Weapons Of Mass Deception By Steven Youell Sleight Descriptions by Andru Luvisi Photographs by Terri Sinclair
Acknowledgements Thanks to Andru Luvisi who for some reason has decided to catalogue all the ideas I’ve ever come up with-- good or bad. when I need something out of the “vault”, he’s the one I call. He’s also the best friend I’ve ever had. A special thanks to Ron Bauer, who has not only made me a better magician, but also a better writer. Thanks to my wife, Terri Sinclair for patiently taking the photographs in this manuscript. Thanks to Mike McAfee for reading & Proofing various forms of this manuscript. And thanks to Derrick Chung, who posed for one of the illustrations in The Camouflage Spread.
Entire Contents © Copyright 2009 By Steven Youell All rights reserved. No part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted in any form, by any means (Electronic, Photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the author.
Table Of Contents Elegant Solutions JawBreaker Russian roulette +1 trapJacks My Name Is Nobody memory Paper Reading the Tells NumerAlphatology Calling the Shot The Angle Cut Key Card The Camouflage Spread Sleight Descriptions Odds & Ends
1 8 11 12 17 22 25 29 34 38 41 45 48 57
Elegant Solutions Over the years I’ve found that I think differently than most people. This could be bad or good depending on which side of my brain you’re on. While most performers will start with an established effect or premise and then develop a method and/or presentation for it, I’m almost a complete opposite. I have long lists of effects with no methods, tag lines with no presentations and even titles with no effects attached. See, I think about what I want the audience to see; the tag line of the presentation or even a premise before I’m even close to a method. So while most performers will start with some sort of foundation, I tend to think of the end goal first and then I have to work backwards from there. This has just as many disadvantages. Allow me to give you an example. In the movie Maverick, a recurring theme was that he (Maverick) was convinced he could teach himself to “will” an ace to the top of the deck. That’s bothered me for years. I envision explaining the story to an audience, creating a little movie in their mind or if they’ve seen the movie, reminding them of this little sub-plot. Then I would tell them that it might actually be possible. What if someone actually could “will” an ace to the top of the deck? Then I would have an audience member shuffle the deck, set it on the table and “will” an ace to the top. MAN would that be good, huh? I’d call it Willing The Cards. I can imagine coaching an audience member to stare at the deck with a contorted look of concentration and BAM-- there’d be an Ace on top of the deck. As of yet, I have no solution-- but I’ve learned to live with that. The most depressing thing about this is that the solution is always a compromise between what I want the audience to see and what is actually possible. In other words, if I ever find a solution for Willing The Cards it will probably be a compromise between what I envision and how tainted that vision will get from the method I use to solve it. Over the years, though, I’ve developed a way of thinking through these things that has, for the most part, given me some pretty good results. I share these thoughts with you not in a dogmatic way, but in the hopes that you might find them helpful in your own creative process. It all started when I read a book called Space by James Michener. In that book, he used several paragraphs to give a beautiful description of what NASA called “Elegant Solutions. Rather than copy Michener’s description, I’ll summarize:
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Mathematicians, engineers and other scientists use the term “Elegant” to describe solutions in which the maximum desired effect is achieved with the smallest, or simplest effort by leveraging available resources. A simple example of this is the way NASA uses the gravitational pull of planets to propel a rocket deep into space so they can minimize the amount of fuel the rocket has to carry. Obviously I’m no rocket scientist, but I’ve adapted this to Card Tricks: In terms of Card Magic, Elegant Solutions are created by combining and leveraging fundamental sleights, strategies and presentations. Consider this effect: The performer tells an audience that he can riffle stack four perfect poker hands. He shuffles the deck a few times and deals out four perfect poker hands. Since methods should be transparent to an audience-- what difference does it make if you can actually riffle stack? What really counts is if you can completely convince an audience that you can riffle stack. That is the end goal. To reach it in the most effective way possible, I try to find an “Elegant Solution”-- a solution which which involves leveraging the resources I already have available into a solution which meets or exceeds my end goal. Don’t get the wrong idea, though. I’m not saying that “the method doesn’t matter”. The method does matter. If I want to convince an audience that I can riffle stack four perfect poker hands, the method I use should (from the viewpoint of the audience) look exactly like someone who actually does riffle stack four perfect poker hands in a gambling demonstration. Using an in the hands faro shuffle here might stack the cards, but it wouldn’t look the same as a guy who can riffle stack-- that’s a solution from someone who thinks “the method doesn’t matter”. And although most audiences don’t know what a riffle stack looks like, I can promise you that they know what it does not look like. Movies, television shows and casinos have all educated them enough to know how a real shuffle should look-- and it ain’t in-the-hands faros. BUT-- effectively ringing in a stacked deck and then false shuffling in a manner that is indistinguishable from a man who can actually riffle stack would be an elegant solution, because it gives me the same exact results (convincing an audience I can riffle stack) with much less effort and uses a resource that will have much greater use in my work as a whole. Card Magic, however, is not rocket science-- which works for me since I’m not a rocket scientist-- I’m a CardGuy. I’m not working with resources from nature that are either there or not. I have the advantage of choosing which resources I will spend my time 2
developing. And if I choose wisely, the resources I choose-- sleights, stratagems and presentations will all be resources that I can leverage into Elegant Solutions. First, let me take you through my thought process on how I evaluate the leverage of a particular resource-- sleights.
Shopping For Sleights Let’s go back to the riffle stacking scenario above. A competent CardGuy could easily ring in a stacked deck and with one or two false riffle shuffles easily convince an audience that he can riffle stack. Heck, I’ve done it. That is an Elegant Solution. You might ask “Why don’t you just learn to riffle stack?” The answer is leverage. I can already do a good false riffle shuffle, so why not leverage a resource I already have to achieve the end goal I want? And why did I choose to spend my time learning a push-through shuffle and still haven’t learned to riffle stack? Because to the best of my knowledge, there’s only one application of spending hours on end learning riffle stacks: you can stack cards. But I can do much more with a push-through-- including convincing an audience that I can riffle stack. I chose to spend my time developing a resource that gives me the greatest amount of leverage. Since I can control what resources I have and which ones I spend my time in developing, I need to make sure I shop carefully, right? Here’s how I shop for sleights. Hopefully it will save you some time and effort too. First, I focused on learning the basics. Actually I was forced into that foresight by my mentors. Trying to learn a center deal before I had a pass and/or basic palming down resulted in scolding and sometimes derision. Rather than write another essay explaining what I think the basics are and invite withering criticism, I’ll suggest you make your own list and run it by a few trusted individuals who have a lot more experience that you. But just in case you don’t know any trusted individuals with a lot more experience than you, I’ve included my list at the end of these lecture notes. My list is based on which sleights I think will give someone the most leverage in proportion to the amount of time spent learning them. This is not as easy as it seems. The first factor I considered in making this list is how much use someone would get out of a sleight. Almost all of the sleights in the list are utilitarian in nature. And I’m also not saying that you should master all the sleights on the list before you learn other stuff. What I am saying though it that the list might help you prioritize how you spend your time.
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When you’re deciding whether to learn a sleight or not, remember a sleight’s leverage is not just limited to how many uses you can get out of it. Another important factor is the impact you can get out of it. For example, I have a friend who practiced for a very long time just to be able to do The Boomerang Card. Now while being able to throw a card into the air, have it come straight back to you and catch it into the deck has only one application (that I know of), the impact this effect has on an audience justifies this fellow’s time spent in learning it-- to him. This leads me to a term I coined over 25 years ago-- The Pain To Glory Ratio. If the amount of Glory you get out of a sleight is much greater than the Pain involved in learning it, the greater the value of that sleight is to you. In other words, the larger the difference between the amount of use and/or impact you get from a resource (sleight or effect) in comparison to how much effort to acquire the resource, the more valuable that resource is to you. I’ve used this as my criteria for longer than I care to remember. Glimpses, for example, have a very low Pain To Glory Ratio for almost everyone, because they’re not only versatile and give you a multitude of uses, most are rather easy to learn. For other sleights though, like bottom dealing, you’ll have to decide for yourself what factors into Glory and what factors into Pain. How you determine the “Glory” of a sleight will be unique to you. Going back to my friend who learned The Boomerang Card, for example, he decided that the amount of entertainment value and the “Wow!” factor he gets out of it gave it a very high Glory factor and was therefore well worth putting the time in to learn. Some routines and/or effects are strong enough (give enough Glory) to merit learning the sleight(s) necessary to do them. My personal preference in determining the Pain To Glory Ratio of sleights involves evaluating how many uses I’ll get from a sleight and how adaptable it is to angles and various circumstances in comparison to how much work it takes to learn. I tend to think strictly in terms of versatility and audience impact. If a sleight is something I can use in dozens of different effects, in almost any situation, then it has a high amount of versatility. If it allows me to devastate almost any audience with it, then it has high audience impact. If has both then I’ll almost always put in the work required to learn it. A word of warning-- many of the variations of sleights have different amounts of leverage. For example, the Touch Force has much more leverage than the Hindu Shuffle Force. Both are sure-fire forces, however the Touch Force has the advantages of looking 4
more natural, since it more closely resembles the most common way of having a card selected. Additionally, the Touch Force is a technique that can help you learn and leverage your culling and “under the spread techniques”. Thinking ahead and then “shopping” wisely is the key.
Stratagems A good example of an Elegant Solution is something I call The Hacker Stack that was published in Weapons of Mass Destruction. This is a memorized stack that is in Si Stebbins order. This idea was developed because I wanted all the power of a memorized deck without having to go through the trouble of setting it up card by card. Additionally, if I was going to memorize a stack, I wanted to memorize one that gave me advantages over any other stack. So that was my end goal. The solution I came up with was the result of leveraging a few things I already knew-- overhand shuffle technique, an in-thehands faro and the Si Stebbins stack into a solution that met my end goal. I might add that this solution depends on Darwin Ortiz’ Si Stebbins Secret, a methodology that allows you to get into the Si Stebbins stack from new deck order in less than thirty seconds. Therefore I am guilty of “compound leveraging”: I took one of Darwin’s Elegant Solutions and leveraged it into something even more powerful. So what I ended up with was a memorized stack that gave me several advantages over other memorized stacks: 1) It has all the advantages of a memorized stack, all the advantages of a cyclical stack and all the advantages of Si Stebbins. 2) From a new deck, it takes 30 seconds to set up**, using a simple overhand shuffle sequence and in-the-hands faros. 3) I can set up a memorized deck right in front of the audience simply by opening up a new deck. This is a pretty good example of leveraging a combination of sleights I already knew and some stratagems into an Elegant Solution. There are more benefits to The Hacker Stack and a full description can be found in my last set of lecture notes, Weapons Of Mass Destruction.
