New Meeting Place, Day and Time!

I.B.M. Ring 50 is excited to announce our new meeting place, day and time!

Starting with the THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 6, 2012 meeting, we will meet on the first THURSDAY of each month (except July) at the

Bishop Ireton High School
201 CAMBRIDGE ROAD
ALEXANDRIA, VA 22314

Our NEW agenda is as follows:

6:15 p.m. Counts of Conjuring (Magic Youth International)
7: 05 p.m. Teach-in
7:30 p.m. Meeting starts
9:30 p.m. Meeting ends



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2012-2013 Ring 50 Meeting Schedule

REMEMBER our NEW meeting location is

Bishop Ireton High School
201 CAMBRIDGE ROAD 
ALEXANDRIA, VA 22314.

PLEASE NOTE: Please enter at the doors for the Whaley Auditorium, which face Duke Street and have a bog parking lot. Do NOT enter at the main school entrance facing Cambridge Road.

6:15 p.m.  Counts of Conjuring (Magic Youth International)
7:05 p.m. Teach-in
7:30 p.m.  Meeting starts
9:30 p.m.  Meeting ends

The many fine restaurants nearby Bishop Ireton make it easy to visit with your friends before the meeting!

2012-2013 Schedule

WEDNESDAY, Sept 5 ....... Teach-In by Members
WEDNESDAY, Oct 3 ......... ESP/Mentalism Night
WEDNESDAY, Nov 7 ........ Simon Lovell Lecture
WEDNESDAY, Dec 5 ........ Annual Holiday Children's Magic Show
WEDNESDAY, Jan 2 ......... Houdini Night
WEDNESDAY, Feb 6 ......... Lecture (TBA)
WEDNESDAY, Mar 6 ........ Auction
WEDNESDAY, Apr 3 ..... Dan Lacey Contest, Officer Nominations

**Apr 5-6 .... Magi-Whirl 2013**

WEDNESDAY, May 1 ........ Lecture (TBA)
WEDNESDAY, Jun 5 ........ Winton Carroll Contest “Most Humorous Magician”

**No Ring 50 Meeting In July 2013**
**Jul 17-20, 2013 IBM Convention Phoenix, AZ**

WEDNESDAY, Aug 7 ........ Teach-In by Ring 50 members
WEDNESDAY, Sept 4 ....... Brown Bag Magic
WEDNESDAY, Oct 2 ........ Hocus in Focus Night
WEDNESDAY, Nov 6 ........ Jay Scott Berry Lecture
WEDNESDAY, Dec 4 ........ Annual Children's Holiday Magic Show

New Meeting Place for Ring 50 in Vienna, VA

Beginning with our Wednesday, January 4, 2012 meeting, Ring 50 will meet at 8:00 p.m. in Louis Meyer's

ChildTime Magic Party Place,
312 Dominion Drive NE, Vienna, VA 22180.

While the Vienna Metro is not within walking distance, we hope those members who rely on Metro can team up with other Ring 50 members to and from meetings. And taxi rides are only a phone call away.

In terms of logistics, there is plenty of nearby parking and there are several excellent restaurants nearby. We can easily be find a restaurant that would hold an area for us to dine as a group. (Amphora, anyone?) Louis even mentioned that Ring 50 members could use the dining area of his place and call in for pizza delivery, if that's what some members would like to do.
- Bob Patterson

The Great Zucchini to Lecture Sept. 7

If you ever have preschoolers or Kindergarteners attending your show, you MUST come to the September 7 Ring 50 meeting! The Great Zucchini (Eric Knaus), Washington's funniest and most magical PRESCHOOL & KINDERGARTEN entertainer will give a lecture at I.B.M. Ring 50 on September 7, 2011 at 8:00 PM following a brief Ring meeting.

"In the world of local kid's entertainment, there is no bigger name than The Great Zucchini! You're like a phenomenon ... all the parents know you!"
- Tony Perkins, Fox 5 News

"The Great Zucchini is instantly likeable, and effortlessly charming."
- Gene Weingarten, The Washington Post

The Great Zucchini has been entertaining young children as a magician and preschool teacher. He performs his hands-on, interactive magic shows for more that 400 groups a year. His experience, coupled with his gentle nature and wacky facial expressions, makes kids immediately feel comfortable and ready to laugh. He will have you laughing at the gags he does to entertain toddlers. We each have different styles, but it does come down to keeping the kids attention and keeping control. If you EVER entertain children, this is a lecture you will want to attend. There is a lot to be learned from studying Eric's approach to entertaining young children. The lecture is free to paid-up Ring 50 members, all other magicians $15 at the door.

