How To Do A Magic Show Proposal Final Copy II PDF

FOG Literary Agency
Sue Flammang
3800 S. Decatur #214
Las Vegas, NV 89103
(702) 631-7725
www.FOGliteraryagency.com
sue.flammang@FOGliteraryagency.com
XYZ Books
Ms. X
Dear Ms. X,

Who needs to buy expensive magic props when you can make your own at home? Unfortunately, most beginner magic books give you the raw data and it is up to you to come up with
your own routine. Thats putting the cart before the horse. Also, some beginning magic books
teach you tricks that they themselves would not be caught dead doing. Its as if they are afraid
that a book with real tricks of the trade will reveal too many secrets. No magic book wants the
beginner to learn the real workings of this elusive profession.

That is until now. With the tricks in this 39,415 word fully illustrated book, HOW TO DO
A MAGIC SHOW by Michael Pascoe, the readers not only will learn to do quality magic tricks,
but full blown routines with dialogue and all. Also, they will learn the individual misdirection
that goes with each. Thats the real secret to the art.

There are two sets of routines in this book. The first is a series of short close-up routines
filled with coins and card tricks. This way the reader can get started right away with items they
already have in their house. Plus, it is easier to get an audience for close-up magic, so they can
put to practice what rehearsing cant give them. And that is experience.

The second phase is designed for a parlor show. The reader can do these routines in front
of a small group of people gathered in their living room. All of the tricks are taught together,
then a program list is given at the end to set up their own show. They can do all of the tricks for
a longer show, or break it off in smaller parts. This way the next time they perform in front of the
same audience, they have something new.

Michaels experience as a professional magician, writer, and illustrator has given him the
insight to be able to combine a manuscript that communicates all that is needed to learn the art of
prestidigitation efficiently. With HOW TO DO A MAGIC SHOW,I am pleased to state that anyone can take the time to learn the art of the professional. Finally, the readers will have as much
fun doing this as Michael did writing it.

I have enclosed a proposal that includes an overview, a chapter by chapter outline, and
the complete manuscript for your consideration.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Sue Flammang
Proposal Contents
Proposal Contents
SILK MAGIC 13
Chapter 7
13
MAGIC OF THE MIND
Marketing 7
Chapter 8
Promotion 8
ROPE ROUTINES
13
14
14
Competing Books
Chapter 9
About the Author
10
TRICKS FROM THE ORIENT
Endorsements 11
Chapter 10
Chapter-by-Chapter Summary
12
PART ONETHE ANCIENT ART OF MAGIC

Chapter 1
12
14
14
NEWSPAPER MAGIC
12
14
14
PART FOUR-- Doing the Magic Show

Chapter 11
14
14
HOW TO DO A MAGIC SHOW
12
PUTTING TOGETHER THE MAGIC SHOW
PART TWO-- Close-Up Magic
12
HOW TO DO A MAGIC SHOW Table of Contents
Chapter 2
12
CARD TRICKS
Chapter 3
PART ONE-- The Ancient Art of Magic

12
1. How to Do a Magic Show 1
12
AT THE DINNER TABLE 12
1. Card Tricks 9
Chapter 4
Self Working 10
13
MISCELLANEOUS CLOSE-UP TRICKS 13
Lucky Seven 10
PART THREE-- Platform Magic
You Do As I Do
12
The Four Burglars
14
Chapter 5
13
13
THE PROPS 13
Cut the Lady in Half 17
Chapter 6
3. At the Dinner Table 21
13
14
Sugar Packet Prediction
21
Tricks with Rice
Salt Shaker Through Table
24
The Indian Rice Mystery
Whats Under the Cap?
31
Rice Bowls
4. Miscellaneous Closeup Tricks

The Linking Paperclips
Dice Prediction
36
10. Newspaper Magic 116

116
122
5. The Props 51
6. Silk Magic 55
Showing or Blowing 55
60
7. Magic of the Mind 68
Book Test
110
Saying Thanks with Style
40
Are You a Square?
105
Torn and Restored Newspaper
36
Nest of Boxes 42
A Plethora of Silks
105
68
71
8. Rope Routines
76
Stretching a Rope
76
Threading the Needle 80

The Magical Shoelace 83
Cut and Restored Rope
86
The Coat Release Trick
96
9. Tricks from the Orient
100
The Cups and Balls 100
50
11. Putting Together the Magic Show 128
128
Pascoe/ HOW TO DO A MAGIC SHOW
Can a magic book for laypeople teach them how to perform this wonderful pastime?
Marketing
1

There is no questions the popularity of the professional magician. Everyone wants to be
the next David Copperfield or Lance Burton. When one attends their shows, the audience falls
into their spell. Part of this spell is the envy and the desire to be able to do such wonderful fetes.
It is said that magicians are born, not made. This is far from the truth.

Making of a magician is no different than other profession. Is is said that there are over
fifteen thousand magicians in the United States. Magic is indeed a big business. That's why there
is a need to teach it correctly. There should be a training school the same for the other arts like
dancing, singing, and acting. That's why a book that covers the details of the art is important.

Even though the history of magic goes back thousands of years, today its known as a
theatrical art. The ability to perform is just as important as the tricks themselves. Many people
spend a lot of money and years of practice to learn how to do magic. What one can save if a book
can present good quality magic tricks at anyones fingertips is priceless.

The original teacher of magic Professor Hoffman said that there is a big difference in
knowing how a trick is done and learning it. Even those who should know better have not taken
his advice. All the authors that followed him have given the bones without the meat. The exception is the next great magic teacher, Harlan Tarbell.

There is not a book today especially designed for young and old alike with clear and
simple directions that anyone can perform effectively. Most of the tricks in here are of those of
the professional magician which have fooled and entertained many.

Teenagers and adults invest their money and time learning the latest tricks. However,
among those, very few have learned the most important technique and that is how to entertain
with magic.

Magic is perfect for any age who wants to entertain socially. Young teenagers especially
start magic at this age and need a comprehensive course. This book doesnt talk down to the
young people. Which means even business men and women can use magic to entertain clients.
Also, adults want to use this as a tool to show off at parties. Michaels uncle used magic for that
purpose.

HOW TO DO A MAGIC SHOW contains plenty of tricks that can be performed without
special equipment. It shows full instructions to the reader to make their own props as well as
mapping out programs with all of the necessary dialogue. Then the only thing they have to do is
read the clear instructions and practice so they will always be ready to entertain their family and
friends or give a show to raise money for school, church, or even to buy more tricks.

The past 40 years has shown a great increase in interest in magic among amateurs. The
internet displays young people showing off, but with no performing skills. They want to do the
latest and coolest moves, but do not know or cannot come up with their own routines. They are
only presenting tricks; poorly performed, poorly arranged, and poorly dramatized.

Most books on magic feel that dialogue is detrimental to the performer. However, as beginners, how are they supposed to know what to do? Show them so they can later learn to create
their own routines.

With this book, it is possible. The readers gets everything they need to get started; quality
tricks, the dialogue to go with them, and a program designed to get them to the most important
part performing.

The knowledge of magic will grow confidence by increasing social skills. A few past
professional magicians have stated how shy they were before learning magic. Illusionist Doug
2
Henning mentioned that with the introduction of magic in his life, the once shy young Doug
gained enough confidence that he presented his World of Magic in front of millions of television
audiences.

Magic broadens the mind. It increases the thinking power which is valuable to other
fields. It does this because magic requires concentration. This is a wonderful way to train the
mind and keep it sharp. Performing requires quick thinking. It requires multi-tasking many different things. Coordination of eye and hand as well as thinking of what you will say versus thinking how the audience is reacting to the tricks.

Makes you alert and keen of mind

Knowledge leads to greater heights

Improves public speaking as well as presentation skills

Some use it for therapy working in hospitals

Develops motor skills

Self-Confidence and Self-Discipline is created

Creativity is developed

Problem solving skills is sharpened

Makes one unique among their friends

The best of all... it's the best ice-breaker to meet new friends
ates with groups like the Boy Scouts, Popular Mechanics, and other magazines of that sort.

How to Do a Magic Show is a good primer for those starting out. Michael is working on
a second book showing more advance work for both beginners and professionals alike with the
same step-by-step approach.

Most of all, being a magician is about entertaining. By telling stories while doing a mystery is fun. There is no other feeling than looking at the face of someone that has had their minds
blown. The only reaction is to laugh. When you can get your audience smiling and laughing, that
is the true power of magic

110 Amazing MAGIC TRICKS with Everyday Objects by Marvin Berglas crams in the
said advertized tricks into 43 pages. One cannot possibly teach that many tricks in that amount
of pages. It reduces the tricks to mere stunts and not a theatrical entertainment. A knowledgeable
magician could find material and create good routines, but without that knowledge, it ends up
just fluff to fill out the pages.
Promotion

Michael Pascoe is prepared to help promote this book by giving lectures, book signings,
as well as any other public appearance as a professional magical entertainer. He is also friends
with magic dealers who will place How to Do a Magic Show on their shelf.

He will create a website that will attract visitors and readers. This website will have a
media kit as well as an authors page to help get media attention and speaking engagements. He
will utilize his social media presence to build anticipation for the books release.

Michael will get noticed by doing book signings at book fairs while mingling while collecting business cards from everyone he will meetespecially those who express an interest in
his book. He will give a short demonstration from the book, then commence with the book signing.

Periodically, send out flyers, brochures and/or notices announcing an
upcoming show with the title, "Author of the book, How to Do a Magic Show". He will solicit
the Independent Bookstores, Galleries, and Gift Stores to carry his book. Michael will approach
booksellers in person. Visit those within their community, throughout the area.

Also, Michael will travel to nearby states for access to more independent bookstores. He
will follow up by doing his part to initiate sales in these areas and by checking back frequently
with the store manager to monitor sales and payment. As well as send press releases to magazines and newspapers.

As a writer, Michael will publish articles on magic targeting those magazines that associ3
Competing Books

Thousands of titles have dealt with various aspects of the performing art of magic over
the years, but none directly tackled the subject of the performance end of it. An Amazon search
shows a plethora of magic books that deal primary with revealing secrets.

Some are fine books and range from the rank beginner to the top pro. It is expected that
the books geared towards the working professional will only give the raw data and let you use
your experience as a magician to figure out the rest. However, even the beginning books do the
same thing. While most magic books explain lots of tricks, few provide a foundation in magic for
the serious beginner who wants to learn the fundamentals and move beyond brainteasers.

Five of the recent titles that deal with teaching beginning magic like How to Do a Magic
Show focuses on the barebones of the tricks themselves. Below is a detailed analysis of each
title.

Magic Tricks 50 Quick, Easy and Fun Tricks by Joshua Minute is another beginner's
book. The layout of it is a good telling of what the trick looks like to the audience, preparation
for the trick, and how to do it, but it just gives the basic modus operandi and no routine so speak.
Each routine is about a page long and doesnt dedicate too much into each effect. The illustrations are week and don't give minute detail like HOW TO DO A MAGIC SHOW does.

Easy-to-Do Magic Tricks for Children, author Karl Fulves has selected good tricks for
the book, but leaves it to the beginner to create their own routines. A beginner cannot know how
to structure a trick and turn it into a mystery. That is missing from Easy-to-Do Magic Tricks for
Children. They are just reduced to mere tricks to be figured out.

Kids' Magic Secrets: Simple Magic Tricks & Why They Work by Loris Bree and Marlin
Bree. This books covers basic beginner tricks, but without the step-by-step approach. This is primarily an eclectic style book that doesn't entirely reflect how the tricks affect the audience which
whom it was intended for. Also, the illustrations are crude and have an amateur feel to it.

Magic for Beginners: Learn Magic The Fun Way! By Joseph Then. Once again a book
that displays just mental puzzles not suited for a real performance. What will the reader do with
this information? How can they do a magic show from this?
About the Author
4

Michael Pascoe is an author, graphic artist, and professional magical entertainer. Michael
wrote and did the layout for the fashion magazine EVVO, which is now out of print. His cartoons
and editorial articles where featured in The Las Vegas Tribune as well as The Coyote Press. His
was first published in the international magic magazine, Genii.

His novel The Proto-Matter Effect is a Cli-Fi tale of an astronomer that finds a probe
from another planet and learns a great mystery hidden inside the scrolls left behind. Because
magicians love mysteries, he wrote the whodunnit about magician detective Richard Henderson
in Dead Men Tell No Tale.

Michael also wrote and illustrated the book A 9/11 Christmas: A Christmas to Remember.
Congresswoman Dina Titus and Shelley Berkley both loved the book. Las Vegas Channel 8 news
anchor Paula Francis read it before going on air and cried. Even Bill Clinton thinks this a good
book to teach young people about the tragic events of September 11th.

Michaels interest in magic stared as a kid. After watching a magician on television, he
couldn't wait to go the local library the next day to learn this craft. He was disappointed when
he went to the magic isle. Just like Goldilocks, the first book Michael picked was too easy. The
effects seemed like baby tricks. The second book was too hard. His head spun seeing all of the
hand magic in it that looked like it would take years to learn. He was about to give up when the
last book peaked his interest. It said simply, Hocus Pocus. And like that ancient incantation, a
spell was cast.

Magic was his gateway to everything. He learned acting to better assist his stagecraft.
Already drawing everything in sight, he used that talent as well sketching out magic moves that
was described in the books he read. Not happy with the lack of well written routines, he soon
learned the art of crafting words. This led to him pursuing being a writer.

Later he became a professional magician performing at places like the Magic Castle and
Magic Mountain to name a few. He left his home in Los Angeles to try his luck in Vegas. But, as
many would find out, what happens there really stays there. So writing and art became a necessity.

After earning an Associates of Arts Degree at the College of Southern Nevada, Michael's
passion came full circle by combining all of his talents; magic, writing, and graphic design.
While teaching young kids magic, he realized that there is not a good book on magic that teaches
the beginners how to perform the tricks. He set out to write such a book and illustrated it to teach
each trick in the best way possible.

The fruits of his labor is in this book.

Endorsements
POTENTIAL ENDORSERS:
Denny and Lee's Magic Studio
Las Vegas Magic Shop
The Magic Cafe blog for magicians
Pop Haydn professional magician
Scoundrels Forum
Contact information:
Michael Pascoe
2925 N. Jones Blvd
Las Vegas, NV 89108
(702) 870-6895
mtpascoe2002@yahoo.com
Chapter-by-Chapter Summary
5

Chapter 4
PART ONETHE ANCIENT ART OF MAGIC
MISCELLANEOUS CLOSE-UP TRICKS
Chapter 1
This introduction section explains:

How magic works

The basic rules of magic

What the readers will get from the book

Part two goes into the magic routines. The first set of tricks are a series of short close-up
routines filled with coins and card tricks
Three miscellaneous tricks using paper clips, dollar bills, dice, and coins

Dice Prediction
Nest of Boxes

The second phase is designed for a parlor show. The reader can do these routines in front
of a small group of people gathered in their living room or even on a stage.
Chapter 5
Chapter 2
CARD TRICKS

Four simple cards tricks routined and performance ready.
Lucky Seven
You Do As I Do
The Four Burglars
Cut the Lady in Half
THE PROPS

This chapter goes over the necessary props used in a magic show like making your own
magic wand.
Chapter 6
SILK MAGIC
Chapter 3
AT THE DINNER TABLE
Tricks using silk handkerchiefs.
Showing or Blowing
A Plethora of Silks
Chapter 7
Three tricks that can be performed at the dinner table

MAGIC OF THE MIND

What's Under the Cap
Mind reading magic
Are you a square?

Book Test
Chapter 8
7
ROPE ROUTINES

Stretching the Rope

Threading the Needle
The Magical Shoelace
The Cut and Restored Rope
How To Do
a Magic Show
Chapter 9
by
Michael Pascoe
TRICKS FROM THE ORIENT

Tricks from the Orient including the classic Cups and Balls.
The Cups and Balls

Tricks with Rice
Rice Bowls
10
Chapter 10
NEWSPAPER MAGIC

Tricks with newspaper including one written just for this book.


Chapter 11
PUTTING TOGETHER THE MAGIC SHOW

This last section Michael feels is the most important part of book, and one he wishes he
had as a young magician. How to do the show. This section will show the readers how to put the
Magic Show together. A list of combination of tricks organized for thirteen shows.

All of the tricks are taught together, then a program list is given at the end to set up their
own show. They can do all of the tricks for a longer show, or break it off in smaller parts.

A Close-up Act
The Platform Act
A Guide to Learning to Perform the

Ancient Art of Magic
10

Michael Pascoe
2925 N. Jones Blvd.
Las Vegas, NV 89108
(702) 870-6895
mtpascoe2002@yahoo.com
39,415 words

By
Michael Pascoe
FOG Literary Agency

Sue Flammang
3800 S. Decatur #214
Las Vegas, NV 89103
(702) 631-7725
www.FOGliteraryagency.com
sue.flammang@FOGliteraryagency.com
To my childhood friend John.

This is to all of the hours spent trying to fool each other.
The time spent was well worth it.
To my wife Carole. . .
who has put up with my obsession not only to magic, but writing this book
And to my agent Sue who made all of this possible

Showing or Blowing 55
Table of Contents
A Plethora of Silks
60
7. Magic of the Mind 68

1. How to Do a Magic Show 1
Are You a Square?

Book Test
68
71
8. Rope Routines
76
1. Card Tricks 9
Stretching a Rope
76
Self Working 10
Threading the Needle 80
Lucky Seven 10
The Magical Shoelace 83
You Do As I Do
12
86
The Four Burglars
14
96
Cut the Lady in Half 17
100
3. At the Dinner Table 21
The Cups and Balls
100
105
21
Tricks with Rice
24
31
Rice Bowls

Dice Prediction
36
36
6. Silk Magic 55
10. Newspaper Magic 116
Nest of Boxes 42
5. The Props 51
110
40
105
116
122

50
11. Putting Together the Magic Show 128
128
So why should you be expected to write your own routines?

The general school of thought is that each performer has his or her own style. By giv-
ing them a full blown routine it may not fit that persons style. This may be true for a seasoned
veteran. But, if you are just starting out, how do you know what your style is?
1. How to Do a Magic Show

Magic! Even the word alone brings many thoughts and visions of men in evening clothes
producing rabbits, floating beautiful women and then cutting her in half. We all wish that we
Thats why the tricks in here are written out in detail and properly routined. With suitable
practice, you can learn the basics to the tricks in this book. Then learn the dialogue that goes with
it and be ready to perform them. After awhile, you will have a feel for what a good trick feels
like. You can create your own. For now, do the tricks the way its written.
How does magic work?
could have a magic wand to do our bidding for us, to wave to and fro. Wave our magic wand to
make money appear, to make our foes disappear.

When we speak of magic in this book, we are talking about the art of magic. Conjur-
ing, legerdemain, prestidigitation, call it what you want, it is as old as man himself. Magic is the
second oldest profession. The art has been practiced from beyond the reaches of time. Magics
beginnings go as far back as the cave men. Drawings on walls show a magician performing the
ancient trick of the Cups and Balls. Magic originally meant, The true interpretation of the laws
Magic today is a regulated art form. As an art form, it takes years of study. Fortunately,
the tricks in this book are easy to learn and only takes ten minutes a day of practice. The object
of these lessons is to help you become a good magician. The tricks here are designed to be per-
consciously take part. The audience must give consent to the magician to control that interest and
hold it.

We magicians know that memory is a poor recording mechanism. People cant pay atten-
tion to more than one thing at a time. We either watch the left hand going left or the right hand
going right. One hand will catch the eye, but not both if they go away from our frame of vision.
If you read books on magic, they teach the skeleton of the art. Its up to you to provide
the entertainment. Some magic purist say its wrong to do a magic routine word for word. This
does not make sense. When you learn how to sing, you are not expected to write your own songs.
1
Then you can lead up to the thing in a trick that does interest us and that is the magic part.
This is where all of the heat is. By heat, I mean the audience will be looking to see if they can
catch you. Thats why you do all of the tricky stuff in the set up phase, if you can.

formed in your own magic show.

