THE MAGIC CASTLE

FOUNDED: 1963

STATUS: Open for business . . . magical business.

EXCLUSIVITY FACTOR: Only members of the Academy of Magical Arts and their guests may enter.

SECRECY FACTOR: This Hollywood landmark was declared a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument in 1989, but the secrets behind the magic tricks performed inside may never be revealed.

THREAT FACTOR: Undetectable. Who knows what these magicians are capable of?

QUIRK FACTOR: High. Have you seen the outfits some of these magicians wear?

HISTORY AND BACKGROUND

You approach the door of an ominous, turreted mansion, your invitation clutched in your hand. You have no idea what is waiting for you inside. You encounter men in capes, flocks of birds appearing out of nowhere, and even a person being sawed in half. You aren’t in a house of horrors—you’re in Hollywood’s famous Magic Castle.

The Magic Castle is the private clubhouse for The Academy of Magical Arts, the world’s premier organization dedicated to the art of magic. The Academy of Magical Arts (AMA) was started by William W. Larsen Sr. in 1951. Years earlier, Larsen had embraced the magical life by founding a magazine called Genii, the Conjurors’ Magazine, and quitting his job as a defense attorney to perform in a traveling magic show. When he began the AMA, all magazine subscribers were granted membership. After William Larsen Sr. passed away, his wife and older son, Bill Jr., kept the magazine running. But the Academy was languishing until Larsen’s younger son, Milt, found the ramshackle three-story Victorian mansion in the Hollywood Hills that would become the Magic Castle.

It took more than the wave of a magic wand to transform the rundown building into a regal retreat for magicians and their friends, but the Magic Castle finally opened its doors on January 2, 1963. At first, the clubhouse consisted of just a bar and a small room where closeup magic tricks were performed. Over half a century later, it contains several showrooms and bars, a restaurant, a séance room, and a music room with a very peculiar piano (more on that in a moment). Aspiring magicians can also take classes taught by some of the world’s greatest illusionists.

All of the biggest names in the world of magic have come through the castle at some point: Lance Burton, Criss Angel, Harry Blackstone Jr. and Sr., Penn and Teller, Siegfried and Roy, and David Copperfield. So it was a blow for the magical community when the beloved institution caught fire on Halloween of 2011—right before a costume party called “Inferno at the Castle.” Some noticed strange coincidences connected to Harry Houdini, the most famous magician of them all. The fire began at 1:26 pm on October 31, almost the same time as Houdini’s death eighty-five years earlier. One hundred twenty-six firefighters showed up to battle the blaze. And the Houdini Room, which houses the escape artist’s straitjacket, hand-cuffs, and his glass Metamorphosis Chest, was the one room left undamaged. Was Houdini making his presence known? That’s just one of the many mysteries tucked inside the Magic Castle.

Luckily, the castle was restored shortly after the fire, and is now open in all its glory. The biggest trick is getting in the door.

MEMBERSHIP REQUIREMENTS

To have unlimited access to the castle, you must become a member of the Academy of Magical Arts. Those who practice magic as a profession or a hobby are required to test their magical knowledge in an interview with the Academy’s membership committee, and then they must shock and amaze the committee members with a demonstration of some magic tricks. The AMA also offers associate memberships to those over the age of 21 who may not practice magic but love it nonetheless, and junior memberships are offered to promising young magicians. In addition to enjoying the dining and performance facilities at the castle, members have access to classes, lectures by world famous magical experts, and a library full of resources on the magical arts.

But the less magical among us can still visit the castle as guests of AMA members. If you’ve got a magician pal, ask them to pull a guest card out of a hat. You will have to call ahead for dinner reservations—the castle can get really packed on weekends—and adhere to a strict formal dress code (no jeans and sneakers), but once you get inside, the experience is simply spectacular.

INSIDE THE MAGIC CASTLE

After presenting your guest card and entering the book-lined lobby of the castle, it may appear that you’ve reached a dead end with no visible doors or hallways. But remember that in The Magic Castle, nothing is as it seems. If you approach an owl figurine perched on a bookshelf and say the magic words, “Open sesame,” the wall will swing open to allow you inside.

A Castle Knight may greet you in the Grand Salon, and he’ll show you around and share stories of the establishment’s colorful history. Look out for magical memorabilia, such as the original trick billiards table from W. C. Fields’s stage show in Ziegfeld’s Follies; a rare program from a Royal Command Performance for Queen Victoria, circa 1855; and an aquarium modeled after Houdini’s water-torture cell. Milt Larsen, who can often be spotted holding court in the Owl Bar, calls the castle’s unique style of decor “Larcenous Eclecticism.”

