Robert Zabrecky (born June 2, 1968, in Burbank, California) is an American actor, author, magician, and songwriter. His career began as a musician while being the front man for the band Possum Dixon. In the later years of his career, he has found success as a magician, actor, and author.

Life and career

Zabrecky was born and raised in Burbank, California. From 1989 to 1999 he was the singer-songwriter and bassist for the Los Angeles group Possum Dixon. The band, originally hailing from Silver Lake, released three albums during the 1990s. During the mid-1990s, he began practicing magic and has since become a magician at the

Magic Castle The Magic Castle is a clubhouse for magicians and magic enthusiasts, as well as the clubhouse for the Academy of Magical Arts. It is in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles, California and it bills itself as "the most unusual private club in t ...

in Hollywood, California. In the mid-2000s he began a career in acting and has since landed roles in films and television programs.

Actor

In 2017, Zabrecky landed a supporting role in the supernatural drama, '' A Ghost Story''. His film credits also include a supporting role in Ryan Gosling's directorial debut '' Lost River'', playing the master of ceremonies at an underground fetish nightclub, and a starring role in the psychological thriller, ''Decay'', portraying a troubled theme park groundskeeper who falls in love with a corpse. As a television actor he has made several appearances in popular shows including '' GLOW'', '' Strange Angel'', ''

Criminal Minds ''Criminal Minds'' is an American police procedural crime drama television series created and produced by Jeff Davis. The series premiered on CBS on September 22, 2005, and originally concluded on February 19, 2020; it was revived in 2022. It ...

'', '' CSI: NY'', ''

Comedy Bang! Bang! ''Comedy Bang! Bang!'' (formerly ''Comedy Death-Ray Radio'') is a weekly comedy audio podcast, which originally began airing as a radio show on May 1, 2009.A Special Thing Forums:Comedy Death-Ray Radio starts today! Popularly known as ''Humani ...

'' and ''

Angie Tribeca ''Angie Tribeca'' is an American comedy television series created by Steve and Nancy Carell, which aired on TBS. The series, a parody of the police procedural genre, stars Rashida Jones as police detective Angie Tribeca. It also stars Hayes MacAr ...

''. He has also appeared in several short films and a wide range of television commercials. He graduated from a two-year training program at

Theatre West Theatre West is a theatre company in Hollywood, California, the oldest continually-operating theatre company in Los Angeles. Originally conceived as a venue for working professional actors in the film and television industries to exercise their ar ...

, where he appeared in theatrical adaptations of the television classic, ''

The Twilight Zone ''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology television series created by Rod Serling. The episodes are in various genres, including fantasy, science fiction, absurdism, dystopian fiction, suspense, horror, sup ...

'' and other productions. In 2019, Zabrecky and his wife Tommi Zabrecky created the supernatural comedy series, ''The Other Side with Zabrecky''. In each episode, Zabrecky invites guests into his home to participate in a séance to contact a departed spirit of their choice. Guests have included Jack Black, Jason Sudeikis,

Kate Flannery Kate Destiny Flannery (born June 10, 1964) is an American actress. Following her early theatre work, Flannery had her screen breakthrough playing Meredith Palmer on the NBC series ''The Office'', which won her two Screen Actors Guild Awards. Sh ...

Will Forte Orville Willis Forte IV ( ; born June 17, 1970) is an American actor, comedian, writer, and producer. Forte is known for being a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' (2002–2010), a recurring character on the show leading to a feature film ada ...

, and

David Arquette David Arquette (born September 8, 1971) is an American actor and former professional wrestler. He is best known for his role as Dewey Riley in the slasher film franchise ''Scream'', for which he won a Teen Choice Award and two Blockbuster En ...

. The program is featured on the online visual arts magazine Night Flight.

Author

In June 2019 Zabrecky released his memoir, ''Strange Cures'' (RothCo Press).

