Thoughts:

"Gazzo does the cups and balls for an hour and it's brilliant".

I believe it...

"The difference is it has to be an hour that feels like five minutes.
I have seen tricks that take three minutes that have felt like they went on for an hour. I think it depends on the performer".

To quote David Letterman, "...It's time for 30 minutes of entertainment, - all crammed into an hour-and-a-half!"..

I spent months in San Francisco during the Rennaissance of Street Performers there and lived in a house full of them, Harry & Patti Lovecraft, Butterfly Bob Nelson, A Whitney Brown (who went on to become head writer for SNL!), and saw many others work over and over again.

I thought, "This is SO cool." It was the ultimate teaching laboratory. If people lost interest they simply walked away. It was a hardcore way to discover what material you had that really kept attention.

Anyway just "Calling" or building your crowd may not be what you really want to "burn" your good magic material on. Most magicians didn't waste tricks on that. They made the crowd applaude to cause interest by telling them to do so. Michael Marlin the Juggler (who once toured with Doug Henning) simply balanced a peacock feather on his nose and told jokes. Bob Nelson insulted the audience.

D Lites may be OK if you use them in an innovative way, (Granted, they are well known). I came up with a bit of using the D Lites to trace patterns in the air, finally "placing" them in my other palm to open it and reveal a HERSHEYS KISS, or other curious item that was given away. (Great bit to chat ladies).

A. Whitney Brown was working with a dog who wore a hat and glasses while sitting in a chair. People were just naturally curious as he chatted absurdley to build the crowd. Just do SOMETHING that promises the unusual and show confidence.

People passing by have a very low tolerance of BS (Boring Stuff). I wish all magicians would do it just once. Too many go on with mediocre material because party audiences tolerate standard stuff out of politeness to the host. Those crowds really don't help one get better, but if you GET how to hold a crowd in the street, then you become REALLY entertaining.

Sorry, I am rambling and its very late. Need some sleep for shows tomorrow. I hope to get back here with a lot more thoughts and stories. This is a fascinating topic.

More later, and I do have thoughts on floating, which is one of my specialties.

Magical Aloha

-Mike Ching

Well, Daniel must be 17 or 18 by now ... I wonder if he ever did his act, or got his straight As.

I was wondering that myself!

Yuh huh.

It's the principle guys. Just a good topic to cover!

Mike:
I'd really love to hear more stories about those guys in SF.

Yup RR:

As a novice getting a daily crash course in "Geurilla Street Entertainment" you were surrounded daily by people who took it all so seriously and it was super-inspiring. I often thought it would make a great Broadway Musical. Sometime when I have a whole afternoon to write, maybe I'll jot down some of the wonderful adventures there were.

If I remember right Daniel was wanting to do his street thing in Kentucky and his folks moved him to Houston Texas (or Austin) and that was that last I heard from him.
Steve V

So, anybody have anything to say about the street scene in Houston, Texas?

There is very little street scene in Houston, TX. There is one public square where you can perform, called Martha Hermann Square. By law, the police cannot tell anyone to move along. Consequently, the place is filled with street people.

The polizei do not have a liking for buskers. Mike Marlin used to busk in front of Jones Hall, but he got sent packing.

I wanna know the end of the tale, does somebody knows daniel ??

Sorry to bring up an older thread, but since I'm near to Paducah, KY, this caught my interest. They still have the "Downtown After Dinner." It'll be starting back up next weekend. I am not a regular visitor, but they have had some good bands/performers.
There is one "statue" who I have seen over a couple of years. My girlfriend always gets a kick out of watching her.

I have thought a number of times that it would be interesting to see a magician there. Perhaps after more practice (and in-between school years away) I might get to be that magician?

Mike Ching, that was some good information. I'm definately going to file it away for future reference!

Someone has to get a hold of Daniel. He had all the right things going for him! Pleasee Daniel, come back!

Whatever happened to Daniel? He must be 27 now. Probably a corporate accountant in some cubicle somewhere.

kj

Kinda wondering myself