The waitress poses this question to our narrator while still jotting down his order on an old notepad. Even though she’s prob- ably asked that question tens of thousands of times at the diner, there’s still a warmth to it. Our narrator is about to respond that the order is finished when he notices the kind of pen the waitress is holding.
Glancing at the pen, our magician asks the waitress, “Is that one of those early- 2000s Bic pens?” Confused but also intrigued, the waitress hands the pen over. Examining the pen closely, the magician nods and seems excited. Ah, the little things.
Pulling off the cap, our narrator explains. “A lot of these pens were recalled
because they dried out too quickly. Not just the ink on the inside, but the ink on the out- side, too.” Slowly but surely, the familiar BIC logo on the side of the pen begins to fade away until it’s completely gone.
In one last ditch effort to save the ink, our narrator heroically recaps the pen just in time for the logo to reappear. Reclaim- ing the pen, the waitress slowly meanders back to the kitchen to both put in the order and build a shrine around the pen.
Explanation: Performing Mute does
require a gimmick, but it’s one that can be easily carried around or created on the fly. To create the Mute gimmick, take a white drinking straw (Subway straws work well) and cut off about a three-inch portion. Cut a single straight line up the barrel of the
straw and flatten it out just a bit. This gim- mick should easily slide onto any standard ballpoint pen.
Borrow a white pen with a small logo (such as a classic BIC pen) and, as you act surprised by what kind of pen it is, secretly slide the Mute gimmick (with the slit at the back) about a centimeter up the barrel of the pen (with the rest of the gimmick hang- ing off). Display the pen by holding it in your right hand, your right thumb covering the gimmick (Figs. 1).
While talking about the ink drying out, remove the cap with your left hand and put it in your pocket (or in your lap, if you’re sitting at a table). The left thumb now holds the pen just above the BIC logo (Fig.
2). The right hand now turns around and
uses the first and second fingers to slide the Mute gimmick over the logo and under the left thumb. Done smoothly, it should look like the logo visually fades to about fifty percent of its clarity (Fig. 3).
While still holding onto the pen with your left thumb and forefinger, rotate the palm of your left hand around the pen (so the back of your hand is to the audience.) Now comes the part where the logo visibly fades away into nothing. The first finger and thumb of both hands should now be holding the pen right around the logo (cov- ering where the gimmick ends on each side). Using the thumbs as anchors to hold the gimmick to the pen, the two index fin- gers now work to slowly push the gimmick forward and away from the pen. The fur- ther the gimmick gets away from the pen, the more the logo will vanish (Fig. 4-5).
Once the logo has almost completely faded away, the left hand comes off the pen as the right hand turns the pen over (to dis- play the side with no logo). While keeping
the pen in motion (so as to not let the audi- ence see the opening of the Mute gim- mick), the right hand performs the paddle move, seemingly showing both sides to be completely blank. After performing the paddle move once or twice, mention that you might be able to recap the pen in time to save the ink.
With the left hand now holding the pen, your right hand now reaches for the cap. On its way to the pocket (or your lap, if that’s where you placed the cap earlier), the right hand secretly slides the Mute gimmick off of the pen and ditches it as it retrieves the cap and brings it into view.
Finally, replace the cap on the pen and perform the paddle move one more time. State that you “think you recapped it just in time” as your left hand rubs the barrel of the pen. In the same action, your right hand twists the pen 180 degrees showing the logo has reappeared.
Notes: Credit for this one goes to my
friend Mark Tirone for the concept. I carry a Mute gimmick in my messenger bag and my jacket. However, I have quickly made a gimmick in food courts (carefully) with a pocket knife and a straw.
This column is all about situational magic. If you have anything that you could see our narrator perform in his next escapade, I’d love to see it! Please email it over to [email protected] and I’d be happy to check it out!
Épistémentalogie
Dr. Todd Landman. Available from www.lulu.com/
spotlight/drtoddlandman, Hardcover, 120 pages.
$65.68.
It has been a while since a magic book has made me really think about magic and compel me to re-evaluate how I perceive things and how I perform. Dr. Todd Land- man is the Executive Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Essex, Founder of the British Society of Mystery Entertainers, and Visiting Profes- sor of Performance Magic at the Universi- ty of Huddersfield. In Épistémentalogie, he asserts that contemporary mainstream mentalism, and even bizarre magicians, have explained away the mystery of magic.
He says that too often effects are pre- sented with a “let me you show how it’s done” plot or with a weak psychological premise that damages the art. The biggest failure is that presentations are made with- out any real-life experiences that make
connections with an audience. Bizarre magick is relying too much on the occult, with which many people do not connect.
Landman’s solution is a presentation philosophy that brings “a re-enchantment to mystery entertainment, while at the same time grounding it in ‘lived experi- ences’ of the audience…giving a sense of meaning that is framed around perennial philosophical questions.” Épistémentalo-
gie draws from epistemology (the theory
of knowledge), philosophy of science, metaphysics, and the history of ideas to redefine mentalism, bizarre magic, and the mystery arts. It’s thought provoking, to say the least.
