INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA [Assembly Report for June 2006]
Harry Riser Assembly No. 31
President: Steven A. Spence
Secretary: Mike Engle
Meets the first Monday, 7 PM at Mystic Tai Lodge, SE corner of Illinois & North St.

New Officers Elected â?? Exciting Magic Auction

Assembly 31 elected new officers for the 2006-7 periods. Elected by acclamation were the following: Steven A. Spence President, Harry Riser Vice President, Mike Engle Secretary, Dee Saul Treasurer, and Don Miller Sergeant at Arms. We wish to thank the outgoing officers, President Ken Kern, V. Pres. Harry Riser, Treasurer Dee Saul, Secretary Paul Harnishfeger, Sgt. at Arms Bill Branson Jr., and Scribe Robert Vasileff for their commitment and excellent work.

We also wish to thank Ted Baer, Frank Dailey, Dave Oesterreich, and Karl Wagner for bringing magic to the auction. We especially thank Mr. Oesterreich, as his magic was donated to the Assembly for the auction. The following served to make the auction run smoothly; Ken Kern auctioneer, Dee Saul cashier, Cheryl Kern auction secretary, and Bob Vasileff for handling the items in the pit.

Bob Vasileff, Scribe

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA [Assembly Report for May 2006]
Harry Riser Assembly No. 31
Meets the first Monday, 7 PM at Mystic Tai Lodge, SE corner of Illinois & North St.

Taylor Martin, Impressive As The Glamorous Andrea Merlyn

Taylor Martin AKA The Glamourous Andrea Merlyn, the hit of the 2005 Indy Fringe Festival, presented a dress rehearsal for Assembly 31 and Ring 10. Taylor will be performing this May at the International Fringe Festival in Orlando, Florida. Taylor opened with an assortment of rope magic, that included a single piece of rope that when tied was converted to a piece of rope looped on the rope and Professorâ??s Nightmare. He was assisted by Mark Grabhorn. Carl the Cockroach, a hand puppet, became the butt of excellent puns as the roach morphed into a bunny. Andrea made a subtle change of costume and became a child. This was the motivation for the wonderfully humorous magic Pom-Pom trick. Volunteer David Fordâ??s health was checked as he tried to make the magic imp bottle stay up and was found lacking. A rope was placed around his middle with an entry and exit tube inserted. Andrea then cleansed the humors and returned David to good health with this superb Ali Bongo trick. Next Andrea performed an excellent comedy Asra levitation with a small doll and musical accompaniment of a Kazoo. A magic show is not complete without a card trick. Andrea, assisted by Randy Middleton, performed Banned in Boston, where a selected card is signed, vanished, and interlaced with a ton of comedy is then found in a deodorant container. A real treat for all was the appearance of a Thayer Die Box in the next comedy magic trick. Dee and Paula Saul assisted Andrea in another excellent comedy Linking Ring performance. Andrea concluded with a comedy sponge ball assisted by Mark Grabhorn. All enjoyed Taylorâ??s entertaining professional show. We wished him great success as his career in magic continues to soar.

Bob Vasileff, Scribe

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA [Assembly Report for April 2006]
Harry Riser Assembly No. 31
President: Ken Kern
Secretary: Paul Harnishfeger
Meets the first Monday, 7 PM at Mystic Tai Lodge, SE corner of Illinois & North St.

Harry Riser Honored At Book Signing Event

Harry Riser, Assembly 31 namesake, was honored by local magicians on the occasion of the release of his second book, Secrets of an Escamoteur. Mr. Riser presented a 2 hour lecture using material from his book. Chapter 1 of the book begins with â??Travels with Charlieâ??, that is Charlie Miller. An important topic was the Malini-Miller Egg Bag. Harry acknowledged that his wife Margy probably had as much to do with the construction of the egg bag as Charlie and Harry did with the routine. The plans to make an egg bag and Harryâ??s presentation are included in the book. We were treated to a live performance of Harryâ??s egg bag routine.

Harry discussed card handling techniques. These are brilliantly discussed in his book. Some mentioned include carrying a break, second dealing, gauging and estimating, using a corner short card, the double lift, clever cuts, card controls, and spectator management.

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA [Assembly Report for March 2006]
Harry Riser Assembly No. 31
Meets the first Monday, 7 PM at Mystic Tai Lodge, SE corner of Illinois & North St.

Steve Taylor Entertains Two Magic Clubs

Steve Taylor presented a lecture to Assembly 31 and Ring 10. Jim Croop, Ring 10 President, introduced Mr. Taylor. Steve has performed 9 times at the Magic Castle and lectured there 5 times. He has performed or lectured in all the states except Alaska. The lecture emphasis was on Promoting, Marketing, and Motivation using magic. Lecture notes were available that included creating and writing educational magic programs.

