Columnist Jerry Fink: Offbeat afternoon show remains King’s court

Friday, Nov. 28, 2003 | 8:28 a.m.

On one hand, the 44-year-old native of Kentucky has the wit of a stand-up comic. On the other, he has the skills of a superior, sleight-of-hand magician.

For the past three years, since his gig at the old Maxim was cut short by the hotel's bankruptcy, King has been performing his blend of magic and comedy at Harrah's Comedy Cabaret.

Little has changed in King's act during that time.

He still performs the Cloak of Invisibility bit, spits out a goldfish after slipping a sliver of carrot into his mouth and performs amazing card tricks.

King did delete his closing bit after Roy Horn was seriously injured by a tiger during a Siegfried & Roy performance at the Mirage on Oct. 3. Until that fateful event, one of King's final gags in his 60-minute performance was to disappear and to be replaced by a stuffed white tiger.

King, who plays the role of a rube to maximum effect, also got rid of his trademark loud, oversized, three-piece plaid suit.

Now he wears a subdued, oversized, three-piece plaid suit that is a mix of earth tones.

"This is a pretty special occasion," King told the audience at a show earlier this week. "It's the first time I have worn my new suit."

But the jokes about the suit are as old as the act.

"It used to belong to my grandfather," he says. "My grandmother made it for him. It used to be her couch."

No one seems to mind that King's routines and standard jokes vary so little from performance to performance -- they still amaze and amuse, even if fans have attended the show a dozen times (and many have).

Two days before Thanksgiving this week his performance was at near capacity -- and this is the slow time of the year, when tourism tends to drop off as families stay home for the holidays.

King has been named the 2003 Magician of the Year by the Academy of Magical Arts, based at the Magic Castle in Hollywood, Calif.

He will be presented with his award during a ceremony on May 1 at the Henry Fonda Music Box Theater in Hollywood, joining a list of past winners that includes Siegfried & Roy, Rick Thomas, Doug Henning, Harry Blackstone Jr., David Copperfield, Lance Burton and Penn & Teller.

Riding a wave of popularity, there is no need for King to make any dramatic changes to his comedy or his magic.

Why mess with success?

Though his act is rigidly structured, there is enough flexibility so his shows are never boring.

Much of his act relies upon volunteers from the audience, and when you are dealing with ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances, you never know what's going to happen.

King is a master at dealing with the unexpected.

One of King's funny gags is a card trick in which a volunteer takes a card from a deck, replaces it, and King later pulls it from the fly of his plaid pants. He usually jokingly asks the female volunteer if she would like to reach for the card.

Once, according to a fan at the recent performance, an inebriated volunteer actually tried to take King up on the offer.

During a show Tuesday a member of the audience was brought onstage and asked to help out with a card trick by choosing a card from a deck, writing her name on the card and then replacing it.

The bit was working smoothly until King realized she had written her name on the back of the card, rather than on its face.

His facial reactions and his comments following surprise occurrences such as that are what keep the act fresh. And his boyish delivery of jokes make them funny, no matter how many times you have heard them.

"Can I call you Carol?" he asks a volunteer after she gives him her full name.

"Yes," she replies.

"When can I call you?" he grins and looks at her husband in the audience. "How are you doing sir? I'm Lance Burton."

In another bit he tells the female volunteer, "This is called the Houdini Challenge Naked Rope Escape. You take off your clothes and tie me up. Actually, you don't have to tie me up. I just want you to take off your clothes."

That's about as risque as it gets in a King performance. His shows are wholesome, good for the entire family.

King has a country-boy charm that appeals to his fans, and a sense of humor that may make you forget how talented a magician he truly is.