Why we love Jerrys Nugget!

[MagicTobe]

It is because these cards represent a Status Symbol (SS).

Psychologist, Sociologists and Philosophers alike have been knowing for a long time that the accumulation of material good over a basic level, will neither bring any consistent satisfaction nor is it a way towards happiness.

In life we strive to give a good image of ourselfs by showing how intelligent, diligent, athletic, friendly etc. we are.
In modern capitalism (no I am not a communist) the Status Symbol is a way to create a good image of ourself, not buy being friendly or by impressing with our intelligence, but by byuing material goods.


SS work because of their exclusivity, by excluding the "others", the non-buyer. Since Jerry Nuggets (JNs) are expensive, few can afford them, while the others strive for them. What would a deck of Jerrys Nugget (JNs) be if everybody had one?
So by purchasing the SS (in this case JNs) you get the feeling of being part of an exclusive club, of being even exclusive and not less valuable than others.
By the way this is true also for other Status Symbols such as the latest, most exclusive, coolest and luxury Dan and Dave Leather Card Clip for just 120$.

It is selfexplanatory that I personally do not think that money should not be the determinant of the image we build of ourself, and that I believe that we should rather gain acceptance and appreciation by social behaviour and altruism and the usage of our ratio.


I am in no way stating that it is always wrong to buy JNs, I was merely trying to explain why we ascribe them such a high value.
I also hope that I did not personally offend anybody.

 

[Goth]

Who's we? Are you supposing Bob over there and myself love Jerry's nuggets? Not everyone loves Jerry's nuggets. However I see were your going with this, It's actually very much true and it's amusing how some people even do it without noticing that they are doing it.

 

[MagicTobe]

Who's we? Are you supposing Bob over there and myself love Jerry's nuggets? Not everyone loves Jerry's nuggets. However I see were your going with this, It's actually very much true and it's amusing how some people even do it without noticing that they are doing it.

I very much agree with you, it has become definitely an unconscious behaviour, very probably created by advertisment and marketing.

As for the "we" I meant it generally speaking, as I personally think that most card-artists "love" them.

 

[formula]

It is because these cards represent a Status Symbol (SS).

I've never had a deck but I like them for the design, it's nothing to do with them making me "cool".

 

[Aaron.Williams]

Actually, I've never been a big fan of Jerry's Nuggets. I don't really like the design and they don't look like they'll last long if you were to use them. If I could come across a deck, I would probably sell it, or just keep it until its worth more. But I could live my life without any kind of sadness related to whether I have this deck or not.

 

[XabierL]

I would really like to have one, just to be able to sell it for 200$...

 

[kayloh20]

I am perfectly fine with not owning a deck that, in my personal opinion, look ugly and can barely fan. I believe the only reason why they are that expensive is because of how popular Dan and Dave are. Nothing against anyone, I just do not see any positive to Jerry's Nugget in terms of the cards themselves versus many, many other playing cards.

But your logic does make sense. The fact that they are rare and expensive make them highly sought after regardless of anything else about them. Nevertheless, I too would simply sell them if I came across a deck.

 

[timsilva]

Capitalism breeds these behaviors. It's a male-reproductive-organ measuring content.

I completely agree with you Tobe. Although sure, not everyone wants Jerry's Nuggets (or a Lamborghini for that matter), but it certainly have a price value that makes it desirable.

Its helpful to remember that we are all just monkeys with pieces of paper that determine how much freedom we have. We just don't throw poop at each other now days (except for a few, but that's for another day).


That being said, I'd love to own some Jerry's. Superficial? Sure, a little.

 

[CaseyRudd]

At the end of the day, I'd only pay a couple of bucks for a Jerry's Nugget, not hundreds. It's just paper and cardboard; it doesn't matter if it was specially printed. A deck is a deck. A playing card is a playing card. I could live my whole life without owning a deck of JNs.

 

[formula]

Are you saying we're all wasting our money on the specially printed T11 cards Casey? To an ordinary person a deck is a deck, to a professional a deck is not just a deck and that goes for everything, cheese, wine, art, cars, jewellery....

 

[saborfang17]

Who gives a sh*t whether or not other people like them? If you like them, good for you. If you don't, good for you.

 

[danielmontagne]

it's an interesting thread about us

 

[ZachMueller]

You guys are all wrong, okay, I have 12, so you guys don't know anything.

Kidding of course. It all depends on how you perceive the item. Some things have value because they are sold at an extremely high value, and because they are the best of the best (for example, a Leica M9, one of the nicest cameras at around $7,00). Jerry's don't fall into this category because they aren't really better than other cards, it's because they are much rarer and are no longer being made. Back when they were 50 cents per deck, almost every magician in Vegas had a deck, because they were cheap, and lasted a long time. The increase in value was when they stopped being printed, and the demand went up.

Just my two sansei.

 

[CaseyRudd]

Are you saying we're all wasting our money on the specially printed T11 cards Casey? To an ordinary person a deck is a deck, to a professional a deck is not just a deck and that goes for everything, cheese, wine, art, cars, jewellery....

I was talking about a Jerry's Nugget deck, not other decks. Here is the quote:

"At the end of the day, I'd only pay a couple of bucks for a Jerry's Nugget, not hundreds."

Even a couple of bucks is how much a Custom Deck of t11 cards cost. $4.95 - $5.95. Not that much at all when compared to 300 dollars.

 

[formula]

It's just paper and cardboard; it doesn't matter if it was specially printed. A deck is a deck. A playing card is a playing card.

Regardless of whether they're Jerry's you're saying all cards are the same and that they're just paper. On a level I agree but as a cardist I completely disagree with you. As a member of the T11 team I thought you would appreciate that stock, design, finish....all make a big difference to how much cards are worth. In 50-100 years I think the cards from current time will fetch more money than Jerry's do now. Cards will have their own antique-like marketplace because finishes, stock and even how they're manufactured will change leaving us with "outdated" cards that you won't be able to buy in the future (just like how people say Jerry's feel different to any other card because cards aren't produced like that these days).

 

[tokyoUW]

If you have the spare cash, then to each his or her own. If you are struggling to make ends meat and go blow a couple hundred dollars on a deck of Jerry's (or anything that you don't really need for that matter), then you have issues that need resolving.

 

[CaseyRudd]

Regardless of whether they're Jerry's you're saying all cards are the same and that they're just paper. On a level I agree but as a cardist I completely disagree with you. As a member of the T11 team I thought you would appreciate that stock, design, finish....all make a big difference to how much cards are worth. In 50-100 years I think the cards from current time will fetch more money than Jerry's do now. Cards will have their own antique-like marketplace because finishes, stock and even how they're manufactured will change leaving us with "outdated" cards that you won't be able to buy in the future (just like how people say Jerry's feel different to any other card because cards aren't produced like that these days).

I do appreciate all of those qualities as a Cardist myself. It comes to terms of personal preference. If you are a layman, then a card is a card and a deck is a deck. They all treat them the same. But I said "At the end of the day" because that's what it REALLY is at the end of the day. To some it matters, to some it doesn't. Like I said before, as a Cardist myself, I pay attention to finishes, stock quality, etc. because they matter when it comes to flourishes and all that. When I'm not doing Cardistry, a deck is a deck. You can hand me any deck and I'll do magic with it or play a quick game of Five Card Draw with friends.

 

[William Draven]

With all this debate about cardistry, I have to play devils advocate and ask: Just how viable is the art form for commercial use outside of marketing DVD's to other magicians or enthusiasts? Seriously, when have you ever paid or would be willing to pay money to see someone perform cardistry? Is it something that can sustain itself in the general market, or is it only something to be done for bragging rights among those who are already initiates?

 

[formula]

"Cardistry" is a hobby for self satisfaction, Magic is entertainment. As you said, the general public don't really care for cardisty, it looks cool but they don't really care. The market for things like cardistry is very small, occasionally being used in adverts, film as doubles or on tv as a demonstration for something (Dan & Dave on that US science show and recently Dynamo on Inside The Human Body). Outside of that rare need it's purely to amuse ourselves, whether that be to impress or just as a challenge.

I think your posts are contradicting Casey but I know what you mean.

 

[MagicTobe]

Who gives a sh*t whether or not other people like them? If you like them, good for you. If you don't, good for you.

It is not that easy. Consumer needs are created artificially by marketing as well as by seeing other customers owning the product.