sidewalk performers, whos who?

HEY, I'M JIMMY AND THIS IS MY WHO'S WHO BLOG.

2011-01-27T12:31:00.001-08:00

ON THIS BLOG I UPDATE FROM TIME TO TIME.

SO EVERY ONCE AND WHILE YOU SHOULD CHECK IN ON IT, BECAUSE IF YOU OR SOME ONE YOU KNOW ISN'T ON IT YET, YOU MIGHT GET A SURPRISE ONE DAY!

ADMITTEDLY IT HAS A LONG WAY TO GO SO PLEASE BE PATIENT....REMEMBER I SPEND MOST OF MY TIME BANGING OUTTA LIVING ON THE SIDEWALK MYSELF.

I HOPE YOU LIKE IT, HAVE FUN.

ALSO DON'T FORGET TO CHECK OUT THE NEW SIDEWALK PERFORMERS SITE!

the site is mostly for small acts busking for a living, but doing it because they love it first.

it´s not just magicians.

it´s any act;

musicians, clowns, mimes, balloons, jugglers, stautues,etc.etc.

the site is being designed to teach how to become and master the sidewalk.

this winter we will be filling it up with celebs and articles.

so if you would like to talk to some of the sidewalk performers you have heard of or get news about them please log on to the site.

it has it´s own forum and links to other important educational busking sites.

here´s the site;

http://sidewalkperformers.com/wordpress/

but be sure and sign up on the forum it's where we all hang out;

http://sidewalkperformers.freeforums.org
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SHEL HIGGENS

2011-01-27T12:06:00.000-08:00

Shel Higgens is a true student of the art.

He is a graduate of The Busking School in Cardiff England and a graduate of the Buskers Boot Camp in the US.

He is a student of Michael Patrick one of the few people on planet with over 7000 upside down straitjacket escapes.

He has busked on both the East and West Coast of the United States. Shel is a former business man who thinks that there is nothing in world more fulfilling than entertaining strangers on the street.

A performer whose line "I am not that good" is not just a line. Enjoys watching a good street show as much as performing.

Shel understands, that to become a master, one must be humble first.

this can be very difficult when one is as talented as Shel.

here's a youtube clip.

Recently he has been learning a small sidewalk magic show.

i have been helping him with this.

he feels that to be a great entertainer one must be able to work any venue no matter how large or small.

the magic he does is very original and when i get some footage of his show i will put it up here.

but until i can get that, here's him doing a little cups and balls magic.

Shel is not just a great performer, but a great human being.

if you get a chance to see his show, you will see why so many have so much good to say about him.

If you wanna getta hold of him or find out where he'll be or when, here's his website;

www.metroplexmagic.com
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DUSTY TRAILS COWBOY-BILL BRINSFIELD

2010-12-02T14:12:00.000-08:00

Bill is an icon in,
san diego and hollywood.

Bill has a long history in show business.

he's done movies, theater, T.V., private parties, corprate and everything else imaginable.

He has a site that will go into detail about his amazing life;

http://billbrinsfield.orgfree.com/

His following here in san diego is legendary.

he is highly respect with the other performers on the street here.

he is also an inventor and has created thousands of effects.

he has taken me under his wing many times and has been crucial to the growth of my show and me as a person.

of course he is famous as a cowboy statue act on the street, but he has an amazing magic sidewalk show.

he also has a mark twain monolgue for the street, he looks and sounds dead on like the twain.

i will be writing more on him later.

he is a great friend and a master teacher of theater and magic.
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Bill i can't thank you enough for everything you have done for me.

but from all of us out here san diego and L.A. thanks for your lifes work.
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look for more on Bill here later.
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"BANKS" Paul Brown

2010-12-02T13:01:00.000-08:00

Teachers-

Jimmy Talksalot.

Owen Lean.

"Banks is a world traveler,

but his main town is London.

As I sit here listening to burroughs.....
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I think back some years ago to that day in Covent Garden, hangin with all the fellahs on magician's corner.....what a siight it was to see Paul walk up sporting his three piece business suit.....somebody blurted, "hey banks"

he set up and went to work.

watching Paul proceed to do parlor manip and creative visual magic with sophisticated patter, left us and the audience with the feeling that the pros from the higher order had shown up.

alot of people ask me where i get my inspiration for my unusual parlor stuff and i tell you it's paul, my secret weapon.

you hear about the proffessor vernon or marlow for close up cards....well paul is that for parlor.

don't get me wrong he is a master at close up and stage, but my interest is in his parlor, because there are so few accessable masters to this.

every time i meet one of these guys a actually stop talking for once and pay attention.

his extensive knowledge landed him a job at Davenports the most famous and exclusive magic shop in the world.

he spends much of his timeworking indoors, but has informed me he misses the streets and will be going back out maybe eve full time.

he has been awarded and sought after by the most prestigious magicians in the world.

check out his work for the magic circle;
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he's got a site that you can learn more about him and remember he's got a lot of stuff on him on the web if you search it;
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http://www.world-of-wonder.co.uk/
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once again, i am talking about a student as though he is the teacher....

simply, at magic, Paul IS the master and this is my priority.

i believe it is our art first.

Admittedly, mostly, I am a clown out there, but my teacher Doug Conn is a master magician and had instilled in me to seek out other great magicians and teach them the street to bring up the quality of magic shows on the street.

my priority is to help real magicians.

and Paul, is a case in point.

i have always encouraged him on the street and taught him what i knew. the streets of course is a different animal then a prepaid indoor gig and hence everyone must learn at some point this skill.

Paul is a scholar, inventor, raw talent, and a close friend, i thank God i have had the chance to meet him.

here's he is with his other teacher.

Sleeveless the Magician Stephen Sloan

2010-12-01T13:06:00.000-08:00

When i started this blog it was for those masters who never really got thier due.

Sleeveless is definately one of those performers who should be a house hold name for his talent and determination in his lifes work.

but, lo, he is one of us, a busker.....

this magician has worked in san diego on the streets for well over 20 years.

This feat, to me and anyone else who has traveled the world and then come here, knows this is one heck of a thing.

since i have been here in san diego, i have seen some of the top traving buskers come and quickly go, they don't last much more then a day or two because they can't cut the mustard.

san diego is tough.....real tough.

sleeveless, not only provides one heck of a show, but actually brings some sorely needed world class proffessional talent to san diego.

the people here know it and appreciaite it.

he is one of the few performers here that has been asked to work on all the major venues available in the city, and here, that is also very tough to do.

san diego seperates the boys from the men and sleeveless has done it for a long time and made it look easy.

i have had a great deal of respect for him and he has helped me out with my show and other things, with my stay here.

it should be understood that he is a bit of a recluse out side of "show time", infact i have been reluctant to write anything on him outta respect for this, but i feel compeled,

to let our peers know about the gem here in san diego.

i am grateful to have met him.

i would highly recomend his show to any one.

he is often photo'd and filmed because of his gritty, friendly, street wise, persona.

sleeveless, i could never repay you for all you've done,

but from all us guys learning from you out here......THANKS FOR YOUR LIFES WORK.

DIOBO

2010-12-01T12:37:00.000-08:00

world traveller.
mostly in europe.
Student of Jimmy Talksalot.

DIOBO has the most unique character i have ever seen.

he does a silent sidewalk act, he begins with a cigerette act on the ground it moves around posessed then levitates, then a manpulation act and a vanish.

this all compounded by his mysterious appearance. dark close fitting rugged clothing and a mideavel hood, creates an almost instant crowd..

a very bizzar act, at one point a glass fills with smoke, things vanish and appear in peoples clothing. small animals seem to appear at his command.

he's tall and his very strange moods and theatrics and etched nordic features seem to attract alot of women to his act....which of course brings men.

i have not listed alot of the effects of his act out of respect to his creative privacy.

he does alot of experimental stuff.

he's a full timer with lots of experience.

he lives well and adventurious.

his show is a rambo type, he shows up does his bit collects and moves on unless he feels he can milk that pitch.

he has little problems with the cops even working forbidin areas, because his crowd is instant, his show is quick in and out, no amp, little to no equipment to be seen and he has an uncanny street smarts as to whats happenning around him at all times.

this is not to say that he is not capable of doing circle shows, because i have seen him do some incredible ones. i have also seen him work with a borrowed amp to music which made him seem like a huge expencive act, creating huge crowds absolutely inthralled in what he was doing.

where diobo excels is in his creative mind always dreaming up incredible effects never seen to rarely ever seen on the street.

a real worker, genius.

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.......WATCH THIS!.......
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sorry about it being cut in half.

CHAPLINO

2010-12-01T11:18:00.000-08:00

Student of Jimmy Talksalot.
Home town San Diego.

Booking himself as the mexican illegitate grandson of charlie chaplin.

He works primarily in Seaport Village and the Gaslamp Quarter of down town San Diego.

When i first met Chaplino it was in seaport village in the park out back they call the embarcadero.

he was dressed in regular street clothes, no costume really, and no real character to speak of except of course his own personality....which was workin for him, because he's a nice guy.

i was outta costume and he stopped me to show me a trick. he had amazing close up chops and would work primarily for just a few people with small stuff.

Funny enough, now, he commands the largest crowds in seaport and has the most unusual magic show in the business.

he trained for a year on the streets of san diego before he came to work in seaport and it shows.

his act is a huge combination of, juggling, walk behind mime, magic, sight gags, and audience situation comedy skits.

he has become one of the most beloved and sought after acts at seaport village.

many tourists have come down to the village looking for him and talking about him.

Chaplino is a fanatic, always pushing himself to learn more and experiment on the street.

Off stage he is loyal, humble, and a perfectionist to creat a quality act.

this has landed him many gigs and spots on t.v.

he has a large cult following in the hispanic community and has been seen on a few spanish speaking t.v. channels.

years ago,he began with a spoken show dressed in normal magician garb, but has evolved into a silent act.

the reader should know that working as a silent act in the states on the streets, is almost impossible.......and working on the west coast only compounds this.

but because of his drive and determination to express his vision of the character he has not only pulled it off, but makes it look easy.

i will be posting some footage later when we put it together.

I love Chaplino because he makes me look like a great teacher, with his huge success, but the truth is, he's pure talent and determination.

it should also be noted that he has a very important skill, he take any bit he sees and change it around and add on and improve it so that it cannot be recoginized from the original.....this is what makes his show so genuis.

he doesn't need to steal, he just needs to learn the gist of atmosphere to create something he also puts brand new stuff together from responce from the audience...he learns from his audience.

i could go on and on.

but simply, he's a great performer and a great person.

