Law and Magic Blog

Call For Papers

From Brandy Williams

Call for Writers – Womens [sic] Voices in Magic
Email for inquiries and submissions: brandyeditor at gmail.com

Megalithica Books, an imprint of Immanion Press (Stafford, U.K./Portland, OR, U.S.A) is seeking submissions for an anthology on women working in the magical communities, particularly in communities where women have not been extensively published or in which women face stereotyping and misunderstanding within and without the community. These communities include (but are not limited to) groups and individuals working in the Golden Dawn, Thelemic, Aurum Solis, Alchemy, Chaos, and Experimental Fields.

Women have been involved in traditional and ritual magic since the late Victorian era. However women are often viewed as tangential to these communities or as soror mysticae, assistants to the magician. Today women are actively involved in ceremonial magical groups and lodges, alchemy, chaos magic, and Experimental Magic, overcoming stereotypes and creating new visions of magic within the communities.

Read the rest of the entry here.

Vanishing Women

I've just started reading Karen Beckman's Vanishing Women: Magic, Film, and Feminism (Duke University Press). Barnes and Noble provides a sample chapter here. Meanwhile, the new indie film Women in Boxes awaits the weekend (or some copious free time).

Magic on TV and Film

Upcoming on Masters of Illusion (myNetwork TV), which airs Mondays at 9 p.m. (8 Central time).

• February 2nd: Scarlett, Jeff McBride, Kalin & Jinger, Farrell Dillion, Hillel, Krystyn Lambert, Amazing Jonathan, Guy Bavli, Tony Clark, Ai & Yuki.
• February 9th: Jason Byrne, Dan Sperry, Joe Skilton, Krystyn Lambert, Kevin James, Jonathan Levit, Aaron Radatz, Tom Burgoon, Ridgeway & Johnson, James Clark
• February 16th: Arian Black, Scarlett, Ed Alonzo, Jeff McBride, Kyle Eschen, Zach Creahan-Mueller, Farrell Dillion, Ai & Yuki, Mark Kalin & Jinger
• February 23rd: Jason Byrne, Tom Burgoon, Nathan Gibson, Chris Randall, Aaron Radatz, Dan Sperry, Fielding West, Rocco, Jonathan Levit, Kevin James, Krystyn Lambert, Ridgeway & Johnson

[courtesy of Magic Magazine].

Women in Boxes, the indie film on magicians' assistants, is now available on DVD.

Via iTricks: Focus Features asks magicians about their favorite films.

A Little More On That Globo TV Lawsuit

Here's a little more on that Brazilian magicians' lawsuit against Globo TV, courtesy of  Vicenç Feliu, a law librarian here at LSU Law.

...[this case was up in the Tribunal of Justice, court of first instance of the State of Rio Grande do Sul; Judge Eduardo Khote Werlang of the 11ª Vara Cível de Porto Alegre (11^th Civil Chamber of Porto Alegre) presiding.  The decision was passed on 30 April 2003 and the docket number was 00101156694. There were 21 magicians (see list at bottom of message) bringing suit against Rede Globo and their attorneys were Dr. Marco Antonio Birnfeld and Dr. Marcio Oliveira Puggina, who died on 01 October 2001, while the case was ongoing. As you know, the judge ruled in their favor. I have searched the court’s website (http://www.tj.rs.gov.br) using the docket number as well as different combinations of the known facts and have been unable to find any documents related to this case.  I have also searched the web and beyond finding more news items, like the one you have, or blog entries, I have not been able to find any actual official court documents.   

Vicenç 

List of magicians: 

• - Andréa Araújo Viana (ANDREA)
• - Leda dos Santos Souza (PASSOQUINHA)
• - Andréia Maria Alexandre Henrique (MARY)
• - Caetano Miguel Tótaro Neto (ROCAMITONI)
• - Claudio Alves Machado (WULLICHANG)
• - Daniel Silveira Pereira (LE DENIER)
• - Edgar Poggetti (IBIS)
• - Guacira Terezinha da Silva (GUACIRA)
• - Hilton da Rosa Melecchi (HIDROMEL)
• - José Benedito Galtieri Filho (MAGRINE Jr.)
• - Juliana Cristofari (JULLY)
• - Marco Antonio Rodrigues (THU)
• - Maria Lucia Schneider (LÚCIA)
• - Paulo Roberto Britto Martins (TONY) – Actual Presidente
• - Rita de Cássia Vareira dos Santos (RITA)
• - Sérgio Albino Schneider (ALBIN)
• - Solange Carvalho Araújo (SOLANGE)
• - Valéria Martinak Soares (VALÉRIA)
• - Vera Lúcia Santana Dias (ALINE)
• - Vilson José Schneider (VILSON)
• - Vitor Hugo Cardia (KARDINI)

Legal Fallout From Those "Masked Magician" Specials

I was browsing for more information about possible legal fallout from the broadcast of the "Masked Magician" specials on the Fox network in the late 1990s and found an article published in the Herald Sun (Melbourne), dated June 4, 2003, called Magic Cat Is Out of the Bag. Apparently twenty-one Brazilian magicians sued the Globo TV network, Brazil's biggest, for broadcasting the specials, because the conjurors lost income after audiences saw the secrets of the illusions (and presumably lost interest in going to magic shows). One magician, Paulo Roberto Brito Martins, said he lost more than $800,000 in income. The court ruled that the network should pay each magician damages in the amount of his (or her) lost income. I'd be curious to know more about the legal basis for the ruling, and to get a copy of the opinion. Anybody out there have access to Brazilian case law? The case comes out of Rio Grande do Sul; the judge is Eduardo Kothe Werlang.

Magician Attacked at Magic Castle Hotel

The website TMZ reports that a magician who had planned to participate in a reality series for VH1 was attacked while staying in the Magic Castle Hotel. She fought off her attacker, who left behind his cell phone. Police used it to lure him to a park nearby, and arrested him. Both the woman and her colleagues checked out of the hotel. She has since decided not to participate in the series. Read more here and here.