* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * New Zealand's MagicNZ e-zine * www.watson.co.nz/ezine.html * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Issue Number: #64 Date: Sunday 11th March 2001 Editor: Alan Watson www.magician.co.nz www.alan-watson.com e-mail alan@watson.co.nz ================================ Hi here is the latest news ================================ 1. Editors Message 2. The 33rd Annual Academy Of Magical Arts Awards 3. The Blue Room 4. Mentalist Gerard Senehi - Public ridicule in Brazil 5. QUALITY rubber chickens 6. The "Blue Room" 7. The Blue Room description is wrong 8. Magic is available in Vietnam 9. Fuels to use in the Fireball spitting 10. Endorse Tommy Orchard's comments 11. Blackpool Convention 2001 12. The Orchante Saga #20 13. 60th Anniversary Dinner - Canterbury Society of Magicians 14. Diarise these events 15. MagicNZ e-zine archives 16. Subscription Management ------------------------------------ 1. Editors Message ------------------------------------- Message from Alan Watson - The Magic One If any local magicians that are looking for doves. I have six surplus to my requirements please give me a ring on 4839 274. Had an e-mail from Paul Romhany from the Arab Emirates and his shows as Charlie Chaplin are being well received and Charlie is well recognised as a popular character. Paul will be back in New Zealand at the end of March. Remember if you have any magic news drop me a line: alan@watson.co.nz ------------------------------------- 2. The 33rd Annual Academy Of Magical Arts Awards ------------------------------------- Message from Mark Nelson (US) Nominees For Magicians Of The Year For Their Performances At The Magic Castle During The Year 2000 ___| Lecturer Of The Year |___ Aldo Colombini Doc Eason Lennert Green Paul Green Whit Haydn ___| Close-Up Magician Of The Year |___ Lennert Green Andrew Goldenhersh Whit Haydn T.C. Tahoe Steve Valentine ___| Parlor Magician Of The Year |___ Brian Gillis & Sisuepahn Andrew Goldenhersh Handsome Jack Martin Lewis Earl Nelson ___| Stage Magician Of The Year |___ Ed Alonzo John Carney Mike Caveney Dimmare T.C. Tahoe April 20, 2001 - 7:30 pm - The Wilshire Ebell Theatre, Los Angeles 4401 West 8th Street, Los Angeles Tickets to the 33rd Academy of Magical Arts Awards Show are available exclusively from Ticketmaster, including all Robinsons May, Tower Records/Video, Ritmo Latino stores and select Wherehouse Music and Tu Musica stores. Or visit ticketmaster.com or call (213) 480-3232. http://www.magiccastle.com/awardshow/ ---------------------------------- 3. The Blue Room ---------------------------------- Message from Bob Loomis (UK) The info. that the Blue Room was in Hopkins, in issue #63, stirred up some of the tiny brain cells in my cranium. I recalled there was an excellent history of the illusion a year or two back in Magic. Then I made the mistake of checking out the on-line index. It was 5 years ago! (Please stop asking for references that make me remember I'm getting old!) Here is what the index said: 96 1 46-51 Feature - Blue Room, The History of the Blue Room - Mike Caveney ---------------------------------- 4. Mentalist Gerard Senehi - Public ridicule in Brazil ---------------------------------- Message from Philippe Piet van Putten Yesterday (March 4) French mentalist Gerard Senehi, 38, was introduced to millions of Brazilians during an interview to the weekly TV show Fantastico (Globo Network), the nation's leading variety program on Sundays. It all started very well, with Senehi demonstrating his levitations, metal bending and book test. For my surprise, almost by the end of the program, the show's host, Mr. Cid Moreira, presenting himself as "a friend of the Masked Magician" (Valentino) proceeded to reveal all the secrets used by Senehi!! I just couldn't believe my eyes and ears!! Fantįstico ridiculed Senehi openly and also dubbed his voice, editing a false statement, to make a fool out of him!! My God !! Globo Network was sued by Brazilian magicians and LOST. Now it attacks again with a clear intention to expose magic secrets and ridicule magicians. I want to recommend to all international artists a deep caution with Globo Network reporters. They have started an intense war against our magical arts. ------------------------------------- 5. QUALITY rubber chickens ------------------------------------- Message from Jack Browne (US) Immediate Past National President IBM In response to my friend Bev Bergeron's distress call for QUALITY rubber chickens, one need go no further than ARCHIE McPHEE, that famous cult purveyor of the same, who also carries pink lawn flamingoes, nerd glasses, voodoo dolls, potato guns, and other goodies. The rubber chickens are 20" long, are made of hand-painted quality rubber and come with a tag explaining the origin of the chicken joke. They sell for US $9.95, and can be viewed on line at: http://www.mcphee.com. I just bought two of them, and they are great. ARCHIE McPHEE & CO. is located at PO Box 303852, Seattle, WA 98103, tel. (425)349-3009. ------------------------------------- 6. The "Blue Room" ------------------------------------- Message from John Evernden (US) You won't find much info on this effect. There is just little in print. The "Blue Room" version was designed by Harry Kellar, and displayed seldom before his retirement. He took it with home when he retired and it was never really performed again. If you will look thru archives at www.uelectric.com/pastimes/, or The Learned Pig Project you may find an account of a man who contacted Kellar shortly before his death. Kellar met him at the train station, took him home, performed the mystery in the barn, then bade the man goodbye and died very shortly after. The workings of the illusion were not discussed in this writing. You'll find a good range of descriptions of methods and modifications in Optical Conjurors' Secrets, or Mechanical Conjurors' Secrets, by S. H. Sharpe. Listed most likely as Pepper's Ghost. A short treatise of Pepper's Ghost was published by Jim Steinmeyer within the last year. Check with Magic Inc or Stevens for possible availability. ------------------------------------- 7. The Blue Room description is wrong ------------------------------------- Message from Bev Bergeron (US) In the 63 issue Malaki was asking about the Blue Room Illusion and mentioned "Magic Stage Illusion, etc. by Hopkins. I lived with that book for years from age twelve. I was lucky to buy my own copy after I became an adult. It is a great book and Walt Disney got many ideas for his theme parks from it, however, the Blue Room description is wrong. In 1960 when we were looking for ideas to be used on our CBS-TV show, The Magic Land of Allakazam, I started to put together things we could do with the old mirror illusion. So I made a model from the published works of several magic books. I was shocked - they were all wrong. Only a small pamphlet put out by the Gilbert Chemical Company had it right. I made a working model of the illusion and showed it first to our gang of writers for the TV show and then I took it to an even more amazed magic group in Los Angeles the Los Magicos magic club. Everyone was shocked that these magic books have carried the wrong workings of the effect. A year after I built my model I saw one of several working model that U.F. Grand had years before made to be sold to companies for putting into store windows and having their product appear and disappear. It was very similar to my cheap cardboard model. What was wrong with the books? They did not allow the distance from the mirror to the subjects to be the same on both sides. The model is really an "L" shape not almost square as it is drawn in the books. Soon after that, I built several Girl to Gorilla Illusions that were used in carnivals; one was used in a night-club. The Blue Room Effect would have a Girl change into a Gorilla without cover. The good part about the illusion was that everyone paid to see it and then when the Gorilla "broke" out of the cage and ran towards the audience- everyone ran out the door. Doing two things: One: It cleared the theatre for more people to come in - fast. Two: It created excitement-having people running out of the tent, so that others outside rushed to buy tickets. ------------------------------------- 8. Magic is available in Vietnam ------------------------------------- Message from Bev Bergeron (US) Ken Fox wants to know what magic is available in Vietnam - he is heading that way. The last time I was there was in 1971 just before I went to work for Walt Disney World in Florida. I was the only magic that I saw. The other things I saw were not nice. I would love to know how things have changed in 30 years. Is there Magic in Vietnam? Hope that Ken can report to us on this subject. ------------------------------------- 9. Fuels to use in the Fireball spitting ------------------------------------- Message from Bev Bergeron (US) Loch David Crane wanted to know of other fuels to use in the Fireball spitting. When the Magic Castle first opened there were only a