THE BOOK WITHOUT
A NAME
A N N E M A N N
Th.
ook Without a Name
' E y
T H E O . A N N E M A N N
W it h Introduction b y A l . B a k e r P U B L IS H E D BYM A X H O L D E N
N e w Yo r kCopyright 1931
by
M a x H o l d e n
Printed and Bound by Printed in U.S.A. Wm< q popper & Co.
First Edition Rotogravure - Printing - Lithography A p r i l , 1 9 3 1 New York
I’m dedicating this, my first book, to
Raymond McEwan and A. B. Bartron.
Little could they have foreseen the
path I was to follow when they showed
me my first tricks.
T h e A u t h o r.
The printers of this "Book Without a
Name” are proud that this, the first
Magical Work ever to be done in the
Rotogravure Process was entrusted
to them.
They have done their best to have
its format in keeping with the best
traditions of the Graphic Arts and up
to the highest standards of book
making.
The best minds in the Magical World
have told us the effects are the master
piece of a superior artisté — we hope
the book is worthy of its contents.
I n t r o d u c t i o n
...
It is the usual thing for a writer to go to a friend for an introduction to his work, knowing well enough that the friend w ill say all the nice things that the author would like to say himself.
I have been approached several times by budding authors to write an introduction for a book o f new and original creations.
A fter reading the manuscripts and finding the effects not so 'new’ and not so 'original’, I tactfu lly refrained from granting requests because I feel that the market is already overcrowded with magical plagiarism. Therefore, the fact that I have read the manuscript of this book and am now writing the intro duction speaks for itself.
Having seen Annemann do these effects and knowing of his ability to get 'that something’ out of his presentation I can see real value here for the performer who is looking for the greatest effect from the simplest method. Annemann has a distinctly different approach and way o f presenting his effects and this alone is the secret o f w hy he is able to fool even magicians w ith tricks they already know.
I think that if the reader w ill carefully study Annemann’s presentation as much as his method, he w ill get more real value than if he hastily reads the book just to see 'how’ the tricks are done.
Al Ba k e r.
F o r e w o r d
...
The author must have his say even though it be little. My ideas and conceptions differ a great deal from those of some w ith whom I am acquainted. It is m y theory that any effect to be successful must first be founded upon a simple method and then be performed with a direct to-the-point presentation. It is m y contention that the moment one deviates from this straight-line, he is not doing what a genuine magician or mind reader would do.
T o follow the above rules I have had to renounce all of the so-called performing ethics, inasmuch as I consider the effect upon m y audience above everything.
So, to some, m y methods may seem bold, daring, bare-faced, and in a number of cases rather under handed, but before de ploring these facts, admitting them, please consider w hat the ultimate effect is on those who are watching.
I wish to thank Mr. A l Baker and Mr. Max Holden for helping me w ith the photographs.
Lastly, my heartfelt thanks go to Mr. Julien J. Proskauer, business manager of The Sphinx, and member of many magical societies, whose knowledge o f magic and attitude towards the Art has helped make this book possible.
I n d e x
...
The 'Really N ew ’ Locator Card... 10
A n Original Set Up Discovery... 11
One in Fourteen--- --- 13
A N ew Thought Card Spelling Effect... 14
Whichever You Pleasel... .— ... ... ... 16
Count Your Cardl --- 17
Telepathy in the Audience... ...— 19
The Red and Blue Back Mixup... 20
The Gambler in Person--- 22
The Gambler is Back Again... -... — 25
Psychic Sympathy Method N o. 1--- 27
Psychic Sympathy Method N o. 2--- --- --- 29
The Four Pile Location... 30
The Genii C ut D eck Location... 33
The Mystery Card Reading Method... 35
A N ew Apparatus for the Pellet Switch--- 38
Find the Lady.--- --- --- 41
The Improved Magic Square Presentation... 42
The One Man 'Genuine’ Magazine Test... 4 6 Mental Coloring— Telepathy w ith Silk.--- 49
The Color-Tell Billiard Balls--- --- 51
Seeing in the Dark... ....-... 52
Seven Keys to Baldpate--- 54 A Prophecy o f the Koran_____________ ____________ 58 Jimmy Valentine Opens a Safe____________________ 61
The “Really New”
locator (^ard
. ..
I
SINCERELY hope that this is my own originality because it is of untold value to the subtle card man. However, although I claim it as a 'find’ of my own, I can never be sure that it hasn’t been thought of before by someone.Just imagine picking up a strange pack of cards at any time or place. Then imagine having a perfect locator card in that pack in one second w ithout it being out of sight for a moment, w ithout adding anything or taking anything away, and w ithout apparatus needed of any type. When I say 'locator card’ I mean one as perfect for the purpose as a short or narrow card and yet in this case it is neither of those two.
By now it must seem like a marvelous secret but it is so silly and simple that even now my reader may just pass it over.
MERELY TAKE T H E UPPER R IG H T C O R N ER OF A N Y C A R D A N D B E N D BACK T H E TIP OF SAME U N T IL IT BREAKS.
H ow many times have you accused a party (in your mind, of cou rse), o f being a clumsy dolt because they used your new pack and broke the corner of a card? I don’t mean break it off, nor by bending half the card, but just at the corner and just so that it has cracked. It must be done from the face back wards and not from the back towards face. N ow do this at the diagonally opposite corner when the deck is turned end for end.
