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Secretary Report – March 2023

Ring NO. 46, OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – Seymour Davis Ring

Meets 7:00 pm, 1st Monday of the month at the New Beginning Fellowship Church, 15601 S. Pennsylvania in OKC

LEE WOODSIDE, Secretary. Email: WoodsideLee@hotmail.com.

www.okcmagic.club

Our themes for March were Hi-Tech Magic and Steampunk Magic. Our featured performer covered both of these admirably. Professor Ludicrous (AKA Rick Martin) of the Steampunk Skunkworks Laboratories demonstrated an artifact that had been discovered in the lab’s archives. The switchboard had four switches and four light bulb sockets. Each socket contained a bulb of a different color. Each switch had a cover with a color associated with one of the bulbs. No matter how the bulbs or switch covers were moved around, the corresponding bulb lit up when a switch was thrown.

Jim Green demonstrated his remote-controlled “Tipper the Monkey.” The monkey would bang his cymbals together in response to questions or math problems. He would also “chatter.”

Michael King discussed Hickman’s Famous Psychedelic Card Engine. This was a website that would appear to read peoples’ minds. It would name the cards they were thinking of. Michael then very generously offered each of us the magic DVDs from a project he had worked on a few years ago.

Cassidy Smith talked about the “iDeck” by Noel Qualter. He said that it gave the appearance of a high-tech gadget.

Lee Woodside announced that the second-greatest card mechanic in the Northern hemisphere was in our midst. (Richard Turner the being the greatest, of course.) He invited “Deadwood” Derrick Beeson to join him at the table and demonstrate his ability to deal bottoms, seconds, and even from the center of the deck. When he asked Derrick to turn over the top card of each stack on the table after the dealing, Derrick turned over the four aces. Lee then brought out two paper clips and told the story of how they fell in love, The paper clips ended up linked, and when he dropped them into Derrick’s hand, there were “baby” paper clips. Lee said this was his “21st Century Paper Clips,” and was inspired by a routine in Ibidem.

Cassidy Smith showed us his new Brett Sherwood wand and passed it around so we could marvel at the quality. He then passed out sponge balls and showed us several moves that could be performed with this underappreciated classic of magic.

David Teeman showed a wooden bar with three scarves hanging from it. Two of the scarves were black and one was yellow. After much comedy byplay, he caused the outside yellow scarf to change places with the black scarf in the middle.

Brian Tabor demonstrated his lie detector, which had a green light for “truth” and a red light for “lie.” After having Derrick Beeson select a card and look at it, Brian asked Derrick several questions and each time the lie detector correctly deemed the answer true or false.

Mark Cristiano showed a list of 100 Taylor Swift songs on his phone. He asked that a number from 1-100 be chosen and 55 was named. The song at that number turned out to be “You Belong to Me.” When a page of “hieroglyphics” was folded at the creases, the name of the chosen song appeared.

Cassidy Smith placed the names of all the performers into a hat. Mark Cristiano’s name was drawn and he became the proud owner of a book on rubber band magic.

Lee Woodside

Secretary Report – February 2024

Ring NO. 46, OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – Seymour Davis Ring

Meets 7:00 pm, 1st Monday of the month at the New Beginning Fellowship Church, 15601 S. Pennsylvania in OKC

LEE WOODSIDE, Secretary. Email: WoodsideLee@hotmail.com.

www.okcmagic.club

Brian Tabor kicked off our February meeting as the featured performer. He started by showing an octagonal piece of cardboard representing a clock face with one hand on each side. As he flipped the “clock” around various axes, the perception was that the hands were moving. Brian invited Jonathon Meyer and Rick Martin to join him for a test of observation. After showing a small spread of playing cards to each of the participants, he asked them how many red cards they saw and how many total cards were in the spread. Their different answers to each question demonstrated the dubious nature of eye-witness testimony.

Brian invited Kallie to deal cards face up from a face up deck of playing cards. He said that when she stopped dealing the last card dealt would be her selection. That card proved to be the only one with an “X” on the back of it. Brian asked Grant Vinson to hand him the deck of cards that he had entrusted Grant with earlier. He then asked Grant to name a number between one and fifty-two and any playing card. Grant named the number 22 and the deuce of diamonds. Brian removed the cards from the deck, handed the deck to Grant, and asked Grant to deal to the 22nd card. Sure enough, it was the two of diamonds.

