The Original Close-Up Convention

FFFF Chairman: Obie O'Brien
President Emeritus:
Obie O'Brien
Directors:
Joan Caesar
Glenn Brown
Board Of Directors:
Steve Beam
Jimmy Cieslinski

Dan Garrett
Mike Joseph
David Oestreicher
Christian Painter
Gary Wiseman
Meir Yedid
Backstage Crew:
Lee Eyler (Manager). Jack Chancellor, Ray Eyler, Scott Miller.
Audiovisual Crew:
Jimmy C. (Manager), Joe Cappon, Larry Kohorst, Gary Ward, Rick Wilcox.
4F Shop Crew:
Rod Chow (Manager), Shank Kothare, Simon Lane, Rajneesh Madhok, Amanda Nicot, Jay McLaughlin, Ed Ripley, Michael Tallon.


Fechter's Finger Flicking Frolic

In Memory of Eddie Fechter
Eddie Fechter

Fechter's Finger Flicking Frolic

OBIE'S 4F convention is the "Original Close-Up Magic Convention" and the most prestigious gathering of close-up magicians in the world. Since 1971 the By-Invitation-Only event continues to feature the best performers, creators and lecturers in the world.

Mark MasonThe 50th Anniversary Obie's 4F Convention is planned for April 26-29, 2023. The Guest Of Honor will be Mark Mason.

NEW: 2023 Hotel Information:
M Hotel Buffalo
2040 Walden Ave
Buffalo NY 14225
Direct phone: 716-681-2400.
Web: http://www.mhotelbuffalo.com

Mention 4F Magic to get the discounted room rate.
For online reservations use code: 0799AAS789.

"Fechter's Finger Flicking Frolic" commonly referred to as the 4F or Obie's 4F convention was started in April 1971 at the famous Forks Hotel in Buffalo, New York by Eddie Fechter, Bill Okal and "Obie" O'Brien, who decided that it would be nice to have a convention dedicated strictly to the art of close-up magic. Bill Okal is no longer involved with the convention and Eddie Fechter passed away on March 31, 1979, leaving Obie O'Brien who continues to produce "The Original Close-Up Magic Convention."

If you would like more information or would like to attend a future FFFF Convention Contact:
Joan Caesar: HERE or Glenn Brown: HERE

The FFFF Guest Of Honors:
Since 1977 every convention was dedicated to a single "Guest Of Honor" for his contributions to close-up magic. The Recipients were:
1977- Jim Ryan*
1978- Eddie Fechter*
1979- Larry Jennings*
1980- Gene Gordon*
1981- Bob Read*
1982- Sid Lorraine*
1983- Steve Dusheck*
1984- Rick Johnsson*
1985- Tom Mullica*
1986- Jay Marshall*
1987- Tom Craven
1988- Phil Willmarth*
1989- Gary Ouellet*
1990- Shigeo Takagi*
1991- Harry Lorayne
1992- Daryl*
1993- Paul Gertner
1994- Derek Dingle*
1995- Paul Daniels*
1996- Jerry Andrus*
1997- Johnny Thompson*
1998- Juan Tamariz
1999- Lennart Green
2000- Bill Malone
2001- Herb Zarrow*
2002- Max Maven*
2003- Meir Yedid
2004- Pat Page*
2005- Gene Anderson & Dan Garrett
2006- Aldo Colombini*
2007- Ton Onosaka
2008- Boris Wild
2009- Henry Evans
2010- Obie O'Brien*
2011- Steve Beam
2012- David Stone
2013- Stephen Bargatze
2014- Shawn Farquhar
2015- Oscar Muñoz
2016- The Fat Brothers (Dani DaOrtiz, Miguel Angel Gea, Christian Engblom)
2017- Rocco Silano
2018- Pit Hartling
2019- Mike Powers
*Deceased.
The Lou Gallo MVP Award:
In honor of Lou Gallo (1932-2004) the annual Most Valuable Participant award is named the "Lou Gallo MVP Award." The award, which is voted on by all attendees, is given annually to the person whom they thought contributed the most to make the 4F convention a big success.
Previous FFFF MVPs:
1982- Karl Norman*
1983- Steve Dusheck*
1984- Bob Stencel*
1985- Jerry Andrus*
1986- Shigeo Takagi*
1987- Rocco
1988- Gary Kurtz
1989- David Williamson
1990- Juan Tamariz
1991- Aldo Colombini*
1992- Lennart Green
1993- Jim Krenz
1994- Steve Beam
1995- Paul Daniels*
1996- Pat Page*
1997- Alex Elmsley*
1998- Tom Gagnon
1999- Lennart Green
2000- Bill Malone
2001- Tim Ellis & Susanne Webster
2002- Henry Evans
2003- David Stone
2004- Armando Lucero
2005- Reed McClintock
2006- Flicking Fingers
2007- Shoot Ogawa
2008- Boris Wild
2009- Dick Cook
2010- Obie O'Brien*
2011- Steve Beam
2012- Denis Behr
2013- Dani DaOrtiz
2014- Michael Dardant
2015- Amanda & Roger Nicot
2016- Jimmy Cieslinski
2017- Katalina Absolon & Christian Painter
2018- Howard Hamburg
2019- Maria Schwieter
*Deceased.
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© Copyright 1971-2023 by Obie O'Brien. All rights reserved.