Yes, it’s been many days since the end of the 2010 Gathering but it’s taken me that long to recover – It was that good.
Attendance was in record numbers this year and the attendees were of the highest caliber – Thanks to all who participated and worked to make this year’s Gathering a smashing success.
PHOTOS and VIDEOS
There are many of you with images and video from the Gathering and we’d love to see what you shot and share it with the world. If you have video or images to share, please email me directly, I’m steve@grandillusions.com. We’ll take YouTube video, Flickr galleries, raw images and video and just about anything else you’d care to share.
Show the world a little part of what you experienced by sharing your memories on this site and those of our media partners as well.
Did you know that you can find coverage of the 2010 Golden Gate Gathering on a number of different websites? Check out the media from this year:
Late night and worth every hour of lost sleep. Breakfast in the hotel restaurant and it’s time to learn from master coin magician, Mike Gallo and, in the other room, sophisticate, Norman Beck.
After two excellent lectures we broke for lunch and went to raise our blood sugar levels and contemplate the knowledge we’d been given.
Back to the hotel lobby lounge, the home of most of the action at the Gathering, people are starting to sit and session, cards and coins are hitting the tables and laughter fills the atrium.
This is our last night at the Golden Gate Gathering and we’ve no intention of going gently. If last night was any indicator for tonight, we’ll be here till they close us out in the wee hours, then we’ll move to the Precursor Suite. We’re low on sleep but high on energy and the party is just starting…All over again. Stay tuned and hang on our every post!
Apparently word is out about how great the Gathering is because it’s much larger this year than ever before. A much bigger turnout meant a change in format was necessary and now, during lectures, we’re two groups and two lectures occur at the same time. This morning featured Jason England and Paul Vigil followed later by Allan Ackerman. Our worlds were rocked, naturally.
Jason is an expert at gambling sleights, Allan might just know more card effects than half the gathering combined and Paul…Well, Paul is a unique experience.
We session, laugh and gasp in amazement. We attend classes to have our heads handed to us and then filled with the knowledge of how to take the heads of others. We sometimes find time to eat.
We’re not quite halfway through.
Time to head to to the Precursor Suite. We’ll let you know what happens tomorrow. In the mean time, take a look at this video of Allan Ackerman in the hotel lounge:
Arriving at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Foster City is always exciting. The glass doors open smoothly and silently as we approach and on the other side we’re greeted by Kent Gunn performing his famous, “Fun Shop Cups and Balls”. What a great way to start out the 2010 Gathering!
Kent Gunn performs his famous "Fun Shop Cups and Balls"
A quick look around the lobby lounge reveals a number of familiar faces; Tony and Rosie Miller (RFA Productions) who will be running the parties this year, Steve Ehlers, Curtis Kam – All appearances say that this is going to be a hardcore convention.
We check in, drop our stuff off in our rooms and hit the lobby to session with our friends – people we rarely, if ever get to see except here at the GGG.
At 7:00 the party in the hotel pub started up and the group moves out of the lobby and into the club. Details of the resulting merriment will not be discussed or disclosed in these pages. What happens at the Golden Gate Gathering…
What we CAN tell you is that at the same time a private, seven seat, no-limit Texas Holdem game began. At the table were Steve Brooks (Magic Cafe), Tony Miller (RFA Productions), R. Paul Wilson (Shade), Tom Cutts (AM/PM Magazine), Tom Frame (Genii reviewer) , Jason England (Foundations) and Lee Asher (CardStar). Ultimately, Paul Wilson was the winner and took all.
Close to 10:00 the party moves upstairs to the Precurser suite run by Tony and Rosie Miller. Here is Kent Gunn reading the rules of the party:
Last night was a roller coaster. Dinner in an excellent Sushi restaurant, we removed our shoes and sat on little cushions, drinks in the suite (way too many), Steve Youell’s lunatic lecture, smoking Beutler’s cigars and cards, cards, cards. The Crowne Plaza is comfy, clean and friendly just as always and the group is even better than last season. Right now were between lectures and I’ve got a little much needed down time. The lobby is crowded with conjurers and from the upper balcony you can play a game of count the card decks – at every lobby table fellows are dealing piles, choosing or locating cards, shuffling, flourishing and telling lies. (I mean patter)
Howard Hamburg lecture was a little earlier today. Howard was an attendee last season who, between lectures, was destroying everyones brains with his smooth, well paced and immaculately thought out magic – it was only logical that Howard be invited this year as a guest speaker. Let me tell you, dear reader, that Mr. Hamburg did not disappoint our high expectations. Howard was a friend of the Professor’s and had some excellent anecdotes and reflections in addition to some terrific magic of own. (For those readers who have come into Grand Illusions, last year Howard taught me that terrific Triumph with the one hand fan that I show to anyone who passes by, I love it so.)
Back in the hotel lobby for a turnover pass session with Roman when Gary spies a new friend, Kim. Gary calls him over and Kim performs two pieces for us – Linking Rings and a finger ring and string routine. Dear reader, when Kim finished we had tears in our eyes – his magic was that beautiful. I don’t think I’ve been that moved since I saw Armando Lucero at the ‘07 GGG – Just enchanting. Thank you Kim, you’re an inspiration to us all.
Time to sign off, J.C. Wagner is next and I want a really good seat.
Finally, all the craziness of bringing this beast of a convention together is coming to fruition. Theron is sessioning with the Buck boys, Kent is starting to ramble something about starting the first lecture and I have made my last run to the airport.
I can’t believe all the lecturers are here… ALL SEVEN OF THEM!!!
Again this year we have a sold out attendance and it’s hard believe everything has come together without a hitch. The hotel is happier to have us back than they should be after the way we left the suite last year…let’s just say that we’re happy that they even let us have the suite again.
I’ve just hooked up the projector and the camera so even though we have a full house everybody can see what’s going on. People are starting to come in and get seated for Steve Youell’s brand new lecture on key cards and palming. All I have to do for the next three days is hang out with my friends and do magic…
Live from the Gathering, News and Info | Steve Johnson | 
August 20, 2010 12:28 pm | 
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