Society of American Magicians, Assembly 12
Chartered in 1923 by Harry Houdini and based in the Twin Cities (Minneapolis & St. Paul, Minnesota) metro area, we are Assembly 12 of the Society of American Magicians. Today, it is the oldest and most prestigious magical society in the world with approximately 300 Assemblies worldwide. The primary purpose of the S.A.M. is to advance, elevate, and preserve magic as a performing art. Our members are magic performers, dealers, collectors, and historians — including professionals, serious hobbyists, and students.
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July 2026 Meeting Notes
On July 17th the Members of Assembly 12 gathered at the Eagle Magic store in Burnsville, Minnesota. Nine people were in attendance (in group photo shown from bottom left going clock-wise): Magic Manny, Todd Anderson, Chris Pidel, Larry Kahlow, Magic Brad, David Farr, Steven Peer, Doug & Jeff Kohagen.
We normally don’t meet in the summer, but we have just elected new officers and the S.A.M 12 board has decided to continue meeting year-round to keep the momentum going, and keep the magic alive!
Brad Gudim, our new president, conducted the meeting. We talked about new and old business, the future of the assembly and new opportunities for the coming year. Items discussed to include in future meetings:
- more lectures
- more public shows
- how to attract new members.
- working on a yearly calendar of events so members can see future opportunities
Steve Peer opened a discussion around the open mic night @ Sisyphus Brewing in Minneapolis that occurs on the 2nd Tuesday of every month @ 7PM.
The group recapped the national S.A.M convention in Appleton WI (many members attended).
We also discussed how Houdini made the only known recordings of his voice on Edison wax cylinders on October 29, 1914, in Flatbush, New York. On them, Houdini practices several different introductory speeches for his famous Chinese Water Torture Cell. You can listen to these rare audio bits and read the article at this link here. Thanks to Steven Peer for sharing the link post-meeting.
Performances: Magic Manny shared his fruit cards packet trick w/ Larry (a mentalism effect) and David Farr shared an effect utilizing a peek and a practical in-the-hands version of the cross-cut force. A special thanks to David for attending!
Post meeting Magic Brad also shared this photo of Kevin Smith & Paul Black of Blacksmith Magic performing in The Magic Lounge at the Fridley 49’er Days Festival in July 2026
With many opportunities presented for S.A.M. Assembly 12 in the year ahead we are looking forward to a great 2026-2027 season! -
July 2026 Meeting
Yes! We are going to KEEP THE MAGIC ALIVE by continuing monthly S.A.M. 12 meetings this summer. We encourage you to bring some magic to present.
WHEN: JULY 17, 2026 at 7:00pmWHAT:
Topics of discussion…
- SAM12 Business (old and new)
- SAM Convention in Appleton
- Picnic (IBM or otherwise)
- Lectures vs Pitches
- Guest Appearances via Zoom
- Discuss Publicity for SAM12 – Fundraisers, Community Outreach, Public Shows, 2027 City Parades.
- Mike Davis MagicJam
- The Magic Underground
- The Magic Lounge
- ZOOM Access is on-hold (please attend in-person)
Please bring potluck snacks to share.
WHERE:
Eagle Magic Store
11995 Co Rd 11
Burnsville, MN 55337 (It’s 4 lights east of 35W on Hwy 13, southeast corner, next door to the BP gas station.) -
May 2026 Meeting Notes
Another month, another SAM12 meeting! Ten people joined us in person at Jeff Kohagen’s house in his secret magic room. (Thanks, Jeff!!) Two more attended via Zoom.
During the business portion of our meeting, we started with the most important task of elections! We had a single nomination for each position, so the vote was quick and easy. Our new club officers are:
- President: Brad Gudim
- Vice President: Manny Betinis
- Secretary: Todd Anderson
- Treasurer: Jeff Kohagen
We also chose the delegate for SAM 12 at the SAM National Convention in July–past president Kevin Smith volunteered and was chosen as delegate.
Other performance news:
- Brad Gudim was recently the opening act for a sold-out Neil Diamond tribute show!
- Brad is looking for volunteer help for a booth he’s hosting in July at Fridley ’49er Days.
- Adam Moore is performing a ‘mystery show’ coming up for 10 to 50 people. Good luck, Adam!
- Manny Betinis had his best gig ever–he did some strolling magic for fancy execs at a fancy hotel downtown and had a great time!!
Next, Jeff Kohagen gave us a tour of his amazing magic collection, displayed in his secret magic room and beyond. Very impressive.
Performances:
- Manny Betinis performed his entertaining version of “Fruit Forecast”.
Finally, our Royal Road book club continued, and Past President (as of this meeting) Kevin Smith taught Chapter VI: The Key Card. He went through the various moves in the chapter, performed Do As I Do, and discussed pencil dots and other methods of marking the back of a key card.
The evening ended with the usual socializing and snacks. While we typically do not meet in the summer, we discussed having some informal meetings, a cookout, etc. A good number of us will be attending the SAM National Convention in Appleton, and we plan on getting together there, too. Watch for details at SAM12.org.
See this in the July 2026 MUM Magazine
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