Flashback Video Clip

The year was 1987 performing at the Funny Bone.

Video Clip Click Here

Comments from the Magic Cafe

It's very nice to feel appreciated and respected be your peers.

I posted some video clips recently to an Online Magic Newsgroup

Here were some of the comments:

WONDERFULLY BEAUTIFUL...I feel inspired...thanx for sharing...great stuff...

Great stuff, you have an eccentric character.

More fantastic stuff Tom. I liked how you got the crowd to respond like a chorus. I use something similar and it really helps to draw/unify/build the crowd. A real gem there!

Great show Tom. When I read you before that you really banged the cups, I had never seen it. But I have found myself banging the cups just about like that since I bought yours. They just seem to attract a beating. Nice. Very nice.


I liked the pace with which you worked. My natural tempo is a bit slower, but you certainly seemed comfortable working and talking at that speed.

I knew I recognized your voice; I have your Rings DVD! Good stuff.

Very Enjoyable and well done. Thanks for posting that. The good stuff just keeps coming! Man, Tom, you really do deliver!
Thanks for sharing that with us.

Tom, I like that you're talking loud without yelling at them. Well done!

and finally from Kyle in Philly a more detailed viewpoint


I just watched the video and I wanted to say that is was an excellent experience for me. Thank you for sharing that with us. I think what I enjoyed the most from watching it was that you really have a well defined character and you present this character so well to the audience that you could feel the audience react and relax with you by the middle of the routine.

There is a fun energy level you have, and the style of your speech seems to fit the character so nicely that it fits like a glove. It does not seem to be overstated or "out of character" so to speak.

I have seen so many perfomers try to be a character and personna that they simply are not nor can they convey it well. This just comes across to your audience as fake. To me, your character and speech and style seemed natural and without even knowing you, I felt myself liking not only the magic, but liking the performer. I think the audience related well to you because, by chance, they may feel that you really are just like them but only know some neat things you like to share with them.

I think that folks can learn so much from this video. Even taking away the great effect you show, they can still learn so much. You can really see the pyschology behind what it is you do and why you do it the way you do it. There really is a rhyme and reason for everything you are doing.

Even in the beginning, you successfully break down that invisible barrier that exists between performer and audience and let them know it is ok to come in closer. By stating to move closer and by getting them to interact with the oohs and ahhhhs really helps you to instantly break down that barrier and at the same time show the audience that it is ok to react to what they are about to see.

Thanks again. I really learned so much from this and I thank you for sharing your wisdom with me. Keep up the great work.

Charlie Chaplin Playing Card

Wine and Playing Cards

By Edna Bizon oil on canvas

The Dusty 45's

If your curious as to what kind of music we dance to every Wednesday night or what the dancing looks like, check out the clip and you'll have a much better idea. The guy in the clip dancing is Joe Rosse, he teaches lindy hop as well as plays in his own band. This clip was shot at the South Lake Union Block Party here in Seattle. Let me know what you think! Leave a comment.


Video Clip Click Here

Video Clip Du Jour

More footage from my set at the Pike Place Market Buskers Festival last weekend.


Video Clip Click Here

Yeah baby!

Just got back from a great night of dancing!! Started out stiff and awkward but loosened up as the night progressed. I danced half a dozen times with a new girl named Tracy. What a doll. Danced with a bunch of chicks. Had a girl come up to me and ask me to dance . She said she had been watching me and thought I was a real good dancer. I lack confidence in my dancing but I really enjoy it. Holding Maggie close, smelling her hair and dancing a slow dance put me on cloud 9.

Tomorrow is going to be a GREAT day!! I just finished making 3 brown bag lunches. One for Buster, one for Hope and one for me. I wrote notes on Buster's and Hope's napkins. I'll leave for Ellensberg at 9:30AM get to Mt. Stuart Elementary at 11:30AM. Check in at the office, eat lunch with Hope at 11:40. From 12:30 - 1:00PM I'll be with Hope in her classroom. from 1-2:45 I'll be in Max's classroom where Miss Ristine has asked me to participate in a class activity! At 2:45 Moira will meet me at the flagpole where she will drop off Liam. I'll have the kids till 6:30PM. Well have fun and dinner. I am really looking forward to a full day of fun and adventure!

Mona Lisa

Mona Lisa, Mona Lisa, men have named you
You’re so like the lady with the mystic smile
Is it only ’cause you’re lonely they have blamed you?
For that Mona Lisa strangeness in your smile?

