A New Topps Article



	locks open and is a perfect representation of the woman. The table of the Gossamer Flight is a slick item on its own. It folds up cleverly and is just as cleverly designed as the form. It is only an inch or two thick. The deception is not accomplished by the sloping, thick base method usually associated with Asrah, but with an unusual black art device. And, no, you do not need a black background. The method was not discernable in the living room. Onstage, or at a nightclub, school or lodge hall it would be impossible to discover. This prop has been very popular for Owen's. They've sold quite a few to magic's biggest names. One of the first went to my friend Brett Daniels. Our mutual friend, David Michelson, has used it with these comments: "I don't think anyone believes the woman is under the cloth in any Asrah effect, but this version looks more like floating than the stage version where the body goes straight up. The possibilities for this effect are just beginning because the concept is still new. I don't think it's for a magician with an illusion or two. It is for a bona fide illusionist." Dave also insisted the routine should never be done in whiteface! Like so many of Michelson's comments, it's hard to figure out what that means. Just remember, it comes from the performer who objects to this magazine being called The NEW TOPS. "The NEW TOPS has been around longer than the original TOPS. Get those guys at Abbotts to just call it TOPS. It's no longer new." Assistant-to-the-stars, Peggy Peterson, worked the illusion and suffered when the table was rolled over a substantial bump and the legs folded up. The most well-known artist to use the Owen illusion is Jack Goldfinger of Goldfinger S Dove. I spoke with him about it and he was wildly enthusiastic	about this item. He has used it for four years in a variety of performing situations: theatres, cruise ships, auditoriums and in nightclubs. He used it steadily for two years in Puerto Rico. Jack told me that after all that time is anything could have gone wrong, it would have gone wrong. "I have absolutely no complaints," he told me when I interviewed him for this article. "I also have absolutely no air freight bills for it." How many other major illusions can you say that for? Alan explained that this illusion is not sold to anyone without some lessons in using it. You either pick it up at Owens and spend a half day learning how to properly open and close the form or you pay for Alan to bring it your way. He also explained that it is tough to build a form that is very light and very sturdy. For that reason he expected these forms will have a service life. It will not last forever if subjected to abuse or repeated clumsy performances. And, even under optimum conditions, the very act of performing it will ultimately take its toll. So, if you've got that big contract at Disney World, to present this item four times daily, year around, a back-up might be in order. After four or five years a replacement unit would be a good idea, but steady work should help pay for this expensive illusion. It is currently just over $5,000.00 with an ATA case to protect it. Seebach's Bottom Line: Unlike the full stage Asrah, an Owen Gossamer Flight is much harder for the performer to do. It is more like performing Zombie (and you all know that an effective Zombie routine doesn't occur overnight). If you think you'll be doing this just with your lady partner, you'll want to work out some details. Who will roll the table off after she's levitating? Is there a secure, out-of-sight area to roll the table to? By the way, the woman actually begins the floating by raising the form and cloth with her own hands. The magician is nowhere near as this happens. As it continues to ascend, he steps back

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