277: Gregory Wilson Returns & Responds - Part One with Brad Stine

This week we have a surprise for those naysayers who thought that he wouldn't return. Gregory Wilson is this week's guest for the first of two podcasts to respond to the accusers who have presented their "proof" in episodes #270, #272 and #273.

Greg was preparing for a trip to the 2016 Blackpool convention where he will perform and lecture and he wanted to present his rebuttals before he departed. Due to his busy schedule, Greg said that he had only recently gotten around to listening to a few of the podcasts. After he returns from England, he intends to listen to episode #274 with John Lovick then respond point by point to each issue brought up by John; however, some of the issues are addressed in this podcast.

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Also on this podcast is an edited bit of a conversation I had with stand-up comic, Brad Stine, who is a long time friend of Greg's. Brad was a comedy magician and regular performer at the (now defunct) Magic Island in Newport Beach, California and has had crediting incidents with Greg. Brad wanted to present his stories in a public forum to show that Greg can, has and will give credit when shown the proof of creation.

2/9/12 - Conservative Comedian Brad Stine went after political correctness in its many forms at CPAC 2012.

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Congratulations to Nathan Reed and Fred King who won a digital download of he Audible.com book "The Ambitious Card - An Eli Marks Mystery" by John Gaspard. And thank you again, John Gaspard for offering these prizes.

272: Time for Change with Cosmo Solano

Follow the money.

Cosmo Solano is a magic creator. His first creation that caught the attention of most magicians was his Quantum Connection (a.k.a. "Q") and later his International Pocket Change. Both took years of Research and Development before he was ready to take anything to market. Certainly there are those occasions in the world of "simultaneous inspiration" in which the same idea is thought of and worked on by someone else somewhere in the world. But our measure of who created it first is largely dependent upon who actually got it to market first.

In this podcast, Cosmo Solano talks about his creation of "International Pocket Change" and his conversations with Gregory Wilson.who marketed"Exact Change". He talks about the chronology of the creation and how the two differ. This is a rather sensitive subject for Cosmo and he was reluctant to publicly discuss the matter. But I believe he thought it was important enough to contribute to the conversation and perhaps encourage others to speak "on the record" about their experiences of dealing with Gregory Wilson.

This chat moves along our conversation of "magic thievery" in our community and will hopefully encourage others to share their stories here, on forums, and/or in the social media. #MagicCereal

From the creator of SHOPAHOLIC!, "Q" and NEWSWORTHY!comes an organic, all natural magic effect with everyday objects! International Pocket Change (a.k.a. IPC) is an easy to do, entertaining and MIND BLOWING effectwhere your AUDIENCE predicts the amount of pocket change you have in your pocket!

Available at www.hocus-pocus.com. Your 1-100 prediction is right on the money! *Easy to do *Start clean and end clean *36 remarkable routines

Cosmo tells us his side of the story in conversations with Gregory, much of which he was not just recalling from memory, but from notes he made at the time during their conversation.

He also talks about his cynicism of sharing his creative ideas with other magicians and how he no longer has an interest in marketing anything to the magic community in the foreseeable future. He also talks about his Quantum Connection trick that launched his name as a magic creator. He concludes with saying that some magic being released today is not particularly "quality magic" but feeds the appetite of voracious magicians. He is optimistic about the future of magic as long as we recognize those who are the creators and do not feel we are "entitled" to everything. He suggests that people new to magic give back to the community rather than just taking from it.

2016 has begun but it's not too late to get your new year magic wall calendar. Mine is hanging next to my computer and I love it. You can support The Magic Word with your purchase and if you have Amazon Prime, then shipping is free!

Colon, Michigan - The Magic Capital of the World

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!