Do you smile to tempt a lover, Mona Lisa?
Or is this your way to hide a broken heart?
Many dreams have been brought to your doorstep
They just lie there and they die there
Are you warm, are you real, Mona Lisa?
Or just a cold and lonely lovely work of art?

- Jay Livingston and Ray Evans

Glass of Beer and Playing Cards

Juan Gris 1913 Oil and papier colle on canvas

This piece of art reminds me that it is Wednesday night. Time to change my clothes put my dancing shoes on, cross the West Seattle bridge, go beyond the sea to the Owl & Thistle Irish Honky Tonk Pub in Post Alley


Somewhere beyond the sea
somewhere waiting for me
my lover stands on golden sands
and watches the ships that go sailin

Somewhere beyond the sea
she's there watching for me
If I could fly like birds on high
then straight to her arms
I'd go sailin'

It's far beyond the stars
it's near beyond the moon
I know beyond a doubt
my heart will lead me there soon

We'll meet beyond the shore
we'll kiss just as before
Happy we'll be beyond the sea
and never again I'll go sailin'

I know beyond a doubt
my heart will lead me there soon
We'll meet (I know we'll meet) beyond the shore
We'll kiss just as before
Happy we'll be beyond the sea
and never again I'll go sailin'

no more sailin'
so long sailin'
bye bye sailin'..

- Charles Trenet & Jack Lawrence

Court date postponed

Due to some screw up on my lawyers part, we will not be going to court on Friday. I told him it was no big deal as I had waited this long. . . what's another 2 or 3 weeks. He still seemed agitated and pissed off with himself.

No worries.

We are rescheduled for Oct. 12th at 1PM

59th Street Bridge Song

Slow down, you move too fast.
You got to make the morning last.
Just kicking down the cobble stones.
Looking for fun and feelin' groovy.
Hello lamppost,
What cha knowing?
I've come to watch your flowers growing.
Ain't cha got no rhymes for me?
Doot-in' doo-doo,
Feelin' groovy.

Got no deeds to do,
No promises to keep.
I'm dappled and drowsy and ready to sleep.
Let the morning time drop all it's petals on me.
Life, I love you,
All is groovy.

Simon & Garfunkel

Made my plane reservations

My mom had the tube taken out of her throat today and was in quite a mood from what I understand. My step-father and step-sister were there to absorb the brunt of her foul mood. Over the course of the last day or so she has indicated that she would like to see me. My brother was there the other day and my sister is making some arrangements to visit as well.

Today I booked a flight leaving Sunday night and returning Thursday evening. I'd have liked to stay longer with her, but I can't afford not to be working both weekends. I've had a headache all day and I'm a bit stressed about the whole thing. I've seen my mom in the hospital many times through the years, and it's never easy. I always thought my job was to be the comic relief. Hitting on the nurses, filling out my own perscriptions and doing some parlor tricks in various off limit areas of the hospital. I'll never forget the the look on a my moms face when I performed an impromptu cut and restored IV tube that contained her pain medication.

If it's not easy being green, just imagine how it feels to be black and blue. Well, hells bells. . . . got to do, what I got to do.

Last night at the session I asked Steve if he could check in on Buster while I'm gone. I've decided to let Buster stay at home alone while I am gone. He's a big boy, and this is a good trust building opportunity for him. Besides with the ankle bracelet that Steve will be putting on him from the police station I should be able to keep pretty good tabs on him.

Busker Festival Pics

Joe The Juggler, Jake & Me

Partying with the Freaks at the Fenix Underground

I'm glad to be back performing at the Fenix Underground on Friday and Saturday nights. You never quite know what kind of crazy shit they've got planned. Early in the evening on Saturday night my old friend JR Hughson treated Buster and me to some excellent Thai Food at a place on Alki Beach. After dinner he joined me for some fun at the Fenix. There was a lot going on that night. A heavy metal band, burlesque, body piercing and suspension and of course a bit of magical entertainment to round out the festivities. We had a good time!



Suspension

Definition: The act of hanging the body from large hooks for the purpose of spiritualistic ritual or a test of endurance. People who have done suspension describe it as a highly euphoric and spiritual experience. It can also be very dangerous and should never be performed alone, but only under the supervision of a suspension expert.



Haven't quite figured out what makes a person want to to this. And if this isn't enough, it got really wierd in the act where another guy jumps on him and starts swinging from him. OY!



Here is JR with a priceless expression



This is JR's tattoo on his arm. He did a bit of magic for the kids as well using his tattoo. Fun night.

