Welcome to the Portal of the World's Largest Magical OrganizationIf you are interested in magic, here is a source of information that opens up many possibilities. The I.B.M. has 90 years of continuous activities and embraces thousands of members from 88 countries. There are about 300 branches, known as Rings, all over the world and there could be one close to you. We encourage you to join and be part of our affiliation based on friendship and trust, where young and old, professional and amateur, historian and collector can find friends and share knowledge about the wonderful art of magic. Magic is a hobby but it also helps with communication and critical skills. It is also an art form that can develop our creativity. Most of all, it is fun for those who perform it and for those who watch it live and on video. If you have any questions, contact us and we’ll do our best to help you in any way we can.
Vanni Pulé, International President
Word came today, May 17, that Jack Kodell died in Florida this morning, at age 84. He is often given credit for being the pioneer of a bird act. In his case, it was parakeets. Originally from Minnesota, he moved to Chicago in 1941, and met George Boston, who would become his mentor. Kodell, Boston and Cantu developed "A Fantasy in Birds" and the rest is history.
From July 3-7, 2012, magic’s first and longest-running convention -- the I.B.M. Annual Convention -- will be going to one of America’s oldest regions -- Norfolk, Virginia. One of the Mid-Atlantic’s most exciting destinations, Norfolk, attracts thousands of travelers each year to enjoy its lively waterfront downtown which is easily walkable and alive with eclectic dining options, a rich arts scene, high-end shopping and fun, and year-round special events. For four hundred years this dynamic heart of Virginia’s storied seafront region has offered a vibrant blend of history and heritage, contemporary attractions, outdoor adventure, and the Commonwealth’s most revered cultural institutions.
Here are the Top Ten reasons YOU and your family want to be in Norfolk for the 84th Annual I.B.M. Convention:
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News You Can Use
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Year after year, the I.B.M. annual convention printed program is rated the best of all magic convention programs. This year, the printed program for the I.B.M. 84th Annual Convention in Norfolk, Virginia, July 3-7, will continue that tradition! In addition to being the official guide for the convention itself, the highly-coveted souvenir program is a collector’s item. Advertisers have a unique opportunity to reach one of the largest target markets in all the world of magic. But the DEADLINE to reserve your ad is May 31, so hurry! Read on to understand why you HAVE to attend the convention, and to advertise in the printed program, in order to get your own personal copy!
Las Vegas, Nevada has more magic than any other place in the world. There are full-fledged, all-magic, all-the-time shows, and magic interspersed into other, variety-type shows, and everything in-between. As a way of giving back to the world of magic which has been so good to him, David Neubauer, a full-time professional magician based in Los Angeles, California has been compiling and distributing a monthly update of Las Vegas Magic, for some time. Here is his latest update, for May 2012.
Happy 98th birthday April 24 to Moi-Yo Miller, Dante's top assistant for over two decades. Born in 1914, she was a professional dancer in Australia when Dante the Magician came there as part of his world tour. After an interesting search there for a new beautiful assistant, he hired her and she became his top assistant for the rest of his career. Below we include excerpts from several sources, telling some of her fascinating story. Moi-Yo Miller was the stage name of Mona Loretta Miller, an Australian who became the principal assistant to the stage magician Dante (Harry Jansen, 1883-1955). ... She met Dante while she was in her late teens, performing in a musical revue in Melbourne. Dante became fascinated with Australian women, stating that "he saw in Melbourne more beautiful women per square block than he had seen in any other part of the world."
What do Lance Burton, Howard Hale, James Cielen, Fanny Tjin (Jade), Greg Frewin, George Saterial, Keiko Muto, Arthur Trace, David Williamson, Johnny Ace Palmer, Joe Given, Giovanni Livera, Steve Bedwell, Oscar Munoz, and Chase Curtis all have in common? All of them won the coveted Gold Medal or Gold Cups at a past International Brotherhood of Magicians Convention. And they all went on to fantastic careers in magic! We invite YOU to put the finishing touches on YOUR performance and enter one or both of the 2012 I.B.M. contests. Today!
NO FOOLING! It is April and time for another terrific issue of The Linking Ring! And there it is, in the upper left corner of this front page on the I.B.M. Web Portal. And what a terrific cover, with a little fun, as David Stone covers his face with his hand. Not to worry, the cover story inside shows several photos of David, with no hand covering his face. Read on for a preview and summary of what’s inside.
The Eighty-fourth Annual I.B.M. Convention in Norfolk, Virginia, July 3-7, promises to be a convention to remember. It will continue to build on the new ideas and events introduced at the Dallas "reinvention convention," blending the old favorites with exciting new faces and events. When you pick up your registration packet in Norfolk, you will be issued your own passport to gain entry to a four-day extravaganza of magic lectures, workshops, shows, and special events. Not only is the passport your schedule for entry to these special magic events, if you use this passport to visit each of the purveyors of magic in the Dealers' Room and obtain their stamps indicating your visit, you will become eligible for special drawings.
