FUN hits the airwaves...again!

FUN Incorporated and owner Graham Putnam were featured on last night's news broadcast on Chicago's ABC 7. Graham talks about the company and demonstrates the manufacture of our flagship product.

Click here to view the broadcast!

Society of World Deaf Magicians

The only encounter I have had with a magician who is also deaf is my dear friend Ron Jaxon, of Kalamazoo, Michigan. Ron has got talent in spades - he's a creative consultant with Sean Bogunia, is a recognized authority on using Invisible Thread, and has some of the best card moves I have ever seen.

I figured that a magician who is deaf was quite rare. I was wrong.

Recently, Tomas forwarded to me the latest edition of Magic Hands, the newsletter of the Society of World Deaf Magicians. The organization connects deaf and hearing magicians worldwide, and hosts an annual festival with gala shows and contests.

I'm having a little trouble tracking down a website for the Society, but if anyone knows it, feel free to post in the comments.

Kaleidoscope Cards - New and Improved

We're just finishing up a run of Kaleidoscope Cards here at the Fun factory - a new and improved version of this classic impossible coincidence effect.

For the uninitiated, here's a rundown of what a spectator sees: You and a spectator each select two a card from a deck made up of more than 50 different back designs. Amazingly, the backs of the chosen cards match! Even better, the faces of the selected cards match, too! The triple whammy comes at the end of the trick, when you explain that of all the cards that could be chosen, you and your spectator chose the only ones that were different. When you turn the deck over, all of the rest of the faces are the same card, a different value than the ones chosen by the two of you!

For years, Fun has manufactured this effect - which is virtually self-working - with bridge-sized cards. We're now making them with poker size cards, and at a very reasonable price.

Fun in the Archives

One of the perks of working at America's Largest Magic Manufacturer is the storied history of our company. Having been around for soooo long, we've accumulated a vast archive of old magic books. Every so often I like to check one out, take it home, and absorb the information.

Recently, I had the opportunity to spend time with our old friend Dr. Tarbell. There is so much information in that set of books, it would be possible to own the set, nothing else, and still have an excellent career as a professional magician. Sure, the patter is pretty dated, but the effects remain solid as ever.

For those of you who are into this new-fangled Internet technology, I suggest checking out the audio archives of The Magic Lantern. They do interviews with magic celebrities like Marc DeSouza, Al Cohen, and Bill Palmer. But my favorite interview was the one they did with Denny Haney. In fact, they wanted to cram all of Denny's wisdom in, so they split the episode into a 2-parter!

In those interviews, Denny discusses his first brush with the Tarbell series as a teenager, and how he advocates it to all the budding magicians that wander into his shop. As he says, "We consider it a good day in the magic shop, anytime I sell a Tarbell Volume 1. When I sell two, it's a great day."

So, take a moment to go back into your archives. Re-read Royal Road to Card Magic! It's amazing the insight you find when you re-read those books that got you started in magic. Remind yourself why those books got you started. You'll be glad you did.

String Them Along!

As John mentioned in yesterday's blog, I am involved with two more Royal magic DVD projects.
The Card Magic Essentials DVD is very good. For the price, it's going to have a lot of great information. Usually on beginner videos/dvds, the material is rather basic. No "cool" moves are taught.
This DVD has Elmsley Counts, Double Lifts, Controls, Forces, and even shuffles. Wish this was around when I got started. Also, I am very proud of my AT THE TABLE DVD. No, it's not as zany as my Geek Magic release, but it's still fun to watch. It's a great collection of impromptu magic. No throw away material here.... all good stuff! Oh, and a customer of mine was surprised to learn I was the magician on ROYAL's Amazing Tricks With Rope DVD. Many customers really enjoy this DVD. It features a slew of effects! Even how to make a stiff rope gimmick! Plus it's priced very nice. I always do well with it when I lecture. For years I have been watching instructional magic videos/dvds, I still can't believe I'm making them myself!

Coming Soon

The forums have been abuzz with the imminent release of the final chapter in John Bannon's Fractal Card Magic Trilogy: SPIN DOCTOR. We're waiting on some supplies, but the DVD and art is all ready to go. We expect to have this one on store shelves beginning in November.

Second, we have a release from the Royal Magic line of DVDs: Card Magic Essentials is a project I alluded to earlier on this blog. CME is going to be a basic reference for the most crucial moves and sleights used in card magic. Geared for the beginner, I predict this one is going to popular!

And lastly, we are wrapping up the final details for another release in the Tomas department. "At the Table" is going to feature lots of impromptu gags, tricks, and bits that can be done while hanging out at a bar or restaurant. Great stuff here from everyone's favorite Customer Service Manager.