Magician

Zabrecky is best known for an aberrant magician character he portrays by combining irreverent dark humor,

mentalism Mentalism is a performing art in which its practitioners, known as mentalists, appear to demonstrate highly developed mental or intuitive abilities. Performances may appear to include hypnosis, telepathy, clairvoyance, divination, precognitio ...

and an artful use of elongated pauses in performances. He was taught under the guidance of Robert Daven, another member of the Castle. In 2011 and 2012 he was voted "Stage Magician of the Year" by the Academy of Magical Arts at the Magic Castle. In 2014 and 2015 he was voted "Parlour Magician of the Year" by the same organization. After his music career ended he has worked throughout the United States, Japan and Europe as a magician. Since 2002 he has been a regular performer at the

, where he formed the magic trio,

The Unholy Three The Unholy Three can refer to the following: * ''The Unholy Three'', a 1917 novel by Tod Robbins * ''The Unholy Three'' (1925 film), directed by Tod Browning * ''The Unholy Three'' (1930 film), a remake of the 1925 film directed by Jack Conway * ...

in 2003. He has also been the featured magician at annual magic conventions worldwide and appeared on the cover of magic-related journals and periodicals including '' Genii,'' ''Reel Magic'' and the ''Mandala.'' ''The Zabrecky Hour'', a one-man variety show, directed by John Lovick and Tommi Zabrecky, was premiered and developed at the Steve Allen Theater from 2010 to 2016. The show featured highlights from his

act, song & dance, conversations with the moon and audience interaction. After Zabrecky performed on

Penn & Teller Penn & Teller, Penn Jillette and Teller, are American magicians, entertainers, and scientific skeptics who have performed together since the late 1970s. They are noted for their ongoing act that combines elements of comedy with magic. The duo h ...

's '' Penn & Teller: Fool Us'' in August 2016,

Penn Jillette Penn Fraser Jillette (born March 5, 1955) is an American magician, actor, musician, inventor, television presenter, and author, best known for his work with fellow magician Teller as half of the team Penn & Teller. The duo has been featured ...

said "We were trying to think if there's ever been a mentalist doing a mentalist act that was sincerely funny and sincerely good. You may be the first ever."

Musician

As the frontman for Possum Dixon, Zabrecky became a notable figure in the early 1990s emerging Silver Lake independent music community. During those years he wrote, recorded and performed with several musicians and producers including Beck,

Earle Mankey Earle Mankey (sometimes misspelled "Earl" in credits) (born March 8, 1947, in Washington, United States) is an American musician, record producer and audio engineer. He was a founding member and guitarist for the band Halfnelson, later called Sp ...

Tom Rothrock Tom or TOM may refer to: * Tom (given name), a diminutive of Thomas or Tomás or an independent Aramaic given name (and a list of people with the name) Characters * Tom Anderson, a character in ''Beavis and Butt-Head'' * Tom Beck, a character ...

, Pleasant Gehman,

Carla Bozulich Carla Ragin Bozulich (born December 24, 1965) is an American musician based in Los Angeles, known as the lead singer, lyricist and founder of The Geraldine Fibbers and Evangelista as well as a founding member of Ethyl Meatplow and Scarnella. The ...

, Tim O'Heir and others. In 1998, Zabrecky, with Possum Dixon, released '' New Sheets'', which would be the last album by the band. The LP, produced by

Ric Ocasek Richard Theodore Otcasek (March 23, 1944 – September 15, 2019), known as Ric Ocasek, was an American singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He was the primary co-lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist, songwriter, and frontman for the rock ...

, featured co-written material with

Jane Wiedlin Jane Marie Genevieve Wiedlin (born May 20, 1958) is an American musician and singer, best known as the co-founder, rhythm guitarist and backing vocalist of the new wave band The Go-Go's. She has also had a successful solo career. The Go-Go's w ...

, Charlotte Caffey, Dave Stewart and Pat MacDonald. Shortly after the breakup of Possum Dixon he spent time singing for the Los Angeles art rock band, Human Hands and played bass in a

Gun Club The Gun Club were an American rock band from Los Angeles, California, United States, which existed from 1979 to 1996. It was formed and led by singer-songwriter and guitarist Jeffrey Lee Pierce. History Early days (1979–1980) The Gun Club ...

tribute band alongside original members Ward Dotson and Terry Graham. In early 2010 he appeared on-stage with Maria McKee at a fund raiser in Hollywood. The pair sang a duet to Lou Reed's "

Satellite of Love "Satellite of Love" is a song by Lou Reed. It is the second single from his 1972 album ''Transformer''. At the time of its release, it achieved minor US chart success (#119), though it later became a staple of his concerts and compilation albums. ...

". The pair performed the song again as part of a ''Night of Zabrecky'' performance at the Steve Allen Theater in 2012.

