Issue 18 | February/March 2015
Anthony Owen
Unlocking the secrets to performing on television
RAY LUM
Jeff Hobson
Romany
Triple Threat
On the Road
Diva of magic
Damned Kids!
Dream it, Belive it , Be it ...
New Series featuring Illusion builders 1
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Top Tricks & Picks find the best ‘Card In Box’ For You! With so many “Card To Box” effects available in the shop, it is hard to be clear on which is the right choice. Mystery Solved! We try to offer some Clarity to the situation with a comparison of eight similar tricks. We mention the good, and the bad, to help you find the right Card To Box for your own performing style and situation. Check out our work on the latest from the MagicTrick.com blog.
MagicTrick.com/boxes
A Crystal Clear Finish!
Joshua Jay’s own version of the classic Omni Deck trick turns each individual card into clear plastic, right in the spectator’s own hands. The routine is self-wroking, or use this deck to create your own magic!
JUST THINK
Force a card into their thoughts with this deck of cards. It appears normal, but holds Limitless power!
Made to last a lifetime.
MagicTrick.com/phantom
MagicTrick.com/limitless
Best-selling routine HEADLINE ready to make your reputation! MagicTrick.com/headlines
Now with 9 3 6 8 magic items 9 ready to ship worldwide. 3
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February/March 2015
VA NI SH
Internatonal Magic Magazine
Contents FROM THE EDITOR
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Bamboozlers - diamond jim - trick
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EDITOR Paul Romhany
ACAAN by Charles gauci - trick
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CONTRIBUTING EDITOR Ben Robinson
Victorious by Josh Janousky - trick
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handy business by danny archer - trick
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PRODUCT REVIEWERS Paul Romhany & Friends
THIS Cup Production by louie foxx - trick
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COVER PHOTO DESIGN BY
NEWS
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ADVERTISING COORDINATOR Paul Romhany/Sydnie Anderson
The Importance of wonder - Ben robinson
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SENIOR MARKETING SPECIALIST Steve Hocevar
Entertaining Kids - tim manix
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EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Paul Romhany
ANTHONY OWEN - The television man
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ART DIRECTOR and LAYOUT Paul Romhany
Ten Little Secrets - timothy hyde
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PROOF READERS Richard Webster, Mick Peck
ROMANY - Dream it, believe it, do it ...
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Damn kids - jeff hobson
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Road case ruminations by Ted Outerbridge
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Bricks and mortar shops - tannens
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RAY LUM - The Triple Threat magician
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Married in magic by matthew fallon
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RED hot acts - Kristian skovbo
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CONTRIBUTING EDITOR Nick Lewin
Paul Romhany
E-READER VERSION www.revizzit.com TO ADVERTISE IN MAGAZINE Contact Paul Romhany for more information at: editor@vanishmagazine.com
HOCUS PORCUS - Steve Spill
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42
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TIM MANIX
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Ray lum
The ABCs of family entertainment
ANthony owen
A look in to the world of making magic happen on Television
Mentalism - An Adventure in Mysticism
illusion fabricator, illusionist and close-up magician
106
Constructing a REALLY strong magic show Nick Lewin
110
To Boldly Go - Bill Gladwell
114
Magic & Public speaking - tobias beckwith
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Q&A with two presidents by Daz Buckley
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RAISING CHILDREN IN MAGIC by STEVE GORE
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Magic Reviews
132
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JKristian skovbo
106
the color purple
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A red hot act from Denmark
I.B.M & S.A.M Q&A
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FROM THE EDITOR Paul Romhany
editor@vanishmagazine.com www.vanishmagazine.com
W
hile I now make Canada my home I am still very proud to call myself a Kiwi. This last month has seen two major achievements from two very prominent magicians from my home country.
I would like to personally congratulate one of my mentors Alan Watson on his recent recognition by being awarded The Queen’s Service Medal. This is such an honor for a magician in any commonwealth country and for New Zealand it is not only long overdue but well deserved for Alan. He has been a huge influence in my life and career and I remember over 35 years ago when I first met him. I was in a local magic talent contest and he was the judge. His remark to me was “make sure you wear clean shoes.” To some people this might seem a rather odd comment, but I knew exactly what he was saying. You are judged as a performer by your appearance the second you walk out on stage. That advice has always stuck with me and served me well. And to this day I do look at performer’s shoes as it tells you a lot about how they treat our art form. It is also a very special moment in New Zealand magic history as Ber6
nard Reid releases his long awaited book, “Conjurors, Cardsharps and ConMen.” See the review of the book in the Review section of this issue, but I would like to say that this book is outstanding. It is filled with wonderful stories, show reviews and history about touring magic shows from a time when most people think there wasn’t much happening down under. The book itself is stunning and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. This isn’t only for those who love the history of magic, it’s for everybody who enjoys magic in general both young and old. What I found funny was a lot of what is happening with the problem of magicians stealing from others was happening just as bad back then! It is an honor to have Anthony Owen on the cover of VANISH and feature his story. He is the producer of many, if not most, of the Derren Brown shows as well as a host of television magic shows out of the U.K. It was such an insight in to the world of TV magic and what goes on when producing a show. It’s always fascinating to know what a producer is looking for because you never know, YOU could be the very thing. One of my goals was to always fea-
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ture more female content in VANISH and I have some great plans ahead. The first is to introduce a new contributor who has earned the respect of all magicians and is as dedicated as anybody I know to our craft. Her name is Romany, which is similar to my surname minus the ‘h.’ I’m very please to welcome such a talented artist to VANISH and look forward to many more insightful articles. I would personally like to thank Nick Lewin who does an incredible job for VANISH. He is constantly on the look out for artists to review and is a great promoter of the magazine. Nick has some wonderful feature issues coming up that I know will be of interest to everybody. Until next time
Paul Romhany
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HEAd for drinking
Bamboozlers Diamond Jim TylEr ABOUT FACE BET: Prop up a $10 bill against a salt-shaker sitting on a table so that the portrait faces outward. Everyone can see that the profile faces to the left or west (Fig. 1). Bet that you can make the profile look the opposite direction without touching the bill. SECRET: Fill a clear glass with water and place it about four inches in front of the bill. Now when your audience looks through the glass all can see the portrait is looking the opposite direction (Fig. 2). The image may be distorted for some depending on their angle when looking at this optical illusion. If they see a blurred or double-image, then have them close one of their eyes to witness the mirror reflection of the bill through the glass of water. You can also start with the bill flush against the glass so all can see that the profile still faces the same direction. Then slowly pull the bill back and have them look at the portrait through the glass so they can see the exact moment the head turns the opposite direction. As a follow-up I’ll ask them “Which President
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is on the $10 bill?�, as I cover up his name printed below his portrait. If they guess Alexander Hamilton, then they are surprisingly incorrect, because it is a trick question. Hamilton was a founding father and the Secretary of the Treasury but was never President. It is best to borrow the bill when performing a money trick like this. I always borrow money from a pessimist, because they don’t expect it back.
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DOUBLE PERECPTiON By Pablo Amira
A 2 way out system that looks completely impromptu and it will serve you in close up or stage situations
Participant and Audience perception
Proposing an experiment in “psychic smells” the performer throws a paper ball to a male member of the audience to join him on stage. Then the mystery man takes one piece of blank card and draws to little fruits, a cherry and a banana, tearing the card, creating 2 little 10
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pieces of paper. The participant is asked to close his eyes and imagine for a moment that his 7th sense of “psychic smell” can pick up the proper fruit. After four tries, getting 2 corrects and 2 incorrect in the order of correct-incorrect-correct-incorrect, the performer claims that the game was not about just psychic smell,
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