CONTENTS. Jt
Jt
1.
Introduction.
2.
Tables A L a E xquisite.
3.
W ooden Tables.
4.
tr o p ic Bamboo Stan d .
5.
F la t Tables.
0.
K e y Card.
7.
Easj' Picking’s.
8.
S u p e rio r A ee Effect.
9.
M a tte r o f F orce Deck.
10 .
Unique Card L ocator.
11.
The E g yptian D ivination.
12 .
A double P red iction.
jl
•
13 .
Sim ple Force.
14.
Novel Change fo r a deck.
15.
C ards and hand kerchiefs from anyw here.
16.
Ink thru H at.
17 .
U seful exchanging bag.
18 .
A D eceptive Dodge.
19.
S p irit W atch .
20.
T w entieth C entury M agical T ransform ation .
21.
Im proved R ising Rope and hoop.
22.
M ammoth F lo w e r P roduction.
23.
The Dove o f Peace.
24.
The Human Sm oke Stack .
(S e v e ra l methods.)
25.
O vettes M odern M iracles.
26.
The human A irop lane.
27.
H ot spots.
M A G IC A L OVETTE
The State Library of Victoria “ A L M A C O N JU R IN G C O L L E C T IO N ”
INTRODUCTION. In ■writing this book, it is not my in tu itio n to treat conjuring in a ll its technical d e ta ils; but m erely record some o f the results o f m y life study of the fascinating' urt o f M ag ic;; and which I hope, w ill prove, i f not in s tru c t ive, at least in terestin g to the m any who eith er dabble in Mag'ic fo r a liv lihood o r pi-stime. W hen I w rote “ T ric k y -T ric k s” I confidently intended it should be my last book. B ut “ Circum stances A lte r O ases.” The great success o f m y two books: “ The M agicians New F ie ld ” and “ T ric k y -T ric k s” was a v e ry g ra t ify in g su rp rise to me, as the sales of these hooks ran fa r beyond m y fo n d est expectations. Since then I have been besieged w ith inquiries, especial ly during the last two m onths, as to when I was going to w rite anoth er book. O f course, it is encouraging (o know that y o u r w ork is appreciated, but m v tim e was pre-occupied w ith my “ finessing In stitu te .” Besides my a s p ira tio n s were soaring w ithin the lo fty realm o f a New-M ore P e rfe c t and more w onderful type o f Magic than the w orld has ever known b e fo re! Now, since the birth o f “ New Era M ag ic’ ’ we have a new condition — A condition which demands New Mcgic L ite ra tu re ; and as a s ta rte r “ A d vanced M ag ic” is the first answ er to the call. A n ticip atin g y o u r in terro gation as to what “ Now E ra M ag ic” is, I w ill b rie fly state th at the d istinctive principle, and p rin cip le distinction between the old and the new class or higher type o f Mitgic, is the obvious fa irn e ss and open-and-n.bove-board m anner o f presentation o f the la tte r. In oth er w o rd s; in the New Magic, m aterialization s are not ob viou sly smug gled in, n o r are the envanishm ents obvious sm uggling out, as is g en erally the case w ith our aged a rt. E specially is th is ,tru e w ith the big trick s — I l lusions. lie who thinks this prin ciple is o f little im portance does not know' •whrit it is th a t re a lly makes an effect S u rp risin g and S ta rtlin g . The de gree in which y o u r effect is S u rp risin g or S ta rtlin g depends upon liow p e r fe c tly you have adhered to and applied the said principle. W ith in the advent o f “ New Era M agic” ou r beloved A r t now enters upon a New Epoch. A re- you, d ea r rea d er, going to keep pace th erew ith , o r are you one o f those who think that any old tiling is “ good enough” os long as you can get, aw ay w ith it ? U nless you decide quickly, no choice w ill be le ft you. The Magic A r t is now in a state o f tran sitio n and is r a p id ly undergoing a com plete revo lu tion. There w ill be only one type o f M agic in the fu tu re ; th at w ill be. the “ New E na.” I have no axe to g rin d ; nor have T an y apology to m ake fo r the ap p ear ance o f this book. “ Advanced M ag ic” is sim ply a re p ly to the numerous urgent requests o f m y frien d s, m any o f whom I have met p erson ally, be fo re and since leaving the road, th a t 1 put in book form more o f the fru its o f m y experience and observations. I f this w ork should prove helpful to a t least one S tru g g lin g B ro th er, I ■will fs e l am ply rew arded fo r m y efforts. Sin c e re ly yours, M agical O vette,
cADVANCED M AGIC
ILLUSTRATED
©
PART ONE lI lA l l l A l t f A t l t A f ir A t r A f y A m A m A f I?A w A f l r A n A t l f r
TABLES. Tables A La Exquisite Wooden Tables Tropic Bamboo Stands Flat Tables
s
A D V A N C E D M AGIC. T A B L E S A L A EX Q U ISIT E Tables are an alm ost indispensible adjunct to a con ju ring p erform ers
equipment.
M any C onjurers do not c a rry a table and w ill p erform with
the aid o f any old piece o f fu rn itu re that can be borrowed. an im prom pt effect.
This m ay have
But to an “ New E ra M ag ician ,” im provised or m ake
sh ift ta b les; as w ell as conventional sty le stands th a t are used by most ev e ry con ju rer, seems incongruous. The New E ra M agician w ill not be caught c a rry in g around 8-10 lb. stands, no r tables that consume much time in settin g up.
The fo llow ing
tables which I am about to describe, and which I have used in my act fu lly
10 yea rs, I can sincerely vouch fo r as being up to the m ark. I t was in the y e a r o f 1010 while at W h ite C ity P a rk , Chicago, doing Magic and Illusions, that 1 fo r the first time realized the true valu e o f iry table, although I had used the same tables several y e a rs before. D uring m y engagement at W h ite C ity, I had the pleasure o f m eeting tnany o f the boys, and each and eve ry one o f whom, pronounced my tables the best they had e v e r seen, and ju st the thing fo r a m agician.
H ere are
the main fea tu res o f my ta b le s :—P o rta b ility , N eatness, S ta b ility and L ig h t n ess—weighing but two pounds.
No screw ing or tightening o f base o r le^s.
Only J/2 m inute to set up, and less to take a p a rt: and capable o f holding '26 lbs.
But every good thing has its im itators, and Tables E xquisite a>c no
exception. In fa ll, 1910, they w ere put upon the m arket by other p arties one o f whom called upon me w hile I was p laying at the Olympi.i Thentre, Brook ly n ,—came back o f the stage to get-a good view o f my stands a t close ’ an^e; and la te r w rote me requesting that I bring one o f m y stands to his residence so that he could study same a t his le isu re —N erve ( ? ) .
ADVANCED MAGIC.
9
A glance a t P la te 1 , w ill, I tru st, help to m ake clear the explanation w hich I am about to undertake. G et a w ood-turn er to tu rn out a fo rm sim ila r in shape to a 3 -le a f C lov e r 2x2±l//2 in. as depicted in Fig. 1 , which we w ill call a “ Screw J o in t.” A lso have him d rill a % in. hole in the center o f each S c allop or le a f, and a % inch hole in the center. Now tak e this model to a brass fo u n d ry and have as m any o f these “ Screw J o in t s ” made as you wish to use. F o r the legs, get 3 pieces o f brass tubing 2 1 inches long, % in. th ic k ; have them threaded and bent in shape o f the le tte r S —See F ig u re 2, and screw to “ S crew J o i n t ” ; and you w ill find th a t they w ill fo ld flat together ae F ig . 3. A lso get a piece o f tubing known as rope or tw isted tubing 17 inches long and % inch thick outside. Then get Va inch nipple w ith flange (m ay be bought a t any plum ber shop) and solder it to the end o f the 17 inch tube. Next g et a piece o f tubing 2'/2 inch in length and w ith % inch bore, and solder to “ Screw J o in t .”. H ave S crew J o in t hole tapped. TO SET U P TABLE Open out the leg s—In sert tw isted rod in sh ort tube, screw top on and table is set. To take A p a r t : U nscrew top and l i f t out tw isted tu b e—and the legs w ith the Screw J o in t, you fo ld together. I f you w ish the table to present a little m ore fa n c y appearance—get 1/2 dozen Caps, or bulbs, such as the posts o f Bed S tead s are fre q u e n tly dec orated w ith , and place one o f these globe-shaped nobs over each o f the holes in S crew Jo in t, and one on fo o t end o f each leg. P la te 2 : Illu s tra te s an oth er S tan d , quite novel but a little h eavier than the one we have described above. G et 3 legs fro m an old Coffee U rn (these have holes n e a r to p ). N ext get a w ood-turner to tu rn you an 8 inch disc fro m any inch lum ber and bore 3 holes n ea r edge 'and at equal distance a p a rt. Now get three 2 inch bolts w ith w ing-nuts. P ut bolts through holes in circu lar wood and tighten nuts v e ry tig h t into the wood. Next a d ju st legs, allow ing bolts to pass through holes in legs and tighten wing-nuts. On top, fa ste n flange w ith 2 inch nipple and couple. P ad a ll around nipple w ith cotton b attin g and cover w ith v e lve t o f a bright color. Next gel a piece o f gas pipe threaded a t each end and screw one end to couple. Table top having a flange you screw on to gas-pipe, and you have anoth er table. I have not given any size pipe fo r you can use any size not o ver % inch in diam eter.
10
ADVANCED MAGIC.
WOODEN T A B L E S A g ain you mList go to a w ood-turner, though ii' you are handy w ith a »aw it m ay not be necessary. G et some 3 ply veneer wood and cut out two fo rm s as plate 3 Fig. 1. These w ill nest as Fig. 2 by m ortising out top center o f one as “ A ” and bottom center o f the oth er as “ B ” Fig. 1, so that they w ill tit w ithin each other. The p illa r shown Fig. 3 is ve ry sim ple but a more ornam ental a rran g e ment can easily be designed, i f preferab le. Top end o f p illa r must be m ortised leaving it square, so as to fit the top. T his is im portant, fo r i f le ft a round table top would revolve. Now you can have some nice scroll w ork as in Fig. 4. This w ill be found v e ry useful doing aw ay with the need o f d ra p e ry ; and yet, you can conceal sm all objects such as coins, hakfs., etc. etc. by having space in S cro ll fitted w ith tin tubes with springs. These tubes w ill not be noticed a few fe e t aw ay as it w ill a ll look dark. TROPIC BAMBOO STAND H ere is a simple, yet useful stand fo r an orien tal w orker. Get 3 Bamboo canes or a fishing pole and cut three 35 inch lengths. B oth ends o f each must be cut a little on the slant. (See Fig. 1 l ’late 3). In one end o f each glue a little plug—allow ing % inch sticking out. Now, w ith so ft brass w ire, tie two canes together 1 1 inches from top, then tie the third cane to one o f the two which are tied. (Note —Be sure not to tie ..ny low er than 11 inches fro m top. This, when spread, w ill give space fo r a 1 4 inch top). In setting u p : A ll th at is necessary is to open out legs and place on the top. Table top must have holes in exact place. Best w ay is to cut plugs on slant a fte r top is on. Now a coat o f bronze—and there you a re !
ADVANCED MAGIC.
11
F L A T T A B L E S. A n o th er stand th a t I have used in la te ye a rs in my o rien tal A c t is the fo llo w in g : Cut out tw o fo rm s as in F ig. 1 & 2 —P la te 4. A n incision is made in each fo rm —but in opposite directions, i. e., fro m top o f one and fro m bottom o f other, so that they w ill fit w ith in each oth er as in F ig. 4. Then give it a coat o f dull paint and finish. D ecorate to suit. I glue the D ragons cut from colored tinsel paper fo r decorations. L ittle fu rth e r in structio ns a re necessary. The size is up to you. M ine a re 35 inches high, 15 inches wide. A s lit is made in each corn er o f top so as to fit snuggly over, protuberances le ft on the 4 corners o f stand.
I ■ * g »k *0
JJ
CARDS. K ey Card Easy Picking Superior Ace Effect Matter of Force Deck Unique Card Location The Egyptian Devination Simple Force Novel Change for Pack of Cards Cards and Handkerchief from Anywhere.
ADVANCED MAGIC.
13
CARD T R IC K S Once again the w rite r lias the p leasu re o f presenting to the M agical F ra te rn ity a m odest a rra y o f m iscellaneous id ea s: Som e are original, some m erely im provem ents—but a t any ra te a ll w orth trying . I have endeavored to make the explanations as clear as possible w ith out useless rep etitio n o f general prin ciples, w ith which the re a d e r I fake fo r granted is a lrea d y fa m iliar. 1 have thoroughly tested out these orig inal ideas, suggestions and im provem ents, and can h e a rtily recommend them to p erfo rm ers as applauscg etters, when capably presented. K E Y CARD . P re p a ra tio n : —Cut out a portion, the size o f thumb tip from the m id dle o f one end o f any card, and place this “ K e y -C a rd ” som ewhere near the center o f pack. Now i f you ru ffle the cards at the end, y o u r finger w ill stop a t torn card. So locating chosen card, tr y th is : —Oct K ey-C a rd a t bottom , lay pack on table, have someone cut the cards. Note card at the cut, torn or key card is now ju s t above selected card. Now ru ffle cards and .your r u f fle w ill “ h e s ita te ” at K ey-C ard. The card ju st below it is the chosen one. (See Goldstons E xclusive M agical S ecrets I’agc 54 gives s evera l Novel M ethods). E A S Y P IC K IN G F o u r cards are selected, returned and shuffled in deck. C ards a re d i vided into two equal portions, on e-half being placed in one pocket and the rem ainder in tlie other pocket. Now perform er draw s out selected cards. The effect o f producing cords from the pocket is p re tty w ell know n; and as f a r as the public is concerned, it form s a fittin g sequel to any card trick which can he concluded by the p e rfo rm e r taking a chosen card from his pocket. To P e rfo rm : H ave fo u r cards selected and Returned. M ake the p ass; bringing the fo u r cards to the top. I f you cannot m ake the pass, use the “ K ey-C a rd as fo llo w s: H ave torn card on bottom o f pack. H ave two o f the selected cards placed on top. Now have someone cut the c a rd s ; this w ill brinpr the two cards to center or w h erever cut was made. R uffle cards and hold p a rt, open at Ivey-Card to receive the, o th er tw o selected cards. S q uare cards up, and again ruffle them to get location o f K e y -C a rd , w here you divide pack into tw o portions and do the do ve-tail shuffle le av in g the fo u r select ed cards on top, and which you palm off. (N ote: — In palm ing selected cards it is not necessary to palm ju st the rig ht cards, i. e . : —Y ou can palm along a few more w ith them. This saves tim e and is much easier and enables you to w ork the moves sm oother.) A ft e r cards are shuffled, palm ed cards are replaced on top. U nder cover o f d ivid in g pack, slip two o f the selected cards to bottom . Now place one portion o f pack in each o f two pockets. This is sim ple, fo r you get a glance o f bottom two cards as you place in y o u r pocket. O f course, you w ill know them as the, oth er two cards a re on top o f oth er portions, so you can a t once pick them oul. A l the finish yon can include the B rookes “ A n y Card from the P o c k et.” T have a lw ays thought that this trick o f any card taken from the pock et is most effective when it is presented in the w ay I have described fo r, before they are aw are o f it, the tric k is on them, so to speak,
14
ADVANCED MAGIC. ANOTHER SU PE R IO R A C E EFFECT.
