Magic Mike King

When I was six years old my dad worked in midtown Manhattan.  On his lunch hour he would spend time watching the magician perform at the Macy's department store magic counter.

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Every couple of weeks he'd buy a trick and bring it home; first to perform it, and then to show me how it was done.  It was at that young age that I figured out what I wanted to be when I grew up.

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Over the years, I received various magic kits as presents.  I remember buying my first trick deck of playing cards at the House of Magic while visiting Disney World.

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When I was 11, I visited my first real magic store and it was at this point that things got more serious for me.  A friend and I formed a magic duo and we performed at parties.  Most weekends involved a trip to the magic store to pick out a new effect.  

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Magic took a back seat when I was in high school, but when I went away to university, I took a few tricks with me.  They were popular with my new friends, so every few weeks a little more of my magic would migrate from my home collection to my university collection.

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After school, magic would once again go dormant for a couple of years, but then I found myself dusting off some tricks and bringing them into work.

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As a consultant, I switched clients every few years.  At each new assignment, after I had been there for a while, the magic would seem to come out.

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When my kids were young they loved magic and it was fun to take them to the same magic store I went to as a kid.  It was a different experience to be an adult and able to afford the tricks I couldn't imagine owning when I was 12.

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As the years went on, my passion for magic got stronger.  Around seven years ago, I had the opportunity to put together a show for my company's annual meeting.  It was the largest crowd I had performed for and it was a LOT of fun!

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Currently (prior to covid) my job takes me to the occasional trade show where I enjoy performing to attract crowds to our booth.  At home, I am also known in the neighborhood as Mike the Magician.  In the summer there is always a good audience requesting that I perform magic on my front lawn and in my driveway.

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I also do private shows for friends and colleagues who live nearby.  I've done kids birthday parties, bridal showers, and 50th birthday parties.

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A couple of years ago I was the resident magician at a hackathon for a nearby University.  I did walk around magic all day and night while the teams worked and I also performed an hour long show for an enthusiastic crowd.  I went back again last year, but my train struck some debris and we we were stuck on board for around 12 hours.  To lighten the mood and pass time, I performed a number of impromptu shows.  I made it to the University in time to salvage a 45 minute evening show for another enthusiastic crowd. 

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I think it is hard to be a magician named Mike these days without people making a connection with the movie Magic Mike.  I decided to go with it, and registered MagicMikeKing.com :)

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To be continued...