A flat minor...

Truer words...

 

 Today I am recovering from MAGIC Live here in Las Vegas. I only got about 20 minutes in the dealer's room to look around but I have seen some videos of random effects popping up. One such video got my usual reaction to the glut of the magic released nowadays... "So what?".

 There are so many "minor miracles" released into the magic marketplace disguised as this HUGE thing. Sure in the right hands, almost anything can be a show stopper but how often does that happen? I'm getting kind of sick of seeing mediocre wizardry touted as amazing magic when the effect is basically only good as disposable video fodder. 

Long gone are the days of performers putting in many, many hours to make sure an effect was as solid as it can be. This is not new of course, but it slowly seems to be now be the norm. Far too much is being released far too quick for a quick buck. I'm not saying everything I have ever released has been gold, but I at least gave it more than a week of gestation before putting it in people's hands.

I don't want magic that can't drink dammit!

No respect I tell yah...

 Some of you might be too young to know, or remember, that there was a time in America where variety acts were well respected. There were TV shows that showcased their talent and didn't treat them like some second class citizen waiting to be exploited for clicks, views, or ratings.

Culture tends to be influenced by it's media. Clothing, hairstyles, and other trends come from what we consume. If the media doesn't respect the variety arts, then the general public doesn't tend to either.

Let's harken back to the days when programs like "The Ed Sullivan Show" would bring on people who spent YEARS perfecting a skill set and not for being "famous for nothing". 

 

This is George Carl. One of the great Vaudeville clowns. Did I say clowns? Yes... yes I did. We equate clowns to those who sport facepaint and bright costumes, but there is a whole other kind of clown that doesn't need all that "finery". The physical comedian, the slapstick connoisseur, the... well... clown.

George Carl was a master of many things (as one had to be back then) and created a lot of gags and bits of business that have since passed on into the acts of others, whether they know it or not. As performers we should know what came before to appreciate what we have (or don't have) now and carry on the traditions of entertaining an audience with whatever we have on hand, be it our coats, our arms, or just ourselves.

True comedy is timeless.