T hat’s all there is. You have the same thing as a short card. Riffle the deck from face towards back at this corner and when you reach this card it will snap and you w ill stop at it like any self respecting 'short.’
D on ’t ask me why. I found it two years ago while playing with an old deck that had some broken corners. Since then I’ve used it constantly and some magicians are wondering how I did a certain trick w ith their own new pack.
cAtt Original Set
-
Up
‘Discovery
. ..
I
T H IN K I have something here that will open the eyes of the ones who have handled cards for any length o f time and who have had occasion to use a set up or stacked deck.There are tw o stacks which have weathered the ages, one being the well known Si Stebbins arrangement of rotating suits and a three advancement in values, and the other is the arrange ment using the rhyme 'Eight Kings threatened to save, ninety- five Queens for one sick Knave.’
O f the two, the latter was much the best from many standpoints, the most important being the apparent haphazard ness and the fact that there was no semblance of mathematical progression as in the former. It is very apparent in the Si Stebbins arrangement that when 3-6-9 shows up and then repeats itself a little further on something more than chance is at work.
The one great objection to the 'Eight Kings’ method was the labor involved in setting this up as the cards must be found and stacked one at a time. The Stebbins method in contrast was simply put together by making four piles of the separated suits which had been placed in order from A ce to King. Each pile was started three ahead of the other and the mere picking up of the cards in rotation set them.
My discovery, and I claim it as a real and worthwhile find, is an arrangement whereby the 'Eight Kings’ stack' can be put together as quickly and simply as the Stebbin arrangement and therefore the one great fault o f this well thought of arrange ment is eliminated.
W e shall suppose that your suit arrangement is Hearts, Clubs, Diamonds and Spades. We separate the four suits into four piles. N ew each pile is taken face up and arranged thusly from back towards face of pile— 4 - 7 - K - A - 9 - 3 - 6 - 5 - 1 0 - J - Q - 2 - 8 . This is very simple to learn when gone over a few times and is your entire key. Arrange each o f the four suit piles in this order and have them face up before you in the correct suit order from left to right. The first pile starts with
-e f 1 1 j»
an Eight. C ut the second pile so a King is at the face. Cut the third making a Three the face card. The fourth is cu t to bring the Ten up.
Starting from the left pick a card at a time from each pile over and over placing them face up in left hand and do this until all are picked up. Your deck is now completely arranged in the correct order and from the time you start w ith a mixed deck and separate the suits until you finish, this should not take over three minutes.
I am not at liberty to mention his name, but one o f the best known men in magic has used this stack for years and always had to set them one by one. I had the pleasure of setting his deck several times when in a great rush, once on a subway train, and thus I can be sure that in this case, at least, the 'find’ has been more than welcome.
One in Fourteen
...
I
H A V E found a rather good trick to end up any series of effects in which a stacked deck is being used. It destroys the order, hence the reason for it being last.The deck is placed on the table and the performer walks away. A spectator steps forward, cuts the deck several times and then takes the top card from deck. He remembers it, places it on table and deals 13 more cards from deck on top of it. Picking up these fourteen cards, the spectator shuffles and mixes them as he pleases, finally handing the cards to the performer. The performer in turn, fans the packet once, draws a card and throws it face down on table. The party names his card, turns over the one on table and finds it to be correct.
Simple? Very much so because in the stacked deck every thirteen cards complete a cycle of the thirteen values and then start over.
A ll the performer must do is look for a pair of cards of the same value and there will only be one such pair among the fourteen cards. The noted card is the one whose suit precedes the other and there you are! Thus if there are two Four spots, one a Heart and one a Spade, the Spade is the card because of your suit order in the stacked deck which is Hearts, Clubs, Diamonds and Spades. If the pair were a Diamond and a Club, the Club would be the one. It all happens simply because the top card is looked at and the fourteenth card from any one in deck is o f the same value and the next suit in order.
<5f 1 3) f r
cA I"New Thought Qard
Spelling Effect
. . .
T
HIS rather gets away from having people pick a certain card which is desirable. The performer deals four piles of four cards each onto the table, places the deck face down and walks away. H e asks that someone pick up any of the piles, look at them and to merely think of one, to place the packet on the deck, the other three packets on top of all and to cut the deck once or twice. Taking the deck, the performer gives it a cu t or tw o and hands it back to the spectator w ith the explanation that he must touch the deck once in order to bring his power into play.The spectator is asked to spell his thought of card to himself and to deal the cards one at a time w ith each letter spelled silently. When he stops, the performer asks him to name his card and to turn over the next one face up. It is the one!
W e must first arrange sixteen cards on top of the deck. Make four sets o f four cards each. Starting with the first of each set, the cards in each set spell with 12, 13, 14 and 15 letters respectively. For instance, the first set from back to face could be Four of Hearts, Seven of Spades, Four of Diamonds, Queen o f Diamonds. Thus the first spells w ith 12 letters, the second w ith 13, then 14 and lastly IS.
