The Genii Forum

performer

There was a most wonderful thread in the past here concerning the impropriety of a magician telling lies when performing. Here it is: https://forums.geniimagazine.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=50254&hilit=lies The thread consisted mainly of J.Keyes arguing with Brad Henderson. I was on the fence o...

performer

I am bringing this old thread back to inform the multitude that I am rereading an old book on selling. I purchased it in Belfast around 50 or so years ago and it is one of the greatest books on selling I have ever read. Interestingly enough it was written by an amateur magician and in fact he makes ...

performer

I stay in hotels all the time and have done so all my life. I can tell you the prices quoted for Quebec City for this convention are utterly horrendous.

performer

This is going to turn out to be a female version of the Erdnase thread. In any event the video has been taken down.

performer

Don't forget you will be paying in Canadian dollars so the price will be somewhat less in US money.

performer

I shall make an announcement at the appropriate time in my usual low profile manner.

performer

The point of view of an amateur interests me in some ways more than that of a professional. I am an amateur at heart.

performer

Indeed. But on reflection I think my suffering with regard to this qualifies me. I learned the very, very hard way.

performer

I am actually very shy.

performer

If the book is crap I will say so. If it is good I will say so too. Actually that is better for you. False praise from a mutual admiration society doesn't do anyone any good. However, I shall merely say that on a cursory first look I am intrigued by your introduction. I am getting a vibe that it is ...

performer

I am not really qualified to talk about this but I am going to anyway. It took me ages and ages to figure it out. Decades in fact. I learned all my other performing skills fairly quickly but the stand up act always eluded me. I could do some damn good close up magic within the first 6 months of my s...

performer

He was not sold at a psychic fair. I know him personally and am therefore in a position to confirm this. I can also confirm that the annotated Royal Road to Card Magic has now been completed. Just a bit of proofreading and some illustrations to sort out.

performer

A pleasure talking to you also. I look forward to reading your book.

performer

Your Highness would be a suitable mode of address I think.

performer

I shall try to find time to read the book. At first glance it seems very interesting.

performer

It seems that Ed Victor created the impromptu method for "The Magnetic Cards." The effect appeared in "New Era Card Trick" as "Gravity Defied," but not impromptu. It's about keeping ALL the cards spread stuck on the magician's palm. It is quite interesting being able t...

performer

This is from the same advert. (Why do Americans say "ad'? It is about time they learned to speak English properly). CUT-OUT We're not going to tell you the effect of this one! Why not ? Simple ! You'd only go and make it up for yourselves ! You see, it's such an easy item to make that you'd all...

performer

What a good advert! I think I might buy one myself!

performer

1974?

I was young then...............................

performer

I can't seem to find it online. I may have an old Abra lying about with it. I will seek it out. I know the copy sold well from Abra. Ken Brooke used to say that advertising in Abra wasn't worth doing because the response was so weak. I found the opposite. I tried other magic magazines at times but e...

performer

You started it by asking about the worm!

Anyway I came up with some great advertising copy for the De Land Deck. If I can ever find it again I will reproduce it here. It sold me rather a lot of the decks. Grafting in print.

Oh sorry. I forgot we weren't supposed to mention grafting!

performer

Back in 2014 I got an email from Professor Clark. Here is a tiny excerpt which may be of interest: "The e-Book versions are already out now. We’ve added some chapters about things like what made these traders so good at what they do, etc. For what it is worth (and it is not a coincidence I thin...

performer

I am now up to Three Cards Across in the annotations and after that there is only one more trick. I should be able to get through this annotation very quickly since this is one of my signature tricks that I have been doing for over 55 years in different countries at all sorts of venues from close up...

performer

I found better prices than those on Amazon for Mark's recommended book at https://www.alibris.com/The-Hard-Sell-The-Art-of-Street-wise-Selling-Colin-Clark/book/14074054?matches=10 . If you save the $30+ by purchasing at the above link, feel free to send me a few BitCoins as compensation for the 30 ...

performer

Reading what Mark says about grafters/pitchmen as being instructive lessons, reminds me of listening to an esteemed elder minister of his denomination, who was asked what advice would he give to young ministers who want to effectively reach their listeners. He replied they all should go to the stor...

performer

There is nothing particularly entertaining about towels, or crockery, or nylon stockings yet a skilled grafter can make them come alive and entertain hundreds of people just talking about them. Yet a magician cannot make a brilliant trick which is inherently interesting and wonderful into a piece of...

performer

I call it "The Grafter's Edge". Hard to explain what it is but it is a major advantage. If you become a grafter you also learn cynicism, timing, showmanship, salesmanship and most important of all you get to understand PEOPLE. It is quite true what you say about magicians being dull person...

performer

Oh, it's none of my business. I have my own troubles. And maybe they had permission whoever they may be.

performer

Then I am using a knock off. Not as good as the original Tenyo product but good enough. I have no idea who produced it.

performer

That is also true. And it further confirms what I have always said. The psychology of magic is very important indeed. You have to understand the PEOPLE even more than understanding the techniques. It isn't easy to figure out how people's minds work but it is essential to be able to do so if you want...

performer

Where seven cards are concerned I have to remove the cards myself for technical reasons. With regard to involving a spectator I am always in favour of this but not so much when I am on a stage. It would certainly slow things to get them up on the stage to merely count a few cards and send them back ...

performer

So that's a vote for letting them handle the pack and give you the cards. Makes sense. Sometimes things that make sense in print don't make sense in practice. I am on the fence over this matter with regard to platform or cabaret work although I tend to think it is not necessary. For impromptu close...

performer

I shall explain the Derek Dingle thing first and get it out of the way. Many, many years ago a friend of mine visited the Blackpool Pleasure Beach and there was a woman there who did handwriting analysis. You would give her a sample of your handwriting and she would write out a report in her own han...

performer

I used to sell Tenyo tricks. I would have quite a large range but never demonstrate them since the profit margin wasn't high enough. I would demonstrate my regular pitch items such as the svengali deck, the worm, the mouse, plastic cups and balls, Dutch Looper etc; since these were high profit margi...

performer

It's not. You can have a whole set of dupes in your pocket like Dingle's "Supersonic Spades to Pocket." Are you saying the Royal Road got it right or got it wrong? Mention of Derek Dingle brings up something I have been wondering about for decades. This may be a strange question but I hav...

performer

I just finished doing the annotations to the Cards to Pocket. In the old days this was done with twelve cards, then it settled down to ten cards which seems to be the traditional way nowadays. However, I decided to bring it down to seven cards and I described my version in the annotations. However, ...

performer

Mr Lewis, I`am curious how the annotation of the Royal road is progressing?:) I think it is fair to say that it is nearly finished. There are only two or three tricks left to be annotated and then that means the first draft will be completed. It is then just a matter of editing and proofreading the...

performer

All I can tell you about MacDonald's Aces is that it is my greatest card trick and I know dozens upon dozens of them. It has nothing to do with MacDonald of course. It is actually a trick of Hofzinsers called "Power of Faith". I have a suspicion that the original version is probably the be...

performer

This is the world I come from. You will see the worm being demonstrated at around 38 or so seconds in. Just a few seconds of it anyway. It must have been invented rather a long time ago since you will see a price of a shilling which is pre decimalisation money. Note what seems to be a basket around ...

performer

I have a suspicion that it was created by a grafter that I prefer not to name since he is still around and owns a company in the UK which manufactures and sells them. There is a chance that he is not the man but I seem to remember that years ago other grafters told me that it was indeed he. It seems...

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