Cards in Magic & Conjuring: page 39

A new approach to the Stewart James classic Queer Quest.

Another Stewart James card mystery from the past, brought right up to date by Australian cardman Ian Baxter.

Queer Quest first appeared in The Jinx magazine back in 1938. Publisher Ted Annemann endorsed it immediately because this was obviously not just another card trick. Although the effect is far from new, three spectators each selecting a card with the performer locating them one at a time, Queer Quest stood out because of its simple method and straightforward presentation.

Eighty-five years down the track and Q.Q. is now totally revamped, with easier handling...

To all magicians, amateur and professional - here is a loaded question:

Have you ever been bored silly watching a magician perform a spelling trick?

This is contentious and very obviously axiomatic. Quoting from the Preface of his new manuscript, Australian card man Ian Baxter comments: "Unfortunately, spelling effects in card magic hold the onerous title of being the most laborious, boring presentations imaginable."

This is the point at issue - boredom setting in, thanks to the tedium of endless counting and spelling, usually propped up with trivial patter. Such effects are simply...

Doctor Jacob Daley was one of the most respected sleight-of-hand artists of the twentieth century. This acclaimed New York performer left the magic fraternity an astonishing cache of published works, from the acclaimed Stars Of Magic series to prized entries in assorted books and magazines.

Three Daley Deceits offers a new look at three of the Doctor's most celebrated card mysteries, carefully revised by Australian cardman Ian Baxter.

Daley's Aces - In Spades is Baxter's spin on this ever-popular transposition. The four Aces from the deck are slowly and deliberately placed on the table, Hearts and Diamonds...

Add to your arsenal of outstanding close-up effects with this hard-to-find manuscript from a recognized master of deception. The effect is simple and direct: Four Aces change places with four Kings, which are later found face-up in the deck.

Meanwhile, in the pile formerly occupied by the Kings, are cards that match one previously selected by a spectator.

Or, as Canadian reviewer Sid Lorraine says:

"Aces in one pile, Kings in another. The Aces and Kings change places; then the Kings jump into the deck face up and the four remaining cards on the table turn out to be the four Queens."

Let...

Over 200 different impromptu take-a-card trick endings.

From the introduction by John Braun:

Excellent work filled with strong card routines. Explanations are detailed and supported by photo illustrations. From the preface by Ned Rutdlege:

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...

Available again after a long absence is this fine work by J. Stewart Smith, presenting eleven more of his mystifying card effects, each of which is accomplished without knuckle-busting sleight of hand. This is the book that had card workers talking all over the country. It had to be good to receive praise from such internationally known close-up workers. See below for a few brief quotes from some of the very best.

PARTIAL CONTENTS:

• Ascending Treys
• Pop Over Treys
• The Four Aces
• The Four Queens
• Follow The Leader
• Sevens and Jacks
• The Inseparable Sevens
• Peek-A-Boo Discovery
• Horse...

J. Stewart Smith's third book on card magic, containing six more card masterpieces. Like his previous releases, all the work is accomplished without knuckle-busting sleight of hand. Only a few simple moves are necessary, easily within the grasp of the average magician.

PARTIAL CONTENTS:

• Our Cards
• False Cut
• Ascent of the Black Fours
• A Restoration
• Triple Alliance
• The Four Aces
• Double Cut
• A Prediction

Card workers the world over praise his beautiful effects and their methods. See below for a few brief quotes from experts in the field.

"The author has attempted to approach as...

J. Stewart Smith continues with his professionally-praised run of card magic routines, this one containing seven appealing card mysteries. Like his previous releases, all the work is accomplished without knuckle-busting sleight of hand. Only a few simple moves are necessary, easily within the grasp of the average magician. Smith strives to strip down his creations so every move is logical, from an audience's perspective. There is no confusion as to what happens. It looks like pure magic.

PARTIAL CONTENTS:

• A Transformation
• The Nostalgic Trio
• The Unseen Passage
• Two Faces Up
• Pure and...

PARTIAL CONTENTS:

• A Cocksure Choice
• Topsy-Turvy
• Without Doubt
• Invisible Power
• A Weird Event
• A Surprising Revelation
• A Transformation
• In Like Manner
• The Survivor
• A Magical Restoration
• Hide and Seek
• At Ease
• An Interchange

"Within these pages the reader will find many new effects. He will also discover a few oldies in new dress. But most of all he will find good, effective card tricks that he can perform with a minimum...

Excerpt from the Foreword:

• Foreword
• It Is Certain To Happen
• The Notorious Society
• Nebuchadnezzar’s Nightmare
• Occult Powers In Full Force
• Unfriendly Influence
• The Offensive Jacks
• An Unexplainable Purpose
• So Great Is Its Power
• This Strange Mystery
• Within The Realm...

Sixty Years of Magic from the Private Notebooks of Jack Avis!

