The Genii Forum

Bill Duncan

Drat. This thread has got me thinking about that tired old trick. I've been doing an impromptu Wild Card for a couple of decades, and never thought I needed a gaffed version when the one I do is FASDIU. But the talk of a slightless version got me curious and I bought JR's book from http://www.llepub...

Bill Duncan

Thank you Brad. And Peter.

Bill Duncan

Some time back there was a video on the net (YouTube if I recall correctly) of Peter doing the routine for his director, or acting coach. He performed the routine and she gave some notes.

It was wonderful.

Bill Duncan

Similarity in writing style, aside, I rather hope this isn't true. If only so that the site can post weekly "I am Spartacus" videos.

Bill Duncan

I like how he was doing standard magic shop magic, with no presentation beyond "That's a hot one." It's important to let the magic speak for itself.

Alfred, the coin trick is Gregery Wilson's Exact Change.

Bill Duncan

Sent you a pm

Bill Duncan

Even if you don't want to visit the site Tom linked to so that you can profit from Tommy's creations it's worth a click.

The site has YouTube links to some video of TW that you probably haven't seen before.

Bill Duncan

As soon as you get into symbolism, elaborate story-telling, plot and sub-text - a lot of this effort becomes wasted and is unable to be appreciated by an audience. Magic is a craft not an art. I really hate hearing how _____ is "not an art". Nothing is a freakin' ART! Painting is not an a...

Bill Duncan

...along with the string and routine using smoke. I got to see Smoke from about 6 feet away, at a magic convention in Seattle years ago. I had read Peter's book*, Theatrical Close-up , but I was not aware of Smoke. I was astonished. It is, hands down, one of the best pieces of magic theater ever cr...

Bill Duncan

I'm not sure where the idea Vernon didn't use or like flourishes comes from. He espoused naturalness, sure, but he also published and popularized a one handed shuffle, a one handed stud deal, and the coin star. The Sadowitz thing looks terrible. Hands down, the worst thing I've ever seen him do. I d...

Bill Duncan

if we're bragging about obscure titles, I still have my copy of The Interlocked Production of Coins.

Bill Duncan

I searched for a friend who publishes on Lulu using his name and found this books. I don't see anything when searching for your name.

Is this impacting everyone? The missing covers are missing on my friend's page, but he can be found by name.

Bill Duncan

I had a brief email friendship with Harvey over a decade ago when I posted a couple of crappy web-cam videos showing the difference between the Erdnase Diagonal Palm Shift and the Arthur Findlay version from the Vernon Chronicles for someone who was asking about the original version. Harvey pointed ...

Bill Duncan

Because you can always trust a reformed card cheat who hid his identity? That makes sense to me.
; )

Bill Duncan

Why would we assume that photographs means the illustrations taken from them were traced? Isn't that just applying what we do now to something done a century ago? I recall hearing a lot about the differing quality of the illustrations. Wouldn't it make just as much sense to thing that after the in p...

Bill Duncan

Another discrepancy is that often, the three packets from which aces vanish show 3 face-down indifferent cards, and a face-up ace. And during the vanish/transposition, the packet is turned over, and 4 face-up cards are shown. Sometimes, the handling accounts for this, but sometimes it doesn't, and ...

Bill Duncan

I'm also convinced that most laymen would describe the effect as "he made three aces disappear from three piles and then found them in the last pile with the fourth ace" rather than "he transposed the aces from three piles with three indifferent cards in the fourth pile." I susp...

Bill Duncan

Alfred, I think audiences would assume that's the aces are going somewhere, because of that whole "matter can neither be created nor destroyed, only transformed" rule our universe operates on. But even if they do assume things are vanishing forever (because we hate aces???) and are surpris...

Bill Duncan

Bob,
I think the production you're talking about sounds an awful lot like Richard's DH Revelation (Double Halo) from the New York Magic Symposium video. One of my card productions. Ever.

