Magic Castle Trip Details

Magic Castle A week ago my good Friend JC Dunn, a fabulously fun magician and a great friend, and I went on our yearly pilgrimage to the Magic Castle. The Magic Castle is technically a private magician's club. The club is open to the public by invitation from a member then you pay a cover charge and a dinner purchase requirement. It started back in the sixties when it was strictly and only a magician's nightclub. The unique thing about the club is that they have several rooms where various types of magic are performed. For example, there is the close-up gallery, the parlour room where stand-up magic is performed and the Palace of Mystery where stage shows are performed. My busy schedule makes going to the Castle difficult. So for the past three years JC and I have been making a trip there in late January or on the first weekend in February. This year it was mid-January because of our busy preparations for our move to Kentucky. Every year we've seemed to go through a difficulty or two in the process of getting there. For example, the first year we went I had suffered a major back spasm the day before we left. Though walking was nearly impossible I would not cancel the trip. I drive every year and I must admit I am blessed with a very comfortable seat in my van. So the 500 mile drive with a bad back wasn't that bad. Still, after arriving I had a Dickens of a time moving around. I was out of pain pills and as anyone knows who have had major back spasms the pain only increases until the third day then it wanes. We arrived that first year in the late afternoon and after settling into the hotel we walked over to the castle. It was a tough walk but the excitement of my first trip to the Magic Mecca the adrenalin alone was enough to get me there, though slowly. I knew the seats in the little theaters and showrooms were going to be rough on me, not to mention the stairs that are all over the place at the castle: it is an old Victorian. I wasn't a drinker but it was suggested to me that a drink an hour might relax the muscles and kill the pain. So I had a Martini. It was a very smooth martini and it did relax the muscles and kill the pain. The next hour I had another martini. But it was made by a different bartender and it was horrible. Enough to make me cringe. I drank it for the medicinal effects though. When the next hour came I decided to try a different drink. So I ordered”Kentucky bourbon". The Bartender revealed my ignorance as a drinker by telling me, "all bourbon is from Kentucky". I admitted to him I knew nothing of drinks. Then I asked him which was the best bourbon. He told me it was Maker's Mark. It smelled really tasty; it has a spicy oaky rich smell. I let JC smell it and he agreed it smelled really good for an alcoholic drink (neither one of us were drinkers). We were chatting with a number of people around us and in turn they all sniffed my drink. OK, maybe that was weird. From that point on Bourbon would be my medication. Oh, one point I should make. If you start off with a high-end bourbon, you can never have the low end stuff (sorry Jim Beam). The next year, last year, my back was in great shape but poor JC was suffering a pretty nasty cold and suffered arterial fibrillation. But his medication saved his life. No one likes to travel with a head full of mucus but there was no way he was going to miss our trip. I think short of being strapped to a bed in a hospital I think it would be pretty difficult to keep us from our yearly pilgrimage. In spite of the cold, we managed three days down there and even got the Griffith Observatory and a trip to JC's old neighborhood as well as a drive around Beverly Hills. This year was our easiest. Neither one of us had any ailments or infirmities. The drive was very smooth and uneventful. The visit to the Castle was likewise generally uneventful. We met some old friends and made some new ones. We saw some good shows and a couple of not so good shows but all in all it was nice. Each year we meet people either one or both of us had never met. Last year, among others, we met Tippy Hedron (from "The Birds") and Tony Curtis. I met for the first time Milt Larsen, the man who turned the old Victorian into the Castle, and Ron Wilson, an old Scottish gent and a founding member of the Castle. I am of Scottish descent and because of that Ron and I hit it off right away. In fact, we had a jolly time making jest with Milt and JC since they are both from Irish descent. He taught me a saying, "A wee droch an doris." It basically means "One for the road." Sadly I promptly forgot it...that's my memory for you. I also re-acquainted with Jack Goldfinger who had become the entertainment director of the castle since I met him last over 18 years ago in Japan. He was performing at a convention in Tokyo back in 92. Sadly we would loose Ron Wilson and Tony Curtis in 2010. R.I.P. This year the only new people I met was Fielding West, a comedy magician out of Vegas. I did get a chance to chat with Goldfinger and with Milt Larsen a bit. In fact, Milt would sing the whole song, "A Wee Droech and Doris" for me in memory of my fellow Scot, Ron. Milt is a producer of stage shows and was once a writer for television. He also made a cameo in "Bed Knobs and Broomsticks" long time ago. The performances at the castle this time, though good, weren't as great as they were the past years. Maybe the fact that I was not buzzed with "medicine" while there might have affected my views. Still the general population (non magicians) seemed really entertained. I must also confess that recently I have been spending a lot of time worrying about out big move to Kentucky. (I seem to fret about things a lot. The week before we leave on a big tour I am a worrywart mess.... I worry about the possibility of things going wrong, about the preparations, about the clients, about the weather, about the money...especially the money, and anything else you can think of.) I really shouldn't worry. After all I am a Christian and I belief with all my heart the we are in God's hands so when I worry I think I am taking things into my own hands instead of trusting in God! While in SoCal for our Magic Castle experience we try to mix in other activities to make the trip a little more interesting. For example the first year we hit Hollywood Blvd, Hollywood Magic, and one of JC's favorite lunch places. Last year it was Griffith Observatory as I mentioned above and visitations to his old haunts. This year we hit the LA Zoo. I had just visited the SF zoo with my girls and was disappointed with how much the SF zoo has changed over the years. No elephants, no hippos, and a shrinking population of other animals. I was told by a zoo employee that the animal rights activists have really hurt the zoo. It's amazing. I was told that because of the activists pressures they had to move the elephants to a special sanctuary. On the way there they all died. Thank you PETA! But the LA Zoo was so much better. Bigger, better, more animals. What a great place for kids to come and learn about the animals and learn to respect the animals. How many zoologists will come about because of these zoos? We did have dinner at the castle on Sunday night. It was spectacular. The prime rib was tender and very tasty. Their au juice was a bit sweet; seems they had nutmeg and cinnamon in it. But outside that the meal was great. In fact, there was too much for me to eat. On Monday we went to Shintaro Sushi. You would think a sushi shop in a small strip mall off Hollywood bid would be a bit raunchy. But once you enter the doors you step into a very classy place and forget what was on the other side of the doors. It was nice to introduce new things to JC. He's had sushi before but I did introduce him to uni (Sea Urchin). Most people have a hard time eating it. It has a strong flavor and it has a very slippery texture. But JC loved it. Anyone that can get past the texture will enjoy a sweet light sea flavor. We also had something neither one of us had before. Live scallop sushi. Grant it, it was dead by the time it was served to us, but just dead. The whole presentation was outstanding and pretty. The meat of the scallop was fabulous. Oh, I almost forgot an incident at the Castle. Near the end of the night, just before we went into the close-up room to see the very entertaining David Minkin, I had my first drink of the night. In honor of the late Ron Wilson, I ordered a Droech and a Dra (a draught and a dram...a beer and whisky). I had a Guniess Ale and a Maker's Mark. My food had well since moved down the digestion track and the alcohol went directly into my blood stream. While in line for the close-up room, as the alcohol, started to kick in , I performed a few magic tricks and the human block head stunt for the audience. By the time we entered the room everyone in the audience new who I was. I am not sure what set me off but I started to have a giggle attack. As we all took our seats in the close-up room various people in the audience found it great fun to keep me in that giggle state. JC was getting embarrassed by me so he ordered another bourbon for me. Bad idea! I was struggling to get composure when the drink came and just as I took a sip someone made a crack and I sprayed the sip on the people sitting in front of me. (It was only a sip). That sobered me fast. The people weren't angry (they were participating in keeping me giggling anyways.) Still will power one over the moment and beat the booze. I was fully sober in spite of the additional bourbon. Crazy. I managed to not drink all night. It was in that last hour in a tribute toast that got