Peter Duffie - Virtual Miracles
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(2) TABLE OF LINKS to CONTRIBUTORS Please read the INTRODUCTION first.. Jason Alford Steve Beam David Britland Dave Campbell Aldo Colombini Paul W. Cummins Daryl Peter Duffie Iain Girdwood Phil Goldstein Paul Hallas. Steve Hamilton Pit Hartling J. K. Hartman Richard James Marty Kane Peter Lamont Walt Lees Val Le-Val Gene Maze George McBride Peter McLanachan. Robert Neale Jon Racherbaumer Dave Robertson Robin Robertson Fred Robinson Gavin Ross Allan Slaight Roy Walton Gary Ward R. Paul Wilson Andrew Wimhurst. TABLE OF LINKS to TRICKS Jason Alford. Sandwich Spread. Steve Beam. Remember & Forget. David Britland. AT003 Sweet Little Lies The last Game An Old Bar Bet Offworld. Dave Campbell. Premonition Ricochet. Aldo Colombini. Jump and Pass Twin Expedition. Paul W. Cummins. Phone Home. Daryl. Universal. Peter Duffie. Packet Switch The Topless Bottomless etc.... Iain Girdwood. Gerrymandering Threes. Phil Goldstein. Forked Tongue. Paul Hallas. Easy Number. Steve Hamilton. Stressed Out Card A New Twist. Pit Hartling. The Three Musketeers. J. K. Hartman. Sham on You (Too!). Richard James. Jack Trapped (Duplicate Card) Jack Trapped (Non-Duplicate). Marty Kane. The Jack Queen King Ace Trick Best Poker Hands. Peter Lamont. A False Solution. Walt Lees. Royal Ace Cut. Val Le-Val. "X" Marks the Spot Snoz!. Gene Maze. Peeping "Tom" World's Greatest Sponge Ball Routine!. George McBride. Countdown Location Home to Roost. Peter McLanachan. Queen Piece. Robert Neale. Who Is this Woman?. Jon Racherbaumer. Tick-Tock Dot Doc. Dave Robertson. Misdirection Replacement. Robin Robertson. Aldo Colombini's "Chance" Revisited Double Lucky. Fred Robinson. Fred Robinson's Blackjack Stack Poker, Rummy & Bridge. Gavin Ross. On My Way Up. Allan Slaight. Castor & Pollux. Roy Walton. Cardputer. Gary Ward. Countdown Mates Another Countdown. R. Paul Wilson. Diminished Responsibility The Omniscient Queen. Andrew Wimhurst. Whispering Henry's Triumph. Virtual Miracles © Peter Duffie 2000.
(3) INTRODUCTION. Welcome to Virtual Miracles. An electronic collection of fine card and close-up magic from some of the top names in the field. This book acts just a like web site. The index page contains two tables of contents. The first table lists all the contributors in alphabetical order. Simply click on a name to be taken to his first effect. However, as some people contributed more than one item, a second table lists the contributors but gives links to each individual trick. This is also useful if you want to find a particular trick by name. I would like to thank everyone who participated in this electronic venture. A particular word of thanks to Gary Ward for testing this ebook. And, to Marty Kane and Richard James who also tested the book and helped in other ways. So, click on and enjoy! Best Wishes. August 2000. Virtual Miracles © Peter Duffie 2000.
(4) SANDWICH SPREAD By Jason Alford Jason comments, "This is my favourite trick that I’ve ever created! It is very visual! It is my answer to the "purist sandwich challenge" by Richard Kaufman. I've fooled some fast company with this one. Why? Because it's direct and simple. Believe it or not, it's practically self-working." EFFECT The magician shuffles a red deck of cards thoroughly. He then removes two Jokers from a blue deck. A willing spectator removes any card he wishes and signs it across the face. The card is returned to the deck. Our hero the magician slides one of the blue Jokers about 1/3 of the way from the top of the deck. He then slides the other about 1/3 of the way from the bottom. Both are face-down and left outjogged for about 1/2 their length. Our hero then pushes both flush and immediately spreads the deck. The two blue Jokers have somehow come together in the center. They are now separated by only one card. Our hero shows that it is the signed card and leaves to thunderous applause. REQUIREMENTS You will need a red deck and three blue Jokers. Place a small piece of double sided tape in the center of the back of one of the Jokers. Also, you need to place a breather crimp in one of the red cards. If you don't know what a breather crimp is, use a regular crimp. Place this card on the face of the deck. Place one of the Jokers (one without the tape) on the face of the deck (onto the crimped card). The other two Jokers are dropped face-up onto the table. WORKING 1. Shuffle the deck without disturbing the bottom two cards. Be careful not to flash the blue card on the face. Spread the cards and have one removed. As your helper is signing the card, casually cut about 3/4 of the deck to the bottom and hold a break. You should have a pinkie break below the blue back Joker. Your left hand pinkie now kicks the card to the right a little and pulls down on it. This transfers the break to above the blue Joker. 2. Take back the selection and insert it directly into the break. As soon as the card has entered the break, your pinkie can release its break. Leave the card sticking out of the deck for half of its length. Table the deck and slowly push the card flush. 3. You now pick up a Joker (the one with tape on its back) with your left hand, as your right hand lifts up about 3/4 of the deck. Turn the Joker face-down and put it onto the tabled portion. Make sure that you leave it outjogged for half of its length. Replace the right hand cards. As your left hand lifts the other Joker, your right hand lifts the cards up at the break. Place the Joker face down onto the tabled portion. Don't forget to leave it outjogged. Replace the right hand cards on the tabled portion. The Joker with the tape on its back is toward the bottom. When squared, it will stick to the card above it. 4. The selection is now between two Jokers (one is outjogged) about 1/3 of the way down in the deck. All that is left to do is to square the outjogged cards into the deck and spread the cards on the table. It appears as if the two Jokers instantly come together to find one card. Show the trapped card to be the selection. Gather up the cards and run before someone else wants to use the deck!!. ************* This effect originally appeared on The Second Deal Website and this is its first appearance outside that members-only forum. [email protected].