The central secret of magic is manipulation of interest. Interest is selective. You must
We only notice what interest us. We dont pay attention to things we dont.
of life.

A skilled magician determines what the audience shall pay attention to. This is called
misdirection. So, the real secret to magic is to control this attention. The magician must control
that interest not only through misdirection, but showmanship. To do this is by taking note on
what holds our interest.
2

In a magic trick, what does not interest us is the preparation of the trick. You can make
Rule number two: Never challenge the audience
this boring so the audience will not see the subtle maneuvers you are doing. That will be misdi-
rection. However, this is bad showmanship. So, the key is to put the emphasis on what you are
lenging the audience. This is dangerous. This causes the audience to be more astute than they
saying as you set up the trick. This should contain the plot of the trick. Since the key word in
should be. Then they may except your challenge and say how the trick is done. If you dont want
misdirection is direction, the best way to manipulate this is with good showmanship. By combin-
to be embarrassed, never challenge the audience. It doesnt matter if they are right or wrong. A
ing both showmanship and misdirection, you can control what the audience sees much easier.
logical thinking person will see the thread in the hecklers observation. Then he too will think this
The rules of magic

Yeah, yeah, magic has rules. To be able to be a part of this fraternity, we must address the
Never perform magic as a puzzle to be figured out. By doing it like a game, youre chal-
is how its done. Whether they are right or wrong, the mystery is lost.

One way to challenge the audience is to say, I have an ordinary deck of cards. This is
basic rules of magic. I have listed seven.
a challenge. The audience may wonder how ordinary is it. They also may want to examine the
Rule number one: Never tell how a trick is done
deck. If you have a trick deck, or a pre-arrange pack, this request will ruin your trick.
The first rule is obvious. Do not reveal how a trick is done. Because of the nature of the
Even if you dont use trick cards, this request will not only slow down the show, but will
magicians work, secrecy is important. Magic depends on mystery. Magic routines are interest-
burst that balloon of mystery as if the secret itself was revealed. Youre supposed to be a real
ing as long as the audience is puzzled. Telling how a mystery is done punctures the balloon of
magician. A real magician doesnt need to challenge his powers. When you remind the audience
amazement. Once that balloon has been punctured, the mystery is gone. The magic has been
that there is a secret, you are doing the same thing as revealing the actual secret.
reduced to a game to be figured out.
you say so, you are only reminding the audience that magicians palm objects. Even though we
The closer we conjurers make magic mystery seem like a miracle, so much the better. The
The same is true when you say that your hands are empty. They are supposed to be. When
audience wants to believe that magicians perform miracle. The world itself wants to believe. Do-
wont be dealing with palming, they may still suspect that if they are challenged. Instead, just
ing the impossible even when the audience knows that natures law says it cannot happen, is part
show your hands empty and let them make the observation themselves.
of the appeal. If you reveal the fact that natures law can explain what you do, then why would
Rule number three: Never repeat a trick
the audience watch you?
the first time, they will catch the second time. Once is a mystery, second time is education. If you
The old time magicians guarded that secret jealously. To create this aura of mystery, we
When you have them mystified. . . leave them mystified. What the audience has missed
must depend on secrecy. As you can see, its not the secret thats being revealed, but the mystery
do the same trick the second time theres a chance the audience will discover the secret. When
behind the secret. Just like the old timers, guard your secrets well.
this happens, youve lost your hold on them.

There is another reason why its not a good idea to repeat a trick. Its poor showmanship.
to be a surprise is like not knowing you are going to get a gift on your birthday. You dont know
You never tell the same joke twice, so why do the same trick twice? A good trick is designed to
what the surprise is, but you do know there is going to be one. The surprise is opening the gift
reach a logical climax. The climax of a routine signifies the end of the trick. Repeating it makes
and seeing what we are given.
the routine anti-climatic. Some tricks have no endings. Routines that go on and on, really do not
have an ending to them. Just stopping doesnt make sense. The audience must know where the
proper set-up, you have no joke. A punchline that doesnt make sense to the set-up is not funny
end is. Each routine should be a mini story. Beginning, middle, and end. This is not an easy task.
either. A strange variation of the set-up, however twisted, can be funny.
Repeating a trick breaks up this pattern.
sets it down. He waves the wand which tells the audience a surprise is about to happen. Then
Some tricks are designed to be repeated. A few here in this book are. More often than not
Setting up a surprise is like setting up a joke. Everyone knows that if you dont have a
The same is true in magic. Magic has its set-up. The magician shows the cup empty then
when a trick like this is repeated, its designed for it. The story is designed to reach a logical cli-
when the cup is lifted, a ball is produced.
matic ending. Usually tricks that are design to repeat sometimes change the method on how its
done. It looks the same, but the secret is different.
the plot of the trick. If knowing this reveals the secret, then delay this until the right moment.
You can see when I have done this and when I havent. Take notice of it because each trick will
The point is never give in to the temptation when an audience member asks to repeat a
The general rule of thumb is; only tell the audience what they need to know to understand
trick. They dont know how to react to what they just saw, so they think of the first thing that
contradict this rule. See why its done. Discovering this will be the greatest lesson of all.
comes to their head. Do it again. Or How did you do it? They really dont want to know or want
Rule number five, six, and seven: Practice, practice, and practice
to see it again. Just go on to your next trick.
Rule number four: Never tell what youre going to do
eryone knows that practice makes perfect. Thats not entirely true. Perfect practice makes perfect.
You can practice now until doomsday, but if you practice incorrectly, youll never be perfect.
Never tell the audience what you are going to do ahead of time. Thats the same as re-
Professionals in all areas of entertainment practice. This cannot be over emphasized. Ev-
peating a trick. The audience now knows what to look for. This is the basic reasoning given by
Once a habit has been formed, its hard to undo it. In fact, it takes longer to undo something than
most books on magic. There is a problem with this rule. If you dont tell the audience what you
it is to learn it from scratch.
are going to do, they wont know what to look for. If they dont know what to look for, then there
is a chance they might miss the surprise of the trick.
best to practice in short spurts than in one long session. Even if you want to practice all day, its
best to practice in fifteen-minute increments. Rest, analyze, and check what you did wrong or
No one likes a true surprise. Four must follow three numerically. People do like stage sur-
prises. Setting some one up for a surprise can be pleasant. Without actually saying there is going
5
Practice everyday, even if only for ten to fifteen minutes. Some like to practice more. Its
right. Then go back to practicing. You dont want to take the risk of practicing a mistake.
6

When practicing, its best to use a mirror. A full-length mirror is best. You can see if your
There was no one else.
hands are correct as well as your body positions. Professional dancer practice in front of a mirror.
came, he froze. His acting background helped him ad-lib, but he did not have the background or
Using a mirror will help you see what you are doing right and what you are doing wrong.
I taught him the tricks and he practiced them. However, when the performance time
If you can see in the mirror how the trick is done, so can the audience. Be critical of yourself.
the fundamentals of a magician to be able to cover up a mistake like a magician would.
You can catch an error before it becomes habit. Remember, the audience will not miss a trick
(pun intended).
how a trick works, you wont know what you are doing wrong. Though each trick is set up so
you can perform a magic show, I have given you more than just mere tricks. I have given you the
Even though a mirror can be a valuable tool for practicing, its best not to use it during
You can learn the tricks Im going to show you, but without the knowledge of why or
rehearsals. It will hinder your performance and make you stiff. When you perform, you want to
principles as well.
move around. Even a full-length mirror will make that impossible.
trick is done. Certain gestures or pauses help to sell a trick that will not only entertain, but mys-
In a dance studio, where the mirrors are all around, you want to focus on performing to
I have inserted in the tricks, basic magic fundamentals that will show you why and how a
your imaginary audience. This is a good time to picture your audience in your minds eye. When
tify. A magician is not a magician because he knows tricks. He knows the principals behind each
you perform, you want to entertain everyone in the audience. You dont want to perform for
trick.
yourself. With todays electronics, you can use your cell phone to video tape yourself. Then play
it back and see it from the audiences eyes.
bining pictures with the text, you learn quicker. Some people are visuals. They learn better with
What you will get from this book

Youll get what you put into it. Basic fundamentals are there for everyone. A man once
I drew all of the illustrations in an attempt to explain the moves the best I can. By com-
illustrations. Others are word minded. They see words as pictures. While other still are like me,
they are both.
said that a genius makes his work a science as well as an art. A genius is one who works twice as
hard as others. When others give up, the genius forges ahead. The genius knows through experi-
magic is the second oldest profession. With that, comes respect. Im certain youll take the art as
ence how far to go whether to exaggerate or hold back. This comes through time. Time, instincts,
serious as I have. Im also certain that once it gets in your blood, you will not be able to get rid of
experience, and knowledge. Knowledge leads to greater heights.
it. It is definitely a fun profession.
So learn each trick carefully. These are the tools that have been passed down for ages as
Foundation is a basic to all learning. Learning tricks without foundation on how or why is
disastrous. I found this out once when I was doing a show at Six Flags Magic Mountain. Because
I had jury duty, I had to take the day off from the show. I taught an actor friend to take my place.
7

10
However, we think the problem with card tricks is the lack of a good routine. Nothing is
more annoying than seeing someone doing a boring card trick. It just goes on and on with no real
point to it. Each of these tricks have been routined, so stick to the basic premise.
Self Working
1. Card Tricks
The following tricks are called Self Working, but thats not quite correct. Self Working
implies that the cards work on their own without you touching them. You have to do something

Everyone knows a card trick or two. Magicians and non magicians alike. The Magic
of course. The main point is that it doesnt take sleight of hand to perform these tricks.
Lucky Seven
Castle in Hollywood, California is an exclusive club for magicians. They have a beautiful library
with stacks and stacks of books. Of all of the categories, the section on cards out number the
Effect: The magician writes down a prediction on a piece of paper and keeps it in full
other sections by a staggering amount.

We guess the reason is most people have cards. Also, people expect the magician to be
good with them. The most important reason is that so much can be done with playing cards. We
will show you simple tricks first. Tricks you can learn right away. The key is to learn, not perform right away. Even though these tricks are simple, you shouldnt rush to perform them. Like a
script in a movie, you must know your lines well.

Another thing, resist the temptation of performing too many card tricks. We feel a balance
view. Then he deals the cards in two piles. A member of the audience chooses a pile. The magician shows the prediction proving that he knew ahead of time which pile the spectator would
choose.
Props:

A deck of cards
A piece of paper or a business card

A pen or pencil
in any show is important. About four good tricks is enough in any close-up program. Its best
to mix it up with other close-up tricks and do not get in the habit of being the pest that doesnt
know when to stop.

Once you get going, someone will know a trick or two. Some may want to interrupt your
performance and want to show you a trick. Most of them are mundane and lose the audience attention.
Preparation: Take out the four sevens from the deck; the seven of spades, the seven of
diamonds, the seven of hearts, and the seven of clubs. Place these four cards on top of the deck.

To perform: As I was coming here tonight, I got an image of a future event. Write
down on the paper or on the back of a business card, You will choose the seven pile. Make sure
the audience sees you doing this, but do not show the prediction. Turn the prediction face down,
10
11
but leave it in full view.
Take the prediction card and read it out loud please. When
Deal the four sevens face down on the table. Do not show the faces of the cards. Next to
12
Instead, you chose the pile with the four sevens.
they do, they will be astonished to find out what your predic-
this, deal out seven random cards face down. See figure 1.
tion says, You will choose the seven pile.

If they chose the pile with the seven cards, pick up
Fig. 2
the pile they didnt choose, This is the pile you could have
chosen, but you didnt. Count the four cards face down. One, two, three, four. This is the four
pile. Do not show the faces. Then pick up the pile they chose, This is the pile you did choose.
Count the seven cards face down out loud, One, two, three, four, five, six, and seven. You chose
the seven pile.
The four sevens

The seven cards

Fig. 1
Turn to a spectator, Would you help me? Point to any pile. It doesnt matter which. He
Turn to the spectator and have him read the prediction out loud. It will of course say, You
will choose the seven pile. I knew that the seven would be your lucky number. Now the next
time you go to a casino, you know what number to pick.
You Do As I Do
points to one. Are you certain that you want that pile? I want to make sure that you have a free
choice. Let them change their mind if they want.

You are sure you dont want to change your mind? nod your head no. Get the audience
Effect: The magician promises a spectator to teach him a trick. Two different color
to copy you. You are happy with the mind you have. Shake your head yes and get the spectator
decks are brought out. Both spectator and the magician chooses a card. The chosen cards are
to shake his also. This should get a laugh. Good!
returned.
Now the outcome depends upon which pile they choose. In magic, it is best not to tell
The decks are switched. The magician and the spectator pull out their cards. When the
what you are going to do ahead of time. This way you stay one step ahead of the audience. If
cards are turned around, they match each other.
the spectator chooses the pile with the four sevens, turn over the other pile face up and show the
Props:
faces. This is the pile you could have chosen. But you didnt. Then turn over the pile with the
Two decks of cards: A red deck
four sevens. (See figure 2.)

11
A blue deck
12

13
To perform: Take out the blue and red decks, Have you ever heard of the term, monkey
think of anything cleverer than that.

I will show you how to be a magician, but you must do as I do. Hand him the red case,
You look like the type of person that is seeing red, so youll get this one.

Ill take the blue deck, because Im always blue. Take the deck out of the case. Make
sure the spectator follows you. Shuffle the cards. Once again, make sure the spectator follows
you.

As you shuffle, peak at the bottom card of the deck. It must be on the last shuffle. In
fact, dont shuffle more than once, or youll bore the others. A good way to peak at the card is to
tap the cards as in figure 1. Your motivation for doing this is to straighten out the cards after they
Alright, lets exchange decks again. Change decks from the spectator. Fan the cards
with the faces toward you, Pull out the card that you looked at and close the deck when you are
finished. Ill do the same.
Look for the key card. When you find it, look at the card below it. That will be the spectators
card. Pull the spectators card out and place it face down on the table.

Thats the card I chose. Put the card you chose next to it. After he does, ask him to
turn his card over. When he does say, Thats impossible! That is the card I chose. Turn your
card over. If youve done everything correct, itll match.

Youre a better magician than you probably thought. Take a bow. After he does, stage
whisper, (that is whisper so the others can hear) Remember, a magician never tells how he does
a trick.
The Four Burglars
are shuffled. Peak at the bottom card. This is called the key card.

Very good, youll be a good magician yet. Change decks with him. Fan the deck and
take out a card. Look at it. Make sure the spectator does the same thing. Look at your card
The Four Burglars is one of those tricks that just seem to always be with us. Its like your
favorite limerick... everyone knows it, but cant tell you who started it. When I was a little kid,
trick. I still does this even today.
meaning if you forget your card. Even though
you ask the spectator to memorize his card, dont
Effect: The magician shows four Jacks from a deck of cards and explains that these are
four burglars. The deck is a building they attend to rob. One burglar is placed two-thirds of the
memorize your card. The only card you need to

Fig. 1
remember is the key card.
this was the first trick I learned. I never did magic seriously at that point, but I loved to do this
and remember it. The trick doesnt have any
14
spectator is doing what you are doing. Cut the deck to lose your card in the middle.
Preparation: No set up required.
see, monkey do? Well, in magic, we have a term; spectator see, spectator do. Sorry, I couldnt
Place your card on top of the deck. Make sure the spectator is following along, Place
your card on top. Cut the deck and complete it. Then square it up. Once again make sure the
way into the deck. The second burglar is placed half way in the deck, and the third burglar is
placed a third of the way in the deck. The last burglar stays on top as a lookout.

The magician taps the deck and all four burglars rise to the top. The deck is spread out
face up and it is normal without any duplicate Jacks.

13
14
15
16
Props:
A full deck of cards
to the second floor. Place the next card after that and put it a third of the way in the deck. The
Preparation: Pull out of the deck the four Jacks. Also pull out three indifferent cards.
third burglar goes to the third floor.
Take the next card on top and put it in the middle of the deck, The second burglar goes
Place the seven cards face up in your left hand in this order: three indifferent cards followed by
the four Jacks. See figure 1.
Jack. If done nonchalantly, the audience will swear later on that you showed every card before
burying it. Thats the way it is with audiences.
Square up the indifferent cards and hide them behind the first Jacks as in figure 2. Make
Put the deck on the table. Pick up the top card and show the face to the audience. Its the
sure that this four card block looks like one card. Fan out the other three Jacks and hold them in
The last burglar stays on top as a look out in case the police comes. Put the Jack back
the left hand.
on top of the deck, Everything was going smoothly when all of a sudden the police came. The
burglar on top called and told the others to come up and join him, tap the top of the deck three
times. Turn each top card over face up and reveal the four Jacks, And they all came up to the
top.

Fig. 2
Fig. 1
To finish up, spread the cards face up on the table as in figure 3. This way you can show
that you do not have any duplicate Jacks with out saying so. Dont say that there is a possibility
of duplicates. If they are interested they will look.
To perform: Show the fanned Jacks, being careful not to expose the indifferent cards.
Tell the story about the four burglars, These burglars are going to rob this department store.
Pick up the deck for emphases. Then put it back down on the table. They needed a secret plan
to rob this store. Close the fan, So they gathered together to discuss what they are going to
do. Drop the packet of seven cards on top of the deck. They met on top of the department
Fig. 3
store late at night.

Pick up the deck in the left hand. Take the top card, dont show it. Its the indifferent
card, but its supposed to be the first Jack. Push the card into the deck around two-thirds of the
way and square it up. The first burglar goes to the first floor.
15
16
17
18

When I was thirteen, I caught the magic bug again. This time it was serious. I never got
over it. I started to learn professional tricks that I read in books. This was the first trick I learned
Fig. 2
from that book. Just like the four burglars, this one is easy to do.
Fig. 1

Effect: The magician takes a Queen from the deck. He says he will show how to cut a
lady in half. He places the Queen in an envelope. With a pair of scissors, the magician cuts the
envelope and the Queen in half. He separates them to show that they are really cut in half. Then
he puts them back together, over lapping the cut section.

Then the magician waves his magic wand over the cut pieces. Then he pulls out the
Queen. She is completely restored.
Put the envelope in your breast pocket along with
the scissors. Make sure a Queen of any suit is on top of

the deck. This is for ease of handling. But, if you are doing this after another trick, then just fan the cards out and
pull out a Queen.

To perform: Cut the Lady in Half is the most popular trick in magic. The plot
is simple. A lady is placed inside of a box, then cut in half. First of course you will
need a lady. Look around, No volunteers? Pause. Pick up the Queen from the deck,
Props:
Aright, then Ill just use this little lady here. Place the Queen face up on the table.

Next we need is a box. Act as if you are searching for something that can be used as
A deck of cards
a substitute for a box. Finally go to the breast pocket, Failing that, we will improvise with this
One pay envelope
envelope. Dont over do this. It should be casual. The impression you want to create is that
A pair of scissors
you are doing this completely spontaneous.

Preparation: Make sure that the envelope is the kind that has the flap on the longer
When you take the envelope from the pocket, keep the slit away from the audience.
Place the Queen in the envelope with its back to you. The face of it should be towards the audi-
end as appose to a letter envelopes that have the flaps on the shorter end. See figure 2. Fold the
ence. Dont place it all of the way in. Make sure that the Queen goes in the slit so half of it
envelope in half as in figure 1. Unfold it. With the pair of scissors, cut a slit in the back of the
sticks out. See figures 3 and 4.
envelope on the fold as in figure 2. The front of the envelope should look normal.
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18
19
20
before the trick is done.

Dont cut all of the way. Leave a centimeter still attached. If you cut all of the way
through, there might be a chance that the bottom half of the envlope might fall to the floor and
the audience will see there is nothing in it.

Put the scissors down. Pull away the remaining piece from the envelope. Separate the
halves. Be careful that you dont show the back with the folded Queen.

