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132: The Night Before Christmas

During this year's MINDvention in Las Vegas, several of the attendees agreed to read the Clement Clarke Moore classic poem, "The Night Before Christmas". It was a fun project that includes voices that many magicians will instantly recognize and others you may have to play back a second or third time to believe who it is. This is a short podcast but offered with good wishes for you to enjoy the best of the holiday season.

Download this podcast in an MP3 file by Clicking Here and then right click to save the file. You can also subscribe to the RSS feed by Clicking Here. (please note: this RSS Feed subscription system may not work with Android systems). Remember, you can download it through iTunes. See the preview page by Clicking Here.

Magic & Martinis Thursday

On Stan, on Docc, on Kerry and Banachek. On Jeff, on Chad, on Lupe, Bob and Paul(s). Cheers, one and all and to all a good night!

Simon Lovell in "Strange and Unusual Hobbies"

131: Simon Lovell - A Ferret's Broken Femur

In early November, Simon Lovell took a fall that landed him in the hospital with a severely broken leg (femur broken in three places). Many have wondered about his status, how it happened and how he is doing. Here you can hear it from the ferret's mouth himself. And beyond just a health update, Simon talks about creativity in magic, the importance of hard cover books versus e-books, his latest book projects, his work on the USA Network's popular TV show, "White Collar" plus other projects where he will have acting roles, his work with Kozmo and "Reel Magic", and so, so much more.

You can hear more of Simon on Reel Magic by subscribing to Kozmo's bi-monthly video magazine. Visit the website at http://www.reelmagicmagazine.com/

There are so many topics and side trips we take on this podcast that it's difficult to give you time stamps for all the fascinating areas we covered; however, if you are most interested in hearing about Simon's recent injury, then you can skip to 00:37:47.

Simon would appreciate hearing from you with your good wishes for his speedy recovery. He has returned home from the hospital but your email will help bring him some cheer during his long rehabilitation period. You can drop him an email at Simon@SimonLovell.com

Download this podcast in an MP3 file by Clicking Here and then right click to save the file. You can also subscribe to the RSS feed by Clicking Here (please note: this RSS Feed subscription system may not work with Android systems). Remember, you can download it through iTunes. See the preview page by Clicking Here.

Magic & Martinis Thursday

Here's to you, Simey. We all hope to see you "back in the pink" soon. Cheers!

Holiday "spirits" - magic themed nutcrackers and martinis

Colon, Michigan - The Magic Capital of the World

130: Greg Bordner - Las Vegas Comes to Mayberry

The Andy Griffith Show aired on TV in the 1960's set in the fictional rural town of Mayberry, South Carolina, a friendly, close-knit community that clung to the 1930's...a time gone by. Colon, Michigan is not dissimilar in that it has a rich tradition where many come back to relax and to enjoy a simpler time.

With a population of 1,161 people and one flashing traffic light, Colon nearly doubles in size each year for the annual Get Together as magicians from around the world convene to enjoy each others' company and share magic. It is truly a "Brigadoon" type of event that has the entire community turning out to celebrate the craft of magic then disappears afterwards with no trace that anything ever happened.

Magic is a big house with many rooms. We have a rich history of magic that is filled with many people contributing to give us the texture that makes up the fabric of our craft. Greg Bordner, proprietor of Abbott's Magic Company, is one of dealers who continues the tradition started 80 years ago in the small village of Colon, Michigan.

Greg Bordner joins me on this podcast to talk about the history of Abbott's Magic Company, the transition of a brick-and-mortar magic shop to a successful online store, popular tricks sold through Abbott's, how Colon, Michigan came into being starting with Harry Blackstone, Sr., the many magicians who have moved to Colon, what there is to do in and around the Get Together (i.e. garage sales, Amish dinners, Curly's close-up contest, American Museum of Magic, Colon Museum) and so much more.

This is an interesting chat with some funny stories along the way about Blackstone, Sr. and others. For more information on Abbott's Magic Company, the annual Get Together or the Close-Up Convention, visit their website at: http://AbbottMagic.com/

Download this podcast in an MP3 file by Clicking Here and then right click to save the file. You can also subscribe to the RSS feed by Clicking Here.

As mentioned in the chat, many magicians are buried in the Colon cemetery. Thanks to Al the Only, here is an alphabetical list of those buried there (as of this writing):

Don Alan, Arthur Glen Babbs "Arturo", Bill Baird, Jack Barrows, Harry Blackstone Jr., Harry Blackstone Sr., John Nicholls Booth, Recil Bordner, Peter Bouton, Jerry Conklin, Shirley Conklin, Ted Coppin "Ted Banks", Della Coppin "Sally Banks", Ricki Dunn, Vince Fabek "Quincy the Clown", Karrell Fox, Anne Gwynne, Jack Gwynne, Kenneth Husted "Roy Huston", "Little Johnny" Jones, Skippy Lamore, Elaine Lund, Robert Lund, Fred R. Merrill, Hank Moorehouse, Jack Rench, Duke Stern, Marx Edward Straw, Jesse Thornton, Donald "Monk" Watson. You can learn more about each of these past magicians and see their grave sites by Clicking Here.

Magic & Martinis Thursday

Well, 'tis the season and everyone is working and partying hard. Our tree is appropriately festive with the right mix of...well, Magic & Martinis, what else? Cheers!