“ F o u r A c e ” Tricks alw ays seem to have an attrac tio n fo r magicians as w ell as the la y man. W h y not add a good 4 ace tric k to you r re p e r toire ? P r o c e d u r e H a v e the fo u r aces rem oved from the deck and cards ex amined. Now have 4 aces return ed (“ A s in Easy P ic k in g ” ). A ces are brought to the top. P e rfo rm e r ask No. 1 to mention num ber between 1 and 1 2 Number called does not m atter. P e rfo rm e r counts the required num ber from the bottom and passes them to the top. C ards are then counted out on table un til the required num ber is reached, which proves to be the Ace. You now have someone in the audience to call a num ber. W e w ill say 15 is called. Now you proceed to count that number slow ly from the top o f pack, throw ing the cards down on the table one on to]) o f the other. Now picking up the cards ju s t as they arc. you drop them into you r le ft hand, then (suddenly) as though you heard someone speak you look up sayin g : “ W h a t is i t ” ? D uring this b rie f interlud e you slip the bottom Ace, which rests on y o u r palm —to the top. You can now turn it over and show an ace. I t w ill be remembered th at in the original position, the 4 A ces were on top o f the pack. And it w ill be understood th a t the rem aining two cards a re at the bottom o f the 15 just counted from the top. These 1 5 cards are now replaced on top o f the pack (little finger secretly m aking the d i visio n ), and p erfo rm er forces the bottom card o f the upper portion (3rd A ce) on someone, and have him call out the card, which is an Ace. In the meantim e you bring to the top the last Ace, and slip an extra card over it, so ace is next to top. Now a fte r showing top and bottom (c are le ssly ), you place pack in a n y o n e’s pocket and call fo r another number, and pull cards out from pocket un til number is read ied , when you pull out the A ce! I have found the above A ce Effect v e ry m ystifyin g and have been com plim ented by a ll who have seen me w ork it. F o r a change, in the finish, you can have last A ce pen etrate handker chief, etc. M ATTER O F FORCE. (Im proved F orcing Deck.) The fo llow ing is another method o f “ F o rcin g ” 3 cards by using “ M at te r o f F orce D eck.” Shuffle the pack and in v ite ■anyone to in sert the blade o f a k n ife in deck, and you can allow him to choose one card above the k n ife blade and two below it, or two above tlie k n ife and one below, or a ll three above, or all three below. It makes no difference to you which o f these he chooses ow ing to the clever arrangem ent o f deck. M O D U S: O P E R A N D ! The pack is arranged in groups o f three alike, and repeated in dupli cate throughout the pack. I t w ill, th erefore, be noted th at w h atever th eir choice, they w ill alw ays be the three cards. I have been selling this deck, un der the above name fo r sometime.
ADVAN CED MAGIC.
15
UNIQUE CARD LOCATION L A VELLM A. E F F E C T :—A card is passed before the eyes o f a spectator. This is repeated w ith a num ber o f cards, one at a time. S p e c ta to r is told to mem orize a card and to tell p erfo rm e r when to stop dealing cards, a fte r a few more are passed a fte r selection is made. P e rfo rm e r then places cards be hind back and locates the card. THE “ H O W ” . : —One card at a time is passed before the eyes'an d a f te r a number is done in this w ay p erfo rm er replaces the cards on top o f deck. P lacing deck behind back, he deals off three, cards fro m the bottom o f deck and one card from the top. S p ecta to r is shown the fo u r cards draw n from behind back, fanned, and asked i f his card is among those draw n. P e rfo rm e r keeps track o f card draw n from top o f pack. W h en the card is among those draw n, sp ectato r says so and p erfo rm er know ing it was the card draw n from the top o f pack locates and names it in any m anner desired. A fa lse shuffle m ay be made a fte r selection is made keeping track o f the cards on top o f pack and not disarran gin g them. THE E G Y P T IA N D IVIN ATIO N . (A n Old Lamp fo r a New One. L a V ellm a) E F F E C T :—This is an old trick , even one o f the trick s o f our school days yet. in a som ewhat different dress and when p ro p erly worked makes a dee]) im pression on the m ajo rity. Someone is handed a pack o f cards and requested to shuffle same. P e r fo rm er takes back cards and tells spectator to think o f any number. V ic tim is then told to in tu rn m ultiply num ber thought o f by tw o ; add a given number, divide result by two and then subtract the original sum from the last result and to bear this num ber in mind. C ards a re riffled and victim is instructed to call stop at any time, l i e does and the card the pack is cut a t is taken by victim and to his surprise the pips on card correspond to the num ber he has in mind. Sim ple, yet baffling. H O W ’T IS A C C O M P L ISH E D : Cards are re a lly shuffled by sp ec ta to r; when handed back perform er gels a glimpse o f the bottom card. ( A ll cards equal num bers thereon and jack , queen and king num ber respectively, 11 , 12 & 13. S a y num ber on bottom o f pack is 5. V ictim selects say 20 fo r the num ber. 2 tim es 20 equals 40. Bottom card is f>. P e rfo rm e r tells V ictim at all tim es to add double the num ber on the bottom card. In this case 10 is added to 40 m aking 50. “ D ivide the resu lt by tw o ,” says p erform er. V ictim divides 50 by 2, re s u lt: 25. “ Take original amount, thought o f aw ay from final sum ,” ord ers Ma gician. V ictim takes 20 (orig inal num ber thought o f by victim ) from 25 leaving 5. B efo re this the p e rfo rm er has slipped the bottom card to the 1op
16
AD V A N CE D M AGIC,
A DOUBLE PREDICTION E ffe c t:—P e rfo rm e r borrow s a calling card, envelope and a pack o f cards. On tbe calling card, he p riv a te ly w rites a “ p red ic tio n ” seals same in an envelope which he gives to a spectator to hold. P erfo rm er now picks up deck o f borrowed cards and asks someone to blindfold him ; a fte r which some sp ectator is requested to select from the pack a card which is return ed to deck and the cards thoroughly shuffled. Now, the p erfo rm er asks that the envelope be opened, and the “ predic tio n ” re a d ; at the same tim e handing the cards to a spectator. W e w ill say the “ p red ic tio n ” reads “ You w ill select the K in g o f H e a rts ” which w ill be found the 1 2th card from the top. S p ecta to r counts down ]2 cards and to his amazement find tbe selected card as predicted. E a sy —W hen you have borrowed the calling card, envelope and pack of card s; secretly note the bottom card o f the pack and lay pack on the table. Y ou m ay now w rite you r “ P re d ic tio n ” using the name o f the card which you know to be on the bottom o f the pack. Now, a fte r you are blindfolded, pick up pack o f cards and force card on spectators. To accomplish this, we suggest the fo llow in g m ethod: Take the pack in the le ft hand. H olding it w ith the fingers on one side and the thumb on the other. S e c retly draw down the bottom card about '3 in. L et the rig ht hand approach the pack, and w ith the first and second fingers draw down the cards, one by one, 1/2 in., beginning w ith the top card and so 011, in v itin g you r audience to stop you at any card they choose. This is d e a rly shown in the illu s tra tion. The thumb o f the rig h t band has rem ained beneath the pack in con tact w ith the bottom card. The thumb should have been previou sly m oist ened slig h tly so as to adhere to the bottom card. W hen y o u r audience has indicated the card at which they desire you to stop, draw all the cards so f a r selected com pletely aw ay from the pack, draw ing with them also, un known to the audience, the bottom card. 11’ this is done quickly it is im possible to detect that the bottom card is draw n aw ay with the upper cards. Since, however, you know the bottom card, it is needless to say th at the bottom card is re a lly supposed to be the last card at which you stopped in going through flie pack. Good, so fa r. Now to get the card as the 12th card from the top w ith out counting and fu m b lin g : A little device is used which is known as a “ card counting R ing ,” and which is worn on the third finger o f the le ft hand and in the A c t o f shuffling slide eleven cards in to ring. See (Fig. 2 ). B rin g the “ chosen” card (the forced card) to the top and replace the elev en cards from ring. The cards can now be false-shuffled and given to a spectator who is requested to read the “ P re d ic tio n ” and ascertain i f it is correct. The card counter may be made by soldering a piece o f m etal to any rin g in the m anner shown in the cut. This m etal piece is so adjusted as to allow eleven cards to slip into it w ithout crowding.
(I am indebted to my friend, Dr. Puncanson, for the above).
ADVANCED MAGIC.
17
SIM P L E FORCE. Remarking' th a t you a re p ecu lia rly sen sitive to an yth in g red, you hand a fo ld ed paper to someone. Shuffle an o rd in a ry pack and hand i t to same p a rty , asking him to give it an ad d itio n al d o vetail shuffle. Then, w ith pack fa c e down, he deals oil one card a t a tim e, looking a t each and stop ping a t the first red card he comes to, which he notes and shuffles in to the pack. On opening p ap er you handed him he finds w ritte n thereon the name o f the card he chose. Two or more cards m ay be forced. The deck is arran ged in a certain color scheme which c a n ’t he detect ed a fte r the shuffling. S a y you wish to fo rc e the queen o f hearts. D ivide pack in to its red and black cards. P lace fa c e down six red cards, on them 1 2 black cards, then seven more reds, the top one being the fo rc e card. On it place any black card. A rra n g e balance o f pack face down in anoth er heap as fo llo w s: F ir s t a black card, on it seven reds, then tw elve blacks, then the re st o f the reds. B ridge these tw o heaps in opposite directions and place them together, heap containing fo rc e card becoming low er h a lf o f pack. H and p a rty p ap er w ith “ Queen o f H e a rts ” w ritte n on it. Cut pack a t bridge and do vetail shuffle the two h a lves together, taking care th a t the top tw o cards o f low er h a lf (black card and fo rc e card) f a ll la st —on top o f pack. I f only h a lf w ay c a re fu l w ith th is shuffle, en tire center —1 8 to 2-4 c a rd s—w ill be black. A sk p a rty to give pack an additional d o ve-tail shuffle. I f you know lie shuffles th a t w ay, d o n ’t sp e c ify the kind o f shuffle. Y ou w ill perceive th a t, as he c a n ’t cut pack except in the m idst o f its all-b la c k center, no re d cards can possibly f a ll above the fo rce card when he shuffles, and the tric k is done. Two or m ore card s o f same color can ju s t as re a d ily be forccd. They should lie d ire c tly under the first fo rce card in orig inal arrangem ent and m ust be allow ed to fa ll on top o f pack in yo u r shuffle. 1 ’a r ty then takes first tw o o r th ree reds he comes to. Y ou can a p p a re n tly leave choice o f color to chance by means o f this ru se w ith s tra w s : B etw een thumb and fo refin g er o f rig h t hand show two straw s, one seem ingly longer than the other, th e ir uneven ends p ro jectin g tow ard you. P reten d to mix th eir ord er and have one d raw n (h id ing the inn er, uneven ends.) S h o rt s tra w stands fo r color you w ish to fo rce, and is alw ays draw n. Three stra w s an inch long a re used. P lace tw o between thumb and forefing er, outer ends even .and p ro jectin g tow ard company. Third stra w is also placed betw een thumb and fo refin g er, but p ro jectin g tow ard you, it seem ing to be a p a rt o f one o f the fr o n t straw s. W h ich ever stra w is draw n you im m ediately show the tw o le ft in conjunc tion, when they appear to be the long one and y o u r color is forced. A NOVEL CHANGE FOB, A P A C K OF C A R D S. The tric k is p e rfo rm er w ith a long and sh o rt pack o f cards. E m pty the rig h t hand trou sers pocket and se c retly introduce the short pack in to the upper p a rt o f the pocket, th a t is the p a rt th a t comes next to the w aistcoat. To keep the pack in place, catch the bottom o f the pocket and pu ll it up and tuck along side o f cards, the side aw ay fro m body. I t w ill now be found th a t the pocket m ay be pulled in side out w ith out revealin g the presence o f the cards. Thus prep ared , you hand the long pack to the audience asking six persons to each select a card, now tak e back the rem ain d er o f the pack holding it w ell above the head, so that audience m ay see th at you do not in any w ay tam per w ith it. A s k one o f the persons who drew a card to tak e note o f its value and re tu rn it to the center o f the pack (m,ako the pass and b rin g it to the top.) G ive the pack a good shuffle but tak in g good care not to m ove the top card. Y ou now undertake to show how easily you can find the draw n card
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ADVANCED MAGIC.
by touch and in ord er that you m ay not he 'accused o f looking a t the cards you w ill place them in y o u r pocket, which you pu ll out and show empty. Place the pack in the pocket and ask at w hat num ber you shall produce the draw n ca rd ; suppose tiie .answer is four. Take th ree cards fro m the bottom o f the pack and the fo u rth fro m the top which you w ill rem em ber is the draw n card. Now take w hat the audience supposes to be the same pack out o f the pocket, but you re a lly leave the long pack in the bottom p art and take out the short pack from the top, when, o f course, the change is effected w ithout exciting suspicion. The rem aining five cards a re now collected in the short pack to be produced in any w ay you choose. C A R D S AND H A N D K E R C H IE FS, from A N Y W H E R E This stunt, w ill give the wise acres a jo lt. W atch th is —E ffect: P e r fo rm er rem oves his sleeves—shows his hands p e rfe c tly e m p ty—fingers wide a p art, etc. Then he gets one from bottom o f this fo ot, and one from back o f knee, and a few more from space, and so on he continues to get cards from anyw here and everyw here when suddenly he catches a larg e silk hand kerchief'—and then another one or two. Then some more cards, one a t a time, m ysteriously m aterialize in his outstretched hand, and then more silks and so on he continues to produce a lte rn a te ly cards and silks un til over a h a lf a. hundred is produced w hile all the time showing his hand to be p e rfectly em pty and a ll fingers wide a p art. A nd hands a ll the tim e at arm s length from body. This is M agic! This w onderful effect is accomplished by the aid o f a new card and handkerchief “ S p id e r” which we w ill now endeavor lo describe.
