330: Bob Schulien on "Schulien's" Bar Magic

Schulien's was one of the legendary magic bars in Chicago that thrived throughout most of the 20th century. At the soul of the restaurant was its owner, Matt Schulien. Chicago-style magic was born here where the magic came fast and furious as drinks were served and the motto was "GTFM" (Get The F'ing Money).

In this podcast, Robert "Bob" Schulien, the grandson of Matt Schulien worked at Schulien's under his father who was heir to the bar and who encouraged Bob to perform magic for the patrons. He was told that people came to the bar not only for food and drink but also for the magic. They expected magic and so Bob became the "designated magician by default". Other magicians later came to work and perform at Schulien's (like Al James and Chuck Morris) until it closed on January 27, 1999. There is an excellent article online that tells its history at The Chicago Bar Project.

Bob carries on the tradition of bar magic each week at The Chicago Magic Lounge along with a bevy of prestidigitators who entertain every Thursday and Saturday night. You can listen to a previous episode with the owners/managers that was broadcast #213: Chicago Magic Bars and Lounges

Chicago Magic Lounge quickly became 2015's speakeasy for many professional traveling magicians. Not only to perfom but also relax by enjoying the camaraderie of fellow Chicago magicians, as well as honing their craft. I've been collecting fun behind the scenes video and photos taken over the first year of shenanigans at the CML.

Time stamps for this podcast:

00:04:36 - Bob Schulien talks about the early years of his grandfather Matt Schulien's Bar in Chicago from its earliest days until it finally closed. Bob regales us with many stories about his grandfather and the magic and pranks he used to perform for and on his customers.

00:56:45 - "Brother Paul" West invented a new product called the CellGrasp which makes it easier to hold you mobile phone while taking selfies. This is a product I keep on my cell phone all the time and I find indispensable. He also has a special offer to listeners of The Magic Word Podcast.

01:03:54 - "Flaming Coffee" by SansMinds is a visual stunner that takes the Fire Wallet to a new level. Recommended with reservations. Also, not available to those under 19.

01:07:49 - "The Deceased" by Jamie Daws is a creepy, dark and bizarre bit of magic that could have your audience feeling the goosebumps. This is a :Living or Dead" test that is well made and can be carried around in your wallet to creep out people at a moment's notice. Recommended.

Order a CellGrasp and receive your choice of any one of Brother Paul's five downloads from his website. Order two CellGraps and receive two free downloads. Oder three, and...well, you get the idea.

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260: The Science of Magic with Tony Barnhart, Ph.D.

During the I.B.M. convention in Phoenix in 2013 I came across a flyer from Anthony Barnhart, Ph.D. soliciting subjects for a scientific study about magic. They were looking for magicians to come to the Arizona State University campus to help with a psychological experiment. Well, I was too busy to make it there, but I kept the flyer. Being the "hoarder" that I am (not unlike most magicians, I'm sure), I recently came across that flyer. I decided that it sounded like an interesting subject for the podcast.

Since that time, the Psychologist who was conducting the study has since moved on to another state. I was able to locate him (thank you, Google) and schedule a time for a Skype chat. Tony (as he likes to be called) is now in the Department of Psychological Science at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin and still continuing his study on the Science of Magic.

He references some articles he's published and you can find them here: The special issue of Frontiers in Psychology: http://journal.frontiersin.org/researchtopic/2464/the-psychology-of-magic-and-the-magic-of-psychology Hid blog, where he's written about some of this stuff in a more informal style is at: http://scienceofmagic.org/

You can follow Tony on Twitter at: https://twitter.com/magictony He is on Facebook, too at: http://facebook.com/magictony

His teaching conference (with a magical flare) can be found at: http://skepticalclassroom.com/

For more information, please visit http://www.AnthonyBarnhart.com. The speakers featured in this video include (in no particular order): James Randi (http://www.randi.org) D.J. Grothe (http://www.forgoodreason.org) Dr. Stephen Macknik, Barrow Neurological Institute (http://macknik.neuralcorrelate.com) Dr. Susana Martinez-Conde, Barrow Neurological Institute (http://smc.neuralcorrelate.com) Roland Sarlot & Susan Eyed (http://www.carnivalofillusion.com) Fr.

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