ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

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Chuck Romano
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ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby Chuck Romano » January 7th, 2015, 10:56 am

I am pleased to announce the publication of a new, hardcover version of The Expert at the Card Table. This edition will be available on/around February 5th, 2015.

This is not a print-on-demand or scanned copy. The classic text has been completely re-typeset, and the original artwork has been cleaned and enhanced. No attempts at editing Erdnase's words or changing the book's layout have been made in order to retain the book's charm. Of course, it will bound in the well-known green cloth of the original. The result can only be described as a "classic" reproduction of this classic.

You can pre-order your copy exclusively at H&R Magic Books http://www.magicbookshop.com/product_in ... s_id=17764

I will also be selling a special BIBLE EDITION of TEATCT. Since Erdnase's work is considered the bible to many, I have bound 50 copies in a black cloth cover with The Cardman's BIBLE elegantly stamped in gold on the cover and spine. Each book has a red, ribbon bookmark and is embossed on the end paper with a seal stating the book's number. This is a strictly limited edition of 50 copies. Once these are gone there will be no more - EVER. The pre-publication price for this edition is $100.00 (postpaid). After Feb. 5th, 2015 the price will rise to $110.00 if any copies are left for sale. U.S customers only and only available from me. Order your copy at http://www.houdinisattic.com

Thank you!

Chuck Romano
535 Sumac Dr.
Aurora, IL 60506
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crmagic@comcast.net

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby Ted M » January 7th, 2015, 11:59 am

Since the book has been re-typeset, can you show us some sample pages to give us confidence in the aesthetics?

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby Chuck Romano » January 7th, 2015, 5:56 pm

Hi Ted,

Here are a few jpgs that illustrate how some of the pages look. Keep in mind the quality of the jpg is low. Thanks.

http://www.houdinisattic.com/images/EAT ... Page_3.jpg
http://www.houdinisattic.com/images/EAT ... Page_2.jpg
http://www.houdinisattic.com/images/EAT ... Page_1.jpg

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby Will Jung » January 7th, 2015, 8:02 pm

What a coincidence in timing. Penguin just started carrying another version of EATCT as well:

http://www.penguinmagic.com/p/5114

After a bit of research, I discovered that a magician by the name of Ryan Edwards is responsible for this edition: http://www.rehandcrafted.com/

I'm not a fan of the black cover though. I'll definitely be pre-ordering the version from H&R. Thank you so much for sharing Chuck.

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby Richard Kaufman » January 7th, 2015, 8:18 pm

I must be an idiot for not publishing yet another edition of this book!
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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby brianarudolph » January 7th, 2015, 9:11 pm

And Josh and Andi at Vanishing, Inc. are releasing a limited edition of TEATCT too. I don't think it's the same one, but I could be wrong (and usually am):

https://www.vanishingincmagic.com/magic ... hardcover/

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby Leonard Hevia » January 7th, 2015, 9:19 pm

brianarudolph wrote:And Josh and Andi at Vanishing, Inc. are releasing a limited edition of TEATCT too. I don't think it's the same one, but I could be wrong (and usually am):

https://www.vanishingincmagic.com/magic ... hardcover/


I think that black hardcover edition is the same one we see in Vanishing Inc., Penguin, and Mr. Edwards' site.

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby Bill Marquardt » January 7th, 2015, 10:23 pm

Richard Kaufman wrote:I must be an idiot for not publishing yet another edition of this book!


Maybe you should. I bet it wouldn't cost fifty bucks.

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby lybrary » January 8th, 2015, 12:36 pm

Bill, I think you are missing the point, these high priced EATCT releases only target collectors. In that market you score with high priced limited edition releases. For everybody else who simply likes to read EATCT there are many inexpensive reprints and digital editions some of which are free. By now I think most already have multiple editions.
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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby Bill Marquardt » January 8th, 2015, 1:05 pm

Call me weird, but...

What I would like is a simple hardcover edition of EATCT. I have the digital version somewhere on one of my hard drives and I have Revelation, but I would still like a simple hardcover edition. Not easy to find unless you want to pay the big bucks. I do not like paperback books in general, and I do not enjoy reading a book on a screen. I am leery of print on demand although I don't know why.

i will probably end up buying a collector's edition, but I won't be happy about it. I am not a cheapskate; I have bought over $1,000.00 worth of books this past year. i just don't like paying twice what a book is worth (IMO).