Response Rough Draft

One month before my wife took control of a $400,000.00 trust her father had left for her, I was served with divorce papers and a cycle of irrational behavior and outrageous claims started and continues to this day. We were married for almost a decade and as far as I (and everyone else could see) thought we were happily married. I was a loving and caring father and devoted husband despite what Moira claims. I have years of home videos to prove it. Holidays, Birthdays, Vacations, great memories that chronicle the course of years and the births of our three children and my son from a previous marriage of whom I had custody of when we met and continue to raise as a single parent to this day.

As for her accusations as to my drug use. . . . it mirrored hers. We both smoked some pot on occasion. During the trial she admitted to the court that she had lied about her drug use.

I was ordered to be evaluated by the East-side Recovery Center. I called them up and visited their Summit Branch and was evaluated by Benjamin Ross on July 23, 2003. After a several hour evaluation, Mr. Ross made an expert professional determination that I had no problem with drugs or alcohol. As a result of his conclusion, there was no need for random UA's and he did not recommend any follow up treatment. I was prepared to take as many UA's as he thought fit as my primary goal was to spend time with my children.

It was not long after that, when Moira and her lawyer said, "They didn't like the results of the evaluation, and wanted me to see someone else", adding that Mr. Ross did not conduct the evaluation properly and that somehow I had manipulated him and the truth. On October 6, 2003 Mr. Ross wrote a letter to the court stating that his evaluation was in accordance with the Washington Administrative Code (WAC) 388-805-310.

I was then ordered to go to Comprehensive Evaluations Northwest. On Oct. 23, 2003 I talked to Joan Norton, I explained my situation (my business had closed in June and I didn't have the funds to pay for the evaluation). I asked her if I could be put on a payment plan. She said that they didn't do that. She suggested that I ask Moira to lend me the money since she had $400,000.00. I asked Moira and she refused.

Through out the process of our divorce I quickly found out what happens when one party has a great deal of money to invest in a campaign of hate and misdirected anger and the other party has none and attempts to represent one's self in the family court of law. I did not refuse to participate in the parent evaluation, I just couldn't afford it. However, there is nothing in that report other than her self reported delusions of my alleged neglect and out of hand drug abuse. The evaluator talked to my first wife who said I was a good father and had no reservations about our son living with me.

I attended the Divorce Lifeline Course. I enrolled but did not complete the Apple Parenting Class as there were work conflicts. While Moira was throwing money around like it was going out of style (I have bank records showing her spending $30,000 in the month of March 2003) I was trying to make a living paying the spousal maintenance ordered as well as child support and my own mounting bills.

I have tried to spend as much time as I could with the kids. For over a year I saw them at least twice a week. I would make them dinner and do homework with them. It was not uncommon during the summer for me to pick them up in the morning and drop them off in the evening. We would go swimming and hiking. (Once again, plenty of home videos to show the love, joy and involvement I share with my children). It always puzzled me, that if I was the chronic drug addict that she alone reported; why would she put 3 kids under the age of 7 in my car and let me take them swimming. It just doesn't make sense.

Moira states, "That our children were not my main priority". She was a stay at home mom, I was the bread winner. Throughout our entire marriage she put me behind the 8-Ball financially. Her excessive spending was the primary reason for the demise of more than one business. You can only rob Peter to pay Paul so much before you're out of business. I worked long hard hours providing a quality of life for my wife and kids and this is how she thanks me. By dumping me as soon as her trust came due and restricting my access to my children.

Her lies upon lies show the depth of her delusions. I can't count the amount of times she has denied me visits during the holidays, birthdays and the many times throughout the year that I have asked to spend time with the kids. Most recently, for a month and a half she restricted ANY AND ALL physical contact stating that she had been on 3 different vacations during that time period.

When Moira moved in January to Cle Elum, I wasted to time contacting Joan Norton At Comprehensive Evaluation Northwest. Now it was more important than ever to get the overnight visitation that I never stopped asking for. Sadly she had retired. I spoke to her business associate Nigel Lott who agreed to evaluate me for free. He said that in his business he had seen this sort of thing many times. Where an ex wife will make a man jump through hoops and urinate in a cup while another man watches in order for him to see his kids. From the start I was prepared to do whatever I could to see my kids. Nigel evaluated me for several months and recommended 4 random US's over the course of two months and once again a conclusion that there was no problem with drugs or alcohol. Nigel said that he checked with collateral sources. When I asked If he had spoken to Moira, he said that she did not return his call. As far as this goes, it's out of my hands. Who do you believe, a professional drug evaluator. . . or a lying bitch.

