Sunday, December 27, 2009

JC Wagner Fundraiser

When: Sunday, January 10, 2010; 2-5 PM
Where: Mc P's Irish Pub http://www.mcpspub.com/welcome.htm

What: JC Wagner is undergoing treatment for colon cancer and chemotherapy co-payments are very expensive. Many magicians will be joining JC at Mc P's for an afternoon of fun and magic. Even Bob Sheets is flying in for this (and flying out immediately afterwards). Mc P's is also located in Coronado, not too far from JC's Little Club.

Need more info? Contact me at magicdoc@sprainedangles.com

Friday, December 25, 2009

Heard from Magic Newswire: Ron Jaxon is starting to hear after 20 years

DEAF MAGICIAN DISCOVERING THE MAGIC OF HEARING!

Deaf Magician Ron Jaxon just had coclear implants activated which will help him to begin to hear again after 20 years of deafness. I was quite honored by the content of a message from Ron to me which I'll share here:

I just got turned on a few hours ago and it's very exciting. Nothing sounds right yet because I can't tell what I'm hearing. But I am hearing things. Voices sounds like "Squawk Squawk" right now. I'm kind of in a training stage right now where I'm suppose to keep turning it up to kind of challenge myself yet never go loud enough where it's uncomfortable. So everything is going to sound strange to me for a while until my brain learns to distinguish sounds again.

Speech is a little down the road but it's coming. I really don't know how long it'll take to be able to understand speech or how far I'll go with it. Some people like me go on to understanding 80% to 90% of speech (Which is more then most people can understand. Especially married people. LOL). But on the other hand there are others like me who can only reach the ability to understand maybe 20% is speech. So I really don't know how far I'll go in that but I do know that I'll be able to "Hear" voices because I've only been "Bionic" for about 3 hours now and I can already hear them.

One of the things I look forward to if I can hear again is to listen to the interviews on your site. In fact I've been doing research and talking to other people who have had the implant that I might be getting and they told me that I'll have to do some "home work" if I get the implant. My homework will be to listen to things. My brain will have to relearn to hear and recognize sounds. This includes voices.

It's kind a strange things but they say that it's not uncommon for someone to be able to hear a voice but not really be able to understand what the voice is saying at first. Anyway, I figure I'll use the interviews on your site as part of my "home work" to help learn to recognize speech again. I might as well do it with a subject I enjoy. It's an exciting thought.

Just thought I'd share that with you.
Obviously, I wish Ron all of the best in his recovery and cannot express how thrilled I am that my little magic project might help him in some way!

Sunday, December 6, 2009

From iTricks: Magician Uses Sleight Of Hand To Rob Britain’s Got Talent Producer During Audition


skitched-20091202-105748.jpg

During local auditions for the upcoming season of Britain’s Got Talent, a magician in Glasgow decided to make a £10 bill disappear and reappear. Not bad, right? The real kicker came after he left, when a show producer realized he had actually made off with her purse including £90.

According to MyParkMag.co.uk the cops were alerted but since the magician gave a fake name during the auditions, the victim doesn’t have much hope to get the money back.

Talk about leaving your audience wanting more.

Friday, December 4, 2009

Riviera's Ex-Magician from Topless Magic Show Gets Arrested

Scarlett Arrested For Alleged Domestic Abuse Of 67-Year-Old Boyfriend

Posted by Editor on December 4th, 2009

skitched-20091204-004753.jpg

This from the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

A 21-year-old woman who had a magic show at the Riviera this year was arrested for assaulting her 67-year-old boyfriend last week.

Rachel Jessee, who starred in “Scarlett and her Seductive Ladies of Magic,” was arrested today by Henderson police on one count of misdemeanor domestic battery.

Her arrest report states that she and her live-in boyfriend, John Lewis, had an argument at their Henderson home. Lewis told police she grabbed him by the ear and struck him with a fist in his right eye. Police said that Lewis was bleeding from behind his ears and had a scratch to the back of his neck. He also had swelling under his right eye, a bite mark to his left tricep and scratches to his chest. He refused medical assistance.

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Magic-Con Special Guest of Honor has been announed


Juan TamarizGuest of Honor: Juan Tamariz
Referred to by many as the best magician alive, Juan Tamariz is a living legend who represents a body of work admired and studied worldwide.

Sunday, November 29, 2009

Found iTricks blog: Magic Week Postponed

Late Late Show’s Magic Week Postponed

Posted by Editor on November 26th, 2009

According to Magic Magazine, the 2009 edition of the Late Late Show’s “Magic Week” has been postponed. A production schedule is being blamed for the delay which will push the week of magic guests back to February.

Lance Burton, Jason Hudy and Ed Alonzo are returning with one act making their Magic Week debut. Neil Patrick Harris will again provide introductions.

Find the full line-up in the latest edition of Magic Magazine, the one with Andrew Mayne on the cover.

