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Presto! Local magician to craft illusions North Journal By Lora Hershey, Staff Writer July 7, 1994 A nun at St. Alphonsus School once told a young Tom Interval that if he were as good at his studies as he was at magic, he’d be a genius. Interval, now 27, is still working on his studies after making a living off of entertaining young and old alike with his sleight of hand and other tricks. After graduating from North Allegheny High School in 1984, Interval attended college part-time but put off his degree in favor of working at Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, Va. as a strolling magician. He did four to seven shows a day dressed as a 15th century Englishman in sweltering summer heat. He also hit the talk show circuit in the Virginia area to promote a new magic shop at Busch Gardens. Despite the fact that the majority of his classmates immediately entered college full-time after high school, Interval’s parents were supportive of his decision to work as a magician first. Interval, who lives in Franklin Park, remembers that he “just had to have a magic set” after watching a magician on television at about age 6. His first trick was making a penny disappear, and Interval says he was hooked after that. As a youngster, he hung out in libraries reading magic books and practicing tricks until he nailed them. Word got around about Interval’s talents, and he landed his first paid performance at age 12—performing magic tricks for 7-year-olds at a birthday party. Seven and 8-year-olds make the best audiences, says Interval. “At age five and under they usually need a clown, at age 13 they could probably use a rock band.” Interval isn’t shy about pulling out his briefcase full of tricks. Sleight-of-hand tricks are his favorite. The best part of magic, though, is to see the audience’s reaction, he says, particularly the reaction of children. That’s why he teaches kids how to perform tricks. Interval has taught magic at the YMCA and Community College of Allegheny County. “It helps with their self-esteem when they can fool an adult or the adult pretends to be fooled,” says Interval. “It gives them the confidence to do more tricks and it gets them into the library to read books about magic.” Speaking of books, Interval has a collection of about 400 books on magic and magicians’ biographies. His inspiration has been Harry Houdini. Nowadays, Interval is a full-time student at La Roche College in McCandless. He’s thinking about a public relations career, but if he can make enough money as a professional magician, “who knows?” says Interval. David Copperfield may want to watch out. To learn more, contact Tom now. Back to Top