Gene Poinc, contrary to some accounts; was a mere mortal man of flesh and blood, the same as you and I.   His all too sad and real death attests to that.  But rather than being an ordinary fellow; he distinguished himself by being extraordinary!  He had extraordinary creativity and sensitivity as well.

Talented in the arts of painting, writing, and of course conjuring; Gene was very generous in sharing his gifts.  With a sometimes sly /wry , pixie -like sense of humor, he had the capacity to really make you think.  In the all too brief time I knew the man, I discovered what true friendship is.  Not only was he an endearing soul, he was a man of principle.  Someone you could trust.  A rare trait these days. Will I miss him and the direction he gave my life?   Would miss I the air I breathe?

Gene claimed to come from another planet. At one point he also said he lived on Mount Olympus.  I chided him, and suggested he change his name to KOMO,  King Of Mount Olympus.  He countered by naming me  that which I now prefer to call myself; KOTAH, King Of The Ant Hill <g>.  When Gene would summarily tear apart a story I happened to be writing; with his incessant 'suggestions' , which he claimed would make it better:  I gave him a new name; PITA, Pain in The Ass.  Gene roared at this; and our friendship was from that point firmly cemented.

Jack Shea

As a subscriber to Genii I knew of the name that was connected to the wonderful cartoons that playfully jabbed at the silliness of many magicians and their foibles.

I don't remember exactly which email digest I wrote to about an idea of mine and the oddity I created from a boring standard prop. I was bowled over by getting a wonderful letter full of praise and additional ideas from Gene.

We wrote occasionally and his wonderful sense of humor and his creative spirit would fill me with joy. I always felt blessed by his generosity toward a relative unknown and his words of encouragement were taken and well used. I will always treasure his friendship and will miss his presence in this digest. I too will watch carefully for his reincarnation and there will probably be words and gestures that will appear to some of us as he helps us to carry on his irreverent but realistic humor.

Karl Bartoni.

Although knowing of Gene Poinc for many years, it was not until his writings of the Strange Eyed Twins appeared on the Shadow Digest, that we actually came into contact with each other. This began when I started replying to these young monsters ladies. When I received on of Gene's special Christmas cards in 2000, I knew that he regarded me as one of his many friends. During 2002, our emailing became more frequent and I spoke to him over the telephone several times when he was having major problems with his eyes and then his hospital stay.

Through our personal chats, I discovered his warmth, sincerity and kindness as well as his love for his 'fellow man'. However, it was quite plain that he did not suffer fools lightly. He was at times quite emotional when recounting occurrences which happened many years ago, and it was plain through this that he was a very sensitive person.

He loved being part of the Shadow Digest and although some there wrangled with him from time to time, Gene loved and lived for the Digest and the many appreciative friends he met there. He had had to give up so many of his artistic pleasures owing to illness, that his computer and internet connection to so many people and friends had given him a new interest and purpose in life. So much so, that during the early part of his final hospital stay, he confided in me that the doctors had said that he needed treatments and surgery for his heart and he was fighting against this, mainly because the drugs needed for this would thin his blood and probably result in the loss of his already seriously poor and ill eyesight. He said that without them and the ability to communicate via his computer, having a new heart would be pointless. I don't know for sure but I think that it was only because Larry White came up with a solution to this problem, that Gene let the doctors have their way.

Gene will live on in my heart and the many others who came into contact with him, in so many ways, he was very SPECIAL.