We recently connected with Daryl Howard and have shared our conversation below.
Daryl, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What’s the kindest thing anyone has ever done for you?
The late Eugene Burger, considered as one of the most talented, creative, and successful close-up magicians ever to work in the business, was a dear friend and mentor of mine throughout my career in magic. He was the Dean of the Jeff McBride Magic and Mystery School in Las Vegas, one of the most successful and prestigious schools for magicians in the world. I was a student there some years ago, and Eugene was one of my teachers. He was very strict, but also very kind and patient with me as I struggled to find myself on stage, and develop the magic that would someday earn me the trophy for Dallas’ Performing Magician of the Year, along with a successful career as an entertainer. Some years after my graduation from the school, I had the honor of performing onstage along with Eugene and several local magicians in Dallas. I was understandably nervous. What would my teacher think of my performance after all these years? After the show, Eugene hugged me and said, “Daryl, you have become a very good magician!” That meant the world to me, and it gave me the courage to continue on my career path as a magician. I didn’t know it at the time, but those would be the very last words that Eugene would ever speak to me. A few months later, I received the news that he had passed away from cancer. Whenever I perform, I always remember his last kind words to me.
Daryl, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
My life-long love of magic began at the age of eight, when my father took me to see my very first magic show at the State Fair of Dallas on my birthday. After the show, I told my father that I wanted to be a performing magician, and I soon began collecting books on the subject. (We didn’t have the Internet in those days, but we did have the local library.) Several decades later, I made the transition from amateur to part-time professional entertainer. and on October 4, 2021, I officially retired from my day job to pursue performing magic as a full-time career. My specialty is performing strolling close-up magic for private parties and corporate events, and I also have a small stage show that I perform for other special occasions. Along the way, I have earned the title “The Texas Gentleman of Magic” from my peers for my unique performing style, and I have won the trophy for Dallas’ Performing Magician of the Year for my original magic show. I can help make your next event a huge success; one that people will be talking about for years to come. My magic show is a unique, one-of-a-kind experience, unlike any other show you’ve seen.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
When I first told my parents that I wanted to be a performing magician, they scoffed at the idea. My father, in an attempt to protect me, described the entertainment industry as “fiercely competitive, brutal, cruel, and rejecting.” He further warned me about the “rampant drug and alcohol problems” that entertainers face on a daily basis, and told me that I wouldn’t do very well in that environment. Shortly after his heart-felt speech, the world lost Jimmy Hendrix and Janice Joplin to drug use, and I was forced to admit that my father was right. So, I went to electrical trade school and became a master electrician instead, and kept the magic as a favorite hobby and part-time endeavor. Some years later, I discovered that there is another side to the entertainment industry that my parents failed to tell me about. I began meeting entertainers who lived balanced lives with families and children. They became my good friends, and they didn’t seem to have any drug or emotional problems to complain about. Yes, the entertainment industry is very competitive, but I learned by experience that, with patience, hard work, and determination, any person with a talent to share with the world can do well as a professional performer. And no, the journey is not an easy one. It is not for the faint of heart. But, it is well worth the effort.
Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?
Whenever you attend a live event, such as a music concert, theater play, comedy show, or magic show, it appears that the performers on stage are having the time of their lives! They look like they are having so much fun up there, you likely wonder why you aren’t working in the entertainment business yourself. So much fun! So much money! This is a grand illusion. Yes, the performers are having a great time during the show, and most of them are very well paid for their shows. But the audience never sees the grueling hard work, oppressively long work schedule, and failure after failure that those performers had to endure in order to prepare for that live show that looks like so much fun. Let me tell you, there are dues to be paid in blood and sweat and bitter tears in order to earn your place on that stage. And after years of hard work, one little mistake can cost you your entire career. Magicians have an especially hard time, because we work really hard to make it look like we aren’t doing anything on stage!
Contact Info:
- Website: darylhowardmagic.com
- Facebook: Facebook.com/darylhowardmagic
- Linkedin: darylhowardmagic
- Twitter: [email protected]
Image Credits
Promotional photo provided by Stacey Bratton Photography, LLC. All other photos are candid photos shared with me on social media.