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.

Greg Bordner wishes everyone a Happy Holiday from the showroom of Abbott's Magic Company.

Greg Bordner gives an after hours tour of the Abbotts Magic Factory. See where the magic begins before making it to the shelf!

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/

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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.

Karrell Fox gives a friendly tribute to his old friend Duke Stern in the Colon Cemetery. Also seen in this 1993 video is Bibik and Al the Only..

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!

062: Abbott's Get Together Day 4 - 2012

Just before the final evening show, we got an inside wrap up the 75th Get-Together with owner and organizer, Greg Bordner. The information for next year's Get-Together is already posted at: http://magicgettogether.com/ Following the show and the awards presentation at the elementary school, the group continued the reverie in the village.

I caught up with Stan Allen who talked about this Get-Together, MAGIC Live! and the Essential Magic Conference. We recorded this chat with Stan outside the Legion Hall in hopes that it would be much quieter. Indeed it was; however, the wind picked up and there is some wind noise in this part of the podcast. Please forgive the poor quality of the recording of this chat, but I decided to leave it in because of the quality of the discussion. For dates, registration and more information on MAGIC Live!, visit: http://www.magicmagazine.com/live/

Before we called it a night, I talked with Al the Only and Don Wiberg who together gave a nice wrap and overview of the entire convention. Then just before we signed off, Dana Daniels came out of the Legion Hall so we got to chat with him about him winning the Senator Clark Crandall Comedy Award for Excellence, his "No Show Show" and his future. For information on booking Dana, you can find more information at: http://danadaniels.com/Dana_Daniels.html

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058: Abbott's Get Together Day 0 - 2012

It was a bright, cheerful sunny day as I arrived in Colon, Michigan for the 75th annual Abbott's Get Together. After checking in at the motel in nearby Sturgis (there are no motels in Colon), I traveled to "Blackstone Island" where I had been invited to a little "night before" party hosted by David Seebach. Among the guests, I had a chance to visit with Adele Friel Rhindress, perhaps better known as the woman who was the "Elusive Moth" in Blackstone's famous illusion. She traveled with the Blackstone show for the last two seasons. I found it interesting that she had not returned to this idyllic spot since 1948, nearly 65 years ago.

I also had a short chat with the owner of Abbott's Magic Factory and organizer of the Get Together, Greg Bordner. And of course we talked with our host for the evening, David Seebach.

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