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Murray SawChuck, also referred to as Murray the Magician, describes himself because the Dennis the Menace of magic and comedy. “When everything goes wrong or haphazard, that’s my style,” Murray tells us. Murray doesn’t appear like your typical magician — he opts for a t-shirt and denims over the stuffiness of a go well with — and he isn’t afraid to lean into his unorthodox look to assist his act. “With my messy hair and my big glasses and stuff like that, it kind of works for me,” he explains. However this obvious disorganization solely enhances the phantasm. “At the very end,” he assures us, “there’s a resolution, you know, whether it be a magic trick, a prank, whatever the case is.”
We lately had the prospect to talk with Murray the Magician about how he received his begin in magic, how he makes a residing and what he’s received deliberate for the longer term. Right here’s what he needed to say.
Magic Murray
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Why magic?
“You know, it was one of those things where, of course, I always wanted to do it. I saw David Copperfield on TV and, and other entertainers and I thought it was super cool,” he says, pondering again to the primary magic package — a present from his dad and mom. He was seven on the time. “I did it for a little while, put it away like any kid,” Murray recollects. A number of years later, Murray acquired one other magic package as a birthday present from his aunt and uncle: “I could understand things better and I dove back into it again.”
By then, Murray already knew he wished to be an entertainer. “I was a professional dancer for like 16 years and I also played music,” he says, “I played the accordion and keyboard and stuff.” Murray remembers that he at all times beloved being on stage — “I kind of like the attention of it, you know?” — and magic was one technique to keep there. As he realized extra about magic tips and strategies, he began to surprise if this was one thing he might make a residing at.
Early profession
Murray began small. “I don’t know why I thought I could do it, you know?” he says, “But for some reason I did … I was a lifeguard when I was younger, and at the rec centers, I saw these ads on the wall … And I thought, ‘Well, why don’t I put an ad up on there for magic shows?’ You know, half an hour birthday parties for like 50 bucks.” Murray put up adverts in recreation facilities and newspapers and to his shock, he really received responses. Earlier than lengthy, he was booked and earning money.
Nonetheless practising magic, Murray went on to get a level in radio, tv and broadcasting with a minor in enterprise. On the similar time, he was selling his act to brokers. He ended up touchdown some cruise ship gigs. “I got booked for more money than I thought I could ever dream of at like 19 or 20,” he remembers.
By the early Nineteen Nineties, Murray was getting alternatives that took him all around the world. “I was still doing ships and I toured to resorts in Europe — never Vegas though, you know, but Japan and Europe and all that.”
Rising visibility
Whereas cruise ships and resort excursions allowed him to see the world, Murray, as a magician, had goals of taking part in the glitzy levels of Las Vegas. “I always wanted to play Vegas and I wanted to be on TV in LA,” Murray says, “but I lived in Orlando.” Ultimately, after going after Vegas gigs by mail, he discovered some producers keen to tackle his act. “They took a risk on me,” Murray tells us, “It did all right, and then at the same time I thought I need to get on TV.”
Round this time, actuality TV was beginning to take off in reputation. Murray noticed a chance: “I thought, ‘Well, I wonder how I can get on some reality shows,’ you know?” The technique labored; Murray kicked off his TV profession on a actuality relationship present referred to as Blind Date. Today, he’s a daily visitor on Historical past Channel’s Pawn Stars and seems on CW’s Masters of Phantasm. He additionally lately launched his first comedy particular, Itz Gone, Dwell from Las Vegas, on Tubi.
Taking magic on-line
As YouTube rose to prominence, Murray started posting clips from his TV appearances to his YouTube channel. Ultimately, although, it grew to become clear that his strategy wasn’t splendid. A buddy, Seth Leach, loved Murray’s magic however lamented the YouTube channel’s poor efficiency. He steered including extra authentic content material. Not solely that, Murray wanted a hook.
Murray recollects Seth telling him, “You’re cool and hip. We need you in a t-shirt and jeans.” Murray, on the time, was not accustomed to the extra informal getup, however he agreed to offer it a shot. Then, Seth had one other suggestion to assist attract viewers: “He said, ‘Let’s do magic tricks with cops and parking attendants,’ like, because you know, anyone who goes against a cop is a bit daring and avant-garde.”
