903: AbraCORNdabra 2025 - Day One Report

Friday May 16, 2025

11:00 AM CHECK-IN TO PICK UP REGISTRATION PACKETS
Registration Opens

11:00 AM – 12:30 PM Flea Market

12:45 PM Grand Opening / Welcome Greeting/ FREE MAGICAL GIFT

1:00 PM – 2:30 PM Show & Lecture #1 - PETER SAMELSON

2:30 PM – 3:00 PM Break

2:30 PM – 7:30 PM magiK-MART Opens (dealers)

3:00 PM – 4:30 PM

4:30 PM – 6:00 PM Dinner on your own

6:00 PM – 7:30 PM LECTURE (Lecture #2) - ERIC TAIT

7:30 PM – 8:00 PM Break

8:00 PM magiK-MART closes (dealers)

8:00 PM – 9:30 PM Show & Lecture #3 - THE COSMIC ROMANTICS

9:30 PM – ???? JOLLY TIME JAM – NEW FOR 2025
Super Special Late Night Jam Session featuring some very popular “name” magicians!
If you are a “nite-owl” – you will enjoy “hanging out” with fellow magi trading magical secrets & such. This special room for late-night jamming of magic is set up JUST for you & your magical friends!
Enjoy free flavored popcorns and soda sponsored by JOLLY TIME POPCORN!

Time Stamps: These will be posted after I have gotten some sleep.

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

826 - Mike Miller - Talent Booker

More than a magician, Mike Miller, Past National President of the S.A.M., also books talent for many magic conventions including the S.A.M. convention, Abbott’s Get Together, Super Sunday, and many others. He scours the world looking for unique acts to book. He has a good eye for spotting up-and-coming performers before they “hit it big” on the international scene. The best way to be seen by Mike is by competing and performing in other magic conventions. For several years, Mike also booked acts for a multi-city tour of China. Today he regularly performs at the Smoke & Mirrors Theater in Philadelphia while still searching for convention acts. As a result of his untiring efforts in helping magicians around the world, the Academy of Magical Arts will present a Special Fellowship to him at the awards banquet on May 17, 2024.

If you are more of a visual person, then perhaps you might enjoy watching our interaction during our Zoom conversation.

In this episode, Mike Miller talks about his career as a talent booker and how Hank Moorehouse shaped his life. He talks about how he goes about finding unique acts and how he learned to be a stage manager, too.

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 Pandora and SiriusXM (formerly 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.

760: Magic Collector Expo - Day 3 Report

Thursday, May 11

9:30am to 11:00am Dealer Room Opens

11:00am to 12:30pm Session #4 with William Winters “Walter Gibson”, John Cox “Houdini in Cleveland”,David Charvet “Conjurors and their Cars”

12:30pm to 2:30pm Dealers Open

2:30pm to 4:00pm Session #5 Jay Hunter “Don’t Throw Away Throw Out Cards”, Gabe Fajuri “A Half Century of Magic on The Block”. Mike Caveney “Otis Lithography Company, Cleveland, Ohio”

6:30pm- 10pm Dinner & Show Cleveland’s Finest Magicians with MC Kerry Pollock, Alan Howard, Tim Hill & Rick Smith Jr

Time stamps for this episode:

00:00:18 - Julie Eng from Magicana and editor of Magicoll chats with us about this convention and specifically the Bruce Averbook collection

00:12:00 - Bruce Averbook talks about his collection and how he designed it. The visit to his museum was the highlight of the convention.

00:32:54 - Lance Burton talks about the presentation given by David Charvet about “Conjurors and their Cars” and in particular the vanishing car performed by Lance for his TV special

00:41:15 - Jim Hagy talks about his presentation he gave on the opening night covering the conjurors who lived and worked in Cleveland.

00:47:45 - Ben Winn is only 19 years old and has an avid interest in our history and collecting and will be one of the young magicians who will carry on with our passion

00:52:13 - Dr. Cato Holler and his wife Susan tell us about their collection in western North Carolina and how they house and display his immense book collection.

00:58:19 - Jon Stetson tells us a bit about his mentalism workshops with Bob Koehler as well as a sneak preview of an upcoming convention in Dubai. Jon also helps recap and give us an overview of the speakers in the final session this afternoon.

01:10:43 - Bill Smith, the organizer of this Expo, finally has time to reflect for a couple minutes as we wrap up the convention. Be sure to check the website at https://magiccollectorexpo.com/ for updates and announcements about the next Expo.

903: AbraCORNdabra 2025 - Day One Report

Friday May 16, 2025

826 - Mike Miller - Talent Booker

760: Magic Collector Expo - Day 3 Report

Thursday, May 11

The Magic Word