W ith these sets arranged, pick them up backwards onto the deck so that when you deal them off, it will be done naturally into four piles. My own method for a quick set up is to run through the face up deck and locate four 12 letter cards and put them on top. Follow these with four 13 letter cards, then four 14 letter cards and then four that spell out in 15 letters on top of all. T o deal, make a row of four, then four more on top of these and repeat this twice more and you are set. It is done perfectly natural as one would deal.
If using a borrowed deck I make a short card as described in this book and have it on the bottom.
A ny pile is picked, a card merely thought of and the packet placed on top of pack. Then this is followed w ith the other three which has the effect of placing twelve cards on top o f the
four among which is the thought of card. The deck is cu t and the performer takes it and cuts it a couple of times, cutting at the short card and not forgetting to cut the short card back to bottom so that the deck is left exactly as it was after the packets were replaced. N O W T H E T H O U G H T OF C A RD WILL AUTOM ATICALLY BE AFTER T H E LAST LETTER OF ITS NAM E IN T H E SPELLING. What more can one wish for. The performer never knows what the thought of card is until the spectator names it and turns that very card over.
Some may wish just to have the packets replaced and then give the deck a false cut and hand it to the spectator. Or by noting the bottom card, one could fan through the pack several times and cut it back to bottom. I prefer however, any method that does not necessitate the performer looking or seeing any of the cards at all.
Whichever You ‘Please
...
H
ERE is a very cute location o f a card in a rather different manner and impromptu w ith any cards.A card is chosen, replaced and the deck handed directly to the spectator who is asked to cut it several times and then to deal it into either two, three or four face up piles. Great stress is laid upon the fact that he may do whichever he pleases and during this the performer walks away. This having been done, the performer asks the party to pick up the one pile con taining their card and to discard the rest of the deck. This packet is cut once or twice, the performer takes it face down and deals a card at a time into a face up pile. Suddenly he stops and declares that he is holding the chosen card. It is nanied, he shows the card, and once more he is acclaimed as successful.
This is practically automatic, but it is also practically indetectable. A ny card is chosen and in fanning for the selec tion, the performer counts cards from the top so that he has the card replaced under the 11th or in other words, the chosen card is replaced 12 th from the top. As he hands the deck to the spectator for cu ttin g and dealing he notes the bottom card and this is the key.
The deck is cu t as pleased and dealt into either two, three or four piles faces up. In turning around at the finish the performer sees at a glance how many, or he can tell at once from the size of the packet given him.
The rule is simple. If the above has been followed out correctly the chosen card follows the key card in the packet by three, four or six cards. The performer merely divides the number of piles dealt into twelve and he has the number. If three piles were dealt, the chosen card would be fourth after the key card. If four piles, the card would be third after the key. The key and the chosen card w ill always fall into the same pile. H ave the card 12th from the top, note the bottom, and it works.
Count Tour Card
! . . .
T
HIS is a far cry from originality but I consider it rather a novel effect from the presentation standpoint. In short, I have taken a very old principle, arranged it to repeat twice instead of once, and it is made to look like something new.A party is asked to take the inevitable card, note it and then replace it among the others. A fter a possible shuffling or cutting, the deck is handed directly to the spectator w ith the request that he find his own card and save the performer a lot of worry and trouble*
He is asked to start dealing the cards face down one at a time and to turn a card face up whenever he pleases, but not to go too far and make the effect boring.
The spectator deals and turns one face up. The performer says, 'You have turned up any one card that you pleased. Is it your selected card?’ The answer, o f course, is in the negative.
The performer then asks the number on the card turned up. We shall assume it to be a six. The spectator is asked to deal another pile and to turn over the sixth card.
'Is that your card?’ asks the performer and the answer is again 'N o .’ Again the performer asks the number of the card turned up and the reply is 'Ten.’
The performer continues, 'Three times and out. You may have one more chance and if you fail I guess I’ll have to find it myself. Count another pile and turn over the tenth card this time.’
The party deals nine and the performer stops him. H e is asked to name the card he first selected and upon doing so, he shows the next or tenth card, and it is the selected one.
There are possibilities here for a comedy presentation due to the apparent mistakes and the continuance even in the face of such contretemps.
The method however, is purely a simple arrangement and automatic. From the top or back o f deck is arranged eleven cards as follows regardless of suits: The top card is a Ten followed by a nine and so on in numerical order to the Ace which is followed by another Ten. That’s all.
S
mam
p
The card is selected from deck below these eleven arranged cards and the performer breaks the pack so that the card is replaced tw enty-first from the top. I would suggest that in first fanning the cards for the selection the performer count ten or fifteen and then finish the count while apparently fanning the cards a little more for the return. Some may prefer a bridge or other means o f getting tw enty cards up so that the chosen one may be replaced twenty-first. The rest works itself.
The first number must not be over ten and I usually ask the party to silently think o f any single figure and to count down and turn that card over. Regardless o f what the number on the first card is, the second w ill always be the Ten and the chosen card is tenth beyond that so they can’t miss.
Telepathy in the cAudience
...
I
D O N ’T guarantee this as a 100% foolproof effect but I w ill say that if the performer is careful in his working and selection o f assistant, it should not fail once in tw enty times if that. It is adaptable to giant cards.Announcing that he shall try a test of telepathy between two members o f his audience, the performer asks one to choose one card from a deck to remember it and then to replace it.
