* (restored)
American Museum of Magic (Marshall, Michigan)
The House of Houdini (Budapest, Hungary)
Museum of Magic and Superstitions (Uglich, Russia)
Maison de la Magie (Blois, France)
日本奇術博物館 (Okinawa, Japan)
Magic Circle Museum (London, England)
The Museum of Alchemists and Magicians (Prague, Czech Republic)
Davenport’s Magic Kingdom (Norfolk, England)
The Houdini Museum (Scranton, Pennsylvania)
Museum of Magic (St. Petersburg, Russia)
David Copperfield’s International Museum and Library of the Conjuring Arts (Las Vegas)
El Rey de la Magia (Barcelona, Spain)
Le Grand David and His Spectacular Magic Company (Beverly, Massachusetts)
Philip’s Magical Paradise (Manitoba)
Martinka & Co. Museum of Magic (Midland Park, New Jersey)
Magic Museum (Fruška Gora National Park, Serbia)
Museo Fournier de Naipes (Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain)
Museo della Magia (Cherasco, Italy)
Musée de la Curiosité et de l’Insolite (Nice, France)
Norwegian Museum of Magic (Oslo, Norway)
The Museum of Icelandic Sorcery and Witchcraft (Hólmavík, Iceland)
Sveriges Magi-Arkiv (Nyköping, Sweden)
Magicum (Berlin)
Zauberkasten-Museum (Vienna)
Mayong Black Magic and Witchcraft Museum (Mayong, India)
Casa Museo de la Magia (Valencia, Spain)
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p.s. Hey. ** Dominik, Hi!!! Cool (re: you + Shane’s book). We’ll definitely finish the film. It’s just a matter of how much of the professional help we need that we can afford. If the shithead up top condemns us to having to settle for a rush job and begging for favors, we will. But our film deserves a lot better than that. We’ll see. Thank you for caring, really. It sounded completely horrifying: the dog’s ‘I love you’. Its jaws couldn’t pronounce the words so it sounded like it was being tortured into speaking. I didn’t get my soft serve, but I realised I can surely get it at the summer carnival down the street from me, so I’ll walk over there. Nice. In the meantime, I’m gobbling yesterday’s love down right now and, you know, yum. Love letting me remember why I’ve had a folded pink handkerchief resting on my desk for almost a year because I think it must have some kind of significance for me to have placed it there, G. ** Damien Ark, Hi, Damien! How are you, sir? What’s up? I hope Mr. Christmass gets beaucoup love too. ** chas, Hi. Victoire! I wonder about that too. I have plenty of artist friends who claim to have no artist relatives even going back a century. But people can be artists in sneaky ways, like how they arrange flowers or whatever, and not even realise it or never think to identify themselves as artists because of that ‘hobby’. Thanks, yeah, I hope to get back to the film editing today. Jonesing to. Thank you so much about ‘Permanent Green Light’. I’m super proud of it, but I honestly think the new one is miles beyond it. I only know about Carlos Alcaraz because friends of mine who are way into tennis and who know I’m a big Rafael Nadal fan (when I watch tennis, which isn’t often) have told me he’s the new Nadal. But I haven’t seen him do his thing yet. I love your him about poem. It manages the feat of being graceful and hilarious. Thanks for letting me imbibe it. May your day bequeath you wonders. ** Dee Kilroy, Hi there! I think if there’s a saint here it’s probably you. Just a guess. Anyway, thank you about the blog. I do try. I don’t know the Tokarczuk book. I’ll look it up. Puig is one of those ‘you have to be in the mood’ kind of writers. I haven’t been in that mood for a long time. I should retry him, though. I guess my foot’s fine because I forgot I had a foot problem until you mentioned it. Wise words there about the extremities. I’ll dwell mentally within them. Shit, that’s a long recovery you have going on there. I suppose you’ve tried all the usual fixers? Slaying any number of coffees today is high on my agenda, thank you. You too, assuming the coffee is worth killing? ** _Black_Acrylic, Thanks, Ben. ** Misanthrope, Maybe you’ve just developed an allergy to being alive. That would suck. I think I’m going to try a pizza tonight and see what’s what, tomato-wise. I remember that about you and bananas for some reason. At least bananas are fairly easily avoidable. Of course I think everyone developing an allergy to red meat would be great news. ** Jack Skelley, Hi, J. Lots of deserved congrats going around these days. What’s your favorite song on The Beach Boys’ ‘Love You’ album? I think I might have already told you, but mine is ‘I Want to Pick You Up’. ** Kettering, Hi. Ha ha, everyone who comments here gets a response even if they don’t want one, them’s the rules. I didn’t know that about the blog’s maximizing abilities. Is that unique to here? Should I be proud? Should I try it myself? Awesome, the wonders never cease. ** darbzilla🐱🐉🐱🐉, Hi. You have every right to feel pissed off by stuff like that, obviously. Well, I was 17 at the time of the kidnapping thing, and the car was my mother’s, so I think that, as terrified as I was, I might have chuckled a little at the smashing. 