JANUARY 2007 • VOLUME 16 • NUMBER 5

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FROMTHE EDITORStan Allen 17 Defining Jon Stetson 44 CLASSIC CORRESPONDENCE 18 By Shown McMoster Words like versat ile, professional, outrag eous, outspoken are a start, but Mike Coveney to hang a single definition on this 47-year-old performer is " like trying to THE MAGIC WORD David Parr 21 pick up a waterme lon seed," according to his friend, Rick Maue . "Every rime you think you've go t it, it slips from you r fingertips ." THE SHOW DOCTORJeff McBride 22 UPDATE Shawn McMaster 27 The Man Who Had Everything 54 MARKETPLACE Gabe Fajuri 44 By Gabe Fajuri Brad Henderson, Michael Claxton, While en tertainment was Jay Marshall's business, collecting was his pas­ Peter Duffie, John Lovick sion . At the rime of his death in May 2005, every square inch of Mag ic Inc. in Chicago was crammed with his scuff, some great and glor ious, TALK ABOUT TRICKS Joshua Jay 77 but much of it dreadful, down-and -dirty, hadn't-been-touched- in-t hirty ­ J with Peter Duffie, Andi Gladwin, Lance Pierce or-morc -years junk . ECCENTRICKS Charlie Frye 87 TURN IT AROUND David Kaye 88 Tarqeting Blaine 60 with David Charles By Afan Howard He's turned down spo nsorsh ip offers from Th e Gap, Milk, and Pepsi for OUT OF MY MIND Anthony Owen 90 previous stunt s, yet accep ted a dea l with Target to spend 53 UNRESTRAINED Mark Connon 95 hours out in the clements, sp inning around and around . .. and he did it on just one week's notice! CAREER BUILDINGl O1 97 Tobias Beckwith Bring It Onl 62 AUTHORIZEDDEAL ERS 110 By Stan Allen ADVERTISERSI NDEX 113 Sure, Kevin an d Ca ruso have a pretty sweet deal now, but if ther e really is such a thing as "paying your dues," these two cruise -ship magician s FINALLY 114 have paid up enough to cover a lifetime member ship.

Magic at the Manor 66 By Brad Henderson What would you do if you rece ived a single card in the mail with the words "Mangled Cats. Th e Man Soars. Can you Imagine?" pr inted on it? Well, if you're a friend of Richard Garriott, yo u know to start look ­ ing for clues, because yo u've just been inv ited tO possib ly the magic ON THE COVER parry to end a ll magic parries. Photo: SusanWilson.