Jim Green showed a cork board on a stand on which a drawing of a stick figure of a person was attached. Jim blindfolded himself and asked Derrick Beeson and Rick Johnson to each stick a pin into the stick figure. Jim was able to divine that Derrick had stuck his pin into the hand and Rick had chosen the heart. Was it Voodoo?

President Cassidy Smith led a discussion on ideas for what to call a magician’s one-man show. He said that “Ricky Jay and his 52 Assistants” was a great name. He said that his personal choice was “Modest Dishonesty – a Magic Show by Cassidy Smith.”

David Teeman invited Dale Shawn, who is blind, to experience some magic. David brought out three sealed decks of playing cards and laid them on the table in a stack. He invited Dale to pick up all three decks at once with one hand. After this was repeated a couple of times, he asked Dale to pick up only the top deck. It was obvious that Dale was amazed. He said that the one deck was heavier than all three of the decks. David said that the demonstration was more of a psychological phenomenon than a magic trick.

Lee Woodside invited Abby to experience some romantic magic. Lee explained that paper clips are male and female just like people. After telling the story of how the two clips met and fell in love, he magically linked them together. Lee said that the routine was from Ibidem, but the method is published in many beginning magic books.

Derrick Beeson showed a close-up mat and servante that he obtained from Patt’s Matts. He said that they were excellent quality. He said that he also recommends coins from Ronald Davies. Derrick performed a routine called “Chop Shop,” by John Bannon. He showed a red-backed queen and three blue-backed jokers. Each time he put the queen into his pocked, it would reappear in the packet of cards. As a kicker ending, the four cards turned into the four aces.

Jonathon Meyer caused coins to appear in his empty hands, then vanish. He then produced them from his nose!

Cassidy Smith performed a beautiful and romantic routine called “The Rose 2.0” from Bond Lee. After a long-stemmed rose vanished in a ball of fire, Cassidy magically produced four roses one at a time.

We were pleased to book a last-minute lecture by Michael Komiskas. Michael presents a well-rounded lecture; in addition to cards and coins, he teaches magic with cups and balls, business cards, silk scarves, and even the ever-present Sharpie® marker.

Michael began by showing a sheer head scarf. He performed a coin production and then caused the silver dollar to penetrate the scarf in different ways. The routine ended with the vanish of the coin.

Michael handed a deck of imaginary cards to a member of the audience. He asked that the participant throw half the deck over his shoulder and then pass the remainder of the deck on to another audience member. This process continued until only one card remained. Michael then opened a box that had been in plain sight the whole time and removed a folded playing card. When he unfolded the card, it matched the card selected by the audience.

Michael took out his Sharpie and showed that it would cling to his fingers. This old gag got a groan, because he was using the method taught in many children’s magic books. However, he then did it again without “cheating.” While simple and easy, the method is a fooler.

Michael invited Jay Relkin to observe his chop cup routine up close. The final loads were a large ball, a 9-ball, and a potato that more than filled the cup.

Michael took out a purse frame without a bag and took out four silver dollars. He performed a nice “coins across” routine with the coins.

Kevin Brasier selected a card and signed it. Michael put the card into his pocket. Kevin’s daughter, Kallie selected another card and signed it. Michael brought out Kevin’s card and put it with Kallie’s. The two cards fused together, with a signature on each side of a double-faced card. Michael calls this routine “Anniversary Travelers.”

Michael brought out a Sharpie and performed the ubiquitous bending trick that everyone has seen, where the magician shakes the pencil up and down and it looks like it’s bending. However, when he stopped the motion, the previously straight Sharpie was now visible bent and could be handed out for examination.

Ashlee selected and signed the four of diamonds. Michael folded the card and then tore it into four pieces. He placed the pieces into a card box and shook them to “heal” the cards. When he dumped the card into Ashlee’s hand, she unfolded the card and it had her signature on it. Michael calls this routine, appropriately enough, “Healed.”

Michael showed three white medical-grade silicon balls and caused them to travel from hand to hand. He ended the routine with the venerable “two in the hand, one in the pocket” effect.

Michael brought forth a small bottle with a cork in it. He removed the cork and dumped out his quarter collection. Each quarter featured a different state on the back side. Brian Tabor selected one quarter and initialed it. Michael initialed the other side of the coin. He then replaced the cork in the bottle and held the signed coin on his palm. When he banged the bottle against the coin, the coin penetrated the bottle. When he dumped the coin into Brian’s hand, Brian verified that it was the coin he had initialed.

