Dear Texas Magicians,

Thank you for the privilege of being the 2015 President for the Texas Association of Magicians.  I am humbled and honored to be a part of the Austin magic community and host club, IBM Ring 60.  Austin has a very talented and dedicated group that has spent the last 18 months planning and preparing for the 2015 TAOM Convention.

From September 4-7 2015, we’ll be combining all of our magic powers to transform Austin Weird into Austin Weirder and change the Live Music Capital of Texas into the Live Magic Capital.

The 70th Annual TAOM Convention will feature the Austin Weirdness of Brian Brushwood and Master Magician Ray Anderson. Brushwood will present his famous “Scam School,” along with other bizarre and disturbing feats. All attendees will also be treated to an evening at 6th Street vaudevillian sketch comedy and improv club Esther’s Follies, home venue and only
venue of world-class illusionist Ray Anderson. Only in Austin…Austin, of course also has a reputation as Texas’ hub of progressive politics, gender-equality, social justice and sexual equality. Don’t worry, you don’t actually have to burn your bra before you get here, just remember that in Austin it’s utterly optional. What better city, then, to host this historic event: an all-female magic show and gala featuring such renowned women magicians as Jade, Krystyn Lambert, Margaret Steele, Suzanne, Ali Shelley and more. Cowboy boots, Birkenstocks and high-heels all meet dress-code at this Austin-style gala event.

The beautiful Sheraton Austin at the Capitol, (the room rate is $99.00 per night, plus tax) located at 11th Street and I-35, will host our convention — an easy walk or pedicab ride to 6th Street or downtown, and a quick taxi to such Austin mainstays as the Continental Club, the Chili Parlor, Stubb’s, and the Elephant Room. Magic, with professional entertainers, will happen every evening in the hotel bar, gala shows on Friday and Saturday, late-night “Scam School” and Comedy Hypnotism, and, yes, a Sunday blow-out party. The convention will also include 7+ lectures to help you improve your own show, including one by Bob Fitch, Broadway Actor and Magician’s Coach, and another called the “Texas Lecture” in which seven well-known Texan magicians will teach an effect for 10 minutes each. (The “Texas Lecture”
magicians have compiled a DVD of these effects, which they will be selling to benefit “Heroes Night Out” an organization that supports wounded veterans and which the local IBM, Ring 60 has worked closely with for years.)

This all sounds fun, right? But, what about the kids?! The kids—watch them magically vanish before your eyes—into The Fantastic Magic Camp! Magic Camp will provide children from ages 5-12 the opportunity to meet performers and learn enough magic of their own to keep them busy for hours while the adults perfect their own techniques.

This will be the magic convention to remember!  What we have planned can only happen in Austin. Register online. DO NOT miss the best in magic shows, lectures, demos, and late-night legerdemain. BE THERE.

Register by Oct 31st before registration rates go up!
Go to http://taom.org/2015/convention-registration/

Trixie Bond
President TAOM 2015

2015 Convention Update

JADE – just one of the many lovely ladies you’ll see at the 2015
TAOM Convention.

The exotic allure of Jade’s magic stems from her Chinese heritage and her childhood on the Indonesian island of Sumatra. Upon her family’s arrival in San Francisco, Jade landed a position as a cashier in a local magic shop. This simple summer job became a turning point in her life. After earning a degree in Communications from San Francisco State University, Jade decided to pursue her love for the art of magic and begin a career as a professional wonder-worker. Jade took the male-dominated world of magic by storm in 1990, when she won first place in the International Brotherhood of Magicians’ Magic Competition. More importantly, a panel of celebrity judges honored her with the organization’s coveted Gold Medal of Magic, a prize awarded only a handful of times in the competition’s 30-year history.

Jade’s fluency in Cantonese, Mandarin, and English has proved a bonus in her travels and engagements, allowing her to connect with other master magicians around the globe. As Jade’s talents build an ever-expanding repertoire, the extraordinary beauty and grace of her enchanting performances continue to enrapture audiences worldwide.

NEW AUCTION RULES for 2015

Preparations for the 2015 Austin Magic Auction on Saturday. February 28, 2015 are in full swing. That’s right – the 2015 Auction has moved from April to February. We are moving the date because February is typically a slow month for many magicians and the Austin magic community is very busy

planning for the Texas Association of Magicians convention, scheduled for Sept. 4-7, 2015.

Now is the time to decide if you would like to be a seller at the World Famous 2015 Austin Magic Auction. It’s quite simple. Just send me an email (Trixie@trixiebond.com ) stating you would like to be a seller and I will reply with your seller number for 2015.

We allow only 75 sellers at our auction and seller numbers are assigned on a first-come, first-served basis. You may review all the rules and auction information on our website http://austinmagicauction.com. So get busy and start cleaning your closets, drawers, garages, storage units and let us turn

your unused, unwanted props into cash

The Austin Magic Auction is the largest, best attended magic auction in Texas. In 2014 we had a great crowd and generated $25,000 in sales. If you have never attended this auction you will be in for a treat. It’s exciting and fun! Every year we refine the process, and this year will be no

different. The principal change for 2015 involves the application of seller fees. As you are no doubt aware, our all-volunteer staff works hard to give you the best auction experience possible. However, we have discovered that we work much harder for some sellers than others. To address this imbalance, we have developed a new three-tier pricing structure that more accurately reflects the amount of effort required of our volunteers.

