Ron MacMillan (September 20, 1932-January 26, 2005) died on Jan. 26 at the age of 72. MacMillan was considered to be one of the first and best manipulators to ever come out of England. In 1957 he won the British Shield competition and in 1961 he took second place in the Manipulation category at FISM. His extremely difficult routines with coins and billiard balls were published in his two books "Symphony Of The Spheres" and "Modern Art Of Coin Manipulation." In 1991 he released a lecture video where he taught his entire act. But more than just a magician MacMillan was a central figure in magic and cultivated the magic scene in London. The magic shop he established in 1962 and his International Magic Convention, which will be celebrating it's 35th anniversary this year, have both helped introduce magicians from around the world to British audiences and jump start the careers of many magicians. He was perhaps the most loved and respected man in magic.(1/27)

Mike Bornstein (Isaak Meyer Bornstein -- April 28, 1921-January 20, 2005) died on Jan. 20 at the age of 83. Bornstein was a very popular nightclub performer in the 1940s where he presented a manipulative act using the stage name "Kolma." He is best known today as the inventor of many routines using paper money. In addition to being a manufacturer, creator, lecture and performer he was an active supporter of both IBM and SAM organizations in New York City where he was the first person to welcome and befriend new members and guests -- many of which now consider him their mentor. His most popular creation was the "Floating Dollar Bill."(1/26)

Daryl is profiled in an Auburn Journal story that reported, "An awed audience and the looks of amazement are what the 49-year-old Auburn resident said have driven him to a love of magic and a professional career that has spanned a lifetime, taking him to more than 25 countries around the globe." To read the Jan. 9 article by Ryan Sabalow titled "Bringing a little magic to Auburn" click: HERE.(1/26)

Johnny Carson (John William Carson, October 23, 1925-January 23, 2005) died on Sunday Jan. 23 at the age of 79. Carson who started out as a magician and continued to perform close-up magic throughout his life was instrumental in putting magicians on television for 30-years. A New York Times story reported, "When he was 12 years old, he read 'Hoffmann's Book of Magic' and liked it so much that he sent away for a mail-order magic kit. All his energies immediately went to mastering card tricks and other feats of prestidigitation."(1/26)
--To read the Jan. 23 New York Times article by Richard Severo and Bill Carter titled "Late-night king dies" click: HERE.(1/26)

George Schindler's Comedy & Magic show will appear for one night only on Feb. 2 at 8:30pm at the Lake Club (1150 Clove Road) in Staten Island, New York. Joining Schindler on the bill are Jeff Michaels, Danny Allen and Nina Schindler. A dinner package is available. For more information phone: 718-442-3600.(1/26)

Nathan Burton who is one of the finalists in Wayne Newton's "The Entertainer" on E!-TV will be doing a stunt/parody which will begin on Mar. 9. He plans on being suspended outside the Aladdin Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas in a glass enclosure -- the twist? -- he will be joined in the box by seven showgirls. The stunt will last through the 15th when the box will be transported to Hollywood to be opened in front of a live television audience.(1/26)

Edward Norton has been cast to star in the new Neil Burger movie "The Illusionist." The movie is an adaptation of Steven Millhauser's "Eisenheim the Illusionist." Filming will begin this April in Prague. To read the Jan. 17 Film Stew article by Mark Umbach titled "Norton Casts Spell" click: HERE.(1/26)

Stars Of Magic IV starring Gazzo, Doc Murdock, Gino Mozzarella, and the Dream Masterz will run for two nights on Feb. 11-12 at the Theatre of Dreams in Castle Rock, Colorado. Seats are limited. For more information phone: 303-660-6799.(1/26)

Ricky Jay's new exhibit at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco will run through April 3. Titled "Extraordinary Exhibitions: Broadsides From the Collection of Ricky Jay" it features programs and advertisements of unique performers from the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. A San Francisco Chronicle article reported about the opening, "Jay entertained a packed house during a City Arts & Lectures appearance Thursday night, and hinted during an interview that he would love to bring his card-trick-themed 'On the Stem' production to San Francisco. His favorite printer, Patrick Reagh, lives in the area, as does Persi Diaconis -- a Stanford statistics professor and sleight-of-hand icon with a career path as strange as Jay's." To read the Jan. 24 article by Peter Hartlaub titled "Oddballs, magicians, freaks haunt Ricky Jay's handbill history" click: HERE.(1/26)