handful of us that were there nightly. One of us being Robert Harlan, he was then called Bobby "Torchy" Towner. Bobby and an out of work actor from Germany used to sit at the bar and blow out fireballs of 180 proof Cognac and some other high octane alcohol. The first brochure advertising the Magic Castle's memberships has a picture of Bobby at the bar doing the fire. I don't think that they would like you or anyone to do it today. I never wanted to waste good booze that away. Bev Bergeron ------------------------------------- 10. Endorse Tommy Orchard's comments ------------------------------------- Message from Mauro (South Africa) I would like to comment on (and endorse) the most interesting points made in Tommy Orchard's Saga 18. I am basically a magician, but - like most of us - have to widen my scope to survive. Thus many years ago I started offering fire eating as an optional extra, and later added fire blowing (or, as it's sometimes called, fire-breathing). Please note that I draw a distinction between the two - the former using a more volatile solvent than the latter, and the subject of Tommy's saga. To the public, the two are part and parcel of the same art, but are really two different demonstrations. Some 18 months ago I was asked to do, not fire-eating, but just one big blow as an intro to a motivational speaker before getting his 'subjects' to walk (quickly) through a three metre fire trench. His line: "If he can eat fire, you can walk on it." The money was good, it worked, and I was paid. Everyone was happy and we went home. But the next day I started to feel grotty and was diagnosed (via X-rays) as having pneumonitis - a relative of pneumonia. I was in hospital and recovering in bed at home for two months, and remember one night having to change the bedclothes and my pyjamas three times - bad night-sweats is a symptom. Physiotherapy to get me to cough up gunk was ineffective. I didn't connect it with the fire-blow as I had never had that reaction before, and so, when another opportunity to fire-blow came again six months later, I went for it. (I had done fire eating in the interim but outdoors wind and indoors drapery didn't favour -blowing.) The next day the symptoms were back and I drew the connection. This time I was down for only one month. After recovering, I went to speak to colleagues who successfully blow fire every day of their working lives. (One local chap - very macho in leather trousers and leather waistcoat over his bare chest - walks around with a 2-litre Coke bottle filled with the fluid that he swigs and blows every couple of minutes - that's it; no eating, no juggling, nothing else). They could give me no direction as to what I was doing right before, but wrong now. I thought it through carefully and am certain that I didn't cough or sneeze during either experience. I have heard that some Italian fire-blowers claimed to have a liquid that was even drinkable, but as a former industrial chemist I find that hard to believe. To bring matters up-to-date, (there being 'no fool like an old fool') I was persuaded to a few fire-blows about six weeks back and - believe it or not - my pneumonitis came back. So, like Tommy, I am quitting fire blowing, and have e-mailed my agents to that effect, but that I am still in the market for 'entertaining' fire eating. (As Tommy so correctly summed it up: Presentation and entertainment value" are the more important things). So may I close my saga with the suggestion made to me by my GP: "I suggest you put all your income derived from fire-blowing into a trust, and you will be able to use it to pay for the oxygen you will need in a few years time. ---------------------------------- 11. Blackpool Convention 2001 ---------------------------------- Message from Mandy Davis (UK) This was my first year at Blackpool and I had a fantastic time - I was busy from 9 a.m. (breakfast) to 3 a.m. (talking!) and four days after it ended, I am still trying to recover! The first event took place on Friday evening and was the Close Up Magic Competition. The standard was high and all the competitors were in with a chance of at least a place in the final three. As the competition took place in three different rooms, with the judges all in the same one, audiences in the other locations contested the results. However, one entrant told me that he knew he had not gone down as well in the judging room as in the others and he felt he deserved not to be placed - how often do you meet such honesty? Third place went to Peter Roberts who had previously