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The key with any "move" is to practice what it looks like without the move. If you are doing a retention vanish, start by practicing actually putting the ball in you hand and moving your hand away. Pay attention to how you do it and then when you do the false transfer imitate what you did when...

Just don't point like Mark teaches... his book is AMAZING but the pointing in the sponge ball and coin routines is really bad form. I've never seen anyone else do that.

It is interesting that you use the term "performance pieces." I like Larry Haas's definition of a performance piece in his book Transformations-- "every perfomance piece includes trickery, the secret technical method, as one of its components. However, a performance piece also involves all the...

Nice collection. I just picked up a copy of Greater Magic and have to spend some time with it. Jennings '67 is amazing -- I love the invisible palm routines. Stars of Magic is just beautiful -- it really feels like you are holding a piece of history and the routines are amazing. I can only...

We have had that conversation before. You tend to focus on having the meaning intrinsic to the effect where I tend to focus on the meaning being complimentary to the effect in the presentation. Oh, by the way, I get paid by the nit. :cool: Interesting. I love the classics. I think that I...

All tricks are trivial. It is the performer that gives them meaning.

Double facers :) You were testing me to see if I actually looked at the routine. I thought the routine was ingenious. I love effects where you hide in plain sight.

In a word.... no. Those effects are more for the 5 and under crowd. My advice is to take the effects you know and adapt them for your audience rather than learning new effects. That being said, I'd be glad to help you select effects (both from stuff you have and from new stuff) and outline...

Part of it is presentation. Part of it is knowing your audience. My presentation was about trying to make my white dove "Barbie" appear between the silks. I asked my father-in-law to think of the happiest day in his life. He thought of his wedding day. I asked him to think of that night...

True stories.... I once performed the Baffling Bra for my parent's in law... and they loved it. It's all in the presentation. I've done Silk to Panties for friends. I've only performed the sponge ding dong once... for my wife. For some reason she didn't think I should perform that one for her...

I agree with you on the standard coloring book effect. If you are performing for kids older than 5, I think it isn't that magical. I recognize that a lot of children's entertainers like it because you can get a lot of interaction (see, for example, the routine in Seriously Silly by David Kaye's...

I like that one. Now you have me wanting to get The Classic Magic of Larry Jennings (have Jenings '67 and love it ). I'll have to do some research with what books I have. I think there are variations of Ambitious Classic to look up -- Amorphous Aces in The Secrets of Brother John Hammond, The...

In another thread, we were talking about the availability of blank decks and gaffs like double-backers, so my question is what do you use those cards for? Blank Cards Caleb Wiles - Holy Blank (comes with the deck) Bannon's Duplicity Craig Petty's Blank (comes with cards to do all effects...

It's Brett's fault. They will restock..., so your're good as long as Brett doesn't place another order.

Penguin or MJM are your best bet. The decks range from $5 to $7.

I define a gaff as a secret feature that causes a magic effect. I really don't know what a buffed deck is, but it seems to imply doing something to make the cards slide easier. I'm not sure how that works to cause a magic effect. Rather, it seems that it just makes the handling easier. As...

Brett: Saw this and thought of you. I love Garcia's one handed shuffle.

I've got a lot of obsessions when it comes to magic: Strippers - Standard, End, Belly and (although I don't have one) Negative and Short Cards - End, Corner and Side. Great resources include Encyclopedia of Card Tricks, The Stripper Deck, Greater Magic and Jinx. R&S - OK, let's start with...

TW~ Well said. I agree completely. Rev~ I could have written that post. I'm a mild mannered tax attorney by day and the performance and study of magic probably is my only creative pursuit. I also agree that the study of magic has an interesting intelectual / problem solving element. I...

There are Bicycle Jumbo Cards in the "Big Box" : http://www.penguinmagic.com/p/S5598 There used to be a different "Big Bicycle" version that were thicker, but Bicycle switched to the new design. There are not any of those cards readily available. You also can get Parlor Sized cards from Card...