I was filing out the I.B.M. Member Application and it has a section that reads "This applicant is vouched for and duly recommended for membership by the undersigned Active Members..."

Am I required to have two active members "vouch" for me?

Anyone with info please help me out...

Thank you!
Bryan Gilles

Yes that's the requirement. However, the office staff in St. Louis have been known to be the second person on the application if you can only find one in your area. Just write a nice letter to them explaining your plight and ask for their recommendation. Or they might provide you with names of other IBM members in your area.

They've also been known to provide both signatures at times.

Yes you are, which leads one to wonder how the first guy ever got in.

When I joined, it wasn't too easy to find two I.B.M. members from my small area. It actually held me back from joining for a while.

Regan

Bryan,

You could contact our Territorial Vice President (TVP) for
CALIFORNIA (NORTHERN) - Richard T. Myer, 3005 Ribera Rd, Carmel, CA 93923
Phone: 831-626-8681 Cell: 831-402-3079
E-mail: rtmyer@aol.com

He will have a list of all the current I.B.M. members who live in your area.

He can put you in touch with them.

Or I noticed you have several friends who are I.B.M. members on you
"My Space." You could send your application to them and get their signatures.
Just send along a self addressed stamp envelope for them to return it to you.


Steve Hart

I.B.M. Membership Chairman

Thanks for all the help everyone! I have had numerous PMs for help on this... I look forward to the Brotherhood in the IBM...

I hope to see many of you at the upcoming conventions!

-Bryan

Good magic and welcome in advance to the IBM.
Mike taggert Vp Ring 50 Washington DC

I have to echo Regan on this one. IBM's requirement imposes an arbitrary constraint against applicants from lesser-populated areas, as well as for those who are more recent arrivals to the magic world and have not yet connected with other magi's.

SAM only requests -- but does not insist upon -- the names of two "endorsers." And I must say that it was that seemingly inflexible restriction of IBM's which made my decision to join SAM instead of IBM an easy, if not only, choice.

I have yet to learn of a good reason for holding on to this "good ol' boys" kind of membership requirement (although I'm all ears if someone would offer up a reasonable defense). It seems to me that this formality could now be brushed off into a dust bin to join the quaint, but old fashioned and rather silly, secret-handshake and password-at-the-door kinds of club traditions.

IBM is a social club so of course they try to encourage interacting with other local members. However, they're far from inflexible on this. Many times a simple phone call or letter to IBM Headquarters will get you the endorsement you need. Steve Hart's suggestion above applies to magicians all over the world, not just that one area. Our website at http://www.magician.org maintains a contact list of local rings and TVP's who are more than happy to help.

There's another solution as well.

IBM's Ring 2100 was formed to address the problem of solo magicians without a local meeting place close by. We've endorsed and accepted members by email for over 10 years now. We have about 900 members worldwide who hold "virtual meetings" daily via our own mail list server. For many it's their only interaction with other magicians.

http://www.ring2100.org

That's helpful news, Dave. But how about getting the word out to those who could really use it? My strong suggestion, if IBM intends to continue its sponsor requirement, is to reveal the quite esoteric policies that you've just mentioned. They could easily be stated on the IBM application, or prominently on its Web site. How many young, or foreign, or new-to-the-avocation applicants would inherently know they need to steer themselves to a local ring to find endorsers? No telling how many potential members have been lost over the years because of this rather obscure information.

Thanks again.

IBM isn't likely to abolish the requirement and throw open their doors to every secret seeker who saw a David Blaine special. I found my way in nearly 20 years ago with a simple question at my local magic shop. Before that I had never heard of IBM, SAM or any other such organization. I simply asked "Where do other magicians hang out?" One thing led to another and I was in!

In any club if a potential member doesn't at least put forth an effort to find the group to join, it's really not the group's fault.

It all boils down to this:
All you really have to do is ask.

I have been putting this off for too long. I was at a magic get together early in January and got a couple of the guys there to sign the papers for me. I look forward to getting the Linking Ring.

I know when I first join when I was a teen ,I found that the small town I lived in had an escape artist I knew noting about. His stage was The Great Dank ,I have a book about him since he has now pass away. I also found my town had another magician who taught me a lot of good magic,all becauseI had to find 2 people
to sign for me before I could join.

That's another great reason for the requirement. You have two new friends you may have never met otherwise.

In years past it was a very strict requirement to becaome a member of the IBM or the SAM that you not only had to be sponsored by two active members but you also had to give a short performance. I shall forever be thankfull to my departed sponsors Jay and Frances Marshall.

If you can't find two active members, the staff will assign some active members for you, that's what happened to me.

Carolini, the requirement to give a short performance is for lcoal assemblies and rings and is optional. Many clubs don't require it and you absolutely don't have to perform to join the international or society.

In response to a question I posted on The Magic Café, I attended both S.A.M. and I.B.M. local meetings where I met some nice people and have signed up to both organizations. A great bunch of people. The local groups don't require a performance.

So I suggest finding a local ring and joining up that way.

Marty Sasaki

It seems to me that a forum such as this might be a practical way to "meet" two active members who could vouch for a new applicant(?). Locating and attending a local Ring meeting as a guest is surely the greatest way of meeting potential sponsors.