ADVANCED MAGIC.
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ADVANCED MAGIC.
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CARD AND H AN D K ER CH IEF “ S P ID E R .” You can make tliis spider from any tin can, as fo llo w s: — Cut a piece o f tin out o£ the side o f the can about inches. Now, allow the curve to rem ain and bend up edges from concaved side about % inch each to about 45 deg. —See Fig. 2. Now cut another piece out o f the side o f the can 4 x 2 Vi inches. And out o f one end o f this piece cut a crescent about Vi inches at the w id tst p a rt see B-Fig. G. Now place the concaved side o f this piece to concaved side o f you r oth er piece and solder th e re to ; and you w ill have an apartm ent fo r silks and which we call the bottom o r belly o f the “ s p id e r” — (See Fig. 4 ). Next bend two pieces o f w ire as in Fig. 7 and solder them on to bottom edges o f fa k e , as in F ig. 1 and .'i—because a “ s p id e r” —not a fry in g p a n must have “ legs.” Now paint the whole thing black.
7
Q
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P R E P A R A T IO N AND M AN IPU LATIO N . F ill “ S p id e r ” w ith a- fu ll pack o f ju n io r cards, and apartm ent under neath is stuffed fu ll o f fine silk handkerchiefs. The cards a re produced one a t a time ju s t as you would i f you had 10 or 1‘2 cards back-palm ed. The handkerchiefs are linked together the same as production from ball or an egg, ete. To Back-Palm S p id e r—Place thumb against the end and push—a t the same tim e curl fingers under it like a fist, then, as you tu rn y o u r hand o ver straighten out y o u r fingers. The first and fo u rth fingers a re on the sides o f spider and come against legs. To bring S p id er to fro n t o f H and: —Curl lingers in like a fist. P ress thumb against face o f the c a rd s—holding sp id er against fingers w hile the la tte r straig hten s out. The first and fourth fingers n a tu ra lly come against le £ S , by means o f them, the S p id er is held securely to the hand.
PART THREE MISCELLANEOUS Ink Thru Hat (Several Methods) Useful Exchanging Bag. A Deceptive Dodge. Spirit Watch. Twentieth Century Magical T ransfor mation. Improved Rising Rope and Hoop. Mammoth Flower Production. The Dove of Peace.
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ADVANCED MAGIC.
U SE FU L HINT. How to prepare candle w ick proper. Cut off wick flush, break off about an inch and h a lf length o f too th pick, (wooden) and fo rce sharp end into candle fo r fa k e wick. S p lit top end o f fa k e wick a little . Take from w a te r a tin y grain o f phosphorous about size o f % grain o f w heat. R oll it over on p a p er to get w a te r off of it. Now w ith a p a ir o f pinchers or a k n ife blade, pick up phos. and fo rc e it into s p lit at top o f fa k e wick (but b efore doing la tte r let a drop o f oil o f turp entine fa ll on to phos.) Next m ix a little , m ake up black w ith glycerine, and blacken tip o f “ w ic k '’ w ith it. ' Now when (phos. is touched w ith kerosene oil it w ill ignite. A much b ette r method th at I have worked out is as fo llo w s: imbed a sm all glass container into side o f candle. In to this glass fa k e, oil is fill ed. W ick o f candle is treated as above, to light same candle rem oved from holder w ith rig h t hand and tra n sfe rre d to le ft hand, during which m iddle finger o f rig h t hand comes over glass fa k e and receives a drop o f oil on m iddle finger o f rig h t hand is now' touched to wick which causes it to light. Note. D rop o f oil is touched to phos. wick and NOT THE FIN GER as a burn from phos. is V E R Y undesirable. E A ST M A N SL A T E TEST. E F F E C T : Two slates are lieing 011 y o u r table, sm all slate pencil, sponge and a d ry rag. S itte r wiashes each slate sep a rate dryin g them w ith d ry ra g shown clean on all sides, sm all pencil p u t betw een the slates, held by medium and s itte r, w ritin g heard, opened by s itte r, he finds a message.
W O R K IN G : W rite a message 011 one o f the slates w hich we w ill call slate No. 1 or message slate. No. 2 slate is un prepared. L ay No. 1 on ta ble, message side down and No. 2 slate on top o f this. Now you are ready. P ick them up ju s t as they lay. S lid e the top slate fo rw a rd a little , ad vancing to sitter. Take it off and te ll him to w ash i t w ith sponge, and d ry it good w ith the d ry rag'. Y ou in m eantim e hold No. 1 slate in you r hand. M essage side down, so he c a n ’t see it. Wtlien he Is through tell him to put the ra g on table. Now w atch his eyes. Take slate fro m him, pretend to look a t it to see i f it is good and d ry . Tell him to take slate
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pencil and put his in itia l up in corner o f slate. A s lie drops his eyes to table, put (his No. 2 slate under No. 1, (he w ill think you placed it on top.) Point with yo u r finger up in corn er o f this to,p slate No. 1 tellin g him to put his in itia l there. Then slide it right off and la y it on table (message side down) hand him the slate you still have in yo u r hand tellin g him to wash this one also. Dry and put his in itia l up in corn er when he is through. (In re a lity , the same one he did, wash the No. 2 slate.) Now he has his in itia ls on both slates and he th in k s lie has exam ined and washed both o f them. Now la y No. 2 slate on No. 1 which is on table and go through the fo llow in g moves. Pick them both up. No. 2 is on top. No. 1 on bottom. (Message side dow n), open them up. See fig. 2 (which shows inside o f slates) and slide No. 2 under No. 1. T urn them over on w rist. Fig. 3, (which shows bottom o f No. 2, turn them back again in band. No. 1 on top, No. 2 on bottom. Cut them (m eaning put No. 1 under No. 2) which leaves No. 2 on top as at fiirst. Open them again as in fig. 2, showing inside o f slates. Slide No. 2 under No. 1, etc. These moves have the effect o f showing a ll sides o f both slates clean (in re a lity only 3 sides.) R epeat these moves a few times ending w ith No. 1 on top. S lid e No. 1 off w ith rig h t hand, toll s itte r to put slate pencil on tg>p o f No. 2 slate. Put No. 1 over it. P u t a rub ber band around both slates, which holds them together and gives you 11 op portu nity to turn slates over so No. 1 comes on bottom. So then when large rubber band is rem oved and slates are opened by s itte r, w'riting appears on top o f the under slate, No. 1. Now a fte r you have rub ber band around, hold slates w ith s itte r lengthw ise like fig. 4. Y o u r fingers are un der slates, thumbs on to)), palm o f hands fa cin g up. A . La. “ K e e le r .” Now' scratch under slate w ith first finger o f rig h t hand. It w o n ’t show on w rist as finger cards move on the back o f the hand. S a y “ Here is some one n o w .” K eep scratching along m aking dots, etc. Then tell s itte r to re move hand and open slates up (and he finds a message). ‘ ‘ R em em ber” : 1. — Hold slates lengthw ise so they c a n ’t see yo u r finger scratching under slate. 2. — W o rk slow. A slate test requires 20 to 30 min. 3. — A slate w r it e r ’s moves is v e ry bold. T hat is w hat makes it de ceiving. 4. — P ractice the moveg 2 weeks b efore showing the test to anyone.
SP IR IT F A C E S ON SLATE . Scratch a ll over in one corn er o f slate w ith pencil, then rub you r fing ers a ll over it, and ’-on have a w hite EV E N spot. Cut L yd ia Pinham s p ic ture o r some other out o f a paper. W e t the un der side o f it, la y on w h ite spot and trace lines o f fa ce w ith pencil, take p ap er oft’ fro m slate, and you have the outlines in black. W ra p a toothpick in hand kerchief, w et the end and trace around or rub out a ll w h ite up to outlines o f face. T ry this in place o f ju s t a message, it looks like the re a l thing.
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ADVANCED MAGIC. JN K THRU THE HAT Im proved M ethods
There are m any v e ry good trick s th at have some d raw b ack s: “ Ink Thru The H a t” is one o f the finest effects out, but its draw back is in get ting' the fa k e into the glass. F o r the benefit o f those who are not fa m ilia r w ith the secret o f this tric k I w ill here offer a b rie f description o f accessories used. G lass p itch er contains a celluloid fa k e — (See Fig. 1 ) —In k is poured in space between p itch er and celluloid fak e. A rub ber tube a t bottom o f fa k e connects in terio r o f fa k e w ith the space betw een the fa k e and the pitcher. A plug attached to a thread fits into the tube and thread hangs over on out side o f the pitcher. A celluloid fa k e to back o f the table. The fa k e fo r the glass is filled w ith ink and placed on the servante. I w ill first describe w hat I think a much b e tte r arrangem ent fo r the pitch er than the fa k e now in use. Instead o f the celluloid fa k e I have made a tin disc which snuggly fits the in te rio r circum ference o f the pitcher. A t tached to disc we have two w ire legs. Our p itch er is painted black up to level o f disc, and disc has tw o holes thru it. W e also seal disc to pitcher b y means o f p la ste r o f p aris mixed with ink. See Fig. 2.
W e plug up the holes in disc with wax, thread attached, and pour a glass fu ll o f ink on the disc. Now when we pull the thread ink runs through holes to bottom com partm ent producing same effect as w ith the celluloid fa k e ; with the advantage th at the amount o f ink which appears to leave the pitch er is exactly no more — no le ss—than the g lassfu l which you put in the pitch er, and which you catch into the glass under the h at, and which can be poured back into the pitcher, as p ro o f—p rovidin g only th at the space under the disc, can accom odate only the g lassfu l that runs th ru —which can easily be arranged by p a rtly filling low er com partm ent w ith ink beforehand —leaving room only fo r a glassful. Now, reg ard in g the glass o f in k : In the old method, a celluloid fak e which fits inside o f the glass is filled w ith ink and placed in position on the servante. In presentation the glass is placed on the table, and fa k e filled w ith ink, is placed in to the glass w hile covering the la tte r w ith a hand kerchief. Not being in fa v o r o f this method o f g etting the ink into the glass, I h ave devised several m ethods which I have thoroughly tested and found to be en tirely sa tisfa c to ry . I w ill explain m y methods in the order in which the im provem ents w ere made.
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In m y lirs t experim ent 1 made use o f two glasses. I would fill one w ith ink and lo w er it in to a “ w e ll.” The em pty glass, I would cause to drop into a w ell w hile sh iftin g the hat. Now, instead o f liftin g the h at to show glass o f ink under it, I would reach un der h a t -and rem ove glass fu ll o f ink fro m w ell. O f course, I could have arran ged an ele va to r to ra ise glass o f in k fro m w ell, hut I d id n ’t care much fo r this method, so I tried an oth er m ethod as fo llo w s: U sing tw o glasses, one fu ll o f ink and both w rapped in paper. The one containing ink I placed on ch air S e rva n te . In reaching fo r the hat, I would exchange the glasses. B u t s till I w a s n ’t satisfied. So, since then I worked out the fo llo w in g tw o m ethods which I found to be the best. In these m ethods 1 use goblets. Get an 8 x 10 inch book o f about 100 pages. C ut center out o f the pages and make a square box out o f tin to fit the cut our space w ith in the book. Or, you m ay use “ m ake-up b o x ” o r Cold Cream Box. These have screw tops. F o r m yself, I made one w ith sm all screw cap, ju s t larg e enough to hold the glass o f ink. 1 d rilled tw o holes, one on eith er side o f this box, and to one hole I soldered a v e ry sm all piece o f tubing; long enough to reach only 1/ 10 inch th ru book-cover when fa k e is in place in book. W a x , w ith thread attached is used to stop up holes in fa k e and the la tte r is then filled w ith in k and placed w ithin the box, leavin g thread outside where i t is easy to get a hold of. B y pu lling th read in k w ill ru n out through tubing in to glass below. The book can be shown on both sides w ith ou t any danger o f exposing the secret o r creating suspicion. A book is a v e ry commonplace a rtic le and as innocent looking as any accessory the m agician could use; and passing ink through a book appears more e x tra o rd in a ry , probably, then passing th ru hat. Place book on em pty glass, and pitch er on the book and pull the thread and the tric k is done. No exchanges to be made. S T IL L AN OTHER METHOD M ake a celluloid fa k e as fo llo w s: G rease inside o f tlip glass you intend using and fill h a lf w ay w ith p la ster o f paris. S tic k in a clothespin o r some thing sim ilar f o r a handle. W hen d ry, pull the fo rm out by the handle. Cut shape, o f this fo rm out o f a piece o f p a p e r—but h a ve it about % inches sh o rter than inside o f glass. Now, using this p a p e r as a p a tte rn , cut out a shape fro m cellu lo id ; then with B anann a oil, stick the celluloid p a tte rn in to shape and place it into the glass, and cem ent i t a t the bottom w ith “ R eady T ransparent C em ent.” Next, cu t out a celluloid disc and glue i t to inside o f celluloid fa k e flush w ith the top. W ith th is m ethod I use a. sm all double saucer. I t requires but a sm all w h isk ey glass fu ll o f in k to till the fak ed glass rig h t up. U SE F U L EX C H AN G IN G B A G . A trick p ap er sack can be made as fo llo w s : G et a sm all box, say 5 x 9 o r la rg er according to the purpose fo r which you intend using it. D ivid e low er p a rt o f sack into tw o com partm ents and, in ord er to gain access to which, you should m ake some so rt o f an opening in sack on the side, fu rtlie re s t fro m the audience. Now p u t some con fette into the box. Now th e fo llow in g fa k e w ill be n e c essary : P aste some con fette on a slip o f p a p er and fo rm it around on the inside o f a tum bler. N ext, fill the glass w ith candy and place in one o f the com partm ents w ith in the sack. To P e r f o r m S h o w em pty glass, and fill it fu ll o f con fette from the box. Now w hile talk in g and stan ding behind the table fa c in g the audience,
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ADVANCED MAGIC.
