Exposure. As some of you may have noticed, I tend to abruptly start my articles with a one or two word sentence, which in fact, is not a sentence at all, but a synopsis of what I'm interested in writing about at that particular time. Exposure is something that has come up many times recently. It's everywhere. No doubt that anyone that has gone online looking for magic has seen it. Recently there have been a few notable magicians on TV that have taken to exposing "smaller" secrets. If you haven't guessed by now, these are my feelings on exposure.

It's been with us since the very beginning, but recently quite a few magicians have taken to the "bad boy" image and like the notoriety of exposing magic on TV. I can think of two groups off the top of my head that have openly challenged each other on national television. Magic is a secretive art. It has to be, but exposure can work in both directions. I'm sure that most of you remember Valentino, better known as the Masked Magician. This waste of human life, and I am going very gentle in my opinion, claimed that he exposed magic to cause magicians to fix what wasn't broken. He claimed he wanted magicians to update the methods of their effects. I'm sure that the check from Fox had nothing to do with it. Since he mysteriously disappeared from the face of the earth, whether in shame or because some other magician "introduced" himself to Valentino, he hasn't been seen and a new group of guys have taken over.

The latest crop of exposure has come from award winning magicians. Some I have no problem with and others really get to me. Two "bad boys of magic" have recently been kicked out of every international organization they were involved with due to the exposure, but they don't care anymore. I use to be a big fan of these guys, but recently they seem like teenagers that use profanity just because it's "cool." They've exposed the Cups and Balls, possibly the oldest and most respected by "insiders" effect in magic, and countless stage illusions. I'm wondering how long it is before they are completely blackballed.

We also have the other end of the spectrum. We have the resident MindFreak on TV every week now. He's taken to teaching tricks on TV. Mac King did the same thing on the World's Greatest Magic specials, which had a big influence on me getting into magic in the first place. I have no problem with someone teaching the Salt Shaker through the Table. That's a trick that can be found in any public library. That's a trick that will cause younger kids to look at magic as something they may be interested in. I don't mind that, but then we have a special that just aired a few weeks ago. I'm not going to mention any names, so let's just call him J. Thompson. No, I don't like that; let's call him Johnny T. decided to expose the Three Shell Game. Not just say "The pea is never where you want it to be," because that wouldn't have been bad for guys like me, but to actually go all out and show the exact mechanics. That bugs me. I use that to raise money for charity. No one wants to play a game that they know is rigged.

Basically, exposure can work in many ways. It can help, but mostly hurts magicians. Anyone with an internet connection can now find illegal copies of magic videos on YouTube or file sharing sites. Why? Why do people want to devalue our art like that? I really hope that magic can survive with people that seem to go out of their way to destroy it. This is part one of my views on Exposure. Part two is in the works and will show up eventually, though probably not next month. As always, thanks for reading.

Jeff Corn

Seriously! Why would anyone want to expose. I really cant answer why people expose

I personally don't like when people expose magic like that. It bugs me.
But at the same time....seeing the Masked Magician...and Mac King reveal the tricks got me into Magic in the first place. If it hadn't been for the World's Greatest Magic Specials, and the Revealed Specials I wouldn't be performing at all.

The cups and balls revealing did bother me. But though it reveals the trick thoroughly, those aren't the only methods to the cups and balls. There are so many sleights and moves that you could still perform it without anyone guessing what is going on. Everyone knows that the magician is going to be one ahead on the cups and balls. Its how to get one ahead...or get the potato under a cup...or a mouse...or whatever you wanna use for a finale...that's the real magic.
The secret isn't the real magic...its the audience reaction...its what the audience walks away with. If they were entertained while you perform the effect then who cares if they figured out the secret behind it.

I know I am probably going to be ridiculed for saying this. But the exposure over the years has helped magic. It got so many people interested in magic again. It was how I got started...and I am sure thousands others. Personally it hasn't hurt anything that I do...I perform the cups and balls and no one has ever said, "well p and t revealed that so I am not gonna watch anymore." I am not saying go around and show everyone how the effect is done...but if they already know...who cares. They were entertained...that's what we are here for...

Sorry if this upsets anyone...but its how I feel.