Angelique "The Living Music Box"

2010-12-01T10:54:00.000-08:00

Her names is Zoe and she is my favorite attraction at seaport village.

she reminds me of the many wonderful statue acts peppered through out europe. she has as large back ground in theater and is in high demand in soutern california....and everwhere, i'm sure.

And it's no wonder, she is the only statue i have seen of this caliber in southern california.

the same grace and gentile sophistication she displays in her act is also present in her "off stage" real life personality.

having been away from my beloved New orleans and braving the california culture she is a breath of fresh air, not only is she a Lady, but she is talented and devoted to her calling as an artist.

it is a great honor to work with her at seaport village.

i think here work speaks for itself,

so,

here's some promo of her.
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And here is some peoples opinions who stumbled upon her.
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she's gotta really fun site, check it out;

http://zoetantrum.com/about.html
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ALEXANDER THE MAGICIAN

2009-09-17T15:03:00.001-07:00

i was on the road for sometime, hearing tell about alex back home in new orleans...but i had never met him.

I first met him in new orleans after returning home. my teacher doug conn had taken him under his wing after seeing how great alex was.

alex is one of those brilliant magicians with chops. he takes our art very seriously and is meticulas and fanatical about it. this of course can be seen by the trained eye after watching him work.

he is an american performer currently working europe.

he can build a crowd with no amp, table, or any props laid on the ground. he simply begins his show. he has a strong stage presence.

he can work any size venue from close up to stadium.

ALEX IS A REAL MAGICIAN...just watch and see.

MURRUGUN THE MYSTIC

2009-07-20T15:59:00.001-07:00

well here's a magician of a different color, heh, his stuff is real.....he's a sword swallowing bed of nails kinda guy.

I met him some years back in san diego, he has been performing for many years but has only in the past few years brought his act to the streets.

i remember him starting out and taking on the streets and the san diego entertainment venue world. i also remember tellin him he was wasting his time in san diego and that he was wasting his talent on this town, i knew he was good, but i thought san diego wasn't.

.....WELP, now i'm eating my hat, because he found the equation to crack san diego's uptight and sterile tendancies. they actually love him there now, infact he's made the local paper front page and he dominates the venue market.

this should all be understood that it didn't come with out many years of hard work and nay sayers {myself included}.

fakir, jadoo wallah, mystic, dement. he has worked every venue in san diego and has done some travelling as you'll see if you check out his myspace;

www.myspace.com/murrugun

his act is fire eating,blowing, exibition, sword swallowing and a bed of nails where a group of the audience stands on his chest at the end he lets them examine the holes in his back.

Fun show, all done with accompaniment, by the lovely miss Justine Bethel on her accordian, she looks like a doll.....a demented raggedy ann doll, making poses like a marrionette with mime smiles.

the show begs to be watched and the two of them deliver. they really are a striking couple doing some very interesting things.

his video clip of them working in sea port village;

murrugun's story is the story of EARNED success, this is a tuff town.

this is a great lesson to us all that, if you're stubborn enough, you can make it happen in the town you want it to happen in.

i have been working here in san diego now for a little bit and i have got to appreciate him more nad more.

murrugun you have my undying respect.

your pal jimmy

STREET SHOW KIETH AKA KEROSENE KIETH

2009-07-20T08:36:00.001-07:00

when i started this who's who blog, i started it to give credit, to some of those brilliant performers who have been doing it along time, but have failed to get the credit they deserve.

you see, many of them have focused all their time on the quality of their show and have not found the time to focus on promo. also some of them are not sterile and wont play by the rules of exploiters so they get neglected and even frowned upon.

i have seen many other more well known performers focused all their time on promo and their income and have left the quality to the way side and many of them have a sterile bubble gum show. not so with fellahs like Street Show Kieth Wolfe.

you wanna talk about a real street guy, well check this guy out.

he travels up and down the west coast of the u.s. the hardest to place to work i have ever been.

he does this making a living. he will crash festivals and over regulated spots. always in and out before they shut him down. the west coast is EXTREMELY over regulated for everything not just busking, businesses have a hard time here.

i have seen the buskers in frisco repect him and let him work....for any one who has worked there you know how voilent and dog eat dog it is there, so this is sayin somethin.

he has various different shows and characters. sometimes he's painted up and some times he's gotta street costume instead.

along with the streets, he also works alot of circuses, cabarets, and private functions.

i have seen him personally in frisco and san diego and some other spots build a huge crowd when it was impossible for me or others to get a show off and to add insult to injurey he made some fat hats. his show is hillarious and he can work a sidewalk or large circle act.

his act is a bit gritty and pushes the envelope, sometimes a bit more then i would in my show, but it fits his character better then it would mine.

people don't copy his act because they can't it's so orininal it's to the point of.....of...well, frankly wierd sometimes.......the cocktail to success my friends.

he has a myspace and a presence on the internet and i would hope you take the time to look him up and watch some of his work.

here's his myspace;

http://www.myspace.com/streetshowkeith

here is some rough footage of him, it does not show alot of his tecnical skills, but the patter is great;

Kieth i get it.

thanks for your lifes work.

PEPPE MIME

2009-07-16T19:29:00.000-07:00

Sonny Holliday calls him a world class performer.

PEPPE comes from a high theater education, he has studied from and taught the masterers.

A WORLD TRAVELLER, but he is a covent garden icon, a celebrity, a myth, a legend, and a force to be reckoned with.

he is a dangerous street character and a loveable child like character rolled into one. he gets the largest crowds in the garden and for good reason. his show can be watched over and over and infact most performers do just that in awe and thrill.

when first meeting him you will notice a thick cockney accent and a rough exterior, with a grin that the cat has when it ate the canary.

his show for the most part is silent and he dominates the garden or any other pitch he chooses to work.

his character is that of a shadow performer who is curious and oblivious that what he is sometimes doing is outrageous. as he puts it he, "just plays" with the people.

he is a performer's performer in that he is a genious with the audience and the show can be watched over and over and it is still new and exciting everytime.

he watched me work silent and offered to instruct me for a couple of hours....when he taught me it was pretty advanced i could barely keep up with the instruction and fell short. his understanding of mime is mind blowing.

later on after years i finally began to understand and impliment more and more. he is loved and respected by all the performers.

everyone has their stories who knows him and i will be writing some in the future when i have more time.

this is A VERY IMPORTANT PERFOMER in the busking world. he sets the standards for what a quality performance is.

he has taught me and many others much and i am thankful.

i am posting this mini documentry below of him, be warned it has what some would think is vulgarity {bad words}, but i feel in this video he best expresses everything that is truly busking. i perticularily like his message at the end about money and motives for being out there.

it also shows some of his mime, physical comedy, and the bits of funny business.

an interesting note to magicians;

On magician's corner in covent garden, i have seen peppe do a sidewalk magic show with only cards, a table,a stick and his banter. funniest bit of by play in the world. he said he learned this from nick nicholis, gazzo, and a bunch more that he knows well and has for many years.
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....................................................................PEPPE..........AUTHENTIC.
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MICHAEL LEE

2009-07-10T20:47:00.000-07:00

Sometimes fellahs write in and do such a good job i just put up their own story in thier own words......here's his in his own words;

Been busking for some 20+ yrs......

Hilights of my career so far have been,, Performing for President Bill Clinton , The birthdy for author Kurt Vonnigut, performing at the opening night Party for Siegfried & Roy....helping to Raise over $ 30.000 for 9/11 families. and performing over 100 FREE shows for NYC Fire & Police there families months after the 9/11 tragedy.

I have found that Busking /Street performing is Simply perfect not only as ways to generate fast cash, But most & more importantly as a way to keep your self & your material sharp !
Practing in front of a mirror once a week will not do ...If your going to do this thing called performing then YES get Your Material honed in front of a Mirror...... Then get away from the Computer, get away from the Dummy

Box (TV) Get away from those in your life that are non believers in you as a Person & get out in the real World & give em something that never seen...& I very strongly believe that that if you can't give em something that they
have never seen then the very least you can do as a performing Artist is to do your very best to Create & have your material evolve into somthing that equals ...YOU !
This will not happen overnight or even in a month...But hang in there, as the adventure is in the doing ....I firmly believe that Time Tell's !!!! and it will.

As a Professional Performer of 20+ Yrs.. , Im not really a fan of DVDs Im a lover of Books ...Im a reader ...Simply put there's "Gold" in them there books so as a rule I read everything...Reading takes work, Attention &
Focus....Sadly there is a "new " generation of performers (?) who seem to have little to almost no interest in the history of our Art.....Which is a verey sad thing to see.

My Friend / Teacher Jeff Sheridan was fond of Saying Creating material is easy when the work has already been done ! in other words DVDs = Xerox copy !!!! and leave's nothing to the imagination , Trust me ... Books are the way to go

The Wonderful thing about Busking is that once you geta tight show it can play any where !! and I have Cruise ships , Theatres, Festivals, TV, Corporate Events for Sony music, Harley Davidson, The Rockfeller Foundation Just to name a few... ..so inother words if you can make the audience like you than more than likely they will like your show.

I would also Highly reccomend The Jimmytalksalot book , "To Lure with Spectical" -First hand knowledge at a more than reasonable price. Just as I feel about my friend & another great teacher -Gazzo...There is no substitute for first hand Knowledge ! Gazzo has been rocking for more than 30 yrs !!! ......I remember him giving me advice on a very light Table I was using that was not up to his Standards ... he told me his opinion !!!! Believe me it was replaced the Very next day by a Heavy / Solid table top that met to his High Standards....I very much appreciated his advice from a good friend , I also very much appreciate his high marks on my Millennium Cups, somthing that I produced back in 2000 that are a Road worthy set of Cups that have been endorses by some of the Best in the Bizz ! (www.michaelleemagic.com)

Im not sure what else i can add Jim other than to say to anyone thinking to follow Busking as a career... Work hard then ..Work even harder , pay attention to your details but most importantly Do your very best & pay special attention to your audiences ..Give em a Great show.. one that YOU would be proud to even watch....Now get to work !

