| The Captain's Bio |
James Madison Light III was born and raised in Greensboro, N.C. As a young lad Jim had a creative imagination. He always
enjoyed Drama class in school, acting and performing for others. A magic kit was given to Jim when he was around 7 years old
by his parents. He would practice and perform for his family. He must have gotten his confidence in performing in front of
others from growing up listening to the radio and his D.J. Dad. Jim would even perform for children at the elementary school
where his talented mother taught. Also, as a young budding performer, puppets and guitar playing were added to many of his
performances. He really enjoyed making others smile at a young age. His imagination stretched as far as pretending to be a
preacher like his Grandfather, speaking uplifting words of wisdom. Little did he realize, like many of us, that one day what was
formed in childhood would later in life come into play.
When it came time for Jim to spread his wings and leave the nest he packed up many of his things and set sail on his
journeys in life. While his childhood endeavors lay dormant, Jim decided to pursue the construction field... both of his
Grandfathers were carpenters. He enjoyed being creative with building materials and turning them into a creation that would
please his customers. He started at the bottom with a company and by his late 20's was working for himself. A real
entrepreneur! Moving around from place to place, he would unpack boxes that he had carried with him from home. He would
run across his old magic kit and framed words of wisdom that his mother had put together for him as a young lad. He then
would claim a place on the wall for them to hang again. These words in a picture frame he would read few and far between.
Nevertheless they were a foundation for him to draw inner strength from ....to sail on even when the waters of life got rough.
On June 6th 2000 as he was navigating his small vessel (a motorcycle) through the night air. A larger vessel (a truck)
came out from a side road not seeing him and crashed into him severely damaging his lower right leg. Would Jim survive
these rough waters, physically and emotionally? The hospital gave him a couple of options. One would be to spend several
years with reconstruction to his leg. Many operations taking various parts of muscle and bone from other areas of his body
with no guarantee of the out come. The second option being amputation. Jim did a lot of praying and soul searching for the
inner strength to make the right decision. Jim chose amputation. He did not believe the first option would give him the better
quality of life.
While recuperating at home he wondered what he would do the rest of his life for a living. Concerned that construction
work would be too hard on him. Jim must have gone to a place deep in his mind. Unlocking some creative doors, he
envisioned a character with a peg leg...a pirate...wait...a magical Pirate! He dug up his old magic kit and started purchasing
more tricks along with Pirate attire. Jim got creative with one of his prosthetic legs, removing the foot and installing a metal
pylon and rubber stopper creating a peg leg. He practiced, practiced, practiced then started performing at his friend's
children's parties. Then friends of friends till his character took off and restaurants starting hiring him. Once this happened,
Jim realized that this character he had created had now created a career for him.
Jim's childhood endeavors were now a major part of his life again bringing ideas and exciting journeys. This Ole' Magical
Pirate now known all around as Captain Jim gives a tremendous amount of credit to his Award Winning, Creative Mother who
was an elementary school teacher and his very Wise, Dynamic Dad who was a well known radio personalty the "Night Light" at
WBIG. You truly are a product of your parents!
Captain Jim now performs for a wide varitiy of events such as: restaurants, private parties, schools, churches, festivals.....
entertaining all ages and making others smile just like he enjoyed doing as a child. After Captain Jim's Magical Performance,
children and adults alike are uplifted and entertained by his amazing magic and inspirational words of wisdom. Captain Jim
says, "I love working with children, they are our future. It is a joy to entertain, inspire and educate them. I want to make a
difference and be a positive piece of their childhood that they remember as an adult..... and maybe, just maybe I can even
make a positive difference in an adult's life too. This was my fate from the beginning when I was named Jim. J.I.M. stands for
Jim Is Magic."
enjoyed Drama class in school, acting and performing for others. A magic kit was given to Jim when he was around 7 years old
by his parents. He would practice and perform for his family. He must have gotten his confidence in performing in front of
others from growing up listening to the radio and his D.J. Dad. Jim would even perform for children at the elementary school
where his talented mother taught. Also, as a young budding performer, puppets and guitar playing were added to many of his
performances. He really enjoyed making others smile at a young age. His imagination stretched as far as pretending to be a
preacher like his Grandfather, speaking uplifting words of wisdom. Little did he realize, like many of us, that one day what was
formed in childhood would later in life come into play.
