Genii Magazine, The Conjurors' Magazine

10/20/2024

Join Genii for as little as $35 for one year and get more magic than you can imagine, plus the opportunity to visit The Magic Castle, at www.geniimagazine.com.
I live on the east coast, somewhat isolated from the world of magic, and so there are lots of magicians I never get to see work. Benjamin Barnes of Chicago is one of them. When Carisa Hendrix first approached me with the idea of doing a cover story on him, I took the opportunity to ask a bunch of people their opinion of Ben. All were effusive. Ben is the person who books the Chicago Magic Lounge, an extremely successful venue in Chicago that I’ve always enjoyed visiting. He’s also a regular performer there. The videos I’ve linked to in the article will give you an idea of his style, which I like a lot. Classy but not too subdued; impressive without a lot of forced excitement. And he fooled Penn & Teller.
The Tenyo Company of Japan is about to release its new line of tricks for 2025. I offer a review of the new tricks, with videos of them, and then Yuki Kadoya takes you to the annual Tenyo Festival which took place at the end of September in Tokyo with a full report. As my time in charge of Genii draws to a close, this may be the last of these annual reviews you see here. I hope you’ve enjoyed them.
David Britland’s “Cardopolis” has run in Genii for many years and this month’s column will be the last. He’s going to devote his attention to a paid version of his Cardopolis website at https://cardopolis.substack.com. The free version will still appear periodically at https://cardopolis.blogspot.com. For his final column, David divulges a gussied-up presentation for the “21-Card Trick” perfectly matched with a stealthy method.
We hear the expression that you have to “make a trick your own” when you perform it. Most magicians don’t know exactly what that means, but in this month’s “Expert at the Kids Table” David Kaye will explain it. * John Gaughan’s “Chamber of Secrets,” which Dustin Stinett will continue in these pages going forward, treats a fairly silly trick of Floyd Thayer’s, but one which many collectors nevertheless hunt for. * Jamy Ian Swiss brings you Noah Levine’s handling of the justifiably famous “Stencel’s Aces” in this month’s “Magicana.” Noah, who will shortly become the Magic Editor here at Genii, has most improbably improved Bob Stencel’s original handling. * “Panmagium” brings, of all things, a fine card routine from Jonathan Pendragon. * In “Thoughts …” Rafael Benatar continues his exploration of the Double Lift. * Robert Mansilla shares a nice routine using a red/blue double-backed card in “Artifices.” * We closing in on the last few installments of Jon Racherbaumer’s column “Exhumations,” and this month we get a trick by Ed Marlo and Don May. * Shawn McMaster brings us yet another month of Magic Castle Madness in “Knights at The Magic Castle.” * “The Eye” gazes over many realms from which Vanessa Armstrong plucks the most interesting stories. * “Light from the Lamp” has been where Genii’s reviews have been parked since October 1936. This month David Britland reviews books, Mark Phillips reviews tricks, and Joe M. Turner reviews videos. Joe has been with us for many decades, always doing great and thoughtful work for our readers. This will be his final column. Thanks, Joe!

10/04/2024

Friends, this looks like an incredible convention! I will be going.

This groundbreaking three-day event is for anyone and everyone who’s eager to be part of the exciting future of women in magic.

09/23/2024

Join us! A $35 subscription to Genii brings you a visit to The Magic Castle and a full year of new issues, plus access to our digital archive of every issue of Genii and MAGIC magazines ever published. www.geniimagazine.com
On our cover this month is the anonymous character known as The Magician, who performs at a venue in Las Vegas known as The Magician’s Study. He wears a rabbit mask in all of his publicity shots and keeps it on only for the first few minutes of his show. His name is never spoken and few know his true identity. His success speaks for itself: consistently sold-out shows in a small premier parlor-style venue, seating 60, located in a fancy boutique hotel within a larger hotel on the Las Vegas strip. His performing style is unique in today’s world of magic.
The beginning of August saw the yearly convention MAGIC Live take place at the Orleans Hotel in Las Vegas. For those of you who could not attend, our coverage of the event is provided in this issue by Dustin Stinett and Bill Mullins.
In “Magicana,” Jamy Ian Swiss explains an excellent handling of Al Baker’s classic “Haunted Deck” by Jeffrey Kellogg. There have been many versions of the “Haunted Deck,” but not so many in which any card is named rather than physically chosen. * From David Regal this month an intriguing illusory card control in “Material Concessions.” * John Bannon takes an off-beat approach to using Bill Simon’s Prophesy Move in “Dealing With It” (includes two videos). * Jonathan Friedman could have marketed “MVP,” this month’s installment of “WWPD,” as a download—but he didn’t! It’s yours, at no charge, in this month’s issue (includes video). * In Jim Steinmeyer’s “Conjuring” this month you’ll learn an adorable trick called “Hershey Comes Home.” * Krystyn Lambert discusses a college course she teaches on magic in “Stage as Studio.” * And of course Vanessa Armstrong brings us interesting news in “The Eye”; Shawn McMaster tells of his recent visits to our club in “Knights at The Magic Castle”; and books, tricks, and videos are reviewed by Tom Frame, Tom Dobrowolski, and Bill Wells.