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby Bill Mullins » January 8th, 2015, 1:47 pm

This was a simple hardcover edition (and I was an underbidder -- way under).

This is a relatively inexpensive hardcover version. Or if you prefer, one with a DJ.

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby I.M. Magician » January 8th, 2015, 2:05 pm

Card Mastery is still available in a softbound edition for around $10 or so.

I may list some brand new copies here on the Genii Forum this month or next.

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby Bill Mullins » January 8th, 2015, 2:58 pm

Softbound editions of Erdnase are widely available. Hardbound (until this most recent spate of editions), not so much.

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby Bill Marquardt » January 8th, 2015, 4:21 pm

You can purchase a hardbound copy of EATCT from the UK, Print on Demand, for about $58.00. One of those same editions is offered on Amazon for $175.00. Is someone attempting a rip-off of an unsuspecting collector?

I purchased a used copy of Greater Magic for $149.00 and thought it was a good deal based on current asking prices, but then someone sold one, apparently in the same good condition as mine, for $80.00. Such is life. I am happy to have the book but wish I had the extra $69.00 back.

I might just go for a used copy of Card Mastery. Twice the bang for half the price.

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby Bill Mullins » January 8th, 2015, 4:34 pm

Bill Marquardt wrote: Twice the bang for half the price.


MacDougall added 81 pages to Expert, so assuming equal-valued content (I'm not sure you should), it's more like "1.4 times the bang".

But it does provided a hardbound edition of Erdnase.

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby Brad Jeffers » January 8th, 2015, 4:54 pm

lybrary wrote:... these high priced EATCT releases only target collectors.

I wonder how many hardcore Erdnase collectors are there? This edition is limited to 700 copies. Are there 700 people who will purchase any edition, at any price, in order to keep their collection complete?

It's really interesting how many different editions have come out in recent years ...

In addition to the facsimile editions, there was the Bible edition, the Indestructible waterproof plastic edition, Todd Karr's Scroll edition (which was printed on a single 40 foot long piece of paper) and my personal favorite, the Erdnase Journal, which was a copy with all the text removed, leaving only the M.D. Smith illustrations and a lot of blank space. In the add copy for this particular edition, it points out that "if you have kids, it makes for the greatest coloring book ever!"

I noticed that in addition to the 700 copies of this new edition there will also be a Bible edition limited to 50 copies and priced at $110.

The Kalush Bible edition sold for $15. The standard edition had black covers. There was a limited edition with maroon covers, and a small number with green covers. If you are indeed a hardcore Erdnase collector, you will of course need to possess one of each.

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby lybrary » January 8th, 2015, 5:59 pm

I think 700 is a bit too much purely for the collector market. 100-200 is about what I would think could be sold to collectors at that price. Time will tell. I think it is likely that eventually the price will have to come down to sell all 700. I think there is too little unique about these latest editions. The CARC small bible Erdnase was different enough and relatively cheap, so it sold a ton. Editions that added commentary also sold well because of the new contents. But just printing and binding it nicely is in my opinion not going to make a strong enough case for the price asked.
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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby Bill Mullins » January 8th, 2015, 9:32 pm

Was it ever announced, by Michael Canick or anyone else, how many copies of the "centennial edition" were printed? Surely not as many as 700. And it took most of a decade for copies to be exhausted from dealer stocks.

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby Richard Kaufman » January 8th, 2015, 10:27 pm

Different people buy for different reasons.

There are those who collect anything Erdnase and will buy it.

There are those who love sleight of hand and Erdnase and will buy it.

There are those who will buy a dozen copies on speculation that the price will rise once they've sold out.

And then there are the people who buy every new book that comes out.

So, lots of audiences to appeal to with this title and I think selling 700 would be pretty simple. Even 1,000 should be a breeze.

I haven't done it because there really doesn't seem to be a valid reason other than money.

But I do have a unique and original idea for presenting Expert at the Card Table in a new way, and perhaps one day ...
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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby Bill Mullins » January 8th, 2015, 11:30 pm

Brad Jeffers wrote:It's really interesting how many different editions have come out in recent years ...

In addition to the facsimile editions, there was the Bible edition, the Indestructible waterproof plastic edition, Todd Karr's Scroll edition (which was printed on a single 40 foot long piece of paper) and my personal favorite, the Erdnase Journal, which was a copy with all the text removed, leaving only the M.D. Smith illustrations and a lot of blank space.


