342: Paul Romhany - VANISH-ing Monthly

Paul Romhany is the editor of VANISH Magazine, the largest digital magic magazine in the world with over 100,000 subscribers per month. Perhaps it is not only because of the outstanding content, but also because it is totally FREE! Paul is a transplanted New Zealander who is now a permanent resident of Canada.

A wonderful tribute with original music to Charlie Chaplin. Chaplin meets magic.

Time stamps for this podcast:

00:02:33 - Paul talks about working on cruise ships and his book about "cat readings" (based on reading a cat's paw print), working with and being inspired by Chuck Jones and Ricky Dunn, and developing his stage character of "Charlie Chaplin".

00:28:54 - a word from our sponsor, The Great American Magic Company

00:34:23- Paul continues with our chat as he talks about VANISH Magazine

01:04:46 - Part One of a product product review for a 4 DVD set called "Ole!" by Juan Luis Rubiales. This review is for Disc One.

01:11:03 - Product review of Disc Two of "Ole!"

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It's been nearly a year since I last recorded a "Meals With Magicians" episode. This week we have lunch at Boston Market with Walter "Zaney" Blaney.

142: Walter "Zaney" Blaney, his Ladder Levitation and David Hoy

Walter "Zaney" Blaney's career has spanned well over 50 years. He is a creator, innovator, performer, engineer, politician and an all-around great guy and friend to thousands of magicians and non-magicians alike. Over the many decades of his professional career, Walter has appeared on many television shows that are now part of broadcast history such as the Mike Douglas Show, the Dinah Shore show, The Merv Griffin show and of course, the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. He has won multiple;e awards in magic not the least of which is being in the S.A.M.'s "Magicians' Hall of Fame".

Walter has been the subject of many articles, broadcasts and discussions. I spoke with Walter in 1996 about his history of his Ladder Levitation and his hoop that had several funny anecdotes behind its making and his performances over the years.

One of the earlier interviews was done "on the radio" in 1965 by his good friend, David Hoy as Walter was on his way to perform at Abbott's Get-Together. Perhaps David Hoy is best known among magicians today as the creator of the "Tossed Out Deck". But David contributed so much more than that to our magic community that you can read about elsewhere on the internet. In this famous (infamous?) radio broadcast, David hosted their mutual friend, Logan Pritchett (aka Doctor Zuko) as one of the guests that featured Walter talking about his "new" levitation.

A rare audio recording highlights a look back at Walters banquet show career. http://www.walterzaneyblaney.com Including commentary from David Copperfield, Lance Burton and Stan Allen.

00:01:18 - On January 26, 1996 Scott Wells interviewed Walter "Zaney" Blaney using a rather cheap cassette recorder. So please pardon the quality of the sound, but the content is golden. Walter talks about how he got the nickname of "Zaney" and the evolution of his famous Ladder Levitation/Suspension and the long history and problems with developing his hoop and funny (and sad) anecdotes along the way.

00:49:15 - During the I.B.M. national convention in Phoenix on July 17, 2013 I asked Walter to share the funny story behind the "radio" interview with David Hoy.

01:01:00 - July 1965 in Evansville, Indiana, David Hoy greeted guests Logan Pritchett and Walter "Zaney" Blaney on a radio broadcast hoax that has never before been available on the internet.

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. (please note: this RSS Feed subscription system may not work with Android systems). Remember, you can download it through iTunes. See the preview page by Clicking Here.

Walter Blaney tells the story of one of Magics greatest practical jokes. http://www.facebook.com/StillZaney Part of the documentary series " Still Zaney After All These Years" Featuring Lance Burton, Rick Thomas, Steve Dacri, Peter Reveen, Jeff McBride and Stan Allen

Magician Walter "Zaney" Blaney's seven year effort to debut his Ladder Levitation Illusion on Johnny Carson's Tonight Show. https://www.facebook.com/StillZaney This is part of a documentary series "Still Zaney After All These Years" . Tonight Show Footage courtesy of Jeff Sotzing - Carson Entertainment Group.

On August 15, 2017, David Copperfield paid tribute to Walter "Zaney" Blaney at the dedication of the Walter Blaney Exhibit at the David Copperfield Museum and Library of the Conjuring Arts in Las Vegas. (Produced by Timothy Drake) http://www.walterzaneyblaney.com

Magic & Martinis' Thursday

"Elevating" the art of the martini! Thanks, Walter.

108: MAGIC Live! 2013 - Day 3

Day three was another fun and exciting day that began with the Opening Session hosted by Justin Flom A highlight of the show was Xavier Mortimer's incredibly innovative routines. He is currently featured in the Cirque du Soliel show here in Vegas, "Michael Jackson One".. But it was Wayne Dobson being interviewed by Jeff McBride which received a standing ovation.

00:00:07 – Tom Vorjahan, Daniel Herron and Eddie Wade give a recap of the Documentary Live 1 show from last night that featured the Long Beach Mystics hosted by Stan Allen and Mike Caveney. It featured David Deeble, Victor and Diamond, Michael Weber, Dana Daniels, Mark Kalin and Jinger, Armando Lucera, Kevin James, and James Hamilton (as Alexander Hamilton).

00:08:33 – I give a short review of the General Session that was hosted by Justin Flom and featured Master Payne, Bill Abbott, Xavier Mortimer, and Wayne Dobson being interviewed by Jeff McBride.

00:13:00 – I chatted with random people dining at the In ‘N Out and how much they enjoy this place. It is one of my regular, mandatory places to dine while in Las Vegas.

00:15:02 – Simon Coronel talks about creativity and how he developed his routine.

00:26:00 – Photo time with Criss Angel

00:26:50 – David Hira talks about this convention and conventions in general and their appeal to different age groups.

00:34:45 – Scott Hunstler was one of the winners on the Sunday night Welcome Party. He talks about what he won. Mark Weidhaas, S.A.M. Past President, and Errol Lipschitz, from Vancouver, talks about their experience of this convention.

00:39:56 – We viewed the documentary about Ricky Jay’s life, Deceptive Practices. Here I get to talk with a few people who know Ricky and have a perspective and opinion on the movie. It isn’t anything like Siskell & Ebert, but I think you will enjoy this discussion by Peter Samelson, Tim Felix and Jon Stetson.

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342: Paul Romhany - VANISH-ing Monthly

142: Walter "Zaney" Blaney, his Ladder Levitation and David Hoy

Magic & Martinis' Thursday

108: MAGIC Live! 2013 - Day 3

The Magic Word