Richard Turner has a new Youtube channel featuring many of his card routines live at the world famous Magic Castle in Hollywood.

To watch Richard Turner live at the Magic Castle visit his new channel here:  WWW.Youtube.com/CatchAThief52

Start with episode 1 above then move on to episode 2, 3 and 4.

Richard is up for “Close-Up Magician of the Year” this year at the Magic Castle. This is the act that won him the nomination. It is well worth checking out.

Sen Mitch McConnell -- "Hero of Conscience?"

Senator Mitch McConnell is pushing an amendment to the Affordable Care Act that would allow employers to deny coverage not just for contraception, but for any treatment whatsoever that they claimed was against their religious or moral beliefs.

This would mean that if you work for a Jehovah’s Witness, you may not have coverage for blood transfusions.

If you work for a Catholic, you may not get the benefits of stem cell research.

Meanwhile, I still expect them to make Quakers pay for military expenditures–even though they are pacifists and supporting war is against their moral conscience, and Catholics have to pay taxes for wars their Pope has called “immoral” and “unjust”–wars that are, or should be, against their religious conscience:

“In March 2003, just hours after the first American cruise missiles slammed into Baghdad, the Vatican proclaimed the nascent conflict a “defeat for reason and for the gospel.”

“It was a war, said papal confidant Cardinal Roberto Tucci, that was “beyond all legality and all international legitimacy.”

Do we really want to allow people to choose which taxes or public fees violate their individual consciences, and refuse to pay that part of what they owe to society?

During the Vietnam War, many tax resisters went to prison for refusing to pay taxes for an “unjust war.”

Where were the religious of conscience then?

Pop Haydn

I have been booked at the Magic Castle in the Palace of Mystery for the week of March 26th — March 31st.

April 1st the Castle will be closed for the Academy of Magicial Arts Awards Show party.

I will be performing the Teleportation Device, the act for which I have been nominated this year for “Stage Magician of the Year.”

Rosewood, ebony and silver wand by John Gaughn

I am excited to announce that I have been nominated once again for “Stage Magician of the Year” by the members of the Magic Castle. This is a very great honor, and especially considering the excellent performers who have been nominated this year. I am a big fan of everyone on the list.

I have won six performing “Magician of the Year” awards from the Magic Castle.

I won “Stage Magician of the Year” in 1979, “Parlor Magician of the Year” in 1995 and 2002, and “Close-Up Magician of the Year” in 2003 and 2004.

I was named “W.C. Fields Bar Magician of the Year” in 2005, an award that has only been given out twice in the history of the Magic Castle.

It is very exhilarating just to be in the running. I am looking forward until the 44th Annual Awards Show on Sunday, April 1st, 2012 at the beautiful Saban Theatre in Beverly Hills.

Saban Theater, Beverly Hills

From the Magic Castle website:

“The elegant evening begins at 5:30 PM with a cocktail party in the theater lobby. The show starts at 7:00 PM, hosted by the star of the best magic show in Las Vegas, Mac King. There will be amazing magic acts (including some never seen here before), legendary presenters and recipients, plus comedy, surprises, music and much more. And the evening ends up at the Magic Castle, which will be closed to the public that night so that we can have our afterparty at our own club, with a lavish buffet dinner.

“This will be an inclusive event, and for that reason we’ve kept the ticket prices as low as possible. All tickets include the afterparty with dinner at the Castle. Prices are $30, $60, $90 and a VIP package at $180. Tickets are available at the Saban box office, 323-655-0111, or on-line at www.sabantheatre.org“

LIST OF FINAL NOMINEES FOR 2011 AMA (Magic Castle) SHOWROOM AWARDS

Below are the names of the final nominees for each showroom; listed in alphabetical order.

CLOSE UP ROOM

Jon Armstrong

Derek DelGaudio

Bill Goodwin

David Regal

Richard Turner

PARLOUR OF PRESTIDIGITATION

Chris Capehart

Michael Carbonaro

Mike Caveney

Paul Green

Helder Guimaraes

Mark Haslam

Kevin James

STAGE MAGIC

Rich Bloch

Mike Caveney

Farrell Dillon

Whit “Pop” Haydn

Rob Zabrecky

LECTURE SERIES

Dani DaOrtiz

Howard Hamburg

Kevin James

Shoot Ogawa

Rob Zabrecky

Congratulations and good luck to all the nominees!

Robert Burns

We will be celebrating Robert Burns Night tomorrow evening from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm in the new Hat and Hare which is being first opened for this event–the first time opened since the fire.

The unexpected death of Mark Nelson, who seemed to put these things together effortlessly, and of course, the fire in October have complicated things quite a bit.

But we are set! There WILL be a Piper, AND yer Haggis! Neeps and Taters! Music and poetry! Scots Whiskey! Men in Kilts! Everyone is invited to wear Scottish costumes–they are good for the whole evening at the Castle.

Everyone is invited to participate! I have a limited number of spaces for non-member guests–please contact me at pop@pophaydn.com before 4:00 pm Monday (Feb 6) afternoon.

We would love you to bring something of Burns to sing or read or play. It is an easy-going, un-structured, single malt-centered kind of evening.

The photo of Burns you see here is a famous one. In our dining room, in the windows that line the outside of the Terrace, you will find the faint engraving of this portrait in the stained glass. These beautiful windows were taken from the Robert Burns Pub.

Great magicians have come from Scotland, including John Henry Anderson, the Wizard of the North, John Ramsay, Ron Wilson and many, many more.

This past week was Scots Week at the Castle, with magicians from Scotland performing. Burns Night tips a glass to them and to those that came before them, and to Ron Wilson who dedicated so much of his life to the Magic Castle.

Pop Haydn backstage of the Palace of Mystery

I will be performing and acting as emcee this week at the Magic Castle in the Palace of Mystery, beginning tonight!