we low er glass w ith con fette in com partm ent and brin g up fak ed glass w ith candy. C over glass w ith “ h a n k y ” and “ P re s to ” . Remove hanky taking aw ay w ith it, the shell and exposing glass o f Sw eets which we d istrib u te to the ju ven ile portion o f the audience. Remember this is only one o f m any uses to which this sack m ay be put — especially fo r exchange purposes. A D E C E PTIVE DODGE Get two pieces o f paper alike, about 4x7 inches in size. F old one edge o\'er, several times and then w rap it up. Place this in y o u r vest pocket. Now have card torn up and pieces w rapped up in duplicate, and place in the same pocket, leavin g corner or edge sticking out a little bit in sight, Now a fte r card is restored, have someone fe e l th a t the pieces are s till in the paper. But when opened—the pieces have vanished ! I t is h ard ly necessary to add th at in rem oving slip fro m pocket you pull out duplicate and w hat was taken fo r torn pieces, was on ly the edge o f the p ap er which was folded over several tim es—and then rapped up. T ry this next time you w ork the torn card trick. Good gag would be the “ L ightless C a rd s.” See “ T rick y-T rick s.” SP IR IT W A T C H Take a w atch, a hunting case one, take off c ry s ta l and bend the hour hand (big hand) down a little so when you tu rn the hands around it w ill ketch ju s t a little on the sm aller hand, now i f w atch is closed, by turn ing ptem you can fe e l the hand ketch every time. D on’t bend it too much though. W o rk in g : H ave watch set about q u arter to 12. Show it to sitte r. Close th e case up. Turn hands 4 o r 5 times (tu rn s) counting each click that you feel. 3 clicks would bo 15 min. a fte r 4. Tell s itte r “ we w ill ju s t tet w atch w hile case is closed so we c a n ’t tell w hat time it is .” G ive w atch to s itte r to put on 2 slates ju s t before a slate test, and when he opens slates up he has a message and departed frie n d has also w rote “ time by w atch is ju s t 15 a fte r 4 . ” You can also use this as “ Mind R ead ing” effeet fo r “ Second S igh t A c t.” W ith a little practice you can turn hands and tell to the m inute w hat time you have* set w atch a t w hile w atch was closed. LIGHTED L A M P V S . R O SE B U SH & POT OR TW EN TIETH CEN TURY M A G IC A L TR A N SFO R M A T IO N On M agicians T A BLE is seen a rose bush in a large flow er pot. P e r fo rm er passes his hdkf. in fro n t o f pot and bush when the la tte r is seen to have tran sform ed and is now a lighted L am p! No tra c e o f pot and bush to be seen! NEXT p e rfo rm e r passes hdkf. in fro n t o f lam p and the la tte r also vanishes! A P P A R A T U S and SE C R E T —The flow er pot has th ree sides which fa ll flat on the table (see fig.) the branches o f rose bush fo ld u - against main stalk o f bush. The la tte r is weighed And allow ed to slide down into table leg —see Fig. The lam p, which is only a h a lf m odel is concealed by pot and bush. The haif-lam n is laid into a ca vity in table top which is form ed to fit the lamp. F la t side o f lam p lies flush w ith table top and corresponds w ith i t in co lo r; which rend ers it invisible. So there you a r e —the whole thing. W h a t m ore — A pp lause — could anyone w ant T
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IM PR O VE D R ISIN G ROPE AND HOOP. E ffect: P e rfo rm e r shows a length o f s o ft rop e about 6 to 7 f t . in length which he curls up on floor he m akes passes, rope s ta rts to rise, when n ea rly a ll is up, he places a solid wooden hoop o ver the top, this even knocks the wise ones off th eir guard th a t threads ai-e used. The p a rt th at puzzles the wise ones is the passing o f th e solid hoop ovwr the top o f rope, they w ill argue, i f a thread is used how in 1 can he place the solid hoop, over top o f rope. ? S tu d y out the draw ings and you w ill notice th a t 2 threads are used, l - l - l - l - l is fa ste n to end o f rope a ll the tim e, it is first rufo up above stage through 2 screw eyes, end th a t goes down stage is first ru n through the sm all wooden hoop on table, and now the end is fasten ed to end o f the so ft rope, the rop e should be placed on floor, n ea r table so it w ill not tangle, end o f rope w here thread is fastened has sm all w ire hook. 2'-2 - 2 -2-2 is an oth er thread which is rum across stage a little higher than y o u r head, so you can reach it w ith ease, th is th read is on sm all hooks assistan t stands re a d y and holds the other thread which runs above stage, the one th a t has rop e fastened to it.
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HOW TO PERFORM THE TRICK ON THE STAGE. P e rfo rm e r picks up rope from lloor (care must be taken so th at there is enough slack on this thread so as to not detach the hoop on tab le). C urls it up, but before he places it on lloor, he reaches up and gets thread num ber 2 and hooks end on this. Do not use weight. 1 use th read S L A C K and let my assistan t work this so the effect is b e tte r if w orked slow in stead Q U ICK and SUD D EN ; when it is on a L E V E L p e rfo rm e r picks up hoop from table, at same time assistan t pulls in slack on this thread so it i i tig h t—p erfo rm er now can release hook fro m cross thread so w eight o f rope is now on the thread above, now the hoop can be placed o ver rope (be cause it was a lread y over the top th re a d ). HOOP is released fro m rope fro m oth er end (below) and given fo r inspection. Rope low ered, by assis tant thread broken, rope coiled up and throw n up in a ir, so it coines down loose, now a ll is clear.
MAMMOTH FLOWER PRODUCTION. E ffect: W h ile the p erfo rm e r is busy w ith some trick or p a tterin g to his audience — A large inverted sunshade o r umbrella filled to overflowing with
beautiful flowers, suddenly appears into his hand. W hen success attends ones efforts in inventing or w orking out an or iginal trick , the tendency to become over-enthusiastic, is, no doubt, quite strong. But the instantaneous appearance o f this enormous bulk, -without th e use o f foulard, flag or other such means o f cnciealment, sums, at least, to be another justification of our claim th at “ New E rie M agic’ ’ really does represent a higher type o f .Magic than th at which has hitherto known to p re
vail. True, such, or sim ilar effects have been possible in the past by means o f
“ Black A r t ’ ’ reflection and the Moving Picture Film. B ut “ Black A r t ’ ’ is done under cover of darkness. R eflection might be classed w ith “ Motion P icture” Magic which is “ Machine Made.” Up to the present time the m agician lias not been able to duplicate the w onderful effects “ Machine Made M agic” ; and, although the la t te r is ve ry p re tty and interesting , it can never s a tis fy the human in stin ct which loves real mystery, no more than can the hand-organ take the place o f the human
virtuose. The w ay in which the w orld is progressing these d a y s ; the M agician, if he would save his a r t from extinction, must move up a fe w notehes occasion ally, and be able to create real mystery. M ost o f present day “ M ag ic” is re a lly not magic a t all. A t least it is o f a very poor q u a lity ; in th a t the ad vantage the p erfo rm e r takes o f his audience is too bold to obvious. It is this condition th at is p rim a rily responsible f o r the r e fr a in : “ Magic is D ead.” Of course the M agiciun must have the advantage; bu t his advantage m ust not be obvious to his audience. A t least, not so obvious as th at o f
“ Machine made magic.” The p o in t which I wish to emphasize here is that, it is the “ Obvious ness” o f the m agicians advantage th at discounts his “ m ystery” and dis qualifies his “ M agic” w hether “ Machine-made” or “ Hand-made.” MAMMOTH PRODUCTION OF FLOWERS. Construction: Secret. ( 1 ) —P ro cu re a larg e Self-Opening Sunshade or Umbrella. ( 2 j — Cut out a Disc fro m a V era-colored, figured piece o f silk. ( 3 ) —Open urab. and in v e rt it. (4) S titc h edge o f disc to inside o f umb. A ll around or a! in terv als so th at it w ill form a false bottom to Umbra. A bout two inches below edge of Umbra. —See F ig . 1 — (5) — Cut from 3 inch ribbon several pieces as long as *4 o f diam eter o f false-Bottom. ( 6 ) P a rtly close Umb. and find lowest point o f fo ld in false-bottom (See Fig-. 2 ), and sew one end o f each of the ribbon cuts at in te rv a ls a ll around. ( 7 ) —Punch holes through stems of
ADVANCED MAGIC.
29
flow ers and thread them — tieing a knot on each side o f each to lim it their freedom . P u t about 10 flowers on first s trin g —20 on n e x t—35 next and 50 o r more on the fo u rth strin g according as you find the capacity w ill allow . ( 8 ) —Now, while assistan t holds ends o f strin g (See Fig. 3) place hands at each end o f strin g o f flow ers. B rin g hands together closing flowers; and place smallest bunch a t bottom point o f the (now ) doubled false-bottom. On top o f this place the next la rg e r bunch and so on to the top. Now bring up ribbon and fa ste n w ith button or hook and eye to hold flow ers in place and to keep them from opening out w hile loading. ( 9 ) —Now cut 4 or 5 lengths (m ore) o f y o u r 3 in. ribbon about 18 in. long, and sew one end o f them, at in terv a ls, to false-bottom about 3 or 4 in. from its edge. Next strin g a lot o f flow ers—loop up the strin g and fasten to form permanent bouquets, and fasten one o f these boquets to the fre e end o f each 18 in. ribbon. Now close flow ers into a packet and ro ll it up into ribbon and tuck the ro ll between the tie rs o f flow ers w ith in the closed Umba. (10 ) W h ile a ssistan t holds rib s o f closed Umba—u n fasten the buttoned ribbon th a t holds flow ers in place and put a s trip o f paper around top of U m brella and fasten w ith paste. (See fig. 4 and 5.) (11) Now to “ pocket” the ‘ 'load.” In sert the point o f Umba. into pants, cuff behind and a piece o f black tape around or p a rtly around body w ill hold handle secure (see fig. 4.) Now th is is a.ll you need i f the handle o f Umb. is a straight one, i f not, you w ill need some oth er kind o f a holder. A ve ry good one is illu stra te d by Fig. 5. (12) Now wdth a needle and double thread take a stitch or 3 into seat of trousers, then pass needle and thread un der the paper band and again stitch to pants. Now, to produce flow ers, a ll p e rfo rm e r has to do is to take hold o f han dle and Straighten Out his A rm !
30
ADVANCED MAGIC. HOW TO PRODUCE
P e rfo rm e r stands a t le ft o f his table facin g the rig h t hand (to him) por Now a little “ misdirection.” P e rfo rm e r has a ball concealed in his hand. B ut shows hand em pty by m eans o f the “ Change over palm.” E xtending his rig h t, closed hand—he pulls up rig ht sleeve, etc. and fin ally produces ball which he lays on table. Now he extends le ft hand (rig h t hand rests on h ip —n a tu ra l position) fo r a m om ent; then pulls up le ft sleeve (and returns to hip) w hile le ft hand pretends to conceal something— fin ally low ers hand and makes a toss into the a ir ; and while, the audience is w atching the assendancy and det'endancy o f the im agin ary b a ll—p e rfo rm er suddenly whirls around TO THE RIGHT and faces le ft hand portion of his audience—holding the inverted Umbrella filled to overflowing with flow
tion o f his audience.
ers in his outstretched hand! Now, o f course, the p e rfo rm e r w ill use his own sort o f misdirection. It is plain and evident that the production can be made at any unexpected time w hile, and during the perform ance o f any oth er trick or while “ p a tte rin g ” to the audience. This production w ill make the little fo lk s say Ow! and make the grown fo lk s think Ow! i f anythin g w ill, fo r it is re a lly a stupendous surprise which leaves no room fo r solution by the “ L a y .” A nd y e t : I t is all so nicely and cleverly arranged, th at fa ilu re is im
possible. I t ’s sure fire. Y ou see the flowers are all read y and only need the room which the opening o f the lim b, gives them and there they are and the Bou quets roll off and fa ll “ overboard” and unroll themselves—because they can't help it!
ADVANCED
MAGl6.
31
THE DOVE OF P E A C E E F FE C T S.
W ITH A Copy o f "VO GUE” “ Saturday Evening P ost” or oth er sim ila r magazine rolled up in his hand, the p e rfo rm e r comes fo rw a rd allow ing the leaves o f the M agazine to slip slow ly fro m his thumb and fa ll down in fro n t so th at the audience m ay see the size o f the leaves, and th a t leaves only w ith the prin ted m a tter and pictures alone make up the copy which the p erfo rm er exhibits. See Fig. 1 and 2. A FT E R a ll the leaves have fa lle n down p erfo rm e r takes the M agazine in his le ft hand and spins out the leaves again, but the reverse o f the w ay in which they w ere allow ed to fa ll the first time. NOW , as i f this is n ’t enough, p e rfo rm e r next grabs a few leaves in each
32
ADVANCED MAGIC.
hand and gives magazine a shake.
See Figs. 3 and 4.
N E X T ,' p erfo rm er holds magazine on le ft hand in position to read — slo w ly tu rn ing the leaves w ith his rig ht hand. W ith o u t w arn in g a live Dove flies out o f the Magazine! A nd out over the heads o f the audience. There are three long stream ers attached to the D ove’s ta il m aking a ve ry p re tty , as w ell as surp risin g spectacle —B u t—Now w ait a minute. PERFORjUER has no Dove o r Pigeon—nor Chicken concealed about bis person o r his clothes. P e rfo rm er rem oves his sleeves before entering. There is no body work. There are no mirrors, traps, no assistan t, no confederate. There are no tables or chairs on the stage. The Dove is re a lly and tru ly alive and was never made into a Pigeon Pie.
SECRET and WORKING. GET A Copy o f “ VOGUE” or, say the “ Saturday Evening P ost” or some sim ilar magazine. Take a p a ir o f w ire cutters and rem ove the three w ires th at the binders use to fasten leaves together. (See F ig. 5.) ^ N EXT, take a sm all screw d riv e r and a ham m er, put the “ P e rio d ic a l” on something solid and d rive the screw -d river th ru a ll o f the leaves, just inside of where the book was w ire d —See Fig. 5. Now draw a short ptece of w h ite ribbon thru each o f the three holes which you have made and tie on outside. See Illu strate d at Fig. 5. N EXT, GET a piece o f good s tiff w ire about 8 inches long and bend the ends as in Fig. 6 . NOW open magazine a t the m iddle and honk the ends o f the w ire on to ribbon — the two near, the ends. See F ig. 7. N EXT push a piece o f so ft cloth under the w ire. See F ig. 8 . Now, before we go any fu rth e r, I ’m going to put you on to a p ecu liar w rin k le concerning bird s and chickens. Y ou may, o r m ay not a lre a d y be wise to the game. H owever, it is worth the powder. I f you p u t a chicken’s head under its wing and la y the chicken down on the same side—the chick w ill sleep indefinitely and never move. The same is true o f birds. NOW , re tu rn in g to where we le ft o ff: Y ou la v a Dove in the cen ter o f C loth—Fig. 8 —B ut we h a rd ly think it necessary to put its head under the wing, fo r, instead, w e tiring the cloth tip around the “ chicken” and baste the two edges together w ith a double thread ra th e r snugly around (lie bird. See Fig. 9. N O W the next thin g w e ’ll do is fo take tw o leaves fro m another copy, or we can fe a r out two leaves from the eopy we are using as there are a superabundance o f le av e s; besides we a re going to re in se rt them anyw ay, into the copy we are p rep arin g in the fo llow in g m anner: P lace one o f the leaves (we w ill call these two “ extra leaves” ) on cith er side o f bird and paste to cloth — See Fig. 30. N EXT, paste the two extra leaves together a t the to p —See “ C ” F ig. 10. N EXT, cut a notch about one inch in top center o f tw o e x tra le av es— See F ig. 10. A lso cut a corresponding notch into top center o f the next three leaves—See F ig. 10. BU T H O W IN THE H - 1 Now w ait a m inu te! Y ou see the notches are ve ry important as th ey “ do the tric k ,” you m ight say. H ere is where they come in —L iste n ! The leaves are slipping liv e ly from un der p erform ers thumb, but when it comes to the notched leaves, tbe thumb can exercise no resistance, the re s u lt is th a t the 5 notched leaves all go a t once—P ractically together and, like a flash! Y ou can stand close to a m irro r when you t r y th is ; and no m a tte r how a le rt you w atch, y o u ’ll not be able to catch the faintest glimpse o f an yth in g suspicious. A s M a rtin k a ’s B ro th er would say, “ They can’t see Nuddings” ! And a tria l
w ill convince you!