Cheers

Michael Lee
New York City

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ANDREW HARDING

2009-07-03T23:39:00.000-07:00

when i first started this who's who blog, it was my intent to give credit to those who went for years with out recognition for thier work......Andy is the perfect example of this for years he has worked london, sometimes at "Covent Garden", but the sidewalk at "London Eye" on the south bank, has been his pitch for years.

originally from his beloved Stoke he came to london many years ago and had it rough from the begining working his way of the streets and into public housing where he took me in the first time till some years later when i came again to london he took me into his new aparment and introduced me to his new love in his life "Cat" a lovely english girl he calls duck.

he has a big heart and takes care of his friends. very loyal person.

he does close up magic, his character is that of a strange and sometimes silly authority of the bizzar.

last i saw he was crowd buildling with a severed hand and finaling with card to glass frame an old anneman effect fro jinx.

he is a real london icon, working sidewalks all over the city.

some of the rougher buskers about town call him weasel out of love of course, he is well known and loved by all the other performers in london.

andy also has another act, he has a human robot act that he does mime and magic to, complete with suit.

he is an avid collector of magic, he has a huge collection and can be found almost once a day at davenports magic shop, a magic instution of england and the world.

if you ever wanna see a truly quirky and real london sidewalk show, keep your eyes peeled for andy.

thanks for everything andy your a real friend. this picture is special to me, it's me and him countin money in the hat. it was taken by a photographer impressed with our shows and way of life as buskers.

i wil be keeping an eye open for some footage, i would be curious myself as to what he's up to these days.

KENNY LIGHTFOOT

2009-07-03T22:53:00.000-07:00

i first met kenny in covent garden , but i had been hearing about him for years in san diego and new orleans.

the guy is one of the most interesting characters in busking i have ever met.

he looks sort of like an hasitic jew and has a beatnick artist sort of aire about him. he's a really nice guy and really intelligent.

as a magician the first thing that will stick out is that he does the magic square in a street show, this to me was mind boggling when i heard about it, but after watching it i realized it worked and it worked big, it was the sort of thing that only he could pull off, his show is incredably original.

i loved it.

when i met him i was hanging out with brian bloodworth and i found out that they were old friends who were street performing some twenty years in the past together in frisco.

hanging out with him always sets you at ease, you feel like everythings alright.

i shared a pitch with him and watched his show over and over i never got sick of it. the way he holds a crowd to me is like magic, people just feel comfortable with him and hang on what he has to say.

where ever i go i hear about him from the locals, where he has gone he has had that sort of impression on the communities he has amazed.

i wish i could track down some footage of him he really is brilliant.

he helped me out when i needed help and i appreciate it.

BRIAN BLOODWORTH

2009-07-03T22:25:00.000-07:00

many years ago walking down royal street in new orleans i saw a well dressed southern business man, set up in the middle of the street on a artists suit case table.

i was learning to work the street and looking for all the acts i could find. there he was doing some of the most incredable magic i've ever seen, he was doing with a dean martin aire about him.

as he worked a cigarette would vanish and appea, over and over, as this happened he was nonchalant and acted as if it was nothing.

he announced that he waould make a signed card appear in his wallet along with a salt shaker in side an envelope in his wallet, he would take that same card and throw it up over the building next to him, needless to say i watched in disbelief with everyone else as he did all the things he promised.

one of the things about his character is that he can do many flourishes and stunts, so impressive that it stops the passer by in their tracks.

he is a long close friend of eric evans, and he knows many of the greats, gazzo gotta chance to see his act and told me he loved it.

a vetran street performer taking on europe again right now but he is known as an american performer.

he started on the street in 1980 & 81. a short time latter he met cellini, since he has had quite a life with the life he chose. he has worked all over the world on the streets and he has work alot of corprate gigs and over the many years just about every venue.

a full time pro, he taught me alot i owe alot to him.

i am hoping to get some footage of him to post here, so you could get an idea.

but the best thing is to see him live, so keep an eye out for him on one of your own busy sidewalks.

i hope all is well with you brian and thanks for being such a good friend.

CHARLIE CAPER

2009-07-03T21:33:00.000-07:00

well where do i begin?

i could go on for hours about the greatness and the rise to greatness of this street magician.

charlie is a full time busker from sweden, he makes his lively hood almost intirely from the streets.

he can work any venue, sidewalks, half circle, circle, stand up with no table, with a table, indoors, on stage, cabaret, any size any venue.

he won swedens got talent with the same humble attitude he has conquered thousands of venues.
he has integrity and honesty and a self critical attitude many are lacking in our industry.

he is a humble perfectionist.

i first met him at covent garden,we all called him carl, we became friends. he watched me work with out a table and i would complain about not having a finale i was satisfied with, two days later i saw him perform a show with out a table and he had a brilliant finale. it was simple and to the point.

all the biggest names including cellini know his name for a reason.

i could go on but i think his work speaks for it self

take the time to check out his amazing site.

http://catchmagic.com/

charlie is a stand up guy and the real deal, he's been all over the world showing people that he is a master at the art of magic and that real magic is alive and well even in our modern age.

thanks charlie for for your lifes work, it's an insiration to all of us.

charlie caper successful busker.

ALSO DON'T FORGET TO CHECK OUT THE NEW SIDEWALK PERFORMERS SITE.

2009-06-01T16:17:00.000-07:00

the sidewalk performers now have a site!

the site is mostly for small acts busking for a living, but doing it because they love it first.

it´s not just magicians.

it´s any act;

musicians, clowns, mimes, balloons, jugglers, stautues,etc.etc.

the site is being designed to teach how to become and master the sidewalk.

this winter we will be filling it up with celebs and articles.

so if you would like to talk to some of the sidewalk performers you have heard of or get news about them please log on to the site.

it has it´s own forum and links to other important educational busking sites.

here´s the site;

http://sidewalkperformers.com/wordpress/

but be sure and sign up on the forum it's where we all hang out;

http://sidewalkperformers.freeforums.org
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Antonio Labella

2009-04-24T13:49:00.000-07:00

italian sidewalk magician working barcelona, spain. but he is a world traveler.

capable of any size show and working any venue, but he is noted here for his skills as a silent to music sidewalk performer.

his character is synical, sneaky, classy, and confident.

i have watched him work silent with NO music! and still pull off some of the most beautiful shows to my amazement.

class act.

he has the power to make you bust up in laughter with just a glance {his signature to be sure} and a moment later to take him seriously as the master of the show and all he sees.

one must see him to apprecaite his act, so look for him when your on the road.

he uses the zombie ball in a way never thought, he uses it the traditional way with foulard and with out foulard as a mime piece and uses it to draw his crowd as a steel ball with a mind of it's own interacting with the him and the people.

i am unable to find any footage, but i will continue to look for it because of the importants of this performer.

he has a strong respect for the art and it's traditions, and it shows in his work.

he has worked italy where he is from which is a tough thing to do. italian audiences set a high standard especially for some one from their own country.

i know how he feels because they are the same way in new orleans my home town, little forgiveness for mistakes and this takes alot out of the performer to master what he does.

he is a good friend and we have shared many spots together, and his ability to work impossible situations will always sit in my head.

he is good to his friends and is respected and loved where ever he goes.

it was an honor to learn from him.

DIOGO ALVARES

2009-04-24T12:49:00.000-07:00

BARCELONA MAGICIAN.

master brazillian manipulator who has made his home in spain. ordinarily his show is silent done to music, his crowd build is simply his manip skills with cards, billard balls, cigerettes, and various other ungimmicked items.

people walking by and "discover" a good looking sympathic character doing his thing, to a great sound track of easy going but subtley edgy music. it puts the people in the mood for a good time....and he delivers.

a highly skilled pro made famous in brazil on t.v. with illussions and every other form of magic, he chose the spanish streets as his dream.

he has invited me to his home and let me stay in hard times and i watched him as he taught me, it was my mecca for parlor manipulations. he was so advanced at parlor manips it took everything for me to keep up with him which is funny to me because i used to pride myself as a parlor magician, well i learned from him who a real parlor magician is.

it has been difficult for me to find a great example of his work on video, but if you look it up your self and watch enough of it a pattern will emerge and i know you will agree with me about his genius.

DIOGO has a dry and sneaky sense of humur and puts out an aura of relaxed class and confidence that sets the audience in a mood that leaves them in the right place to see the beauty in what he does. you hear them ooh and awe and laugh in shocked disbelief.

the film does him only a little credit to see him work and feel the atmosphere is where it's at.

another thing, he reminds me of my teacher doug conn in that he is so humble and it isn't until a fourth of his show that you realize just how skilled he is and that he has been taking you on a well manipulated ride with out you even knowing, yep you were believing in magic and the moment you realize that it startles you.

here he is inna studio doing some of the manips he might do on the street to stop a crowd.

if your wondering what type a person he is, when he not performing, i assure the reader he is a decent, loyal, intelligent, adventurious guy who loves his friends.

everyone that knows him respects him as it is the most natural thing to do he is a master. he takes care of his friends and is a compassionate leader.

the thing that makes him the most unusual is that he is a very successful SILENT sidewalk act, having travelled the world and proven his abilities can work anywhere.

there are only a handful these in the world.

STEVE' LUCY

2009-04-24T00:30:00.000-07:00

walking in the plaza of a cathedral in barcelona me a some other buskers walked up on a show. it was silent to old sad french folk music. there was a massive circle. he did many beautiful stage effects many with birds.

what we noticed right away was how all the women in the audience reacted to his show, they were all crying to his sad magic mime act with sad puppy dog eyes.

the men just stood and looked on with awe.

this happened show after show, me and the other performers asked each other if we ever seen any one cry in a magic show and none of us ever had.

we were jealous with envy, we hated him......he was to good and we had to work there too!

we approached him and he was incredably humble {like all the greats} he asked if we liked his show and we said yes, he asked if we liked him and we said no! but we just couldn't hate him he was such a good person he even charmed us.

he asked i had any suggestions {to my amazement} so i suggested he try a comedy approach to his middle trick.

his next show he did and the girls stopped crying for a second and laughed with sentimental sniffling and then when the show went back on track they went back to crying.

after the show he rushed up to me and said, "jimmy, jimmy, they cry, {and with emotion in his voice he said,} then they laugh, and then they cry.... i love it jimmy."

where ever we went girls tripped over them selves for him and he was shy which only drove them more crazy for him.

well now he work sidewalks too.

he is a french magician who began in montplier, his brother johnny is also a magican and i will be writing about him soon.

here he is performing my favorite trick where he draws a bird.

notice the tone of the girl filming it when she talks about him and see if you can hear all the women cooing in th backgroung twards the end. this is just a small reaction because he is just doing sidewalks you would have to see his long full circle show to get full audience impact.

steve' is modest, kind polite, street wise, and an absolute master at our art.

i am honored and humbled that he would even call me his friend. his silent magic street show has had the biggest impact on me in my career. he will leave you in awe, really.

i should also add that his abilities as a master slieght of hand and manipulator with any and all objects are impecable, he learned from one of the old greats back in france.

his knowledge of stage work is also incredable.

steve' is so kind he even spent time with me on my show and i still do some of the manips he taught me in my show to this day.

he has a great site with footage of his stage shows and street stuff, check it out;

http://www.stephenlucy.com/index_uk.html

steve' if your reading this thanks for everything.

your pal jimmy.

