Assembly11.com - Club News

Message from our President

SAM Assembly 11has done a lot this year. We have tried to keep our lectures educational and really not for just collectors of secrets. Only paid up members may attend lectures. I think this year has been a lot of fun and a lot of learning for the advanced performer. Membership is up some, a little more money in the bank, and for most I believe we have had a good time without raising dues.

$18.00 dollars a year dues might be too low when you consider that the IBM dues are $35.00. Maybe the dues might have to be raised. Compare the two national magazines -- I think our local club is a buy. If however you are in a position to belong to both you will see a lot of magic. Both clubs have their advantages. The SAM in the past has always been the next step up the ladder for the professional or semi-professional who supplements their income by doing magic. I understand the SAM national headquarters may be put in Louisville. That would be great for all of our local members.

I have had a fun year. Have you visited YouTube and seen yourself? I really liked the presentations, it is surprising the quality of the magic we have in our SAM organization. We should concentrate on having a public show soon.

Chuck Sunshine (he goes by this but not the correct spelling) has won the the Large Trophy "Magician of the Year" and will be the first to be engraved and kept at Haines House of Cards along with the "War of the Wizard" trophies that have been recovered. I hope the "Magician of the Month" continues -- this was Leland Penningtons idea and has been a lot of fun. Thanks Leland our New assembly Vice President

Our next meeting, Friday June 11, "Magician of the Month" (MoM) theme will be Do Your Favorite Trick. That's right...do what you want to do. You can still win a trophy.

I want to thank all the members who have participated in our meeting especially my hat is off to Jeff Brown for putting together the Childrens Hospital visits and John Martini, our new Secretary for filling in and becoming the reporter of our magazine, MUM. Also Patrick Themes, for his advice, Chuck Sunshine, Scott Meyers and Richard Lowenberg for volunteering to win for the Assembly the combined SAM/IBM "War of The Wizards", Sean Ownes for YouTube postings of our MoM performances and helping Bill Brewe and myself on many occasions. And of course to the persons of magic that makes it happen in Cincinnati and are known all over the world: Betty and Bill Winzig of Haines House of Cards. Without them their would be little magic in Cincinnati. I haven't forgotten you Arty Kidwell, you are from Kentucky and take care of the southern region.<grin> Gosh just too many to mention.

Thanks all for giving an old man the opportunity to lead something I love with all my heart. Let's continue to move forwarded and have another great year for our assembly!

-- Ken Klosterman

A Haunting at Mason After Prom

Member Brahm Corstanje was a featured performer at this year's Mason High School After Prom event. Click for an article on his involvement with the event.

OperaCadabra 2010 - Cedarville, OH

OperaCadabra is back, to benefit the historic Cedarville Opera House and the Riding Centre of Yellow Springs, Ohio. This year's production will feature Charlie Frye & Company, David Williamson, and John Ekin. Show dates and times are: Saturday April 17, 2010 at 2pm and 7:30pm. Click here for details.

A Wiki for the Wizards - MagicPedia

Check out MagicPedia, a free online encyclopedia for magicians by magicians, dedicated to the techniques and history of magic. MagicPedia is sponsored by Genii, The Conjuror's Magazine. You might be surprised by how close to home some of the entries are! For example: RH, KK, TH1.

Richard Osterlind at The Magic Shop - Jan. 12

On Tuesday January 12 starting at 6 PM, Richard Osterlind will be making a personal appearance with some of his unique items, at The Magic Shop in Covington, Kentucky.

The Magic Shop will also be holding a sale of L&L DVDs during this event (up to 60% off retail). This is a first come first served sale, no advanced sales.

Also, certain items in the shop will be drastically reduced, for example, a mirror box that includes a spring racoon with instructional DVD, normally $125, will go for $95.

-- Artie C. Kidwell, The Magic Shop

Daytona Magic Dealer Lecture at Haines - Dec. 2

On Wednesday, Dec. 2 at 6:00pm, Haines House of Cards will host Harry Allen of Daytona Magic. Harry will present his wildly popular and funny dealer lecture.

Magican of the Month

Starting with our January 8, 2010 meeting, we will be holding a monthly "Magician of the Month" contest. All members, including guests, are invited to participate. The participant will perform any effect they desire, that is in keeping with that month's contest theme (e.g., rope, liquid, money, paper, etc.). January's theme is "a production of anything you wish by any method". The performance will be judged by the members present. The winner will receive the honorary title of "Magician of the Month". The magician who wins the most of these contests during the year, will receive a trophy at the end of the year acknowledging him/her as SAM Assembly 11 Magician of the Year.

