A New Monte Trick with DVD

[The Magic Apple]

Check out the AWESOME Trailer:
Click Here: THREE


Available for pre-sale HERE from The Magic Apple

Will be shipping Late Jan 2012

[Bob Farmer]

Trailers like this are worthless. You can't tell what the effect is, what the routine is or anything else. The weird grip on the cards suggests there must be a getready we're not seeing.

This might be a great trick, but it sure ain't a great trailer.

[Brad Henderson]

Looks like a gaeton bloom gimmick.

[mrgoat]

Trailers like this are worthless. You can't tell what the effect is, what the routine is or anything else. The weird grip on the cards suggests there must be a getready we're not seeing.

This might be a great trick, but it sure ain't a great trailer.

It's actually totally a default trailer in Apple's consumer movie editing app.

Nice to see someone investing absolutely FA in making a trailer.

Here's something I made using the same template. It takes about 4 minutes to do.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1k5iYUNlqGM

[El Mystico]

mrgoat - where can we buy one?

[Tom Stone]

Looks like a gaeton bloom gimmick.

It looks more like a big improvement on the Gaetan Bloom gimmick. If that's what it is, I'd be most interested in getting it.

So Steve Valentine is back. I loved him in the role of 'The Astounding Andy' in the Dick Dietrick show. Funny guy!

[Brad Henderson]

Steve is a great guy. But I'm not sure, from the trailer alone, how one would conclude that, if it is the bloom gimmick, that it has been improved. Could not the standard issue bloom card accomplish everything we kind of see in the trailer?

[Tom Stone]

In Steve's clip the cards are held in a "real" fan. That's impossible with Gaetan's gaff - when "cocked" one card is always held in an odd position.

[The Magic Apple]

Mr. Farmer - what do you know about trailers? Alice's Revenge, Mutanz, or your Bammo tricks, don't even have demos to help sell the product and your ad copies don't even really say what the trick is.

THREE can be performed in 1-2 minutes, 3-4 minutes and can even be done as an entire routine, both standing or seated at a table. If anyone has seen Steve work, you know how good he is and wouldn't put his name on anything that is misleading or is poor quality.

This is just a teaser trailer, before the product gets released, I'm sure there will be a full demo with live performances.

[Chris Aguilar]

The trailer is really spotty, but it there anything there that couldn't be done with fairly off the shelf gaffs and Hollingworth's optical alignment move?

[Richard Kaufman]

While the jumpy editing makes it impossible to follow the routine, the trailer obviously makes no attempt to do that. It's merely a showcase for the gimmick, and whether it's a straight-up Bloom Card or an improvement in some way, is an INCREDIBLE gimmick that creates damn impressive visible changes.

And that would seem to be the whole story until the routine is actually released and someone can write about it.

[kevinm]

Mr. Farmer's products do not need a video trailer to sell.

[The Magic Apple]

Just an FYI:

These cards are NOTHING like the Gaeton Bloom gimmicked cards. There is nothing 'sticky', no flaps, or dental dams.

This should be available something in February! Now taking pre-orders: CLICK HERE

We are offering FREE SHIPPING for Genii Members (in the USA) and 50% shipping worldwide.

[WillJames]

Just an FYI:

These cards are NOTHING like the Gaeton Bloom gimmicked cards. There is nothing 'sticky', no flaps, or dental dams.

There's nothing sticky, no flaps or dental dams with Gaeton's gimmick either...at least not with my set.

[Paul Richards]

Based on what I'm seeing in the trailer, it actually seems to be closer to Jerry Mentzer's Ultimate English Monte. A trick I've used on and off for years. Jerry's effect was based on Patrick Page's Kitson Miracle. Jerry's gimmick also used no sticky stuff, no flaps, or dental dams. There is a video, of admittedly very poor quality, currently on our site as well:

http://www.elmwoodmagic.com/?nd=full&key=1133&view=1

[mrgoat]

Based on what I'm seeing in the trailer, it actually seems to be closer to Jerry Mentzer's Ultimate English Monte. A trick I've used on and off for years. Jerry's effect was based on Patrick Page's Kitson Miracle. Jerry's gimmick also used no sticky stuff, no flaps, or dental dams. There is a video, of admittedly very poor quality, currently on our site as well:

http://www.elmwoodmagic.com/?nd=full&key=1133&view=1

I think that's a great routine. The only issue is using WMV format for your videos. That is a no no really nowadays. But the video itself is great. You can see the effect, no fancy editing, just the effect. Perfect.

[Jonathan Townsend]

Thanks, now I'm confused about who gets the credit for using mylar not to make mirrors on cards?

[Marty Jacobs]

Disclaimer: This is pure guesswork on my part! This looks similar, if not identical in method, to Eric Jone's Twizted gimmick (stupid name, great gimmick).

Marty

[Drakonim]

I have been performing Steve's THREE for a little over a year or so now on a sort of "beta test" for him and I absolutely love it. I don't leave home without it (kolossal killer, hundy 500, and this are my three go to/every day carry effects). It is what I consider the epitome of "pack small - play big."

The gaff really does use nothing extra, no thread or flaps, nothing will break or wear out unless you treat your cards badly. The handling is simple and straighforward, the effect is killer, and you end completely clean (depending on which phase you choose to end with). It is a completely modular effect meaning you can mix and match or end it after any number of phases. There is a lot of potential for new moves, handlings, and presentations too. I love it.

As much as I hate to see it enter the market (b/c I will no longer be one of two or three people performing this great effect) I am excited for discussion to start and to see what other people come up with. I think he mentioned it will be out in March as the DVD authorer ran into some delays.

