Saying goodbye …

Today I said good bye to Tony Eng. Me and a few hundred people were in attendance. To see so much love and humor was a testament to the man and how he touched the world. My dear friends Eric and Murray both spoke from the heart and I was touched by their words. Julie, Tony’s eldest daughter, was last to speak and did such an amazing job I know Tony would be proud.

Following the service we went to a reception and there I was able to share stories with others about a great man. Some I had heard a dozen times and a few I had never heard. One of my favorite moments was a fly fisherman who said Tony’s biggest fear was that Ann, his Wife, would sell his equipment for what he told her he paid! Now if that didn’t make you laugh …

Almost a dozen of us from Vancouver headed to get to the Ferry and on the way decided to stop and have a bite to eat. It was Mother’s Day dinner and most restaurants were packed. We finally found a small place called Smitty’s and a lovely lady named Shellie served us with a flair. When we got ready to leave Shelllie spoke to Hannah and asked her what she wanted to be when she grew up? Hannah replied she wanted to do many things, but for certain she would be a magician. This elicited a laugh from Shellie and then Hannah told her I was a magician. Shellie said she kind of guessed it from the 4F pin on my suit lapel. Shellie then asked if I had heard Tony Eng had died. I was set back at first. Then she shared a story of how Tony changed her 13 year old sons life by teaching him magic and making it possible for him to fit in to their new school at such a difficult time in their lives. I was stunned and made her repeat the story for everyone … a silence fell over the group … and then a smile and feeling I will never be able to explain …

We said our goodbyes to Shellie and then raced to the Ferry …

Tomorrow I’m off to Corvalis, Oregon to see Janet Vance. I haven’t seen her since the passing of her husband and my dear friend, Dwight. It will be a long day … but I’m really looking forward to a hug …

I got a great review in London from the Magic Circle …

Some of the quotes that I read include:

“Shawn performs with masses of energy, and child-like excitement, which was quite infectious.”

“It was a fabulous evening full of tricks and ideas, which could have gone on all night. Unfortunately all good things come to an end, but Shawn Farquhar had given us a real treat.”

I also saw a video today that was quite inspiring for those that think failure is a bad thing. I recall once being asked by a reporter just how many magic awards I had won over the years. I told that reporter that the question was not the right one to ask. That the number of wins was not as important as the number of times I lost! This video shows the other side of many famous folks who didn’t always succeed …

While on the subject of not being perfect. The greatest, without a doubt, magician with birds was Channing Pollock. I spent most of my youth day dreaming that one day I would be perfect like him. In fact he was billed as “the most beautiful man in the world”. Well in this classic video you may notice near the end he vanishes a bird … that doesn’t vanish. Channing never even blinks and goes ahead as if nothing has happened. His assistant even bends down and picks up the bird off the ground without flinching … in my humble opinion … perfect!

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Here’s the full article from the Magic Circular … if you’re bored!

Monday 14 January 2008
A Lecture by Shawn Farquhar
by Paul Roffman

We were privileged to have an unannounced visit from the three-time award winner at FISM. He had been touring Spain and Portugal and a full theatre greeted our Canadian guest, Shawn Farquhar .

He began with a cup and balls routine with a difference; the cups ended up as solid pieces of metal. A good magicians’ trick but, as he said himself, the original works just as well with laymen as they do not know any difference and the surprises are as effective as ever.

This was followed by the use of an assistant for his next effect – me! I got to review this new (and unexplained) trick up close. A card was forced, I mean selected, signed and put back in the deck, which was placed in my hands. The deck then magically changed into a sealed deck, in new deck order, with my signed card in its appropriate numerical position.

Shawn performs with masses of energy, and child-like excitement, which was quite infectious. He talked about the real-world workings of his magic effects and the differences between working on stage, in trade shows and close-up. He utilizes inventive magic which is appropriate for each client. He talked about having four clients whom he worked with for nine years. In one example of inventive magic the effect incorporated a signed CD which could have either the emblem of the client or Shawn’s own details on it.

Another great example of this was his presentation of the Omni (clear, solid) deck which could also have the client’s details. In his explanation of this trick, which is in itself fabulous, he discussed the ins and outs of the deck switch and the various timings involved. He also discussed the importance in eliciting cheers and applause from your audience in walk-around situations in order to impress your effectiveness on your client or event organizer, even when they don’t actually see your magic during the evening.

