584: Patrick Thernes - Call Me Sir Pat Trick

Sir Pat Trick came on the radar of most magicians at the 2013 MAGIC Live! convention when the late Joanie Spina gave a presentation about developing a stage persona. By example, she showed a video of one of her students who had submitted a video then she introduced us to Patrick Thernes who performed a completely different act with a totally new character. The transformation was evident and it led to Patrick achieving his lifelong goal of performing at the Magic Castle.

Patrick Thernes is today a performing magician but not with the same act we saw. He has also scaled back his performances in favor of producing and consulting other magicians and theater owners/producers.

From MAGIC Live! introduced by the late Joanie Spina.

In this episode, Patrick talks about his work as a classically trained actor and his transformation from his “old” character to his new one. He also reveals some personal information about that new character that has not been told anywhere before.

For more information and to register for this online, virtual convention, please visit: NEMCA.com

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179: Day 4 - Abbott's Get Together 2014

Day Four...this is the day everyone has been looking forward to but no one wanted to see come because we knew it would be the last day. And what a day it was. Shoot Ogawa kicked off the day with his lecture. The afternoon matinee was spectacular with lots of fun moments, especially by illusionist, John Hudy, who had a crying child as a volunteer during his "Wiz Kote" routine. But he handled it professionally and all ended well. The evening's show was with a cruise ship theme (the S.S. Abbott) featuring Fred & Bobbi Becker, John Shyrock, Chris Blakemore, Chris Mitchell and Howard Mincone. It concluded with a hilarious "fountain" routine that had everyone in stitches and many comparing to the old "Foxy's Foollies" of yesteryear with Karrell Fox and Duke Stern, Dorny and others. What a show!

John Shryock won the Bill Baird/Neil Foster manipulation trophy. And the entire crew from this evening's show was presented with the Senator Clark Crandall Comedy award. And the Jack Gwynn award for presentation went to Losander.

Time stamps for this podcast:

00:02:43 John Sturk arranges the schedules for the "spontaneous" street performances. He tells us a little history about busking in Colon.

00:13:04 - The Outerbridges, (illusionists) Marion and Ted, are fairly new to the magic convention scene but not to magic. They have been touring professionals in Canada for a number of years and have a unique perspective of magic and dance. with a "time lord" theme.

00:22:25 - Triple threat, Shoot Ogawa, performed in close-up, stage and as a lecturer this year. He tells what he has been up to and what his future plans are. It must be fun living just a few blocks from the Magic Castle.

00:32:33 - Patrick Thernes won the stage magic awards and at last year's MAGIC Live! convention, he won our hearts with the passionate story told by Joanie Spina. Here "Sir Patrick" tells us a little about himself and how that event changed his magic life.

00:46:06 - Randy Wakeman gives us the 411 health update on Simon Lovell's current condition in England and his prognosis.

00:57:01 - Gay Blackstone rounds out the day with a few stories from her perspective "inside the box".

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Joanie Spina at MAGIC Live! Photo courtesy of David Linsell

121: Joanie Spina Has Breathing Room

All of us saw Joanie Spina walk onto the MAGIC Live! stage this year with a 90 foot hose to her oxygen tank. What many of us didn't know was what that was all about, how sick she has been and how long she has endured her illness. Then on September 26th, Robin Leach published an article in the Las Vegas Sun that gave us some insight. You can Click Here to read the article and view additional pictures. Moreover, the article told about the generosity of so many from the Las Vegas magic community, and beyond, that came together this past February 2013 to aid her in her time of financial need. But it was her former employer, David Copperfield who "stepped up" and delivered "big time". She has been cancer-free for five years but still unable to get on the lung transplant list. Moreover, she has been unable to work for at least the past year. Many efforts that might seem mundane to us leaves her breathless and exhausted for days. In fact, she is still "recovering" from her participation at MAGIC Live! which was over two months ago.

Joanie said that although she can "breathe easier" for a while because of the generosity of David Copperfield and so many people, she also mentioned that Joan Lawton works with the Dai Vernon Foundation that helps with those who are in financial need. In addition to directing and counseling magicians and improving their stage acts, Joanie is passionate about animal rights. She is an outspoken proponent of getting pets spayed and neutered. In our podcast, she also talks about the feral chihuahua problems in Las Vegas. Some years ago Joanie recorded a documentary about the importance of having animals spay and neutered. You can view clips from the film at: http://borntodiepets.com and http://hcws.org In this podcast, Joanie talks about all these things and more. But most importantly, she wants to thank all those who have supported her with thoughts, prayers, cards, letters and finances. To read her open letter of gratitude to David Copperfield, Click Here to read that direct link on her Facebook page.

You can reach her at joanie@joaniespina.com or learn more information on what she can do for you, visit her website at http://JoanieSpina.com

Time stamps for this podcast:

00:00:08 - Joanie Spina talks about her health, the fundraiser, her association with David Copperfield, her work for animal rights, and more

00:58:28 - Stan Allen talks about the fundraiser he was involved with to help Joanie

01:08:08 - Stan gives us a preview of what to expect in the November 2013 issue of MAGIC Magazine

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