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A "Magician" as in the Blackstone sense or a "Magician" such as Merlin & Gandolph? The latter will be far easier to find material on unless you want to look at characters within a story such as the Artful Dodger in the Olive Twist tale. . . now he's got a story! A child pick-pocket and...

Parlor Magic to 1,000 or less? Those are some huge parlors, dude! Small stage would qualify in that I would like to run the gambit when it comes to "Illusionette" pieces like Head Dagger boxes and Guilotines or bits like the Shooting a Ribbon thru a Lady, etc. all the way up to things like...

As an entertainer I've had two key areas in the magical arts pull at me; I spent the 1970s and most of the 80s learning and performing big stage magic and even ventured into the creative side of things when partnering with Ken Whitaker & Creative Illusions for a short stint. . . but then, I've...

Based simply on what you've shared I'd say that Krab has a point; you don't have a wide enough arsenal as of yet if all you've studied is card tricks. . . which will get boring FAST if you don't have any kind of variety to offer such as sponge balls, coins/money effects, etc. My suggestion...

Ok . . . first things first. . . if you've been "into magic" for less than two years STAY AWAY FROM MENTALISM. . . if you have less than two years experience performing regularly STAY AWAY FROM MENTALISM. . . and then there's my favorite. . . if you are less than 22 years of age STAY AWAY FROM...

Amateur Magician's Handbook. . . it's a lot more expensive than when I first bought it, but here you go. . .

First things first. . . relying on video is the best way to not learn things. While it can be a great asset in your learning to be overly dependent on it will cause your magic to "fail" when it comes to novelty and being able to put a personal "signature" to things. In regards to this...

Ask yourself a question. . . how can a guy that's never had to read for real to make a living, write an "in the know" book on the topic? HE CAN'T! The Rowland book was written for magicians not Mentalist. . . it's filled with skeptic based B.S. that appeases that crowd and essentially...

As with any specialty area, Mentalism requires us to be a bit self-censoring which is why we use nick-names such as Swami, Imp Pad, etc. but too, there are the same general questions people have such as where to find more information on a given type of effect, special areas of study like doing...

I love that ring story. . . fact is, the better made rings are nearly impossible to cut through with anything other than a decent bandsaw blade. You can hand out your props when they are clean, nothing to be found. If you happen onto another magic lover, don't be afraid of the fact but learn...

The Cafe has simply gotten too big and as was said by a wise one a few thousand years back, "one can only serve one master. . . " While they have an abundance of notables on that forum, I can't help but notice how some of the novices pull them in every-which direction, expecting instant...

I know this is an ancient thread but I thought I'd chime in. . . As a Mentalist I'm aware of a very old effect in which you assign each finger with an emotion or some other label such as the name of a playing card. You and the participant hold hands palm to palm with fingertips touching...

Ok. . . start HERE and you'll find a list of other key books you'll need to study within that text. Do understand that Mentalism is very demanding when it comes to showmanship and people management skills, it's nowhere close to being as easy to present as Magic. Too, the psychology is almost...

When someone reads this post they find missing details which make the piece a challenge to understand even though it gives enough detail for the educated mind to figure out what you are talking about, this is where my gripe came to be, not some misplaced word, though that was probably the straw...

Look up "PK Touches" it is sold as a manuscript on Steve's (Banachek) web site. . . but in my opinion you should hold off on this or anything tied to magic until you learn to use proper grammar and spelling in your posts. . . you will never get work doing shows if this is how you type up a...

Why James, who would do such as thing as that?:p There are ways of doing this, I've always said that. The problem is, most people that do it ruin the psychological advantages they have when it comes to Mentalism and keeping things "believable". . . Magic & Mentalism working from two...

I was recently talking with an associate of mine about T-11 and E and how limited their offerings were when it comes to Mentalism, even though they have a high count of members who focus on Mentalism as well as it's off-spring Bizarre Magick and elder sibling Side Show & Geek Magic. Fact is...

I'm not going to repeat myself here, those interested can visit E and find the same thread title. . . long story short, cynics that want to attack psychics do so out of ignorance or total disregard to the fact that there is an aspect within Mentalism that encourages "believability" by living...

Sorry, but they failed when it comes to making things "more efficient". . . I see that daily; not just with the headaches I've had this past year with my PC but the frustrated cashier at the store or bank teller and so the list grows. I can't even fathom the number of times I've had to deal...

I more than agree with you one the business end of things; hell, I'm living proof of it (as are the majority of us, in my situation . . . 40 years of work and little to nothing to show for it outside of memories). . . entertainers are notorious for this problem, it's why we end up contracting a...