The stand-out effect was something which he had performed for a very high end client. Shawn has performed an improved, and independently realized, version of Dan Harlan’s “Crazy Eights”, which Harlan himself thought was an improvement on his own trick.

A photo was signed on the bottom right corner, folded and torn into pieces. The pieces were put in the spectator’s hand and magically restored, only the quarters of the photo were in the wrong places and the signed part had moved impossibly to the top left corner.

It was a fabulous evening full of tricks and ideas, which could have gone on all night. Unfortunately all good things come to an end, but Shawn Farquhar had given us a real treat.

On the lighter side …

Today I began re-reading one of my favorite books, A Whack to the Side of the Head and a puzzle popped into my head. If you want to have a moment of fun try this puzzle. Try answering the question and then click the answer. Use the back button on your browser to come back …

1) How do you put an elephant into a refrigerator?
answer to Question #1

2) How do you put a giraffe in a refrigerator?
answer to Question #2

3) All the animals in the Jungle head off to New York to the Lion King Premiere … what animal does not attend?
answer to Question #3

4) You are in the Jungle and reach a river infested by crocodiles. You know this because there is a sign that says so! There is no way to go around or over the river. How do you get across?
answer to Question #4

Well how did you do? Most folks get one or two out of the four. Hannah got all four … but then again she is a genius and we are all much older and wiser … or is it programed?

Have a great day!

Shawn

My friend …

This is Tony Eng. If you ever met him, you’re already smiling. You couldn’t help it. He was a small man with a huge heart. We all picked on his size, but never in mean way. He could always make you laugh. I was just 17 when my girlfriend and I broke up and I was in a terrible state. Tony saw this and basically took me under his wing and helped me realize it was not the end of the world. Late nights eating steaks and doing card tricks was just the cure!

I had always dreamed of being a full time magician and seeing Tony work I knew it was it was all about the entertainment value of the magic. He did tricks that people will never forget, but even more important he did MAGIC that will live forever.

When I decided to compete in the IBM’s World contest I needed to practice on people I could trust. No one could know what I planned to do and so I turned to Tony. I will never forget the expression on his face or the words he said when the effect was over. It was at that very moment I knew I stood a chance of winning. For the first time in my life I fooled Tony and made him scratch his head and he swore. The only time I ever heard him swear…

The Times Colonist wrote a story about him today and I have pasted it here for you to read:

Tony Eng lived a magical life
Former owner of Trick & Joke Shop succumbs to leukemia and skin cancer

Jeff Bell
Times Colonist

Wednesday, May 07, 2008

A meeting of the Victoria Magic Circle last night turned into a memorial for one of its most accomplished members, Tony Eng, who died Sunday at the age of 61.

The hope when the meeting was planned was that Eng would present his namesake trophy to the winner of a competition for the best close-up magic trick. Instead, fellow magicians like Shayne King took time to share thoughts of a man they respected and admired.

“He taught me a lot, he gave a lot of magicians their start,” said King, who managed Tony’s Trick & Joke Shop for Eng. He has continued at the store since it became Murray’s Trick & Joke Shop two years ago under Murray Hatfield.

Hatfield said running the store has shown him just how far-reaching Eng’s influence has been. Eng’s legendary demonstrations of his sleight-of-hand at the store counter were a long-time attraction, Hatfield said.

“I can’t tell you how many times since we took over the shop that I’ve had people coming in and saying thinks like ‘We’re here from Bakersfield, Calif. and we were here five years ago, and it was just the high point of our trip’”.

It was all because of Tony and the way he made people feel.

“Tony was a master and definitely one-of-a-kind, and he will be greatly missed by both the magic community at large and by a lot of non-magicians who just happened to come in and meet him through the shop.”

Hatfield said that many people he speaks to are finding the news of Eng’s death hard to believe.

“This has been such a blow. For the last three days, I’ve been hearing nothing but people just being in shock. Tony was such an awesome guy — not only was he an exceptional performer and a great businessman, he just was a really nice man.”

The response to his death means a great deal to the family, said Sandra Eng, one of his two daughters.

“The word is starting to ripple out there now and it touches my heart every time I hear how significantly Dad made an impact on people.”

She said her father, born in Victoria in 1946, was diagnosed last October with both a form of leukemia and a rare type of skin cancer.

His fascination with magic went back to his early childhood, she said.

“He got his first magic kit when he was eight and did his first paid gig at the age of 12.”