Derrick Beeson wrote a word on one of Michael’s business cards and inserted the card back into the stack. The stack of cards was rubber-banded together. Michael was able to divine the word that Derrick had written.

Michael performed a routine with a hot rod that did not involve the cheesy “one through six” number force. His routine was a story about a rainbow and a pot of gold.

Michael showed a very small ream of “copy paper” and showed that all the sheets of paper were blank. He then began “printing” on the paper until he had a full deck of playing cards. His routine is a take on the mental photography deck.

Michael showed us a unique pencil through bill routine that he came up with after watching “Misled” on a David Copperfield show. Not knowing the method, he created his own.

Michael showed us his KFC, the Komiskas Folded Card. This is an improvement on the age-old Mercury Card Fold that most magicians are familiar with.

Michael showed us his improved method of handling the cross-cut force. It fools many magicians. After showing a couple of other things, Michael explained all his miracles. We highly recommend Michael’s lecture for magicians who want to learn some new effects and get some performance tips from a working professional.

Lee Woodside

Secretary Report – January 2024

Ring NO. 46, OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – Seymour Davis Ring

Meets 7:00 pm, 1st Monday of the month at the New Beginning Fellowship Church, 15601 S. Pennsylvania in OKC

LEE WOODSIDE, Secretary. Email: WoodsideLee@hotmail.com.

www.okcmagic.club

We had a great turnout for our first meeting of 2024. John Shack was our featured magician for the month. He discussed SMART Goals for moving ahead in one’s pursuit of magic. SMART is an acronym that stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Bound. John then had Jerry Bowzer select and sign a playing card. John clearly tore the card into four pieces in front of our eyes and then restored it one piece at a time. He told us that this effect of his was published in the July 2023 issue of Genii.

Our brief business meeting was a discussion of up-coming lectures. It is great to be back to having live lectures again after the hiatus caused by COVID.

Our theme for member performances was to show off the magic received from Santa. David Teeman kicked it off by showing a pair of bamboo sticks. One stick had a tissel hanging from a string and the other had a tassel. The tissel would go up when the tassel was pulled and vice-versa. After much byplay, it was proved that the strings were not connected.

Lee Woodside said that his sister-in-law told him she knew what to get him for Christmas after seeing his posts on Facebook. Lee expected a magic trick, but when he opened his package, he found a dictionary. Lee invited Brian Tabor to watch as he flipped through the pages of the dictionary to prove it was not gimmick-ed. Lee then held out the dictionary and asked for Brian to tell him to stop as he flipped through the book. He asked Brian to think of the word at the top of the page and Lee divined it.

Jonathon Meyer showed us a small packet that he said was a prediction and placed it in his back pocket. He had a card chosen, signed, and returned to the deck. In a flash, the deck turned into the prediction and it was opened to reveal the signed card. He removed the deck from his back pocket where the prediction had been.

Michael King invited an audience member to join him. He showed three washers and a length of ribbon. He performed a very “charming” multi-phase routine where the washers would melt through the ribbon.

James Schoonover handed David Teeman a pad of sticky notes and asked him to think of a word and write it on the pad. James was able to successfully divine the word that David had written.

Derrick Beeson performed a routine called “Wild Coin.” He used three half dollars and a shot glass. As he rubbed each coin, it turned to brass. He placed the coins into the shot glass and they turned back into silver coins.

Lee Woodside

Secretary Report – December 2023

Ring NO. 46, OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – Seymour Davis Ring

Meets 7:00 pm, 1st Monday of the month at the New Beginning Fellowship Church, 15601 S. Pennsylvania in OKC

LEE WOODSIDE, Secretary. Email: WoodsideLee@hotmail.com.

www.okcmagic.club

Our annual Holiday Party began with a feast. The Ring provided turkey, ham and drinks our members brought a smorgasbord of side dishes and deserts. Despite our best efforts, we could not make all the food disappear.

Jim Green told us a little known fact that $100 bills have two holes in them and proceeded to put a toothpick through the holes on a borrowed bill. Jim then blew up a balloon and, despite the fact that he did not tie off the stem, the balloon did not deflate. He told us that he uses a clear glass marble to achieve this effect.

December is the month when we conduct our Stage & Parlor Magic contest. David Teeman led off by performing the venerable coloring book. He then placed a Rubik’s Cube into a two-sided box, and after much byplay with the audience, he showed that the cube was no longer in the box, but had teleported to a hat.