Presentation and Presentational Ploys Most of us are used to appreciating really good presentations but we only look at them in terms of entertainment. They can, in fact, be much more than that. Presentations and 5
presentational ploys can often be leveraged to assist or even bear the burden of deception in an effect or routine. A good example of using a presentation to deceive is in my effect The Image Fades. This is a simple card change, however the presentation changes it greatly from the perspective of the spectator. In The Image Fades, the performer is convincing the spectator that the change only occurs in their minds. This takes a card change to a new level, because from the perspective of the spectator, you’re manipulating their mind, not the cards. Since there is only one conclusion people are led to with card changes (“He must have switched the cards...”), it is the presentation that is responsible for the majority of the deception. A presentational ploy is simply a smaller part of a presentation that is leveraged to the performer’s advantage. One of the best examples I’ve ever seen of leveraging a presentational ploy comes from Harry Lorayne. Oftentimes when Harry is going to do a four ace trick, he’ll tell the audience “Look-- in a minute you’re going to claim that there are more than four aces in this deck, so I’ll show you now that there’s only four.” He then proceeds to go through all the cards and drop the aces on the table one at a time so the spectator can verify there are only four aces in the deck. Compare this to the number of times you’ve seen someone take out the four aces and then re-insert them and “lose them into the deck”. In this case, Harry has made taking the aces out of the deck and losing them again something he does to prove the impossibility of what he’s about to do-- quite different from taking them out and losing them again because the multiple shift requires it. In short, he has leveraged one sentence into completely covering a necessary inconsistency. It could be argued though, that presentational ploys are developed for one specific purpose-- that they are unique to an individual presentation. This is not always the case. In the sixties, Ron Bauer developed a presentational ploy that can be used in many different effects. The objective was to separate the “causes and effects” that could (invariably did) lead an audience to part of the secret of card handling. Specifically, once a selection is replaced, spectators can make a connection between the control and the out come of the trick, i.e. a card placed in the center, then revealed on top was linked to whatever handling preceded the revelation. His solution was, whenever possible, to begin the “story” or presentation after the selection and replacement. this isn’t always applicable to a card trick, but whenever it was, after the selection was retuned, he’d place the deck onto the table. Most people who think about the solutions to card tricks presume that once the deck is out of the hands of the magician, no “dirty work” is possible! 6
Some other action follows (in his more reprehensible days, he pause and light a cigarette), then he’d pick up the deck to begin the presentation. The spectator’s ability to backtrack is often frustrated by this procedure. This procedure allows Ron to do two things-- it allows him to separate the cause and effect as well as mislead the audience as to when the trick actually begins. This is a superb example of how a presentational ploy can be leveraged for the purpose of deception. You’ll find the same ploy used in +1, an effect in these notes thus demonstrating that presentational ploys are a resource that can be leveraged. Finally, don’t get the idea that I’m an Anti-Gambling-Demonstration kind of guy. These ideas don’t preclude gambling demonstrations, i.e. demonstrations of pure skill. If that is the type of performing you like to do, you can still greatly increase your scope and resources in terms of deception by applying the ideas in this essay. My friend, Darwin Ortiz is a perfect example of someone who can do “The Real Work”, yet any one of his books on Card Magic will give numerous examples of leveraging and Elegant Solutions. Also, some people like to learn and invent sleights just to learn and invent sleights. I love those people. Those people represent the pure science of card magic. I’m more of an applied science guy-- pure scientists invent plastic and engineers invent Tupperware. So although those types of guys probably won’t use the ideas in this essay, they form a vital part of card magic. In short, we need each other. In these notes, almost every effect is an example of an Elegant Solution-- leveraging sleights that have a low Pain To Glory Ratio, stratagems, and presentations into effects that are not only fairly easy to do, but also extremely powerful. I’ve also included some items that will provide you resources that can be leveraged-- a prime example of which is The Angle Cut Key Card. It’s my hope that you’ll take some of the ideas from my creative process and add them to your own. And by the way-- I have “dibbs” on Willing The Cards. But if you find an Elegant Solution, I’m willing to share! *See The Si Stebbins Secret in Darwin Ortiz At The Card Table.
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Jaw Breaker Effect: The performer shuffles a deck and is allows the spectator to see the shuffles are genuine. He then sends the spectator to a table and gives the spectator the following instructions: “Please listen to my instructions closely. I’d like you to slowly and thoughtfully deal cards face down onto the table until you feel like stopping. Ready? Begin now.” The spectator deals cards face down and stops whenever he wants to stop. He is told to look at the card on which he stopped and place it on the table well away from other cards. “Now if you would please show all of us the card that was dealt before that card and the card that was next in line to be dealt.” The spectator does exactly that. “So you can easily see that had you stopped anywhere else, the results would have been different. Now I’m at least ten feet away, right? Please remove all the other cards so that your selection is the only card on the table-- here’s the box.” “Watch carefully-- I’m going to take another deck out of my pocket, pull out a card and place it face down next to yours. As I approach the table, make sure I do not touch your card.” The performer places his card face down next to the spectator’s and then cases the deck. There are now only two cards on the table-- the performer’s card and the spectator’s card. When they are turned over, they match.
Methodology: There are several different ways to do this-- here are my three favorites:
Standard Method The standard method uses a selection procedure from my lecture notes, Weapons of Mass Destruction. It only requires one straddle faro. All you have to do is get a packet of 20 cards perfectly interwoven into the center of the deck which is easier than cutting the deck at exactly 26 cards and doing a perfect faro. 8
The performer’s deck needs to have a thirteen card stack on top of the deck. From the top down, AH, 2S, 3H, 4S, 5H, 6S, 7H, 8S, 9H, 10S, JH, QS, KH. As you take the deck out, tell the spectator that you’re going to take particular pains to let him know the deck is shuffled. Take the top twenty or so cards (just make sure it’s more than thirteen) and straddle faro them into the center of the deck. Make sure you point out that not only are the cards mixed in the center but it’s obvious that it’s a random shuffle. If the straddle faro is off center, so much the better. Spread the cards face-up in front of the spectator under the pretense of showing that they are mixed. As you do so, cut the deck so the AH and one indifferent card end up on top. In other words, once you cut the deck, there will be an indifferent card on top, followed by the AH. This results in a 26 card stack in which you know the card at every even position. As the spectator is dealing the cards, silently count how many cards he deals. He can deal up to twenty-six cards and as long as you tell him to deal “slowly and thoughtfully”, he will stop long before that-- the length of silence will become unbearable. The silence is even more effective if you’re doing Platform Magic. In the twenty years that I’ve used this procedure I’ve never had someone deal more than twenty-six cards. If the spectator deals an odd number of cards to the table, then tell him to look at the top card of the deck. If he dealt an even number of cards, tell him to look at the last card dealt. To determine the value of the card, simply divide its position by two. If you get an odd value you know it’s a Heart; if you get an even value, you know it’s a spade. Example: he looks at the sixteenth card. That card is the Eight of Spades. In this method it is not required to have the spectator show ANY of the cards-- however doing so locks the idea in the audience’s mind that had the person stopped at a different place, the results would have been different.
Using Full Deck Stacks You can also start with a deck that is two faros out from the Si Stebbins stack. As you’re doing the two faro shuffles, show the spectator that cards are actually being interwoven to emphasize that the cards are mixed. You could also start with a deck already in Si Stebbins order and use false shuffles, but you’ll lose the strength of the spectator seeing the cards interwoven. Using a fully stacked deck allows you to let the spectator deal more than twenty-six cards, so if you’re a bit nervous about being limited to twenty-six then this would be the 9
method for you. Not only that, you can have the spectator give the deck a complete cut before he deals the cards. This method does require you to tell the spectator to “show us the card above and below”, in order to know what the chosen card is. The rest is selfexplanatory.
Bonus-- Brand New Sealed Deck Method Start out with a dozen or so sealed decks on a table and ask a spectator to hand you one of them. Break the seal open and shuffle it into Si Stebbins order using Darwin Ortiz’s Si Stebbins Secret, which is found in Darwin Ortiz At The Card Table. Again, since this uses faro shuffles, the performer can show the spectator that the shuffles are fair. (“Look, the cards are really mixed!”). Have the spectator cut the deck anywhere she wants and start dealing cards face down in a single pile as in the previous procedure. This time, however, you are not limited to twenty-six cards. The spectator can stop anywhere he or she wants. As in the previous method, you will have to tell the spectator to “show us the card above and below”, in order to know the identity of the selection. This is the method I use at performances when I can get the host to buy new decks ahead of time. I can then point out that the decks were purchased by someone else, are still have the factory seal on them.
Comments Once the spectator’s card is on the table, you can actually make this a prediction effect by pulling out an “Invisible Deck”, showing that before the show you had reversed ONE CARD in the deck. Place that card face down next to the selection and go from there. In this case, the spectator does not need to look at the card at all. This will fool even the people that have purchased an “Invisible Deck” at Disneyland because the only way they know how to use it is to find out what the card is BEFORE they show the reversed card. If you’ve learned the Hacker Stack from Weapons of Mass Destruction, then you don’t need to see any of the cards since you’ve memorized the order already. Darwin Ortiz published a similar effect in trick in Darwin Ortiz At The Card Table and a similar effect was also published by Verne Chesbro and J.G. Thompson Jr. called Copy Cat! in Jinx 117. 10
Russian Roulette Effect: A deck is shuffled, cut and given to a spectator who is asked to deal single cards, face down until he feels like stopping. He looks at the card on which he stopped and is then told to replace the card in the deck, reassemble the cards and shuffle the deck well. Only then is the deck handed to the performer. The performer fans the cards towards himself and upjogs six cards so the entire audience can see the backs of the six cards. Five different spectators are each asked to eliminate one of the cards. There is one upjogged card left. It is the selection.
Method: There are thirteen duplicates on top of the deck. Any type of false shuffle can be used that maintains the block of thirteen but the final shuffle is a straddle faro. Cut the top duplicate and an x card to the top-- this will be easier if you mark the back of the top duplicate, otherwise you’ll have to do it with the cards face-up. Hand the deck to the spectator and instruct him to slowly deal single face down cards on the table until he feels like stopping. As long as you say “Slowly” he’ll stop before he reaches the 26th Card-no one can stand silence for that long. Count the cards as he deals and when he stops, make sure he looks at a card in an even position-- if the last card he dealt was an even number, have him look at that one. If it was an odd number, have him look at the card on top of the cards in his hand. Ask him to show the audience the card and make it a point to demonstrate that there is no way you could see the card. Tell him to replace the card, assemble the deck and shuffle it well. When he’s done, take the deck from him and ask him to take a seat. A nice touch is to honestly overhand shuffle the deck while he is being seated. Spread the deck with the faces towards you and upjog six of the thirteen duplicates. They will be in random positions because of the shuffles so the idea that they’re all different is an easy sell. Pick someone out of the audience and tell them that you will touch one card at a time and they will pick which card is eliminated. Pick someone else and run through the same procedure. When you have one card left, pull it out very carefully, put the rest of the deck down so you have only one card in your hand. Ask the spectator to name the card and then show that you have survived the game of “Russian Roulette”.
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+1 Effect: The spectator cuts the deck freely into four piles. The top cards are taken from each pile and shown to be random. The performer explains that only in the movies and dime novels do card cheats deal themselves a pat hand. He then states that real cheats make sure that they only beat the sucker by a small amount and thus avoid suspicion. The performer then demonstrates what he means by cutting to the card one value higher than each of the four random cards.
Method: This effect requires an eight card stack and you’ll need four cards that have no duplicate values, like the 4H, 3S, 9H & JC. These four cards need to be out of sequence in terms of value. The order of the four cards below them must be in ascending order from the top down and each is one higher in value than the other four cards. So from the top down the stack would be: 4H, 3S, 9H & JC in any order followed by the 5H, 4S, 10H & QC in that exact order. Give the deck a convincing false overhand shuffle, maintaining the top stock. Set the deck on the table next to the spectator, closer to her than you and tell her you need four different cards, so you’d like her to cut the deck into four piles and as you ask her to do that, pick up the deck and drop cards from the bottom so that there are four approximately equal piles. By demonstrating this, you’re implying that the piles should be approximately equal. You’d like the spectator to mimic your procedure, but you don’t want anyone to think getting equal piles is important-- so work with whatever she cuts the first time. The pile closest to you should be the pile that was the top of the deck-- with the stack. If for any reason she leapfrogs the piles, do not panic-- just make sure you know which one the stack is on. The reason it’s preferable to have the stacked pile closer to you than her is that you’re going to pick up a pile and it looks more natural to pick up the one closest to you. Pick up the pile and push the top card diagonally to your right and slightly forward for about one third of it’s length.
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Take the top card from each pile and place it on top of the outjogged card. Do this in such a way that the four cards are slightly spread apart (Figure 1). The main idea here is to make it look casual. Count the four cards by taking them one at a time into your right hand, so that the order of the cards is reversed. Place the cards back onto the packet in the upjogged position. The upjogged cards now consist of one card from your stack and three indifferent cards. Then turn the top upjogged card face-up and square the upjogged cards onto the deck, holding a break below the four cards you just squared onto the deck. Take all four cards as one and place them on the pile closest to you, jostling the pile slightly so as to help disguise the Figure 1 fact that four cards were placed there instead of one. Then deal a card from the packet you’re holding face-up onto the other two piles (jostling them in the same way) and finish by turning the last card on your packet face-up. Place your packet with the face-up card on it back where it belongs. You’ll end up with a situation that looks like Figure 2. This is why the first four cards of the stack cannot be in order of value-- you want to imply randomness. With your right index finger, slide each face-up card forward off it’s respective pile, then reassemble the deck maintaining the stack.