ADVANCED MAGIC.
33
Now, stick the needle in the w aistband o f y o u r trou sers or in y o u r vest. Double up magazine lo o se ly—lik e a r o ll—and you are re a d y fo r rehearsal. P E R F O R M A N C E : Y ou a re holding down the leaves w ith y o u r thumb and allow ing them —the le a v e s —to escape slow ly fro m under the thumb and fa ll out and down to w ard audience. Now when you shall have gone all thru the magazine, you can change to le ft hand and spin out the leaves a g a in ; and i f you think th at is n 't enough dem onstration, you can show magazine as Illu stra ted in Figs. 3 & 4. (See Effects.) N EXT, p erfo rm er holds m agazine on le ft hand in position to read, and w hile he slo w ly tu rn s the leaves w ith his rig h t hand, his le ft hand is ex tended —M oving m agazine from body. This au tom atically pulls out the thread and releases Dove, which flies out o ver audience! N O TE: I f the Dove should happen to over-sleep its e lf, or, in oth er words f a il to arouse when re le a se d ; p e rfo rm e r can in se rt rig h t hand betw een the tw o “ E xtra leaves,” at the bottom and push Dovie Out and then h e ’ll hay* to Sw im !
PART FOUR
MAGIC RAG CHEWING By A. NUT
ADVANCED MAGIC.
35
MAGIC BA G CHEWING B y A . Nut. N ote: — This treatise is intended as an answ er to a num ber o f stock questions which I had fired a t mo b efore and since le av in g the stage by magic F ans, A m ateurs and even some o f the profession. L et it be understood that the opinions here expressed are m erely I n dividual. The view s o f others concerning any phase o f M agic,, w ill alw ays be welcomed by me, to the end th a t m utual and general benefit m ay resu lt. “ O VETTE”
THE PROFESSIONAL OFTEN TIMES PUTS A DAM PER ON MAGIC. Some time ago I had a ta lk with a “ p ro fe ssio n a l.” I m et the chap a f te r the sh ow ; and during our conversation I asked him i f he had seen cer ta in effects described in a m agazine. W ith a ra th e r haughty a ir he re p lie d : “ S a y , I ’m a P ro fessio n al M agician and d o n ’t have to look o ver books or m agazines. . I ’ve been doing this A c t o f mine fo r five yea rs, and I ’m g etting aw ay w ith i t ” ! (Y e p ! J u s t like th a t! W e get th a t w a y a ft e r a w h ile !) T here you a r e : F iv e ye a rs doing the same a c t—n e v e r changing it, be cause he managed to get aw ay w ith it. Can you beat it 1 Can you figure it o u t? No, they d o n ’t w ea r th e ir old s tra w bat, during the w in ter, n o r the sam« style su it a ll the tim e—but th e ir p ro fessio n —w ell, th e ir profession can go h a n g !—and s till they call them selves dow n-to-the-m inute professional ma gical e n te rta in e rs !! Y es, the “ P ro fe ssio n a ls” —m any o f them —a re “ doing th e ir h it ” to put M agic on the b lin k —ask an y M anager. A sk La V ellm a (D avid J . L ustig who is now m anaging a th ea tre and who did an act fo r some y e a rs). W h en the m a gicians o f this cou ntry begin to show the en terp rise th a t ch aracterize our B ro th er con ju rers across the pond, then and not un til then, w ill the bookings o f M agic A cts here ta lly w ith those o f foreign countries, where you g en era lly find at least one. M agic A ct on overv vau d eville program m e. “ O ver T h ere ” the audiences appreciate a real magic turn because they a re educated to give a good magician a rousing welcome because the actor doing magic, fo rces them to believe in mind his act and combines m ystery and n o ve lty th a t demand attention . O ver here too m any m agicians have the same effects, and, w o rst o f all reta in them on th e ir program m e y ea r a fte r y e a r ; when th ey m ust, and do lose th e ir n o velty and charm , which is the life and w in ning propensities o f M agic perform ances.
THE COMMON OBJECT THEORY I t is common notion th at g reat expense must be indulged in, in ord er to im prove an A ct. This is not n ecessarily so. F o r in s ta n c e :—The prin ciple o f adopting “ Common A rtic le s ” to the requirem ents o f trick s and Illusions, m ay be a good idea w ith which to experim ent. (Such articles as are handled e ve ry d ay b y the A udience.) The th eo ry is th a t w here u n fa m ilia r pieces o f a p p a ra tu s are em ployed; th ere exists in the mind o f the thoughtfu l onlooker a doubt th at such ap p aratu s is fre e fro m tric k e ry . The re su lt being th at the s p e c ta to r’s “ c re d u lity ” is shattered and he loses in te re st in the trick .
I -would advise, as genera] Tule, not to use the same device in succeeding
36
ADVANCED MAGIC.
tricks, nor the second tim e in the same trick. In the execution o f a series o f processes leading to a final resu lt or “ e f fe c t ” there, should be evid en t reasons fo r y o u r mode o f procedure, so that each step you take w ill ap p ear logical and n a tu ra l. (G ive this lots of thought.) I am a b eliever in p re tty stage settin g s—but think it unadvisablc to crowd the tables too much or have a lot o f “ ju n k ” lyin g around. H ave each piece o f apparatus brought out as you need it. It is g en erally an advantage to select such trick s as fa c ilita te s the greatest accomplishment w ith the least apparatus.
A TEST OF A M AGICIANS SK IL L I t is g en erally conceded th at one o f the best tests o f a c o n ju re r’s skill is his a b ility to get out o f a difficu lty and tu rn a m ishap to an advantage. I f you s k illfu lly lead the audience to believe th a t the e rro r was in ten tional and a c tu a lly a p a rt o f the act, v e ry few are lik e ly to notice the m ishap at all. F o r instance, and fo r exam ple, read the fo llow ing rem iniscences: "While I was doing the han d k erch ief pedestal stunt, I dropped the bot tom less glass. Y on can im agine m y feelings. The glass smashed and m y feelings reg istered “ S . 0 . S . ” W h ile I was pushing the pieces o f glass aside w ith m y foot:, an idea came to m y m ind; I ordered a glass and upon receivin g same, placed it, mouth down on pedestal and covered it w ith a handkerchief. A t the same tim e I pushed han d kerch ief into mouth o f glass and finished the t r i c k . ' I h a v e n ’t used bottom less glass since th a t time. W h a t ’s the use—one gets the same effect w ith an y glass as I have exp lain ed —so w hy b o th er w ith c a rry in g the specially prepared a rtic le ? W h ile doing several card effects a t a “ s ta g ” a ffa ir I was challenged to use one- o f the Clubs decks fo r my next experim ent, which happened to be m y la s t card experim ent, known as “ The Torn Card T ric k .’ ' W h ile they w ere getting dock T got a plain envelope and made a slit on face o f it T had a card selected and corn er torn off. N ext. T showed envel ope to be em pty and placed it, flap upperm ost, on top o f deck, so th a t s lit came n ear the edge. B y holding pack o f cards tog ether in one hand, I pushed selected card through s lit and on top o f deck. E nvelope sealed, and burned, deck shuffled and card found in ppeket. Card w as easy to locate ow ing to m issing co rn er—a fte r the trick was o v er I breathed w ith re lie f. A n o th er time w hile w orking torn and restored p a p er stu n t; ju s t as I had pulled the whole s trip out o f the fa k e thum b—I dropped the fak e. C al a m ity !! W e ll, w h ile T w as preten ding to squeeze the pieces together I happened > to think o f concealing the pieces in m y month. S o w hile slo w ly pu lling out the long strip , T made s e ve ra l pretenses o f m oistening tip s o f fingers in the mouth w here T succeeded in concealing the torn pieces under cover of this m aneuver. I w as then enabled to complete the surprise in the usual w a y by show ing hands em pty. This happened some 32 y e a rs ago. Since, then I have n ev er used fa k e fo r the p a p er—te a rin g trick . I put the secret on the m a r ket and there are m any who w ill rem em ber if, and a num ber who have made it one o f th eir fe a tu re experim ents. It a ll goes to show th a t there is alw ays a w a y out—i f you retain yonr presence of mind and d o n ’t get ra ttle d . He who takes an interest in his w ork, w ill find it easy to overcom e any obstacle, and, besides you improve the Art as well as your work.
ADVANCED MAGIC.
31
A WORD ABOUT OUR M AG IC LIT E R A T U R E . Up to tbe present tim e we have had books fro m m any authors. M any o f them o f the “ d rea m ” order. T reating p rin c ip a lly im practicable, theories or w hat you m ight call “ im agin ary M ag ic” —stu ff th a t looks good in p rin t but im possible to perform . R e fe r to our periodical m agazines o f M agic; here we have it ram pant. Someone o r anoth er is explaining some new trick . F re q u e n tly it is m erely an honest enthusiast running aw ay w ith h im se lf; and his m istakes can n ever be fo rg o tten , fo r his explanation deceives m any including him self. He be lieves th at which he w rite s to be w orkable. Y e t when a p ra c tic a l test dis closes the e rro r, he lacks the courage to adm it his blunder. Then we have the “ Id io to ria l N ecrom ancer and P resto H igh-D iver, who w rite s learnedly' o f th at which he does not com prehend and which he is incom petent to analyze. W o rst o f all, how ever, is the p a rty who w rites books f o r no oth er ob je c t than the g reatest possible sale, who has h a rd ly m astered the A , B, C, o f Magic and who m ay one day experience m agical O stracism by w ritin g books filled w ith th a t which exists only in D ream land—Im p ractical theories th at vanish before they M a te ria liz e ! Books explaining effects th at his S ata n ic M a jesty him self could not p erform are p le n tifu l and several o f this v a rie ty lie b efore me as I w rite. P re tty covers, odd p rin tin g and a batch o f abso lu te ly useless so-called tric k s th a t make one w onder w h ether the authors hit the pipe, use the needle or sniff the stuff. Books o f this so rt a re use less w aste and such authors, who would have one and a ll believe them to be the g reatest m agical creators in the w o rld (H eaven save the m a r k !!) should be ousted fro m the a rt that the re a l m agical student follow s. Look over y o u r bookcase, Mr. W and W ie ld e r, and you w ill find a num ber o f dandy, im pressive looking volum es on M agic and its kindred a rts but how m any o f these books have aided you in y o u r m agical stu d ies? I know you who can use tbe brains the ru le r o f a ll h ave given you w ill re a d ily agree w ith me. O f course, there is some good in the w orse o f books but a ft e r reading the so-ealled “ L ater D ay M ira c le s ” w ritte n in high sounding language w ith m is leading descriptions and draw in g s—we a rriv e a t but one conclusion; the w ork was w ritte n by some hashish or cocaine fo llo w er who lives w ith his head above the clouds and dream s, dream s im press none but the dream er him self.
PART FIVE
ILLUSIONS. The Human Smoke Stack. Ovette’s Modern Miracles. Etherta. The Human Aeroplane.
ADVANCED MAGIC.
30
THE HUMAN SM OKE-STACK. A head-lin er and a ra re N ovelty consisting o f scientific experim en ts o f a rem arkab le character. E ffe c t:—P e rfo rm e r exhibits a p re tty “ c ro w n ” which is e n tire ly fre e fro m tric k e ry , being sim ply a m etal band, perforated' a ll around (see “ A ” in F ig. 4) and which he places upon his ladies a ssista n ts head. P e rfo rm e r now state s his inten tion to tre a t the audience to a cup o f coffee; but explains th a t th e ir coffee-pot got smashed enroute and th ere fo re m ust make th is coffee in the tea-k ettle, but, assures his audience th a t the k e t tle is p e rfe c tly clean. Now, w hile, talk in g, the p erfo rm e r puts some ground coffee in to the k e t tle and, visib ly pours in about a qu art o f w ater. Now the p e rfo rm e r pu ts on the lid and places k e ttle on the crown on the ladies head as “ B ” in fig u re: M eanwhile the lad y, being fond o f refreshm en ts, eats some fir e ! (S e e “ M agi cians New F ie ld ” fo r novel m ethods o f “ E a tin g ” fire ). A n d p resen tly volum es o f smoke is seen to stra in through the ladies hair, and through the p erfo ra tio n s in the crown. Now sh o rtly the k ettle begins to “ sin g ” and soon it is boiling a t a f u r ious ra te . The steam fo rc in g its w ay from the spout in a convincing m an n er and causing the lid to dance. P e rfo rm e r now feels lik e taking a smoke and having no m atch, he ligh ts his cig arette in the steam o f the k e ttle ! N ext, p e rfo rm er rem oves th e k ettle fro m ladies h ead ; pours out the steam ing hot coffee, which he passes out to the audience fo r th e ir delectation. (N o te ):—I f on an y occasion, it should become desirous to lengthen this A c t; m any novel, stran g e and sensational F ire trick s w ill be found in “ The M agicians New F ie ld ” ).
ADVANCED MAGIC.
40
A p p ara tu s fo r Sm oke effect consists as fo llo w s: Two glass containers joined together and held in a m etal easeing, which in turn is enclosed w ithin a easeing o f cloth which is secured under the g a r ments w ith s a fe ty pins n ea r w aist line at the back (see “ P ig. 2 ” ). Now, one o f these glass tubes, (containers) holds Am m onia and the oth er contains H ydrochloric A cid. A rub ber tube connects w ith am m onia con tain er. F ree end o f tube is attached to a double-bulb a ir pump, which when squeezed fo rces a ir in to Am m onia C ham ber; and fo rces A m m onia fum es into the A cid Chamber. The action o f the chem icals fo rm s a vap o r resem bling smoke. Now, attached to A cid Cham ber, is anoth er rub ber tubing which leads up under clothing to top o f ladies head w here the smoke finds an ou tlet through branch m etal tubes w ith holes d rilled along the sides, so as to dis trib u te smoke, w ith the aid o f the h a ir —which is made up over them. A ll o ver the top o f ladies head. W hen lad y leans back in chair, a ir bulb gets a squeeze. This forces the aid up through tubing and chemical Chambers.
