My recent TV appearance that dropped the host to the floor.

I really didn’t expect the reaction I got from this recent TV appearance, but it definitely got me thinking about new avenues to explore when performing on TV.

1. The trick is the old thing.

In all seriousness, I’ve done versions of this close up magic trick at events for 20+ years. As I’ve really learned in the last several years, when you take a trick extremely out of context, it opens up possibilities that you sometimes can’t even wrap your head around. Case in point, I have a trick going into the show very soon that is undoubtedly the most out of the box idea I’ve ever had and out of the 10 or so magicians that know about this trick, every single one of them has asked permission to do it in their shows.

So, all that to say, the trick here may be old, but the context is definitely not.

2. Social Media is the new, old thing!

Up until this less than 4 minute spot, I had never used social media on TV…let alone LIVE TV! Guess when the idea came to me? Less than 24 hours before. I love the things I’ve done on TV in the past, but I was struggling to come up with something that would, one, look good on TV, and two, be different from anything else I’ve ever done. So I took a picture of with my daughter to promote my upcoming appearance (Oh, by the way, my wife and I had a baby which I’ll get to shortly.) and was just about to post it to social media when I had a huge realization. “Why in the world am I not taking advantage of this moment for TV?”

So, I handed her the 6 of clubs, snapped the picture and sent it to Instagram and Facebook. Shortly after posting, one of the TV hosts for the following day, liked the photo. I immediately took a screenshot so I could call attention to that fact on TV.

3. My daughter is the new, new thing.

Yes, my wife and I had a baby. And no, it was not so I could use her in magic tricks, but that was definitely a cute bonus. I certainly don’t plan to do it often, but it worked so perfectly here. Relatives across the country tuned in via FaceTime from local relatives to see the new addition make her television debut.

Maybe it was the innocence of this beautiful little girl…maybe it was the social media aspect…maybe it was the trick itself, but the moment where I showed my daughter’s picture to the camera is ALL PEOPLE HAVE TALKED TO ME ABOUT FOR WEEKS! And they all say roughly the same thing, “Your daughter fooled me!”

Stereotypical Conclusion

This recent few minutes on TV has me creating new tricks for TV without any immediate TV appearances coming up. So get ready. The next wave of TV spots for me will pack, maybe not a serious punch, but a slightly different one. And speaking of violent contact, my daughter kicked me in the face yesterday. Hope she stops that before she turns 6 months old.