The Eighth Strategy: Overcome And Prevail
THE EIGHTH STRATEGY: OVERCOME AND PREVAIL
Never, never, never give up.
—Winston Churchill
Scene: This really happened. Lance Burton achieved the accolade reserved for the greatest of Las Vegas headliners: his own stage in his own theater. The first American to win the Gold Medal awarded by the Fédération Internationale des Sociétés Magiques—the “Olympics of Magic”—in 1982, Burton is performing on his stage in his theater at the Monte Carlo Hotel when, suddenly, one of his comely assistants is menaced by what can only be described as a man-monster.
The masked being brandishes a sword—prompting Burton to interrupt his show, grab his own trusty blade, and engage in an apparently impromptu Errol Flynn-style duel. There is thrusting, parrying, and the discordant clash of real steel against real steel. Clearly, Burton is battling for his theatrical life, conducting a brave fighting retreat up a staircase and taking his stand at the top.
“What do you want?” he demands of the apparition. “Why are you here?”