Since the facsimile edition in 2002, besides the ones you mention, there have been:

1. Pocket Erdnase by Houdini Magic, in conjunction with their Expert at the Card Table DVD set by Allan Ackerman.

2. Softbound edition by Magic Makers, in conjunction with their Expert at the Card Table DVD set by Wesley James.

3. Softbound quasi-facsimile edition distributed by Daniel Madison. This appears to be print-on-demand, and looks to have been made by taking a print out of the CARC bible edition, trimming the line numbers from the sides of the pages, scanning it in grey-scale mode, and printing it out. They don't seem to be available from Madison any longer.

4. The Charles and Wonder edition, edited by Erdnase scholar Marty Demarest.

5. Assorted Print-on-Demand versions found on aggregators like Abebooks, Biblio.com, Amazon. Companies like Read Books (UK) and Obscure Press take public domain books which have been scanned into Googlebooks and print paper books from the scans.



Bill Mullins wrote:Was it ever announced, by Michael Canick or anyone else, how many copies of the "centennial edition" were printed?

The Everything Erdnase site says that there were 750 copies of this version.

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby Roger M. » January 9th, 2015, 10:13 am

The insert contained within the 2002 Anniversary Edition confirms that it was from an edition of 750 books.

Most of those books sold (over quite a long period of time) for around $75.00 each when they were available new from booksellers.

Within the last 2 or 3 years, the books have become harder to find, and when they do show up they go for around $300.00 (give or take).
So there definitely is both a new, and an aftermarket for a finely done hardcover edition.

The recent spate of print-on-demand editions make an inexpensive reference. Certainly these are nicer books to own than the Dover edition, which was the only real choice for quite a few years.

This new edition seems like a nice, limited edition, hardcover package.

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby Bill Mullins » January 9th, 2015, 5:16 pm

Roger M. wrote: Most of those books sold (over quite a long period of time) for around $75.00 each when they were available new from booksellers.


Canick originally sold them for $52.

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby Bill Mullins » January 24th, 2015, 12:42 am

Does anyone know if this is Romano's version? Or Vanishing Inc.'s?

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby Leonard Hevia » January 24th, 2015, 1:55 am

I believe the copy on eBay is Romano's version. It appears to have a green cover and I just confirmed that Romano's version has a green cover:

http://www.mylovelyassistant.com/products/view/22178

Notice also that the gold letters on the cover of Romano's version stand out more than the letters on the cover in Vanishing Inc.'s version, which looks black to me.

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby IanLand » January 24th, 2015, 6:13 am

Pick an Erdnase. Now, give the pile a thorough shuffle. Is that your Erdnase?

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby Bill Mullins » January 24th, 2015, 10:15 am

My Erdnase is corner-shorted and thus is easy to find.

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby John McDonald » January 24th, 2015, 10:17 am

I have a breather as a book mark
Best John

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby IanLand » January 24th, 2015, 10:43 am

I'm currently working on a sequel. Self-Working Erdnase.

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby Rick Ruhl » January 28th, 2015, 4:55 pm

Chuck, got the bible today and it is wonderful... thank you for putting the effort into this.

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby Leonard Hevia » January 28th, 2015, 9:05 pm

Rick Ruhl wrote:Chuck, got the bible today and it is wonderful... thank you for putting the effort into this.


Rick, I'm curious. Do you have the Centennial Edition? If so, have you compared it to Romano's edition? Any differences?

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby Will Jung » January 29th, 2015, 6:26 am

Although we were told that this edition will be available from the printers on February 5th, someone seems to have already gotten their hands on some:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/261745781335

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Re: ERDNASE Hardcover. Pre-Pub Offer

Postby Chuck Romano » January 29th, 2015, 8:30 am

Just a quick update...

I (the publisher) received the book from the printer and put a few copies on Ebay. I sent H&R Magic Books their stock upon receiving the shipment. They should have it this week.

The BIBLE edition is about half sold. All BIBLE pre-orders have been sent from me and customers should have their books already or getting them any day. You can order both editions and view pictures on http://www.houdinisattic.com.

Thanks, Rick (Ruhl) for the kind words. Glad you like the bible.

Best Regards,
Chuck Romano


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