A simple sleight of hand vanishing coin trick done by my father at a very young age was the beginning of a lifelong obsession with magic.  My first exposure to magic props occurred on my first visit to the magic shops at Disneyland.  I later discovered Vick Lawston’s House of 1000 Mysteries browsing through the comics.  That catalog became a doorway to wonders beyond my imagination, till one day my father returned with news that he had found a local magic store, the famous Hollywood Magic, that became a mecca for me.  As I grew older, my attention turned to Abbott’s and Tannen’s for new props, but I soon began realizing that magic apparatus, as I knew them at the time, were not up to a standard of quality I was starting to expect or desire.  I eventually became disillusioned and gave up on magic. I even gave away all the tricks I had accumulated.  Over the years I would venture to buy only an occasional publication on magic and this became the beginning of my magic library.

The mid 1980’s brought Collectors’ Workshop on the scene and their high quality and collectible apparatus rekindled my interest in starting a new collection of magic.  With a renewed interest, I began discovering other quality builders: Milson-Worth, Viking, and Owen at first, then more recently, the likes of Jim Riser, Richard Gerlitz, Mel Babcock, Chance Wolf, and of course, Alan Warner.  Finally, I was in the mist of magic apparatus worthy of also being true works of art.  My library didn’t suffer either as L & L Publishing and others have delivered great collectible titles, especially in boxed limited edition releases.  My correspondence with the late Ed Marlo back in the late 1980’s insured adding many of his now cherished manuscripts to my overall collection.

I am a physician by profession, board certified in both Internal Medicine and Allergy/Immunology.  I am a partner with the Southern California Permanente Medical Group,  a 2400+ physician multi-specialty group that staffs the largest non-profit HMO in Southern California, Kaiser-Permanente.  My other interests include computer gaming and wine collecting.  I have been married for 23 years and have a 6 year old boy who occasionally shows interest in magic.  I am both a member of the SAM and IBM, but don’t belong to any particular assembly or ring.