The Ammar Magic Blog

Evan Tops-It

2011-07-19T06:55:00.000-07:00

Our son, Evan, graduated from Montessori school in June. I love it when he wears a suit. We still need to install a mini Topit in his coat. I know once he gets started with the Topit, he'll be just like his Dad was when he first discovered the power of the Topit - and make everything vanish. Actually...that concerns me a little bit.

Family Props

2011-07-17T07:46:00.000-07:00

This photo was taken by magician Chris Manos. My mom and I enjoyed talking with him and other friends at the final cocktail party in Dallas. My mom was such a tremendous help with the Spirit Cabinet. She not only helped us rehearse - and taught us everything she knows - but she helped by bringing up props for us (we used a few of her bells, table and chair). Having her at my side what such an important part of what made the show go well.

What magic is all about

2011-07-17T07:32:00.000-07:00

This was so cute. An aspiring magician walked with Michael over to the Majestic Theater in Dallas. My mom and I walked behind. We were charmed by the magic wand sticking of the boys pocket. She kept saying, "This is what magic is all about."

Spirit Cabinet Debut

2011-07-17T07:26:00.001-07:00

Whew! We made it past the "Legends of Magic" show at the IBM Convention in Dallas (July 2nd). On the bill were Jeff McBride, Frances Willard, Michael and Hannah Ammar, Walter & Becky Blaney, Tom Mullica, Johnny and Pam Thompson, Gay Blackstone and Darren Romeo. It was a lot of fun to be backstage with so many old friends! I'm also glad we got to go on early, so that I could relax and enjoy the rest of the show. What a beautifully produced show, and great convention! I especially enjoyed the video "Who's Gonna Fill Their Shoes" with custom produced lyrics. It was quite sentimental.

If I were to give one bit of advice...

2011-03-24T13:04:00.001-07:00

This is a response I gave Matlin's Magic blog asking for my turning point when learning magic and what one piece of advice I would give.

The first effect that really resonated with me was the one where you seem to rub a coin or small piece of paper into your arm. Showing it has vanished, you then produce it from your ear or elbow. The method, as I'm sure you know, is that you accidentally drop the coin and in picking it up, you simply fake putting into your other hand so it can seem to vanish.

I knew several typical card tricks up to that point, but I could tell something different was taking place here. Not only did this involve acting, but it also involved true sleight-of-hand.

This meant I had to practice a bit to get it right, but I felt so empowered knowing the reaction I was getting was because of something I did; not because they just didn't know how I had stacked the deck, or whatever.

Having to practice a little to learn that effect made me realize you can get an amazing reaction based purely on your own efforts. I decided to see what would happen if I put even more effort into something. Then I began to notice: the more effort I put into learning something, the better and more satisfying the response was.

Up until then I thought you had to be born a magician. This experience made me realize it was up to me; I could be as good as I decided I'd be; success wasn't a matter of divine intervention, luck, or whatever. It was an epiphany; It's up to me, if it is to be...

If I were to give just one tip to someone regarding magic, it would be to perform as often as possible, then reflect back on the performance to see how much data you can mine from the experience. I think you learn more from 1 live performance than you can from weeks of just thinking about it. So perform as often as possible. There's an old saying, "Everybody needs someplace to be bad." Find someplace that'll tolerate your evolution, then start to build intelligent experience.

30 years of The Topit

2011-02-25T08:38:00.001-08:00

We just published the new Topit Pattern this month. Upon reflecting on how it had changed over the years, I realized it's also been 30 years since I published the first one! Time flies!

Michael back from Nepal

2011-02-10T16:37:00.001-08:00

Michael has just returned from his trip to Nepal. He was consulting on a show for the Discovery Channel. He came back with so many great images and videos. What a fascinating place! It looks just like you would imagine. He will give more information later about this project.

Memorial for Glenn

2010-07-22T08:25:00.000-07:00

Glenn Falkenstein passed away on the 4th of July, 2010. Ironically we were in Hollywood when we got the sad news. It's impossible to be in LA and not think about Glenn. The Magic Castle (especially the Larsen family) were so great in quickly moving to prepare a memorial service for him in just a week. Lots of friends and family gathered in the Palace of Mystery to honor him on Sunday, July 11th. Frances was so grateful to have so many kind words and gestures from the magicians. The Magic Castle had just beautiful flowers for him, and kept them near the "broken wand" picture of Glenn in the entry all week (thanks Matt!). Thank you to all who sent their condolences. We appreciate it more than you know.