Figure 2
From the moment you pick up the first pile to the moment you have all four cards face-up on top of their respective piles should be less than fifteen seconds and you should be talking as you do it. I’ll usually say something like this: “Let’s see what we have here-- one, two, three, four cards, each from a different part of the deck...” This entire procedure should look very casual-- like you just want the spectator to cut to four random cards. Hint: DO NOT use the word “Random”. From beginning to end it should only take slightly less than a minute. Essentially, this procedure should look like you have to get it out of the way before the effect begins. Once the four seemingly random cards are face-up on the table and the deck is in your hands, give it a false riffle shuffle, take a deep breath and/or pause, then begin: 13
This evening, I’m going to dispel a common myth that you’ll often see propagated in the media. Most often you’ll see reports or movies about cheats who beat the sucker by dealing themselves a blowout hand like four aces or a royal flush. That’s not the way it happens. If you think about it, those hands would make almost anyone suspicious and probably end up with someone getting their thumbs broken. As a matter of fact, cheats want to get a hand that is just slightly better than the mark’s hand. The ability to do this on the fly is the mark of a professional cheat. Now Mary has given us four random cards (NOW is the time to use the word “Random”! And DON’T use the word “picked” or “Selected”) and I’m going to shuffle the deck. As I do so, I’m going to sight each card one higher than each one of these, track the card and then cut to it. Because this is going to happen quickly, I want to be sure you understand which cards I’m looking for, so as I shuffle and cut, I’ll call them out. Let’s start with the lowest one, shall we?” You should now realize why the order of the second four cards in the stack is important-knowing the order of those cards allows you to call them out as you cut to them. Do a riffle shuffle and as you do it say “OK, there’s the Five of Hearts”. As you do the riffle shuffle it is important that you look at your hands-- remember that you’re supposed to be sighting the card. Square the deck. “Once the cheat’s sighted the card, the rest can be done by feel. It’s about twenty cards down...” As you say this, do a tabled false cut that simulates taking packets off of the top or bottom-- such as Up The Ladder or the one of the tabled false cuts from Expert At The Card Table. Do not look at your hands. Once the false cut is done, deal the top card faceup without looking at your hands. The audience must believe you’re cutting to the cards “by feel”. It will be tempting to use all sorts of flourish cuts or pop-out moves here, but don’t. In order to be consistent with the presentation it is vital to use cuts that the audience will not be able to differentiate from what they’ve seen at casinos or televised poker tournaments. Repeat this procedure for the next two cards, each time looking at the cards when you shuffle and not looking at your hands when you do the cut(s) and deal the card on the table. You’ll then have the last card on the top of the deck. “Now this time I’ll call out the position of the card and let Mary cut to it. First though a small test. Mary, look away for a second.” Turn the deck face-up and quickly and silently run a number of cards into your right hand. Don’t do this in the context of an overhand shuffle, do it in the context of spreading the cards from the left hand to the right hand. In this way, no one will know exactly how 14
many cards are in the packet. For the purposes of the explanation we’ll say it’s 7 cards. Remember the number! Set the deck face down on the table, square the packet and place it on the table. OK, Mary-- turn around. Now without touching them tell me how many cards are in that little pile. When Mary answers, look concerned. Look at Mary. Look at the audience with a deadpan look. “OK, for the last card, Mary will DEAL to the card...” Put the packet of cards back on the deck. Pause and take a deep breath here-- as if you require a large amount of concentration. On the final shuffle, add another four cards and then take your hands away from the deck. The last target card is twelve cards down. “Well, I can tell you that the Queen of Clubs is twelve cards down-- Mary, take the deck and deal twelve cards face-up from the top of the deck.” Have Mary hand you the twelfth card and turn it up slowly. Conclude by wiping the beads of perspiration from your forehead.
Comments By varying the number of cards you run into your right hand, the last target card will be at a different position each time you do this effect-- an important fact if someone ever sees you do the effect more than once. If the deck is in Si Stebbins order, you can dispense with the four card force. All you have to do is false shuffle the deck and have a spectator cut and complete the cut. As you pick the deck up, glimpse the bottom card. If it’s a Jack, Eight, Five or Two, have another spectator cut the deck. The idea here is that you don’t want the cards mentioned above on to be the face card of the deck. Once you’re in that position, take the four top cards and deal them face-up in a row from right to left. Then overhand shuffle running the bottom four cards to the top so their order is reversed and you’re in position. In this case, however, you will not be able to say “Let’s start with the lowest one, shall we?”. Instead, the first target card you find will be one higher than the card on the left end of the row, so you can say “Let’s start with the first one, shall we?”
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I realize that some performers will prefer one of these methods over the other. Regardless of which version you prefer, however, I would encourage you not to overlook the idea of forcing four cards using a “Spectator Cuts To The Aces” method. The particular sequence in this effect was from Surprise Aces published in Card Cavalcade. I’ve also been told that Ed Marlo has published a similar sequence in New Tops, but I could not find the reference.
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TrapJacks I hesitated to publish this because at first reading it will seem like just another “Sandwich Trick”-- but it’s not. I’ve used this particular item in different forms for over 15 years and it has a spectacular finish. If you’ve been practicing the Riffle Pass for years with no particular purpose in mind, this is the routine for you because it does not require your pass to go totally unnoticed. You’ll see what I mean as we progress. Start out by saying “How many people have seen that game they play on the streets of New York? They call it… three… three...” Act as if you’re thinking and speak the last few words painfully slow and almost 95% of the time someone will finish your sentence for you and say “Three Card Monte!” and as soon as they say it, look at them and without hesitation say “Oh, how much did you lose sir?” Regardless of what they say, continue by saying: “Well, that game is actually a hybrid of an old con called “Trapjacks” and it does use three cards, but it’s a little different and since the court has ordered me to donate some of my time to public service, I’m going to clue you all in on how it works—but no matter what I can’t actually play the game so don’t ask me to.” As you’re saying this, openly remove the Jack of Spades and the Jack of Clubs and place them face-up on the table. “These are my two cards—the black jacks. I like using Blackjacks because it means I either have a winning hand or a weapon—and either way I get the money! But we also need a target card, so if you could just take one of these out, I’d appreciate it.” Have the spectator select a card and as she does tell her: “Make sure I don’t see it. I don’t want anyone to accuse me of cheating. But show it to other people, would you? I don’t want to accuse YOU of cheating!” Have the card replaced and hold a break above the card.
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“Now, allow me to explain the rules of the game. When I do this, I have to get your card between the Blackjacks, get it?” At the same moment you say “When I do this…” execute a Riffle Pass. Look down at the jacks on the table and then look back up at the audience. Change the expression on your face as if you had a realization and then say “Oh no, not when they’re lying on the table like that—that’d be crazy. This is a con game, not a miracle!” Place the jacks face-up on the deck. Look at the spectators and say “Remember—when I do this...” Execute a Riffle Pass and time it so that the pass is completed the same split second you say “this” and at the same moment, look down at the deck yourself. Appear startled that the jacks have disappeared and say: “Whoa! Sorry, that was an accident. Force of habit… that was close, too. I could have been fined $500! Let me make sure I stopped myself in time.” As you’re saying this, quickly run through the cards and when you come to the face-up jacks, spread them out just enough to grab a break below the face down card underneath them, break the spread at that point and then pull all three cards back on to the half of the deck in the left hand, maintaining a three card break. Do this as you say: “All right. Fine. Stopped myself just in time. Nothing’s between ‘em.” Transfer the cards in the right hand to a modified Biddle grip by temporarily holding the packet between the right forefinger and thumb. Once you have the packet in the in this grip, pick up all three cards (jack, jack, selection) between the middle finger and thumb of the right hand, side jogged to the left of the packet (Figure 3). Peel off the first faceup jack with your left thumb onto the left hand packet and place the double card left onto the left hand packet making sure they remain square. As you place the cards in your right hand on those in your left, maintain a break between the halves.
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Figure 3
Give a sigh of relief: “Whew! That was close. Now, you said twenty bucks, right?” As you say that last sentence, look at the spectator and execute a Riffle Pass. At that moment, give an I-Can’t-Believe-I-Did-That-Again looks and say: “Oh no! Apparently I’ve trained my fingers to react even when there’s a mention of money! And this time, I couldn’t control ‘em—look!” Look down at your hands and spread the cards slightly to show a face down card between the two face-up Jacks. Take the uppermost Jack in your right hand and push the face down card off the talon in the left hand, letting it fall gently face down to the table. Replace the Jack in the right hand and ask “What was that card?” Turn the card over and look incredulous. “I can’t believe I did that. Fortunately we didn’t bet anything so it’s not a parole violation or anything…! I’ll start over, but we’ll have to take precautions to make sure I don’t do anything to violate the law. So we’ll make it unbelievably impossible. I’ll put one jack face-up on bottom and one face-up on top.” (Do I really have to tell you at this point to place one Jack face-up on bottom and one face-up on top..?) “You put your card in the middle, see? Now that’s about as difficult as I can make it. Just so you know I haven’t cheated yet, look.” When the spectator replaces her card, take it and all the cards above it in the right hand and tilt them all up to show her it’s still her card. As you tilt the cards back down, execute the Convincing Control to position her card on the bottom of the deck. Square up all the cards and table the deck. “Now in order for me to win this thing, I’d have to have one jack move up; one Jack move down; all the other cards stay still and both jacks would have to stop precisely on your card, right? And all at the same time! Think of the topological impossibility that creates!” Look a little proud of yourself and as an aside, stage whisper to a spectator “Topo-lo-gical. Not bad, huh? Seven years of Community College-- not a day wasted!” During the laugh, pick up the deck and obtain a break somewhere near the middle of the deck. “Now under those conditions, how much do you think the average sucker would bet? I mean it looks impossible, right? What’d ya think-- $10? $20? $50?” 19
Continue to name amounts until the spectator blurts out an amount and at that precise point, execute a Riffle Pass. “Man—these hands, they just have mind of their own. I’m gonna have to see a reflexologist…or something..” Ribbon spread the deck widely on the table so the audience can see the face down card between the face-up jacks. Remove all the cards above and below these three cards and reassemble the cards so the deck is in dealing position in the left hand. Slide the face down selection towards you so it separates from the face-up Jacks and pick it up between your right thumb and forefinger at the back right corner in preparation for a Top Change. “Oh man! I almost hate to look…” Tilt the card face-up and show that it’s the selection, but keep your hands close together for the Top Change. Once the audience sees the card, (and you should look at it too), tell them: “That’s it-- I’m done. I’ve come too close to violating my cheating sobriety.” The idea here is to give an applause cue or otherwise make the audience think the effect is over. At that moment, execute a Top Change; freeze your hands for a brief moment and then table the face down card in your right hand without looking at it. (Attitude: Tricks over, this isn’t important anymore!) As you pick up the face-up jacks with your right hand get a break under the top card (the selection) and placing both jacks face-up on the deck, maintaining the break. During this whole sequence, look as if you have an overwhelming compulsion and then say “Wait. I have an idea” as your right hand picks up all three cards above the break in a Biddle grip. Peel off the first jack onto the deck with your left thumb and then take it back in Biddle grip as you say “…if I put the two jacks on the table…” -- drop all three cards onto the table. If you flex the cards just slightly before you do this and drop them straight down with no lateral movement, they will stay perfectly aligned. The second you let them drop, pick up the tabled face down card and say “and I put the…” tilt the face of the card towards yourself and look at the face. Miscall the card as soon as you see the face as the selection (we’ll assume the selected card is the Two of Spades).“Two of Spades in the deck…” Square the card into the deck. “Then there’s no way…wait a minute, let’s test it.” Lower the deck to the table with both hands so you’re ready to riffle the deck. Hold the deck in this position about two inches above the table surface at a slight downward angle and about 10 inches from the tabled packet. Take a deep breath as if you’re preparing for the worse and ask the spectator to name any denomination of bill they think of. When they do, sharply riffle the deck.