The party is told to think o f the card as a picture rather than as only a name. The second man is handed the deck and told to step to a far side of the room and turn his back. He is asked to look through the deck, fanning them slowly past and when he comes to some one card which stands out as being different than the others, or one which impresses him as being an unusual card, he is to pick out that card, turn around and hold it with its back towards the audience. H e does so and the performer asks the first man to name the card he has been thinking of. The second man shows the card he picked by himself and IT IS T H E CORRECT CARD!
This is purely impromptu but everything depends upon the performer. Some w ill not like this but some w ill make a big thing o f it.
The secret merely is that after the first party replaces the chosen card, the performer in his own way, reverses it in the deck so that it lies near the center and face up.
Read the lines above where the performer tells the second party what to do. It must all be done good naturedly and positively not seriously. That is, until after the selection and you are ready for the climax.
I leave it up to the performer to judge his man for this job. A good natured person is essential and I always pick portly ones too. The lines above to this party very subtly convey the fact that he is to take the unusual Card and the stunt, worked properly, w ill not fail once in tw enty or more times.
■ *1 9 >
-The Red
-
and - Blue
(.'Back cMixup
. . .
T
HIS w ill no doubt go into the routines of many club and social artistes who are looking for something different in general effect.It is announced that a very peculiar affinity exists between cards o f the same value and suit. In order to illustrate this, tw o decks are brought out, one having a blue back and the other being red.
Each deck is shuffled by the audience and acknowledged as being thoroughly mixed. The performer takes the tw o decks and very openly shuffles them together mixing the big double pack well. This double pack is dropped into a hat borrowed at the beginning and holding it over his head the performer asks each o f three people to name any number up to ten. Reaching into the hat with his free hand, he brings out cards one by one, dropping them aside, until coming to the number given by the first party, this card is seen to be a R ED back and is placed back out against a glass or stand. Continuing, this is repeated w ith the second person whose card turns out to be BLUE and lastly w ith the third party’s number the card at which is another RED.
N o w the three parties are asked to name a number again and starting w ith the first the card at his number proves to be BLUE and it is placed alongside his first card. This is done w ith the others and they get RED and BLUE respectively.
It is surprising at the attention the audience gives these cards as they are reached and placed on the stand and at the interest in the coincidence o f the colors appearing as they do.
Imagine the surprise then, when the performer turns the three sets o f cards face out and each set consists o f a matched pair!
I don’t think that such an effect can be surpassed for the sim plicity w ith which it is accomplished. Method means nothing and the feat has the appearance o f something real deep and to the magician probably very complicated.
The whole thing depends upon a mere setup of six cards only taken from the decks (three each to m atch) before starting.
They are arranged from back to face 1, 2, J, 1, 2, 3. The dupli cate numbers represent a pair of like cards. However the back arrangement is important too. The first 1 is RED, the following 2 is BLUE and the 3 is RED. The second 1 is BLUE and is followed by 2 and 3 which are RED and BLUE in order.
It is only necessary that these six cards thus arranged be loaded into the hat and every performer will suit himself about this part. I personally hate sleights because I can seldom get away with them, but in this case it is less than simple to palm the cards in from your pocket as you borrow a hat while the double deck is being mixed. However, they can easily be dropped in from the bottom of the card cases you are holding when you borrow a hat at the start.
Thus the shuffled double deck is dropped into the hat and the six cards become top or bottom. The rest is mere routine. The numbers called, they are each counted to, these cards coming from one side of deck and at the proper number the card taken from the other side.
It is really quite a thing to watch this effect from the front and see the different colored backs come out mixed and at the proper number having a certain color appear right there. It warrants a fair trial though to really prove what I have said about its effect on your audience.
4 2 1
The Qambler in ^Person
...
I
T is the desire of many magicians to really be as good as an audience considers them. H ow often, after a card effect or two, the remark is heard, 'H ow would you like to play a game w ith him?’ Due to this thought there often comes a request for the performer to show them how a few good hands should be dealt and it is at this point that the average card man is in deep water.These tw o methods for card table demonstrations w ill no doubt fill the bill for many a person who needs something like it but can’t bother to learn a lot o f different sleights and shuffles.
In the first routine, the performer has a spectator thoroughly m ix any deck and taking same, the performer deals five hands o f poker face up. H e explains that this is what would happen should the spectator be dealing and he asks that they note which o f the five hands would be the winner.
Picking the five hands up, the performer now states that he shall try to deal a few fair hands and he asks which of the five shall get the highest. One is designated and the performer slowly and fairly deals the hands, the selected hand always being the top or highest o f the lot.
This is so extremely simple that it must be worked to realize the good effect. The first dealing o f the hands is to build the hand for the next deal. When the hands are on table faces up, the performer must locate a fair hand, and it is important that he only take one card from each o f the five dealt out hands. I have yet to see a combination of cards which would not contain a possible hand o f likely value. Starting, with a full house (three of a kind and tw o of a kind) you w ill be able to build four of a kind w ith an extra high card, a straight, which is quite common and easy to get, or an ordinary flush which is probably the easiest o f all. As you do this time after time, it gets to be second nature to spot the various cards to make a combination even as you deal them out. You do this dealing in a slow unhurried manner so that they may watch the various hands and see which is the highest the first time.
