Fast facts on Joseph Bauer

Tuesday, May 14, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.

EDUCATION: Earned a master's degree in the impact of mass media and communications at Occidental College in Glendale, Calif., and a theology degree at Ambassador College in Pasadena.

FAMILY: Daughter Joanna is a college senior in California.

IT'S MAGIC: At age 13, Bauer went on the road performing with Mr. Magic and Co., the largest traveling magic show in the Midwest. These days, he still performs his mental illusions (like mind reading) occasionally at the world-famous Magic Castle in Los Angeles, where he's among an exclusive group of "life member" magicians.

SHOCK JOCK?: Not Bauer. He recalls the only time he ever used a dirty word on the air: "Some guy got me so angry talking about the Constitution that I just lost it. I'm not proud of that," he says. "I would never lose my cool and say something like that, but Howard Stern says it every day. To me, it was a terrible thing. It's not professional. It's not what I want to be known for."

ON TAXES: Bauer, who vehemently opposes income tax, says the government's practice of withholding taxes from your paycheck and allowing you to collect a tax return later on is "like being mugged. The mugger takes your shoes, your socks, your pants, your shirt, your underwear, your wallet ... and then he gives you 25 cents back for car fare and you say, 'Oh wow, I got 25 cents back."'

AHEAD OF HIS TIME: While heading up the advertising, promotion and special events department at Caesars Palace during the early '80s, Bauer claims he proposed ideas for attractions similar to the Forum Shops and soon-to-be open Magical Empire to hotel executives, who showed no interest back then. "I'm always 10 years ahead of my time," he says.

MUSIC MAN: One of Bauer's loves is music. Collecting it and conducting it. He has more than 15,000 vintage pop vinyl recordings that he preserves in cold storage. For a time, he led the 40-piece Ambassador Swingphonic Band. His dream is to conduct the Pasadena Symphony in a pair of special performances. "I'll get around to it someday."

SHOW TIMES: "We the People," 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesdays; "Assignment Adventure," 11 a.m. to noon Sundays; "Cornerstones of Liberty" midnight to 2 a.m. Sunday nights.