What’s Brown and…, Penn Jillette, Torn and Restored Card – Joke/Story/Trick #5

Cross Eyed Dog, Evan Young Story, Blistered Fingers: Joke/Story/Trick #4

Ghosts, MJ Shoulder Pop, Three Men & A Dollar – Joke/Story/Trick #3

Green Riddle, Andy Richter, Screwed Up Money – Joke/Story/Trick #2

German Shepherds, Turd Rainbows, Thought of Card – Joke/Story/Trick #1

About the New Joke/Story/Trick Web Video Series

I’ve been wanting to do a regular video series for a long time but I’ve finally taken the time to put it together. So I present to you “Joke/Story/Trick,” a regular video series wherein I (imagine this) tell a joke, share a story and perform a trick. I’ve got about a million ideas for things to feature in the videos, so please keep checking my youtube profile http://youtube.com/kentmagic for updates. I’ll also post the videos here. I hope to do 1-2 a week and they’ll be filmed in random places like hotel rooms, green rooms, backstage areas, etc. I even plan on having guests do some of the segments as well! I hope you enjoy!

The Hard Part

I hear it all the time. “You’re so lucky to making a living doing what you love.” And I am. They quote the old saying, “Do something you love and never work a day in your life.” That’s partly true, but not entirely. There are hard parts to doing what I do.

For starters, I spend a lot of time away from loved ones. It stinks, but it comes with the territory. It makes it really nice to come home, though. To have friends, family and dogs waiting for me to return is really nice. I’m fortunate to have that.

My least favorite part of this job – by far – is figuring out and dealing with the logistics of travel. Having to figure out what time I need to sleep in order to get enough rest to wake up at what time is the first issue. I usually get to an airport no less than 90 minutes before a flight – even for the tiny airports (TSA in small airports can tend to search bags with much more scrutiny than in busier airports). Then there’s figuring out transportation. In most cities, I rent a car and need to allow time for that. There are many variables. I can control a lot of variables when traveling with my show. Using the same load in/set up/sound check schedule, packing things in the same consistent way(every item has its unique place) & following hotel routines all help. But there are always going to be those factors over which I have no control.

Last weekend it was traffic in Atlanta. I had left Albany, GA 5 hours before my flight, which should have gotten me to the airport 2 hrs prior to departure. Then, when I got 10 miles from the airport – boom – 8 motorcycles crashed into each other and stopped traffic for two hours, making me miss my flight. Situations like that are enough to give you anxiety if you’re not prepared to accept them. I’m getting better at not worrying about it, but it’s still the hardest part of the job and can get very stressful.

I’m writing this onboard a flight that I just barely made – had to sprint to the gate before they closed the doors. My luggage probably didn’t make it. As soon as I land, I have about 8 hours to do laundry and sleep before I have to be back at the airport to fly to Oklahoma. It’s a stressful thing, traveling for a living. But I wouldn’t trade it for any 9-5 desk job. It’s true that I’m lucky to do something I love. I never dread going to a show. They’re all awesome experiences. Last night I did my hour show for a crowd of 1700. You just can’t beat that. It’s the parts before and after that that are hard.

P.S. I apologize to anyone who read the title of this post with different expectations. Pervs!

Tour Schedule Update

Hey! Here’s another look at some shows we just added to the fall schedule! Let me know if you’re interested in bringing me to your school or event and we’ll add you to the list!