The picking up is the real secret. The hands are scooped up one at a time and dropped face down on top o f deck and it is only necessary that the desired card from each hand be on top
or at the back of this heap. Thus in picking up each hand you pick one, two, three or four cards as the case may be and scoop up the remaining cards with these in hand and drop on deck and so your wanted card is on top.
W hen all hands have been picked up in this manner, if they were dealt out again, the first hand would contain the cards and be highest but the idea of letting them choose which of the five is to get the good hand this deal makes it appear as if the performer can just deal the cards wherever he pleases. A ll that is necessary, however, is to add one, tw o or three cards to the top of deck from bottom which w ill automatically do the work. If the third man is to get the hand, add tw o cards, etc. This is easily done quite openly while you false shuffle or false cut the deck, as you must remember that you are doing this as an exhibition o f skill and deft mixing. The psychology here is that if you didn’t shuffle or monkey w ith the deck at all, the idea o f a stack is uppermost in their minds. However, if you shuffle and apparently m ix the cards, they assume you are stack ing them in some uncanny fashion and w ill laud .your skill to the heavens.
The Qambler is (Rack cAgain
...
T
HIS can logically follow the first hand described as you stipulate that this w ill be done under more strict conditions. You explain that many people presume that the card dealer must stack his cards beforehand or know just how they are placed so that when he deals them they w ill appear in the right places. However, in this instance, the performer declares that he shall allow the spectators themselves to arrange the cards in any order and that he can thus prove the results due to his method of skillful shuffling.W hile talking the performer has taken 20 cards from the deck, or just enough for four hands of poker. The cards are the Tens, Jacks, Queens, Kings and Aces. He arranges them with values together and holds them in a fan in his hand.
Three spectators are designated as players. In turn they are asked to name some combination of five cards that they m ight receive from the cards performer is holding. For example, they may say, 'Three Jacks and tw o Aces,’ or 'A King, Queen, Ten, and T w o Jacks.’ They are asked not to call high hands, like Straights, Flushes, etc., as the purpose of this first part is to insure the cards being w ell mixed around. As the various hands are called, the performer places them face up on table until he is left w ith but five which he places before himself.
It is now explained that by knowing where various valuable cards are laying in the deck, the performs: can expertly shuffle them to another spot where they are ready for dealing. The four hands are assembled and holding them faces down the performer shuffles them and cuts them a few times.
Then after cutting, he deals the four hands and ends up with a Royal Flush for himself while the others have but ordinary or poor hands.
The tricky part comes in when the cards are first being placed on table. The performer knows that he is going to build himself the Hearts suit or any other suit. The others go by values only.
Thus, in laying out the hands with the values called for, he merely places the Heart suit to come out right. W e shall assume the four face up hands spread before you. Follow
■ % 2 5 f r
illustrations. One heart must be second in one hand. One heart must be third in one hand. One heart must be fourth in one hand. T w o hearts must be in one hand, one at each end. N o w this may all seem very hard to do but after doing this steadily for nearly four years I can safely say there is no combi nation possible of being called that you cannot arrange. You do not have to have the hands in order on the table or put them down in that order. Just so that when the four hands are finished they w ill come under the above rules for placing the Heart suit. Another point is that you need not lay the cards down in the exact order as they are called as long as the hand contains the various values asked for. A nd again, always have the entire hand of five cards told you before you start picking them out and laying them down.
The next part is the picking up o f the four hands. They are all face up on table. Pick up the hand containing the two Hearts and drop it on the pile which has the Heart in second place. This double pile goes on the hand which has the Heart in third place and they are all dropped on the remaining heap, the packet squared up and turned face down.
A ny simple false mixing here w ill suffice and the packet may be genuinely cut as desired. I like to ask a spectator cut and in com pleting the cut note whether the bottom card is a Heart or not. If so, I can then start dealing and stress the point that I deal from the cut. If it isn’t a Heart the first time, have another cu t by someone else, and it is very seldom that tw o cuts w ill not bring a Heart to the face which is all that is needed to start the deal.
The deal is fair enough and the five Heart cards will never fail to drop in front of yourself if you placed them correctly.
This may seem complicated and I w ill grant that it is rather difficult to explain any too clearly, but with the illus trations I think that one w ill quickly grasp the simple principle o f a truly worth while table effect.
In the illustrated example, the first set o f four hands are as they have been asked for by the players. The second set is the same cards after they have been dealt. The performer has just dealt himself the fourth hand, and a study o f the first layout w ill show how he set it up for himself by placing the Heart cards in the various positions.
Psychic Sym pathy...
A
T first reading, this effect may sound rather daring to some, but after you think it over and then finally try it out, it w ill be found that it really works and what’s more is really effective.Tw o decks are shown. The performer selects a spectator to assist and explains what he is to do. H e is to take one deck and stand at a distance w ith same on his left hand. He is to cut the deck at any spot, note the card, replace the cut and square the deck up. That’s all.
When the spectator does this, the performer runs through his deck and picks out one card. The party is asked to name the card he is thinking of and the performer turns his card around. It is the same! A t once the performer picks another party and duplicates the feat once more.
I have several methods for this effect and any one of them may be used at w ill and according to the likes of the performer.
The first method is making use of an old friend. Two single kind force decks are obtained, all cards o f each being alike. I would suggest one a black picture card and the other a red spot card. Each deck has a contrasting face card and the top card of each deck has been taken from the opposite deck. N ow read the presentation carefully.
