The Genii Forum

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...

performer

I didn't say that it was created as a pitch item. I merely said it ended up that way. The svengali deck wasn't originally a pitch item either. Neither was the mouse. The only thing that was created as a pitch item and for no other purpose was the worm and it wasn't created by a magician.

performer

It just took me ten minutes to describe how to do the Buckle count and several weeks trying hard to avoid describing it in the first place. I am glad that's over! It might not be the best description in the world but I have seen worse. The rest of the description of my cards to pocket routine will n...

performer

If the Dollar Deck is the Marked Stripper Si Stebbins De Land deck I have sold hundreds of them both by mail order and in person. It is actually a pitch item and this is not generally known. Joe Berg mentions in his book a pitchman called Seewald who used to make a living selling nothing but De Land...

performer

It could have been done in three months or even shorter. It is the damn procrastination that delays these things. I am glad I am not trying to write the Encyclopedia Brittania.

performer

Here is a little sample of the annotations to Egyptian Pocket anyway: .................................................................................................................................................................................................... I have to confess that I have nev...

performer

I could finish it in a few days if I had the energy. Or at least finish the actual writing. Of course once that is done there are still other things to do like editing, illustrating and myriad other things involved in writing a book. I am up to the Cards to Pocket in the last chapter. Unfortunately ...

performer

I agree that you should never tell a spectator to replace his card in a specific place. Hugard and Braue mention this as a matter of fact. Always give the people a choice where to replace the card either by spreading the cards or getting them to stop you shuffling. With regard to palming the card of...

performer

I shall sum up the matter and leave it at that. You do NOT need to do the Pass as a control method. There are a myriad of easier ways to control a card to the top of the pack. However, should you use it (and you probably shouldn't) then you must shuffle afterwards since I can assure that your pass i...

performer

You don't even have to do that. First do any trick where you control a card to the top via the pass. Watch their eyes. And do not shuffle. Gauge the reaction. You probably have to watch their eyes anyway to misdirect them. Now do another trick and watch their eyes again. Shuffle afterwards. Now watc...

performer

That last sentence of Alfred is very profound. I have tried to follow it my entire life. Any success I have had in close up magic is because of it. I first learned of that philosophy in the presentation section of Expert Card Technique where it emphasised that you should always see things from the s...

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I am afraid you will have to address your complaints to Hugard and Braue who are somewhat dead at the moment. I am merely nearly dead. However, if you feel that bad about it I know many psychic mediums who for a reasonable fee will be happy to convey your message to them. My own observation is, (and...

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Jon. I wrote that 40 or so years ago. I haven't the energy to reread it and figure out what it means. However, I can assure you that anything I write either now or decades ago should be taken as gospel. But wait! I must investigate! It does sound familiar but I just realised I didn't write it at all...

performer

Oh, who cares about David Copperfield!!. Even if he did expose his real method (and he probably didn't but I don't care if he did) it makes very little difference. I am far more worried about him stealing from Charles Dickens than him exposing or not exposing. The truth of the matter is that people ...

performer

Ray. At least you care. I appreciate that.

performer

Oddly enough Dunninger did something similar in regard to exposures in the Scientific American magazine.

performer

One letter is no good. It will be ignored. It should be many, many, many letters. The more the better. By all means the organisations can send a combined letter but more importantly they should send individual letters. And after Steve Brooks sets a good example and hides his bill in lemon trick so h...

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