One recent Monday night I called my good friend and magical mentor, Leland Pennington. Normally, one of us will call the other on a weekend, but this was a Monday night, we had moved into Daylight Saving Time, it was a little warm, a little light, I was feeling good and decided to give “Pennington the Wizard” a call. Come to find out, it was great timing to give him a call for a couple reasons: One personal, the other magical.
Let me get to the magical reason: Leland let me know that a mutual friend, Richard Osterlind, one of the world’s premier mentalists, was giving a lecture at Haines House of Cards in Cincinnati. I hadn’t seen Leland in a while, and it has been even longer since I have seen Richard. It would be great to catch up with both of them. However, Leland hadn’t been feeling good, so I was waiting to see if he was up to going. On Saturday morning, Leland said he was indeed going. Wendi, the founder of this blog and my wife, and I put our travel plans into motion. We were going to make the 3.5-hour trip from Wooster, Ohio, to Cincinnati, Ohio, with our dog, Owney (who is going to write about his experiences later).
Richard Osterlind is one of the most prolific mentalists around. He travels the country performing his brand of mindreading shows for corporations; circles the globe teaching upcoming performers the art; writes books; produces DVDs; creates effects; and he encourages others. I am sure I am missing something, but perhaps you might want to read more about him here. Because Richard is in such demand, his live, public shows are rare, and he does not lecture as much as he would probably like. Richard is a teacher at heart, which might explain why he is so prolific.
For those who have been to a Richard Osterlind lecture, you will know he is not a salesman. He is reluctant to bring things to sell. He just wants to be with fellow performers and teach them. In fact, his lecture on Saturday at Haines House of Cards didn’t require much in the way of special purchases. He told people where they could buy inexpensive materials to do what he did. Probably the most expensive thing would have been a dictionary with a plastic cover, most likely in the $5-$7 range.
Because Richard is not a salesman, I like to point out to others what products of his others might like. I did this when he lectured in Akron several years ago, and I did it in Cincinnati. Richard produces little pads of paper that are perfect for a number of effects. The pad is nothing special — nothing tricky or sneaky about it. The paper is of good quality and is perfect for an effect Richard taught in a six-volume DVD set based on the booklets of Tony Corinda. Wanting others to know how great the paper pads are, I said how I really like the paper because it was a good quality, and it was very good for performing Great Minds Think Alike. I asked if he would be performing that. He said he would not, but would I like to perform it.
I was in a quandary. Richard teaches that magicians and mind-readers should be able to perform anytime-anywhere. Leland has taught me over the years, never bring magic and perform at some other performer’s show or lecture. So, I don’t. Add to this, I am not a magician’s magician. I do not perform for other magicians; I perform for corporations, businesses, churches, schools, private functions, fundraisers, county fairs, etc. After Richard asked, he started to walk away. I said, “Are you serious?” He said he was, and if I wanted to perform it, I could. I told him about what Leland taught me, and he said, “I am asking you.” So, I got up, got the pad for Richard and was ready to perform. To further illustrate how Richard is an encourager, he wanted to make sure I was absolutely comfortable in performing it. I said I was, but it had been a while since I performed it. (I found out later how long it had been: Since September 2014; I know because I have video; no video was shot at Haines.) So, I performed Great Minds Think Alike.
I want to thank Michael Mode for snapping a series of photos of me with Richard. Incidentally, Michael Mode (learn more about him here) produces the Napkin Roses (read about them here). I had the chance to tell him I use the Napkin Rose in just about every magic show I perform. I explained the story I tell as I perform, and he asked to see some video. So, now I have to look for some video about that. But, getting back to sharing the stage with Richard Freakin’ Osterlind, what an incredible opportunity it was. Three people have really shaped me as a performer: Harry Allen, co-owner of the iconic Daytona Magic; Leland Pennington; and Richard Osterlind. I can now say I have shared the “stage” with all three of them. I used to work for Harry at Daytona Magic, so we “performed” together several times; Leland and I performed together at my 50th birthday (Wendi should write about that sometime); and now Richard and I performed together at Haines. It was very generous of Richard to allow me to perform. I truly appreciated the opportunity … and his friendship. Instead of telling you what Great Minds Think Alike is, let me show you … I have the video:
