Haiku

Wonder is the seed
Magic helps to make it sprout
Only joy grows here

The greater the emergency...

The greater the emergency, or the greater the stakes, the greater the nerve required. (Erdnase)

Who is Adelaide Herrmann?

Adelaide Herrmann: independent spirit, artist, idealist. She graced American stages and earned the name “Queen of Magic” with her flair and superior magic skills. In a time when the magic world was dominated by men, Adelaide demonstrated that women could (and should) perform with equal billing as men. She featured human levitations, magic with animals, and a stunning performance of catching bullets fired from a gun. She also directed her own set design throughout her entire career. 35 years following the death of her world famous magic husband, Adelaide retired at the age of 78. She died nearly a year later and was laid to rest next to her husband Alexander Herrmann in Woodlawn Cemetery, New York. Many scholars believe that when she died, the Golden Age of magic had died with her. We couldn't agree more.
 

For more, see:

James Hamilton’s article “Adelaide Herrmann” in Genii magazine, Vol 63 No. 8 (2000; pp. 40-52).

James Randi’s chapter “The Ubiquitous Herrmanns” in his book “Conjuring” (1992; St Martin’s Press; pp. 68-72).

Either he is working MAGIC or he is...

“Either he is working MAGIC or he is presenting mechanical or manipulative mumbo jumbo—he cannot have it both ways!” (Charles Cameron, Invocation, Vol I, Iss I).

...the temptation to do things the easy way

"…one can only achieve such beauty by avoiding the most dangerous temptation of all: the temptation to do things the easy way.

Arturo de Ascanio, from his prologue to Rene Lavand’s “Magic from the Soul,” page 10. Published by Mike Caveney’s Magic Words, 1993.

Denny and Lee's Magic Studio



 

There is a difference in being professional and being a professional

"There is a difference in being professional and being a professional. The first is capable enough to earn a full or partial living from his skills, but doesn't; the second does make his living in whole or part from performances displaying his gifts. Each has attained a level of skill, artistry and/or innovative excellence for which the public is usually willing to pay."

John Booth, The Fine Art of Hocus Pocus (1995, Magic Art Book Company, pp. 246-247).

Only good for all can come from...

“Only good for all can come from an exchange of magicians’ best ideas. Had each scientist, on discovering a new secret, guarded it closely from the other scientists, knowledge and even civilization would not be where they are today. The same principle that has advanced science applies also to the magic art; and by a proper exchange of ideas, this art can be advanced with the same wonderful strides that have marked the advance of science.” David P. Abbott

David P. Abbott, “Extracts from My Program,” The Sphinx, Vol. 6, no. 1 (March 1907), pp. 6-7, reprinted in Teller and Karr, T. (2005), “House of Mystery: The Magic Science of David P. Abbott” (2005; The Miracle Factory)