mentor

90th Birthday Party for HARRY LORAYNE

May 11, 2016

(May 1, 2016) Over the course of his decades-long career as an author and performer, Harry Lorayne has connected with millions of people. For his ninetieth birthday, he was reminded of how many lives he’s touched. Nearly one hundred people gathered in New York City to celebrate Harry’s birthday, and it was a joyous occasion.

At the party, Michael Vincent turned to Harry and said, “You were my best friend long before you knew I existed.”

This sentiment resonated with many, because we all felt close to Harry long before meeting in person, through reading his books. Harry’s writing style is so conversational it reads as if a friend is chatting with you, offering private lessons.

To my knowledge, Harry currently gives actual private lessons to only one person, his accountant Alan Frankel. Alan and I have struck up a friendship over the past few years, and together we decided to co-sponsor Harry’s ninetieth party as a way of thanking him for his friendship and inspiration.

Too often we wait too long to tell people how much they’ve meant to us. Not this time. People traveled from England, France, Finland, China, and all over the United States to attend.

The guest list read like a Who’s Who of New York City’s magic scene, and beyond. Many told me that it was the greatest “three-hour magic convention” they’ve ever attended.

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90th Birthday Video for HARRY LORAYNE

May 1, 2016

On the occasion of Harry Lorayne’s 90th birthday, magicians and entertainers from around the world sent video greetings to celebrate his extraordinary life. I’ve compiled them into one film that is breathtaking in scope. When viewed together, these “Happy Birthday” videos demonstrate the impact that Harry Lorayne has had on the most influential magicians alive. Appearances by: Steve […]

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MAGIC MENTOR MONDAY: Mark Sicher

February 1, 2016

This week we’ll focus on one of my close friends and mentors, Mark Sicher, a brilliant young magician who tragically passed away at the age of 23 after battling cancer. In my eyes he was one of the greats, and he left us far too soon.

I met Mark Sicher at Tannen’s Magic Camp in the summer of 1985. I was 14, he was 15, and we were serious about our magic. Throughout high school, we phoned each other three to four times a week to exchange ideas, challenge each other, and develop our acts.

Long before the age of Facetime and Skype, it was difficult to share the intricacies of sleight of hand over the telephone, but we prevailed. The minutiae had to be described rather than demonstrated, and we became pretty good at breaking down steps to their smallest components in order to teach each other

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2015 Year in Review

January 6, 2016

As we look forward to the promise of a new year, it’s easy to forget the special moments and accomplishments of the previous twelve months. Allow me to wax nostalgic with a rundown of my 2015 highlights!

232 Chamber Magic performances at the Waldorf Astoria New York

14,000 visitors to Chamber Magic

15 national and international performances

Thank you, everyone, for your ongoing support of my show. I look forward to sharing more magic with you in 2016.

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MAGIC MENTOR MONDAY: Albert Goshman

November 16, 2015

Welcome to MAGIC MENTOR MONDAY. In this weekly series, I introduce you to my magic mentors – people who have inspired me to become a better magician. Each Monday you’ll meet someone who has offered advice, or acted by example, to help steer my career.

Some of these people are alive, others no longer with us. Some are famous, others not so much. The beauty of mentorship is that you don’t necessarily have to meet your mentor face-to-face, nor even live during the same time in history. Many of the people who motivated me were alive a century before I was born! By reading classic books, old newspapers, and magazine articles, I’ve tracked down stories about their lives and work that continue to inspire me to become a better entertainer.

My “big three” mentors are Max Malini, Johann Nepomuk Hofzinser, and Jean Eugène Robert-Houdin. Each of these giants has been featured in previous weeks. You’ll also read about more contemporary figures like Harry Lorayne, non-magicians Danny Kaye and Sammy Davis, Jr. and even fictional characters like Willy Wonka.

How do mentors inspire? They set examples, helping us imagine how we too might solve a particular problem. By seeing the world through a mentor’s lens, we can learn more about them, and about ourselves, at the same time.

This week we’ll discuss lessons I learned from a man known for his avuncular charm: ALBERT GOSHMAN

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To Be a Successful Close-Up Magician You Must…

November 10, 2015

written by Bert Allerton

(published in The Magic of Sam Berland, 1986)

TO BE A SUCCESSFUL CLOSE-UP MAGICIAN YOU MUST

1. Really love magic and not do magic because you love to show off.

2. Love people to the point of sincerely being more interested in their enjoyment of what you are doing than in the effect itself.

3. Have a natural adaptability for doing magic and using your own natural style.

4. Be a salesman to the extent of giving the public what really entertains them and not using the effects that you may think are good or that you like to do.

5. Have a sense of timing which can only be fully developed by experience. This is one of the most important factors in successful presentation of close-up. Learn how to build up suspense, create surprises, and produce laughs.

6. Be a student of psychology for there are many startling and unexplainable effects that can be performed as a result of knowing what people will do under a given set of circumstances.

7. You must routine your presentation, your effects must be psychologically selected, performance-tested, and carefully arranged. The opening is most important and should break down as quickly as possible the normal dislike for magicians on the part of so many people, apparently due to unimpressive performances they have previously witnessed. Every effect must sustain their interest as a close-up magician has distractions which no stage performer encounters — music, dancing, waiters, kibitzers, etc. Like any good performance the climax or concluding effect is exceptionally important and if possible, leave ’em laughing.

8. Be a gentleman. Be careful of your manner of speech, your patter (blue material should be avoided), your dress, and your general conduct. Smile graciously and be friendly.