TAFFY

2009-04-23T23:50:00.000-07:00

a welshman grown up in the inner city of london with cockney accent. way back in the day he was a mod, complete with clothes, scooters and lingo. he's a rough but educated guy.

great friend to have, pulled me outta many a scrape.

started performing with a diablo many years ago in italy, he learned from an italian master there and 2 of his english mates ed and adi, he got so good so soon when he went to greece next he made personality of the week on all the t.v. stations and newspapers.

he performed since 1998 in london and is currently in amsterdam workin the sidewalks there.

here he is working james street covent garden.

the unique thing about him is his skill at a sidewalk show, like all diablo or jugglers he can do big shows but what makes him so unique is his absolute mastery of a sidewalk show.

watching this next clip you can see him working the crowd building for a bigger show.

i have shared many a pitch and a squat or two with him for a while. along with his obvoius skills, he is also a master mechanic, and can work on anything inna building.

he is also an inventor. if you are a diablo worker and you are lucky enough to catch his act live one day you may notice that he is doing some unique moves that couldn't usually be performed.....it's the sticks they are a special design, they are tubes so the strings can be pulled in and out to adjust the diablo as it spins.he does some really unique cat's cradle type effects by pulling the sticks in then letting them drop and untangle magically yet still keeping the diablo on the spin.

anyway he makes em and sells em, ask him about it and he might be able to direct you to the people he's got selling them.

here's another of him working a smaller sidewalk show.

in his younger days he was quite the acrobat.

he's a true sidewalk performer and as street wise as they come. he is a bit of a legend in london and knows all the vetran performers there.

my pal TAF

MATT RAMBLES

2009-04-23T23:27:00.000-07:00

originally from kentucky, but cut his teeth as a busker in the streets of L.A. calif.
traveling the world, up and down sidewalks silent or spoken shows.

jimmy talksalot's number one student, matt rambles.

he's a tough street wise character, with a punk anarchist traveler back ground....survivor/ performing talent.

you'll recognize him emediatly by his modern jester look and masterful manipulations.

with a back ground in the arts back to his childhood, not just street smart but school and self education can be detected from him also. much like a younger sonny holliday.

no matter where he is at he adapts.

he has a serious respect and love for our work and is constantly thinking and creating.

true friend, truly loyal to his work and his friends.

he is a better student then i am a teacher, he's my right hand.

right now he's taking on europe with nothing more then a small bag and his talent.

i have always envied his silent sidewalk work, it's the hardest work to take on and he knows how to do it.

i am looking for some footage because my words can't do him justice.

MR. ISTVAN

2009-04-15T21:01:00.000-07:00

for well over twenty somethin years of performing straight on the street mr. istvan is amazing.

i was at his house and saw all the passes for some of the most prestiges festivals in the world, these passes were what he wore from being hired by them. he said he keeps them as trophys. he has a silent act backed with an incredable sound track,his act has often been copied, but never performed at the level istvan does it.

he is a class act no question, to say he has the royal touch is an understatement.

istvan holds court in barcelona. he has forgoten more then most magicians know. he's not only a real nice guy always willing to share, but he is incredably intelligent and well read on just about any subject.

he has what we call here in the states gumpshin, a tenacious optomism to occomplish what others think is impossible. and this is exactly what istvan does he does what others only dream of, i have never been so impressed with a master performers will, as i was with istvan, he meets all his goals and refuses to fail.

he is extremely disiplined in what he does and it is evident in his work. this is why i am always telling my students to be disiplined and fanatical in thier work.

istvan took me in and let me stay at his house in hard times and instrcuted me in my performance and in my life. he is the major inspiration in my rope work and gave me permission to use some of the things you may see me do.

istvan in my opinion is, classy, graceful, intelectual,a real magician and a close friend.

istvan, master magician.

LORD LUCAN {COVENT GARDEN PAUL}

2009-04-15T20:33:00.000-07:00

here he is finishing his sidewalk routine. i know it's his sidewalk show by what i see on the table.

he has a larger show and his larger show is hands down the best cups and balls i ever saw.

he is my favorite cups and balls performer. his larger show finales with everything you see on the table plus a key of "coke" [salt], a huge slew of coins, and thousands of marbles, all of which listed of course flows from the cups.

orinally paul began as a giant circle act walking glass and various other stuff. he is good friends with peppe, sonny holliday, and several other edgey street performers.

he is a true sidewalk performer, bangin out show after perfect show rakin in the respect, awe and laughter of his audiences.

you probably wont catch any footage of him, he's too old school to allow filming.

i have squatted with him and some other performers for a while in london.

the thing about paul is he is real london, every town has it's icon. for example dr. john is real new orleans and tom waites is real old time american city.......paul is real london. when i think of inner city london culture or cockney or rhyme slang which he taught me and i ain't tellin a porky....i think of paul.

A TRUE FRIEND.

he follows the rules of the street like his bible and the thugs tremble with respect.

one of the most original and old school sidewalk acts in the world, a world class talent as sonny holliday calls him.

highest point in my career was meeting paul.......LORD LUCAN.
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i found this very very rare footage on the net, please excuse the commercial in the beginning, his performance follows it....and it is just the finale of one of his shows....and a very unusual finish, i have never seen him finish in this way.

NICKOLI - DR. STREET

2009-04-15T20:13:00.000-07:00

Dr. Street - He's not a medical doctor nor a professor of history,

but rather a philosophical doctor

and professor of mystery.

His high energy street theater show and gritty sense of magical comedy has folks not only asking how he does it, but "Why?!" Either way

they ask for more.

Because of its traditional street theater style, Dr. Street's magic

can be performed in any location

or venue. You'll never be more amazed, amused, and possibly confused than when you witness

the mesmerizing operation of Dr. Street............

OR SO IT SAYS ON HIS WEB SITE, nicksharpe.com

i met nick some years back and have shared a pitch with him many times. he has been street performing for many years and has worked and ran with many of the greats. he has helped me emncely in my life and in my work infact if you go to my other blog on learnin street performing and look him up there you will find he taught me a valueable lesson and he has allowed me to pass this wisdom of to my readers.

THE NEW SIDEWALK PERFORMERS SITE!

2008-08-10T02:05:00.000-07:00

ZU ZOO MAN

2008-05-04T19:40:00.000-07:00

New Orleans icon, you may see him sellin praline candy or pecan or sweet potato pies, keep an eye out for the zu zoo man rollin accross the waters of the mighty mississippi. famous for his singin and new orleans eccentric antics he is truly a jewel and a fine example of our culture. you might be able to catch him on royal singin jimmy hendrix new orleans ocopello style or the metors my favorite.

started in 1959 in front of a live audience, started on the street some odd 15 years ago full time inspired by tranpa and stoney brooks who you may have seen in documentries or on commercials about the city.

he hand makes all his goodies and is a self taught musician.

he is a spiritual man a christian with a love of his own unique form of gospel, he considers himself saint with saintly ways which gives him a mystical orah that motivates him to wanna convert, "to be better then what i was, not better then anybody else."

ALBERT OWENS

2008-04-29T08:27:00.000-07:00

this is what albert's student The Great Wilsoni or Keith balloonatic says about his teacher;

Hi there, this is for Albert Owens.

I brushed shoulders with a genius a linguistic genius of words,wits and comedy.

Some considered him the king of the park(Washington Square Pk), I know I did.

He was a great entertainer, a comedian with no match. Everybody copied him and his comic humor. who at a drop of a dime could play the blues , R & B, or classical music on his quitar, harmonica or piano (who knew).

He was the Lenny Bruce of the 80s 90s. Washington Square Pk had a few great acts, his was tops, He loved life and hated few, always had a bad word for someone but meant no harm, I am very much indebted the the man Albert George Owens, He took me under his wings and taught the ropes I owe much to this man larger than life. God Bless.

Dynamo

2008-04-22T09:36:00.000-07:00

Dynamo, some of you may have seen his huge body of work on you tube.

some of you may have seen his t.v. specials or caught him in vegas with snoop dog.

i met him before that in covent garden. he used to do an extremely small doorway act on james street.

he was sort of like a white rapper type who would moon walk to his incredibly difficult and amazing close up card tricks. he had a very small crowd 5-8 mins. he had modest but consistant hats all day long.

the other performers at the time were unanimus that he was one of the most talent, humble, close up magicians they had ever met.

they all said how much potential he had. i was skeptical until i met him and it was all true. he was a genuine giving intelligent person and incredibly talented. he was entertaining and he fooled me bad.

sure he didn't make the bigger hats like the half circle shows or circle shows but everybody believed in him.

everyone incouraged him to seek public greatness......

so he did.

as the story goes if i can remember what he told me and some of the other guys told me; snoop dog came down saw him discovered him and took him to vegas , he also put him in one of his videos, after that Dynamo got signed for a t.v. show in england.

i am embarrassed to say that i have not followed his career enough to know exactly what he's done so far.

immediately after his first break some that had told me all those nice things about him changed their story, they said, he wasn't talented enough, he didn't have enough experience, he was arrogant, and it was much to soon for him to think that he could represent our industry with his new exposure.

funny enough he had just done everything they had taught him and told him to do and they were right he could be successful.

after his success, i went and talked to him and he seemed even more humble and talented from what he had learned from his new experiences, he wasn't aware at the time about the efeect he had made on the other performers.

in my judgment they were wrong about him. i made this judgement even though i was just a vagabond traveling sidewalk show guy {and still am}

this story of course is a similar story with blain and angel.

point is.

