2012-04 Ring Report

President Craig Fennessey opened the meeting with the announcement that our March 10, auction had been a success with over 120 in attendance. He gave thanks to all who participated and a special 'Thank You' to Val and Bob Swadling and Robert Moreland for their Workshop and Lectures. Craig reported that Charlie Pfrogner was home recuperating from recent surgery and that Mary and Jack Kodell celebrated, with a few close friends, their 59th Wedding Anniversary.

Once again our Ring will be looking forward to the Fall with scheduled lectures by Dan Garrett and Paul Godon. October will also be time for the Great Genii Bash followed in November by the always popular Daytona Magic Convention. Dan Stapleton and Bev Bergeron noted that The Circus Fans of America were meeting in Deland this month and that The Cole Family Circus would be performing. Guests Merlin Oldham of Clarion County, Pa. and Seloua Caccioppa of Orlando were introduced. Mark Fitzgerald has been performing at the Hard Rock Cafe for five years and will continue along with a new gig at the Portofino Resort Hotel. Mark related that on a recent cruise in the Caribbean, he watched our own Fred Moore performing a magic act on shipboard. Dan Knapp informed the membership that Give Kids The World was taking a magic hiatus and that James Songster has been presenting his act together with Joe Vecciarelli at GKTW for twenty years. Craig Fennessey and Wallace Murphy are
also performing one night a week at Gator's Dockside in Ocoee. Joe Cappucino took over the Teach-In with an origami lesson in making a rabbit from a paper or linen napkin. He opened with a dyslexia routine that was as well received as the instructional lesson.

Master Magician Howard Thurston was the subject of Magic History Moment No. 38. Phil Schwartz took the Ring from Thurston's birth in Columbus, Ohio either to his death in 1936. He was born either in 1869 or '70 and through out his life he was a rather eccentric individual as well as a health food devotee. He learned some magic while selling his father's potato peelers and used the art as a means of increasing his sales. He first performed with playing cards but left Columbus to travel with side shows and circuses and eventually built a very large repertoire of magic. His shows involved many assistants and tons of equipment. Some of his illusions include the "Floating Ball", and "Creation-The Aquarium Mystery". In 1908, when another Master Magician Kellar retired, he passed the Mantle of Magic on to Thurston. Thurston died in California of a cerebral brain hemorrhage in 1936.

The Performance portion of the meeting was led off by Chuck Smith who with a tour Brochure Book, a volunteer, and a paper bag drew an image of an unknown page of the book, selected by the volunteer. It all made for a very entertaining performance. Joe Cappucino surprised everyone with a great rope tie escape. Up next was Sammy the Magician had a selected card cut and restored to a card rack. Wallace Murphy put his coins aside and demonstrated his card prowess with a Four Ace Production. Dan Stapleton brought out his Dominoes and predicted the total number of pips found in the last dominoes played by two audience volunteers. Mark Fitzgerald ended the evening with a spectacular coin and card matrix performed to perfection.


Sheldon Brook