Jay Relkin arrived “on stage” wearing a blazer adorned with flashing Christmas lights. He asked his volunteer, Abby, to select from several possible travel destinations. As she thought of a destination, he took a photo of her holding a blank card. When he showed her the photo on his phone, the picture was of the Eiffel Tower and she revealed that her destination was Paris. Jay then brought out a cigarette lighter and caused the flame from the lighter to jump to various places. He concluded by “eating” the fire.

Lee Woodside said that he was going to perform a true classic of magic. He said that if a magician had come to one’s grandfather’s school when the grandfather was a little boy, he might have performed this very trick. Lee showed a very large die, a gentleman’s top hat, and a beautiful small cabinet. He placed the die into the cabinet and demonstrated that it was truly there. After much byplay, he showed that the die had vanished from the cabinet, but had returned to the top hat.

Mark Cristiano invited Callie to select a playing card and sign it. The card was returned to the deck and the deck was placed in Santa’s bag. Mark reached into the bag without looking and retrieved the signed four of spades.

Rick Johnson began with stories about his family’s lack of appreciation for his magic. His material was better than that of some professional stand-up comedians. Rick then offered to show us a trick that he had not performed in ten years. After waving his magic wand and chanting “abracadabra,” he pulled from his hat not a rabbit, but a rabbit’s skeleton. Rick then asked the audience to stand and for each person to indicate with body language whether they thought a coin would land on heads or tails. After repeating this for several coin flips and having the people who were wrong sit down, only Jerry Bowzer remained standing. Rick displayed several large flash cards one at a time that described who the winner would be. The last card had “Jerry Bowzer” written on it.

When the votes were tallied, President Cassidy Smith announced Lee Woodside as the third-place winner, Rick Johnson as the second-place winner, and Mark Cristiano as the first-place winner. Each winner received a gift certificate for his choice of online magic dealer.

Michael King asked that each of the five participants “pick his pocket.” He laid out five pockets cut from various clothing items and each contestant got to take the contents of one of the pockets.

Michael handed a book to each of three volunteers: Callie, Cassidy and Brian. Each turned to a page in his or her book and selected a word. Michael divined each of the words.

Our annual Officers Planning Meeting was hosted by Lee Woodside at his home the week after our December meeting. Cassidy Smith, Justin Teeman, Michael King, and Lee Woodside planned out what should be an exciting year of magic in 2024.

Lee Woodside

Secretary Report – November 2023

Ring NO. 46, OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – Seymour Davis Ring

Meets 7:00 pm, 1st Monday of the month at the New Beginning Fellowship Church, 15601 S. Pennsylvania in OKC

LEE WOODSIDE, Secretary. Email: WoodsideLee@hotmail.com.

www.okcmagic.club

Our themes for November were Patriotic Magic and Turkey Magic. Members were encouraged to perform magic that honors our military heroes or to show a magic item they bought that did not live up to the hype in the ad (imagine that!)

President Cassidy Smith started the meeting by showing off some of his favorite magic routines. He began by producing a bouquet of flowers. He then performed a multi-phase cut and restored rope routine that he said was inspired by Michael Skinner, who was his “mentor,” even though Cassidy never actually met him in person. Cassidy finished by using his elegant Sherwood Cups and Balls to perform a routine with lots of bits of business and great technical skill.

Michael King led off the “Turkey Magic” portion of the meeting. He talked about an effect that has the participant perform calculations that force the number 1089. He said that the instructions indicated it would work even if the first number given is smaller than the number with the digits reversed, which is not the case. Michael then told us about ordering an early version of the nut off bolt effect and receiving a nut, a bolt, and a length of fishing line, with instructions to glue the line to the nut.

Jim Green showed us his jumbo 3-Card Monte props. He discussed ways of causing the King to turn into the Queen and vice-versa.

David Teeman showed a deck of cards with super heroes Captain America and Wonder Woman as the jokers. He had two cards selected and returned to the deck. When the cards were spread on the table, the selected cards were between the two jokers. He then showed a drawer box to be empty. After a magic spell, the box was opened to reveal Captain America and Wonder Woman action figures.

Cassidy Smith led a discussion on ways to store magic items. He recommended tackle boxes and sewing boxes with multiple compartments for storing close-up magic props. Lee Woodside said that storing props in clear freezer bags lets you easily determine what is in the bag without having to open it. Lee also advised that if magic is stored in a closet, to be sure to check the carpet for moisture frequently.