IF ONE OF OUR PEERS IS BECOMING SUCCESSFUL IN MY OPINION WE SHOULD SUPPORT HIM OR HER TO BRING OUR INDUSTRY AND OUR SELVES UP!

it should be understood that i am not talking about myself, thinking i am becoming successful....i'm a sidewalk performer for christ sakes, i am getting old quick for the work i do and i am just trying to make ends meet on what i make on the streets and i am selling products for money to give to my children, WHICH BY THE WAY I WONT SEE A CENT OF AND I WOULDN'T HAVE IT ANY OTHER WAY.

i just thought i would give my 2 cents about Dynamo's good character. so if your a fan i think you should know on top of it all, in my opinion he is a really decent guy.

of course that's not just my opinion he still has quite a few friend around that would say the same thing about him.

here is an interesting interview by him and i am proud to say he mentions new orleans and their workers.

unfortunately, i wasn't in new orleans when he was there so he's talking about the other guys there.

please watch this interview and go to some of his performance videos because i feel he you could get a better feel of his performance from some of the other videos. but i think what he says is very import to us.

THE AMAZING JOE JOE

2008-01-26T19:19:00.000-08:00

the amazing JOE JOE

home pitch; MYRTLE BEACH

JoeJoe has traveled through
38 States, performing his
unique brand of magic and
illusion on Main Street USA.

joe joe is legendary. regretfully i have not met him yet, but have admired his work and reputation for many years.

he sent me a small bio and i'm gonna post it because i think it is best in his own words;

Background: "When I was 18 living in Ocean City I was working the usual dead end jobs - you know, dishwasher ... busboy ... mcdonalds.

It seemed I was always looking for a new job, and got the bright idea that as a street performer I could make money anywhere in the world without ever having to actually apply for a job.

It didn't happen overnight, but eventually I figured out how to do it".

Influences: "To me, Penn and Teller are successful street performers. Harry Anderson is a successful street performer.

The one thing they have in common is they are not actually working the streets. I hope I get that break and get off the streets, as all the streets are just dead ends.

I don't care how much money you can get in a hat ... it is still nothing compared to what Robin Williams can earn just for showing up at a party! I am amazed at how many street performers don't realize this little fact.

Your goal should not be a fat hat, your goal should be a great act - that is what makes a street performer successful".

Mentor: "There is an old timer here in town, Master Magician Jim Lee - he is featured on my Floating Street Lamp video. I've been working with him for roughly 15 years now. You want a who's who, he would be the one to do one on.

He is the real deal, toured with the carnie circuit doing the bed of nails longer than I've been alive. I don't know how old he actually is, but I hope I'm in as good shape when I'm his age".

The Act: "I try to be original and do my own thing. I think my sword-through-body is the people's favorite. It is tricky to pull that off when half your audience is under 13, but I figured out how to get away with it. Its really not the kids I worry about, its the parents - they are so over sensitive.

I grew up watching Tom and Jerry and the Road Runner ... my sword is nothing compared to cartoons".

here's his site;

http://joejoeonline.com/showtimes.htm

here's his blog good stuff;

http://joejoeonline.com/blogger/

joe joe has a large body of video clips on his site and throughout the internet displaying his talents with illussions on the street...which is a rare nitch.

watch him lure with spectacle.

BOBBY MAVERICK

2008-01-25T11:18:00.001-08:00

BOBBY MAVERICK

Teacher; KOZMO

Home pitch; Urbana, Ohio

Fulltime Busker during the warm months and a Corporate Entertainer/Magician during the colder months.

Been workin 6 or 7 years now. Fulltime for a couple three years.
Works all over the U.S. doin sidewalk/door way acts or circle shows depending on the pitch.

I’ve shared his pitch with him and it was a pleasure bobby is pure pro.

We were workin New Orleans during a festival it was dangerous and insane but bobby didn’t flinch he just tore up the shows one after another a real worker.

Bobby is not just good at what he does he’s got to be the most stand up guy out there. He’s loyal to his art, his peers, and his teacher.

And like his teacher he makes big hats and has incredible contact with his audience infact I think in a few ways he has surpassed his teacher in our art and that says a lot for Kozmo’s teaching skills.

But anyway,

I could watch bobby’s show over and over I learned a lot from him about circle shows and it has increased my hats and show skills.

He’s just as comfortable in a suit as he is his street costume.

The thing about bobby is he can adapt to any pitch small or big tough or family or corporate he’s just that versatile. If you go to his site you see what I’m talking about.

here he is doing a quick one.

Bobby Maverick at IndyFringe 2007

Add to My Profile More Videos

thanks bobby for everything.

thanks for being a credit to our art,industry, and our tradition.

ALSO CHECK OUT BOBBY'S MYSPACE;

http://www.myspace.com/bobdabusker

MANDRAKE {Ed Rhodes}

2008-01-24T09:37:00.000-08:00

Name:

Ed Rhodes

Age: 52

home pitch: rhode island.

Occupation: Wal*Mart Associate (sigh)

Part time busker (week end warrior) Coming up on my 2nd year of performing.

Specialty: Cut and restored rope ~ Cups and Balls (Mark Wilson)

Mentor: None (Not by choice) My Uncle Bob introduced me to magic, but never really "mentored" me by any means.

Belonged to the S.A.M. twice, membership lapsed.

John Sturk

2008-01-21T18:57:00.001-08:00

John Sturk
Hometown: Detroit, MI
Location: Chicago, IL
Teachers/Influences: Chris Capehart, Eric Evans, Whit Haydn, Gazzo, Cellini
Time in magic: 4 years
Time busking: 2 years

Weekend busker. My day job is a project coordinator for FUN Incorporated, America's largest magic manufacturer. I sell magic all over the world, but only perform in a small part of it.

I hope any busker in Chicago will look me up; happy to get together and session. My website is www.johnsturk.com.

GADDY

2008-01-21T14:18:00.000-08:00

name: Gaddy

town: San Francisco

time spent busking: less than a year...
time in magic: started as a kid, got out of it, got back in about 3 years ago!

Teachers: Jerry Salazar, Jim Fassbinder

DOC ANDREW

2007-12-15T21:30:00.000-08:00

Doc Andrew out of Dallas, Texas area.

His teachers are;Eugene Wilkes, J.B.Bobo, and Dal Sanders.

Sidewalk magician/elixer salesman.

Fast talkin, fast dealin, Doc Andrew works up and down sidewalks all over the world.

I first met Doc back home in New Orleans years ago.

I was learnin how to street perform and I saw these 2 guys with all this stage and illussion equipment out in front of the St. Louis Cathedral in the square they were tryin to build a crowd….needless to say it’s a tough town to build a crowd and what makes it worse there’s people everywhere but their not stopping.

Eventually they stopped a crowd and did a funny and bazaar magic show using some effects that fooled and impressed me.

The 2 guys were Bizzaro and Doc Andrew.

Doc already a seasoned vet on the street by that time, was showing Bizzaro the ropes at busking New Orleans. Bizzaro had been doin magic for years but busking New Orleans is a whole different world.

Bizzaro got the hang of it but he preferred to do larger shows and me and Doc wanted to work the sidewalks for awhile, so we shared the pitch on St. Peter and Decatur.

Show after show, Doc whipped em out. Fat hat after fat hat, givin me a run for my money.

For doc it was like taking candy from a baby. He does a brilliant elixir show that can play for any size crowd. The patter is authentic from the day and so is the costume…. Your left with no tell, that your in this century.

The thing, once again, about doc’s show, is it can play any size crowd but packs small really small.

The basic ideas is he’s doin an vintage elixir or medicine sales pitch as a sort of historical show of what you might have seen in the late 1800’s. As the magic happens Doc gives the bottle of medicine all the credit for the miracles that happen before the spectators eyes.

he looks like a carpetbagger and gives off that same sort of sneaky/ shifty personality.

it really is genius and I remember people saying they never thought they ever would see such a great show on the street.

JERRY SALAZAR

2007-12-15T20:10:00.000-08:00

JERRY SALAZAR,

Student of Cellini master in his own right.

San Francisco - Fisherman’s Warf ‘s sidewalk Icon.

full time working pro on the sidewalk for over 40 years probably a lot more I don‘t remember how long.

Cellini talks about him in “The Royal Touch” he’s been around for years.

you can not see it in the picture, but he’s wearing knickers, it’s his signature look.

When I first saw jerry I had no idea who he was. He was doing a 3 ring routine on the sidewalk in the Fisherman’s Warf area.

He did it to music through his amp but he didn’t speak till it was over, then he went into patter for his cups and balls which had a couple of interesting moves, one that will fool you… another one of his signatures.

He was protective of his spot, very old school in his ways of thinking about territory, and this has worked well for him over the years in one of the most dangerous places to work in the country.

I asked him if he wanted to see my show and he gave me permission to work his spot for the one show. He was very strict and it was all business till I started performing and his face changed.

He was like a little kid I saw his first smile and he got excited, I realized that he just loved magic and show business you could tell why he got into it and why he had stuck with it for so many years.

After my show he took me out for coffee and we spent the evening talking shop and smoking cigarettes.

He told me about the old days with Cellini and all the old pros.

If you get a chance check him out, if your ever in Frisco on the Warf.

Class act, fun to watch, very elegant atmosphere. What I loved was he still does the trick called, “the sidewalk shuffle.”

HE HAS AN EXTREMELY CONVINCING CHARACTER OF A RUDYARD KIPLING PROFFESSOR TYPE, VERY CHARMING AND INTERESTING, IT IS VERY DIFFICULT FOR THE SPECTATOR NOT TO BE INTERESTED.

He’s written a book on the rings, you can track it down on the web.

to show you how much of an icon he is. he's in this mini documentry of buskers on fishermans warf, frisco;

TOM PICCARD

2007-12-13T23:42:00.001-08:00

TOM PICCARD,

another one of those legends from the day.

Student of Cellini, master in his own right.

Tom Piccard has been performing since 1970

In 1981 he met Cellini in New Orleans and took to the streets, Cellini helped him a great deal with learning how to build a crowd, keep a crowd, and on magic.

Sonny Holliday told me Tom started out as a clown, but told Cellini he wanted to learn our art.

Much of that clown is still showing;

In 1986 he toured with Cellini in Italy.

The following summer he returned to Europe and has been performing at various festivals and events there ever since.

Piccard also won the European Championships for street magic 4 times...At age 59 he is still at it..

Working 4 months out the year and then wintering in Thailand.

He’s living my dream. A full time pro and has been for along time. You hear about Tom up and down pitches all over the world.