July Magi-Gram is here!

Due to the IBM Convention, we do not have a July meeting, and usually, no July newsletter. But despite his enormous duties as Registrar for the IBM Convention, erstwhile Editor Bob Patterson has managed to create a July issue! You can view it online by clicking here, or see the link in the right hand column ---->

Ring 50 Officers 2011-12

Congratulations to our new officers!

President
Danny Selnick
703-347-5540
president@ibmring50.org

Vice President
Kevin McGuire
703-675-5323
vp@ibmring50.org

Secretary
Wayne Spillner
secretary@ibmring50.org

Treasurer
Bob Patterson
(703) 490-1222
treasurer@ibmring50.org

Sergeant-at-Arms
Scott McDonald
703-491-7989
sgtarms@ibmring50.org

Webmaster
Theo Rushin, Jr.
240-988-3441
webmaster@ibmring50.org

Magi-Gram Editor
Bob Patterson
(703) 490-1222
magi-gram@ibmring50.org

Winton Carroll Contest Results in June Magi-Gram!

Congratulations to Past President Louis Meyer, who won the Winton Carroll Most Humorous Magician Contest and was awarded the well-deserved DC Comedy Magician of the Year staff! Read all about it here, or look at the right column for the link.

Wayne Alan Lecture Debut Impressive

I.B.M. Ring 50’s April 6th meeting was opened by President Arnie Fuoco. After a few business details he introduced our lecturer, Wayne Alan, Corporate Illusionist.

Alan opened his lecture with balloon to bouquet and then two more bouquets appeared. After explaining the production and giving a few tips, he had two spectators join him on stage. He did a Two Card Monte with a regular size Ace and a Queen and then he did it with jumbo cards. Finally, removing the table cloth he showed two very large cards (40”x30”) which were set up on the stage. From these two cards a live Queen (Cassandra) was produced! He explained the workings of the effect and how to build it for less than $300. Next was a coin routine with his version of coins across and the coins appearing under a glass.

Alan's lecture was based on his decades of experience and proven show business concepts, covering 1/3 talent, 1/3 marketing, and 1/3 publicity. Wayne Alan says, " Be a showman and act like a star, be mysterious without being hokey, dress like a star, have beautiful assistants, and ride the coattails of the famous."

Other effects that he demonstrated and taught included the famous rabbit from a hat, card shark gags, a card routine ending with his business card, chop cup, a white board card revelation, a comedy mind reading routine using a spectator blindfolded with a Mardi Gras mask.

Alan also did a torn and restored card with the card reappearing in a frame held by a spectator. The card had a corner missing and it matched the one held by another spectator. He ended the evening with a crystal silk cylinder routine. Throughout the lecture he gave credits to contributors of the effects and routines. A great lecture by Wayne Alan! The May meeting is the Dan Lacey contest for Washington DC Magician of the Year.

- Bob Patterson

March Auction Has Something For Everyone

Forty-eight members and guests attended the auction with 37 registered bidders. Auctioneers Dick Christian and Wayne Alan ( photo, right) did a fantastic job demonstrating the live auction items and coaxing out the best dollar. Danny Selnick and Bob Patterson were the accountants, Louis Meyer helped with the bagging the winning bids. Reggie Rice contributed by putting the unsold items in a holding area. The drawback for the evening was there were too many items (142) in the Live Auction and the time ran past 11:00 PM.

Overall the lucky bidders bought some great magic equipment, videos, collectable magic, and publications. In the live auction, Louis Meyer walked away with a great deal on an Abbott’s Botania. Avi Littky was the lucky winner of a Voice Amplifier. Greg Clements acquired a Dancing Cane at a very reasonable price of $30. After some spirited bidding Sylvia Lett was the top winner for a Boy to Rabbit illusion with a bid of $115. Tom Bohacek didn’t go hungry, he won a Peanut Butter and Jelly set. Ed Kaczka was the top bidder and walked off with a Disappearing Cane and Louis Meyer found an appearing cane that he liked. A Deluxe Handle Style Change Bag was another piece of magic that drew a lot of bids but was won by Louis Meyer for only $40.

