The disappointing recent box office performance of “The Incredible Burt Wonderstone,” a movie about dueling magicians on the Strip, has prompted speculation that the art of magic has become passe.

Nonsense.

As someone who has performed illusions in clubs, on stage, in the streets and is now preparing for a new Spike-TV magic "docuseries" this fall, I can tell you that magic continues to exert a strong pull on people, ever as the art itself morphs to reflect its cultural context.