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A Brief And Enchanting Visual History Of Los Angeles’ Iconic Magic Castle..

A Brief And Enchanting Visual History Of Los Angeles’ Iconic Magic Castle..

The Magic Castle, one of Los Angeles’ most prized (and private) landmarks, is the headquarters of a members-only club that is intensely dedicated to the art of magic. Called the Academy of Magical Arts, the castle doors opened in 1963, but its history goes back much, much farther.

The 1910-era Gothic Renaissance chateau sits in the middle of what is now historic Hollywood and was originally the personal residence of a wealthy banker, Rollin B. Lane. The mansion fell into disrepair by the late 1940s, even serving for a time as a boarding house, before Bill Larsen Jr. and his brother Milt Larsen purchased the property to breathe life into their parent’s lifelong dream of opening a magic club.  Read more and see pics at:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/04/24/vintage-photos-magic-castle_n_7013728.html

Detroit-Born Magician Jeff Hobson Returns Home to Bring Wonder With ‘The Illusionists’

Detroit-Born Magician Jeff Hobson Returns Home to Bring Wonder With ‘The Illusionists’

As you get older, the unknown can become scary as you question more and more things in the world, slowly losing that childlike innocence we all once had. Sometimes, we all love to take that escape from the daily rigmarole of life into some sort of fantasy. We all have out ways to escape, and that’s what the seven members of the magical production The Illusionists try to do; bring back a little magic to our lives and remind you that those “wonders” in life are not all that scary.

Straight from Broadway, The Illusionists is the world’s bestselling touring magic show with an amazing spectacle of mindblowing ruses and stunts. The “trickster” of the group, Jeff Hobson, who was one of the original members from over three years ago, is originally from Detroit (7 Mile and Mound area), and I was able to chat with him recently about his homecoming and what makes The Illusionists so astonishing. Read more…

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kelly-frazier/detroit-born-magician-jeff-hobson_b_7138334.html

(Editors note.. The Magic Roadshow has featured a series of magical effects, courtesy of Jeff Hobson, the past five issues. Be sure to check them out at: http://MagicRoadshow.com   issues 160-165

The Allan Slaight Awards – $250,000 for the Pursuit of the Impossible..

The Allan Slaight Awards – $250,000 for the Pursuit of the Impossible..

Magicana will distribute, on behalf of the Slaight Family Foundation, $250,000, over five years, to recognize excellence in magic. The Allan Slaight Awards are named in honour of Canadian media mogul and philanthropist, Allan Slaight, and his lifelong passion for and contributions to magic.

“My dad has long loved magic – and still does. As a family, we wanted to recognize his passion by giving something back to the community of artists that inspired it.”

Gary Slaight
Slaight Family Foundation

A cross between the Scotiabank Giller Prize and the Griffin Poetry Prize, the Allan Slaight Awards will be given to performers, writers, and/or creators in five categories: Sharing Wonder (Live or Digital), Sharing Secrets, International Rising Star, Canadian Rising Star, and Lifetime Achievement. The goal is to recognize exceptional performances by exceptional artists.

https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/allan-slaight-awards-250-000-120000896.html

For Persi Diaconis’ Next Magic Trick …

For Persi Diaconis’ Next Magic Trick …

By: Erica Klarreich for QuantaMagazine

Persi Diaconis shuffled and cut the deck of cards I’d brought for him, while I promised not to reveal his secrets. “I’m not going to give you the chance,” he retorted. In an empty conference room at the Joint Mathematics Meetings in San Antonio, Texas, this January, he casually tossed the cards into four piles in a seemingly random motion — yet when he checked, each pile magically had an ace on top. “Of course, it’s easy to get confused when there are a lot of cards, so let me just take four,” he said, scooping up the aces. He swiveled the four-card pile in his hands — always keeping it in the same flat plane — and sometimes the aces were faceup, sometimes facedown, even though they couldn’t possibly have flipped over… Read more at:

https://www.quantamagazine.org/20150414-for-persi-diaconis-next-magic-trick/