==Origins:==
Born on August 25th 1978 in Dallas, TX as James "Jimi" Marshall Robinson. (He is named after the famous rock guitarist Jimi Hendrix) He grew up in a small town south of Dallas called Ovilla and is an only child. It was there that he developed his penchant for magic at or around the age of 6. He received a no longer manufactured magic set made by fisher price.

As he got older, he found a more vested interest buying little magic tricks here and there until the age of thirteen when he decided to go pro. It was in November of 1993 at the age of 13 he adopted the name Bizzaro. (replacing the former, VERY short lived moniker "The Great Fire Cat" which was derived from a comic book series he created and draws.) The name was taken to have two Z's and one R. Years later he found it to be the incorrect spelling. The difference in spelling however was serendipitous as it separates Bizzaro from the Superman villain and comic strip of the same name but of proper spelling.( The later addition of "the Optical Illusionist" came many years later as a joke referring to his use of eyeballs in his magic routines. ) For reasons unknown, Bizzaro always puts a period (.) at the end of his stage name.

Despite living in a small town, he spent a great deal of time at comic book and science fiction conventions. His parents' adult friends were his as well growing up. He kept primarily to himself in his small town with very little outside influence from the magic world. He got many of his magical supplies from the now defunct Magicland in Dallas, TX. One of the first books he got was the Klutz Book of Magic. Later would be the Amateur Magician's handbook from his school library.

Starting out as what some would call a "normal" magician, Bizzaro used gaudy painted magic props bought for his birthday as well as wearing a striped Beetljuice suit his mother made him for Halloween. It wasn't until he joined the Young Magician's Club of Dallas, that he made contact with other magicians. (It was there he met Jeb Sherrill and Kristina McKay of Kinetic Shiva fame.) During his limited time in the club, of which he was once president, he started working with unusual props as eyeball ping pong balls, skulls, and eyeball beach balls.

He moved into the adult magic club of Dallas when he was older. He did not stay there long and instead decided to spend his time with the magicians he connected with more. Being a stage magician at heart, Bizzaro started to pick up on more and more close-up magic, particularly card magic. Never giving himself over to being a rabid sleight of hand magician, Bizzaro more focused on magic that was visual, unusual, and fun.

In November of 1995, he teamed up with Jeb Sherrill to put on a stage show at one of the last Dallas Fantasy Fairs (Comic and sci-fi convention). It was during this show that he created his now trademark term and website name, SmappDooDa.

Some years later (1998) he would create a large scale stage show including costumed characters of his own design. Helpers like Masquerade, Mystique, and the inadvertent Residents tribute character, Eyesis. On the eve of 1998-1999, opening for the now defunct Tripping Daisy, he created the character Mischief. Mischief would later become his chief stage assistant, serving more as a detriment than anything else. A costumed foil for Bizzaro.'s off the wall antics.

Later he teamed up with a local Dallas magician Glenn Claxton to form a comedy magic show that was well received but also short lived as Glenn Claxton moved away for family reasons. It was immediately following that he began to work heavily on his solo stage show career creating many of the illusions and effects he performs to this day (Many of which were sparked from the Bizzaro and Claxton Comedy Show). The Bizzaro and Claxton comedy show have since returned around Dallas as well.

Now in 2006, Bizzaro is working on more of his unique illusions and has become a kind of "rebel" in the magic community. Refusing to conform to the common concepts of magic, (IE: doves, boxes, tuxedos, etc.), Bizzaro strives to stand out from the rest of the magic world and find a niche for himself and his unusual brand of magic.

Influences:

Bizzaro cites his fondness for razor blade magic from The Amazing Johnathan. Most of his magic ideas and skill have been self taught or from mere observation of other magicians with no previous knowledge of the inner workings of their magic effects. He states among his favorite performers Sylvester the Jester, Penn & Teller, Rudy Coby, and Amazing Johnathan.

Trademark/favorite magical effects:

Multiplying eyeballs, the razor blade mystery, strait jacket escape while being beaten with a metal bat, shooting a three foot flame from his zipper while on fire, shoving a rose through his hand, pulling a red scarf through his hand, swallowing a four foot balloon, and refilling an oreo cookie with creme. His most recent creation is a bag of nacho cheese flavored chips that comes to life and attacks him on stage.

Hobbies and other skills:

Bizzaro has spent much time learning different aspects of the entertainment business. For two and half years he was a Marionette puppeteer at Le Theatre de Marionette in Northpark Mall in Dallas. He also spent a few years building haunted houses with Terran Entertainment group as well as working in Haunted Verdun Manor in Forney and Terrell, TX.

Early on, Bizzaro was interested in special FX make-up and prosthetics. Watching various panels at conventions he attended and befriending FX artists and Bizzaro now incorporates his knowledge and interest in that field into his magic shows. He also presents lectures on "How to create special FX make-up on a Wal-Mart budget."

Deciding not to rely on others to create his own graphics and promotional material he learned graphic design, video editing, and website design. He now freelances in those areas from time to time as well.

Notable Appearances:

Bizzaro has appeared on National Television , local news and newspapers. He has performed for Gene Simmons, appeared on MTV, and has also traveled with a sideshow across the East coast.

Misc:

Bizzaro has released a book entitled "Helter Shelter" describing various ways to perform the classic Razor Blade Mystery. He is a reverend in the Church of the Sub-genius and Acolytus Ocularus in the Cult of the Eye. He has performed Stage effects and pyrotechnics for such bands as Alex Can't Sleep and Shadow Reichenstein.

References

www.smappdooda.com

myspace.com/smappdooda

myspace.com/firecatstudios

http://www.magictimes.com/archives/2003/2003-10_20-26.html ("Bizzaro presents his "Optical Illusionist and Mischief" for the fifth consecutive year at the SCREAMS Haunted Theme Park in Waxahachie, Texas on Oct. 24-25 with three shows per night.(10/23)")

http://www.usenet.com/newsgroups/rec.arts.anime.info/msg00005.html

http://stonestreettheatre.blogspot.com/2006/12/bizzaro-dbs-music-americana-this.html