(5) REMEMBER & FORGET By Steve Beam EFFECT "When I perform card tricks, people occasionally forget the cards they selected. This makes for an underwhelming climax. So, I decided to make up a card trick where it’s okay to forget at least one of the cards. I call it, ‘Go Fish.’ This is because three of us are going to play a game of fish. I’d like you to shuffle the pack and deal three hands of seven cards each so we can play the game." The spectator shuffles the pack and deals three piles of seven cards. The remainder of the pack is discarded for now. The magician asks a man and woman to assist him. He asks the lady to pick up one of the hands. She is instructed to mix the hand she is holding and then lift off some cards, note and remember the card on the face, and then drop those cards on one of the hands left on the table. "Burn the card you are holding into your memory – I don’t want you to forget it." She is then to hand the remaining cards to the male. He is to mix them, note the top card, and then pick up the remaining untouched hand from the table and drop it on top of the cards he holds. He is then to place all the cards in his hands on the cards on the table. " You are both remembering cards. Who would like to forget their card?" There is an opportunity for humor at this point. No matter who decides to forget their card, the magician takes advantage of it. If it is the man, "That’s funny. The man is always the one who forgets his card." If it’s the woman, "That’s funny. The woman is always the one who forgets her card." The cards on the table are reassembled with the remainder of the pack and the entire pack is cut. The magician states that it’s time to "go fish." The magician turns to the person who was to remember their card which we will assume was the lady. "Do you still remember your card?" She answers in the affirmative. "That’s great. You would be surprised how often I get a negative answer at this point. You’ll agree I couldn’t possibly know what or where your card is since you are the only person remembering it." Again she answers in the affirmative. "I’m going to spell the word ‘remember.’" The magician deals one card for each letter of the word and stops and holds the card at the last letter. "What was the name of the card you are remembering?" He turns over the card he is holding and it is the selection. The magician turns to the person who forgot their card, the male in our example. "A moment ago, you too remembered a card. Then you forgot your card. Do you remember the card you were supposed to forget?" He says that he does. "You do? So, you forgot to forget your card? Well, in that case, let me see if I can find your card too. The card you were supposed to F-O-R-G-E-T." The magician spell/deals the word ‘forget’ and holds the card at the last letter. "What was the card that you forgot to forget?" He names his card and the magician turns over the card he’s holding, the second selection. This is my butchering of an ingenious Roy Walton handling of the now classic plot. Walton’s version entitled The ‘Thing Er Me Jig’ Trick can be found in Some Late Extra Card Tricks. STEVE'S EXPLANATION The trick practically works itself if you follow the above instructions. Before the 21-card packet is added back to the balance of the pack, the cards are in position for a unique revelation. Assuming the lady choose first and the gentleman second, the gentleman’s card will be at the 8th position and the lady’s card at the 15th position. You can spell ‘remember’ from the top of the face down packet and arrive at the gentleman’s card. Continuing from that point and spelling ‘forget,’ you’ll arrive at the lady’s card. If you turn the packet face up, you can spell ‘remember’ and end with the lady’s card followed by ‘forget’ to end with the gentleman’s card. Your role is to have the deck reassembled properly (the 21 cards after the selection along with the balance of the pack that was discarded at the beginning of the trick). If the lady who chose first is the one to remember her card, the balance of the pack is replaced on top of the 21-card packet. The spelling / dealing is then done with the pack face up after a quick false shuffle. If the man who chose second is the one to remember his card, the 21-card packet is placed on top of the balance of the pack. The spelling / dealing is done with the pack face down after a quick false shuffle. That is all that is required to complete the trick. However, I don’t want it obvious that the spelling is done from the same 21-card packet after the deck is assembled. To blur the lines, I make it appear that the spectator controls the point from which I start dealing. This means that if the lady remembered her card, I force the bottom section of the pack. If the gentleman remembered his card, I force the top section of the pack. The force is the same regardless, the only difference is whether the pack is held face up or face down in the process. The Force. If I want to force the top section (to spell the gentleman's card in the above example) I hold the pack face up in the right hand and dribble cards into my palm-up left hand asking the spectator to call stop. When stopped, I place the cards remaining in my right hand face up on the table as my left hand turns its cards face down. I can then spell/deal from the original top of the pack face up onto the face up cards on the table. If I want to force the bottom section, I hold the pack face down in the right hand and dribble cards into my palm-up left hand asking the spectator to call stop. When stopped, I place the cards remaining in my right hand face up on the table as I rotate the cards in my left hand face up. I can then spell/deal from the original bottom half of the pack onto the face up cards on the table. Leftovers. Remember and Forget is a wonderful plot that has many opportunities for humor that are seldom realized. This is because the same person is usually asked to track both cards. When that happens, the person often forgets both of them. This was the reason I use two people for the routine. Using two different sexes for the trick opens the door for numerous opportunities depending on the style of the performer. If the lady is the one to remember her card, just before revealing it, I ask if she remembers her card. When she says that she does, "Well, it has been my experience that women never forget anything." If the lady is the one to forget her card, just before revealing it, I ask her if she remembers the card she was supposed to forget. When she says that she does, I use the same line - "Well, it has been my experience that women never forget anything." Another opportunity for humor is the natural play on words. Did they remember to forget or forget to forget? Did the first one remember to remember or forget to remember? Of course, a little of this type of wordplay goes a long way. Hopefully, you will know best how far you can drag it. [email protected].
(6) AT003 By David Britland Yet another variation on the seemingly infinite permutations three cards can be put through. This routine is the result of experiments with Roy Walton’s ‘The Changeling’ from The Devil’s Playthings. It can also be considered a version of a Dai Vernon problem in which any one of three cards is transformed into the spectator’s selection. Here you show that it really could have been any of the three, any one at all. WORKING 1. To begin, remove the Ace, Two and Three of Clubs from the deck and display them face up in numerical order with the Three uppermost. Ask the spectator to think of "any card in the pack… except one of these…." 2. Flip the three Club cards face down and deal them, from left to right, onto the table in a row, saying, "…the Ace, Two or Three" Sneakily you execute a Bottom Deal on the first card so that the Three goes down instead of the Ace. The order of the cards has therefore been secretly displaced and the incorrect order branded onto the spectator’s memory. 3. Hand the spectator the deck and ask him to pull out his "thought-of card" and then show it to his friends without revealing it to you. Have the card replaced in the deck and then secretly control it to the top under the guise of a shuffle. 4. Point to the tabled cards once again, calling them "the Ace, Two and Three of Clubs" as you indicate each card. "Now I said you could think of any card except one of these but if you had picked one of these which would you have chosen?" The spectator points to one of the tabled cards, let’s say it is the supposed Ace. "The Ace?" you say. Pick the card up and Hofzinser Top Change it for the selection as you snap the card a couple of times. Rub it on your sleeve, tap it against a glass, blow on it or do whatever it takes to provide that moment of magic. Now turn it face up to reveal it has changed into the thought-of card. It is worth noting at this point that the deck stays face down in the left hand for the rest of the handling. 5. "Of course you’re probably wondering what would have happened if you’d pointed to another card. What if you’d chosen the Two instead of the Ace?" There’s a system in operation here. You’re moving clockwise along the row. If the spectator originally nominated the "Ace," you now pick up the "Two" by scooping the face down card up from the table with the face up selection held in the right hand. The two cards are face to face at the right thumb fingertips in a position that will facilitate the Paddle Move that is to follow. Rub the pair on the left sleeve, executing the Paddle Move in the process. You’re really just curling the fingers in to secretly turn the packet over. When the right hand returns to its palm up position the lower card of the pair will be a face up Ace. Push it onto the table, face up, in the vacant spot that the original "Ace" occupied. It is, appropriately enough, the Ace. Now slowly turn the card in your right hand face up. It is the thought-of card. 6. "But you always get someone who says I didn’t choose the Ace and I didn’t choose the Two." Use the face up thought-of card to scoop up the remaining face down tabled card. Repeat the previous sequence to transform it into the thought-of card while replacing the Two on the table. Finish the routine by Hofzinser Top Changing the thought-of card for the Three, which is on top of the deck. END NOTES This is just a basic handling to put forward the cyclical notion of the changes. If, say, the "Three" is the first card chosen then you start over at the other end of the row and use the "Ace" for your second transformation. You can spruce the routine up with all kinds of Through the Fist flourishes or Paddle Move substitutes. And it’d be nice to finish with something other than a repeat of the Hofzinser Top Change. When I came up with this, more than a decade ago, I favoured Al Smith’s P. C. Change or Twitch Switch as it was called in the original series of Talon magazine but there are even more spectacular changes available which would give it suitable flourish-gilded finale. To each his own. mailto:[email protected] GO TO DAVID'S NEXT EFFECT!.
