Derek Dingle

[Guest]

As sent to Magic TImes email list:

"Legendary close-up magician Derek Dingle died earlier today (Jan. 11, 2004)in New York City after suffering a stroke. A full obituary will appear in a special edition of MagicTimes and a further e-mail will be sent once it is published later tonight."

[Carl Mercurio]

Just got this email from Simon Lovell.

I am devestated to have to tell you that my good friend Derek Dingle
died today (Sunday 11th) after suffering a severe stroke last night.

He was not only one of the finest magicians I have ever seen work to lay
people and a wonderful technician he was also one of my very best
friends who never failed to make me laugh and provide superb company.

I last spoke to him last night as I was in the process of doing new
lecture notes for him for an upcoming tour and the Blackpool Convention.
He was really looking forward to the trip and it is so sad that so many
new magi won't get the chance to see him work. He was really on an up
about being around magicians properly again.

Derek will always remain in my heart as the best of the best.

I loved him dearly and will miss him very much.

Simon Lovell

[Guest]

:( I never had the opportunity to meet Derek, but I've loved all his material. I am very sad to hear this.

[John Smetana]

My thoughts are with Simon and all of Derek's friends and family. Sincere condolences to all.

Best thoughts,
John Smetana

[thecardman]

Without sounding rude or selfish (and my apologies if I do) I was really looking forward to seeing and, hopefully, meeting Mr Dingle at the Blackpool Convention at the end of next month. Sadly, it is not meant to be.

Now, he will forever be someone that I, along with many other magicians of my generation, only ever get to read about in books and watch on video.

Peter
:(

[Elwood]

That's two of us.

I was really looking forward to seeing Derek at Blackpool, but that won't happen now.

Two great Magicians gone in a week.

RIP Jack Avis and Derek Dingle.

[Guest]

God Bless Derek. He was very kind to many people, including me. I have special memories of those kindnesses. The world has lost a truly fine man.

PSC

[magicbar]

Wow, Derek is gone. His Complete Works and Stars of Magic videos turned me on to sleight of hand close-up more than Vernon. He will be missed.

[Dustin Stinett]

I just got home and I am just stunned and saddened to read this news. I used to read the piece on him in Hyla Clarks The Worlds Greatest Magic over and over, thinking to myself, This is the guy I want to be. I was thrilled when I finally got the opportunity to see him work in person. The performance and his lecture at the Magic Castle back in the 80s ranks among the best Id ever attended. The last time I saw him work was some years ago at the A-1 convention. His legend status and humor about having to work so early (it was a morning show) in a state that confiscates your cigarettes at the border more than made up for his (by his own admission) less than perfect performance. No one in that room cared that he had to reset in front of us: it was Derek Dingle.

Dustin

[David Regal]

Thank you, Richard, for writing the Dingle book, so his contributions will live forever.

[Jon Racherbaumer]

DEREK DINGLE
1937-2004

Simon Lovell related the sad news of Derek Dingles unexpected death to me the day after it happened. This particularly hit home because Derek was a contemporary and among those I dubbed the boys of autumn in am elegiac piece in The Looking Glass. The others in that group were Larry Jennings and Martin Nashalthough I would have included Mike Skinner, Roger Klause, and Bruce Cervon. Jennings and Skinner have passed onand now Dingle has unexpectedly left us. This fills me with sadness as it simultaneously evokes many memories. Although Derek recently preferred to remain off the radar, he quietly stayed in the game. In fact, Simon Lovell was helping him put together a new set of lecture material for upcoming conventions this year.

I always thought that Derek was a natural, surrounded by an aura of superb softness. That is, he had a soft touch when performing. Coupled with his almost preternatural calmness (in his later years) and the soft-sell of his presentations, he created an aura around everything he did. He avoided anything manic, over-heated, or overly dramatic. Instead he swaddled his magical effects in velvet and then showcased them as dazzling gems, allowing their intrinsic radiance to dazzle. Anyone who saw him in his prime will attest to how powerful his stuff played. His close friends will also attest to his deadly, comic side

Although I will likely write something later, perhaps its fitting to share what I wrote about Derek in The Looking Glass a few years ago?

