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MAGIC ROADSHOW August 20th, 2007 Issue # 77 Rick Carruth / editor (C)2007 All rights reserved worldwide Street Magic's #1 free newsletter for magicians, street performers, restaurant workers, close-up artists, and mentalists, with subscribers in over seventy countries worldwide. _/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/ Hi All
Welcome to a new issue of the Magic Roadshow. The last two issues have been a 'best of' and I'm glad to get back to our normal format. First.. A big "Welcome" to all the new readers who have signed up in the past few weeks. If there's something I can do to assist you with your magic, let me know.. I've been zapped. Not just mentally from endless hours of work, but physically from the never ending heat.. Days and days of unrelenting temperatures above a hundred degrees. It's difficult to get in the mood to write and it so hot. When I think of writing, I think of being in a cabin in the mountains, with either a pallet of color spread through the leaves or, a silent snow fall with flakes the size of half dollars. Thank God for air conditioning.. I spend all last week in Greenville NC, near the North Carolina coast. I though I would have some 'down time' to work on this newsletter, but it didn't happen. One thing that did happen was Barbeque (BBQ). Aside from magic, I love good barbeque, and Eastern North Carolina has some of the best in the world. I told my corporate office if they saw a bunch of receipts from barbeque joints come across with my expense report.. just pay it. One well-known establishment, Bill Ellis BBQ in Wilson, NC, even had a full hog on the buffet bar. Amazing. Now you understand why this issue is five days late.. After reading this issue, if you have any questions, comments, rants or raves.. EMAIL ME Remember too, that I want you guys to submit your favorite effects or advice to the Roadshow. Share your skills with readers around the world. Don't worry about the little things, like spelling or proper english, I'll take care of that. ( A perfect example of the blind leading the blind.. ) --------------- In This Issue --------------- - In Between Revelations - Card Effect - Eight Card Brainwave - video - Don Swaim and Harry Blackstone Jr. - Audio Interview - TheCuso Muscle Pass Tutorial - Magic Uproar - Top Twenty Tricks on Video - How to Date a Deck of Cards. - Bling Fling - Street Magic Secret Revealed - Pocket Promotion Packages For The Magician - Dennis Regling - False Cut - Nice Blind Swivel 3-Packet Cut - False Cut - The Trinary Cut - Submit Your Magic - Star Toothpicks - The Rule of Three - John Kinde - Free eBooks _/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/ In Between Revelations - Card Effect Poppadom Effect: The spectator's freely chosen card jumps out of the deck to end up between two other face-up cards which are both some distance away from the rest of the pack at the same time. Method: Offer the pack for the selection of a card. Then, once the spectator has picked a card and noted its identity, have it placed back into the centre of the deck. Catch a pinkie break and secretly control the selected card to the top of the deck. Shuffle one last time to put the card second from top.. From here you could go and do any number of false shuffles and cuts, or if you're feeling really fancy you could palm off the top two cards and hand out the rest of the deck for the audience to shuffle. But that's your decision. Once you are satisfied that the chosen card is second from the top, say to the audience "We shall take the top card," and, matching the action to the word, remove the real top card. Show it to the audience and name it at the same time. Whilst attention is focused on that card secure a little finger break under the top card of the deck (i.e. the original chosen card) in the left hand. Now take the right hand card which you have been showing to the audience and place it face-up on top of the deck, which is held in the left hand. Thus you have this situation: on top of the deck, face-up, is the card you have just shown around. Second from the top, face-down, is the spectator's chosen card. You have a little finger break under both of these. Next, with the help of your break, lift off the top two cards as one (a double lift), being careful not to expose the underneath one, and grip them between the thumb and the side of the forefinger of the closed right fist (fig. 1). Then you say, "And we shall also take the bottom card." In doing so, use the left thumb to turn the pack over one-handed and push off the top card of the now face-up deck. Place this also in the right hand, underneath the two which are already there (fig. 2). Hand the pack to the spectator and ask him/her to hold it for you flat on their palm. Now hold your right hand, with its two face-up cards in it, over the rest of the