To illustrate the evolution of a trick from the idea stage to full production, Burton explained the genesis of "The Magic Zone," one of his show's featured acts. In the "Zone," a cast of characters appear and disappear in rapid-fire sequence in a small telephone booth centered in a unique street setting. Burton plays a doctor, complete with white coat, and is accompanied by an attractive, leggy blonde. "The segment is six minutes long and we worked on it for three or four years," Burton said. "It's a very complicated number, with lots of people involved. I worked the trick out on paper, had props built, then had some rebuilt. It was very difficult because there were a number of very quick vanishes and reappearances."

The trick was first tried with a phone booth placed in front of a curtain on an otherwise empty stage. When the trick clicked with the audience, an elaborate set was built to showcase the segment.

Burton has said he might be driving a tractor back in Kentucky if it hadn't been for magician Harry Collins. Burton was attending a Christmas party with his family in his hometown of Louisville in 1965 when Collins, the featured attraction, called him on stage to be his foil for a few magic tricks. Collins began pulling silver dollars from behind Burton's ears and he thought, what a great way to make money ... you just take it from midair. From that moment on, Burton was hooked.

Burton began honing his skills at neighborhood parties before he graduated to the big time: appearing with the late Johnny Carson 10 times, with Carson calling him "the best magician I've ever seen."

Burton stopped through Las Vegas for an eight-week engagement in 1992, then signed on for a five-year run at the old Hacienda Hotel, which was later imploded to make way for Mandalay Bay. In 1996 he signed an unprecedented 13-year contract to headline in his own theater at Monte Carlo, which became an instant hit and has grown to be one of the flashiest, most entertaining productions in a city known as the entertainment capital of the world.