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

December 7th Meeting - Childrens Magic

Wednesday, December 7th at 7:30 PM there will be a "Children's Holiday Magic Show" sponsored by I.B.M. Ring 50 featuring four of Washington's finest children's magicians. Admittance is FREE -- with donation of can of food or toy for local charity. The show starts at 7:30 PM and will be about 1 hour in duration. Be sure to come to the Holiday Inn, 2460 Eisenhower Ave, Alexandria, VA and see the show.
The magicians are Lorenzo The Great (Larry Lipman), Captain Token (Louis Hofheimer), Turley The Magician (Hugh Turley), and Laurie Curry.

Al Cohen Presents "Gems from the Past" at THURSDAY November 3rd Meeting

Coming up on THURSDAY, November 3rd will be a lecture entitled "Gems from the past" by Washington DC’s famous retired magic dealer, Al Cohen.

For more than 55 years, Al’s magic shop was the source for quality magic in Washington DC. The ceiling in the shop was covered with playing cards signed by great magicians. Al has hundreds of stories he can tell of his years in the shop and performances at Washington DC’s celebrity functions, such as: Presidents Harry Truman & George H.W. Bush, DC Mayors Walter Washington and Marion Barry, GEN Norman Schwarzkopf, Mohammed Ali, Jay Leno, Joel Grey, Joan Rivers, Avery Brooks…and the list goes on.

When Al retired and sold the shop in 2001, the magic world went into mourning. In 2003, Al Cohen won magic's equivalent of a Lifetime Oscar, the Academy of Magical Arts' Lifetime Achievement Award.

I.B.M. Ring 50 meets the first Wednesday of each month (except July) at the Holiday Inn I-95 at Telegraph Rd., Alexandria, Virginia, at 8:00 PM.

The lecture is free to paid-up Ring 50 members, All other magicians $15 at the door.

Ring 50 Teach-In Scheduled for October 5th Meeting

The October ‘Stars of Magic’ Teach-in is shaping up for an educational evening to enhance our Art of Magic. The lecturers may present a bit of related magic history, techniques, and then teach a trick or two. Each lecture will last 30 minutes. Members will choose three of four lectures to attend. Here’s the line-up for the October Teach-in: Bud Smith, the master of coins will teach some coin routines. Glenn Gary will teach us about the mystery of threads. Sam Brothers, will teach incredible card magic that you can do. Rucj Uffelman, mentalist deJour will present some easy to learn Mentalism and ESP effects. You may want to being some coins (dollars or half dollars), fishing line, safety pin, or deck of cards to follow along with the demonstrations and a pad to take notes on.

Patterson Receives SABAR Award

Bob Patterson was presented the SABAR award by his peers for the outstanding work he has done to support I.B.M. Ring 50 over the past several years. The Award is given to a current member who has given generously of his or her time and talents to the Ring. This is only awarded in cases of exceptional performance or service over an extended period. The SABAR Award Committee appointed by the president includes the past recipients of the SABAR Award (if possible). The award was named after Sam Shapiro; SABAR was his stage name, a contraction of the names Sam and Barbara, his wife. The Ring created the award sometime prior to 1971 and over the past 45 years there have only been 11 recipients. Previous winners of the prestigious award are: Lou Bertol 1966, Al Cohen 1967, Ray Eyler, Larry West, Winton Carroll 1971, Art Emerson 1975, Bill Wells 1978, Jack Nance 1988, John Roberts 1996, Jim Flanigan 2009 and Bob Patterson 2011.

Bob says, “I want to thank all those involved in this award and all the Ring 50 members who come out and support the Ring activities. I am most grateful and I enjoy keeping the Art of Magic glowing within the I.B.M. and Ring 50. For you to honor me with the SABAR award is what magicians call ‘the extra kicker’.”