His ability as a magician had him performing at innumerable charity events over the years. He also became a Sunday night fixture at the Japanese Village restaurant, where he entertained diners for two decades.

Her father had many interests outside of magic, as well, his daughter said, and entrepreneurial skills that saw him run a successful wholesale business and establish the Premier School of Bartending.

“He loved to play racquetball. He was a fierce competitor and his Y buddies are going to sorely miss him. He also went fly-fishing, he did woodworking and he went RVing. Mom and Dad started travelling in the last few years quite a bit down south to Arizona.”

A tribute is set for 3 p.m. Sunday at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church.

© Times Colonist (Victoria) 2008

Happy Birthday to my Dad … goodbye to an old friend ..

Today would have marked my Father’s 74th birthday and in a few days it would have been his 51st Anniversary. It’s a date I will always remember and celebrate in my own little way. I have another date not to forget now as one of my dearest mentors passed away yesterday after a long and hard fight.

Tony Eng is a hard person to describe. He is one of the few people I have ever met in my life who had no enemies. No one even disliked him a tiny bit! He was the father of two of daughters, a loving husband, committed business man and respected an admired magician.

I spent several years growing up in his home town of Victoria, BC and the most common thing I heard when telling people I was a magician was not “how do you do that” or “can you make my spouse disappear”. No what I heard was ” do you know Tony Eng?”. I heard it as many as a dozen times a day on the city bus. Once the bus driver saw me with a deck of cards and didn’t even ask if I was a magician, he just said “have you seen Tony Eng with a deck of cards?”. That bus driver, Carl Hemeon, was later to be my mentor too.

I find it hard to express how I feel as it is so soon. I suspect I will have more to say in the days to come.

On a happier note my good friend Claus has come out of his surgery and is now in his own private room at the hospital. He will be there for a few weeks as the removal of ones esophagus is quite an ordeal. Claus is a great guy and has the strength of a dozen men. I pray for his speedy recovery.

Jim Thielemann has posted a few more scenes from the Fins and Skins shoot. We are just working out when I will have time to return to finishing shooting the rest of the episode. I found out Jim won’t be able to be one of the camera guys so I have to start getting better at my golfing!

too many funerals and not enough weddings …

The past few years it seems I am attending a whole lot more funerals than I am attending weddings. I am saying goodbye to so many more friends than I am making. Recently I lost a dear friend, Dwight Vance, who was just 69. On May 9th he would have been 70. He was a huge man with a huge heart. His love for magic was only surpassed by his love of music and Janet, his wife. I hated to see a man with such strength and power fade away. Disease is such a terrible way to die.

I watched my Father die slowly over the years before his passing. I watched his body fail him but his mind was sharp. It wasn’t until the pain was so severe that they gave him drugs to ease the pain that also took his memories. I cherished the moments between morphine shots when he would become lucid and share stories a son should never really hear.

I have dear friends right now who are learning the true strength of their Father as he fights a battle with death. A battle no one wins. Through all the pain there will be moments of utter joy and humor that will sustain them through the sorrow that is sure to follow. Their Father is my friend and mentor. A man who gave me more than he will ever know. As a boy he gave me comfort through bad relationships, taught me social skills by watching him work a crowd, taught me values by showing me his and most of all friendship by being mine. He is but 62 and has lived a life of value and kindness and this cruel fate that has been thrust upon him is without merit. Why do so many good people die young while those with questionable pasts seem to live far past their deserved years?

I pray for my friend, his family and the hundreds of friends who will be affected when we lose this great man. I pray that as I grow I will be even a mere shadow of that man.

Man in the mirror …

Every night, someone thinks about you before they go to sleep. At least fifteen people in this world love you. The only reason someone would ever hate you is because they want to be just like you. There are at least two people in this world that would die for you. You mean the world to someone. Someone that you don’t even know exists loves you. When you make the biggest mistake ever, something good comes from it…

I read this of all place on a facebook page. I don’t think I could have thought to write something so simple and yet so true. With so much extra time in my life now I am finding myself constantly thinking about the past and the number of times I let special moments fly past in my rush to get to the next big thing.

I have never been happy with the things I have and I guess that has it’s good points. I have always been positive and looking for the next big challenge but have never really allowed myself to realize just how fortunate I have been all these years.

