Episodes 41-80 of my podcast Magic From Wherever I'm At.
These episodes contain the following nuggets:
- This insidious force will bully, seduce, falsify, and distract you into remaining a trickster. It already has 99% of magicians in a death grip... will you ever escape? (Episode 41).
- Why most magicians, regardless of what they claim, are still, in reality, amateur magicians... and what to do about it today (Episode 42).
- How to finally discover your will, self-respect, and power as a magician (Episode 43).
- My tribute to Ricky Jay... a massive influence on my approach to magic (Episode 44).
- The greatest technique in all of magic (and its sisters and brothers)...magicians never take real advantage of this deep subterfuge (Episode 45).
- The five levels of presentation and why magicians can never seem to grasp this one idea (Episode 46)
- What everyone still gets wrong about Dai Vernon... and how even a mentor of mine reversed his position after listening to this podcast (Episode 47)
- The one thing I've long noticed about Vernon performing the Cups 'n Balls (which almost no magician understands) and can improve your performance by at least 62% (Episode 48).
- How I conspired with a Hollywood actress to take a picture of a tourist couple... an idea I got from magician and actor Harry Anderson (Episode 49).
- The "pull out a shovel and start digging" aspect to performing magic that almost everyone avoids... instantly killing their magic dead (Episode 50).
- The absolute worst, most sickening, despicable, and idiotic magic DVDs I have ever had the displeasure of watching (Episode 51).
- The reality of the relationship between the public and magic... fool yourself no longer (Episode 52).
- The relentless hammer force which beat into me what really matters early in your performance career... and why most magicians will never get it (Episode 53).
- The one thing you need to discover first when building a performing persona or character... avoid this or look like a buffoon forever (Episode 54).
- The way a performer won the audience over (and gained required sympathy) despite a cringey performance where he badly exposed how the tricks worked... combine this idea with even a decent show and you're well on your way (Episode 55).
- Avoid this Magic-killing kind of patter at all costs (Episode 56).
- A little-known magic book (almost no one has read) that beats the pants off all the popular ones everyone recommends (Episode 57).
- The one place you should never learn magic from...ever. You can probably guess what it is...but do you fully understand why it's such a terrible place to learn? Get the full explanation now (Episode 57)
- Are you stuck inside the "Magic Matrix?" This is how you get out today (Episode 58).
- The difference between most professions and magicians. How carpentry can correct your terrible magic habits (Episode 59).
- Are you missing all these onion-layers of misdirection? Are you misdirecting yourself while the audience learns all your secrets? Fix it before your next show. (Episode 60).
- Crucial advice Michael Weber received from Pixar about how to think about your personal show (Episode 61).
- What Michael Weber said when I asked about performers appropriating other's material and mimicking other's onstage personas (Episode 62).
- What "magic companies" and creators should be doing to make sure they are in the same situation concerning this as performers (Episode 63)
- What you can learn about putting together your magic show by watching other performers and art forms... almost no magicians ever even think about this (episode 64)
- The "Anti-trained-seal" approach to performing outside your shows. The Do's and Don'ts of living like a true Magician (Episode 65)
- The wrong place most street performers place their focus when starting out and what should be your focus instead (Episode 66)
- The masturbatory covetousness of tricks and methods... and what you should worry about far more if you ever want to be a Magician (Episode 67)
- Why a marketing guru's book taught me more about Magic than any "magic book" (Episode 68)
- The modern master who so badly fooled an entire panel of competition judges that they threw him out... and what he can teach you about your performances (Episode 69)
- How a true master magician fooled me... not with tricks and methods... but with aspects far more powerful (Episode 70)
- Most "magicians" focus on fooling and deception as the end goal of their performance... and what true Magicians focus on instead (Episode 71)
- Why magicians stagnate so early... and how to avoid these uber-common trickster pitfalls (Episode 72)
- One aspect I have never heard anybody ever talk about in regard to magician performers... that subtly destroys their performances right from the start (Episode 73)
- The "rain-on-a-tin-awning episode." Why most magicians create adversarial audiences instead of a unified team... the insidious effect of "Palpatine Syndrome" (Episode 74)
- The bullshittery of "self-esteem generation" thinking and its destructive effect on the magic community (Episode 75)
- Why beginners should never start with sleight-of-hand and why (Episode 76)
- How one of the greatest films ever made (and a personal favorite) can radically transform "magic" (tricksterism) into Magic (Episode 77)
- Magic and Mentalism? Are they the same? What are their differences and why? (Episode 78)
- One of my all-time favorite (and best) magicians... what you too can learn from his approach to performance (Episode 79)
- How much work do you put into your performance? You might wanna rethink how you go about things when you listen to this (Episode 80)
audio 17 hours plus