| VOLUME: 36 / ISSUE: 1,085 / Monday – December 18, 2000 | |
| The legendary Shimada has been named as the recipient of the “Louie” award which will be given on Nov. 2-4, 2001 at Tannen’s 39th annual Magic Convention in Monticello, NY. In addition to receiving the award Shimada will perform his classic act. Peter Marvey has also been booked with his full-evening show, much of which has never been seen in the U.S. Marvey’s illusions are the most original you will ever see. For more information phone Tannen’s at: 212-929-4500.(12/18) David Blaine makes it into TV Guide’s Cheers and Jeers section as a Cheer: “Debunkers griped that air pumped into the icy sarcophagus kept frigidity at bay (think igloo), but the disoriented, pained state in which Blaine emerged convinced us that the endurance test was no winter wonderland. Indeed, the ice-breaking program ended unpleasantly, as Blaine was whisked away in an ambulance.” To read the Dec. 16-22 issue of TV Guide’s Cheers and Jeers column click: HERE.(12/18) –For more about Blaine click: HERE. Milt Larsen, Christopher Hart, Amos Levkovitch, Earl Nelson, Allan Hayden, Ed Ellis, Dylan Sardo, and Alfonso appearing at the Magic Castle in Los Angeles, on Dec. 18-24. This week the Castle will have special lunch shows.(12/18) |
| VOLUME: 36 / ISSUE: 1,068 / Tuesday – December 19, 2000 |
| A new magic TV special “Heroes Of Magic” which will air on Channel 4 in the UK on Dec. 24 at 9pm is previewed in The Guardian. The 2-hour show which focuses on the most popular magicians in the past couple of centuries will feature archival footage of Houdini, Cardini, Slydini, Richiardi, David Copperfield, Paul Daniels, Horace Goldin, Rene Lavand, David Blaine, Geoffrey Durham, David Nixon, Maurice Fogel and more than 30 other magicians who will perform, be interviewed, reminisce and be discussed. The article closes with a quote, “The British magician David Devant used to say it was ‘all done by kindness,’ plus some smoke, mirrors and sleight of hand, of course.” To read the Dec. 19 preview by Adam Sweeting titled “It’s magic!” click: HERE.(12/19) |
| VOLUME: 36 / ISSUE: 1,087 / Wednesday – December 20, 2000 |
| It seems that Lance Burton is one of the best bosses to have. According to a Las Vegas Review-Journal article Burton “..is one of the most generous employers in Southern Nevada. The entertainer spends more than $200,000 on his 30 employees at the holidays, said his spokesman, Wayne Bernath.” The amount includes “…a holiday party, bonuses, more than three weeks of paid vacation and a 401(k) contribution.” Burton is also one of the rare performers who pays his staff for 52 weeks even thought they are on hiatus for a number of weeks. To read the Dec. 19 story by Trevor Hayes titled “Holiday season puts companies in giving mood” click: HERE.(12/20) Col. Bill Boley who is best known as a world class ventriloquist died on Sunday Dec. 17 at the age of 65. Known as a ventriloquist, Boley was also an accomplished magician who worked many magic conventions through the years. He lived in Hopkinsville, KY.(12/20) Dan Birch is the featured magician in, “A Really Big Shew,” the new vaudeville style show that opened at the Las Vegas Hilton’s NightClub on Tuesday and will run through Dec. 30. Shows are nightly at 8pm with a ticket price of $29 per person.(12/20) |
| VOLUME: 36 / ISSUE: 1,088 / Thursday – December 21, 2000 |
| Billy Joe “Bill” Boley (9/9/35 – 12/17/00) who died on Sunday Dec. 17 at the age of 65 is remembered in the Kentucky New Era. He died of complications of diabetes in a Nashville hospital. Boley “…entertained on cruise ships for 13 years and wrote 24 books about magic, ventriloquism and comedy. He also authored a number of video and audiotapes on the subject of ventriloquism.” The article also quotes his friends about the pleasure he brought children with his magic and ventriloquism for the past four decades. A service was held on Wednesday at the Maddux Funeral Home and he was later buried at the Green Hill Memorial Gardens. To read the Dec. 18 obituary titled “Ventriloquist Bill Boley dead at 65” click: HERE.(12/21) David Copperfield’s “Unknown Dimension” is reviewed in The Spokesman-Review where the author’s verdict was “Don’t even try to figure it out. Do what the rest of us did Monday night: Marvel at the complexity and skill of the illusions, and indulge in just the briefest fantasy…” To read the Dec. 20 review by Jim Kershner titled “Copperfield mystifies, delights audience” click: HERE.(12/21) |
