The Genii Forum

West McDonough

I asked Jonathan if he'd heard of him. At first he thought I was talking about the director, but after remembering that was actually Danny Boyle he thought again... and we have a hit! Possibly. Jonathan thinks he remembers this as the name of a guy who was booking acts down to Cancun 5 years ago — i...

West McDonough

As a finn who has lived my whole life in Finland and traveled quite a lot around the globe I cant but wonder the comparisons Mr Pendragon is making... So next time you compare us to something like Blackpool please, in all sincerity, check out some facts first. Since Jonathan posted that a couple of...

West McDonough

How did this thread get resurrected? Before everyone panics... no, the Castle is not being marketed for sale again. This is a six-year-old topic, from before the contract that fell through. The owners and the AMA currently have an excellent working relationship, and are quite content with the way th...

West McDonough

I was thoroughly confused for a moment when I read this thread, since the Magic Castle Hotel hasn't had any sort of security incident in years (and I would know if it had)! Then I noticed it was a 2008 post. Although even then it was an isolated incident, with security immediately adjusted to preven...

West McDonough

Damn! I'm late!

I hope you had an exceptionally happy birthday, Richard, and that your upcoming year is the very best one so far!

West McDonough

Congratulations, Damian! I hope you and your wife are as happy as we are!

West McDonough

Max, that would be my fault, since I never posted a thread here on the forums with the title "The Fabulous Max Maven brilliantly officiates at the Pendragon wedding!"

:)

West McDonough

It has been brought to Jonathan's and my attention that Charlotte has begun distribution of "her" version of the clear-water Sands trick, a signature piece of Jonathan's. Furthermore, the places in which it is sold are billing it as being "by the Pendragons," as if Jonathan was s...

West McDonough

It was, of course, a suspension, not a levitation. I had an unfortunate brain-hiccup there.

West McDonough

Pendragons. I love the costume of his wife! Another professional, you can tell by watching her, that she was comfortable on stage. Jon needs to hit a gym, after just one illusion he was huffing into Mr. Coachman. Enough about the bragging about scars, when did this become entertainment? Jon's stepd...

West McDonough

We also had trouble fitting in the tech scheduling, especially since our show was technically complicated and needed a chunk of time. Originally we were only scheduled for 15 minutes, but Steven Kline kindly offered to fit us in what was supposed to be an hour after the first stage show people had d...

West McDonough

Awww, surely you'll be ready again by the 100th anniversary! :)

West McDonough

It was a wonderful convention in so many ways! A great chance to catch up with old friends, watch some of the best in the business, and discover some wonderful artists I hadn't seen before (like Yumi and Tomo Maeda). Richard Kaufman really did things right with this one, and it's now officially my f...

West McDonough

The new ones are also USPCC, with air-cushion finish. Jonathan loves them! They handle beautifully.

West McDonough

Another person who is wonderful to talk magic with is Jim Steinmeyer brilliant mind and thorough knowledge of both history and technique. Also a helluva funny guy! :)

West McDonough

I'm fortunate enough to know a number of great magicians, several of whom are wonderful conversationalists. I would say that Jonathan Pendragon is still, by far, the best thinker on magic I've ever talked to, but you'd probably say I'm biased :) Still and all, I count myself fortunate to have such a...

West McDonough

Jonathan and I saw the premiere in Newport Beach yesterday, and very much enjoyed it. I recommend you catch it at the Castle if you get the chance.

West McDonough

Johnny's egg bag was the best I've ever seen. Worth the line! It was almost as crowded as a weekend, except you knew most of the people and they were all well behaved. There were moments when I just stopped to wonder at the beauty of the place full of smiling people, all talking to each other and ap...

West McDonough

What a lovely idea! But then, Robert struck me as a very creative showman give him my best when you see him next!

West McDonough

Never fear, Don. We have enough so that it will happen; it's just not full yet. At "worst" you'll just have a better student/teacher ratio than expected :)

West McDonough

There is still room in the second class (Saturday, 31 March) for those who have been procrastinating. Email me at westmcdonough@gmail.com if you're interested.