The new service pricing is as follows:

BASIC SERVICE: 12% seller’s fee. The seller COMPLETELY fills out the online form and uploads their own web friendly photos. This is just like eBay.

PLUS SERVICE: 20% sellers fee. This fee applies when the seller attempts to sort the items, but has not completed the paperwork or uploaded photos. A seller will be automatically be assigned the PLUS SERVICE fee if their paperwork or photo uploads are incomplete.

DELUXE SERVICE: 35% sellers fee. This fee applies if we have to sort, catalog and photograph an estate or collection. The fee is similar to the reasonable and customary commission charged by estate sales professionals.

Lastly, the submission cut-off date of February 20, 2015 will be FINAL. Regardless of the date the items are shipped, if they arrive after the cut-off date, the shipment will be refused and the carrier instructed to return to sender.

Please, try to be understanding with regards to these new rules. They have been implemented as a way to streamline the process, and so as to not over burden our all-volunteer staff. The forms and instructions to be a seller are also on our website: http://austinmagicauction.com/forms-and-documents.html

For those of you traveling from out of town, please make your hotel reservations soon. Hotel information can be found on our website.
www.austinmagicauction.com/area-hotels.html

I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Magically,

Trixie Bond. Chairman

2015 Austin Magic Auction

Bankchek – Thought Reader

You are cordially invited to a night of mind-reading, mystery and amazement as Jamie Salinas presents The Worlds Number One Thought Reader – Banachek in this one man show. Saturday, November 1, 2014 Banachek will perform his one man show at the Lee College Performing Arts Center in Baytown, Texas at 7:30 PM. For ticket information Phone: 281.425.6255.

Improv Clinic in Austi

Date: Nov 8th, 2014 at 10:00 a.m.

Where: Heroes Night Out

1150 S. Bell Boulevard in Cedar Park (Austin)

An Improvisational Acting and Comedy workshop will be facilitated by Terrill Fischer. The particular branch of improv that Terrill teaches is improvised comedy, which straddles the gap between theatrical improvisation and sketch comedy.

Congratulations, Dallas Magic Club

Magicians from around the State gathered on October 21 to celebrate a double milestone — the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Dallas Magic Circle, S.A.M. Assembly 13, and the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Willard the Wizard Ring, I.B.M. Ring 174. What a stellar achievement!

Medical Update from the Lehrs

Chuck and Joannie Lehr are still keepin’ on keepin’ on in Missouri. The doc still calls Joannie a “stage 4” cancer patient, but we think she has it under control. Still have many multi-purpose medical appointments which keep us close to home, here. She just finished her 8th infusion of this particular kind of cancer medicine. The doc describes it as a battle between the meds and the cancer, where eventually the cancer develops resistance to the meds and they have to switch to another type. Hopefully, another scan Wednesday will show that this series of meds has won the battle and she can have a break from infusions for a while. The “tough” part is the side effects because the infusions are only one medicine for one of many other problems.

So.. these keep us close to home. You can’t imagine the frustration of having the IBM/S.A.M. joint convention 30 minutes down the road and not being able to attend. You can’t imagine the frustration of missing both the Dallas, and Ft Worth TAOMs. But, meds and appointments and side effects would not allow us to participate, let alone travel.

I do try to keep my hand in magic by practicing (in my man-cave) and have done about ten shows for our residents in the past 3 1/2 years. When I have the opportunity, I do impromptu close-up and balloons for residents and their visiting families. But my rule is — never a show away from our complex. Our focus is always “together” time.

We ARE happy, and enjoying life as we can — but miss all of our TAOM friends dearly!

Yours, in Magic… Chuck (proud Dean of the Dallas Magic Clubs) and Joannie Lehr

Let’s play “Magician”..

Joe and Marilyn Douglas, members of IBM Ring 157 in Corpus Christi, Texas, were cast as English magician Hubert Rothstrom and French journalist Marie Hati in a Murder Mystery: All at Sea. Among 90 character roles, Marilyn received “Best Actress” award and Joe earned the “Most Wealth” by selling show tickets and performing close-up magic for tips. Joe said that being a magician playing the part of a magician was quite a treat.

Farewell to a Lovely Lady

Magicians around the State were saddened to learn of the death of Ed Solomon’s wife, Dee, on October 3, 2014. Ed has moved to an assisted living facility and would enjoy hearing from you. You can write to him at Sodalis Elder Living, 19095 FM 2252, Garden Ridge, TX 78266.

Bill Malone – Movie Star!

Bill Malone appears in a straight acting role as an accountant in a covert government division who finds himself involved in something much bigger than expected. While he does no magic in the episode, it was his magic that got him this first acting job. The show is NCIS: Los Angeles and airs on Monday, October 27th on CBS.