Moira states, "I feel this is yet another attempt of Tom's to avoid the previous orders by not stepping up to the plate and doing what is expected of him in order for our children to be safe while with him". Yet she continues to put the kids in my loving care as recent as August 30th and Sept 6th. Am I safe or unsafe she should pick a story and stick to it. . . like a normal psychopath.

Moira says that I had a "hidden bank account" . . now were into conspiracy theories!? I had an IRA that my father opened for be well before we were even married. I have never touched that account. She accuses me of closing bank accounts after they were garnished and opening others in someone else's name. When an account was garnished and cleaned out of course I closed it, what else was I going to do? As for accounts in someone else's name, As with every other ridiculous claim, I flat out deny it! Where is her proof with any of her hateful and outrageous accusations!?

I respectfully ask the court to grant me the sort of parenting plan that most divorced people have. Every other weekend OVERNIGHT VISITATIONS, a fair split of holidays and birthdays. I have been evaluated, I have pissed in a cup, I am current on child support. I have complied to the best of my ability with all of the courts orders and would ask that fair treatment be served. If I suspect that she has been drinking or using drugs I should be able to demand a drug/alcohol test for her as well.

The bottom line is. . . I miss my kids, my kids miss me. I just want to spend more time with them and I am prepared to do whatever it takes.

My ex wife is delusional

Another update

I talked to my brother last night he told me that my mom had gone back into surgery. They needed to stop some bleeding.

This morning I talked to Norm, He said the bleeding was from where they split the sternum (breastbone). They used something called bone wax as you can't stich a bone.



Norm said she still looked like a truck hit her. He told her that Mike had driven in from the east coast and rather than share a double bed with him at the hotel, Mike drove two hours from Pittsburgh to Cleveland to sleep at their house. My mom rolled her eyes when she heard this, Norm knew she was awake and comprehending.

Video Clip du Jour

Video Clip Click Here

This was shot yesterday at the Pike Place Market Busker Festival. This clip is the last 5 minutes of a 30 minute set. In it, I perform 3 Fly, Mental Photography and The Linking Rings.

I hope you enjoy it!

Mom's surgery update

I talked to my stepfather Norman this afternoon he said that the surgery had started later than expected. He also said that my mom had had a change of heart.

Since then, I got another update saying that the heart transplant went as planned and that my Mom was unconscious in recovery. I was also informed that an electronic pace maker was keeping the new heart going for the time being. From what I was told this is not that uncommon after this surgery.

Have a heart

The show must go on

The Pike Place Market Buskers' Festival
Starts: Sunday, Sep 18th, 2005
Hours: 10:00 AM - 5:00 PM

This Seattle event, the culmination of Seattle Buskers Week, will feature over forty acts on three stages. Those acts will include such notable crowd pleasers as twenty-plus year Market veteran Rick Fogel and Whamdiddle Dulcimer, the comedy magic of Tom Frank, (voted Seattle Weekly's Best street performer), Singer/Songwriter and Street Siren Niceol Blue, Seattle Jim Page, Regional Emmy Award Recipient Jim Hinde, and the Spoonman/ Poet (who only needs one name), Artis.

Additional notes:
The Pike Market Performers Guild announces the 4th Annual Pike Place Market Buskers Festival! The event is Free, tips appreciated.

Location:
The Pike Place Market, Seattle, Washington

Pike Place Market Busker Festival

I am performing on the North Stage at 12:30PM

I love my Mom

I got off of work at the Fenix Underground, checked my phone for messages and saw that my mom had tried calling me 6 times. She left two voice mail messages telling me to call her when I got the message regardless of what time it was. I called her 12:30AM our time, 3:30AM her time (EST). She said her and my step dad were on their way from Cleveland to Pittsburgh. On thursday she was officially put on the heart transplant list. It was late Saturday night that she found out they had a heart for her. This, my friends, is as heavy as it gets. Holy Shit!



We've been talking about this day for months. Now that it's here, I don't know how to feel. Do I book the next flight out? Do I wait and see? The 4 hour operation will be over before I could even get there. She sounded good and said that she was calmer than she expected. She told me that she loved me very much and that I was very special to her. My heart sank and my eyes welled up with tears. My brother will be driving in from the east coast, and my sister will most likely be coming up from Cincinnati.

I guess life is all a crap shoot anyways, but gambling with cracking ribs and replacing a heart is serious business. I guess we'll have to wait and see. I love my mother very much and I've tried to be a good son, not always succeeding. I got the strange feeling like that might be the last time I ever talk to her. . . . I hope not.