The Convention Committee for the 84th Annual I.B.M. Convention has been hard at work on your behalf, Committee members met in Norfolk, Virginia in January to tour the hotel and theater facilities and finalize plans for the event. Time was spent discussing the convention schedule and coming up with ideas that would provide the best experience to attendees, contestants, and dealers. One of the most important areas of discussion concerned the talent for the July 3-7 affair, and we are pleased here to make the announcement of the first group of seven magicians who will be appearing.
- The Linking RIng and the I.B.M. Web Portal are both looking for help in gathering information for several topics about magic. At any given time, we have a dozen or more writers in various stages of researching and writing such stories. The following are some of the stories someone is working on, and we would appreciate it if anyone with something to contribute on any or all of them, would get in touch with the person designated.
By Scott Hood, President Ring 49, Hamilton Ontario, Canada
Once again the I.B.M. 2012 Convention (whose slogan is "Sea the Magic • Norfolk") planning committee is hard at work pulling together the annual “Operation Tricks Are Treats” hospital shows. It has been the I.B.M. practice for many years to have some of the magicians who are attending the annual convention to donate their time and talents to perform for local hospitals in the convention city and area. Norfolk 2012 will be no exception. However, 2012 will have a slightly different twist to it.
Award-winning writer Don Wiberg is gathering information for an article on magic summer camps to be published in The Linking Ring. Wiberg, Past International President of the I.B.M., notes, "A Google search to get information about summer camps for young people turns up hundreds of camps appealing to a wide variety of interests. With all the camps available, it makes you wonder how many teenagers stick around at home all summer, doing nothing?"
A good question came to Shawn from "Matt," namely: "How do magicians overcome nervousness on stage?" Do professional magicians even GET nervous? What can you do to get ready and be more comfortable on stage?
Shawn posed that question to FISM award winner (2006 at the Stockholm convention) David Sousa, when they were in Tokyo, Japan last year.
A new online publication, the Journal of Magic Research, seeks to promote the application of scientific methods in magic research. The journal is published by Past International President Dr. William E. Spooner (left). “At the present time,” writes Dr. Spooner, “the use of scientific methods in research is practically non-existent within the magic fraternity. A scientific approach to magic can provide information not available through traditional historical research.”
John Moehring, former editor of MAGIC magazine and M-U-M, will serve as editor of the JMR. Past International President Dr. William A. Wells and Dr. Gerry S. Hayes are associate editors.
New DVDs, books, products:
When does Osterlind sleep?By Bobby Warren
When Richard Osterlind wrapped up production on "Corinda's 13 Steps to Mentalism" DVD set for L&L Publishing, the veteran performer of the magical arts thought it would be his last. However, that self-imposed ban did not last long.
Osterlind has returned with another L&L project: "Live Without a Net," in which the mentalist and magician performs in front of a real audience at a casino in Reno, Nev.
With the release of the new, three DVD set, the I.B.M. portal is updating a 2008 feature story about Osterlind, which was the cover story for the February edition of The Linking Ring that year. An edited version of the story appears below, along with some of Osterlind's accomplishments since 2008 and his goals for the upcoming year:
Richard Osterlind's roots in mentalism go as deep as his roots in magic. Ask him when he made the transition from magician to mentalist, and you'll discover he had an impression clipboard as a seven-year-old. Other Osterlind mental mysteries from his childhood repertoire included color and die divinations. With the effects from a couple of magic kits, one of which was his Sneaky Pete's Magic Show, a young Osterlind performed the Linking Rings and sawed in half a lady (never mind it looked a lot like a plastic doll). (READ MORE)
I.B.M. Portal Advertising Manager BJ Hickman has been at it again -- working his magic to give advertisers more BANG for their Bucks -- More SIZZLE for their Steaks. Scroll down to the bottom of this page to see a new concept -- a "Box of Buttons" -- some of our leaders in magic. Click on each ad.
John Calvert performs for audience of 1000 on his 100th birthday.
PHOTO BY DAVID LINSELL
COURTESY OF THE ABBOTT MAGIC COMPANY
John Calvert celebrated his 100th birthday at the annual Abbott’s Magic Get-Together in Colon, Michigan, on August 5. Calvert was the closing act on the evening show, performing his classic “Dancing Handkerchief” routine with his cloth sidekick, Casper.- by Jason GoldbergIt feels like my birthday a few times each year when I receive a new box filled with what producers hope will be the “latest and greatest,” the creations they want to share with the magic fraternity. Sometimes they are great, and sometimes they turn out like that sweater we all want to exchange.
