579: Ben Jackson - Catch Him!

Several magicians have wanted to or tried to create their own one-man show. Few have succeeded in our community and even fewer have had “legs” that allowed them to continue their shows on an ongoing basis. Of course one of the key ingredients is to live in a metropolitan area with high traffic from local patrons as well as tourists. So, for example, it would be harder to sustain a long-running show in Wichita Falls, Texas as it would be in New York City. Next…you must have talent, patience, fortitude, and…well, you need to listen to this week’s episode to find the “secret sauce” that Ben Jackson uses to create a market for his truly unique brand of magic.

Houston Magician Ben Jackson shares the story of Hines, the global real estate investment, development and management firm. Gerald D. Hines opened up a one-m...

In this episode, Jamie Salinas visits with Multi-Award Winning Magician Ben Jackson to discuss four walling your own show. Learn what four walling is and get...

Houston's most intimate theatrical experience hosted exclusively at Four Seasons Hotel Houston. Tickets and Information: BenJacksonMagic.com

Ben Jackson appears on NBC's TODAY Show as a guest magician for David Copperfield's segment, "Magic Mondays." Ben performed a customized piece of magic with ...

In this episode, Ben talks about entering and winning several magic competitions (including F.I.S.M.), performing on the NBC Today Show with David Copperfield, working and consulting for television and movie projects, plus other corporate work. But Ben also shares how he has developed his successful one-man magic show that has run for over five years in Houston.

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 or through iHeart Radio by Clicking Here..If you have a Spotify account, then you can also hear us through that app, too. You can also listen through your Amazon Alexa and Google Home devices. Remember, you can download it through the iTunes store, too. See the preview page by Clicking Here

364: My Week At The Magic Castle - 2017: Part Three

This podcast runs a little shorter than normal but provides a little local "color" surrounding the Castle. We first travel to Santa Monica to visit with Steve Spill and his "Magicopolis" (video tour below) then back to downtown Hollywood to Musso & Frank Grill which is known for their famous martinis. While there, we uncovered a lot of interesting stories about old (and new) Hollywood celebrities who frequent the bar/restaurant.

Since the conversations are shorter than normal, we have time to review John Bannon's "Move Zero" three DVD set which is for beginners and highly recommended.

Steve Spill, owner and performer at Magicopolis in Santa Monica, CA takes us on a guided tour of the building. For more information on his book, "I Lie for Money", be sure to listen to The Magic Word Podcast episode 218 at https://www.themagicwordpodcast.com/scottwellsmagic/steve-spill To hear the latest chat with Steve, live from Magicopolis, then visit: https://www.themagicwordpodcast.com/scottwellsmagic/364-my-week-at-the-magic-castle-2017-part-three available after 9:00 a.m. July 6, 2017

Time stamps for this podcast:

00:03:36 - Steve Spill drives us to lunch so we chat with him while he is driving from his theater, Magicopolis, in Santa Monica.

00:13:46 - Ruben Rueda has been a bartender at Musso & Frank Grill for 50 years and has quite a reputation.

00:23:10 - Sonny Bones, one of the servers at Musso and Frank Grill tells us some stories about the iconic restaurant.

00:28:33 - Bobby Caravella, AGM of Musso and Frank Grill expounds on several classic stories about Old Hollywood and those celebrities who have frequented and are frequenting the restaurant.

00:42:27 - Move Zero Vol. One DVD by John Bannon. Click Here for details.

00:50:34 - Move Zero Vol. Two DVD by John Bannon. Click Here for details.

00: 54:05 - Move Zeto Vol. Three DVD by John Bannon - Click Here for details

218: Steve Spill - I Lie For Money

I'm reluctant to produce a podcast solely for the intent purposes of promoting something that someone wants to pitch; however, there are exceptions. And this is one of them.

Steve Spill has had a magical life...and it's not over yet! One could say that Steve "grew up" in the Magic Castle because his father, Sandy Spillman, was a long-time host and also conducted the seances there for many years. Through his early teenage years he had unprecedented access to hang out with many of the greats such as Dai Vernon, Charlie Miller, Francis Carlyle, Kuda Bux and many, many others. Steve also worked at the Jolly Jester with Bob Sheets in the early days of "bar magic" in Aspen, Colorado. Later, the two of them opened the "Brook Farm Inn of Magic" in Delaware. And for about the past 20 years, he has owned and operated "Magicopolis" in Santa Monica, California.

You can follow Magicopolis on Twitter @Magicopolis and find them on Facebook at http://facebook.com/MAGICOPOLIS (note the all caps for their name plus be sure to look for the "monkey" profile picture so you know you have the correct "Magicopolis")

Steve and I first met over 30 years ago when he came through to perform at Houston's Magic Island and I was one of the House Magicians. Although it was not quite like "two ships passing in the night", we had fallen out of touch with one another since then as we both followed our separate paths. When Steve contacted me with the idea of pitching his new book, I knew that we needed to catch up to talk about all the "water that has run under our bridges."

Steve begins at the end by talking about Magicopolis which he built and owns and where he and his wife, Bozene, appear weekly. He then talks about his many experiences at the Magic Castle and relates stories about the eight mentors at the Castle who shaped his future. He also talks about Bob Sheets and the Jolly Jester in Aspen as well as the Brook Farm Inn of Magic. There a lot of stories from his new book plus some that are not there bu only appear here in this podcast.

You can read many of these stories plus dozens more in Steve's new book, "I Lie for Money" coming out soon and only available through Amazon. You can Click Here for more details and to order your copy.

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. Remember, you can download it through iTunes. See the preview page 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.

Exclusive Interview with Professional Magician & Magic Theater Owner Steve Spill

Order your copy of Steve's book (and support The Magic Word) by clicking on the link below to Amazon.

Get a free 30 day trial subscription and receive two free audible books to keep!