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A black envelopearrives in the in July, and "The Titanic," wher:e~a:------~ ~!~==~ scale model of the ocean liner was built. and l, along with Dawn mail. There is no return address. Guests arrived in period costumes and Allee,Steve Hemphill,and Pam Martin, Inside is a single Silver Serpent­ enjoyed a cruise on Lake Austin before made "Magic at the Manor" a reality.For tragedy struck. Ar the end of the night, Richard, his family, and 130 guests, it was brand playing card. Written on chosewho weren't lucky enough to get in a a night like no other. the back are the words: "Mangled lifeboatwere actuallyp lunged into the lake. First, people had ro figureou t there even Richard still beams when he recalls the was a party, how to get there, and when. Cats. The Man Soars. Can you Mayor of Austin going down with the ship. They had ro unlock the secret website hid­ Imagine?"What would you do if The 2005 party begansimp ly enough. den on their invitation card. If you look Richard'snew home was under construction, closely at the face of the card you will notice you receivedthi s crypticmissive in so he threw a "barn raising"party. Guests a website:www.gaffus.com. the mail? Well, many recipients arrived in overallsand work clothes.While Well,i t wasn't that easy. Gaffus.com was there, it began to rain, then thunder and actually the clue site. Peopleneeded a hint to knew to look for clues, because lightning.Eventually, a tornado hit, and the help them unlock the secretmessage on their they're friends of RichardGarriott. room they took shelter in - actually, the card, though Richard's attitude was little back of a movingva n - was spun around more Darwinian. On the sire you found and eventuallylanded ... in Oz. When the the following equation: "32°F < t < 451°F." Richard Garriott, crearor of the Ultima doors opened,Munchkin Land was revealed, With that clue, what would you do? series of video games and a titan in the complete with florescentflowers, Munchkins, Many realized that it had somethingto computergaming world, is also an amateur and a house resting cockeyedon a witch. do with temperature,specifica lly something magician. He designeda home that has Guests traveledthrough a multi-acreOz, to do with either freezing the card or heating becomean Austin landmark,and each year havingro prove their bravery,bra ins, and it - bur not burning it. The invitation throws an "off the hook" Fourth of July heart. Ultimately, they recoveredthe witch's was printed with specialink. When heated, party, which traditionally never falls on the broom, spoke to the fiery Wizard, and several of the letters disappeared,and one holiday. This year's Fourth of July party watched the lighter-than-air balloonasce nd rearranged itself! "Mangled Cats, etc." was in November. beforereturn ing to ... Texas. becamemagicatthemanor.com, wh ich was Previouspart ies have included "When Alwaysl ooking to top himself, Richard the website with the official invite to the . Hell FreezesOver, " where snow machines wanted the 2006 party to be themedaround party. The site consistedof three pages: The and ski slopeswe~e brought to central Texas magic.So, for over seven months, Richard first, an amazing broadside designed by ·. ~6.,... Mt. no"G,&I· ·~ ~ +.. A N U. A RY 2 0 0 7 ...___ . . --- .... ,. · .!"-..• ...- card.The card'ssu it designated how the guest Webergathered the crowd. J-1is remarks was occupiedby a largeblackjack table where list of 120 wouldsp lit and travelthroughout were perfectlyta ilored to Richard'sevent. Derek DelGaudioheld his audiencesspe ll­ the evening. Then it was off to the tent, where Michaelexplained how the movementof the boundas he demonstratedthe art and artifice an original Carter SpiritCab inet eight-sheet crowd would occur,and warned that if any­ of the card table. lithographgreeted t he guestsas they entered. one becameseparated from their "pack," Aftereach performance,the docents read The dress code was monochromaticb lack they would be disassembledand becomea a letter from Richard.He mentionedthat we and white, and the tent reflectedthis right permanentpart of Richard'scollection. had receivedcrank calls and even one death down to the choice of hors d'oeuvres. A Next, I explained how I discoveredthat threat for exposing the Sawing. He told well-stocked bar took care of the guests,but Selbit had originallypresented the Sawing them not to worry,but that we did have a many ventured to the stage where,set off by with an audiencemember and Richard's problem. The gaffus was missing,but if velvetropes, was our recreationof the origi­ familial relationship. Final!)', our host, found, it was not to be disturbed and the nal Sawingprop . Richard Garriott rook the stage. As he was host was co be informed. speaking, there was a small disturbance About this time, Derek and Eric each Pl!joloi!Ue backstageand a sand bag fell from the ceil­ confessedthey had seen something suspi­ At 7:{5, master of ceremoniesMichael ing, destroyingthe Sawingprop. I quickly cious earlier. Derek had seen Eric hiding a

rushed out to assesst he damage. I bag behind the tent. le contained a number assured Richard that we could of bottle caps, several of which had letters repair the prop, but that there scratched off. Derek did not know what was a bigger problem. I had they meant, but maybe they would be of discoveredbackstage that the use. In the other room, unbeknownst to "gaffus" was missing.Stunned, Derek, Eric revealedthat he had seen Derek Richard sent everyoneoff to hiding a blackjack shoe with some cards in their first show. it. They were rubber-bandedand probably While everyone'sexperience in some special order. To help the group was slightly different, here is a out, Eric also gave them a copy of Erdnase, sample evening: which he managed to lift out of Derek's bag when he wasn't looking. The game Aft" was afoot. The first group's docentdirected the Afterthe first 40-minute set, the guests guests to Richard's dining room, returned to the main rent for drinks or to where EricMead was the masterof this visitJust Alan. Off to the side of the main domain. His elegantsleight of hand and rent was a small candlelit alcove.Statues of quick wit transformedthis spaceinto a Hindu gods adorned this temple,and inside party.Two doors down,the livingroom Just Alan was presentingTaro t readings as -.,. ,~~ .• ' ... ~ David Rowyn, with an imageon loan from event coordinators,Pam Martin and Dawn waiver.We wanted each. and..· every guest to . The second, directions.The Allee;Steve Hemphill, the technical theater leavethinking : "Magic is cool. It is impor­ third, the following letter from Richard: coordinator;and myself. tant. It is something that I would want to Potential plotlines werediscussed, as well learn more about and support in the future." 'ij~eP [!i~te as the specificr esourcesavai lable in Richard's To that end, we brought in some of the best DearFriends, home. CalledBritannia Manor, the home was performers in the world. We also wrote and As many of you may know, I have been a built on the highest point in Austinto accom­ designed,w ith David Rowyn, a full-color longsupporter of the magicalarts and have modate his fully functional astronomical souvenir booklet featuringRichard's house collecteda few interestingtrinkets along the observatory.In addition,Richard can move and collections,a brief history of magic,and way. Recently,a very excitingsituation has from any room to any other room without the biographiesof all of the players. come to light. beingseen v ia a seriesof secret trapdoors and Haveyou everseen the classicSawing a passages.As one approaches the house,one 'ij4eE !!e