Our annual election of officers took very little time. All the current officers were elected by acclimation to serve during 2024. Cassidy Smith will continue as President, Justin Teeman as Vice President, Michael King as Treasurer, and Lee Woodside as Secretary, even though Lee offered to nominate anyone crazy enough to want the job of Secretary.

Lee Woodside performed a routine to honor those who served in the military. He started by playing the songs of each of the branches of the military and asking those who served in each branch to stand. He had Molly Brasier present a small American Flag to each of the veterans. Lee then performed the Mismade Flag effect.

Rick Martin showed off his finger chopper that he made with the help of his laser cutter. He showed three playing cards, each of which had a hole in the center. He placed his finger through the holes and raised up the middle card through his finger.

Derrick Beeson performed the “Demi Deck.” A deck of cards was placed into the device and the deck was broken into two parts and then restored.

Grant Vinton invited Justin Teeman and Cassidy Smith to each select a playing card and then return it to the deck. Grant then spread the deck and showed that the selected cards were between the two joker “detectives.”

Justin Teeman performed a blackjack-themed effect with four cards. Pairs of cards turned into blackjacks. As a finale, he ended with four black jacks.

Cassidy Smith invited Jerry Bowzer to select any five items from Cassidy’s close-up props. After studying the items for one minute, Cassidy performed a very professional routine using all the items.

Lee Woodside

Secretary Report – October 2023

Ring NO. 46, OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – Seymour Davis Ring

Meets 7:00 pm, 1st Monday of the month at the New Beginning Fellowship Church, 15601 S. Pennsylvania in OKC

LEE WOODSIDE, Secretary. Email: WoodsideLee@hotmail.com.

www.okcmagic.club

Our theme for October was escapes and bizarre magick. Jim Green showed us a number of surreptitious means of carrying handcuff keys: belts, bracelets, finger rings, and even the plastic cap for a ballpoint pen. He then showed a finger ring with a saw built into it. Jim said that he presents programs for law enforcement groups, showing ways that people can escape from restraints. He showed how to make a shim from a windshield wiper for escaping from handcuffs.

Cassidy Smith gave us a glowing review of his latest magic purchase, CHARLIE FRYES SLEIGHTY ABSURD book. He said that it contained miracles with cards, dice, cups and balls, knives, egg bags, knives, and even juggling and mentalism. He gave the book two thumbs up. Cassidy also gave a us a look at his other recent purchase, a wooden arm chopper. He asked for our ideas on using the arm chopper in an entertaining routine.

Kevin Brasier, who is no stranger to escapes, showed off some of his lock picks and quick-release restraints, including some handcuffs that he referred to as “bridge jumpers.” He told us some escape horror stories about things that have happened to escape artists over the years. He emphasized that an escape artist should always have a backup plan.

Lee Woodside invited Jerry Bowzer to test whether he would make the cut as an initiate into the Priori of Sion, a secret society described in Dan Brown’s THE DA VINCI CODE. Jerry would be required to intuit the color of his inner aura and also the grade at which he would enter the society. Sure enough, Jerry intuited that his aura was blue and that his grade is “Artist.” Lee gave credit to Thomas Henry for the effect, which was in Thomas’ Parade in a recent issue of the Linking Ring.

Brian Tabor showed off a tattoo which he said he got years ago when the Da Vinci Code book was a best-seller. He then asked whether it is possible to escape one’s fate and invited Derrick Beeson to test the idea. After Derrick arrived at the three of hearts and the two of spades in what looked to be a very fair procedure using ESP cards with a circle and a square, Brian opened a small wallet and showed that it contained a three of hearts with a square cut in it and a two of spades with a circle cut in it.

David Teeman invited Cally to choose how a voodoo doll would be injured. From his prediction envelope marked “CURE,” he brought out a picture of the doll with a large band aid over the wound inflicted by Cally.

Michael King showed us videos of some escapes by former member Steve Crawford that were covered by the local media. In one video, Steve is heavily shackled and thrown into the deep end of a motel swimming pool. After a nail-biting delay, he rises to the surfaces free of the restraints. In another video he escapes from an Oklahoma City Police Department jail cell. Michael then showed us a combination lock that opens when set to the year of a couple’s marriage.

Ring 46 was pleased to host a lecture by Matthew Garrett. Michael began by performing a standard linking ring routine. He and the lecture attendees discussed the strengths and weaknesses of a standard set of rings with respect to layman perceptions. Michael then performed a close-up ring routine. He discussed linking the rings to various objects, such as finger rings or purses.