When it came time for Jim to spread his wings and leave the nest he packed up many of his things and set sail on his
journeys in life. While his childhood endeavors lay dormant, Jim decided to pursue the construction field... both of his
Grandfathers were carpenters. He enjoyed being creative with building materials and turning them into a creation that would
please his customers. He started at the bottom with a company and by his late 20's was working for himself. A real
entrepreneur! Moving around from place to place, he would unpack boxes that he had carried with him from home. He would
run across his old magic kit and framed words of wisdom that his mother had put together for him as a young lad. He then
would claim a place on the wall for them to hang again. These words in a picture frame he would read few and far between.
Nevertheless they were a foundation for him to draw inner strength from ....to sail on even when the waters of life got rough.
On June 6th 2000 as he was navigating his small vessel (a motorcycle) through the night air. A larger vessel (a truck)
came out from a side road not seeing him and crashed into him severely damaging his lower right leg. Would Jim survive
these rough waters, physically and emotionally? The hospital gave him a couple of options. One would be to spend several
years with reconstruction to his leg. Many operations taking various parts of muscle and bone from other areas of his body
with no guarantee of the out come. The second option being amputation. Jim did a lot of praying and soul searching for the
inner strength to make the right decision. Jim chose amputation. He did not believe the first option would give him the better
quality of life.
While recuperating at home he wondered what he would do the rest of his life for a living. Concerned that construction
work would be too hard on him. Jim must have gone to a place deep in his mind. Unlocking some creative doors, he
envisioned a character with a peg leg...a pirate...wait...a magical Pirate! He dug up his old magic kit and started purchasing
more tricks along with Pirate attire. Jim got creative with one of his prosthetic legs, removing the foot and installing a metal
pylon and rubber stopper creating a peg leg. He practiced, practiced, practiced then started performing at his friend's
children's parties. Then friends of friends till his character took off and restaurants starting hiring him. Once this happened,
Jim realized that this character he had created had now created a career for him.
Jim's childhood endeavors were now a major part of his life again bringing ideas and exciting journeys. This Ole' Magical
Pirate now known all around as Captain Jim gives a tremendous amount of credit to his Award Winning, Creative Mother who
was an elementary school teacher and his very Wise, Dynamic Dad who was a well known radio personalty the "Night Light" at
WBIG. You truly are a product of your parents!
Captain Jim now performs for a wide varitiy of events such as: restaurants, private parties, schools, churches, festivals.....
entertaining all ages and making others smile just like he enjoyed doing as a child. After Captain Jim's Magical Performance,
children and adults alike are uplifted and entertained by his amazing magic and inspirational words of wisdom. Captain Jim
says, "I love working with children, they are our future. It is a joy to entertain, inspire and educate them. I want to make a
difference and be a positive piece of their childhood that they remember as an adult..... and maybe, just maybe I can even
make a positive difference in an adult's life too. This was my fate from the beginning when I was named Jim. J.I.M. stands for
Jim Is Magic."
| By Kim Underwood (Excerpt from article) The Life Of A Pirate Misfortune, but also magic, gave birth to Captain Jim |
| "I would say this character has been lurking in me," he said. Some people get it into their heads that the peg leg is part of his magic. "You would not believe how many people believe it's an illusion," Light said. Certainly, Light could have discovered Captain Jim without the motorcycle accident. He's not sure that he would have, though. "It was meant to be that accident that night," he said. "It changed my life for the best." |
| By Ashley Coffman (Excerpt from article) |
| "I make sure to find a fine line" between catering to the young and the adults, he said. Light admitted that he makes his acts enjoyable for all ages, not to complicated for the children, but interesting enough for the adults. |
| By Monica Young (Excerpt from article) |
| "It's amazing to people that I have taken something that was nearly fatal, something that people consider to be tragic and turned it into a blessing" Light said. |
| To all in the media that have helped to share my story. Thank you! |
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The concert was the second of three in the symphony's Concert for Kids, which is aimed at children from 4 to 13. They
joined about 1,500 other people for an afternoon that included such pre-concert, pirate opportunities as walking the plank,
getting a (temporary) tattoo, listening to a pirate adventure story and getting your photograph taken with a pirate.