Bill Duncan

Nani fixing her shoe at the end was a nice touch.

Bill Duncan

Therefore, obviously, a card has been substituted for the ace. If the last card were really the ace and it was to really vanish, the performer should wind up with absolutely no card at all. By that logic, if the aces vanish (instead of transpose) to join the leader ace then the leader packet should...

Bill Duncan

I think it's an interesting point to ponder whether the three aces should rather vanish than turn into other cards. However, I guess the main reason for usually making them change into random cards is that we have found more technical solutions for this than for a convincing vanish. What do you thi...

Bill Duncan

Great to hear!

Bill Duncan

You must be friends with him. Most of the book is half-baked ideas that won't really work. The rest is weak tricks that do work. Yeah... about that. But no, not a friend. I live in the PNW so he lectured up here a couple of times, and I was part of a handful of people who went out for eats afterwar...

Bill Duncan

I had the good fortune to see both Lucy/Carisa and RobZ at The 3 of Clubs magic convention (hi Evan!) a couple of years ago, and was blown away by how much better stage/platform magic has gotten in the past decade or so. As far the the trick-to-presentation ratio goes, both Rob and Carisa kept me in...

Bill Duncan

That might be the best stage magic show I've ever seen.

just wonderful

Bill Duncan

Andi gave a great lecturer, disguised as a great show. Attendance was higher than average, and the skill level of those in attendance ranged from "magic loving collector" to Jack Freakin' Carpenter. And everyone one I talked to afterwards left happy about the show and with tricks and ideas...

Bill Duncan

I'm a but late but mine arrived last Thursday. It was an unexpected Xmas present from my wife, and boy howdy it's a nice package! I'm not a huge Tenyo fan, but I do have fond memories of my early days in the magic shop, but these books are Amazing, and the inclusion of Sakkaku Scale and two other no...

Bill Duncan

I would pay good money to see that film.

I would pay even more money to see Derek voicing a Muppet version of himself, because Muppets are awesome.

Bill Duncan

The best joke in Wenii was the add for the magician naming service...

Bill Duncan

Thanks for that that Ian. Color wheels stress me out so much!

; )

Bill Duncan

It is beyond doubt that modern audience do not believe the mystical act. Not from my personal experience it's not. Just the opposite in fact. I'll share two examples that contradict this assumption: 1. At Seattle Magic there was a customer who was looking at the David Blaine book when I arrived. Th...

Bill Duncan

I think that many magicians fail to understand psychology of audience. Funny you should say that. I was a Psych Major for a couple of years... What I see as a failure of your approach is that theatrical magic should be emotional, not logical. If you deconstruct any theatrical art after the fact you...

Bill Duncan

I really don't get that at all. If you were to demonstrate such a 'magic box' as a non-mystical thing the audience reaction would quite reasonably be comparable to someone getting a new iPhone.

Assuming they believed you.

Bill Duncan

I am being honest with audience that Magic is just wonder of Nature, is marveling at strange anomalies that nevertheless are within our world. Many mysteries remain, that seem impossible but are not. This sort of "supernatural" is not different nature, just part of nature we have yet to r...

Bill Duncan

The effect that is actually performed is going to require a method that does not leave a trail to the obvious solution. Why didn't Tommy Wonder have the audience hold the ring box before revealing the signed folded card inside? His method would not have held up. That's clearly incorrect. Mike Close...

Bill Duncan

Also Interpreting Magic by David Regal

Bill Duncan

Has anyone bothered to look the word up? Here was are more than three years later... Second use, after "a non-ordained member the clergy." A lay minister or prayer group leader, for example. I assume when we use the phrase that's not what we mean so we should fall back on the secondary de...

Bill Duncan

So proud. My wife got all of them but David Blaine. AND she phrased her answers in the form of a question.
: )

Bill Duncan

Richard Kaufman wrote:Still have some BETA tapes of material, too.

I'm gonna guess it's the Balls routines and the Interlocked Production of Coins.

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