How often do assistants change magicians they work for and do they ever tell their new employer secrets they learned from the previous one?

Famous magicians have to tell their methods to so many people around them in the course of their life, I wonder how common it is for assistants to break those confidentiality agreements they signed.

The best assistant is a wannabee magician who becomes your assistant as training for when he or she is ready to launch their own career. The agreement should include permission to have first "dibs" to use certain of your effects when they are ready and meet your performing standards. Then they become collegues instead of assistants, sort of the relationship the magicians of old had with their assistants. It stops the desire to share your secrets with others if they know those will be their own secrets some day.

Here's David Copperfield's Secrecy Agreement form for your review, along with other portions of his contracts which may be of interest.

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/backstage/c......rfield-0

David is good at keeping secrets, especially his newly appearing 16 month old child!

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/44153379/n......YhTunJCc

:magicrabbit:

But realistically speaking, do these assistants and stagehands talk to people about secrets anyway? How do secrets leak ?

Wikileaks

There is a field of science interested in the transmission of secrets--not just magic secrets but all secrets. Some of the findings are quite interesting. For example, confidentiality statements can either increase or decrease the dissemination of a secret--they can increase the dissemination of secrets because they highlight the secret is valuable. Furthermore, most secrets are not disseminated as widely as people expect.

I've wondered about this as well. I think it relies strongly on teaming up with the right person. Some will be committed to the magician's code, other will have a drink and start blabbing. Do any experienced magicians have some suggestions on the interview / hiring process?

It's all about professionalism in my opinion, I wouldn't want to work with anyone that told me all the secrets of a collegue, sure some I would appreciate, but still, I wouldn't reward it with a job..

Secrecy contracts seem to be the only option these days, Hans klok has a 500.000€ contract with everyone who works on stage and backstage with him, but I keep wondering, how will he ever find out who leaks what?

Trust & Professionalism is what I'd go with..

I second the Trust & Professionalism. Good assistants won't be giving secrets if they want to be in the industry for long.

That Smoking Gun article is seriously some of the best documentation I've had the pleasure of reading. Thanks for bringing this up.

Houdini said, "But then, so far as I know, I am the only performer who ever pledged his assistants to secrecy, honor and allegiance under a notarial oath."
And he, if anybody, had every right to.