The Genii Forum

Richard Kaufman wrote:Thanks, Bob. I was working on So Sato's book, but based on your suggestion I'm going to take a nap instead!

Your post prompted me to reread the So Sato entries in Tenyoism and then I started looking at his card magic online.
Very elegant, and very different, in a great way.
Will The Secrets of So Sato include Card Magic Design and Playing Cards & Warujie Solutions ?

Yes, both rewritten (not just translated).

Fantastic news - thank you; really looking forward to this!

Any date of release maybe please Richard ?

Magic Live

Richard,
will "Super Sized Silly" also be available at Magic Live? If yes, will the pre-publication special prize be available during the convention?
Thanks,
Uwe

Both books will be available at MAGIC Live, and both will be sold at the pre-pub price. The day after Magic Live, the prices will rise to normal.

Richard Kaufman wrote:Both books will be available at MAGIC Live, and both will be sold at the pre-pub price. The day after Magic Live, the prices will rise to normal.

Great, thanks Richard, I'll pick it up at Magic Live.
Looking forward to seeing you there!
Best
Uwe

Got my order in!

Thank you.

The DVDs just arrived today. Checked one and it looks great.

The DVDs will arrive at the printer in Michigan tomorrow. Then they'll bind the books and I imagine they'll start putting them right into the books late next week, then the partial dj goes on, shrink wrap, and on the road by July 29 to Las Vegas.

You also used a partial DJ on Japan Ingenious -- is that a style particular to Japan?

Yes, it is. It's called an "obi strip." And Brad Aldridge designed both books. They may share an obi strip, but look entirely different.
For "obi strip" look here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obi_(publishing)

When I think of "obi strip", I think of when I used to seek out and buy vinyl records from Japan which had them. Nowadays, CD's from Japan have one as well.

I put my order in a few days ago. Sure looking forward to this latest creation, Richard.

Thanks--I think you'll enjoy it.

Must... stop... buying... resist... resist...

Aw, I know you want it.

I have to resist also on account of market conditions.

Richard Kaufman wrote:Aw, I know you want it.

You're really complicating this magic sabbatical, Richard.

This is how I paid for mine. A lot of banks offer free $ for vices and whatnot when you open an acct with them.
https://www.chase.com/checking/chase-coupon

Edward, I'm not going to ask how many bank accounts you've opened over the past 5 years.

Dear Richard:

could you tell us a little about the effects in terms of methods? Stacked deck, gaffs, etc. or is everything "impromptu from a shuffled deck in use"

thanks

There are a wide variety of methods used, but only one uses a gimmicked card.

Really, something to please everyone.

What a splendid collection of material! Just finished watching the included DVD. Haven't been fooled so many times in a row as long as I can remember. Although it was in Japanese I don't think that detracted in the least. Such a calm performance of the material. He really let each effect stand on its own merit. The books is an equal joy but I have a bit of a problem. I no longer want to read any more of the book as I would like to stay astonished.

Once again, such a great treasure to have released to the fraternity. Thanks to Mr. Kaufman and Mr. Sato for sharing!

This is a fun book to explore--lots of great stuff!

RK:
Just curious--how did you and So Sato decide what order to arrange the tricks in? Do you deliberately start with a flashy item to catch a prospective buyer's attention or put the "closers" last? Or were they arranged in the order in which they were created? (Is that why the Bushfire Triumph versions are separated?) I'm just interested in some of the decision making processes that go into producing a book like this.

Most of the material was originally published in Japanese in two different books.
Then We added some items.
Then I reordered everything in a way that I felt was interesting and served the book well.

This book is fantastic. So many clever ideas and most of the effects are extremely direct.

Tell your friends!

Definitely enjoying the book and humbled to see a small shout out at the end of Bushfire Triumph...

The "mimic show" routines, especially the excellent "collectors" variant really gobsmacked me when viewing them on the DVD. Lots of room for further exploration of that ruse...

Richard Kaufman wrote:Tell your friends!

This is one of those cases where I both want to and I don't want to!!!

Don't overlook the effect "Another All Backs" in the book. It looks complicated until you try it, at which point you realize it's simple to do. The illusion is far ahead of that produced in most "All Backs" routines

Gotta say I'm pretty impressed. This is the sort of book I used to look forward to in the pre-Genii days, when the books were coming out fast and furious.

Thanks Richard, for bringing him to our attention.

Happy to say that our online store is now functioning for orders for The Secrets of So Sato: http://kaufman.geniimagazine.com/

This is a terrific book and the DVD is certainly a bonus.

I believe I have every Kaufman book except 3 (Tenyo, Perverse and England) and consider them some of the real centerpieces of my small library. If I have a criticism, I always felt that the approach was a little "clinical" and at times, failed to show enough "excitement" for the material - something many others may not find necessary or even desirable. Off hand, I can only think of one time we got to peak behind the veil, so to speak, and it was RK commenting on his disappointment that he failed to convey how good Ron Wilson was (or something like that).

I always enjoyed HLs Last Word and frequently read the tricks he mentioned there first.

I've enjoyed the obvious excitement for this book and it was a significant reason I purchased it. I'm glad I did.

Steve Mills wrote:I always enjoyed HLs Last Word and frequently read the tricks he mentioned there first.

Of course, there was/is always a huge price to pay for HL's excitement. Many (including myself) have found the tone... if yaknowwhatImean... "difficult." IMHO, Kaufman and Minch have set the modern standard.

Steve Mills, I would agree that my approach is often very clinical.

Harry and I have different points of view about this type of thing.

My feeling is that I don't have to do a lot of "rah rah rah" for the tricks since you've already bought the book. My job is to teach you the tricks as clearly and as simply as possible with enough detail to be clear, but not too much detail so it's onerous to read through the text.

I felt 'The Secrets of Bro John Hamman' was a nice example of a book where Richard's enthusiasm and passion for the magic came through.

That book was a lot of fun to study.

Just for the record, does anyone remember what tricks So Sato performed at the Genii convention? I mainly remember the Follow the Leader trick. Richard? All in all, the show was a close-up highlight.

He did Bushfire Triumph, Follow the Leader, and an Oil and Water (which is not in the book).