Fredrick Turner

Reflections

Magic

  • Subscriptions Everywhere

    The magic market is essentially a monopoly run by one major distributor, Murphy’s. The sales of magic products are run by essentially two major companies, Vanishing Inc. and Penguin Magic. Sure there’s other online retailers and a few brick and mortar stores around but they’re stuck buying from Murphy’s. There’s also a handful of independent… Continue reading

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  • Using a Medium

    In his 1964 book, Understanding Media, communication theorist, Marshall McLuhan coined the phrase: The medium is the message. McLuhan argued that the medium or the manner with which a message is communicated should be considered and studied. The medium can facilitate and enhance the message or distract from the message. This is one of the… Continue reading

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  • Mendoza on Practice

    John Mendoza passed away almost six years ago in July 2020. He was 73. He was a master of the cups and balls and released two manuscripts on his handlings. He published books and manuscripts of others including a young unknown magician, Chris Kenner. In 1979, he published Close-Up Presentation – a small hardcover book… Continue reading

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  • Father’s Day

    Happy Father’s Day to you if you’re a father, a stepfather, uncle or a surrogate. Thanks for all you do. My dad was always supportive of my interests. He didn’t push me one way or another. His support included my magical pursuits. When I was in third or fourth grade, I discovered that there was… Continue reading

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  • Eugene’s Birthday

    Today would have been Eugene Burger’s 87th birthday. He passed almost 9 years ago. There’s hardly a day that goes by without me thinking of him – especially when reading, studying, or practicing magic. I probably mentioned this before but one of the best vacations we took was to Chicago. Timing was perfect because Eugene… Continue reading

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  • Revisiting: Documentaries

    My recent post on upcoming documentary projects had me thinking about a few of my favorite ones. The reason that they’re favorites is not just because they are very well made but the love and respect that they show for magic is evident throughout. Our Magic (R. Paul Wilson): Whenever I feel discouraged about magic,… Continue reading

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  • Coming Soon

    Let’s begin with a syllogism: I like movies and documentaries.I like magic.Therefore, I like movies and documentaries about magic. The problem with syllogisms is that while they are logically sound; they are not necessarily accurate. In this case, I can name many films with performance magic at it’s center that I’d watch again and again… Continue reading

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