Steve stressed that it is important to incorporate the message into the magic and not have the message separated from the effect. Libraries, Schools, Trade Shows and Corporations are willing to pay much more for a program with a motivational message, such as (Say No to Drugs, Anti-Bully, Read More, Teamwork, etc...). Each theme should be appropriate for the venue.

His methods were introduced using easy to remember letters, "C", "I", "A". The letter "C" should bring to mind the word â??combineâ??; that is, taking two or more effects to present a message changing the effect from a trick to a meaningful routine. The second letter, "I", causes one to think of the word â??illustrate.â?? This means that one should not use the standard magical patter associated with the effect but one should adjust the patter to promote the desired message. The last letter, "A", is for the word â??changeâ??, meaning one should change the effect to enhance the message.

He then introduced these concepts for Family Audiences: if you fool the audience they will remember the trick, if you make them laugh they will remember the show, but if you touch their heart/emotions they will remember you. When possible always make the spectator the "Hero." If you want to get rehired, you want to play to the adults, principals, librarians in addition to the younger set. One third of all the humor should be directed at the adults. Steve presented many combined magic tricks that were used to illustrate an assortment of motivational messages. He used these examples to show how these routines were used to play to an assortment of venues. Poor weather did not deter attendance for a very successful evening.

Bob Vasileff, Scribe

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA [Assembly Report for February 2006]
Harry Riser Assembly No. 31
Meets the first Monday, 7 PM at Mystic Tai Lodge, SE corner of Illinois & North St.

Yes - I Use Gaffed Cards (original)

Ken Kern opened our meeting with a warm welcome to new S.A.M. and Assembly member, James Croop. Your Best Gaffed Card trick was the theme for tonight. Ken Kern, assisted by Mike Engle, gave Mike half of a packet of cards. Ken turned his cards face up and asked Mike to mentally select two. Kenâ??s packet was combined again and turned over again. Ken asked Mike if his selected cards were there. Mike stated that they had vanished. When Mike looked at his packet, the selected cards were there. Jerry Cassel presented three tricks using apparatus made by Anverdi. David Ford assisted by selecting a card and returning it to the pack. The cards were placed into a box and when the selected card was placed in the box, the lid magically closed. The remaining two devices, one where a hand drops on the selected card and the other where a dog barks and dances when the selected card is laid down suffered mechanical failures. Just seeing these treasures was a treat. Taylor Martin stepped forward and asked Mike Engle to select and sign a card; this card was then torn, vanished, and mysteriously appeared inside a container of Ban deodorant as Taylor performed a comedy presentation of Banned in Boston. Chris Henderson asked Mike Engle to select and sign a card. This card was returned to the deck, and then appeared to vanish, only to be found in an envelope lying on the table as Chris performed Solid Gold Card in the Envelope. Mike Engle asked Tony Watson to select a card, write its value on a piece of paper, and lay it face down. Mike was now going to read his mind. Failing to do this Tony selected another card, but Mike failed again. Mike asked for one more chance, but this time Mike will use his trusted toucan puppet, Beaker. They not only divine the third card; but, correctly identify the first two cards. Bob Vasileff stepped up with a deck of cards that were cut into two packets. One packet was selected by an audience member and Bob removed five cards. Three cards were turned face up, the packet closed, and then pushed the packet through his hand making all of the cards to magically turn the same way. Bob continued with Three Card Monte. Bob concluded by showing a four card packet riveted together. The cards shown were R, B, R, and B. Under the cover of a silk the center cards trade places in a flash. Tony Watson performed an original comedy effect he called the Red Deck with the Blues. A deck of cards appeared to morph into a harmonica upon which Tony played a tune. Harry Riser gave a brief discussion on one way cards and double faced cards and showed how they might be used. Harry then displayed a red backed and a blue backed deck. Paul Harnishfeger selected the red deck. Harry was going to make a prediction using the selected deck and removed one card. Harry opened the blue back deck and asked Paul to name any card, this card was removed, and when the prediction card was shown, it matched the selected card. Harry continued with 5 Card Monte described in his first book, The Feints and Temps of Harry Riser, where an Ace is part of a five card packet. Harry asked everyone to watch carefully as the Ace magically disappeared only to be replaced by a Joker. Harry continued with a Paul Curry trick described in Greater Magic where Harry wrote two predictions on two cards that were placed face down. Jared Sherlock selected a card as did Bob Vasileff. The predictions matched the selected cards. Harry continued by making a written prediction on a slip of paper and then asked Harold Barnes to name any card that came to mind. A comedy routine followed as Harry said that there were many ways to name cards. Cards were shown and different names were written on the back, such as Mark, Jim, and Sally. The card Harold selected was named Edna that matched Harryâ??s written prediction. Harry concluded with No Lay Down Aces, a full description appeared in M.U.M., where three aces plus three cards are culled to form three four card packets. The ace of spades is the master ace and is placed in the remainder of cards and tabled. Each packet is handled and the ace in each vanishes only to have migrated to the ace of spades in the tabled deck.