Michael demonstrated the use of magic squares and the out-to-lunch principle for trade show audiences. After a commando card manipulation performance, he taught Rick Johnson, step-by-step, how to perform a ring and finger ring sequence as the rest of the group looked on.

Michael concluded by showing his “Ninja Fusion.” This is the impossible feat of having a steel ball bearing fuse onto a steel ring.

My thanks go to Justin Teeman for providing me with an overview of Matthew Garrett’s lecture.

Lee Woodside

Secretary Report – September 2023

Ring NO. 46, OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – Seymour Davis Ring

Meets 7:00 pm, 1st Monday of the month at the New Beginning Fellowship Church, 15601 S. Pennsylvania in OKC

LEE WOODSIDE, Secretary. Email: WoodsideLee@hotmail.com.

www.okcmagic.club

We were very pleased to host a lecture by Steve Reynolds, only our second lecture since the COVID pandemic. As a protege of John Racherbaumer, Steve definitely knew how to fool us with the pasteboards.

We had a great turnout for the lecture. Several magicians came from the Tulsa area. Our lecture sponsor system really worked well on this one. The sponsors got most of their money back.

John showed that a deck was all backs and then turned the backs to faces. He invited Derrick Beeson to select a card. John tore the card into four pieces and then restored the card, except for one corner.

John asked Jerry Bowzer to select a card from an invisible deck of cards as he spread them and called off the values to Jerry. Once the deck became visible, the selected card was between two kings. John called this his “classic force with an invisible deck.”

John demonstrated his “invisible palm” with four Aces. He said this routine was “Open Travelers.” He then demonstrated his Zarrow shuffle, which looked totally legitimate, even for a roomful of magicians burning his hands.

John showed us several other card effects, including a color-changing deck. We highly recommend him to any group that is interested in card magic.

Our September meeting was our annual swap meet and auction. We had a record bid; a nest of boxes by Viking Magic sold for $280.

Lee Woodside

Secretary Report – August 2023

Ring NO. 46, OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – Seymour Davis Ring

Meets 7:00 pm, 1st Monday of the month at the New Beginning Fellowship Church, 15601 S. Pennsylvania in OKC

LEE WOODSIDE, Secretary. Email: WoodsideLee@hotmail.com.

www.okcmagic.club

Our theme for August was rope magic and President Cassidy Smith kicked off the meeting by cutting and restoring a length of rope. He then removed the ends of the rope and replaced them. Finally, he removed the middle of the rope and replaced it. Cassidy demonstrated a false knot, an archer’s knot, and a quick knot. He finished his routine with three large linking rings and a five-foot length of rope tied in a ring. He made some very interesting patterns by linking the rings and the rope.

Lee Woodside presented a mini-lecture on the venerable “Professor’s Nightmare.” He said that he has been opening his banquet shows with it for over thirty years. He explained that he bought the three pieces of one-quarter inch blue Dacron (polyester) rope from West Marine back in 1992. After handing out pre-cut ropes to everyone, Lee instructed his fellow magicians in the finer points of the Fred Kaps move and the false count. He also stressed the importance of making eye contact with every member of the audience during the routine.

David Teeman brought out three different-colored ropes: red, yellow and green. He tied each rope into a loop, but when he separated them, he had one giant loop with three different colors. He then showed us the linking ropes that he had gotten from Oscar Munoz many years ago. He ended by performing the rope through the neck.

Brian Tabor showed two crotchet needles. As he worked them together, he formed a small pocket handkerchief.

Kevin Brasier showed his Dean’s Box and asked his fellow magicians for ideas on adding other routines to the ones provided. Lee Woodside suggested adding some of the routines form Stewart James’ spirit cabinet routine, “Sefalaljia,” including the ball in the glass and the ring on string.

Jim Green invited Cally to join him. He had her hold a long loop made from a ceiling fan chain. Jim was able to cause a brass ring to hook onto the chain.

Michael King asked asked Brian Tabor to help him. He showed a napkin, a paper cup, a paper plate, and a plastic spoon. Micheal poured sugar into the napkin, and with a wave of the “spoon wand,” the sugar vanished. He then showed that it had traveled to the paper cup and he poured it in a stream onto the paper plate.

The names of the performers were placed into a hat and one name was drawn. Jim Green became the proud new owner of a two-CD set of “Bill Abbot Presents Classic Workers.”