The performer picks up one deck and as he talks shuffles it. It is very easy to overhand shuffle the deck twice. The top card is shuffled to bottom and the bottom to the top. Once more and they are back in the same original positions. Or, it is very easy to dovetail shuffle and leave top and bottom cards in position.
The performer explains that the spectator is to hold deck on hand and to cut somewhere and note a card. In explaining this, the performer suits his words w ith actions and cuts the deck several times towards himself as he talks. The 'patter’ may go something like this: 'Don’t look at three or four cards and clutter up your mind w ith many, but make a clean cut somewhere and remember the card you look at. Say, for instance, the Seven of Hearts, or again, the Tw o o f Clubs. Just keep a picture of it in your mind rather than the words o f its name.’
•>§{ 2 7 p .
As the performer mentioned the cards he has cut and is glancing at the face up cut (which no one else can see) and this bit of misdirection is worth plenty to the effect in general.
The deck is given spectator and performer walks away, picking up the second deck which he also shuffles as he did the first one. Standing at a little distance and facing the spectator, he is asked to now look at a card which is done.
The performer runs through his cards as if he were looking for something, back and forth a few times and then draws a card out. It is the one card from the other deck which has been on top o f this one. The spectator names card and per former shows his with a grand flourish.
Immediately the performer takes spectator’s deck in left hand and picking another spectator hands him the deck from right hand. This is the deck containing duplicates of a different card. And the deck performer has just taken from spectator number One has a duplicate o f force card number tw o on top o f it ready to be picked by the performer who, it seems, is always right. M ETHO D NUM BER TW O
W ith this idea it is possible to use only one deck and to have the same deck used for the two cuts and a different card is forced each time.
This deck is made up o f twenty-six cards alike and twenty- six more alike of a contrasting card to the first. The 13 th card o f each group of 26 is a short card. Place the two halves to gether, riffle until you hit a short card and cut deck. N ow examine it. The top 13 cards and the bottom 13 cards are of one kind, while the center 26 cards are alike. N ow riffle near center and when you hit the short card there cut again. The same thing holds good except that the top and bottom 13 now are the original middle 26, and vice versa.
Thus when the 26 cards are split into top and bottom packets they present very little selecting possibilities while the middle 26 give a pretty wide expanse. There’s the secret.
The deck is handed a party to cut and note a card as in the first version. It is inevitable that they cut among the center
26. Try it for yourself. Taking the deck from them, the per
former merely has to cut it at the short card and the deck is ready for another selection resulting in a totally different card. In this version a second deck may be used if wished or the performer may reveal the card in another manner to suit himself.
This deck can be used in any effect in which the forcing o f tw o cards is desired.
The Four-Pile lo c a tio n
...
T
HIS is an excellent location o f a noted card and under real good conditions. Using a deck o f cards w ith a reverse back pattern arranged all one way, the performer asks the spectator to first shuffle the deck.That being done, he is intrusted to deal the deck into four face down heaps to thoroughly separate them. In the meantime the performer walks away and turns his back. A fter this the spectator is requested to select any o f the piles, to take any card from somewhere w ithin it, to remember the card, place it on any o f the heaps and then to reassemble the piles in any order he chooses. Thus it becomes very evident that no possible way could influence the selection of the card and certainly one could find no fault w ith the returning to the deck and the resulting pick up of the piles, all o f which is left entirely to the whims o f the spectator. And yet, the performer merely has to take the deck, deal a card onto the table one at a time and face up, and AC TU AL LY STOP W H E N T H E N O T E D C A R D IS A R R IV E D A T!
As said at the beginning the reverse back principle is brought into play. The shuffle does not disturb this arrangement. Then the performer takes the deck for a second and explains what the spectator is to do in dealing four piles a card at a time. In describing this, the performer actually deals a row o f four from the top of the shuffled deck and then the second four on top of those. As he asks the spectator if he understands, the performer changes the deck from left to right hand and incidentally it is simply turned end for end. The left hand scoops up tw o of the piles, the right hand drops the deck on top o f them in left hand and then scoops up the remaining tw o piles and drops them on top of deck. In an innocent and open manner, four cards have been reversed both on top and bottom o f the deck. It is handed to the spectator for dealing.
Because o f this arrangement the top and bottom cards of each pile are reversed from the others.
The selected card is taken from in and among the cards of any pile. N o matter upon which pile it is placed and no matter how the piles are picked up, the selected card thus comes between two o f the reversed cards while the other three pairs
o f reversed cards are together in the deck w ith nothing between them.
W ith the deck face down in left hand, the cards are dealt into a face up pile and the performer watches for the reversed pairs. He goes right along until one reversed card appears followed by an oppositely turned card. As he deals this one face up he sees that the next on deck is the second one o f the pair and his quest is at an end.
It is a strong point that he actually never sees the face o f a single card from the time the deck is thoroughly shuffled until he takes it to find the card.
The Qenii Qut-<T>eck
lo c a tio n
. . .
D
U R IN G various effects, the performer has the deck shuffled well and then placed face down on his left hand. He announces that he shall use only the one hand that in this case the noted card w ill not even be removed from the deck.Turning his head away he asks a party to merely cut the deck anywhere on his flatly outstretched hand, to note the card cu t at, to replace the cut, take the deck in their own hands and give it several more cuts.
