Cards: page 103

More than the thirteen major Marlo items Ed contributed to New Tops Magazine in 1981 - not to mention new sleights, finesses, and subtleties - all these items have been largely unavailable since their publication. Wesley James has added another year of material toward fulfilling Ed Marlo's expressed wishes, keeping his material available "for the guys."

As with Wesley's previous release of M.I.N.T. III, these long-unavailable Marlo items could have been all Wesley compiled. Still, this volume would have been an important contribution to the literature of card magic. As tribute to Ed, Wesley wanted this volume to offer more....

Ian Baxter here, introducing something new from me in the 'Card Stabbing' arena. Nicely Stabbed! offers not one but two approaches to this evergreen card mystery. But rather than have me rattle on about this, I'll ask reviewer and fellow Australian David Jones to offer his opinion.

When Ian Baxter told me that his next manuscript involved the concept of forcing an unknown card, I was intrigued, to say the least. What resulted from this offbeat thought was a very clever, streamlined and almost sleight-free method for a known classic. A spectator stabs a card anywhere into the deck and ends...

The Mark Twain stack is a Si Stebbins stack with a four-apart sequence in SHoCkeD order. It was first published in the February 1935 issue of Modern Mechanix and Inventions magazine. This is a reproduction of this article. Why it was called the Mark Twain stack is anybody's guess.

1st edition 1935; PDF 4 pages.

This is the first known publication of the Si Stebbins stack and several tricks that go along with it. It is a reproduction from the Sunday 18th December 1898 issue of the St. Louis Post Dispatch newspaper.

1st edition, 1898; PDF 5 pages.

The original Prophecy Move in Bill Simon's book Effective Card Magic has been a favorite with magicians since its publication. The spectator places a business card or playing card between two cards at a random position somewhere in the middle of the deck. The move forces the top and bottom cards of the deck. A myriad of variations and tricks with the sleight have surfaced through the years.

The author first describes his version of the move. This in-the-hands handling accomplishes the move using natural movements in spreading the cards. Neither hand turns over when performing the sleight as in the original version. Gerald...

Walker's Card Mysteries is a book of highly useful and original card conjuring. The forty odd items deal with systems, sleights and subtleties, while each experiment is worked out in the most minute detail. Accurate illustrations enhance the value of the publication.

From the Preface:

J. Stewart Smith presents more of his mystifying card effects, accomplished without knuckle-busting sleight of hand. The author was something of an enigma, eschewing public performances in favor of fooling magicians and mentalists at magic conventions. After a process of continual refinements from demonstrating his effects under the critical eyes of magicians, he would assemble a small number of his latest creations and issue them in small, limited-edition booklets. To say that his books are hard to come by is a gross understatement. This is a shame since the magic is priceless.

Smith was...

The Effect of the Card in the Orange ranks with that of the Bank-Note in Lemon, or the Card in the Egg effect, but has one main advantage over the other two and that is that it is easier to do. Although the impact on the audience is precisely the same, the trick can be performed under any conditions and is literally worry-free. The Card in the Orange is one of those effects that, in the right hands, can be a reputation-maker. The whole effect depends entirely upon showmanship and presentation.

• Edwin's Routine
• What You Require
• Another Method
• Knife Force
• Simplicity Force
• The Glide ...

As you can understand from the title this is an impossible divination. The method is becoming more and more diabolical.

The effect is a classic: the spectator chooses a card and the magician finds it. Here, however, the conditions are strict for the magician. There is seemingly no way the magician could find the card. The deck is shuffled while the performer looks away. Despite this, he will be able to find the chosen card face down. All this with a normal, borrowed, totally impromptu deck.

1st edition 2022, video 12:03

This intro price will go up to $12 from May 25, 2022.

Please note that this is deckless. And that does not mean propless. Two double blank business cards are used in this effect, with something written/printed on them of course, as you will get to know in this manuscript. This ACAAN is notoriously unknown as DAD ACAAN. And this is completely different than the earlier Deckless ACAAN.

3 different participants freely and randomly choose a card value, a number, and a suit. All are fair choices...or so it seems. And you read all 3 minds with a uniquely stunning impact. You can even perform this to a single...

Sensitive Fingers is a unique routine that will showcase your skill as a mentalist or skilled card handler. But, of course, the presentation you choose is up to you.

Effect: You remove a small envelope and set it aside. You shuffle a deck of cards and have a spectator cut off a small packet of cards, less than half of the deck. They place the card they cut to in a card box or their shirt pocket without you seeing it.

You take the packet of cards from the spectator and again, without looking, feel the face of the card. You can tell the spectator the color of the card. You repeat this...

The magician attempts to find the spectator chosen card under impossible conditions. In the end, he also manages to find the four aces. Everything is done with a normal deck of cards. Requires minimal sleight-of-hand.

1st edition 2022, video 12:52

You 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.

• Chapter I
  • Invention Of Cards
  • Mysterious Trick Of Thirty Six Cards; Telling The Card You Look At Without Seeing The Pack.
  • To Tell A Card Thought Of
  • Three Jacks As Thieves, Caught By A King As A Policeman
  • To Burn A Card And Fin'd It In A Watch
  • How To Shift Cards
  • The Four Associates
  • To Make A Card Jump Out Of The Pack
  • How To Change Cards To Pictures
• Chapter II
  • All Fours
  • Deceptions Used In The Game Of All Fours
  • How To...

A version of a strike-second deal that the author calls the "shutter" method, referring to the shutter of a camera.

This version could be easier for some to perform than a classic strike-second because the coordination of the thumbs is built into the method itself. While the author claims that his method is practically self-working, there is some amount of practice necessary to acquire the knack. Still, his discovery has earned the praise of top-flight card experts, who have called it perfect in action and imperceptible to the keenest observer.

The second deal is an indispensable sleight...

There are so many possibilities with a stacked deck, or better yet, "Impossibilities." That's because these decks look regular but what you can do with them quite casually can appear incredible. It's an old stack that's still worth its salt is, "The Si Stebbins Stack." It's sorta the granddaddy of this kind of amazing card magic. And it has a mathematical build to it that allows for a variety of other approaches as to magically finding a selected card and or knowing where or what a card is as to its position. This effect is a refreshing and fun way I found to make a bit more magic happen...

Mr. T is an underground gambler, the man who wrote the Pro Guide to the Lucky Log, and the exclusive manual for "Bingo Bango". Now he brings you A Sweet and Simple Swindle. Two of them actually, because the PDF includes an additional bonus swindle with playing cards.

Both dead easy to do, no sleight of hand, no complicated tactics, just a sweet advantage to you, where the mark will believe they have the better of you all along. No marked cards or anything of the sort, both of these use a regular deck of playing cards that can be borrowed, so easy a kid could take advantage of this ... if...

Most tricks explained require a double backer, sometimes the same back double-backer, sometimes a different back double-backer.

• Introductory
• The Two Fold Miracle
• Insto-Transpo!
• The Startling Stop!
• The Double Force
• Double Comedy Relief
• "Satan Behind You"
• Chameleon Backs
• Remote Control
• False Faces

1st edition 1933, 8 pages; PDF 14 pages.

A comprehensive treatise devoted to a brilliant cyclical stack system for professional magicians and mentalists.

This ebook covers the topic in great detail, including ten lessons for learning the system, plus how to use the Magi System to its utmost, including clever false cuts and shuffles that'll hide the fact that a setup is used at all. Also included are mechanical methods that can optionally be combined with the Magi System to make it even better.

The ebook contains a mix of effects that are easy to do and ones that take some skill. All are explained in an easy-to-follow manner,...

An easy-to-calculate version of the Si Stebbins stack.

The name 'Snibbets' (Stebbins reversed) was coined by Rusduck. It denotes a reversed Si Stebbins stack where instead of adding 3 to get to the next card's value one substracts 3. The first to publish a negative step version was Ernest Hammond in The Magic of Tomorrow. While this may seem a rather inconsequential change, it has some advantages over the classic Si Stebbins stack. In this ebook, Dr. Solka takes you through the details of this lesser-known version of Si Stebbins.

1st edition 2022, PDF 19 pages.

A new method to learn the identity of three (could be less, and could also be more) truly freely selected cards from a borrowed shuffled deck.

A real weapon that can also be used in other routines. A powerful effect and a fooler not only for layman but also for magicians. The magician is able to reveal the identity of three cards randomly taken by the spectator under impossible conditions. This method is unbelievable and diabolic at the same time. Everything with a borrowed shuffled deck. The magician always looks away.

• no switch
• no palm
• no mirror or shiner
• no doubles
• no crimp ...

The spectator shuffles the cards, and magi removes one card as an open prediction for all to see. A three-digit number is called by the spectator and the magi deals cards to the table to match each digit, leaving a random card to the side for each number. The three cards placed aside are then added up to the random number they achieve. With the deck now face down, that number is counted down to, and miraculously it reveals the mate to the prediction card initially laid on the table.

No dupes, no gimmicks, no tape, no magnets, no smoke, no mirrors, spectator shuffles, any 3 digits named. ...

Card tricks requiring one or more double-facers.

The 18 tricks were supplied by U. F. Grant. Burling Hull writes:

A minimalist storytelling mentalism card routine.

"This is a truly thoughtful and beautiful presentation - the sort of thing that really warms my heart. The presentation here is the thing. And what's really nice about it, is that it is easily adaptable to other effects if one so desires. I love it!" - Sudo Nimh

A special competition was underway at a famous monastery and all the monks were quite eager to do well. The Master had pointed out a very special tree that lived in the woods surrounding the monastery grounds and the monks had been asked to write a story about this tree. The winner...

A utility move that allows you to control a card to the top, to the second, or a few cards down from the top.

I have created this move back in 2010 to control a card to the top of the deck. Over the years I have refined it to this point, now I am confident enough to share it with the magic community. With this move, you can not only control a card to the top but also to the second position or a few cards down from the top. This move is easy to perform without any knuckle-busting exercises.

1st edition 2022, video 22:20.

Tried and tested card tricks requiring no skill.

• The Sensitive Touch
• A New Card Force
• Locate It
• Out Of The Pocket
• The Subtle Exchange
• Simplified Telephone Mind Reading Card Trick
• The Turnover Deception
• The Invisible Card
• It's Reversed
• A Unique Card Force
• Byplay
• Reel Magic
• For The Reader Of This Manuscript

1st edition 1932, 3rd edition 1973, 19 pages; PDF 18 pages.

This effect has such a subtle method. If you want to destroy your spectator with a killer effect, this is the one. This effect is a mix of impossible location, ACAAN and impossible revelation. Joseph has often used this effect as an opener and always got great reactions. You have all the material at home to construct the deck.

You introduce a deck of cards and instruct a spectator to cut about a third of the deck and place it to the side. The card cut to is remembered by the spectator and also put aside. The spectator shuffles the part cut off and the performer shuffles the remainder of...

If you are interested in mentalism and/or impossible card locations and/or the Sunken Key, you will enjoy this manuscript. If you enjoy fooling other members of the conjuring demi-monde, you will enjoy this manuscript. If you know who Bob Hummer is, you will really enjoy this manuscript.

If you like tricks that involve the Seven Deadly Sins, astrological signs, lucky cards and H.P. Lovecraft, you will enjoy this manuscript.

It's twenty bucks, about what you'd pay for a Starbucks coffee on Rodeo Drive in L.A. Unlike the coffee, you won't need to talk to a sycophantic barista with a Chinese ideogram...

Two bizarre playing card routines.

In the Devil's Game you tell the story of a guy named Billy who finds himself in hell, he simply can't believe it. Billy just doesn't belong in hell, he lived his life honestly, he was loyal, he was a good guy, did the right things, played by the rules. What the hell is he doing in hell?! So he asks one of the Devil's minions to please take him to the devil, that he urgently needs to speak to him to figure this thing out. The minion takes him to the devil's lavish chambers, and the devil, smoking a cigar, surrounded by beautiful women, quietly hears him...

Mental Fooler is a great and direct effect. It looks like you really know how to read the spectator's mind. The most important element is that you can do this with a borrowed shuffled deck. Everything is done with the cards face down. You take a borrowed deck of cards and remove a couple of cards. While you are turned away the spectator first shuffles these cards and then only thinks of one of them. Then you explain to him how to spell a card and move for each character a card from top to bottom. While you are again turned away the spectator spells the thought of card silently. You are able...

You show a packet of four black kings with blue backs and you place them face-down on the table. You further show four red queens. Waving the queens face-up over the face-down kings suddenly turns them all face-down as well. Another magical gesture and the four red queens are now four black kings. You place the packs together and suddenly the cards magically mix. Finally, you show all cards individually as totally normal except that the backs of the queens have now suddenly turned to red. No additional cards. No double-facers and no double-backers or other gimmicked cards.

1st edition...

Two cards (2 x Queen of Spades) are shown to a spectator, who is then handed an "invisible card" the 9 of Hearts. The spectator throws the invisible card towards the magician who is going to catch it between the two queens. The spectator does this and the 9 of hearts instantly appears between them! Then, whenever the magician wants, the 9 of hearts vanishes - only to turn up in another location. This is a great self-working effect that gets great reactions.

You'll need to make the gimmick with a couple of things most magicians will already possess. It'll take you just five minutes and...

10 new card magic effects, semi-automatic and hands-off, thought to be performed at distance, remotely in a video call (like Zoom, Skype, Google Meet...) or just on phone. Some mathematical principles alternate with others less known in card magic, to create easy but amazing new effects that can pleasantly fool all your viewers.

Here are the effects, all executable at a distance:

FIVE CARDS MIRACLE - One card thought of in five, so simple and straightforward that it will fool anyone.

E-SANDWICH - Two special cards will be able to capture the card the spectator is thinking about. ...

La routine des rois is a mixture of a packet trick and a production of Kings and Aces. You can do it with a normal deck of cards. It is a climax of twists, as you can see from the demo video. You need to know only the Elmsley Count. In any case, I also give you a little tutorial on it. No gaffed cards and no gimmick.

1st edition 2022, video 10:56

An interesting evolution of the classic "card to ceiling effect". Two cards are involved.

The first card appears on the ceiling as in the classic card to ceiling effect. A little later, a second card is selected from which a corner is torn off. This card is now suddenly on the ceiling where the first card was before. Alternatively, you could use a wall or a pane of glass.

1st edition 2022, video 38:38.

This e-book is a fun-filled, hilarious 12-15 minute routine, that one can perform with a borrowed deck.

This routine is composed of four monster routines, spliced together into a very funny event, that crescendos into Mr. Hamman's most prized effect, "The Signed Card". But this version has been brought into the 21st century. Now, when someone hands you a deck of cards and says "Do a trick!" you will now be equipped with a 4-part routine that fully engages your spectators and will crescendo into a truly mind-blowing finale - and it's impromptu.

1) The spectator first picks out any four...

A collection of really nice card tricks that require no sleight-of-hand. Additionally, you will get an informative biographical sketch of Fred Roner written by Richard Hatch.

• Fred Roner: Card Conjurer, Stage Pickpocket, Painter
• You have bought this book!
• The Press and I
• Guessing of Cards
• No Title?
• With dice and matches
• The three righteous
• Which card is missing?
• I knew it!
• Vanished?

1st German edition 1929, 1st English translation 2022; PDF 20 pages.

This is an incredible ACAAN with two completely normal decks of cards. Really powerful and semi-automatic, so easy to do. A very important point is that it only takes 5 seconds to reset.

The spectator has the choice of one of two decks. She thinks of any card (totally free choice). This card is taken out of the deck, signed, returned, and the deck is cut several times. Then the second deck is shuffled and cut. The spectator cuts this deck into four piles which are arranged around the other deck of cards. The spectator has a free choice to either turn face-up two packs, and for the other...

An easy and effective multiphase routine with a Svengali deck. A spectator is correct continually in finding a previously selected card which the performer underlines with the punch line "How Right You Are."

From the introduction:

Australian card man Ian Baxter has nailed it once again! Here is a straightforward, anytime, anywhere mystery that will leave audiences scratching their heads.

No fakes, gaffs or stranger cards are employed. An ordinary deck, borrowed or supplied by you, is the sole requirement. Ten-Four, a radio call sign, means "everything is okay" but in this case, it also spells out what is involved. The four tens end up cavorting from the deck to the table and back again, with a jaw-dropping finish. And there is room for a spot of humour as well.

Acknowledgment must be made to Tom Ogden of Hollywood, California,...

This fifth part of my card project (each volume is, in any case, totally independent of the others) includes 3 new original A.C.A.A.N. effects requiring no sleight of hands:

• Multiverse ACAAN (Parallel Universes in a deck of cards!)
• Royal AKAAN (the King of "Card at Number"!)
• IMPROMPTU Lucky ACAAN (Card at Lucky Number, with a borrowed and shuffled deck!)

It's a new series of hands-off self-working card magic effects, that will all happen in your viewer's hands. No particular skill is required, just the ability to instruct and pay attention to what the viewer is doing... In this third...

Bird One - Kingside Castling

Simply put, a spectator's signed king from a packet of four kings vanishes from underneath her hand. As a kicker, the other 3 kings in the packet become blank even though she just saw all four of the kings. There are no switches.

Bird Two - Brainwave: Card 8

This is a variation of Nick Trost's 8 Card Brainwave that does the effect in reverse.

From a packet of 8 cards with 8 different colored backs, the spectator freely (no force) chooses one of them without knowing the values of any of the cards. Yet, the one she freely chose is found to be the only...

Mathematical Fooler is in fact an impossible location effect. It really is a fooler. The principle appears as already known but will succeed in deceiving even fellow magicians.

First of all, it is possible to proceed with a borrowed deck, a real selling point. The magician borrows a deck. He looks through the deck with faces up and inquires if it is a full deck. Then he asks the spectator to cut a third of the deck and count how many cards he has in his hand. It will certainly have a two-digit number. The spectator adds the two digits together and looks at the card that corresponds to that...

You clearly show four red cards and four black cards from both sides. Then you interleave them one red, one black, one red, one black, a.s.o. and they magically separate into red and black cards. (You will need four double-faced cards to perform this routine.)

1st edition 2022, video 3:29

Offbeat alternatives of the Three-Card Motif

This compilation makes a distinction between the well-known Three-Card Monte wagering game, and motifs using three principal cards in different ways. All of the motifs challenge a spectator's ability to follow the actions to keep track of certain principal cards as they are physically moved around.

In some of the motifs, the principal cards are moved by the spectator while the performer's back is turned. Then, sight unseen, the performer is able to ascertain the location of a card previously designated as the "money card."

In other motifs...

A spectator signs a freely selected card (no force). The card is replaced into the deck which is shuffled and thrown loose into a McDonald's paper bag (or any other bag, or container, which can be borrowed and is completely ungimmicked). The bag is shaken by various spectators - the cards are genuinely mixed-up. The magician then reaches into the bag whilst looking away - and brings out a single card. It is the signed card! This is so easy, self-working, and perfect for close-up or on stage.

You can find the only blue card in a red deck - whilst properly blindfolded. Includes a fantastic,...