Dean Carnegie and his Houdini Media Challenge

The Tennessean Newspaper Oct 30, 2026

Oct 31st, 2026 marked the 100th Anniversary of the death of Houdini.  What I called Houdini 100 Day1. In my mind, we have 364 more days to celebrate until we get to the 101st Anniversary. So with that in mind, I began to formulate a media campaign that would hit close to the 31st of October.

I won't go into specifics on what I did. But suffice to say, I appeared on Nashville's most popular TV talk show Talk of the Town. I was interviewed by Dave Schrader on his highly popular show Paranormal60, which appeared on Youtube, and also was aired on WCCO radio in Minneapolis. Then I was interviewed on WSMI radio out of Illinois by John Michael Marty. 

And that was just the start. I appeared on another paranormal podcast midweek which aired on Youtube, I currently have a half dozen more podcasts that want interviews and several that are waiting on future dates.

Probably the biggest thing was the FRONT PAGE of The Tennessean Newspaper, the biggest newspaper here in Nashville. This very paper covered Houdini's appearance in town in 1924 and now they covered me and my interest in Houdini.

Here is a fascinating fact about my Tennessean article. The reporter came to my home. When he saw how incredible the house looked, he asked if he could send a photographer. Keep in mind, I gave him 10 high resolution images of Houdini. He used none of those and instead opted for the images that were taken at my home. Pictures of me, my vintage cuffs, my Houdini cuffs, my Steel Straitjacket, my Houdini artwork and more. 

I learned long ago, that combining your interests, hobbies and such, you could use them to promote yourself. In my case, I am a magic historian, a collector, a Houdini authority, an escape artist, a magician, and a painter. I also am a blogger and a podcaster. All of these things have showed up in my various media appearances during the past two weeks.

Then, to top it off, I created a unique commemorative Houdini Coloring Book to celebrate the Centennial. It's a coloring book for adults but its great for kids too. There is a ton of historical information added as well as QR codes which take you back to my blog and podcast, which give even MORE information on the various images of Houdini. It is the the most inexpensive book on Houdini available this year, it's fun, and you can learn from it. And it's super easy to get. I have them on Amazon.com, and all you need to do is type in Houdini Coloring Book in the Amazing search box and it comes right up. OR, you can click this link.

The Houdini campaign continues and I will be doing much more as the year progresses!

What 8,000 Shows Taught Me About Magic (And Business)

 

How many shows has Dean Carnegie done? That's a good question. As a professional magician, the answer is between 7700 and 8300.  So the average is 8000. A crashed computer led to me loosing a couple years of records and my complete database. Thankfully I kept pretty detailed records for most of that time.

So what have I learned? Well, I have learned that no two audiences are the same. I've learned regardless of how well trained you are, you must LISTEN to your audience.  This means, you might have to change your line-up, you might have to alter the routines, you might have to tweak the messaging. This should apply to anyone who gets in front of an audience and speaks. But more often than not, most people just deliver their set message and let the chips fall where they may.

A strong introduction, delivered well, can set you up for a great time! But even a strong introduction poorly delivered can't help you. And a weak introduction, will have you spending time simply trying to establish your own authority. Introductions are so often neglected. I've seen even the best performers allow someone WING it, and then give a pathetic intro. Create your own introduction. Make sure it's simple, so anyone could read it. Nothing complicated. Just a few bullet points and then HERE YOU ARE!!!! 

Tone and speed can make or break a performance. Authority and confidence come to play here too. If they don't think you are the voice of authority or if they sense weakness from you, they won't really listen. They might be there physically, but mentally they are somewhere else. You can slow down your speech, raise your voice, even whisper, at the right times and they will propel your performance further along.

Learn to READ the Room. In other words, pay attention to your audience. Listen to them. Are they laughing at your jokes, are they into what you are saying? Are they attentive or distracted.  Looking out over the audience and getting their feedback, whether verbally or perhaps often just physically. Sometimes how they are sitting, how well they pay attention, how well you have captivated their attention. This will help you to make adjustments as you go along to improve the overall experience.

Performing magic has given me the ability to talk to crowds, command attention, get huge groups to follow directions, and produce both laughter and deep emotion from the same audience. And it isn't due to the magic it's due to whatever it is I am performing, the message I'm bringing to them. I don't mean that I am preaching at the audience or selling them a product, but everything we do has a message or it just doesn't connect. For example, a school principal standing in front of an auditorium full of students may be speaking briefly and letting the student body know to be on their best behavior because they represent the school, and also the school assembly is being provided for their benefit. So the message is instructional.

A singer at a concert may tell a story about a song they wrong, one about deep heartache and regret, and the message is emotional. A comedian on the other hand may be making jokes or simply making fun about the lines at a TSA checkpoint at the airport. We all laugh, but the message is shared frustration. And then sometimes, the message is simply, 'have fun'. 

I remember when I started in this business. I had already done maybe a hundred shows as a part timer (which are not part of my 8000). But I quickly learned that I didn't know as much as I thought I did. I learned fast that repetition and practice go very far. Getting up, failing, and getting back up and evaluating your failures is the fastest way to future success. Every gig can't be perfect. Sometimes no matter how hard you try, you don't connect. BUT, the more experience you have, the more tools you have in your box of fixes, to adjust and make it work. There is no substitute for experience. And you don't get experience without trying and occasionally failing. 

Here is the dirty secret on failing. The better you get, the harder it is for anyone to spot a failure. You might have a show that, to you, was not a good one. But the client is thrilled, you met or exceeded their expectations. Why the disparity? Because you are judging things against your very best moments. They see it for what it was, a wonderful show. YOU wanted perfection, they wanted a happy audience. They won!

Oh and there is one other thing, the curse that many performers have. The audience of 1 or 2. No, I don't mean only 2 people in the audience. I mean everyone is laughing and having a great time, whether it's 100 or 1000, or 10,000 people. But you have spotted, one or two people who are clearly not enjoying themselves. Suddenly you are laser focused on them. You forget EVERYONE else, and you are trying to win over that one person or two people. To a lay person that sounds bizarre. Trust me, most performers go through this. And we will kick ourselves later, because we didn't win over those one or two members of the audience, even though 99.9 % had a GREAT time. Even 8000 shows doesn't change that, lol! But you must remind yourself that for the majority your message got through!

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