PBS Premieres Documentary Produced by Alicia Sams

At 10PM on January 23, Ricky Jay: Deceptive Practice will premiere on “American Masters,” one of PBS’ most lauded nonfiction series.  The documentary is produced by Alicia Sams, accomplished filmmaker and a producer/director at DB Productions.

Ricky Jay is a world-renowned magician, author, historian and actor (often a mischievous presence in the films of David Mamet and Paul Thomas Anderson). Ricky Jay: Deceptive Practice traces Jay’s achievements and influences, from his apprenticeship at age 4 with his grandfather, to such now-forgotten legends as Al Flosso, Slydini, Cardini and his primary mentors, Dai Vernon and Charlie Miller. Featuring rare footage from his 1970s TV appearances (doing 3-card Monte with Steve Martin on The Dinah Shore Show), this is a remarkable journey inside the secretive world of magic and the small circle of eccentrics who are its perpetual devotees.

Alicia says of the experience, “Diving into the world of Ricky Jay and his mentors has been a fascinating journey and I am thrilled that American Masters has recognized him as the national treasure that he is.”

At DB Productions, Alicia Sams has produced a short film about the New Teachers Project in Santa Cruz, directed and produced short films separately for the American Hospital Association and for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation on quality improvements in health care.

We congratulate Alicia on this remarkable film and its exciting premiere!

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