won the IBM competition with a similar routine, which culminated in some polished large ring and rubber band work. Second prize was awarded to Ian Barradell (whose act I fail to remember as I was one of the 'volunteers' sitting at his table) and the accolade of first place went to Lee Davis who has also won IBM with the same act showing clever card handling and the revelation of a shuffled deck into new deck order. The others taking part were: Tim Shoesmith, Mike Smith, Carl Royle, Trevor Stone and Kane. One minor comment - why were these prizes awarded on the same night and not held over to the main prize giving during the Gala Show on Sunday? I did feel that this trivialised close up magic as not being important enough. Let me confess here that I only managed to attend one lecture during the whole routine. As stated previously, I was too busy talking! However, I have spoken to those that did go to all of them and will impart to you the general consensus of opinion. The highly revered Salvano gave a well-received lecture on stage magic. Sadly, he was suffering from laryngitis which didn't help - although this didn't affect his silent stage act! Children's Entertainer of the Year was fascinating - for the wrong reasons. Some of the acts were so poor that it was amazing to think that they had been 'invited' to compete. Also, although the competitors had been told that they were to perform fifteen minutes of their children's show, almost all of them exceeded this timescale and one of them ran for forty minutes! Ali Bongo compered the event but it was felt that he was somewhat out of his depth with children of the 21st Century. However, the ten rows of kids all seemed to appreciate most of what was happening during the two and a half hours. The winner of this event was almost a foregone conclusion - Colonel Custard (Paul Megram) carried off the trophy although, in my view, Russell Brown's up-to-the-minute look, music and patter is worth a mention. Due to the overrun of that competition, I missed the Topas lecture and the first ten or fifteen minutes of Stephen Bargatze's one. I heard that Topas was extremely professional whilst Stephen gave a memorable demonstration of comedy routining covering a chop cup routine among others. The afternoon's Master Class offered some superb work from Bob King, Gregory Wilson, Topas (his name was almost everywhere!), Rafael Benatar and Chad Long - all hosted by Terry Seabrooke. From the comments afterwards everyone seemed to have enjoyed it although I am not sure whether anyone came away having learned anything. I missed Rafael Benatar's lecture as I was still trying to get around the Dealers' Hall which I am told was a great improvement over previous years in size and layout. I had been dreading the crush that had been the hallmark of the Blackpool convention but now the dealers displayed their wares in the main ballroom with plenty of space for everyone, both sides of the counters. The Stage competition opened with great pzazz and continued in that way throughout. It was divided into three sections with a different compere for each. Peter Scarlett introduced the first act - Daniel Dean who, with song and dance, illusions and girls who could really do their stuff, was the deserving winner of the Illusion prize. My only comment on the act was that the 'lovely Emma' should have billing as her contribution to the act was almost equal to Daniel's. Joe Knight was competing for the Junior prize with a Coke machine as his centrepiece and effects such as doves from coke cans. John Archer deserved the comedy prize for his wonderful sight gags, D'lite routine to music and bowling ball production. His card revelation defies description but included a friendly full sized skeleton! Martyn James also went for the illusion category but didn't have quite the polish needed. His act included a cage of fire which produced two girls and a box with a mangle which 'flattened' out the girl assistant, only to re-inflate her and produce a second girl from the same box. To herald each intermission, we were given a treat - a preview of acts which we were to see in full flow the following evening. To close the first half, Topas and Roxanne performed an excellent silent thumb tie routine where they were tied together and worked as one. Tony Stevens compered the second section. Mark Taylor won the General magic and the Grand Prix with an act which incorporated some of the largest 'bangs' I have ever heard indoors! Fireworks and explosions interspersed productions of umbrellas, drinks and floating lights. Philip Partridge, the camp conjuror, was just that and no more. Hampered slightly by a non-working microphone, it was considered just as well by some that not all his tawdry comments were heard. The magic was standard - restored newspaper pieces, folding mirror, silk to egg and balloon swallowing with obvious one-liners. James Parker won the junior section with his Act as Known which he had honed and polished whilst performing at last year's Magic Circle Christmas Party. Nicholas Mohammed was another magician who has yet to reach competition standard. He also started with restored newspaper pieces but spoke so fast and kept apologising after each joke. He had little delivery and I was not the only one to find it very difficult to understand his garbled repartee. This section was closed by a Beauty and the Beast scene re-enacted by FISM winner Mask. His beast mask and costume were amazing and the whole vignette was magical. Terry Seabrooke compered the final section and introduced the Carjons. Their finale of the production of a large white dog from fire in a cage was not enough to win them the illusion prize this year. Alex Lodge, debuted a brand new act for the junior section. Gone was his usual tailcoat and classic magic. Instead we met a brash American kid who manipulated CDs, yo-yos and silver thimbles. The act isn't quite ready yet but it was a brave attempt and could become prize-winning in the future - watch this space! Mark Shortland, the eventual winner of the Ken Dodd comedy award, regaled us with sight gags and failed to find a selected card. His well-known and well-honed cake spelling routine had the audience in fits of laughter and he amazed many when the card emblazoned on the back of his waistcoat finally changed to the original selection. Tony Parx was the final competitor in the general magic category. This act seemed somewhat dated with a rose changing back and forth and silk productions ending with the production of a waist-high anchor. Topas and Roxanne filled in the gap, whilst the judges judged, with a superb levitation piece. Bob King started Sunday with an excellent lecture which he will be repeating and adding to at the Magic Circle and at selected UK venues in the spring. Suffice it to say - don't miss it! The Close Up Magic performances were spread over three sessions during the day. Those who had attended the entire convention were able to see all the performers but single day people could only catch four as they were restricted to one session only. Peter Scarlett opened with his polished diminishing cards, his well known rope routine and the location of four aces. Jarle Leirpol from Norway changed a £10.00 note for a £20, found a selected card with the use of a mousetrap and gave us Sleight of Mouth which included props such as a surgical glove and a pair of forceps! Greg Wilson defies description. His fast cracking humour and even faster card locations have to be seen to be believed. I am afraid that I was too busy enjoying myself to take any notes beyond his Reboxed routine which opened his set! Don't ever miss this man. Jupiter from Hungary produced a birdcage before producing some coins for a matrix and passing them through the table. Once again, a very well honed set piece. Our afternoon session began with Stephen Bargatze whose off-the-wall costume and zany performing style had the audience in fits of laughter. We saw two tricks, one of Stephen's own - This and That -and also Fred Kap's Eleven-Dollar Bill trick - both with excellent routining. Bob King performed with cards, coins and rope and left us wanting more. Rafael Benatar also had some great routining ideas. He found a selected card by 'faxing' it from one half of a deck to the other and he used the concept of emails for his cups and balls. Great Britain was ably represented once more by Paul Wilson whose clever, card and coin work has benefited from 'audience friendly' routines which had been lacking previously. I found his act to be an enjoyable performance rather than just a clever one. Chad Long and Gregory Wilson both lectured in the afternoon but both were repeating their previous lectures at the IBM conventions. The International Gala Show opened with one of the greatest acts in the world and I felt very privileged to see what was probably their last performance. Marvin Roy and Carol produced light bulbs and chandeliers with all the polish and professionalism you would expect. Their light bulb chain from mouth led to a standing ovation and it