386: Armando Lucero - Looking at Magic

The chimeric Armando Lucero is an underground legend who rarely lifts his head into the social media let alone taking time to record his thoughts in a conversation for public consumption. Armando has a unique perspective on magic and a philosophy on our art that gives us something to ponder. His commitment to the art and deep understanding of what we do is phenominal. In this rare recording of our conversation, Armando uncovers the veil to give us a glimpse into his mind and world of how he views magic.

Time stamps for this podcast:

00:05:18 - Armando Lucero talks about his thoughts on magic competitions, getting out of magic then back in, conducting yourself in a professional manner and not responding to every request to perform, creativity, woiking with "The Illusionists", and more.

01:09:37 - Product Review: "Epic Writer" by MagicWorld.co.uk A gimmick for "secret writing" of your spectator's "thoughts". Recommended.

01:16:30 - Product Review: "Impossible Box V 2.0" by Ray Roch produced by Paul Romhany. A clever origami box made from six playing cards then used in a clever Chop Cup routine on stage or strolling without any gimmicks. Recommended.

01:21:10 - Product Review: "Chinese Tweezers" by Mario Lopez from Vernet Magic. A non-gimmicked version of removing coins from within the hole of the Chinese coins using tweezers. Clever, but angly problems. Ungimmicked coins provided and link to online instructions. Recommended with caveats.

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385: Saratoga Ballantine - My Father

While I was performing at the Magic Castle in 2017, I had the opportunity to sit down for a visit with Saratoga "Sara" Ballantine, the daughter of one of our "magical legends", Carl Ballantine. Carl was a treasure who was known not only throughout the magic community but also to the general populace in many television roles. His most notable role was as "Lester Gruber" on the popular TV show, "McHale's Navy". He appeared in many television shows and movies in the 1960's and 1970's. Billed as "Ballantine - The World's Greatest Magician", Carl had a comedy magic act that landed him in MAGIC Magazine's Top 10 Funniest Acts in Magic.

Carl Ballantine in his prime and at his best. "Come out flying."

Time stamps for this podcast:

00:04:12 - Great stories about Carl Ballantine whose three top loves were horse racing, cigars, and magic (but he also loved his family, of course). Sara was named after the horse track, Saratoga, and his other daughter was named after another racetrack, Molly Caliente (who was born on a hot day) Sara also talks about many of her father's friends who used to come by the house like Ernest Borgnine and Estelle Getty., This conversation was recorded in the offices of The Magic Castle in Hollywood. In the background and you can hear the occasional laughter and contributions by Trish Alaskey, who was present during our conversation.

Sara also talks about documentary she was involved with and is available to view online for free. It is called "Troupers" and can be viewed on SnagFilms.com by following this link: http://www.snagfilms.com/films/title/troupers

01:00:45 - Product Review: The Full Monty by Liam Montier from Big Blind Media is a DVD with the "necessary cards" to perform this effect. Recommended.

01:05:55 - Product Review: Tac-Tic-Al by WorldMagic.co.uk is a gimmick that allows you to change a "Tic Tac box" or a "deck of miniature Bicycle cards" into a full size deck of cards. Very visual but I reserve a hearty recommendation.

Click the graphic above to view the film "Troupers" for free.

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384: Two Fer - Neal 'n Bull

While at the IBM/SAM Combined Convention in Louisville, Kentucky, I recorded some extended chats with a couple friends that were too long to be part of the daily convention updates but too short to complete a full hour for the podcast. So, this episode for the first time brings you not one, but two excellent chats with world class magicians: Jonathan Neal and David Bull.

Vintage clip of Jonathan’s second appearance on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson.

A rare inside glimpse of a magical world- Marco the Magi's Production of Le Grand David and his Own Spectacular Magic Company in Beverly, Massachusetts, USA. Footage is from the Larcom theater and their second historic magic auction from this amazing ensemble.

Time stamps for this podcast:

00:05:58 - Jonathan Neal (Brown) talks about establishing a relationship with an audience, blocking and choreography on stage, plus how he developed his successful act and how he works towards excellence in every performance.

00:31:35 - David Bull a.k.a. "Le Grand David" tells us how he became known on the bill as "Le Grand David" plus some of the history of the theater troupe and how it began and ended and what David Bull is doing today.

00:57:52 - "The Ocbender" by Menny Lindenfeld available from your favorite magic dealer through Murphy's Magic Supplies. This is an unseen tool used by the mentalist/magician to make coins, spoons and keys seemingly bend "in the hands of your volunteer". Very well made gimmick and highly recommended.

00:57:52 - Product (Book) Review of "New Angle" by Ryan Plunkett and Michael Feldman published by and available from Magic, Inc. This book is a new look at a classic tool in the magician's toolbox: the Tapered (or "Stripper") Deck. New ideas, tips and routines that take this tool to the next level. Recommended for intermediate to advanced card workers.

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

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