Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Friday, January 27, 2012
Funny!
College Humor sometimes has nice surprises.
And this might be a lesson for some magicians who keep buying the next self levitation, undoubtedly being under the unconscious assumption that they might end up buying the real thing.
And this might be a lesson for some magicians who keep buying the next self levitation, undoubtedly being under the unconscious assumption that they might end up buying the real thing.
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
The Angry Man of Magic - Concentrating on the presentation.
There are two broad strokes to learning my magic - the method, and the presentation. The method is the bit in which most of us are interested. Learning the sleights and being able to show the exposed view to our friends at the magic club is the closest to a circle jerk we've had since high school. It's hidden, and it's enjoyable.
Then there's the presentation. A cool and effective delivery. Strong patter lines, interspersed with relevant humor (not random jokes ripped from other acts, or the Internet). It all makes something with which an audience can engage.
To be an effective entertainer, I need to be able to do both. Blindfold. At the same time. Without mistakes. In fact, if something outside of my control causes a mistake, I must be capable of resolving the mistakes. Blindfold. At the same time. Without further mistakes.
So why do tricks insist in telling me the method is so easy I can "concentrate on the presentation"
Whisky Tango Foxtrot?
Magicians need to be able to walk and chew gum at the same time. If I can't perform the sleights required by the routine, I should not be doing it. Period. No one should. Practice not until you can do it right, but until you can't do it wrong, as they say. You must be able to commit each move, turn, block, and misdirection to muscle memory and handle it as smoothly as if you aren't doing a move. Or turn. Or block. Or misdirection.
If the trick has simple sleights, say so. But the Google translate function inside my head just replaces "concentrate on the presentation" with "there's no incentive to practice this, so you will mess up and look as stupid as an amoebic dysentery diet plan.
Maybe the other interpretation is "you'll be performing this right out of the box". This actually means, "you won't bother even writing a script, so you can concentrate on ad-libbing incoherent verbal durchfall during the presentation". And since, unless you're Bill Malone, ad-libbed presentations consist of a running commentary of the moves; so don't be surprised if I don't concentrate on your presentation.
Then there's the presentation. A cool and effective delivery. Strong patter lines, interspersed with relevant humor (not random jokes ripped from other acts, or the Internet). It all makes something with which an audience can engage.
To be an effective entertainer, I need to be able to do both. Blindfold. At the same time. Without mistakes. In fact, if something outside of my control causes a mistake, I must be capable of resolving the mistakes. Blindfold. At the same time. Without further mistakes.
So why do tricks insist in telling me the method is so easy I can "concentrate on the presentation"
Whisky Tango Foxtrot?
Magicians need to be able to walk and chew gum at the same time. If I can't perform the sleights required by the routine, I should not be doing it. Period. No one should. Practice not until you can do it right, but until you can't do it wrong, as they say. You must be able to commit each move, turn, block, and misdirection to muscle memory and handle it as smoothly as if you aren't doing a move. Or turn. Or block. Or misdirection.
If the trick has simple sleights, say so. But the Google translate function inside my head just replaces "concentrate on the presentation" with "there's no incentive to practice this, so you will mess up and look as stupid as an amoebic dysentery diet plan.
Maybe the other interpretation is "you'll be performing this right out of the box". This actually means, "you won't bother even writing a script, so you can concentrate on ad-libbing incoherent verbal durchfall during the presentation". And since, unless you're Bill Malone, ad-libbed presentations consist of a running commentary of the moves; so don't be surprised if I don't concentrate on your presentation.
Monday, January 23, 2012
Wus up wiz this?
Are we on the brink of a new kind of magic sell out? So we got Luke Dancy hosting a web show called "Secrets Revealed". Luke Dancy, a professional magician, creator and consultant on "Mindfreak". So he is not of the usual spoilers of magic. In fact he doesn't spoil any magic at all. Eric Jones is. I respect Eric Jones. And he goes on explaining magic. His own magic. I'm okay with that, but why the hell? But first here is the video.
there is a second video, where Eric Jones is explaining the routine in detail.
Going back to my initial question. Are we on a brink of a new kind of magic sell out? Well obviously yes. It's not enough to teaser trailers. Obviously people are fed up with those and the lies. So Eric offers a bit of "honesty" by revealing parts of the product he sells.
And while I think that the routine is a whopper I cannot get myself not noticing the fact that it may not be his own. There is P.D.Q. Coins Across by Paul Harris, which is similar, but not the same. But let be check up on my good ol' Bobo: Classic Palm, check! Click Pass, check! Han Ping Chien, check! Well here it is. All the stuff published before Eric was born.
