Buzz Aldrin after my performance in New York: “I used to think Saturn V was a miracle. But your show – this was a real miracle.”
I performed magic last week for NASA astronaut Buzz Aldrin and a fascinating group of space tourism supporters.
Buzz let me use his ring for one of my tricks – the ring HE WORE ON THE MOON!
Without a doubt, that experience trumps all the other notable rings I’ve borrowed in the past, including a Super Bowl ring, and Ellen Barkin’s wedding ring.
I still can’t get over it. I held the ring Buzz Aldrin wore while walking on the moon. And he let me use it in my show. What an honor.
I’m a fan of movie star Renée Zellweger, and was thrilled when I found her sitting in the front row at my show last night. In this blog post, read what she had to say about the show […]
Have you ever wanted to see the inside of the legendary Friars Club in New York City? It’s a private members-only club with rich show business history. Then read on, and enjoy a few in-action photos from my recent induction ceremony, held on September 20, 2011. The ceremony was held in the Frank Sinatra dining […]
I love stumbling across historical gems — here’s one from The Sphinx magazine (a well-known magazine for magicians) that ties together two of my loves: magic and the Waldorf-Astoria hotel. This hotel, now located on Park Avenue, was previously located at the corner of 34th Street and Fifth Avenue, but was torn down in 1929 to make room for the Empire State Building.
Editor William Hilliar reported this closing in the May 1929 issue, and wrote about one of the Waldorf’s most famous employees, Oscar Tschirky. If you’ve been to my Chamber Magic show, you know that I summon the ghost of Oscar nightly to assist with a magic trick. It turns out he was actually a bit of a magician himself, as you’ll see below.
“For the uninitiated layman, everything Steve Cohen presents in “Chamber Magic” must seem totally impossible and could easily convert anyone to believe in the paranormal.
“Other mentalists and all magicians should watch Steve carefully. Not so much for the actual effects but for his superb patter, timing and presentation. Few other entertainers are able to create the kind of intimate and mysterious atmosphere that this evening offers and, in the best show-business tradition, he leaves them wanting even more!”
–David Berglas
I was honored to receive this praise from David Berglas, one of the living legends in magic. David and his wife Ruth visited my show in London, and we’ve remained in touch over the years. A few years back, they visited New York City, and I organized a lavish luncheon in David’s honor at the Waldorf-Astoria. Here is the personalized menu from the Peacock Alley private dining room […]
As convenient as the internet has become, there is no substitute for doing research the old-fashioned way – searching for rare books in the stacks of the New York Public Library. As long-time readers of this blog will know, I’m somewhat infatuated with the historic magician Max Malini. I’ve modeled my career on him, visited his home and even stood in the garden where he died.
So it was with great excitement that I located a passage in a non-magic related book that included a new story about Malini. The book is titled “Two Gun Cohen” by Daniel S. Levy. I’ve included the passage below, followed by some further comments from me. Two Gun Cohen was the nickname of Morris Cohen, a Jewish mercenary who befriended Sun Yat-Sen, worked as his bodyguard, and became a major-general in the Chinese army. He carried two guns, and was apparently not afraid to use them.
Here, then, is the Malini story which takes place in Shanghai, China, at a time […]
“Aside from his success, it is Steve Cohen’s charm and elegance which separate him from all but a tiny elite of world-class magicians. However, Steve is the only magician from that elite and highly-select group to take his show to an elite and highly-select audience. It is a true one-off: an intimate caprice of parlour diversion by an enthralling and consummate master.”
-Derren Brown
I also dug out an old photo of Derren with my wife and children […]
Yes, that’s me with master magician Lance Burton at the Friars Club in New York City. We were there tonight for the premier screening of a new magic-themed movie: Make Believe.
The Friars Club is a grand old club for entertainers and people in the entertainment industry. Past members include all the show business legends, including Johnny Carson, Frank Sinatra, Lucille Ball, Elizabeth Taylor, Ed Sullivan and Milton Berle. The street entrance looks like this […]
I had an uncanny out-of-body experience this week. A gentleman from England sent me his uncle’s scrapbooks from the 1930s and 40s, and they were filled with memorabilia of a famous magician who worked for 18 years at the Waldorf-Astoria hotel in New York. The magician’s name? Dr. Sydney Ross PhD.
He entertained aristocrats, dazzled celebrities, and stumped politicians – even several US presidents. For all intents and purposes, he was “The Millionaires’ Magician” of his day, and even worked in the same hotel as me!
Going through his clippings, photos and promotional material felt like I was reading about myself from the future. What a mind-trip!
According to his nephew, Dr Ross jokingly told people that his PhD was in “phinagling.” He must have been very good at it, since he was invited to entertain Franklin D Roosevelt and Eleanor Roosevelt in the White House. More on that in a moment. […]
Part-TED conference, part off-the-hook spring break, Summit Series 2011 was an extraordinary experience that I am proud to have been part of. My mind and body are still humming in excitement. I gave one performance on Saturday to a packed auditorium of 200 people, including top authors, scientists, entrepreneurs, astronauts and scholars. They generously gave me a standing ovation, and mobbed me the rest of the weekend. I’d call it a mutual fan club.
Summit Series 2011 was held on a cruise ship sailing out of the Port of Miami to a private, undisclosed island in the Bahamas. For three days, one thousand hand-picked people shared ideas, gave presentations, built friendships and expanded our horizons. The slogan of Summit at Sea was, “You can’t discover new lands until you have courage to lose sight of the shore…”