| VOLUME: 36 / ISSUE: 1,089 / Friday – December 22, 2000 |
 David Copperfield, Siegfried & Roy, Melinda, and Mac King are featured in separate articles in the Dec. 24-30 issue of Las Vegas Showbiz. Copperfield will be appearing in the Hollywood Theatre at the MGM in Las Vegas through Jan. 1 while King at the Harrah’s described his show as “It’s all sleight of hand. It’s no big box tricks, no showgirls, no offstage assistants pulling wires. …It’s certainly more intimate than any other show.” The S&R article is mostly about their white lion Prosperity who was named the “Official Mascot of the United States Senate.” Melinda who currently is starring with her own show at The Venetian explained that she is a perfectionist, “I go over things again and again to make them right.”–To read the David Copperfield article by Joe Delaney titled “Seeing All Sides of David Copperfield” click: HERE. –To read the Siegfried & Roy article titled “Pride of the Millennium – Siegfried & Roy reflect on Life” click: HERE. –To read the Mac King article by Jaime Buerger titled “King of Comedy — Magic has never been so funny” click: HERE. –To read the Melinda article titled “Blazing Hot – Melinda heats up the world of magic” click: HERE.(12/22) Teller is interviewed in the Washington Post about his new book, “When I’m Dead All This Will be Yours! Joe Teller — A Portrait by His Kid, Teller,” and The Penn & Teller appearance at the Warner Theatre in Washington, DC on Dec. 26-31. Teller recounts an event in NYC, “I was once walking through Times Square, and a cop stuck out his night stick directly in front of my chest and said, ‘Name?’ I said, ‘Teller.’ And he turned to his partner right there and said, ‘See, I knew I could make him talk.'” To read the Dec. 21 article by Lloyd Grove titled “Teller Talks?” click: HERE.(12/22) |
| VOLUME: 36 / ISSUE: 1,090 / Saturday – December 23, 2000 |
| Dixie Dooley who stars in “Houdini Lives Again” at the Plaza in downtown Las Vegas is featured in a Las Vegas Review-Journal article which reviews his current show and recounts his persistence in making it in Las Vegas. It is put this way, “His devotion fuels an unbreakable desire to make it in a town that so far has done its best to ignore him. That David Blaine punk got a prime-time special for freezing himself in ice. Dooley buried himself in 300-pound chunks of ice for three hours last August — a fund-raiser for the Muscular Dystrophy Association — and no one seemed to care.” To read the Dec. 22 review by Mike Weatherford titled “Dixie Dooley helps keep Houdini’s spirit alive” click: HERE.(12/23) Penn & Teller who will be appearing in Samba Theatre at the Rio in Las Vegas next month are featured in a Las Vegas Review-Journal article. Penn is quoted, “We have been doing magic together for 25 years, and are so sick of it we could spit… So, in the new show, we are moving into the field of religion and will be performing real miracles.” To read the Dec. 22 article titled “Magicians Penn & Teller set stint at Rio’s Samba Theatre” click: HERE.(12/23) |
| VOLUME: 36 / ISSUE: 1,091 / Sunday – December 24, 2000 |
| Teller’s book, “When I’m Dead All This Will Be Yours!”, is reviewed in the Las Vegas Sun in conjunction with a book signing on Saturday. The project is described as, “Using words — which he never does on stage in his act with magician Penn Jillette — Teller transports the reader to a world he recently discovered: the one his artistic parents lived in before he was born.” A funny quote from the book by Teller’s mother is included, “The sensible solution would be just to take your own life when it’s time. But you can’t do that if you have a famous son — it would be bad publicity.” To read the Dec. 22 review by Jerry Fink titled “Magician writes an ode to his artistic parents” click: HERE.(12/24) –Buy the book from Amazon for $19.96 by clicking: HERE. Penn & Teller’s move from the MGM Grand, where Copperfield now performs, to the much larger Samba Theatre at the Rio is discussed in a Las Vegas Sun article. To read the Dec. 19 story by Kate Maddox titled “Vanishing act at MGM Grand” click: HERE.(12/24) |
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