Bill In Egg

When I was a teenager I bought a 24-page book by Milbourne Christopher for $1.75. On page 22 the author explains a trick called “Bill in Egg”. Christopher describes the effect as “messy but remarkably effective”. I must have had the book for ten years before ever trying the routine. I remember performing it once or twice for friends etc. I don’t know why but the trick sort of drifted out of my awareness. Now that I am trying to build a rigorous and professional level repertoire, this seemed like a natural addition. I didn’t know when I would perform it, but it definitely belonged on my list. Last Monday I decided to purchase a book and a few accessories form Hank Lee’s shop. I also ordered a couple packets of flash bills so I would have them on hand for “Bill in Egg”. By Thursday I still wasn’t sure what to do for Magic Friday. My plan was “PDQ Aces in Case” by Dan Fleshman. (More on that next week). I’ve been working on that effect for several weeks. The problem is I just did two card tricks in a row. I really wanted to do something else. When I got home Thursday evening I was shocked to find Hank’s package on my doorstep. That must have been the fastest delivery ever. Thanks Hank! That settles it. Tomorrow I will perform “Bill in Egg” for my students. Yes it was messy and yes it was effective. But remarkably effective? The performances ranged from fine to great. Most students were amazed and bewildered. But there was a hint of the mundane in the air. I know it was not the trick. It’s a great trick. Are my students getting used to the “impossible”? Is the magic they have been enjoying the past several months becoming ordinary? I doubt that. Maybe it was the fact that I was suffering through a miserable cold and sore throat. My voice sounded like Miss Jane Pittman. I really needed to be home resting in bed, but if I was well enough to be at work, I was well enough to perform. Yes, I suppose my illness could explain the lack of stunned disbelief. But that’s too easy. Although I framed the illusion in the indestructibility of the new money, I probably could have prepared the presentation better. That’s got to be it. Did I fail to create the right expectation? Did I create too mush expectation and spoil the surprise? One thing is for sure, I’m not giving up on the effect. Yes, It was successful and effective. But I want to get more punch out of it. I will analyze the effect and write up a formal script. What a delicate balance it is between eye misdirection, mind misdirection, expectation set up, selling the effect, surprise, revelation and satisfaction of expectancy. And all this must be gracefully and effortlessly carried in a presentation that is irresistible and entertaining. If only audiences knew what was involved in performing good magic. On second thought, it’s probably best that they don’t. At any rate, I am confident that with a little more time and work I can get more power and “remarkable effectiveness” out of “Bill in Egg”. And I intend to do just that.

I'll Take A Life Line Please

As mentioned in the previous post, life is moving way too fast. Among other things I am now teaching a six-week Sunday school class on “Astronomy and the Bible”. I have got to learn to say "no" once and a while!.
I am still working on Vernon’s “Silk and Silver”, “Three Ball Routine” and “Slow Motion Aces”. I am making reasonable progress but have a long way to go before performing any of them. Last week “Chicago Opener” went over very well. But with limited time for practice I needed something for this week that I was already good at. Something that would not require learning a new sleight, arranging a new handling or even writing a fresh script. Something that required little prep time. I had something I was saving for just an occasion as this. The Rising Cards. Okay, I’m a stinky prostitute. I admit it! But in my own defense I remember reading in one of my books that “self working” tricks are not necessarily a sin. If they are balanced with good sleight of hand effects it is perfectly acceptable to include a bit of magical cheese. It serves me to agree. But if the audience has seen you perform near miracles with ordinary objects that have been examined, than why not? Besides, there is no such thing as "no skill required" even a "self-working" effect requres presentation. My students are used to me handing out for examination whatever I have been using. So when I performed the “Rising Cards” they were intently watching me for tell-tale motions. It did not seem to occur to anyone that it might be the cards themselves that are being clever. If on the other hand I had performed the “Rising Cards” closer toward the beginning of the year, before establishing myself as a gentleman of adequate legerdemain, the focus would indeed have been on the cards. Truth be told; When the trick was over I switched the deck out for another. Just in case.
Now that I’ve used a stand-by freebie, (breathe) it’s on to more tasty sleight of hand work for next week.

