March 2024 Report
Peoria, IL
Ring # 48
Assembly # 51
The March meeting began with the detail business of the upcoming Central Illinois Magic Get-Together, which will be held on April 27, here in Peoria.
President Rodney Nordstrom updated us with dealers, and talent for the convention. He then verified who our liaisons are for other events, such as the HOI Fair and the Riverfront Market.
Loren Williams, a.k.a. C.J. Diamond announced that he is rebranding his magic business as, AVALON MAGIC. Gone are all the other business IDs he previously used. It must have already begun to bring him luck, as he was the quarterly attendance award winner. The prize, which we award every 3 months by way of a drawing is for attendance at all three monthly meeting of a quarter. The prize is $50.
The magic portion was kicked off by yours truly, Michael Baker who began with a “chase the Leprechaun” routine culminating in the poor rascal flattened in a giant mouse trap… well, giant size to a Leprechaun. He followed with The One Ace Trick in which a named Ace is the only card among an entire deck of Jokers. This is a comedy routine that was available commercially a number of years ago. I apologize for not recalling who put this out. It’s a fun routine.
Gambit followed with one of his crafted items which we dubbed, Himber’s Ball’s. It is a mentalism effect using colored balls and a bag.
David Taylor, who rarely is able to attend our meetings, showed a really great original trick with puzzle pieces in a box that solve itself minus a piece that was selected from the box earlier. This is a very clever trick with a well-thought-out method and crafting.
Michael Baker then performed his spin on Daryl’s handling of Dominic Duvivier’s “Printing.”
Troy Keefer then fooled us with Estimation Aces. Troy’s unique presentation style always entertains.
Peoria Magicians Assembly Meeting Minutes February 14, 2024
Attendees: Jay Zentko, CJ Diamond, Stefan Evans, Rodney Nordstrom, Gambit, Grege Joyce, and Troy Keefer.
Rodney is no longer liaison for the Farmer’s Market. He will give contact information to Jay Zentko and Jay will make contact. We believe Phil will be contact for the HOI Fair.
Troy will contact the dealer for the CIMGT. CJ and Grant Golden may set up tables.
CJ will bring video projector and screens to the CIMGT. Stefan will help to compile content.
Get Tricked will be at BG Karaoke on February 17.
CJ gave a report on Cornstock Theatre. He has nothing to report.
Sidney Friedman is doing a show at The Betty Jane in Peoria Heights the night before our CIMGT. We should support it and use it to promote our show.
Magic:
Greg Joyce taught Penn & Teller’s “Love’s Me” trick. He brought cards & instructions for everyone.
Greg discussed his favorite Valentine’s Day trick. He saw Mitch Williams perform a trick for a couple involving pink & white tissue paper.
Gambit performed Phil Smith’s “Fusion Mosaic Phenomena.”
Gambit performed three effects by Wayne Dobson. He performed “Lucky Dip” with a bag he made. He performed “Odd Ball” with another bag he made. He also performed and Anti-Bank Night routine with some nice locking Himber wallets.
Respectfully submitted, Jay Zentko, Treasurer
On February 19, Radek Hoffman gave his lecture. Several members gave it high praise.
The Peoria Magicians will be at the Riverfront Market again this year, beginning Saturday May 18. Magicians will perform on the 1st and 3rd Saturdays through the summer from 9:00am until noon. Gambit reports that his Get Tricked show on February 23rd was a success
Sep/Oct/Nov 2023
Report for Sept/Oct/Nov 2023
The September meeting was lightly attended. The bulk of our meeting was devoted to details regarding the upcoming Peoria Magic Gathering and October Magic Show.
This was the first time we reinstated the attendance award since suspending it during the pandemic. The year is divided into quarters and everyone who attends all 3 months in a quarter is eligible for a drawing. The prize is $50. This quarter’s winner was Gambit. Gambit (Kyle Bassett) also provided the magic after the business was concluded.
October’s meeting was largely devoted to last minute preparation for the upcoming mini convention and public show. We had two guests attend, who we feel will become vital members of the PMA… Matthew Moland and Scott Nicely.
Both newcomers performed magic. Matthew did a nice version of a chosen card travelling from one packet of cards to another. Scott performed a variation of the Color Monte plot, also well done.
D’Nordo (Rodney Nordstrom) pulled off a miracle when a trick he has tried many times before actually worked. From a shuffled deck any two values are named, say an 8 and a King. Those two values will be found next to each other. Michael Baker performed a torn and restored card.