was no surprise when they were presented with the Murray Award later in the evening. Mick Miller was a great compere for the evening with some self-deprecating humour to link the acts. Roxanne performed in a Gothic setting but her loads were somewhat obvious and she seemed more relaxed when working with Topas than alone. Amethyst gave us several illusions which impressed the professional illusionists sitting next to me. Their finale - a vanish of a motorcycle and rider - was rather spoiled for me as from where I was seated, I could see what had happened to the rider! Stephen Bergatze's straitjacket escape was hilarious but his attitude to children was the thing that most people remembered. He lined up a few youngsters at the back of the stage telling them that this was a good place to watch the act from - and then closed the back curtains on them so they were hidden from view! Salvano was another legend of magic whose classic but quirky presentation of card manipulations and drink productions were superb. Greg Frewin closed the first half with a sub trunk style switch in the form of an inverted glass pyramid. Yet again, the illusionists were most impressed. Mark Oberon's Black Art Theatre was very different and futuristic. He has certainly brought his art into the 21st Century with great style. Topas performed his Act as Known with sunglasses and wands, ending with the production of ringing bells. Once again, this was an act which shone with polish and professionalism. Mask's was the first of two FISM winning acts; using puppets and bubbles he created a story of rejection and love which ended when the puppets transformed into a real boy and girl. You either loved it or not - I loved it. Ken Dodd limited himself to approximately ten minutes which I am told is a record in brevity but he was nevertheless warmly applauded by the audience. The second FISM winners were Scott the Magician and Muriel from Holland. If I explained the act in detail, it would ruin it for anyone who sees it for the first time in the future. Suffice to say it was hilarious, it was different and it was talked about long after the evening had ended. Topas and Roxanne worked together to present a wonderful levitation which then culminated in an Asra and was beautifully presented. Finally Greg Frewin did what he is famous for - his celebrated dove act where doves just erupted from nowhere. This was a cracking ending for a gala which gave us perhaps the finest magic ever put together under one roof. The after Gala Party was well attended and the Lancashire Hotpot supper was most welcome. Duane Laflin and Mary performed their delightful silk act with class and humour and the evening was rounded off by the Bachelors - singing sensation of the Sixties. Well one of them was a Bachelor back then - one out of three ain't bad, I suppose. With late card sessions among new and old friends in the HQ hotel bar lasting until almost 4 a.m. every night and an elongated train journey home which was a non-stop card school from Blackpool to London, I guess you can say that I had a wonderful time. Roll on 2002! ---------------------------------- 12. The Orchante Saga #20 ---------------------------------- Message from Tommy Orchard (The Amazing Orchante)(UK ex-pat Kiwi) So, what do you want to be when you grow up? A Magician - Fakir - Projectionist? Well, yes - all of that -this episode is about MOVIE Magic! How's this for NOT QUITE following in Dad's footsteps! I have two sons - one's a fire-fighter. I'm a fire-eater. The other lays carpets - I lay on nails. What is that - an alternative parallel - the same difference - dunno! I used to have nightmares about this - imagine the scenario! I'm doing my show, and about to drop onto the bed of nails - then, to my horror, it has suddenly become beautifully carpeted, and standing there is my son, hammer in one hand, the other full of tacks, looking very pleased with himself, at a job well done. The other 'night-fright', I'm in the middle of the fire-eating act - a door bursts open and there is my other son, in full fire-fighter's regalia, gripping a writhing fire-hose by the nozzle, blasting a mountain of water straight at me! (This scenario almost happened at a Hotel in Napier, which was built on a hill, circular in shape, with huge windows around the entire circumference, giving panoramic views people looking up from their homes saw the flames of my fire-eating, and assumed the hotel was on fire. The next thing I knew, Fire fighters were thundering up the stairs ready to give me a good