After Jack's death in 2004, 28 notebooks were discovered among his vast collection of manuscripts, books and other publications that contained his collected thoughts over the past half century. Some original, some of his own handlings of effects of his friends, some sleights, some tips and ideas but all bearing the stamp that earned him a world reputation for simple, baffling, natural magic. This important volume contains much of Jack's original thinking and ideas as well as rare photographs and notes from throughout his sixty...

This is the 'pick a card and I find it' type of effect, where the spectator's card is revealed with a color change. It is a nice sequence that could fit into many card routines.

runtime: 4min 37s

Spectator merely thinks of any card out of 52 and that card is the only one with a different back than the rest of the deck. But what if the spectator would have named another card? To demonstrate the performer takes another card and visually moves the off color back from the first selection to the new one. A very visual and stunning transformation.

runtime 9 min 32s.

This hard-to-find book of eleven clever card effects was ahead of its time and still plays well to today's audiences. While not self-working, magicians with ordinary card ability can do them all.

The effects include:

• An Instantaneous Detection
• The Haunted Whisper
• The Hazy Pips
• From Another Deck
• A Joker Location
• Another Joker Location
• Blowing the Pips
• A New Reverse Location
• Upside Down
• The Phantom Pips
• Topsy-Turvy Location

Acclaimed by close-up masters including Dai Vernon and Charlie Miller, McMillen and Brown were known as the most skillful card performers on the Pacific coast. Those who knew...

This publication is in my opinion among the best books on cards ever written, but it is rarely mentioned or recommended. I am not sure why this is. Perhaps one reason is that Jack Merlin himself has not left a large footprint in the magic literature besides this one publication. He has a published trick in Expert Card Technique and if you read Card College 1 you will have learned the Jack Merlin's Riffle Shuffle. Farelli mentions in his Farell's Card Magic: "I agree with Mr. Jack Merlin that the custom of continually practicing in front of a glass is the cause of the unfortunate habit many magicians have of blinking at the precise moment of performing...

You apparently teach four card tricks to a member of the audience, but the explanation leave the spectators more and more bewildered ... with a strong climax.

Here's a routine that has withstood the acid test of time. Jack Shepherd's great comedy routine performance to the paying public has been very valuable to the originator. It can be as valuable to you too! You get a member of the audience to help and offer to teach him how to do four card tricks. False explanations of the various effects as performed lead up to a brilliant climax where the spectator reaches into his own pocket and removes...

Jack Vosburgh was a close friend of Ted Annemann and deeply inspired by that master. Annemann referred to Vosburgh as "an unusual idea man." See for yourself in these thirteen novel playing card problems, especially the famous "Future Deck." Everything clearly explained so you can learn them quickly and easily.

From the introduction:

There are some mighty good card miracles here, from the fertile mind of Jack Vosburgh. Contains six original, impromptu card tricks with anybody's deck - with no extra appliances, preparation or setup - and almost no skill.

Here's a listing of the clever effects included in the book:

• The Bashful Card is a combination divination, spelling and reversal effect - and it's plenty good.
• The Five Card Mental Elimination - this is an easy-to-do puzzling mental effect.
• The Fifth Column - This is a color separation that is both novel and clever.
• A Lesson in Card Magic - A real fooler and the...

"Jack's Wallet" is an ingenious way of predicting a freely-chosen card using an unfaked wallet, the sort you probably possess already. It is a 'stand-up' trick without the need for a table, the type that is becoming more and more popular.

The second effect, "Jack's Line-Up", is a mental masterpiece that, properly performed, will stagger an audience whether it's done impromptu or as part of a regular cabaret act.

Here are the more detailed effects:

JACK's WALLET: Briefly, a spectator selects a card. It is not forced. The performer allows another spectator to remove a sealed envelope...

This ebook's purpose is to teach something about the art of close-up card magic; not just to describe some card effects. Each chapter consists of three parts:

1. the text
2. captioned drawings
3. a summary of moves and sleights

Elliott was a very popular magician. Particularly some of his card effects were considered best of its kind. Nobody knew the secrets to some of Elliott's tricks. People waited impatiently for the release of this book. But it was met with some disappointment that not all of Elliott's tricks were described. We do not know which tricks these critics mean. The reason might well be that Elliott died before he could finish his book. Burgess and Houdini had to collect Elliott's notes and fill in some of the missing explanations. However, Elliott and Houdini believed that all the material in this book was...

Looking for the perfect romantic card trick? Then check out Valentine!

A card is selected and signed with a heart by your spectator. The card is lost in the deck. The Three of hearts is shown to the spectator and the magician asks her to watch the middle heart very closely. At that moment you visually pluck the middle heart from the three and throw it onto a stack of cards on the table. The Three has visablly turned into a two and the heart now lays on the table! You place the two on the table and turn over the card that the heart has landed on. Its the signed card! At that point you collect...