Annual Haunt

It's that time again when Count Marco (a.ka., member Marc Wiechman) manifests his "Haunted Castle" for one weekend only, Oct. 29, 30 and 31. This event is open evenings and free to the public. This is one of the most elaborate Halloween yard (and front porch, and garage) displays in the Cincinnati area! 6791 Marvin Ave., Cincinnati, OH (North College Hill). Get your ghost on, and come out for a hauntingly good time!

Abra-Kidabra - 2nd Audition Session

The next date for auditions for the below mentioned CNLCC Abr-kidabra production, will be at Haines will be 6pm Tuesday, October 20, at Haines House of Cards. To schedule an audition time, please contact: David Girmann (email; or phone: 513.237.4696). Audition priority will be given on a first-come, first-served basis. Calls and emails will be returned as promptly as possible. Please note, no flame or sparks of any nature included in the acts.

Local Member Takes Local Stage...Again

Member Brahm Corstanje will be appearing as "Mr. DePinna" in Lebanon Theatre Company's production of You Can't Take it with You. Show dates are October 2, 3, 4, 9, 10 and 11.

Abra-Kidabra - Auditioning for a Few Great Magicians

The Cincinnati and Norwood Learning Centers for Children ("CNLCC") is looking for area magicians interested in performing their top acts in the Abra-Kidabra production, detailed below. On Saturday, September 19, at Haines House of Cards, CNLCC will be auditioning magicians interested in participating in the event and gaining recognition for their art. Performances should be appropriate to an 800 seat theatre. Additionally, magicians will be expected to perform for approximately ten minutes and are asked to have available a brief outline (with a brief description of each routine) of the act they would like to present at the show. The goal is to have three acts that flow well together for a night to be remembered, not have three different magicians performing the linking rings on the night of the performance. Depending on results of the audition, CNLCC expects to take the top five performers to the theater for further work in the coming months.

To schedule an audition time, please contact: David Girmann (email; or phone: 513.237.4696). Audition priority will be given on a first-come, first-served basis. Calls and emails will be returned as promptly as possible. Because of the age of the theatre, there can be no flame or sparks of any nature included in the acts.

CNLCC is looking to host Abra-Kidabra, a Night of Magic on Saturday, May 08, 2010. We are looking for Cincinnati's best Wizards to help share their magic! This event will be the first of what is planned to be an annual event showcasing Cincinnati's top magical talent. The venue for the event will be the Cincinnati Masonic Center, located next to the Taft Theatre in downtown Cincinnati. We are looking for three performers, to perform their "family friendly routines" with each performer having about thirty-five minutes of stage time.

Performance in the 800 seat Scottish Rite Cathedral on Saturday, May 08, 2010 at 7:30 PM. Three varied performances (all routines must be family friendly). Ticket prices are expected to be in the $10-$20 range to promote a family friendly event. Performance held in a professional theatre.

Benefits to local area magicians include: Showcase and promote top local magicians: to schools, families, companies and organizations. Provide a large venue in which to perform. Provide promotional opportunities and collateral to performing magicians. Provide a monetary payment to the performing magicians. Opportunity for local magicians to hone their skills and compete with their fellow Wizards!

Because this will be a new event, CNLCC's goal for this event is to generate a great deal of publicity for the event and for the performing magicians. CNLCC is also looking to grow this event so that not only is it held annually, but also so CNLCC can move the event to the Taft (2,200 seat theatre also owned by the Scottish Rite). CNLCC realizes that a minimum goal for the first year is not to lose money. Additionally, CNLCC is looking to pair this show with another early fall event. An event that is currently in its second year in Cincinnati and will be held on September 12 at the CMC (singer, impersonator and story teller: Tony Pace). Expect publicity to explode!

Message from Our President Elect - 8/25/2009

Compeers,

As a few of you know I will be President of SAM Assembly 11 this year. If you are not a member of the Assembly 11 you might care to join for something different in magic and a new exciting year.

As elected President, I hope to better the communication to our local members. With the exception of our web site, I was not reminded of the picnic at Lake Isabelle and since it had for over 20 years been held at Langsem Farm on Fathers day (which was recently changed) I forgot about the picnic, as I'm sure many of you did as well. For those that did go, I hope you had a wonder full time.

As mentioned we will have 3 lectures this year. Richard Osterlind. John Gaughan, and the third is not yet determined. These will be for members only and no charge. The September 11 lecture will be Richard Osterlind who has committed to offering material I feel sure will be some of the best items in mental magic you have ever seen. I intented to continue our long estabished practice of holding our meetings on the second Friday of the Month. I will suggest to have lecturers who will provide teaching/learning lectures and not necessarily a dealers demonstrations.