Stay tuned!

FUN Inc sightings!

Last week I mentioned The Masked Magician's feature on one of our products, the Universal Floating Gimmick.My keen eye has spotted FUN products in yet another video venture: Reel Magic magazine. I don't know if it is on purpose (probably not), but David Regal's review column is filmed at The Magic Apple in Studio City, CA. In the background of the most recent episode, I noticed a few FUN products in prominent locations.
The Art of Levitation DVD and Boris Wild's Wild Poker Trick are clearly visible on the left, behind David. I'm not sure, but I think it's Bolted Aces inside the display case on the right. That's definitely a Royal Magic product, though. Also note that David's new book, Approaching Magic (BTW, awesome book), is on the counter behind him.

Is this subliminal advertising on the part of Reel Magic? You be the judge.

Delightfully Creepy Halloween Magic!

From private parties to pumpkin patches, magicians generally work a variety of engagements during the Halloween season. I'm sure many of our customers are being asked for delightfully creepy Halloween themed magic tricks. Here are some of my favorites:
1. Made popular by Harry Anderson, the Needle Thru Arm is a must have for gore loving fans. Looks so real, but thank goodness it's not!
2. Andrew Mayne has been very popular in the past number of years. His products are always fresh and hip. FUN carries his ARMBUSTER booklet. This is a clever method of gimmicking an ordinary power drill to apparently pass through your arm. A very
convincing illusion.
3. A reasonably priced SWORD THRU NECK! Magically push a 23 inch sword through the frame and the spectator's neck. Spectators see the sword pass through the middle of the stock and come out the other side. A classic!
4. Take a look at the SWORD THRU FINGER. This is a mini version of the SWORD THRU NECK. The perfect Halloween giveaway! Super inexpensive. Halloween is a FUN time of the year. If you need any other suggestions, please give us a call!

R-H-P is H-O-T!

It's being called one of the best tricks to hit the market in recent times. A sleeper hit. An under-the-radar smash.

Cameron Francis' Red Hot Prediction continues to gain steam in the magic world. Recently, I found myself demonstrating behind the counter at a well known Chicago magic shop. The gentleman I was talking with described his performance style and stituation, so I demonstrated RHP. The gentleman bought it on the spot!

As I was performing, the store's manager was watching from afar. "Why haven't I been doing that one?" he exclaimed. "If I had taken the time to learn it, I would've sold dozens of 'em by now!"

The best part - it takes only moments to learn. Magic shop owners and demonstrators have to learn a lot of magic, with precious little time available to them. RHP is a surefire hit, everytime, and takes only moments to learn.

Just take a look at this thread on the Magic Cafe!

Add this one to your display case before we run out.

Magic Dealers of the World: UNITE!

Despite the collapse of all civilization amid a global financial meltdown, we at FUN have been working diligently to serve the magic world with the same high standard of service as always.

Our focus of late has been to expand our global network. One of my first ideas when I started at the company was to monitor magic news globally via a Google News alert. It has been helpful many times, but none quite so much as when an item ran across my desk about a new magic shop in Guam.

Guam, the tiny unincorporated U.S. territory in the South Pacific, is about three times the size of Washington, DC. A hotspot for tourists, the island now has its own magic shop, The Trick Stop, catering to the local population of 160,000 and to the thousands of tourists that pass through each year.

It is shops like these that keep magic alive all over the world. If you know of a small shop in your corner of the globe, let us know about it! I don't want to rely on Google News alerts for everything!

What Happened to the Magic Box?

Last week (or was it two weeks ago?), David Blaine's latest television special hit the airwaves. The Dive of Death landed with a resounding "thud" in many an American household.

Ten years ago, I would have been glued to my TV set on the night of the broadcast. Blaine-mania and magic-on-tv-mania had what I took to be a stranglehold on the magic community in general. Every magician I interacted with seemed set on watching whatever magic appeared on TV. It was as if watching magic on TV had become part of every magician's job description, be he an amateur or professional. Magic shops used to report waves of phone calls on the days following a major TV magic special. Is that still the case, still the trend? I'm not so sure.

It now seems that fewer members of the magic community are as dedicated to tuning in on broadcast night than before? Is this simply a matter of personal perspective (since I don't watch them anymore, that doesn't necessarily mean that no one watches them anymore), or does it have something to do with the way entertainment is being consumed these days? Or worse yet, is the culprit of my suspicion directly related to a general disinterest in magic on TV in general?

