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.

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

Order your copy of this book and help The Magic Word Podcast through your purchase.

294: Jamie Salinas - Half Halloween

Well, we appear to have been off by about a month because we thought May 31st was the halfway point between last Halloween and the next one. But nevertheless, now is the time to work on and start promoting your Halloween services. And what services might those be? Well, it's a perfect time to talk with the things that go "bump in the night". You may not be a mystery entertainer, a bizarrist, or a psychic, but I'll bet that even if you don't utilize any of our suggestions, at least you will be better equipped to know what is "out there".

Jamie Salinas is an award winning Houston, Texas, area magician who has been a business partner of mine for many years. As "Top Talent Productions" and following the closure of The Magic Island, we used to produce magic shows in a five star hotel in downtown Houston featuring magicians from across the country. But during the month of October for the past eight years, we have produced seances in an old downtown bar (established in 1847) that is said to be haunted. During our chat, we often refer to a mini lecture we gave a couple years ago and posted in a September 2014 podcast which you can find here. We also talk about our set of PDF Lecture Notes (Creating the Paranormal Experience) which you can order for ten bucks here on The Magic Word by clicking here.under Scott Wells Lecture Items. Or you could win one of two sets that will be given away in the contest. Just fill in the form at the bottom of this blog to register to win.

We also refer to a couple of resources we have used and recommend: Lebanon Circle is here. and Outlaw Effects is here. The podcast referred to in the podcast with the ghost hunting video video at the Ott Hotel in Liberty, Texas is Here. The podcast recorded from there is Here. To learn more about our seance in Houston, please visit: HoustonSeance.com

Attendees provide comments for Houston Seance.

Click on the graphic above to learn more about the products reviewed in this podcast and more. Support The Magic Word with your purchases, too!

Time stamps for the product reviews this week:

00:46:49 - "Safe Bet" by Pablo Amira

00:49:15 - "Re5" by Kelvin Trinh

00:52:01 "TiTanic" by Zolo

Congratulations to Magister Freud and Daniel Norat who each won a copy of the e-Book, "Creating the Paranormal Experience", by Jamie Salinas and Scott Wells. If you would like to purchase a copy of the PDF file for just $10, then click on the graphi… — Congratulations to Magister Freud and Daniel Norat who each won a copy of the e-Book, "Creating the Paranormal Experience", by Jamie Salinas and Scott Wells. If you would like to purchase a copy of the PDF file for just $10, then click on the graphic above for more information.

219: Lee Earle - Clear Vision

Lee Earle has been a leader and pioneer in the field of mentalism for decades. He recently came through Houston on his "Farewell" Lecture Tour where he imparted some of his years of experience in a concise two and a half hour lecture filled with advice and solid, commercial mentalism effects. Unfortunately, Lee has not created nor marketed many new effects over the past several years. Moreover, he has not been seen on the convention or lecture scene either. As a result, he is best known, remembered and respected by those "long of tooth". If fact, he said that perhaps 80% of those attending his 20+ lectures across the U.S. had gray heir. Too bad for this generation who missed out.

Lee has had a remarkable career having started out as a magician then transforming into a mentalist, which is the typical way people get into mentalism. He laments that actors and drama majors don't go immediately into mentalism and skip magic altogether thus not "tainting" them with "bad habits" that are hard to break in the performance of mentalism.

For those who are unfamiliar with Lee Earle's background, he was the secretary and membership chairman of the Psychic Entertainers' Association (P.E.A.) for a number of years. He authored the newsletter "Syzygy", produced and marketed several mentalism tricks along with Larry Becker under their company, "Mentalism Unlimited". He was the medium who developed and produced "Manifestations" in Phoenix, Arizona. And early in his magic career, he started the circuit for performing in large, upscale RV Parks across the southern part of the U.S.

The podcast begins with opening a can of Diet RC Cola then we get down to business. Lee talks about his experience of performing magic at Recreational Vehicle (RV) Parks across the south in the 1970's. He then talks about his transition from magic to mentalism and the stumbles along the way that made him more determined. Lee then tells us about "Manifestations", the seance he conducted from 1986 through 1989, some stories from the performances and its demise.

Lee concludes this podcast talking about his friend and business partner, Larry Becker, and their business "Mentalism Unlimited" which is no longer in business. The items remaining are being sold by Lee during his "Farewell" Lecture Tour which is helping him clean out his inventory following his move from Phoenix, Arizona to Atlanta, Georgia.

Enjoy supplemental material from Lee Earle as he talks about the basic premises upon which mentalism is based. Plus he gives some great advice on use of sound (i.e. microphones, speakers, etc.)