Red Hot Mama

It’s been almost a month since the last posting. These have been pretty busy times with holiday travel, midterm exams and church activities. When school started back, the first magic Friday was January 8th. I’m writing 18 days behind myself. At this point, I am still working on three nice routines. All of which happen to come from Dai Vernon. Two of them come from “The Vernon Chronicles” and one from “The Dai Vernon Book of Magic”. I don’t know what I would be doing without these two incredibly rich books! (More on these routines later). For magic Friday January 8th I performed an old standard. The “Take Five” of card magic. “The Chicago Opener” aka: "Red Hot Mama". Conceived by Frank Everhart and popularized by Jim Ryan. At conventions in years past I have seen magicians lecture and perform the “Opener” with a card to wallet or pocket finish. A powerful ending to be sure. “My signed card was in his wallet the whole time”! The problem is, (As Patrick Page points out) the audience tends to forget the first part of the routine and only remembers the climax. As a result, one effect is lost.
My quest (the reason for this blog) is to refine older sleight of hand effects I already know, learn new sleights and routines, and perform all this with a polished and professional level quality. A new routine must be perfected and performed each week for six different audiences for 36 weeks. At the end of 36 weeks I will have time off from teaching. I will use this time to try my hand at a little busking, some open mike type stuff and even seek steady work a couple nights a week doing close up at one of the nicer restaurants in town. My skills and creativity seem to be on track. (Though practice time is short and precious). It’s my confidence, presentation and professionalism that will be the real test. I digress. The point is, I can’t afford to combine effects that are strong enough to stand on their own. So, as tempted as I am, I will keep “Chicago Opener” and “Card to Wallet” as two separate, stand alone effects.
The “Chicago Opener” played extremely well with my students. Using a cheap trinket, I framed the routine as a “scientific” phenomenon. When the second card was turned over to reveal the first spectator’s card, roars of joyous disbelief were raised. Timing is everything, isn’t it? However, my first period class usually has a less enthusiastic response to my effects. I’m not sure if this is because it is a smaller group, too early in the morning, or if they are just more laid back. But the common denominator is me. I must assume it is something I am doing or not doing. The most likely cause I suppose, is that since it is my first performance of the day, perhaps I’m just not in the zone yet. Maybe I’m coming off as too cautious or unconfident. It could be that I’m just not properly building or selling the effect on the first go. I know there is a valuable thing to learn here. I must pay closer attention to my presentations and create the same level of enthusiasm in this group that I have achieved with the others.

Going Mental

Today’s “Magic Friday” event was a real change of pace, I must say. Last week I did Vernon’s “Fingerprint Trick” and got a huge response with it. In order to keep things fresh and interesting I try not to do two card tricks on consecutive Fridays.
I am currently working on two beautiful Dai Vernon effects. “The Ace Assembly” (An earlier version of “Slow Motion Aces”) and “Silk and Silver” using the Cervon opening. Although I’ve never seen them performed, I can tell these are pure, beautiful and elegant effects. But they do involve some pretty hairy sleights. I am making reasonable progress with both, but they will require a lot more work before I can do them justice.
So all week I have been going through my collection of books trying to find the right trick for Friday.
In all my years of doing magic as a kid and as a young man I don’t recall ever doing a mental / psychic effect. With the exception of a trick called “Tarot Thought”. It’s a nice trick involving 5 tarot cards and 5 envelopes. Long story short; the spectator’s thought of card is divined from within an envelope behind the magician’s back.
I haven’t done that one for many years. Although it’s a good trick, I quit doing it because I felt it lacked directness. There were too many instructions for the spectator to follow. But now for some reason I thought a mental effect would be fun for a change. That is if I could find one that I could make fit my own style. By Tuesday I narrowed it down to two effects. Both of them are from Tarbell #4. I finally settled on “Himber’s Transcendental Book Test”.
In a nutshell; three books and two assistants are called for. Each assistant picks a book and some pages are randomly determined. The page numbers are added and subtracted to determine a page and line number in the third book held by a spectator. The Magi then becomes an actor and goes into psychic mode, gets some visual impressions, and after a bit of by play recites the arrived at line in the book. I was intrigued by the effect but not really excited about it. But the clock was a tickin’ so I figured I’d just give it my best shot and see what happens. There would be 5 performances as usual. But I had those blasted rising cards handy just in case…
1. The “Book Test” turned out to be a dud.
2. I turned out to be a dud. Or
3. I just plain chickened out.
I had three concerns about the trick. The first was that there might be too many instructions for the volunteers to follow. All my favorite magical authors warn against tricks that require too much concentration on the part of the audience. That makes perfect sense to me. Personally, I would rather be entertained than be put through a series mental calisthenics. I was also worried it might smack of a math trick. There’s nothing magical about counting articles into various piles, adding the year of your birth, multiplying by 12.7 and integrating the result along an inverted parabola. Yawn. My third concern was the fact that the proper working of the trick requires some quick counting, arithmetic, reading and memorization when only a quick and casual glance is allowed. I’m not the sharpest hammer in the woodpile so I was a little spooked by that last part.