It seems that the second supposition above - the good 'ol Internet's effect on broadcast media - is the most likely answer. While I didn't see Blaine's special on ABC-TV, I did check out the disappointing finale and the part where Big, Bad Bill Kalush shoots Blaine in the mouth (for real) on YouTube. And guess what? If more of the special were available on YouTube, I'd probably watch those clips, too.

So, dear readers, is there a general malaise out there in TV-magicland, is streaming video killing off TV (as I recently heard reported on NPR), or is there some other impetus for my possibly incorrect hypothesis that magic on TV just ain't the all-consuming magic community rallying point that it used to be?

Customer Service Friendly TOMAS!

One of the many perks of working for FUN is that I get to chat with just about every magic store owner in the world! Fortunately for them, I KNOW MAGIC LIKE A NERD. I get asked plenty of questions in regards to products and magic in general.

I am very familiar with not only our line, but with all the products we distribute. I know what they do, how they work, who makes them, and which are better than others. I've even coached tricks to shop owners via telephone! If, for whatever reason I am stumped, then my co-workers will have an answer for sure!

Why am I telling you this? Many customers have complained to me that other wholesalers aren't too familiar with their product. Product that most would consider "basic", like thumb tips or Svengali decks! Not at FUN! We all know our stuff. Please feel free to call me with any comments, questions, or even suggestions. I am always here to help!

FunInc.com Improvements

It took a long time, but I finally finished a pet project of mine: to categorize every single one of the 2,100 items listed on FunInc.com. If you visit the site, you can click on "Magic Tricks, etc." under Wholesale magic to see the various categories.

Along with Gabe, he and I combed through every single item individually to update descriptions, images, and categories. It was a tedious job, but one we knew our customers wanted and appreciated.

We have been experiencing some server issues lately. Our ISP is working on that, and things seems to be moving faster than the molasses-like crawl we had last week. Rest assured, you can always contact the FUN team at 1-877-4-FUN-INC to speak to a real live person. Often it seems the art of interpersonal communication gets lost, but I know that Tomas and I both love interacting with our customers. We only wish we could teleport ourselves to your shop in order to demo products live! Sadly, the technology is too far away.

I really think this internet is going to take off...

As Exposed on TV!

For those of you who missed the newest reincarnation of our old friend, The Masked Magician, MyNetwork TV last night premiered the first in a new series of specials continuing the Breaking the Magician's Code series. Personally, I was watching the vice-presidential debates, but I recorded the special for later consumption.

As was expected, he gave away methods to mostly large illusions, but I was surprised to find quite a few close-up effects were exposed as well.

In one of the close-up segments, MM tipped a method for floating an aluminum soda can via a thumbtip and suction cup: FUN Incorporated's own Universal Floating Gimmick!

Despite the outrage that I should feel, I am mostly amused at the decision to expose the Floating Gimmick. If anything, my hope is that magic shops around the country will experience a demand for Floating Gimmicks rather than DeKolta chairs or the old Vanishing String Quartet trick.

Which, going back to Valentino's speech, is exactly what he wants. He wanted to generate more interest in magic, and I think it's fair to say he has. Despite the last several specials, this series hasn't hurt magic - it certainly gives a point of conversation when I introduce myself as a magician. I will use whatever I can use to build a rapport with my audience.

To be honest, this is not the first time MM has exposed a FUN Incorporated product. Take a look at what he's done with our venerable Magic Coloring Book.

Propless Wonders

Last night I had the opportunity to see a rare public performance by Ross Johnson, one of America's premier psychic entertainers and star of Fun Inc.'s Simply Psychic DVD. Ross' show relies on his theatrical ability to entertain rather than flashy props. It's a study in simplicity, an economy of motion.

Aside from Simply Psychic, here's some other resources you can look to for minimum props, maximum entertainment:

Twisting Arm Illusion DVD: This is an impromptu routine, which is easy to do and uses absolutely no props. The magician asks a spectator to copy his actions. Both place their hands palm down on the table and begin turning them in a clockwise direction. The spectator turns his hand part way, while the magician turns his hand in a full circle one and a half times!

Pen Sation: This has been a very popular item, and it's lean toward the impromptu is part of its success. Divine a thought of number, word, or symbol. Even though you had your back turned, you are instantly able to name the original thought! An outstanding utility tool for mentalists. Great for Living and Dead tests!

The Piatt Envelope: This is one of the most devious and ordinary looking props a magician and mentalist can use. The concept of multiple outs is a powerful weapon when used in a mental effect. Books have been written on the subject and hundreds of props have been invented to produce the desired results. The Piatt Envelope is among the best and fairest methods ever invented for this purpose.