Chapter The Challenge. Chapter Dai Vernon's Double Lift: with a well covered get ready. Dai Vernon's routine is a must study for effectiveness and routining.
Chapter Nate Leipzig's Card Stab. Chapter Tips on Knots. Chapter Six Card Repeat. Chapter Free and Unlimited Coinage of Silver. Chapter Mental Spell. Chapter Pot Pourri. Score: 5. The psychology of magic is a nascent field of research that examines the underlying mechanisms that conjurers use to achieve enchanting phenomena, including sensory illusions, misdirection of attention, and the appearance of mind-control and nuanced persuasion.
Whereas performers sometimes question the contributions that modern science may offer to the advancement of the magical arts, the history of magic reveals that scientific discovery often charts new territories for magicians.
In this research topic we sketch out the symbiotic relationship between psychological science and the art of magic. On the one hand, magic can inform psychology, with particular benefits for the cognitive, social, developmental, and transcultural components of behavioural science.
Magicians have a large and robust set of effects that most researchers rarely exploit. Incorporating these effects into existing experimental, even clinical, paradigms paves the road to innovative trajectories in the study of human behaviour. For example, magic provides an elegant way to study the behaviour of participants who may believe they had made choices that they actually did not make.
As his journey continues, Ian not only becomes a performer and creator of magic—even fooling the late Anthony Bourdain during a chance encounter—he also cements a new brotherhood, and begins to understand his relationship with his father, fifteen years after his death. Written with psychological acuity and a keen eye for detail, Magic Is Dead is an engrossing tale full of wonder and surprise.
DIVThe one essential guidebook to attaining the highest level of card mastery, from false shuffling and card palming to dealing from the bottom and three-card monte, plus 14 dazzling card tricks. Pull back the curtain on the real history of magic — and discover why magic really matters If you read a standard history of magic, you learn that it begins in ancient Egypt, with the resurrection of a goose in front of the Pharaoh.
You discover how magicians were tortured and killed during the age of witchcraft. You are told how conjuring tricks were used to quell rebellious colonial natives.
The history of magic is full of such stories, which turn out not to be true. Behind the smoke and mirrors, however, lies the real story of magic. It is a history of people from humble roots, who made and lost fortunes, and who deceived kings and queens. In order to survive, they concealed many secrets, yet they revealed some and they stole others. They engaged in deception, exposure, and betrayal, in a quest to make the impossible happen.
They managed to survive in a world in which a series of technological wonders appeared, which previous generations would have considered magical. Even today, when we now take the most sophisticated technology for granted, we can still be astonished by tricks that were performed hundreds of years ago.
The Secret History of Magic reveals how this was done. It is about why magic matters in a world that no longer seems to have a place for it, but which desperately needs a sense of wonder. Dai Vernon: the last great undiscovered artist of the 20th century. His medium was magic and with it, Vernon turned the clandestine world of conjuring on its ear with virtuoso sleight-of-hand and a dogged pursuit for perfection. Born in in Ottawa, the son of a Canadian civil servant, Vernon moved to New York - Manhattan - in , and never looked back.
Miracles flowed from his fingertips - effortlessly. The source of his secrets? The underworld and the gamblers, husters and con-men that roamed back-room dens of iniquity, bunked in jail cells and walked the streets of America. If proof be needed—Dai Vernon taught this trick to Dr. Daley and Jimmy Drilling—Dr. Daley performed it hundreds of times during the last year of his life ; Jimmy Drilling performs it regularly.
This false count is particularly deceptive when it is desired to show that a small packet of cards contains less than its actual number. In " Penetration of Thought " it is necessary to count five cards as four, and the Buckle False Count allows this to be accomplished cleanly and con- vincingly.
It will be remembered that after the performer counts the packet of eight cards, due to the secret stratagem employed he is able to divide the cards into two apparently equal packets ; one of which is supposed to contain four red-backed cards and the other four blue-backed cards. Actually the red-backed packet contains three cards only, the fourth card already being in the blue-backed packet at the position next to bottom.