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The air movement from the riffle will cause the three tabled cards to gently float apart, revealing the face down card between the jacks. Figure 4 gives a realistic expectation of how the cards will most often separate, however by experimenting with the distance and strength of the riffle, you can almost always get a larger separation. Slowly turn the card face-up and with a look of resignation say:
Figure 4
“I guess old habits die hard; but apparently this one isn’t even sick!”
Comments I realize that this specific presentation may not fit everyone’s character. In short, if you’re an accountant, police officer or federal judge and you look or behave like one, you may want to consider a slightly different presentational angle. How about this one? “Well, as you may know, I am a law abiding citizen, however a few of my ancestors did skirt the law occasionally. I found out last year that my great-great grandfather was a card cheat! I knew this stuff was in my genes, but I didn’t know HOW much until a few months ago. He was legendary in a game called TrapJacks and once I started experimenting with this game, a very strange thing happened. My hands apparently are genetically programmed to cheat at this particular game! I know science won’t back this, but it doesn’t back being possessed either and those are the only two possibilities I can think of. Let me show you what I mean…” This routine can be used to give a performer confidence in his Riffle Pass because the pass happens at a moment in which your fingers are supposedly moving on their own, so the presentation allows for the audience to “know something is happening”. But please don’t use it to excuse sloppy pass work in other routines. The second sequence is a Frank Simon effect and it first appeared in Earl Nelson's book Variations published in 1978. This book is also an excellent source if you need to learn the Convincing Control. The Convincing Control and the Immediate Bottom Placement are different names for what is essentially the same sleight, so even if you do not have Variations, you may already have a reference in your library. An excellent description is also in Jennings 67. 21
My Name Is Nobody This is a powerful effect that will convince your audience that you can easily cheat at cards while at the same time minimizing sleights-- a Multiple Shift and an in the hands false cut. Neither of these sleights will seriously bust your knuckles.
Effect The performer tells the story of a legendary card cheat who could cut the aces from a shuffled deck, but never told anyone how he did it. Instead the cheat would describe a virtually impossible method so no one could duplicate his feat. In telling the story, the performer actually does it. He verifies that there are only four aces in the deck, makes sure the aces are in different places and shuffles the deck. He then proceeds to cut to all four aces exactly as the cheat described.
Method Start out by referencing the story and at the same time explaining your next few actions. This will frame the procedure of taking the aces out and putting them back again as something that needs to be out of the way before the story begins*: “In a minute, I’m going to tell you a story but if I’m lucky, in two minutes you’ll swear that there are more than four aces in this deck-- so let’s eliminate that possibility right now. I’m going to go through all the cards, pull out the aces and you verify there are only four in this deck.”** Run through the face-up cards and and as each ace becomes visible, drop it to the table. When you’re done, make sure the spectator agrees that there are only four aces in the deck. Then shuffle the cards once, fan out the cards and place each of the aces somewhat evenly spaced in the fan, leaving them outjogged for about half their length. They need to be in CHaSeD order from the top down. Close up the fan and execute the most deceptive Multiple Shift you know. I have used the Cardini Multiple Shift for over thirty-five years and that’s the one I recommend. Regardless of which shift you use, the audience has to be convinced that the deck is shuffled after the aces have been replaced and the aces have to remain in order. The Cardini Multiple Shift achieves that perfectly. Now that the dirty work is done, you can set the deck down, take a deep breath and introduce the story: 22
“About 50 years ago, there was a legendary card cheat who was able to consistently cut to the aces from a shuffled deck. The method he said he used is absolutely impossible-legend has it that he gave a phony method to throw other cheats off the trail. Here’s what he told them: he said that from a shuffled deck he could riffle down the corner of the deck, sight the aces, count the cards that came off of his thumb after he sighted the aces and then cut that precise number of cards off the deck. For over five decades cheats have tried to make this work and their conclusion? Nobody could do it. Nobody. Let me show you how impossible it is...” Hold the deck as in Figure 5 and riffle the inner corner of the deck with your right thumb as in Figure 5. The riffle should be fast and tight. Move your hands so that the spectator can see the the cards fly by as you riffle them. The impression you want to create is that although they can see the indices of the cards fly by, there is absolutely no way it would be humanly possible to sight the aces or count any of the cards. This sets up the impossibility of what you’re about to do, so it’s very important that you do this for a few people so everyone gets the idea.
Figure 5
“Now that you’ve got the idea of how impossible this is, I’m actually going to try it. Of course, I’ve been trying to do this for years and years.” Riffle the deck the same way you did for the spectator a moment ago, but this time, watch the indices and look like you’re calculating. Then make the claim: “OK, I think I saw the Ace of Clubs at twenty-three cards down from the top of the deck, so if I make some precise cuts...” As you say “precise cuts”, you’re going to execute a false cut that maintains the top few cards of the deck. I use a full deck false cut I learned from Gerry Griffin, but if you want to use a different cut, make sure it simulates taking more than one packet off the top of the deck and that it can be done fairly rapidly. Since you’re claiming that you’re cutting a precise number of cards, breaking that number up into two or more packets makes it difficult for a spectator to ask if he can count the cards you cut off. And since you’re going to do the same action another three times you want to avoid that and make backtracking the cuts impossible. You’ll get the idea pretty quickly if you take a look at the false cut I use-- a basic description of it is in the description of sleights at the back of 23
these notes. The ideal cut would be for the audience to see a few packets flying around so they not only can’t backtrack the cut but it also looks like you’re cutting precise amounts of cards. Look a little doubtful and then snap the Ace of Clubs face-up and drop it onto the table. Give a look of relief and then say: “That’s one. I’ll go for two...” Using the same procedure (calculating the riffle, calling the specific ace and how many cards it is from the top of the deck), cut another two aces looking increasingly concerned with each cut-- as if the risk of failure is increasing each time. Right before you get to the last ace, look at the audience and say something like: “This is it. I’ve never gotten this far before.” Hesitate, take a breath and go into the cut. Peek at the card, but don’t let the audience see it. Look a little disappointed as you say: “Folks, they were right. Nobody can do this. But tonight...my name...is Nobody!” Snap the last ace face-up at the same time you say “Nobody”.
Comments Which false cut you choose to do in this effect is very important. You do not want to choose a cut that looks so hard to do that it distracts the audience from the effect. I’ve tried several and although some worked, I have yet to find one that gives me the same balance as the Gerry Griffin’s cut. This is one of my all-time favorite Tag Lines-- it comes from an old Spaghetti Western movie directed by Sergio Leone called My Name Is Nobody and starred Terence Hill and Henry Fonda. Once you see the movie, you’ll immediately see the significance of the tag line.
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Memory Paper I debated for weeks on whether or not to include this effect, but in the end decided to include it. It’s a lot of fun to perform and since “memory paper” may be real technology someday, I thought I should share the fun before it’s actually invented and takes away the impossibility. It’s simple to do, but the willingness of people to believe that technology can do anything makes it a Card Scam well worth doing. Additionally, it is the perfect trick to do with the new “Hybrid Decks”, such as the Black Tiger deck of cards-- because those cards look so different than what spectators are used to seeing.
Effect The performer demonstrates a new technology called “Memory Paper”, that will remember which card a spectator has selected.
Method The methodology here is simply a sequence of standard card changes but with a choreography that strengthens the effects premise. Start out with a deck of cards in your pocket that has an unusual back-- something that looks high-tech like the aforementioned Black Tiger is perfect. “You know as old as sleight of hand actually is, technology is changing it as fast as anything else-- let me show you something that I was sent by a playing card company. They asked me to test it out so you have the privilege of being involved in one of the first Card Trick Lab Experiments in the world!” Shuffle the deck and ask the spectator to select one. Have it replaced and then control it to the top while you’re explaining: “Now this is how most card tricks begin. You pick a card it’s lost in the deck and the performer ends up finding it. This deck, however, totally eliminates sleight of hand-- as least its supposed to...this isn’t your card, is it? At this point do the best double-lift you can do and time your question so the face of the card is shown just at the end of the question. I prefer Ron Bauer’s Two Card Turnover Technique because it looks very casual. As the spectator confirms it’s not her card, turn the double face-down again and take the face-down card into your right hand at the inner 25
right corner. Ask the spectator to hold out their right hand palm up. Rub the face-down card very lightly on the spectator’s hand and as you say: “If I rub any card on your hand, it’s supposed to change into your card!” At the moment you say “Into your card” turn the card face-up to show that it’s changed. You’re going to do a Top Change here, but you have two different moments in which to accomplish it, so take advantage of the first opportunity if you can. If your technique is solid enough, the spectator should be taken off guard and look up. That is the first opportunity for the Top Change. If by chance she doesn’t, ask her if she wants to know how it’s done and attempt to make eye contact with her as you ask her. That should give you more than enough cover to do a standard Top Change. I’ve never had anyone not want to know how it’s done, so we’ll assume they said yes. “Well, it’s something they call “Memory Paper”. The entire deck is made out of this stuff and it’s designed so once a card is touched by anyone other than me, the deck remembers which card was touched. In fact, I’m rather surprised it worked. Let’s try it again!” As you say “Let’s try it again”, slide the face-down card in your hand into the middle of the deck and do another double-turnover. “We’ll take this card...” Turn the double facedown, starting the same sequence as before. This time, however, when the card has been rubbed on the spectator’s hand, leave it face down in her hand for her to turn over. “Hmmm. Well that seems to work-- I wonder how the cards communicate with each other? I mean logically, if this works every time, every card in the deck would have to know what card you originally touched....here, put it back and make sure you don’t touch any of the other cards...” As you’re finishing these lines up, take a small packet of 10 to 13 cards off the top of the deck with your right hand and have the spectator replace the card on the cards in your left hand. Replace the packet of cards onto the selection, maintaining a break. Look like you’re thinking for a second-- consternation would be the word to describe the desired look on your face. “Wait a minute... Let’s try something else...”
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Spread a few cards haphazardly face down into your right hand and then tilt them towards yourself so you can see the faces. Do this again with enough cards so the last card you spread is the selection. The idea is to make this look like you’re looking for the selection. When you tilt the cards this time, you are in position for Ed Marlo’s Flexible Switchout. Execute the switch and casually toss (place) the switched in card on the table face-down. Reassemble the deck, maintaining a break below the selection and then start spreading cards into your right hand in preparation for a selection. When you come to the selection, cull it under the spread so you can force it using the Touch Force. “Well if this works like it’s supposed to work, you could touch any card in here...” Have the spectator touch a card somewhere in the middle of the deck and execute the Touch Force. As you tilt the packet of cards in your right hand up so the spectator can see the selection, tilt it a little more so you can take an obvious look at it. Look impressed. “Wow-- that’s actually pretty impressive. But that means this one must have...” As you say this, place the cards in your right hand onto the cards in your left hand, maintaining a break, but leaving the deck unsquared. As you say the next sentence, say it slowly like you’re thinking and look at the card on the table. If you do this properly, all attention will focus on the tabled card. At that moment, Side Steal the selection as you square the deck. Turn the tabled card face-up and look even more impressed, then put the card back into the deck. Ask the spectator to touch the top card of the face-down deck: “Do me a favor and touch the top card with just one finger...very lightly now...” Once she’s done that, push the card off and take it face down by the right inner corner, in position for a Top Change. Tilt the card up so she can see it and continue the tilt so you can see it. Tilt the card face down so you’re in position for a Top Change. “Now THAT’S modern technology for you! It doesn’t get any cooler than that...” If you say this properly and then pause, the audience will get the impression that you’re finished-- somewhat like an applause cue. It is at this time that you execute another Top Change. Casually place the card face down on the table and as you do so, relax your left hand a little, holding the deck loosely caged in the left hand. Suddenly tense all the muscles in your left arm, but not your left hand. The cards in your hand will jump around a little.
