does anyone ever give you a tip ($) when you walk up to them on the street and show them a trick? im just wondering

Yes. But I never walk to them. I draw them to me. When I have enough people I start my show, using hat lines from the beginning. Go into my middle and finale then hat line again and pass the hat. I do only sidewalk shows and average between $30 to $50 per show and run 3 shows per hour.

If I don't get $30 per show I move to anther pitch because that place isn't worth my time.

If you walk up to people and "show them a trick" they think you are a "cute kid" or a pain in the butt and either way you won't get money.

sorry i've never done magic on the streeet before
i'm just used to watching David Blaine just walking up to people
$30 is pretty good for a street show if your doing 3 an hour

Blaine is NOT a stret magician. All his tricks are filmed before a group of actors pretending to be an audience. Don't even think that he knows magic.

are you sure ALL his tricks are performed for actors? i always thought they were real people(not like actors aren't real people) but what do i know

In his book, David said they were real people, and was describing how hard it was to get releases to all the people to sign before they walked away (so they could show the footage on tv).

yeah that's what i thought but IDK

There is no such thing as a "Street Magician," unless you speak of the old name used for busking. The only time a "Street Magician" exists is if there is a camera crew.

Yeah I am sure you will get a lot of tips, such as "Get away from me with your toys kid." I will give you a "tip," work actual venues that exist if you are old enough. Read the article by Jamy Ian Swiss in Antinomy "In Search of Street Magic." http://antinomymagic.com/swiss.htm

Listen to these interviews http://linkingpage.com/2008/07/07/jamy_ian_swiss/

Then forget about this imaginary genre. Kids think this is an easy way to make a buck, when in reality you are just bothering most people who are in a hurry. "Street Magic" is nothing more than marketing tool.

If you're a true busker, Kozmo shares some good advice on how to get tips on his double DVD set and at his lecture.

David Blaine says a lot of things. If you believe him I have some Ocean front property for sale in Arizona. I'm not saying he is lying, but the truth and what he writes are two totally different things.

Contrary to popular belief, Blaine did not even write his own book it was ghostwritten.

Now that we have established that "Street Magic" only exists on TV, what do we call it when people stroll in public and do Magic ? ... "Public Magic" ? ... "Strolling Magic" ? ... "Sidewalk Magic" ? "Mall Magic" ?

Do we need to change the name of this Forum ?

"Desperate Magic." If "hired" to stroll at a street fair, it is called strolling magic or walkaround. "Street magic" is simply walking around and bothering people with "close-up magic." You were not hired by anyone, and you expect pay from those that you bother. This sounds like an absolute dream to young, broke kids looking to get some extra cash for more tricks. Shops know this very well.

However what they don't tell you is that without a camera crew, few people are interested in stopping to see what you have. In fact most think you are going to swindle them or something, or perhaps even worse.

Some call it "Hit and Run" magic.