FROM THE LOOKING GLASS:


I met Derek Dingle in 1969 when he held court at a table in a cafeteria near Tannens magic shop in New York City. Everybody hung out on Saturdays. He was showing tricks later published in Dingles Deceptions and his performance was impressivehighly stylized, accented in precise English, with just enough razzle to dazzle fast company. Back then tricks like Color Triumphant, Through and Through, and Four Coins in the Countin were cutting-edge stuff and the looks on the faces of the slack-jawed faithful were something to behold. He was on the verge of becoming a star and had studied under Ross Bertram and Eddie Fechter. The former engendered a deep appreciation of refined sleight-of-hand and the latter taught him how to woo-and-wax lay people.

Perhaps all cardmen move through stages, beginning as tyros-earnest, fiery, and serious-as-a-heart-attack? This is the intense Student Phase when wholesale absorption of knowledge occurs with manic avidity. There are long sessions of card-tricking and intensive reading. (If you have a caring mentor, this can be a memorable, exciting phase.) Next comes the Newbie-Whiz Phase when the brain-bursting new-guy cannot contain himself. He must show-and-tell, must test his newly acquired knowledge, and showcase his cleverness for anybody (besides his mother).

When I saw Dingle for the first time, he was past the Newbie-Whiz Phase and was beginning the Celebrity Phase. During the 70s he was the man-of-the-hour and his confident skillfulness ushered in an influential period in card magic. He would join Michael Skinner, Larry Jennings, Roger Klause, and Bruce Cervon as the Second-Wave Cardmen, the guys rocking and rolling with what they learned from Vernon and Marlo. Dereks approach emphasized sturdy sleight-of-hand. double blow-offs, and Technicolor kickers. Al Schneider may have introduced Matrix in Genii, but it was Derek who yanked Hoe into another dimension and put Matrix on the map. Everyone with four coins and a close-up mat picked up on the Pick-Up Move.

Derek also took certain tricks to higher levels, stretching limits to their breaking point. He sought extra oomph and vital after-shocks and his tacit message was: Why be content with just "blowing minds when you can shout Gotcha!" in the hollow space that remains? Resonance is one thing, reverberation is another. He made the deck change color after performing Triumph. He rolled over and flattened a Ron Ferriss effect and re-created a knuckle-busting reputation-maker, Rollover Aces. He rehabilitated and tweaked Bruce Cervons Dirty Deal, creating a bar-room show-piece called Poor Charlie. At the height of the Universal Card craze, I showed Derek The Chameleon Card (The Universal Card) and he immediately worked up an improved handling. All in all, he invented a lot of card tricks during the 70's and a distillation of what percolated during this time in Cardopia is recorded in The Complete Works of Derek Dingle (1982).

Perhaps the final phase in a cardmans development is the Mature-Zen Phase? The quality and character of this phase largely depends on the professional experiences each cardman has. Derek, for example, worked trade shows, exclusive private engagements, and in a saloon. These are gritty, real-world gigs which dramatically temper ones working repertoire. What fools and impresses the cognoscenti can be irrelevant and boring in the real world. Derek learned quickly and learned well. The Zen way (although he would scoff at this term) to performing maturity is by rumination. You strip away the immaterial and unnecessary and eventually get down to the quick of what you really know and need. Learners, in the beginning, fervently add things. Adepts take things away.

Derek is now smack dab in the middle of his Mature-Zen Phase and if you want the see the result, watch what Dominique Duvivier captured on a video of Derek Dingles performance at the Double Fond in Paris (March, 1995). You will see a settled, subdued Derek, blissfully comfortable in his own skin, completely receptive to any foreign experience at hand, and manifestly convivial. The been-there-done-that knowingness of the past fifteen years has left him in good humor. He seemed bemused, unhurried, and content. There was relaxed deliberation in his movements, and instead of blasting lay persons out of their chairs, he permits them to savor the impact of his trickery and languish in their own astonishment. In the 70s, he would mentally jitterbug and knock down the rubes like tin ducks in a shooting gallerybingety-bang-bing! He would go full-speed-ahead and wouldnt stop until all the ducks were down.

Now he is one of the boys of autumn. He may still crinkle his nose in an odd way and work his brows, but these days he peers over his eye glasses like a gentle solicitor and seems to be enjoying himself. The presentation pieces on the video are vintage Dingle: Edward Victors 11-Card Trick, Card In Balloon, Sympathetic Coins, Quick Copper, Australian Poker (much stronger than it reads), Cards Across, and the Collectors. After you watch this video, closely reexamine the big book written and illustrated by Richard Kaufman.