deck. Cover the right hand's cards with the now free left hand (don't forget to show the left hand empty first). Now you must engage in a bit of showmanship. What I tend to do is wave my hands together, up and down, three times. Under cover of this movement push the right thumb marginally to the right. This will have the effect of uncovering the middle face-down card so that it is visible between the other two. Take the left hand away and show the three cards in the right hand. Ask the spectator to take the middle one which, to them, has just appeared out of thin air. Watch the astonishment on their faces as they realise it is their card. A Special "Thanks" to Poppadom for providing this entertaining effect for Roadshow readers.. http://www.cardtrick.piczo.com ======================= Eight Card Brainwave - video The magi shows eight cards and their backs.. each card has a blue back. After performing his hocus pocus, the backs all change to red. How does he do it? Watch this nice video from revver and discover the secret. Watch 8 Card Brainwave ==================== Don Swaim and Harry Blackstone Jr. - Audio Interview Don Swaim has worked as a multi-talented writer, journalist, and broadcaster for many years. Aside from working at the CBS-TV affiliate in Baltimore in earlier years, Don produced a daily broadcast from WCBS-TV in New York for over ten years. During that period of his long and illustrious career, Don had the pleasure of doing something that could only have been done in New York City... interview a voluminous number of successful authors and celebrities with connections to published works. Nationally syndicated by the CBS Radio Stations News Service, Don produced Book Beat, a two-minute feature heard around the country. What his audience didn't appreciate was the amount of time that went into putting together his two minute interviews. Like all good journalists, Don's interviews were actually culled down from extensive interviews. Now, you can access those full length interviews and listen to them in their entirety. One in particular that holds interest for the magic lovers amongst us is an interview with Harry Blackstone Jr. "In this 1985 interview, Don Swaim talks with the award-winning magician, Harry Blackstone, Jr. about his first experience on stage at the age of six months, and the relationship between his father and Houdini. Blackstone is the co-author of There’s One Born Every Minute, My Life As A Magician and The Blackstone Book Of Magic and Illusion." This 27 minute interview offers some unique insight into one of magic's outstanding performers. Going through the list of interviews you're bound to find others, not necessarly magic related, that are of interest to you. Guys like Clive Cussler, Isaac Asimov, Lewis Grizzard, Kurt Vonnegut Jr., and Coast to Coast stalwart Whitley Strieber.. A special Thanks to Elaine for this link.. http://www.wiredforbooks.org/swaim/ ( Scroll down the page for a complete list of interviews..) ==================== TheCuso - Muscle Pass Tutorial I know.. I published a muscle pass video a couple of issues ago. But, there seems to be a lot of interest in the muscle pass, as it's so visual and surprising, plus, it's potentially very difficult to master. Since the last video I've been in touch with Alejandro Portela, aka Cuso, from Vigo Spain. Cuso not only publishes a highly informative website/blog with a ton of useful info ( in english), but he puts together his own tutorials. One is of the Muscle Pass.. This video is very clear and straight forward, and makes it easy to understand the basics. I don't guarantee that you'll master the muscle pass after watching it, I have no idea how much time you'll devote to practice, but I promise you'll understand the basic positioning and moves needed to accomplish this exciting move.. Cuso obviously enjoys flourishes as well, and there's much in the way of sleights and flourishes to be learned from TheCuso's Magic Blog.. http://www.thecuso.info/2007/01/thecusos-muscle-pass-tutorial.html ==================== Magic Uproar - Top Twenty Tricks on Video Magic Uproar selects their top twenty card, coin, and miscellaneous tricks on video's and post them all in one location. Watch performances and tutorials of Snap Card, Coin Matrix, Revolver, Drop Change, Spin Change, The Jumping Ring, and Double Shock among other effects. I think you will find something interesting, regardless of your favorite form of magic. Top Twenty Tricks ===================== How to Date a Deck of Cards. Thanks to Decknique for publishing a nice article detailing how to date a deck of cards utilizing tax stamps, zip codes, and bar codes. I collect old playing cards. My wife and I spent part of this past weekend scouring through antique shops, each with our own agenda. I'm always on the lookout for old, rare decks of playing cards that I can buy for a dime. Unfortunately, I