Eugene Burger - Audience Involvement Lecture

(1)

.•. a lecture

b

y

EUGENE

B

URGER

]

(2)

- - ~)"n ' . "..',

A

'/'"

. / . : t , (1) PRESENTATION

The great danger in 1i steni ng to 1ectures

is that we are only listening to words, only

listening to the other fellow talk and show his

magic, and not making any real progress of our

own -- and that, after all, is what is

impor-tant; making my own progress toward ... what?

What are my goals?

What am I seeking to accomplish? What results do I wish to attain?

If the goal of performing (whether on the

trapeze, the guitar, or with a pack of trained

seals) is to entertain people, the goal of

magical performers ought to be to entertain them

through deception. Notice that the word

"enter-tain" comes before the word "deception.II This

isn1t simply a trick of sentence construction or

a play on words; it points to a primary fact

recognized by almost all magicians who earn

their entire "living" (meaning "moneyll ... hnmn

••• ) performing magic.

Close-up magic as performed by many

ama-teurs is deceptive but not very entertaining.

Energy has been put into constructing the decep-tion, but not enough energy and thought and work

has been put into constructing an entertaining

eresentation within which they might, as we say,

cloak the hoax.1I

And, hoaxes, I submit, really ought to be

cloaked with something.

(3)

-ItIS more fun that way! Not only for your

audiences but, hopefully, for you. Persentation

is that poi nt where you put .YQii'rse1f into your magi c.

Even if your presentations tend toward the "Now I'm going to do this; now I am going to do that" format, your lines must be rehearsed and

spoken as i f you were saying something

impor-tant -- something worth the spectator's time and attention.

Consequently, the style of close-up

presen-tation which I personally least enjoy is one

which we see all too often -- and which might be

called: "11

m doing this as a throw-away so that

if you catch me it won't be such a big deal.1I

I

enjoy thi s least because (among other reasons)

when one sees i t , it does not appea r to ha ve

been so much consciously chosen by the performer but, rather, to be the inevitable result of too

little rehearsal. According to IIBurger's First

Law: II Too many performers practice the moves

but forget to rehearse the show!

-You must practice the parts and rehearse

the whole. You must practice the moves, the

sleights, the various physical maneuvers until

your fingers can do them smoothly and without

awkwa rdne s

s,

Now you've learned the trick -- and the

work (and, hopefully, the fun) is about to

beQTn.

If one is a silent performer, the trick

generally must now be choreographed to musiC; if one is a speaking performer, the trick must now

be choreographed to what you wi 11 ~ (your

4

-•

script). Expecting to be "inspired :''' the spot"

regarding your script shows very little ~espect

for your audences!

Much lik: a dance or a dramatic play, the

close-up mag' cal performer's movements and

act ions are choreographed to the words he wi11

use in performance. And it is this which needs

to be rehearsed. This interaction of the

per-former's actions and handling of his prODS on

the one hand and his words on the other ~- and

the surprises which are thereby generated -- is

the show. Agai n, the show must be rehearsed':""

Of course, the close-up performer's script needs to be flexible and open rather than rigid

and closed. This is required because of the

intimacy of the performing situation wherein

spectators often will talk to each other and to

you. In t he context of such i nt i macy, I ha ve

found the following to be a helpful rule of

thumb: If you expect spectators to be attentive

to you, you must, in turn, be attentive to them. Close-up performers need to listen to what their spectators are saying -- so they can respond to them.

One eveni og I went on a tour of a few of

Chi cago' s many magic spots with my fri end and

former partner in the Spirit Theatre Company,

Denni s Rook. Afterward, Denni s remarked: Quite

a few of the magicians we saw tonight related to audiences as if they were only technical neces-sities -- needed to select cards, remember them

and say IGreat job!' to the performer at th~

finish. 1I

How true. Yet much of the fun of close-up

mag;c for spectators is that ; t ; s close-up __

(4)

-Play with them. Have fun yourself.

But lest you think 11

m preaching, let me say that I'm only telling you how I approach my

own work. I agree with leo Buscagl i a when he

said: "Beware of giving advice. Wise men don't

need it and fools won't heed it."

Allowing the spotlight to drift occasional-ly to a spectator (when this is not done for

purposes of humiliation and/or embarrassment)

is not only gracious, it is theatrically wise.

We ar~ creating a magical context of mystery and

fun and surpri se and play and, in thi s

con-text, audience involvement can enhance your

presentation and deepen the impact you have as a performer.

and that they may, therefore, participate all

the more fully in what is happening.

People enjoy getting involved. They want

thi s to be fun. They mi ght even talk and 1augh

and joke with you.

Don

vt

give them dirty looks. And, please

don It treat them as if they were "hecklers!"

(How aWful!}

(2) TOP CHANGE

I was taught this effect, step-by-step.

when I was sixteen or seventeen years old by

Alex Berecz , a magician-bartender at Dix and

Norb's Magic Inn. a Chicago magic bar popular in

the 1950's. Because the effect is little more

than theatrical dressing around a top change --a sleight which I --assumed w--as terribly difficult to execute -- I consequently made hard work of

the lessons. Alex, however, was a patient

teacher and slowly got me to

see

that what is

important here -- and what makes it all

decep-ti ve -- is not primariIy what your hands and

fingers are doing, but the situation you are

creat i ng through your words. your eyes, your

gestures. and your interactions with your

audi-ence. Once thi s i s rea1i zed, the top change

rather does itself -- and you just help it

a long.

I confess thi s i s one of the cornerstone

effects in my card work for laymen. I perform

it all the time. It allows me to get peoplets

names and talk with them. I perform the effect

sitting at a table, standing behind a bar, or

standi ng in the mi ddl e of a cocktai1 party or

hospitality suite with spectators completely

surrounding me. People simply will not see the

exchange of the cards if their attention is on the two spectators who are in the spotlight. Yet the exchange is done boldly -- right under their

noses. Perhaps this is why I like it.

*

Routine

"Do you ever do card tricks?" I ask a

spec-tator on my ri ght. Go with the answer. "We11 ,

6

(5)

9

-I hold the card so that it faces John and

look

at

Mary

and say somewhat

triumphantly,

"Wouldn't l't""be amazing

if

John did find your

card?"

Mary usually admits thatlt would be

amazing.

I tip the card back so that I can see its

face.

fl\y

right hand continues moving -- and

crosses over to show the card to Mary.

Before

Mary can say anything, I say:

"You picked the

four of Hearts (or whatever) ••• "

My right hand

immediately (but not quickly) moves back so that

it is held about seven or eight inches in front

of my body -- and about waist high.

At this

point, I am looking Mary directly in the eyes

--as

I

continue

the

last

sentence,

"...

and

that's exactly the card at which John stopped!"

It is during these final words that the top

change is executed.

As I say these last words,

my left hand crosses in front of my right,

con-tinues its movement and finishes pointing

dir-ectly at John -- as if for emphasis.

Duringthe

crossover, the exchange is done.

The left thumb

pushes the top selected card about one-half inch

to the right.

The card in the ri ght hand is

held between the thumb and fi rst finger. The

first

and second fingers

of

the

right hand

separate so that the selected card can be fed

between them by the left thumb.

The left thumb

immediately lifts slightly upward so that the

card in the right hand can be taken onto the top

of the deck.

AND THE HAND KEEPS MOVING until it

comes to a stop -- pointing at John for

em-phasis.

this is a card trick that you will do.

May I

ask your name?"

---Spectator replies his name is John.

"Well,

Jobn, I hope you're lucky tonight."

Turning to a spectator on my left, I ask

her name.

She replies it is Mary.

UMary, I

want you to select one of these cards.

Show it

to everyone except John and me.

Now, John,

don't peek!

We're all watching you!"

(Indeed!

If everyone continues watching John and Mary, if

you continue to keep them in the spotlight, no

one wi 11

~

see the exchange!)

Mary

shows her card and replaces it 1n the

deck.

I maintain a break above the card with

~

left fourth finger.

"John, tell

us the truth:

Did you see

Mary's card?"

As everyone looks at John for his

reply,

I execute a pass which brings the

se-lected card to the top. Alternatively, if one of

the spectators is staring unmercifully at the

deck, I will "absent mindedly" double undercut

the card to the top.

This needs to be done as

if it has no bearing whatever on the proceedings

-- and without shame or guilt.

I turn toward John and slowly riffle the

cards.

"I'll do that again and you say 'Stop!'

wherever you 1ike. "

If I feel playful, I might riffle the deck

so rapidly that

it

is finished before he says

anythi ng at all.

"Thi sis a motor skill:

You

must coordinate with me!"

The point

t

s that I

play with the spectators here and keep it light.

John finally succeeds in stopping me and I take

the card in my right hand -- keeping the deck in

my left.

8

-One other point:

made, the left hand, in

toward John, moves more

stops, pointing at John.

Once the exchange is

continuing its movement

sharply upward until it

(6)

The whole routine needs to be rehearsed --from beg; nni ng to end. The words which you are us; ng for the exchange must fit into the frame-work of the rest of the script you a~e usinq,

During rehearsal t talk out loud to lmaglnary

spectators.

During per-f'ormance , I am seeking to have fun with John and Mary and the other specta-tors -- and I wi 11 allow the situation to de-velop as it wi 11 -- knowing that I can always get back "on track" with my script. Remember, the reactions and responses which you are able to elicit from John and Mary greatly enhance the show. The magical change of the cards is but the "topper" to the situation -- John's. atte~t ing to find Mary's card -- a

sttuat ton

WhlCh should be fun and entertaining in and of itself. Mary may get a bit confused and look to

others for support as she tells me that this was not her card.

I tell John that I am a little disappointed with his card trick -- and then ask him to blow on the card. I turn it over and show that it has changed to Mary's card.

Once the surprise has begun to subside, I repeat the exchange as follows. I look at Mary, smile, and say, ItYou didn't think that John

could do it, did you?1t As these words are begun, the right hand (with the card) gestures for emphasis toward Mary. When I get to the name "John- in the script, the left hand is moving to point to John -- and the card is exchanged in the process.

-Here, John, blow on it again. 1t I look at Mary and turn the card over -- showing it has now changed back to the first card -- and say, -You see, itls never what you think!" I give the card to Mary so that she can touch it --and, in the process, see that it is not prepared (Which, interestingly, is often suspected by spectators).

Notes

I want to discuss this effect not only because it has a very hi gh impact upon laymen but also because it shows us what we need to practice and what we need to rehearse. The physi ca

1

act i on of the exchange of the two cards needs to be practiced -- repeated over and over and over unti 1 it can be done smoothly and

ef-fortlessly, without strain. •

- 10 - ~

*

11

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(7)

(3) BRAIN-WAVED

Why another version of the Brainwave Deck? Certainly any self-respecting magician ought to

be satisfied with the original Vernon version

or, shou 1d he for some reason prefer a

face-down card appearing in a face-up pack, Joe

Berg's Ultra Mental Deck.

Performing as I do in public places where

both local and visiting magicians often drop in

to see a little magic, it appealed to me to

develop a version wherein both sides of the deck

coul d be di sp 1ayed at tfl'eTi ni she Thi s has

caused quite a few magical mouths to drop open

-- as magicians suddenly realized they were

not seeing one of these now-standard packs.

And, that is exact ly what I wanted (perverse

soul that I can sometimes be!). It is great

fun to have a few effects in your repertoi re

that are "maqi ca 1 traps for magi ci ans" because

magicians, generally, deeply enjoy being fooled.

It is unwise, of cour se , to gear your entire

repertoire toward magicians because, according

to "BurgerIs Second Law:" Laymen tend to

re-member what they

1

i"fe about your show while

magicians tend to remember what they donlt like. Gearing your work to magicians, then, is a

los-ing battle. (And we hevent even begun to talk

about magicians as "tippers" in a restaurant

or lounge!)

The routine I am about to describe is based upon three points which, I think, are

indepen-dently interesting. Ffr st , audiences do not

kt10w what you intend to do until the ending is

revealed. This is why multiple-out effects have

the impact they do: The spectator does not know

12

-II

what the "e ndi ng" is supposed to be and so any

one of a set of endi ngs can be introduced as

IIthell

endi ng. Second~ when descri bi ng effects

afterward, spectators notoriously misremember

details. I have very often heard this effect

described by spectators to their friends as: "I

named a card and it was reversed in the deck I was holding!" -- which, as you will see, is not

what happens. But it IS the effect which the

spectator believes he saW-me perform.

Third, if asked to name onels favorite card

suit, the overwhelming choice will be "Hearts."

A fairly strong second plaae choice is "Spades."

Women, to a much 1esser degree, wi 11 somet i mes

smil e and say "0; amondsII - - perhaps rememberi ng

that "Diamonds are a girlls best friend."

"C'lubs " is named very rarely. If you ask where I

have di scovered such curi ous secrets about the

human psyche, my answer is that I have simply

asked this question of hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of persons over the past few years and this is what I have discovered.

Consequently, this deck is designed to

exhibit three suits: Hearts, Spades, and

Dia-monds. If C1 ubs is named at the begi nning, I

immediately fan the deck, ask that a Club be

selected, and go into another effect -- most

often my version-of Matt Schulien's Card in the

Matchbook. At the conclusion of this effect, I

ask that another suit be named and the choice

is now between the suits which the deck can

display. This is, to be sure, a detour -- and

one which may disappoint magicians because of

its apparent 1ad of di rectness. It does not

trouble me, however, because I equally enjoy

performing the Card in the Matchbook and because

(8)

-this lack of directness is perceivable only by

the performer. The spectator has no sense of

what is going to happen.

He

does not perceive a

detour at all -- or. more precisely. he will

not perceive a detour unless the magician is

unable to hide his own disappointment over the spectator's choice!

---The pack consists of 24 double-back cards

and 24 double-face cards. (The application of

double-face and double-back cards to the

Brain-wav~ Deck. though in another form, was something

I f trst read about in Sam Dalal's excellent but

short-lived magazine. Swami.)

The double-face cards are as follows (read

across the columns for order of double-face

cards in the deck): 20 - JC 50 - 9C. 90 - 2C 3S - 7C 6S - AD IDS -

QD

4H - JD

8H - AH 3D - AC 60 - KD 100 - 6C

4S - QH

8S - QC 2H - 3C 5H - 5C 9H - KH 40 - 4C 8D - JS

2S - JH

S:;(5 - 7H 9S - 7S 3H -

QD

6H - AS 10H - 70.

top of the deck down we have: 8C, KS, DB~ OF

(20 up), DB, OF (3D up),

et

c; , ending with the

unprepared KC and 10C on the face of the pack. Using a razor blade, scratch the backs of the double-back cards which are roughed to the

20. 25, and 2H on the upper 1eft and lower

ri ght hand corners. These wi11 be your gui des

as you run through the deck, faces toward the

audi ence. The gui de cards wi11 tell you where

each suit begins (and so each suit should be

marked differently). You then count from the

guide card to the number selected -- remembering

to omit the number "seven" which is not used. I

confess my deck has marks on the 6's as well

since I prefer to do even less counting!

Using transparent tape, put a small tab on

the bottom of the 65 - AD -- about one-fourth

inch in length. This will be used as a guide

for cutting the deck should the final choice be

either the 2, 3. 4, or 5 of Diamonds or the 6,

8, 9, or 10 of Hearts. The cards are simply cut

at the tab once the deck is removed from its

case. The reason for the cutting is to bring

the chosen card more near the center of the pack for its final display.

Since no standard double-face cards are so backed, you will either have to spend some time

splitting cards or engage someone to do it for

you. Neil lester (of Cards by Martin) made my

deck for me.

~he card are roughed together in pa irs:

One stde of a double-back card is roughed along

with the Diamond, Spade and Heart sides of the

double-face cards. The four unused cards (8C

KS,

Ke,

and 10C) are placed on the top and bot:

tom of the deck respectively. Thus from the

14

-Routine

The pack in its case is given to a specta-tor several effects before I intend to use it --with the instructions that it is something we'll use later and to put it into his pocket.

"Do you have a favorite card suit?" I ask. Assuming the spectator replies "Hearts" (or

"Spades" or "Diamonds"), I continue: "let's

look at this idea we call luck. Lives have been

15

(9)

----~---changed and, at least in Las Vegas and Atlantic City, vacations have been ruined because of it. In a moment, I want you to callout a number between one and ten -- but so that later people won't think you made it too easy for me, don't call out the number "seven" as this is most always called. So... call out a number."

The spectator replies, ItFive."

To the spectator with the deck, "Sone time ago I gave you a pack of playing cards which I asked you to place in your pocket. Would you take them out and hand them to thi s gentleman (who made the selections). Sir, please hold the deck up. This deck of cards was gi ven to me by a man I once met, an old gambler. He had spent several hours using this deck to deal the most wonderful poker hands -- royal flushes and all of it -- and at the end of his demonstration he gave the deck to me, no doubt to prove to me that what I had been witnessing was the result of real skill on his part. He said that he hoped the cards would bring me luck. It

To the first spectator: "Do you believe in 1uck1" If the answer is "Yes," I say, IIWonder-fu1!" If the reply is "No,1I I say, IIWell ... I certainly hope that you're lucky tonight!" It You see, when I fi rst looked through the deck after the gambler gave it to me, I was sur-prised to discover one card was reversed -- up-side down -- in the pack. An accident ••• per-haps ... or one of the gambler's secrets. I simply left the card reversed ••• where it is right now ••• to see how lucky people really can be. I wonder ... do you thi nk that you are lucky?1t

16

-Aga in, go wi th the spectator's response. Then continue: ItLet us see. You named the suit

'Hearts' and the number 'five'."

The cards are taken from the spectator, removed from the case, not cut at the tab be-cause of the card chosen, and slowly spread with their faces toward the audience. Watch for the Heart guide card and then count to the five and spread the roughed-together cards apart. A face-down card appears to the spectators. In fact, it is the double-backed card. Right next to it, faci ng you, is the fi ve of Hearts. The fanned deck is turned around and the five is displayed and removed. Finish!

Notes

If you are worried about an Ace (the number "one") being selected (this will not happen, since you asked for a number between one and ten), you can place four Aces in your breast pocket in CHaSeD order from the front of the pocket to the back. Thus you are able to pro-duce any of the Aces from your pocket as if this were the effect. Another spectator can then be asked to name another number between one and ten and you can proceed into the effect. This perhaps seems complicated in print but, in prac-tice, it is really quite simple and appears to be direct.

On the very rare occasions when I present a stand-up performance before a large group of (seated) persons, I generally present this ef-fect but I use a different way of gett i ng into it which eliminates the possibility of the first detour (necessitated by a selection of "Cl ubs"},

17

(10)

--I 'begi n by handi ng out the deck. Then I. show four jumbo Aces -- one of each of the SUltS :-and propose an experiment in telepathy wheretn

I will mentally attempt to send the name of one of the card suits to the audience as a whole. If you don't play this as comedy and if you keep the pace moving, audiences seem thoroughly to enjoy such excursions into parapsycholog~cal Woo-Woo. People enjoy guessing and being rlght ~nd

raising their hands and showing off. (Just llke

~!)

(4) BRAIN-WAVED AGAIN

Thi s i s such a strong effect -- a named card found reversed in the pack -- and, here, the effect is the same but the method is differ-ent. No double-face or double-back cards are required. The "miracle- has its price, however, especially if you are squeaonsb about multiple-outs and thinking on your feet. Just remember, "thinking on your feet" is made easy by thinking i n rehearsal.

I ask someone to mi x the Aces and then return them to me. I fan them so that neither the audience nor I can see any of their faces --and then select one, apparently at r--andom. Ac~

ually, the backs of the cards are marked and f

t

is an easy matter to select the Ace of Clubs. I look at it and attempt mentally to send it to the audience. I ask how many persons thought of "Spades?" I ask them to raise their hands. Then "Hearts" and then "Diamonds" are call-ed out. When I name "Clubs," I turn the card around so everyone can see it -- and, at the same time, scan those who now have thei r hands raised. Picking a likely person near the :ront (for better audi ence vi sibil ity), I ask hl m ~r

her to stand up and cont i nue with the

exper-t-mente I discard the "a1ready used" Ace of ~lubs

(Why not?!) and hand the spectator the remalning three Aces and ask him to mix them thoroughly and then to select one -- stressing the fairness of the choi

ce,

I am now ready to begi n the effect proper without the possibility of a detour.

*

18

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The pack can show one suit only: Hearts. The entire suit of Hearts has been roughed on both sides and then sandwiched between two other cards -- one of which has been roughed on its face and the other roughed on its back. Thus we have groups of threes with the reversed card in the center.

. On the backs of the cards which sandwich the Ace, three, six, nine and Queen, make a small scratch on the upper left and lower right corners -- which will make counting so much easier.

I use two decks. One shows Hearts and the other shows Spades -- the two most frequently named suits. I have used these decks in several ways.

First, I have placed a deck in each of my vest pockets (the Heart pack over the heart --where else?). I ask a person to name his favor-ite card suit. Again, if either Clubs or Dia-monds is named I go into another effect -- with-out flinching! If Hearts or Spades is named (Which will happen in the vast majority of cases), I remove the appropriate deck from my

19

(11)

----'-,-can be the first and only Ace which you attempt to send to the audience. It is slilply picked out of the face-down fan by its secret marking. The advantage of thi s pack over the pre-vious one is that it can be made up using a regular deck of cards -- thus making up new decks is an easy matter. Again, with this deck the reversed card can be removed from the pack, back toward the audience, the pack itself turned around, and then the reversed card turned around so it can be seen by the audience -- a far more interest i ng di sp 1ay vi sua lly,

pocket as I say, IIIn a deck of cards there

are thi rteen cards of each suit. Name anyone of them." It's a matter of timing and eye contact. I ask the spectator if he would like to change his mind and name another Heart. I make a game of thi

s,

When the spectator is solid on one named Heart, I remove the deck and spread it faces toward the audience. The cards are separated at the appropriate point. I say: IIOne card is reversed ••• and ~ one card ••• the three of Hearts (or whatever). As I say this, I remove the reversed card (without

show-ing its face) and slowly turn the pack ar?und so the other side can be seen -- as I am saYlng, "and only one card. II The card itself is then turned around to reveal it is the very card named!

Second, if I am perfomi ng at a tab 1e , I might place the Heart pack on the table but off to the side. If Hearts is named, I pi ck it up.

If Spades is named, I switch the deck for the Spade deck in a way shown to me by Bruce ~ern

stein, a very clever Chicago performer, WhlCh I am not free to explain. Since the spectators do

not

know what you are going to do, the switching of the decks is not ab1g production -- and can occur on a natural off-beat.

Thi rd, standi ng before a group, I use the jumbo (marked) Aces. Fi rst, I hand out. the Heart (or Spade) deck. Then I show the JU'!">o Aces and propose the telepathy experiment wlth the audience. I attempt to transmit one Ace and then another (neither being the Heart). The two remaining cards are g1 yen to the spectato~ and the Ace of Hearts is selected throu-gh a Slmple process of equivoque ( IIWould you hand one of them to me. ") Alternately, the Ace of Hearts

20

-*

*

21

(12)

i

(5) WATER SUSPENSION

Laymen often believe, erroneously, that if they are seated close to a magician, they will

have a better opportunity to di scover hi s

se-crets. Whi 1e thi s i s often true, it is by no

means a 1ways the case. Thi s effect, for

ex-ample, is effective precisely because it ~

performed right under the spectator's nose.

Further, it is percei ved by the spectators as

being completely impromptu -- the only proper-ties used are a dollar bill, a rubber band, some water or other liquid, and the performer's

busi-ness card. (You mi ght thi nk thi sis a clever

way to pass out your business cards -- and,

per-haps, it is. Personally, I never give my card

to anyone unless they ask for it. Should I be

asked -- and should there be some 1iquid handy I very often perform this effect.)

The basic effect first came to my attention

in Mi 1bourne Chri stopher's book on the thumb

tip. If you wrap even a newish bill around a

thumb tip and slip a rubber band around it, you

might think the whole thing looks wrong: The

tube thus fonned seems too large -- obvi ously

suggesting to the discerning specta~or th~t

something is inside it. I felt a flnger

!.'!E.

formed a thinner and more believable tube -- and

that is what I use. If you put a small rubber

band around the finger tip and put it in your

pocket, the effect is wonderfully impromptu.

Routine

Ask to borrow a bi 11 -- "the 1arger the

de-nomi nat i on the better." Ask that the bill be

newish (a worn bill would crush under the rubber

22

---~.-...

~~~~--~---~---~---~ - _ . _ - - - _ .

band). The finger tip is alread, on the first

finger of your right hand.

Whi

e the bill is

being produced by a willing spectator, slip the rubber band off the finger tip and hold it in your left hand.

The bi 11 is received in your ri ght hand,

palm up, and rests on the palm -- thus covering

the tip. The left hand turns the bill over once

or twi ce and then holds up the rubber band as

you say, "Would you trade the bill for this

rubber band?" This question usually takes

folks off guard and you should get many

inter-resting responses with which you can work.

Whatever the answer, hand the rubber band to the spectator with the request that he pull on it (fantasy being what it is, this usually

gets a laugh from the other spectators). While

the attention is thus on the spectator and the

rubber band, form the bill into a tube around

the finger tip -- which 15 illll1ediately removed

before the tube is finally fonned. This takes a

second. 00 it casually -- as if you were just

doing it, just forming a bi 11 into a tube

--withou~getting flushed in the face and

genera-ting your sense of guilt to the audience.

Take the rubber band and slip it around the

tube thus formed: The tip should be near the

top of the tube. (Thi sis the poi nt where you

tell all of your "rolling the dollar bill into a tube" jokes.)

A card is taken and placed on the third and

fourth fi ngers of the 1eft hand. The tube is

placed on top of it and held in place by the

thumb and first finger of the left hand.

(13)

-Water is slowly poured into the bill. Just

before I do this I usually say "This is the

reason I didn't want to use

~y

own money!II

Stop, let it sink in. Don't be in a hurry.

Slowly ... as if you were doi ng somethi ng

tremendous ••• slowly sl i de the card from under

the bil~ unti~ it is free of contact. If I am

p~rforml.ng thi s behind a bar or near a table, I

wll1 sprn the card onto the surface toward the

spectator.

. If you do thi s as if you were doi ng

some-thlng utterly. unbelievable, you will find that many people wl1l gasp when you remove the card.

. Taking the glass in the right hand, slowly

ratse the tube in the left, pause, and then

slowly pour the water back into the glass. This

very often generates laughter.

Put the glass down -- or hand it to

some-one: Look the spectator right in the eye as you

de l tver the following line: -1'i\r1d-uie most

amazi ng thi ng is that bi11 is not even wet! It

This line covers a multitude of sins -- not the least of which is the steal of the tip from

the tube. But don't even think of it as a

"steal: -- ~tisn't. What I do is simply insert

the thlrd flnger of mY right hand into the tube

(and the tip) as my left hand slips off the

rubber band. I allow the bi 11 to unroll by

i~s~lf.as my hand moves toward the spectator

--flnlshlng about a foot from his face. The left

hand iRlTlediately turns the bi 11 over several

times and hands it back to the spectator -- as

both hands are shown empty (fingers pointing

toward the spect~tor's eyes).

24

-Notes

Don't be in a hurry -- particularly when

you unroll the tube. I have fooled many

magi-cians with this simply because they were looking

for somethi ng on my thumb or fi rst fi nger. The

movement of the right hand toward the spectator, as the left removes the rubber band, is smooth

and unhurried. It's all over before you know

it.

The best kind of glass to use -- since you

don't want the bill to get wet(!) -- is a

cordial glass. Pour slowly but

steadily--until the water is about one-fourth inch from

the top. With his Liquid Pull, Vernet supplies

small plastic glasses which are designed to pour perfectly and which hold an ideal amount to use

with a finger tip. Again, a paper cup is also

fi ne since it can be squeezed togethe r at the top before pouri ng -- and the water wi11 pour straight down (which is what you want).

One 1ast word concerni ng the presentat ion

of this -- and other -- close-up effects. The

greatest failure, it seems to me, is a failure

of the imagination on the part of the performer to i magine that he is rea lly doi ng thi ngs that

are absolutely fantastic and amazing. If the

performer can imagine this to be the case, he is

al ready on hi s way toward communi cating that

energy and wonder to his audience. This little

trick, for instance, really can be played into

something quite marvelous in the perception of laymen -- and, if you do it smoothly, even magi-cians might wonder where the thumb tip went ••••