SECRET OF THE BOILING KETTLE. Inside o f the K e ttle we have a little coffee -pot w ith a long snout which reaches w ell up into the spout o f the k ettle. F irs t you make the coffee— stra in it and put the coffee (liquid) into the little pot inside o f the kettle. Next, p u t 3 or fo u r lumps o f hard, unslacked lim e, about the size o f a goose egg, into the kettle. The am ount best suited can be ascertained by ex p eri ment. To P e rfo rm :—F irs t put a few tablespoonfuls o f ground coffee into the kettle. F ill a “ Ching Foo C a n ” w ith w arm w a te r and visib ly pour into kettle (by th is means you only pour in the amount you re q u ire —the re s t r e m ains w ithin the can, though to the audience you seemed to have poured in all the can contained —about a qu art.) Now, in a fe w m inutes, a chem ical action takes place, w ithin the k ettle and an intense heat is generated, w ith the re su lt as p rev io u sly described to the un in itiated this effect appears most e x tra o rd in a ry . A charm ing perp lex ity so re a l and yet so absurd as to provoke h e a rty laughter. The cig arette is a tin tube the size o f an o rd in a ry cig arette. F ill tube w ith tobacco and paste a cig arette paper around the fa k e. Now, in one end is embedded a tin y lum p o f m etalic Potassim . The potassim can be fasten ed w ith m agicians wax. This end should be m arked so th at y o u ’ll know which
md is to be lighted.
ADVANCED MAGIC.
41
OVETTE’S MODERN- M IRACLES A HEADLINE ILLUSION ACT B y Magical Ovette Som etim e ago discovering the fa c t that m agical e n terta in ers did not ap p reciate the possibilities o f th e ir fa scin a tin g a r t so to in s till enthusiasm T created a Guessing In stitu te which aroused considerable in terest. A d e ta il ed synopsis o f the act which was to he given fo llo w the modus opcrandi, o f course is not given due to the fa c t I have turned the G uessing C ontest over to another. B u t a magician w ith ideas can form an act o f this so rt using his own original methods.
SYNOPSIS. A B B R E V IA T IO N S. M .—M usic. M. S . —M usic stops. M. C.—M usic continues. SI. M .—S lo w music. TV.—P olice w histle. B anc;!—R eport o f police shot. B a n g ! B a n g !— Two shots, etc. F E A T U R E NO. 1 -E L E M E N T OF P U R G A T O R Y —C u rtain R ise s: M. P e rfo rm e r enters, and as he advances tow’ard fo o t-lig h ts he passes a sm all stand, from which w ith out stopping, he picks up a sheet o f p a p er about 6x9 inches in size. N ear the fo ot-lig hts he shows his hands and slip o f p a p er on a ll sides and fingers wide ap art. (M. S.) P A P E R B U R ST S INTO A F L A M E ! FE A T U R E NO. 2 -B T R T I I OF OLD G L O R Y -B e fo r e the audience has r e covered fro m th eir surprise another su rp rise is th ru st upon them. (M. S ta r Spangled B a n n er ). BLAZIN G P A P E R STT>DENLY CH AN GE S TO A LA R G E STLK F L A G ! The lo w er end o f flag FLO AT IN G T O W A R D OR CH E STR A. The la tte r, nor anyone w ithin three feet o f P e rfo rm e r could not possibly see from whence the flag ca m e ras they d id n ’t see it, com e—but i t ’s th e re —just as though you r eyes w ere closed and you had suddenly opened them. Its appearance is as sudden and m ysterious as the flame th a t consum ed the slip o f paper. NOTE TITESE P O I N T S - ( A V P a p e r NOT prep ared b efore h a n d - j u s t o rd in ary p a p er—N ew spaper w ill do.—and U N PR E PA R E D is laid on the ta ble re a d v fo r the p erfo rm er to pick up as lie passes the table W ITH O UT STOPPIN G. (B ). There is no fa k e s —Potash and S u g a r: Acid tubes, no r chem icals, concealed in p e rfo rm e r’s hands. N othing to get rid o f except the p ap er and the F L A M E attends to th at. (C ). P e rfo rm e r’s hands n ever approach his bodv from the tim e he en ters u n til flag ap p ea rs—and NOT E V E N THEN. A rm s m ay be bared. F E A T U R E NO. 3 - T H E M Y ST E R IO U S A N G E L -( M . C .L P e r fo rm e r advances n earer fo o tlig h ts: then low ers flag u n til lo w e r end touch es the floor. W h en IM M E D IA T E L Y his hands a re seen th rn st ont a t Vne side o f flag. Then his head. Follow ed b v em erging o f his en tire b o d v— BUT. THE F L A G R E M A IN S SU SPE N D ED as thousrh the p e rfo rm e r was S T IL L BEHIND THE F L A G HOLDING IT U P ! (M. S .) B A N G ! P e r fo rm e r pu lls flag aw av and a B E A U T IF U L L A D Y IN T IG H TS ANT) W IT H W IN G S TS SE E N ! NOTE TITESE PO IN T S—No stage tra p s, No m irro rs. No cabinets, No p ro xim ity to side w ings, back drops, flies or cu rta in s; and NO obstruction to CLE AR V I E W O F ST A G E FLOOR, excenf, flag which p e rfo rm e r low ers as stated , and which the p e rfo rm e r HELD A B O V E H IS FE E T AND A N K L E S A S H E AD V A N CE D . No Chinese n o r A n cien t M agicians gowns. P e rfo rm e r w ears usual evening dress suit or M ephisto G arb. A rem a rk ab ly Clean cut, S tran g e, Novel and C harm ing production. C o n trast th is w ith the usual inode p f producing a grow n person and the conception
42
ADVANCED MAGIC.
o f w h at MODERN M AG IC SHOULD BE W IL L D A W N UPON YOU IN IT S TRUE LIGHT. FE A T U R E NO. 4 ' - THE E X E C U T IO N -P e rfo rm e r (addressing the M ysterious A ngel) : “ W h e re did you come fro m ? (The M ysterious W inged L ad y shakes h e r head) “ W h ere 's y o u r clothes? (Angel again shakes h e r head). (H ere, A ssista n t hands P e rfo rm e r a square o f pleated w h ite c l o t h pure w hite, excepting borders at the two sides, which are black. (W e w ill call this a “ R ohe” ). P e rfo rm e r hands “ R obe” to A ngel commanding “ H ere, put this around y o u !” (L ad v makes several attem pts to don the “ R O B E ” w ith comical effect, as h er wings are in the w a y ). P e rfo rm e r (A ddressing A ssista n t) “ Remove the ‘ A E R O P L A N E S ’. ” (A ssistan t rem oves the Ansrels w ings). P e rfo rm e r (P lacin g Robe around A n g e l’s shoulders) “ Now, Y ou m ay g o.” (L ady shakes h er head). Come now, get back .to the “ G A R D E N ” —A dam w ill be uneasy. (L ady again shakes h er head). ( W ). (A ssista n t rushes in ). (P e rfo rm e r and A s sis t a n t escort the “ M ysterious A n g e l” to a larg e screen n e a r center o f stage. NOW , W ITHOUT' FOR ONE IN STAN T L E A V IN G THE SIG H T OF AITDTENCE—lad y is induced w ith the assistance o f the tw o men to mount a step which extends across the fro n t o f the m iddle panel a t the bottom o f the screen. W ith h er back against the screen, the lad y is bound th ere to a t h er w aist line w ith black belts. “ N O W ,” savs the P erfo rm er, A d d ressing the Audience as he w alks tow ard the footligh ts, “ F e llers, I ’ll show you how to git rid o f ’em .” (B an g ! B an g !) P e rfo rm e r (w ithout looking tow ard s screen) “ There, Y ou see; S h e ’s GONE! (Audience S n ick ers). P erfo rm er tu rn s and looks tow ard screen and is surprised and em barassed). A dd ressing the prisoner, who is still tied to screen, “ O h! A re you still th ere? “ N o,” say s the p rison er try in g to get loose, “ I ’m still h ere.” ) “ O h,” (ejaculates the P erfo rm e r) “ W e ’ve fo rg o tten some th in g ,” (W .) (A ssistan t rushes in.) A black bag is now shown and plac ed over la d y ’s head and neck. A rope low ered fro m flies is tied tig h t around the p ris o n e r’s neck over black ba
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using: up to the present tim e. W e place the L A D Y in FRONT o f S c re e n ; and NOT the SCREEN in FRONT o f the L A D Y . QUITE A D IFFER EN CE, is n 't i t ? This V an ish is not only N E W —Tt is PR E T T Y , SE N SA T IO N A L , ST A R T L IN G , PIC T U R E SQ U E ; and in effect, the Cleanest and b y f a r the fa ire s t and MOST B A F F L IN G V A N IS H E V E R W IT N E SSE D . In the in terest o f the A R T, 1 w ill give. not only the S ecret o f this IIlu sio n —“ EX E C U T IO N ’ ’ - b u t also the EN TIRE $500 CH ALLEN GE I L L U SIO N SK E T C H “ THE M Y ST E R IO U S A N G E L ” E N T IR E LY F R E E ! and w ith out any CON SIDERATION or OBLIGATION to AN YON E W H O W IL L CREATE IT S EQUAL.- A nd leave it to Dr. W ilso n to decide all points. P . S .—The Screen is T w elve (121 feet long, S ix (G) feet high and stands ten ( 1 0 ) inches clear o f the floor. S ecrets o f the ENTIRE F IV E FE A T U R E D N E W ILLU SIO N A C T THE M Y ST E R IO U S AN G EL w ith draw ings and fu ll in stru c tio n s; Only $500. F E A T U R E NO. 5 —R E IN C ARN ATIO N — (SL . M .) A ll this excitem ent seems to be too much fo r the p erfo rm e r who ffoes into a trance, sinks into a chair, and from his .iestures seems to “ sec th in g s” when suddenly his eyes a re directed a lo ft where the “ G H O ST ” o f the M ysterious A ngel is seen g ently flapping her w ines in decent. W h en the “ G H O ST ” A lig h ts, the p e rfo rm e r rushes fo rw a rd ; and cautiou sly picks up the "WINGED ROBE, fo r th a t is a ll it proves to be. P e rfo rm e r smiles, and two assistan ts take Robe and place it around p e r fo rm e r’s shoulders. The P e rfo rm e r seems to enjoy the joke, although lie m akes a v e ry com ical looking “ A n g e l” as Robe comes on ly just, below the knees. Tn this out-landish m ake-up p e rfo rm e r strid es boldly fo rw a rd , n ea r fo otligh ts, A s sistan ts rem ove the Robe which the p erfo rm er takes and w ithin the fo ld s oT which, R EPRO D UCES the “ M Y ST E R IO U S A N G E L ” ! ! ! L ad y Sm iles. P e rfo rm e r takes h er b y the hand and they how them selves off. P e rfo rm e r retu rn s, and by this time. Audience which was dum founded, su fficien tly recovers to realize th at it is the p e rfo rm e r th ey owe fo r the ab sorbing, exciting and all around w onderful entertainm en t, and th ey a re not slow in showing th e ir enthusiasm , A P P R O V A L AND A PP R E C IA T IO N . NOTE TH ESE P O IN T S -N o M irro rs. No S tag e T raps. The “ R E IN C A R N AT IO N ” takes place n ea r fo otlig h ts in C enter o f B R IL L IA N T L Y LIGHTED ST AG E . No doubt this is the cleanest and most su rp risin g M A T E R IA L IZ A T IO N E V E R AT T E M PT E D —B A R R IN G NONE.
1.
Feature No. 1 —ELEMENT OF PURGATORY
P e rfo rm e r enters, and as he advanced tow ard fo o tlig h ts, he passes a sm all table fro m which, w ith out stopping, he picks up a sm all sheet o f un p rep ared paper.
2.
Feature No. 1-E L E M E N T OF PURGATORY
N ear fo otlig h ts he shows bis hands and slip o f p ap er on all sides. He does this fre e ly , as his hands re a lly conceal nothing. Y e t p ap er suddenly
hursts into a flame! This tric k is fu lly 9 9% perfect.
There is not one such tric k in a. thou
sand. I challenge d en ial w ith proof. 3.
Feature No. 2 -B IR T H OF OLD GLORY S u d d en ly one end o f a large silk flag appears between performer’ s The other end o f flag floating at full length toward audience. This
hands.
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ADVANCED MAGIC.
is the first you see of flag, so it must come from flam e o f p ap er o r from what appears to a ll o f us an empty space. Impossible? W e ll, p e rfo rm e r’s hands n ever approach his body up to this tim e and his arms are bare to elbow. B u t— The flag is there! 4.
Feature No. 3—THE MYSTERIOUS ANGEL
P erfo rm er advances s till n earer fo otlig h ts and allow s low er end o f flag to touch the floor. W h en suddenly he ducks his head behind flag and th ru sts his hands out a t one side o f flag, then his head, and follow ed by his entire body. The flag seems mesmerized, as it remains standing.
5.
Feature No. 3 —THE MYSTERIOUS ANGEL B a n g ! B a n g !! P e rfo rm e r’s pistol shots rings out, when he pu lls flag
away and a beautiful lady in tights and with wings is seen, and is none oth er than “ The Mysterious A n g el!” 6. Feature No. 4-T H E EXECUTION A s the im m aculate m odesty o f m agicians is so w ell known, I w ill m ere
ly state, w ith out comment, th at “ The Mysterious A ngel” w as handed a W hite Robe and p o lite ly told to go and join the re st o f her tribe, w here the w earing o f clothes has nothing to do w ith the high cost o f living. B u t evi d en tly the strange visito r p re fe rre d to linger. P erhaps she was stage struck. A t least, th a t is where she “ struck.” B ut it takes a magician to find a way. A ccordingly, the stubborn young M iss is chained to the center o f a large screen and the “ Black Cap” and noose adjusted. E vid en tly w ith cold-blooded attempt to k ill! But! The “ A ngel” knows some magic “ tric k ”
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herself. In fa c t, “ M ysterious” is her nam e! A n yw a y , she gets the p er fo rm e r’s “ goat” and escapes! No doubt she is in league w ith His M ajesty Mephistophiles! 7.
