374: Day One - 2017 MAGIC Live!

In this report from the first day of MAGIC Live!, we chat with quite a few people in an effort to get around to as many attendees as possible since there are 1,600 attendees. We also chat with a couple people prior to the start of the convention since we arrived two days early and attended a few shows.

Time Stamps for this podcast:

00:00:16 - Departing Houston as we discuss what the next week might hold for us.

00:02:32 - Mike Hammer talks about his show and audiences. We catch up since our last visit this past February.

00:04:58Po-Han Huang, from Taiwan, has been traveling and performing in the U.S. for the past couple months. We met at the Magic Castle when he dropped in to see my show after he had performed there for a week. Also, he gives us a quick review of several of the magic shows currently playing in Las Vegas because he has seen them all.

00:13:17 Paul Gertner and I talk about what we think might be coming up this week at MAGIC Live! plus he talks about his current status of performing at trade shows and his blog.

00:26:13 - Steve Valentine

00:27:10 - Raj Madhok is glad to be at this year's convention

00:28:05 - C.J. Johnson gives kudos to The Magic Word Podcast

00:30:15 - Kayla Drescher will have asurprise up her sleeve for this convenbtion

00:31:30 - Chuck Jones talks about returning to tour New Zealand with his illusion show

00:32:40 - Lew Wymisner talks about the status of "Magic in the Rockies" and whether or not it will ever return

00:34:50 - Shawn Hull is a regular listener who is at this convention because he heard this podcast last year and decided to come to their first MAGIC Live!

00:36:47 - Katie Sokulski talks about the registration process

00:38:27 - Bro Gilbert talks about working with Murphy's Magic Supplies plus his experience working as a consultant for Criss Angel

00:48:00 - Christopher Hart and Don Wayne talk about illusion creativity

00:54:17 - panel discussion with Penn Jillette and Johnny Thompson answer questions from the audience after the screening of the film, "Gambler's Ballad"

01:03:01 - Johnny Thompson talks about his upcoming book.

01:07:23 Larry Hass shares some memories of Eugene Burger

01:18:25 - Stan Allen talks about his expectations for this convention

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358: Mat Franco - Magic Reinvented Nightly

Winner of Season 9 of "America's Got Talent [sic]" (AGT). Mat Franco has a successful show on the Las Vegas Strip for the past year and a half in the newly remodeled Linq Casino and Hotel, which was the former Imperial Palace. His show is unlike any other on the Strip and pulls from many of the popular tricks he performed on AGT. The name of his show "Magic Reinvented Nightly" is the perfect title because, without giving away any surprises, every show is different but...oh, darn it, I really can't say any more. But I do recommend the show. It is done with pure skill and personality. The focus is not on the props, dancers or music but focused on the performer himself. And he is riding high on the success of his TV appearances. I know that his show will have "legs" and should remain popular for many years to come.

Time stamps for this podcast:

00:04:50 - Mat Franco talks a lot about his experience on America's Got Talent [sic] television show. He obviously had a completely different experience than all the other magicians who preceded him. We also chat about his new show at the Linq Hotel and Casino (which is owned by Caesar's). He also tells about his years performing on the college circuit, his early inspirations, trick selection, timing, nervousness, developing his character, bad decisions along the way, creating his vision of the show, and more.

01:12:46 - Product review of "Matrix Pad Reloaded" by Richard Griffin. Effect: a Post-It notepad is shown. Four spots are drawn in each corner of the pad with a Sharpie. One by one with a rub of the finger, the spots visibly assemble to one corner. The top sheet can be peeled off and given to a spectator. Highly recommended.

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Click the graphic above to visit The Linq, get directions, make hotel and show reservations.

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353: Jarrett and Raja - New Kids on the Strip

Jarrett and Raja have been in Las Vegas since 2000 and have finally made it into their own showroom. They just opened at the Hooter's Casino Hotel on March 24, 2017 with their show, "Jarrett & Raja - Magician vs. Maestro Dinner Show" in their own Jarrett & Raja Showroom. They have appeared on "America's Got Talent (sic)" as have many other magicians and we have talked with those others about their experience. But Jarrett and Raja have also appeared on "Shark Tank" where they tried to get an investor to underwrite their Las Vegas show. Spoiler alert...they didn't get a shark, but there was an unexpected and pleasantly outstanding outcome.

This conversation took place in their Las Vegas warehouse during the second week of February, a full month before they opened at the Hooter's Casino Hotel, so they were still relaxed yet very excited about their upcoming show.

Jarrett & Raja appear in featured spot on the hit TV show "Shark Tank".

Jarrett and Raja opened their new Las Vegas show in Hooter's Casino Hotel on March 24, 2017. But before the curtains were first opened, they gave us a sneak peek at their warehouse and what is going on there. Be sure to hear our chat on the podcast on https://www.themagicwordpodcast.com

Jarrett and Raja have some great stories telling how they performed in Asia before they found their home in Las Vegas. Then they talked about their first showroom that had a quick opening and closing. They also talk about their experience with preparing to appear on "Shark Tank" plus all the problems they had right up to the last minutes of turning on the cameras.

They also talk about the new direction Hooter's is going to promote family entertainment and how their "family friendly" show fits with their new marketing strategy.

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

For more information on this and the other Nick Trost books in this series, please visit Steve Bryant's Little Egypt Magic, March 2017 edition.