Lee Woodside

Secretary Report – July 2023

Ring NO. 46, OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – Seymour Davis Ring

Meets 7:00 pm, 1st Monday of the month at the New Beginning Fellowship Church, 15601 S. Pennsylvania in OKC

LEE WOODSIDE, Secretary. Email: WoodsideLee@hotmail.com.

www.okcmagic.club

Our annual “Pandemonium of Magic” public show was very successful this year. We have performed our show on the day before Father’s Day for many years. We had a great audience, an impressive lineup of magicians, and actually made some money for the Ring.

David Teeman welcomed everyone to the venue. He used a pair of large dice ala “victory cubes” to produce his assistant, Brynna. He then turned the show over to President Cassidy Smith, who emceed.

Lee Woodside, AKA Captain Lee, hypnotized the entire audience and left a post-hypnotic suggestion with them to always applaud loudly (Professor’s Nightmare). Lee performed his “magic card” (What’s Next) and finished with a true classic of magic, the venerable die box.

Rick Johnson performed danger magic. He placed an object into his mouth and had four strings dangling from his mouth. He invited an audience member to select one string and yank on it. Nothing was tied to the string. After two more strings were yanked and proved to not be tied to anything, he removed a treble fish hook from his mouth, which was tied to the fourth string.

Rick displayed a folded up paper bag. He opened it up, reached into the bag and brought forth a bottle of beer.

Rick showed five wooden disks, one of which had a large spike sticking up from it. He covered each disk with a paper bag. The bags were thoroughly mixed by both Rick and an audience member so no one knew which was which. As an audience member made a selection, Rick would quickly smash that bag with the palm of his hand. When only one bag remained, he lifted the bag to show that the deadly spike was beneath it. He smashed an apple onto the spike to show that it was indeed dangerous.

David Teeman, with the help of his beautiful young assistance Brynna, performed an acrobatic knot routine. He vanished a silk scarf and it instantly reappeared in a small glass coffin being held by Brynna.

Grant Vinson showed three Chinese coins, which he threaded onto a cord. One at a time, the coins melted through the cord.

Daniel Buster performed as the Western Gambler/Western Roper. After cutting to the four Aces in a deck of playing cards, he demonstrated his skills with a lasso, ala Will Rogers.

Darryl Brooks performed his act to music. He showed a silk to rope manipulation, the Metamorphis Spots, and a ring and rope routine.

Brian Tabor hypnotized the entire audience with a spinning disk. When they all looked at his head, it seemed to grow in size. He then performed a comedy silk to egg routine.

Shaun Clark invited the audience to enter his coffee shop. He performed a broken and restored coffee stirrer routine and then caused two coffee rings on a napkin to link together.

Cassidy Smith performed Jim Steinmeyer’s “Hospitality” routine. He poured different drinks out of one milk carton. As he tore up the now empty milk carton, Michelle Tabor passed out the different drinks to audience members to prove that they were genuine drinks and not just colored water.

Kevin Brasier closed the show with his stage illusions with his assistant, Hannah. He placed her in a box and pulled the middle out to the side (Zig Zag Lady.) He ended by shackling Hanna, tying her in a bag, and locking her in a trunk. He got on top of the trunk with a curtain and raised the curtain over his head. When the curtain was lowered, Hannah was holding it. The trunk was unlocked and opened, the bag was opened, and there was Kevin in shackles.

Strong storms raged through south Oklahoma City a couple of nights before our July meeting. Although our venue was undamaged, downed power lines blocked the roads leading to it. An “alternate plan bravo” was quickly arrived at and twelve magicians convened at the Buffalo Wild Wings in Moore, OK.

Among those in attendance was James Schoonover, who drove all the way from Ardmore and brought along his niece, Berkeley. Berkeley penetrated a dollar bill with a ballpoint pen and then showed that the bill was undamaged. Michael King suggested to her and her uncle the names of some accomplished female magicians that they might want to check out on YouTube. James Schoonover performed an ace assembly and a couple of other tricks

Michael King caused a quantity of salt to vanish and then reappear. Michael then grabbed a straw and removed the wrapper, stating that the straw was now his magic wand. As he passed his “wand” over grains of salt, they began jumping onto the straw. He balanced the straw on top of a pepper shaker and caused the straw to move by using hand motions.

David Teeman performed the trick where a number of colored blocks are held in a box, and at his command, the named blocks fall from the box.