******

Thats how the Looking Glass piece ended. With Dereks untimely passing, it may be a good time, As David Regal suggests, to reexamine his books and videos or any surviving legacy. To me, his television appearance on the old Barbara Walters Show is vintage Dingle. His appearance in Sesame Street was equally impressive.

Tonight Cardopia seems a smaller, somber place...

Onward

[Guest]

When I heard the news I didn't know what to do. I grabbed my copy of the Dingle book and wrote a little note on the leaf page. Here's what it said:

"Thank you for teaching me the true meaning of the words, Knuckle Busting. Thank you for getting me to practice for hours and hours and hours each day. Here's to cardmanship,brass balls and Kicker endings.
- Noah Levine
P.S. The Stuart Gordon Double rocks my socks"

I wrote the note in blue pen and I wrote the words "kicker ending" in red pen. Does anyone have any stories about DD or any particular favorite tricks of his. I loved his all-backs as well as the DD quick three way.


Noah Levine

[Rene Clement]

I recall Richie's efforts over 20 years ago to convince Derek to let him write up EVERYTHING he created. This was some task as even Derek couldn't remember all his contributions to the art of close up card magic.
When the book was published in 1982, it covered all of Derek's works to that date...thus the book's title.
Now more than ever we realize Richie's effort fulfilled it's intended purpose.

[mark]

I am so inadequate to the task of doing any justice to an epitaph. That is better left to men like Racherbaumer, Chosse, Kaufman, etc.. I am just in absolute shock. I have been gone all day you see, and as I sat down, weary at 11:00 on a much too busy Sunday evening, I had hoped against hope that the e-mail that I read was untrue. The Genii Forum was my next stop, only to find that I would never again have an opportunity to be in the presence of such a master. Mr. Racherbaumer, it is a smaller world, indeed. Rest in peace, Derek Dingle. We will have to learn to be satisfied with what is left behind.

[Tom Frank]

Some people see a bottle as half full, others as half empty. It doesn't really matter, cause I polished it off and now I'm just f***** up. Not nearly as wasted as I was The last time I saw Derek Dingle alive. I was in New York City to attend the NYC Toy Fair. Besides my Carew Tower Magic Shop in Cincinnati I was celebrating my 2nd year in business with my FunKIDelic Toy Store, a 3200 square foot specialty toy store in the same downtown mall as my Magic Shop. I was staying with my pal Jeff Moche while in the big city and thought it might be fun to look up my old friend Derek. He seemed as excited as I was to hook up, shoot the s***, catch up and throw back a few cocktails. The drinking began at 10AM of a
Sunday morning. Maybe Jeff can throw in his 2 cents as to what transpired that morning and afternoon.
I met Mr. Dingle for the first time when I was about 15 years old. He was friends with a mentor of mine named Larry Pringle. Derek always joked that they were going to do an
act called "Pringle & Dingle". As usual I am rambling. . .but so what. These guys showed me what card magic was all about. More than just a pinky pull down or a buckle, but how to put a smile on a persons face or turn a day into a week of practice. I will miss Derek as much as I miss Larry Pringle. The circle of life. For nobody else gave me a thrill, with all of your faults, I love you still. It had to be you, wonderful you. It had to be you.

[mago]

I envy those of you who knew Derek. I never had that pleasure.

I do have all his works and they are treasured both on my shelves and in my heart.

Tom Wolf

[Matthew Field]

The world of magic has lost not just a great sleight-of-hand master, but one of its sweetest inhabitants.

I was introduced to Dingle by Richard Kaufman, and saw him on a dozen or more occasions. Once, he was working as a strolling opening act for Blackstone, Jr. as part of the "Magic of Oreo Cookies" kick-off and I saw him in action with laymen -- Card to Wallet and more. Extraordinary.

I last saw him at the Magic on Manhattan one-day convention a few years ago and, truthfully, he did not look so great. He was with his wife, who was devoted to him, and I went up and said hello. He was, as always, instantly friendly and ingratiating.

Highly recommended is the video he did in France for Dominique Duviver. He will be sorely missed.