So how did it go? It was great! I was as blown away by the response as my students were by the effect. I really didn’t expect this trick to play that well let alone pack such a powerful punch. In fact, I may have to look into one or two more mental effects. Who knows, Maybe I could apply some Vernon-osity to "Tarot Thought". Once again, where I was hesitant and ready to chicken out, I instead pressed forward and trusted my gut. And once again, the payoff was HUGE.
Acting!
Amazing!
Thank You!

The Fingerprint Trick

Many years ago I purchased “The Vernon Chronicles” and “The Dai Vernon Book of Magic”. I don’t know whether I was intimidated by the slights required, suffered from a lack of vision or just plain lazy, but I did not do much work at all from them. Maybe I thought I would become a better magician just by having them in my collection.


Fast forward to last August. I am so thankful that I had the wisdom to acquire these books. (If not the motivation to work from them). For the past 5 months I have been studying these and a few other books. Of course I knew and understood who Dai Vernon was and his standing in the magic community. But I never fully appreciated his genius until this year and my reimmersion into magic. For the past few weeks I had been working on “Ace Assembly”, an earlier version of Vernon’s “Slow Motion Aces”.


I felt like I needed a good 4 Ace trick in my repertoire. Since I was a kid I have been doing the version found in Bruce Elliot’s “Great Secrets of the Master Magicians” It’s a good trick. But I loved the idea of the aces traveling one at a time. Once I started working on it I realized this was going to take some serious time. I would continue to work on it but in the mean time what to perform on Friday? The Fingerprint Trick is in the same book and while I skimmed the effect earlier I looked a little more carefully into it. It did not take long for me to realize how strong this one could be. No freaky sleights, interesting plot and of course the “Vernon Touch”:
That is, straight forward and above board (seeming) handling. I had a few days to work the trick out and write my own script for it. I added a simple prop for 3 reasons. To create more interest, involve more spectators and most importantly, as a cover for the world’s clumsiest classic pass.
The first performance I totally screwed up. I lost count during the turning cards phase. It was no disaster since the chosen card was found as one of the five Candidates. I brought a back up just in case. The Rising Cards. I thought briefly about temporarily chucking The Fingerprint Trick and doing something easier. But in the end I decided to continue with my original plan. I’m glad I did because the rest of the performances were amazing! I did not expect the shouts at the final revelation of the chosen card. This is another winner! I love it! I am really learning to build effective routines from classic books and make them my own. There just is no feeling like that of artistic accomplishment!

Clean Cut

In 1977 I saw Mark Wilson do the color changing pocket knives on his wonderful show "Magic Circus". I thought for sure it was done with some kind of shell gimmick. Nevertheless My next order to Tannen's included a set of knives.

When I got them I was surprised and pleased. I still have them today. I never really built a routine around them but used them as a quick "impromptu" type effect. The problem, I felt was there was no real finish. Eventually I modeled a miniature knife. For a finish I would crush a knife down to size. I had a couple of other ideas which I never pursued. The color changing pocket knives eventually drifted out of my awareness. Until recently.
There they were in my dusty old trunk with all that other stuff. I found a basic routine by Harry Lorayne in Tarbell's #7. The routine was sharp, direct and I liked the pace of it. There is a good finish but it requires a third knife. At one point a handkerchief is introduced and used.

