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(3 reviews, 7 customer ratings) ★★★★

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Just Think by W. G. Magnuson & Devin Knight

If you really had psychic powers, you could answer questions just thought of. There would be no need for the person to write the question or tell you what it was. He would just think of a question in his mind. If you really had psychic powers you would immediately answer the question WITHOUT any pumping or fishing! There would be no hesitation! Of course, this sounds 100% impossible; unless, you really were psychic.

A noted performer once said, "The man who can create an act whereby you ask a spectator to just THINK of the question and then you answer it...will be doing something. In fact, he will be revolutionizing the history of mentalism."

Believe it or not, in the 1930s G. W. Magnuson, who performed as Del-Ardo, developed a method that allowed you to do exactly that. He developed a method where you tell the audience members to just think of questions they wanted answered in their minds. To never write the question down or tell anyone what the question was. If someone was thinking of a question, that person was to raise his hand and the performer would go to him and immediately and correctly answer the question without any fishing, pumping or asking the person what the question was.

The method is almost forgotten today (it will be a new method to most mentalists) and was released in the 30s as The Miracle Mind Act. Magnuson used the method with great success, most of his performing career. The method is so good that A. N. Rossi the famous magician and mentalist from the 30s had a consecutive six-month run in a night club mainly due to performing this.

Devin Knight has mastered this technique and has performed it for more than 20 years as an after-show bit with the audience. He often sells this to the buyer as additional after-show entertainment for a higher fee, saying he will go out into the audience after his regular act and answer any questions just thought of by the audience. Devin Knight has taken the original rare manuscript detailing the method and reset the type, added some photos and corrected grammatical errors. He also wrote a foreword to the book and added an afterthought section with his own tips and ideas from performing this for more than 20 years. He includes valuable tips and advice that Magnuson did not include in the original manuscript that only comes from a performer who has spent 20 years performing this.

This is strictly a one-man act. No more hassles of passing out cards and pencils and then having to collect the cards.

  • no gimmicks
  • no clipboards
  • no impression devices
  • no assistants
  • no stooges or instant stooges
  • no preshow work of any kind
  • no fishing or pumping for information
  • spectator never writes the question
The bottom line is that the audience just thinks of questions and you immediately and correctly answer them. You can do something most mentalists have only dreamed of doing. This ad is 100% accurate, this is what you do!

For those in the know, this is not the same method as George Anderson's Dynamite Mentalism. In this routine, the performer does not throw out random questions and ask people who are thinking of that question to raise their hands. Instead, the performer asks people who are thinking of a question to raise their hands and the performer goes to those people and correctly answers their questions WITHOUT asking what the question is and with no fishing or hesitation.

Be warned, this is something for EXPERIENCE performers only. You need to have a commanding personality. This is NOT for the novice performer or someone wanting to get into mentalism. This needs to be performed in a situation where you can approach the spectators, such as a banquet hall with tables, hospitality rooms, psi parties, and night club situations. This is not suitable in a theatre setting, as you must be able to step in front of each spectator. Keep that in mind.

Even if you never perform this, you will find the method a fascinating read and an education in mentalism. IT WORKS, PLAIN AND SIMPLE.

1st edition 2016, 13 pages.
word count: 2850 which is equivalent to 11 standard pages of text



Reviewed by Darius Acuna (confirmed purchase)
★★★★★   Date Added: Saturday 23 September, 2023

Pretty cool concept! I'm more experienced as a close up mentalist - an amateur who has frequent experience with impromptu demonstrations and readings - not minding making the big claims, so this is something more my style. I don't think it takes guts, as much as it takes speed.

You NEED to be fast in your answer, and you gotta be very comfortable doing this sort of thing regularly outside of mentalism. I wouldn't say this is for the bold as much as it's for the quick-witted mentalist who can operate without a script, since, that IS what you're doing.

Also, to those being mad about this being reused work, it says so in the description who is credited. I really didn't mind that especially since that's a very uncommon thing in our community. I appreciate the lack of plagiarism and transparency in the ad copy. For those who know about it, you're just getting someone's commentary, and I think that's worth $8. You might not, but we can't deny the main idea is pretty dang cool.


Reviewed by Christian Fisanick (confirmed purchase)
★★★★   Date Added: Sunday 10 July, 2016

This one goes way back. I got Just Think because I was curious. I had an idea of how it worked--and I was right. And for those of you who get this, you will immediately note that this effect uses the same principle as a famous item that has been on the market since the 1950s, though this version is 100% pure and uses no gimmicks whatsoever. I like Devin's use of this effect as after-show individual future telling and also his performance hints. I don't think that you can effectively use it for a main act unless, of course, you are a real fortune teller because to quote Rick Maue, "TERASABOS." Pros will know what I mean and could make some use of this. Mentalism neophytes, despite your skepticism, this kind of stuff really does work. But it takes chutzpah, audience management, personality, and experience.

Reviewed by Ronald M Levy
★★★★★   Date Added: Thursday 07 July, 2016

This is one of the most spectacular descriptions of a method of performing mentalism I have ever read because the participant only thinks of their question, and does not write anything down, and the mentalist has no gimmicks at all. The mentalist writes answers to questions on an ungimmicked pad. Devin Knight has experience performing this act, and offers very worthwhile guidance. This act is a piece of magic history, having been created by a now forgotten mentalist, Walter G. Magnuson, and Devin has revived Magnuson's writing to bring us the present work. To succeed with this act requires a strong personality and audience management experience, although Devin has made it possible, by the work he has put in on reviving this manuscript, for all mentalists to enjoy and learn from this now remembered master of the craft.

This product is listed in the following categories:

Magic & Conjuring / Mentalism & Spiritism / Reading Systems, Oracles & Cold Reading

Magic & Conjuring / Mentalism & Spiritism / Q&A