Genii, The Conjurors' Magazine, is the best selling magazine for magicians in the world. We publish

09/18/2024

Something great!
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The Jack of Hearts Session. A very special online event to help a family in need.

08/20/2024

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Boomsky, Boomsky, Boomsky! How many Boomskys were there? Have you even heard of Boomsky before? The poster you see on our cover is only one of the many Boomskys. While most were assistants to Alexander, Adelaide, and later Leon Herrmann, other Black performers also took the name because Boomsky gained great fame during the era of Reconstruction and early 20th century. Our cover story this month consists of a pair of excerpts from Margaret Steele’s new book The Great Boomsky, a terrific read that traces many of those who took the name, but our focus here is on the first—M.H. Everett, known as “Hutchin.” He ran straight from a field picking cotton with his family to Alexander Herrmann’s show in Americus, Georgia in 1891 and never looked back. His was a life of amazing tales.
Counting down our last five months of the current iteration of Genii with this line-up of great columnists, this month we present: Jon Racherbaumer “Three’s the Charm,” a variation on a trick by Carl Jones that appears in Greater Magic (which I happened to read the other day). * A stunning French Physic magic set from the late 1800s from John Gaughan’s collection is on display in this month’s “Chamber of Secrets.” * David Kaye keeps a diary of his experiences doing children’s shows, and this month he shares a bit of it with you in “Expert at the Kids’ Table.” * Rafael Benatar shares his “Thoughts” on getting ready for the Double Lift, with four video clips. * Part 2 of the story of The Pendragons appears this month in “Panmagium.” * In “Cardopolis,” David Britland delves into a clever use of a double-backed card in a trick with a funny name. * Roberto Mansillia, like so many Spaniards, has a deep and abiding love for the Color-Changing Knives, and he shares some of his ideas in “Artifices” (with video). * Jamy Ian Swiss helps Matt Holtzclaw open his “Umbrella,” which is a full performance piece with everyday objects, in “Magicana” (also with video). * Vanessa Armstrong, one of your new editors starting in February, scans the globe for news in “The Eye.” * Shawn McMaster gives you the latest news from our home in Los Angeles in “Knights at The Magic Castle,” which focuses on the initial Artist in Residence program with Juan Tamariz. * And in the final pages of this issue you’ll find “Light from the Lamp” with reviews of videos, tricks, and books by Jonathan Levit, David Regal, and Francis Menotti.

Genii, The Conjurors' Magazine, is the best selling magazine for magicians in the world. We publish

08/10/2024

New David Blaine series coming to NatGeo in 2025, and it looks insane!

David Blaine: Do Not Attempt is a cinematic journey following magician David Blaine as he chases little-known magic within our world. David is searching for ...