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The object here is to make it look similar to the deck silently vibrating. Pause. Look at your hand. “Did you see that?!” “Vibrate” the deck again. “Someone must be operating a faulty electrical appliance in the nearby area. Which means...” Turn the card on the table face-up and show it’s no longer the selection. Look dismayed. Pick up the selection and place it in the middle of the deck and give the deck an overhand shuffle to cover your tracks. “Well, on to more traditional methods. I’ll file a full lab report in the morning...” Case the deck, put it away and continue the show.
Comments The line that references a “faulty electrical appliance” is from Clayton Rawson and is on page 109 of My Best by J.G. Thompson, Jr.
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Reading The Tells Here’s an effect that demonstrates the idea of leverage-- it only requires one sleight, looks impossible and can be adapted to your performing style and audience because you can play it seriously or comedically. Not only that, it can be done as a Platform Trick OR for a small group of people. Thus, with one sleight you get a versatile, powerful effect with more than one style of presentation.
Effect: The performer explains the idea of tells in the game of Poker-- the concept that an astute player can tell what type of hand the opposing players have by their mannerisms. He further explains that since he’s not allowed to play poker, he needs better odds so he’ll read the tells from various audience members. A spectator shuffles a regulation deck of cards and selects one while the deck is in her hands. The card is shown to the audience and replaced while the deck is in the spectator’s hands-- at all times the deck is held by the spectator. By asking the audience direct questions and deciding if the answers are true or false based on tells, the performer discerns the identity of the card.
Method: Start out by having a deck shuffled by a spectator who is directly to your right and while she’s shuffling address the audience: “In Poker and other games of chance, there is something called “Tells”, which means that a very good player can figure out how good of a hand the opposition has by detecting very small changes in his mannerisms. It could be almost any type of facial tick or even differences in the length of time it takes someone to blink. This is a crucial skill when it comes to bluffing or as we say in the business: LYING! For those of you who think I’m not serious about this, when you get home, look up the standard text on the subject: “Caro’s Book of Tells. Or you can look up former FBI Agent Joe Navarro’s book called Read 'Em and Reap.” Speaking of the FBI, I’m not allowed to play poker anymore so I’m really out of practice. But if you’ll give me a little room, I’d be glad to demonstrate how this works. Judy, take the deck and spread it out a little with the faces towards you. Go through the 29
cards until you see a card you really like and push it up a little-- about half it’s length, like this. Make sure you hold the deck tight, like a poker player would.” Demonstrate what you want Judy to do by spreading the cards faces towards yourself and up jog any card near the center of the deck. When you do this, hold the cards at chest level and very close to you-- much like a poker player trying to keep the other players from seeing their hand (Figure 6). Once she understands the procedure, hand her the deck and have her shuffle it again, saying “Shuffle the deck well before you pick your lucky card so there’s no way I could possibly have anything memorized...”
Figure 6
When she’s sure the deck is shuffled, let her run through the procedure you described a few seconds ago. She’ll end up holding the deck slightly spread with a single card upjogged. “Now since I’m out of practice, I’m going to need more than one person involved so that I have a wider variety of tells to read...” As you say this lightly grasp the upjogged selection by the upper right corner and gently lift it up and remove it from the spread. Turn your entire body counter-clockwise, including your right arm. As soon as the card is facing the audience, freeze the right arm, but continue to rotate your head and body counter-clockwise. Execute the Flicker Glimpse as you do this, saying “THIS is Judy’s lucky card...” The flick should be done at the same time you say “THIS”. The flick then becomes a gesture of emphasis. Essentially what you’re doing is rotating your body and your head at the same time, but your head rotates slightly faster. When your right arm is holding the card in front of the audience your head continues to rotate. The time to take the glimpse (and flick the card) is at the moment your right arm stops. In this way, you’ll catch sight of the card at the very last second out of the corner of your right eye.
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You’re now in the following position: Your head and body are turned to the extreme left, your right hand is holding a card in front of the audience. I know it sounds painful, but you already know the card, so you should be very comfortable anyway. Now rotate your body clockwise, but keep your right arm in it’s relative position so when you’re facing the audience, the card will be right in front of the cards spread between Judy’s hands. This entire procedure should take about six seconds and if properly done, no one will have the slightest idea that you could have seen the card. The timing, however, is crucial and will require practice. Once you have the timing down, though, you will have a selection procedure that can be leveraged into a large number of effects. You are now facing the audience and holding the card right in front of Judy’s face and/or the cards spread between her hands. It should be clear to everyone that you’re head is turned away from Judy and the cards. “Judy, turn the deck around and put this card face-up somewhere in the middle of the face down deck. I won’t look until you tell me the card is hidden. OK? Fine. Now I’m left with nothing but my rusty ability to read tells...” “Now it’s not just how GOOD the card is-- we’re looking to discover the exact identity of the card. So to do that, I’m going to ask different people specific questions about the card and they can lie or tell the truth. Hopefully by reading their various tells, I’ll know whether they’re bluffing or not. Everybody get it? You can lie or tell the truth when I ask you a question. Just put on your best poker face for me.” Look at a specific audience member and ask: “Sir, was it a red card?” Regardless of the answer, make up a “tell” and explain to the audience that it allows you to know whether the spectator is lying or telling the truth. Assuming the spectator lied, it would be something like this: “Well, one of your tells is looking up and to the right when you lie, so I’m sure it was a red card...” Ask individual audience members different questions, make up a tell and claim that it allows you to know whether the respondent is bluffing or not. Make sure you personalize 31
the tells-- and if the spectator actually DOES change their expression make sure you use that and point it out to the rest of the audience. Let’s assume the selection is the Eight of Hearts. Here is a sample script based on that: “Is the card red or black? Ah! You blinked your eyes for longer than most people do, so I’m sure you’re lying. So now I know it’s a red card! “You Miss-- is it a heart or a diamond? Well you’re pretty good, but your facial muscles were too relaxed for you to by lying-- so now I know it’s a heart!” “Sir-- the gentleman in the red tie-- was it a number or a picture card? Wow-- you’re even better that she was, but the left corner of your mouth turned up a little-- almost as if you were trying to hide a smile. So now I know you’re lying and it was a number card. Hmmm... so far all the men have been liars, but it’s my guess that all the women in the audience already knew that...!” “The lady in the blue dress-- was it an odd or even number? Okay, I don’t want to panic you or anything, but there’s a small crease above your left eye when you lie-- so now I know it’s an even card...” “You sir-- is it higher than a six? Ah, consistency. The men have maintained a consistent record of lies... by the way, your forehead creases a bit when you lie. Make sure your wife never finds out about that! “Let’s see... even heart, even and higher than a six. That only leaves ONE choice-- the Eight of Hearts!” The odds are that it will be a number card since they greatly out number the face cards, however it the selection is a face card, you’ll have to ask fewer questions. One way I draw it out is to ask a woman “Was it a Superior Female or one of the lesser males?” This will not only get a laugh if it’s played right (like some of the other comments in the script), but it will also give you one more question unless it was a Queen.
Comments I’ve used this effect in various forms for over twenty years and most recently published the idea in Weapons of Mass Destruction. This presentation, however, allows you to involve more of the spectators and can even be done as a platform trick. (If it’s a fairly large audience, bringing out a pair of binoculars to see the faces you’re “reading” is very
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funny...) Additionally, the glimpse specifically fits the presentation so I would caution you not to use any other. Do not miss the fact that the card is replaced face-up into the face-down deck. This is a safeguard that will prevent anyone from telling you that you have failed. But once you named the card, do not run through the deck to prove it unless you have to-- it would be anti-climatic.
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NumerAlphatology Driving home the leverage that glimpses give you, here is an effect that utilizes the same selection procedure and glimpse as the previous one but gives you an entirely different performance piece. Not only that, but it can be played seriously or all-out total comedy.
Effect: The performer demonstrates a “serious pseudo-science” he has developed that allows him to tell which card someone has selected. A spectator shuffles a regulation deck of cards and selects one while the deck is in her hands. The card is shown to the audience and replaced and the spectator then shuffles the deck well. Only then does the performer take the deck. Telling the spectator that he is able to narrow the choices down based on the physical characteristics he’s already observed, the performer up jogs five cards. He then asks the spectator various questions and based on the responses, eliminates one card at a time. After four questions there is only one card left and it is the selection.
Method: Start out by having a deck shuffled and while the spectator (who should be directly to your right) is shuffling, start out by saying: “Have you ever heard of Numerology? Numerology the belief that there is a relationship between numbers and physical objects or living things. It’s an ancient mystical belief but over the years I’ve developed it into a serious pseudo-science. I’ve discovered that people have a certain affinity for specific playing cards and have developed a system to discover which cards match which people. “Mary, take the deck and spread it out a little with the faces towards you. Go through the cards until you see a card that you feel a connection to and push it up a little-about half it’s length, like this.” Demonstrate what you want Mary to do by spreading the cards faces towards yourself and up jog any card near the center of the deck. When you do this, hold the cards slightly below chin level and very close to you-- much like a poker player trying to keep the other 34
players from seeing their hand. This is the same selection procedure used in the previous effect. Once she understands the procedure, hand her the deck and have her shuffle it again, saying “Shuffle the deck well so it’s a fair scientific test.” Once Mary has decided on a card, ask her: “Do you feel a strong attraction to that card? If not let me know and you can go through again. I want you to find a card that has a compelling attraction.” When she’s sure she has a card that has “called to her” she’ll end up holding the deck slightly spread with a single card upjogged. “Mary, do you know what a “double-blind scientific control is? It means that if you forget the card, I can still look good! So as a double-blind scientific control we’ll show the card to the rest of the audience.” Lightly grasp the upjogged selection by the upper right corner and gently remove it from the spread. Turn your entire body counter-clockwise, including your right arm. As soon as the card is facing the audience, freeze the right arm, but continue to rotate your head and body counter-clockwise. Execute the Flicker Glimpse as you say “Please remember that THIS is the card Mary is attracted to...” Make sure you flick the card at the same time you say “THIS” so it’s a gesture of emphasis. You’re now in the following position: Your head and body are turned to the extreme left and your right hand is holding a card in front of the audience. Now rotate your body clockwise, but keep your right arm in it’s relative position so when you’re facing the audience, the card will be right in front of the cards spread between Judy’s hands. This entire procedure should take about six seconds and if properly done, no one will have the slightest idea that you could have seen the card. “Mary, put the card back in the deck and shuffle it really well so NO ONE knows where the card is. Once you’re done, let me know it’s safe-- I won’t look until then!” 35
When Mary tells you to turn around, take the deck and give it a shuffle as you say: “Now from our interaction here and the way you carry yourself, I can already narrow the choices down...” Spread the cards between your hands with the faces towards you and up jog five cards, making sure that one of them is the selection. Let no one see the faces of any of the cards. “As I said, we’re going to use the pseudo-science Numeralphatology. Did I mention I invented it? I’ll have to ask you some questions regarding your preferences on other things and each answer should help me eliminate one of these cards...” Look at Mary and ask a question that has to do with a numerical or personal preference, like: “Do you prefer the number 16 or the number 246, 968?” or: “Mary, do you prefer the color blue or cajun food?” The idea here is to ask one question for each card and eliminate one of the cards after Mary answers. Each question should be about Mary’s preferences and some of the questions should be about numbers, although it should never be a question that could give you a hint of what the card is, like asking if she likes even or odd numbers. This allows for a great range of presentation styles because you can play it seriously (non-funny questions) or comedically (funny questions). I try to keep a list of fairly funny questions-- and I’m not going to tell you what they are. However I’ll give you one hint: You can often make the question funny by a comparison between normal and ridiculous (as in the number question above) or by giving her a choice between two totally unrelated things, like the choice between the color blue and cajun food. Once there’s only one card left, you can conclude the effect by saying something like this: Mary, from interpreting your preferences to various things, I’ve been able to use the pseudo-science of Numeralphatology to come to only ONE conclusion-- that THIS is the one card that you would be compelled to choose-- the Nine of Diamonds!”