soaking. They were not amused!) Back in Manurewa (Auckland, New Zealand) (1960 something) my best mate was John Hickey. He was a Fire-fighter (in those days they were called Fire-men) He lived with his wife (or girlfriend - can't remember which) in the Flat above the Fire Station. I have no idea how we met, but remember marathon sessions playing Ping-Pong in the recreation room at the Fire Station, and listening to Elvis Presley records - John was a fanatical Presley fan, and had every L.P. Elvis had recorded. Somewhere along the line, he persuaded me to 'join up' and become a volunteer fireman. Funny how some things from the past are clear as a bell, and others just a vague memory - being a 'fireman' is one of the latter. I have fleeting glimpses of rolling out 'miles' of fire hoses to dry, and rolling them up again - the thick clothes which were as hot as hell in the summer time, and racing like mad to the Fire Station when the alarm went off. Thank God, the Police Station where I lived and the Fire Station were only 100 or so yards apart. I do remember the running joke/threat of having a fire nozzle shoved up my backside and turned on full blast to 'extinguish all the fire I ate'. HARRY ROYCROFT was the Officer in Charge of the Fire Station, and also the Projectionist at the local Picture Theatre in Manurewa (now long gone). If, for any reason Harry was unable to 'show' the movies, a temporary replacement Projectionist would come in from Auckland City. I've always been fascinated with the hows and whys of 'what went on' in the 'mysterious' projection box , with all those little glass windows you can see when you look up, and where the man who showed the films disappeared into. Guess it was the Magician and the 'how is it done' factor in me. Harry revealed all the 'secrets' of that 'little room' that few Picture Theatre patrons get to see - he taught me how to be a projectionist, thus, another string was added to my bow- sleight of hand Magician, Ventriloquist, Fire-eater, Fakir, Bed of nails, Sword swallowing, Mime artist, Hypnotist, Volunteer fireman, and now, a Projectionist! All that, plus doing shows, and to top it off, mowing 'acres' of Government owned lawn for gratis (see Page 10 of Saga). Harry introduced me to his 'little room' - the Projection box. Inside, two identical Cine projectors, standing 4 feet apart, each facing out through a little window, angled down towards the screen. To one side was a Slide projector to show all those 'ads' before the start, and during the interval. A long bench was fixed to the back wall - two spindles were screwed to the front edge, their function - to re-wind the film, the spools, one obviously empty, were locked on with special nuts. That was my first 'job' - learning how to rewind, making sure it was on the right way round - not back to front or upside down. Also, as the film rewinds, you held it lightly by the edges, feeling for any splits or breaks in the film. I remember one Saturday morning, rewinding film ready for the 2 o'clock matinee. I hadn't locked the spool of film on properly. The nut came loose, the spool flew off, spinning as it hit the deck, and thousands of feet of 'Ma and Pa Kettle' became a twisted, curled up mess, on the floor. Oh, Christ! It took two hours to sort that mess out, ready for the Matinee showing. LESSON! LOCK THE NUTS ONTO SPINDLES, PROPERLY!!! That's it - don't miss next week's 'SPINE TINGLING CONCLUSION OF MOVIE MAGIC!' ------------------------------------- 13. 60th Anniversary Dinner - Canterbury Society of Magicians ------------------------------------- Message from John Ross - President Canterbury Society of Magicians A party of almost forty people gathered together on the evening of Saturday November 25, 2000 to celebrate the 60th Anniversary of the Canterbury Society of Magicians. The Society was founded in February 1940 with the Inaugural Meeting being held on August 23, 1940. Unfortunately, Founder Member Gordon Rogers could not be present due to ill health, but current members, wives and partners were very pleased and fortunate to welcome along the following past members and partners: Joined 1940 Walter & Pamela Leslie Joined 1941 Miriam Montigue Now Patron of the Society Joined 1946 Ossy & Kura Greenwood President 1951 Joined 1949 Donald & Gwen Stringer President 3 years 1953-55 Joined 1954 David & Coral Ward Joined 1963 Lester & Peggy Clarke Joined 1991 Ron & Joyce Hodge Special mention should be made of our Patron of a number of years, Miriam Montigue whose father Bill Peppler joined