It is now necessary to count five cards as four only, to reverse their order and to show them to be all blue-backed cards ; in addition, it is necessary to bring the red-backed card to the centre of the packet. Hold the packet of cards squared in the left hand in the dealer's position, with the outer short end protruding about half an inch over the side of the left forefinger. Curl the left fingers under the packet so that the tips of the fingers contact the right long edges of the cards and keep them squared.
With the left thumb push the top card to the right and receive its outer right corner between the right thumb above and the right first and second fingers underneath.
Carry the card away to the right and clear of the left hand packet on the count " one ". The left finger-tips keep the rest of the cards perfectly squared, as the top card only is pushed to the right, to be taken by the right hand. Carry the card away in the right hand on the count " two ". It is the next two cards which must be taken as one, but the action must appear exactly the same as when one card only is taken see note at end of chapter.
Curl the left third and little fingers inwards, pressing their tips on the inner right corner of the bottom card of the left-hand packet. This causes the bottom card to buckle at the inner end only. As the tips of the left third and little fingers are right at the edge of the buckled card, part of them will also be in contact with the underside of the second middle card.
By uncurling the left third and little fingers, but exerting pressure from their tips on to the underside of the middle card, the two upper cards are carried to the right in perfect alignment, the left thumb providing the other point of pressure from above the top card.
From above the left thumb is seen. Move the right hand to the right, carrying the four cards with it as you count " three ". Transfer the complete packet back into the dealer position in the left hand.
The count must be practised until it can be made smoothly and naturally, with no pause between the counts of " two " and " three ". Dai Vernon has been using the principle of buckling the bottom card for over thirty years. He developed it for his own use, and, although he personally has not claimed it as his own origination, it seems certain that he was the first magician to make good use of this clever idea.
Instead of re-writing, in this instance, I propose to quote Dai Vernon's comments :— " I usually use the count you have described when counting on to a spectator's hand or on to the table ; otherwise I grip the cards in the right hand at the inner right corner. Now the bottom card is buckled and is pulled away from the right fingers, leaving the other two cards to be taken as one.
This ensures that there will be no slip-up with any type or condition of cards. Edwin T. However, there was one trick which impressed him considerably ; a novel and quaint effect with marbles. For this trick the performer placed some marbles in his mouth, where he held them temporarily whilst showing his hands to be empty. He then took the marbles separately from his mouth and held them in his closed fists, from where he caused them to vanish, only to reappear from the tip of his wand, from the table-top and from his mouth again.
This description intrigued Dai Vernon, who became determined to evolve a routine which, whilst eliminating the distasteful action of placing marbles in the mouth, would allow him to bring about a mysterious trans- position of marbles or balls from one hand to the other.
After a con- siderable amount of experimenting, he produced an original routine which met with instant success and which has remained a feature of his act for many years.
In the Vernon effect, the balls used are about an inch in diameter. The material from which they are made matters little, although he recom- mends solid rubber. On occasions he will pick up olives from the dinner table and perform with those. For his demonstrations in this country, in addition to rubber balls, he used balls turned from wood and also balls that looked like miniature golf balls, made from a plastic material, which he purchased from a toy shop.
Although the audience is aware of the existence of three balls only, he actually has FOUR in his jacket pocket on the right hand side at the commencement of the performance.
When procuring balls for this routine, it will assist the reader if he bears in mind that the diameter required is about the same as an English halfpenny. The photograph at Fig. When performing before a large audience, Dai Vernon provides a close-mesh net, which is held by the assistants in place of the handkerchief. The advantage of the net is that the balls can be seen by spectators who may be sitting below the level of the performer.
Incidentally, the idea for using a net is Dai Vernon's own. He passed it on to Silent Mora, who. The purpose of the basic sleight is to allow the spectators to see two or three balls apparently placed into the left hand, whereas, in reality, the hand even- tually contains a single ball only.
After casually permitting the left hand to be seen empty, close it into a fist and hold it, thumb end upwards, in front of the body just above waist level. With the right hand pick up a ball and place it on top of the left fist, then, after touching it with the tip of the right forefinger Fig. So far there is no trickery involved, except that the ball does not go far down into the fist, only just out of sight.