The Silent Auction had many great deals on magic items. A card effect, a Victorian-styled Box of Destiny, had several bidders with Cassandra Rogers being the winner for $30. A very nice Chick Pan went to Bob Malinchock for $14. Mike Wolfson was the high bidder for a set of cups and balls. Dan Miller was the top silent bidder for a Confusing Crayon with a bid of $13. Karl Keat won a Self-Lighting Light Bulb. Ken Busch was top bidder at $13 for the popular rope effect “Hang ‘em High”. Danny Selnick and Dick Guay battled it out for a Milson-Worth Card Frame, with Dick placing the winning bid of $12. Eric Henning snagged a $40 Shufton's Portal for only $5. Another Silent Auction battle raged on for a 2 inch Crystal Ball with Cassandra Rogers placing the final bid of $13.

Altogether, it was a very busy night with a total of 63 items being sold in the live auction for a total of $1,930 and 101 magic items sold in the silent auction for $676. - Bob Patterson

Photo credit: Eric Henning

February Magi-Gram Newsletter is Here!

The February Ring 50 Magi-Gram Newsletter is here! You can view it here, or look for the link in the right column.

TLR Reviewers Perform at November Meeting

The November 3rd meeting had more than 50 in attendance, including new members Cassandra Rogers and Julian Ortiza, who were officially voted in. Magi-Whirl 2011 Chairman Theo Rushin, Jr., announced the full lineup for the April 29-30 event: Losander, Luna Shimada, Keith Fields and Mark Mason. Magi-Whirl will have a truly international flavor this year and you can get details at www.Magi-Whirl.org.

The November showcase featured Ring 50 members performing tricks they had reviewed for The Linking Ring. Since Associate Editor Jason Goldberg is in charge of Hocus in Focus and is also a Ring 50 members, most of the reviewers are from Ring 50. (Because of the sheer number of performers that follow, there is no room for full descriptions, which you can find in the November 2010 Magi-Gram newsletter.)

President Arnie Fuoco introduced the acts, which began with Jason Goldberg doing a charming rendition of Christian Schenk’s “Metamorphosis,” in which caterpillars on cards change to butterflies and one comes off as a souvenir. Treasurer Bob Patterson did Cameron Francis’ “Annihilation Deck,” in which two prediction cards are removed from the deck, and then a helper chooses a card. The prediction cards do not match the selection, but have the value and suit of the selection written on their backs! Bob Continued with “Prohibition” from Blacks Magic, a very clean, nearly impromptu cap-in-bottle effect. Bob concluded with “Double Coincidence,” one of the effects from Jean-Pierre Vallarino’s “Fasten” DVD.

Dick Christian did several mental magic and mentalism items, including “School Daze” by Black’s Magic, Asi Wind’s “Switcher,” and Devin Knight’s “Word Sight.” Kevin McGuire switched gears into children’s magic with a modified version of “Fronkey” from Oliver Meech’s “5 for £5 Kids Magic,” a sort of McCombical Deck routine for children, which was very cute.

With many funny bits of business, Arnie Levin did a four ace trick from the Criss Angel DVD, and then recommended we simply buy McDonald’s Aces. He finished with “Keyruption” by Bob Solari, in which a borrowed, signed, bill vanishes and winds up in a zippered leather key case – a definite recommendation.

Rucj Uffelman performed Devin Knight’s “Inside Thoughts” and “Schezuan Sampler” from Mentalism Unlimited. Bob Carnathan performed Devin Knight’s “Unshop,” and Danny Selnick did Gaeton Bloom’s “The Die.” Geoff Weber astonished all with the signature routine from Steve Spill’s “Confessions of a Needle Swallower” DVD.

Eric Henning had a last-minute change of program, announcing that he had been privileged to perform for President and the First Family at the White House Halloween party. He proceeded to do the routine he had developed for this engagement, which combined Bill Abbott’s “The Thing” with the DaVinci Floating Table. Afterward, Michael Taggert came up and reiterated his reviews of “The Thing” and also Jim Kleefeld’s “Sound Control” utility device, which Henning had used in his act.

