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I feel for you if you have had troubles performing for your family and friends. My family really doesn't see what I do often. My dad took it upon himself to be my toughest critic since I was very young in magic. He didn't let me get away with anything. I think it helped at the time but at this...

This sounds like someone has been on the Magic Cafe lately. On the Theory11 forums we acknowledge that some topics are going to be repeated, in our view it is generally better to start up a new thread than to dig up a thread that was started 10 years ago. Some people on the cafe are more willing...

Yep, it's an easy mechanical version of the trick. That's why I posted it. Not that there's a problem with any of the other versions out there. I have a version that I have written up and I know Mark Eldson has some work on it as well.

Christopher hits the nail on the head with most of this. When you practice for your family they need to act like laymen. I have to talk to my wife before hand and say something along the lines of, "I just need to see if this all works together, will you watch this trick". I approach my family...

No, each time I have broken a reel it becomes practically useless :/ All I.T. will break eventually. With loops I know that I can make a new batch, I have a harder time with the reels.

Anything Marlo or Vernon

It can't get easier than Fair Play http://paulharrispresents.com/products/fair-play-dvd-and-gimmick-by-steve-haynes-uday-jadugar

Yikes! I have a really hard time with I.T. for these reasons. It always breaks, and maintenance is difficult (mostly because I can't see it). I stay away from electronic reels and stick with loops for the most part.

I always have a jacket on for any of my gigs. It is awkward enough to approach a table in a suit, where you look a little different than everyone else. If you perform in a t-shirt I'd worry about being taken seriously at a gig. It's different if you are just hanging out but even David Blaine...

You get no input from me Lefty!

As it turns out they ordered all of the party favors before they heard back from me. They turned got a bunch of finger traps, decks of cards and cheap dollar tricks. Congressman Pete Sessions was there. We got talking about magic and copyright law. He was behind the legislation that passed...

Confession, I really don't like Origami all that much. I also don't really like Doug Henning all that much. Origami is a classic illusion and I chose it to point out that stage magic isn't without worth. Kalin and Jinger, I think that these two are great. I'm not a huge fan of OP Art but the...

Is there a reason that strangers would like different magic than people you know?

Copperfield's performance is different. I think I prefer it (probably because I'm a Copperfield fanboy and I love 80's music). It is refreshing to see the two routines performed so differently. Sure they are the same trick but there's a real lesson in character here. Copperfield has to do with...

Yes! Kalin and Jinger are so great! Sorry for the choppy format. I meant to include my thoughts on Origami in the same post but it became too long. I do think that the boxes can be explained away or that the motivation can be made more clear. I think that too many magicians neglect that they...

Doug Henning performed in a funky way. He was a bit of a hippie and his audience responded to him at the time. If you can look past his style I think that there is a lot that can be learned. Of course my observations are not necessarily the gospel truth. Henning starts of by explaining that...

I began my career in magic watching Lance Burton, David Copperfield and the World's Greatest Magic specials. I wanted to do the really big stage magic but as I saw more and more stage magic it began to lose its flavor. Stage magic began to turn into a bland, cheap looking branch of the art. I...

When in doubt I go for complete honesty. "So, this is the most awkward moment of the night. I'm a magician and they've asked me to interrupt all of you and show you some magic. Would you like to see something?" This doesn't work for everyone but it is just silly enough for me that it breaks the...

If you understand the main idea of a topit you can go ahead and make one. Topits entered the magic community from shop lifters and thiefs. No one really owns the idea. That said a few people have improved the design; Michael Ammar, Jeff Kaylor and David Penn all have popular designs. Most of the...

In a similar vein to all of this I used to perform the cups and balls at birthday parties as a kid. My routine was created in such a way that I never showed the entire contents of one of the cups. Before the trick started I would shove a large ball up into the cup and lodge it there, then when I...