Matt Field

[Carl Mercurio]

I think Jon captured it. I've been doing Color Triumphant for 25 years. It is among the greatest of all card tricks. And that Matrix pick up. And everything in the Dingle issue of Genii (Richard, forget publishing your next issue. Just re-release this historic issue in its place). I saw Dingle about five years ago at Magic on Manhattan. He wasn't at his best, but you could tell you were in the hands of a worker. My wife assisted on cig thru quarter. A memorable moment. Simon Lovell and Dingle worked together all the time at private parties, Dingle doing the magic and Lovell doing gambling demostrations. Along with McComb, he was one of Lovell's favorite entertainers. That's saying a lot from a guy like Lovell, who in my mind is one of the great real-world magic entertainers. Derek Dingle is dead. Long live Derek Dingle!!!

[Mark McPhee]

I met Derek Dingle at PCAM 2000. It was a treat because his work was responsible for rekindling my interest in magic. I had found a tape of his in the local library, was floored by his work and had to learn more. At the convention Derek spent a lot of time entertaining at the bar and kept all magicians at an arms length. We sat together quite a while and visited. He opened up a lot because I asked him about everything but magic. In the end he was kind enough to show me a few examples of the different material he would do for laymen versus magicians and why. He deserved a better place of honor in the magic world but he intentionally crafted a separate life and appeared to not want the attention at the time we met.

[David Oliver]

Whenever Simon calls on the phone, I always expect a fun story, a laugh, a conversation concerning some esoteric card move or fresh news about an upcoming book deal.

When he called me yesterday, and in a uncharacteristically somber voice said that we had lost Derek about an hour earlier, I was at a loss for words. The man with, by far, one of the coolest and possibly most memorable names in magic, "Dingle", gone?

I didn't know Derek as well as Simon, or for as long as, or as closely as many of you knew him, I'm sure. But during my encounters with him, Derek always made me feel as if we had been friends for years! I don't know who among us had ever had a chance to meet, know or watch Derek in his prime, but, in my opinion (even though I met him in later years), he lived up to his legendary status.

His fabulous books (thanks in no small part to Richard!) inspired a generation of performers, myself included, to venture further into the close-up arena. Unfortunately, in recent years, the legend had diminished a bit, and many of us never really saw the true master that was Derek Dingle.

What never diminished was his impact on our little community. I will forever remember Derek and his magic for his inventiveness, his direct humor and his genuine kindness toward others. Thanks for the magic, the generosity and the inspiration, Derek! You will be missed.

My heart aches for Shelley at this time. Please, remember to keep her in your thoughts.

-David Oliver

[Andrew Martin Portala]

Wow............
When I heard the news yesterday about Derek Dingle,the first thing that ran in my mind was all the things I learned in The Complete Works of Derek Dingle.The pass,the bounce change(which is pretty close to real magic.)and his double lift.
Then I remember when I got my first VCR it was his tape I first watch.
I never met him but I saw him at a Cleveland convention.
Thank Mr.Dingle for your amazing magic and for Richard who put out a great book.
Magic has loss one of the best sleight of hand artist in the world.Wow.....................

[cardstuntman]

hi

I have not posted here in a while. had to say somekind of goodbye to the Man who made it all come together for me. Derek Dingle will always be my favorite. I am going to go break the seal of a new deck and do too many cards, all backs , open sez me and have a good cry.

s.p.

[Gordon Bean]

When I was a teenager, I was once talking with a woman from New York City. When she found out I was a budding magician, she smiled and recalled a performer she had encountered at a party. Even though the party had occurred over a year before our conversation, she remembered the full name of the performer who had so affected her. It came out of her lips clear as a bell: Derek Dingle.

Dingle was my first magic idol, and still ranks as one of the finest entertainers and technicians I have ever seen. During a ten-year lull when I was out of magic, the one magic book I bought was The Complete Works of Derek Dingle, and without that incentive I may well have stayed on the other side of the curtain.

So thanks, Richard. And thank you, Derek. A true star shines forever.

[Bob Baker]

I was in the NYC Cafeteria the Saturday long ago when Derek Dingle walked in and started doing the Zarrow shuffle. To my knowledge, no one outside the most inner circles had seen it up till then. Everyone was floored. We all thought he was just doing regular table riffle shuffles. People went crazy.

