I was traveling through England and Scotland in 1998, and managed to show up at the last meeting of the Magic Circle at the Victory Services Club. I went down to the bar, and that's where all the bigwigs were hanging out. Alan Shaxon introduced me to various people whose faces I knew only from the Magic Circular.

I spotted a taciturn, grey-haired gentleman standing by himself and realized it was Alex Elmsley.

I asked Alan if he would introduce me to Alex Elmsley, and he complied.

So, once the introduction had been made, I asked Mr. Elmsley if he would do me a favor. He said, "Well, I suppose I could..."

I assured him that it would not be embarrasing, painful or anything else like that, but I added, "I promised myself that if I ever met you, I would do this, if you would allow me to."

He said, "Well, I suppose it would be all right."

So I touched him on the shoulder and said, "One."

He looked at me quizzically and raised an eyebrow, as if to say that he didn't understand the significance of what I'd done.

So I said, "It's a perfectly natural 'Elmsley Count.' "

He grinned and chuckled, and that was enough for me. He definitely was amused. And that's all I wanted.

He did remember it, though, because we spoke briefly about it at the Centenary in 2005.

Great story!

I love it!

9.9/10

Well-played.

Awesome Story! Thanks for sharing!
Lliam

Love it! awesome thinking! Hillarious!