Unbelievable Magic Ballet

You simply must watch this captivating Chinese dancer and her astounding magic routine. http://.viduki.com/video/18937/Where_does_she_keep_it_all

SYFY is now casting creative and talented magicians for the new competition series, WIZARD WARS. This TV series takes viewers inside the world of magic, challenging new teams of magicians each week to create the most jaw-dropping illusions using an array of eeryday objects and transforming them into eye-popping miracles. The winning team of challengers in the first round then tae on the expert “home team” of world-renowned wizards for a cash prize of $10,000. If this is you, email Hayley Billman at asmithcocasting@gmail.com with “Attention Hayley” in the subject line or call 310-432-4810

Charles Gauchi Lectures:

October 25 – New Orleans – 1:00 p.m. at the home of Gary Hughes, 10109 Walden Drive in River Ridge, Louisiana. Email westley@da-parish.com for details.

November 14 – Austin – 7:00 p.m. at Heroes Night Out, 1150 Bell Boulevard in Cedar Park. Email lectures@ibmring60.org for details.

November 15 – Dallas – 2:00 p.m. at Crosspointe, 2425 Parker Road in Carrollton. To to www.thats-impossible.com/lectures.htm for details.

November 17 – San Antonio – Contact Doug Gorman at douggorman@att.net for location and information.

November 18 – Houston – 7:30 at the I.A.T.S.E. Hall, 3030 North Expressway (I-45). Email scott@scottwells.com for details.

October 25 – Carrollton Movies & Magic Night at 7 p.m. at the Perry Homestead with S.A.M. National President Dal Sanders and an amazing kid-friendly magic show. At exactly 7:00, he will join thousands of other magicians nationwide to perform a levitation illusion as part of a national promotion called “A Magical Moment in Time” to kick off National Magic Week.

October 29 through November 19 – University of Texas Informal Classes Intermediate Magic Course by Kent Cummins. Email kent@kentcummins.com for details.

November 1, Houston – Banachek at Lee College. See “Bits…” article above for details.

Second Saturday Magic Sale at Magic, Etc., 9:00 a.m., Forest Park Blvd. at 1-30 in Fort Worth.

November 8 – Second Saturday Family Magic Show at Main Street Magic & Fun Company in McKinney with shows at 7 and 9 p.m. featuring the magic of Christopher Lyle, Chris Gracy, and Geoff Grimes.

Monday Night Magic at Humperdink’s at #6 North Six Flags Drive in Arlington. All magic aficionados are invited to attend these informal gatherings that meet in the back meeting room each Monday evening. Bring your cards and props and practice your “chops”!

Magic at the Improv in Arlington EVERY SUNDAY at 2:00 p.m. Go towww.improv.com for details.

October 19 – Mike Squires and Christopher Lyle

October 26 – Ian Richards

November 2 – Trigg Watson

November 9 – Darren Collins

November 16 – Slappy & Monday and Mike Squires

November 30 – Mike Williams

Magic at the Improv in Addition EVERY SUNDAY at 2:00 p.m. Doors open at 1:00 for lunch and preshow entertainment. Go to www.improv.com for details.

Magic at the Improv in Houston featuring Ted Schwank and Carter Blackburn. Go to www.improvhouston.com for details.

The South Austin Card Group meets on the last Saturday of each month, usually at the home of Ron Cartlidge. Get in touch with Lou Hornung at lhornumg@sbcglobal.net for details and to be added to the meeting notice distribution list.

Greetings, Compeers!

I have lots of exciting S.A.M. news to share this month:

S.A.M. National President Kenrick “Ice” McDonald will recognize a S.A.M. member in each region with a Presidential Citation every month. Candidates should be a member of S.A.M., active in the local assembly, go above and beyond the call of duty, donate time and magic to worthwhile organizations and events, and have a high respect for magic and its secrets.

Send your nominations to be and include (1) name of the nominee, assembly affiliation, address, “real” job, position in the assembly, magic interests, efforts to further the art of magic, and community involvement in sharing and giving to others.

MI McDonald has also proclaimed the week of October 25-31 as National Magic Week throughout the United States and Canada. For more information, visit www.magicsam.com/magic-week-proclaimed-oct-25-31-2014

The Magic Summit is just a month away. I hope to see many of you there. If you can’t attend and have questions or suggestions for the powers that be, please let me know.

The Magic Summit team is pleased to announce that Michael Ammar, Brian Brushwood, Jamie D. Grant, Jeff McBride, Michael Mode, and many other remarkable magicians will speak during the event. The Summit will be held November 14 and 15 in Las Vegas. Details and registration information available at www.magicsummit.com

Sincerely, in Magic, Unity, and Might,

Michael Tallon, S.A.M. South Central Region RVP

mtallon@att.net

Home: (210) 341-6959

Cell: (210) 355-3434

It’s been a very busy month and my thoughts are all a-jumble but I do want to remind you to register for TAOM ’15 before the price goes up.  You’ll save $30 per adult registration if you register before this coming Saturday.  That’s just a week!  So hurry up and do it!  You’ll be glad you did.  You can buy some neat magic with $30.

Judy Hollingsworth
TAOM Club Coordinator

p.s. Go to www.taom.org/2015/convention-registration/