The Jester is in Court

Walking into Midwest Magic in Franklin Park, you will notice the place is just littered with items waiting for a good home. These little miracles are just asking for someone to buy them and unlock the secrets. The biggest novelty, in this novelty shop, is the shop itself.

Midwest Magic is on the endangered list for the brick and mortar magic shops. Very few magic trick shops exist in the country. Many on-line dealers have threatened this species that has a larger overhead. The values of these physical shops are being overlooked for the convenience of a mouse click.

Tim Felix, owner of Midwest Magic, explained why the brick and mortar magic shop is so important. He said, "You can have some interaction with the customer as far as to what will suite their needs. [A magic trick] might be a piece of garbage and shouldn't have been made in the first place, or it might not suite you. I can ask a person questions. What do you do now? What do you like to do? What's working? I can sell you a piece of garbage just as easily as I can sell you something that you will like. To me it's much better to have you smile when you get home and say 'this is pretty cool' and you are working with it. [It's better] then being upset and say 'this is a piece of garbage.'"

Tim took on the challenge of owning a magic shop 10 years ago. He said he entered the business because of, "Sheer Stupidity. I've been in magic all my life; I worked at a magic shop in Chicago for 13 years when I was a kid. I'm watching them drop like flies so I dedicated my life to poverty."

Midwest Magic has shelves lined with jokes, theater props, instructional DVD's, tricks of all kinds, large stage illusions and books. Most professional magicians will say the bookshelves are where to find the best magic. There is limitless opportunity for imagination and creating miracles in those walls.

In its 10-year history Midwest Magic boasts about 8000 different items and is the biggest magic shop in the country and supplemented with www.midwestmagic.net, one of the most comprehensive magic retail web sites. A short walk from the Franklin Park Metra Train Station Midwest Magic is located at 9706 Franklin Ave, Franklin Park, IL.

Since opening, Midwest Magic has been a place for magic enthusiasts to assemble. The veteran magicians enjoy passing advice onto beginning magicians. This un official meeting space is another value of the magic shop. It is a bridge between generations that has been filled with magic.