Gerry Griffin and his new dinner theater, "Club 52" in Martinez, California are featured in a Contra Costa Times article that reported, "…if it all works out, Griffin's downtown Martinez magic nightclub will be more than perfect; it'll be the realization of a lifelong dream -- a place to perform, with other magicians and mystery acts, without going far from home." To read the Jan. 20 article by Pat Craig titled "Magic is served: Nightclub serves sleight of hand with tri-tip" click: HERE.(1/26-Subscription)

James Swain will be releasing his fifth Tony Valentine novel on March 1. The new book is titled "Mr. Lucky : A Novel of High Stakes." To coincide with the book's release Swain will be doing a book tour through April 30 at select bookstores in Florida, Tennessee, Colorado, Arizona, California and New York. Swain usually performs magic and demonstrates gambling scams and techniques during his appearances. For a complete list of tour dates click: HERE.(1/26)
--To pre-order the book click: HERE.(1/26)

Murray Hatfield's "Illusions Magic 'n Miracles" show is the subject of a Calgary Sun article that quotes Hatfield, "I designed this show for people that hate magic. By that I mean, everyone has experienced a bad magician in their lifetime. At my show people don't expect what they get." Also mentioned were Dan Sperry, Oscar Munoz, and Paul Romhany. To read the Jan. 12 article by Andrea Radke titled "Local magician reappears in town" click: HERE.(1/26)

Smoking bans and their effect on magic shows is the subject of a Guardian article that reported, "Earlier this week, [Tony] Binarelli urged health minister Girolamo Sirchia to follow the model adopted in the US and issue magicians a licence for the 'theatrical use of cigarettes.'" To read the Jan. 17 article by Sophie Arie titled "Magicians find giving up smoking tricky" click: HERE.(1/26-Subscription)

Rick Thomas' contract at the Tropicana in Las Vegas will be up in April and his future plans are up in the air. A Las Vegas Sun article reported about a rumor that has Thomas, "moving his popular afternoon show from the Tropicana to the Stardust this year." Although no decisions have been made Thomas does have many options open to him. To read the Jan. 7 article by Jerry Fink titled "Magical Mystery Tour" click: HERE.(1/26)

Allan Lee, George Wong, Allen Leong are featured in a Malaysia Star article that reported "The trio really know how to keep an audience entertained. Sometimes, one of them may slip up but by humouring their audience the mistake is quickly forgotten. Perhaps that is one reason why there is a steady crowd of onlookers surrounding the stall from the moment it opens at 4.30pm to closing time at 11pm." To read the Jan. 14 article by Grace Chen titled "Salesmen with the aim to put magic in your life" click: HERE.(1/26)

Johnny Garcia is profiled in a Brownsville Herald story that quotes him on the type of magic he likes, "Rather than performing on a stage, the magicians do their card tricks in front of a few individuals at a time, giving them the opportunity to inspect the cards and see the action 'close-up.'" The article also mentions Oscar Muñoz. To read the Jan. 16 article by Jeannie Floyd titled "Magic Man" click: HERE.(1/26)

Paul Hevey who hosts IBM Ring #166 at his home is profiled in a Union Leader story that reported, "He's 82, but he still cuts hair on Saturdays at Normand's Family Hair Care on the West Side and he still volunteers at the Elliot Hospital. He's still active with the Knights of Columbus and he still hosts prayer meetings at his home on Tuesday nights and when it comes to magic, he's still learning, teaching and performing." The article also quotes Father Cyprian. To read the Jan. 10 article by John Clayton titled "At Hevey's house, there's magic in the air" click: HERE.(1/26)

Dave Denney is profiled in The Union where they report, "Denney sees magic as a performance art, where your mind views the impossible… 'Whether it sends me off to dreamland or not, you're no longer thinking how the magician did it, you're just enjoying what you see,' he said." To read the Jan. 17 article by David Mirhadi titled "Keys to a secret world - Illusionists offer advice for budding magicians" click: HERE.(1/26)

Penn Jillette's latest writing project is a collaboration with Steven Banks on a play titled "Love Tapes" which runs at the Sacred Fools Theatre in Hollywood through Feb. 20. To read the Jan. 21 Back Stage article by Terry Morgan titled "Caught on Film" click: HERE.(1/26)

A Guardian article reported that "Fluorescent clothing was invented by an amateur magician to protect GIs from friendly fire during the second world war." To read the Jan. 15 article titled "Now you see them..." click: HERE.(1/26)