On October 21st, we hosted the 2nd Annual Peoria Magic Gathering and October Magic Show at Expo Gardens Opera House. The mini-convention held from noon until 5:00pm is a totally free event that we offer to any and all magicians. It begins with a flea market in which anyone may sell. There is no fee for tables or sales.
Following this, were 4 mini lectures. Michael Baker began with a talk and demonstration of how to theme a Halloween Show. CJ Diamond (Loren Williams) was next with a talk on Magicians and Masons. Yort (Troy Keefer) discussed busking. A portion of Yort’s timeslot was used by Mark Yeager, who talked about his time working with Bill Malone and his beginnings in magic. Finally, Jack Ackerman gave us several examples of Story Magic.
After a short break, the close-up show began. Performers were Christopher Bontjes, Mikayla Oz, Jeff Harpring, Luke Cannon (Lucas McCannon), Steve Daly (Steve Hinrichs), Mark Yeager, and Yort. All gave outstanding performances.
Now it was the dinner break. There are a number of restaurants within a short drive of Expo.
The evening show was open to the public and was very well attended. Prior to showtime, several magicians roamed through the audience performing close-up magic. Raffle tickets were sold for a magic set giveaway.
This year’s show welcomed “Masters of Scare-A-Moanies”, Skeezer & PopEye from Dr. Zirkus’ Haunted Dungeon. These are two giant skeleton puppets that wisecracked, told corny jokes, and introduced the various acts. The performances began with Remarkable Jay Zentko, who has graduated from magician to wizard. He performed a variety of magic and entertained with his ukelele.
Next was Luke Cannon, the Silent Magician. It was an interesting act that culminated in a big surprise to lots of applause. Jerry Tupper followed with an act done entirely to music. Silks were produced and finally transforming into an American Flag.
Yort brought a volunteer from the audience and entertained in his inimitable style. Everyone knows when Yort is in the house! He finished by producing a dove from a balloon.
Closing out Act 1 was Mikayla Oz. She showed a beautifully routined and performed Silk and Flower act all perfectly timed to music.
Following a brief intermission, the magic set drawing was held. It went to happy child (at heart) who we hope will one day become a magician!
Steve Daly, who conducted the raffle, opened Act 2, with a great routine using 2 children from the audience. Steve’s trickery is masterful and what appeared to be a simple routine, turned out to be a stunner. What a pro this guy is!
D’Nordo took the stage next and brought several children up to participate in a routine where all the kids won a prize… but the magician himself beat them all by getting the best prize.
CJ Diamond performed a variety of rope tricks in front of the curtain while the stage was being set behind.
The final act for the evening was Grant Golden. Grant’s professionalism on stage is evident in his performance. It shows what years of training and performing on stage will do. He was assisted by his daughter and granddaughter and delighted the audience with a variety of colorful magic and illusions.
A curtain call allowed the audience to applaud for all the performers once again. The “puppeteers” were revealed to be CJ Diamond and Michael Baker.
Then, we surprised Grant Golden by giving him a Lifetime Achievement Award. Yort conducted this worthy event by giving a brief rundown on Grant’s accomplishments in magic and then handing him the framed certificate.
On November 1st, we hosted a lecture by Keith Leff, who presented a well-received talk on restaurant magic. The modest crowd seemed to enjoy it and it appeared that Mr. Leff’s sales were brisk.
The November meeting was devoted entirely to a post-mortem review of the October event and discussion of the Central Illinois Magic Get-Together 2024 that we’ll host in April.
July 2023
July was busy for the Peoria Magicians. Our July meeting began with finalizing dates and working on details for upcoming events. Topics included the HOI Fair, The Riverfront Market, Ignite Peoria, The Club Picnic, The Public Show, and looking ahead to CIMGT in 2024.
Magic was provided by Gambit, who performed Vallarino’s English Poker, followed by Hanky Coins Across and Blow Coin Assembly. Michael Baker showed a Cards Across variation, and then described his methods and improvements.
Jerry Tupper performed a nice sleight of hand version of Kings Across. Jay Zentko did a picture divination effect. Rodney Nordstrom performed a Spelling Trick. Finally, Greg Joyce showed a gimmicked version of 3 card Monte that many of us learned as kids.
There were several magic performances of note. Phil Raso had a public show in Dunlap. Gambit held another Get Tricked show at Pizza Works.
