211: Nick Lewin - A Brit Under the Brim

British born Nick Lewin has been in America for over 40 years but only recently found his way to the great state of Texas where he and his wife, Susan, reside in the state's capital city of Austin. Most of you know Nick as a regular contributor to Alan Watson's "New Zealand eZine" and as the co-editor for the fantastic, FREE digital magazine for magicians, "Vanish". But you may not know that he was the first afternoon show in Las Vegas performing two shows for six days a week for five years at the Maxxim Hotel & Casino. When he left, Mac King took his spot as Nick moved on. Nick has been, and remains. a popular cruise ship entertainer. He even wrote a book on the subject entitled, "Cruise Magic 101".

Nick's mentor and friend was Billy McComb from whom he learned a lot. He was also influenced by Maurice Fogel and Ken Brooke. After moving to Los Angeles in the 1970's and settling near the Magic Castle, he continued to learn from and befriend many of the magical "luminati".

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Nick recently traveled a short four hour drive to Houston where he lectured to our local magic group and spent some time behind the microphone to chat about his life. Nick shares tons of interesting stories right from the start of our conversation including funny memories with Maurice Fogel, Billy McComb and more. He also talks about his early years in Las Vegas, working cruise ships, hanging out at the Magic Castle with Dai Vernon, Charlie Miller, and more. If you enjoy stories about the "old guys" and the "old days", then you will enjoy this look back at some of our magic history. Plus he gives us some performing tips along the way that are well worth the price of this podcast.

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Join us for another episode as a few magicians dine and chat. There is a little magic talked about in this episode, a little...okay, very little. Just another boring dinner with David Stone and Martin Cox and a few local Houston magicians.

141: Marc Salem - Piece of Mind

Star of stage and screen (well, small screen...television), Marc Salem stopped by for an extended chat about mentalism, world travel, building a show and the structure of a show, theatre work, celebrities he has worked with and known, and more. In particular, he shares some stories about his appearance on the TV show, 60 Minutes, stories from the stage perspective, stories about Uri Geller and more. This was an interesting conversation in that we seem to be "all over the board". It was difficult to keep a focus and get direct answers despite redirecting. It was kind of like trying to nail Jell-o to to the wall.

One of the interesting analogies he draws are the three types of spacial displacement: human years, dog years and entertainment years. He also talks about the dangers of making predictions, making meaning of our magic and lives, using psychology, how to get publicity, The 13 (secret mentalism New York group), and so much more.

Marc was low-key in promoting his book to the point of not even mentioning its title in this podcast. For the record, his book is "The Six Keys to Unlock and Empower Your Mind: Spot Liars & Cheats, Negotiate Any Deal to Your Advantage, Win at the Office, Influence Friends, & Much More". Whew! With a long title like that, it's no wonder that he didn't mention it in order to keep the podcast short. :) But for those who are interested, you can find it on Amazon. Just Click Here for more information on Amazon and to see an excerpt from the book.

If you are interested in hearing more from Marc or you have any questions about anything he mentioned during our chat, then please drop him a note via email to masalem@aol.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 (or is it "Mentalism") & Martinis' Thursday

119: David Oliver Breathes Easier

During one of my podcasts from 2011, I asked David Oliver (DO) for his "Magic Word". He said, "Believe". This has never been a more prescient and important word for living his life. And it is a good word and good advice for us, too. He lives what he "believes".

DO has been a champion for teaching magic to our next generation of magicians. He is an excellent performer who is highly respected in his field and traveled the globe performing and helping youth learn magic. Three years ago when he was diagnosed with a rare lung infection known as Hypersensitivity Pneumonitis, or Bird Fancier Lung, which was caused by his doves, his health outlook was grave. The only treatment was a double lung replacement. On June 28th, a stranger's life ended but it gave David two new lungs and another chance at life so he can continue to DO magic.

His surgery is over but now is the time for him to rebuild his body and his life. After being hospitalized for so long, his muscle mass has atrophied and he has not performed before a live audience for well over a year. He is anxious to move forward and get back on stage as he continues to counsel youth on our art.

David Oliver is a Boston-area magician. More than just a talented magician, for more than twenty-five years, David Oliver has mentored, directed, and taught many of today's finest young magicians from around the globe. In an effort to assist their friend in dealing with mounting medical bills, many stars of magic have joined together to DO magic...

For the first time in 11 months, David hopes to attend his first magic convention this weekend, October 4-5, the Magicians' Alliance of Eastern States (M.A.E.S.). He had a little time to chat with me about his health, how things are going, and his future plans. We also talked about advice for those new to magic whether they are young  or old. We chatted about magic conventions, too, but the one thing that David wanted to emphasize was his deep and sincere appreciation to the thousands of people who have supported him with their thoughts, prayers and finances during this most difficult time.

David is far from being "out of the woods" as he tries to rebuild his life and finances. He has not performed for well over a year but still tries to give instructions via Skype to students around the world. If you are interested in talking with David or becoming a student, then you can contact him at DOmagic@DavidOliverMagic.com or you can find him on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/domagic?fref=ts

There are various ways you can financially contribute to David Oliver's medical fund. You can visit the "DO Magic for David Oliver" Benefit Fundraising Page at http://domagic4davidoliver.blogspot.com/ which has a link for donating with your credit card through PayPal (you do not have to have a PayPal account to donate). Another page is DO Breathe Easy at http://www.youcaring.com/medical-fundraiser/do-breathe-easy/35262 which is an online fundraising site. One hundred percent of your donations go directly to David. Please help if you can.

If you would like to send him a Get Well card or other well wishes, then you can reach him by regular mail at: David Oliver, 141 Audubon Road, Weymouth, MA 02188

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Magic & Martinis Thursday

Since David can no longer consume alcohol, we will toast to his good health with something less...well, alcoholic.  A Coca Cola, not diet or sugar-free. Cheers! Here's to your good health, David. Let's DO Magic!