Tonight was a terrific meeting where some excellent card magic was presented for the enjoyment of all.

Bob Vasileff, Scribe

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA [Assembly Report for January 2006]
Harry Riser Assembly No. 31
Meets the first Monday, 7 PM at Mystic Tai Lodge, SE corner of Illinois & North St.

Magic Gifts I Received For Christmas - Start The New Year For Assembly 31

Ken Kern opened our meeting with a warm welcome to guests Jeff Harmon and Jared Sherlock. The theme for this eveningâ??s meeting was Magic Tricks I Received for Christmas. Chris Henderson opened with his version of Osterlandâ??s Two Card Trick which utilizes a memorized deck and a metal mask worn on the face to divine the selected card. Chris concluded with an excellent rendition of Aldo Columbiniâ??s Your Card. Jim Croop performed Teleki-What? by Fred Shields and Bascom Jones as described by Leo Behnke. Is this a trick of control and/or co-incidence? A spectator controls the deck only to see that his selected card and the magicianâ??s selected card mysteriously appear at the same moment. Dee Saul performed Bro. John Hammanâ??s Gemini Twins, where twins meet twins in a seemingly impossible way with four cards. Dee used an interesting Paradise Grip variation for Gemini Twins. Dee concluded with a superb presentation of Chicago Opener, as the selected card is found with a different color back. Steve Spence performed two wonderful coin routines, Dean Dillâ??s Coin Matrix where coins disappear from one location and reappear in another. Steve concluded with The Three Invisible Coins by Joshua Jay, which was particularly baffling. Tony Watson performed an original comedy effect inspired by an article he had read in a magic magazine that he tagged the Red Deck with the Blues. A deck of cards appears to morph into a harmonica and then Tony actually played Suwannee River. Mike Engle performed Mind Control, by Bill Abbott, where seven borrowed items are placed on a table and Mike correctly identifies the selected one with a very smooth execution. Jared Sherlock performed an excellent expanding penny production, Dishonest Abe by Gregory Wilson, where a small penny is magically transformed into larger ones that then vanish. While it became obvious that Santa had not visited all, the meeting provided a wonderful evening of sharing and enjoying well performed magic.

Dee Saul for Scribe Bob Vasileff

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA [Assembly Report for December 2005]
Harry Riser Assembly No. 31
Meets the first Monday, 7 PM at Mystic Tai Lodge, SE corner of Illinois & North St.

Assembly 31 & Ring 10 Host Gala Annual Christmas Party and Magic Show

Assembly 31, Ring 10, S.Y.M., gathered together for an evening of food, magic, fun, and fellowship at the Annual Christmas Banquet and Magic Show. Thanks to All Souls Unitarian Church, Chef Cheryl Kern, producer Harry Riser, sound engineer Paul Harnishfeger, and stage manager Bob Vasileff. Emcee Harry Riser opened the evening with clever mind reading card trick where a spectator selected a card and Harry correctly divined the selection. Chris Henderson set the tone of excellence with a rhyming three card Monte using Elvis as the focal character. Harry Riser then performed a card trick where 4 aces are seen to magically disappear. Jared Sherlock, S.Y.M., updated the classic bullet catch as he performed a paint ball bullet catch. A shot was fired and a signed paint ball magically appeared between his teeth. Harry did another trick. Bill Burdette, also from S.Y.M., was next with an excellent Cups and Balls presentation with many magical moments. Harry performed a beautiful Malini egg bag routine astounding his assistant and the audience. Ken Kern, appearing as Prof. XXX, demonstrated that in his hands the laws of nature do not apply. He showed that solid penetrated solid with Vampire Block and Rope through Body. He also showed that matter can with stand the ravages of fire with a clever rendition of Cremation where a scarf is placed into a box, the space above the scarf is set afire and yet the scarf was removed unharmed. Harry Riser then presented his famous three rings Linking Rings to thunderous applause. Ryan Siebert did three of his card tricks. Taylor Martin, AKA Rodney the Younger, kept the audience in stitches as he closed with his superb comedy Sword through Neck assisted by Debbie Martin and a brave volunteer from the audience.

Photo lineup: Jared Sherlock & Bill Burdette front and kneeling. Second row; Bob Vasileff, Chris Henderson, Ken Kern, Harry Riser, Ryan Siebert, Taylor Martin and Debbie Martin. Photos courtesy of Dee Saul

Bob Vasileff, Scribe

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA [Assembly Report for August, September, October 2005]
Harry Riser Assembly No. 31
President: Ken Kern
Secretary: Paul Harnishfeger
Meets the first Monday, 7 PM at Mystic Tai Lodge, SE corner of Illinois & North St.