07/20/2024

Join Genii today for as little as $35 and you’ll be able to make a reservation to visit the world famous Magic Castle in Hollywood, get 12 new issues over the course of a year, and have access to all back issues of Genii and MAGIC magazines at www.geniimagazine.com.
And … 25 years has passed in a blink: August 1998 is when I called Irene Larsen and said I’d heard that Genii was for sale. After a quarter of a century, I am retiring as editor with the January 2025 issue, along with my wife Elizabeth Kaufman, our most talented art director, and my associate editor Dustin Stinett, truly my right-hand man for many years. Creating a new issue every 30 days has been both exhausting and rewarding, but we are most definitely not going to miss that deadline.
Our owner since 2016, Randy Pitchford, has big plans for Genii and its brand, but I’m not the person to share that news. What I can tell you is that the remarkably talented Julie Eng has completed her run as chief of Canada’s Magicana and is now in charge of all things Genii related, of which there will be many—the magazine will be just one part.
For my job, we needed someone who has been in magic their whole life, knows pretty much everything and everybody in the field, can write, edit, meet deadlines, and so on. There are not a lot of people who have the necessary experience and expertise. I thought of one name, and one name only: Jim Steinmeyer. We are the same age and, like me, he always has a million and a half things on his plate. And yet, after much discussion with both myself and Julie, he embraced the offer and will be your executive editor for 2025 as the new team takes shape. What a coup for you, my readers! We have found someone I am genuinely thrilled to take my place and who can certainly do the job as well or better job than me.
Jim will be backed up by a team of excellent associate editors and writers. Some will be new to you, others you already know. Their names will be revealed in the coming months. Some of Genii’s columnists will remain, others will depart. I am delighted to be working with Julie, Jim, and the new team on the next iteration of Genii. Wonderful things will happen.
On our cover this month, a magician I’ve greatly admired for many years, Canada’s Shawn Farqhuar. He’s been a working pro his entire life, and became FISM Grand Champion in Close-Up Magic in 2009. He did great sets at FISM in Quebec in 2022 and is really at the peak of his powers as a performer. Watch his Topsy Turvy Bottle routine closely next time you have the chance—there’s no gimmick. Dustin Stinett takes Shawn down memory lane.
Once each spring since the pandemic the Tenyo Company of Japan has been holding an annual fan meeting in Tokyo. Each year, the most dedicated Tenyo fans attend and are treated to lectures and interviews, plus a special gift. This year that gift (the Japanese call it “omiyage”—oh-me-ya-gay) is an ingenious new handling of a flexagon for the revelation of several chosen cards. Called “Anakarakuri,” we have a video demonstration of it in this issue embedded in Yuki Kadoya’s report on the event.
Get thee hence to New World Stages in New York City by September 1st to see Swedish magicians Peter Brynolf and Jonas Ljung in their 90-minute show Stalker if you can. Carl Mercurio did, and it was so good that he decided to write about it for Genii. Tickets here: https://stalkershow.com/tickets/.
And I’m sorry to report the death of my old friend Andy Galloway, the sole student of the Scottish genius of magic John Ramsay. The material in his Ramsay books really came alive when he did it (fortunately both of Andy’s videos on Ramsay are available via streaming from International Magic: https://www.internationalmagic.com/l/general/the-magic-of-john-ramsay-vol-1-by-andrew-galloway). Dominic Twose memorializes him.
Our columnists this month run the gamut: John Bannon, Jonathan Friedman, Krystyn Lambert, David Regal, Jon Racherbaumer, Jamy Ian Swiss, and of course the latest doings at The Magic Castle, and reviews of the latest books, tricks, and videos.

06/24/2024

Join Genii for only $35: receive one visit to The Magic Castle, a new issue each month, and access to over 800 issues of Genii and MAGIC online in our archive. www.geniimagazine.com.
On our cover this month we are pleased to bring you the first feature-length article on Hide (pronounced hee-day) Yamamoto, one of the world’s best magicians. In his little bar Half Moon in Tokyo he has created a place of mystery and deep humanity. And that’s what our story and interview are really about—the humanity in his performances is something unique you won’t see anywhere else.
We follow that with full coverage of the Academy of Magical Arts annual Awards Show by Simone Marron. And …
Jamy Ian Swiss brings us a mindreading piece from David Gerard in “Magicana.”
In “Exhumations” Jon Racherbaumer explains a clever trick using a little-known principle: pointer cards.
In “Thoughts,” Rafael Benatar discusses saccadic eye movement in relation to magic. Watch a game of ping pong or tennis and you’ll get the idea.
In “Artifices” Roberto Mansilla explains the important differences between performing card magic for close-up or parlor venues.
David Britland devotes “Cardopolis” to is simplification of a little-known trick by U.F. Grant.
David Kaye discovers the birthday peeing during his show in one of several humorous anecdotes in this month’s “Expert at the Kids’ Table.”
In “Panmagium” Jonathan Pendragon reflects on the origins of The Pendragons athletic style of illusion performance.
Vanessa Armstrong sings out the news in “The Eye.”
Shawn McMaster brings you the latest happenings at our club in Los Angeles in “Knights at The Magic Castle.”
Reviews of books, videos, and tricks come our way from David Britland, Joe M. Turner, and Mark Phillips.