Yet, although the position of a single card in the deck hasn’t been changed except for the cu ttin g of deck, and even though performer did not see the cutting done and never looked towards the card, he easily and correctly finds the noted card w ith no trouble. Again I call your attention to the fact that at no times are the fingers closed around the deck and no crimpings or marking o f the cards is necessary.
Our old friend, the reverse back, is here again. The first shuffling o f the deck does not hurt the one-way set up. As it is placed on left palm o f performer he gets a glimpse o f the bottom card and remembers this. This remembered card is never used as a key-but is to later act as a guard and tell the performer where the noted card IS N O T . It can only be one other place as w ill be seen.
N ote the illustration for the holding o f the deck when it is first cut. On the left hand which is held outwards to the left a little and the performer’s head is turned to the right.
The moment that the cut is made, the performer says, "Look at the card cu t at and be sure I don’t see it at all.” As this is said, the performer turns even farther to the right and the left hand swings around so he is holding deck behind his back. The cu t is then replaced, the deck picked up, cut several times more and then given to performer.
The turn did it because the action o f putting the hand behind his back reversed the pack on hand. The other half was replaced.
As the condition now exists, two halves o f the pack are turned in opposite ways. The selected or noted card is thus the last card of one o f the halves or the one before the next that is turned the opposite way.
Remembering the previously noted card, the performer deals the cards into a face up pile and watches the back of deck in left hand. When he deals a card and the next is reversed, the one dealt w ill either be the one noted by performer or the one noted by spectator. If the former, the dealing is continued until the reverse happens again when the card just dealt w ill be the noted one.
I earnestly hope that the reader will try this out as it is as clean a method o f getting a card as can be wanted under the conditions which are about as strict as a card location can over come.
The ¿Mystery Qard Reading
¿Method
. . .
A
T any time or place, and w ith any deck o f cards, the performer is able to apparently look through them and read them one by one as often as desired. During the reading they are laying face down on his left hand and as they are named, they are dealt off into a face up pile. There is no apparatus or fake used and the secret is so simple and correctly placed as well as timed that people standing on three sides of the per former cannot catch a thing. It is of w orthy note that even a person knowing the exact method cannot see it being applied.It is essential that this be presented slowly and easily as there is positively no need or use of any fast moves.
Method: When you first place the shuffled deck behind your back, it is necessary to know the top card. Either use your own method for ascertaining this or follow my own. As you first place the deck behind back, note the bottom or face card. N ow merely crimp or bend one corner of the bottom card, cut deck and hand it back to the owner for an additional shuffle with the remark that someone m ight accuse you of seeing the bottom card. Take it back again face down on left hand, openly cut it once or twice and cut the crimped card to top. Place deck behind back and you know the top card!
W ith deck behind back, slowly named the color, suit and value of the top card. This enables you to— shove two top cards into right hand without changing the orc^r, turn the next four or five cards face up on deck and then replace the top tw o cards faces down. The index corners o f the face up cards are now at the upper left corner o f deck.
A fter naming the top card, the deck is brought to front around right side by right hand, holding it flatwise w ith fingers at front end and thumb at the rear. The deck is brought across in front o f you and placed face down on left hand. The top card is dealt off face up to show it correctly named and the left hand without a further move curries the deck back of you once more when the next card is named and the procedure repeated.
<•{ 35 }>
The deck was held in right hand, fingers at front and thumb at rear in bringing it forward, but what the audience couldn’t see was T H A T T H E R IG H T FOREFINGER A T T H E UPPER LEFT C O R N ER W AS H O L D IN G T H E TW O TOP CARDS UP A B O U T A Q U A R T E R IN C H , W H IC H B R O U G H T T H E TO P C A RD OF T H E FACE UP FEW IN SUCH A POSITION T H A T ITS IN D E X W AS PLAINLY SEEN AS T H E PACK WAS CARRIED ACROSS A N D D R O P PED IN T O LEFT H A N D . In other words, the first finger holds a small break which shows you the index o f the next card. When right hand drops deck in left, the break is, of course, lost and the top card dealt on table or shown. The left hand carries deck behind back and this is the time when tricky work is being watched for.
Behind the back this time, the right hand merely takes second card from top and places it on top turning it over at the same time. Then holding it as before w ith the tw o card break at corner, the top card is named and the deck brought around for dealing and the next face up card spotted. Continue this the several times until the face up few have been used, when, after the last card is dealt, the deck can be shuffled or examined.
The beauty o f this method is that at all times the deck is kept squared up, the bottom card always remain the same, and the deck can always be seen top and bottom. It is also important that at no time can anyone see the performer make a move or make any semblance o f a peek.
< § (3T
A ¿New (Apparatus for the
(Pellet Switch
. . .
T
H ERE are many magicians who have wanted to do some thing in the way of a pellet reading effect to introduce into a performance as an exhibition of how a medium would give a single sitting seance.Lately there has been put on the market a piece of apparatus which was designed. for an entirely different purpose. The Petrie-Lewis Match Box for changing cigarettes is it. Read on and see how this ingenious little thing can make a pellet switch possible.