The HOI Fair had several fine performances. These included, D’Nordo (Wonders from Worlds Beyond?), CJ Diamond (Linking Rings, Ropes, Silks, and Cards), Yort (Bill in Orange, Coloring Book, Silk Vanish, and 3 Card Trick), and Jerry Tupper (Silks, Ropes, Lota, Rainbow Waters, and American Flag Production).
Catch us at any of our upcoming events or come to a meeting (2nd Wednesday of each month). See our website for more details: PeoriaMagic.com
April 2023
The April meeting had a very short business discussion, with a final head count announced for the banquet and mention of a couple of upcoming nearby conventions. Jim Cox was on hand to hand out posters and flyers for the Springfield CIMGT in June.
Our theme was two-fold, with both Children’s Magic and Teach-A-Trick. Ian Munk performed, then explained a nifty 4-Ace Trick in which the Aces changed to 10s, and finally to Kings. Phil Raso demonstrated a funny gag for children using flash cards of animals. The idea was to pit the kids against the adults. In Phil’s re-working of the trick, the kids always won against the adults, which in the opinion of everyone present, was far superior to the creator’s original version in which the adults would win (and which seemed to make no sense at all).
Walter Smith used a really nice make of Candy Factory to change oatmeal into M&Ms. Jerry Tupper was next with a spelling trick, involving True and False. He then had a handful of colored loops link into a chain and then blend into one giant, multicolored loop. He then told a very detailed story of a love affair that lasted a lifetime in which a chunk of brass and some colored silks were repeatedly placed in and out of a cabinet and eventually turned into a large tie-dye silk and a brass bell… that rang.
Michael Baker attempted to follow this by teaching a card jumping from a hat, and then did a kid show presentation of 20th Century Silks for a roomful of faux children. Yort finished the magic session by having a pair of cards vanish from the deck and appearing in Walter Smith’s pockets.
March 2023 Report
The March meeting began with President Rodney Nordstrom opening discussions regarding various business topics. These included the Riverfront Market, where the members will perform on the 1st and 3rd Saturdays through the summer, the upcoming banquet in April, the HOI Fair in July, and upcoming conventions such as Abracorndabra in May, and CIMGT in June.
We then introduced ourselves to our guests, a mom and dad with two young sons. The older son, JT performed his first trick in front of our group. He was given a lot of praise and encouragement.
Michael Baker enlisted JT’s help with an impromptu salt shaker through the table. Ian Munk succeeded in finding a selected card, and Walter Smith had a pair of Jacks finding another pair of Jacks.
Yort made a silk scarf disappear and end up in someone’s sleeve. He then made a quantity of salt disappear and reappear magically. Rodney Nordstrom was able to determine which hand held a quarter. Jim Cox then performed Chris Smith’s Ignition, a key through bill effect.
Gambit performed Art Attack, a really cool puzzle-type trick with a surprise ending. Phil Raso was able to correctly predict which coin a spectator would select. Michael Baker showed an optical illusion with a couple of coiled wires.
Yort found a playing card that appeared stuck to his forehead. Finally, Gambit performed Extreme Trilogy.
The rest of the meeting was devoted to fun magic discussion.
Statement from the Incoming President
I am proud to take over as this year’s President of the PMA Chapter, Ring 48 - THE HAROLD MARTIN RING. My special thanks to outgoing President “Phenomenal” Phil Raso and his leadership team for an exciting and magical 2022. They have set the stage for an even better, more productive year at our club.
First, we again will be performing at the Heart of Illinois Fair. This will be our eighth year performing there. This past year's turnout at the Fair was exceptional and we performed magic for many visitors. Stay tuned as we further expand and announce this year’s event.
I am also pleased to announce that this year will be our tenth year performing at the Peoria Riverfront Marketplace throughout the summer. We perform there every other Saturday morning and if you haven’t attended this event, you should make sure to come down this year because it is really worth it.
Our banquet will be on April 22, 2023, at Fairview Farms which is rapidly approaching. Our featured master comedy magicians this year are award-winning Jesus Rios from Iowa and Chris Bontjes, past President of the Society of American Magicians.
2023 will prove to be an extraordinarily strong year for our club. Many new things are in the hopper. We will be sure to update you as we add more exciting events to our upcoming season.
Rodney "D'Nordo" Nordstrom
November 2022
Early in November the Peoria Magicians hosted a fine lecture by Dan Fleshman, a very seasoned restaurant worker whose name speaks for itself. Dan showed a number of routines he uses in his own work and explained the inner work from years in this field. Thanks Dan!