Perhaps the most mind-boggling piece of furniture in the castle is a baby grand piano that appears to be playing itself. The piano is actually played by Irma, the castle’s resident ghost—and she takes requests. Legend has it that Irma was one of seven sisters who lived in the building when it was a private home. Irma distracted the family so much with her eternal practicing on the piano that they banished her to the attic, where she remained until her death in 1932. When the piano was discovered and moved to the Music Chamber, the spirit of the persistent pianist returned as well. Ghosts are notoriously flighty, but Irma is a dependable one—she’s always poised at the keys, ready to play any song requested. Castle guests are continually amazed by her seemingly endless repertoire.

Next, you’ll want to see a magic show in one of the castle’s theaters. Performers in the cozy Close-Up Gallery do close-up magic—sleight-of-hand stuff, like card tricks and disappearing coins. In the Parlour of Prestidigitation, the Victorian parlor show is recreated. A parlor magician performs classic effects such as cutting and restoring a rope, vanishing silks, or levitating a rose. And in the castle’s largest theater, The Palace of Mystery, illusionists whose acts require large props and pyrotechnics wow the crowd.

When you’re not hypnotized by magic tricks, keep an eye out for famous faces. This is Hollywood, after all, and celebrities regularly appear at the Magic Castle to take in dinner and a show. Currently, Neil Patrick Harris, star of How I Met Your Mother and Doogie Howser, M.D. (and a hobby magician), serves as president of the AMA.

Magic can truly be found in every nook and cranny of this very peculiar private club. To learn more about visiting or becoming a member of the Magic Castle, go to www.magiccastle.com.

THE MAGIC OF MARCO

A magician never reveals his secrets, but New Jersey-based magician Marco provided the inside scoop on his profession. Marco made the pilgrimage to the Magic Castle twice over the course of his more than thirty-year career. While visiting the castle with a friend, he did some close-up magic tricks for spectators in the bar. Irma dutifully played “Smoke on the Water,” at his request (Marco claims “Irma” is not really a ghost, but he won’t divulge how the illusion is done). The highlight of the castle for Marco was sitting in the front row of the Close-up Gallery, only two feet away from his magical idol, Pop Haydn (a past vice-president of the AMA), as Pop performed his funny and awe-inspiring act.

Before Marco became a popular magician, he was a full-time musician—a drummer. In 1975, he and the guitarist of his band took a night school magic class on a lark. It was a good investment—the class was just $40 including props, and over the course of ten weeks, Marco learned the basics of everything he needed to know, including tricks he still practices today. For many years, Marco only did magic shows occasionally; he didn’t realize there was good money in it until, while performing at a festival organized by a friend, an agent spotted him and offered to get him some lucrative gigs. Marco dropped his drumsticks and became a full-time magician.

Marco’s specialty is close-up strolling magic, which means he’ll approach small groups at an event with sleight-of-hand tricks, like making small objects disappear or magically transferring a coin from his hand to the hand of one in his audience. He’s also performed street magic to larger crowds at places like New York City’s South Street Seaport.

Whatever the venue, it’s important for a magician to have the right look. It’s all about showmanship. “Being a magician is being an actor playing the role of magician,” Marco says. Traditionally, magicians had mostly worn tuxedos, until guys like Criss Angel and David Blaine turned the industry on its head by performing in jeans and T-shirts, much to the chagrin of old timers. Marco doesn’t go quite that casual—he wears custom-made satin vests with six pockets, important for “pocket management” of magical items used in his act. He accessorizes with magical bling: a gold pin with a top hat, cane, and glove on his left breast; a chain with a gold ball that opens into a Masonic cross around his neck; and a double pocket watch chain on his right waist pocket. Instead of a watch, the chains are attached to a small magic wand with crystals on it and to a gold antique cigar cutter knife. Marco says his look ensures that when he walks into a room, “They know I’m not a male stripper.”

PHOTO © MAGIC OF MARCO

Marco has many tricks up his sleeve, but a crowd favorite is called “dollar in fruit.” In it, an audience member cuts open a lemon, and Marco miraculously makes a dollar bill appear in it. Most spectators are impressed, but sometimes one will challenge him, saying “You don’t have special powers.” To this, Marco responds, “You’re absolutely right—I don’t have special powers, but I do have certain knowledge. And knowledge equals power!”

To learn more about Magic of Marco, visit www.magicofmarco.com.