[The Magic Apple]

And here is the demo you have all been waiting for!!

Check it out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXHz0iDVnpA

and if you want to order it, CLICK HERE
It will finally be shipping on Friday! If you order it before the end of the week, it will be FREE Domestic shipping!

[mrgoat]

Dear me.

I couldn't watch it all. Cringeworthy. It was as if he was just making up the patter and the routine as he went along.

And why did someone not tell him he forgot to put a shirt on in the opening shot? Chain, bare chest and v neck jumper is not a good look!

And hiring two lights for the video would have eliminated those amateur shadows.

But most importantly, it really looks unnatural and dodgy the way he pulls the gimmicked red card out so carefully in the set up.

I'll pass.

[Tom Stone]

Dear me.

I couldn't watch it all. Cringeworthy. It was as if he was just making up the patter and the routine as he went along.

A bit too harsh, I think.
Steve left magic soon after getting the AMA "Close-up Magician of the Year" award in 1999 and 2001 when his acting career took off. The routine is solid, and since he has not been a magic performer for a decade, I think we can allow for a small amount of rusty awkwardness when doing the piece for a cold non-responsive camera.

I'm for one glad he's back. There are a couple of other items from his past repertoire that I've heard about, which I'm very curious about.

On Facebook, Steve said the following about the new clip:
Ok all, finally have a full trailer up for '3', yes it's not MOVIE quality with special effects and costly editing and lots of walking shots with anonymous kids on the street screaming at who knows what... but it faithfully shows one of the routines on the DVD , and that's my goal, to teach you as thoroughly as I can my three card Monte... blah blah blah...
Truly hope you guys like it, I'll be performing it all week at the castle, last week in March. See you then.

He is at the Castle during the same week that I am there, so I hope I will be able to catch his act.

[Bob Farmer]

Any monte trick should build, each sequence being more impossible than the one before. That doesn't happen here, it seems to be the same thing over and over. It is also difficult to see what is happening since the cards are all kings, and you only see one sliver of the red king.

[The Magic Apple]

If you saw the entire routine in person, you'd change your mind. Not only does it build after each sequence, it gets more 'fooling' as you go along. It will fool A LOT of people, especially you, Bob.

Thanx for the nice words Tom! I can't wait to finally meet you while you are in town

[El Mystico]

Looks to me nothing like the Gaeton gimmick, nor the English Wonder, or Page's Kitson thing...but may be inferior in its possibilities, if I'm following this right...

That's no criticism of Steve's presentation, which I found superior to most magic presentations.

[Tom Stone]

Thanx for the nice words Tom!

Don't mention it.
Although, I must confess that I would like to have seen Astounding Andy demo the piece instead.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9gpueznC_Gg#t=420s

[Pete Biro]

Awesome clip, Tom.... very cool is Steve.

[Drakonim]

posted by Steve Valentine on another forum and re-posted with his permission.





Hey guys, Steve Valentine here. just want to comment on some of the.. er... comments, mostly uninformed , regarding THREE.

While it seems strange to me that certain magicians want to expose the marketed material of another magician, especially when they themselves market magic, is beyond me. But I do think if you are going to say a trick is done THIS way you should at least buy it and know what you are talking about.

Anyway for those interested here's the skinny. It is 'inspired' by Ken Brooke's DUTCH LOOPER , I say so on the DVD. It is NOT Pat Pages Dutch looper /Kitson miracle which used a flap, or Gaetons 3 card trick, I have no flaps or double cards. The Looper gaff created by Ken Brooke only allowed the corners of the gaff to show, enabling only a very tight handling and display.

So I have re-designed the gimmick to allow almost all of the face to show, look at the video again, at times you see a lot of red king and yet moments later almost the entire black king face shows, it looks very clean. The re-design is the key feature of the THREE gaff, add to that the fact that the gaff is printed, allowing the audience to feel the cards and check you use only single cards.

Nothing is added or taken away from the card during the routine and it resets in a nano second. Its a very commercial routine and after working it for years I enlarged the possibilities of the gaff until it reached the multiphase stage it's at today. All the effects in the video can be done in sequence without resetting, unlike someone else suggested was happening.

So yes, you can make your own Pat Page flap or Ken Brooke gimmick (see the Gen) but it wont be my design and give you the cleanliness of handling in this routine. You won't be able to do the visual vanishes etc either..

Tom Stone was in the Close up room last week at the Magic Castle, he thought I was using double cards or Mylar or rough and smooth threaded cards, because of all there visual moves and effects I created with this gaff.

We discussed the trick and he said this " I saw "3" performed by Steve at the Magic Castle, and was amazed at the shear amount of different effects Steve managed to squeeze out of one single idea."

The benefit of the routine is that it's simple, that's the key for any commercial effect, nothing to break in the middle of a set, so you can relax and enjoy performing.

I include TWO gaffs as well as the full set of cards in every DVD, because if you do this as much as I do you will eventually dog ear your cards.

ill be teaching the trick and additional bonus handling at The Magic Apple, on April 18th, come see for yourself.

so there you have it, more than I would have liked to give away but the misinformation can be irksome.

Finally, and this is just my opinion, to all those who don't know, producing a Magic effect for market is a very time consuming and costly and rarely a money MAKING endeavor, many of you have done it and know what Im talking about. this is my baby and I wanted to share it with the community. To expose or try to expose the secret on any forum of magicians seems a bit tacky to me, I certainly hope no one does it to you, you know who you are .


all the best
steve

[Q. Kumber]

Just a note on the Dutch Looper. Ken Brooke did not invent it and mentions in his routine that it is very old and was known by fairground workers. Ken's routining and handling popularised it with magicians.