I liked the idea of using a handkerchief, but the handling did not fit my style. Eventually I worked out a different handkerchief switch based on an old Dai Vernon move using coins and a handkerchief. But in the end I decided that for me the routine was stronger without a handkerchief. This left me right back where I started. How to finish? Then it came to me. I incorporated a sweet move I learned from Patrick Page. This move is a clever card vanish that can be used to cleanly dispose of any small object. Patrick Page credits to move to Max Malini. This allowed for a surprise and very clean finish for the pocket knives.
It was fun watching my students almost figure out how the trick was done when I threw in a very "casual" move from Harry Lorayne's writing in Tarbell #7. He credits the move to Russell Barnhart. If you do the pocket knives look this one up! It is one of little subtleties that if done properly, throws off the wise and the clever. Together with the clean and surprising finish I am very pleased with the routine I have stitched together. After the appause died down I flat out asked my classes..."Is this one a keeper?" To which I received many "Thumbs Up".
Its been 20 years since I fooled around with the pocket knives. Now I've got a strong well-paced routine with a surprising and clean finish. All made possible by Mark Wilson, Harry Lorayne, Russell Barnhart and the great Patrick Page. Thank you gentlemen!

Dancing On The Ceiling

As a thirteen year old I did a birthday party for a young girl in my neighborhood. I did 20th century silks using a Tommy Windsor type popcorn box,

Chinese sticks purchased from The Coney Island Faker himself, Al Flosso, (I remember after demonstrating the trick for me I said “Pretty good”. To which he replied, “What do you mean pretty good!?)
I bought them right away. They served me well for many years! At the party I also did Zombie, and Card on Ceiling as taught by Bruce Elliot in “Great Secrets of the Master Magicians”. Good effect, easy sleights. Since then I occasionally performed Card on Ceiling but not that often. I suppose I didn’t want to have to play “help the magician pick up his cards”. Later I saw Whit Hayden perform it with the deck bound with rubber bands. (I regret I did not get to know Whit better while we lived in the same town!). Every time I met Whit he was kind, friendly and always professional. One class act guy! Not to mention, one of the very finest ring routines you'll ever see!
Since then I’ve seen other magicians perform Card on Ceiling in simular ways. I didn’t perform it much anymore. I could do a few nice card sleights but those paramount (and difficult) ones still eluded me. After seeing it performed by real professionals I felt like I was wearing training wheels and lost interest in performing the effect.
Since my return to magic last August, Card on Ceiling has been on my "must become proficient with" list. I chose it not only because of it’s powerful impact but also because it serves as another vehicle for the classic, professional quality sleights I've been working so hard to achieve. I knew my CP was up to scratch (could still use improvement)
and now it was time to test my one handed TP. So last night while sitting in the car while my kids were having piano lessons, I hatched an idea for a plot. The script pretty much wrote itself. I wrote the misdirection onto the script for the crucial moments and the story line was something people could relate to and allowed for plenty of humor. I felt like I had a gem! I got to school early and beat the devil out of a brand new deck throwing it at the ceiling.
The first performance was just lame. My fault. The tricked worked (Sort of. More on that later). But my delivery was crapola. The next performance was a little better. By the 5th and 6th performance the drama and humor were on track. And after throwing the deck at the ceiling the audience gasped and broke into applause as the signed card came floating down. Floating Down? Yes floating down. You see the acoustic tile ceiling would not do. But I did have a 5 or 6 inch wide beam across the ceiling I was going for. Being a computer lab it was also quite cold in the room which had a negative effect on some very old and cheap material I was using. Am I disappointed?
Not a wit sir! First, the audience did not expect to see a card stuck to the ceiling so there was no let down. (So to speak) The performances (except for the first one) were interesting and produced laughter. When the deck hit the ceiling the card released itself and (because of the extra weight) floated down flat and face up making it easy to pluck from the air and display with triumph. But the main reason I am grinning ear to ear tonight is because 6 times I successfully pulled off the CP and one-handed TP semi-surrounded by a demanding and skeptical audience. After months and months of practice I can now add these powerful weapons to my arsenal. Now I’m going to have to peel myself off the ceiling!