He always did that to us.


Bob

[Carl Mercurio]

Dear Forum Members,

Simon Lovell informed me that he has printed out and faxed all of your forum notes to Shelly, Derek's significant other. Your feelings of admiration are much appreciation. In addition, tonight's Monday Night Magic performance was dedicated to Derek.

[Guest]

I, too, am shocked and saddened to hear about the passing of a true legend in close-up magic.

Derek as a teacher and mentor was unmatched. I saw him perform for the first time on the Tom Snyder show (Rollover Aces!, etc.) in NYC. He lived in NJ and I was determined to meet him. I got his phone number, called him and asked if he would give me lessons. He readily agreed...If memory serves correctly, for $15/hour. My first session with him lasted about 4 hours and he only asked for $15!

He was the first cardman that I witnessed up close who could do the "real work." He made the pass, palm, side-steal and so many other sleights "come to life." I had read ECT, but Derek knew that book inside out, and could perform the work.

He was generous with almost everything. (I remember a Diaconis deck switch and a Jennings routine in particular which he refused to divulge. I still wish I could remember the Freeman ace-assembly he showed me!)

I just a budding card guy to him, but he lent me his xeroxed copy of Marlo in the New Tops which Darwin Ortiz had compiled from copies in the NYC library. What a goldmine that was. Derek was very generous!

There is probably not a cardman today who was not only influenced by Derek, but also performs his material.

I will miss the man who inspired me and challenged me and changed me.

[Guest]

I never saw Derek but have been working through the "complete works" for a little while. I dabble in magic off and on - kind of for my own amusement - but reading Derek's stuff and really trying to learn it has been great. I remember Richard K. saying on here that you just could not see Derek's pass. Well I have been trying like crazy to learn how to do the Pass and just a few days ago I decided to see if Derek himself would ever be giving a lecture tour so I could try to learn from the source. A web search under his name greeted me with the first notice of his death. Goes to show you should never take anyone for granted. He will be missed.

[Jonathan Townsend]

In 1976, a friend was busy toying with the routines in Dingle's Deceptions. His enthusiasm for the material was infectious.

In 1977 or 78, Derek visited the cafeteria one Saturday. He was nice enough to take a request for 'Super Interchange'... and then proceeded to perform the 'innovations' series including the one that never made print... and 'Rollover Aces.'

He spent about an hour showing some of his routines. He would dive into his case looking for the right cards to show something, and after a few moments of searching, come up with a few cards which somehow changed several times. One such item was a 'Quick Three Way' ending with all three cards clearly shown simultaneously as identical.

In his hands, the thickness of a packet of cards simply vanished. Between his demeanor and his routine construction, material that might read as procedural or awkward would flow as background to his presentation.

There was a time just after Dingle's Deceptions was published that you could walk into Tannen's and buy sets of 'Poor Charlie', 'Sympathetic Cards' and Poker sized MacDonalds Aces. One could also find his work in the 'Riffle Shuffle Technique' book, and the 'Innovations' series. Suddenly everone was working on coin assemblies.

Seeing the all backs sequence for 'quick three way', 'Color Triumphant' and the twisting the aces that happens between two jokers performed by the inventor was inspiring.

That was a special day. Thanks Derek!

[Guest]

I was introduced to Derek Dingle in 1982 by Richard Kaufman. Derek was working behind the Cobblestone Bar in Greenwhich village.

You can only imagine what happened to me that night; I experienced difficult sleight of hand presented without fear or trepidation. Derek Dingle was the master role model to emmulate along with Jennings and Skinner.

I was lucky and blessed to have met this master once. Sadly, today's generation can only guess how good Derek Dingle was.

He was awesome...............period

Another star shines in heaven

Mike Vincent
London

[Carl Mercurio]

Dear Forum Members,

Simon Lovell asked me to post the following message on his behalf....

Dear All - I have been forwarding all your messages to Shelly and she has read them all. She is very moved by the outpouring of love for Derek and has asked me to pass on her sincere thanks and best wishes to you all. The messages have given us all tears but not just tears of sadness, tears of joy that Derek was so well loved by our world. We are sure that he's looking down from somewhere, sipping a scotch, cigarette in hand and smiling.

Thank you again,
Simon

[luigimar]

I was really sad when I read the news of his untimely passing and wish I had met the man at least once and witness live his great ability and artistry. I only saw his performance thru his Tannen's video where I learned and still perform the only all backs routine with selection that I do. Never saw (who could?) his pass because it was perfect and really invisible.

If you really admire the man, take out your copy of his book (or if you don't have it, buy it, what a better way to thank him) and study one routine, any routine that you like and perform it in his memory. I'm already practicing All Backs and Quick-D way.

Thank you Derek!

luigimar

[David Regal]

I saw Derek at one of the New York Symposiums. At the show designed for magicians, he performed some of his big foolers with a pure casual mastery. I recall him doing his all-backs routine in which the backs change color at the end. The greatest moments came later, though, when I saw him doing tricks for "just folks" at the bar, including his ambitious card routine...he lit up, turned on the charm, and performed exuberantly. A thrill.

[Guest]

Derrick Dingle was my friend, at times he was tough to take, at times he was tough to understand. If you knew him well enough, he was a very giving guy. Sometimes I think it was difficult for him because before he let you be his friend, a true friend, he had to trust you up, do and sideways. He was smart, too many of us are eager for friends, Derrick could wait and I respect him for that. If Derrick thought, just thought you needed something, he would give it to you. He amazed me, not only was he an master magician, but in our conversations I found him to be a craftsman in many ways, from working with engines to doing intricate woodwork. With that said I have to smile because finding out some things about
Derrick was magic in itself, he was a very personal person.

He was my friend, he is someone I will miss and he was someone I am glad Id known in my life.
I join with Shelly in celebrating his life.
Goodbye my friend,
Paul Mondelli

[Richard Kaufman]

I am here in Las Vegas at the World Magic Seminar along with Jamy Swiss, Geoff Latta, and many others who learned much from Derek. To say that we were shocked to hear of his sudden death when we arrived here on Sunday is an understatement.
We will do a memorial issue of Genii for Derek in April or May, depending upon how long it takes me, Swiss, and Racherbaumer to pull it all together. We want to do it right without rushing.
What else can I say?
How can one repay a debt to someone so well known, and of such great ability, who let me lay on the floor and watch him do the Pass from underneath when I was just an anonymous kid of 14 years old?
How very different so many of our lives would have been if not for Derek.

[Bill Wisch]

Derek Dingle was the sleight-of-hand master...one of a kind, gifted in so many ways, and truly on top of it all.
I always felt that if I ever had the proverbial Victorian mansion, with the drawing room and fireplace and 20 or so guests, the magician performing would have to be Derek. That would be the true art of magic at it's best.
I first saw Derek at Tannen's Jubilee in 1971 and was immediately captivated for life! Meeting and knowing him through the years was a treat in itself, but I will always envy you guys who had the chance to become close with him. Thanks for some of your memories.
And like so many others, I echo the thanks to Richard Kaufman for his painstaking work and outstanding legacy, "Derek Dingle's Complete Works".

[Jon Racherbaumer]

There is so much that can be added and written about regarding Derek, and, as RK just posted, much of this we hope to put in the Memorial Issue of Genii. I was heartened to see so many magicians response to Dereks passing and express their thoughts and feelings. If there are others who want to express their thoughts in greater detail, please feel free to e-mail me, Jamy, or RK and perhaps these words could be added to our Memorial Issue. Send any comments to me at:
GeniiJon@aol.com.

I mentioned in my short piece that Derek was a natural (as in the sporting sense of the word). In the parlance of sports, the term good hands is often used to describe innate motor skills, timing, and the ability to quickly learn and execute. There are some students of sleight of hand who will never be great no matter how much they practice and rehearse. Others, the naturals, just seem to immediately develop the knack and know-how.

Back in the old days when gaffed, POKER-SIZE cards had to be made by hand, there were only a few who knew how to dry-split cards and glue them correctly. Charles Kalish was an early developer of techniques, taken from the field of photography (tacking irons, dry-mounting, etc.) Johnny Benzais talked about dry-splitting cards. However, Derek was a master at doing this. Ill never forget the day I asked him about doing this.

I dont think it is possible to do this in a consistent manner, I said.

Derek shrugged and said in is easy, English-accented, Canadian way: Of course it is

I handed him a Tally-Ho, three-ply card.

Derek tapped the corner of this card a few times and then held it deftly between his fingers and in a single, speedy, uninterrupted movement, CLEANLY torn the card into two perfect pieces. One was two-ply; the other was one-ply.

He handed me the pieces and said, Thats all there is to it!

I still have the pieces, which are now sanctified artifacts.

Like I said:

Derek was a natural.

Onward

[Jon Racherbaumer]

There is so much that can be added and written about regarding Derek, and, as RK just posted, much of this we hope to put in the Memorial Issue of Genii. I was heartened to see so many magicians response to Dereks passing and express their thoughts and feelings. If there are others who want to express their thoughts in greater detail, please feel free to e-mail me, Jamy, or RK and perhaps these words could be added to our Memorial Issue. Send any comments to me at:
GeniiJon@aol.com.

I mentioned in my short piece that Derek was a natural (as in the sporting sense of the word). In the parlance of sports, the term good hands is often used to describe innate motor skills, timing, and the ability to quickly learn and execute. There are some students of sleight of hand who will never be great no matter how much they practice and rehearse. Others, the naturals, just seem to immediately develop the knack and know-how.

Back in the old days when gaffed, POKER-SIZE cards had to be made by hand, there were only a few who knew how to dry-split cards and glue them correctly. Charles Kalish was an early developer of techniques, taken from the field of photography (tacking irons, dry-mounting, etc.) Johnny Benzais talked about dry-splitting cards. However, Derek was a master at doing this. Ill never forget the day I asked him about doing this.

I dont think it is possible to do this in a consistent manner, I said.

Derek shrugged and said in is easy, English-accented, Canadian way: Of course it is

I handed him a Tally-Ho, three-ply card.

Derek tapped the corner of this card a few times and then held it deftly between his fingers and in a single, speedy, uninterrupted movement, CLEANLY torn the card into two perfect pieces. One was two-ply; the other was one-ply.

He handed me the pieces and said, Thats all there is to it!

I still have the pieces, which are now sanctified artifacts.

Like I said:

Derek was a natural.

Onward

[Mark Tams]

We must all be eternally grateful for those that came before us and influenced the Magic World. Derek was definately one that came before us. I echo the sentiments of those that stated Derek's influence on each and every one of us in one way or another.

By the way, over the years the most overlooked move I've encountered by magicians in the know comes from The Complete Works book. It is only a paragraph long, but has served me well for countless years. It is titled the Classic Pass False Cut. Worth looking up!

Thanks for your influence Derek! :)

[Jamy Ian Swiss]

Derek Dingle was one of the greatest close-up magicians of our time. I was privileged to know him, work with him, and above all, be deeply influenced by him.

Although he had a deserved reputation as a remarkable sleight-of-hand technician -- truly possessing among the best hands I ever saw -- magicians rarely understood his truest gifts, in that he was a phenomenal entertainer for laymen. A "worker" in every sense of the word. He rarely if ever succeeded in revealing this greatness in front of magicians, much to the frustration of his most passionate fans, including myself and Richard Kaufman.

I think every magician comes across a certain book at a certain time that, while it may not be responsible for his over-arching philosophy or conjuring education, serves to influence his work in some profound way, and remains forever with him. Derek's Collected Works did this for me. There is no single book in magic which has influenced so much specific material in my working repertoire.

I will miss this great artist terribly. At the risk of stating the obvious, there will never be another like him.

[Brad Henderson]

I never met Derek Dingle, but knew I needed to.

When I was young I was vacationing at Walt Disney World. Being a precocious teen I had my deck of cards handy and was more than happy to entertain while waiting in queue. (Well, at least I was entertained.) I met up with a family and we spent the afternoon seeing the sights with me keeping them occupied during the waits. The father told me, "You need to meet this guy named Derek. I've seen a lot of magic, and this guy is the best I've ever witnessed." I had heard of someone named Derek Dingle and asked if that was his last name. His eyes lit up.

Turns out they frequented the same bar and Derek performed there regularly. To hear this man talk, a lay person, you would think Derek was the greatest magician who ever lived. So much so that my new found friend had a very difficult time understanding why Derek didn't have the fame of Copperield or Henning.

I regret having never seen Derek perform, though his work will be a memory I carry with me always.