Continue with the dialogue, Of course its also important to put her back together.
Place the two pieces in approximately in the same place that it was before it was cut. (Figure 6)

Let go of the folded Queen so it lines up to the
back of the bottom half. Pull out the Queen and show it
completely restored. There will be a slight crimp in the
Fig. 4
Fig. 3

We also need something to cut with. Pull out the scissors from your pocket. This pair
card. This, unlike the crease, can be snapped back to

its original condition. This must be done if you plan on
of scissors will do. Open and close them a few times. Look at the same female you did in the
handing out the Queen for inspection. If you dont, they
beginning, Arent you glad you didnt volunteer?
will see the crimp and probably guess the secret.
Fig. 5
While you are doing this, carefully fold the card
As you do, finish up by saying, And the Queen
toward you. See Figure 5.
is no worse for ware. She can even take a bow. Tip the
card over simulating a bow.
Dont put a crease in it. If you do, then you
wont be able to undo it. Youll be surprised how far
Fig. 6
you can bend the card without creasing it.

Cut the envelope at the spot where the crease of
the envelope is. Do not cut the card. By cutting at the

crease, you are getting rid of the evidence of the secret
19
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22
Preparation: While you are eating, sneak a sugar packet that youve already marked
ahead of time in the holder. Use any number, but remember it. Lets say you chose eight.
3. At the Dinner Table

Sometimes youll find yourself at dinner with someone and the subject of your new skill is
brought up. Youll be tempted to show off, but resist. Do just a few quick tricks and re-direct the
conversation some where else.

These tricks seem spontaneous because you use the items that are on your dinner table.
cause you will use a cap from a soda bottle if there is one.

Effect: While eating dinner, talk about dj vu. Show a little demonstration of it by tak-
ing a sugar packet from the table. Write something down and put it off to the side for safe keeping. Then take eight more sugar packets. Openly write down a number from one to eight on each
Scoop up all of the packets and drop them into a spectators hand. Have them mix it up.
Then ask them to drop the packets randomly from their hand until all of them fall on the table.
You discard any that land face down. You take the remaining and repeat this until you only have
one left. This matches the prediction packet you wrote before the demonstration.

Have you ever had the feeling of dj vu? However the spectator responds, say, I
vu? Didnt you just ask me that? See, its happening right now. I can sense the outcome of things.
I cant always figure out the details to take advantage of it, but I am getting a feeling of a future
event as we speak.

Grab a sugar packet. This could be Sweet and Low or any other sugar packet you have
on the table. Use any number for the prediction. We are using the number eight for example. To
prove my point, I am going to write something that hasnt happen yet, but will. Take out a pen
and write your prediction number. Dont let anyone see the prediction. I must assure that no one
tampers with this prediction, so Im going to put this off to the side. Place this packet so it is
of the packets.

you. This is a good trick. It doesnt need any fancy dialogue.
knew you were going to say that. I get it all of the time. Have you ever had the feeling of dj
All the tricks are impromptu with the exception of Whats Under the Cap? It seems like it is be-
To perform: This trick is straightforward in its method. But dont let its simplicity fool
face down tucked under something like a glass, salt shaker, or an ashtray. Make sure that it is in
plain sight.

Grab a handful of sugar packets, about eight more. Make sure your pre-set up packet is
included. Dj vu is a skill that is used to see future events. Some say its just luck or coincidence. Or maybe all three.
Props:
A guessing game relies on pure luck. Write number one on the first packet. Do this so
Nine sugar packets
the audience can see the numbers. It would be no test if you had a choice between one num-
Marking pen
ber. Pick up another packet and write the number two on it. Two numbers increase the odds
21
22
23
24
to 50/50. Pick up three more packets, If we really want to make this a test of luck. . . write
packet. By random occurrence, weve ended up with the number eight. I knew that would hap-
the numbers three, four, and five on the separate packets, . . . well increase the odds by adding
pen. Dont touch the prediction, but have a spectator pick it up and show it. And it is indeed
more numbers.
the randomly chosen number. Take the packet with the double side. Of course you could say
that it is just a coincidence. . . tear it open and pour the sugar into your tea or coffee. Because
Sugar packets like Sweet and Low have the logo on one side, and the nutritional infor-
mation on the other. For misdirection reasons, write some of these numbers on the front of the
that means relying on luck. Crumble up the packet and throw it away. It must be dj vu since
packet, some on the back. The reason will be clear later on.
I never take chances with blind luck. Look puzzled at the audience, Its too bad I cant do that
to win the lottery.
Pick up the last three packets and write six, seven, and eight. When you get to the pre-set
up packet, write the same number that is on the back. This will give you a double packet. That is,
a packet with the same number on each side. In our example, we are using eight. So make sure
that you write eight on the other side of the sugar packet.

Hold out your hands as if you are receiving some water. To further make this a game of
luck. . . pick up the eight sugar packets and mix it up. You want a good mixture because you
dont want the demonstration to end too soon. Place the packets in the spectators cupped hands,
. . . mix them up real well. Let it trickle through your hands like warm sand on a beach. Any that
Some of the packets will land face up, others face down. Luck made some land face
down. . . discard any that are face down. . . . and some to land face up. Grab the face up ones
Because the force packet has a number on each side, it will never land face down. The
subtlety about writing the numbers on different sides of the packet come to play here. An observant spectator might notice that every packet lands the same way except one. They may reason
rection as I went along.

Effect: While eating dinner at a restaurant, your friends have asked you to do some
tricks. After you have done some dynamite close-up tricks, your friends want more. You try to
next, you see a salt shaker and cover it with a napkin. You state that it will penetrate the table. On
the count of three, you slam the salt shaker right through the table.
Misdirection is the most important technique in magic. If your timing is off, the audience
will discover the secret. At the very least, know when the sneaky part took place. Thats just as
bad. This trick is a lesson on misdirection.

The original way I learned this trick was to take a coin and place it on the tabletop. Then
the old books said to cover the coin with an empty facedown drinking glass. From there, a paper
that one is double sided.

thing to show off your powers. Ive done this killer effect for years and have refined the misdi-
and put them in the spectators hands.

If you find yourself at a restaurant and someone wants you to do a trick, this is the perfect
beg off and steer the conversation somewhere else, but they insist. So not knowing what to do
lands face down, well eliminate.

Lets try this again. Repeat this until only one is left. Of course that will be the force
23
napkin covered the glass. It said from there to announce that the coin will disappear. Remember
24
25
26
the old rule about announcing ahead of time what you are going to do? Well, this was supposed
pear. Then he palmed it away and made it reappear in his coat pocket. Still, it was a bit too tricky
to be misdirection against the rule effect. Because when the glass was lifted, the coin was still
for me. And he was using the premise about making the coin disappear.
there. In the action of moving the glass and napkin toward you to reveal this, the glass secretly
was dropped to the lap. The basic shape was seen through the napkin. The misdirection was
pearance, I changed it to a penetration. By doing that it changed the trick. I didnt have to worry
when the magician said, The coin hasnt disappeared yet. Then the glass was moved over to
about having a glass or a salt shaker in my lap. Nor did I have to worry about trying to palm it
cover the coin again. Then it was crushed to show the glass has disappeared instead of the coin.
away. It only stayed in my lap temporarily until I needed it to reveal that it penetrated through
the table. This also changed the moment of astonishment from, Huh, to , I dont believe. . . do
The misdirection was good, but the trick as far as entertainment value was not. Here is a
So this comes to the second change I made. I altered the moment. Instead of a disap-
good example of the misdirection being better than the showmanship. Thats because it lacked
that again. As any magician can tell you, this is a complement.
continuity which controls the flow. When I did it the way the book showed it, people in the audi-
ence would say, So what. . . you didnt make the coin disappear.
that the trick had not even started. I would look over the situation and improvise according to the
table set up.
When you think about it, this is what I promised to do. A good showman would not break
The third thing I did was to delay the moment as long as I could. I did this by pretending
up the flow of the routine that way. So how do you combine the rules of showmanship with the
laws of misdirection? Find a better a way to do it.
ject was in the way, I would move the salt shaker out of the way by bringing it to the edge of
the table. I dropped the salt shaker in my lap. Then moved the item out of the way. I moved the
First the misdirection must be changed. I got rid of the premise of making the coin disap-
I covered the salt shaker with a paper napkin. If a placemat or some other kind of ob-
pear. Then I concentrated on the moment of the event that is the magic, and the tricky part that is
napkin with the form of the salt shaker back to the center of the table. Then I paused. Smash the
the secret. I find that if you can change the moment or delay it, the easier the misdirection would
napkin and the made the shaker go through the table.
be.
The moment is the vanish of the glass. The secret is to get rid of the glass. Before the
If there wasnt a mat in the way, then Id bring the salt shaker to the edge of the table
and drop the shaker. At the same time, grab a mat and place it in front of me. I would say that I
vanish is revealed, it has to be secretly dropped in your lap. Now the problem is once the glass
needed it to help with this trick. Then I would put the napkin over the mat and make it penetrate
disappears, how to get rid of the glass without being detected? Delay the moment or change the
the table.
moment. So this is what I did. By doing both I came up with a new trick.
itself was a stunner, but I still had showmanship problems. By showing the salt shaker first, then
First, I changed the prop from a glass to a salt shaker. I read the Amazing Randis version
in the book, The Worlds Greatest Magic where he did this trick by making a salt shaker disap25
Thats the way Ive been doing it for years. There was still a problem with it. The trick
moving the place mat, I broke up the continuity again.

26

27
Of course it was not so bad, but there was still a chance that an audience member may
28
Fig. 1
loose track of the flow of the trick and forget that I placed a napkin over the salt shaker. I ignored
the weakness and refined the mystery by adding sound misdirection. I will explain this when I
give more details on how to do it.

It got to the point where I hated to do this trick. My wife loves this trick and always asks
that I do it. First, she would say, Do the trick where you make the salt shaker go through the
table. Well, this of course violated the rule about not saying what you are going to do ahead of
time. Now they are watching that salt shaker instead of the table mat. I would decline doing this
trick because I stated I dont like to show off. After enough prodding, Id do it. With all of the attention on the salt shaker, thats when I finally cleaned up the handling. I came up with a method
that satisfied me. This is now one of my favorite sit down tricks.

Cross your feet. This is not for luck. Its so you can catch the salt shaker and not
drop it on the floor. Youll see what I mean when you practice it a few times.

Cover the salt shaker with a napkin from the table. See figure 2 and 3. Because of
the stiffness of the napkin, it will take the form of the salt shaker. (As in figure 4). This is key to
the illusion that will about to take place.
This is a good teaching trick because it has five examples of misdirection. Time and
sound misdirection, ruse, simulation, and finally dissimulation.

Props:
One salt shaker
A paper napkin
To perform: The use of a paper napkin is important. Its the secret behind the effective-
ness of the trick. If you wrap a new paper napkin around a small object like a salt shaker and
remove it, the napkin will keep the shape of the object. This is called simulation.

You look around for something to use as a prop. Im sorry that I dont have anything
else. . . wait. This salt shaker will do. Place the salt shaker in the center of the table as in figure
1.
27
28
Fig. 2

Fig 3
29
Fig 4
With the right hand, bring the salt shaker to the edge of the table as in figure 5. The grip is
important. At the same time say, The salt shaker will penetrate the center of the table. . . With
the left hand, knock the table, . . . right here. See figure 6.
Fig 5
Fig 6

This, of course violates the basic rule. As stated before, the rule tries to prevent the
audience to watch where you do not want to because they know now where to look. The phrase
forces the audience to look where you want to, and also its good showmanship to let them know
what they are going to be witnessing.

This is also perfect misdirection. Sound attracts attention. Use this moment to drop the
salt shaker into your lap as in figure 7.
Fig 7
29

30
31
Keep the same grip on the shaker as if you are still holding the salt shaker as in figure 8.

Not only does this use sound misdi-
rection, but dissimulation. The dissimulation

hides the salt shaker in the lap. Bring the
Fig 11
right hand back to the center of the table. See
Fig 8
Fig 12
Then with the left hand, bring out the salt shaker. If you really believe that the salt shaker
figure 9. Show your left hand empty and put
it under the table, To catch the salt shaker
goes through, then you can convey that to the audience. I cannot stress enough how important the
when it falls through. What you really are
pause is. The audience just doesnt believe what they are seeing and the pause lets their brains
doing is taking the shaker from your lap and placing it under the table.
catch up. Of coure we dont it to catch up too quickly. When they try to back track, you bring out
the salt shaker and set it on the table with a thud.
At this point the trick is all done. Dont rush it. In the eyes of the audience, the trick has
not yet started. Relax. Have fun. This is time misdirection. Its called that because your timing is
The audience will ask you to do it again, but resist. Smile. Welcome to the club.
important here. Pause. Count out loud, One, two, three. With the right hand, crush the top of
the napkin giving the illusion of forcing the salt shaker through the table. See figure 10.

Effect: Three coins are on the table in a row; a penny, a nickel, and a quarter. The magi-
cian turns his back. A spectator is asked to cover a lid of WD40 or soda bottle cap over one of the
Fig 9
coins. Then the remaining coins are placed in each hand. When the magician turns around, he not
only names the coin under the cap, but calls out the other coins that is held in each hand.
Fig 10

With the left hand, hit the salt shaker underneath the
bottom of the table. Pause again. Let sound misdirection sink

in. With the right hand, turn over the napkin and show the
Props:
A cap
Three coins; a quarter, a nickel, and a penny
Invisible thread or long strand of hair
Preparation: Find a cap of some sort that will fit over the coins. The one that comes
shaker is gone as in figure 11.

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31
32
33
from a can of WD40 will work nicely. Or a plastic cap from a soda bottle is fine. The kind of cap
doesnt matter because the cap is not faked. Two of the coins are.
my pocket for some change, I have trouble telling the difference between the coins. Pull out the
three coins from your pocket. The quarter is obvious because its larger. However, if I only had
The original idea of this method uses a long strand of hair. Or you can use invisible
To perform: State that you are going to test your psychic abilities. When I reach into
thread. This will work as well. Despite its name, the thread is visible. Buy a spool of it from a
a nickel and a dime in my pocket, I would not be able to know for sure.
fabrics store. Dont get one too thick or the spectator will feel it in their hands. Get the thinnest
one you can find. Make sure that its as thin as a piece of hair.
why soon. See figure 3.
Line the three coins on the table. Make sure they are far apart from each other. Youll see
By making it thin, most people will not notice it when its attached to a coin. Its this
visibility-invisibility quality you will take advantage of. Just make sure that the surface you are
going to set the coins on is a light color so that you will be able to see the thread when you want
to.

Cut off about an inch of the invisible thread or hair and glue it on back of the quarter so
that a little bit of it sticks out on each end as in. See figure 1. In a pinch you can use a piece of
tape, but the spectator might notice it. (See figure 2) Do the same for the nickel, but instead, use
two inches of thread or hair. Have it stick out on both sides. See figure 3 for example. After you
Fig 3
prepare the quarter and nickel, put all three coins in your pocket.

I have developed such a delicate touch, I can even do it without coming in contact with
the coins. Let me show you what I mean. When I turn my back, cover one of the coins with this
cap. Illustrate by covering each coin. When your back is turned continue, Cover any coin you
like. Have you done that? After you hear a response say, If I turned around now, I can tell
which coin is which by process of elimination. So pick up the larger amount coin in the right
Fig 2
Fig 1
hand. . . Raise your right hand for emphasis, Then the remaining coin in your left. Raise your
left hand. Have you done that? When you hear an affirmative, turn around and face the audience.
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33

34
Glance quickly at the cap, but dont stare at it. Look at it just long enough to determine

35
The reason you dont want to stare at the cap is because you want to put the emphasis on
which coin is under the cap. If you see a thread sticking out, its the quarter under the cap. See
determining the value of the coins in the spectators clenched fist. This will seem more incred-
figure 4.
ible. You do this by using logic. Since you made the request to the spectator on which hand to
Fig 4
hold the coins, you can figure out the location of the other two. Because you asked the spectator to put the larger coin in your right hand, this gives us just two possible outcomes. Either the
nickel will be in it or the quarter. The penny can never be in the right hand. At the same token,
the left hand will never hold the quarter. The nickel can be in any of the three places.

If the quarter is under the cap, then the largest coin will be the nickel which is in the right
hand. If the nickel is under the cap, then the quarter is the largest coin and will be in the right
hand. Then of course if the penny is under the cap, then the quarter is in the right hand.

Take your time in revealing this. Make it seem difficult. Look at the spectator holding the
coins. Even though you are holding the coins, I can feel its size. Lets say the quarter is under
the cap. Place your fingers on your temples. The nickel is smooth in texture. Also, I can feel the
outline of Jeffersons profile on it. Your right hand must be holding the nickel. Dont reveal it

If you see it sticking out on both ends, then its the nickel. (See figure 5) If you dont see
anything, its the penny. The secret to the trick is to identify the idenity of the coin under the cap.
Fig 5
Once you do that, the others will be simple.
yet.

Concentrate some more, The penny is small and has a copper tone to it. I can definitely
feel the image of Abraham Lincoln. Your left hand is holding the penny. Which means the quarter is under the cap. Reveal the coin under cap. Then ask the spectator to show the coins. Take
the coins from him before he has a chance of examine it too close, These coins are mine. If you
want to try this out for yourself, get your own money.
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35
36

The last three tricks in this section are random selections that I thought would be nice in
a close-up routine. They could be done anywhere you have a few people gathered. They must be
pre-planned as they are not impromptu. Thought must be taken on when and where you will be
doing these tricks because you have to carry these around on your person already pre-set.

Effect: The magician talks about how the true classic in magic is the Chinese Linking
Rings. However, he doesnt have the rings with him, so he improvises with a set of paperclips.

He takes a dollar bill and folds it in thirds. Paperclips are placed on opposite ends of the
bill. When they are pulled, the paperclips fly in mid-air and link.
Props:

Two paperclips
A dollar bill
Preparation: There really is no preparation. If you want to make this appear spontane-
ous, take the two paperclips and attach them to a letter in an envelope. Then put this envelope in
your breast pocket.

Also, for ease of handling, have the dollar bill in your pocket. This should be new so it
is firm and not soft. You can even borrow a bill if you like. Just keep in mind that it might slow
down the routine.
36

37
To perform: China is the land of magic. I would like to perform one of its oldest tricks.
The ancient miracle of the Chinese Linking Rings. Usually a set of metal rings are used, but I

38
Turn the bill over facedown, He knows it backwards. . . Fold the bill again from left to
right in thirds so the face is towards the audience, . . .and forwards. See figure 3 and 4.
dont have any with me. Search around your person as if you had a set of linking rings on you.
Linking Rings are rather large, so this would be impossible.

I still wanted to do this classic trick for you. Continue searching until you notice the
envelope in your breast pocket. Take it out. Look at it up and down. Notice the paperclips and
Fig. 3
remove them, This will do. Dont overact. If you really think you are searching for something,
then it will show on your face.