9. Have a sense of humor and if not naturally a comedian be able to build up situations with your magic that produce laughs.

10. And last but basically the first requirement. Be a technician, as near to a perfectionist as possible in this regard. Learn to do all your moves automatically and effortlessly so that you can project your personality and do a real selling job.

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MAGIC MENTOR MONDAY: Harry Lorayne

November 9, 2015

I once read an article about an imaginary magician’s contest. Exactly one hundred of the world’s most talented close-up magicians would be invited to compete. Each magician must stand at his own table, and a thousand laymen would freely wander the hall, gravitating toward the most gifted performer. The table with the biggest crowds at the end of the night, wins.

By the end of the night, a thousand laymen, plus the other 99 magicians, would all be standing at one table. The magician they’d be watching: HARRY LORAYNE

Harry is and always has been a dynamo – give him a deck of cards and an audience, and it’s off to the races. When he was younger Harry presented lectures to magicians that were legendary for lasting 6, 7, even 8 hours. His audiences got wrapped up in his crisp and punchy voice, his sly humor, and his rat-a-tat machine gun delivery.

If you’ve never heard Harry speak, his voice sounds like a mix between Regis Philbin and physicist Richard Feynman. It has a gravelly, old-New York quality that contrasts handsomely with his overly crisp enunciation. He speaks with a quick authoritative cadence that jumps out and grabs you by the collar. Or as he would say, “by the coll-ah.” You can take the kid out of the Lower East Side, but you can’t take the Lower East Side out of Harry.

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MAGIC MENTOR MONDAY: Jean Eugene Robert-Houdin

November 2, 2015

Welcome to MAGIC MENTOR MONDAY. In this weekly series, I introduce you to my magic mentors – people who have inspired me to become a better magician. Each Monday you’ll meet someone who has offered advice, or acted by example, to help steer my career.

Some of these people are alive, others no longer with us. Some are famous, others not so much. The beauty of mentorship is that you don’t necessarily have to meet your mentor face-to-face, nor even live during the same time in history. Many of the people who motivated me were alive a century before I was born! By reading classic books, old newspapers, and magazine articles, I’ve tracked down stories about their lives and work that continue to inspire me to become a better entertainer.

My “big three” mentors are Max Malini, Johann Nepomuk Hofzinser, and Jean Eugène Robert-Houdin. Each of these giants will be featured in coming weeks. You’ll also read about more contemporary figures like Harry Lorayne and Albert Goshman, non-magicians Danny Kaye and Sammy Davis, Jr. and even fictional characters like Willy Wonka.

How do mentors inspire? They set examples, helping us imagine how we too might solve a particular problem. By seeing the world through a mentor’s lens, we can learn more about them, and about ourselves, at the same time.

This week we’ll focus on the father of modern conjuring: JEAN EUGÈNE ROBERT-HOUDIN (1805-1871)

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MAGIC MENTOR MONDAY: “Think-a-Drink” Hoffman

October 26, 2015

Welcome to MAGIC MENTOR MONDAY. In this weekly series, I introduce you to my magic mentors – people who have inspired me to become a better magician. Each Monday you’ll meet someone who has offered advice, or acted by example, to help steer my career.

Some of these people are alive, others no longer with us. Some are famous, others not so much. The beauty of mentorship is that you don’t necessarily have to meet your mentor face-to-face, nor even live during the same time in history. Many of the people who motivated me were alive a century before I was born! By reading classic books, old newspapers, and magazine articles, I’ve tracked down stories about their lives and work that continue to inspire me to become a better entertainer.

My “big three” mentors are Max Malini, Johann Nepomuk Hofzinser, and Jean Eugene Robert-Houdin. Each of these giants is being featured in this series. You’ll also read about more contemporary figures like Harry Lorayne and Albert Goshman, non-magicians Danny Kaye and Sammy Davis, Jr. and even fictional characters like Willy Wonka.

How do mentors inspire? They set examples, helping us imagine how we too might solve a particular problem. By seeing the world through a mentor’s lens, we can learn more about them, and about ourselves, at the same time.

This week, let’s turn our attention to a forgotten master: CHARLES “THINK-A-DRINK” HOFFMAN (1896-1966)

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MAGIC MENTOR MONDAY: J.N. Hofzinser

October 19, 2015

Welcome to MAGIC MENTOR MONDAY. In this weekly series, I introduce you to my magic mentors – people who have inspired me to become a better magician. Each Monday you’ll meet someone who has offered advice, or acted by example, to help steer my career.

Some of these people are alive, others no longer with us. Some are famous, others not so much. The beauty of mentorship is that you don’t necessarily have to meet your mentor face-to-face, nor even live during the same time in history. Many of the people who motivated me were alive a century before I was born! By reading classic books, old newspapers, and magazine articles, I’ve tracked down stories about their lives and work that continue to inspire me to become a better entertainer.

My “big three” mentors are Max Malini, Johann Nepomuk Hofzinser, and Jean Eugene Robert-Houdin. Each of these giants will be featured in coming weeks. You’ll also read about more contemporary figures like Harry Lorayne and Albert Goshman, non-magicians Danny Kaye and Sammy Davis, Jr. and even fictional characters like Willy Wonka.

How do mentors inspire? They set examples, helping us imagine how we too might solve a particular problem. By seeing the world through a mentor’s lens, we can learn more about them, and about ourselves, at the same time.

This week we’ll focus on one of my favorite figures in the world of magic:

JOHANN NEPOMUK HOFZINSER (1806-1875)

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