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Wizard of Oz Inner circle Most people wish I didn't have 5155 Posts |
Nice. I like the extras out front, probably helps to define your safe space from those curious young goblins. How did the show go?
Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.
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Michael Baker Eternal Order Near a river in the Midwest 11172 Posts |
Had my second night tonight, two shows. First one had the smaller crowd, a reverse from last night. Second show was SRO and a fun group. The fence and stuff kind of defines the space, but when folks are first coming in, I keep my eye on the front. The tiny tots have a way of wandering when mom and dad aren't on top of them. Not a real problem though, There are chairs, although some late arrivals camped out on the floor in the center aisle.
That front stuff is real "Plan 9 From Outer Space" kind of rickety, but it's all a piece of cake to carry in and out (doesn't weigh anything), and it was cheap. We did a similar thing a few years ago in a restaurant/bar show for Halloween, but we used a heavier fence. We did use the same tombstones, which are Styrofoam. They have held up good, and if one does get trashed, they are super cheap to replace. The backdrop is 1/3 width of what it can go, and I only set it to about 7' high so I could use one of my giant skeleton puppets from behind to open the show.
~michael baker
The Magic Company |
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StevieDee Regular user Salt Lake City area 154 Posts |
I think the "cast iron" fence is particularly cool, not to mention those skeleton tables.
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Michael Baker Eternal Order Near a river in the Midwest 11172 Posts |
Quote:
On Oct 10, 2014, StevieDee wrote: Funny how a few choice details can sell a point, huh? Like the moss green fabric thrown haphazardly over the top of the back drop curtain. It gives it a completely different feel.
~michael baker
The Magic Company |
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Michael Baker Eternal Order Near a river in the Midwest 11172 Posts |
I liked the set of bottles recently offered by Jim Kleefeld. They sold out quickly, too.
It dawned on me that I had the same labels, purchased several years ago from a Spirit Halloween store when I was still living in Birmingham. I figured they might come in handy one day. I dug them out and went to work on a set of multiplying bottles that I bought from someone here on the Café. (My fuzzy mind won't let me remember who that was... sorry.) Anyway, I was able to use these during some of my shows this last weekend. So, to go with my fuzzy mind, is a fuzzy photo of them. I lined the inside of the tubes to prevent scuffing up the paint, something that ALWAYS seems to happen with Multiplying Bottle sets.
~michael baker
The Magic Company |
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RoyHarper New user 26 Posts |
Love the look.
Roy |
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Wizard of Oz Inner circle Most people wish I didn't have 5155 Posts |
I second that!
Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.
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Ray Tupper. Special user NG16. 749 Posts |
Quote:
On Oct 13, 2014, RoyHarper wrote: That sounds like a hats off to you then Michael. I love quirkiness like that. Great thinking on the lining as well. Ray.
What do we want?
A cure for tourettes! When do we want it? C*nt! |
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Michael Baker Eternal Order Near a river in the Midwest 11172 Posts |
Regarding the inner lining... These particular sets have a turned-out bead at the bottom end, like Cups & Balls. This does a lot toward preventing the scuffing that often occurs. But, I wanted a little extra measure there. I did have to hold my breath to see if there was enough clearance between the smallest tube and one of the largest bottles. Barely.... and I mean BARELY. I see no sense in why the tubes are made this way. In fact, the larger bottles have a slight flare at the bottom, and can be pulled up from the smaller tube (with a very slight tug at the end), but cannot be lowered into the same tube again. I just set the trick so that bottle is eliminated from play first.. not a big deal.