This trick is so old, even George Washington knows it, take out your dollar bill. Fold
the bill from left to right in thirds. See figure 1. Place one of the paperclips over the fold. Make
sure to cover the number one on the bill. See figure 2.
Fig. 4

Put the other paperclip on the right
hand side of the bill as in figure 5. Once again

put the paperclip on the number one. Figure 6 shows an above view what it should look like.
Fig. 1
Fig. 5
Fig. 2
37
Fig. 6
38

Firmly grab the ends of the bills as in figure 7.
George will throw the clips in the air.
39
40
Dice Prediction
Watch the flight. You will actually see the clips link
in mid-air. With a fluid motion, pull on the ends of
the bill. Figures 8 and 9 is in stop motion, but you
Fig. 7
Effect: The magician writes a prediction on a piece of paper and puts it off to the side.
Then a pair of dice is thrown on the table. The totals are added up. When the prediction is re-
want to keep it moving causing the two paperclips
vealed, is matches the dice.
to link together. Figure 9 shows this.
Props:
A pair of dice
A pad of paper
A pen
Preparation: There is no preparation.
paperclips to fly in the air giving the
To perform: This is practically self-working, but try to make it seem like this is a dif-
impression that they linked in mid-air,
ficult feet of mind reading. Because its self-working, you cant repeat this to the same audience
as in figure 10. Practice this a little bit
member because the outcome will always be the same. They say Las Vegas is not built on win-
to get the right timing in pulling the
ners. However, that doesnt stop many people from trying. Wouldnt you like to know the out-
bills. If they get caught up, you didnt
come to a casino game?
pull it with enough force.
Fig. 9
Fig. 8

This fluid motion will cause the
Fig. 10
Pick up the paperclips and
Pull out the dice, pad of paper, and the pen. Ive been working on such an idea. I havent
perfected it yet, its still in its planning stage. Pick up the dice. Shake it. Nothing can be more
show them linked, Now that you
random than the rolling of dice, throw the dice on the table. Name the numbers that show up.
know the ancient miracle of the Chi-
Pick up the dice again and hand them to a spectator, Check these dice out. Roll them a few
nese Linking Rings, dont tell anyone
times to make sure they come up random.
how I did it.

39
40

41
42
As he throws them a few times, call out the numbers. Depending upon what he rolls,
Nest of Boxes
comment on it as if was a game of craps: If he throws two ones or two sixes, say, You would
have lost. Do you know why they call this game craps? When you lose, you say, Oh crap. If he
Effect: The magician borrows a coin and has it marked. The magician has the spectator
throws a seven or eleven, say, This time you won. But you wont for long. If they get anything
else, say, Thats your point. How long do you think itll take before youll make your point?
hold his box of secrets, (a box of Sucrets lozenges). Then the magician puts the marked coin in a
piece of paper. That paper is wrapped in a second piece of paper. This is repeated with a third and
Continue with the routine, You can throw all day and never be able to know for sure
what set of numbers will be next.
finally a fourth. A spectator is asked to put a finger on top of the package of paper.
Until now. Im going to write down the results of the next throw of the dice. Pick up
The magician waves his hand making an invisible pass from the paper to the box, then
the pen and pad. Pretend to really be concentrating. Write down, The total number will be 14.
from the box to the paper. The spectator removes her finger off of the paper. The magician opens
Rip it off and fold it in half. Then tuck it under an ashtray for safe keeping.
up package of paper. The last one does not have the coin, but a bunch of matches.
Throw the dice like you would in a game of craps. Hand the pad and pen to the specta-
The person with the box of secrets opens it up. Inside that is a matchbox. The matchbox
tor. Write down the top two numbers of the dice. Lets say its a five and three. Have him total
is opened. Instead of matches there is the missing marked coin.
the numbers which will be eight.
Props:
Turn the dice over. The spectator does as you ask. Write down the numbers of that side too.
An empty box of Sucrets
Those numbers will be the two and four. Thats because on every pair of dice, the top number
Coin slide
and bottom number equals seven. Thats why its best to add the numbers separately. If you
A matchbox
added the top number and bottom number separately on each dice, the audience will see that each
A bunch of matches
total seven and the jig will be up.
Packets of paper
A quarter
together. What is the answer? He will say fourteen of course. Have spectator take out the pre-
Seven rubber bands
diction and read it out load. It will match the numbers added on the paper.
A felt pen
Have the spectator total the two and four which will be six. Now total the two numbers
Its too bad we cant do that in Vegas. We might break the bank. It looks like they wont
be building anymore casinos off of us.

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42
43
Preparation: Before you begin to set up the trick, you need to make the coin slide. Take

44
Trim it so it looks like figure 3. Finally, tape a paper clip to the back of it. (Figure 4).
a piece of poster board 3 inches by 3 3/16 inch size. With an exacto knife, score the poster board
as in figure 1.
1/16
Fig. 3
3 3/16
Most ver-
sions of this trick

uses a small bag
Fig. 1
and a medium size

box. I dont use the
bag because with the premise of the coin changing places with the matches,
Cut a half circle a little bigger than the size of a quarter in the poster board about an inch
and a half in. Then on the other end, cut holes as in figure 2. Then fold on the scored dotted lines.
Glue it together.
1
4
1/16
3
Fig. 2
doesnt make sense. I like the idea of the

medium size box, but it doesnt fit into the
Sucrets box.

Take out the matches from the box
and put off to the side. Position the coin slide
11/2
3/16
1
2
Fig. 4 it
Fig. 5
in the matchbox so its not too far in the box, but not too far away. Slip the cover over the box.
Place the rubber bands crisscross over
the matchbox as in figure 5.
1
4
Finally, place this into a Sucrets
box and wrap it up with the rubber bands
3
43
Fig. 6
as in figure 6.
44

45
Now, take this bunch and clip it to your right back pocket. Make sure the half circle is

46
Take the two ten inch sheets of paper and glue them back to back as in figure 8.
face up. You want to be able to put the coin through here. Put your jacket over this.

Next take some construction paper or better yet, some parchment paper. If you use con-
struction paper, use different colors. If you use the parchment paper, keep it the same. Youll use
four different size papers. Two six inch squares, two eight inch squares, two ten inches, and one
twelve inches square. Fold the papers as in figure 7.
Fig. 8

Put the matches in the smallest bundle. Then put this bundle in the next size. Place this
bundle into the third size up. Turn it around and open it up the other side. Then take the other
small sheet and fold it up. Put this into the next size up and fold this. Then put this bundle into
the faked sheet and fold this up. Finally, put this into the larges one. To keep it in place, put a
rubber band around it. Place this entire bundle in your pocket.

To finish the set-up, put a quarter into your back pocket next to where the box is. Then
take the felt pen and put in your jacket pocket. This is the set-up.

To perform: Before you perform the trick, take out the rubber banded packet
from your pocket. Take the rubber band off of it and toss it to the side. Open up the paper until
you get to the smallest bundle. Leave this on the table and start.
Fig. 7
Borrow a quarter from someone from the audience. The reason it should be a quarter for
several reasons. One, quarters show up better. Second, you are going to switch the quarter for the
one in your pocket. If you are worried about a spectator not having a quarter, then make sure you
45
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48
have a nickel, a dime, and a penny in your pocket in case this happens.
because to the audience, you just made a couple of gags to make them laugh. When later the coin
disappears, they will not be able to back track.
Pull out the pen and hand it to the spectator you borrowed the coin from, Please write on
the face of this coin any kind of mark. It can be your initials if you want. You can put a mustache
on George Washington if you are into that kind of stuff. The mustache line gets them to put the
will make the magic rub off from the box to the coin. Place the coin in the smallest of the piece
mark on the face of the coins, which is what you want.
of papers. Fold it up. Pick it up with the thumb underneath and the fingers on top. Touch the box
with the packet, turning your hand from the wrist so your thumb is on top, From the coin to this
After he does, pick up the coin in your right hand and take a quick peak at the initials and
remember it. Do this with out the audience being aware of it. You hide your actions by continue
Touch the coin to the box, making sure you dont expose the head side of the coin, This
paper. (See figure 9).
with your dialogue, This is so we can identify it later. Pretend to put the coin in your back
pocket. Actually drop it in the coin slide, . . .if we see it again.

Put your hand to your side. Look serious, then chuckle, Im just kidding, reach into
your back pocket and pull out the duplicate coin. . . .when we see it again, youll be able to
recognize it by the markings. Make sure the tails side is facing the audience. Look at the face
and pretend to read the initials on the coin, What does M.P. stand for? (or whatever his initials
are). Its your name. Well, M___, people ask me how magicians do their tricks. Look around as
if you dont want anyone to hear, Its a secret.

Put the coin in the left hand. Make sure the tails are toward the audience. Reach into the
back pocket with the right hand. Pull the box straight down and free of the slide. Bring the box
forward, I always carry my box of secrets with me. Show the box of Sucrets. This should bring
a chuckle. Will you hold my box of secrets? Hand the box of Sucrets to the spectator who gave
you the coin.

The psychology here is that they are holding the box before the coin has left their sight.
The switch is not suspected because they are not expecting anything to happen yet. By pretend-
Fig. 9
ing to look at the coin, it burns in their mind that it is the same coin. They wont suspect anything
47
48

49
Turing your wrist back again making sure the thumb is back underneath. Then place this

50
Tell the spectator holding the Sucrets box to open it up. You dont want to touch this
packet inside of the next size paper. Repeat this move. Once again, place this packet in the next
either. You want to give the impression that the box was in their possession the entire time. When
size paper.
he opens the Sucrets box, he will see the matchbox. At this point he might understand why the
This time when you touch the paper and turn your wrist, dont turn the wrist back over. Keep the
matches appeared in the packet of papers. Even if he doesnt, dont say anything. Let him be
thumb on top. What you have done was turn the paper over to expose the other side. From this
surprised when he opens the matchbox and sees the marked coin.
packet of paper to this box over here. Match your action to words.
Place this packet on the last piece of paper. Fold it up. Again touch the paper to the box. This
box of Sucrets and say, Its a secret.
Some people might say something like, How did you do that? If they do, pick up the
is misdirection to throw them off of the scent. Place this packet on the table. Turn to a female
spectator if you can, and say, May I have the use of your finger? Take her finger. Touch her
extended finger on the box of the Sucrets. Then put the finger on the packet of papers so it wont
unfold.

Everything is all done. All there is left is the magic. Wave your hands as a real magician
would. Make an invisible pass from the packet of papers to the box. Then from the box to the
packet. This is the magic part. This is where they are going to watch real closely, but the secret
part is over with.
Ask the lady to lift her finger from the packet. Unfold the first two packets. Then hand the rest of
the packets to the female and ask her to unfold it. Since the danger packet is out of her hands, it
is safe for her to handle the paper. It makes you seem clean because you are not touching anything.

When she gets to the last piece of paper, the audience will see the match sticks. Pause to
make sure everyone understands what happened. Scratch your head in puzzlement.

Tell the spectator holding the Sucrets box to open it up. You dont want to touch this ei-
ther. You want to give the impression that the box was in their possession the entire time. When
49
50
51
52
easy to transport. You can keep your table bare if you prefer. I use what is known in the trade as
a Close-up Mat. It looks like a large mouse pad. This keeps the props from slipping and prevents
any noise when items are placed on the table.

the table with a velvet table cloth with fringe. Use good taste when dressing up your tables. You
5. The Props

A soft spongy material will suffice. Place black felt over it. If you want, you can drape
dont want too much attention drawn to them.
To dress up a magic show, you need certain items. One of those items is the classic
Stores like Marshalls or T.J. Maxx have decorative tables that would be perfect for your
magicians wand. You can buy one from a magic store, but its more fun to make your own. My
act. They come in different sizes so choose the one thats best for you. They dont fold, so you
friend John Santangelo made one for me when we were teenagers out of wood. I still have it
would have to deal with the bulk.
after all of these years.
now, many have criticized magicians for their lack of taste in their prop selection. Even now
To make your own, take a wooden dowel about a little more than a foot long and a half
In choosing tables, dont be tempted to copy the style that magicians still use. For years
inch in diameter. Sandpaper it so its smooth. Wrap masking tape to the ends about an inch from
modern wizards still use those archaic equipment. The complaint was that the original design
the end of the stick as in figure 1.
was built in the 1890s and have not changed. The world has changed, but magicians have not.
You dont have to be modern, just smart. Antique furniture can look classy in your act, but keep
with current styles. Dont make it look to eclectic. Youll give the impression that you do not
Fig. 1

care. Every detail is not too small when performing.
Paint the stick with black glossy enamel. When it is dry, take the tape off. Then wrap
Other props you will use are scarves made of silk. Magicians just call them silks. When
more tape around the other side and paint the ends with white enamel. After it dries, take the
tape off then varnish it. It should look like figure 2.
addressing the audience, call them scarves because thats what the rest of the world refers to
them as.
Fig. 2

The rest of the equipment youll make as we go along. One other thing youll need is
tables. I use wooden T.V. trays. The metal ones look cheep. The wooden ones look good and are
51
The type of silks are important. This is one item you might want to buy from a magic
shop. It is costly, but worth it. If you choose not to go this route, be careful in your selection. I
know someone that made his own. If you can sew or know someone who does, you can save a
lot of money.
52

53
Never use blends because they dont fold up as well. If you are going to make your own,
54
comedy, she felt uncomfortable performing without her magic props. Little by little she weaned
buy it by the bolt. The weight of the silk is important. Six momme is recommended. Anything
herself from the props until she was doing pure stand up.
lighter will be too fragile. Anything heavier will not fold up tightly. If you are going to use the
silk as a cover, then the eight momme will be perfect.
ity can hold an audiences attention even if you own a table full of the best magic tricks on the
market or not doing magic at all. This book will help you do that. Each trick is design with the
Bolt sizes comes in two width of 27 and 36 inches. You can use the 27 inch square as one
You dont have to do that. You can do a combination of the two. A pleasing personal-
large piece or economize by cutting it into squares of 15 and 12 inches. Use the scraps to make
dialogue necessary to start performing as well as strong material.
other square sizes. Or you can attach them together to form one long strip known as stream-
So lets gets started.
ers. On the 36 inch bolt, you can cut them down to 12, 18, and 24 inch squares without having
wasted silk.

Make sure to sew a hem in the silk or it will unravel. You can dye the silk if you bought
white. Tie dying will make it look pleasing when using them in the Plethora of Silk trick described in this book.

The arrangement of the colors for such effects is important. I dont want to go into too
much detail here. Just use common sense. For producing silks from a container, a good order
would be; lilac, dark blue, orange, dark purple, white, yellow, light blue, pink, emerald green,
red, light green, and magenta. When loading them, start from last to first.
As far as the rest of the props, use the KISS principle; Keep It Simple Stupid. You dont
want to focus too much attention on the props. I know magicians that spend thousands of dollars
on props. These kind of performers hide behind their equipment. The real performer is a minimalist. He uses his personality to dress up his act.

Still, the magician gets some kind of comfort in performing prestidigitation. Stand up co-
medienne Judy Carter started off as a magician. She said that when she first started to do straight
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55
6. Silk Magic

Preparation:
Take one of the silks and put it in your breast pocket. Make sure a little bit of the corner
sticks up. The device that is going up your sleeve is made by knotting the four rubber bands into
a chain. This is called a pull. See figure 1. You may
Silk magic is standard in a magic show. There are a varied of things you can do with
need more depending upon your sleeve length. I use
them. They can be the star of the show in production tricks or they can be a supporting player
six rubber bands. But this depends also upon size of the
when they are used to cover something thats going to disappear.
rubber bands.
I know so many silk tricks, but I thought it best just to include a few here. These two take
Fig. 1
Tie the second silk to one end of the rubber
band about three inches from the corner. See figures 2
time to prepare, but they are well worth it.
Showing or Blowing

56
and 3.
Everyone always thinks that everything goes up the magicians sleeve. This trick actually
does take advantage of your sleeve. This is a nice effect to use as an opener. I have used a similar
version for many years. The dialogue is exactly from my repertoire.

Effect:
A silk handkerchief is taken out of the breast pocket. Within seconds, the silk vanishes
right in front of the audience. In case anyone was wondering, it went right back to the pocket.

Props:
Two 12 inch square silk handkerchiefs of the same color
Four strong rubber bands
The scarf you use is very important. The type magicians prefer is a thin kind of pure silk.
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
These show up big, but fold perfectly. If you have any problems with it getting caught up your
sleeve, then the silk is probably a blend.
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56
57
58
To perform:
Loop the other end of the rubber band pull around your belt loop on the left side of the
body. See figure 4.
People always ask me how did I first learn to do magic. When I

was a kid, I use to bug the owner of the local magic store to show
Fig. 4
me a trick. This was his favorite. Hed take out his pocket handkerchief.
Fig. 6

hand, push the protruding silk into the pocket. At the same time
Hold the silk at the knot between the right
thumb and first finger. Then put on the coat so
pretend to pull out the palmed silk in your right hand.
the rubber band pull stretches behind you and
through your right sleeve. Extend your right arm
looks like it is coming out of the pocket. Shake it up and down a few times. Be careful not to let
out horizontally and pull the silk knot forward so
go of the pull as of yet. Practice in front of a mirror to get the general effect.
the chain of rubber bands are evenly stretched and
under tension.
No, this is for showing. . . smile. . . . not for blowing, pretend to look at the imaginary child.
Accordion pleat the silk as in figure 5. Then hold it in right hand. Make sure that one of
the corners protrude
Use your left hand to hold back the palmed silk as you grab the corner. Pull it up and it
I said, Ew. . . thats not the hanky you blow your nose with, is it? Make a face.
I said, Well, if its for showing, then show me a trick.

He said, Alright. Im going to make this handkerchief disappear.
so you can get to it

easily as in figure 6.
With the both hands, reach over to the breast pocket. With the right
I said, Most magicians wont tell you that ahead of time.
Fig. 5
Thats because I want to you to watch very closely.

Move the hands away from the body so as to put tension on
the pull. Figure 7 shows it from the audiences view. Figure 8
Fig. 7
shows it from your

angle.
Fig. 8
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58

59
60
Make a motion as if you are going to toss it up in the air. As you do, release the silk so it
can fly up your sleeve. Pretend that it is tossed up by watching the invisible flight. This is so no
A Plethora of Silks
one sees the silk going up the sleeve. (See figure 9).

Many kinds of production tubes have been used to produce scarves. Some use tricked
tubes to hide the scarves like The Phantom Tube. However, the amount of scarves from this is
limited and only can be increased if a switch is made.

Fig. 9
This method doesnt use such a switch. Clever misdirection is applied so you can produce
a bunch of silks from an empty tube. To put meaning to the trick, two other effects are added to
reach what I hope is a logical conclusion to this colorful trick.

Effect: Two tubes used to hold a bottle of wine sets on the table. The inner one is shown
Pause. Brush hands together. I said, Hey, where did the hanky go?
empty. To demonstrate that the larger one is empty, the smaller one is dropped inside of it. This
It went right back to the pocket.
larger one is also shown empty. The large tube is placed around the smaller tube.
Go to the breast pocket and pull out the duplicate silk. Bow. Put the silk back in the
The magician waves his wand over the tube and produces a plethora of colorful silk
pocket. Look at the audience, then continue to tuck it in. Then look at the audience again. Pause.
scarves. From the scarves, a glass of wine is produced. Then the tubes are placed over the glass
Pretty darn amazing. Say this with mock seriousness. I know darn is unusual, but hey. . . I
and a bottle from the same label that is on the tube is produced.
was just a kid.
This is a great finale to your act. Music can be added to make you seem like a season veteran.
If the silk gets caught up in your sleeve, many things could be the reason. The length of
Props:
the rubber bands are too long. Maybe you didnt tie the knot up far enough on the silk. If it still
One hollowed out wine bottle
gets caught up, try moving your arm farther forward. This will put more tension on the pull.
Three tubes of descending sizes
Practice this a little bit to get the feel of it. Once you do, then youll be like an old pro.
A bunch of different colored silks
A glass of wine
A chair
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61

Preparation: After emptying a bottle of wine, carefully cutout the bottom of it. It is best
62
Place this bottle in the smallest tube as in figure 2. Around the bottle place the silks one
by one as shown in figure 3.
to take it to an expert who knows how to do this. A craft store can direct you on the best way to
go about this. Caution; you dont want to cut yourself, so make sure that the bottom of the bottle
is well sanded with no jagged edges.

Another way to get a bottomless bottle is to use a plastic one. There are some alcoholic
Fig. 2
beverages that now come in plastic. Rum bottles come this way. You can cut the bottom then
Fig. 3
paint the inside with brown paint to look like rum. This will be very deceptive because it looks
like a full bottle.