Pick up a second ball with the right hand and apparently place it on top of the fist as before, then allow it to sink in, but during these visible actions you perform the following secret move :—.
After the first ball is in the left fist, and during the action of reaching forward for the second ball, drop the left hand about eight inches and turn it so that the thumb end of the fist is to the right. Relax the fingers suffi- ciently to allow the ball to roll right into the opening at the thumb end of the fist, but at this point the opening should still be covered by the thumb.
Notice the position of the left hand in Fig. With the right hand pick up the second ball and display it between the pads of the thumb and second finger Fig.
Now simultaneous actions take place with BOTH hands. Bring them towards each other ; the right hand making a quarter turn to bring the back towards the audience as the first, third and little fingers come around the ball, obscuring it from view Fig. As the hands are coming together, they BOTH begin to turn to the left until, when they actually touch, the right hand is above the left fist.
During this turning movement, move the left thumb aside and slightly down so that when the. The foregoing moves appear complicated in print, but if the reader will attempt them whilst reading the text, they will be easily understood. Refer to Fig. The photograph shows how the action is covered—notice how the right fingers cover the second ball on three sides, obscuring it from the view of the spectators in front and the two volunteer assistants on the left and the right of the performer.
When the right hand is re- moved, what appears to be the second ball is visible on top of the left fist. Actually it is the first ball again. Apparently to draw attention to the ball the right second, third and little fingers curl into the palm conveying the second ball automatically to the finger-palm position , and the ex- tended forefinger touches the visible ball Fig.
The same operation is repeated with the third ball, and at the con- clusion the audience will believe that there are three balls in the left fist ; actually there is one only, the other two are in the right finger-palm position. Practise the moves until the movements of both hands can be perfectly synchronised, as it is upon the timing and the naturalness of the actions that the illusion depends.
Although the right forefinger touches the ball before it sinks into the fist, it is not necessary to push. Touching the ball looks perfectly natural, as the action draws attention to it, but what is important to the performer is that by extending the right forefinger and curling the other fingers into the palm the second ball is taken automatically to the finger-palm position under cover of a natural movement.
From the finger-palm position a ball can be conveyed to the palm-proper position if required. Once the mechanics of the moves are understood, the reader will find that they are not difficult to perform, but it is essential that they are practised until they can be made smoothly and automatically—remember that it is the timing and the naturalness of performance which creates the perfect illusion.
With FOUR balls in your jacket pocket on the right hand side and the handkerchief or net readily available, you are ready to present the effect.
Obtain the services of two volunteer assistants from the audience ; position one on your right side and the other on your left, then instruct them to hold the handkerchief or net between them Fig. If the per- formance is taking place before a large audience, then a better view will be obtained if the performer and his assistants are standing. It is also desirable to use a net on these occasions, as the mesh permits a view of the balls from a low angle.
Tell the audience that it is proposed to use three small balls for this effect, and, after removing three of the four balls from the jacket pocket, let them drop singly from the right hand into the net. Now hold both hands palms upward with fingers curled slightly to permit the audience to see that they are empty.
Say : " Watch carefully. Pick up a ball from the net between the pads of the right thumb and second finger, and place it on top of the left fist; touch it with the right forefinger Fig. As you reach forward to pick up a second ball from the net in the same manner as before, allow the left fist to turn and drop naturally in readiness for the BASIC MOVE. Touch the ball with the right forefinger and say : '" Two balls.
At this point the audience believe that the three balls are in the left fist, but due to the fact that the basic move has been employed twice, there is only ONE ball in the left fist and TWO balls in the right finger-palm position. Close the right hand into a fist and hold it, thumb upwards, in front of the body and about a foot from the left fist.
Gesture with the left fist. Now turn to the assistant on the left and pretend to hear him remark that there is no ball in the left hand, so say : ". Open the left hand and show him the ball on the palm.
Pick it up with the right hand and show it to the assistant on the right, then apparently take it back into the left hand, which is then again closed into a fist. Actually, this is a fake transfer Chapter Two , the ball remaining in the right hand, where it is taken into the palm-proper position as the hand drops momentarily whilst attention is focused on to the closed left fist.
