"Marc Salem Mind Games on Broadway" is the latest of Salem's New York City productions. The new show begins on Monday May 17 and officially opens on May 24. It will run every Monday at the prestigious Lyceum Theatre (149 West 45th Street). A New York Times article reported, "Mr. Salem has been telling audiences what's in their heads for years, and on Monday he takes his popular act to the Great White Way in 'Marc Salem's Mind Games on Broadway.'" The show will be dark on a few dates as he will be appearing in Singapore for a week in June and in London for three weeks in July/August. Tickets are $56.25 per person and are available from Telecharge.(5/17)
--To read the May 14 Playbill article by Andrew Gans and David Lefkowitz titled "Marc Salem to Bring Mind Games to Broadway" click: HERE.(5/17)
--To read the May 14 New York Times article by Jason Zinoman titled "No Type-Casting" click: HERE.(5/17)

Pax TV announced a new magic series for their new 2004-05 season. The show is to be called "The Magician" and is described as, "a one-hour series showcasing the David Copperfields of the world vying for their opportunity to headline at the legendary Magic Castle in Hollywood, the exclusive 'magicians only' club… Upon completion of the performance in which each magician fulfills a trick from a different magical genre, judges will critique them according to the technical difficulty, originality, and presentation." To read the May 11 press release titled "Expect the Unexpected on PAX TV in the 2004-2005 Television Season" click: HERE.(5/17)

Bob White will be making a rare east coast appearance when he will be presenting a one-day seminar on Jun. 19 at 10am-4pm at the Villa Maria Education Center (161 Sky Meadow Dr.) in Stamford, Connecticut. White will be teaching his system of "managing sleights and techniques in a natural uniform manner... His methods make these principles more natural and deceptive to any audience and can be easily learned by any serious student of magic." Admission to the seminar is very limited and the cost is $100 per person which includes the necessary sets of lecture notes. For more information or reservations e-mail: Thomas Gaudette at: tagaudette@snet.net or Eric DeCamps at: jonramsay@aol.com.(5/17)

Steve Wheeler's "Magic on Ice" opens on May 14 at the SandCastle in Tumon, Guam where he will be adding tigers to the new show. It will be replacing the long running "Fantastique" which featured Tim Kole.(5/17)

Marisa Carnesky's "Ghost Train" which features illusions designed by Paul Kieve is the subject of a Financial Times article that reported, "The magic in the show will be provided by Paul Kieve, the master illusionist whose work includes the next Harry Potter film. Traditional tricks - optical illusions, changes in the light - explore the characters' experiences of dislocation." The Guardian reported that the train will hold "Audiences of up to 20 at a time will be loaded into the carriages of a specially built ghost train, modeled on 19th-century versions of the fairground ride, and sent around a track. Along the way they will glimpse a series of hauntings - live performance installations that draw heavily on the Victorian tradition of the magic show, the séance and the earliest silent films."(5/17)
--To read the May 4 Guardian article by Lyn Gardner titled "Smoke and mirrors" click: HERE.(5/17)
--To read the May 13 article by Sarah Hemming titled "Performance art: The thrill of grand illusion" click: HERE.(5/17)

David Corsaro will be presenting a one-hour show on Friday May 28 at 10pm at the Riddles Bar & Grill (300 Wanaque Avenue) in Pompton Lakes, New Jersey. The $5 cover charge will be donated to the American Cancer Society in memory of Andrew Jobbagy.(5/17)

David Copperfield's tour through Asia is reported in a Korea Times article that described him as, "Anybody who has ever laid eyes on Copperfield has probably noticed the twinkle in his eyes when he talks of his one passion in life, magic." Asked about teaching his magic to someone Copperfield said, "If someone were to be inspired by my magic to do something new, that’s great but I think my magic should die with me." A Korea Herald article reported, "Illusions have never been so believable until you experience a live Copperfield performance."(5/17)
--To read the May 10 Korea Times article by Han Eun-jung titled "'Master of Grand Illusion' to Perform in Seoul" click: HERE.(5/17)
--To read the May 12 Korea Herald article by Iris Moon titled "Copperfield dazzles with magic, illusions" click: HERE.(5/17)
--To read the May 13 Shanghai Daily article by Guo Feifei titled "His magic kingdom" click: HERE.(5/17)

Mark Kalin and Jinger Leigh's new show and venue the "Magic Underground" is featured in a Reno Gazette-Journal article that quoted Kalin, "We are borrowing from 100 years ago where theaters of magic and illusion were, if not commonplace, at least around… Great magicians of the day would create these theaters of wonder, these environments where only magicians perform. They could set the mood and create the environment most conducive to magic." The article also reported that "The resident house magician, Jacques Simard, entertains the crowd with close-up magic. And, if all goes right, the new Parlor of Mystery -- designed exclusively for close-up magicians -- will open by May 20." To read the May 16 article by Neil Baron titled "Mind-blowing illusions at Magic Underground" click: HERE.(5/17)

The overnight ratings for Gerry McCambridge's "The Mentalist" received a rating of 2.1 with a 6 share of adults 18-49. Approximately 6.19 million viewers watched the show. The show also received a mixed reception from reviewers. A Hollywood Reporter review concluded, "McCambridge is affable, entertaining and good with audiences. He leaves his audiences smiling -- and none of the mind-reading revelations is embarrassing or humiliating. That's a good thing." The New York Times reported, "Tonight Gerry McCambridge appears on NBC trying to do for mentalism, a practice comprising mind-reading and forms of hypnosis, what Mr. Blaine has done for illusions."(5/17)
--To read the May 11 Hollywood Reporter review by Michael R. Farkash titled "The Mentalist" click: HERE.(5/17)
--To read the May 12 New York Times review by Virginia Heffernan titled "Here to Amuse You, Right on This Very Screen" click: HERE.(5/17)
--To read the May 12 Newsday article by Noel Holston titled "Hosting a TV special is all in the head" click: HERE.(5/17)
--To read the May 12 Chicago Tribune review by Steve Johnson titled "Mentalist won't put you in a party mood" click: HERE.(5/17)