Tubes can be of any sort, but the best is one with a label that the alcohol came in. This
will make it logical when you produce the bottle at the end. If you cant find one, steam the label
off of a bottle and glue it on a tube. The smallest tube will not be seen, so it should not be decorated. Also, this small tube should be slightly shorter that the other two. This is so you can grip
the middle tube while doing the routine. Figure 1 shows the three tubes and the bottle.
Use as many silk scarves as can fit. Arrange the colors in the most pleasing order possi-
ble. Reverse the order that was given on page 39 starting with the color magenta then light green
and so on ending with lilac.
Put in the magenta silk
and have the corner
stick up. Take the light
green silk and twist it
Fig. 4
around the first one as

in figure 4.
Fig. 1
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63
Tuck this in the tube until the second corner is sticking out. Twist this around the third silk like
you did the first. Repeat this until you have four silks left. One of the four should be a white silk,
Sew buttons loops on each corner of the silk. See figure 8. Place the glass halfway on the center of the scarf. Collect the corners of the scarf as in figure 9.
much smaller than the rest. This will be used as comedy, so thats why the order is important.
Twist this one around the corner sticking up. Then repeat this with the rest of the silks. Take the
middle size tube and cover it over the small tube. See figure 5. Finally, take the largest tube and
cover over the other two. (See figure 6.)
Fig. 8
Then hang it on
the nail in back of the

chair as in figure 10.
Fig. 5

Fig. 6
Next thing you need to prepare is the production
of the glass of wine. Pour water in the glass halfway so

as not to spill the contents. Then use a small amount of
red food coloring to tint the water. This will look like
wine as in figure 7. If you are using a rum bottle, dont
use the wine glass. Instead, use a regular glass and fill it
halfway with ice tea.
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Fig. 7
64
Fig. 10
64
Fig. 9

65
To perform: Being that this is your finale, do it to music. The music should be anything
66
with your left hand. Repeat with the fourth one.
contemporary, but it has to fit your actions. The beat of the music should coordinate with the fol-
lowing movements. Its best to have music that starts off slow, then gets faster and louder. As the
should get a laugh from the audience. Stop and look at this. You should have four large colored
music gets faster, you move faster. Herb Alberts Zorba the Greek is perfect for this even though
silks in the right hand, and the one small white silk in left. Look confused. Put the silks thats in
its not contemporary.
your right hand over the chair so it hangs over the load as in figure 12.
Pick up the middle tube and show it empty. Because the inner smaller tube is shorter, this
would be easy. Push your arm through it to further prove that it is empty as in figure 11.

Slide this tube inside
of the larger tube. Then pull out the

large tube leaving the middle one
behind. For some reason, this gives
the impression that the large tube is
empty. If there was something inside
of the large tube, the middle tube
Fig. 11
would not be able to fit. This should

have one flowing motion. Not too
fast, but not too slow. Show this tube
to be empty.
Put it back over
the two inner tubes.

Pick up your wand and wave it over the tube, then tap it. Set the wand down. With
your right hand, pull out the first silk from the tube. Because you twisted the ends together, each
one will pop up like a Kleenex box. Still holding the silk in your right hand, reach in with your
left hand and produce the next silk. Put this into your right hand. Then pull out the third silk
65
When you get to the fifth one, it is just a plain white hanky. The smaller size
Then show on your face that the white
silk looks familiar. Pretend to blow your nose

into it. Fold it up like you would a handkerchief and put it in your back pocket. Collect the
scarves from behind the chair. Secretly grab the
loaded one. Make sure its well hidden behind
the other four.

Now continue to pull out scarves from
the tube with your left hand and place it in the
Fig. 12
right hand. Pick up the pace. You can do this by

pulling one out with the left hand and place it to the right. Then pull one, two with the left hand
before transferring it to the right. Then one, two, three. You can even get the audience involved
by having them clap every time a silk is produced. If you pick up the pace, it will get the audience clapping.

Now to make the glass appear, slip your left hand under the load to support the
glass. Then let go of the silk with your right hand so all of them will fall over your left hand revealing the glass. (In figure 13, the silks have been removed for clarity. In reality, youll have the
produced silks on the palm of your hand). Take the glass in your right hand and take a sip if you
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67
want. Put the silks down on your table. Place the glass back on your palm as in figure 13. Finally,
7. Magic of the Mind
with your right hand, reach into the top of the tube with your fingers. Stick your middle finger
Are You a Square?
into the bottle. With your thumb on the outside of the tube grip all of this together.

Cover the glass with the tube as in figure 14. Look at the label on the tube. Look at the
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Mind reading effects are always good to insert in any magic show. The impossibility of
audience, then the label again. Wave your right hand over the top. Pause. Then lift up all three
it boosts your credibility as a master mystifier. The following trick is a great way of creating that
tubes revealing the bottle, (see figure 15) making sure the music strikes a cord on the production.
aura of mystique. You appear to do nothing more than just walk up to someone and read their
The music should be ending as you take your bow.
mind.

Effect: The magician walks up to a spectator in the audience and asks them to choose a
geometrical figure; a square, a circle, or a triangle. After they say their chose out loud, the magi-
Fig. 14
Fig. 13
Fig. 15
cian shows a prediction that proves that he knew ahead of time that he can read minds.

Props:
Two 8 x 4 inch cardboard
One manila envelope
Preparation: Before the show, write the words, You will choose the square in big bold
letters on a piece of cardboard. Tape this below a spectators chair. Then take a manila envelope
and draw three geometrical shapes; square, circle, and triangle. On the back of it print in big
bold letters, You will choose the circle. Finally, on another cardboard a little smaller than the
envelope, print the words, You will choose the triangle. Put this in the envelope. Make sure the
blank side is towards the face and you are all set.

To perform: Pick up the envelope and make sure you do not show the back of it. Walk
over to the spectator that is sitting at the prepared chair. Excuse me, would you stand up? I
know nothing about this person, is that correct? If she shakes her head say, Well, dont look so
happy about it. Whats youre name? After she gives it, say, Thats absolutely correct. This
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69
should get a laugh.

Note: Below are the three selections in bold type. Photocopy them and cut it as the prediction.
Usually when normal people meet they ask each other silly questions like that. But as
YOU WILL CHOOSE
you can tell, Im not a normal person. Look at her, You dont have to agree. I am psycho. . . I
mean, psychic.

Being psychic, I am going to ask you an unusual question. Hold envelope so they see
THE SQUARE
the markings on the front, Think of a shape. Are you thinking of a shape, or are you thinking of
ways to sit down? Go ahead and name it.

If they say square, and most people do, then say, I knew that because Im-- if you
pause, the audience may join with you, --psycho yeah. Thanks for reminding me. No really, if
YOU WILL CHOOSE
you look under your chair that youve been sitting on for the entire night, you will see a prediction that I placed there before the show. Go ahead and look at it.

She turns it over. Have her take it off. Make sure you dont touch it because you want to
give the impression that you never came near it. Then have her show it to the audience.

THE CIRCLE
If she chooses circle, then change the outcome. This is known as the magicians force. De-
pending upon their answer, you control how it is revealed. Thats because you never said ahead
of time what you are going to do.

Continue with the dialogue. Then say, Thats because I took the precaution of writing
YOU WILL CHOOSE
your choice on back of this envelope. Turn it around and show the prediction. If they chose the
triangle, make sure you dont show the back of the envelope. Open it up and pull out the card.
Toss the face up envelope on your table and turn the card around and show the prediction. Continue with the dialogue but switch the shape to triangle.

70
Take your bow with the spectator. I told you I wasnt normal. Hand the card to her and
let her sit down.

69
THE TRIANGLE
70
71

Book Test
72
Do the same with the other books. You have to search to find the same word near the
same position. It doesnt matter if the page number is different, as long as the same word is in the
upper left hand corner of the right hand page. Remember the page numbers to each book.

Set them on the table in a row as in figure 1.
Effect: Three books are shown. An audience member is given a free chose of any of the
three. Before the spectator reveals her chose, a prediction is written down on a business card.
Then after the title is revealed, a page number is chosen. The prediction is written on another
business card.

A blank business card is inserted somewhere in the center of the book. It is opened up
and the page number is announced. Finally, the spectator is asked to look at a word on the chosen
page. This is also written down. Then the word is revealed.
The three predictions are revealed to match exactly.
Fig. 1
Props:
A stack of business cards
Three books
should be next to the cards.
A marking pen
Preparation: The chose of books you use for this trick is immaterial. However, you
wont. If they hired a mentalist, the bookstores would know before the readers do.
Have a stack of business cards on your table. A marking pen to make the prediction
To perform: Bookstores for years have tried to figure out what books will sell and which
probably want one with out any pictures. A novel of some sort with a short title will suffice like
Misery or Contact. Take off the dust jackets. This is so the audience wont be able to tell if the
stores knew what book you wanted to buy. Pick up each book making sure not to show the cards
book is right side up or upside down.
sticking out from rear and read off the titles of the three books. For instance, Contact by Carl
Sagan, and so on. If they used a mentalist consultant, this is how it would work. Think of any
Insert a business card in one book somewhere near the center. Look at the first word on
Turn to a spectator, Do you like to read? If he says yes, say, Imagine that the book-
the page of the right hand side. Make sure it is not a small word like a, but, and, the, or it for
book of the three I have here. But do not say it out load. Read out the titles again.
example. Choose a nice action word that is not too difficult to read. This will be your force word.
71
Pick up the stack of business cards and the pen. Me being the mentalist consultant, I
72
73
74
will know which book you will choose. Write a prediction on one of the business cards, using
the stack as a writing surface. In reality, you write the force word on it. Put this off to the side in
with the left hand covering the business card the spectator has inserted, while still holding the
plain sight. This is called one ahead.
other in end in your right hand as in figure 4. This is an above angle.
To be able to write down the prediction of the page number. . . Turn the book sideways
Now say which book you want. Whatever book she chooses, pick it up. I also can tell
what page number you will go to. Make sure the business card that is sticking out is facing you.
Cover this with your right hand. See figure 2.

With your left hand, give him the business cards. Insert one of the business cards
at random somewhere near the center. See figure 3. After he does, you must now make the
Fig. 4
switch. This is what you do.
. . . I need the busi-
As she gives you the stack, push in the
ness cards please. Let go of
business card flush into the book with the heal of
your grip on the right hand and
the left hand as in figure 6.
gesture with it. See figure 5.
Fig. 3
Fig. 2
73
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
74

75
76
Now pretend to write the prediction of the page number, but instead, write the title of the
book. This is why it is good to have a short title so you are not writing so much. After all you are
supposed to being writing the page number. Put this prediction off of to the side.

Finally, the mentalist consultant needs to know what the customer is reading. Pretend
to write a word on the business card, I will write down a selected word from this book. Instead,
write down the page number. You know which page number it is by which book they choose.
Each will be different. Lets say its page 121. Write down on the card you will choose page
number 121.. Add this to the prediction cards. Place the other business cards off to the side and
the pen.

Open up the book at the business card. You do this for her because you dont want her to
accidentally find the duplicate business card. Boldly point to the page number on the right and
have her announce the page number. Give the book to her. Read the first word on the top of
page number 121.

Pick up the prediction cards. They will not be in the correct order because of the one
8. Rope Routines
The kind of rope is important. A soft sash is recommended. Do not use hemp. I like ny-
lon. The important factor is if you are going to use the rope for the Cut and Restored Rope trick,
the cutting must be done with no effort.

Sharp scissors are important. There is nothing more frustrating than performing the Cut
and Restored Rope trick and you cant cut the rope because the scissors are dull. Make sure they
are sharp by bringing your own. Dont borrow anyones scissors.

Some people like to use white macram that seems like rope. Its easier to cut, but the
draw back is that it looks like macram. Some magicians like to pull out the inner core of the
rope to make it easier to cut. But, then that will make the rope look flat. Instead, just take out
some of the insides and leave just the cotton filler.
ahead system. Dont worry about it. Fan out the cards so you are the only one seeing them. Have
the spectator call out each prediction one at a time. First the name of the book. Pull out the correct prediction and show it to the audience. Then the page number. Pull that out and show it.
Then there is only one card left. Build up the moment. The spectator names the word he only
thought about. Show prediction.

Stretching a Rope
Effect: The magician says he wanted to do a trick with the rope, but the one he has in his
hand is too small. So he pulls on it until it stretches. And stretches, and stretches, until the rope
gets longer and longer. Unfortunately, it grows too large. The magician remedys that by cutting
off a piece of rope and starts the rope routines.
So the next time you go to the store to buy a book, remember, the bookseller already
knows your purchase. Take your bow.
75
Props:
Three yards of rope

Another rope about twenty-four inches long
White plastic tape

76

77
Preparation: Take the three yards of rope and cut about twenty-four inches from it. Then

78
If you are going to use this as your opener, then just walk out with the rope as in figure 3.
However, even though I have used this to open my show before, I dont think it is a good trick to
carefully tape it to the end of the long rope. See figure 1.
start your show with. Tuck the ends of the rope into your sleeve as in figure 4.
Fig. 1
To perform: With both hands, reach into the con-
tainer that you use to hold your props. Pull the rope ends
out of your sleeve and quickly place it like figure 5. Then
take it out of the container. Look at the rope. Scratch your
head in confusion. With your right hand, look into your

container again. Sigh, I wanted to do a rope trick for you,
The reason you tape it is if you cut it for every performance, the rope will become shorter.
This wont be a problem until youve use up a good chunk of it. Taping it keeps it the same size
but this is all I have left. It is way too short. Dont you
every time. Just use a new rope for the cut and restore rope trick.
hate when that happens. Start to put it back. Snap your
fingers, I forgot, Im a magician. Hit your forehead with
Double the three yards of rope so the two ends are together. Take off your suit jacket.
the palm of your right hand. I can make this as big as I
Grasp the two ends with your left hand. Now put the jacket on. Pull the rope through the sleeves.
See figure 2. Make sure any excess goes down your back as in figure 3.

However, you dont want any to
Fig. 4
like.

With your right hand, grab the rope as in figure 6.
hang below your jacket. If it does, stick

some of this excess in your back pocket.
Fig. 5
Fig. 2
Fig. 6
Fig. 3
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78

79
To the audience, the following move will look like you stretched the rope by pulling it up
80
Then move your left arm and stretch the rope again. Now quicken the pace. Repeat this until you
with the right hand. However, its important that you pull down on the rope with the left hand.
run out of rope.
The illusion of the stretching is greatly affected on how you pull the ropes. The manner you do
this can influence the way the audience sees it. If you keep your left arm still and pull the rope
breath. Look at all of the rope you produced. Unfortunately, I made it too big. I dont need
with the right hand, it will look exactly like what you are doing; pulling a rope from your sleeve.
magic to solve this problem. Pick up the scissors and cut it at the tape end.
Stop. Dont pull the rope out of the left hand. Put this into your right hand. Take a deep
However, if you keep the right hand still and move the left arm, it will look like its stretching;
which is what we want.

Threading the Needle
At first, just stretch it a little bit in the vertical position until you get about six inches of
rope. See figure 7.
Stop and look at it. Nah. . . not long enough. Stretch
it again slowly. Feel it stretching. Look at the audience again.
Fig. 7
You are just as amazed as they are. Now smile at them. This
is not witchcraft or sorcery. Nor even nimble fingers. This is
hocus pocus indeed.

Turn your hand horizontal as in figure 2. Stretch again
by pulling the rope with the left hand. Once you get about a
yard, bring the hands together and make a loop by twisting the
rope. See figure 8.
This is good for a nice quick effect leading to another rope trick.
Effect: The magician wraps a rope around his thumb forming a loop. The loop represents
an eye of a sewing needle. The magician picks up the other end of the rope and thrusts it forward.
Even though he didnt come anywhere near the loop, it still threads just like it went through the
eye of a needle.

Props:
One rope approximately 24 inches
To perform: Old magicians never
die, they just disappear. But they still have

trouble threading their needles when they
need to sew their magic props. Wrap the
rope around the thumb like in figure 1. Then
wrap it two more times as in figure 2.
Fig. 2
Fig. 8
Fig. 1
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80

81
Make a loop with the B end of the rope. Put in the crotch of the thumb. See figure 3 and
4. Let the loop protrude.

82
Move it back and forth a few times as if you are going to thread it. Squint your eye as if
your are threading a needle. Then move this end forward passing the loop. Pull hard on it and let
it come off the thumb. See figures 6 and 7. . . . and eureka, its threaded. It will appear as if it
was threaded. Handy stuff magic is.
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 6
Fig. 7
A B
Being magicians, all they have to do is hold the thread a few inches away. . . Take end
A. See figure 5. Point it toward the loop.
Fig. 5
B
B
If you look closely, youll notice that there is one less loop around your thumb. If I didnt
bring it up, youd never have seen it. The audience wont either.
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82
83

84
Lift the rope up until the right hand is parallel with the left hand. See figures 3 . The
right index and middle finger grips the rope at point A as in figure 4. The left index and middle
The Magical Shoelace

fingers grip the rope at point B.
Effect: The magician ties a bow similar to one tied on a shoe. He accidentally slips the
laces through the loop. When he pulls on it, he ends up with a knot. Just like on a real pair of
shoes. Waving his hands over it, he causes the knot to disappear.

Props:
Same piece of rope from the previous trick
To perform: When I was a kid, I always had trouble untying my shoes. Hold the rope
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
over your left hand with the ends hanging down. With the right hand, reach behind the right end

of the rope. Grip the right thumb in front. See figures 1 and 2.
Pull through until you have a bow. See figure 5.
Fig. 5

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
I do everything alright up to this point, but what I always did was accidentally pull the
laces through the bow before pulling the ends. Dont laugh! How many of you have done this?
Put your left thumb and index through the loop on the left bow as in figure 6. Grab the rope that
is in front and pull through as in Fig. 7.
Fig. 6
83
Fig. 7
84

85
86
Do the same with the right loop so you end up in the position as in figure 8. Then pull
through until you get a knot as in figure 9.

You can do these tricks before the Cut and Restored Rope as a good follow up to a series
of rope routines.
There are numerous methods to do this classic, but one version is done more frequently than others. Thats the one Im going to show you. Of course, I will show you a routine to perform with
Fig. 8
Pause here because you dont want to pull all the way as of yet or the knot will fade away
it.
Note: If you do this in the same program as Showing or Blowing, you can change the opening
at the wrong time.
line of this to: I went back to the guy at the local magic store, I saw a magician Continue
with the dialogue. .
Show frustration, To be honest, I still have this problem. But ever since I became a ma-
gician, all I have to do to remove the knot is take the k out of knot. . . now pull on the ends, . . .
and the knot is not there.
Effect: I went to the local magic shop and I approached the guy behind the counter,
I saw a magician on TV take a rope. . . The performer brings the middle of the rope up and
forms a loop. . . . he cuts the rope. . . and restores it. The performer does exactly that. Do
you have that trick? He said, I know the trick youre talking about. I saw the same show. The
magician took a piece of rope. . . Once again the performer brings up the middle of the rope,
. . . then he cuts the rope in half. . . and restores it. The performer waves his hands over the
Fig. 9
severed rope and restores it.

I told him that was the one, but he said he didnt carry it. I asked him why not and he
said, Because it doesnt make sense. If you take a rope. . . The performer once again brings up
the center of the rope, . . . cut it. . . there should be only one way to make it one piece. The
performer ties the rope in a knot.

85
No, I said to him, The magician restored the rope. I think if I see that magician that
86
87
Put this loop next to the ends in the left hand and clip it in the thumb and index finger as
I saw on TV, Ill ask him to do it. And I did. He took the rope and pulled on it and. . . The knot
pops off, . . . he restores it. The moral of the story is: If you want something done right, go to
in figure 4.

The illusion is that you brought the middle up,
the source.
88
but in reality you looped one of the ends. The move is
Props:
Rope around twenty-four inches
A pair of scissors
To perform: I went to the local magic shop and I approached the guy behind the coun-
easy. If you just clip the end as described, you dont

have to analyze it to figure this out. Just do it and it will
ter, I saw this magician on TV take a rope. Show rope as in figure 1. Bring up the middle of
the rope and clip the right hand piece marked with the arrow as in figure 2. As you do, the right
work. Just think you are bringing up the middle and it
Fig. 4
will show to the audience that way.

