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Inspector Magic, Mark Weidhaas, began his professional start as a magician on Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Previously, while living in North Carolina, Mark was a Captain with a Volunteer Fire Department, where he spent much of his free time. When he relocated to Cape Cod, he discovered that all the fire departments had paid full-time firemen, so Mark had to come up with a new "hobby."
Magic had always interested him as a child, thanks to his "swami" Father, "assistant" Sister, Brothers and a wonderful Uncle. Hours would be spent trying to decipher how the magic miracles were performed. That curiosity lead him to an education at Penn State University and an over 25 year career as a Professional Structural Engineer. In 2006-2007, Mark was the State President of the Professional Engineers of Colorado.
Back on Cape Cod, Mark had a shoe box of magic tricks and was asked to perform for his son's friend's birthday. That was such a success, that Mark was asked to perform again for the friend's brother. New material was needed, and fortunately, Mark discovered a magic shop that sold mass quantities of magic secrets. Also, he was fortunate to find a small group of magic enthusiasts who were trying to start a local magic club. Next thing Mark knew, he was performing at the many area libraries, schools and festivals, even at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology!
Inspector Gadget was a popular cartoon at the time, before the movie, and Mark chose Inspector Magic for his character. With the knowledge he had as a fireman, he chose to include safety messages with the magic shows. He even performed in his fireman dress uniform to help give extra weight to the messages. The first shows developed were safety with strangers, Halloween safety, bicycle safety, playground safety, and of course fire safety. Mark's family was happy to get involved, and they would often be seen in the many Cape Cod Parades and festivals - They won first place one year with his kids playing different parts from Inspector Gadget, "Brain" the dog, "Chief Quimby" and "Penny" levitating on a flying carpet.
The popularity of Inspector Gadget dropped but not the popularity of Inspector Magic. Annual shows were performed at many fairs and weekly summer shows were developed for the Cape Cod tourists. The fireman's uniform was changed into more traditional magician garb, bowties, vests and tails. Inspector Magic was even awarded a grant to help develop and perform a special show about preserving our natural resources by the Massachusetts Bay Authority.
"He is full of energy," said Academy Award winning actress, Julie Harris, upon seeing him perform. Inspector Magic was a key charter member of the magic club, the Cape Cod Mystics, International Brotherhood of Magicians (I.B.M.) Ring 309, and was their President for two years and awarded "Magician of the Year" by his peers.
Then he moved to Colorado Springs and joined the Pikes Peak Prestidigitators magic club, Society of American Magicians (S.A.M.) Assembly 170. He was President of this group for five years, appointed as the S.A.M. Regional Deputy for Colorado for seven years, elected to the Northwest Regional Vice-President in 2006, the National 2nd Vice-President in 2007 and the National 1st Vice-President in 2008. He is the National Membership Chairman for this group and serves as a Trustee to the SAM Magic Center Foundation and the National Convention Registrar. He has even performed at several magic conventions in Leadville and in Fort Collins, and has lectured for other magicians about library magic shows at local magic clubs and the National Convention in Dallas in 2007.
To augment his theatrical performance, Inspector Magic has been involved in many theatrical productions, including the Springs Community Theater, "1776," John Hancock; the Woodland Park Players, "The Miracle Worker," Captain Keller and "Fiddler on the Roof," Motel the Tailor; the Colorado Springs Symphony, "Guys and Dolls," Chorus and "The Music Man," Chorus; the Cape Cod Academy of Performing Arts, "1776," Richard Henry Lee; and the Chatham Drama Guild, "Fiddler on the Roof," Lazar Wolf.
Inspector Magic now strives to be one of the very best magicians in Colorado, constantly working on new updated material and shows. Keeping fresh is achieved through regular attendance to magic conventions and workshops showcasing many of the world's finest magical artists. "Every time we see you, you keep getting better" is often stated by his many repeat clients.
He commissioned Grammy Award winning musician, Arthur Stead (of Peter Frampton fame) to compose the Inspector Magic Theme Song. In 2006, Inspector Magic fulfilled his dream with the production of many performances of his Stage Illusion Show, with the help of assistant Windy. For the past several years, he performers over 200 shows per year.
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