RUMFORD - Six magicians from around the state wowed more than 100 people of all ages during An Evening of Magic and Superstition on Friday night at Mountain Valley High School. It was a benefit for the Class of 2009.

The performers are professional members of the Assembly 174 of the Society of American Magicians of Portland and/or Bangor's Ring 362 of the International Brotherhood of Magicians.

Additionally, they gave acting Rumford Town Manager Stacy Carter a large brass plaque from both organizations, proclaiming Rumford as Maine's Capital of Magic.

The recognition honors Rumford native son James William Elliott (1874-1920), one of Maine's foremost magicians, a world champion card manipulator and friend of escape artist Harry Houdini.

Both the award and card manipulator Wes Booth of Newport, also set the stage for the second annual J. W. Elliott Card Challenge, which will be held at 3 p.m. Sunday, April 29, at Hotel Harris and The Boiler Room in Rumford.

"I believe that when the dust settles and, it's all said and done, there will be a second Elliott Card Challenge trophy on my mantel," boasted Booth, who wore a crown of playing cards, a large unsheathed sword, and a cloak of cards. He is the reigning J. W. Elliott card champion.

"I'm anticipating several challengers, because the gauntlet has been thrown down. Card manipulation is a very specific branch of magic, and there are not that many people who do it. Some of it involves feats of juggling and making cards disappear and reappear. Elliott was the foremost card manipulator of his era," he said.

Escape artist performer "Dr. Wilson," aka Paul Szauter of Bar Harbor, said the magicians performed Friday night as a publicity stunt for the card challenge and, out of friendships with fellow magician Scot Grassette of Rumford, who performed a floating candle trick. His daughter, Kaitlyn, emceed the show and also performed magic tricks.

The Grassettes and Auburn magician Bob Nixon performed during the first half of the more than two-hour show, while acts by Booth and Blue Hill's "Professor Miller," who declined to state his off-stage name, led to Szauter's grand finale, the Chrysallis, a late 1930s death-defying human bondage escape feat.

Booth quickly got the audience laughing loudly during his handkerchief act, which began with him holding a red cloth in his closed fist and throwing an orange Nerf ball with the other hand to a youngster named Tommy several seats back from the stage.

When asked by Booth to pick any color in the world, Tommy said purple. After Booth consulted Kaitlyn's brother Zach Grassette, one of Booth's two "bodyguards," the magician asked Tommy to pick another color, a process Booth repeated after every "wrong" color.

"Something that reminds you of snow," he said.

"Yellow."

"Something that reminds you of fresh snow."

"White."

To applause, Booth poked the red handkerchief through his fist and pulled out a white cloth, then revealed no red cloth in either hand.

At Booth's request, Tommy then threw a line-drive Nerf a few rows back to a child named Andrew, who, when asked by Booth for a color, answered, "Periwinkle."

"Think of any other color that reminds you of the sky."

"Gray."

"Something that reminds you of a clear sky."

"A bird."

"A color that reminds you of a clear sky."

"Aquamarine."

"Andrew, has anyone ever told you that you have a future in politics?"

Booth then pushed the white handkerchief into his fist and pulled out a blue cloth, which he then pushed through the same fist and out came an American flag, to loud applause. He next did a large three-card Monte trick, which was followed by Dr. Wilson's bondage escape performance.