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Comments Once in a while, a spectator will try and give you an answer that avoids answering the question. For example, if you were to ask something like this: Question: “Mary do you prefer blue or red?” Answer: “Neither...” Look at Mary, roll your eyes and upjog another card. If she gets a laugh, she may do it again. In which case, you roll your eyes, upjog another card and say something like: “Uh... Mary? It’s only a 20 minute show...” Finally, I’ll state the obvious and say that if you’re going to play this seriously, then you should tailor the script appropriately and tone down the humor. If you don’t know which parts are humorous, I only charge $100 an hour to teach comedy by phone.
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Calling The Shot This is an effect based on something Terry LeGerould showed me a very long time ago, but I’ve changed the idea into something much different. Additionally, it can also give you an excellent ace cutting effect which is briefly described in the Comments section.
Effect Three cards are selected and shuffled into the deck. The performer demonstrates he has developed the knack to cut to any card simply by calling out the name of the card as he cuts to it. To demonstrate, he cuts the deck three times while saying: Nine...of...Clubs. The Nine of Clubs is cut to the top! To further demonstrate, he then cuts to the first two selections and let’s the last spectator call out their selection as he cuts! Each time the performer is able to show the top and bottom cards of the deck.
Method Haver three cards selected and control them to the top, but make sure they are on top in the order in which they were selected. You’ve probably already guessed that I use the Cardini Multiple Shift, however almost any deceptive method will work here as long as it’s quick and retains the order of the selections. Glimpse the bottom card without letting the spectators see it-- I get the glimpse during an all-around square-up-- this is described in the Sleights section. This will put you in the following position: you know the identity of the bottom card and you have the selections on top in the order in which they were selected. Double cut the bottom card to the top and start the pitch: “You know, over the years I’ve developed a certain knack that is unique. OK, it’s just a little weird, but it works for me. Let me show you what I mean...” As you say this, execute the Straddle Faro Glimpse as follows as described in the Sleight Descriptions at the end of these notes. You’re now in the following position: You have a small number of cards on top of the deck, the key card you glimpsed during the Straddle Faro, followed by a known card and the selections in the order which they were selected.
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“See, I can call my shots. I can cut to any card I need with three cuts of the deck. Now I’ve shuffled the deck, so to tell the truth, I don’t know where your cards are-- let’s make sure they’re not on top.” Push off a few face-down cards into your right hand and tilt them toward you so both you and the audience can see the faces. Ask “Not here, are they?” Keep up this procedure until the last card you push off is the card you sighted during the Straddle Faro Glimpse. Since it’s only a few cards, you can most probably do this in one push off sequence, but if you don’t, quickly push off single face down cards, tilting them in the same manner until the last card you pushed off is the card you sighted during the Straddle Faro Glimpse. Once you’re there, flip the deck face-up in the left hand, but as you do so, retain the card you sighted during the Straddle Faro Glimpse on top of the deck with your left thumb. Then push a few cards off the bottom. “Not here either?” Then flip the cards in your right hand over and add them to the face of the face-up deck. Flip the deck face down. This entire procedure should take about ten seconds. As you say the following, get a break below the top card of the deck. “Then let me show you what I mean. All I have to do to find a card is call it out. Let’s say I’m looking for the... (act like you’re thinking...) Nine of Clubs. All I have to do is call the shot, like this...” Grasp the deck in the right hand as in Figure 7-the right thumb takes the over the break. Bring your left hand under the deck and riffle up from the bottom approximately 1/3 of the cards with the tip of the right thumb and cut those cards to the top. Repeat the action with another 1/3 of the deck all the while maintaining the break with the right thumb. Repeat it a third time, but this time riffle off all the cards below the break and cut them to the top. You have, essentially triple cut the top card to the bottom. Show that the Nine of Clubs is on top and that you’ve successfully “Called The Shot”.
Figure 7
Each time you cut the bottom packet to the top, call out a part of the card, i.e. Nine...of...Clubs. Each word is said as you place the cut off packet on top of the deck. Do not overlook the riffle. It should sound exactly the same on each cut. Look at the first spectator and ask: 39
“Get the idea? What was the name of your card?” Using the same procedure, cut the spectator’s card to the top. After the card is shown, drop it to the table and push off the top card and show it to the audience as you say: “See? If I was one card off, I wouldn’t have made it!” Repeat the procedure for the second spectator but this time when you show the indifferent card, don’t use the same exact phrase. Instead say something like: See? It’s just a knack!” or “That was close...” Hesitate as if you have an idea and then address the third spectator: “Wait a minute-- it occurs to me that you might think I’m cheating because I know the card before I cut. So this time, YOU call the shot as I cut...but don’t go faster than I did because my fingers need to keep up!” Have the spectator call out her card just as you did the previous cards, repeat the procedure, show the card and drop it onto the table as you say “OK, maybe it’s NOT unique to me... but don’t try this at home...”
Comments Do not overlook the fact that this methodology can also be used for an in-the-hands ace cutting procedure that mimics Ed Marlo’s Estimation Aces but leaves the guesswork and the need for a table behind. If you do this, you will not need to demonstrate the procedure using a “random” card. (In our example the “random” card was the Nine of Clubs). You’ll simply need to get the four aces, in known order, to the top of the deck with an indifferent card on top of them. Then do the Straddle Faro Glimpse, show the aces aren’t on top or bottom and proceed from there, calling out each ace as you go. I prefer to make the last ace the Ace of Spades because... OK, I don’t know why, I just like it.
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The Angle Cut Key Card While there are all types of key cards, I’ve never found one that could be used to my satisfaction. Corner Shorts usually require riffling at the corner or tapping the deck on the table at the corner which I’ve always thought was rather strange behavior. A short card is better, however is also has some rather strange maneuvers required to use it effectively and can often be detected due to the brief. Scallop shorts and Belly Strippers are better, but rather limited in the way you can find them. So I had to invent my own.
Manufacturing An Angle Cut Key Card First, let’s take a look at how it’s constructed and then we’ll get into how versatile it actually is. Here are the tools you need to make this card: 1) A small metal ruler-- found at almost any office supple store. 2) A pair of nail clippers-- found at any drugstore or grocery store. 3) A four-way nail buffer-- found at almost any drugstore. 4) A very sharp, but safe razor knife-- found at almost any hardware store. 5) A surface you can cut on that will not let the knife sink into it-- like heavy glass or metal. Figure 8
In the Figure 8, you can see scratches on the cutting surface. That’s because it’s made of plexiglass-- not hard, thick glass. When you are using a cutting surface to make key cards, the harder the surface, the better the card. The reason is that if pressure on the knife causes the knife to sink into the surface, it will press the edge of the card into the surface, thus giving the card a slight “lip”. Although I normally use heavy glass for doing this, in this explanation I’ll be using the plexiglass so I can explain how to get rid of the “lip”. In this way you’ll be able to compensate if you cannot find or purchase the heavy glass necessary. And since you’ll be putting a good deal of pressure on it, the glass will have to be very thick.
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Take out the card you’re going to alter and place it face up on the cutting surface. You’re going to make a very small, angular cut on the right long side of the card. In figure x you can see me getting ready for the cut and exactly how much I’m going to cut off. While you’ll be able to reduce the amount cut from the card after working with the ACKC, it’s best to start with the amount shown so you can experiment with it first. Figure 9
After you’ve cut the card, there may be a noticeable sharp corner on the outer right side of it, depending on how much you cut off. Using the nail clippers, clip the sharp corners away making very small cuts and gradually round the corner. The smaller the cuts you make, the better the results will be. Using the roughest surface of the nail buffer, smooth out the corner until it’s almost perfectly round. Use very short, very light strokes.
Figure 10
This is a picture of the card after it’s been cut and has had the corner rounded. Once you get used to using the ACKC, you’ll be able to work a card which has a much smaller piece cut off and there will be very little corner rounding necessary. At first, I suggest using a larger cut and a rounded corner for reasons I’ll discuss later.
Figure 11 42
The last and final step is sometimes necessary to remove the “Lip” that comes with cutting the card. Set the card flat on the glass and run the smoother sides of the nail buffer over the edge and corner of the card that’s been cut. Then turn the card over and do it again. I do this every time, even if I’m using a glass cutting surface. Figure 12
Advantages Of The Angle Cut Key Card Once you make this card and put it in the deck you will be amazed at how many different ways you’ll be able to gain control of it. One of the unusual properties is that it is selfadjusting. In other words, you can easily adjust the brief to be almost anywhere you want it to be-- at the front end, the back end or even on either long side of the deck. Not only that, but once you learn to handle it, you can hide the brief from a particular side. These properties make the ACKC one of the most versatile key cards in existence. Rather than spend dozens of pages describing all the different methods you can use to shift and/or position this card, I’m going to briefly describe some of the ways you can gain control of the card and let you have a fun evening playing with the card so you can discover ways to position it that fit your performing style. I will say, however, that you should start by squaring the deck on the table in different ways-- try all four edges of the deck and you’ll see how the card adjusts. You’ll even find that you can use it if you’re left handed!
Here is a close-up of the deck when it is squared and on the table. You can see the brief on the right side of the deck. From both ends and the front, however, the deck will look perfectly normal. It is also possible to get the brief on the left side! Figure 13 43
As you can see, the ACKC can be easily cut to the top in an ordinary riffle shuffle. Here the picture shows the right thumb simply lifting up at the brief. I riffle up with my right thumb because that’s how I normally shuffle.
Figure 14
Here is a close up that shows me gaining control of the ACKC by simple pulling down with my left little finger. If you look closely, you’ll see the last card coming starting to come off -- the ACKC is right below it. This action takes only one second and can be done as your right hand comes over the deck to cut it. In this case you’ll have a break below the key card. Figure 15
And of course, you can also use your left thumb to riffle down to gain control of the ACKC which makes forcing the card below it in the context of a riffle force possible to do without holding a break. In this photograph, the ACKC has just been released by the left thumb. With a little experimentation you can also get ACKC to outjog in different places! Figure 16
I cannot emphasize the versatility of the ACKC enough-- it is the most versatile key card I’ve even used or heard of. It can be adapted to almost anyone’s performing style, it can be used by right or left handed people and you can gain control of it using actions that are normal and natural. 44
The Camouflage Spread This is a concept which most Cardmen know about, but few have exploited to it’s fullest extent. First, let’s talk about camouflage. One of the key factors in camouflage is the idea of random patterns. Unfortunately when most of us handle cards, we handle them neatly. Let’s look at two pictures. Figure 17 is a fairly neat ribbon spread. Figure 18 is the result of dribbling the cards onto the table. Which picture implies randomness? In which display would the spectator reach in and grab one with no hesitation?
Figure 18
Figure 17
There are two points here that I want you to understand. First, human beings like order and do not like to disturb or corrupt something that is orderly, neat and tidy. If you spread cards on the table in a neat ribbon spread and ask a spectator to take one, almost without exception they’ll reach forward with their index finger and thumb, being very careful to not disturb your neat, orderly display. On the other hand, if you dribble the cards on the table as in Figure 18 and ask someone to “reach in there and snag one”, they’ll have no hesitation to do just that. The first point is this: disorder implies randomness. Compare the two pictures again. In which of the pictures would it be more difficult to detect a change? Obviously it would be Figure 18. The second point is this: random patterns are a prime factor in camouflage. Now admittedly these principles have limited applications when the cards are on the table, although there are a few. However both principles can be leveraged to a great advantage when the cards are in your hands.