This report covers the months of August, September and October. John Carney was hosted during the month of August. There was an excellent turn out and Mr. Carney exceeded everyoneâ??s expectations.

Your Favorite Silk Magic was the September theme. Harry Riser presented a mini lecture that included the chop cup, silks, cards and coins. Harry began with different methods to use the chop cup; one was with a silk and continued by showing the Bob Stencel method of loading a chop cup. He continued with the Close Up Billiard Ball Routine. Next, Harry performed Ball to Silk using a Floyd Thayer Morrison Pill Box. Harry then used a small but beautiful P & L Drum Tube from which silks were produced. Mr. Riser then transitioned to a card trick. Phil Dubbs touched a card and when the Drum Tube was opened, a silk of the selected card appeared. Harry discussed the Charlie Miller force. Some details of tonightâ??s performance can be found in â??The Feints and Temps of Harry Riser.â?? Harry concluded by causing the card silk to vanish. Harry then discussed the device used to vanish the silk, the general use of Drum Tubes, and the Bosco palm.

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA [Assembly Report for June 2005]
Harry Riser Assembly No. 31
President: Ken Kern
Secretary: Paul Harnishfeger
Meets the first Monday, 7 PM at Mystic Tai Lodge, SE corner of Illinois & North St.

Assembly 31 June meeting was called to order by Ken Kern. Tonightâ??s theme was Favorite Magic. Paul Harnishfeger opened a pack of Life Savers, removed two, and in the twinkle of an eye they were linked together. Dee Saul then performed Too Many Ace of Hearts, where a packet of cards were shown to be all Ace of Hearts are converted to an ace high royal flush. Jerry Cassel came forward with a tray containing 8 double edged razor blades and a spool of thread. The blades and thread went into his mouth and when removed, the blades were threaded together. Ed Filbey then showed a white and a black scarf tied together that magically changed into checkered flags. Chris Henderson, assisted by Joe Fuller, showed four small pieces of magical photo paper. Joe selected one piece, initialed it, and placed it between two halves. Joe then selected a card, concentrated, and the image of the card was transferred to the initialed photo paper. Chris continued with tearing the selected card into fourths as he did Flash Restoration.

Harry Riser was next as he performed Triumph, assisted by Joe Fuller. Triumph was originally taught to him by Dai Vernon and Charlie Miller. Then Harry explained and demonstrated Strip Out Shuffle and the Zarrow Shuffle showing how they differ. Harry continued by showing how to double cut a deck controlling cards to desired locations. Harry ended his portion with Dunbury Delusion, written up in the Riser Repertoire in the June 2005 issue of M U M. Joe Fuller then showed two bar/restaurant tricks where a selected card appears in an unlikely location as Joe asks â??what do you want to bet?â?? Many favorite tricks were performed and interesting discussions related to the art of magic made for an excellent evening.

Bob Vasileff, Scribe

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA [Assembly Report for May 2005]
Harry Riser Assembly No. 31
President: Ken Kern
Secretary: Paul Harnishfeger
Meets the first Monday, 7 PM at Mystic Tai Lodge, SE corner of Illinois & North St.

Assembly 31 and I.B.M. Ring 10 hosted Michael Close lecture. We were treated to a lecture by an excellent magician that all felt was one of our own. Effects included The Trick Lance Burton Showed Me, Gary Plantâ??s Magnetized Cards, The Luckiest Cards in Las Vegas, Sideswiped Meets the Bammo Deck Walloper, Red Blue Mama Fooler, and Butte Ox? Two Butte Ox! This was an excellent lecture with an excellent presentation.

During May we were again treated to another superb lecture by one of our own, Harry Riser. Mr. Riser, a renowned card magician, displayed additional talents with a Coin Magic Lecture. Harry began with a brief discussion related to the 1878 book by Jean Robert-Houdin about various methods used to palm small objects. He opened with a coin trick that he learned from Dai Vernon where coins magically penetrate through a table or his hand. Harry continued by showing how a coin, described in the Robert-Houdin book, can vanish. Included in the evening lecture was a demonstration of an excellent retention vanish, an assortment of beautiful palming positions, superb passing techniques and using these methods in an assortment of excellent coin effects. Harry caused coins to vanish, appear, and transpose from an assortment of objects that included his hands, an Okito Box, a pocket coin purse, and a Boston Box. The methods he learned from many of his mentors and vignettes about these greats in magic were eagerly shared with those present. Some of the coin magic demonstrated this evening is described in his first book, â??The Feints and Temps of Harry Riserâ?? and other effects will appear in his second book soon to be published.

Bob Vasileff, Scribe