February 13, 2017

Meet Mike Jacobson of Magic Mike

Local Stories

Today we’d like to introduce you to Mike Jacobson.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
When I was 9, I went to a summer camp that had a magician perform. He was amazing! Actually, I’m pretty sure he sucked, but I thought he was amazing. At the end of his show, he showed us all how to do one trick: how to take a piece of string and pull it through your neck. So, of course, I literally took that piece of string everywhere I went and showed it to every adult I knew. They all acted really impressed. Looking back, they totally weren’t, but I thought it was awesome. As a kid who’s told what to do by adults every day, it was really awesome having something over them that I didn’t have to explain or justify. I got a high from the amazement and joy I could bring people, and probably the power over adults at that point, too.

Has it been a smooth road?
Funny enough, as a kid/budding magician, I was super duper shy. Which as you can imagine, is a horrible trait for a magician. So while there, fortunately, weren’t many bumps in my magic career itself, magic helped me as a person transform into a normal human, you know?

So, as you know, we’re impressed with Magic Mike – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
My goal is to do more than just magic but to help bring mass excitement to the entire party. Since I’m younger than most magicians, I’ve been told I bring an energy to the room that most of the old-school magicians can’t. I basically do it by entertaining people through non-cheesy magic and comedy. So, I won’t have a sparkly vest and top hat, telling old grandpa stories. In other words, no creepiness. I keep my magic relevant and contemporary- so while there’s definitely classic card effects, I also may change $1s to $100s, or melt a coin into an iPhone. NBDNBDNBD.

In terms of things, my Mom brags about most… it’s probably being featured on the Ellen DeGeneres show. It was incredible. Apart from that, she’d also probably casually drop that I was a Forbes Magazine 30 Under 30 & Business Insider 30 Under 30, featured performer at the Magic Castle (and was one of the youngest people ever admitted as a member at the time), a Magic Castle Junior Achievement Award winner (an award for excellence in performance given out once a year to an up and coming magician in the U.S.). And last but not least, I’ve been blessed with the opportunity to perform all over the world, in everywhere from England to Poland, Spain, France, Germany, Ecuador, and Thailand. Traveling is the best. I’m such a Millennial.

Years later, in January 2010. The producers of the Ellen DeGeneres show reached out to a handful of magicians to submit videos. Mine was literally just me going around 72 doing magic for people. I honestly didn’t think it would go anywhere. But then the next week, I got a call from them asking me to come in and perform for them in person (to make sure I wasn’t a creeper and didn’t just edit the video). I performed for them, they happened to dig it, and I got on the show! It was absolutely incredible.

Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
I’m obsessed with LA. I know it’s an easy city to hate on, but what I like to tell haters is LA’s what you make of it. It’s like an epic puzzle. You have to be in the know, and care about logistics; knowing what when/where/how long/with who/how you’re going to get there/what’s happening before and after, etc. But when you do that, the whole city unlocks. I just love the unique balance of laid-back environment and epic adventure. I love LA so much that I made a tribute video called This is Los Angeles that captures everything that makes LA, LA (to me, at least… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=efR7O3zswSY.

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