Magic Moments: Come Sip the Magic

Charlotte Pendragon’s Magic Tea Cup featured on NBC’s World’s Greatest Magic

Appearing out of mist on NBC’s World’s Greatest Magic. Photo courtesy of NBC TV

In twilight's hush, mist unfolds,

A figure forms, with grace untold.

Her brunette hair, a flowing stream,

A beautiful lady, from a dream.

Clutched in her hand, a tea cup rare,

With swirling steam that fills the air.

"Come, sip the magic, let worries cease,

In this enchanted moment, find your peace."

So linger here, where dreams take flight,

In her warm glow, all feels right,

For in this mist, love’s secret stirs,

In every drop, the magic occurs.

---

"The World's Greatest Magic" was a series of American television specials dedicated to showcasing extraordinary magic acts. The inaugural episode premiered on NBC in 1994, launching a sequence of annual editions that continued through 1998. The series was produced by Gary Ouellet and featured the first episode hosted by Robert Urich.

The Pendragons were two stars among several celebrated performers, including Siegfried and Roy, on this popular NBC TV Special airing in November 1994. On it, we performed our famous metamorphosis, for which I’ve posted the illusion many times in prior Substack articles. Our segment was filmed at Universal Studios in Hollywood because, during the regular filming scheduled for later in the fall at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas, we weren’t available to film in Vegas. After all, we were booked to tour China and Southeast Asia.

Significant changes in the production were altered to accommodate our availability, so the set in Las Vegas ended up resembling our set at Universal Studios. It was a great choice because the entire show adopted our set and stage ambiance. Due to Hollywood's magic, our set at Universal Studios seamlessly blended in with the set at Caesars Palace. That's magic in itself! When Robert Urich introduced us, you would have never known we were on a different stage in another location two months earlier. Our set at Universal Studios was designed with rock formations on various levels, giving the atmosphere a misty King Arthur vibe. I was produced at the show's top, appearing magically from a misty stage. The way it worked was with an elevator, CO2, and me holding my breath because excessive CO2 can suck your breath away, and my entire body was in that fog. But it was a beautiful opening and well worth holding my breath for about one minute, which wasn’t difficult because my competitive swim days gave me a pair of strong lungs.

To find extra information about this show, I searched through IMDb, assuming they provide accurate news, including updates on this show. In doing so, I came across some hilariously untrue trivia about the show. Maybe that's how rumors get started? Lol! Anyway, here is the trivia on IMDb’s website:

“Excluding teach a trick segments; The Pendragons, Max Maven, and Mac King are the only magicians who appear more than once.”

This is false because Lance Burton and a few other magicians made multiple appearances in the series.

The illusion in which Franz Harary cuts Charlotte Pendragon into nine pieces is known as "The Slicer".

This one is laughable, Lol! I love Franz, but I've performed with him.

After being sawed in half by Melinda Saxe on "The World's Greatest Magic", Charlotte Pendragon returned the favor the following year on Houdini: Unlocking His Secrets (1995) when she sawed Melinda in half vertically.

This one is the biggest doozie. There isn't an invisible amount of truth to this statement.

It makes me wonder, from whom is IMDb receiving their information? 🤷‍♀️ I don’t know? But I’m fascinated by the intrigue.

When I came across this video showing me perform a piece of magic for a segment called Teach A Trick, where a magician performs magic, and returns later in the programming teaches it to the television audience. It was a great idea, and inspired a new generation of prestidigitators.

In my vanished a tea cup taught to me by Jonathan my in our early days performing at the Renaissance Faire in Los Angeles. Although in the future this section will be limited to my paid subscribers, I will occasionally release a few for all of my subscribers. As a welcome gift to my new subscribers, and a thank you to all of my subscribers my first one is open for all of you to watch. Less than a minute long, I am charmed by thi, because I’d forgotten about until someone sent it to me about a month ago. Next week my presentation will be direct from our Magic and Music Studio, we designed just for our future productions. I’m looking forward to inaugurating it with my first video next week. Until then I hope you enjoy the show! 🍿

TV Gude advertisement promoting World’s Greatest Magic. We pictured on the bottom right.