I have not met him in person yet, but I will this season, I’ve kept in touch with him through mutual friends and via the internet.

I have mentioned him here, because he’s important, I’m also gonna list others here I haven’t met yet in the future, because I think there’s other guys who should be here…I just haven’t got to meet em all yet.

Tom is a great example of how a large body of working pros, who will work in the first world and live in the third. Gypsy genius.

Visiting his myspace is visiting another world. Theres plenty of footage and fun strange things to see….but if your like me you’ll make it your business to try and meet him.

http://www.myspace.com/piccardmagick

Piccards Cup Routine

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Tom, Gazzo, and Patrick

Thanks Tom, for the life time of devotion

GEORGE GILBERT

2007-12-13T12:31:00.001-08:00

GEORGE GILBERT student of Jesse Stickley, Jimmy Talksalot, Eric Evans.

works Ocean city Md.

So me and Eric Evans were workin O.C. and we walked up to the pitch and there was these 2 guys hangin out. A big rough lookin one and a quiet small one. The big one came up and said you fellahs thinking about workin this and we said, “yeh we didn’t know anybody was here.” so the big guy says “hey lets share the pitch”

The thing about these guys is they were a comedy act. The one big guy beat up on the little guy and kept yellin at him that he was screwing everything up and the little guy kept apologizing and promising to do better. The bigger guy was teaching the little guy to busk, and the little guy didn’t want to go out, he was shy and awkward.

This went on for about a half hour and people stopped and watched….till we all realized this wasn’t a show!

this was REAL!

Finally the big guy went out to show the little guy how to do it. The big guy went out and did a mentalist show which blew me away and fooled me bad. He hatted em and then made the little guy go out.

The little guy went out and did silent manip. It was silent cuz you couldn’t hear him he was too quiet he only gotta small edge.

The next time around,

The little guy didn’t want to go out and finally we all urged him and I gave him a Cellini wand made by Eric Evans and he gotta a huge edge and did a beautiful show.[ Cellini’s power at work again].

The big guy was Jesse Stickley and the little guy his student George Gilbert.

Jesse Stickley, - George’s teacher, is a big abrasive outspoken guy with a heart of gold and amazing skills at magic. I’m jealous that he found George before I did.

Since then I have watched George improve. The thing about George is he is one of the few U.S. magicians that can stop em and build a crowd and make money with a silent manipulation act.

Watching George perform is watching poetry.

GEORGE GILBERT is a genius at our art.

As a young performer he has 2 things that few or none of the other young guys have,

1. he’s got some of the best parlor chops I have ever seen,

And

2. he has no ego problem to ruin it for the spectator.

George is humble and this is what makes him great loved and respected by anyone that comes into contact with him…..a rare quality.

Me and Eric taught him a lot, but we learned a lot from him. Not just tricks but about friendship and humility.

He’s a modern Cardini or sympathetic character. When you see him as a spectator first thought is, “wow! What just happened, oh hey, the poor guy’s having trouble, I want to route for him, I hope he can do this finale.”

And when George does the finale the crowd goes wild.

George is pure Buster Keaton silent film dexterous sad clown. I have seen no other in the U.S. that can touch him in this field on the street. I’ve seen many in Europe, but none here. Due to the tough conditions here I doubt that many of those European silent acts could compete with him here on crowd build and hats.

Here’s a photo of George with his proud teachers.

George Gilbert, Jimmy TalksAlot, Jesse Stickley, Eric Evans

check out his myspace for more info about him;

http://www.myspace.com/georgegilbertmagic

HARRY ANDERSON

2007-12-12T14:07:00.000-08:00

Harry is one of those guys who has done so much for magic, accomplished the impossible so many times and never seems to get any credit.

Here’s a guy who started on the street, worked there for years, and in his heart never left. A guy who always stayed loyal to our art and us.

Brought up in the old school, back in the day, he learned the rules and he believed in them. When the other guys around him found fame and fortune they forgot where they came from,

but not Harry, cuz he never stopped believing….the thing about Harry is, he’s not shallow, he’s a real guy.

Funny thing is, he made as much or more then those other guys, but when you talk to him he’s just one of us.

in fact, I remember hangin around his shop in New Orleans and there was a bunch of Hollywood movie stars and big wigs waiting to talk to him. His wife told him they were waitin and he told her to let em wait he was talkin to us…a bunch of shifty eyed, fedora wearin, cig smoking, buskers.

Funny thing about harry, was it pained him to hafta keep up appearances. When I first met him, I walked into his shop and I was lookin at some tricks I wanted. I saw him in the side of my eye and I said “hey I was wondering how much….oh, hey, you’re Harry Anderson”

He was beeming that I recognized him, and he began puttin on his promo face and I just interrupted him and asked, “how much for this trick..” Harry loved it that I didn’t care, you see that’s why he moved to New Orleans to get away from that Hollywood shallowness.

In New Orleans he would make it his business to catch every street guy's show at least once.

back in the day he had worked there himself.

Thats where he fined tuned his routines.

He's got some incredible acts, funniest man alive with ingenius magic. I don’t need to go on his life’s work shows.

Harry’s got that royal touch and he proved, you can take it anywhere. He’s hugely contributed to our art. His magic and entertainment leave you in awe.

THIS IS A MASTER.

And I’m glad I was alive to meet some one like this.

HARRY, HAVN’T SEEN YOU IN A WHILE, BUT I HOPE GOOD THINGS.

http://www.myspace.com/harryanderson

DANTE

2007-12-05T20:02:00.001-08:00

DANTE,

A student of Doug Conn and studied under Cellini and some of the greatest performers of Europe and the world.

When I think of the perfect street magic show, it’s Dante’s show no question. You may have seen him on the Cellini dvd.

Kozmo told Cellini that Dante was the next Cellini. One thing’s for sure Dante got Cellini’s grace in performance.

DANTE IS A PRO.

REALLY,REALLY,FAT HATS! IMPECCABLE MAGIC! 45MIN ACT OF PURE MAGIC THAT LEAVES YOU BUMMED OUT THAT IT’S OVER.

No one ever called him a bum because he dresses with style and holds himself with a dignity that can only be described as aristocratic.

But the guy is all street and the hoodlums know it, they don’t fool with Dante.

His crowd usually begins with an edge of hot young chicks…he’s a chick magnet, yeh, we all hate him. His crowds are massive in the U.S. and this was his undoing. You see he’s gone indoors for now with his short cabaret act [I hear good things]. He got sick of doin the streets because he got sick of bein yelled at constantly before he even set up. It was the cops, the shops, and the other buskers.

DANTE IS STILL A LEGEND IN NEW ORLEANS.

When I was learning he took me under his wing and helped me. When I went to Europe it was his name that opened doors to the other buskers they respected him there. I’m gonna write more about him later cuz he’s important.

He was the first to tell me to do a circle show and taught me a lot of tricks of the trade that literally saved my life a few times.

YOU WANNA LEARN SOMETHIN ABOUT IMAGE AND FULL TIME PRO CHECK OUT HIS SITE;

http://www.dantemagic.com/entertainment.html

JOHNNY BALLOONS

2007-12-05T19:05:00.000-08:00

NEW ORLEANS/ NEW YORK, SIDEWALK ICON

Johnny’s an old buddy of mine.

He walks around harassing the passer by, never lets a person get by em. Blowing ballons and wisecracks at everybody he sees. He stops em on a dime with his lines.

He’ll go up to a body builder and say, “put’em up, I’ll take you right now!”

He’ll stop a group of hot blondes with his arm up in a curled fist to show off his muscles and say, “I’m single!” “hey you need a ring!” and he’ll make her a balloon ring.

He’s been around forever has taught me loads and is friends with all the big guys like Cellini, Sonny Holliday, Toot, and not only that but he knew a lot of the guys the big guys at Tannen’s magic shop back in the day.

One of the funniest guys you’ll ever meet, but definitely all street.

He’s an old pro with cards {close up} and a ring routine that kills, but he hardly ever does it on the street he’s a balloon guy now. Says, he never made as much money with the magic that he’s does with the one liners and balloons.

i couldn't find any pics of him in full costume on the street. these are pics of him doin his ministry with kids. yeh, he's a christian and you'd never guess if you'd meet em, cuz he's all street. But if you think back on your visit with him you'll realize as rough and tumble as he was, he didn't do any thing really unchristian just a little street fun.

SONNY HOLLIDAY

2007-11-27T21:14:00.001-08:00

there are masters and there are gods.

when the masters hang out with Sonny, they know who their master is and they all chatter like giddy school girls.

in the U.S. there is no one higher, the pecking order starts and ends with SONNY HOLLIDAY.

EVEN THE MOST CONCEITED , WITH DILLUSSIONS OF GRANDUER KNOW THEIR PLACE STARTS UNDER SONNY HOLLIDAY.

NO ONE HAS PAID THAT MANY DUES.

NOBODY HAS THOSE KINDA CHOPS.

NOBODY HAS THAT KINDA CLASS, STLYE, OR BALLS.

IN THE U.S. NO OTHER PERFORMER HAS THAT MUCH STREET IN THEM....NOBODY.

LASTLY, NOBODY IN THE WORLD CAN TOUCH HIS 15 MIN. MANIP. ACT, ON THE STREET.

YOU WANT TO HEAR THE POETRY OF THE STREET?

WATCH SONNY HOLLIDAY.

as Americans we produced 2 busker legends for the international world to see,

Cellini

and his #1 student

Sonny Holliday.

I modeled myself after sonny, he is my hero, and in my mind, there is no one better.

I’d like to add one more thing, it goes without saying that the rest of the world has a huge, nay, gigantic amount of greats that puts our country at the bottom of the list for busking....a shameful thing.

but Cellini and Sonny Holliday put us on the map and they belong to us and we should do everything we can to show our thanks and undying respect any where we can.

.....ask yourself where would we be right now if they hadn't showed us how.

when I travel the world, doors open for me because of them. the world expects the same greatness from me. unfortunately, i of course fall short, but i think it should be our goal to exceed the world's expectations of us.

i think we should try and achieve the same greatness as these TWO, no matter how impossible it may seem.

Sonny has no students, I am the closest thing. he has taken me under his wing many times and as a street magician that is the thing I’m most proud of.

and with Sonny Holliday, you know I’m either telling the truth here, or I got a death wish.

