324: Garrett Thomas On Astonishment Plus MAGIC Legacy Update

Garrett Thomas is a wonderful performer, teacher and lecturer. He recently traveled across the U.S. and he stopped in Houston, Texas where he took time to sit behind the microphone to give us a mini-lecture. Well, it may not be so "mini" as he spoke for over two hours with the first part being posted in this podcast.

But before Garrett begins, we have to address the topical magic story of Stan Allen who prematurely "pulled the plug" on MAGIC Legacy plus he would publish one more issue of MAGIC Magazine and add another MAGIC Live! convention in 2017. After some of the dust settled in the magic social media, Stan took time to talk about the thoughts that went through his mind into making this hard decision.

In an effort to keep the podcast to about one hour in length, our conversation has been broken into two separate podcasts. In this Part One, Garrett talks about the importance of creating "astonishment" in the lives of our spectators. He will follow through with this discussion in the next podcast plus he will talk about his work as a consultant for David Blaine plus working at the fabled Forks Hotel in Buffalo, New York, original home of the F.F.F.F. close-up convention.

Stan Allen shares details and answers some frequently asked questions about what's next. For more information, visit: http://www.magicmagazine.com/w/

Garrett Thomas demonstrates his presentation of "Pen Thru Quarter".

Time stamps for this podcast:

00:03:30 - Stan Allen decided to cancel MAGIC Legacy before it got off the ground. He talks about why he made this decision and also about the future of MAGIC Live!

00:22:30- Garrett Thomas gives us a lesson in "creating astonishment", approaching tables to entertain guests, and making magic an art.

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

Please sign this petition to help pass House Resolution 642 that will recognize "magic" as a true art form. We need your signature today.

Click on the banner above for a free tutorial on how to perform this modern day card classic. And be sure enter the contest to win a free deck of cards needed to perform this effect.

Congratulations to Tony Baronio, Robb Peffer and Shaun Rivera who won a FREE deck of cards for the "Anniversary Waltz". Thank you to 60+ people who registered for this contest.  Be sure to enter this week's contest for a FREE set of Loops by Yi… — Congratulations to Tony Baronio, Robb Peffer and Shaun Rivera who won a FREE deck of cards for the "Anniversary Waltz". Thank you to 60+ people who registered for this contest. Be sure to enter this week's contest for a FREE set of Loops by Yigal Mesika.

110: MAGIC Live! Epilogue + Magic & Martinis Thursday

I arrived early at McCarran Airport in Las Vegas to return to Houston knowing that I would run into others from the convention who were returning home, too. No sooner than I had passed the friendly “pat down” from TSA (at no extra charge unlike other places in Las Vegas where they do charge extra for touching), and before I reached the gate, I ran into Fred King from southern California. Fred is a long time listener, first time caller to The Magic Word. Many times he has offered me a glass of scotch as a “thank you” for me providing this free podcast, but there was never an opportune time; however, now we had nothing but time before our flights. So we retired to the bar and settled into a glass of Glenfiddich (it was the only single malt they had) as we discussed and reviewed the convention with particular emphasis on the Wednesday events.

The YouTube video in this blog of The Great Tomsoni and Company's final performance was captured by Joe Turner on his cell phone. Hence the poor recording quality of this historic event. The second video in this blog was taken and posted by collegeofmagic at the end of Johnny and Pam's final performance. It shows Lance Burton plus Penn and Teller honoring Johnny and Pam Thompson for all their years of friendship and creativity to their own acts plus the magic community in general.

Download this podcast in an MP3 file through FeedBurner or directly by Clicking Here then right click to save the file. You can also subscribe to the RSS feed by Clicking Here.

Magic & Martinis Thursday

You have no doubt followed my posts during this week so you know what I have been up to each day. And as mentioned it was a fabulous convention, unlike other magic events. I read a tweet from one attendee who said something to the effect, “I have never learned so much magic at one convention but I haven’t learned one trick.” Well tweeted, my friend.

As I arrived home to Houston, I was pleased to spend the evening with our Scottish friend and magician (who now resides in Wales), John McGrath. He was over this week on business. He arrived just about the time I left for Las Vegas and will return home on Friday. So Thursday was the only night we could get together. He and his wife, Debs, and their children hosted us for many nights in between my lecture dates whilst I was in the U.K. on tour this past May.

