MISSING MAGICIAN & MENTALIST - NOT A JOKE!!! HELP POLICE

[Guest]

I just received a phone call from Detective Mark Miller of the Pismo Beach Police department 805-773-7020 and email mmiller@pismobeach.org

asking if I knew of mentalist magician Joe Wilson. Does anyone here know him, or have met him or had any recent contact with him - if so you may prove valuable in assisting this police department investigating this case.

Feel free to copy and post this in high traffic magic sites so anyone who may be acquainted with Mr. Wilson can contact the police department.

He is listed on one of my agents web sites along with me. The story follows:
As does Wilson's biography.

If you have any information or have crossed paths with this performer recently please contact the detective immediately.

This is not a joke. Please handle this seriously and contact the police if you have any relevant recent information about this performer. It is a missing person's case and they need to discover what may have (if anything) precipitted his dissappearance. On their behalf thanks.

Shell Beach (article copied from the local area The Tribune)

Police release name

of missing kayaker

Pismo Beach police say they believe the kayaker reported missing Sunday is Joseph Franklin Wilson, 45. Public records show Wilson lives in Shell Beach.

The search continued Monday for Wilson. Efforts to reach his family Monday were unsuccessful.

According to Cmdr. Jeff Norton of the Pismo Beach Police Department, officers learned of the kayaker's identity after scouring the area and finding someone who knows him.

The U.S. Coast Guard, in conjunction with the Port San Luis Harbor Patrol and volunteer units, had expanded their search from the shoreline to more isolated areas, Norton said.

The kayaker was last seen in the water at Pier Avenue around 1:30 p.m. Sunday.

A Pismo Beach resident reported him missing at approximately 5 p.m. after he saw an empty kayak and gear floating against the rocks about 100 yards offshore.

-- David Baez and Cynthia Neff


Joe's Biography:

"The Mental Edge" Mentalism Show

Joseph Wilson was born in San Jose, California. His interest in Magic and Mentalism started at the early age of eleven. His role model was the prominent magician, Mark Wilson, who had a syndicated television show in the 1970's. Joseph perfected his craft and began performing professionally in 1984. His solo performances have included the Simon and Seaforde Dinner Theaters in Anchorage, Alaska, as well as performances at the Hyatt, Sheraton and Hilton Hotels. He has also performed work in voice-overs. Joseph has had celebrity exposure when he performed close-up Magic and Mentalism for Willard Scott of the Today Show.

Joseph is a member of the Society of American Magicians, the International Brotherhood of Magicians, and the Pacific Coast Association of Magicians. These societies require high standards for admittance.

Joseph is very charismatic and his audiences are always pleased with his personable performances. To quote a few members of the audience, "I enjoyed being fooled by you" and "your slight of hand and mind is impeccable."

He brings his unique act, "The Mental Edge", to the stage for the performing pleasure of mystifying and pleasing his audiences around the country.

[Christopher Starr]

A month later, I wondered how this story was going and found this:
http://www.sanluisobispo.com/mld/sanlui ... 513121.htm

Posted on Tue, Aug. 30, 2005...

"Police have identified the body found near Avila Beach last weekend as missing kayaker Joseph Franklin Wilson.

An autopsy Monday revealed that Wilson died from a self- inflicted gunshot wound to the head, according to Cmdr. Scott Smith of the Pismo Beach Police Department.

A Shell Beach resident, Wilson had worked as a correctional officer at the California Men's Colony since 1989, said prison spokeswoman Lt. Shelly Thompson.

He took turns manning guard towers at the prison north of San Luis Obispo and patrolling the yards, she said.

Doesn't mention any show biz background for this guy though.