WHO WRITES FOR GENII? More Stars Than There are in the Heavens. Tom Stone Jim Steinmeyer David Kaye Max Maven Dani DaOrtiz David Britland Jon Racherbaumer Jeff Prace Jonathan Pendragon Kainoa Harbottle Helder Guimarães John Gaughan John Lovick Dustin Stinett Danny Orleans John Guastaferro 80 YEARS ...

05/20/2024

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The performance of coin magic is generally not an emotionally moving experience but, when Luis Olmedo appeared at FISM 2022 in Quebec, you could sense a feeling move through the large room. His quiet manner, the music, and of course the leaves … specifically autumn leaves. He is a magician of uncommon discipline and ability, no matter the props, but in this case his act consisted of a Coin Assembly done on a diagonal instead of a square. The leaves changed to cards, magic gently ensued as the coins mysterously relocated as if pushed by a ghostly hand, and the cards returned to leaves, then carried away by the wind. Considering the enormous stage and room in which this was performed, Luis managed to create a remarkable feeling of intimacy. He deservedly tied for first place in Close-Up Magic. When not performing magic he’s an athlete—no awkward school day stories for this kid. And—good for him—his act did not depend on anything that can’t be done in close-up circumstances for real spectators sitting at the table with him. His story is told in part narrative, part interview, by Roberto Mansilla.

And we have our usual sterling line-up of columnists this month, including John Bannon, who, in “Dealing With It” explains “HofScotch,” which most cleverly fixes “The Hofzinser Ace Problem.” Krystyn Lambert muses on pursuing your passion in “Stage as Studio.” Jim Steinmeyer has created the ultimate routine based around the game of Clue in “Conjuring.” Jamy Ian Swiss presents another remarkable routine in “Magicana,” and this month it’s Adam Elbaum’s “Visible Deck.” In “WWPD” Jonathan Friedman exhibits strange behavior with those leftover center bits—the detritus from a Linking Card routine. David Regal renews his license to perform magic in this month’s “Material Concessions.” Jon Racherbaumer reclines while reading a mind in “Exhumations.” If its in the news it’s in “The Eye,” courtesy of Vanessa Armstrong, and if it’s happening at The Magic Castle you can read all about it through the eyes of Shawn McMaster in “Knights at The Magic Castle.” Tom Frame, Mike Dobrowolski, and Bill Wellls review books, tricks, and videos in “Light from the Lamp” to complete the issue and propel you properly into your summer reading.

Genii, The Conjurors' Magazine, is the best selling magazine for magicians in the world. We publish

09/20/2023

Visit The Magic Castle! Get 12 issues of Genii a year! Get Digital access to tens of thousands of pages of back issues of Genii and Magic magazines. All for as low as $35 at www.geniimagazine.com. Join us today.
In 1912 the Martinka brothers built a Spirit Cabinet for illusionist Charles Carter. It is here that Mike Caveney’s cover story this month begins. In it you will learn the complete workings of Carter’s Spirit Cabinet in sufficient detail that, armed with the hundreds of pounds of apparatus, several assistants, and a stooge, you could perform it yourself.
We follow up with what is a rarity in these pages these days: a convention report. While many people think that this type of coverage in a printed magazine is no longer relevant because people discuss it online while it’s happening, in truth there’s a difference. First, that online coverage will likely cease to exist in coming years (websites vanish all the time), and Genii has always been the magazine of record in the magic world. Second, people’s brief online comments are not comparable to the full coverage we provide, from opening to closing with coverage of every act and lecture. With that said, I hope you enjoy the full report on Magic Live!, which took place at the beginning of August, brought to you by Dustin Stinett and Krystyn Lambert.
Jonathan Friedman’s column “WWPD” contains a particularly intriguing trick this month that relies on a small mirror and some scraps of paper. The included video in our digital edition (or accessible via the QR code printed on the page) enables you to vividly picture the effect. * Jim Steinmeyer uses the principle most well-known from “Powers of Darkness” to tap into a spectator’s thoughts in “Conjuring.” “Simpleton’s Affinity” is Jon Racherbaumer’s name for a nearly sleight-free trick of Don May’s in this month’s “Exhumations.” * There’s a very tricky card box at work in David Regal’s “Dark Perception” in his column “Material Concessions.” * “Stage as Studio” finds Krystyn Lambert thinking about patter with Armando Lucero. * Detectives are at work, trying to save 52 pasteboards from underworld terror in John Bannon’s effect “Gang Related.” It’s a sandwich trick—you’ll just have to deal with it. * No card tricks in “Magicana” this month, wherein Robert Ramirez presents two clever effects from Mark Gibson. There’s video for both! * And of course we have our monthly columns from Shawn McMaster, “Knights at The Magic Castle,” and Vanessa Armstrong, “The Eye.” Tie it all up in a bow with reviews of books, videos, and tricks by Francis Menotti, Bill Wells, and Tom Dobrowolski.