Sonny Holliday at Venice Beach CA

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This is from the Cellini instructional dvd

BUT HERE'S MY FAVORITE YOUTUBE FOOTAGE OF HIM.
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WHAT IS A STREET MAGICIAN? { BY CELLINI }

2007-11-27T20:48:00.000-08:00

WHAT IS A STREET MAGICIAN?

when asked this is what cellini says,

"Exactly who or what is a street magician?

In my humble opinion he is a wanderer who believes he is the inheritor of all he surveys.

Someone who goes from place to place with or without a settled route or destination.

He is a boundary crosser; his purpose is to discover new places, meet new people, make new friends and preserve a way of life while perfecting his craft.

He is a person who is both loved and envied for his way of life which appears to the untrained eye as jolly-good, and fancy-free. But in fact it is a life of unremitting toil and unfailing persistence.

He must be willing to stake his future on his ability to persist no matter how hard the going gets. He must have an unshakable faith in himself and in his specialized knowledge to resist all the temptation; to buckle under the weight of society, to refuse to be herded like sheep into a pen and to be told when, where, and how long he can stay.

He is the first Church of the Street Theater and claims the same rights as any religion. To stand on any street corner and gather a crowd. To say and do as he wants whenever he wishes as long as it is within the bounds of propriety and good taste. And lastly, ask for support.

He is adventurous, persistent and courageous. Along with those characteristics, he has the determination to survive, the tongue to persuade, and the hand to execute any mischief called for.

He is a man possessing a touch of the earth with a warm and sincere interest in his fellow human beings. His heart, soul and thoughts are those of a king. He is a man blessed with the Royal Touch."

-- Cellini excerpt from "The Royal Touch"

here's some clips of cellini doin some magic indoors;

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here is some very rare footage of our late famous master working the street, thanks to tom frank.
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DANNY HUSTLE

2007-11-27T19:45:00.001-08:00

on my journey to meet the best sidewalk men danny was on my list i made it my business to meet him.

i heard alot about him and saw him on the cellini dvd.

when i was travelling kozmo was helpin me on the phone find good pitches and i asked him if he could make it happen for me to meet danny.

so i rolled into boston in my 88 dodge caravan{gun metal grey with rust spots}.

danny gave me directions on the phone and i met him at his house.

i met his wife and kid they were charming.

we got to talkin his family are the real deal vaudville and general entertainers, for generations.

he's got archive footage of everything and an encyclopedia mind of entertainment history and knowledge.

we went and shared the pitch at quincy market and there was a bucket drummer there and he decided he was gonna set up on us.

danny had other plans for him.

danny cranked his amp and blew him out....i wanted to be helpful so i did my silent act while he was drumming and hatted the people and walked over to the drummer and gave him a dollar the only one he would be makin there. this pissed the drummer off but before he could do any thing about it the cops came and shut him down...it was a touching momment.

danny was humble about his show, but his show was the quitisental sidewalk act.

the tricks were original and genius.

its the way his mind works its in his blood in his families blood he's pure show business.

the thing about danny is he's loyal to his family, friends, and his art and its tradition. he's protective.

if you cross that line....its well...bad.

i wish everybody was like that, you know where you stand!

danny once told me a story that happenned in his life that changed mine.

it really moved me.

it was about a guy who was picked on in school and danny saved him then something happenned years later that will blow your mind if he'll tell it for you.

i've told some people the story but i think it would be more appropriate if he told it to you and he might if you go on his forum and ask him.

anyway the thing we should understand is how important danny is for our art.... he has saved us alot of time and money, by giving his own.

danny believes in our tradition. you can tell by his actions.

he's different than alot of other guys in the industry part of magic, for danny its about the art not about danny.

thanks danny

really thanks.

and now can i have that $20 dollars you owe me?

Here’s some footage of him workin indoors;

Danny Hustle has done more to promote busking for magician's then anyone else in the u.s.

infact he has set up a forum dedicated to helping buskers and here's the link.

http://buskerscafe.com/

KEITH { BALLOONATIC }

2007-11-27T19:44:00.001-08:00

He also goes by, "THE GREAT WILSONI".

This guy is incredible he’s been out there a long time workin new york city and New Orleans.

A real veteran the old timers all know him. Good friends with sonny holliday.

His show is real new york style. He does stage stuff like passe passe bottles, linking rings and finales with a interesting finale where he ties up a man and a woman who don’t know each other and plays music to them trying to get out, it’s a sort of a puzzle thing. When they can’t get out he tells the audience he’s gonna show everybody how to get them out but before he does this finale, he hats them with a plastic grocery bag.

The guy looks and sounds like sammy davis jr. and literally reaks of class, he definatley has the royal touch, holds himself like a gentleman but there is no one on the street with more street smarts.

He is a circle show performer, but can do sidewalks. He used to get me to open his show with my show then he’d give me a cut at the end.

I watched him once build a crowd, was the coolest thing ever, he would anounce his show on an amp walking around telling his intro with vegas style music in the background then all of a sudden the music got interrupted by Chinese music and he would look like he went into a trance and using a lota bowl he would pour out water the full length of the edge saying, “water from china ladies and gentleman water from china.” the music would change back to vegas and he would go back to his show then through out the show the music would go Chinese again and he would do it again pouring water from china with a hypnotic voice and face, over and over……and that’s gotta be the best use of a lotta bowl I’d ever seen.

Here’s some clips of him doin a little sidewalk work. these are some clips I got of him off the you tube. but they in no way do him the justice he deserves.

He's right at the end of this one.

here's the tail end of his ring routine;

Keith is a good friend, a real magician, a veteran busker, and most of all the most stand up guy I know on the street.

here he is in new oreleans.

here's what kieth says about his teacher;

Hi there, this is for Albert Owens.

I brushed shoulders with a genius a linguistic genius of words,wits and comedy. Some considered him the king of the park(Washington Square Pk), I know I did. He was a great entertainer, a comedian with no match. Everybody copied him and his comic humor. who at a drop of a dime could play the blues , R & B, or classical music on his quitar, harmonica or piano (who knew). He was the Lenny Bruce of the 80s 90s. Washington Square Pk had a few great acts, his was tops, He loved life and hated few, always had a bad word for someone but meant no harm, I am very much indebted the the man Albert George Owens, He took me under his wings and taught the ropes I owe much to this man larger than life. God Blless

WARPO

2007-11-27T19:43:00.001-08:00

warpo is like a brother to me,

i learned comedy, throw away magic, and novelty magic, from Warpo. we have a long history going back many years.

one of the most valuable things he taught me about magic comedy is that it's much more appealing if the joke is on the performer.

i'm really intimidated writing this because i look up to him so much and i think this may have to be a work in progress.

he has a long and successful history as a pitchman. his teacher was sir david walker.

almost everyone i've talked to in the business has told me he's the best and i've never seen any one as good as him at it.

recently warpo has gone to the street and it fits him like a glove. so much so that it makes all wonder why he never did it before.

he is an icon in the french quarter and has been since he arrived in new orleans many years ago at the worlds fair. i think he should be mentioned here because he is also now a sidewalk performer. i'm gonna write more about later.

heres a clip of him in alaska;

he's gotta myspace that does him better justice then i have here so far,

y'all should check it out.

http://www.myspace.com/Warpomagic

here's another

DANIEL DEVENPORT

2007-11-27T19:41:00.000-08:00

thats daniel on the left with doug conn in the middle and me on the right.

it's mardi gras new orleans the west bank...can you tell.

daniel devenport is the number one up and comming full time pro sidewalk show performer in the u.s.

he is the exact vision of a sidewalk magician from the day. he dresses right, got the gift of gab, and the chops to back it up. if you watch him, your watchin an exact piece of our history out there on the sidewalks. and he's the real deal he's a well dressed shadey street character with fast hands and fast, talkin.

heres a clip of him,

i assure you the clip does him no justice he's much better in real life and has alot more material.

he's been instructed by Eric Cash [eric von knownothing], Chris Karney, Jeff Sheridan. all great performers

i first met him in frisco and he liked my "magic show" sign and the rope that i lay out as a stage. he took those and incorporated them into his work.

i told him about alot of the fellahs including sonny holliday, eric evans, doug conn, and many others and i made it happen so he could meet them.

what's he like in person?

cocky, self consumed, fanatical about his lifes work, very generous, but rarely uses the word thank you.

and he will back up his friends in a fight, i know this because he backed me and some other buskers up, when these spray paint artists were moving in on our pitch.

he doesn't catch a hint to save his life and would rather be told some thing straight out.

when being instructed he learns magic instantly but some how still manages to be a difficult student to who ever is teaching him.

the thing about daniel is you know where you stand with him and he could be your best friend or your worst enemy.

in some regards he is a lot like sonny holliday but only in some regards.

he's young and sharp and if he ever learns humility he will be the master

...after us old guys are gone of course.

i really envy daniel, his talent, youth, and stlye.

even though you never say it daniel, i'm gonna say it to you, "thanks" for your devotion to our art,

you really make us all look good out there.

you make what we do out there look good.

TOM FRANK

2007-11-27T19:38:00.001-08:00

student of cellini, master in his own right.

TOM FRANK is the one of the least talked about, but is the most important american street magician.

everyone of cellini's students took one of cellini's traits and tom frank took cellini's most powerful trait.

when my wife left me and i felt like killing myself i was asking everyone what i should do and no one could gimme the right answer till i asked cellini and he told me. and all the circumstances surrounding his life came together and fixed my problems it was spooky... a real mystery.

i went on a journey for a couple of years and at the end was when i met tom frank and he gave me the final answers to my remaining questions.

asking them even tho i didn't know them seemed natural and i just knew they had the answer, i had faith in their authority as the real deal.

tom frank understands who we are as street magicians. he understands our true nature. out of all the guys i've met he gets it, he really gets it.

his student BLACK MAGIC JAMES told me he's followed him for years for the grounding and the knowledge.