(7) SWEET LITTLE LIES By David Britland For this odd truth and lies routine you’ll need need the ability to cull cards secretly, execute Marlo’s Simple Shift neatly and four counters or poker chips. The chips have lettering on both sides. Chip One: Says RED on one side and BLACK on the other. Chip Two: Says SPOT on one side and COURT on the other. Chip Three: Says HEARTS on one side and DIAMONDS on the other. Chip Four: Says CLUBS on one side and SPADES on the other. WORKING 1. Begin by throwing the counters onto the table and handing the deck out for shuffling as you tell the spectators some fable about the deck being a handy device that enables you to sort fact from fiction. Request the help of a spectator whose eyes are perhaps too close together and tell him he looks like the sort of person who might be able to tell a fib or two with sincerity. Ask him if he’d mind helping and when he replies that he wouldn’t mind at all congratulate him on his ability to lie so effectively! 2. Have him select and remember one card from the deck. It’s returned and you secretly control it to the face of the deck. Give the deck a cut but retain a left little finger break below the selection. Retain the break as the right hand hinges the deck over on its side, turning it face up and splitting the deck at the break, giving you a brief glimpse of the index card of the selection. This is a standard move. 3. Close up the deck but retain the break. Now you’re going to spread through the deck and upjog three cards including the selection. At the same time you’ll be looking for some other cards. You’ll need to find a card that is the same colour as the selection, one that is the same suit and another that is either a spot card or court card depending of course which one of these the selection also happens to be. Ready? Go! Let’s assume that the selection is the Three of Spades. As you spread the cards face up, from the left to right, cull any Spade that is also a spot card. As you reach one third of the way in from the face outjog any card that contrasts well with the selection. Let’s assume that the Queen of Hearts (a card totally dissimilar to our Three of Spades) has been upjogged. Continue spreading until you arrive at the selection. You held a break above it just in case you forgot it. Look at the card immediately above it. Ideally it should be a spot card just like the selection. If it is then just outjog the selection. If it isn’t then divide the spread at this point so that the culled card becomes the rear card of the upper portion, and then outjog the selection. The culled card, you will remember, was a spot card. You’ll see why in a moment. Continue spreading until you’re two thirds of the way through the deck. Look for any card of the same suit as the selection, in this case Spades. Now outjog the card immediately below the Spade card. You’ve now got three cards upjogged. If you didn’t have to use the culled card when you upjogged the selection, then continue spreading to the end of the deck so that the culled card becomes the rearmost card of the pack. If you did get rid of the culled card earlier, then cull any black card and move it to the rear of the deck. Whew! Almost there. And it’s not as complicated as it sounds, honest. Occasionally you can set the whole trick up without ever needing the culled card. Anyway, square the sides of the deck and flip the cards face down in the left hand. Spread the three upjogged cards and then hold the deck up towards the spectators so that they can see their faces. Tell them you have made three guesses as to the identity of the selected card. They can see that one of them is indeed the selection. Add that the only way you can be sure is to use the services of your cards as a lie detector. 4. Square the three projecting cards so that they are once again parallel with the deck. Lower the hand and deck in preparation for the Marlo Simple Shift. With the right hand pick up Chip Number One and tell the spectator that you are going to ask him three questions regarding the identity of his selected card. He can lie or tell the truth as he pleases during this interrogation. Question number one is, "Was your card red or black?" Place the chip on the left of the table top with his answer uppermost. Pick up Chip Number Two and ask, "Was it as spot card or a court card?" Place the chip in the centre of the table with the appropriate answer uppermost. Ask him for the suit of his chosen card and pick up either Chip Number Three or Four and place it with the appropriate side up on the right of the table. Pocket the remaining counter. We’re nearly there. 5. Tell the spectator that you’ll have his answers verified by the pasteboards. Perform Marlo’s Simple Shift, pressing the outjogging cards into the deck so that they plunge out a block of cards from the inner end. Grip the plunged-out block with the right hand and twist it ninety degrees to the right. Move the block back, clear of the left hand cards, and then strip it out away from the deck. You’ll find that it emerges with one card (the selection as it happens) projecting face down from the block. Now put all the left hand hands face down next to the left hand chip. Place the right hand packet next to the centre chip. Cut this packet at the projecting card and place these cards next to the right hand chip. Take the projecting face down card and place it forward of all the chips. 6. Time for the truth. Point to the left hand chip, which displays the spectator’s answer as to whether his card was red or black. Turn over the top card of the left hand packet for the correct answer. It will be the same colour as the selection. Chide the spectator suitably if he had tried to lie. Similarly the top card of the centre packet will reveal whether the spectator’s card was a court card or spot card. And the top card of the right hand packet provides the suit. Finally, recap what you have gleaned so far regarding colour, denomination and suit and ask the spectator to tell the truth for the first time. He answers and you turn over the single face down card to reveal, in this instance, the Three of Spades. END NOTES It’s a simple routine. Bits of paper can be substituted for prepared counters although I prefer the latter. It’s one of a number of routines I developed which exploits the revelatory possibilities inherent in the Marlo Simple Shift. The first of these, Computer Deck, was originally described in Babel magazine many moons ago.. GO TO DAVID'S NEXT EFFECT! BACK TO DAVID'S PREVIOUS EFFECT.
(8) THE LAST GAME By David Britland This poker routine began as an attempt to simplify Karl Fulves’ According to Hoyle, which was published in his The Magic Book. It’s a poker deal in which the spectators get the opportunity to switch hands during the game. Fulves’ own stack was more suited to someone who played poker and was not easily remembered. The following stack is much simpler and you always win with a four-of-a-kind, a hand easily recognised even by non-players. I’ve also added the repeat deal and final blow-off, proving that the spectator just can’t win. Remove the Ten of Clubs, Ten of Hearts and Ten of Diamonds from the deck and place them in the card case, wallet or anywhere else that you can produce them from later in the routine. The rest of the deck is stacked as follows, from the top: AS, KS, QS, JS, 10S, AD, KD, QD, JD, X, AH, KH, QH, JH, X, AC, KC, QC, JC, REST OF DECK. The "X" can be any card. A quick glance will reveal that you are merely stacking the Royal Flushes minus the missing Ten spots. The flushes can be in any order as long as the Spades are on top and the other values follow the order of the Spades. For now use the above stack until you become familiar with the principle. PHASE ONE 1. Bring out the deck and give it your best False Shuffle, retaining the stack. Tell the spectators that you will show them a very unusual game of poker. Nominate four spectators to help as you finish your shuffles and cuts. Announce that you will deal a five handed game, five cards each, but each person at the table will get a chance to swap his cards with yours as the game proceeds. 2. Deal out the first five cards, from left to right, dealing to yourself last. Point out that you each have one card and that one of the spectators can now swap with you, "Who will it be?" Let them choose the lucky person and then openly exchange your card with his. No one looks at their cards while this happens. 