• Author / Uploaded
• Was Waz

Citation preview

Hidden Gems Vol.4 A BRAND NEW ENCHIRIDION of SOLID GOLD maGIC cOMPILED by

Mark Elsdon

Introduction Welcome to Hidden Gems Volume 4. More excerpts from my notebooks, listing fantastic tricks that have caught my eye over the years. The first three Hidden Gems books have been very popular so here we are with Volume 4. 100 more of my favourite tricks and routines are in here, all of it material that I have seen or read and then learnt and performed regularly over the years. Some of the tricks I have used for many years and some I have only rediscovered and started performing again as a result of writing this booklet. For this Volume I have plundered The Collected Almanac by Richard Kaufman for 10 tricks, just as I did with Apocalypse, MAGIC and Labyrinth in the earlier volumes. This time I have also recommended 12 tricks from a single author: Bruce Elliot. I recently re-read his entire output and was stunned by the breadth and depth of it. The items herein are some but by no means all of my favourites. The amount of material he published (for the public!) is crazy. In Hidden Gems 5 I’ll be focusing on the books of Bob Neale, so get buying and reading. As usual I haven’t published an index, nor have I graded them in terms of difficulty. I do usually tell you whether a trick is suitable for close-up, stand-up (cabaret) and more suited to professional performance or magicsessioning. By far the majority are for the former. If you’ve been in magic for a while and buying the literature, most of the Gems will be in books, eBooks or magazines that you already own or have easy access to. A small handful might take a little bit more tracking down, but again nothing too obscure. And don’t forget to join the Facebook group when you get a minute: https://www.facebook.com/groups/147515615896034/ Mark Elsdon June 2019 1

2

The Hidden Gems Hidden Gem #1: 'Imagination' by Chuck Smith, What If? (p9). One of a handful of tricks that I always carry in my wallet. A photo of an incredible (and incredibly little-known) optical illusion that ends up revealing a thought of card. And the only prop required is the photo. Genius. Hidden Gem #2: 'Cocktail Bill Penetration’ by Ken Kuroki, 5 x 5 Japan by Richard Kaufman (p53). A borrowed bill or bank note, a napkin and a borrowed pen are all you need to perform this ingenious penetration. No prep, no gimmicks, no problem! Should be in everyone’s impromptu repertoire. Hidden Gem #3: ‘The Jennings Revelation’ by Larry Jennings, The Classic Magic of Larry Jennings (p71). A beautiful production of four aces that looks both magical and completely impossible. Lots of magicians published variations. There was no need; this is simply sensational. Hidden Gem #4: ‘Invisibility’ by Cody Fisher, Secrets of Invisibility (p3). Widely agreed to be the best handling of the ID, it’s both very clever (it would definitely fool you if you saw it before reading it) and very commercial. Hidden Gem #5: ‘Foiled’ by Donny Orbit, Inside The Head of Donny Orbit (p11). A silver coin is covered with some foil and a ‘copy’ of the coin is made by rubbing the design into the foil. The real coin is placed on the table and the foil is now peeled away revealing that a second coin has been ‘minted’ from the foil. Cautioning that the coin is actually a fake, the performer crumples it into a foil ball and hands it to the participant! This trick has great visuals and the choreography is perfect. Add a compelling intro line and this is a perfect pocket mystery. Hidden Gem #6: ‘Humthing’ by Max Maven, September in Seattle notes (p8) + several other sets of notes. The performer writes the names of a bunch of songs on the backs of different business cards and the participant genuinely shuffles them. Two are fairly chosen and the participant looks at them and thinks of one. Without any questions or pumping the performer 3

reveals the thought of song. This has a typical Maven-clever method and with just a little thinking the trick, and especially the climax, could easily be adapted to something using social media. Hidden Gem #7: ‘Black Days’ by Juan Tamariz, Sonata (p109). The magician find which one of seven black cards a participant is thinking about and then causes the remaining six to change to red. But more importantly, the story that accompanies it has the potential to be expanded into something really personal and relevant by the right performer. Hidden Gem #8: ‘Ring on Notepad’ by Anthony Owen, Some More Tricks (p24). A perfect effect that ends with an impossible object. Following the instructions in a small pocket notepad, a borrowed ring vanishes and is found linked onto the spiral binding on the notepad! The binding needs to be cut with wire cutters to remove the ring. An absolute fooler of the highest order. Hidden Gem #9: ‘Passing Through’ by Alan Ackerman, MUM January 2006 (p46). You already know that I’m obsessed with two-card transpositions and keep a few hidden favourites in reserve to smoke my friends. This is another gem on that hidden list. No get readies, no breaks, no fumbling. This is squeaky clean! Hidden Gem #10: ‘Gambler’s Third Lesson’ by Karl Fulves, Gambler’s Third Lesson (p17). One of the very best pseudo-gambling routine. It’s got a onetwo-three punch that for laymen is a knockout blow. A commercial, practical and fooling response to the line “I wouldn’t play cards with you!” Hidden Gem #11: ‘The Barfly Billet’ by John Wells, A Compendium of the Works of John Wells eBook. This is a superior billet tear and one of the several that you really ought to have in your repertoire if you use billets. The moment you try it you just know that Wells has used it under fire for a long time. Hidden Gem #12: ‘Card Quake’ by Kuniyasu Fujiwara, New Magic of Japan (p24). A very odd rising card effect where the selection rises out of the boxed deck as a random card is moved horizontally through the top edge 4