Feature No. 5 -REIN CARN ATIO N
Sudd enly a ll eyes a re a ttra c te d tow ard the “ flie s,” w h ere the ghost o f the ‘ ‘M ysterious A ng el” is seen g ently Happing h er w ings in descent. A s soon as the “ g h o st’ ’ alights, p e rfo rm er cautiou sly raises fr o n t part o f “ ghost,” which p roves to be, and is, nothing but an empty shell covered w ith the w h ite “ robe.”
8.
Feature No. 5-REIN CARN ATIO N
A f t e r exposing to view a ll p arts o f “ shell-robe” and tu rn in g it upside down, tw o assistan ts pitch the em pty “ shell-robe’.’ over p e rfo rm e r’s head and bring corners o f “ robe” around his shoulders and fasten ed in fro n t. The two Police Officers (assistan ts) have 1o hold th eir sides a t the com ic a lity o f the p ro fe s so r’s m ake-up and pose. A stran ge looking Angel Ghost indeed, as robe comes scarcely to his knees. B u t'th e p erfo rm e r strid es oldlv fo rw a rd to footligh ts, where the shell-robe is rem oved and handed to p er fo rm er who, w ithin the fo ld s o f which, reproduces “ The Mysterious A ngel.” This is a most “ p erfect” illusion, a befitting fin^l and a charming cli max to a most perfect and powerful m ystery sketch, destined to become one
of V audeville’s Greatest Feature A ttractions!
46
ADVANCED MAGIC. TERMS, CONDITIONS and OTHER INFORMATION CONCERNING OVETTE’S MAGIC GUESSING INSTITUTE A S MENTONED ELSEWHERE.
M y New Illusion A c t —“ THE M Y ST E R IO U S A N G E L ,” consists o f five fea tu res. I t is F e a tu re No. 4 —The Execution, which 1 subm it fo r p h y chological recreation , a n alysis aud solution. This illusion is o f the same higher typ e and magnificanee as the other fe a tu re s o f the act but being a little m ore E laborate Sen satio n al and E xciting, we call it the “ M ain F e a ture o f the A c t .” I sin cerely'b elieve th at “ E xecu tion ” w ill p ro ve the m ost b ea u tifu l and charm ing magic effect, as w ell as the m ost rem arkab le and astounding va n ish ever w itn essed! N othing like it has e v e r been seen on the A m erican S tag e. H ow ever, you m ust judge fo r y o u rse lf. I f you w ill tu rn y o u r judg e ment loose, give is fu ll pow er to act, and com pare “ E xecu tion” w ith any “ v a n ish ” you have ever seen, 1 w ill be p e rfe c tly satisfied w ith y o u r deci sion. The follow ing , in b rief, is the e ffect: L ad y, “ The M ysterious A n g e l,” n o t a m ere fo rm , shell o r dummy, but a L ivin g Being, robed in w hite, and, w ith out fo r one in sta n t leavin g the sight o f audience, is placed in fr o n t o f a large black screen and chained thereto a t w aist-line, a bag is d raw n over h e r head and neck and tied tight around neck w ith end o f rope which dangles fro m the flies. Not w ith stan d ing this cumbrance and secu rity the L ad y V anishes like a bursting bubble o r an extinguished candle ilame, leavin g only the dangling rope and bag. The screen is 1 2 fe e t in length, (j fe e t in height and stands 10 inches clear o f the floor fo r its fu ll length. Im m ediately the vanish takes place two as sistan ts push screen over tow ard fo otlig h ts, so th a t i t fa lls to the floor w ith a crash, leavin g a clear view o f the en tire stage. This illu sion act, as a whole, is an Innovation, a M agical Trium ph, which sets a new pace, m arks a new epoch in M agic and ra ises the a rt to a higher plane, to the end th a t an e a rly decease o f our beloved a r t w ill be averted by keeping ab reast o f L ivc-w ire Science which m easures ou r p ro g ress and which is destined, fin ally, to even determ ine a social statu s in which the w o rld ’s creatures w ill, fo r the first tim e in h istory, en joy a R eal aud True C ivilization.
CONDITIONS. This is not a “ Guessing C o n test” where the prize is aw arded to a S ing le W in ner. Our arrangem ent gives E very G uesser an E qual Chance to win regard less o f how m any other Guessers m ay be successful. E v e ry guess er who offers the correct solution o f the M y ste ry w ill receive the Complete S ecrets and F u ll In stru ction s reg ard in g the en tire act, tog ether w ith the num erous draw ings, a ll en tire ly fre e .
TERMS. One “ G uess” w ill be allow ed FR E E on a ll ord ers fro m m y lists am ount ing to 50 cents or over. Two Guesses F re e on orders o f $1.0 0 o r over. Three Guesses on ord ers on $1.50 or over, etc., etc., allow ing one “ G uess” on each 50 cent value o f purchase. O rders o f $5.00 or o ver w ill be allow ed 1 2 Guess es and one guess fo r eacli ad ditio nal value o f 50 cents or over. Twenty- five Guesses w ill be allow ed on a ll orders o f $10 .0 0 or over, etc. etc.
ONE SECOND PRIZE OF $10 VALUE. The person who sends in a. Guess which comes the nearest to those who guess co rrectly w ill be entitled to select item s fro m m y lists to the value o f $ 10 •E ntirely F ree. 11“ two or more persons come equally close to the ones who send in the correct solution the secnd prize w ill be divided equally be tw een them.
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YOUR MONEY BA CK. The person sending in the F irs t C o rrect Solu tion o f “ E x ecu tion ” w ill receive not only the New F iv e F eatu red illu sio n S k e tc h : “ The M ysterious A n g e l” F ree but also His M oney Back in fu ll in the fo rm o f a fre e selec tion o f goods fro m m y lists.
DR. WILSON TO ACT A S JUDGE. In ord er th at everyone m ay be sure o f a square deal we have asked Dr. W ilson , e d ito r o f “ THE S P H IN X ,” i f he would serve as judge and we take g reat pleasure in announcing that the D octor has k in d ly consented. D r. W ilson knows m agic fro m A to Z and is capable o f weighing all the points and com paring th e ir w o rth and significance to a fineness, so that a ll guessers can fe e l assured o f a square deal as f a r as the doctor is con cerned. W h a t the D octor says “ G oes” and w ill be F in a l and I w ill have to abide by his decision as w ell as you.
. VALU E OF MYSTERIOUS ANGEL. M y New Illu sion A c t “ The M ysterious A n g e l” is e a sily w o rth up in the fo u r figures, but I have priced i t a t a v e ry con servative and nom inal figure o f $500.00. The M ysterious A ng el is ju s t the kind o f an act the Big Line w an ts, it should book re a d ily and solid fo r a t least $000.00 a week and costs to build a tr iffle —com p aratively insignificant. The act, th erefo re should p ay f o r its e lf in a couple o f weeks o r so even i f the nom inal price o f $500.00 w as paid fo r it.
A REAL $500 PRIZE FREE. B u t you chance to secure the act fo r nothing is good. The question in reg ard to F e a tu re No. 4. “ E xecu tion ” is ju s t th is : How is it done? W h a t is yo u r idea as to how this rem arkab le fe a t is accom plished. W h at, in you r opinion, is the solution o f the problem ? W h a t becomes o f the lad y and how is such a fe a t made p ra c tic a l? I w a n t you to guess the means employed. IIow does the lad y, such a bulk o f human llesh and blood. Change to Nothing, D em aterialize, w hile encum bered as she is and w hile in fu ll view and w ith such suddenness th at it th rills the hum an senses and defies any language to describe. There m ay be more than one w ay by which this E ffect is accom plished, no doubt there is, but the num ber o f “ W a y s ” th a t a re p ra c tic a l a re sure ly so few th at it would seem alm ost certain th a t out o f a fe w c a re fu lly thought-out guesses, one o f them could h ard ly f a il to be the sam e as w e cmploy. I t is w ell w orth y o u r while to secure as m any chances as you ean han dle and go rig h t to w ork on them. In sending in y o u r answ ers o r guesses be sure and w rite v e ry cle arly and on separate sheets o f p ap er w ith date and sign y o u r name to each one- o f them. D on’t bother Dr. W ilson w ith questions, etc. about this m atter. Send a ll ord ers and guesses to : M A G IC A L O VETTE, BO X 72, DUNDEE L A K E , N. J . A ll w inners w ill be notified and the prize aw arded ( a fte r Dr. W ilson has passed upon them) a t the close o f the period o f guessing, N ovember 15th , 3917. Kemernber I can supply you w ith AN YTH IN G in the line o f Magic Goods or Accessories a t the ve ry low est catalogue prices and b e tte r than the usual term s, I can also supply you w ith a ll goods fro m the catalogues o f T hayer, Los Angeles, Cal. M ysto, New lla v e n , Conn., or C. Pentz. M innea polis, M inn. I G uarantee this. A ll Goods G uaranteed the B est on ?"'ie M a r ket. W h y not le t me supply you r M agical needs and get y o u r chances at the G R E A T $500.00 V A U D E V IL L E ILLUSIO N SK E T C H E n tire ly F re e ? F a ir T reatm ent and a Square D eal G uaranteed to A ll. Rem em ber ! ! In w inning this New A ll F ea tu red V au d eville A c t you w ill become possessor of the N ewest and G reatest Magical A ttraction Existing at the Present
48
ADVANCED MAGIC.
Time, as w ell as the M ost N otable In n ovatio n al N ovelty the M agical W o rld has experienced fo r a t le a st a H alf-a-C en tu ry. W e w an t y o u r opinion on the M ain F e a tu re o f the A c t—F e a tu re No. 4. “ The E xecu tion.” You m ay be the V e ry F ir s t One to h it upon the E ig h t “ M ethod .” I t ’s re a lly a Cinch. D o n ’t p u t this m a tte r oft'. Become one o f the G uessing Stu d en ts NOW.
A F A IR PROPOSITION. E v e ry M agic E ffect Has a W a y o f Its Own, which is A lw a y s Sim ple but which is S ecret and cannot be known unless R evealed o r Exposed. One person is as apt as another to h it upon the “ w a y ” o r “ h o w ” an Illusion E ffect is accomplished. I f the E ffect is new, the P ro fessio n a l has little o r No A d van tag e over the Novice in G uessing—A ll H ave an E qual Chance.
W H Y NOT TRY YOUR LU CK? Y ou can n ev e r te ll w hat you can do u n til you tr y , I found the “ w a y ” and so, o f course, others Can and W ill S o lve the Problem . Y ou A r e A s A p t To Guess R igh t A s A nyone E lse and Be One o f the L ucky Ones. I t ’s only a m a tte r o f g iving the subject a little thought which you can do during spare tim e when you a re doing nothing else. G uessing closes N ovem ber 15 th , 19 1 7 . Time soon ro lls around. D on’t w a it u n til the la s t m inute. G et Y o u r Guess in E a rly. Rem em ber the first w in n er gets not on ly the $500.00 P rize, the G reat New Illusion A c t : “ The M ysterio u s A n g e l” but also his M oney Back in ad ditio nal M agical Goods fro m m y lists o f his own selection F re e .
OTHER FEATURES OF THE ACT. F e a tu re No. 1 : —ELEMENT OF PU R G A T O R Y . This tric k rank s about 99% in P o in ts o f A d van tag e in its E xecution and 10 0 % in E ffect. In oth er w ords it is w h at can be rig h tly be called a P e r fe c t T rick. I t ’s One in Thousands. N ot one tric k such as this is produced in a G en eration ! I Cliallange D enial W ith P ro o f. F e a tu re No. 2 : - B I R T H O F OLD G LO RY. The M agical production o f a flag is not new , o f course. B u t when the p erfo rm er shows H ands P e rfe c tly E m pty save a flam ing sheet o f paper, and so larg e a flag appears as fro m now here and F lo a tin g Out A t F u ll Length fro m Hands w hile H ands Rem ain a t A rm s Length fro m B ody and No Sleeve W o rk ; and, i f you w ere sittin g w ith in th ree fe e t o f p e rfo rm e r and fa ile d to see w here flag came fro m , W h at W o uld Y ou C all Such A n E f fe c t? B u t, Supposing Y ou H appened to K n ow the S e c re t and S t ill W a s U n able to see F la g A p p ear, But Could See I t W a s There and F ee l its F old s S trik in g Y o u r B ody and Its M agical B reeze F an n in g Y o u r Cheeks as i f to s a y : “ P lease S tan d Back and G ive Me R oom l ! ” How W o uld That S trik e Y ou? F ea tu re No. 3 : - T H E M Y ST E R IO U S AN G EL. Did you eve r see a lad y produced under such circum stances? I f so, W h en ! W h e re ? I f this F e a tu re is New and the effect is as stated , and it must be, then W h a t is $200.00 f o r this S e c re t A lo n e ; being a com m odity o f Indefinite R e-productiveness? To say N othing o f the Enhancem ent o f the P e rfo rm e r’s R e p u ta tio n ; which is, in its e lf, an Incalculable A s s e tl F e a tu re No. 5 : —RE-IN CARN ATION . Is o f S im ila r C h aracter but even M ore P e rfe c t. B ut it Is not the value o f the F ea tu res as Sing le Unites alone th at M ust Be Considered but also T heir C ollective Significance, E ffectiveness and P ow er, re su lta n t o f th e ir U nique In ter-R elation sh ip. C reating an A c t o f “ C h a ra c te r” and an E x ceedingly N ovel and B ew ild ering “ S k e tc h ” o f G re at R a rity , o f A bsorbing and F ascin atin g In tere st and M agnetic A ttra c tiven e ss. D on’t miss this, Y o u r O pportunity, by which you m ay secure th is M agnificent and V aluable P rize W ith o u t R isk or Cost to You.
M AGICAL OVETTE,
BOX 72
DUNDEE LA K E , N. J ,
.
ADVANCED MAGIC.
49
(NOTE—I t should be born in mind tlia t new Era Magic Is in its Infancy th erefore the num ber o f trick s and Illusions o f the "H igher ty p e ”- o f magic is up to the present tim e, quite lim ited, which accounts fo r the com p arative ly sm all num ber o f this class appearing in this book. H ow ever, as fa s t as tric k s and Illusions o f the higher class, (New E ra M agic), are created, they w ill be promptly announced.)
ETHERTA OR THE HUMAN AEROPLANE. E F F E C T :—P e rfo rm e r mesm erizes his lad y assistan t,—places her on a D ivan, from which, obedient to mesmeric passes, she rises into the A i r ; p e r fo rm e r continues his hypnotic influence causing the lad y to float out over the heads o f the Audience, pass th ru hoops, re tu rn to stage, and fin ally set tlin g on two ch a irs: (head on one and fe e t on the o th e r ) ; body s till rig id and in plain view o f the Audience. P e rfo rm e r now lifts subject, pu ts h e r on her fe e t and “ brings her to o ” , i. e., restores her to animation and her senses! ( “ E theria” smiles.)
