Who's Watching the Magician?

I love performing at the Georgia National Fair. We always have big crowds and the folks that work for the fair are so nice and professional. I do five shows a day some days, and my stands are always full. Lots of old friends and new friends are crowded into the bleachers...and, sometimes, there's standing room only. Once, while doing one of my shows, I looked to the back of the audience and there was Charlie Daniels watching my show. He was there to perform at Reeves Arena and just stopped by to watch me before he had to go in and do his show.

Other times, I have been honored to look up and see Governor Sonny Perdue in my audience. Years ago, before he became Governor, he would often be at some of the civic club lunches I would perform at around Middle Georgia. I don't know if he likes my shows or just likes the potential voters in the crowds... but it's always nice to have him in the audience!

I was presenting a show at the Cloister on Sea Island a few years ago and I had a big crowd for my "Full Evening" show...the one with the big stuff, like sawing a woman in half, levitating a lady, etc. After the show, an elderly man came up to tell me how much he enjoyed my magic. I was surprised and honored to find out he was retired General William Westmoreland.

Another time, also at the Cloister, I was doing "close-up" magic (coins, cards, etc.) for a company's Christmas party. While performing my "cups and balls" routine which uses very difficult slight of hand, I looked up to see Mack King watching. Mack is a magician with his own venue in Las Vegas. He was at the Cloister to do a private show for another company Christmas party. I was a nervous wreck the rest of my show!

It's Magical in the Magic Warehouse

Every time I go out to my magic warehouse, I get lost in the magical atmosphere. There are thousands of antique magical treasures...not just equipment, but all kinds of paraphernalia. Posters, displays, books, costumes, etc., all having at one time belonged to magicians of the past. I get so inspired.

My friend Steve Dooley loves for me to do the "Card in the Orange" trick. It is pretty neat. An orange is sitting on the table. A card is freely chosen by an audience member. The card is torn into pieces and burned with the spectator keeping a piece of the card. The orange is cut in half. Inside is a rolled up card... the same card the spectator chose... but with a piece missing. The piece the spectator kept fits perfectly the card from the orange!

Some of the things I find so interesting in my antique magic collection are the old flag tricks... all the flags have 48 stars!

I've been very inspired lately. I've been adding the doves back into the act more.

Magic & Football!

Several years ago I had just made Santa magically appear at Mobile, Alabama Mall...a very large and beautiful mall in a beautiful city. Everything was packed up and I was headed home.

Well, it happened to be the Saturday of the Auburn | Georgia game, they were playing in Auburn, and I was excited to be able to listen to the game on my long ride home. Georgia was losing as the game was coming to an end.

I needed to stop for gas, so I pulled off the interstate into a station that happened to be in Auburn! Just as I began to refuel, Georgia made a miracle touchdown and won the game in the last few seconds.

I started to yell with excitement when I realized I was among nothing but very upset Auburn fans. I decided to suppress my excitement, pay for the gas, and go home.

First Magic Show Memories

One of the first magic shows I ever performed was for my elementary school's talent show. This show was memorable for two reasons.

First of all, for my show, I was going to cut someone's head off with my homemade guillotine. I had seen this performed on TV, so I made one. It was so cool...5 feet tall with one of my mother's kitchen knives for the blade. It probably would have worked if given a chance. The teachers and principal failed to see the entertainment value and nixed the guillotine from my act. Maybe it was for the best.

I'm happy to say that I now have a 7 ft. guillotine which I use regularly in big shows... and it works just fine.

Oh, I said there were two things that made this talent show memorable. While we were all waiting to perform our acts during rehearsal in the auditorium of Old Alexander II Grammar school, all of a sudden, the Star Spangled Banner began playing over the intercom. It was just after 1pm, November 22nd, 1963. Kennedy had just been shot. Rehearsal was canceled and we all went home early.

Magic Club Bloopers

The "Magic Club" TV show was taped as if it were live. In other words, when the cameras began rolling, it was a straight 30 minutes...no edits or cuts. I used to believe that a kid in the audience would have to throw-up for us to edit the show.

During one taping, I asked the kids if they knew any jokes. They all held up their hands. When I approached them with a microphone, they would pause and say something like "...I like Ice Cream". That was their joke. One kid, however, began..."what is the difference between roast beef and pea soup?" I repeated, "I don't know, what is the difference between roast beef and pea soup?" The little boy replied .."any body can roast beef!"

That was one of the few times we edited the show.

Diva Bunny!

Butterbean the Baffling Bunny was an absolutely beautiful rabbit...and she knew it. Butterscotch color and lop ears...she looked so sweet and precious. In reality, she was the meanest rabbit I have ever had or seen! What a prima donna!

On stage, or on the TV show, she loved the attention and applause she received upon making her magical appearance. She let people pet her and was so docile. At home, she became a little Tasmanian Devil! She would bite, scratch, and even growl at me.

When Butterbean wanted to get out of her cage and run around the den, she would start gnawing on her cage door. I would open the door and she would hop out and bounce about for a while, then stretch out and watch TV (really!). Sometimes, she would hop up on the sofa and get in my lap. There, she would force her head under my hand for me to pet her. If I didn't, she would use her four razor sharp teeth to nibble holes in my pants.

Like I said...she knew how to get what she wanted, and do only what she wanted to do. Butterbean went to the big Magic Hat in the sky a couple of years ago. I still run into people who watched the "Magic Club" on TV who ask me "where's Butterbean"?

She was a star... but what a meanie!

The Power of Television

I was the opening act for The Roy Clark Show at the Hiawassee Mountain Fair this summer. The theater seats 3,000 and there were several people already in the audience while I was setting up on stage.

Doing this show was so exciting because of the size of the live audience. All of the publicity promoted "Roy Clark and Magician Mike Fuller".

Naturally, I was setting up to do a big show and was lost in the "magic" moment of arranging my props on stage. Then, a lady among the early arrivers shouted, "Hey...that's my weatherman!".

Ah, the power of television!