Sunday, September 24, 2006

The Tim Mannix T-Shirt


Just recently I have added a new feature to my Titanium Birthday party show package -- a customized Tim Mannix t-shirt -- as a way of leaving some part of the show with children. It's something they can wear as a remembrance long after their special day is over.

It comes in kids sizes and it's going over like gangbusters with kids and parents alike!

The Titanium package is my biggest and most elaborate kids birthday package which features making the birthday kid appear from nowhere, a mid-air suspension, the t-shirt, hardbound magic book, plus a personalized Junior Magician trophy and all kinds of other cool things for up to 25 birthday guests!

The Tim Mannix logo (pictured above) was custom-made for me by GotLogos.com, which is an awesome service I cannot more strongly recommend as a VERY inexpensive and effortless way to get a logo for your online business or to begin brand identity. They do a great job and the basic price starts at just $25. Wow! How can you go wrong?

Of course my tagline, Creating Lifetime Memories One Show at a Time, Guaranteed appears underneath the logo.

Hey, marketing is marketing.
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Sunday, September 10, 2006

Baby's Party in a Bar?


Recently, a woman engaged me to entertain at her child’s 4th birthday party having seen my preschool show at her child’s daycare. Being a local businessperson she decided it would be a great idea to have the party at her workplace – a restaurant and bar.

Eureka! What a great idea, right? Me thinks NOT! Since she owns the place it must have seemed like a perfectly good idea. The party was to be held on a weekday night at 6:30pm.

Well folks, truthfully, a restaurant is NOT the ideal location to have a child’s party. In fact, not even close. But if there’s a private room that's inaccessible to the general public it can work okay.

To my dismay, upon arriving at the restaurant I found that it was not to be held in the restaurant portion of the eatery, but in the bar. Uh-Oh! Nevertheless, I wheeled into the bar with the party going full tilt. The bar was dimly lit as bars tend to be, with a single window behind the stage area and dusk fast approaching. The environment was chaotic at best with parents talking loudly in order to be heard and children running amuck. The only light source was coming from a shoulder-high window BEHIND me. We magicians hate light coming from behind us, but for brevity I’ll refrain from elaborating on this grisly point.

Although informed of their low-levels of sugar intake, the kids appeared to have been on 30-minute sugar IVs prior to my arrival. Trust me, they were swinging from the chandeliers. Also, several of the parents were consuming alcohol – not very common at preschool-age parties. It could have been disastrous had I not brought my sound system with me. The sound levels were at a fever pitch. And so began my perilous uphill battle to entertain these folks with my dinosaur-themed magic show.

As you might suspect the outcome was horrendous! It was like performing in an aviary! It was pure unbridled bedlam with just a few kids and parents watching. Amid the continuous bar chatter from parents, all during the show several children were playing onstage almost underfoot, interrupting occasionally to growl at me with dinosaurs in hand. My multiple but humorous pleas for the removal of these “angels” fell on deaf ears as no parent laid claim to them. Shocking!

Later I found out the mothers of these children were next door in the bar having drinks while the rest of the crowd “tended” their children. This was better than dropping them off at the party, which they’d done a month earlier. Don't anyone scream "White Trash!", although possibly fitting, it wouldn't be proper.

Finally when the onstage munchkins started playing with my magic props, I stopped the show altogether and asked that parents, ANY parents come forth and cart these kiddos away. They did and I finished the show.

After the show several parents stopped by to express their disgust with the situation and commend me on a job well done. They told me they were glad I’d stopped the show and commiserated with me for a brief moment on the dismal state of contemporary parenting skills. I appreciated their sentiments, but was ready to bolt out the door screaming all the way down Fairfax Avenue. I didn't though, remembering that I could always cry myself to sleep that night.

The birthday mother was annoyed, embarrassed and apologetic as she helped me outside with my rabbit and props. She said she felt the birthday child had enjoyed the show and the kids didn’t know the difference. But, I did and EVERYONE else did too. Once again, environment, or lack thereof is everything and it had contributed to, if not ruined, the entire birthday experience for everyone!

I perform at hundreds of parties every year and have to say that this was one of the most challenging and most nightmarish performance conditions I've encountered to date. If all kids parties were this way, I’d either be out of the business or strapped down to a gurney on the express shuttle to a rubber room.

And although I don’t work for tips and do charge a fine fee for my services, this woman in the restaurant/bar business offered me no tip. And trust me, given the circumstances, a tip would NOT have been considered inappropriate.

Storal of the Mory: Don’t have your child’s party in a bar, just don’t.

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Wednesday, September 06, 2006

FAM Newsletter is Back!


Finally, I will be getting back to publishing a monthly or bi-monthly newsletter to clients, customers, and friends letting them know news, information and perhaps useful information they can pass on.

My fall version of the FunAmazingMagic newsletter will feature the collage (pictured at left) from my 4th of July show at the City of Commerce Independence Day Celebration and was photographed, compiled, and created by magician friend Matt Savin. He and his wife Aimee attended the festivities and watched the show. I thought that was pretty nice of them to just show up to see the show -- cool friends, huh? Matt sent the collage to me via email and I will feature it in my fall FunAmazingMagic newsletter as part of my recap of Summer 2006. The newsletter should hit mailboxes on or about September 15th. Be on the lookout for yours.

Remember, Halloween and Christmas are just around the corner and what with school now back in session, I am going into my busy time...thank goodness, 'cause August can get a little lean.

If you'd like to receive my monthly newsletter, just drop me a line at tjmagic@sbcglobal.net and I will be sure to include you as a recipient of the newsletter.

Until next time....
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Monday, September 04, 2006

They Want Me for Govenor!


Last May 19-20, 2006 I attended the Northwest Magic Jamboree in Newberg, Oregon just outside of Portland and had an absolute blast with magicians friends Don Kenney and Bill Turner.

Between the shows, dealers and awesome magic auction (I unloaded everything I'd brought and bought a couple of treasures), and the down-home and friendly attitudes of attendees it was truly one of the best magic conventions – if you can call it that -- I've had the pleasure of participating in.

While lunching on the first day, I noticed a political sign that I just had to get a shot of outside our restaurant. I can just see the headlines;

Newberg Spellbound by L.A. Humorist Tim Mannix, Proposes Governorship with Aggressive Fastrack Campaign

or perhaps...

Oregonians Enthralled with California Magician, Locals Insist Mannix Enter Gubernatorial Race

Yes, now I can tell people, “They loved me so much in Oregon they want me for Governor!” You know, I do believe I could get used to this sort of response to my casual visits.
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Saturday, September 02, 2006

Magic Castle Performances


This weekend I am appearing at the Magic Castle and it is indeed a pleasure to get the opportunity to be there and to live my dream. Years ago I dreamed of appearing at the Magic Castle when I was a little kid growing up in Oklahoma City.

Honestly, it's sometimes a little intimidating being amongst so many talented performers. But, I just have to remember that I've got a right to be there and to take my place among the other great performers that go out into the world to share our gift of live Performance Art...magic.

This definitely is NOT the best weekend to be appearing there since it's Labor Day weekend, but it's my fifth time there. Seems most people are out of town or doing some "last-chance-to-be-outdoors" activity rather than be indoors. Still, I'm having a lot of fun presenting my newest favorite trick, the appearing bowling ball -- it fries people -- leaves them speechless. Magicians live for this kind of reaction from laymen.

As always, I invite my customers and friends to contact me for passes to the Magic Castle. It's a really cool place to go and have fun with family and friends. It's especially fun to bring people for there first time. Just email me @ tjmagic@sbcglobal.net.

Remember, if ever you want to go...the passes are yours for the asking.

Tim Mannix
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