Magicians Chat with ...
Rich Cowley
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Rich is a regular at the Magic Castle in Hollywood. You can often find him in every corner of that amazing place, sharing his magic and entertaining the crowds night after night.
Rich has left his fingerprints all over the Castle, and that leaves the cleaning crew pretty upset with him. But, he's also left his mark in the creative sense; you can often find Rich developing and trying out new, unique material, or off in a corner with a student magician somewhere.
When he's not performing Magic, Rich is still performing; as an ordained minister, he performs customized wedding ceremonies. Recently, he was featured on the NBC reality show "The Biggest Loser", to perform a Dream Wedding for a winning couple. |
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Wilm Weber: Today we are chatting with Rich Cowley, Rich is not just a name but a lifestyle as he likes to joke during his performances. Rich is a resident magician at the Magic Castle in Hollywood with long career in close-up and street magic and a well known name in magic circles. Thank you very much for taking the time.
Rich Cowley: No, thank you for inviting me!
Wilm Weber: Let’s jump right in. Please tell us a bit about your beginnings in magic. How did you discover your interest, when did you get involved and how did you acquire your skills?
Rich Cowley: Well, I got started in Magic when I was very young, in a roundabout way.
My dad left home when I was three years old, and one of the few things he left behind was a deck of Pan-Am souvenir playing cards, a cheap cardboard-y deck that they used to give away on airplanes. I was three years old; I didn’t know what a deck of cards was – but I knew these were Dad’s, because the Pan-Am logo on the backs was the same logo I’d seen on his lapel pin.
I walked around with that deck of cards in my hand or in my pocket for years. One day, I started experimenting with different ways to shuffle cards, and I taught myself how to do a Faro Shuffle. I didn’t know it had any magical applications; I just thought it was a neat way to mix cards.
Somewhere around 8 or 9 years old, I walked into a magic shop for the first time. The guy behind the counter showed me a few tricks, then asked me to do one for him. I only knew one trick at the time (the 21-card trick), but I couldn’t remember right away how it worked. So, to stall for time while I remembered the method, I picked up his deck and gave it a few perfect Faros. He watched for a minute, verified that they were perfect, and eventually offered me a job in the shop, where I worked until I got out of High School.
Wilm Weber: What is your professional background? Have you always been a magician or did your start your life on a different track? Can you describe your transition?
Rich Cowley: I worked the normal church-basement, birthday-party shows for a few years, but I hated it. Too few shows, too much business negotiation, not enough fun. In the mid-1970’s, I saw my first street performer, and I was hooked. Here were performers who worked when they wanted, for whom they wanted – total freedom! I started working the street in the nearest big city (in my case, Philadelphia), and became one of the longest-running street shows in the county!
Wilm Weber: You told me you worked as a street magician for several years. How do you view the differences between close-up and street magic? What do you like/ don’t like about it? What is your take on today’s street magicians?
Rich Cowley: I don’t think my show was very “typical” for a street show. By the end of the run, I had several hundred people in each audience, and the show ran almost 30 minutes – it was a “big deal”. I’ve seen many street magicians over the years, and the trend I see today – performers who believe the effects they’re doing are the most important part of the show, and don’t infuse themselves into the performance – leaves their audiences cheated a little bit. When the effect becomes the start of show, and the performer becomes a commodity, the Art behind magic takes a dangerous turn.
Wilm Weber: Who in your opinion are the best close-up and street magicians today and why?
Rich Cowley: Wow, touchy subject. I try hard never to use the words “best” or “greatest” when I discuss other performers: after all, “one man’s food is another man’s poison”. I will admit, though, that there are some performers I’d watch no matter what they were doing. Some of the names that come to mind there are Penn and Teller, Derren Brown, and Gregory Wilson…
Wilm Weber: How do you see the magic world evolve and change in the coming years? Any trends you see? Any predictions?
Rich Cowley: We’ve become a VERY attention-span-challenged society. As a performer, if you don’t get their attention in the first 10 seconds, you’ve sometimes missed the boat entirely. As people change, Magic changes too; it’s been reflecting society for centuries, and it’s not about to stop now. But, as I said before: the performer who’s not afraid to develop a character, a personality for his audiences to connect with, is the performer who’ll be successful in the long run.