The other day a young lady from Cuba walked up to me in a crowd and said she had just moved to America. She said it was her dream to come to America and succeed. She told me of her Fathers dream that she be free, see the world and experience all there was to be offered. Then this young lady said she loved magic and had watched my Shape of my Heart video hundreds of times and never thought she would ever meet me in person. Her perception of me was everything she wanted for herself. It made me stop and see myself from another persons perspective. I’ll be honest, I’ve never done that before. From where I was standing … my life looks pretty sweet!

Now back to the view from inside.

Lots of folks have been asking about the up coming PCAM convention. If you’re a magician on the West Coast of North Amercia, get to registering for a super great event. You can visit www.pcam2008.com for lots of information.

NY to Vegas in just 18 hours!

It’s not always easy to travel. For me it seems to just get harder and harder. I had gone to bed the final evening of FFFF at half past four in the morning and was awoken by the alarm from my iPhone at 8 AM. I had a quick shower and headed to the lobby at 8:30 AM to meet the shuttle to the airport. It was a fun ride with friends and upon arrival at the airport I got a funny feeling it was going to be one of those days I won’t soon forget!

I approached the DELTA Airlines counter which seemed quite barren and was promptly told my flight had been canceled. No explanation for the cancelation but I was told I could get on the 6:45 PM flight. It was not yet noon and they expected me to kill the entire day in the airport. I explained how important it was for me to get to Vegas and they actually switched me to US Airways on a flight leaving at 2:30 PM … sweet!

Well I checked by only bag and headed off to the security where I was flagged as SSSS which means I get the full meal deal when it comes to be “checked”. I seem to get this a lot. Maybe it’s the hair? After my free rectal exam I went on search of food and found Ali Bongo and a few fellow 4fer’s hanging out and shared a table and devoured a Caesar Salad. I headed off to my gate a little ahead of schedule and I got a funny feeling it was going to be one of those days I won’t soon forget!

A super great guy named Lou asked me If I was planning to take the flight to Vegas. I replied yes and he said, it wasn’t looking good. There was a mechanical delay in Philadelphia and the plane would probably not make it here to make it’s connection in time. I explained how I had to get to Vegas as I HAD PLANS! He told me there was nothing he could do and I replied by doing a magic trick and saying nothing was impossible! Turns out Lou is a bit of a magician himself and we shared a couple of magic effects and I ended up in the first class lounge hanging out with Eric the bartender instead of a hard seat at the gate! When the plane did arrive there was still a small chance I could land in Philly and make my connection. The flight attendant, Annette, was also super cool and seated me in row 1 seat C, which is the closest seat to getting the hell off the plane! When the door opened I bolted for the connection but as I got close to the gate I could see no other people around and I got a funny feeling it was going to be one of those days I won’t soon forget!

The plane had left on time. I want to point out it is most likely the only plane to leave that day from any airport in the US that met it’s schedule. The airports were all at level Orange and almost every plane was delayed. I suspect it is some tactic employed by the Federal Aviation Administration to disrupt terrorists plans.

I was given a new ticket on the 6:15 PM flight and I sat back to listen to some music and practice some of the techniques I had acquired while at the FFFF. I had about an hour and forty minutes to kill so I took a little walk and as I headed back to the gate I got a funny feeling it was going to be one of those days I won’t soon forget!

That’s right this flight was delayed due to mechanical issues and we would be leaving around 8 or 9 PM … but hey that’s just a tentative time …

Around 8 PM we were informed of a gate change and headed to the other end of the airport. There I sat and made friends with a couple of folks from the UK. Maurizio, was an Italian guy living in the UK who was originally from Italy. He has a restaurant in Southport and apparently I have an open invitation to dine there some day. I am so looking forward to seeing his face when I walk through his door! Another reason to head back to the UK.

US Airways finally announced the arrival of our plane and were loaded up and ready to go at 9:30 PM. As we taxied out towards the runway I got a funny feeling it was going to be one of those days I won’t soon forget!

The pilot came on with a message from the flight deck. Seems we might be spending a bit of time on the ground before we were expected to actually take off. Ok it wasn’t that bad. We sat for about 30 minutes and we were finally in the air. I would like to give you a review of the flight, meal and attendants service but .. I slept the entire trip. Woke to find we had landed in Vegas and I was on my way to fun. After collecting my bag I headed to catch a taxi and on the way to the stand I got a funny feeling it was going to be one of those days I won’t soon forget!

I have traveled countless time to Vegas and have never seen a cue for the taxi’s so long that it took nearly a full hour to get a damn ride to the hotel!