3. Deal a second round of cards so that you now have two cards each. Invite another spectator to swap his two cards with both of yours. It can be anyone except the person who swapped cards in the first round. 4. The cards are exchanged and you deal a third round. Again one of the spectators exchanges his hand of cards with yours. This leaves only one spectator who has not swapped. It also tells you which four of a kind you will end up with at the end of this phase. As you deal the cards are being dealt out Ace, King, Queen, Jack, Ten (or indifferent card). So, let’s say the second spectator from the left is the only one who has not swapped. You now know that you will end up with four Kings at the finish. Two rounds of cards have yet to be dealt but you could, if you wished, mention that you are trying to force the spectators to part with the four Kings. 5. Deal the fourth round of cards and ask the spectator, the one who has not yet exchanged cards) whether he would like to swap cards now or wait until the last round of cards is dealt. It makes no difference what he decides. Swap cards if he chooses and then deal a fifth round. Alternatively deal and then swap. 6. At this stage you have the winning hand but you play up the impossibility angle by offering them another choice. Tell them that only one spectator may play against you. Without looking at their cards they choose who it should be. Pick up the discarded hands and place them on top of the deck. Don’t shuffle each hand, just drop them one atop the other and then onto the deck because you are setting up Phase Two. Finally, the nominated spectator turns over his hand as you turn over yours. You win with four of a kind. Don’t disturb the order of either hand as you pick them up and drop them on top of the deck. It doesn’t matter which hand goes on top of which. PHASE TWO 7. False Shuffle and Cut as you tell the spectators that you had, of course, psychologically forced them to give up their best cards. This time you’ll give them a straight deal, no swaps. 8. Deal out five hands of poker from the top of the deck, dealing yourself last. Ask the spectators to choose one of their number to play against you. They choose and you now surprise them by saying that maybe, you’ve already forced a choice so you give him a chance to pick any one of the hands, bar yours, on the table. The situation is, reading left to right, the first hand contains only spot cards, hands two to four contain Royal Flushes minus the Ten spots, your hand contains a Royal Flush in Spades. If the spectator chooses hands two, three or four then just return the discarded hands to the deck. If he chooses hand number one let him take it, then say that you’re feeling lucky tonight and you’ll let another spectator play against you. He chooses one of the remaining hands. If you now have two spectators playing against you: Get number one to look at his hand (the spot cards) and offer him the opportunity to discard some of his cards and take replacements from the deck as is usual. Make sure he shows his hand to everyone who is watching so that they can feel part of the game. He exchanges cards and then you ask number two (holding what is almost a Royal Flush) to do the same. Of course he will discard only one card in the hope of filling his Royal Flush with the missing Ten. If you’re only playing against one spectator: It will be the one trying for the Royal Flush. In these circumstances I offer him the opportunity of discarding a card (or cards?) and choosing the replacement from anywhere in the deck which I spread face down across the table. Nothing could be fairer. 9. The spectators turn over their hands, one at a time, and you reveal yours to show an unbeatable Royal Flush. Finally, look at the spectator who was trying to fill a Royal Flush and ask him, naively, which card he was looking for. He will reply, "Ten of Diamonds," or whatever, and you say, "I never take chances" and produce the missing Ten Spot from your card case or wallet. Be sure not to let the spectators see the other two cards that are in there. This should get a great response if you’ve been able to get the spectators involved with the win or lose situation. END NOTES If you are going to use this, you might like to produce the missing Ten spot from up your sleeve in classical card cheat fashion. This routine is particularly adaptable to a pseudo mental presentation because you know the type of hand you are going to win with and how the spectator will lose in the final phase. Judicious use of some alternative predictions could produce a very strong mental effect. Give some thought to the presentation and you may have something you’ll use for a long time. One final point. If you are performing this routine for people who know a little more about poker than you do, you may find that in the second phase they will not want to exchange any cards. This will be because they possess a flush (five cards of the same suit) and will not risk swapping one of their cards in order to obtain the Ten spot. In order to prevent this just ensure that all the indifferent cards in the set-up are of the Spades suit. This way they’ll never end up with a flush following the deal in the second stage of the routine.. GO TO DAVID'S NEXT EFFECT! BACK TO DAVID'S PREVIOUS EFFECT.
(9) AN OLD BAR BET By David Britland "I have three coins in my hand," said Steven and held his hand out so that everyone could be sure exactly which hand he was talking about. "What?" said Eric, who obviously had no idea what was going on. Steven started over again, holding out his closed right hand for all to see, saying, "I have three coins in my hand." "So," said Eric. "So the strange thing is that these three coins add up to eight pence but one of them isn't a one-pence piece. Which three coins have I got?" Eric realised that it was another one of Steve's party tricks. He looked at Steve and said, "Don't be stupid. You can't have only three coins if one of them isn't a one-pence piece. How are they going to add up to eight pence?" "That's what I'm asking," said Steve. "I have three coins in my hand, they add up to eight-pence and yet one of them isn't a one-pence piece. Which coins do I have?" Steven smiled. He liked bar bets and this was his favourite. He'd already conned Eric out of the first round of drinks and now that his glass was empty it seemed time for another. Eric hated puzzles of every sort but most of all he hated Steven's smugness that seem to come with every one. Steven held his arm outstretched, the fingers of his right hand clutching the coins tightly as if they were a dark secret. I should force his hand open, thought Eric, and break every finger. That would show the smug bastard. If they'd been on their own he might have done just that but today they were in company and Laura sat at the pub table seemingly entranced by the impromptu entertainment. Anyway, he fancied Laura, always had, and wasn't yet drunk enough to make a complete fool of himself by throttling Steve across the table and forcing the coins down his throat. Eric tried to parry Steve's question by turning to Laura, saying, "Well, mastermind over there says he's got three coins that all add up to eight-pence, but one of them isn't a one-pence piece. Can't be done can it?" Laura, roused from her thoughtfulness, said, "If it wasn't for the business about not having a one-pence piece, I would have known. It would have to be a penny, twopence and a five pee, wouldn't it?" Steven, another fan of the softly spoken Laura, immediately opened his hand to reveal the very coins Laura had named: a penny, two-pence and five-pence piece. "Very good Laura, right again. That's two to you and none to Eric. Must be feminine intuition." Eric stared at the three coins, baffled, thinking he must have misunderstood something but not sure what. Finally indignation triumphed over embarrassment and he shouted so that he could be heard above the general buzz of the pub, "You said that one of the coins wasn't a penny!" Steve looked straight at him, smiled then winked at Laura. Eric realised he'd just made a fool of himself again. "Yes, I did didn't I?" said Steve. He lifted up the five-pence piece and tossed it to the table where it spun and wobbled with a hollow rattling sound. "Yes, one of the coins isn't a penny. This one. It's a five-pence piece!" Laura and Steve laughed as the coin spun around a couple of more times before lying on the table as flat as Eric's ego.. GO TO DAVID'S NEXT EFFECT! BACK TO DAVID'S PREVIOUS EFFECT.