Vince Carmen and Yvonne present "It's Magic" at Houdini's Showplace at the Quay in Sarasota, Florida. The family show is featured in a Bradenton Herald article that reported, "The show features all types of magic - anticipation, levitation, disappearances, the elastic-lady stretch, two girls coming out of a box the size of a suitcase, escape, the Great London Spirit Séance, sleight-of-hand, poltergeists and a tribute to Harry Houdini." To read the May 14 article by Donna Hartman titled "'It's Magic' starts run at Houdini's Showplace" click: HERE.(5/17)

Derren Brown who will be opening at the Palace Theatre at the West End in London on Jun. 7 for a limited run is the subject of an article in The Sun where they are promoting a live web chat with Brown. To read the May 14 article by Simon Rothstein titled "Magic up a poser for Derren" click: HERE.(5/17)

MICHIGAN: Michigan Magic Day 2004 takes place on May 21-23 in Kalamazoo. Featured performers include: Jerry Andrus, Allan Ackerman, Gene Anderson, Stephen Bargatze, Todd Charles, Chuck King, Garrett Thomas, Mike Powers, Rick Merril, Kenn Capman, and Antony Gerard. For more information click: HERE.(5/17)

The 36th Annual Academy of Magical Arts awards banquet is mentioned in a Las Vegas Sun article that reported, "The evening was a tribute to Roy Horn, and when Fischbacher came out to accept the honor, [the crowd] responded with a standing ovation that ran several minutes… The show also featured Harrah's headliner Mac King, who received the 2003 Magician of the Year award, and the first major onstage appearance of Gay Blackstone since the death of her husband, Harry Blackstone Jr., in 1997. She performed the Blackstone Floating Light Bulb Illusion with S&R protégé Darren Romeo." To read the May 3 article by Timothy McDarrah titled "The Greatest KOs K-1 fight crowd" click: HERE.(5/17)

Erik Mana who will be launching his new television series, "Stranger," on Philippine television in June is featured in a Manila Times article that describes him as, "The 30-something balikbayan continues to amaze the common pedestrian with his endless card tricks, a one-second handshake that ends up in a vanishing watch (you’ll find it on his wrist, don't worry), and the 'think-of-any-word-but-don't-tell-me-' cause-I'll-tell-you' routine. As simple as the magic acts may sound to you right now, just wait until you bump into the guy at the sidewalk of some mall, and you’ll be bowled over." To read the May 17 article by Tessa C. Mauricio titled "Stranger about" click: HERE.(5/17)

Mark Bennick, who performs as the Prince Of Magic, is now appearing in the "Count the Cash" show at the Greek Isles in Las Vegas. A Las Vegas Sun article pointed out that he is, " to our knowledge the youngest magician professionally performing in Las Vegas. He is 18 years old… His first big gig was in the showroom at Fitzgeralds… We would not be surprised to see his name on his own Vegas showroom one day. To read the May 7 article by Timothy McDarrah titled "Stern warning: Howard on approach" click: HERE.(5/17)

Mac King tells about an odd experience during a show in a Las Vegas Review-Journal article, "King was five minutes into his comedy magic show, performing a rope trick with scissors, when he saw the tip of his thumb fly onto a table in the audience. For a few seconds, he thought it was a thumbnail, until blood started gushing. He tried to scotch tape it, to no avail." To read the May 2 article by Norm titled "Mirage benefit to honor star chef" click: HERE.(5/17)

VIRGINIA: George Schindler lectures on Monday May 24 at the Divine Magic Shop (5409 Lakeside Avenue) in Richmond. For more information phone: 804-262-4170.(5/17)

P.C. Sorcar's three-day workshop where he and his daughter Maneka will be teaching magic is featured in a Calcutta Telegraph article that reported, "Towards the end of this month, 50 lucky schoolchildren are set to find that out at Nehru Children's Museum, where magician P.C. Sorcar (junior) will share some tricks of the magical trade with them." The article also stated that "More magical stuff may be on the way soon. 'Rabindra Bharati University authorities have requested me to consider opening a course on magic,' Sorcar signed off." To read the May 14 article titled "Abracadabra in class" click: HERE.(5/17)

NEW YORK: Paul Cummins lectures on Monday May 24 at 7pm at Michael Canick Booksellers, L.L.C. (200 East 82nd Street, #3B) in New York City. For more information phone: 212-585-2990.(5/17)

Mhelly Bhumgara is featured in an Express India article that reported, "He aims to make it more than a past-time fun activity for children - 'I want it to be refined entertainment for adults. In fact, I've performed for 40 companies, school programmes, road shows and product launches.' What's unique is that Mhelly has given magic a new dimension by using magical effects created especially for a product or for corporate publicity using the brand image and the logo." To read the May 13 article by Preeti Raghunath titled "Magic in the air" click: HERE.(5/17)

NEW YORK: Richard Sanders lectures on Thursday May 27 at Ronjo's Magic & Costumes (1651 Rt. 112) in Port Jefferson Station. Admission is $15 per person. For more information phone: 631-928-5005.(5/17)

Matthew Dowden who started Dowden Marketing Magic is profiled in The Guardian where he is described as, "This enterprising graduate uses his own brand of close-up magic - card effects and mind-reading stunts - to boost the sales of companies he represents at product launches and trade shows." To read the May 8 article by Adeline Iziren titled "What happened next?" click: HERE.(5/17)