Monday, November 16, 2009

From the Magic-Con.org Blog: 2010 Special Guest of Honor Introduction by Dave Buck

2010 Special Guest of Honor Introduction by Dave Buck

Popout

In this video, Dave Buck talks briefly about Magic-Con 2010’s Special Guest of Honor. Although his identity hasn’t been revealed, Dave does say, “He is one of the most universally respected performers, thinkers and creators of magic,” and that “You won’t want to miss the opportunity to see a true master and one of magic’s living legends.”

On December 1st, we will proudly announce Magic-Con 2010’s Special Guest of Honor.

Monday, November 9, 2009

tommEE pickles will be performing for a stellar event

THE BORNSTEINS VARIETY SHOW

COMEDY, MAGIC, MIND READING & MORE
Type:
Network:
Global
Date:
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Time:
6:00pm - 7:30pm
Location:
Jon Lovitz Comedy Club - Universal Studios City Walk
Street:
1000 Universal Studios Blvd
City/Town:
Universal City, CA

Description

An ALL-STAR variety show featuring different acts every month.

The Bornstein's fill an evening with Comedy, Magic and Mind-Reading!

COMEDY MAGICIAN - Joe Monti
COMEDIAN, ACTOR & MUSICIAN - Kenny Bob Davis
THE BORNSTEIN EXPERIMENT - She Reads Men's Minds and It's HILARIOUS what their thinking!

** Close-up Magician on the walk - Tommee Pickles

Where: The Jon Lovitz Comedy Club
Address: Universal City Walk, (The Old BB KING venue)
Show Time: 6:00 Pm - 7:30 PM
Recession Special: $0.0 (6PM show only)

The Jon Lovitz Comedy Club has a full dinner menu and bar.

www.sherea
dsmensminds.com

Sunday, November 8, 2009

tommEE pickles performs magic at Corky's Choice Series

Host:
Type:
Network:
Global
Date:
Monday, November 9, 2009
Time:
8:00pm - 11:00pm
Location:
Hyperion Tavern - 1941 Hyperion Ave Los Angeles, CA 90027-4746

Description

Reverend Charles "Corky" Baines, veteran Garage Comedy
roadie for SIX years (witnessed approx 3,500 comedy acts) has been racking his brain to remember all of his favorite acts.

This week November 9th The Corky's Choice Series:
Tarter Control
Tommee Pickles
Murdered Man
J.C. Coccoli

FREE 8:30pm @ Hyperion Tavern - 1941 Hyperion Ave LA CA 90027

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

BROKEN WAND :: CARL BALLANTINE

Sad news to report is the passing of Carl Ballantine who passed away in his sleep at the age of 92. As "Ballantine the Great" or "The Amazing Ballantine" Carl's vaudeville-style routine involved transparent or incompetent stage magic tricks, which tend to flop to the wisecracking Ballantine's mock chagrin.In his early career, Meyer Kessler did a straight manipulation act but gave up "real magic" when he realized he could not be as good as some of his peers. He changed his name to Ballantine early on after he noticed a bottle of Ballantine whisky in an advertisement and decided that the name of his magic act was to be "Ballantine, the World's Greatest Magician". He proved successful enough that he became the first magician to headline in Las Vegas. The general public will likely remember Ballentine as Lester Gruber, one of the PT boat sailors in the television series McHale's Navy (1962-66). Ballantine was the husband of actress Ceil Cabot (8 March 1927, USA - 24 January 2000) and is the father of actress Sara Ballantine.

Last time I saw Carl Ballentine was at the 41st Annual AMA Awards.

tommEE pickles performs magic at the Bar Show Saturday

tommEE pickles performs magic at the Bar Show

Host:
Type:
Network:
Global
Start Time:
Saturday, November 7, 2009 at 10:00pm
End Time:
Sunday, November 8, 2009 at 11:55pm
Location:
Magicopolis, 1418 4th St Santa Monica, CA 90401

Description

Every Saturday night at 10:00 pm in the Magicopolis Bar, two comedians and one magician perform behind the bar. There's no cover charge, there's no drink minimum, just one extremely wild ride. Hosted by the comedian, magician, and bartender Erik Tait, there is no show in the world like this.

Photos

Displaying 3 photosAdd Photos|See All


Monday, October 26, 2009

It's here, Hollween at the Magic Castle



It's Here

The Magic Castle & Roy Johns
Presents
Phantasmagoria
Revenge of the Living Dolls

October 26th through November 1st, 2009

Special Event Door Charge







The FreakShow Deluxe

in

The Inner Circle

Monday, October 26th through Thursday, October, 29th
8pm to Midnight


The Magic Castle
presents


Gris Grimly’s
Cabaret Macabre

8pm to 1:30am
October 30th through November 1st
in the Inner Circle

Much like a traditional Cabaret, Cabaret Macabre will feature comedy, music, theatre, burlesque and art among a spooky crowd. Here's a taste what you can expect...