Hmm, maybe it truly is original. It's a worker though. I do a similar routine with just three coins. Quicker and a little bit easier. Maybe I should put it on a DVD?
Sad when it has come to this, that magic dealers have lied to the costumers so much, that the most desperate measure, that of exposing, is necessary to accomplish one thing. Selling Magic!
there is a second video, where Eric Jones is explaining the routine in detail.
Going back to my initial question. Are we on a brink of a new kind of magic sell out? Well obviously yes. It's not enough to teaser trailers. Obviously people are fed up with those and the lies. So Eric offers a bit of "honesty" by revealing parts of the product he sells.
And while I think that the routine is a whopper I cannot get myself not noticing the fact that it may not be his own. There is P.D.Q. Coins Across by Paul Harris, which is similar, but not the same. But let be check up on my good ol' Bobo: Classic Palm, check! Click Pass, check! Han Ping Chien, check! Well here it is. All the stuff published before Eric was born.
Hmm, maybe it truly is original. It's a worker though. I do a similar routine with just three coins. Quicker and a little bit easier. Maybe I should put it on a DVD?
Sad when it has come to this, that magic dealers have lied to the costumers so much, that the most desperate measure, that of exposing, is necessary to accomplish one thing. Selling Magic!
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Saturday, January 21, 2012
Revolutionizing Magic Lingo
I propose a new term to be used in magic.
Most magicians really deserve a better terminology. Instead of calling themselves "Magician" the term "Badician" seems to be much more accurate.
I know that this is a groundbreaking idea. So naturally spin offs will happen. "Madicians" "Faticians" and my personal favourite "Sadician". (The last one has been thought of before and appears in a very rare handwritten manuscript by Barry Solayme, which is all about "Lonely Ball Manipulations with and without climax." Published during his blue period)
totally unrelated:
Most magicians really deserve a better terminology. Instead of calling themselves "Magician" the term "Badician" seems to be much more accurate.
I know that this is a groundbreaking idea. So naturally spin offs will happen. "Madicians" "Faticians" and my personal favourite "Sadician". (The last one has been thought of before and appears in a very rare handwritten manuscript by Barry Solayme, which is all about "Lonely Ball Manipulations with and without climax." Published during his blue period)
totally unrelated:
Friday, January 20, 2012
The Sober Game
I have this great new idea for a game. I call it The Sober Game. The goal of the game is to have fun with the Magic Café. But not the kind of game that the Magic Circle Jerk was doing 7 years ago, that got a lot of people banned from the Café. No, my game is more of drinking contest that you play with your friends. (If you don't have any friends you can refer to other magicians as your "friends".)
Here is how to play it. Go to the workers section of the forum and look for any Harry Lorayne post that he doesn't pitch his books. (Should be a piece of cake!) If that post is about himself and how great he is you don't drink. But in case that the post is acknowledging someone else's work you go to the next step.
If the guy that HL is acknowledging is dead, you have don't take a drink... but in case that HL praises someone who is still alive, you have to drink. Got that!
If those rules keep you too sober you can reverse the rules, but I urge you not to do it. Alcohol poisoning is not the experience one needs to make.
Here is how to play it. Go to the workers section of the forum and look for any Harry Lorayne post that he doesn't pitch his books. (Should be a piece of cake!) If that post is about himself and how great he is you don't drink. But in case that the post is acknowledging someone else's work you go to the next step.
If the guy that HL is acknowledging is dead, you have don't take a drink... but in case that HL praises someone who is still alive, you have to drink. Got that!
If those rules keep you too sober you can reverse the rules, but I urge you not to do it. Alcohol poisoning is not the experience one needs to make.
Thursday, January 19, 2012
WMF Trailers
FUUUUUUUUUCK..... Get to the fucking point. More and more magic trailer nowadays, do way too much "atmospheric introduction" Most recent example: Five by Daniel Garcia and Marcus Eddie.
Oh no, its not a trailer. It's a preview video. What's the fucking difference? More than 40 seconds to get to the magic. And it's not even seen at all. Stop teasing you bloody Fuckers. Show the routines and be done with it. 40 seconds, it sure feels a lot longer. I'm not interested in seeing blurry images of cars and streets.
I could give a rat's ass about audience reactions to tricks I don't get to see. In fact I don't even give a flying fuck about any audience reactions.
I would get all pissed off if it wasn't Daniel Garcia and Marcus Eddie. I actually think they are talented and good. So I'm interested in what they got to offer. Instead I get out of focus slow motion shit.
