Happy holidays! My original plan was to have this note out before Christmas, but life has a way of getting in the way of living sometimes. Either way I trust you will all get a decent break however you choose to celebrate, or maybe just seek to manage the challenges that often come with the season.

We’ve had a great autumn at the club with plenty of amazing events planned for the new year. Alain Choquette delivered a delightful, fun, and practical lecture and Jeff Hinchcliffe was thoughtful and terrific. I learned a ton at Josh Jay’s lecture, and he has inspired me to work on several new bits. I hope the same for you.
 
We have quite a few new members and some old ones who have rejoined. Welcome back. For those of you who are into jamming and are inclined to share elbow to elbow, our monthly meet ups have been a blast. Colin Geddes has been super committed to getting us together informally. It’s working well and has seen a good, active group developing with plenty of stories, laughs and ideas getting shared.
 
We do have some fun and exciting plans for the New Year. Stay tuned. If you still get The Linking Ring, watch for the December issue. There will be a couple of very nice Ring 17 surprises for you to enjoy. Chances are you’ll learn a fair bit about our club too. Thanks Ariel.
 
We’re hoping for another big show in 2023. 2022 was a huge success. The feedback was brilliant, and we had a good mix of performers and lay people too. We sold out, had a great night, and raised some money for the club. Thanks to all who supported the event. We’re looking at a few new partnerships, a couple fresh ideas and some ways to continue to honour our 80+ year old club.
 
Thanks to everyone who performed for the December Daily Bread fundraiser. A very special thank you to James Alan for taking the lead, editing the show into a palatable offering and for setting our financial goal. Thank you also to those who’ve donated to the cause. Working on behalf of vulnerable people in the city is a worthy cause that our club has stepped into for several years now, and we hope to continue making this a part of our core values. Next year we’re already talking about a live fundraising event.

If you haven’t heard - James Alan is lecturing on the 19^th. Hope to see you then.

Don’t forget to shop at and support The Browsers Den. I know they appreciate it and do check out their latest offer. Four lectures for $50. It’s a steal.
 
Here’s to a friendly, healthy, contented, sensible, satiated, plentiful, rational, empathetic, peaceful, just, loving, and magical New Year.
 
David Peck
Club President

2. What Was Under The Tree - Our Next Meet-Up Thurs Jan 5th

When: Thursday, January 5th, 7PM 
Where: The Uptown Pub, 3185 Yonge St / by Lawrence Station

Join us on Thursday, December 1st for another casual social were members can get to know one another, talk magic and and jam on tricks. Bring your cards, coins, silks, ropes or whatever you use. Come with a trick, routine, move, or something interesting related to magic that you've learned over the past 3 years that you can show off to real live people! No Zoom tricks allowed! 

I recently acquired a catalog for Whitlam's Temple of Mysteries aka the Japanese Magic & Novelty Store (24 Yonge Street Arcade) and found this ad for "Whitlam's Famous Magic Set For Entertaining Young and Old." Thought I'd share this and wondering if one of these still exists somewhere? Did you get any fun magic stuff over the holidays? Bring them along to the Meet-Up for show and tell or to try them out! 

And if you have any magician friends who aren't members who are curious about the club, invite them! Happy to have non-members sit in and learn what the club is about.  ~ Colin Geddes, 1st VP
 

3. The Man Who Made Spain the Magic Capital of the World
 

From the New York Times:

The Man Who Made Spain the Magic Capital of the World
Inside the mind of Juan Tamariz, the godfather of close-up card magic.

Going out to dinner with Juan Tamariz in Madrid is a little like accompanying a cartoon character on a journey to the real world. As I walked with the 80-year-old magician on side streets off the city center’s main drag, the Calle Gran Vía, heads turned left and right. Tamariz has been a professional magician for 52 years, and in that time, he has managed the singular feat of becoming both a household name in his home country and a living legend in magic everywhere. He is referred to by magicians all over the world, and waiters all over Madrid, as Maestro. David Blaine has called him “the greatest and most influential card magician alive.” But in Spain, Tamariz is an icon, less like Blaine or David Copperfield and more like Kermit the Frog. [READ MORE]

4. Upcoming Club Dates 
 
We're still sorting out details for all of our Meetings and Events, but mark your calendars with the following dates. Details to follow on Meetings and Events and programming for the New Year will be announced in the Fall. As magic enthusiasts, we all appreciate the value of suspense and surprise, don't we? 😁

• Thursday Jan 5th, 2023 - Meet-Up (The Uptown Pub, 3185 Yonge St / by Lawrence Station)
• Thursday Jan 19th, 2023 - James Alan Lecture (Agricola Lutheran Church - 25 Old York Mills Road)
   
• Thursday Feb 2nd, 2023 - Meet-Up (The Uptown Pub, 3185 Yonge St / by Lawrence Station)
• Thursday Feb 16th, 2023 - Swap Meet & Members Magic Night (Agricola Lutheran Church - 25 Old York Mills Road)
   
• Thursday Mar 2nd, 2023 - Meet-Up (The Uptown Pub, 3185 Yonge St / by Lawrence Station)
• Thursday Mar 16th, 2023 - Glenn West Lecture (Agricola Lutheran Church - 25 Old York Mills Road)
   
• Thursday Apr 6th, 2023 - Meet-Up (location TBD)
• Thursday Apr 20th, 2023 - Event TBA (Agricola Lutheran Church - 25 Old York Mills Road)

5. Join The Club!

Have you signed up for our 2022-2023 season? Join the deck and help us make this new season a TRIUMPH! 😂

What do you get when you join or decide to renew your membership for our 2022-2023 Season? 

• Access to all Club Meetings on the first Thursday of every month 
• Access to all monthly Club Events (occasionally a modest surcharge may be applied depending on event booking costs)
• Access to the Members Only Hat and Rabbit Facebook page 
• Access to trick tutorial videos on the Members Only section of the Hat & Rabbit website
• Access to streaming links of select past Lectures from the 2021-2022 season
• Access to streaming links of Lectures and Events (when available). We will be doing a mix of live and online events for the 2022-2023 season
• Coming Soon - A listing in the public online Club Members directory 

With the exception of the month of September, there will also be a Club Meeting/Meet-Up held on the first Thursday of every month. This will be a place for members to socialize, practice, jam and take part in various activities related to, well, MAGIC! Every month there will also be Club Event which will include lectures by professional magicians, panel discussions, workshops, performances, film screenings, dinners, field trips, etc. We will try to schedule Club Events towards the middle or end of the month, but dependent on performer availability, we aren't able to lock in a regular monthly date. As it is getting harder and harder to find ideal and budget conscious venues these days, Club Meetings and Events will take place at various locations around the GTA. We will do our best to be consistent and be aware of proximity to transit lines and parking.