Magician work stories

Lets be clear, i would never perform this way at a kids show. It's about knowing your audience and your venue. It was a bar so everyone was having a good time and nobody was uncomfortable except this one lady. Don't know why she was upset, her boyfriend was my biggest fan.

This has happened more times than i'd like to admit. I legitimately have people that think i have dark powers. I've had a person try and exorcise me, throw holy water on me, run away screaming the whole shebang. Some people just don't understand this is just for entertainment. Most are just funny, some can be dangerous.

remember i mentioned the crazies?

Ok, this one didn't happen to me but it DID happen to a buddy of mine. He is a much more successful magician than i am, having his own tv show on Discovery (Breaking Magic) and a bunch of other great successes. He was in South America promoting his show and was on a local tv show. The host told him he was going to perform a blessing on him, but it was a lie. He lit him on fire and my friend suffered bad burns on his face, hands and neck. He has since recovered and looks great and they are pursuing legal action but its a cautionary tale about the dangers of this business.

This one both cracked me up and amazed me. Occasionally you just get lucky. A small joke or little detail can take a fun trick to another level and make it a genuine miracle. My little joke was timed just right so she though i REALLY could read her mind. Let me tell you, from the little info i got in the apology, those thoughts would have made me blush too.

I used to work a lot of college gigs and in one in particular a fire alarm went off at the worst possible time. The entire crowd had to file out just minutes before the culmination of the entire show. All momentum was lost, no recovery possible, BIG let down.

Ok, this night was one of the best/most uncomfortable of my life. I was hired to do a 45 minute set for a bachelorette party and thought it would be pretty standard. I was wrong. This group was CRAZY. I ended up actually being there for almost 2 hours. From the party favors to the banter these girls were wild. I was a little uncomfortable with all the manhandling i received but tried to play it off as best i could. My ass felt like a koosh ball. I usually have cards signed to give away as souvenirs but they kept giving them back to me. I just put them in my pocket without really paying attention. At the end of the night when i was cleaning up my supplies and took a look at everything. Not only did i have more tips than the cast of magic mike but every card signed also had a phone number and a few... um.. offers. It was a unique experience but i'm not sure if it's one i would want to repeat.

Seriously, please PLEASE don't do this. My show is tailored to the crowd i'm expecting. Something that translated well for a certain distance DOESN'T for bigger crowds or larger rooms. I made it work but man i was upset. I almost refused the show but they apologized, offered to increase my fee and said it was largely because more interest was expressed. What can you do?

Okay, this one scared the hell out of me. A very stereotypical looking mob guy approached me after a show once. Asked if i had ever dealt in card games (i have). Asked if i would be interested in dealing once a week for him and his buddies. He offered me a nice retainer and it was a good deal with the stipulation that i needed to be able to keep my mouth shut about what was talked about during the game. He THEN asked me i knew how to stack the deck a little in his favor. Not much he said just enough to give him an edge. I told him i knew how but wasn't really comfortable with it. He said he would make it worth my while but just not to get caught, his associates from down state don't mess around and i wouldn't want to get caught. In the end i politely declined the offer. I like my knee caps.

Ok, i'm gonna say this once. I'm a magician, not a clown, not a balloon artist, A MAGICIAN. I know how to make ONE balloon animal, a puppy, and thats ONLY because i use it for a trick. I get the confusion but it's a stigma and a remnant of a time long ago. I was performing mostly gambling demonstrations and the like and i don't exactly keep a saw in my pants. ..giggity.

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