Auctioneer

He is a skilled auctioneer, trained by

Bonhams Bonhams is a privately owned international auction house and one of the world's oldest and largest auctioneers of fine art and antiques. It was formed by the merger in November 2001 of Bonhams & Brooks and Phillips Son & Neale. This brought to ...

auction house (known then as Butterfield & Butterfield) during the late 1990s. For over a decade he has helped organizations such as the Silverlake Conservatory of Music, Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center, The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society,

Laguna Art Museum The Laguna Art Museum (LAM) is a museum located in Laguna Beach, California, on Pacific Coast Highway. LAM exclusively features California art and is the oldest cultural institution in the area. It has been known as the Laguna Beach Art Associati ...

and many others with fundraising events.

Personal life

Zabrecky lives with his wife, Tommi Zabrecky, whom he married in 1998.

Works

Memoir *''Strange Cures'' (2019) *''The Feral Boy Who Lives in Griffith Park'' contributor (2019) Publications * ''Music for Deaf People'' chapbook (1992) * ''

Smartish Pace ''Smartish Pace'' is a non-profit, independent literary journal based in Baltimore, Maryland, USA. The magazine was founded in 1999 by Stephen Reichert (authored by member of journal's staff, published in an alumni magazine) who was a University ...

'' Art/Poetry Journal (contributor) * ''The Underground Guide to Los Angeles'' (contributor) * ''Stories of Famous Magicians'' (contributor) * ''Secrets of My Friends 2'' (contributor) * '' MAGIC, The Magazine for Magicians'' (contributor) * ''M-U-M, The Society of American Magicians'' (contributor) * ''An Exploration at the Intersection of Magic and Theater'' (2010) * Genii – The Conjuror's Magazine (Cover Feature, April 2013) *A,B,Z's of Magic, (2019) Vanishing Inc Interviews *''Dana Gould Hour Podcast,'' 2019. *Boo Crew Podcast, 2019 *Monster Party, Apple Podcast, 2019 *''Hollywood Anonymous, Apple Podcast, 2019 *''Three Thousand'', Melbourne *''The Magic Newswire, 2012'' *''The Avant/Garde Diaries, 2012'' *''Dan & Dave, 2012'' *''The Alibi; Illusion Noir, 2012'' *''Los Angeles Times, 2011'' *''Pop Culture: Sweet Tea Pumpkin Pie, 2011'' *''Carson Daly, 2010'' Awards and nominations * 1999 LA Weekly Award for Best Pop/Rock Band (Award) * 1999 California Music Awards (Award) * 2008 Parlour Magician of the Year, Academy of Magical Arts (Nomination) * 2009 Parlour Magician of the Year, Academy of Magical Arts (Nomination) * 2010 Parlour Magician of the Year, Academy of Magical Arts (Nomination) * 2010 Stage Magician of the Year, Academy of Magical Arts (Nomination) * 2011 Lecturer of the Year, Academy of Magical Arts (Nomination) * 2011 Stage Magician of the Year, Academy of Magical Arts (Award) * 2012 Stage Magician of the Year, Academy of Magical Arts (Award) * 2014 Parlour Magician of the Year, Academy of Magical Arts (Award) * 2015 Parlour Magician of the Year, Academy of Magical Arts (Award) * 2016 Lecturer of the Year, Academy of Magical Arts (Award) * 2017 Lecturer of the Year, Academy of Magical Arts (Award)

References

External links

* *
Dancing Like a Motherf*cker With Rob Zabrecky, 2010 InterviewRob Zabrecky 2008 Interview by Ross AnthonyLA Weekly Story and Interview with Rob ZabreckyRock Magicians , LA Weekly ArticleLA Weekly Article on Silverlake Artists featuring Rob ZabreckyInternational Brotherhood of Magicians – Magic Castle Nominations
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zabrecky, Rob 1968 births Living people 21st-century American male actors American male film actors American male television actors Male actors from Burbank, California American magicians American rock singers Singers from California Musicians from Burbank, California American alternative rock musicians Alternative rock bass guitarists American indie rock musicians American memoirists American people of Scottish descent Academy of Magical Arts Lecturer of the Year winners Academy of Magical Arts Parlour Magician of the Year winners Academy of Magical Arts Stage Magician of the Year winners