Rogue Magic: Magician, Grift Artist, & Exhibition Pickpocket

To me, clandestine artists are some of the most fascinating individuals in the world!

When they work…..you can bet that almost every move is a calculated step, and just about every word is a carefully crafted façade. Some of them are so good at blurring the lines between illusion and reality that their skills really to seem do border on the supernatural. And, we all learn from each other…

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A LITTLE ABOUT MY STYLE:

Some time ago, someone I value highly in the entertainment field blatantly asked me, “what is your character?”

This was a great question! My answer at the time was, “I just want to be me. A professional, skilled, and experienced me…but me nonetheless.”

Later another performer inquired about my character, after looking at my site, and asked “are you the reformed con…or something more edgy?” My answer was, “Neither, I just be myself.” See, I believed that my personal life experiences (ethical and otherwise), education, and professional experiences were enough that I could just be myself.

But, as I thought about it…there needed to be a way to describe my “character” my…“style”…to others; here is that description:

Growing up, my dad (born in 1944) used to tell me stories of a man he used to run with named, Harlon. I always liked that name…Harlon. To me, that name became the embodiment of quickness, agility, adaptability, and strength—the traits my dad always said he saw in me.

Audiences are never made aware of this in performance, but when entertaining, I take a moment before I start to remind myself of those characteristics…and, internally, I call them “Harlon.”

Overtime, I decided to add elements of my personal, professional, and educational experiences into my style of entertainment.

Jeremy “Harlon” Chisum, I like that...

It takes both the good and the rogue experiences of my history and slams them together as one.

I do posses real experience and education around underground knowledge and skills, psychology, criminal thinking/behavior, deception, sleight of hand, and grifters, cheats, pickpockets, and magicians. I spent a lot of time in my life with a mixture of both good people, and not so good people who were always cheating, conning, swindling, or hustling each other.

And, I spent a fair amount of time studying human perception, thinking, and behavior. So much so, that I obtained a bachelor’s degree in psychology and master’s degrees in both forensic psychology and social work. Don’t get me wrong, I am not actively running cons or thieving in the criminal sense, nor do I (or anyone I know) do “real” magic. But I do possess some pretty unique experiences, with many falling on the not so savory side.

And, also made several friends over the years who are typically a lot more experienced in the darker side of life than most people who pretend to be “edgy.” Nonetheless, I do not want to take on some pretend personality and act like a gambler from the old west, or a time traveler with magical powers, or some reformed con who has turned “good.”

I just want to be a version of me that is okay with including all sides of my knowledge and experiences.

How do I see my character?

Well, I like to think of myself as a deception, grift, psychology, & sleight-of-hand expert, and a serial skill builder fascinated with learning real skills that can be combined with magic to create impossible outcomes—some a little shadier than others.

Hence, my choosing of the title of “Rogue Magician” to emphasize my style and area of expertise.

I enjoy sharing what I know along with a few of the better stories from my life. Hopefully, leaving a sleight air of intrigue and withheld potential.

My goal is to open the door (just a little) to a world that others may never get to experience otherwise. A world full of the underground knowledge of grifters, pickpockets, and magicians. And, to showcase that world with fascinating stories of unique characters and personal experiences through magic, deception, and sleight of hand.

In the end, taking a moment to give others the opportunity to temporarily suspend disbelief and wonder at the possibilities are defining features of my character.