1/10 sounds like you’re being generous. Your name change made me want to eat hardcore vegan food. Strange. Oh, thank you for giving me a peek at you. You look great in that photo. Who’s the lucky cat? Now I have a face and glasses and style to think about when we talk. Thank you, I like. I guess you know what I look like, or you easily can. Oh, and cool that you used that profile pic. The blog earns its keep again. Have the swellest day. ** Cody Goodnight, Hi, Cody. I’m good because it’s cooler outside today. Shaved ice, nice. Dole Whip, wow, I forgot all about that. Birthday cake of what sort and design? No, I haven’t seen Feuillade’s serial. I really should have by now. No time like the present? Today’s looking like a fount of possibilities on my end, and on your end? ** alex, Hi, alex! I’m good. Our summer has yet to be nightmarish here, and I’m ‘praying’ it won’t be. Hoping your landlord is near-sighted, obvs. That prose poem sounds tasty. Give it all the time it needs. I will check out Merchandise’s album thank you. I am in that mood. Always trust your gut, well, unless you have food poisoning or something. Thank you for taking some of your precious time and inputting yourself here today. Have an excellent one yourself. ** Okay. I’ve restored this very old post because I had a thought that its death was unfair to it. It is still for Derek McCormack, if you’re out there, Derek. See y’all tomorrow.
Now available in North America 
*
I totally get not wanting to lose time to being on Instagram each day. Um I can’t figure out how to link those Midjourney derived cult actor pez dispensers on here, should I email you screenshots?
Denniss – Derek has quite the collection. Thanks Derek! His Instafeed is a daily delight. “I Wanna Pick You Up” is quite the Beach Boys number. I think that’s Dennis Wilson singing lead w Brian. When you compare the song’s theme of romanticized infantilization w/ Dennis’ relationships w women (including his underage bride), it all makes sense. Hope things holding steady & productive. We have set the line-up for big FOKApalooza event July 26. It includes some of our dearest palz. luvz, Jack
@ Derek, until today I did not even know the word prestidigitation was a thing. I now consider myself something of an expert in this field, so thank you!
Hope today’s editing was a delight.
Hi Dennis.
How are you? Im doing decently well. I find these type of museums very fascinating and exciting. I think my favorites on display are the ones in Blois, Okinawa and Prague. Thank you for this post. The birthday cake was shaved ice as well. It was sweet with a blue coloring on the ice, though some of the tiger’s blood flavor got into it. I didn’t mind. Do they sell shaved ice in Paris? Les Vampires is very exciting. It’s very long, but hardly ever boring. It’s pulp mystery goodness. Well yesterday I had fun at the pool. Had a nice grilled cheese sandwich and got some good sun. I had a double bill of Georges Méliès The Kingdom of the Fairies and Hayao Miyazaki’s Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind. I think Méliès is a true magician, and the short I watched last night is my favorite of his. Nausicaä is a delight as well. Im a big 80s/90s anime fan, and I think mostly everything Studio Ghibli made is gold. Have you seen anything from Miyazaki, Dennis? For today, I may watch some short films by Jan Švankmajer and then Grey Gardens. Screening The Wall tonight, and going to see The Marriage of Maria Braun tomorrow in a theater. Only thing troubling me is I’m going to a family reunion on Saturday. I do not enjoy seeing my family, and I am honestly dreading it. But it’s just one day. Hope you have a great day or night, Dennis!
Some nice, evocative images in today’s post. I should show this to my writer friend Damian Murphy, I think he would dig something like this.
H’mm, seems I’ve become the eccentric, wayward nephew again. Sorry, I’ve just been super-depressed recently, I’ve been having some crazy dental issues and my finances have really taken a hit. Also been stressed about a looming colonoscopy/endoscopy in a few weeks (it’s been a decade since my last one). The procedure itself is no big deal (as they put you to sleep for it), I just loathe the prep work the day before.
Dennis, have you seen ASTEROID CITY yet? I saw it at the theaters yesterday (for the record, last time I caught a movie at the cinema was HOUSE OF GUCCI in November 2021). Anyway I enjoyed it. Kind of neat to see Wes Anderson’s take on sci-fi.
There was something else I wanted to ask you but I can’t remember what it was. H’mm. Well, if I remember what it is, I’ll let you know.
Is your producer likely to let you know soon exactly where the film stands financially?
