The Presto-Digitators, will present a seminar, "It's Your Turn to Talk--Making More Effective Presentations," at 7:30 p.m., Thursday evening, February 19, in Room 210 of the Colorado State Office Building, 3842 South Mason Street, Fort Collins. This seminar, conducted by Sally K. Robinson, owner of WorkSmart, will give you practical techniques for gaining the involvement of your listeners and keeping their interest level high during any presentation you give. According to Lew Wymisner, who has used Ms. Robinson's services for presentations to business groups in Fort Collins, to audiences numbering in excess of several hundred people, and for a state-wide conference for job training professionals in Colorado Springs, "Any magician worth his or her salt would be a moron to miss this seminar!" This seminar is presented free of charge by the Presto-Digitators for the betterment of performing magicians.
BTW, dues are due. Take a look at your newsletter mailing label. If it has a "D" (dues are due) or a "T" (temporary), please send a check, money order, or large piles of cash (actually, its $15 for a regular membership, $2 for associate) to Bob Reed, 643 Crawford Circle, Longmont CO, 80501, and tell him the dog ate the first one. This will turn that letter code into a "P" which stands for Paid (or is it "Priceless"... or "Princely"..., I don't know.) Bob is always willing to answer questions at (303)651-3196. For those of you with internet access, check out our new website. http://pages.prodigy.net/byron_ferguson/presto.htm We are trying to increase our connectivity these days so feel free to contact me (Geoff) with your questions, concerns or positive feedback at mckthomp@worldnet.att.net (negative feedback can be addressed to lew@takeahike and will be received at the Adam's rack in Ault). Don't worry, our telephones still work, so feel free to call us. One more thing. Dorian Gray is scheduled to lecture in Denver on Friday, Feb. 20. There is some very good buzz on this gentleman's work.
For those of you who have not heard, Colorado's own, Doc Eason is doing what very few working professionals are willing to even contemplate. He is tipping his life's work in the form of a three volume video set produced by L&L Publishing. These tapes have been reviewed by Mike Close (to appear in March issue of MAGIC) and, as Doc put it, "Mikey likes it!" The best and quickest way to lay your hands on these Rocky Mt. gems is to give Doc a call at, Rocky Mountain Magic, Inc., (970) 927-3197 or (for those on the net) you can access his webpage at (http://www.doceason.com).
The March meeting will be on Thursday, March 12 and will take the form of a lecture by the Head Lemming himself, Simon Lovell! Simon has been touted as one of the more creative talents in magicdom and should provide a 'laugh-a-minute riot' of a lecture. Be sure to put it on your calender. Please note that this date is one week earlier than (and will replace) our regularly scheduled meeting. The annual Money Magic contest will occupy the April meeting slot on Thursday, April 16. Start polishing & pressing that currency now. The next Presto-Digitators Planning Meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m., Wednesday night, March 4, at Coopersmith's Brew Pub in Old Town Fort Collins. Everyone is invited to attend and dinner is optional. Magic in the Rockies 1998, scheduled for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, September 11, 12, and 13, will again be held at the Fort Collins Marriott. Registration information will be sent to you soon. Stay tuned to this spot for more info as it becomes available.
The third Saturday in January means it's time for the Presto- Digitators' Annual Banquet. Nearly 50 attendees arrived at the Mulberry Inn to enjoy cocktails followed by a sumptuous dinner provided by The Chenz and Mrs. C's Classic Catering. The buffet dinner which included desserts had enough variety to please just about everybody. Some brief announcements followed dinner, including well wishes to Barry Fernelius who is at home recovering from what is hoped was a mild heart attack. Next was the announcement of this year's new club officers: Byron Ferguson was elected President; Tim Pendergast, VP; Lew Wymisner, Secretary; Bob Reed, Treasurer; Monte Haines, Sergeant- at-Arms; and Geoff Thompson will take over as Newsletter Editor. Ed (Mr. Magic) Hurtubis will be concentrating this year on his duties as I.B.M. Territorial VP, in-between traveling with his wife Mimi to such events as the Super Bowl, as well as several magic conventions. (Ed took a well deserved early retirement on December 31, 1997, after 33 years with the Kodak Company.) The evening's entertainment was next. Club members who recently participated at the second annual First Night Fort Collins New Year's Eve celebration were asked to perform in the stand-up and/or close-up portions of the after-dinner show. Byron Ferguson, Bob Blea, Allan Bryner, Mr. Magic, Tom Kechter, Tim Pendergast, Geoff Thompson, and Lew (The Great Loudini) Wymisner were joined by, "That Old Son of a Witch" Hudson Grotzinger, and Ryan (Master of Magic) Siebert. Ryan, who performed an hilarious escape using an Abbott's Strait Jacket (Byron was seen taking notes!), was attending his first I.B.M. 250 meeting. He's is a visiting I.B.M. member from Connersville, Indiana who is interning with a local architectural company in Fort Collins. Comments by banquet attendees, including club members, their significant others, and other guests indicated this year's annual banquet was a smashing success. Good food, good fellowship, and great entertainment. A magical jump-start to the new year! Lew Wymisner.
How many times have we heard, "I hate to perform for magicians?" Why do many of our members feel this way? I believe that many of us are reluctant to perform because of what happens to us when we do perform for magicians. Sometimes we may feel that everyone knows exactly how we actually do an effect or knows more than we do, and sometimes we may not enjoy how we are treated. May I suggest that we make a sincere effort to give our undivided attention and support to any performer, especially to our club members. For instance, we can put away our cards instead of practicing a faro shuffle or double lift; we can put away our coins instead of explaining the effect to our neighbor or mentioning that we noticed a "flash" or something. I can remember many years ago when David Copperfield visited Ft. Collins. Many of our club members had front row seats for his show. For his straight jacket effect, David asked for a few volunteers. I was surprised and pleased to be selected to assist David, but I also had a responsibility too! As David welcomed us onto "his" stage, I quietly mentioned that he had picked two local magicians, that many folks in the audience would recognize. David responded, "Thanks, let's really make this look good" Consider the Golden Rule, treat others as we would like to be treated. Many of us practice to be performers, should we practice to be a good audience? When we are inattentive or disruptive during any performance, we denigrate our art form. Let's be positive audience role models for all performers. What do you think?
I.B.M. Ring 250 is the Presto-Digitators of Fort Collins, CO. Meetings are on the third Thursday of each month, at 7:30 p.m. in the Colorado State Office Building, at 3842 South Mason St., Ft. Collins, CO. 80525 President: Byron Ferguson (303) 277-0323 Vice-President: Tim Pendergast (970) 225-0708 Treasurer: Bob Reed (303) 651-3196 Sergeant-at-Arms: Monte Haines (970) 224-0446 Newsletter Editor: Geoff THompson (307) 635-0306 Secretary: Lew Wymisner (970) 484-7014