|
|
Steve Brooks Founder / Manager Northern California - United States 3780 Posts |
Michael Close was bit by the magic bug at age six, when he received some magic tricks purchased from Dick Stoner's Magic Shop in Fort Wayne, Indiana. In 1962 his family moved to Lebanon, Indiana, a small town 20 miles northwest of Indianapolis. He had little contact with other magic enthusiasts, but kept his interest up by ordering books from Stoner's shop. In 1972 he discovered a magic club that met at Ron London's shop in West Lafayette, Indiana. At about the same time, he met Harry Riser, who was an enormous influence on Michael's approach to magic. In 1976, Michael attended and performed at his first magic convention (the IBM convention in Evansville, Indiana). In 1978 he took his first restaurant gig, performing at a Max and Erma's restaurant in northwest Indianapolis. He performed there for seven years.
In June of 1988, Michael joined the staff of the Illusions Restaurant in Carmel, Indiana. Shortly thereafter, he was made supervisor of the magic staff, a position he held for five years. These were very creative years, and many of the routines that were developed during these years (by Michael and co-workers Chris Kenner and Homer Liwag) continue to influence and inspire magicians. In 1990, Michael released the first book in the five-volume Workers series, which detailed many of the routines developed during the Illusions years. In 1998, Michael moved to Las Vegas. In May of that year he recorded seven videotapes for L&L Publishing. These videos are now available on four DVDs as The Ultimate Workers Series. In 2004 Michael Close entered the world of electronic publishing with the release of the ebook Closely Guarded Secrets. Recent ebooks include Michael Close on the Faro Shuffle, Close’s Torn & Restored Card, and two chapters of The Work series (covering the bottom palm and the top palm). These ebooks continue to raise the bar for electronic publishing. In addition to writing, performing, and lecturing, Michael Close is a highly respected reviewer. For ten years he wrote the Marketplace column for MAGIC magazine, and he now shares the book reviewing responsibilities for Genii magazine. He has also contributed a variety of articles to MAGIC, Genii, and M.U.M. Michael Close has degrees in Music Theory and Composition, and is an accomplished jazz pianist. For more than 20 years he has served as the music director for the annual IBM convention. He has released two jazz piano CDs. Michael currently lives in Las Vegas with his wife Lisa and their two Chihuahuas, Pablo and Murray. The Closes are in the process of adopting a little girl from Guatemala.
"Always be you because nobody else can" - Steve Brooks
|
The Magic Cafe Forum Index » » The January 2007 entrée: Michael Close » » Who is this 'Michael Close' guy anyway? » » TOPIC IS LOCKED (0 Likes) |
[ Top of Page ] |
All content & postings Copyright © 2001-2024 Steve Brooks. All Rights Reserved. This page was created in 0.01 seconds requiring 5 database queries. |
The views and comments expressed on The Magic Café are not necessarily those of The Magic Café, Steve Brooks, or Steve Brooks Magic. > Privacy Statement < |