Having nesting tubes is a nice feature with Passe-Passe Bottle & Glass, but not with these, unless a full nest of bottles is stolen later in the routine. Because of the bead at the bottom, it is impossible to pass one tube completely through the other, so having them different sizes makes even less sense. It certainly doesn't make the set pack any smaller for travel. Maybe I'm missing something, but these are different than any set I've ever owned in that regard. But, I got them cheap and unused except for having the labels already removed. Refinishing them was a simple two-day job. Paint them one day, label them the next. They added a nice touch to a Halloween show. BTW - for anyone looking, you can buy the labels here: http://www.spirithalloween.com/product/s......tickers/
~michael baker
The Magic Company |
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StevieDee Regular user Salt Lake City area 154 Posts |
I like the way the labels defuse the liquor reference usually associated with the bottles, which make them much more kid-friendly.
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Ray Tupper. Special user NG16. 749 Posts |
Quote:
On Oct 14, 2014, Ray Tupper. wrote: Looks like my Led Zeppelin pun was missed...."Hats off to Roy Harper", Led Zep III. Ray.
What do we want?
A cure for tourettes! When do we want it? C*nt! |
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Michael Baker Eternal Order Near a river in the Midwest 11172 Posts |
Quote:
On Oct 14, 2014, Ray Tupper. wrote: I sure did miss that... and I am a die hard Zep fan, now and embarrassed one.
~michael baker
The Magic Company |
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Wizard of Oz Inner circle Most people wish I didn't have 5155 Posts |
Quote:
On Oct 14, 2014, StevieDee wrote: You're so right...and the adults will enjoy it too since the fun product names can easily be alcohol brand names as well...everyone wins!
Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.
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Michael Baker Eternal Order Near a river in the Midwest 11172 Posts |
Agreed! Although there was one kid at one show that just hollered out, "IT'S ALCOHOL!!!!" Hahaha!!!
I begin with the Red Blood and a maniacal laugh (10% white blood count by volume!). I have it and the glass jump around a bit and then "expose" two bottles of Red Blood. <OOPS!!> The next exposure is "ZOMBIE VIRUS" (2nd largest of a set). It is also the easiest to read from a distance. But, then it vanishes again and I start producing bottles from further inside the nests. Of course it gets laughs, but the kids start hollering, "Where's the Zombie Virus??" I wait until just at the end and produce it again to finish. End on a high note instead of just redundancy. I need to find better glasses to use, though.
~michael baker
The Magic Company |
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Michael Baker Eternal Order Near a river in the Midwest 11172 Posts |
Newest item...
Oriental See-Through Block Box. This is the first of six that will be available through Stevens Magic Emporium.
~michael baker
The Magic Company |
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Ray Tupper. Special user NG16. 749 Posts |
Very nice to see Michael...Very nice indeed!
Great to see you didn't just cut the lids square where they meet the centre cross member. Those small details, which you obviously appreciate, make a massive aesthetic difference. Ray.
What do we want?
A cure for tourettes! When do we want it? C*nt! |
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Harry Murphy Inner circle Maryland 5445 Posts |
Breathtaking! Beautiful as always Michael.
The artist formally known as Mumblepeas!
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Michael Baker Eternal Order Near a river in the Midwest 11172 Posts |
Hi Ray,
I noticed the lid detail you mentioned on a version made by Mel Babcock. That 45 degree cut allows the three lids to be opened in a single action. The cove-routed edge gives it a bit of personality. What doesn't really get shown off in the photos is the redesigned base. It's something I spent a bit of time on and am rather proud of. The base was the one feature that I did not like on any of the other models I'd seen. They simply looked to big and boxy. Knowing the method, you'll understand how the base must hide a substantial amount of things, including the sliding weight. Over all, that depth is 1 5/8" (almost 42mm). That's a lot of real estate to disguise! I used grand illusion theory and technique when designing these. Here is a shot that better exploits that feature.
~michael baker
The Magic Company |
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Michael Baker Eternal Order Near a river in the Midwest 11172 Posts |
Thanks Harry!
~michael baker
The Magic Company |
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Wizard of Oz Inner circle Most people wish I didn't have 5155 Posts |
Michael, this piece is breathtaking...and you are a far better craftsman than you are a photographer , so I know that in person, this would be incredible.
Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.
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