never find any. But I DO find some that I can buy for a few bucks. And the chart provided by Decknique helps me date each deck and determine whether or not it's something I might be interested in.. Many playing card companies have been bought out in the past 30 years or so by the United States Playing Card Co. (USPC). A handy chart helps to date your finds using the dating code found on most decks. Decknique.net Forums ===================== Discover the Magic Tricks and Secrets of professionals in the privacy and comfort of your own home... Dozens of ebooks from a lifetime pro with one of the best reputations for quality material on the web.. Discover Magic Here ===================== Bling Fling - Street Magic Secret Revealed! Make a ring put in one hand vanish, and reappear in the other hand. Then, watch the ring as it jumps back and forth from one finger to another right in front of the spectator. This is a very impressive, very well produced video to teach you the above effect. It's actually much simpler to perform than you would think, and is an effect you can do anywhere, any time.. Check out 'Bling Fling' and let me know what you think, if you use it, and what kind of reaction you received. http://www.5min.com/Video/An-amazing-street-magic-toturial-4718 ===================== Pocket Promotion Packages For The Magician Dennis Regling How many times have you met a potential customer, while out to eat or at an event and and you wish you had a complete promo package for them? They are interested, they fit your customer profile and who knows, maybe you could book them on spot, if you just had the info on hand. To me, too often. So I found a solution. Sure I always have a package or two in the car, but that is not always handy. I purchased some small coin envelopes, just bigger than a business card. On the outside, I palce a label with all my contact info. On the inside, I have a business card that opens up, This card holds twice the information of a regular business card. On the front, I have a logo, my name and a quote from a previous client recommendation letter. (See the archives to read my article on getting recommendations.) On the back, I again have my contact info. If they remove this card, the contact info goes with it. On the inside, I have details about my services. Using small fonts, you can put quite a resume inside one of these cards. I also place in the enelope a second, regular size business card with either a magic trick or an optical illusion on one side and additional quotes and my phone number on the other. Sometimes, I use a Pride and Joy card with my info on the back and all I put on the envelope is a label that reads, "My Pride & Joy." I put in my other large business card and it makes a great give-away. Imagine, I ask the client, "Ya wanna see my pride and joy?" They say, "Sure." I pull the picture out of the envelope and they laugh. I now give them the envelope with all my info in it. They may remove this information for future use, but they will carry that envelope and picture everywhere. They will be showing their contacts the picture and telling them about the wonderful magician. Great word of mouth advertising for a few pennies. This is working for me and I am sure you can adapt it to work for you. Dennis Regling - BellaOnline's Magic Editor Visit Dennis at : BellaOnline Magic ======================== False Cut - Nice Blind Swivel 3-Packet Cut Here's a nice video of a false cut, using a blind swivel and three separate packets that looks perfectly natural. You should be able to master this is ten to fifteen minutes, and it will give you years of service.. Click for Swivel Cut --------------------------- False Cut - The Trinary Cut Learn the Trinary cut created by David Acker. A great three packet cut where one packet gets turned over. Filled with movement and very fun to perform. Very deceptive! Click for Trinary Cut ========================= Submit YOUR Magic If you know of a great resource, or, have an article or effect you would like to share with Roadshow readers, I've put up a simple-to-use web form where you can enter a url, article, or effect and send it directly to the Roadshow. I ask for your first name and email address only so I can contact you with any questions. ( I already have your email address, if you're a subscriber ) Your personal info is NOT saved in any database. In the near future I'm going to provide a special 'room' for readers who share their resources with others. It will be password protected and will feature a number of magic resources not available in the newsletter. I will save the info of anyone submitting resources to a simple text file, so I can send you a password to the new area once it goes public.. Send in those resources, articles, and effects !! http://www.streetmagic.info/submit.html ========================== Star Toothpicks Here's a challenging bar