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Figure 19 is a picture of Derrick Chung offering the cards for a selection using the LePaul Spread. Do you see how neat and tidy it is? There are two things about this I want you to notice. Again, if you ask a spectator to select one of these cards, they’ll reach forward and attempt to take one without messing up your pretty spread. It is a natural human tendency to prefer order over chaos. We like neat things and we will take pains not to mess them up. In terms of the Classic Force, this is a disadvantage because the one thing you don’t want when using a Classic Force is for the spectator to hesitate. The other problem with this display is that it is an Figure 19 orderly pattern and therefore it is much easier to detect changes in it. If you spread the cards between your hands this neatly, it makes it much more difficult to accomplish under the spread work-- because orderly patterns do not facilitate camouflage.
Now take a look at how sloppy my spread is when I offer the cards for a selection (Figure 20). There isn’t a spectator in the world that wouldn’t just reach in there and grab one with no hesitation. That not only makes the Classic Force easier, if you spread cards like this consistently, it also makes culling and under the spread techniques much easier. It becomes quite easy to do things like the Touch Force and culling because you’ve got much more room longitudinally to move the card without being exposed at the front of the spread.
Figure 20
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The idea of The Camouflage Spread is not new. However it’s applications have only just been touched on in Card Magic. Consistently using The Camouflage Spread makes almost all sleights that use a spread much more deceptive. Additionally it makes culling and similar sleights much more deceptive. I’ve even developed a Side Steal that uses this that is unique because like almost all Side Steals it uses a squaring action to place the card on top of the deck, but in this case-- the deck needs to be squared. Additionally this particular Side Steal is made much easier and is covered better due to the extra longitudinal room provided. Consider how it could be used in things like Marlo’s Flexible Switchout, The Touch Force and even The Convincing Control. Finally, I want to mention that the phrase “just reach in there and snag one” is the idea of Kent Gunn. To date it’s the best line I’ve ever heard used in the context of the Classic Force and once I heard him use it, I immediately started using it with his permission.
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Sleight Descriptions By Andru Luvisi I've attempted to make these description as accurate as possible, but they are “Bare Bones” descriptions. We wanted to include them for the sake of being complete, but we did not want to waste space describing sleights that are fundamental to most CardGuys and did not want to duplicate detailed teaching found in other sources. The following list of descriptions was, therefore, a compromise. If Steven does a move differently than most, we’ve included the differences for your convenience. They are listed roughly in the order they are mentioned in the notes.
Straddle Faro Steven does a Faro (including the Straddle Faro) a little different than it’s commonly done-- unlike Ed Marlo, Steven interweaves the corners closest to him as in Figure 21. A Straddle Faro does not require you to split the deck into two equal packets. Instead, all you’re really concerned with is getting a perfect weave. Figure 22 shows the results of a Straddle Faro. While most people reading this probably know what a Straddle Faro is, Steven is often asked about it while he’s lecturing so we’ve included the picture for those who aren’t familiar with it.
Figure 21
Figure 22
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Tabled Running Cuts Steven uses two different cuts for this: one is a hybrid of Up The Ladder and the other is the Hustler’s Triple Cut which is described in The Annotated Erdnase by Darwin Ortiz. Other cuts you might want to consider are the Blind Cut III To Retain the Top Stock from page 41 of The Expert at the Card Table; the Gamblers' False Cut from page 78 of Expert Card Technique and Dai Vernon’s Cold Deck Cut from Dai Vernon's Ultimate Secrets of Card Magic.
The Riffle Pass This move has been published in many places, including Elliot’s Last Legacy, Royal Road To Card Magic and More Card Manipulations.
Convincing Control Spread the cards from your left hand into your right hand, and ask the spectator to touch the a card. While spreading the cards, move the right and left hands in a seesaw motion, with the left hand moving towards you a little while the right hand moves away, and then with the right hand moving towards you while the left hand moves away. Making this seesaw motion a few times at the beginning of the spread helps to create an uneven spread, which gives more cover for the moves to follow. Separate the spread below the indicated card, so that the selection is the bottom card of the right hand spread. Raise the right hand, showing the card to the spectator. Square the cards in your left hand. As you lower the spread, you will now apparently bring the hands together, outjog the selection, and close the spread. In reality, you will outjog the card above the selection and bring the selection to the bottom of the deck. Bring the left hand up to the right hand cards, with the left hand about half the length of a card lower than the right hand. Place the outer edge of the left third finger tip against the lower edge of the right hand spread, and place the left thumb on the back of the card above the selection. As the hands lower the spread, right when the edge of the spread is pointed at the eyes of the spectators, the right fingers pull the selection to the right under the spread. The left thumb holding the card above the selection helps to make sure that only one card is pulled under the spread, and the left third finger at the inner end of the spread helps to keep the card in alignment with the other cards. The uneven spread helps to hide any misalignment of the card.
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The left thumb now holds the card that was above the selection in place while the right hand pulls all of its other cards towards you, even with the other cards in the left hand. The card that was above the selection is left outjogged. The spectators believe this to be the selection. As the spread is closed, the selection rides below the cards to the bottom of the deck. You can now slowly and fairly push the outjogged card into the deck, calling attention to its position. Pulling a card under the spread is described as a cull in Modern Magic by Professor Hoffmann on page 109, and again on page 110. Pulling a card under the spread is also described as a control in Hofzinser's Card Conjuring on page 26. Outjogging a card other than the selection, that appears to be the selection, is described in the Convincing Control write up in Heirophant number 3, which starts on page 133. Outjogging the whole right hand spread while showing the selection and then bringing the right hand spread back in line with the left hand cards, leaving the dummy card outjogged, is described on page 33 of Variations by Earl Nelson in Pass The Sandwich, where it is credited to Frank Simon, in Versatile Card Magic by Frank Simon as the Versatile Outjog Control and on page 17 of The Classic Magic of Larry Jennings in A Problem With Hofzinser. Ron Bauer was kind enough to include his technique for this sleight and you’ll find it at the back of the notes.
Top Change Steven does not use any large movements to accomplish the Top Change. Instead he positions the cards in such a manner that the change can be done in an instant. Figure 23 shows his starting position. Figure 23 also shows his ending position. By careful blocking you can arrange for the cards to be in the position shown. Since the cards start out and finish in the same position, it only takes one second to accomplish the change. By keeping Figure 23 the ending position the same as the starting position, the audience will see no difference between the moment before the change and the moment after the change. A complete tutorial of the Top Change as well as the advantages of this approach can be found on Steven’s website. 50
Ron Bauer’s Two Card Turnover Technique The most accurate written description of Ron’s technique is in his 2008 Lecture notes. Steven has a complete video tutorial of it on his site (available to members) and an excellent demonstration of it on his public site.
Cardini Multiple Shift For illustrative purposes we will assume that you wish to apparently insert the four Aces into random places in the deck and fairly shuffle the deck, while actually controlling the Aces to the top. Begin with the Aces face up on the table and the rest of the deck in your hands. Fan the deck face up in the left hand. Insert the Aces into different parts of the fan, leaving them sticking out of the fan for half of their length. Close the fan from right to left. You now are holding the deck face up in your left hand, with the four Aces out jogged for half of their length. Tilt the deck up to the right, into an overhand shuffle position with the faces to the right. The left hand holds the deck with the thumb above, and the four fingertips underneath. The right hand takes a position with the thumb at the inner end of the deck, near the top, and all four fingers at the outer end. With all four right fingertips, apparently push the Aces into the deck. In reality, when they are only protruding between a half inch and a quarter inch, the right fingertips move upward in an arc, angling the Aces. The forefinger pushes the upper outer corner of the Aces towards you, past the outer end of the deck. As this is happening, the left second, third, and fourth fingers lower to allow the Aces to move diagonally through the deck. Once the right forefinger has pushed the upper outer corner of the Aces about a half inch closer to you than the upper outer corner of the deck, the right forefinger stops pushing and the left little finger pushes up and towards you on the lower inner corner of the Aces, pivoting them on the left thumb and bringing them into a position parallel to the rest of the cards, but injogged about half an inch. The right thumb now lifts the inner upper corner of the Aces while pushing away from you (in an arc) until it can grip both the top of the inner edge of the Aces and the inner upper corner of the deck against the right second finger at the outer end of the deck. Overhand shuffle, but as you do, slowly rotate the right thumb away from you, keeping its grip on the Aces but releasing the other cards some at a time. At the end, you are 51
holding only the Aces with the right hand and you drop them on top. You can then finish with a false overhand shuffle of your choosing. Although Steven’s handling is a bit different, The Cardini Multiple Shift was published in Greater Magic on page 545 and in The Amateur Magician’s Handbook on page 91
The False Triple Spinning Center Cut The right hand holds the deck between the right thumb at the inner end near the inner right corner and the right second finger at the outer end near the outer right corner. The right first finger lifts a third of the deck and moves to the left, causing the packet to pivot on the right thumb at the inner end. The left hand grabs the packet in the fork of the left thumb and moves away to the left until the packet clears the cards in the right hand. The left hand moves back to the right, under the right hand, as the right first finger starts to cut another third of the deck to the left. The left thumb goes between the two right hand packets. The next two actions occur at the same time. The right third finger and thumb grab the packet the left hand is holding (the original top of the deck), and the left thumb fork grabs the lower packet the right hand is holding (the original bottom of the deck). The left hand then moves to the left until the left packet clears the right packets. You are now holding the original bottom of the deck in the left hand, the original top of the deck between the right thumb and third finger, and the original middle of the deck between the right thumb and first finger. The left hand now moves back so that the left thumb can contact the inner end of the upper packet in the right hand (the original middle of the deck). The left hand moves forward, rotating the packet 180 degrees clockwise between the left thumb and the right first finger. As soon as the rotation is complete, the rotating packet almost automatically falls on top of the cards in the left hand. The right hand then drops its only remaining packet on top of the cards in the left hand. This cut leaves the deck in its original order, and when performed quickly, looks much more difficult than it actually is. The packets can almost seem to fly past each other. No one will have a clue that it is a false cut. One more thing-- the cut has a rhythm to it that only comes with practice. Once the rhythm is attained (and as I said, it's not nearly as hard as it looks), you will have a valuable tool at your disposal. This wonderful false cut is the invention of Gerry Griffin. The method of cutting packets from the top of the deck is commonly called a Swing Cut. It is similar to the one handed fancy true cut described in The Expert At The Card Table. 52
It is also similar to Marlo's Running Cut from Deck Deception. The idea of spinning part of the deck around during an in the hands flourish cut is described in The Leipzig Book by Dai Vernon.
Marlo’s Flexible Switchout Hold the deck in a left hand dealing position. Spread the cards into the right hand. Separate the spread below the card to be switched out. The card being switched out is the bottom card of the right hand spread. The left hand squares the cards that it holds while the right hand raises to show the spectator the faces of the right hand cards, drawing attention to the lower most one. You will now apparently take the bottom card of the right hand spread on top of the left packet and deal it onto the table. As the right hand lowers, right when the edge of the spread is pointed at the eyes of the audience, the hands come together. The bottom card of the right hand spread is placed square on top of the left hand packet, as the left thumb grabs the the second card from the bottom of the right hand spread. The left hand takes the bottom two cards from the right hand spread, but when the hands separate, only one card is jogged to the right on top of the left hand packet. Apparently it is the card that was just shown at the bottom of the right hand cards. The left hand then deals the switched in card onto the table. If the switched out card needs to be on top of the deck, the right hand can now slide its cards under the left hand packet. Marlo's Flexible Switchout is described in Marlo Without Tears-- Steven also has a complete video tutorial of it on his website.