Lee Woodside

Secretary Report – June 2023

Ring NO. 46, OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – Seymour Davis Ring

Meets 7:00 pm, 1st Monday of the month at the New Beginning Fellowship Church, 15601 S. Pennsylvania in OKC

LEE WOODSIDE, Secretary. Email: WoodsideLee@hotmail.com.

www.okcmagic.club

June is the month for our annual Close-Up Contest. President Cassidy Smith placed numbers in a hat and invited each contestant to draw the number for his order in the performances.

David Teeman invited Brian Tabor to join him. David showed a box with different colored blocks, which were held in place by a rod that ran from one end of the box to other and through holes in the blocks. David removed the rod, dumped out the blocks, and invited Brian to choose two blocks. Brian chose yellow and blue. David returned the blocks to the box and re-inserted the rod. After a magical incantation, he dumped out the blocks, but the yellow and blue block remained in the box, impaled by the rod.

David opened a small envelope and removed five cards. Each card had a picture on it. There were a caduceus, a horseshoe, a knife, and elephant and a pepper. He asked Brian to choose one card. When Brian chose the elephant, David turned over the card and on the back was the message, “You will choose this Charm.” No applause. However, David then turned over the remaining four cards and placed them in a square to show the picture of an elephant. Now there was applause.

Jay Relkin asked Jerry Bowzer and Michelle Tabor to join him. He showed a small cube with a different color spot on each side. He then asked Jerry to select any color, place the cube in a small box with that color on top and place the lid on the box. Jay and Michelle looked away while Jerry did this. Jay then had Michelle look at Jerry, read his mind, and name the color. Michelle said, “Green” and Jerry confirmed that green was his choice. Jay concluded his performance with a very professional “coins across” routine, with the last coin traveling from Jerry’s hand to Jay’s.

Brian Tabor brought out a deck of playing cards and placed one card into his pocket. He invited Jerry Bowzer to choose one card from the deck. Brian placed a round sticker on the back of the card and then lost it in the deck. Brian removed the card from his pocket. As he shook the card, a sticker suddenly appeared on its back. He turned the card around to reveal that it was the selected Jack of Hearts.

Brian took out a two-dollar bill, showed it front and back, and then folded it in half lengthwise. He showed that there were two small holes in the bill that lined up. He then folded a playing card in half and placed the folded bill inside. He placed a toothpick through the card and the bill. With a magical pass, he was able to move the bill back and forth. He removed the toothpick and unfolded the bill to show that it was intact except for the two small holes.

Bob Caldwell showed a deck of Zener ESP cards and told the history of their development for psychic testing by Dr. J.B. Rhine at Duke University. Abigail volunteered to help him. As he dealt cards to the table, he asked her to tell him whether to switch cards or not. He then showed his prediction of the number 3, 7, 13, and 19. When he counted down to those locations in the deck, each card proved to be a Star.

Kevin Brasier invited three people to each write a 3-digit number on the page in a small notebook. He handed Abigail a book and asked her to announce the number of pages, which was just over 500. The three numbers were added to produce a total of 932. Since this was larger than the number of pages, Kevin divided it in half, yielding 466. He summed these digits to get 16. Abigail found the sixteenth word on page 466 to be “company,” which matched the prediction Kevin had placed in an envelope earlier.

While the scores from the judges (everyone who did not perform) were tallied by our Treasurer Michael King, David Teeman gave a glowing review of the “non-convention” called “Pebblepalooza.” He and his son, Justin Teeman had attended it in Dallas over the Memorial Day weekend.

Cassidy Smith announced the winners of the close-up contest as follows: First Place – Jay Relkin; 2nd Place – Brian Tabor; and Third Place – Bob Caldwell. Jay received a $50 magic gift certificate and a brand new balloon-to-bunny box. Brian Tabor received a $25 certificate and Bob Caldwell received a $15 certificate. Each will also receive a trophy at a later meeting.

Shaun Clark led off the member performances. He dealt cards until Jay Relkin called “stop.” Shaun tore the corner off the card and placed the card and torn corner onto Jay’s palm and asked Jay to cover it with his other hand. When Jay lifted his hand, the torn corner had melted onto the back of the card.

Lee Woodside showed a small box with six dice in it. Each die had a different number showing on its face. Lee placed the lid on the box and handed Michelle Tabor another die and a small dice cup. Lee asked Michelle to shake the cup and place it mouth-down on top of the box containing the dice. Lee lifted the dice cup to reveal that Michelle had rolled a six. When he lifted the top from the box, he showed that each of the six dice now showed the number six on top.

Lee Woodside