Gary Plants is an old friend; we met more than forty years ago at one of Joe Stevens’ early Desert Magic Seminar conventions. Gary is an extraordinary technician, a magic scholar, and an enthusiastic magic hobbyist. Occasionally, he lectures at magic conventions, and lately he has been doing more public performing. Gary is also a collector with a focus on magic photographs and private correspondence. And, as those of you who are friends with Gary on Facebook are aware, he is also an excellent photographer.

During the course of our conversation, Gary talked about his first magic convention, in West Virginia in 1977, and his first “big” convention, the SAM fiftieth anniversary convention in New York City in 1978.

I had a great time talking to Gary; I think you’ll enjoy our conversation. You can learn more about Gary and see photos from the convention Gary talked about in the December 2024 issue of the MichaelClose.com Newsletter.