Hike behind the Magic Castle

2010-07-22T08:09:00.000-07:00

Right behind the Magic Castle is a big nature preserve. I never knew it - I guess I never had a reason to look for parks until this recent trip to Hollywood with the kids. It's called Runyan Canyon - and it's amazing to hike through it. You can quickly get a great view of LA. If you ever try it, just remember to take good tennis shoes and some water!

On the French Riviera

2010-06-14T11:34:00.001-07:00

Up close and personal

2010-06-02T11:28:00.001-07:00

One of the best things about the lecture tours is that Michael is able to work with people on a personal level. No matter how successful he gets, I think he's always going to enjoy the lecture tours, because he it keeps him close to the "grass-roots" of magic - and gives him a chance to see what others are doing and thinking about magic. He's been fortunate in his career to not only teach magic around the world, but have the world teach him too.

French Lecture

2010-06-02T11:24:00.000-07:00

It's always nice if they are standing up at the end of the lecture and not just at the beginning! Taken June 1, 2010 in France.

St. Etienne

2010-05-30T07:57:00.000-07:00

I just spoke to Michael this morning. He's having a great tour of France right now. He and Jeff are on the way to St. Etienne. If you are in the area, stop by and see him. Michael promised to send a photo - so I'll post it as soon as it gets here.

After the Letterman Show Video

2010-05-25T16:51:00.001-07:00

The Late Show Wahoo Gazette

2010-05-22T13:55:00.000-07:00

Here is what the Wahoo Gazette said about the Letterman apperance.

Finale to Close Up Week on Letterman

2010-05-22T13:29:00.000-07:00

Here is the performance on The Letterman Show, May 21st.

2010-05-20T15:12:00.000-07:00

With Jason Randal and John Carney. Michael and Jason had already filmed - so they were able to give John some solid advice. I think it's great that each guy on the show this week is so different stylistically - their manner, material and even clothing will vary.

2010-05-20T14:42:00.000-07:00

We walked back from dinner with Jason Randal. What a nice guy! We had such a great time with the other close up guys. We met up with Jason, John Carney and Steve Cohen. The only one we missed was Johnny Ace because he hadn't flown in yet.

Video: with Theory 11 - after the Letterman taping

2010-05-20T14:31:00.000-07:00

Along with Jeff Kaylor - Jonathan Bayme and Dan White (of Theory 11) were our guests at the Letterman Show. We enjoyed our time with them while we were in New York.

Brooks and Dunn

2010-05-20T14:26:00.000-07:00

Other guests on the Letterman show included Ashton Kutcher and Brooks & Dunn. This picture was taken of Brooks and Dunn in the greenroom, just before they went out to perform with Reba McEntire.

You can take the boy out of the office, but you can't take the office out of the boy!

2010-05-20T14:10:00.000-07:00

Here we are, at a beautiful coffee bar called Nave - in New York. In spite of the atmosphere, these guys were all over their phones! This is Michael, Jonathan Bayme, and Jeff Kaylor.

Little Hand

2010-05-20T12:13:00.000-07:00

One of the cool things about being there was realizing this was the stage where the Beatles debuted during the Ed Sullivan appearance. The producers loved "The Little Hand" and specifically asked Michael to perform it as his closer. Letterman laughed and said, "That is the stupidest thing I've ever seen!" (He meant it in a good way!)

Reba was also a guest on Letterman

2010-05-20T11:31:00.000-07:00

Michael was filmed for the Late Show with David Letterman on Monday. It will air on Friday. Also on the show was Reba McEntire. She was very sweet. This was taken just outside our dressing room.

Letterman

2010-05-12T20:49:00.001-07:00

Yesterday Michael was booked for Late Night with David Letterman! His appearance will be Friday, May 21st. We are looking forward to heading up to New York for the filming later this week. Hope you can catch it!

