A new approach to the Stewart James classic Pocketheral.
Stewart James (1908 - 1996) was known not just for an immense output of published effects, but his deliberate, somewhat humorous conferring of odd titles to various tricks. Pocketheral was certainly no exception, attracting the attention of, among others, Edward Marlo.
The Cardician, Marlo's celebrated book released back in 1953, included two very worthwhile variations of PTR. Marlo, along with many others, would doubtless have been amused by the name chosen for this one.
Marlo's approach involved not twenty but ten cards being dealt in a row, a spectator being asked to mentally choose a card laying at an odd number in the spread; a second spectator settled on an even-numbered card. The ten were gathered, two heaps dealt out, one odd, the other even. On command, the performer then caused the two thought-of cards to magically change places. A check of both heaps proved this had indeed taken place. Marlo called it 'a sort of mental double transposition.'
And now, seventy years on, Ian Baxter submits his own version - some telling changes being made in the process.
Of special interest is the scrapping of odds and evens, replacing these with colour choices instead. Alterations to the method of handling are also apparent, the conviction of where the colours go being of special interest; elimination of the Buckle Count is another noteworthy improvement.
This streamlined, up-to-the-minute version is going to find favour with many a card handler. The one sleight involved is the Double Lift; all else falls into place. No matter how you slice it, Pocketheral Once Again will impress. Don't miss this one. A bargain at just $8.00.
1st edition 2023, PDF 3 pages.
word count: 924 which is equivalent to 3 standard pages of text
