L

Out of boredom and nothing else to do, I went to a lecture. After attending the Al Bach lecture recently, I swore off ever going to another one. Just brutal. Anyway, Bob Sheets came through town and am I ever glad I went. It’s been a long time since a left a lecture actually enthused about the material. Material that made me want to go home and try some of the ideas.

Sheets was competent, funny, entertaining and congenial. His work with the shells is legendary and the reputation well deserved. His material shows the result of years of performance honing. He freely gave of his experience and answered all questions thoughtfully and completely.

Thanks, Bob, for putting some energy back in this old magic body!

Take care…..

Cafe Fund Drive……..

I’m surprised the needle moved at all!

I saw this quote attributed to Gustave Flaubert on my son’s wall recently –

Be regular and orderly in your life so that you may be violent and original in your work.

Take care………

Boy, I’m sure glad our government wrote that Anti-Spam Law

Am I just getting less tolerant or has the amount of SPAM precipitously risen recently?

I’m no programmer, but I believe I could write a SPAM filter that could catch these. (Actual emails that made it through my commercial filter):

• Lesbian sisters in hot scenes
• Gay Russian men in action
• Four lenders want to talk with you
• Canadian Pharmacy
• Mexican Pharmacy
• 18 Million Active Members – Real Sex – No Commitment

That’s this morning and these don’t include the ones that dropped the F-Bomb right in the Subject line! ….and with all this great advice, I’m still dirt poor – can’t get any women and my willy still hasn’t reached my knees. Oh well – maybe in the next life.

In a previous post, I mentioned that one of the few things I collect are bound magazines. I try to limit myself to hardbound collections, but in a couple of cases I’ve acquired soft bound when it’s necessary to complete a run. I’m no expert, but here’s what I’ve located thus far. The only thing I don’t have that I know is available are the volumes of Magick, published by Collectors Workshop, I believe. I would be interested to know if anybody knows of additional published items:

• Phoenix
• Jinx
• Richard’s Almanac
• Ibidem & Aziz
• Pallbearers Review
• Epilogue
• The Chronicles
• Apocalypse
• The Jinx
• Kabbala
• Hierophant
• Seance
• Swami / Mantra
• Syzgy
• The Magic Menu
• The Compleat Invocation
• Hugard’s Magic Monthly
• Stanyon’s Magic
• Pabular
• Pentagram

Whew! That’s quite a list. Just eye balling it, I would guess that it’s about five feet of books. Personally, I think you would be hard pressed to get more magic in any other five foot shelf.

The soft bound category would include The Yearbook Reader and The New Phoenix. Both worth having. We’ll look at some of these in greater detail in the coming weeks.

Take care………

These Fuckers Are Driving Me Crazy!!

At my age, it really doesn’t matter, but I worry for my kids. The mess that will be left in the wake of the GII regime will be of such monumental proportions, that I seriously question whether this country will ever recover.

Today, FoMoCo announced the elimination of another 30,000 jobs. The kind of jobs that have driven our economy and were a center point in the rapidly evaporating American Dream. Of course, our government had a comment:

Reacting to news of the job cuts, White House press secretary Scott McClellan said: “Anytime someone loses a job we’re concerned about it, we’re concerned about the community.”

However, McClellan said overall the economy “is going strong.”

Thats right Scott, you ignorant bastard. The economy is great if you want to flip hamburgers or work in your garden. It’s great for illegal immigrants, people, like you, sucking on the public teat and those government protected classes. For the rest of us, it’s in the shitter. Pure and simple. May you all roast in the pits of hell.

This administration has turned the country over to the most corrupt entities in history, the American corporation. Meanwhile, George plays guns. What a fucking disaster.