The idea behind the concerts is to spice up education with fun, and kids were invited to visit with the musicians who would
be up on stage later and to try their hand at percussion and stringed instruments.
Captain Jim - the pirate magician alter ego of James Madison Light III -- strolled the lobby with his assistant-pirate-magician
sons, Skyler, 14, and Guy, 10, and soon-to-be levitated wife, Shelby.
In 2000, Captain Jim lost the lower part of his right leg after a car ran into his motorcycle.
He used to refer to his prosthetic leg as a peg leg but, after enough kids commented that it didn't look like a real wooden
peg leg, he said to himself, "I've got to do something about that," and had someone custom-make a real wooden peg leg out of
Brazilian cherry.
When the concert started, Captain Jim and crew took to the stage to provide something for everyone to see while their ears
took in selections from the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, the comic opera The Pirates of Penzance and other pirate musical
fare.
Conductor Matthew Troy asked the audience for help from time to time, and should anyone ever need a group of pirates to
roar "AAARRRGGGHHH!" or stomp their feet to simulate thunder, the person would be well-advised to reassemble this group.
When Captain Jim and crew took a break from pulling birds out of thin air and levitating pirate wives, Richard Ollarsaba, a
bass/baritone at the UNC School of the Arts, and the Acafellas Ensemble from Reynolds High School would come on stage and
help the musicians keep the energy high. The Acafellas treated the audience to the rare sight of a chorus line of pirates.
One young pirate was so impressed by it all that as his father carried him out to the car after the concert, he kept saying
that he wasn't done with the pirates. He seemed unimpressed by his parents' contention that even pirates had to go home at
some point.
joined about 1,500 other people for an afternoon that included such pre-concert, pirate opportunities as walking the plank,
getting a (temporary) tattoo, listening to a pirate adventure story and getting your photograph taken with a pirate.
The idea behind the concerts is to spice up education with fun, and kids were invited to visit with the musicians who would
be up on stage later and to try their hand at percussion and stringed instruments.
Captain Jim - the pirate magician alter ego of James Madison Light III -- strolled the lobby with his assistant-pirate-magician
sons, Skyler, 14, and Guy, 10, and soon-to-be levitated wife, Shelby.
In 2000, Captain Jim lost the lower part of his right leg after a car ran into his motorcycle.
He used to refer to his prosthetic leg as a peg leg but, after enough kids commented that it didn't look like a real wooden
peg leg, he said to himself, "I've got to do something about that," and had someone custom-make a real wooden peg leg out of
Brazilian cherry.
When the concert started, Captain Jim and crew took to the stage to provide something for everyone to see while their ears
took in selections from the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, the comic opera The Pirates of Penzance and other pirate musical
fare.
Conductor Matthew Troy asked the audience for help from time to time, and should anyone ever need a group of pirates to
roar "AAARRRGGGHHH!" or stomp their feet to simulate thunder, the person would be well-advised to reassemble this group.
When Captain Jim and crew took a break from pulling birds out of thin air and levitating pirate wives, Richard Ollarsaba, a
bass/baritone at the UNC School of the Arts, and the Acafellas Ensemble from Reynolds High School would come on stage and
help the musicians keep the energy high. The Acafellas treated the audience to the rare sight of a chorus line of pirates.
One young pirate was so impressed by it all that as his father carried him out to the car after the concert, he kept saying
that he wasn't done with the pirates. He seemed unimpressed by his parents' contention that even pirates had to go home at
some point.
| By Kim Underwood Published: January 17, 2010 (Excerpts from article) |
| Captain Jim - Rave reviews once again! Second year performing with the Winston Salem, NC Symphony. "Graceful and charismatic, the Captain performs amazing and exciting professional illusions while accompanied by the Symphony. Packing the Williams Auditorium at Winston Salem State University with over 1500 people. Children and adults alike were thoroughly entertained by this magical, musical moment." |