I understand that Banachek’s taping for the Japanese network went well earlier this week here in Houston. We are exchanging locations: as I arrive in Houston, he will be heading to Las Vegas. As you may have heard in my little clip with Criss Angel, they will be shooting an episode with basketball great, Shaquille O’Neil for Criss’ upcoming series on Spike TV.

And this Saturday night, David Rangel will be performing a one man close-up show at the Hilton Americas here in Houston. David is also the main house magician at Tokyohanas Grill and Sushi Bar on Thursdays and Saturdays. Next Saturday night, August 24th, Jamie Salinas will perform and host a magic show in Bay Town, TX called "Champions of Magic" featuring the award winning magic and dancing duet “The Rhythm of Magic”, Michael and Jessica Blanco.

As for me, I don’t know how much I will be able to type next week as I will be having hand surgery for carpal tunnel syndrome on my right hand next Thursday the 22nd. That may keep me off the computer for a while. But I plan to quickly do some rehabilitation on my hand with playing cards. I just hope it won’t affect next week’s Magic & Martini Thursday.

Magic & Martinis Thursday after returning home from MAGIC Live! in time to enjoy the evening with my mate who is visiting from Scotland, John McGrath.

106: MAGIC Live! 2013 - Day 1

We haven't even begun to do anything yet but there are so many friends everywhere I turn. I decided at one point just to leave on my microphone and see who I ran into as I strolled around the floor. This is certainly THE magic event of the year. It is so exciting and there are so many fun mysteries to unfold over the next few days. I am having a blast and I hope the podcasts show that. It is so much fun also getting to meet several of the listeners to this podcast who hear my voice and introduce themselves. Thank you one and all.

00:00:07 - We take off from Houston for MAGIC Live! in Las Vegas, Nevada

00:02:19 - Marvyn Roy, aka "Mr. Electric" was one of the first friends I bumped into after I checked in. Marvyn talks about his new project of reading his book, "Mr. Electric Unplugged" which will be published by Mike Caveney and hopefully out by this Christmas.

00:18:34 - David Bull from Le Grande David Show in Beverly, Massachusetts talked about the sale of their movie theatre and what's going on at the Larcom Theatre with new traveling shows coming in for special engagements.

00:24:45 - Editor and Founder of The Magic Cafe, Steve Brooks, chatted with me about the phenomenal growth of this free online resource.

00:35:13 - Arthur Emerson talked about his 30 year association with Larry West and their partnership, Emerson and West that made many of the packet tricks that sold so well in the last century.

00:40:40 - Mark Kornhouser has an interesting video project going on during this convention. It's entitled "My First Trick". The intent is for anyone who is interested in sharing to show the first trick they learned and talk about how they got into magic and what the art means to them. In this interview, I left on the microphone during my segment as they were videotaping.

00:55:21 - Kyle Knight (I remember him when he went by Tyler Knight) and his wife, Mistie, talk about working Disney ships.

01:02:37 - Trigg Watson (formerly Burrage), David Hinkin and Krystyn Lambert talk about magic as a youth, contests, movies and more.

01:09:57 - Editor and Chief of MAGIC Magazine, Stan Allen, gave me a few minutes to talk about what's in store for this convention...well, as much as he could tip. Most of it will unfold just as you turn the page of the magazine. But Stan isn't afraid to take chances.

01:20:19 - Richard Hatch, former part owner of H&R Magic Books, talks about the reprint of The History of Magic book by Taschen. If you act quick, you can get a copy for $70 postpaid in the U.S. for an incredibly low price, but only if you mention that you heard it here on The Magic Word and if they have any left in stock when you order.

01:24:56 - Owner and proprietor of one of the world's largest wholesalers of magic, Mark Murphy (of Murphy's Magic Supplies) talks about his business and how inventors can get their ideas to market.

01:31:03 - Trade show magician, David McGee, talks about his upcoming six page spread that will appear in the September 2013 issue of MAGIC Magazine where he talks about his latest project: a game show at casinos. Plus he talks about the importance of working at charity shows. This is fascinating stuff.

Download this podcast in an MP3 file through FeedBurner or directly by Clicking Here then right click to save the file. You can also subscribe to the RSS feed by Clicking Here.