Have you ever looked at your magic from the perspective of “How do you as the performer know what you know?” Your spectators ask themselves that every time you do an effect. Landman says knowl- edge comes to us from experience, percep- tion, and observation combined with, among other things, our cultural beliefs and our faith. How you frame your per- sona, presentation, set design, and the actual magic effect along these lines deter- mines your credibility with the audience. The end result is that, if you take all this into account, your performance instantly becomes more credible and more impact- ful.
A dozen detailed effects and presenta- tions that Landman has performed over the last thirty-five years explain each nuance of Épistémentalogie. Interestingly, the effects are well within the range of those who have intermediate magic skills. The book is going to help you think and define
Associate Editor’s Note: More reviews can be found this month, from “Fat Brothers 2” to “Pinky Swear” at www.magician.org and at Ring 2100, www.ring2100.org.
every aspect of your magic from your per- sona and props to the mood you set and the impact you want to have.
You won’t be able to read the book in one sitting. I am a quick study and absorb concepts easily, but I found myself read- ing, thinking, questioning, and then read- ing a section again, not because I had to, but because it made sense and I wanted to understand it better.
Highly recommended.
Rolando H. Santos
Flown Away
Paul Romhany and Jasper Blakeley. PRO-Mentalism. Available from Your Favorite Dealer. Wholesale from Murphy’s Magic Supplies. www.murphysmagic.com. 74 pages. $39.95.
No magic props, a simple and well-con- cealed method, an easy-to-follow story- line, and the freedom to concentrate on an entertaining presentation: these elements constitute a perfect mentalism effect, and
Flown Away delivers on all of them.
British magician Jasper Blakely developed the basic method and the effect for which the featured routine and book are named. The book is co-authored and published by Paul Romhany, the well-known New Zeal- and magician, author, and businessman. The book comes with a DVD that offers three separate live presentations of Flown
Away by Mr. Blakeley.
In “Flown Away,” the title routine, the mentalist hands a spectator a folder con- taining fifty advertising sheets describing fifty different destinations for a trip by air. The spectator freely selects a destination while the mentalist has his or her back
turned, and then returns the unselected forty-nine brochures to the folder. The mentalist has the spectator insert the selected travel destination brochure into an envelope and seal it closed with a bulldog clip. The mentalist then uses a second bull- dog clip to hang the envelope containing the selected destination in full view of the audience.
The spectator is asked to take out an insurance policy before traveling and place it in his or her pocket. The spectator is then instructed to fly to and land at the selected destination. The mentalist announces where the spectator has landed. The mentalist is wrong; Blakeley plays this for laughs. The spectator is instructed to try again. This time the mentalist announces the destination correctly as ver- ified by the spectator and by the contents of the envelope, which has hung in full view the entire time. The spectator is then asked to remove the insurance policy and read what is printed on it. The policy not only predicts the correct destination, but also mentions arriving first at the incorrect des- tination.
All three of the performances of the rou- tine contained on the DVD were per- formed in comedy-club venues and in a style that most of my own audiences would find a bit too vulgar. Luckily, the basic rou- tine is so strong, flexible, and foolproof that each performer can routine it to fit her or his own style.
The well-written book clearly explains the method and gives detailed instructions on constructing the needed gimmicks. The paper products needed are described in ISO International-size standards common- ly in use just about everywhere except North America. This should be no problem as these sizes are available in the United States, Canada, or Mexico, or you can rescale to North American standards.
The book also contains Blakeley’s full patter, along with suggested gags and per- formance tips. A very valuable part of the book is five additional routines using the basic method. These include versions for a
children’s show, a trade-show version, and my favorite, “Who Dunnit,” written by Romhany, which is based on the mystery game, Cluedo (known as Clue in the Unit- ed States).
All and all, Flown Away describes an excellent set of mentalism routines utiliz- ing a single method that is clever, well hid- den, and packs flat. It takes but an innocent instant of time to do the secret work. I’m definitely adding this to my kit bag.
Highly recommended. Rucj Uffelman
Joined
Dario Capuzzo. Titanas Magic Productions. and
The Answer
Ron Salamangkero. World Magic Shop. Both avail- able from Your Favorite Dealer. Wholesale from Murphy’s Magic Supplies. www.murphysmagic.com. $30 each.
Joined and The Answer are both Torn
and Restored Card effects. I feel it is best to compare and contrast them in a single review. They cost the same, and both are single-trick DVDs. The Answer comes in a cardboard sleeve, Joined in a plastic DVD case. Both are taught with captions instead of voiceover, but are still clearly ex- plained.
