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Prestidigitation or Magic Made EasyunknownA complete handbook of legerdemain, containing all the latest optical, chemical, mechanical, and magical tricks and deceptions, amusing transmutations, astonishing sleights and subtleties, together with all the noted tricks of modern magicians and prestidigitators. If you always wanted to make a mouse come out of a pack of cards, change salt to sugar, or make fire burn under water, this may be just the book for you. The author only identifies himself as 'An Old Conjuror'. Excerpt from the publisher's preface: The following pages are not intended to make the reader either a cheat or... | $8 to wish list | |
Mind ReadingPersifor FrazerAfter a lengthy introduction, it describes and explains the performances of the muscle-reader Mr. Brown. It also describes and explains the performances of the brothers Outerbridge whose purpose it was to prove that these types of experiments are based on muscle-reading and not any other mysterious mental forces. This talk was given before the Social Science Association on May 12th, 1875. Persifor Frazer was an interesting character. For example, he was internationally respected as an expert on handwriting. He devised a process for detecting forgeries through composite photography, leading... | $5 to wish list | |
The Art of AmusingFrank BellewA collection of graceful arts, merry games, and odd tricks, intended to amuse everybody and enable all to amuse everybody else. Full of suggestions for private theatricals, tableaux, charades, and all sorts of parlor and family amusements. With nearly 150 illustrative pictures. In the days without the Internet, TV, or even radio, people entertained themselves. This book covers all kinds of things one can do from arts and crafts, little plays, simple conjuring tricks, and other activities. 1st edition 1866, 302 pages; PDF 157 pages. | $8 to wish list | |
The Fireside MagicianPaul PrestonFamiliar and scientific explanation of legerdemain, physical amusement, recreative chemistry, diversions with cards, and of all the minor mysteries of mechanical magic, with feats. As performed in public by Herr Alexander, Robert Houdin, "The Wizard of the North," and distinguished conjurors of all ages and nations.
| $12 to wish list | |
The Genial ShowmanEdward Peron HingstonReminiscences of the life of humorist Artemus Ward (Charles Farrar Browne) and pictures of a showman's career in the Western world. A wonderful account of show business by the example of the humorist Artemus Ward during the 19th century. In particular, it describes how performers had to travel through the US during the 1860s, how they had to advertise and promote their shows, including the characters they encountered and the situations they had to master. For conjurers most interesting is chapter 25: Spiritualism And Conjuring. This tells of how Hingston and Browne helped a conjurer by... | $12 to wish list | |
Fifty Years in the Magic CircleSignor BlitzAn account of the author's professional life; his wonderful tricks and feats; with laughable incidents, and adventures as a magician, necromancer, and ventriloquist. Excerpt from the Preface: In presenting my Autobiography, I am fully aware of the grave responsibility I assume, and equally so of the presumption of a person describing, in a measure, his own character;—yet it is essentially better to relate one’s adventures himself, than to entrust them to the dictation of others. The reminiscences of my life may not be entitled to any special merit, beyond the amusement they may afford... | $12 to wish list | |
The Parlor MagicianWiljalba Frikell100 tricks for the drawing room. Containing an extensive and miscellaneous collection of conjuring and legerdemain; sleights with dice, dominoes, cards, ribbons, rings, fruit, coins, balls, handkerchiefs, etc. All of which may be performed in the parlor or drawing room. Without the aid of any apparatus; also embracing a choice variety of curious deceptions which may be performed with the aid of simple apparatus.
| $10 to wish list | |
The Champion Pig of EnglandunknownThis is a lovely old-school children's story about a pig named Grunter Growler, his life on a farm, his animal as well as human friends, and his success winning 1st prize as the most beautiful pig in the country. The interesting part for conjurers is that Grunter meets Toby the Learned Pig which includes a description of a typical performance of Toby. Those who study and research learned pigs might find it interesting. All learned pigs in England were named Toby. It is therefore not clear which Toby was the model for this description.
| $4 to wish list | |
The True History of Pepper's GhostJohn Henry PepperJohn Henry Pepper took a projection invention of Henry Dircks, called The Ghost, with his permission, and made it practical so that it could more easily be performed. He earned a lot of money staging it. Even though Dircks did not want any payments from Pepper, there was a falling out between the two because the invention became known as Pepper's Ghost. Dircks wanted to have his name associated with it. This prompted Dircks to write The Ghost. Pepper's answer to that publication and dispute came almost 30 years later in this work The True History of the Ghost. He also includes the history and working of Metempsychosis... | $7 to wish list | |
The GhostHenry DircksAs produced in the spectre drama, popularly illustrating the marvellous optical illusions obtained by the apparatus called the Dircksian Phantasmagoria being a full account of its history, construction, and various adaptations. Henry Dircks was the first who came up with the stage illusions that later became known as Pepper's Ghost. He had an arrangement with Pepper, they took out a patent in both their names, and Dircks did not want any monetary remuneration for it. John Henry Pepper improved the configuration to make it more practical and successfully staged it earning quite a lot of money with it. However,... | $7 to wish list | |
Lulu Hurst Writes Her AutobiographyLulu HurstFor the first time explains and demonstrates the great secret of her marvelous power. In this autobiography, Lulu Hurst tells her rise to fame and fortune by performing acts of incredible strength on stage. She does this with personal recollections as well as quoting from various newspaper reports. At the time she performed many attributed her strength to some as of yet unknown or unexplainable force. But she had no unusual strength or the aid of any special force. She cleverly used mechanical principles as well as showmanship to make it appear she had super-human strength. In the second... | $10 to wish list | |
Beyond the MississippiAlbert Deane RichardsonLife and adventure on the prairies, mountains, and Pacific coast. Beyond the Mississippi is a travel log of Albert Richardson from a few years before and after the American Civil War. As the title suggests, he traveled west of the Mississippi through states and territories such as Missouri, Kansas, Colorado, Texas, New Mexico, Montana, Wyoming, Iowa, Oregon, California, Nevada, etc. He describes nature, people, politics, and commerce. It includes exciting adventures as well as fairly dry facts such as how many bushels of grain a particular area produces. Overall it is quite readable and the... | $9 to wish list | |
How to Pose as a Strong ManEdward Barton-WrightBarton-Wright, one of the first Europeans to study Japanese martial arts, explains eleven pseudo-strength tricks in words and photos. Forty years before this publication Lulu Hurst created a sensation demonstrating similar stunts as manifestations of 'unexplainable forces'. The tricks explained in this article are:
| $4 to wish list | |
Two Pounds Less Than An ElephantPopular MechanicsA nicely illustrated article explaining some of the popular pseudo-strength demonstrations made popular for example by Lulu Hurst and others. 200 years ago demonstrations of this kind created a sensation. Nobody could explain them. Many believed these were manifestations of some yet unexplained force. Today they are relegated to party stunts. Nevertheless, some are quite surprising demonstrations you can try out in your living room. 1st edition 1928, PDF 6 pages. | ★★★★★ $4 to wish listPDF_facsimile | |
Baccarat Fair and FoulProfessor HoffmannBeing an explanation of the game, and a warning against its dangers. Excerpt from the preface: A good deal of public curiosity has been of late aroused respecting the game of Baccarat. The present work is designed, in the first place, to satisfy such curiosity by giving an explanation of the game and a statement of its laws. But it has also a second object. There is perhaps no game which so lends itself to the arts of the card-sharper as Baccarat, and if it be true that "in vain the net is spread in sight of any bird," an exposition of the frauds to which the honest player is liable should... | $10 to wish list | |
Card Sharping ExposedJean Eugene Robert-Houdin & Professor HoffmannA translation of Les Trickeries des Grecs by M. Robert-Houdin, one of the most valuable and interesting works on the subject of card sharping. Excerpt from the preface: Meanwhile, the march of science has continued, and the arts of deception, like other arts, have received many new developments. There are fashions in fraud, as in more innocent matters. I have endeavoured in the present pages not only to offer a faithful translation of Robert-Houdin's text, but by the aid of notes to bring down his work, so to speak, to present date. In so doing I have to acknowledge special obligation... | ★★★★★ $12 to wish list | |
Games of Skill and ConjuringunknownInstructions for games, magic tricks, model building, giving shows, and more.
| $7 to wish list | |
Gambling in its Infancy and ProgressJonathan H. GreenA dissuasive to the young against games of chance.
| $8 to wish list | |
Judge's Library No. 79Judge Publishing Co.Judge's Library was a satirical periodical published in the USA from 1881 to 1947. It was a rival magazine to Puck founded among others by cartoonist James Albert Wales, dime novels publisher Frank Tousey and author George H. Jessop. This issue No. 79 of Judge is all about poker. It provides a wonderful glimpse into how ubiquitous poker was in the US that such a successful periodical would dedicate an entire issue to it. Also noteworthy, particularly for Erdnase scholars, is the fact that pretty much all the funny dialogs in this issue are in various national slang and ebonic. Thus the few lines... | $8 to wish listPDF_facsimile | |
The Hand-Book of SwindlingDouglas William JerroldA humoristic manual about swindling, how to become a successful swindler, as well as why it is such a good thing - featuring the late captain Barabbas Whitefeather.
| $7 to wish list | |
How To Do Chemical TricksA. AndersonContaining over one hundred highly amusing and instructive tricks with chemicals.
| $10 to wish list | |
Scientific MysteriesunknownA collection of simple and effective experiments illustrating chemical, physical, and optical wonders. Published by the Offices of the Chemist and Druggist. 42 Cannon Street, London.
| $10 to wish list | |
How to do Sleight of HandA. AndersonContaining over fifty of the latest and best tricks used by magicians. Also containing the secret of Second Sight. Excerpt from the introduction: In Egypt, Greece and Rome, sleight of hand, accompanied by the supposed answers of the gods produced by ventriloquism, enabled the priest to keep the ignorant nations in subjection to their will. In the Middle Ages, too, a great deal of what happened under the influence of Black Magic was simply the cunning of professors of sleight of hand, sometimes mixed up with a few chemical tricks. ... One thing the young conjurer must remember, and... | $10 to wish list | |
Faro ExposedAlfred TrumbleAt one point it was believed that only one copy of this book existed. This and other myths are addressed in the introduction by Frank Lehmann, who has studied this book in detail. The book exposes various ways in which the game of Faro was crooked. It was a very popular betting game in the United States and usually was rigged in one way or another. It was published by Richard K. Fox, the proprietor of the Police Gazette.
| $19.50 to wish list | |
Card and Conjuring Tricks and Book of Riddlesunknown
| $6 to wish list | |
The New Conjuror's Museum and Magical MagazineunknownFor magicians most interesting is a section with arithmetic tricks and another with legerdemain featuring effects such as letting a pen-knife jump out of a goblet, some card tricks, coin tricks, and chemical tricks.
| $12 to wish list | |
The Life of Mason Long the Converted GamblerMason LongBeing a record of his experience as a white slave; a soldier in the Union Army; a professional gambler; a patron of the turf; a variety theater and minstrel manager; and, finally, a convert to the Murphy Cause, and to the Gospel of Christ. This book is an illustration of this paragraph by S.W. Erdnase: Hazard at play carries sensations that once enjoyed are rarely forgotten. The winnings are known as "pretty money," and it is generally spent as freely as water. The average professional who is successful at his own game will, with the sublimest unconcern, stake his money on that of another's, though... | $10 to wish list | |
The Life of a ShowmanDavid Prince MillerThis is a wonderful account of a traveling showman's trials and tribulations in England and Scotland during the middle of the 19th century. Among other things, he was a conjurer. While this is not a book of tricks, one coin trick is explained as part of one story of his life. But much more interesting are the descriptions of various scams and the modus operandi of various ways to defraud the public by traveling hucksters the author encountered. The operation of the thimble rig is explained in detail. It is an account of how traveling showmen struggled essentially their entire life to make... | $10 to wish list | |
Jack PotsCollin MacKenzieFor anybody interested in Erdnase, this poker story compilation should be of interest because many poker stories are from Chicago. It was published in 1887 which means it likely overlaps somewhat with the active time of Erdnase. We are not saying you will find a story featuring Erdnase. But such poker stories, even if they are often exaggerated or purely fictional, do provide one with some sense of the times of Erdnase. In particular, it is educational to compare the stories with the ones from Eugene Edwards' Jack Pots. There isn't any significant overlap, however one aspect is noticeably different. Eugene... | $12 to wish list | |
The Game of Draw PokerJohn W. KellerA fairly detailed work on the rules and variations of draw poker. Also includes some advice on how to play the game successfully. This work includes Robert C. Schenck's rules for draw poker.
| $8 to wish list | |
Draw: rules for playing pokerRobert C. Schenck | $5 to wish list | |
Gambling ExposedJonathan H. GreenFull exposition of all the various arts, mysteries, and miseries of gambling. It is a complete exposure, of the different and various ways of deception and cheating in all the numerous games played, such as Faro, Two, Three, and Four-Handed Poker, Shuffling Cards, Roulette and Rolling Faro, Vingt-Un, Brag, Euchre, Game of Boston, All Fours, Cribbage, Whist, Dice, Stealing out Cards, Palming, Playing by Signs, Marking Cards, Backgammon, Solitaire, Playing Three against One, Spring Tables, Spring Boxes, Pulleys, Ingenuity of Gamblers, Card Manufactories, Lotteries, then modes of drawing and... | $12 to wish list | |
Games and Tricks with CardsJonathan H. GreenYou will find here card tricks, cheating exposes, card games, and gambling stories. A later expanded version of this book was published under the title Gamblers' Tricks With Cards Exposed and Explained.
| $8 to wish list | |
The Magic Oracle or Conjuror's GuideunknownThis work reveals a mix of card tricks and other small magic effects, science tricks, and in particular chemical stunts and experiments. It also covers the making of fireworks in some depth including how to make an artificial volcano. Interesting was that even in 1850 it was clear that experimenting with mercury (quicksilver) was risky as the following quote from the book shows: Feats performed through the medium of quicksilver should be executed with the greatest caution, as there is some danger attending them. (Obviously, nobody should be casually experimenting with mercury. It is... | $10 to wish list |