the Society in 1940 followed a year later by Miriam in 1941. Master of Ceremonies, Geoff Diggs kept the evening moving along and with the pre-dinner cash bar and the free wine on the tables everyone soon got into a convivial mood. The Avon Centra conference rooms proved to be a fine venue and their Chefs' provided an excellent buffet meal. The venue had been decorated with many photos and posters from the past and there was much reminiscing over the people and events they represented. Some of this memorabilia was new to the Society, having just recently been donated by Founder Member, Gordon Rogers. A number of the past members also brought along with them, memorabilia for display and all this added to the nostalgia of the event. Neville Higham's Dinner Brochures were a colourful and much appreciated addition to the tables. We even got into the Xmas spirit with Xmas crackers which provided some extra merriment. Robert Clark and Liz McLean (Castle of Magic) provided the background party music and did a great job as Official Photographers. The Dinner set out to be an informal and friendly affair, so speeches and toasts were kept relatively brief and low key. Toasts were: Guests and Partners - John Ross Absent Friends - Burns Scandrett The Society - Rex Williams (our longest serving present Member) MC Geoff Diggs read the messages and apologies from: Gordon Rogers Bill Morgan (Waiheke Island) Alan & Michele Watson Jan and Bryan Whittington Doug George Constable Keith - and "Sniff?" (Constable Keith de Dulin) As it was a night for all of our members to relax, the entertainment was by past member El Gregoe (Greg Britt) who breezed into the party (after playing three other gigs that day) and provided a snappy and professional magic act complete with plenty of Greg's typical fun and humour. It's a tough job performing for magicians but El Gregoe did it in style. Greg also took the opportunity to remember and acknowledge the help and guidance given to him over the years by members of the Society and in particular Graham Pratley and Watson Raines who sadly are no longer with us. Thanks to our other guests Irene & Bruce Burson, Vivienne Raines & Phil Johnston, Sue Britt, Trudy Diggs, Kirsten McIvor, Liz McLean, Margaret Ross, Sally Tripp, Connie Van Slooten and Loraine Williams; many of who have to put up with the silly antics of the boys and their magic toys. Members present wee: Ian Bruce, Grant Campbell, Robert Clark, Geoff Diggs, Neville Higham, Miriam Montigue (Patron), Bev Pratley (Honorary), John Ross, Burns Scandrett, Brennan Sharp, Pat Sweeney, Dick Tripp, and Rex Williams. From all the comments I have received I believe that everyone had a very enjoyable evening and I wish to record my thanks to the Committee and members who put time and effort into the organising of the very successful function. ------------------------------------- 14. Diarise these events ------------------------------------- The 26th NZ Magician's Convention will be held at the Waipuna Hotel and Conference Centre, Mt Wellington, Auckland, New Zealand from Thursday 27 December 2001, and concluding with a New Year's Eve Celebration on Monday 31 December 2001 ------------------------------------- 15. MagicNZ e-zine archives ------------------------------------- Back issues of the MagicNZ e-zine go to: www.watson.co.nz/ezine.html Both the User Name and Password MUST be entered in lower case to gain access. User Name: ezine Password: newzealand When you enter the archive the e-zines are in issue order and are coded. Eg 001nov0699.txt first three numbers (001) denote issue number, then the date (nov06) and the last next two numbers the year (99) If you want to print copies of MagicNZ e-zine go to: www.watson.co.nz/ezine-archive ------------------------------------- 16. Subscription Management ------------------------------------- Our subscriber list is NOT made available to other companies or individuals. We value every subscriber and respect your privacy. To subscribe or unsubscribe from the MagicNZ e-zine: www.watson.co.nz/ezine.html MagicNZ e-zine is published weekly, on Sunday. The opinions expressed in this e-zine are those of the individual contributors. Neither MagicNZ or Alan Watson can vouch for the accuracy or reliability of any opinion, message, statement, or other information reported via MagicNZ e-zine. We reserve the right to correct any errors or omissions as we see fit. >> This publication may be freely redistributed to other magicians if copied in its ENTIRETY << (c) Copyright 2001 Alan Watson