Updated 08/13/2008

Earlier this month I received one of the most devastating calls a magic club president can get: the announcement that one of the club's most respected members has passed away.

While Jim Smithson had been in the hospital a few times in the last couple years, it had always been for ailments that were inconvenient, not life threatening. So if someone had told me that Jim was in the hospital with a mild infection I would have sent him flowers and paid a visit, but I wouldn’t have imagined it to be the last time I would see him.

Jim’s passing took everyone by surprise. No one saw this coming. And his passing shook the magic community.

Jim’s life and magic had an impact on everyone who has ever passed through the Oklahoma City Magic Club. There’s not a person who visited the club who hadn’t been influenced by Jim in some way. It’s not just that Jim was such a talented performer. Jim was also the ethical compass for club members. When anyone had a question about the right thing to do in a given situation, they went to Jim. As a result, it was no surprise that he was eventually named a Territorial Vice President by the International Brotherhood of Magicians. A position he served until his passing.

The timing of his passing was so close to the club’s meeting that the membership had decided to have the Broken Wand Ceremony at the August meeting. The theater at the City Arts served as the host cite for the ceremony. So fitting since this was the location of the first Pandemonium of Magic, a program that wouldn’t have been such a success if it hadn’t been for the influence of one of its founding members, Jim Smithson.

Rob Lake and Jim Smithson were quite close in recent years as Jim was a regular performer in Rob’s illusion show. Rob Lake organized Jim’s Broken Wand Ceremony as well as Jim’s funeral.

The Broken Wand Ceremony for Jim Smithson was attended by seventy-eight current and former members. The Broken Wand was like seeing a who’s who of the Oklahoma City magic world. Seymour Davis’s daughters paid a visit. The Jacoby’s paid a visit. Matt Lamb, Rob Lake, Gary Owen, Dr. Don White, Steve Crawford. And people the club hasn’t seen in a decade or two came out of the woodwork to pay their respects.

The attendees heard commentary from several of Jim’s closest friends. John Pansze, Rob Lake, Joe Comet, Michael King, and Roger Ryan delivered anecdotes of their experiences with Jim. Several short videos were shown on a projection screen and ranged from a tear jerking photo montage, to a laugh-out-loud view of Jim goofing off in an animated scene. One of the videos showed Jim’s appearance on a local talk show. Another video showed a performance of Jim at the first Pandemonium. The wand to be broken was a quite impressive looking piece of wooden sculpture provided by Malaki.

After the presentation in the theater, members made their way across the hall where a pot luck meal awaited them. The club’s officer’s provided chicken and soda. Various club members brought pies, cookies, salad, and Jambalaya.

Someone told me that a younger member approached Michael King during the meal. The child announced that he had brought his grandfather to the meeting because his grandfather wanted to see some magic tricks. The child pointed out that no one was performing any magic tricks. Michael said that he informed the child that the meeting would be monopolized by the memorial and that there wouldn’t likely be a member performances that evening. He said it occurred to him that Jim would have taken the kid and his grandfather to the side to entertain them. So, Michael performed an impromptu magic performance for the kid and his grandfather.

Even after his final disappearing act Jim still continues to influence our world.

Look forward to seeing everyone at the next meeting.

 

El Presidente,
Bob Caldwell

 

 

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