My Little Cousin Freaks Out via Email

[Ben Long]

My little cousin just started into magic. I showed him some things over Thanksgiving--cross cut force, a key card trick, and this one coin vanish...
I made him swear into the magician's code so that he's take it seriously.

He sent me this:

Ben,

I tried using silly putty to do that dissapearing penny trick with a pencil that you taught me, but the silly putty got stuck in my pocket, so if I tell my mom, she'll know how I did the trick!!! I already swore the Magicians Code of Ethics. Can I tell her what really happened?

Jordan


This was my reply:

Jordan--

Let me say this:

Because you will be living in the same house with her for the next ten years, your mother will probably figure out how the trick is done sooner or later.

Try and get the silly putty out of your pocket, but if you can't just ask her to help you out.

In the future, do not use silly putty to do that trick. In fact, do not use Silly Putty to do any trick. If a trick is meant to be done with a coin, use a coin.

You wouldn't use toilet paper to do a card trick (would you?). So don't use Silly Putty to do a coin trick.

Remember, stick to the code! Keep practicing. Are you practicing?

--Ben


Pretty funny stuff...

 

[APassivePoke]

That's pretty cute haha. Good to know he took it seriously

 

[vipercard]

HE BROKE THE MAGICIANS CODE

 

[clllllust]

Haha that's awesome, I'm going to try and get my younger cousin hooked on magic when he gets a little older. He's only 5 right now...so he doesn't understand much. He still thinks I stop time with my magic watch and switch cards and move them around.

-Happy Holidays,
-ra69

 

[Ben Long]

The first trick I taught him was this one easy key-card trick. Every time he would spread the cards to find the selection, he actually would get hysterical, in his excitement that it was actually working. It was kind of half-moan, half-laugh. He did that trick to my entire family over thanksgiving several times over and everyone got sick of it, so I showed him 2 other tricks...

I gave him some red bikes because the cards he had were the plastic-coated hot-wheels cards. He had apparently gotten into magic at circus camp. He kept telling me about his magic teacher and showed me the only trick he had apparently learned which was making a pencil "float" or stick to his hand.

He tried doing magic to my even littler cousin who doesn't even know what plaing cards are...

Come winter vacation, I'll lend him Mark Wilson's Complete Course in Magic...somehow I think The Art of Astonishment would be lost on him...

just a hunch...