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Dale Salwak
Dale Salwak | |
Born | February 7, 1948 Amherst, Massachusetts |
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Dale (Francis) Salwak (b.1948) is a professor of English at Citrus College in California and an internationally-known magician who has performed throughout the world. Salwak is well known as "The Gentleman of Magic."
Biography
His lifelong dedication to his art has been his ticket for traveling the world including the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea in 2009 (and again in 2011) as a guest of the government as the only American magician to perform at the country's Spring Friendship Arts Festival. In April 2012 he returned with a delegation of American magicians.
Director of the Chavez Studio of Magic since 1978,[1] Salwak works hard to impart the highest standard of artistic values to his students. Since 1974 he has appeared in and produced for audiences across America his annual "International Stars of Magic" - for which he received an Award of Merit from the Academy of Magical Arts. He has served as Entertainment Director at the Hollywood Magic Castle (1996-98), Talent Chairman/Executive Producer of Shows for the I.B.M. Annual Convention (since 1995), and as a member of the jury for magic competitions in over thirty countries. He is also a member of London's Magic Circle (MIMC) for which he is currently serving as an American representative. His writings on the history, theory, and practice of magic appear regularly in all of the magical publications worldwide. Currently he is also serving as the I.B.M.’s International Relations Officer.
Salwak continues to perform as a magician in supper clubs, theaters, and on television beginning in 1965. He is producer of Stars of Magic, an annual magic show featuring internationally known magicians that has toured colleges and universities since 1974.
A common link between his two professions is teaching. Salwak has received numerous awards for teaching at the university and he also instructs apprentice magicians through the Chavez College of Manual Dexterity and Prestidigitation. In 1978, Salwak become the co-owners (with Neil Foster) of the Chavez school. In 1988 Neil Foster passed away and he has continued at the West Coast branch.[2]
AWARDS
- Stage Magician of the Year Nomination (three times), Academy of Magical Arts;
- Jack Gwynne Award for Excellence in Magic;
- Chavez Memorial Trophy for Excellence in Manipulation;
- Bill Baird Memorial Award for Manipulative Magic;
- Lecturer of the Year Award, Academy of Magical Arts;
- Award of Merit, Academy of Magical Arts;
- Presidential Citation (three times), International Brotherhood of Magicians;
- International Brotherhood of Magicians Ring 264, Best Lecture;
- Society of American Magicians Hall of Fame;
- Inner Magic Circle with Gold Star, London;
- Official Service Award, I.B.M./S.A.M. Combined Convention;
- I.B.M. Linking Ring Award for Best Article, 2010
BOOKS
- A Trip to the Orient (1962)
- Spooks on Stage (1963)
- For That Special Occasion (1968)
References
- ↑ Memoirs Of A Magician's Ghost, THE CHAVEZ COLLEGE OF MAGIC, of John Booth, in The Linking Ring, Vol. 66, No. 12, December 1986, pages 57 - 60
- ↑ Neil Foster's Obituary, Genii 1987 December
- The Magic Circular, Vol. 84, No. 909, September/October 1990, Dale Salwak, THIS IS YOUR LIFE, page 186
- M-U-M, Vol. 81, No. 11, April 1992, Dale Salwak, Magician of the Month, page 10
- Contemporary Authors Online, Gale, 2009