346: Stan Allen Is Not Mr. Nobody

Even though he is retired from editing the magazine, Stan Allen is far from being relegated to a "nobody" status. He really is somebody to reckon with in the magic community. And he has lots of plans for the future.

Editor of the former MAGIC Magazine (or is it, Former Editor of MAGIC Magazine), Stan Allen, has been a guest on The Magic Word many times, but he is undoubtedly the man who has his "finger on the pulse" of the magic community. He knows everyone in the magic community and was the logical first stop in my "Las Vegas Chronicles". With MAGIC Magazine now a part of our history, his focus is now on planning future MAGIC Live! conventions which he talks about in this podcast.

Stan was the first guest I visited on my trip to Las Vegas as we talked not only about the evolution and demise of MAGIC Magazine, but also about digital magic magazines and where that might go, and he wraps up talking about the future of his MAGIC Live! conventions (now that there is no "bringing MAGIC Magazine to life" to model the convention after) and breaking the mold of the traditional event.

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Special Edition: Las Vegas Chronicles - On the Road with Scott Wells

In this special edition of The Magic Word Podcast, Scott Wells takes you along for a ride (and a few bites along the way) through Las Vegas as he drives from one location to the next where he chats with several of the top magicians, dealers, builders, and magic aficionados in Las Vegas today. This podcast is a sneak preview of what is to come over the next few months as Scott releases podcasts with Stan Allen, Bob Kohler, Fielding West, Gary Darwin, Nathan Burton, Mike Hammer, Jarrett and Raja, Robin Leach, Bill Smith, Richard Faverty, Geno Munari, and Mat Franco.

Be sure to subscribe to The Magic Podcast so you don't miss a single podcast. you will want to hear them all!

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. You can download or listen to the podcast through Stitcher by Clicking Here or through FeedPress by Clicking Here or through Tunein.com by Clicking Here. Remember, you can download it through the iTunes store, too. See the preview page by Clicking Here

345: Marcie Hume Documents Magicians - Life in the Impossible

Marcie Hume, co-director and co-producer of the recently released documentary, "Magicians - Life in the Impossible" visits us this week to talk about her new film. It follows the lives of four magicians over four years: Jon Armstrong, Brian Gillis, Jan Rouven, and David Minkin. After 18 months of editing, it was finally ready. As they say on the website:

MAGICIANS follows four very different professional magicians on stage and off, exploring how and why these characters so passionately dedicate their lives to the artistry and craft of illusion: from the most humbling of road gigs to the grandest performances on the biggest of stages; to finding love to terrible personal loss; and, most dramatically, to the prospect of losing everything for the one constant in their lives: magic.

As we come to understand why each is pursuing his own dream, we’ll discover the greatest secret that has been hidden right before our eyes all along: far more fascinating than the magic are the magicians themselves.

This was just released on Netflix on February 13, 20161 and available in many digital formats for viewing.

Equal parts awe-inspiring and heartbreaking, MAGICIANS captures the world of professional magic and the challenges that come with seeking illusory fame in a business where being sawed in half is the norm. The film follows four magicians on and off stage, exploring why they so passionately dedicate their lives to the craft of illusion.

Uploaded by HotDocsFest on 2016-05-02.

In the first half of our chat, Marcie Hume talks about being a female mentalist, performances, developing her character, overcoming obstacles in a predominantly male performing art, and growing up and deciding to pursue mentalism rather than magic. In the second half of our chat, she discusses the selection process of who was going to be in the film, the way they decided to film the pieces, and a little about what wasn't said in the final cut. One of the things that we touched on but did not go into any detail was the fate of Jan Rouven which you can find here.

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. You can download or listen to the podcast through Stitcher by Clicking Here or through FeedPress by Clicking Here or through Tunein.com by Clicking Here. Remember, you can download it through the iTunes store, too. See the preview page by Clicking Here

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