Friday, January 28, 2022

Magic Beginnings of a Boston Magician Part 2

Magic Beginnings part 2

The Magic of Joe Ferranti 339-927-4710

In 1973, NBC aired a new show called The Magician, starring Bill Bixby. The show only ran one season. I enjoyed the short cameos of professional magicians. One show had a very short clip of Dai Vernon performing his Cups and Balls routine. It began with a sequence of the vanish of three balls. I had a basic knowledge of sleight of hand and easily understood the vanish of the first two balls. What fooled me badly was the vanish of the third ball. This is what I saw. Dai placed the third ball in his hand. He merely closed his hand, and when he opened it, the ball was gone. Wow!, With my understanding of magic methods, this was not possible. Now I would attempt to find out how this was done.

I have lived the major part of my life without the internet, and such was the case back in the 1970s. By this time, I had discovered the Joke/Magic Shops in Boston. My wife at that time worked in Boston and would stop at Little Jack Horner's Joke and Magic Shop on Tremont Street and would pick me up books and various pocket tricks.

In 1975 Boston got its first Magic Shop. Hank Lee's Magic Shop. Just magic, no jokes, no backroom of "magazines", no smoke products or marijuana paraphernalia. Just magic, from pocket tricks to large illusions. Professional magic by professional magicians. A very special time, Magic Lectures, I.B.M. meetings.

Now I knew where to get the secrets I wanted. I tracked down a booklet on Dai Vernon's Cups and Balls routine for $5. (A bargain for the best Cups and Balls routine.) I learned it and performed it at every opportunity I could find, which was few. (More on this next time.)

Massachusetts Magician Joe Ferranti

The Very Best in Close-Up Magic

Walk Around and The Intimate Parlor Show

Tuesday, January 18, 2022

Magical Beginnings of a Boston Magician

Early Introductions to Magic

Ed Sullivan

Mark Wilson

I first saw magic as a child on the Ed Sullivan Show and Mark Wilson’s, The Magic Land of Allakazam. To say I was fascinated was an understatement. At that time, when you saw a magician perform on TV, it happened once and there was no possibility to see it again and again, as the curious can do now. (The super curious can now examine a performance frame by frame!)

Living in a small town in Massachusetts, I visited the library to read every book available about magic and magicians. The reading was exciting to a young child, but the secrets I was hoping to find were not at The Public Library.

So, my life moved forward with interests in drawing, painting and studies in music. Magic took a back seat. In fact, it was out of my life, and I had no expectation of its return.

Life goes on and we get married, have kids, work, get divorced etc. During this period something changed dramatically in the World of Magic with the arrival of Doug Henning and his Broadway debut in “The Magic Show”.

Later Influences in Magic

Doug Henning

As a young man, Doug had brought magic to a new generation as the Beatles had done with music. Gone were the stereotypes of how a magician would perform or dress. It brought a renewed interest to me.

I was always on the lookout at bookstores for books on Magic, but the pickings were slim. Magic books could be found in the hobby section, but there were never many, and what was there was not very good. I had not yet discovered The Magic Shops in Boston.

My first discovery of a "Real" magic book, published for lay people was “The Complete Illustrated Book of Card Magic” by Walter Gibson. This brought me hours of delight, reading and practicing card magic. I also discovered some of the secrets I was searching for as a young child.

To be continued,

Joe Ferranti

Boston Massachusetts Close-Up Magician

Wednesday, January 5, 2022

A Different "Shut Down" 2022

The Magic of Joe Ferranti Top Rated Magician in Massachusetts

January 2021, things were looking positive. Two vaccines had emergency use authorization and a third would be available in February. The only problem was getting an appointment for a shot. Surely we were on our way to ending the pandemic in our country and would move on to help others less fortunate.

On the business side, there was no demand for my Magicians services in Massachusetts or New Hampshire, where I receive 90% of my gigs. As many know, some magicians/entertainers had added virtual services for their clients. It seems to have worked well for some, I chose not to add virtual services for many reasons. Mainly, my knowledge of the technical aspects of providing a virtual show would likely fail to offer a satisfying experience for my clients.

Encouragement came in the spring, as I was contacted to perform for the graduating class at Billerica High School. The event would take place outside, the students and I would be masked. Not my preferred way to work/communicate. However, it worked well and to the complete satisfaction of my clients. (reviews available for ferrantimagic.com on Google.)

When June arrived, I was contacted by the graduating class of Newburyport High School. A client I had worked for previously. At this point, I was vaccinated and so were the students. This was my return to performing in the manner I was comfortable with. The style of magic I perform is called, "Close-Up Magic." further explanation is not necessary.

And so it continued with many more performances, as people had regained a comfort level to gather in intimate settings. All was going great, with an expectation of a busy holiday season, and it was a busy season for holiday parties, Christmas parties, and a few birthday parties. Until...Omicron.

The cancellations began, some due to actual cases of covid, and more due to uncertainty.

As of now, I am not technically closed down, but I have no idea when I will receive my next inquiry. So, realistically, I am "closed down."

And on it goes... as of today, fully vaccinated in the U.S. is at 62.2% or 74% for one vaccination.