of the deck. Even more incredible is that although I’ve used this trick on and off for over 30 years, I still don’t really understand how it works! Hidden Gem #13: ‘Hands of Time’ by Greg Arce, Hands of Time eBook. A powerful, specific time prediction effect that relies on ‘suggestion’. Uhhuh… The difference is that this one was created by a working performer, not a teenage FB expert, so the good news is that it actually works. Not 100% of course, but in the high 90s and certainly enough that it belongs in your casual repertoire. Hidden Gem #14: ‘Uniquely Surrounded’ by Dave Loosley, Creative Collective Vol#1 (p33). A brilliant bar bet / magic trick combination that is possibly the best use of Coin Unique that I have ever seen. Hidden Gem #15: ‘Shaken And Stirred’ by Oliver Meech, 5 For 5 Pounds – Coffee eBook (p7). Another simple but brilliant effect from Meech: a participant chooses an ESP symbol and the matching symbol is marked out in chocolate powder on the frothy head of a coffee. A perfect Weberesque little mystery for casual performance. Hidden Gem #16: ‘In Plain Sight’, by Mick Ayres, In Plain Sight eBook. This is essentially a meta-presentation for Paul Curry’s ‘Open Prediction’. Others have tried similar approaches with the Berglas effect – explaining to a lay audience who Berglas is, the infamy of his ACAAN effect etc. – but no one else has succeeded at anywhere near this level. An audience witnessing you perform this in a parlour setting would be convinced that they have just seen the greatest piece of card magic of all time. Hidden Gem #17: ‘Mirror Image’, by Gary Kurtz, Unexplainable Acts (p88). Another Hidden Gems, another recommendation for a killer Kurtz trick! This one is a truly special transposition: a word written on a piece of card magically changes places with its own mirror image! Twice!! And the second time it’s the participant’s own word. Unbelievable, totally practical and unlike anything else you currently perform. Learn it now. Hidden Gem #18: ‘Mentalism Goes Postal’ by Lee Earle, Mentalism In New Directions (p140). Earle is the Godfather of modern mentalism and this is a perfect example of what he does: combines visually interesting yet natural 5

props with an entertaining and amazing routine, all held together by an intriguing premise. Here a stack of postcards of various cities are used for an impeccable demonstration of remote viewing climaxing with a drawing duplication. Hidden Gem #19: ‘Double Stop Transposition’ by Kevin Reay, Lecture Notes #1 (p16). Kevin Reay was an incredible magician and over the years I was privileged to see him perform three of the best five cards tricks I’ve ever seen in my life. And this is one of them. It is a double card revelation and transposition that just looks so utterly impossible. Hidden Gem #20: ‘Fandazzle’ by Ben Harris, Fandango eBook (p16). A stunningly visual sandwich trick where the selection visibly appears between two Jokers. No gimmicks and pretty easy to do, relying solely on Harris’ startling ‘Fandango’ move. Direct, powerful card magic of the kind that makes laymen’s eyes pop out. Hidden HG: If you learn the ‘Fandango’ move you can also do a killer colour-changing deck with it: ‘Universe Backwards’ from the eBook of the same name (also by Harris, obvs!) Hidden Gem #21: ‘Blue Plate Special’ by Bill Goldman and Eric Mead, Bill Goldman’s Magic Bar & Grill Issue 2 (p1). Stand-up performers are always on the lookout for strong effects that involve the whole audience, and this one is a beauty. The audience call out colours, items of clothing and numbers and you clearly and openly write down everything they say. They make lots of different choices and then one audience member makes the final decision on exactly which ones to select. And you have predicted it all with 100% accuracy! This effect highlights a killer new methodological principle with tons of further possible applications. Hidden Gem #23: ‘Yoke’ by Fraser Parker, Yoke eBook. Parker has created a fantastic little two-person code that lets you code a playing card in such a simple way that is nevertheless impossible to rumble. I have seen a lot of smart minds totally stumped by this. And best of all, you can teach it to someone in less than one minute! Hidden Gem #23: ‘Red Hot Prediction’ by Cameron Francis, Commerical Release (2007). At the time of this writing (June 2019) one of the ‘hot’ tricks being pushed by all the dealers is Richard Sanders’ ‘Any Card’. It’s a 6

trick that didn’t need to be devised, as Francis already released a superior version 11 years ago! Here is exactly how it looks: Spreading a blue deck face-up between your hands, you ask a participant to name any two cards she sees. Placing those cards on the table, you ask her to name any other card (a free choice!). Say she names the Ten of Hearts. You explain that earlier you removed two cards from a red deck and wrote on their backs. The first two selected cards are turned over to reveal a 10 drawn on the back of one card, and a Heart shape on the other. Killer stuff. Hidden Gem #24: ‘Divine!’ by Bob Somerfeld, Mind Reader’s Digest (p4). A participant draws something on a card and seals it inside two envelopes, which he may examine both before and after the test. Everything is signed by him and there are no switches of any kind. He retains possession of the sealed package throughout yet you are able to duplicate the design without going near him. This is the kind of brilliant old school mentalism that a lot of the new generation of prop-less wonders don’t even know exists. Hidden Gem #25: ‘The Game of Fate’ by Borodin, Final Curtain (p273). I genuinely love this! It is a version of Deddy Corbuzier’s ‘Free Will’ that is socially relevant and discusses politics. And it must be the only trick ever devised that features photos of Sophia Loren, Jennifer Lopez and Angela Merkel. It’s madness, but in the best kind of way! Hidden Gem #26: ‘Candyman’ by K. Neill Fujiwara, MagicVampire Issue #3 (p1). A smart, commercial piece of card magic with a genuinely surprising climax. This kind of thing can off come off as a bit cutesy (pictures appearing on a card) but in this instance it’s quite the opposite. Hidden Gem #27: ‘Sense of Touch’ by Ian Rowland, Sense of Touch (p2). This is a perfect demonstration of ‘seeing with the fingertips’ using nothing more than a deck of cards. The audience can impose any conditions or controls they can think of, yet you are continually 100% successful. I would not have figured this out in 100 years. Oh and thankfully it doesn’t use Lewis Jones’ ‘Pattern Principle’ which is used in almost every other approach to this plot that I’ve ever read.

7

Hidden Gem #28: ‘Illusion’ by Paul Harris, The Art of Astonishment Vol. 1 (p51). One of Harris’ earliest creations and still one of his very best. A very simple, very direct piece of card magic. A selected card vanishes from between two Jokers and appears face-up in the deck. They see the selection until the last possible moment, then boom! This trick also has one of the greatest false counts ever devised that will make you smile inside every time you perform it. Hidden Gem #29: ‘Crowd Control’ by Michael Murray, South Tyneside Lecture Notes (p17). Murray continues to redefine what is possible within the field of mentalism. In short, this technique allows you to seemingly control a participant’s actions by planting your voice inside their head (options for both stage and close-up are included). No electronics or indeed props or gimmicks of any kind; this incredible technique is entirely language-based. Hidden Gem #30: ‘Chink A Chink!’ by Walter “Sonny” Day, 5 x 5 Scotland by Peter Duffie (p36). I wish I had seen this performed. I asked Walt Lees about it (he’s mentioned in the write up) and he told me that he was totally fooled and the climax left him speechless. A four coin assembly unlike any other. Hidden Gem #31: ‘Re-usable Ticket’ by Ray Kosby, Commercial Release by Daryl Magic (1999). A wonderful, direct torn and restored routine using a simple cloakroom ticket. The ticket is torn and restored three times, each one more impossible than the last and it ends clean with an impossible object. I’ve loved this since I first saw it and learnt it the following day. As usual, I’ve never seen or heard of anyone else performing it. Hidden Gem #32: ‘Cards and Wallet’ by Paul LePaul, Expert Cards Mysteries by Alton Sharpe (p65). To say that four signed cards vanish and reappear in an envelope inside a wallet goes no way to conveying what a powerful effect this is. LePaul regarded the handling of the wallet so highly that he even chose not to include it in his own book and only published it here. Hidden Gem #33: ‘Perchance to Dream’ by David Regal, Close Up and Personal (p224). A merely thought of word disappears from a page of 8

writing. He uses Hamlet, but you can use anything and the principle gives you a host of other uses. A method waiting for a miracle effect. Hidden Gem #34: ‘Colour Burn’ by Dave Forrest, Commercial Release (2010). Colour-changing deck effects are in the category of card magic that is too sophisticated for most laymen, and far better suited to other magicians or the few laymen who have seen lots of close-up magic. And this is my favourite version of all. I remember when I first saw Dave perform this live – it genuinely looked like trick photography. Hidden Gem #35: ‘Cellular Mitosis’ by Docc Hilford, Cellular Mitosis (p6). And you really should read his CM2 booklet as well, which is his later thinking on the effect. What effect? Well it’s fantastic: a participant thinks of anything, calls up their friend (on their own phone) and their friend tells them what they are thinking of. I know that sounds impossible, but it’s true. Genius work from Docc with this release. Hidden Gem #36: ‘Will Power’ by Bruce Bernstein, Commercial Release (2009). A brilliant, multi-phase mindreading and prediction effect using nothing more than some pocket change and a borrowed plate or container. Hidden Gem #37: ‘Psychokinetic Match’ by Drew McAdam, The Drooby Book (p21). A very direct and powerful bit of PK done with a box of borrowed matches, where the action all happens when you’re not even on the premises. Very smart thinking. Hidden Gem #38: ‘Three Different Ways’ by Michael Skinner, ARCANE Issue 4 (p33). Superior card magic from a master. This trick was an underground sensation for several years before it was published and then went into the repertoires of many discerning professionals as soon as it was. Hidden Gem #39: ‘Gone With The Flame’ by Jack Chanin, Handle With Gloves (p6). A production, vanish and re-appearance of six coins. This kind of magic isn’t so popular anymore, which is a real shame. One of my early teachers in magic used to do this trick and it looks fantastic, the moment when the coins vanish from the napkin fooled me repeatedly. 9

Hidden Gem #40: ‘The Pen Game’ by Paul Brook, The Book of Lies (p25). One of my favourite Brook tricks: you play several rounds of the ‘pen game’ with a participant, betting that you know the outcome of his guesses. You appear to lose, but then reveal that in fact you predicted ALL his guesses – they are written in ink on the note you bet with. Practical, fooling casual mentalism. Hidden Gem #41: ‘Multi-bob Pendulum’ by Bill Cushman, Trybil eBook. If you know nothing about multi-bob pendulums then you are about to disappear down a rabbit-hole of intrigue, impossibility and wow-moments. The fact that they work is incredible. Hidden HG: Body Trick 67 by John Fisher, Body Magic (p97). This is the ultimate: 5 bottles with pendulums in them are placed on a lightweight table, and four people sit around the table touching it only with their fingertips. Nevertheless, the ideomotor principle will do its work and each pendulum can be made to swing alone. It seems utterly impossible. Hidden Gem #42: ‘Master of the Game’ by David Britland and Joe Dignam, Master of the Game (p10). Deal great poker hands from a genuinely shuffled deck with NO culling? Yes please! Very practical method too. Hidden Gem #43: ‘Lie To Me’ by Leo Boudreau, Magic Café thread. Whilst I’ve previously recommended the Jerx’s blog, I think this is the first time I’ve recommend a trick on one of the forums, and the Tragic Café (from which I’m banned) at that! It’s worth it though. It’s in the ‘Inner Thoughts’ section and was posted back in 2009. The whole thread is 5 pages in total. Leo’s original idea is utterly brilliant and then he and several others offer additions and variations. As well as the trick being a killer, the whole thread is a masterclass in creative brainstorming. Hidden Gem #44: ‘Divide and Conjure!’ by Marty Kane, Peter Duffie’s Card Conspiracy (p49). A hugely procedural card trick that I love anyway. Add a Jerx-style ‘Engagement Ceremony’ presentation and you’ve got a winner. Hidden Gem #45: ‘Thought Chunnel’ by Joshua Quinn, ParaLies (p153). If you want to create the illusion of mind-reading with nothing more than words, this is exactly what you need. It’s the real deal. Hidden HG: if you read this and love it you also need to check out Brandon Queen’s Phathom. 10

Hidden Gem #46: ‘Forgotten Card’ by Patrick Redford, Glemme (p12). Redford has taken Sankey’s ‘Thought Thief’ and made it better in every way. A participant selects a card which everyone sees. Then he really forgets what it is. It’s that simple. The book then goes on to discuss how to make him forget the colour of his shirt and much else. Love it. Hidden gem #47: ‘The Paper Plane Chair Game’ by Hector Chadwick, The Mental Mysteries of Hector Chadwick (p47) A very simple and direct ‘chair test’ and all the better for it. Follow it up with ‘Mach II’ which immediately follows it in the book and you have a commercial, entertaining platform mentalism routine that will fool anyone. Hidden Gem #48: ‘Even The Burn Card’ by Benjamin Earl, Gambit 2 (p15). One of the simplest most elegantly structured four-Ace productions ever devised. The participant shuffles the deck and you never touch it. Hidden Gem #49: ‘Test Your Luck’ by Darwin Ortiz, The Ephemeral Lecture Notes (p9). One of my favourite memdeck tricks. A participant names any card. He then inserts a random card anywhere into the deck and in the process locates the named card. Very simple, very strong. Hidden Gem #50: ‘KONTROL’ by Kenton Knepper, KONTROL eBook. A powerful example of mental influence that is strong enough to use at a walkaround gig, but casual enough to perform for friends over coffee. Hidden HG: Colin McLeod has some work on this that you should look up too. Hidden Gem #51: ‘Standing Hoard’ by Geoff Latta, The Long Goodbye (p290). This astonishing coin routine is the stand-up handling of Latta’s ‘From The Elfin Hoard’ (described earlier in the book) and is surely one of the most magical coin routines ever created. Pure, magical eye candy. Hidden Gem #52: ‘Oddity’ by Alex Hansford, Kino (p18). Four random cards are shown, genuinely mixed and placed face-down on the table. A card is chosen from the deck (e.g. KC) and it is swapped with one of the four on the table. The other three are immediately shown to be the other three Kings. Great, commercial card magic. 11

Hidden Gem #53: ‘Tic-Tac-Toe Telepathy’ by Fred Lowe, Visual Mentalism Series No. 1 (p4). The best method and presentation I have read for a mentalism version of ‘Noughts and Crosses’. Hidden Gem #54: ‘Memory Loss’ by Richard Osterlind, The Perfected Center Tear (p50). Although I sometimes use the Bannon handling, this is actually the strongest version of ‘Daley’s Last Trick’ that I’ve ever used. Osterlind’s ‘memory lapse’ presentation is genius and lifts the trick to another level entirely. Hidden Gem #55: ‘Brainstormer’ by Mark Leveridge, Commercial Release (1991). You show a double-blank deck, explaining that this is what playing cards look like before they are printed. You and the participant each name a card (his is a free choice) and then you give him half the deck to shuffle. Impossibly your named card appears in his half deck and his in yours! An utterly startling trick that will stun anyone. Hidden Gem #56: ‘Ahead Of The Spectrum’ by Ken Dyne, Thinking Ahead (p19). The best essay I’ve ever read on the venerable one-ahead principle and then a brilliant trick to prove that he’s right. Kennedy has grown to become one of mentalism’s most important thinkers. Hidden Gem #57: ‘The Cards Under The Bums’ by Dominic Twose, Impromptu Secrets (p153). An incredible handling of the cards across plot, this is one of my go-to tricks whenever I’m performing in a bar. There’s not much that can follow it. A regular closer. Hidden Gem #58: ‘The Blackjack Room’ by Josh Zandman, The Blackjack Room eBook. This adaption of Ted K.’s ‘Target Number’ prediction is sensational. You perfectly predict which player at a table will receive a specific blackjack hand. The cards are fairly dealt, the players can swap seats and the prediction is in someone else’s hands from the start. A major fooler. Hidden Gem #59: ‘Mainframe’ by Kevin Reylek, Mainframe (p8). Beg, steal or borrow this limited edition booklet that will teach you a system to mark Tally-Ho Circle back cards invisibly. A must-have in your toolbox. 12

Hidden Gem #70: ‘The Imagination Tester’ by Michael Close, Complete Workers Series (p363). Using a single sheet of paper you openly fold an Origami bolt and frame model. And then you visibly slide the bolt out of the model, leaving the frame behind. And everything can be fully examined. A true baseball bat to the head moment. -------------------As mentioned in the Introduction, the next 12 tricks are from the writings of Bruce Elliot. Here are the four Elliot titles: Magic As A Hobby (1948) Classic Secrets of Magic (1953) The Best In Magic (1956) Published in the UK as: 100 New Tricks Professional Magic Made Easy (1959) I just checked and all of them are available second-hand on either eBay or Amazon (UK and US sites) for about £5 each. Alternatively, three of them have been made available as eBooks by Conjuring Arts and can be found here: http://shop.conjuringarts.org/store/pc/showsearchresults.asp?pageStyle= P&resultCnt=30&keyword=bruce+elliott Whichever format you prefer (printed books!), no magic library is complete until these books are in it. Please be motivated to get hold of these wonderful books. Before we get to the specifics of what I recommend and/or use in each book, here is a taster of some of the wonderful magic hidden in these books that cannot be found anywhere else (or are much superior explanations): Charlie Miller’s Cups & Balls, The Benson Bowl routine, Paul Curry’s Linked, in fact whole chapters of Paul Curry material, including some great material not found in his World’s Beyond compilation. Oh and his work on the Centre Tear. Then there is Kolma’s barehanded money production, which is being featured in a TV show that I’m working on right now. 13

Superior card magic from Curry, Vernon, Baker, Enfield, Daley, Scarne, Simon and a whole section on self-working card tricks, 60 years before its current popularity. Miser’s Dream, Egg bag, Sach’s Dice Routine (the best routine and description extant and a constant in my repertoire for 20 years), the Razor Blades, Four-object Assemblies, billiard balls, and a whole chapter on ‘Small Magic You Can Make And Do’ full of great little tricks that these days would all be released separately with a £20 price tag. So, here are the 12 gems: Hidden Gem #61: ‘Joe Barnett’s Ring & String trick’, Magic As A Hobby (p3). Laymen’s eyes pop at the restoration and magician’s eyes pop when they see there are no extra pieces. Hidden Gem #62: ‘Lou Tannen’s Coin Routine’, Magic As A Hobby (p108). A coin penetrates a glass, then the table, climaxing with the glass penetrating the table. Can go straight into any professional close-up repertoire immediately. Hidden Gem #63: ‘Kolma’s Money Production’, Magic As A Hobby (p153). The performer produces a huge amount of bank notes from his bare hands. A stand-up piece with no tables, no tubes, no boxes, just pure magic as you make money appear from thin air. Better than Miser’s Dream and yet no one does it! Perfect for TV or Stage magic. Hidden Gem #64: ‘Appearing Prediction’, Magic As A Hobby (p204). Utilising the concept of the magic slates (a flap) Elliott offers an ingenious effect that doesn’t use slates or a flap! Nevertheless, a prediction or revelation mysteriously appears on piece of card that is on full view in the driver’s licence compartment of your wallet. Hidden Gem #65: ‘Jay Marshall’s Card on Ceiling’, Classic Secrets of Magic (p24). No wax! Super practical and easy handling. Hidden Gem #66: ‘Roy Benson’s Egg Bag’, Classic Secrets of Magic (p50). A brilliant total reversal of the usual routine, where the bag ends up full of eggs, to the complete bafflement of the performer!

14

Hidden Gem #67: ‘Charlie Miller’s Cups and Balls’, Classic Secrets of Magic (p192). This routine uses borrowed teacups or coffee mugs and three borrowed banknotes. A stone cold classic and every time I read it in this book I’m stunned that I have never seen anyone perform it. Hidden Gem #68: ‘John A. M. Howie’s Ghost Thimble’, The Best In Magic (p20). A surreal effect with an invisible thimble that the audience can nevertheless hear and feel. It briefly becomes visible then vanishes without trace! Hidden Gem #69: ‘Walter Gibson’s Cut To Measure’, The Best In Magic (p92). A very clever cut and restored tape measure where the audience clearly see you cut the middle (not a bit from near one of the ends) and then it fully restores. Oh, and it can be examined. AND repeated!! Hidden Gem #70: ‘John Scarne’s Do As I Do’, The Best In Magic (p116). You’ve read the versions by all the latest guys and think you’ve seen the best handling. Trust me, you haven’t till you’ve read Scarne’s. The second version explained is another one of my all-time favourite magician foolers. Hidden Gem #71: ‘In His Hands’, Professional Magic Made Easy (p45). A great coin trick that takes place in a participant’s hand. Unbelievably, a coin vanishes from your hand and audibly joins a coin that the participant is already holding. No gimmicks! Strictly impromptu and beautifully simple. Hidden Gem #72: ‘Bob Hanko’s Papo-Leaso’, Professional Magic Made Easy (p45). I love puzzles, so of course I love this. A signed paper band is somehow removed untorn from a cord that it is threaded onto, despite the ends of the cords being held throughout! This will fool anyone. -------------------Hidden Gem #73: ‘Insight Spectacular’ by Al Koran, Legacy (p81). Mentalists are often challenged about using their ‘powers’ to win the lottery. So Al Koran did! This is his full method. You’ll perhaps be a little disappointed when you read it, as the method is 1960/70s centric. Remember that it fooled a whole country though! And more importantly 15

here is a challenge: there must be some way to bring this technologically up to date. Let me know if you have any ideas… Hidden Gem #74: ‘The Fifth Fourth’ by Jonathan Friedman, The Fifth Fourth. This is a very odd effect indeed. A prediction card is placed to one side and four other cards containing words or names are torn into quarters. The pieces are mixed and dealt into four piles, the top pieces of which are turned over. None match. But when you show the prediction they do match that. Then things get weird… the four un-matching torn quarters actually physically fit together as if they came from the same card. A totally original effect which I love and use regularly. Hidden gem #75: ‘Ambitious Aces Repeat’ by Jerry Sadowitz, Lawrence Frame’s Close-up Framework (p10). A lovely minimalist Ace assembly using just the Aces and the deck cut into four piles, with a sensational repeat where the participant handles everything. Vintage Sadowitz. Hidden Gem #76: ‘Home Astral Projection’ by Ian Rowland, Home Astral Projection eBook. Like almost everything Ian does, this is wonderful. You make someone you just met feel like you are seeing through their eyes as they mentally walk around their own home. Unnerving yet utterly compelling, I use this a lot. There’s nothing else out there like it. Hidden Gem #77: ‘Portal’ by Daniel Garcia, Something More (p4). Two jokers are displayed and then bowed apart to create a tunnel. The participant’s selection is visually pulled out of the tunnel, both face-up and in a different orientation. Killer visual, no gaffs, great trick. Hidden Gem #78: ‘Priority’ by Chad Long, Commercial Release (2018). The classic slate routine reworked using a ‘Priority’ envelope, a stapler and some markers. One marker is dropped back inside the envelope and stapled up and the other used to select a word from a magazine. When the envelope is torn open the chosen word is written inside it. A squeaky clean handling using standard stationery items that works for any size audience. Perfect. Hidden Gem #79: ‘Through and Through Two’ by Derek Dingle, The Complete Works of Derek Dingle (p108). Four playing cards repeatedly pass 16

through a postcard. There’s something about this trick that just feels right. It does need a good presentation but the magic is flawless. A classic for a reason. Hidden Gem #80: ‘St. Elmo’s Opener’ by James Went, A Book (p5). Two selected cards are found in a trial of fire, leaving the participant with an impossible object. Fooling, commercial, and with a great souvenir. -------------------NOTE: The next ten tricks are all from Richard’s Almanac magazine. The references are all from the bound edition which is called The Complete Almanac. I read the magazine during a formative time in my development as a magician and so have performed dozens and dozens of the tricks both casually and professionally. But listed below are the ones that are at the top of my list (at the moment!). I’ve tried to avoid recommending the same tricks as Kaufman does in his ‘The Thirty-Six Picks’, although two did sneak in for reasons you’ll understand. Hidden Gem #81: ‘Reversi’ by Mark Lefler (pxlv). We haven’t even got to Issue One yet and we’ve found a classic! This is a startling piece of magic that I was lucky to see Lefler do in person. Probably the most magical coin matrix I’ve ever seen. Hidden Gem #82: 'Plastic Man’ by Krenzel, Dingle & Kaufman (p36). I did this trick for Peter Kane once at a session and he absolutely loved it. I could tell, because his words were, “Hmm, not bad”! The next week he showed me several improvements on it. What a guy. Hidden Gem #83: ‘Bandaid’ by Jay Sankey (p41). The very definition of commercial. I’ve performed this trick hundreds and hundreds of times and it never fails to be a stunner. Hidden HG: I could easily have picked ‘Forgery’, the following trick, and said exactly the same thing. Hidden Gem #84: ‘Fisting C/S’ by Geoff Latta (p81). A fantastic copper silver transposition that ends clean. Latta truly has no equal in his construction of material. This is a thing of beauty on every level. 17

Hidden Gem #85: ‘Stick It In Your Ear!’ by Jay Sankey (p110). Pure, commercial madness. It’s fine as is and I used it that way, but I currently use a variation of it as one of my Ouroboros tricks. Incidentally, it could well be argued that Issue 13 of the Almanac contains more great magic than any other single issue of any other magic magazine ever published. Three of the four tricks are bona fide classics. I’m not going to mention them, but Kaufman recommends them all in his list, so check ‘em out anyway. Hidden Gem #86: ‘Flash Link/Linking Stanley’ by Michael Weber (p158). Early Weber, early brilliance. It’s easy to forget how ground breaking this was at the time. I used this for years. Hidden Gem #87: ‘Cut As I Cut’ by Larry Jennings (p167). Another longtime magician-fooler favourite of mine. After doing Jennings’ ‘Always Cut the Aces’, I’ll wait a while and then kill them with this. Hidden Gem #88: ‘FIRP’ by Gary Goldberg (p203). A very unusual move which allows you to accomplish some incredible card magic. This has stayed in my repertoire since the day I learnt it. The two tricks described here are just the tip of the iceberg. Hidden Gem #89: ‘Universal’ by Daryl (p251). This three card revelation sequence has got me out of trouble many times over the years when I’ve been jazzing and suddenly found myself with nowhere to go. I’ve added my usual use of a Breather Crimp into the mix which makes it even more practical. Hidden Gem #90: ‘The Magic Cards’ by Bro. John Hamman (p289). What a surreal card trick! I regularly perform this trick and even I’m still not sure exactly what the effect is. Goodness knows what laymen think… -------------------Hidden Gem #91: ‘Xijatsey’ by Joshua Quinn, ParaLies (p23). If you liked ‘HASTERIX’ from the first volume of HG then you will love this. Quinn has 18

taken the whole thing up a level and has handlings for close-up, stage and over the phone. This is a ‘must use’. Hidden Gem #92: ‘Out of Body 2’ by Larry Becker, Stunners Plus! (p500). I’ve got to tell you that this totally fooled me the first time I saw it. So clean. Basically, someone freely takes a card from the deck and replaces it where they like then puts the cards back in the box, and wraps some rubber bands around it for extra security. The performer astrally projects himself into the card box, allowing him to correctly name the selection. Hidden Gem #93: ‘Sublime Influence’ by Michael Murray, A Piece of My Mind (p53). One of my all-time favourite pieces of situational mentalism, using some numbers drawn on some slips of paper and any suitable glass that’s handy. If I’m at home I use a glass that the Jerx suggested (happy hunting!) and either way the revelation of the hidden-in-view prediction at the end is always a stunner. Hidden Gem #94: ‘Water to Wine To Beer to Milk’ by Sam Shapiro, Charlie Miller’s Magicana (Genii Magazine November 1969 p136). I must be honest: unlike everything else in the HG books I’ve never actually performed this. However I did work on it as part of a TV project and so have practiced it quite a bit. I love tricks with liquids and chemicals, no one seems to create them anymore. Anyway, this is one of the best. Someone should do it on a ‘Got Talent’ TV show. Hidden Gem #95: ‘Free Call’ by Deddy Corbuzier, Companionage eBook (p201). I love telephone tricks involving my ‘psychic friend’. I collect them. And this is one of my favourites. Someone thinks up 10 random names and decides on one as the target then calls your friend. He immediately reveals that chosen name. No extra phones, open lines or any other hidden communication. Very clever. Hidden HG: I published what for me is the ultimate phone/code system in Mentalism Reveals 3, called ‘Decibel Vision’. Hidden Gem #96: ‘Rune Miracle’ by Christoph Borer, 2007 Lecture Notes (p35). A participant freely chooses a rune stone from 25 possibilities. In the bag that the stones came from there is a leather cord with the exact same 19

rune on it. The participant may take it home with her. Imagine doing this at the end of a reading. Wow! It couldn’t get more powerful. Hidden Gem #97: ‘Coincidence Between Two Decks’ by Dani DaOrtiz, The Semi-automatic (p127). I’m a sucker for impossible two-deck coincidence effects and this is one of the very best. Easy to do too. Hidden Gem #98: ‘The White Room’ by Ran Pink, The White Room eBook. Imaginary card magic! By which I mean card magic with no deck, just words and imagination. Almost always this kind of thing is bull. But not this! I tried it, it worked and I’ve continued to use it. What your participant will ultimately remember is that they merely thought of a card, and you named it. It’s a great opener. Hidden Gem #99: ‘Button Button’ by Francis Menotti, Commercial Release (2010) The performer’s shirt is missing a button and he shows how losing a button can easily happen, performing a version of Weber’s ‘To Feed Many’ from Lifesavers, where multiple buttons vanish as they are added into a square of buttons on the table. Finally a single button is selected and it vanishes and reappears sewn in place of the previously missing button. This takes what is essentially a piece of puzzle-magic and gives it a proper climax. Bonus! Hidden Gem #100: ‘Cheat!’ by Bob Farmer, Cheat! eBook. Cut four aces from a borrowed, shuffled deck with no skill required? I don’t think so. Enter Bob Farmer… an exhaustive look at an incredible principle and its many variations. A must read. I guarantee that you’ll use some of this material. Hidden Gem #101: ‘A Conversation Along a Thickly Wooded Path’ by Eugene Burger, The Complete Almanac (p302). In looking up the trick references in the Almanac, I enjoyed browsing the whole book, and came across this fascinating article by Burger. Back in the 1980s Penn & Teller were viewed very differently to how they are now, and this essay shows that wise magicians always see the bigger picture, a lesson more relevant than ever.

20

Copyright © 2019 by Mark Elsdon. All Rights Reserved. Do not copy it, do not scan it, do not upload it. Thank you. More Elsdon goodies are available at: http://elsdon.blogspot.co.uk/ 21