Seeing Double

2010-05-05T11:39:00.000-07:00

I love this recent picture of Michael and Evan. Evan looks so much like his dad. Michael was a toe-head when he was kid too. Both our kids see their dad a constant source of amusement. Michael rarely goes anywhere without coming home with some sort of cool toy to play with. When he goes on tour, forget about it - the suitcase is loaded with goodies from magic shops and street vendors worldwide!

Where in the World are Frances and Glenn?

2010-05-05T11:11:00.000-07:00

People often ask me about my mom (Frances Willard) and Glenn Falkenstein. I thought this might be a good place for an update. They have moved from sunny Southern California to sunny San Antonio, Texas - my mom's beloved hometown. Mom looks amazing (let's face it, the woman is forever young)! Glenn is getting along in years and was diagnosed not long ago with Alzheimer's. He still enjoys company and is pretty good at remembering magic and especially all the details about his act and life in show-business. This weekend is Mother's Day and my mom, sister, daughter and I will take a weekend trip to The Big Apple to celebrate. I can't wait, and I hope to talk Mom into blogging some. She really has a wealth of knowledge about magic to share!

The Men's Hut

2010-04-27T18:31:00.000-07:00

We have just launched a new site called The Men's Hut (themenshut.com). If you have Michael's book, "The Magic of Michael Ammar" - you may recall an essay with the same title. The site is in reference to that essay. We are hoping to make it something of a testing ground, or catch-all of sorts - where Michael can put interesting ideas, experiments, material-in-progress, bonus videos, etc. Check it out if you get a chance. You'll find the essay there if you haven't read it.

FYI, I took this picture backstage after these poor guys finished 16 straight close-up shows at Blackpool. Pictured: Juan Tamariz, Jay Sankey, Simon Lovell, Lennart Green, Michael and Simo Aalto. They were definitely in the Men's Hut!

Hannah 4/27/10

Our Menagerie

2010-04-26T22:01:00.000-07:00

Evan and Savannah really love nature. Savannah, now 9, is showing Evan the fish she caught. She likes to name her catches. This was "Buttercup" the minnow. Fortunately she didn't beg to bring Buttercup home. Presently our menagerie consists a mouse (Patches), hamster (Chubs), cat (Summer) and dog (Rusty).

Lesson Learned

2010-04-26T21:54:00.000-07:00

I took this picture just a day after attending Photoshop World (a 4 day conference on the software and photography). One of things I learned was, "Keep your camera with you, always. It should be a part of you." Well, this might not always be possible. But at least I tried the next day - and I got some great shots of Michael and our kids out by the lake. Evan is 4 now...quite a handful! He looks a little like his dad, don't you think? (Michael did have hair like that - once!)

Hannah 4/26/10

So, what's cooking?

2010-04-26T21:30:00.000-07:00

Did you ever have someone ask, "So, what's cooking?" and you drew a blank? That happened to me this week, and it took me a few days to figure out why. It's the wrong question. A better question would be, "So, what's not cooking?" I mean, we are totally updating everything. We have so many things cooking right now it would be easier to list what's not cooking. Most of our products will be rejuvenated, our website has a new look, a new site has been created (The Mens Hut), a new book is being printed now, etc, etc, etc. So, keep your eyes peeled - a feast is coming!

Hannah 4/26/2010

Custom Baseballs

2010-04-26T21:23:00.001-07:00

Just yesterday someone asked me about a custom Mike Rogers baseball. He was hoping to get a custom color - actually a "duo-tone" look, with half tan, half white. I am checking into the possibility of adding other colors. If you have a special interest in a new color, please let me know. I would like to get an idea of what magicians are looking for (and why, if you have a particular reason).

Hannah 4/26/10

Michael in Europe

2010-04-26T21:17:00.000-07:00

In just a few short weeks Michael will be hitting the road again! This time, in lovely Europe. His tour will begin in The Netherlands and Belgium and then continue through France. I sure hate to miss this one! There are so many friends to see in the cities he will be visiting (and it's a beautiful time of the year to be there too!) Ah well....Jeff will be along to help Michael and keep him company. The tour schedule is posted on our site for those who would like to take a look. The tour starts May 20th and ends June 13th.

Hannah 4/26/10

2009-12-05T00:04:00.001-08:00

Michael is working on the release of a new book! Coming in May 2010!