The Touch Force Have the force card about a third of the way down in the deck, above a left little finger break. Spread the cards from your left hand into your right hand. While spreading the cards, move the right and left hands in a seesaw motion, with the left hand moving towards you a little while the right hand moves away, and then with the right hand moving towards you while the left hand moves away. Making this seesaw motion a few times at the beginning of the spread helps to create an uneven spread, which gives more cover for the moves to follow. When you get to the break, cull the force card under the spread. To do this, the left thumb holds the card above the force card while the right fingers pull the force card 53
to the right under the spread. After you have culled the force card, ask a spectator to touch the back of a card. When this is done, separate the spread below the touched card, so the touched card is (apparently) the lowermost card of the right hand spread. Place the left thumb against the left edge of the touched card. Raise the hands to show the selection to the spectator, keeping the left thumb against the left edge of the right hand packet. As you do so, the left thumb pushes the selection to the right, square with the other cards in the right hand, above the force card. The spectator now sees the force card, but thinks it is the selected card. Do not neglect the Camouflage Spread, or the placement and use of the left thumb. The Camouflage Spread gives you extra cover for the cull, and the use of the left thumb, squaring the card as the right hand cards are lifted, and remaining against the edge of the cards, creates a retention of vision effect, an illusion that they are seeing the face of the same card that they just saw the back of. The Touch Force is described on page 136 of Hofzinser's Card Conjuring, with the force card starting on the bottom of the deck. Ed Marlo's Imperfection Force from Marlo in Spades includes the idea of starting with the force card near the top and culling it. The use of the left thumb to square the right hand packet to create a retention of vision device is original with Steven.
The Flicker Glimpse Spread the cards face down between your hands and ask a spectator to touch one. Out jog the selected card and close the spread leaving the selection out jogged. Tell the spectator that you will allow them to change their mind if they like before you show them the selection. Once they confirm they‘re happy, grip the selection at the outer right corner between the right thumb and first finger. Withdraw the card from the deck and hold it at a 45° slant with the upper end closer to you. Tell the spectator to remember the card and as you say this do two things simultaneously: Turn your head away to the left but at the last possible moment, flick the card outward with the right second finger, sighting the lower left corner of the card out of the right corner of your right eye. It should look like you just flicked the card with the right second finger to emphasize your comment to the spectator. This is a modified version of the glimpse that was published by Earnest Earick in his book By Forces Unseen; earlier by Jerry Mentzer in Card Cavalcade IV and all were based on a glimpse in Bruce Elliot’s Phoenix #300.
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In these notes the handling differs slightly due to blocking-- there is a body turn involved. There’s also a complete tutorial of Steven’s handling of this glimpse on his website.
All Around Square Up Glimpse This is a great way to sight a card that is on the bottom of the deck under cover of an all around square up. The all around square up is a common action used to turn the deck end for end. The deck is held in a left hand dealing grip and the right hand takes the deck by the ends from above. The deck is then rotated away from you, bringing the right thumb up. It is at this point that you look at the deck and sight the card. The left hand turns towards you, the thumb grasping the long edge closest to you and the fingers grasping the long edge farther from you. The left hand takes the cards from the right hand and turns palm up, finishing the rotation of the deck and bringing the cards back into a dealing position. Steven curls his left forefinger on the bottom of the deck and uses it as a pivot point. This glimpse is described as Marlo’s Turnaround Glimpse in Revolutionary Card Technique on page 404. Steven curls his left forefinger on the bottom of the deck and uses it as a pivot point.
Straddle Faro Glimpse This move allows you to bury the top of the deck during a faro shuffle, but know the value of the card that goes above the original top card. Begin with the deck held by both hands by the long edges. The back of the top card is towards the right. The bottom card faces to the left. The short edges of the deck are vertical, and the long edges are parallel to the floor. The left thumb, second, and third fingers grip the deck by the long edges near the outer end, thumb above and fingers below. The right thumb, second, and third fingers grip the deck by the long edges near the inner end, thumb above and fingers below. The right thumb pulls to the right, splitting the deck and taking about a third of the cards off of the top of the deck, away from the left hand. The right hand now moves inward, carrying its cards with it, until the outer end of the right hand packet can be butted against the inner end of the left hand packet. The ends of the two packets are now forced into each other, faro style, but the top card of 55
the right hand packet (the original top card of the deck) is buried under a small group of cards from the left hand packet. After the packets are interlaced about an inch, the left thumb and little finger grip both packets by the interlaced portion while the right hand lets go of its packet and changes grip. The right hand moves so that the right thumb is at the inner end of the inner packet and the right fingers are at the outer end of the outer packet. The right hand squeezes the ends of both packets together while the left hand pushes the middle to the right. The packets bow into the mirror image of a "C" (with the opening to the left instead of the right). The left hand releases its grip on the interlaced portion of the packets. As the cards straighten out, starting at the bottom of the deck, they will "spring" into each other in a manner similar to the common waterfall finish to an end riffle shuffle. The left hand catches the cards as they spring into each other. Right as the waterfall is finishing, glance at the upper inner corner of the small group of cards from the top of the outer packet. This packet will have a natural tendency to stick to the right palm for just a moment after all of the other cards have sprung into each other, long enough for you to peek the index of its lowermost card, the card going above the original top card of the deck (Figure 24). Square the cards and you are done. Try to make your peek in the smallest amount of time possible, and try to minimize the amount of time that the top packet is apart from the other cards. Experiment with how far the packets are telescoped, where the outer end of the outer packet touches the right fingers, and how large the packet is that buries the original top card.
Figure 24
Marlo's "Throw-Off Faro - Top" from page 24 of The Faro Shuffle accomplishes a similar end, but uses a break instead of the peeked key card.
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Odds & Ends Fundamental Sleights & Where To Find Me As promised, here is my personal list of fundamental sleights. Although you may want to add a second and bottom deal to it, I think you could probably do about 95% of the Card Magic in print with these. In my opinion, it would take decades to truly master these. They are in no particular order: • The Top Change • The Classic Force • False Riffle Shuffle • At Least Six Glimpses • A Pass And/Or Side Steal • Elmsley and Jordan Count • Holding and manipulating a break • False Overhand Shuffle Technique • Two Or Three Sure-Fire Forces • Double And Triple Turnover Technique • Palming Cards From The Top And Bottom • Some Flourishes And A Few Color Changes • A Few Full Deck False Cuts (Table AND in the hands) • A Few Good Controls Other Than The Pass Or Side-Steal Several times in these notes we’ve referenced my website-- it’s a membership site that has video tutorials. All members are allowed to download the videos to their hard drive. There are also articles on subjects related to Card Magic and a forum where you can ask questions on the material. You can find find out how to become a member by going to www.stevenyouell.net.
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Ron Bauer’s Technique For The Convincing Control In discussing The Convincing Control with Ron Bauer, he mentioned that he had a particular way of doing it that took out the tells. I asked him if I could include it because I thought it was a brilliant example of an Elegant Solution. Ron re-wrote the description specifically for these notes. Every magician owes it to himself to own Ron’s Performance Scripts and you can find out more by going to www.thinklikeaconjurer.com. Following is a description that Ron adapted from his monograph Fair and Sloppy: The principle of secretly slipping a card from among the cards near the center, and secretly moving it beneath the spread to another location was first published by J.N. Hofzinser. Though this idea is very clever, as translated into English, the procedure has no inherent misdirection. The slipping and substituting of the selection for an indifferent card happens immediately following the replacement. Everyone’s attention is riveted on it. This is the type of cause and effect relationship to be avoided. Ed Marlo came up with a solution to this tell by apparently outjogging the selection (actually a different card) as misdirection from the under-the-spread mischief. So convincing were his results that he called them The Convincing Control. There are certain elements of it, though, that aren’t always completely convincing. For one thing, the objective of the Convincing Control is to give the impression that a card is touched by a spectator, outjogged, shown to the audience, and then, turning the deck faces downward, cleanly squared with the other cards. That’s not what happens, however. In reality, a card is touched by a spectator, shown to the audience, the deck is turned faces downward, the selection outjogged, and then cleanly squared with the other cards. Did you discern the difference? It’s the order of the actions. In the Convincing Control, the card is outjogged after the deck is turned faces downward. It’s the order that leads to the tells. But, the order is necessary because that’s where the manipulation happens. So, since we can’t change the order, we must strive to change the perception of the order. To accomplish that, and take care of a few other tells in the Convincing Control, several handling techniques and finesses have been integrated into the presentation for Fair and Sloppy. Study them judiciously, and I’m confident that you’ll experience some genuine satisfaction from your results.
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Here we go... The Convincing Control begins with offering a spectator a free selection of a card... “I don’t push cards at you. No. I let you JUST TOUCH ANY CARD with the TIP OF YOUR FINGER... THIS WAY you can SEE that I’m being COMPLETELY FAIR. Go ahead. Touch one...” When you spread the cards between your hands for the selection, you not only convey “fairness” by the way you lightly spread them, but also by your body language, i.e., your palm up hands. Actually, you don’t want any card selected. You want one selected from those ten or fifteen cards near the center of the deck. This more or less obliges the spectator to select from that group. In the traditional handling, this is where the first “tell” occurs that’s most likely to destroy the illusion, i.e., the alignment of the selection with the card above it, occurs. Once the audience fixes on this action, the resulting suspicion is never resolved. (They may not know how it affects the trick, but they’ll be satisfied that they “saw something,” which effectively spoils the illusion.) So, don’t align it. Instead, as soon as the spectator touches a card, tap it with your left thumb tip “to verify.” Then, press the selection against your left fingers, which are below the spread, with your left thumb. Split the spread at the selection by moving the spread cards above it to your right, then raise your left hand to show the clipped card to the audience. As if to show more of the selection, raise the spread cards in your RIGHT hand, and bring your hands together so you can deposit the selection against the card nearest the audience. Clip it in place with your right fingers. NOTE: This cancels the first “tell” by replacing the standard alignment at the time of selection with one that is motivated by the need to openly display the selection to the audience. Therefore, the alignment will make sense, and create no suspicion. To help reinforce the innocence of the alignment, move your left hand with its cards out of the way as though to avoid obscuring the view of the selection. An additional throw off is to make an obvious squaring action of the cards in your left hand. “There it is. Your card. Don’t forget it...”
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As you say this, move the left hand packet back to the front of the selection so you can clip the lower left corner of the double card against it with the tip of your left thumb. The selection covers the upper right quarter of the packet in your left hand. You can rest the selection and the card aligned with it on the side of your left third finger to help stabilize the cards during the action to come. This position, while necessary for the course of the action that follows, should appear to the audience as though you’re merely putting the cards together while trying to “fairly” keep the selection in their view; not yours. It’s at this point where the worst tell of all typically occurs in the standard handling of the Convincing Control. It’s the great downward sweeping gesture made to show the backs of the cards. Eliminate this awkwardness by only do just that. Simply lower the assembly enough to bring the backs into view by bending at both WRISTS. (If necessary, you can slightly unbend at the elbows, too. But, only move enough to get the job done.) And, DON’T RUSH. I’ve seen this move done with such sudden speed that the perpetrator came close to flipping his entire body over. True, that could be a spectacular moment in a magic act, but I don’t believe the big move would “fairly” cover the little one. So, I really don’t think you should bother. Remember, don’t hinge at the elbows. It’s all in the wrists! As soon as you reach a position in which the faces can’t be seen by the audience, STOP, and slightly relax the pressure of your left thumb against the back of the card above the selection. THEN, with your right second and third fingertips, slip the selection to the right ABOUT AN INCH. The audience will assume the card beneath your left thumb to be the selection. KEEP IN MIND that it’s very important that you don’t move the selection to the right until you’ve stopped the downward movement of the cards. This is to ensure that you don’t flash any under-the-spread activity. You’re safe doing this for several reasons. First, the audience can’t see beneath the spread if the backs are toward them. Second, they can’t immediately focus on which face-down card is the selection, even with your left thumb supposedly touching it. While they adjust, you make the secret move. And, third, they see that all the cards have remained in their original positions. You reinforce this situation by saying:
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“Keep your eyes glued on it...” Now you’re going to apparently outjog the selection and show that it’s in the center of the deck. Actually, you move all the cards in your right hand (including the selection which is resting on the tips of your right fingers) into alignment with the packet in your left hand leaving the card beneath your left thumb tip outjogged. To do this, first move the cards in your right hand to the right until you can feel the selection clear the top of the left hand packet. (The audience can’t see it because the card clipped against the lower half of the deck with your left thumb covers it.) As soon as the left side of the selection clears, move your right hand spread inward until it aligns with the left hand packet. Spreading all the cards beneath the jogged card will give the illusion that the selection is still in the center, but outjogged.
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