Man, get a tripod, a decent camera guy and be interesting! I like it old school. Speaking of horrible trailers for magic effects. Peter Loughran's Body Swap Illusion is a masterpiece of lazy ass boredom. Almost 50 seconds (that's nearly a minute) before we get a SLIDESHOW.
By the way: What a weird ass illusion is that? I can see only one application where this would be cool. At an erotic fair and trade show. Because then you could have the participants prove that their body parts got swapped. Finally transsexuals can shine, bringing hope and a positive message about being whoever you want to be.
Back to the topic... Wanna see a good magic trailer? Check out pretty much everything by Axel Hecklau.
The intro is minimal, it even shows the trick, and then, without cuts and fancy editing the routine is demonstrated.
Bravo Herr Hecklau, you are doing it well.
To all the other... LEARN FROM IT!
Oh no, its not a trailer. It's a preview video. What's the fucking difference? More than 40 seconds to get to the magic. And it's not even seen at all. Stop teasing you bloody Fuckers. Show the routines and be done with it. 40 seconds, it sure feels a lot longer. I'm not interested in seeing blurry images of cars and streets.
I could give a rat's ass about audience reactions to tricks I don't get to see. In fact I don't even give a flying fuck about any audience reactions.
I would get all pissed off if it wasn't Daniel Garcia and Marcus Eddie. I actually think they are talented and good. So I'm interested in what they got to offer. Instead I get out of focus slow motion shit.
Man, get a tripod, a decent camera guy and be interesting! I like it old school. Speaking of horrible trailers for magic effects. Peter Loughran's Body Swap Illusion is a masterpiece of lazy ass boredom. Almost 50 seconds (that's nearly a minute) before we get a SLIDESHOW.
By the way: What a weird ass illusion is that? I can see only one application where this would be cool. At an erotic fair and trade show. Because then you could have the participants prove that their body parts got swapped. Finally transsexuals can shine, bringing hope and a positive message about being whoever you want to be.
Back to the topic... Wanna see a good magic trailer? Check out pretty much everything by Axel Hecklau.
The intro is minimal, it even shows the trick, and then, without cuts and fancy editing the routine is demonstrated.
Bravo Herr Hecklau, you are doing it well.
To all the other... LEARN FROM IT!
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
SOPA and 209.85.148.132
I agree, even though this law wouldn't really have an effect on my German website. Free Speech should not be made impossible, because some assholes (The entertainment industry) get too much fucking power to censor Domain names (the DNS for those curious). Sure piracy is bad, but hitting a fly with a sledgehammer is overkill and often enough not working.
This means that this blog the way it runs would not be possible anymore. Enough hate filled magicians would try to censor this blog, and all it would take is just one guy. Well technically it would mean that you cannot type "weeklymagicfailure.blogspot.com" into your browser and expect to get here. You would have to type: "209.85.148.132" so now you know. And knowing is half the battle.
This means that this blog the way it runs would not be possible anymore. Enough hate filled magicians would try to censor this blog, and all it would take is just one guy. Well technically it would mean that you cannot type "weeklymagicfailure.blogspot.com" into your browser and expect to get here. You would have to type: "209.85.148.132" so now you know. And knowing is half the battle.
Friday, January 13, 2012
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
The Elmsley Count Project! Seriously?
What the hell is that thing I found advertised in big letters over at the green monster? 35 bucks for two DVD's on the Elmsley Count? Has the Big Blind Media gone mad? Or is it just me? Selling just one move and it's applications?
What's next? An in depth study on the Biddle Grip with an optional discussion on it's biggest rival, the Mechanics Grip? What I would like to see would be a whole series one the "Break". 5 DVD's with several ways of holding the break with your pinky and of course a bonus disc with a few card tricks using the break technique. I want to have the issue covered from all sides. And alternatives would be nice too. What if my pinky is missing or not even pink. Can I hold the break with my ring finger?
Just watch the video:
Interestingly the video has some funny moments. When we get told, that we learn an "invisible" Elmsley Count (0:36) the video shows us a count where I actually see that the first card is stolen back. According to the video we will learn how to count 2-3 and even more cards as four cards. We learn to hide faces and backs of the cards via the counting. Makes it sound like several different techniques. We all know it's just the one sleight.
This project might be useful for beginners, but seriously I cannot help myself but to think that this is just a quick way to make a buck. 35 bucks to be precise.
PS. Happy New Year suckers.
PPS. What's up with the towel on the head?