LIVE BAND PERFORMANCES BY CREATURE FEATURE

Comprised of the vicious vampiric vocalist Curtis RX and the ghoulishly fiendish organ master Erik X, the California native horror attraction Creature feature is set to take the underworld by storm. Creating a haunting mix of vintage horror visuals, old school beats, a carnival feel and a strangely rebellious approach to the modern ideals, the two monstrous musicians weave tales of the macabre, creating anthems for the horror minded and horror born alike.

I'm happy to have Creature Feature a part of Cabaret Macabre as the (haunted)house band. They are sure to carry us through the night. If they wont have us feeling safe in wonderland, they will be scaring us into a new pair of trousers.

LIVE BAND PERFORMANCES BY THE VOODOO ORGANIST

For the past seven years, the Voodoo Organist has been spreading his gospel of salvation through sin all over the country. Hard to categorize, yet instantly recognizable, he plays everything from industrial waltzes to drunken mambos; garage punk gospel rave ups to swinging exotic demonic blues. The Voodoo Organist will steer your conga line straight to hell, and you'll be dancing like the devil the whole way down.

OPERATIC SOUNDS BY ASHLEY KNIGHT

Soprano Ashley Knight has earned distinction in wildly varied contexts, from the traditional opera stage to the underground music scene. Ms. Knight is passionately devoted to dusting the cobwebs off of the operatic art form and making it compelling to the opera fan and the uninitiated alike. Supported by highly imaginative visual elements, skilled acting, and a taste for the unexpected, she is creating a world of great beauty and surprising depth.

BURLESQUE BY VICTORIA VENGEANCE

Known for stealing hearts and eating brains, Victoria Vengeance is sure to lure you in with her over-the-top set pieces and performances-a fusion of traditional striptease and dynamic theatrical-style. Victoria has given the burlesque community something to rave about. For this show, she brings us her penny arcade fortune telling madam act, which I promise will unhinge your jawbone and knock it off your skull. Not for the squeamish or the lovesick.

Your host Mistress Avalon will guide you through a time warp where ghouls are the hired hands and marionettes come to life. Have a howling good time, but try to avoid running into the dangerous hornswoggling ghouls, Gorp and Malick. In between changing sets and beating the crypt out of each other, they are known to hoodwink guests out of money, jewelry and even their pants. Spooky music will go bump in the night thanks to DJ Josh Schneider (Friday) and DJ Dave Bats (Saturday-Sunday).


The Magic Castle Annual
Costume Contest

Friday, October 30th and Saturday, October 31st
11pm
in the Inner Circle

$10,000
in Prizes

Prizes for
Most Magical
Funniest
Scariest
Best Couple or Group
What the Hell is it?
Homemade
Most Popular

Special Guest Judge

Friday, October 30th

Tippi Hedren

Star of
Alfred Hitchcock’s “The Birds”


Magic Magazine November


MAGIC Magazine November 2009 CoverI am so excited for the next issue of Magic Magazine. On the cover is one of the magicians I am inspired by, Rune Klan. One of my favorite routines that I perform all the time is something that was taught by him.

The next month's magazine has coverage of the World Magic Awards that filmed a couple weeks ago. The World Magic Awards will be airing in November.

Lastly, there is a article about the Las Vegas magician Scott Hitchcock. I have met Scott a couple of times because he hangs out with the guys from Street of Cards.


Friday, October 23, 2009

Magic Newswire reports: ED ALONZO WINS THIRD WMA AWARD

ED ALONZO WINS THIRD WMA AWARD!

This is Ed'S third award from World Magic Awards, this year in the category of Best Variety Magician. Ed was also one of the featured performers during the taping for the show hick will air in November. Pictured with Ed are his assistants, Chris Mitchell & Jenna Jarvinen. Ed also let us know that he is preparing to take part in a "cool Documentary about Magic." He's still on tour with Britney Spears and they're headed of to Australia next month but is currently performing weekends at Great Americas Halloween Haunt, a cool comedy magic and production show called "Psycho Circus of Magic and Mayhem". (through October 31st.)

Criss Angel to escape from Mexican Prison?

CRISS ANGEL ARRESTED IN MEXICO?

If you've been following Criss Angel's Twitter account, you know that he's vacationing in Mexico with his family. Using photos, videos and text, he has been sharing the experience with his fans. Angel's two most recent posts are raising eyebrows and making people wonder what he's currently up to. The top picture was posted two hours ago with the text "Cop car following us." One hour later there was a link to the bottom photo which appears to beCriss being taken into custody by Mexican authorities. Is it real, or is the Mindfreak just playing games with everyone's head? Only time will tell! Stay tuned for updates as we get them.