Most magicians just cut the rope at this point.
But, if you do, then you will have the ends being
hand is going to grab the rope as in figure 3.
uneven. This is not a big deal, but think about it. If
AB C
D
you are going to bring
B CD
up the middle and cut

it, wont it make sense
to have two ropes the
same size? It may be nit
picking, but I dont want
Fig. 1
to arouse the audienc-
Fig. 3
Fig. 2
es
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
suspicion if I dont have

to. So, fix this little discrepancy before you cut
the rope. To do this, just pull on the bottom loop where the arrow is in figure 4 and it will even it
up like in figure 5. This is my little contribution to this classic.
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88

89
Continue with the routine, . . . he cuts the rope. . . Pick up the scissors from the table.
Cut the rope at the loop (C and D) as in figures 5 & 6.


Take end D in right hand and grab end C. Hold these two ends as if they are stuck togeth-
er. See figures 9 and 10.
Let go of the ends marked A and D. Hold the rope in the left hand. Make sure that
Pinch
Joined
Pieces
Fig. 9
you cover the section that is looped around. See figure 7. To the audience it looks like two pieces
of rope, but to you its a short piece looped around a long piece as in figure 8.
B
Fig. 7
Fig. 8
Fig. 10
With the right hand, pinch
Pinch
Joined
Pieces
the ends together as in figure 11. Still

pinching the ends with the right hand,
let go of the ends A and B with the left
hand. Let go of the ends A and B. Grab
Fig. 11
the rope by the middle with the left

hand and run your hand to the other
A
end so it is horizontal. This displays

the ropes. See figure 12.

You should be holding the short
piece with the left fingers. The right

hand should look like the left hand.
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90
90

Joined
Pieces
Fig. 12
91
Grab it in the middle as in figures 14 and let go of it as in 15.
Continue with the routine, Do you have that trick? He said, I
know the trick youre talking about. I too saw the same show. The magician took a rope. . . With the left hand bunch up the short piece while
still holding on to this end. With the right hand, let go of its end and let it
hang as in figure 13.
Fig. 15
Fig. 14
Fig. 13
91
92
92

93
Then pull through the real middle. Hide the short piece in the left hand by clipping it to

94
Place your right finger and thumb together like pinchers. Place it under the middle of the
the thumb. See figures 16 and 17. Grip the ends in the crotch of the right thumb (as in figure 17)
rope. Grab the middle part of the rope where the arrow is pointed. See figure 19. Then rest the
while still holding the scissors. Scissors have been omitted for clearity.
index finger against the rope and raise your hand and pinch rope higher up about a quarter of the
way up as in figure 20.
Put the scissors in your pocket leaving this secret piece behind. . . . and restores it.
Wave your hand over the rope. Show it has restored in the same manner as before as in figure
11 except you are not concealing any extra ropes. This is for misdirection purposes. To hide one
up this time. Just as before, even it up the ropes. However, this time pull the rope until it is half
move, you repeat it when there is nothing to hide. Other times vice versa.
way down as in figures 21 and 22.
This will put you back in the same position as in figure 4 except you dont have both ends
CD
Continue with the dialogue, I told him that was the one, but he said he didnt carry it. I
asked him why not. He said, Because it doesnt make sense. If you take a rope. . . Point your
right index finger near the top of the rope and slide down until you get to the center as in figure
18.
Fig. 19
Fig. 20
Fig. 22
Fig. 21
Fig. 16
Fig. 17
Fig. 18

Continue with the dialogue, . . . cut it. . . Take the scissors from the pocket and cut at
the loop and drop the ends. You will be in the same position as in figure 8. Put the scissors away.
. . . there is only one way to make it whole. Take the short piece from the front as in figure
23. Wrap it around the loop and tie a knot as in figure 24.
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96

This trick has been done for years in one form or another. One version called Grandmoth-
ers Necklace was even in the first magic book called Discoveries of Witchcraft by Reginald Scot.
A more up-to-date version is called The Cords of Phantasia by Ottokar Fischer. It is a beautiful
Fig. 24
Fig. 23
routine using silks and a fan.

Grandmothers Necklace utilizes a secret thread attached to the string. This is a good method.
However, all of the other routines based on the Cords of Phantasia, suffer one fatal flaw. The
Drop one end of the rope and show the knot in the middle. See figure 25.
stick in which the cords are tied around have to be released first before the magic happens. The
Continue, No, I said to him, He restored the rope. I think if I see that magician
flaws are always covered up in explanation. For instance, if the stick is a wand, then it is needed
on TV, Ill ask him how to do it.
to so it can be waved over the ropes. This is weak. It would be more impressive if you can just tie
up the items to be released, pull on the ropes, and have them magically free itself.
And I did. The magician on TV took the rope. . . hold the rope horizon-
tally as in figure 26. , . . . pulled on it and. . . pull the rope. Because of the way
This version does that. It comes from the book Magic Digest by George B. Anderson.
the knot is tied, it will fall off as in figure 27. Show rope restored, . . . he restored
the rope. The moral of the story is: If you want something done right, go to the
hanger. Then the two ends are placed through the coat. Each end is held by members of the audi-
source.
ence. They are asked to tie the rope into a knot. On the count of three, they are asked to pull on
Effect: A coat is borrowed from a member of the audience. Two ropes are tied to a coat
the ropes. Then the magician walks away from the ropes still holding on to the jacket. The spec-
Fig. 26
Fig. 25
tators are left holding the two ropes.

Props:
Two pieces of rope about five to six feet long
A wooden coat hanger
Fig. 27
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96

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The coat hanger should be the type that has a wooden cross-bar and wire between to hang
the pants on. The wooden cross-bar swings free at one end and can be slipped back on. See figures 1 and 2.
Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Preparations: There are no preparations. Just set the props and go into the routine.
To perform: Go to a spectator from the audience and ask him to volunteer. Then
have him choose a spectator with a suit jacket or coat. Ask the spectator to take it off. Have
them come up on stage. If you cant find someone with a coat, use you own.

Some times a person will go to any length to make sure that no one steals his coat.
Look at spectator, I guess its too late for you.

Take the hanger and open it up. Then slip the ropes between the bar and wire and
close it as in figure 3. Make sure the four ends are even. Tie a single knot with the four ends. A
single knot is half of a square knot. See figure 4. Hang the coat on the hanger. Ask each volunteer to thread the ropes through the sleeves as in figure 5. Then have them hold onto each of the
ends as in figure 6.
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Instruct the volunteers to switch ends so they can tie it in another knot. See figure 7.
Fig. 3
Fig. 7
Fig. 4

Tell them to hold the ropes firmly, but loose. As you are doing this, reach inside of the
coat and unhook the wooden cross-bar. Slip the ropes off of it. Then re-clip it.

Now tell the spectators to pull gently but firmly on the ropes. But no matter how much
you try, it seems that you cannot stop a thief when he has his mind made up. Walk away from
the ropes as they release and the spectators are left holding the ropes See figure 8. Thank you so
much. Look at spectator, I suppose you want your coat back? The moral of the story is crime
Fig. 5
does not pay.
Fig. 6
Fig. 8
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When everyone thinks of magic, they always think of the Far East, especially the Indian
Fakirs and their marvels. Im not going to teach you how to charm snakes, but I will show you a
101
Preparation: Any set of disposable cups will do as long as they have a recessed bottom.
Dixie has a nice set that are large and show up nice on stage. The balls can be anything that is
soft, but has some weight to it. This trick depends on gravity so you dont want anything that will
be too light. Go to a craft shop. They have plenty of selections of these kind of things. They must
few of classic tricks from the Orient.
The Cups and Balls

The Cups and Balls is the oldest trick in magic. As stated in the introduction, pictures
be squishy so when the cups are stacked, the balls will squash. In a pinch, you can take a paper
napkin and rip up four pieces and roll them up into balls.

To set up, put the ball between the first and second cup so it is hidden as in figure 1.
of this trick are on caves. Magicians from East India would sit crossed legged and do this with
wooden cups. At the end, they would produce baby chicks. This trick made its way to the West.
the bottom cup with the right hand as in figure 2. As
Art work about five hundred years old that show strolling magicians, always show him perform-
you can see, the right hand is twisted. As you take the
ing this classic. There are many versions of this. Some can be complicated and difficult to do.
cup off of the stack, you are going to untwist your wrist
Sometimes the simplest method is the best. This is the first version I learned. Its easy to do and
and turn the cup over and place it on the table. You do
this in one motion as you turn the hand over in an arch
looks great.

To practice, set up the cups as in above. Grip
Effect: The magician takes out three cups and dumps out three balls from it. He places
the cups in a row on the table. The magician places a ball on the center cup. The other two are
and place it on the table. See figures 3 and 4.
Fig. 1
placed on top of it. The magician taps his wand on the cups and lifts them up. The ball magically
penetrates it. This is repeated with the other two. Finally, the magician takes an invisible ball and
places it on the center cup and stacks the others on top of it. When the cups are lifted, a fourth
ball is produced.

Props:
Three Styrofoam or plastic cups
Four small balls
A wand
Fig. 3
Fig. 2
Fig. 4
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101

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103
Grip the second cup now on the bottom the same way. The ball is in this cup. This time
when you turn it over, the ball will ride along. Gravity keeps the ball in the cup for a split second
as you place it down. Do this in a lazy motion. Dont rush it. Practice doing it real slow, letting
the ball fall. Then do it a bit faster. Keep doing this until you find the right tempo. Its this even
rhythm you want. This is the basic Cup and Ball method. Repeat this with the other cup.

first and second cup so it is hidden. To complete the set-up, put the three remaining balls in the
top cup. You can put it in a black cloth bag like the pros do or to make it seem spontaneous, you
Fig. 7
Fig. 6
Once youve practice this, set up the cups for the routine. Put the ball back between the

Lay the cups in a row. A ball should be inside the center cup. See figure 8. Place one of
the balls on the middle cup as in figure 9. The first ball is just for fun...
can put the Dixie cups into the plastic bag is came in. Then open it up and take out three cups.

Place the three balls in the top face up cup. Then pour the balls out and do the penetration
portion.

To perform: This is the oldest trick in magic.With the left hand, take out the cups from
Fig. 8
the bag, making sure you keep the same order. It involves three cups. . . hold the cups in the
Fig. 9
left hand making sure to keep a grip on the three cups.

Continue with the dialogue, . . . three balls,... still holding all three cups, dump the three
balls on the table. ...and a wand. Take out your wand and place it on the table. With the cups
still in your left hand, tilt the cups so the mouth is facing the audience as in figure 5. Then do the
Cups and Balls move and put it on the table as in figure 6 and
7. Each time you take a cup, briefly show the inside of the stack
with the wand. With the right hand pick up the stack of cups and show the ball has penetrated.
cups. For some odd reason, the audience thinks you are showing
Transfer the cups to the left hand. Repeat the cups and balls move to place the cups on the table.
each cup empty. In reality, you are just showing the inside of the
When you get to the center cup, cover the ball that was just produced.
Fig. 5
same cup.
Stack the outer cups over the center one with the ball on top as in figure 10. Tap the cups
Now you should have the cups in a row with two balls in the center cup. Place the second
ball on top of the middle cup. . . . ball number two is just for you... Stack the two end cups on
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the middle one. Tap it with the wand and reveal the two balls. Repeat this with the last ball. . . .
Tricks with Rice
ball number three. . . point to yourself, ... is just for me.

After you produce the last one, do the cups and balls move
Rice is a very popular theme in Oriental magic for obvious reasons. There is so much of
it there. The symbol is very important to those in this region. To have a bountiful supply is im-
again covering the three balls. Look around, ...the fourth ball is...
portant to them, thats why the most famous trick is that of the Chinese Rice Bowls.
oops... there is no more balls left.

Put hand on chin and think. Then look up as
if
My first magic kit had the Rice Bowls in it. I love this trick and own several different ver-
sions of it. However, none is better than the basic concept that is submitted here.
you have an idea. Look out towards the audience and reach out as
if you grabbing something. Pretend to take an invisible ball from

the air. Do you see the it? Of course not, its invisible. Panto-
mime placing it on the center cup as before. Stack the cups and tap
Unstack the cups and place then on the table as in figure 11.
The oldest trick in magic... the cups and balls. Spread your arms
Effect: The magician explains that he will "hypnotize" a red ball so it will do what he
asks it to. After hypnotizing the ball, it is dropped into the jar. A bag of rice is poured into the
it with the wand. Lift up the cups and show the four balls.

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empty jar until it covers the ball.
Fig. 10
He waves the dagger over the jar like a wand and commands the ball to rise to the top of the rice.
Within moments, the ball mysteriously appears as it comes forth to the top of the rice.
showing the cups. If the spectators want to examine the cups, let them.
The ball is taken from the jar. The knife is plunged into the rice. The handle is lifted and
the knife clings to the blade. It is suspended without visible means of support. When the knife is
removed, a spectator is asked to do the same thing, but fails.

Props:
A jar
A knife
A bag of rice
A rubber ball
Fig. 11
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105
Preparation: Make sure that the jar you choose

is the HOW
type with
that turnsSHOW
inwards. This
Pascoe/
TO the
DOtop
A MAGIC
106 jar
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should be narrower at the top than at the bottom as in figure 1. For the trick to work, the opening must not be
more than three to four inches. The smaller the better.

The knife can be any kind even a table knife, but it must have a point. If the blade is wide on the bottom,
it wont work. Whatever you choose, the more impressive looking the knife the better. If you can get one with
a handle with a hole in it, you can tie a rope or sash to it to make it look East Indian. See figure 2. Use a rubber
Fig. 2
ball from a set of jacks.
Fig. 1
Fig. 3

Fig. 4
Pour the rice from the bag into the jar until it covers the ball. Continue pouring until you
have about a couple of inches to the top. Clip the bead between you finger tips and pull on the

Next, get a spool of black silk thread. Thread it on a needle and tie a knot on the end. Pierce it through
the ball. Pull the thread through until you get to the knot. Then tie a knot on the other end. Now the thread is
locked onto the ball. The string should be double the length of jar. Put a small button or bead halfway. Then put
another bead on the end of the string.

To perform: Pick up the ball and the string in your hand but only show the ball. Say you are going to
hypnotize it. Stare at it and pretend to hypnotize it. Drop it into the jar. Make sure the button hangs over the
edge of the jar. See figure 3. Pick up the bag of rice and pour it through your fingers to show that it is normal.
Dont say so. Never ever use the words ordinary when performing. It reminds them that there is a possibility
that it might not be.

Hold the jar as in figure 4 so the bead or button does not fall in the jar.
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string just a little bit to get the ball free from the rice. Then re-grip the jar so it is on the palm of
the left hand. Make sure your thumb is above the second bead as in figure 5.

Take the dagger and wave it over the jar. Command the ball to rise to the top of the rice.
The grains will part like the oceans did for Moses. Pull down on the bead and the ball will rise
bursting through the top. See figure 6.

Pause so the audience can grasp what just occurred. Take off the ball from the jar and
place it off to the side.

Take the bag of rice and fill the top of the jar so it overflows. Make sure to pour more rice
than its needed. Rap the bottom of the jar sharply against the table a few times. It seems like you
are just getting rid of the surplus rice, but in reality you are packing it tight in the jar. Brush off
any rice that may be above the lip of the jar.
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Fig. 5
Fig. 7
109
Fig. 8
Fig. 6

Grip the bottom firmly. Give the blade a slight back and forth twisting motion. The knife
will come free, but most important, it will unpack the rice. Now you can give the knife to a spec
Pick up the knife, Now the sea will become hard as cement. Jab the knife into the rice
tator to give it a try, but the blade wont stick for him.
a few times. This looks like you are just finding the right spot, but what you are really doing is
packing the rice even harder. You may need more rice, so pour more in. Plunge the knife again a
find out that the more the rice that is packed into the jar, the more likely it will stick to the knife.
few times. The last plunge should feel tight. Push it a little, but not all of the way. You dont want
You will not get this the first few times you try it. If you have trouble, then the jar or the knife is
it to stick yet. When the rice is firm enough, grip the knife tightly and pause. Then plunge it into
not right. Remember, once you plunge down, dont go all of the way. Then push it in until you hit
the rice about three quarters down. See figure 7. Pause for affect. Then push down until you hear
the bottom. You can feel the resistance when you do it this way. Youll surprise yourself when it
a crunching sound. The knife now should be wedged into the rice.
works. Once you get the feel, you have a trick that was done by the ancient Hindu fakirs.
This is a trick that you need to do several times to get it right. With experience, youll
This takes practice to get the right feel. Now pick up the handle of the knife and the jar
will come with it. You can even swing gently on the sash. See figure 8. Catch the jar in your palm
of your hand.
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111
perimeter of the bowl. I like to leave a lip on the disk so it will be easy to take off later. See fig-
Rice Bowls
This trick is known as the Chinese Rice Bowls, but it actually has its origins in India. It is
a good trick by itself or with the Indian Rice Mystery.

Effect: Two ceramic bowls are face down on the table. One is picked up and rice is
ure 1.

Fill one bowl with water. Dip your finger into the water. Wet the lip of bowl. Then put the
disk on it so it sticks. Put this face down on the tray. Stack the other bowl on top of it as in figure
2. Make sure that the tray is dry before putting it on or might stick to the tray causing an accident
during the show
poured into it. This is covered by the other bowl. They are turned over three times for good luck.
When lifted, the rice doubles in quantity. Then they are covered again. This time they are turned
over twice. When the bowls are lifted, the rice changes to water. The water is poured back and
forth between the two bowls.

This can be used in conjecture with the Indian Rice Mystery. The dialogue at the end of
Fig. 1
the explanation combines the two effects.

Props:
Two china rice bowls
A plastic disk
A jar of rice
A tray
Preparation: Any bowls will do, but it is best to use a set that has a wide lip. The brims
Fig. 2
To perform: Pick up the bowl that is stacked on top of the one with the water and set it
face up on the tray as in figure 3.
of the bowls should be grounded down so they are perfectly flat. If you can find plastic bowls
that fit this criteria, so much the better.

Find a clear sheet of plastic. This should be thick enough so water does not leak through,
but thin enough so the bowls can stack on top of each other. Cut this so it is the same size as the
110
Fig. 3
111

112
Pour the rice into the bowl making it overflow. Take the bowl that is face down and use

113
Pick up the two bowls again and turn over twice. Its not necessary, but this is needed to
this to trim off the excess rice. See figure 4. Leave it stacked on top as in figure 5. Youll notice
disguise the turning over the first time. Set the bowls back down on the tray. Wave the wand and
in this illustration that jar if filled with rice. This is for when you combine it with the the Indian
pause. Lift off the top bowl. As you do, losen the disk by pressing down on the lip. Lift up the
Rice Mystery. If you are going to do it as a stand alone trick, then discard the jar and just pour
disk with this top bowl. Set it down on top of the spilled rice as in figure 8.
the rice from the bag.
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Pick up the two bowls as figure 6. Turn them over and back three times. Three always
means good luck. This will invert the bowls so the one with the water is now on the bottom.
Fig. 8
Place them on the tray. Wave the wand over the bowls. Then lift up the top bowl and the rice will
overflow because it is on top of the plastic disk. See figure 7. This looks like the rice has doubled
in quantity. Use this bowl to trim of the rice as in figured 4 & 5.
With the left hand, pick up the bowl on the table and show the water. Then pick up the
bowl that is face down. The rice that is on the disk will blend with the spilled rice on the tray.