6/11 – Pullman, WA
6/12 – Philadelphia, PA
6/25 – Albany, GA
6/28 – Thompson, PA
6/30 – North Dartmouth, MA
7/17 – Mansfield, OH
8/7 – Omaha, NE
8/15 – Mt. Pleasant, MI
8/22 – Beloit, WI
8/23 – Lexington, KY
8/27 – Clarion, PA
8/28 – Manchester, NH
8/29 – Towson, MD
8/30 – Bowling Green, OH
9/5 – Potsdam, NY
9/8 – North Adams, MA
9/11 – Monmouth, IL
9/12 – Philadelphia, PA
9/25 – Pella, IA
9/26 – Moorehead, MN
10/2 – Oxford, OH
10/3 – Reading, PA
10/21 – Murray, KY
10/22 – Richmond, KY
10/27 – Arnold, MD
11/12 – Lyndonville, VT
12/4 – Beavercreek, OH

For a complete list of shows, visit http://michaelkentLIVE.com/tour

Imitation the Sincerest Form of Flattery

I knew when I decided to start putting clips of my show online that unoriginal performers without the ability to create their own material might start trying to perform my original material. That’s sort of the risk that goes with the reward of giving millions of people access to my performances. In the case of my “close up street magic video,” it’s the card to shoe that people haven’t seen. Card to shoe is an old principle and has been performed many ways. I’m not sure if my method is 100% original or not but I came up with it on my own. Almost 80,000 people have watched the video at the time of this blog. Since then, I get emails from young magicians saying “hey, that’s a great idea – I think I’m going to use that.” Why not just come up with your own way to end the trick?

Then we come to today’s topic of discussion. A friend called and told me someone online was doing my “Stars” routine word for word in a new YouTube video. I immediately had an idea of who it was, because last year I had a bunch of students facebooking me telling me that this performer was performing the routine word for word – right down to the geisha father and “I’ll never forget what my father said to me next. He looked me straight in the eyes and said ‘Now get a broom and clean that shit up!”‘ Word for word. Verbatim. Word for word. Well it turns out this performer was so proud of his performance of my routine that he decided to put a video of it online. Since I had asked the performer to stop doing my routine a year ago, I still knew where to get his number. I called and left a message and within an hour, the video had been taken down and replaced with a version that had any of the accompanying monologue to the trick omitted. No call back, no admission of guilt.

Let me be clear. The “Snowstorm in China” is a magical effect that has been around for a very long time – centuries old. I’m not claiming that other performers can’t perform it. It’s been performed by thousands of magicians throughout time. Badly by many of them. Many performers feel like they need to add it to their show because its beautiful and they saw another performer do it. This was the motivation for my routine. In case you haven’t seen my routine (you can watch below), it’s a spoof on the effect. I’m making fun of the magicians who feel as if telling a story about their childhood and doing beautiful magic somehow enables them to connect with the audience. My routine was written years ago with a comedy writer friend of mine. The routine – right down to every line of it – is mine, and I’ve performed it for thousands upon thousands of people in the last however many years.

I would love to share the original version of the other magician’s video with you. I have it saved (thank you, vixy.net). He really looks like an idiot performing my line. But I think I’ll take the high road on this one. After all, no one’s going to perform my original material as well as I do.
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I only ask that you help me through your support. The people that visit my facebook and read my blogs are the most supportive group of people I’ve ever seen. Show the below video to as many friends as you can. Post it to your wall, submit it to other web sites, do whatever – just let some more people see my video. I’d really appreciate it. Here’s the stars routine.

To put this video on facebook or link to it, here’s the URL to use: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TogBivhs290
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Thanks for your support. In closing, I’d like to ask you. What would you do? Do you think I’m doing the right thing?

New College Tour Dates Announced

Hey! Here’s a quick look at some college shows we just added to the fall schedule! Let me know if you’re interested in bringing me to your school and we’ll add you to the list!

6/25 – Albany, GA
8/15 – Mt. Pleasant, MI
8/22 – Lexington, KY
8/27 – Clarion, PA
8/30 – Bowling Green, OH
9/2 – Westville, IN
9/12 – Philadelphia, PA
9/25 – Pella, IA
10/2 – Oxford, OH
10/3 – Reading, PA
10/21 – Murray, KY
10/22 – Richmond, KY
10/27 – Arnold, MD
11/12 – Lyndonville, VT

For a complete list of shows, visit http://michaelkentLIVE.com/tour