Edit:

IT WAS ALL JUST A MINDFREAK

Criss Angel has since updated his Twitter status to confirm our speculation that his "arrest" in Mexico was in fact a joke. Here's the proof:

Halloween at the Magic Castle

Halloween week at The Magic Castle

Close-Up Gallery . . . Early Shows at 7:00 – 7:45 – 8:30 – 9:15

Rob Zabrecky

Late Shows at 10:00 – 10:45 – 11:30 – 12:15

DeadEye Dick

Parlour of Prestidigitation . . . Early Shows at 7:30 – 8:45 – 9:30

Pop Haydn

Late Shows at 10:30 – 11:30 – 12:00

Georges-Robert

Museum . . .

See Host for Showtimes Andrew Goldenhersh

Palace of Mystery . . .

Shows at 8:30 – 10:00 – 11:15

Phantasmagoria

Inner Circle . . . Monday through Thrus 8pm – Midnight

FreakShow Deluxe

Friday through Sunday 8pm – 1:30am

Gris Grimly’s Cabaret Macabre

Friday and Saturday Costume Contest

$10,000 in Prizes to be given away

Prizes for Most Magical Funniest Scariest Best Couple or Group What the Hell is it? Homemade Most Popular

With Special Guest Judges

Make-up provided by MAC

Friday, October 9, 2009

Christmas Parade

Hollywood Christmas Parade due to be held on Sunday, November 29, 2009, at 6:00 p.m. The Magic Castle will have 15 - 20 strolling magicians to perform along the 3.5 mile route along Hollywood Boulevard and Sunset Boulevard. This event is scheduled to be televised twice in prime time on Thursday, December 10th and Thursday, December 24 on MyNetwork TV (Channel 13).

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

It's Magic - Novenmber 8th

IT'S MAGIC

ALL-STAR LIVE STAGE REVUE
Lance Burton,
Mac King, Rudy Coby,
Joseph Gabriel & Katalin,
Kevin James And Company,
Jorge Blass, Shimada,
WITH Neil Patrick Harris
ONE NIGHT ONLY
SUNDAY NOVEMBER 8
7PM
KODAK THEATRE
HOLLYWOOD & HIGHLAND
www.ticketmaster.com
(800) 745-3000

Monday, September 28, 2009

Seen on iTricks.com

Late Breaking: Scarlett To Close At Riviera Tonight

Posted by Editor on September 28th, 2009
skitched-20090928-192524.jpg

We are getting late-breaking word from Vegas that Scarlett’s AbraCaSexy show at the Riviera is set to close tonight. Rumors first began surfacing on Vegas Auditions.com and has since been confirmed by multiple sources.

The show has received mixed to negative reviews. Scarlett was previously housed at the V Theater with a similar show sans nudity.

More on this as it becomes available…

Future Excitement

I saw just after Halloween, some of my favorite performers will be at the Magic Castle.

November 2 - November 8
PALACE OF MYSTERY
Gregory Wilson
Farrell Dillon

Saturday, September 26, 2009

The Bar Show

tommEE pickles is unleashed again to perform some magic
Host:
Type:
Network:
Global
Start Time:
Saturday, September 26, 2009 at 9:30pm
End Time:
Sunday, September 27, 2009 at 12:30am
Location:
Magicopolis
Street:
1418 Fourth Street
City/Town:
Santa Monica, CA





Description

Every Saturday night at 10:00 pm in the Magicopolis Bar, two comedians and one magician perform behind the bar. There's no cover charge, there's no drink minimum, just one extremely wild ride. Hosted by the comedian, magician, and bartender Erik Tait, there is no show in the world like this.






Thursday, September 17, 2009

Ooh and it's football season too. Time to create magic.

Magic Wand Remote!

    wand-remote

The buttonless Kymera Magic Wand universal remote

Check out the website. The pages look like pages from an ancient tome, complete with hand-drawn illustrations and crinkly, yellowing paper.

The wand itself is a simple stick. It’s a stick containing an infrared LED. In practice mode, you can try out any of the 13 gestures and the wand will vibrate and pulse a coded pattern to let you know which one. When you are ready to do some serious magic (change channels), the wand learns simply by performing a gesture and beaming a boring, modern-day remote at its tip. Change channel by flipping left or right, for example, or increase the volume with a quick clockwise twirl.

The wand will be available on October 1st for £50, or $83, batteries included.

http://thewandcompany.com/index.html

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

My friend Erik Tait and his fantastic comedy and magic show.

The Bar Show! Back From The Castle

Comedy and magic so close you can kill it!
Host:
Type:
Network:
Global
Price:
Free!
Start Time:
Saturday, September 12, 2009 at 10:00pm
End Time:
Sunday, September 13, 2009 at 1:00am
Location:
Magicopolis
Street:
1418 4th St.
City/Town:
Santa Monica, CA
Phone:
8052089452
Email: