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Remembering Mark Bellinger (1963-2003) By Robert E. Martin Life does not cease to be funny when people die any more than it ceases to be serious when people laugh. - George Bernard Shaw Last Friday, along with hundreds of other people, I said 'farewell for now' to my friend Mark Bellinger. With an inventiveness and talent greater than that of mere mortals, Mark delighted and touched the lives of virtually everybody he met with his astonishing magic, music, and humor. I remember Mark back in his 'rock 'n roll' days, when he was performing with the hot club band, 4 U Only. After moving to San Francisco for several years, he suddenly appeared in my office one day back in 1993 and did a hand trick with one of my business cards, magically transforming it into one of his own. Mark explained that he was now a professional magician and had spent time in California honing his craft. He had performed for the likes of Joe Montana and Vida Blue and wondered if I knew of any clubs in the area that would be interested in featuring tableside magic. At that time, Brian Wood had just purchased JB Meinberg's and was looking for 'something different', so I told Mark to contact Brian. As soon as you could say 'Presto!' Mark was filling the booths at JB's during Happy Hour on weekends, eventually expanding his remarkable talent to casinos, corporate parties, and children's' charity benefits throughout the state. Professionally, the amazing thing about Mark was that I never saw him do the same trick twice unless it was requested, as I would often do with his amazing 'card on the ceiling' trick. For those that never saw it, Mark would hand you a common deck of cards, ask you to select one card and make your own 'mark' on it with a pen. He would have you insert the card back into the deck, shuffle the deck, and then tie the entire deck tightly with several rubber bands. After the deck was securely bound, he would toss it to the ceiling at JB's and when the deck came back to the ground, still securely bound with the rubber bands, Mark would direct you to the ceiling where you would find the card you'd selected and drawn upon stuck to the copper ceiling. I've never been able to explain that trick, and I mention it now only to give those that never had the privilege of witnessing Mark's talents a taste of what he had to offer. But mainly, what Mark did offer to all those fortunate enough to rub shoulders with his fairy dust, was a sense of astonishment, amazement, and joy in a world that often seems increasingly leached of these nutrients. And he was one of the nicest guys I've ever met - always willing to offer his services, and always willing to experiment with new ideas, as when he approached me once about whether I would like to try a 'comic strip' in the Review that would actually show people how to do simple tricks. Unfortunately, the comic strip never caught on, perhaps because not every person shared the same knack for magic that Mark did; but I thought it telling that he believed everybody was capable of creating their own magic. Some may call this a naïve notion; I prefer to view it as signature of Mark's humanity - his belief in the goodness & joy at the core of people that they often lose touch with. After Mark was diagnosed with Ewing's sarcoma, a disease most commonly associated with 10 to 20 year olds, and extremely rare in adults over 30, I hadn't seen him much until the night of his Benefit Concert at Hollywood Nights. Walking with a cane and obviously shed of hair, the brightness in his eyes and brilliance in his face left me feeling incredulous - how could somebody so happy be sick? And the thing is, while Mark may have been physically ill, his spirit and soul were still shining. To this day, I will never forget the feeling I got when I saw him sit down his cane, pick up his guitar, and nail the solo to Prince's Purple Rain down note-for-note with Count 'n the Change. But such were the many talents of Mark Bellinger. Sadly, the next time I saw Mark was at his funeral service last Friday. While I joined the other mourners, trying to eke out a smile by remembering Mark's wonderful gift for life and laughter, shortly before the funeral service ended Brian Wood asked if I would help him transport some of the easel boards papered with photos from various stages of Mark's life over to JB's for a wake the family was holding after the service. As we walked outside on a clear, silent sunny day, suddenly a gust of wind rose up, blowing the secured photos on one of the boards free, and causing Brian and I both to scramble like mad hens in suit coats all over the parking lot. Brian and I just looked at each other afterwards and laughed, 'That Mark! He's probably rolling with laughter in some cloud in heaven at what kind of crazy steps he just put us through." But that was Mark. Always laughing, eminently entertaining, and constantly ready to get you going when you least expected it. Mark pulled his final magic trick on the evening of June 16th, disappearing into the heavens above. But as was said during his eulogy, he's simply doing magic for another venue. Goodbye for now, my friend. Wherever you are right now, study hard. One of these days I want to witness all the new tricks they're gonna teach you up in Heaven. Mark Bellinger is survived by his devoted & loving wife, Lorisa; four children, Rachael, Caleb, Madysn and Callan; his mother, brother, father, stepmother, sisters, and friends. A Benefit is currently in the planning stages to contribute to the future education of Mark's children. Watch the Review for future details. |
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