BLACK MAGIC JAMES would say about tom frank,"you gotta follow the master"

his student is an incredible magician but of course he would be with tom teaching him.

doug conn ran with him back in the day but lost track of him for years.about a year or 2 ago he fell into a big low he found tom's blog and it saved him.

http://tomfrank.blogspot.com/

this blog is incredible for finding yourself as a magi and how we should be living our lives.

my favorite cups and balls routine by anyone is by tom frank you can see footage of it here;

http://buskercentral.com/video.php#magic

here's his site;

http://www.industrialstrengthmagic.com/

as far as magic goes there is NO ONE doing magic at the level he's doin it.

important because he's pure artist but makes good money.

he's gotta be the best example to us.

the fact is the guy's all pro and has been for years and i could only hope to achieve that kinda greatness one day.

here's a great auto-bio clip of him;

ERIC EVANS

2007-11-27T19:36:00.000-08:00

Student of Cellini and master in his own rite. he wrote the secret art of magic, has dvds on coin manipulation, a product line of busking equipment he hand makes of the finest, most practical and durable on the market.

he painstakingly finds the hardest and best woods to make his wands they are incredible so's all his other stuff.

he busks and lectures around the world.

if there is one man out there i could say i respected the most as a street magician it would be eric evans.

the fact is he is the closest thing to the next cellini we got right now. and don't get me wrong, there is a lot of other guys who are Cellinesque out there and i thank god for them. further there is a lot more guys out there who are better then eric with certain things in their own ways, but when i read the definition cellini gave of a street magician, only a few magi come to mind and when i think of cellini,

eric is all that is left.

he's gotta spiritual side thats genuine and wise but not hokey or made up.

when people are watching him they know they're watching a real magician.

he's loyal to his teachers, students, friends, and the art, to a point that some might say is fanantical, but i wouldn't because in order for me to respect someone thats the qualities i look for.

i chose to be instructed by him [ yeh, i begged him] and it was the wisest decision i ever made. i have been working with him for the past few years and learning from him and it has been the most productive in my life as a entertainer.

the thing about Eric is he's sort of a recluse around other magicians, i think he likes other performers better then magicians some times because i've noticed he's more apt to socialize with a busking piano player or other busker more then a magician if he can help it.

he does lectures, so if you know your local magic society guys you should tell them to book him so you can have the luxury of learning from him.

i not trying to "sell" his lecture, i really think he improves street performers and this might be the only way you "up and comming" guys might have a chance to meet him.

i got to meet him through doug conn and i made it my business to try and get around him to learn from him.

years ago when Cellini told the american magicians that he had a school in europe Eric was one of the wise ones who did what ever it took to get to switzerland to learn from the master.....and as we can all see it was a wise decision.

i would suggest y'all try and do the same.

try and catch one of his lectures.

ELLIOT GORTON - PARANORMALIST, STREET MAGI.

2007-11-27T19:33:00.000-08:00

this is a picture of elliot

so there was the time that elliot scared a cop so bad he started crying...bad.

back when i was a mentalist me and elliot were always lookin for spirtualist work.

well one holloween we got a good one it was a large house that had been sectioned of for different theme rooms and we had the joint rigged to the hilt.

people would come to our room at their leisure and we would spook em with mind reading spirit manifestations etc.

now understand elliot looks like an average proffessional in a suit which makes him all the more clinically scary looking....he looks real not like a guy in a cape.

well at the end of the nite elliot had em on the ouija board but i asked if he could do something else cuz i don't like those boards.

so heres what he did, best i can remember it was @12 years ago i think any way,

he asks the owner lady if she's got any eggs in the house and for her to fetch em and a large glass bowl.

he does a short scan of the people reading them with his eyes to find the proper victim then he picks this one guy who looked average to me.

he asks the guy to pick an egg and that they were gonna try an experiment.

so the guy does and elliot takes the egg and starts rubbing it all over the guy and as he does this he's saying to the guy "some thing has happened i know! and we're gonna rub this egg all over you and we're are gonna try and take these bad things out of you we're gone change these things"

"this has effected some one close to you someone here to today and we're gonna take out the bad"

when he was done rubbin the egg he cracked it and open in the bowl and there was blood chunks of meat and hair....lots of hair.

the guy and the girl next to him started wailing like like some thing was hurtin them and the guy burst into tears you could barely make out the story he was tellin.

but the jist of it was that he was a cop and he would ordinarly get emotional but he had cheated on the girl next to him and their relationship was really on the rocks because of it and they needed something to make it better and then they came to party and then this happened.

of course the couple left happy that nite but i still feel dirty inside even as i write this.

elliot is another student of dougs.

a brilliant man well read and versed on human nature.

he's loyal to his and has chops few could stand up to especially with a deck of cards.

elliot is one of my closest friends and one of those icredible human beings you would usually only get to read about.....but it's his mind that should have you looking him and his work up.

good sidewalk man.

here's his myspace.

http://www.myspace.com/elliotgorton

DOUG CONN

2007-11-27T19:30:00.000-08:00

@17 yrs ago i met doug i was working at magic masters and after work a bunch of us magicians were meeting up and we ended up at his house. i didn't know him and when i first saw him i thought he was quiet and unsure of himself even clumsy.we were all sitting in his living room and he was in another room and i really thought that i was amazing at that time.

he came in to our room and asked if some one could help him with a trick everyone urged me and my ego got the best of me.

i went into the kitchen with him to "help" and he began....he was showing me a trick w/ a coin and a scarf and asking advice after the end of 5 mins. i realized i didn't have a clue what he was doing 2 mins. later i realized he knew this too and was doing these amazing things to me on purpose,i confronted him but he claimed innocence to the end as we walked back into the living room together the other magi were waiting and laughed at my confused face.....i said "he's good huh" and they responded "yeh thats doug conn"

i knew then they had all taken that little walk with him.

it was at that moment i knew i wanted him to teach me magic because i obviously didn't know it yet.

doug is not only the most analitical,diabolical,and devious magician i have ever met he's also the most giving and kind hearted genius.

he is my teacher.

HERE IS HIS SITE;

http://www.dougconn.com/

here's some better footage;

here's about ten minutes after that trick.

"TOOT" RIKI PALMER

2007-11-27T19:26:00.000-08:00

this is a picture of him in atlantic city.

toot is talked about in cellini's dreamer's highway.

i met him when i heard sonny holliday and gazzo were workin atlantic city and they were on my must meet list.

when i got there i saw an older fellah in all black w/ a fedora walking on the boards pulling a rig.

i asked him if he was a magician he said yeh and we got to talkin he said he was a cellini student..so i asked him if he knew sonny and i told him about how sonny was my idol.

toot laughed and said yeh i'll take you right to him.

anyway thats a different story.

i met him as riki. he took me under his wing and he told me stories about the old days.

he had a brilliant show, sheridan-esque. mixed a animal balloon show with a magic act.

used a warbler[whistling device you keep in your mouth] did the whole show wistling never spoke but you'd swear you heard him talk through the whole show.

a good friend and a genius.

a great teacher.

another thing about toot was for years he just worked with a small bag over his shoulder.

he could stop and work anywhere with that warbler any country.

hes 60 yrs old and i couldn't keep up with him he taght me to be young and live every day.

cellini was so impressed with him he wrote about him in his dreamers highway i was lucky to meet him.

heres his web site,

http://magicofriki.com/

THE CELLINI STORY

2007-11-27T19:24:00.001-08:00

when i was learning to street perform in new orleans.

i remember standing on my pitch for hours with nobody stopping to watch and wondering, if that was normal, if the other guys went through this {by the way if your on a bad pitch yes its normal but stick to it}

i was having trouble getting people to stop {new orleans is tough} so i asked people doug conn, elliot gordon,kozmo, johnny balloons,jugglers, crack head statues, and any body who had seen cellini work, how it was that he stopped people and everybody said the same he taps the wand.

now one of my mentors dante i knew was a sceptic of just about everything so asked him cuz i thought this was a case of heroe worship.....so i asked dante he said," oh, right he taps his wand like this." tap tap. " and they just stop and crowd around."

i got mad i said "no he don't, not here he don't, not in new orleans, i been workin here months and they don't do that."

so dante said, "what ever, you asked a question!"

couple of months later cellini came and watched my show it took about 10-20 mins to build a crowd.

when i was done with my show,he said,"that was the most original show i've seen....but you don't look at the people! you have to look at the people!" so when he was done bitching me out i said,"would you do somthin now?"

he wasn't in costume he looked like an average person and told me,"well i wasn't really prepared"

so i urged him, i almost insisted, thinkin i had em.

so he says, "alright but i'll need to borrow a stick"

at that moment i knew i didn't have em.

he was kinda up in age and years of the street had takin its toll so he slowly bent to the ground tapped the stick twice slowly rose and there was 40 people waiting for him.

i was dumb founded.

he did some stuff and they looked at him like he was a real magician.

you see thats the thing about him the people in there heads say,"wait honey we have to see this guy he's a real magician, we'll never get a chance to see a real one in our whole life we gotta see this" "don't worry its not that cheese guy we saw at the bar the other day."

and then cellini delivers.

PAUL NATHAN

2007-11-27T19:20:00.001-08:00

i first met paul in covent garden i didn't like em.

he had 2 strikes against him he was american [i was sick of my country at the time] and he was from california,frisco....yankee.

when the english guys aked me if he was alright i was suspicious.

i became competitive with him. he'd do a show, i'd do a better one.

on and on this went until he did "the show" i was furious it was so good i couldn't stop laughing i didn't want to it was just that good the magic was impeccable and all the other performers were there laughing and amazed and when it was over i knew i had nothin better then that left up my sleeves.

so i walked up to him and told him i surrender and he told me it wasn't a compatition, i told him it wasn't any more.

i found out later he was hangin around cellini and tom frank back in the day they were room mates.

paul gave me my first email address, expensive hotel rooms when his house was too full and many more things i'm ashamed to tell i accepted.

he booked me in his cabaret and his friend's cabarets he's done so much for me i could never repay him. he treated me like royaty,treatment i never deseved but i'm really grateful.

he's educated,talented,successful and respected.

i'm not suckin up to him because i know he probably isn't reading this cuz he usually doesn't get involved in magic affairs or hang with magicians except his close friends.

the reason i'm writing this is i think other guys should know that there is such a thing as a real magician.

he reminds me of orson wells.

look for him or his friend frank olivier on the internet.

for all you close up card guys he even does that good he's gotta show called "the devil in the deck" he does it in his cabaret with a monitor above him... i think the show is on one off his many sites so you can see for yourself.

he works the street, corprate, and cabaret, and anybody that can afford him he's pricey but you can be pricey when you deliver the way he does.

all his friends call him unkle paul cause he takes care of us and he's like family to alot of us disfunctionals.

HERE IS HIS SITE;

http://www.firemagic.com/

here's promo for his famous "DEVIL IN THE DECK" cabaret show.