Genii, The Conjurors' Magazine, is the best selling magazine for magicians in the world. We publish

07/20/2023

Want to visit the famous Magic Castle in Hollywood? Subscribers to Genii can score a reservation at this exclusive private club each year as one of their perks. Subscribe to Genii magazine today for as little as $35 and get more magic than you can dream of … at www.geniimagazine.com
Because things in magazines tend to vanish from common consciousness after a year or two, most people don’t remember that a substantial amount of Steranko’s unique card work had been published in Genii. This month our cover story is a mid-century retro replay: Steranko’s “Stacked Deck,” a 20-page potpourri combining interview, essay, and seven card routines never published elsewhere other than their original appearance in Genii’s November 1962 issue.
We do a complete 180 in our next story, which focuses on The Don Silvio Museum of Magic in the Medieval city of Cherasco, Italy. Created by Father Silvio Mantelli, the priest who led the campaign to make Don Bosco the patron saint of magicians, it is filled with magic ephemera and books, and functions as a place for the young to learn magic.
Our third story reports on the second Tenyo Magic Fan Meeting which took place in Yokohama in May. Organized by the Tenyo Company, Tenyo fans will be eager to hear about the latest Tenyo news and learn about the special tricks given to attendees and unique souvenirs sold. One of the old lions of Tenyo’s Creative Division, Shigeru Sugawara, gave a lecture and demonstrated one of his ingenious routines, which I’m delighted to present to you at the end of the article.
In this month’s “The Eye,” Vanessa Armstrong brings you news of Jason Sudeikis’s interest in magic; I met him backstage at David Copperfield’s show one evening and I know he enjoys reading magic books. * Shawn McMaster talks up the AMA Awards Show and Milt Larsen’s passing in “Knights at The Magic Castle.”
There’s a soldier who served in Vietnam involved in this month’s bit of digging in Jon Racherbaumer’s “Exhumations.” How far can you toss a Tossed-Out Deck? In Jim Steinmeyer’s “The Tossed-Aside Deck” the answer is far enough that the deck is left with an audience member; in “Conjuring.” David Regal sends a packet of Aces back in blankety-blank time in “Material Concessions.” In “Stage as Studio” Krystyn Lambert digs into the “zone”—the moments during performance when all things good converge to produce excellence. Jonathan Friedman has remodeled the sleight into “Pop Gun Pasteboards” in this month’s “WWPD.” The so-called Hofzinser Ace Problem has intrigued card workers for decades: John Bannon, this month in “Dealing With It,” lets loose with his version called “Blitzinger.” Robert Ramirez regales you with three tricks in this month’s “Magicana,” including a devious trick using a borrow iPhone. Just before this issue folds closed, “Light from the Lamp” squeaks in, bring you reviews of the latest books (including Max Maven’s eagerly-awaited Parallax), videos, and tricks from Nathan Coe Marsh, Suzanne, and Ryan Plunkett.

WHO WRITES FOR GENII? More Stars Than There are in the Heavens. Tom Stone Jim Steinmeyer David Kaye Max Maven Dani DaOrtiz David Britland Jon Racherbaumer Jeff Prace Jonathan Pendragon Kainoa Harbottle Helder Guimarães John Gaughan John Lovick Dustin Stinett Danny Orleans John Guastaferro 80 YEARS ...