(10) OFFWORLD By David Britland Marlo was dead: to begin with. There is no doubt about that. No more twisted cigar wrappers littering restaurant tables, no more Marlo’s Magazine, no more double-digit versions of whatever card plot interested him at the time. No more letters to cardmen pointing out the error of their ways and the righteousness of his. What the Dickens am I talking about? Well….. Marlo’s obsession with card magic was not confined to his own books and magazine articles. He made it a point to read as much as he could about everything anyone else was doing in the field. And, if he thought that you had unwittingly trespassed onto territory he considered his, he would write a long and detailed letter pointing out the true source of your ideas. As it happens, that source usually turned out to be Marlo and as a consequence his letters had an air of pique about them rather than a willingness to share information. I’ve seen several such letters and even received one myself. But the most unusual example I ever saw was addressed to Terri Rogers. Marlo had read, in her book Secrets (1986), a description of an "Out of this World" effect she had seen performed: I dealt the cards into two piles and he did not stop me at any point. This knocked me for six. He didn’t divide the cards either, but what he did do was brilliant and new; a completely original concept. It was seeing this breakthrough which inspired me to think again and what I came up with does look quite impressive. Terri then went on to describe her version of the Paul Curry classic, a version in which the deal is not stopped halfway through (see "Curry Flavour"). Marlo though took umbrage at Terri’s claim that it was "a completely original concept" and pointed her in the direction of some of his own original concepts. He was probably right but the letter was galling all the same especially as the trick hadn’t even been fully described. Until now that is because the person who performed the trick that Terri saw was me. The trick has an ignominious history, Long before Marlo had lambasted it, it had the honour of being rejected for publication by Donald Bevan of Abracadabra magazine. This was back in 1976. Donald thought it too complicated. Now just what kind of trick can be dissed by Marlo, rejected by Abra and considered inspirational by Terri Rogers? You’re about to find out, but only if you follow through with cards in hand. Begin by setting up your face down fifty-two card deck with the red cards on top and the black cards below them. WORKING 1. False Shuffle and Cut and generally convince your audience that you’re handling a shuffled deck. Spread the top half of the deck and have a card selected. It will be a red card. Have it remembered and replaced in the lower half of the deck, among the black cards. False Shuffle and Cut again, ostensibly to lose the selection. 2. Hand the deck to the spectator and tell him that you’d like to try an experiment in imagination. Ask him to imagine the colour of the top card of the deck. It might be red or black. It can be either, it all depends on his imagination. Caution him not to tell you what he has in mind. "Red or black, just imagine it, don’t tell me." Ask him to deal the top card face down on the table. You now explain the exercise more fully. "Because what I want you to do is imagine the colour of each card and deal all the red cards in one pile and all the black cards in the other. Now you have one card on the table already. If the next card is the same colour, then deal it on top of it. If it’s a different colour, then start a new pile." Basically you’re giving him the usual "Out of This World" instructions and he’s dealing the cards into two piles, one red, one black. The difference is that only he knows which pile is which. After all, the difference exists only in his imagination. 3. Magicians will be waiting for you to stop the deal half way through. You don’t. Instead, when the deck has been dealt into two piles, you ask the spectator which pile did he imagine contained all the red cards. He points to one and you turn it face up. He should be astonished to find that there is a red card at its face. "You must have a strong imagination." 4. Pick the other packet up, keep it face down and Faro Shuffle it into the face up packet. Use a standard in the hands Straddle Faro. The face down half is closest to you. The face up half is furthest away from you. As you push the two halves together your left thumb riffles down the side of the face up outer packet. You’re surreptitiously looking for the dividing point between the red cards and the black cards. Squeeze the packets together, creating a break at this dividing point. This takes just a moment as you say, "Let’s see how strong. Because if I shuffle the packets together like this, then all the face up cards should be red. Can you imagine that?" You then spread the deck across the table but just before you do so you Half Pass the lower portion at the break. Amazingly, all the face up cards are red. "But what was your card?" The spectator names it. You look through the face up reds, saying, "because all the red cards are here except one…." And you repeat the name of the selection. "Wouldn’t it be odd if it was the only card among the blacks?" Either flip over the spread or scoop it up and respread it across the table. All the cards showing will be black with the exception of the red selection.. ************** And that’s it. Well almost. If you went through the trick with the cards in hand you probably discovered that some cards, either at the top or bottom of the spread, were out of place. Don’t worry about it. I never did. What you need to do is the best Straddle Faro you can when you mix the cards and then, just in case some are still out of order, be careful not to expose the top or bottom couple of cards when you make that first spread. That way you will hide any errors. Hey, what do you want, perfection? I’m sure there must be a simple way of guaranteeing the accuracy of the Faro but I’ve never nailed it down. Let me know if you do. The trick is certainly not better than the simple genius of "Out of This World," a trick that has survived all attempts at improvement, but it’s good for entertaining fellow magicians. And who knows, if Marlo is somewhere out there reading this, we may be graced with another of his formidable letters. Let’s hope so. mailto:[email protected] BACK TO DAVID'S PREVIOUS EFFECT.
(11) PREMONITION By Dave Campbell Dave Campbell was one of Scotland’s premier thinkers. When he passed over in January 1994, the loss to Scottish magic was tremendous. As a tribute to the great man, here are two of his clever routines. EFFECT The deck is shuffled then spread face down and a spectator is invited to touch the back of any card. This is a completely free selection. The card that he touches is flipped face up along with the one directly next to it. These two cards might be the Ace of Hearts and the Six of Clubs. The spectator is given another choice, that is to create IN HIS MIND ONLY, one new card from the two he selected. So from the two just mentioned, he could create either the Ace of Clubs, or the Six of Hearts. He now takes the deck and deals through face up with the instruction to stop when he comes to the card that is in his mind. He deals straight through without stopping because his card is not there. You immediately reach into your pocket and bring out the card which you placed there before you left the house due to a premonition. BACKGROUND The "Premonition" effect is one that intrigued Dave for many years ever since he bought the Eddie Joseph version, which used pocket indices. The original version of the effect and method appeared in J.N. Hofzinser's Card Conjuring (1931) under the title of "Domination of Thought". Hofzinser used the same method as Eddie Joseph to achieve the same effect. (See "Domination of Thought" second version) The main difference was that Hofzinser didn't have pocket indices, instead a deck was split between four different pockets. Considering that there were only thirty-two cards in a deck, this was a fairly workable method. Dave disliked the pocket index method to produce the card and experimented with the effect. He eventually hit upon a method with which he was "absolutely delighted". Unfortunately, Edward Marlo had come up with exactly the same method some years previously, and so it was back to the drawing board. The story resumes when Dave received a copy of Jerry Sadowitz' magazine The Crimp, issue number 10. In this issue, Steve Hamilton had published his excellent routine "Thinking Out Loud". Steve's trick also appeared in the Roger Crosthwaite compilation card book, Roger's Thesaurus. The principle used in this trick intrigued Dave and he quickly saw that it could be used to achieve the "Premonition" effect which would obey the strict conditions that he had set himself, and which until now had evaded him. Only one regular deck is used, and nothing else. The method closely follows Steve's original "Thinking Out Loud", with the main alterations coming in at the end which send the effect off in a different direction. A full deck stack is required, and this is the same arrangement as used by Steve in his original routine. The stack is basically the classic Eight Kings set-up but with the cards set in PAIRS, though any other similar stack, such as Si Stebbins, can be used. Here is the stack reading from the top down:. 8C-8H KC-KH 3C-3H 10C-10H 2C-2H 7C-7H 9C-9H 5C-5H QC-QH 4C4H AC-AH 6C-6H JC-JH 8S-8D KS-KD 3S-3D 10S-10D 2S-2D 7S-7D 9S-9D 5S-5D QS-QD 4S-4D AS-AD 6S-6D JS-JD. WORKING 1. With the deck stacked as above give it any False Shuffle that retains full order, followed by a False Cut. 2. Spread the deck face down between your hands and ask a spectator to touch the back of any card, saying, "I will turn whichever card you want face upwards along with the card that lies directly next to it." This is a true statement, however, the colour of the card touched will determine which card on either side of the selection is also turned. So, once the spectator has touched a card, flip it face up keeping it in position in the spread. If it is a red card you flip over the card immediately to its left. If it is a black card you flip over the card immediately to its right. Dave used Steve's memory jogger to avoid any unnecessary thinking here:. RED AHEAD - BLACK BACK 3. At this point there are two face up cards in the spread, and owing to the pre-arrangement of the deck along with the above simple rule, these will always be of different values, and different colours. Remove all the face down cards to the right (above) of the face up pair and place them to the bottom thus bringing the two face up selections to the top. Deal the two face up cards onto the table so that they lie side by side. Let us assume that the two cards are the Ace of Hearts and the Six of Clubs. If you check the top and bottom cards of the deck you will find that they are the Six of Hearts and the Ace of Clubs respectively. These are your essential cards in what is to follow. Hold the deck in readiness for an Overhand Shuffle and milk off the top and bottom cards together then shuffle off the rest of the cards on top. Now cut off the top half of the deck and Faro it into the lower half, ensuring that you begin your Faro above the bottom two cards. The Faro is merely to destroy the stack so there is no need for perfection. An in-the-hands Riffle Shuffle could be substituted. 