trick that you may, or may not, be able to perform. I make no promises that this effect works, but it should be interesting to see what your experiences are.. I published the video on my blog a day or so ago, but that's so it can get indexed quickly. IF this actually works, I can see a mental magic effect in the making. http://www.streetmagic.info/2007/08/toothpick-star-trick.html ======================== The Rule of Three - Humor Technique from the World of Comedy. There is a useful joke structure in humor writing called the rule-of-three. Here's an example of the rule-of-three which I've used as the greeting on my telephone answering machine: "Sorry I can't personally answer the phone. I'm either motivating thousands of people, appearing on the Oprah show…or taking a nap. Please leave a message and I'll return your call when I wake up." Here's what makes the rule of three work: A funny line is sometimes said to be like a train wreck. You know where the train (your train of thought) has been, you think you know where it's going, but then you're surprised when it goes off track. The same sort of thing happens when you see the unexpected slip on the banana peel. The surprise or twist helps build the tension to create and magnify the humor. The rule-of-three structure sets a pattern like the train coming down the tracks. You'll see a similar principle in action in a two-person comedy act. The straight person sets up the pattern which the funny person's punchline will break. The rule-of-three uses this same structure. The first two items in the triplet set the pattern (the "straight" line) and the third item breaks the pattern (the curve/the twist/the derailment). Breaking the pattern heightens the tension and creates the surprise, usually resulting in laughter (which relieves the tension). There are countless patterns you could use: Same Category/Same Category/Different Category (T-shirt which lists world-class cities: Paris/Tokyo/Fargo). Expected Trait/Expected Trait/Unexpected Trait (She was pretty, she was shapely, she was a man). Something Everyone Loves/Something Everyone Loves/Something Everyone Hates (A Las Vegas wedding package contains everything you will need; music, flowers, divorce papers). Ordinary/Ordinary/Ridiculous (I go to Las Vegas to see the shows, eat at the buffets and visit my money). Extreme/Extreme/Ordinary (Speaking to thousands, appearing on Oprah, taking a nap) Rhyme/Rhyme/Rhyme (rhyming sets a pattern and can disguise or add a special twist to the third-item punchline). Here's an example I created for a 50th birthday party using the "give the answer first then give the question" vehicle which Johnny Carson made famous. "The answer is…Three things that describe Suzie Smith. And the question is…what are Nifty, Thrifty and Fifty." This example also uses the category Something Good/Something Good/Something Not So Good (people don’t want to get older). I could have used the word Shifty as one of the first two words, but that would have been less effective setting the proper pattern. Why three? It's just one of those tried and true rules of comedy. It's a rhythm that works. It's part of the music of the humor structure. Experiment and you'll find it's true…a series of three almost always works better than a series of two or four. Use the rule-of-three technique and it will become a natural part of your humor tool kit. You'll find yourself to be funnier, you'll connect better with your audiences, and in only fifteen years you'll become an overnight success. ------------------------ Another great article from my Vegas friend, John Kinde, editor of Humor Power. If you're not using humor in your performance, then you're not performing - you're demonstrating. Adding humor to your performance will take your magic to another level. Sign up for John's 'Humor Power' newsletter at: http://www.HumorPower.com ====================== FREE eBooks For Subscribers Erdnase 'Expert at the Card Table'.. Free Download http://www.301url.com/erdnase ----------------- Easy Mentalism .. Free Download http://www.streetmagicsecrets.info/1mentalpay.htm Not a subscriber? http://www.streetmagic.info/subscribe.html ================== I encourage you to send any magic resources my way. If you know of a site that has a free ebook or a wide assortment of magic related material, let me know. I'm sure all the other readers will appreciate it.. Email me.. --------------------------- Please don't forget to visit some of my other sites.. see what's new - http://www.StreetMagic.info http://www.MagicRoadshow.com http://www.StreeMagic.info/blogger.html http://www.StreetMagicSecrets.info http://www.Mentalists.info http://www.LasVegasMagicShows.info --------------------------- May my next issue find you well.. Rick Carruth / editor ::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~ |
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