Murray took the concept and ran with it: “We started doing pranks and magic tricks with police officers, and all of a sudden it got a huge buzz because it’s kind of taboo. And anyway, it ended up really, really being a thing,” Murray says.
Regardless of the preliminary success, Murray finally let his channel go dormant: “Trends change all the time.”
That didn’t imply he was finished with social media, nonetheless. Murray shifted gears and began doing shorter movies on Fb, Snapchat and different platforms. He says he hasn’t given up on YouTube both. He plans to revitalize his YouTube channel with new content material in 2023, although he is aware of success just isn’t assured: “You know, at the end of the day, whoever they are, you know, they can either suggest you or not suggest you.”
For Murray, social media is about getting his identify on the market and sharing the enjoyable of magic tips with individuals on-line. On this means, YouTube is a device that helps him construct an viewers, but it surely’s not the centerpiece of his profession. “I work in Vegas at my show at the Tropicana nightly, and I’m also in a show called Fantasy at the Luxor,” Murray explains.
Nonetheless, Murray acknowledges the distinctive energy of social media in relation to reaching individuals: “When you have an audience, you have 300 or 500 or a thousand people every night. You can’t compare that to when you do social media, and you get one video that hits 20 million people … that would take a lifetime to do a live show for that many going theater to theater.”
That’s why Murray consists of on-line media as a part of his total profession technique. “As an entertainer or somebody being the public eye, you really don’t wanna miss out on that,” he admits.
How Murray the Magician makes cash
All through our dialog, Murray emphasised the significance of diversifying each your talent set and your revenue streams. “If you wanna become wealthy,” Murray tells us, “you kind of spread your money around … Same as in entertainment, if you wanna be successful — and when I mean successful, I mean like a Dolly Parton, you know — you have those different facets of entertainment, getting out there really makes you a really well-rounded performer.”
The truth is, Murray places being well-rounded as considered one of his prime priorities as an entertainer: “I want people to go, ‘Oh, that’s Murray. Not just Murray the Magician.”
Murray approaches his revenue similarly: “I’ve always been a believer of various incomes … To keep in the business and keep making money, I always have all sorts of ads. I have my live shows, my touring — I wrote a book — I have my social media … Also, on a side note, I have investment properties as rental homes and real estate.”
Murray additionally lately launched a kids’s e book titled “At Nighttime, We’re All the Same Size.” Murray tells us, “It’s a book based on rescue animals and basically a metaphor of not judging people and the way they look or sound, but seeing them eye to eye so you’ll understand them better. You know? ’Cause the way I look, I’ve been judged every day. I walk in a room with my crazy hair and my weird outfits and my glasses and all that.”
Murray recommends a diversified revenue technique to anybody, however particularly these in leisure. He reminds us, “Every day, life changes, you know, money and life and the weather and everything.”
Last phrases of encouragement
Wrapping issues up, Murray shares some recommendation for aspiring creators and entertainers:
“If you love it, money will come down the road,” Murray reassures us. “I could have done any job in the world, you know what I mean? And I chose magic, which is, you know, right down there by clown and juggler … and I’m making a living off it. So I’m very fortunate.”
“Just remember though,” he cautions, “when people always say, follow your dreams, that means you gotta work probably 24 hours, seven days a week … There’s gonna be a lot of sleeping on couches and in your car for auditions and just doing a lot of stuff that that isn’t that luxurious, trying to make it.”
In the long run, Murray emphasizes that this danger is critical for fulfillment. Should you imagine in your expertise, it’s value placing within the effort. “You got nothing to lose,” he reminds us, “You know, the great thing about trying something is you can always go back to whatever you’re doing.”
“Just go for it,” he concludes, “Yeah, of course. Why not? What the hell?”
To search out out extra about Murray the Magician and his numerous initiatives, together with reside reveals on the Tropicana and Luxor in Las Vegas, in addition to upcoming tour dates, TV appearances and e book releases, head to murraymagic.com. You may also try his TikTok channel right here and his YouTube channel right here.
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