4. Spread the deck face down between your hands as you say, "You have selected two different cards completely by chance and the rest of the deck has been thoroughly shuffled. If you look at these two cards you will notice that you can make another two cards by using their properties. By taking the value of this card and the suit of the other, you could make up the Ace of Clubs....or, if you take the value of that one and the suit of the other you would have the Six of Hearts." Here, you point out the two possible combinations of value and suit between both cards which will give two completely different cards. As you speak close up the spread and obtain a left little finger break above the bottom two cards then immediately Palm them into your right hand. If you find this Palm difficult, then a regular left hand Bottom Palm can be used. As you make the Palm, ask the spectator to hold out his left hand palm up. The instant the Palm has been made, take hold of the outer end of the deck with your right hand and turn it face up, while at the same time you hold out your left hand palm uppermost by way of demonstrating what is required of the spectator. Place the face up deck onto his outstretched hand then relax. You will have to vary the foregoing procedure slightly if you have palmed the cards into your left hand. 5. At this stage the spectator appears to have all the cards in his possession with the exception of two, and these are lying in full view on the table. He has yet to make his decision on a card, so the position is a very strong one from an audience point of view. Of course, it doesn't matter which of the two possible cards the spectator finally decides upon, because you have both of them securely in your palm! Ask the spectator to decide on one of the two combinations, which he does openly and out loud. Now say, "Make a vivid mental picture of that card in your mind. Now I want you to deal the cards face up onto the table and when you reach your card STOP, and I will show you a wonderful coincidence." Allow the spectator to deal through the entire deck and of course his card will not be there, at which point you say, "That is the wonderful coincidence....because I removed your card before we started and placed it in my pocket." Reach into your inside jacket pocket with the two palmed cards, and as a memory check you will be able to glimpse the colour of the front card as your hand goes to the pocket. Leave the unwanted card behind in the pocket and bring out the correct card with its back towards the audience, then dramatically turn it round to conclude. NOTE: If you have used a regular left hand Bottom Palm, you will not be able to make the final glimpse, therefore, you will need to remember the colour order of these cards by glimpsing the face card of the deck during the Faro. END NOTES As with Steve's original "Thinking out Loud" routine, there are two crucial cards that must not be touched by the spectator, otherwise the trick won't work. These are the twenty-sixth and twenty-seventh cards. This is easily controlled by spreading the upper half widely, and if no decision is taken, the middle few cards are then pushed over together and the remainder of the cards spread. A small problem, but one that you must be aware of. However, if you care to think about it, the two composite cards which can be made from our two Jonah cards lie at the second from top and second from the bottom positions. GO TO DAVE'S NEXT EFFECT!.
(12) RICOCHET By Dave Campbell EFFECT A spectator (A) selects a card and signs his name across the face. You take this card and place it into your inside jacket pocket. A second spectator (B) selects a card, signs his name across the face, and this card is placed face down between two face up Jacks. A third spectator (C) selects a card, signs his name across the face, and this is buried into the middle of the deck. Now the fun starts. You attempt to cause the third selection to shoot out of the deck, only to find it is now the second spectator's card which is supposed to be between the Jacks. The card between the Jacks is removed and it is now seen to be the first spectator's card which is supposed to be in your pocket. You finally remove the card from your pocket to show that it is now the third spectator's card. The first revelation is a slight variation on Peter Kane's classic "Shooting Joker" which appeared in Hugard's Magic Monthly (1963), and also "Single Shot" which can be found in A Card Session with Peter Kane (1967). WORKING 1. Remove the two red Jacks and place them face up on the table to your left and forward. Remove the Ace of Spades and place it face up on the table to your right and forward. 2. Spread the deck face up between your hands and invite spectator A to select a card. Hand him a pen and have him sign his name across the face. As he doing this, close up the spread and obtain a little finger break below the top face up card. Take the selection and place it momentarily face up on top of the deck, tilt your hand inwards slightly, then insert your right first finger into the break and withdraw the second card from the face. Without pause, your right hand places the card into your left inside jacket pocket, as you say, "I'll do a trick with your card later." 3. The first selection is on the face of the deck, so turn the deck face down and shuffle the bottom card to the top. Turn the deck face up again and spread the cards, inviting spectator B to select a card and sign his name across the face. While he is doing this turn the deck face down. Take the card from him and place it face down on top of the deck to allow your right hand to slide the two face up Jacks towards you. Now bring your right hand back and execute a Second Deal, switching selection B for selection A, which you place between the two face up Jacks. 4. Once again turn the deck face up and have spectator C select a card and sign his name across its face. As he is doing this, turn the deck face down, then raise the inner end of the top card of the deck in readiness for the Vernon Depth Illusion (Tilt). Take the third selection and apparently insert it face down into the middle of the deck, really executing Tilt so it finishes second from the top. The top card of the deck is selection B and selection C is below it. 5. Cut off less than half the deck from the top and weave this section into the larger bottom section for about one inch. Turn the smaller section so that it is at right angles to the larger section, with both sections forming an L shape. Hold the larger portion in your left fist with the upper portion pointing forwards to represent a hand gun. The faces of the cards should be facing to your left. Selection B is the topmost card of the upper angled section. As your right hand picks up the Ace of Spades from the table, turn your left hand so that the faces of the cards are towards the audience. Turn the Ace so that it faces the same way as the cards in the deck, and place it against the back of selection B. Slide the Ace down so that it enters the larger section and comes out at the bottom, at which point you stop and position the card so that it is downjogged from the bottom of the larger section. Move the downjogged Ace gently upwards until you feel the edge of the card touch the edge of selection B. This will leave about an inch or so of the Ace still downjogged. Tilt the deck (gun) to a forty degree angle then flick the downjogged ace sharply with your right first finger. This will cause selection B to shoot out of the deck, into the air and land face down on the table. 6. Ask spectator C to turn over the card to discover that it is spectator B's card. While he is doing this, strip out the smaller portion of the woven deck and place it on top of the larger portion. Ask spectator B to remove the card from between the two Jokers to find spectator A's card. As this revelation is occurring, Palm the top card of the deck into your right hand. Finally reach into your left inside jacket pocket and bring out the palmed card at your fingertips. Turn it round to reveal the third and final phase of this pasteboard ricochet.. GO BACK TO DAVE'S PREVIOUS EFFECT.
(13) JUMP AND PASS By Aldo Colombini EFFECT Two selected cards change places with the four Kings! The trick has some affinity with a Phil Goldstein routine that requires one to be seated at the table. I have changed the handling a little so that I can do the same routine standing up. Give it a try and see for yourself how strong it is. WORKING 1.Remove the four Kings from the deck and leave them aside. Have two cards selected from the deck of the same suit (say they take the 5H and the 9H). Leave the deck aside. Pick up the four Kings and place them face down in your left hand. The KH (same suit of the selections) is the top card. 2. The right hand picks up the two selections and places them face up onto the packet. Steal the KH below them as you square them and lift the three-card packet from above with the right hand. The left thumb slides off the top card (say the 9H). This card is turned face down and taken below the right hand cards. Repeat with the next card (5H) which is flipped face down and taken under the right hand cards. Hold the three-card packet from above in the right hand. From top down: KH, 9H, 5H. (in your left hand you have the other three Kings). Have a spectator check inside the card box. At the same time the right hand is above the left hand and drops the bottom two cards (selected ones) onto the left-hand cards. The right hand holds only the top card (KH) from above. Place the KH into the card box (to the audience you are inserting the two selections just shown). Leave the card box to a spectator to hold. 3. Spread the top three cards keeping the last two as one and show four cards. Square the packet. Flip the top three cards face up as one onto the cards remaining in the left hand showing a King. Turn the left hand palm down, turning the cards as well and with the left hand remove the bottom King (the one previously shown), turn it over face up and replace it to the bottom. During these actions you can say, "You may have selected two cards of this suit or this one." Turn the left hand palm up. Flip the packet over and do an Ascanio Spread, showing that apparently the KH is now face down third from the top. Move the double card to the top. Say that the KH will turn again face up. Spread the cards showing two cards face down between the Kings. Surprise. Turn over the two cards and show the two selections. Ask the spectator to remove the card from the card box showing the KH for a strong finale. http://www.mammamiamagic.com GO TO ALDO'S NEXT EFFECT!.