Gesture to the assistant on the right with the right hand. The ball is in the right palm-proper position, the fingers opened a little and curled slightly, so that the hand is natural in appearance, NOT with fingers spread " starfish " fashion. Say : " Watch ", then close the right hand and hold it in front of the body again. Make a gesture with the left hand towards the right, then squeeze the ball to the top of the right fist and allow it to drop into the net.
Show both hands casually, palms upward. At this stage the effect is repeated, but on this occasion there is a slight variation in the moves. This leaves one ball in the left fist and two in the right, although apparently there should be three balls in the left fist only. After the previous demonstration the audience will be watching carefully, so a variation is brought into play. This time hold the fists closer together in front of the body, and, as the left hand gestures towards the right, the left-hand ball is secretly brought outside the left fingers and gripped by the base of the thumb and the bent third finger—the thumb rolls it to this position under cover of the movement of the left hand as it gestures towards the right.
All attention will be on the right hand as it squeezes a ball to the top of the fist and then tilts to the left to make the ball fall into the net. Squeeze the second ball to the top of the right fist, but this time, although the tilting action appears the same as before, the right hand moves UNDER the left hand the left hand is kept STILL. When these movements are correctly timed, it appears as if the ball has been squeezed from the right fist to fall into the net.
In Fig. Apparently the three balls have passed magically from the left hand to the right hand. Both hands are opened and shown casually, palms upward. State that the effect will be repeated again.
This time really do allow the first two balls to sink into the left fist no basic move is made. Place the third ball on top of the left fist, then say : " I'll place this ball in my pocket ". Reach over with the right hand as if taking the ball, but as the right fingers come around the ball allow it to sink into the left fist. The right hand goes to the jacket pocket, palms the fourth ball, and is then removed.
Looking at the assistant on the right, say : " How many balls in my left hand? Remember, at the conclusion of this stage, the fourth ball is palmed in the right hand, unbeknown to the audience. The moves, with certain variations, are repeated. Pick up a ball from the net and place it on top of the fist.
Actually this ball sinks into the fist under cover of the right fingers, and it is the palmed ball that has been brought to the finger-tips, which is seen on top of the left fist as the right hand moves away.
It will be seen that the ball which was taken from the pocket and brought to the finger-tips rests on top of the first ball, then, when the first ball is allowed to sink into the left fist, the second ball drops on top of the fist.
Let the visible ball sink into the fist as you say : " One ball". Pick up another ball from the net and place it on top of the fist; allow it to sink in as you count : " Two balls ". Take the last ball from the net and place it on top of the left fist. This time, pick up the ball again between the tips of the right first and second fingers Fig.
Notice in Fig. In this instance, nothing is concealed in the palm, but the audience are being conditioned for the occasion when it is necessary to conceal balls. Place the right hand in the pocket, palm the ball and bring the hand out again. Open the left fingers slowly and allow the three balls to roll singly into the net.
Again you repeat the moves with variations. Pick up a ball with the right hand, place it on the left fist and allow it to sink in counting : " One ball".
Pick up another ball, place it on the left fist and allow it to sink in counting : " Two balls ". Turn to the assistant on the left, open the left hand and show him the two balls, saying : " Remember, two balls ". Holding one ball back with the left thumb, bring the left hand back upwards over the right hand and open the fingers of both hands. One ball only leaves the left hand and joins the palmed ball in the right hand, which you now show to the assistant on the right, saying : ".
Place one of the balls from the right hand on top of the left fist and let it sink in, then do likewise with the second ball. Really leave the ball in the pocket this time. Squeeze the three balls from the left fist, allowing them to fall singly into the net. This is the concluding stage and all is ready for the climax. Casually show both hands empty, then close the left hand into a fist. Pick up the first ball and place it on top of the fist; touch it with the right forefinger, then allow it to sink in, saying : " One ball ".