Now pour the rice back and forth between the bowls.
Combine the two tricks:
In ancient India, rice is used as a symbol of marriage just like in this country. However,
instead of throwing it at the couple, it used by a Hindu fakir to tell if the marriage will be successful.
Fig. 6
Fig. 7
One day a Hindu girl named Roni wished to marry her love Rajah, the villages fakir.
However, her father forbid it. She was set to marry the rich man of the village Sahib. Before they
can get married, the test performed by the village fakir must be conducted. Being a respected
112
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115
member of the village, the fakir does the test with the rich man.
bowls and turn it over three times. Three symbolizes good luck. Wave your hands over the
Rajah tells them that this crystal jar symbolizes the prospective bride, and this knife rep-
Thats fine for now, the father says, but what will you do for the future? Lift up the
resents the groom. Pick up the ball, This is no ordinary ball. It is a sovereign sphere. Spheres
bowls. Lift up the upper bowl and show that the rice has doubled. He proves that he can pro-
are regarded as the circle of life. It has supreme authority which contains complete power even
duce food when ever he wants. The father is still not impressed.
over time itself. Drop the ball in the jar. Put your hand in the bag of rice and let some of it pour
through your fingers, Since rice is considered the staff of fidelity, it is poured into the jar. Pour
tom bowl with the top one as in figures 4 and 5. Turn it over two times. This means that the two
the rice into the jar.
shall bond together. Wave your hands over the bowl. Lift up the top bowl and set it down releas-
ing the disk. Rajah proved his worth to Ronis father by producing an endless supply of water.
If the sphere rises, that means one of them will be unfaithful. Make the ball rise. There
He wants to know what will he do incase of a draught. Scrape off the rice from the bot-
was a hush amongst the family. Take out the ball. Ronis father was not convinced, Who is the
Pour the water back and forth. Set both bowls down.
one that will break the bond?
The fakir says, It is uncertain. Pick up the knife, If the groom joins the rice. . .
Soon they were married and they livedwell, you know the rest. The moral of the story
is love always prevails.
insert the knife several times into the jar, . . . the two will become one. But the knife blade
never clings. The marriage is considered to be doomed. Take out the knife. Ronis father says
this symbol proves that she will never marry and her fate is that of an old maid.

Rajah says he will save Roni. The fakir performs the test with himself as the groom. He
proves to her parents that he is the right man for her. Pour more rice into the jar. Stab it a few
times. Then pause. Plunged the knife into the rice and push down. It will stick. Lift up the blade
of the knife. They and their lives adhere in one solid unit. Swing the sash gently. This miracle
proves that their marriage will be divinely blessed.

But the father is still not impressed. He thinks that Rajah is not good enough for his
daughter. Pull the blade out. Dont offer anyone to duplicate this, go into the Rice Bowls routine. Rajah must prove he can provide for her. Take the jar of rice and pour it into one of the
bowls making sure it overflows. Cover it with the bowl as in figures 4 and 5.
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It comes crashing down and

slams into the surface towards
Valencia. Jamie jumps out of
his skin. Shockwave follows
and spread all over him
throwing him to the ground.
When he gets up, he looks
toward Valencia and shakes his
head. It looks like a war zone.
Griffith observatory could not
be reach for comment.
Franklin repeats what he said that

the team is working on it, but they
wont stop. A scientist never tells
what he doesnt know. Even though
he studied the data and knew what
he was talking about, Franklin is ill
prepared for the slaughter he just got
from the national media. They made
him look like a fool.
It bursts into a beaming green glow.

least I hope its a meteor Jamie
thinks to himself.
Space probe lands on earth


thinks to himself.
Incredible. Thats what witnesses

said when they saw a probe
streaking across the night sky.

The Daily Tribune
Sunday, August 12, 2014
Take the funny section in the black and white section which is the weekly newspaper.
w.
least I hope i s a meteor Jamie
thinks to himself.
More like a greenish blue. Kind of
like the color of his gas stove.
Jamies photographer instincts take
over. He takes out his Olympic and
sets it for a one minute exposure. He
clicks away as the light streaks
across. Jamie stares right into the
meteor. It changes from green to a
bright white light.
set up for him by the Observatory.
Some of the microphones are set to
a PA system so the visitors can hear
it as well. The others belong to the
national media. Franklin starts to
talk into the microphone and
feedback squeals through the
speakers. His mouth is dry. He licks
his lips to keep them moist. He
wished he brought bottled water
with him.

Incredibl That what witnesses

One such witness is a Valencia man
named Jamie hears a sound like
never before. He looks up at the
southwest. A large bright fireball is
in the distant horizon. He freezes
and cant move. A lump is in his
throat. Jamie watches the meteor
racing towards the San Fernando
sky and heading towards Sylmar. At
them.
Dr. Franklin Stewart is so excited.
With the permission of the
laboratory, he announces his
findings to the media. He is nervous
because he has never been on
television before. Susan made sure
that his suit was pressed and clean.
But, he cant chase away those
butterflies. How do those reporters
remain
News. You say that this thing has traveled million of miles, but what proof do you have?
The Daily Tribune
I have a team at this very moment

studying it. He tells them that a
crack squad of linguists and
cryptologists are going over each
word, letter by letter. However, that
doesnt seem to satisfy the reporters.
They jump on the scrolls alright, but
a little bit too much. They want to
know everything, and they want to
know now. I dont know will not
do.
Broadway made
him a star
that millions of people are watching them at once. Franklin does.
so calm and cool? They just seem to not

care
He walks up to the podium that is

with him.
Broadway made
him a star
Fig. 2
An astronomer can go his or her

entire life and never make any kind
of discovery that will require any
kind of media attention. A space
rock here, a new star there. Though
damn exciting to them, boring to the
average media outlet. Thats why so
many of them are ill prepared for
them.
remain
The Daily Tribune
meteor. It changes from green

to a bright white light.
simpler can you get than take a full size newspaper, tear it up and bam... its restored?
Recording Artist new album

Incredible. Thats what witnesses Jamies photographer instincts take
One such witness is a Valencia man across. Jamie stares right into the
thinks to himself.
do you have?
Rubber cement glue
Franklin is interrupted by million of

questions from the media. He is so
bombarded, he cant hear any of
them. He points to someone that has
a friendly face. Lee Cowan, NBC

do.
News. You say that this thing has traveled million of miles, but what proof
Double sheet from the Sunday funnies

care
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116
One half sheet color ad from the newspaper

them.

do.
One half sheet black and white comic section of the newspaper

Props:

with him.
with it. I just stuck to the Gene Andersons version because it was the best. How much more
care
ent in Torn and Restored Newspaper magic. I love the old premise, but never had a good routine
Broadway made
him a star
will want to buy the duplicates.

remain
changed the way the packet was switched which I feel is cleaner.

restored, they come out as a Sunday comics... in color.

with him.

them.
youll need them when you practice. However, when you prepare the papers for your show, you
Then fold from right to left again so its folded about three quarters. See figure 2.

an idea of taking a black and white sheet from the comic pages of the newspaper and a colored
Fig. 1
Effect: The idea I had was to make visual part look slightly different. So I came up with

remain
The secret is a standard one with the restored packet glued to the back. However, I

This is my version of this classic trick. I wanted to do something that was a bit differ
to left as in figure 1.
good way of dealing with all of the old newspaper you have piling up in your house. Trust me,
Tear it in half. Discard the rest of it. Turn this half sheet sideways. Fold it in quarters from right
Everyone has newspapers, so the audience is familiar with them. Plus, you now have found a
Preparation:
Using newspaper for magic tricks are very common because of the simplicity of it all.
10. Newspaper Magic
117
116
sheet of paper and tear them together. This time when the paper is opened up, instead of being


streaking across the night s

One such witness is a V
southwest. ge bright fireball is
and cant move. lump is in his
sky and heading towards Sylm
s a meteor Jamie
It bursts into a beaming green glo

bright white light.
Fig. 5
the night s
streaking across
ess is a V
One such witn
a sound like
hears
e
Jami
named
up at the
never before. He looks
streaking acr
oss the night
s
One such
witness is
aV
named Jamie
hea
never before. rs a sound like
He looks up
at the
hes the meteor

throat. Jamie watc
the San Fernando
racing towards
towards Sylm
sky and heading
throat. Jamie
watches the me
teo
racing toward
s the San Ferna r
nd
sky and head
ing towards Sy o
lm
r
tches the meteo
throat. Jamie wa
the San Fernando
racing towards
m
Syl
g towards
sky and headin
throat. Jamie
watches the met
eor
racing towards
the
sky and heading San Fernando
towards Sylm
the night s
streaking across
s is a V
One such witnes nd like
a sou
named Jamie hears
s up at the
look
He
never before.
streaking ac
ross the nig
ht s
One such
witness is
aV
named Jamie
hears a sound
like
never before.
He looks up
at the
night s
streaking across the
is a V
One such witness
d like
soun
a
hears
named Jamie
up at the
.
streaking ac
ross the nig
ht s
One such
witness is
aV
named Jamie
hears a sound
like
never before.
He looks up
at the
the meteor
throat. Jamie watches
Fernando
racing towards the San
rds Sylm
sky and heading towa
throat. Jamie
watches the me
teo
racing toward
s the San Ferna r
nd
sky and head
ing towards Sy o
lm

s a meteor Jamie

ts
streaking across the nigh
aV
One such witness is
like
sound
a
named Jamie hears
at the
never before. He looks up
streaking ac
ross the nig
ht s
One such
witness is
aV
named Jamie
hears a sound
like
never before.
He looks up
at the

streaking ac
ross the nig
ht s
One such
witness is
aV
named Jamie
hears a sound
like
never before.
He looks up
at the


bright white light.
It bursts into a beaming green glo

bright white light.
.
streaking across the night s ky

r
throat. Jamie watches the meteo
ndo
racing towards the San Ferna
Sylm
ds
towar
ng
sky and headi
throat. Jamie
watches the me
teor
racing toward
s the
sky and headin San Fernando
g towards Sy
lm
.

i
throat. Jamie
watches the me
teo
racing toward
s the San Ferna r
ndo
sky and hea
m din
g towards Sy
lm


w.
thinks to himself.

bright white light.
w.
packet and press down on the ad sheet. Press down and wait to dry.

w.
open the paper up.

newspaper on the right as in figure 8. Now take the rubber cement and glue it on the back of the
tine when you restore the paper and start to
.
streaking across the night s ky
the ad and lay it open on the table. Center the packet in the middle of the quarter section of the
Incredibl That what witnesses
in figure 4. From there, fold the
119
118
youll need this overhang later in the rou-

See figure 5.
as in figure 7. Now crease all of the ends sealing it together. This is your restored packet. Take

bottom so the two ends meet.
in half, this will be off. Thats okay because

bright white light.
starting with the top portion as
The reason for this is that you are going to tuck the left hand side inside of it so it stays

and prepare like you did the comic page. Open this up and place off to the side.
Fig. 8
you are going to fold it in thirds
them.
are done with this, set it off to the side. Take a half sheet from the ad section of the newspaper
Fig. 6
forth to soften it up for the tear. Once you
Fig. 7
folding it further. This time,
because newspapers are not folded exactly

color. Fold it like you did before.
figure 6. Repeat this with the right hand side.

with him.
Now your are going to continue
Fig. 4
sheet from the comics which is
to right as in figure 3. Youll notice that

remain
Now take the Sunday

ing vertical, crease these folds back and
Fig. 3
Because newspapers rips better go
Fold the left side in, but instead of making it even, you are going to do it at an angle as in

Then fold it the rest of the way left

119
118
ess
One such witn
is a V
is a V
s is a V
night s
a sound like
named Jamie hears
up at the
the
streaking across
streaking acr
oss the night
s
named Jamie
hea
He looks up
at the
night s
a sound like
named Jamie hears
up at the
throat. Jamie
watches the met
eor
racing towards
the
towards Sylm
hes the meteor

throat. Jamie watc
the San Fernando
racing towards
towards Sylm
sky and heading
streaking acr
oss the night
s
named Jamie
hea
He looks up
at the
the
streaking across
streaking across the night s throat. Jamie watches the meteor

One such witness is a
named Jamie hears a sound like sky and heading towards Sylm

Artist new album
throat. Jamie
watches the met
eor
racing towards
the
towards Sylm
hes the meteor

throat. Jamie watc
the San Fernando
racing towards
towards Sylm
sky and heading
s what witnesses
ky.

Artist new album

s what witnesses
ky.
ess
One such witn
night s
a sound like
named Jamie hears
up at the
night s
a sound like
named Jamie hears
up at the
the
streaking across
One such
hes the meteor

throat. Jamie watc
the San Fernando
racing towards
towards Sylm
sky and heading
throat. Jamie
watches the met
eor
racing towards
the
towards Sylm
ess is a V
witness is
hes the meteor

throat. Jamie watc
the San Fernando
racing towards
towards Sylm
sky and heading
streaking acr
oss the night
is aat.V
s witness
thro
Jamie watche
One such
s the meteor
named Jamie
racing towards
hea
the
never before. rs a sound like sky and heading San Fernando
He looks up
towards Sylm
at the
the
streaking across
One such witn
streaking acr
oss the night
s
named Jamie
hea
He looks up
at the
teor
es the me
ie watch
nando
throat. Jam s the San Fer m
ard
Syl
racing tow ding towards
hea
sky and
The Daily Tribune


downbyand
crashing
It comes is
million of
interrupted
Franklin
towards
the surface
slams intofrom
He is so
the media.
questions
of of
outany
jumps
Valencia. Jamie
hear
he cant
bombarded,
followsthat has
his skin.
points to someone
He Shockwave
them.
all over
spreadface.
Cowan, NBC
Leehim
friendly
aand
do.

s is a V
night s
aV
d like
ie hears a soun
named Jam He looks up at the
re.
never befo

care
across the
streaking
2014 bright fireball is

12,large
August A
Sunday,
southwest.
Jamie
its a meteor
least I hope. Thats
what witnesses
Incredible
thinks to himself.
Broadway made
him a star

them.
with him.
The Daily Tribune

witness is



do.

The Daily Tribune

Fig. 11
section. You want to press this in because you want to
Fig. 10
lock the torn papers together. Now comes the switch.

remain
aV
free. See figure 11. From there, fold in the right hand
121
120
care

thinks to himself.
Broadway made
him a star
them.
tion on the left inward keeping the restored packet

the top half over as in figure 10. Then fold the sec-
Now I can enjoy the funnies the way it was meant to be... in color.
with him.
the section with the restored packet in the rear. Fold
and turn it around to show the back. Then reverse this bring it back. Now turn it right side up.

remain
Finally tear the last quarter and of course put

Sunday funnies. Move your left hand behind the sheet (see figure 13) and cover the torn packet
Fig. 9
unfold it. Because of the overhang, it is now easy to open. Finally open up the paper showing the
Now tear it in the middle and once again put the restored section behind this as in figure 9.
hiding about half of the packet. You don't want to
Fig. 12
sideways so the restored packet is to your right. Slowly and careful tear the first quarter section
Fig. 13
One such
table. I like the funnies. You dont need to spend too much time reading them and as the name
and restored paper tricks. I came up with this

implies, its funny... sometimes. I dont understand why they only put color in the Sunday section
years ago. I think it looks natural. All you do is

of the paper. Im about to cure that right now.
fold the packet over forward and it now is in front.

See figure 12. Nice and easy. Hold your left hand
Take the two sheets of paper and put them together the folds fit into each other. Turn it
I never liked the switches explained in torn

To perform: Before you go on, undo the fold in the restore pack and set it down on your

Wave your right hand over the packet. Then
to your right. Because of the grain going the wrong way, it will be difficult to tear. Just do it slow.
reveal the color comics section yet.

Put the section with the restored packet behind.
121
120
122
123
The Daily Tribune

you
Props:
A pair of scissors

remain so calm and cool? They just
Preparation: Take a double sheet from the newspaper and rip it in half so you have two
seem to not care
Franklin does.
that millions of people are watching them at once.

with him.


single sheets. Use the want ads so no one can tell its two different pages. Or if you are doing the
Torn and Restored Newspaper, use a duplicate page from the left over newspaper.

Print out the THANK YOU sheet at the end of this section. Put a piece of cardboard
under this and cut out the letters using an Exacto knife. Use it as a stencil and trace the letters on
one of the single sheets of newspaper with a pencil. Dont put it in the corner as thats where the
duplicate will go. Instead, place it near the center as in figure 1. Place the cardboard underneath
the newspaper and cut it out using an Exacto knife again.

Fold this sheet three times. First you are going to fold it against the natural fold bottom to
Fig. 1

Fig. 3
You should be looking at page 2 as in figure 4. Place the glue around the edges and turn it
over. Then glue it in the upper left hand side of the duplicate paper. See figure 5. Notice how the
packet is slightly lower than the edge of the paper. This is so nothing sticks out. Pre-crease the
paper folding it against the natural fold. Then open it up. This is for ease of handling during the
performance. Make sure the THANK YOU letters are facing correctly when the sheet is opened
up so its not upside or sideways.
top so the front of the paper is inside. Crease it with your thumbnail. Next, fold it right to left and
crease it as in figure 2. Finally, bottom to top.
122
Fig. 2
t explain
ncia, Ca

them.
The show is over and the magician takes his bow.
Two single sheets of newspapers

do.
you
Scientist at Griffith cannot explain

fireball in the sky in Valencia, Ca
The magician unfolds the paper and in large cutout letters reads; THANK YOU.

do. doesnt seem to satisfy the reporters.
seem to not care
doesn
do.
, that
, that
He walks up to doesn
the podium
that is
, that
set up for him by, that
the Observatory.
doesn
. are
He licks
Some of the microphones
set to do.
do.
do.
thatvisitorsdoesn
system so ,the
can hear
, that
he others belong to the
won
A
days newspaper and folds it up. He takes his scissors and quickly makes a few cuts in the paper.

t explain
ncia, Ca
thank
Effect: The magician bows to his audience after his last trick. He shows a page from to-

bright white light.

you
style.


thinks to himself.


do. doesnt seem to satisfy the reporters.
seem to not care
doesn
do.
, that
a little bitdo.
too much. They want to
, that
He walks up to doesn
the podium
that is
, that
set up for him by, that
the Observatory.
doesn
. are
He licks
do.
Some of the microphones
set to do.
do.
thatvisitorsdoesn
system so ,the
can hear
, that

to know for certain. This trick definitely tells the audience that you are done. And you do it with
ou say that this thing has traveled million of miles, but what proof do you have?
Sometimes when a performer has reached the end of his act, it is difficult for the audience

123

nc alright, but
seem to not care
They jumptne
on the scrolls
Incr
do.
doesn
Incr
hat a little bit too
hatmuch. They want to
ats
w
He walks up to the
podium
that is tne
ibl
di they want to
know everything,
and
tne
s whaset up for him by the Observatory.
y. ibl
a e.IT dont know
ib
will not
e. Tknow now.
. He licks
n Inc
do.redib
bl n
hat doesn
dido.
tne
, that
tne
hat
n
e
.
T
hat
at w
won
A
The Daily Tribune
124
The Daily Tribune

nc
seem to not care
They
jump
on
the
scrolls
alright,
but
tne
do.
Incr doesn Incr
hat
hat
a
little
bit
too
much.
They want to
ats
w
He walks up to the
podium
that is tne
ibl
di they want to
know everything,
and
tne
y. ibl
a e.IT dont know
ib
will not
e. Tknow now.
. He licks
n Inc
do.redib
bl n
hat
dido.
tne
, that e. T doesn
hat
ntne
hat
w to the
he others at
belong
won
A

Broadway made
him a star
them.
remain
care

do.

with him.
t explain
ncia, Ca

s photographer instincts take

. He takes out his Olympic and
thinks to himself.
Broadway made
him a star
Fig. 4


them.
Fig. 5
Take out a pair of scissors, Youve been such a great audience. Turn the paper sideways

Dr.
F
Wit rankli
n
h
labo the pe Stewa
find ratory, rmissio rt is so
he a
ex
ings
n
bec
Dr.
to th nno of the cited.
a
F
tele use he e med unces h
Wit rankli
v
n
h
that ision b has nev ia. He is
labo the pe Stewa
is
But, his suit efore. S er been nervo
find ratory, rmissio rt is so
us
h
e
in
n
butt he can was pr usan m on
bec gs to e anno of the xcited
erfli
t ch
esse
a
a
.
th
de
rem
tele use he e med unces h
ain es. How ase aw d and c sure
v
that ision b has nev ia. He is
do th ay tho lean.
is n
e
e
h
f
r
se
is
o
ose
his
b
ervo
re. S
But,
suit
een
lips
repo
us
to
rter
butt he can was pr usan m on
s
e
e
with keep th
rem rflies. t chase ssed a ade sur
em
with him.
ain
How
awa nd cle e
m
o
w
him
y
ist.
with
ith h
d
a
with
him
.
He
im. o those those n.
lo
with him.
rem him. w
repo
with ok like
him
ith
them ain
rter
a fo
.
rema him.
with him.
s
ol.
.
th
in
h
e
m.
them
with im.
w
.
him
w ith h
.
th ith h im.
them em. im.
. th
em.




remain
care
125
and use the scissors as if you are cutting out letters. See figure 6.

thinks to himself.

t explain
ncia, Ca

do.
Fig. 6

with him.