(14) TWIN EXPEDITION By Aldo Colombini EFFECT Two cards are selected and replaced in the deck. The magician shows the four Kings and one is selected. The selected King disappears and reappears in the deck between the two selected cards! This is a very easy routine with a direct-to-the-point climax. It has similarities to the classic Hofzinser plot. WORKING 1. Remove the four Kings from the deck (or any other four-of-a-kind of your choice) and leave them face down on the spectator’s hand (or on the table). 2. Have two cards selected and replaced. Secretly control them second and third from the top. Obtain a break below the top two cards of the deck with your little finger of the left hand. At the same time, the right hand picks up the four Kings, turns them face up and places them on top of the deck. Spread the four Kings and ask a spectator to select a King, say he chooses the KC. Move the KC on top. Square the Kings above the deck and at the same time secretly steal the two face-down cards below the King packet, taking the six cards squared with the right hand from above. With your left thumb slide the KC onto the deck. Drop the five-card packet on top and do a magic gesture. Spread the top four cards to show that the KC has vanished. Leave the three face-up Kings in the hands of a spectator. 3. Casually turn over the top card of the deck showing it indifferent. Replace the card face down on top and cut the deck completing the cut. Spread the deck face down between the hands and show the KC face up in the middle of the deck. Remove it and the two cards on each side. Turn them over and show the two selected cards.. BACK TO ALDO'S PREVIOUS TRICK.
(15) PHONE HOME By Paul W. Cummins For some years I have been looking for a baffling card routine that is easy to do, easy to remember, and that can be performed over the telephone. I specifically wanted to give the impression to the person I’d called that she had choices to make during the routine that would seem to prevent my having any control over the outcome of the process. And, importantly, I didn’t want the person I’d called to be able to reconstruct the routine by following the steps again after we’d completed the phone call. Jim Swain demonstrated a routine to me after having seen Jon Racherbaumer perform Marlo’s "Nouveau 21-Card Trick" at the 1997 Magic On The Beach magic convention in South Florida. Jim’s version of Marlo’s routine could be done over the phone successfully, and he added an important, appealing, step to it - but the effect could be reproduced after the phone call if the spectator could remember the proper steps to take. Jim’s routine led me to develop the following. Since the patter used in the routine is extremely important, this description will be unusually patter-heavy. WORKING 1. Telephone a spectator and, after making the appropriate amenities, ask if she’d like to see a card trick. If she does, and only if she does, ask her to round up any deck of cards. When she has done so, ask her to shuffle the deck and create three face-down piles of seven cards apiece. Have her place the remainder of the deck aside. It is important to give specific and simple instructions! Say, "Pick up one of the piles and hold it in your hand as if you were going to deal the cards. Is the pile in your right hand or your left hand?" Assume the spectator answers that the pile is in her left hand. Say, "Then with your right hand, lift off a portion of the pile and turn your right palm toward yourself so you can look at the card you’ve cut to. Remember that card! Okay, place the cards in your right hand onto one of the piles on the table." 2. Continue your instructions: "Now place the remaining cards in your left hand onto the OTHER pile on the table. Pick up that OTHER pile and place it onto the pile that contains your card." The spectator will do so. 3. You’ll now execute Swain’s excellent addition to Marlo’s routine. This is the first time that the spectator will be given some choices that apparently take all control away from the magician. Say, "Pick up the pile on the table and hold it like you were going to deal again. Cut a little packet off the top and place it onto the table a bit to your left. Now cut another packet and place it to the right of the pile on the table. Finally, place the remaining cards to the right of the piles on the table." Students will recognize these actions as the first part of the Ose False Cut. Since the spectator is executing the false cut for you, some time misdirection is helpful. Say, "If I were there in the room with you, I might be able to eyeball all the cuts you made and estimate the location of your card. But since I’m not there, I can have absolutely no idea how many cards you cut when you chose your card, nor how many cards you cut into the piles that are on the table in front of you; do you agree?" The spectator will have no option but to agree. "Okay," you say, "place the pile on your left onto the middle pile. Now place that whole pile onto the pile on your right, and pick up the entire packet." "Please pretend that I’m sitting across from you and deal me the top card face down. Deal the next card to yourself, and one to me, another to yourself, and keep dealing until you are out of cards." The spectator will indicate when she is finished. You will now give another instruction that allows the spectator a choice. Say, "Pick up either pile - yours or mine, it doesn’t matter which one - and spread it faces toward you between your hands, just as if you were playing a game of Gin Rummy or Bridge." By virtue of the mechanics of Marlo’s selection procedure, the selection is the fourth card from the top of the pile in front of the spectator. The spectator may pick up either packet; you will learn which packet was selected in a moment without having to ask. When the spectator indicates that she has spread out the cards, say, "All right, I’m getting the sense that you can see your card; is that not correct?" If the spectator has chosen her own pile, then she will respond positively, in which case you say, "Yes, I thought so." This will in itself surprise the spectator! If she had chosen the pile she dealt for you, then she will respond negatively, in which case you say, "Right, that’s NOT correct." This is an old gag that allows you to capitalize on the ambiguity of the first patter line in this paragraph. Most importantly, this whole sequence allows you to determine which packet the spectator has selected. If the spectator does not see her card, then she selected your packet; if she does see her card, then she selected her own packet. So, if the spectator can see her card in the packet she holds, have her place the other packet aside with the deck proper. Also, have her close the fan of cards and hold the packet face down in her left hand. If she does not see her card, have her place the packet she holds aside – and have her pick up the other tabled packet. 4. Continue your patter: "Obviously, we are eliminating cards. Deal the top card to me again, the next to yourself, and continue just like before. Let me know when you’re finished." At the conclusion of this deal, the selection will again be the fourth card from the top of the packet she has dealt to herself. You must to direct her to pick up this packet, but you should use one of the following patter lines to emphasize that the choice is her choice and not yours. If the spectator initially chose the packet she dealt to herself, then you should say, "I don’t know which pile you chose the last time, but this time pick up the same pile. So if you chose your own pile last time, pick up that pile now." If the spectator initially chose the packet she dealt to you, then you should say, "I don’t know which pile you chose the last time, but this time pick up the other pile. So, if you chose my pile last time, pick up your own pile now." Have the spectator place the other pile aside. This is the point at which your spectator’s retrograde analysis of the routine will fail if she decides to try to reconstruct the trick after you are off the phone. You had given her a choice of packets earlier. Now, although you are not giving her a choice of packets per se, your instruction is based on a choice she made earlier – a choice with an outcome that you have no apparent means of knowing. Actually, of course, you are directing her to choose the packet that contains her chosen card and to discard the packet that does not. 5. Continue, "Okay, one more time. Deal the top card to me, the next to yourself, like we’ve been doing. Let me know when you’re finished." Here comes another red herring. Say, "Again, I don’t know which of the piles you chose before, but this time I sense that you must use the pile that is in front of you. Pick that pile up and discard the pile you dealt to me." In the spectator’s mind, this direct instruction cannot possibly be based on her previous choices because she believes that her previous choices are unknown to you! More smoke for the retrograde analysis. 