Featurings tock children's magic, as well as was rold ro stand very still as Dr. Rectum space devoted to the toys of the imagina­ a flawless execution of the NeedleSwallow­ tried to transport him to a secondbox sta­ tion? Closing with his very artistic Snow­ ing, David's performance ended with him tioned behind the audience. srorm, Peter directed the guests outside, thumbing his nose at the "big rime magi­ On cue, a Tesla coil began firing, shoot­ where two youngassis tants were auditioning cians in their tuxes in the tent" by present­ ing sparks at the enclosure. Slowly the vol­ for help. ing his own madcap version of the Sawing. unteer beganro fade our, until he finallyd is­ Vanessa Laurenand Tiny Bubbles(a .k.a. Unfortunately,the blade actuallygo t stuck appearedcomple tely. Hatch went co the sec­ SteveDa ly) were tired of doing all the work inside the spectator'sbody! He played the ond box, but the volunteer did not arrive. and getting no credit. They had decidedto character to perfection. Then, someone from the audience noticed do their own show, but they still neededan AfterLynch 's performance,our Britishhi s­ that there was movementin the observatory. assistant. So, young men from the audience torian, portrayedby RichardHatch, shared You could see the figureof this man grow were auditionedan d put through the paces with the group what a gaffus is. He also our of nothing. Hatch yelledup , telling him that their female counterparts usually are. pointed out an unusualorb floating in the air ro find the secret.T he orb went out. When The laughter could be heard on the other aboveGar riott's observacory. Hatch showeda the man was transportedback, there in his side of the house. In the end, the lucky win­ posterof Okito's Floating Ball and explained pocket was a light bulb. He had no idea ner was given a diploma- a scrap of news­ that while we know how the ball levitates, how it got there and no memoryof having paper from the dove cage. Just a scrap of how it glowsas if lit by an ethereal supernat­ obtained it. Of course, Hatch had pointed paper?Or was it a clue? ural forcewa s a secrettaken to Okito'sgrave . our that temporarymemory loss is a com­ The Jacks were led into Richard's media This was our chanceco learn that secret. mon small side effectof the trip. room. Here,h e housesseveral pieces from his M A G I C · J A N U A R Y 2 0 0 7 69 ,. . •....• ...- advent~'recollection, including a RussianCOS · come with the room." Seemingly using props the Streets," wowed them. When he monaut suit, artifacts recoveredfrom the from the collection,Max placed the sitters in revealedthe melon under his hat for his Titanic,and most of his magiccollection. Bill touch with the "other side." Cups & Balls finale, there was a collective Malone took over and held the audiencein After their brush with the bizarre, the whoop. After his stellar performance,t wo stitcheswith his stunningcard work. Before guests were led into the scienceroom where young "e-llusionist magicians" entered the leaving,room managerStephanie Gorss, grew they discoveredJon Armstrong, representing scene and talked about extreme magic - real roseson Richard'sP & L Rose Bush, the Magical Alliance, and John Lovick, rep­ the kind you can download on the Internet whichwere given to the ladiesin the room. resentingthe magical press.T he two were and perform the next day. Jared Kopf The docentthen led the guestsdown the arguing over who was the sexiest. Armstrong encouraged Marcus Eddie to perform the hallway where they encountered a gypsymys· demonstratedhis magneticqualities with a trick he learned yesterday. Marcus bor­ tic, playedby AndrewGoldenhersh. Claiming packetof cards, whileLovick gave one lucky rowed a ring and explained, "Extreme to know why the Sawing was destroyed,h e lady the ultimatepresent - a magicaldraw ­ magic is live. It's raw. It's about emotional handed the group a book with pagesmissing ing of himselfin his "Chippendale'soutfit." investment.Not mine.. . yours." And with from it and explained that Selbit'sghost Beforedepart ing, Armstronggave one man a that, he threw the borrowed ring into destroyed the prop as Karmicjustice for jar of mysteriouspowder. Richard's 14-foot-deepscuba pool. While