Anyone who has something unique or interesting that you feel would be a delight for the membership, please bring it to my attention and I will bounce it off the Board and see what we can do. All invited guests or guests who wish to join our club must have qualifications of past performances, or be reasonalby knowledgeable of the art of magic. For example, performers, authors, collectors, historians etc. Note: guests are not invited to nights that Assembly 11 is hosting a lecture. However, if you are a SAM member and have not paid your local Assembly 11 dues, you may pay at the door on proof that you are a paid national member.

Please, if you know of any new members whose emails I do not have, let me know.

I will see that a snail male announcement before the Sept. meeting is in your hands. We must remember some members are not as efficient as many of you at a computer.

I shall repeat, lectures of our local Assembly 11 will be free to members only. Non members are not invited. Sooo, pay your dues NOW!!!! so you do not miss some great things coming our Assembly's way.

Ken Klosterman

President Elect of the Society of American Magicians

Message from Our President Elect - 7/18/2009

I wish to make our SAM Assembly 11 a quality organization with people who can perform magic and contribute to the history of magic. It is a tough thing to do in such a short time of one year. I will try to make it important to belong to our Assembly, not just to see dealer demonstrations, but to find ways of improving our performances and gaining knowledge of the profession.

My plan is to have 3 quality lectures a year, no charge for members of the Assembly, and no guests. If you wish to see the lecture you must be a member in good standing with Assembly 11. It is also planned that the present Members do a 10 minutes act or recital of the history of Magic in front of the other members who will judge them as to their quality and performance ability. By doing this, I hope to determine if we have magicians who are capable of being in our organization and/or performing in a show for the public in 2010.

There is hoped to be a scheduled Photo Shoot of the members who wish to participate at very reduced prices. A drawing for some free sessions will be paid by the Assembly.

Each meeting will be preceded by a business meeting not to last more than 15 minutes. This will be timed and cut off at the 15 minutes dead line.

Our first scheduled lectured will be Richard Osterlind. This lecture will be free to paid members and is Scheduled for September 11 at Haines House of Cards.

In addition, all meetings will be held on the 2nd Friday of the month. Change of place, if necessary, will be announced via the Next Meeting page of this website, and by snail mail. Everyone will receive a meeting announcement by snail mailing.

Hopefully we will be able to participate with another club via a buss ride for the group.

I look forward to beginning my Assembly 11 Presidency in September and providing the direction to give our Assembly Membership the tools and skills, to make one of the oldest Assemblies, one of the best...and lead our Assembly into a proud future.

Other ideas are always welcome. Member Patrick Thernes has kindly volunteered to be my appointed Assistant to the President along with assisting the rest of our Board, helping us to provide interesting and enlightening meetings for all of our members.

Looking forward to seeing the entire Assembly 11 Membership at the September 11th Meeting.

Hate to spring this on you but Dues are due!!

Ken Klosterman

President Elect, SAM Assembly 11

Local Member Takes Local Stage

Member Brahm Corstanje recently appeared as "Leslie Bainbridge" in Lebanon Theatre Company's production of the British farce, Taking Steps. Show dates were June 5-7 and 12-13.

Pryor Press

Member Bill Pryor recently received some press in a local community paper. Click to view "Magician Still Wows After 60 Years".

Garrote Escapes

Local magician and escape artist (and soon to be new member of Assembly 11??) Steve Mollett, has abook on the market sold by Cannon's Great Escapes: Garrote Escapes. Steve has been active in magic for over 37 years and has performed for night clubs, comedy clubs, local TV, county fairs, shopping malls, bookstores, business banquets, theatre shows, outdoor events, busking, office parties and psychic parties. His primary field is escapology, with sideshow stunts, mentalism and bizarrism running closely behind. His wife, Andrea, is a tarot reader.

Steve has also written articles for two escapology publications: "Escapism" and "The Escapist's Newsletter." Garrote Escapes is his first book; others are in the works.

Steve's day job is technical writing. His other interests include Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA), figure kit collecting, building and customizing, collecting restraints, collecting Iron Maiden memoribilia (the device; not the band) and collecting old and obscure horror films.

Steve was a member of the Counts of Conjuring in the 1970's.

This Page Won't Write Itself

Brief bios and current happenings of any actual members of Assembly 11 are also always welcome for posting to this page. If you would like to post such a bio and/or have any other local magic and/or club related news that you would like to see posted on this site, please send your write up to Assembly11@Assembly11.com, and include the subject header "Assembly 11 News" in your message.

Last updated May 29, 2010 11:07 AM

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