The November meeting began with a discussion of the Magic Gathering we held in October. Many items were discussed regarding what went right and what we hope to improve. The consensus is that we’d like to do this again next year. So, consider plans already underway.
PMA prodigal son, Daniel Houston appeared like magic following an absence of more than a decade. Welcome back Daniel!
Next on the agenda was to begin discussions of plans for the club for 2023. This included agreeing to have the annual banquet in April, rather than in the winter as we usually do. This will hopefully help us avoid inclimate weather that has caused us scheduling problems in previous years.
We also decided on the new board of officers for 2023. This will be Rodney Nordstrom, President; Troy Keefer (Yort), V.P.; Jay Zentko, Treasurer; Michael Baker, Secretary. Phil Raso will remain on the board as Past President.
On to the magic for the night with a theme to coincide with Thanksgiving: “Tricks that might be turkeys, improved with good dressing”.
Michael Baker began by showing a simple Cut & Restored Rope and then repeated the same trick with a hopefully more entertaining presentation. Yort showed his rendition of “Now Look Here”, by Chad Long. The control of attention helps make this an entertaining routine. He then showed Hot Rod.
Greg Joyce discussed creating magic with found objects. He had clever ideas with avariety of things, some of which can be found at the dollar store.
Jerry Tupper introduced us to Merlock the Turkey Dog. He then showed an original routine involving scarves in a clear tube changing into a long streamer and a Thanksgiving Blendo finish.
Phil Raso demonstrated a solid version of Chicago Opener, a routine that he has obviously honed over the years.
The rest of the evening was devoted to magic talk and well wishes for everyone’s upcoming turkey feast.
October 2022
It all begins with an idea.
October was a busy month for the Peoria Magicians. Our regular meeting was dedicated to Spooky Magic. Jerry Tupper showed us a Ghost Card, an invisible bat that escaped a box and wreaked havoc until he was trapped under a scarf and returned to the box, and a Spirit Frame. Michael Baker told a story of Dracula vs Van Helsing as Dracula disappeared in a flash of fire.
Jay Zentko had a mind-reading card and Gambit did spectral Touch and discussed the razor blade trick he performed at a recent freakshow event in Wisconsin.
The remainder of the meeting was dedicated to the final planning of The Peoria Magic Gathering held at Expo Gardens the following weekend. The Magic Gathering was an idea we had to add on to our planned public show. What this was, was a day-long event with a magic flea market, lectures, and close-up shows. All daytime events were 100% free to any and all magicians. We had asked that the other clubs in the area to have one representative performer to be on one of the shows. We had great performances from Peoria, Champaign, Springfield, the Quad Cities, and Chicago.
Many people participated in the flea market as both sellers and buyers. Following this, Andy Dallas gave a superb lecture based on his years of performing experience. Next up was S.A.M. President-elect John Sturk who gave a great talk on the S.A.M., and then did some wonderful close-up magic which transitioned into a mini-lecture. Many thanks to all the performers who adjusted to fit our last-minute schedule changes. It’s a pleasure working with real pros.
Next was a close-up show featuring Michael Baker, Yort, Mark Yeager, and Jesse James, Miller.
The event was well represented by both I.B.M. and S.A.M. There were two Past National Presidents of S.A.M., Andy Dallas, and Christopher Bontjes, along with incoming President John Sturk. From the I.B.M., Past International President Don Weiberg and his wife attended.
Following a dinner break, there was a public stage show. For this, we asked for a $10. Ticket donation. Kids under 12 were free. There were several magicians entertaining the crowd pre-show with close-up magic. The show featured Jay Zentko as MC, Mark Yeager, Yort, D’Nordo, John Sturk, Jerry Tupper, Grant Golden, and Andy Dallas. It was a fine show and a few hundred people turned out.
Behind the scenes were Todd Rodewald with Rodewald Sound & Lighting, Terry Grawey manning the follow spot, Rebecca Zentko operating the ticket booth and concessions, and Michael Baker as stage manager. Jill Yeager, Rob Thompson, and Dave Matrisch took many photos from a variety of angles, Jeff Harpring aided in the cleanup afterward. I know there were others helping, and I apologize for overlooking names.
In the end, it was considered a success and we will likely do this again next year. We made a small profit, which will help fund the Dan Fleshman lecture on November 7th.
Michael Baker