West McDonough

Tom Stone is coming to Los Angeles! This Swedish Genii columnist and bestselling author (Vortex, Maelstrom), known for his innovative thinking about magic, is in town for a very limited time, and has agreed to combine forces with world-famous, multiple award winning magician and bestselling author (...

West McDonough

Brad, I admit I never even noticed that was there! Though now I'm not sure I can answer it; to name Jonathan would look like favoritism, and to name anyone else might get me in trouble ;)

Thanks to everyone for the good wishes it means a lot to us!

West McDonough

Aw, you should have gone ahead and introduced yourself I like putting faces with names! :)

West McDonough

Only problem being I haven't been a "Flanagan" for awhile now; that name belonged to a former marriage :)

West McDonough

Although my route is for someone eating at 6:00, it's actually much easier for the 8:00 seating you just catch both early small-room performers before dinner (I usually go for the 7:00 Close Up and the next Parlor I forget what time it actually is), have dinner, see the 10:00 Palace show I'm tickete...

West McDonough

Door charges and dinner are an important source of revenue, but so are membership dues plus, the more members you have, the more people to give out guest passes. If such events as this increase the perceived value and exclusivity of membership, and therefore result in more people joining, I'm all fo...

West McDonough

I have, upon numerous occasions, managed to have dinner and still see every show at the Castle. Here is my route: Unfortunately there is no Close-Up show before the dinner seatingthe earliest show is 7:00, and dinner starts at 6:00 or 6:30. If I'm having dinner at the early seating, usually the only...

West McDonough

I had this happen for a long time when I used Safari. I was never able to figure out why, but it was fine in both Firefox and Chrome, so I just used one of those instead. Eventually it stopped happening even in Safari my best guess is that an update fixed whatever was malfunctioning. So, best advice...

West McDonough

It does not have to be a son or daughter. I know one person who gave it to their cousin, and another to their brother. But it is true that it may only be passed once that person cannot pass it on again.

West McDonough

He talks like that all the time.

West McDonough

If you have your spouse listed on your membership, then he or she gets a card as well (associate, not magician, unless they qualify in their own right). The last of the new cards were sent out several months ago, so if your spouse (or you) is missing one, then contact Trish Alaskey in Member Services.

West McDonough

I don't actually remember where I first saw it, but it was probably and article rather than an ad. I pre-ordered it months ago, then forgot about it until it arrived. I told Jonathan, "oh yeah, I ordered that awhile ago because it looked interesting... do you think it will be any good?" Hi...

West McDonough

Now, if it was in the NY State death index, that's actually considered to be a reliable source :)

West McDonough

I'm no expert on Houdini's sister, but I've used Ancestry a lot over the years. Those profiles are not in the least reliable as a source. They're pretty much just what someone says, and the majority of them are not documented well, if at all. People go on there and info-dump anything they ever saw a...

West McDonough

Mine just arrived yesterday, in SoCal.

West McDonough

FWIW, I am not posting from the perspective of a "stay at home" I was there. And, as I said the first time I posted, there did seem to be many in the audience who loved the act. I didn't. The people I was with didn't. But many others did. Am I advocating some sort of "rules" that...

West McDonough

I don't know, I have no problem believing Jim wrote the overall concept and structure, which I enjoyed quite a bit. But did he actually write the faux-Chinese piece and the jokes that left me (and others) feeling distinctly uncomfortable? That seems unlike him. I would guess, rather, that he left a ...

West McDonough

So he's being an offensive parody of bisexuals instead of homosexuals? Doesn't make me like it any more, I'm afraid. Mr. Hobson was quoted in an interview saying that he stopped worrying about whether he was being offensive to Asians when he looked out at the audience and saw some Asians laughing hy...

West McDonough

Which may just emphasize the problem with the totality of the presentation. In the beginning I thought like that: that the character was just flamboyant and ambiguoussomething in the way of the Host character in Cabaret. But it got pushed a bit further towards the offensive caricature as it went on,...

Search found 54 matches