Ricky Jay’s Nightmare
The magician/actor is stuck in an elevator with two party girls, and he’s not happy about it…
Doug Henning
After I mentioned magician Doug Henning briefly on this blog yesterday, reader Frank Gresh e-mailed to say that he never saw Henning’s Tony-award winning “Magic Show” on Broadway (as I did), but he remembers seeing a primetime special Henning did in the early 80s. That show was one of eight annual broadcasts the magician starred […]
Randi Amazes Barbara
Of all the people James Randi has debunked over the years, his number one nemesis has always been Uri Geller. In 1975, Randi wrote “The Truth About Uri Geller,” in which he provided evidence that Geller was a fraud who used simple magic tricks, not the power of his mind, to bend metal objects and […]
Vegas Magic
Because I’ve been going to Las Vegas several times a year for many years, I get asked by friends who are going there, especially for the first time, whether there are any shows worth seeing. I have three shows I usually recommend, all featuring terrific magicians, appropriate for all ages. In no particular order they […]
The Importance of Empathy
My friend Jamy Ian Swiss, one of the best sleight-of-hand magicians in the world, explains why empathy is one of the necessary job skills — and not just for people in his line of work — in this presentation from the 2009 GEL (Good Experience Live) Conference…
The Great Ballantine
Mark Evanier has written a nice obit for his friend Carl Ballantine, the comedy magician/actor who has died at age 92. Ballantine’s magic was bad on purpose and jam-packed with funny lines. I’ve seen it countless times and it always put a smile on my face. Unfortunately, there’s no great video of Ballantine onstage, so […]