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Maybe... but I think there is something more to why they don't interrupt the movie to give you a theory of how it is done.

Part of this may be age. If you are older than 25 (or 45), people tend to challenge you less than if you are under 18. Part of this may be how and where you perform. Friends and family are more likely to challenge you than strangers. People you perform for more frequently are more likely to...

Focus on building a character and a way of presentation. That will define who you are more than a name. Most names people give themselves often don't work because there is a disconnect between what they call themselves and what they do. A "Pasteboard Prestidigitator" might sound cool but that...

Have you ever watched a Marvel movie and have the person next to you lean over and say, "They can't really do that in real life, it's all computer generated graphics and camera tricks"? Probably not. Have you ever sat in the audience at a magic show and hear someone speculate throughout the...

I don't like the word "tricks" because it set up expectations (I trick you, you get tricked) and because what it trivializes what we do. I like the word "magic", because there are truly magical things in our lives that have nothing to do with sleight of hand. In talking to magicians, I like to...

The original was published in an out of print booklet by Victor Farelli titled John Ramsay's Cylinder and Coins. It sells for around $600. It was republished in the November 2008 Genii magazine. If you have a subscription, you have access to back issues. Variations are published in David...

The answer is that there isn't a deck like that. You would have to either make it yourself or have it made. The technique is called card splitting where you separate the face of the card from the back of the card and then reassemble the card using half of a regular card and half of the all...

@eternalredking - To paraphrase your question: I have people who view my performance as a puzzle and burn my hands to figure it out - do you guys have a better puzzle for me to perform? My answer was to stop performing puzzles and instead imbue your magic with significance and develop a...

It is that most magicians aren't that interesting to watch. When there is nothing more to the presentation than what you are doing, the most logical thought for the spectators is how you are doing it. When people add some presentation to an effect, most of the time it isn't logical - like...

Card College. Roberto Giobbi's approach to magic and handling of sleights is excellent. There are lots of pictures and for each sleight there are checkpoints for you to review to make sure you are doing it correctly. Start with the first two volumes (which were originally designed to be the...

The performance of magic as a puzzle provides the audience with a sense that you know the secret and it is their job to figure it out. It also gives the audience the sense that the magician thinks they are superior because they know the secret. That is how hecklers are made. Being puzzled or...

First off, never let a spectator inspect anything. You are the performer, you are in control. Second, if you openly spread the deck and then have the spectator take the face down card from the deck - there shouldn't be any suspicion. Have them look at the card first and then turn it to show...

@ChristopherT pretty much said all that needs to be said. Magic is about entertainment, not about fooling people. If you set out to fool someone, they have two options - figure out how you did it or be a fool. Nobody wants to be a fool. If you set out to entertain, figuring out how it is done...

Starting with Mark Wilson's book is your best bet. I would add the following to the inexpensive card books: Cards Arthur Buckley's Card Control Paul LePaul's Magic of LePaul Jerry Mentzer's Counts Cuts Moves and Subtleties S.W. Erdnase's Expert at the Card Table Any of Karl Fulves Self Working...

Yeah, but Madison spent a WHOLE weekend reading the graphic novel version of Expert at the Card Table... that has to count for something. Marlo just invented multiple variations of every standard card move out there... big deal. Reading Marlo's Arcade Dreams now and loving it.

Expert Card Technique is a difficult read. Did you find Card College easier? I find that the older books almost tedious to read. Card College is great (the best at what it does), but it does have a textbook feel to it. However, when you find a well written magic book it, you can't put it...

For real magic, you must go beyond the plain vanilla.

So true. The book seems simplistic at first. Reading it cover to cover gives you a sense of how magic really works by showing you principles rather than just telling you about them. As you learn more about magic, you come to appreciate the power of the methods in that book and understand...

You most likely will regain full range of motion and full coordination... in time. In the meantime, get some self working books. Scarne on Card Tricks is the best. Also check out Tamariz's Verbal Magic. Take some time to get some good books and read them. Darwin Ortiz's Designing Miracles...

To bastardize George Santayana's famous saying, "those who do not study the work of the past masters are doomed to reinvent it. I'm fascinated with magic history and love old magic books. I'd bet anyone that I could prepare a better show using any one of Our Magic, Art of Magic, Greater Magic...