Wilm Weber: I’d like to get your take on the line up of today’s TV shows and performers? What is your opinion on shows like Mind Control (Derren Brown), Phenomenon (NBC) or Mindfreak (Criss Angel)?
Rich Cowley: I love watching Derren Brown work; to me, he just seems so natural when he interacts with someone. Wonderful. I have yet to see an episode of Phenomenon; I’m not a great fan of performers “competing” with each other, or judged publicly. To me, that’s the ultimate “whoring” of magic, not unlike the Masked-Magician stuff of years ago – art for money’s sake. Eew!
I’ve seen a few episodes of MindFreak, but I gotta tell you, I’m not a big fan. To a younger audience, Criss might connect more solidly; to a guy my age, though, he comes across as schizophrenic, a personality that changes from scene to scene. Again, just my opinion. Plus, I’m not a big fan of magic that doesn’t look the same if you see it live as opposed to seeing the edited video…
Wilm Weber: I had chance to catch you at the Magic Castle a few times and really enjoyed your shows. Your close-up magic is entertaining, engaging and involves your audience more as often seen with others. What is the most important thing to you when performing?
Rich Cowley: The most important thing? Remembering the names of people I meet in the audience. I’m not kidding. Once you get into the habit of remembering their names, you start bringing them into the show more, involving them more, and your focus shifts from the effects you’re doing into making sure that everybody gets an experience they won’t easily forget.
Wilm Weber: Who influences / has influenced your work most and how so? Who are your magic heroes or role models?
Rich Cowley: When I was young, I was the ultimate Harry Lorayne fan; to this day, I use a lot of calculation and memory work in my shows. Harry Anderson has always been an idol of mine, the sway he crafted an on-stage character that could be defined so precisely. I mentioned Penn & Teller before; I’ve always loved the way they poke fun at and adore Magic simultaneously.
Wilm Weber: What tips can you give fellow magicians who want to improve their game? How did you tune your skills? What are your top 3 tips for fellow performers?
Rich Cowley: Number One: Develop a name-memory system, and do it today. Remembering names (and making sure the people are more important than your tricks) will help you in every aspect of your life, for the **rest** of your life.
Number Two: Develop some dynamic scripts for your material. If you ever do a trick to me where all you’re saying is, “now I’ll deal cards onto the table, now I’ll put the packets together, …”, please realize you’ve probably lost my attention for the rest of the show.
Wilm Weber: I saw you are running for the board of the Academy of Magical Arts who resides at our beloved Magic Castle. You have my vote as I strongly believe that besides experienced business people (which we clearly do need) we also need people on the board who are passionate about magic and the Castle above all else to not just retain a financially secure club but also never lose sight of what the Castle is to never lose its soul. What would you like to accomplish as a board member?
Rich Cowley: When I worked in that magic shop outside Philadelphia back in the 1970’s, I used to read Genii magazine, and read about the Castle all the time; how magicians would be having a party nd learning from each other every night there. When I moved out to LA in the 1990’s, some of the key people behind that party (Vernon, Bill Jr., Jennings) were sadly passing away. I’m not sure that was the cause, but: over the years, I’ve seen that “party mentality” erode into a more “magicians with snide behind-the-back remarks” atmosphere, and I think that’s a huge waste of a valuable resource. I’d love to see the Academy rebuild its original intent – to make sure we’re the friendliest, most ambitious group of magicians on the planet!
Wilm Weber: What's next for Rich Cowley? Any lectures or Magic Castle performances scheduled? Where can people see you perform?
Rich Cowley: Well, I just lectured at the Castle a few weeks back, and I had a great time; I hope they bring me back to do it again sometime. To see me perform, all you have to do is stand inside the Castle for a few hours – it’s hard to miss me in there. As a ex-street performer, I can’t stand still very long without performing; it’s in the blood!
Outside of magic and outside of the Magic Castle, I’ve also recently become an ordained wedding minister. It sounds hokey, I know, but I perform a LOT of weddings these days, and I’ve had a ton of fun with it. Check out www.Rich-Cowley.com/Weddings for details!
Wilm Weber: Thank you very much for this interview and continued success!
Rich Cowley: No, thank **you**, for giving me the chance to talk about my favorite subject!
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Interview Date: 02/08/2008 |
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