I finally checked into the Orleans Hotel at 2:30 AM … which means from hotel to hotel my trip took a total of 18 hours! Oh I know I am being dramatic … there is that 3 hour time change so I was only traveling for 15 hours … geez what a whinner!

[ trivia from the brain of Shawn: most folks would think that DELTA Airlines got it's name from the fourth letter in the Greek Alphabet, or perhaps the term DEscription Language for TAxonomy which is a flexible method for encoding taxonomic descriptions for computer processing. You may have even thought of the DELTA Force of the US Military as it is so elite! Well you are all WRONG! DELTA stands for Doesn't Ever Leave The Airport! ]

FFFF

I have just been a part of an experiment in sleep deprivation, disguised as a magic convention! Obie O’brien and the board of the FFFF have obviously signed a secret contract with the US military to test the results of high mental and creative stimulation and lack of sleep. To aid this experiment they offer free beer, soda and Tim Horton doughnuts to see the effects of sugar!

OK, maybe it’s not an experiment, but it should be as I see friends who are in the Eighties strolling the halls at 5 AM with deck in hand looking to show, share and learn.

For those of you who are not aware. FFFF is Fechter’s Finger Flicking Frolic. It is the original close up magic convention and is an invitation only event with the best of the best in sleight of hand. Almost everyone who attends is expected to perform. This is my third visit to the event. I was invited first after winning the IBM sleight of hand award in 2001. It was quite exciting as I was also awarded the People’s Choice “Obie Award” which was quite an honor! I will never forget my first visit to the FFFF. I was asked to present on the final evening show and opened the second half of the evening and did my FISM act. I followed Rocco Silano who is a legend at FFFF and the man who made Roger Mayfarth’s D’lite so popular.

It was a lot of fun that first time. The next time I was able to make the journey was in 2005 and I brought with me my Shape of my Heart routine. I followed Rocco! So this year I brought some new ideas including my Torn and Almost Restored Photo and was asked to be on the final evening show again. This was a wickedly cool show as it had Paul Gertner, Daryl Martinez, Stephen Bargatze, Rick Merrill and Rocco Silano … oh yeah … I followed Rocco again! I would like to say there were another dozen acts on the bill and everyone of them was outstanding. I never dreamed I would be able to see that much great magic in one place … and to be on the show was a bonus!

Every year they honor an outstanding magician. This year it was my friend, Boris Wild. Boris is an amazing magicians and such a great person that it was easy to poke a little fun. I did a small mentalism effect and introduced the FFFF 2000 (Farquhar’s Fabulous Film Festival) which had only one official entrant in the category of short films with magic as the subject. I would try to explain the effect but it would probably not make much sense … besides the number one rule of FFFF is we never talk about what happens at FFFF … or was the fight club?

Next stop … Las Vegas …

[ trivia from the brain of Shawn: Rocco is a famous magician but most people don't know he is also the inventor of a small design for milk cartons to make them collapse easier. He holds a US Patent on this idea which has made him a few dollars since 1987!]

Greg Frewin Theatre

Well the day began quite early for me. Greg, my friend, tapped on the bedroom door at about 8 AM which in Pacific Standard time is 5 AM. For those of you who know me well … that’s usually when I’m going to bed! I got to see Alana, Greg’s wife and of course Ben and Megan their two adorable kids. I had not seen them in about five years and they have grown considerably. I can recall carrying Ben on my shoulder down the streets of Juneau. I suspect it would be quite a task to even get him onto my shoulders now!

After the kids were off to school I helped Greg and John load the cats into the truck for the drive to the theatre. OK, I really didn’t help a lot. But sometimes staying out of the way is really helping. They are some really impressive animals and to see them up close was fun.

When we arrived at the theatre I was surprise at the size of the building. I had only seen a pictures from the website and a couple of others that Greg had emailed when the construction had begun. It is huge, professional and I believe the line in Greg’s show that summed it all up was when he said to the audience …” I gonna give you twice the show you expected.” Truth is he lied. He gave me more than twice the show. I expected great as I expect nothing less from him, but this was spectacular. He had an audience of almost 300 enthusiastic people at 1 PM on a exceptionally sunny day sitting in a darken theater instead of at the Niagara Falls ( the reason they came to the area!) cheering at the top to their lungs! It was super fun …

To end the day we dropped by a Tim Horton’s and headed off the FFFF….