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53 entries from February 2011

A trick a day for a year

FEBRUARY 28

JOLLY POLLY GEORGE

'Children Laugh Louder' by David Ginn (Page 56)

This is a nice one for kids performers, especially those new to the game who prefer to do card tricks.

It is a card trick!

It's like a three card monte with jumbo cards, for kids.

Three of the cards have empty cages and the fourth has a picture of a parrot.

It's a nice little effect, well routined and - true to the Supreme edict - it packs flat and plays big!

 


A trick a day for a year

FEBRUARY 27

TAP A TRICKS

'Mathematics, Magic and Mystery' by Martin Gardner (Page 101)

Martin Gardner was a mathematical genius and, in this astounding collection of mathemagic, he demonstrates his mastery of the art.

Tap A Tricks are one genre of mathemagics similar to this one popularised by David Copperfield.

Martin Gardner offers quite a variety of effects well worth looking at - especially if you have a TV special coming up - including 'Crazy Time',  'Tappit', 'Tap A Drink', 'Tap an Animal' and 'The Riddle Card'.

 


A trick a day for a year

FEBRUARY 26

THE DIMINISHING SILK PRODUCTION

'Capers with Color' by Harold R Rice (Page 5)

A lot of people have seen this trick, where a seemingly endless supply of silks appear one by one tied to the corner of the other silks.

But most are learning from people who learned from people who learned from... but it's always better to learn from the original source.

It's quite enlightening reading the 1943 version.

It even includes a clever 'lock fold' that seems to have been lost through the ages.


A trick a day for a year

FEBRUARY 25

THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS

'Jiggery Pokery' by Andrew Wimhurst (Effect 9)

I'm very pleased to say that I sold Andrew his first Svengali deck and I've followed his career in magic since the begining. (Where is he now, you may ask... probably reading this post!)

This effect is Andrew's clever take on a card magic classic which involves up to ten selections and a very magical revelation of the first batch of cards appearing, in turn, on the face of the deck, some cards appearing in the pocket and the final two appearing while the rest of the deck disappears.

And it can all be done in a walkaround situation.

Wonderful effect. 

 


A trick a day for a year

FEBRUARY 24

PASTEBOARD MASSACRE

'New Wave Thaumatology Number 3' by David Regal (Page 1)

I used to do this trick way back in the days of Merlin's Magic Restaurant.

It's a very different card trick. Shocking, perhaps.

A card is chosen and returned to the deck, then the magician takes a knife (I used a meat cleaver) and slices through the deck literally cutting the cards in half and stopping at the selected card.

This effect is ripe for colorful presentation. In fact I modified the effect and turned it into THIS