For Slant Magazine, I reviewed glaive’s I CARE SO MUCH THAT I DON’T CARE AT ALL:https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/glaive-i-care-so-much-that-i-dont-care-at-all-album-review/
The Mayong museum would make a nice set for a death metal video (especially the skulls.)
Dennis! Hi. Prestidigitation! Cool word. I’m filing it away in my brain right next to ‘Hey Presto!’ for easy recollection.
Dan held a metaphorical gun to my head earlier. A cheese fishcake, or a fish cheesecake? They both sound really fucking bad, so I chose metaphorical death.
Today’s happiness is the happiness of the cat who, after dropping a slightly masticated mouse on the doormat, gets an extra good scratch behind the ears from a friendly human. Thanks for the kind words, Dennis. If life were a video game, you gave me, oh, at least a +15 to my ‘chuffed’ stat. There’d be a cute little icon in my HUD, green, maybe a smiley face with three upwards-pointing chevrons next to it. There’d also be a little timer next to the icon, counting down the hours, minutes, seconds ’til the effect wears off. Such is video game life.
Cheese fishcake, definitely. It could be a cheddar-tuna cake, like crab cakes— Fool the devil with that clever answer, why don’t you. 🙂 -k.
Hi. HOW ARE you?Did I write that yesterday? sorry I’m getting days confused cuz of how long and distorted they’ve been.
Huh. oh thank! I think that’s the best picture of me because it was on my birthday and my friend took it and I’m genuinely happy despite looking so miserable lol!
I gained like 10 pounds on lithium, which I knew would happen since they like to say “Oh but your already skinny” like ok but I don’t want to get FAT and you make me eat three big meals at this place and I rather not eat breakfast its repulsive. Its pretty easy to lose weight now that im off but I wish I was super tall so I could become 200 pounds and feel super badass and muscular instead of being scrawny and small. GUUH!!
Oh that’s not a cat, that’s a monster. She’s a crazy little bitch. Seriously she’s a violent little girl. Feral. Her name’s Isobel. I have her stabilized in the photo and she looks pissed. She was probably growling too!
Despite all that she’s a sweetheart and I think I’m the only one who could love her because I have a high pain tolerance to her bipolar ass. I feel like all my cats are just really fucked up haha. All from the streets.
She is like the only reason I go back to my mom’s house because she follows me around EVERYWHERE and when I leave she looks around the house for me and cries like a wimp. Or so I’m told.
OH ok!! I was thinking about this!! Did you see the moon landing when it aired? I love watching ARG horror and there’s this cosmic/eldritch series on youtube based on the 11 minute transmissions of the first people on the moon and NASA which were not revealed outside of the government. This is real, but the series does this fictional concept that, what if, what they found was the moon was not as it seemed, and that something lurked beneath it. It was an egg, and that by interacting with it, it awaken some cosmic creature beyond our own knowledge. AH!!! Hardcore vegan food!!! I had an avocado sandwich which was ok!
The only meat i’ll eat is seafood because I just cant give it up for some reason! Or at least oysters, crab and calamari. Fish I can do without though!!
*** Mr. Dennis–
I think we should come up with a safeword for you so you can let me know when I’m irritating/ freaking you out, or if I’m just plain boring you– something like ‘white squirrel’ or ‘princeling’– o’ ha– actually, ha ha you might actually use those in conversation– oh– sorry– Okay– If we did this then I could chill way the heck out. I feel like I need you to have a way to signal this to me. Maybe it’s a strange way to begin an acquaintance, but I’m sortof like the opposite of someone with autism in that I can get very mixed-up if I can’t see someone’s face or gestures or body language, or at least hear the tone of their voice. This is seriously a thing with me and it means I’m cool irl but so awkward and skittish in other interactions. It’s funny, because people who work with me tell me how mild and easy-going I am (well, happy, is what I think they actually say), and I am in a lot of circumstances able to get into the flow of the moment and just be happy with the basic human warmth around me. Online, however, anything you say can be read in all these different ways that are potentially much more sophisticated in their harshness or pomposity—way beyond anything I am actually capable of. Or maybe I’m blathering on when I write, or maybe I’m rude, or maybe I’m naive, or maybe… maybe… ugh. It’s awful.
So. A safeword, yes? I’d love to hear what you come up with– Ha ha!
(and why bother talking to me?)
(well// here’s my plea: bc i really love the blog and you’re amazing and cool and this is the only place where i’m not serving someone or silent// and// most importantly// i think you’d understand a lot of the stuff i ponder and you too seem to be a really curious person -i really, really like that- and you’re weird too and you have very interesting ideas and insights// and// well// maybe someday i’ll have an interesting idea or insight for you?)
-k.
ps Amy Gerstler’s books finally came today! Glee!!!