Pick up the second ball and apparently place it on the left fist, but this time make the basic move. Touch the visible ball with the right forefinger, then allow it to sink into the left fist, counting : " Two balls ".
Now pick up the last ball and apparently place it on the fist, but make the basic move again ; this time the ball remains on the fist as you count : " Three balls ". At this point, although the audience thinks that there are two balls in the left fist and one on top of it, actually there are two balls in the right hand and the visible ball is the only one contained by the left hand.
Do not. As you display it to both the assistant on your left and the assistant on your right, the other two balls in the right hand are concealed by the third and little fingers and thumb, so, this time, keep the hand back upwards. To the audience you are going to repeat the effect of making a ball leave the pocket and join the two in the left fist. This is a terrific climax—watch the audience reaction. Dai Vernon tells me that when he is performing several shows in an evening, people will often stay especially to see this routine performed again, so he likes to have a variation for the climax.
For a repeat performance he has a small lemon in his jacket pocket in addition to the balls. As he reaches the climax he leaves all the balls in his pocket, but palms out the lemon. When he claps his hands together he allows the lemon to fall from his hands into the net. The instructions for the performance of this fine routine are somewhat lengthy because all details have been given. It will be appreciated that a small move that is over in a second often takes many paragraphs to describe.
When the basic move has been mastered and the moves for the first stage memorised, it is simply a question of remembering the variations. Like all good things in magic, practice is the key to success. Practise until the moves can be performed automatically, then the presentation can be concentrated upon.
In performance the first two stages should be presented fairly slowly, but as the routine continues the tempo should be quickened until the last stage is performed briskly—but not hurried. Pick up ball in right hand, place on left fist and allow it to sink in.
Close right fist; squeeze first one ball, then second ball from top of right fist into net. Show ball in left hand and pick it up with right to display, then make fake transfer back into left hand.
Close fists and squeeze ball from top of right fist into net. Show hands empty. Repeat same moves as 2, 3 and 4 above. Bring ball outside left fingers Fig. Squeeze ball from top of right fist into net. Squeeze second ball to top of right fist; right hand goes under left and ball allowed to sink into right fist and second ball drops from left hand on to right fist, then into net.
Squeeze ball to top of right fist and allow to fall into net. Pick up ball, place on left fist and allow to sink in. Chapter Ball, Cone, and Handkerchief. Chapter The Last Trick of Dr. Jacob Daley: Four Ace Transposition packet trick. Chapter The Thumb Tie: a full routine. Dai Vernon: the last great undiscovered artist of the 20th century. His medium was magic and with it, Vernon turned the clandestine world of conjuring on its ear with virtuoso sleight-of-hand and a dogged pursuit for perfection.
Born in in Ottawa, the son of a Canadian civil servant, Vernon moved to New York - Manhattan - in , and never looked back. Miracles flowed from his fingertips - effortlessly. The source of his secrets? The underworld and the gamblers, husters and con-men that roamed back-room dens of iniquity, bunked in jail cells and walked the streets of America.
Vernon sought them out, befriended them, and made their work, their covert methods, his. This book, the first in-depth examination of Vernon's life, traces the first half of his remarkable journey - through Ottawa, Coney Island, Chicago, Manhattan, Kansas City and Colorado Springs - and the celebrities - Houdini, Billy Rose, and Roosevelt, that Vernon encountered along the way.
Dai Vernon: A Biography also details the evolution of magic in the 20th century. From the stages of London and Paris to the back rooms of magic emporiums where secrets were bought and sold, Vernon's life and work escort the reader through vaudeville, Broadway theaters, grand magic spectaculars, New York nightspots and the dawn of television.
Here, cornerstones of the craft have finally been laid bare for all to see. A famous magician's journey to find the greatest cardsharp ever evokes the forgotten world of magic where Americans found escape during the Great Depression It has the nostalgic quality of an old-fashioned fable, but Karl Johnson's The Magician and the Cardsharp is a true story that lovingly re-creates the sparkle of a vanished world.
Here, set against the backdrop of America struggling through the Depression, is the world of magic, a realm of stars, sleight of hand, and sin where dreams could be realized - or stolen away.
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