6. The final red herring: "You may have two or three cards. If you have three, then discard any one card of the three. Okay, are you down to two cards?" The spectator, of course, has only two cards, but this patter supports the theme that you do not have any knowledge of her previous choices because you have allowed for the possibility that she might have three cards – the exact amount of cards in the packet she dealt to you in this round. Also, because you ask her to "discard any of the three," she will think to herself later, "what if I had had three cards and I discarded the selection?" 7. To finish, say, "Take the top card into your right hand and give me a moment." Pause briefly, then say, "You cut to a card and remembered it, you cut the deck onto the table into piles whose number I could not know, and you made your own choices about which packets to discard. Place the card in your left hand aside. I believe you are now holding the card you cut to moments ago; take a look." The spectator will follow your instructions and be left with the very card she chose. Given your recap of events in the above patter line, the spectator has no option but to be surprised to find that she is staring at her selection! And, as discussed above, retrograde analysis will only frustrate her attempts to discover how you led her, apparently through all of her own decisions, to the very card she had initially selected.. References, Credits, and Remarks * The only portion of Marlo’s "Nouveau 21-Card Trick" that is used in the above effect is a simplified version of the cutting/placement procedure from the Third Phase of the Marlo article in Racherbaumer’s Marlo Without Tears, found on page 148. * Racherbaumer also cites Marlo’s "The 21-Card Trick Streamlined" from The Cardician, by Ed Marlo, on page 134. He also mentions that David Solomon, Steve Draun, and Jon himself have work on Marlo’s routine, but he didn’t reference them. Steve Draun’s "Twenty-One Again" may be found in Secrets Draun From Underground, by Richard Kaufman, on page 128. James Swain’s routine, "The Twenty-One Card Trick," may be found on page 23 of his terrific book, 21st Century Card Magic. * See also Marlo’s "21 Plus Subtlety" from Racherbaumer’s Kabbala, Volume 1, Number 7, page 57; Chuck Smith’s "Imaginary Card Trick" from his lecture notes What If; Chris Kenner’s "You Must Be 21 To Enter" from his Totally Out of Control, on page 145; and Doug Conn’s "Impossible 21 Card Trick" from, Tricks of my Trade, The Magic of Doug Conn, on page 105, by Paul Cummins. * Jay Ose’s great false cut, "Ose’s Cut," was first published in Harry Lorayne’s Close Up Card Magic, on page 93. * I have used gender-specific pronouns in the above description. Magicians are referred to as males and non-magicians are referred to as females. This is not an attempt to be sexist or judgmental; it is merely an attempt to provide ease of reading. mailto:[email protected].
(16) UNIVERSAL By DARYL Written by Richard Kaufman - reprinted from Richard’s Almanac (Spring 1985) Copyright 1985 by Richard Kaufman. The real parent of this item is a routine by L. Vosburgh Lyons in THE JINX No.22 (July, 1936). Lyons had three cards selected and returned to the pack. A Joker was shown on top of the deck, and it magically turned into each of the selections one at a time. Not really a General or Universal card in the true sense of either plot, this is, for lack of a better term, a changing card trick. Daryl's handling is both simple and impromptu. The only preparation is to control the Joker to the bottom of the deck before the routine begins. Do it at the end of the previous effect, or while fiddling between things. To perform, shuffle retaining the Joker on bottom and then have three cards freely selected from the deck. Spread the cards between your hands and split the deck at about center so the third spectator (let's assume he's on the left) can replace his selection. After the card has been inserted in the spread your right hand lowers its half of the spread deck onto the cards in your left hand and does a Hofzinser Spread Cull, stealing the first selection beneath the right hand cards as you immediately continue spreading lower into the deck for the return of the second selection. Stop spreading after a few cards and split the deck again for the return of the second card (assume this card belongs to the spectator in the center). Now you must use Marlo's Multiple Spread Cull mechanics as you bring the halves of the deck together, stealing the second selection beneath the right-hand cards, under the first selection. Both are allowed to lie beneath the spread. Continue spreading and repeat the same control with the first selection (which belongs to the spectator on the right), squaring the deck afterward. The selections are now on the bottom of the deck in one, two, three order (from the bottom up) with the Joker directly above them. Spread the cards and sight-count four cards from the bottom, obtaining a left pinky break above them. Double cut them to the top. Begin spreading through the deck and say, "I'm going to take out one card which I hope is all three selections." Of course this is impossible, but you'll get around that in a moment. Outjog the fourth card from the top, then square the deck without disturbing the outjogged card. Grasp the right long side of the outjogged card between your right thumb, above, and fingers, beneath. Lift slightly as you strip it out of the deck enabling your left pinky to obtain a break beneath the top three cards of the deck. In other words, by lifting the outjogged fourth card you also lift the sides of the three cards above it, automatically providing the necessary gap. Your right first finger snaps the card in that hand. As attention is directed on the card in your right hand your left hand obtains a second break this one beneath the top card of the deck. Usually you would simply misdirect away from the deck for a moment and turn it slightly as your left thumb pushed over the top card just enough to allow your left third finger to sneak under it. But Daryl has a nice finesse which enables you to obtain the break in full view (if anyone happens to be looking). Your left first finger is at the outer end of the deck as is usually the case in dealing position. Here, however, the very tip (just a bit of the flesh) must be curled over onto the outer end of the top card. Your left thumb, which rests on the outer left corner of the deck, pulls diagonally outward and to the left. That causes the top card to buckle very slightly. Slide your third finger into the break and release the left-thumb pressure. Your right hand places its card on top of the deck and immediately does a Double Turnover to the first break, levering two cards as one face up on top of the deck and outjogging them. Say, "Jokers are wild." (This is an explanation of your last statement where you said that you would find one card that would be all the selections.) Turn your right hand palm down, fingers together and straight, and lower it over the face-up Joker. Say, to the first spectator on the left, "Just by rubbing the Joker with my hand I can cause it to change into your card." Do The First Transformation described by Erdnase on p.151 of THE EXPERT AT THE CARD TABLE. This is the familiar color change where the top card is outjogged slightly and the card beneath it is slid inward with the heel of the right hand. When the cards clear the right reverses its direction and moves outward to align the card hidden beneath it, the first selection in this case, squarely on top of the outjogged Joker. While the cards are still hidden by your right hand, your left first finger reaches to the outer end of the outjogged double card and pulls it flush, at the same time pulling downward slightly so the inner end of the double card rises a bit. This enables your left third finger to obtain a break beneath the double card. (Remember that your left pinky maintains a break beneath the fourth card throughout the preceding actions.) Lift your right hand to reveal the first selection. Immediately lift the double card and cleanly flash both sides, then replace it flush on top of the deck (still face up). Insert your right first finger into the left pinky break, then lower your thumb onto the face of the quadruple card. Lift the four cards as one about an inch. Your left hand immediately turns palm down and takes the quadruple card beneath the deck. Extend your right arm and rub the face of the deck on your right sleeve. Say, "Of course I don't have to use the whole hand, I could just use my sleeve." Turn your left hand palm up to reveal the second selection face up on the deck. Do a Hit Double Lift and flip the top two cards face down onto the deck as one. Ask the third spectator (on the right) to hold out his hand palm up. Say, "In face, I don't have to use anything of mine - you put your hand out." Thumb off the top card and place it onto his palm. After a moment ask him to turn the card over to reveal the third selection. http://www.Daryl.net.
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