I have lived in Los Angeles for 26 years now and up until last weekend I had never been to The Magic Castle. What is the Magic Castle? Just a Los Angeles institution! It’s a throw-back to old Hollywood, the kind of place that still requires a jacket and tie to get in. It’s so exclusive that you must be personally invited by one of their members to get in for an evening’s entertainment. That’s probably why I had never been before – I was never invited! But thanks to the magic of the internet, I now have a connection. Michael Vincent is a brilliant magician who lives in London. He happens to subscribe to my Daily Wisdom e-mail newsletter. When Michael was invited to perform at the Magic Castle in Los Angeles, he invited me to come see his show! Of course I jumped at the chance. The Magic Castle is an old mansion that has been converted into a restaurant and show rooms. Greg and I arrived for our 7:30 dinner reservation and had a lovely vegetarian meal. The service was excellent, the atmosphere very old school dignified. Everyone dressed up for an elegant evening. After dinner we explored the place, and were mesmerized by a bartender/magician doing card tricks. It turns out this was the anniversary of The Magic Circle in England, so it was British week at the castle, and all the shows featured British magicians. The first show we saw Greg laughed so hard I thought he was going to fall out of his seat! I think Aussies and Pommies share a similar sense of humor. In between shows we had a drink in the lounge, and were serenaded by Irma, the resident ghost who plays requests on the piano. You call out a song and it magically plays! Any song – it doesn’t matter, Irma knows it. Amazing! Finally we got to meet Michael Vincent himself. I had gotten to know Michael a little bit via e-mail and by visiting his website, so I knew already that he is a sweetie. But, oh, what a gentleman! Michael is very handsome, and gracious, and it was so good to connect with him in person. And talk about talented! We were absolutely astounded by the magic that Michael came up with. I think my jaw kept dropping open, and I kept looking at Greg to see if he was seeing what I was seeing. We had a great time – Michael is hilarious – so charming and at ease on the stage. You could really see that this is his dharma. Drop by and visit Michael’s site – and if anyone knows an agent in LA who handles magicians, let me or Michael know – I want him to come back and do Leno! http://www.magicofmagic.com