In effect, the performer hands a person a piece of paper on which they write a question or notation, fold it and lay it on the outstretched left hand o f performer. H e steps to table, takes a match from the box, and openly burns the paper to ashes. Taking a small 4 by 6 inch pad from pocket, the per former announces that he shall attempt to get an automatic writing. H e scribbles a little on the pad and reads it aloud but the spectator says that it is in no way connected with what he wrote. The performer tries again and this time gets a perfect answer and the pad is handed directly to the spectator to verify the reading.
N early three years ago, I produced a pellet steal which was read by the use of the pad, and as far I know the handling of the pad should be credited to Dr. Ervin of Kansas City.
The box is in the right coat pocket to start and the fake top has been filled w ith matches. On the under side of the box and impaled onto the tw o sharp prongs is a duplicate pellet. In the same coat pocket is the pad w ith writing side outward.
H ave the slip w ritten on and folded. A ccept it on left fingers near end. Step back and turn a little to left. Box is brought out w ith right hand which places it for a second on left fingers while right gets a match and scratches it. In placing the box on fingers, the pellet there simply w ent directly into the side o f the box aided by the left thumb and the fingers which are just under the box are in contact with the dummy pellet there. The match lights and the box is grasped in right hand between third and little fingers and heel of hand while match
New Pellet
Switch
The spectator’s pellet is slid into the box as it is placed on hand for removal of match. When bo* is laid aside the dummy pellet is left on fingers from bottom of bo*. Note the method for reading the writing in back of the pad.
■<{89]».
at tips of forefinger and thumb lights the pellet in left hand. The moment it lights, match is blown out and dropped and right hand goes to pocket w ith box and stays there easily while performer watches the pellet burn.
Performer turns more to right now and drops the burning pellet on an ash tray or saucer there and right hand has of course ample time to take pellet from side of box and open it against face o f the pad.
The pad is brought forth and after an explanation the per former scribbles anything irrelevant that he pleases as he really reads the slip. H e reads what he has written, it is said to be wrong, and he at once crumples up the top sheet w ith pellet, tears it off and drops in pocket or throws aside where he can get it later. The ash tray is a good place.
N o w he starts over and this time gets the good answer. The pad is then handed directly to spectator which in an open manner prevents any further thought about it in any way.
O f course, the matchbox may be used for a switch with any other method o f finish, but I wanted to complete out the effect o f such a handy article.
Find the J^ady
. . .
A
N effect quite like this was invented a few years ago by Sid Lorraine. In this case however, the method is totally different and knowing one will give no clue to the other.Everything used may be borrowed and nothing else is used other than the unprepared cards and the unprepared en velopes. I suggest using five. The deck is handed a spectator who is asked to remove any one of the Queens and all four of the Kings or Aces.
Holding the envelope open and singly, the performer asks the spectator to drop the odd cards in and as each card is placed into an envelope it is sealed. We now have five sealed envelopes one o f which contains the lady. The spectators mix them well and they are handed the performer behind his back, either one at a time or all together. Regardless of the procedure, the performer draws one envelope away from the others and declares that it contains the Queen. It is opened and the Queen drawn forth. Everything may be examined as there is nothing to find.
This secret is based on the fact that all standard envelopes are just a trifle higher than a playing card. Playing cards are
31/2 by 2 Z2 while the Bridge decks are % o f an inch less in width.
So behind his back, the performer merely gives each envelope a sort of 'bending feel’ and the Queen envelope cannot be missed.
By a little experimenting the performer w ill find that when the cards are placed in the envelopes long side down, and he is holding the envelope open, he can by a very simple motion, jump the card to a standing position and this little detail, while not necessary, is worth acquiring.
4>1 )5*
The Improved ¿Magic Square
^Presentation
. . .
I
do not wish to claim anything new for this centuries old feat but I do think that I have made a better effect out o f it and m y work has been to make it a shorter, snappier and more interesting item for your program. There may be several other small details of my own inserted but they are of no great con sequence.My idea of the good presentation is thusly; the performer announces the making o f a magic square under extraordinary conditions, but before starting wishes to make clear just what a magic square is.
Drawing a square o f sixteen smaller squares, the performer fills them in quickly from one to sixteen and explains that he has made a magic square o f 34. In short, by adding the columns horizontally, vertically, diagonally, any square group o f four numbers, or the four corner numbers, one w ill reach the same total o f 34. Truly, a remarkable combination and arrangement.
N ow , the performer continues, he w ill show the amount o f concentration and memory he has applied to this problem inasmuch as he can instantly make a magic square of sixteen different numbers that w ill result in any total desired by the audience. T o do this, it is obvious that he must carry any number o f totally different combinations in his mind.
Lastly to do away w ith any thought o f mathematical methods, he w ill fill in the various squares in any order in which they are pointed to by a spectator! This is the strongest point.
A number is named, the square drawn and follow ing the pointing finger o f a spectator, the performer quickly fills in the squares and the effect is over. In my mind, the presenta tion is clear, clean-cut and not in the least bit cloudy or draggy. M y method requires absolutely no memory at all except for the simple bit o f calculating.
The illustration shows the original magic square of 34 which is the smallest that can be made. If one cares to learn this, all well and good, but I simply suggest your writing down the figures beforehand on the slate or blackboard in ordinary