TLR Reviewers Perform the Latest Items

The November 3rd meeting will be demonstrations of the latest magic items on the market by our Ring 50 product reviewers for the "Hocus in Focus" section of The Linking Ring. New items arrive at TLR editor’s office for review. He sends them to the Associate Editor, Jason Goldberg, for his reviewers to examine, tear apart, perform, and evaluate. Many are new items, books, DVDs, and some are revisions or modifications to classic magic effects. This will be a good chance to see a demo of an item you have seen advertised and want to know more about.

We appreciate the time the "Hocus in Focus" team spends on their reviews. It is not an easy task to critically examine the hard work of others. Our Ring 50 reviewers are:
Jason Goldberg, Tom Bohacek, Sam Brothers, Dick Christian, Eric Henning, Dick Kahane, Arnie Levin, Larry Lipman, Kevin McGuire, Louis Meyer, Bob Patterson, Tom Paxton, Dwight Redman, Danny Selnick, Dave Shepherd, Ed Spells, Michael Taggert, Geoff Weber, Rucj Uffelman, Bill Wells and Paul White.

October Magi-Gram is Here!

You can read it online or download it and print it out from your own computer if you like. Just click here. Special thanks to Bob Patterson, who in addition to his duties as Treasurer, has been faithfully creating this great newsletter monthly.

You can see the online newsletter archive at http://www.scribd.com/document_collections/2674897

Magician's Ghosts Featured in October Meeting

The October meeting began with President Arnie Fuoco introducing prospective new member John Cloninger of Woodbridge, Virginia, who was voted in by the members present. Fuoco also promoted Magi-Whirl, April 29-30, 2011, asking for volunteers to help Convention Chairman Theo Rushin, Jr. You can see more info at www.Magi-Whirl.org.

Our guest lecturer was well-known magic collector Ken Trombly, whose extensive collection of magic ephemera is merely hinted at on his Website at www.MagicPosters.com .

Starting as a magician at the age of ten, Ken’s interest slowly evolved, and he began collecting magic posters and other paper from the “Golden Age” of magic about thirty years ago. Ken is an active member of the Magic Collector’s Association and ran their 2006 conference in Washington, DC. By day, Ken is a trial attorney. He has written articles or been featured in most of the major magic publications, including a recent profile in TLR.

His presentation, “Paper Treasures: Collecting Magic Ephemera,” took us on a tour of the publicity, and sometimes, behind the curtain of the great magicians of the 19th and early 20th centuries. Ken started out with a sampling of his vast collection of magic posters, most in near-mint condition, shown in hi-res photos. Ken has numerous specimens from Robert-Houdin, John Henry Anderson, the Herrmanns (all of them), Kellar, Thurston, Goldin, Chung Ling Soo (and even earlier when he was still William Robinson), Lafayette, LeRoy, Blackstone Sr., Jansen (later Dante), Hardeen and, of course, Houdini.

Among numerous photographs, Houdini provided the highlight of the evening, when Ken showed a receipt for magic apparatus bought by Houdini in 1897, and then showed us a famous promo photo of a young Houdini. Putting the two side by side, Ken demonstrated that all of the apparatus from the receipt was arranged in the photo! This was clearly an attempt by Houdini, then still trying to make it as a magician, to impress the agents. (See below.)

From posters and photographs, Ken moved neatly into promotional giveaways such as throw out cards, hand mirrors, pins, fans, fake money, fake tickets, coupons, even cigars -the band (below) bearing the facsimile signature of "Herrmann" still remains! We saw letters and letterheads, postcards, business cards, cartes de visite, paperback books, sheet music, newspaper stories (real and fake), newspapers (ditto) and even photo montages. Cartoons, both editorial and political, done by legends such as Daumier and Nast, reminded us of the incredible fame these performers enjoyed.

One “accidental” collectible is a hotel postcard. The photographer, snapping the hotel’s great façade on a busy city street, captured a local bus going by. In large letters, the bus’s side banner shouts “HOUDINI.”

All photos in this article courtesy Ken Trombly collection and (c) 2010 Ken Trombly.

The Spirit of Houdini at Ring 50

President Louis Meyer opened the January 6th meeting promptly at 8:00 PM. After announcements about Magi-Whirl, the I.B.M. Convention in San Diego, and the KapitalKidvention the Houdini Night program began before a crowd of 62 people.

Rucj Uffelman (right) began with an escape from a chain dog collar locked around his wrists. Harry Houdini saw this system used to transport prisoners to Siberia (and we all know that no one escapes from Siberia). Rucj’s wrists were securely bound with the steel chain and padlocked by a spectator. He amazed the audience by getting out of the chain in a matter of seconds.

Challenges by the US Postal Service led Houdini into escaping from a sealed and locked mailbag (a canvas bag, with metal grommets on top). Danny Selnick (Photo: on left) re-created that event with his ankles and wrists tightly secured to the ends of long metal shackles by means of two heavy duty chains and locks before being locked in a mailbag using a solid steel bar is passing through the grommets, with padlocks on both ends of the bar. A backdrop was placed around him and within a record time he made his escape as the crowd applauded him.

John Roberts (right) claimed Houdini failed to have a timing device when performing his escapes. John displayed a small pole with a woodpecker at the top that he used to time his escape from his securely rope tied wrists. His hands were covered with a cloth as the woodpecker made his way down the pole, John began his escape. When the woodpecker reached the bottom before John could escape, he reset the timer and in a flash was free of the ropes.

Louis Hofheimer (a.k.a. Captain Token) and two lovely girl assistants performed two stage escapes. Using several pieces of rope one girl was secured to a 4 inch square totem pole 6 feet tall. A rope was tied around her neck, her waist, her legs and her ankles. In the blink of an eye, in full view of the audience, she magically materializes through the ropes! Next, a large mystic looking box was brought onto the stage area. A young lady entered the box. The doors were closed and without hesitation the magician stabbed ten swords into all parts of the box. The audience could plainly see the smallness of the box did not permit the girl evading the swords. The box was then opened and the girl had vanished! The box was revolved so that all sides were visible. The doors were closed ... the swords quickly withdrawn ... the top of the box was opened ... and up popped the girl, unharmed!


VP Arnold Fuoco (right) told the story about the time Dai Vernon fooled Harry Houdini (who in his early years billed himself as "The King of Cards"). Houdini often boasted that if he saw a card trick performed three times in a row he would be able to figure it out. Vernon then showed Houdini a trick, where he removed the top card of the deck and placed it in the middle, and then turned over the top card to again reveal the original card. Houdini watched Vernon do the trick seven times, each time insisting that Vernon "do it again". Finally Houdini's wife, and Vernon's friends said, "Face it Houdini, you're fooled." For years afterward, Vernon used the title The Man Who Fooled Houdini in his advertisements. The trick Dai Vernon chose to fool Houdini with was his own version of the classic ambitious card routine, so named because the spectator's chosen card always wants to get to the top of the deck. Arnie demonstrated this as he told the story.

Wayne Alan showed some pieces from the collection in his home “Houdini Room.” One was a handcuff made by a spectator and was used on Houdini during a performance. He also had the metal air vent grate from the hospital room in which Harry Houdini died. Wayne’s cookbook, Magical Meatless Meals shares over 100 healthy and delectable vegetarian recipes collected during his storied and award-winning career in show business. Many of these and the pictures are linked to the Houdini fame.

By the 1920's, Houdini's career was going into a slump. As he approached age 50, his escapes were becoming too strenuous and his "death-defying" feats no longer enthralled increasingly jaded audiences. Vaudeville itself was slowly being strangled by competition from radio and movies, which were cheaper for audiences and more profitable for producers. Houdini switched to exposing fraudulent spirit mediums. Louis Meyer presented Houdini's original “Fraudulent Spirit Medium Expose Lecture” with pictures. Although many believe that people were more gullible back then, the popularity of "mediums" such as John Edwards makes this a timely topic.

Meeting Info

Ring 50 meets the first Wednesday of the month (except July) at

Bishop Ireton High School

201 Cambridge Rd  Alexandria, VA 22301


Click here for a map & directions.

6:00 p.m. Counts of Conjuring (Magic Youth Int'l chapter) meeting.

8:00 p.m. Meeting

All magicians and magic enthusiasts are most welcome!