revealing his secret.Andrew then did several Backto the tent. Bynow the guestswere the audiencenoticed a small ATAcase stunningpieces of magic,ending with him deep into the srory.Each group workedfever ­ sunk at the bottom, a police officer came transforminginto a living,talking skeleton . ishly ro figureout their clues. The newspaper forward and rook Marcus in for question­ The Kingsmade their way into Richard's from the assistants had a sudokupuzzle on it. ing in regard ro the destruction of the dungeon,where a full-sizehuman skeleton Sometried to solveit . Lettersfrom the bottle Sawingprop. had been resting peacefullyfor a dozen caps spelledwords; the onlyone that seemed The audiencethen turned their attention years. Also on display were two authentic tO makese nse was "Capezio."There was a to AlainNu, who was seated arop a ladder, shrunken human heads from the Jivarro key in the back of Erdnasew hich allowedo ne He encourageda memberof the audienceto tribe of Central America,original vampire to decipherthe phrase, "It is not what I am hide spikes under Styrofoamcups beforeh e hunting kits complete with crucifixesthat but where you found me." Bur there were walked down the steps of the ladder,avoid­ fire silver bullets, and the original Leather· extra cards left over,a pair of Acesa nd two ing the spikes. The police officer arrived face mask from the Texas ChainsawMassacre more that apparentlystood for "metric sys­ again and took Alainaway, and not a moment movie. The group was arranged in a circlein tem." The light bulbs confoundedmany, so too soon. As he was being taken away he preparationfor a visit with the spirits, with muchso that two were shatteredas people yelled,"What you want is at the bottomof as the guide. Max enteredthe tried to peek inside. the pool.What you needisn't in any book." room and explained, "What separates me WithJared's help, th e audiencerealized w hat from the other performersis the relationship A

where you found me." Well,the cards were to light on its own. "Many hands make light Author's Note:A lot of peopleworked on found in a dealing shoe. If you arranged work." Who did it? Magicat the Manor. While many have all the scratched bottle caps it spelled, It was the otherset of twins at the party, alreadybeen mentioned,several of my "Capezio," which is a type of shoe. The the only set of twins who could have gotten friendsvolunteered their time to help and newspaper had two shoe ads on it and also all of these props into the other magicians' deserverecognition . Specialthanks go out the comicstr ip Shoe.If you rubbed the con­ hands, the only peoplewit h enough magical to David Rowyn, Javier Garza,Roger tents of Armstrong's jar on Lovick'spaper, experience in so many genres to be able to Gorss,Sam Haine, Nathan Coe Marsh, it read, "What is the measureof a man?" do so. Yes,the culprits were the assistants- and Nancy Moon. Finally,a huge tip of the and had two ruler marks each going to 24 Vanessaa nd Tiny! hat goes to our hosts, RichardGarriott inches, which is two feet. The cards had an Tiny yelled our, "Of course we did it. If and Kellyand BrennanMiller. They opened extra pair, and "metric system"?Well, the you performthe trick without an assistant, their home to each of us and made sure gaffuswas fake feet! But where were they then we're out of a job. We need chisto live. everyonehad a memorablenight . Whether hidden? Well, remember the light bulb? It The Assistant'sLeague stopped Selbita hun­ it was the couchesin the green room, the came from the footlights - not just any dred years ago, and we were sent to stop 100-year-old bottles of port at the after footlights, but fake footlights. That's right, you conight." Michael was stunned. "! don't party, or the surpriselecture by magical the missinggaff us was a pair of fake feet believeyou," he exclaimed. "What do you legendRobert Stencel, Magic at the Manor that someone hid in the fake footlights. mean?" yelledTiny, " I just told you we did was a memory which will long live in But who did it? Michael took each of it." "No," Michael said, "I don't believe our imaginations:,,@ the clues and transformed them magically. you're twins." As the two were being hauled MAG IC JANUARY 2007 71