Sometimes we wish we had a magic wand that would make our problems
disappear. But real life doesn’t work that way, and that’s why local
magicians this weekend are holding a fund-raiser — though they
really don’t want to use that word — for Dick Williams, host of
WMC-TV’s Magicland show for 23 years.
“A Tribute to Mr. Magic, Dick Williams” will take place Saturday,
August 29th at 6 p.m. and Sunday, August 30th, at 3 p.m. at the
Germantown Performing Arts Centre. Proceeds from both shows will help
defray medical costs for Williams, who has been hospitalized with hip
and head injuries after suffering a fall.
“Ask anyone who was around the Mid-South from 1966 to 1989 about
Dick Williams’ magic show, and you will immediately see a smile on
their faces,” says Memphis magician Tim Rappel. “He inspired many
children and adults — including me — to take up the art of
magic.”
Williams began his career as a radio announcer in Wichita, Kansas,
at the age of 17. In 1965, he moved to Memphis to work for WMC as an
announcer and weatherman. When station officials here learned he was a
magician — a skill he picked up after receiving a magic set as a
Christmas gift — they offered him his own show. Magicland
premiered in 1966, and the half-hour Sunday-morning show left its mark
in the Guinness Book of World Records for remaining on the air
for 23 years, making it the longest-running magic show in television
history. Williams retired from the show 20 years ago this year.
“A Tribute to Mr. Magic” will feature professional magicians and
never-before-seen clips from his show. “It will be two days of magic
and memories,” Rappel says.