I know thats just a clique, but my wife (or mother) would not sit through this Fold it
in half again as in figure 7. Make some more cuts. . . .so you should be congratulated.

thinks to himself.
t explain
ncia, Ca
To perform: Pick up the newspaper from the table. Make sure your left hand grips the
packet as you unfold it. Show the normal side to the audience and keep the load facing you. Fold
it in the other direction so the load is still toward you. For some unknown reason, the audience
thinks they have seen both sides. It doesnt matter, because they dont know what you are doing
anyway.


be reach for comment. Dr.
Franklin Stewart is so excited.
findings to the media. He is
nervous because he has never
Fig. 7
124
125
Jamie
over
t explain
ncia, Ca
side under the THANK YOU set up.
trick, place this on top of the THANK YOU set up. Then after you are done, put this off to the
bum
The Daily Tribune
top of a stack of newspapers on your table. If you are doing The Torn and Restored Newspaper

nc alright, but
seem to not care
They jumptne
on the scrolls
do.
Incr doesn Incr
hat
hat
a
little
bit
too
much.
They
want
to
ats
w
He walks up to the
podium
that is tne
ibl
di they want to
know everything,
and
tne
y. ibl
a
ib
.
T
e
I
dont
know
will not
e. Tknow now.
. He licks
n Inc
do.redib
bl n
hat
dido.
tne
, that e. T doesn
hat
ntne
hat
w to the
he others at
belong
won
A
Fold the duplicate in half around the glued packet locking it in. Set this off to the side on

nc alright, but
They jumptne
on the scrolls
do.
Incr doesn Incr
ats
w
He walks up to the
podium
that is tne
ibl
di they want to
know everything,
and
tne
y. ibl
a e. T
ib
I
dont
know
will not
e. Tknow now.
. He licks
n Inc
do.redib
bl n
hat
dido.
tne
, that e. T doesn
hat
ntne
hat
at w
national media. Franklin starts to Franklin repeats what he said that
talk into the microphone and the team is working on it, but they
won
A
thinks to himself.
Now comes the switch. Its the same switch in the Torn and Restored Newspaper trick
(see figure 12) This fold brings the load in front. Then turn it 180 degrees so its right side up as
in figure 8.

nc alright, but
seem to not care
They jumptne
on the scrolls
do.
Incr doesn Incr
ats
w
He walks up to the
podium
that is tne
ibl
di they want to
know everything,
and
tne
y. ibl
a e.IT dont know
ib
will not
e. Tknow now.
. He licks
n Inc
do.redib
bl n
hat doesn
dido.
tne
, that
tne
hat
n
.
T
e
hat
w to the
he others at
belong
won
A

nc alright, but
seem to not care
They jumptne
on the scrolls
do.
Incr doesn Incr
ats
w
He walks up to the
podium
that is tne
ibl
di they want to
know everything,
and
tne
y. ibl
a e.IT dont know
ib
will not
e. Tknow now.
. He licks
n Inc
n
do.redib
bl
hat
dido.
tne
, that e. T doesn
hat
ntne
hat
w to the
he others at
belong
won
A
t explain
ncia, Ca
t explain
ncia, Ca
Fig. 8
It is now ready to be revealed. Before you do, make some more cuts being careful not to
cut the loaded packet. Maybe just a simple thank you will do.

Unfold the loaded paper and reveal the letters as in figure 1. Hold it close to your body
so your suit will act as a background. Hopefully youll be wearing a dark colored suit. Take your
bow, but not too deep. Set the newspaper down and look to you left and bow. Then look to your
right and bow. Finally, face center and bow full from the waist, hands to your side.
Note: The Thank You stencil is given in the following page in full size. Photocopy this
and use it to cut out the newspaper with.

126
127
thank
you
126
127
128
129
will practice more for the next time.

You will make mistakes in the beginning. Heck, I still do. But not as often. This is the
reason you want to perform your first show for those you know. They will excuse your nervousness and encourage you.
11. Putting Together the Magic Show

Now that you practiced the individual tricks, its time to think about performing that
One of the mistakes you will make is accidentally revealing the secret. Dont get upset
if this happens. Ignore it because there is a possibility the audience didnt notice. Make a mental
note of what you did wrong and practice it the next time.
show. You probably were tempted to show off what you learned here. The results Im sure was
mixed. The reason is because you werent ready yet to perform. Thought must be given to what
and how long you are going to perform.
put the emphasis on the wrong set of movements. Doing close-up is an easy way of learning this
skill. When you have gotten use to working with the magic props, youll want to venture off to
The best way for first time magicians to break in is by doing close-up magic. Thats why
Coordinating the secret movements and the stage business is difficult at first. You may
I included it first. Its tempting to do the entire selection in one sitting. However, youll bore your
the bigger stuff. The stage is a wonderful place, but scary at first. Your first few stage perfor-
audience if you do. One to three tricks would be best. Dont be tempted to do more at first. Do
mances will be in your living room. This is called parlor magic. I prefer this kind of magic even
one trick and stop. You will be asked to do another. Do one more. Once again the request will
on the stage. It is intimate and leaves room for your personality to come out.
come to do still another. Do a third and stop. Leaving the audience wanting more is a show biz
saying. If you give in, theyll regret asking.
Crystal started off. His many imitations of his family members he performed in their living room
gave him the experience that he used to launch his career.
The style of close-up has changed. One way is to sit at the table with the guests and
You will still be performing for your friends and family here. This is how comedian Billy
perform. The most popular is walk around magic. You carry some kind of table with you and ap-
proach the subjects that you will perform for. Then pull out your props from your pockets. I used
cordion, my mother sang, my dad told stories, and I would do impressions. When I learned to
a leather fanny pack to carry my props in.
do magic, I practiced on my family in the living room. A lot of the tricks I do today were formed
there.
Your first performance will be the sit down variety. The reason is because youll be doing
This is also how I started. Everyone had a shtick in my family. My uncle played the ac-
your show for your friends and family. Say, I have learned something new and would like to try
it. They will be surprised at your new skills. Dont over do it. Say that you are only learning and
kids parties. This is a very popular field. If you like to do this kind of thing, you can make a lot of
128
The next logical place is kid shows. You dont have to dress up like a clown to perform at
129
130
131
money. You have to like kids and be willing to put up with packing and repacking as you go from
props that are used. Then this card goes alphabetically in a card file or Rolodex. When I want to
one party to another.
do a show, I thumb through this and choose the tricks that will be best.
Even though you can perform most of these tricks for kids, it is not recommended be-
For right now, I have put together a series of tricks for your act or show. The reason is be-
cause the routines are too talky. When I did my act for kids, they would sit mesmerized. I thought
cause the order of your act is very important. Below is a list of tricks that should go together. Ive
they didnt like it, but on the contrary. They liked it too much. The magic mystified them so
taken the twenty-four tricks provided in this book and assembled them for your convenience.
much, they didnt move.

Kids like silly stuff. Distinctive tricks and routines are specially designed for them. Audi-
ence involvement is a must. You can learn more in the book Kids Stuff by Jay Marshall.
A Close-up Act

Impromptu at dinner:
work. This is very ambitious as there are not too many places anymore for stage magicians.
Salt Shaker Through the Table
Night clubs are the last destination for platform performers. However, these gigs are far and few
in between. Even in Las Vegas where magic once was a bountiful place for magicians. Now its
The Four Burglars
hard to find a venue anymore.
Dice Prediction
The next logical place to go is the stage. Acting lessons would pay off for this type of
Amusement parks like Disneyland and Six Flags are still a good place to go. Here the
For family and friends:
work is long and hard. It is gratifying though. Also, its good training ground for the determined
Nested Boxes
performer.

The Magic Show
The formation of the magic act or show is paramount. Keeping it all straight is also im-
portant. I have every trick I have ever done typed out word for word in my computer. Also I keep
At a party:
Lucky Seven

The Four Burglars
a hard copy in my filing cabinet.

Another thing I like to do is write out each trick on a 3 x 5 index card. I head it with the
name of the trick. On the right of the card I put the time it takes to do the trick. Then I list the
130
131

When you only have a deck of cards:
132

133
You can do the Cups and Balls as a close-up trick or platform. My own routine I use
Lucky Seven
strictly for platform. However, the one I included in this book works well with both. The Cut the
You Do As I Do
Lady in Half can be used for platform. The queen can be seen from the distance. Other card tricks
The Four Burglars
are not good on stage because the audience cannot see the identities. You can also use a Jumbo
Deck and a larger envelope.
Mix and match any of the above:
The Four Burglars
The Platform Act
Short act:
1. Showing or Blowing
You Do As I Do
2. Cut and Restored Rope
3. The Cups and Balls
4. A Plethora of Silks
5. Saying Thanks with Style
1. Are You a Square?
Dice Prediction
2. Rope routines
3. Torn and Restored Newspaper
4. The Coat Release
Lucky Seven

Nested Boxes

Cups and Balls

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Longer act:
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The full act:
2. Rope routines
2. Rope routines
3. Book Test
3. Cut the Lady in Half
6. Book Test
8. The Indian Rice Mystery
2. Book Test
3. Rope routines
4. Cut the Lady in Half
sweet, and to the point. Showing or Blowing gets right into the magic. This has been my opening
for years. Once you establish yourself to the audience, then you can slow things down. Combin-
6. The Indian Rice Mystery
ing the rope routines sets up a theme with one prop.
7. The Coat Release
for volunteers to assist you. As we reach to the end, a long trick like The Indian Rice Mystery
Thats just a sample of the different combinations. The opening trick should be short,
The middle is a nice balance of effects. At this point you can go into the audience and ask
that has heavy dialogue is inserted here. This will segue into our finale.

The two basic rules for a closer is either to do something quick and flashy or perform a
strong mind blowing effect. Logic might dictate that you open the show with a production, then
close with a vanish. Actually the reverse is true. A vanish stuns people. It causes your audience
to just sit and stare at you like a deer caught in the headlights. For the finish, you want people applauding.
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Thats why a colorful production of items is best. A Plethora of Silks ends the act with

music. It is colorful and quick. The silk fills the stage and makes the act look big. The Coat
Two 12 inch silk handkerchiefs of the same color
Release does not do this, but it is a strong effect. It breaks another rule about having volunteers
The rubber band pull
on stage for the finish. You dont want to take your final bow with spectators from the audience
on stage with you. However, ending with Saying Thanks With Style will end your act with you on
stage alone.
A piece of rope twenty-four inches
A pair of scissors
It can also be used following anything. This provides a double closer. A Plethora of Silks
2. Cut and Restored Rope
is fast with no dialogue. Saying Thanks with Style puts you at one with the audience. It is not a
strong effect, but it is cute. The audience will recognize this as the end and will reward you with
an ovation.
Three cups

After you decide which program to perform, type it up. Keep this on stage with you.
Four small balls
The wand
Trust me, with all of the stress of remembering all of your dialogue, you will forget what comes
next. You dont want to fumble. Just glance at the list and go on. Its alright if the audience sees
this. They will respect you as a professional who cares for details.
Wine bottle
Three tubes of descending order
something silly like your scissors for The Cut and Restored Rope trick. I have included the list
X amount of silks
of props in each trick. Only include what you use. I listed in the routine things like four rubber
A wine glass
bands for the pull. This eventually got linked together and made into the pull. It shouldnt be on
Colored water
the prop list, only the pull itself should be. The list below is an example of how I arrange my
A chair
Next you need to type up a prop list. This comes in very handy. You dont want to forget
own list.
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behind you towards the left corner. Avoid that when ever possible.
Two single sheets of newspaper
A pair of scissors
gest. Then I do a trick like Saying Thanks with Style facing the audience front and center. This is
Then I set my finale on the table to my right. This is a strong position, but not the stron-
the strongest position.

This list you dont bring on stage with you. This is for you to check before you leave
home, as you set up, and before you go home. You dont want to leave something important
Once you have it set where things go, practice it that way. Youll be surprised when you get on
stage how automatic it becomes. This will become one less thing for you to worry about.
behind. When you are done checking your equipment, leave this list in your container that you
packed your props in.
vous. This puts the evil thought into the performers head that may have not been there before.
This container can be a sports bag or suitcase. Experience has shown me to be very care-
Now the show begins. I hate when someone asks a beginning performer if they are ner-
ful when packing. For anything breakable, I cover it in bubblewrap. I make a bag out of it so I
People just expect performers to be nervous before a show. Dont let yourself be in that position.
can reuse it. This may be a pain to do all of this, but in the long run it pays off.
Practice so you know your material, be prepared by making sure you have brought everything,
and give your self enough time to set up.
Once you set up, keep the bag or suitcase backstage. You could build a box to carry your
stuff in. I have one that has legs hinged onto it. I open it up and use it like a table. Then I put the
props Im finished with in there as I perform.
nervous as I use to. I use to pace up and down until it was my turn to go on. This was tough the
year I worked the illusion show at Six Flags Magic Mountain. I was pre-set in a box and couldnt
Place your props on your table with care. Nothing is worse than seeing a performer
A little anxiety is alright though. It is natural. After all of these years, I dont get as
search for something. The performer should reach for it and find it instantly. Think about this.
move.
You can put the rope in your suit pocket, the envelope for the Cutting the Lady in Half in your
breast pocket, and your business cards for the Book Test in your pants pocket. This will help to
my name. Delay more, I think to myself. Then I have the Catch 22 situation. I want to get it
make your table less cluttered.
over with. However, I know that experience has shown me that everything will be alright. If I put
in a new trick I have never done before, I get a little more nervous than usual. To overcome any
Place two tables on your stage; one to the right, the other to left. This leaves the center
open for you to walk down. Since this is the strongest position, you want to leave it open.

I always start off doing the Showing or Blowing front and center. Then I place the first
half of my act on the table to my left. This is the weaker of the three position. The weakest is
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Now a days, I just take it all in stride. I still feel a little nervous. I pray that they never call
stage fright, I lick my lips. There is a tendency for your mouth to be dry when you are nervous.
Licking the lips helps to cure this. Usually if Im nervous, it goes away once Im on stage.

Nothing is worse than the performer coming out lackadaisical. This happens because you
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sit backstage so long waiting for them to call your name. You should come out bursting with
to go by slower for the audience. I think because the words are jumble and cannot be understood.
energy. I remember one particular instance recently where I was not up to my usual standards.
When this happens, the audience loses interest in it. Once they do, everything seems to take for-
It was a long lay off between performances, so I lost that spark. My dad even commented that it
ever to finish.
looked like I lost the joy of performing. This was like a challenge to me. I racked my brains try-
ing to find a solution. No, I said to myself, I am not washed up. So I remembered something
real slow as to bore the audience. I mean, pick spots in your dialogue that is very important and
that the legendary master illusionist Howard Thurston use to do before each show. He would tell
pause before you get there. Stop dead. Dont move. Nothing. Wait for one to three seconds, then
himself, I have a great audience. I am going to be great, etc. What he did was psych himself
deliver the line.
up. He entered the stage full of vim and vigor.
pencil, I put slashes where I want to pause. One slash is a one count pause, like between com-
I did this. In fact I over did it. However, as things usually happen, when you enter with a
When we pace our words properly, time on stage seems to go by faster. I dont mean talk
The following is an example of what I do with a script when I first get it. With a pen or
lot of energy, the moment drags you down. So Im glad I came on with too much energy because
mas. Two slashes is a much longer pause. This is usually something that I want to emphasize.
it evened itself out. The audience caught my energy and responded. Then they fed me to keep the
energy going to the end. It was one of the best performances I had in a long time. I proved I was
bug the owner/ of the local magic store/ to show me a trick.// This was his favorite.// Hed take
not washed up.
out his pocket handkerchief.//
People always ask me// how did I first learn/ to do magic?// When I was a kid,/ I use to
You might say that the size of the audience had a lot to do with it. In this case it was not
true. There might have been maybe ten people in the audience. I was not going to let the lack of
Read it this way in practice, but dont set it in stone. You may feel that your emphasis
attendance pull me down.
was wrong. If you do, change it. Dont memorize these slashes. It should come naturally as you
practice. Also, if youve discovered that right feel for the dialogue, write it down. A pause or a
As you perform, control your pace. There should be no dead time between tricks. Novice
movement that is affective should be noted so you can always do it the same way every time.
performers do the opposite on what they should. They speed up the presentation of their tricks,
and then slow down in between.
around a hundred times. Ive seen the best magicians do this. They pick up a deck of cards and
rotate it around and around. This makes the audience nervous.
There is a natural tendency to let nerves speed up the act. Dont let it. Your act should be
Move with purpose. Dont fidget. When you pick something up, dont move your hands
fast paced, but not you. You may have said the same dialogue over and over, but its new to your
audience. They want to hear every word. Its a funny thing, but when we talk fast, the time seems
around the stage either. Stand still. Deliver a line, then move forward or right to left. Then stop
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You dont want to be a permanent fixture behind your table, but you dont want to pace
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again. You can do the tricks that are on your table, then when you get to something like the rope
well. Those that are tried and true.
trick, you can take it out of your pocket and move towards the audience. You may deliver some-
thing with a burst of energy, then slow it down. Dont repeat the same actions too soon.
perfectionist that I am, I have gone back and reworked the sketches until I felt they were right.
With that, the second book will take sometimes because I want it to be complete.
Chris Rock is a great performer, but he makes me uneasy when he paces back and forth.
The hardest thing I found in putting together a magic book is the illustrations. Being the
He has that nervous energy that makes him dynamite. But that pacing. . . It drives me crazy.
that is shared by the writer and the reader. It is you that I had in mind when I wrote this.
Bill Cosby paces his act nicely. He starts off by sitting down. Image that. . . a stand up
Thank you so much for your purchase. I hope we can explore together this inner journey
comic sitting down. Then he builds the act by getting up. He moves his body acting out the
situation he is describing. He gets really silly, then he stops. He looks at he audience with those
Magically yours,
incredible faces he makes, then he slows down. Finally, he delivers the punch.

I dont want to spend too much time on performing. By taking an acting class youll learn
Michael Pascoe 2014
what you need. The most important thing to remember is to have fun. I know this sounds silly,
but most performers I know forget this. They are so busy trying to get through it as fast as they
can, they dont spend the time enjoying their act. This will help relieve the nerves. It will make
performing addicting. You will not be able to get enough of it. Then youll want to perform more.
If you do, I wish you success.
I am glad you took the time to practice the tricks I have provided for you. Certainly, this
is not all that you can learn from magic. I encourage you to go and explore by going to the magic
shops. Be careful because one can go crazy and buy all sorts of stuff you may never use. Remember, routine is the most important thing to the magical performer.

Soon, I will work on a second book that will cover all that you can learn in magic. It will
be a book for all levels from the beginner to the advance. Basically, it will be a book from my
career starting from a young teenager all the way through to the present. I will give pet effects as
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MAGIC OF THE MIND

About the Author

TRICKS FROM THE ORIENT

PART ONETHE ANCIENT ART OF MAGIC

PART FOUR-- Doing the Magic Show