We are back to a full week schedule at the Magic Castle, and the Hat and Hare will reopen on Monday the 6th for Burns Night.

With me in the Palace will be the wonderful puppeteer Scott Land and a two-man company from Scotland, who call themselves The Fifth Dimension.

In close-up this week, we have the incredible Paul Vigil–worth a visit just to see him.

This wonderful photo, taken backstage of the Palace of Mystery, is by Christiaan Lopez-Miro. More wonderful magician photos by Christiaan can be found here: http://www.christiaanlopez-miro.com/

Look under Smoke and Mirrors in Images.

Whit "Pop" Haydn, Richard Turner, Johnny "Ace" Palmer

Last night at the Magic Castle, the magic teachers of DC comic’s The Spirit got together.

In the December issue of The Spirit, 2008, the Spirit shows some card tricks and explains that magic is his hobby and that he had three magic teachers, Whit Haydn, Richard Turner and Johnny Ace Palmer. Also in the same magazine, our friend and fellow Magic Castle member, the lovely Misty Lee appears in the story as a character.

All of us are old friends, but none knew what had brought us together like this.  It turns out that Mark Evanier, a writer for the comics, was a Castle member, and we were his favorite magicians. He had attended lectures and classes by all of us, and considered us teachers, so he just wrote us into the story with the Spirit.

It is  a wonderful honor.

My life seems to continue to become more and more fictionalized…

Richard Turner

My friend, Richard Turner is working this week at the Magic Castle. He is the foremost card expert in the world today, even though he is legally blind. His discipline and perfection is stunning. These photos show him in 1986 when he received his first black belt, and then in 2012 when he is 58 years old. There is only four ounces difference in his weight.

As a measure of the type of skill Richard displays in his work, let me quote Jon Raucherbaumer, an internationally recognized expert who is writing a biography of Richard Turner:

“The action of perfectly alternating playing cards, 26 and 26, is not easily named if the goal is accuracy. Even the noun “shuffle” seems inexact because it suggests clumsy randomness and asymmetrical mixing. Sure, the relative positions of the cards change, but the changes are cyclically predictable and in this regard, perfect…

“…But there are two types of this kind of Interlace: The Faro Shuffle and what can be called a Volitional Faro Shuffle. The physics of the Volitional Faro Shuffle in terms of what happens with and to the cards is identical, but the means of making this happen is different. The Faro Shuffle is semi-automatic because the two 26-card sections are butted together in precise ways and the cards will then automatically alternate. The Volitional Faro Shuffle depends on the operator’s volition. He must will his thumbs to precisely and alternately release cards until all 52 of them are interlaced. This is not automatic. It is a matter of pure dexterity and unerring timing.

“Richard’s high-lift, soft interlace table Faro Shuffles are done in less than one second. Formerly a fantasy in MacDouggal’s mind, Richard can execute a Volitional Faro Shuffle in 8.1 seconds.  

“If you think this is easy, try making love while standing up in a hammock and juggling seven ice-cream cones.”

Richard Turner, my good friend Johnny Ace Palmer and I were all named in the comic book the Spirit as magic teachers to the Spirit. It was very cool to be included in such incredible company:

Richard Turner is performing in the Close-Up Gallery at the Magic Castle in Hollywood until Sunday.  It is worth your time to make an effort to see this incredible and unique talent.

SaraAnne Fahey, Neil Patrick Harris and Tonya Kay

My friend Tonya Kay, who is a very versatile performer as actress, model, showgirl, dancer, burlesque performer, and knife throwing and whip expert is here on the right, with SaraAnne Fahey and Neil Patrick Harris on the People’s Choice Awards. Tonya performs in a improv sketch with Neil and SaraAnne as a showgirl.

Tonya has a lot of skills, and an interesting career, including playing herself as a comic book hero in.

Tonya is also a leading influencer for the vegan lifestyle.

Here is a video of the sketch on People’s Choice:

More info on the People’s Choice Awards event is here:

TonyaKay.com

Tonya used to have wonderful dreadlocks, which she has just recently cut. I loved the dreads, but this short haired look is great, too.

The Year of the Dragon is upon us. Big celebration in Chinatown tonight at Midnight. Fireworks, dragons and lions. Celebration!

Here is some important fast-breaking info to help get you through the next fifteen days:

Mandarin Chinese:
新年快乐 (xīn nián kuài lè, pronounced “sheen nyen kwy luh”) = Happy new year! (literally “The new year comes fast!”)

恭喜发财 (gōng xǐ fā cái, pronounced “gong shee fah tsy”) = Wishing you a prosperous new year! (literally “May you have much joy and wealth!”)

Cantonese Chinese:
新年快乐 (san nin faai lok) = Happy new year!     (literally “The new year comes fast!”)

恭喜发财 (gung hei faat choi) = Wishing you a prosperous new year!     (literally “May you have much joy and wealth!”)

The most common auspicious greetings and sayings consist of four characters, such as the following:

• 金玉滿堂     Jinyu mantang – “May your wealth [gold and jade] come to fill a hall”
• 大展鴻圖     Dazhan hongtu – “May you realize your ambitions”
• 迎春接福     Yingchun jiefu – “Greet the New Year and encounter happiness”
• 萬事如意     Wanshi ruyi – “May all your wishes be fulfilled”
• 吉慶有餘     Jiqing youyu – “May your happiness be without limit”
• 竹報平安     Zhubao pingan – “May you hear [in a letter] that all is well”
• 一本萬利     Yiban wanli = “May a small investment bring ten-thousandfold profits”
• 福壽雙全     Fushou shuangquan – “May your happiness and longevity be complete”
• 招財進寶     Zhaocai jinbao – “When wealth is acquired, precious objects follow”

Now give me a red envelope.