Trailers for both effects are available online, and you should watch them both. I don’t think lay audiences would see a dif-
ference in performance. You have a card signed on its face, fold it in half lengthwise and widthwise to crease it, and then rip it into four pieces. You then repair the card, one piece at a time, and return the restored card to the spectator. Both offerings require the use of your pockets. This is not much of an issue in a standup situation, but if you have a table handy, there may be some question as to why you don’t use it instead of your pockets.
Joined has two handlings: one for an
unsigned card and another for a more advanced handling for a signed card. Both versions require the same amount of skill, though the unsigned version has an easier setup and is maybe a little cleaner.
The offerings differ in their preparation.
Joined has the easier setup and requires
just a sharp knife and a straight edge. Dou- ble-sided tape is required for the signed version. The Answer requires splitting a portion of the card, rubber cement, a knife, and a straight-edge.
Joined can be gaffed more quickly. If
you are not performing the signed version, you can have many gaffed cards in the deck unnoticed. If I were performing this regularly, I’d make two templates and apply the work in less than a minute. The
Answer requires over five minutes to make
the cards described on the DVD. With practice, I think you could bring this down to three to four minutes per card, plus time for the rubber cement to dry. The Answer gaff is thicker than a normal card and needs to be rung in just before performing.
The restored Joined card can be left with the spectator. The restored Answer card has some areas that have been treated with rubber cement. While it can be handed out for examination, I would be reluctant to leave it with spectators.
Both effects are amazing and will leave your spectator with no idea how they are done. If I were going to perform this regu- larly, I’d opt for Joined due to the simplic- ity of preparation, but you won’t be disappointed with either one.
Light Speed
Perseus Arkomanis. Alakazam Magic. Available from Your Favorite Dealer. Wholesale from Mur- phy’s Magic Supplies. www.murphysmagic.com. $35.
Reading the text on the DVD case, where nearly every statement ends in an exclamation point, might lead you to believe that Light Speed is the ultimate magic technique that will instantly elevate amateur performers to professionals and earn professionals a reserved spot on Mount Olympus. It is a very nice piece of work, but it doesn’t quite live up to that level of hype.
The DVD is primarily (ninety percent) about sleeving coins. It is a great treatise on how to sleeve and offers good explana- tions of several very nice routines that make use of your new skills. Although some of the scripting needs a bit of polish for an English-speaking audience, the rou- tines are straightforward and practical. Some brief discussion of sleeving marking pens and cutlery is also included, along with a few helpful practice drills to perfect your technique. Since the routines are mostly with coins, some additional sleights are necessary to perform them. Brief explanations for these are included for completeness, but they do not distract from the DVD’s focus on sleeving. Expla- nations are provided for the Classic Palm, Shuttle Pass, Utility Switch, Bobo Switch, and Strike Vanish. Although the effects included are not new, the addition of Arko- manis’s methods does add a fresh approach that enhances the effect of some classic routines, including Copper Silver, Coin through Bottle, Coin through Table, and One Coin Routine.
I did feel that some aspects of the pro- duction of this DVD were lacking, howev- er. There was no appreciable introduction to the DVD, some of the sequencing was a bit odd, and a few of the segments seemed to lack context. I expected better from Alakazam.
Overall, the DVD provides a good intro- duction to sleeving, one of the great clas- sic, solid techniques of magic. It also includes several very practical routines. It’s definitely worth your consideration.
Recommended. Pete Majkowski
Patrified
Patrick Kun. SansMinds. Available from Your Favorite Dealer. Wholesale from Murphy’s Magic Supplies. www.murphysmagic.com. $34.95.
Patrick Kun is a skilled cardician, and watching him perform is nothing short of amazing. He has great chops, and much of his material is not for the faint of heart. That said, he is also a great teacher and shows you each move with painstaking detail. He breaks down each routine and effect with superb camera work and thor- ough explanations. Most of the sleights can be learned with practice, if you put in the time. There is one sleight I don’t think I will ever be able to do, and I will point it out below. All that said, Patrick Kun is about as good with a deck of cards as any- one out there and will fool magicians as well as laymen.
There are seven effects on the DVD and just as many sleights introduced along the way. The first effect, Be-Tween Produc- tion, requires the sleight I will probably never be able to master with any consisten- cy, but it is a thing of beauty to behold when Patrick does it. Basically, he holds
two jokers side-jogged in one hand and causes a signed card to fly out of the deck from his other hand, and it ends up trapped instantaneously between those two jokers
invisibly. If you are willing to put in the
time, you will blow anyone away with this one move.
The next effect is his PK Double. This is a great utility move, a one-handed double lift that will never be suspected when mas- tered. It also will take a lot of practice and a knack to do it consistently. Kun has great courage starting out his DVD with his two most difficult sleights right up front. It does get easier from here, so don’t eject the DVD too quickly.
Inflict Evolved is a fantastic move that most will be able to master, and it gives you a tremendous utility sleight for your repertoire. A chosen card changes between two jokers visibly. They will rub their eyes when you perform this – and you will per- form this! Center Point Retouch allows a chosen card to visibly shoot or appear between two face-up mates that have been