Inside thoughts from the Ammar Experience

2009-11-20T23:43:00.000-08:00

I just finished lecturing in Rochester, NY. It’s been 8 years since I’ve done a lecture here, so I’m seeing a wonderful blend of people who’ve known me for a long time and people seeing me for the first time.

In the past I deliberately tried to put 3 or more years in between lectures in a given area. Once a lecture comes together it takes at least a year for it to really hit its stride. Even then, the temptation is to keep doing that same lecture; after all, the more you do it the better it gets. So it becomes easier to find a new audience than it does to find a new lecture.

As a loose rule of thumb I would change about 60 - 70% of the lecture every 3-4 years, while touring in slow arcs that brought me back to the same area every 3-4 years. In the same time frame the typical club memberships would go through some changes, so everything seemed to work out fine.

But the response over the last three months has been so strong that I wonder if it isn’t time to approach this in an entirely different way. In the last three months I’ve been to almost 50 cities and over 40 of them reported record turnouts! In spite of record unemployment in some of those cities and states, I saw more people than ever coming to the lecture and getting excited about magic again.

In the past, at this point in the development of a new lecture, I would be thinking to myself, ‘Okay, now I’ve done most of the US; time to tour this lecture in other parts of the world for a couple of years. After that, perhaps a few conventions, then a little break, at which point I should be able to put together a new collection of material so that I can do it all again if I want to.’

But this time feels different. This time, for the first time in thirty years of doing this, I think the best thing would be to return to the same regions I’ve just done as soon as possible; perhaps within the next 12-18 months.

One reason is because the multimedia featured at the lecture is doing what we’d hoped it would do, and we know several ways to make it even better. This feature will make it possible for me to draw from and present a wider range of new content, which is the main thing people want from a lecture.

The other reason is because in spite of the record turnouts, I can tell we still aren’t reaching a certain segment of young people. The people sitting in my lectures are those that learned magic through video and DVD, not the ones who learned about magic through the internet.

I hope that on the return trip through these areas that we can help join these two groups through the bonding that comes from sharing this information in a live magic lecture experience. There is nothing like seeing a live magic lecture, so I would love to give that experience to those who have only learned magic through YouTube!

If you have never been to a magic lecture, you’ve really got to go to understand how cool it is! A good magic lecture contains great magic, lots of fun, new ideas and inspiration. If you can’t make it to one of my lectures, then ask around so you can see a good one because you’ll always remember your first!

Get Struck by the "Lightning Round"

2009-10-12T08:27:00.000-07:00

The Lightning Round is one of the big hits in Michael Ammar's new lecture The Ammar Experience. Its a rapid fire, trick a minute, segment that has something for everyone. You want to know the best thing of all....YOU CAN BECOME A PART OF THE LIGHTNING ROUND TODAY!

All you need to do is submit your idea to us and if its just right we may consider it for the lightning round. Please keep the following in mind.

We are looking for original ideas.

They do NOT need to be entire tricks they can be bits of business or other tips as well.

Things that can be explained in under 60 seconds are best.

If you have a video or image you would like us to have please email us at

michaelammarmagic@gmail.com
subject line "Lightning Round Idea".

As Michael would say "Best Wishes"

Anton James -Team Ammar-

Easy to Master Flight Miracles

2009-10-12T08:20:00.000-07:00

New series by Michael Ammar. Pre order now! (not really!!!)

Ammar Experience Testimonials

2009-10-12T07:59:00.000-07:00

The feedback from the Ammar Experience has been great. It makes me so happy to see such a positive reaction to this lecture. Here are some testimonials from recent lecture tour stops.

Best Wishes

Michael Ammar

First Blog Post & The T.A.O.M.

2009-09-15T00:51:00.000-07:00

Hey Everyone!

Welcome, and thank you for visiting my blog. I'm very excited to have this outlet to share with all of you my upcoming projects, tours, and general thoughts about magic. You may see postings from myself or those that I work with here.

Currently I am on tour with my new lecture the Ammar Experience.

The Ammar Experience is a full scale multi-media lecture. The multi-media aspect allows me to give the lecture I have always dreamed of giving!

Also I would like to say I had an amazing time at the T.A.O.M. Thank you guys for being such an awesome group! I've included some footage from the T.A.O.M. below, ENJOY!

Best Wishes

Michael Ammar