CONSTRUCTION OF PROPS G et thin sheet ru b b er or Oiled S ilk , and fit p a tte rn s o f it o ver a fo rm , (wooden or H um an), size o f lad y assistan t, and gum them tog ether, form ing a closed bag or balloon, shape o f Human body. There m ust be a hole in bal loon fitted w ith tap, w ith which to connect gas tube. There m ust also be a co llar gummed on fo r the purpose o f attach ing a head. Head m ay be carved out o f cork or a larg e sponge; or a bunch o f sm all sponges glued together and covered w ith sheet ru b b er or oiled silk. F ace should be a mask resem bling fe a tu re s o f “ E theria” and painted to match E theria’ s make-up. In filling the gas bag; make it a point to g et n e a rly a balance between gravity and buoyancy, w ith the la tte r only slig h tly in the assendancy. No doubt the s k irt, hood, etc., w ill be w eighty enough; i f not, more w eight iS-in be used, o r some o f th e gas let out and a ir pumped in its place to get the gentle buoyancy required.
50
ADVANCED MAGIC.
W hen introduced, lady assistan t appears in spangeled tights. A gown, a ll bunched up, is handed her, thru hole in center o f which she th ru sts h er head and allow s gown to fa ll ahout h e r enveloping body (see “ A ” fig. 2 ). Gown has i. collar attached, which is brought up o ver head and fastened un der chin fo rm ing a hood (see “ C ” Fig. 2 ). Male ;.ssistant takes hold o f sk irt and stretches it out fu ll w idth (see “ B ” Fig, 2 ). S t ill holding skirt., assistan t w alks around lad y, w inding sk irt snugly around her and fasten s same. P oint “ D ” (see F ig. 2 ), is a l lowed to hang loose. I t should be h a rd ly necessary to m ention th a t the gas bag should be sk irted and hooded etc., to rep resen t an exact duplicate of th e heroine of the p la y and then fastened to re vo lv in g pannel o f Divan.
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W e w ill now take a look a t the D ivans o f which we have tw o ; occupy ing; opposite sides o f tem p o rary stngirig erected six fe e t above stage proper. (See Fig. 1 ). The seats o f these D ivans are constructed ex actly the sam e; having a pannel in center o f seat which revolves. (See P lan o f D IV A N seat F ig. 3 which gives fu ll d eta ils). Our stageing has an extension 18 in wide, p ro jectin g out in parquet over heads o f audience. This extention enables the p e rfo rm e r to accom pany his subject so as to m aintain fu ll pow er over h er by his w o n d erfu l H ypnotic influence ( ? ) (N OW K E E P Q uiet a m in u te )! Then we have on each side o f extention, tw o ropes 1 8 in. a p a rt w ith canvas between them, stretched fro m top o f r e a r ra ilin g o f stageing to flag-staff at end o f extention. (W e w ill call these “ Canvas s h a d e s).” The R ailing o f extention is 4 ft. high. Canvas shades are two ft . from ra ilin g and 1 f t . higher.
a x e u
A thread is attached to hood o f inflated fa k e — travices along un der can vas shade—thru the hoops a t end o f e x te n tio n —and hack to Divan No. 2 and then back to assistan t behind curtain. T hread tends to stabelize the D IR IG IB LE fa k e and m ake it run more stead ily, and obviate the p o ssib ility o f it accidently slipping aw ay and getting beyond the reach o f the M esm erist. P e rfo rm e r can cause fa k e to move to the rig h t o r l e f t —up or down, by sim p ly pressing hand or wand against thread. N orm ally, fa k e run s along about six in. below canvas shade. M ovem ents or D irigible fa k e seem to be alto g eth er a t the w ill o f the perform er. Now I believe we have everyth in g re a d y ; l e t ’s tr y it and see how she works.
REHEARSAL P e rfo rm e r appears and w ith w ell feigned solem nity, s in c e rity ; delivers him self som ething as fo llo w s:
earnestness and
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ADVANCED MAGIC.
“ Ladies and G entlem en: I am about to undertake an experim ent o f a v e ry unusual c h a ra c ter and I re sp e ctfu lly requ est th a t you k in d ly rem ain as quiet as possible, as the success o f the experim ent and possibly the life of a Human Being depends upon profound stillness. I am sure, fo r w h at you w ill w itness, you w ill fe e l am ply rew ard ed fo r com plying w ith m y humble r e q u est.” “ E T H E R IA ” is now introduced and dons h e r gown as p reviou sly ex plained, Hood is adjusted o ver her head, and gown rapped around h er as herein before directed. Two assistan ts m ove D ivan (A ) slig h tly fo rw a rd and rem ain standing behind it. P e rfo rm e r puts “ E th e ria ” into an H ypnotic state and places h er upon D ivan “ A ” from which, under the influences o f his m esm eric passes, she arises into the A i r ! S till obedient to p erform ers hypnotic passes she floats g ra c e fu lly out over heads o f the audience, accompanied by p erfo rm er who w alks out on the extention. A T end o f the extention, lad y passes th ru the hoops and re tu rn s to stageing and settles upon D ivan ‘ ‘B ” , fro m w hich she again ris e s —floats across th e stageing and fin ally alights on tw o chairs (head" on one and fe et on the o th er), fro m w here she is lifte d by p erfo rm e r and assistan t, stood upon h e r fe e t and restored to consciousness and anim ation ! (“ E th e ria ” sm iles) (audience applauds). W e ll! I t was a grand success w a s n ’t i t ? B u t I see you are m ystified y o u rs e lf! W h a t you need is more light. A ll rig h t, here it i s : “ You see, w hile the p e rfo rm e r is w ith his fake “ E theria” out above the audience, the real Etheria makes her escape, thru re a r o f D ivan and thru re a r ra ilin g o f stageing and cu rtain , and enters D ivan No. 2 (B ) th ru re a r tra p , and, layin g fa ce down, attaches h e rse lf to underside o f tra p which has been p revio u sly set. I wo invisib le w ires w ith loops a t th e ir ends
PART SIX
BETWEEN SHOWS —
o r —
HOT SPOTS.
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ADVANCED MAGIC. “ BETWEEN SH O W S” (OR ‘ ‘HOT SPO’T S ” )
l a reg ard to “ H ot S p o ts ” or the V icissitudes o f M agicians, the fo llo w ing incident appealed to nie as a dem onstration o f quick thought a t a c ritic a l moment. A w ell known M agician w as p laying a t a th e a tre in Je rs e y C ity , a few seasons ago. In the p a rt o f his program m e where the “ G lass T ru n k ” is us ed, he had the tru n k rolled out to the center o f the stage, calling the a tte n tion o f the audience that the trun k was p e rfe c tly em pty. He dropped down the fro n t o f the .trunk, but instead o f it being em pty, a young lad y could be seen, v e ry com fortably reclining w ithin. (Som ething was su rely w ro n g ). D elib erately closing fro n t o f trunk, the e n te rta in e r w alked to fo o tlig h ts to offer an explanation to the audience aud addressed them som ewhat as fo llo w s: “ Ladies and G entlem en: A moment ago I allow ed you a b rie f glim pse o f a p a rt o f m y secret methods. You no doubt believed when looking at the tru n k you saw a young lad y w ithin. You did, and did not, but in re a lity , w hat you did see, was but a reflection o f a young lad y. V ery fe w people are aw are th at a M agician while p erform ing an illu sion, ve ry often relies on the assistance o f m irro rs .” ‘ ‘ M irro rs can be arranged so as to reflect to the center o f the stage, a person standing quite a distance aw ay, such as behind a w ing or a screen, th erefore when tbe in te rio r o f the tru n k was exposed the young lad y was standing behind a wing, in a d irect line o f reflection, m aking it ap p ear as i f she w ere in the trunk. Now th at she has re tire d and out o f vision, I w ill open tru n k once m ore to convince you it is p e rfe c tly em pty. ( l i e showed tru n k em pty) and then continued his usual ro u tin e .” The foregoing appealed to me as an object lesson. A s f a r as th e audi ence was concerned, it was divided as to opinions, some believed in w h at wTas told them, others had their doubts, but as his audience was a v e ry refined one, there w ere no comments. I adm ired the quick w it and self-con trol o f the M agician, under the circum stances. The Illusionist has a m ighty difficult proposition to contend with. W hen he w alk s out on the stage, clothed in the dignity o f his position, little does the audience realize (o r care) w hat a resp on sib ility th ere is hidden beneath his s ta te ly pose, when w ith a w ave o f his hand o r wand o r the re p o rt o f his gun, creates a w onderful tran sform ation . H is assistan ts a re the re a l M agi cians, upon them depend the success o f the Illusions. E fficiency in selecting assistan ts fo r a M agical A c t should be the fu ndam ental prin ciple. G reat care should be exercised in the m a tte r o f speed and accuracy. H aving had the pleasu re (o r m isfortu n e) to sam ple th e life o f the C ir cus, Museum, T heater, S to re Show , C ountry f a i r , C a rn ival and Club w ork, m y schooling has been quite proficient. A s a trapeze p e rfo rm er, I had my ups and downs. A s a lire e a te r 1 enjoyed m any a hot tim e. D uring my Museum C arreer I enjoyed a d elig h tfu l w arm lunch fro m 7 to 12 times a day and i f the old adage is true, th a t p ractice makies p e rfe c t, I should have been the K in g o f Human Salam anders. A f t e r the experience o f several fires, w hereas the fire-departm ent was the ch ief actors and I was the best loser, I decided to bu y up a few tin box es, some hand kerchiefs, a deck o f cards and a magic wand and became a M agician. H aving since paid some r e a l m oney fo r m agical apparatus, I have found it more pleasant to be stung th an to be burnt b y fire. In the e a rly days m y class o f magic w as v e ry often used as a supper-chaser, and to exem plify my a b ility to an em pty house three times a day rath er grat
ADVANCED MAGIC.
55
ed on m y sen sitive nature, th e re fo re I decided to e a ter to local w ork. In this class o f w ork I found m y past experience o f g reat benefit. To accept an hour and a h a lf engagement to e n te rta in an audience o f about 3 o r 4 hundred in a sm all H all, w ith a little p la tfo rm stuck up against the w a ll fo r a stage and a gripsack fu ll o f nothing, requires g re a t showm anship, especially when you have been ad vertised as an illu sio n ist and they send an express wagon to the depot to get y o u r trunks. (T ry this and make good). B u t d o n ’t blame me fo r the headaches you w ill get.) D uring the holidays, the M agician is in g reat demand fo r children en tertainm ents, giving them fro m one to one and a h a lf hours o f M agic. On one occasion 1 was entertain in g some children in the aftern o on . A t night, I w as to en terta in a t anoth er place. Thinking th a t I would h ave an oth er audience o f children I carried the same bag o f trick s w ith me, but, when I a rriv e d a t m y night job, I found it to be a “ S m o k e r,” given by a Uept. Club, held in th e ir Club House (a p riv a te house used as a Club House show room, was the fro n t p a rlo r). There was room fo r about 10 0 but £00 managed to get in. A p artitio n about 6 fe e t wide divided the fr o n t p a rlo r fro m the back p a rlo r, a doorw ay on both sides o f th is p a rtitio n connecting the both rooms. In fro n t o f this p a rtitio n was a large floor m irro r reaching to the ceil ing, a 4x6 p la tfo rm , a fo o t high set n icely against this m irror. The place w as so crowded, th at those in the fro n t row had to brace th eir fe e t against the p la tfo rm in ord er to keep from pushing the actors off the stage, also the doorw ays leading into the re a r room w ere so congested th a t a fte r you got out on the stage, you cou ld n’t get off again. Conditions did not look v e ry fa v o ra b le fo r the " M a n o f M y s te ry ” . To add to the pleasure, this kind o f audience w ill not stand fo r Sund ay School stuff. Such trick s that I could have used un der o rd in a ry conditions, w ere out o f the question to present b efore a m irror. Then again two o f th e ir S t a r A cts w ere late, and I was to k ill time. A special requ est was made fo r the C igar, C ig arette and Card trick . B y chance 1 happened to have a prepared c ig arette load ed w ith the card, as it was necessary to fo rce a duplicate card, I found I had no cards to m atch the prepared one, and the only cards in the house w ere o f a different back. M y card was o f a ilesh colored back, (th e ir cards being a ll blue backs,) so 1 forced an 8 o f H earts (w hich was the c-ard I was using) and then tore it up, letting one o f the audience hold a sm all corner. From a borrowed C igar I produced the card restored. A g ain tearin g the card again, 1 produced it from a borrowed cigarette. I do n o t think that anyone detected th at the card I was producing had a llesli colored back. 1 w as taking big chances, but luck was w ith me. The fo llo w in g was a ve ry in terestin g a ffa ir. This date was in N ewark. I w as to go to the residence o f Mr. A ., be there a t 7 1*. M. A r r iv in g a t the appointed hour, M r, A . met me a t the door. He apologized fo r g ettin g me th ere a t such an e arly hour, explaining th a t i t was his b irth d a y and as a member o f a card club, the club w as to meet at his house to p la y cards, a fte r which I was to be introduced as a surprise. Conducting me to th e top floor, he le ft me w ith fo llow ing instructions. I was lo keep out o f sight u n til called fo r, some cigars and a deeautor would be sent up to keep me company. W e ll, to make a long sto ry short, 1 received one cig ar and a glass o f wine. I read fo r a w hile and smoked a w hile, the little clock on the m antle ticked aw ay the m inutes. I counted one hour, then tw o and then three. A s the room was v e ry cosey and com fortable, I began to fe e l v e ry nvueh a t home. Suddenly my com fort w as in terru p ted by the b u tler g en tly shaking me, a t the same tim e try in g to explain th a t the guests had gone home. In quirin g as to the w hereabouts o f M r. A . I was in form ed he bad been carried up to his room a fe w hours previous.
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ADVANCED MAGIC.
The poor fellow had forgotten his surprise, but got it when he receiv ed my bill fo r services. I waited from 7 P. M. to 2 A . M. to play the date. I t was too bad they awoke me. A su rp rise on me was a t an engagement up town N. Y . C ity. M y in struction s w ere, “ C h ild ren ’s p a rty , A fte rn o o n .” A rriv in g a t the residence, 1 w as given the use o f the bath room , to p re p are m y lay o u t. W hen the tim e came f o r my appearance, 1 was escorted to the reception room . A s I w alked in sm iling, it struck me a little odd, not seeing any o f the children. There w ere only fo u r people in the room, the m aid, butler, a m iddle aged wom an and a v e ry eld erly lady. I fu ssed about m y table fo r a w hile, thinking som eone'had gone down s ta irs to send the children up. A ft e r a w hile one o f the ladies inform ed me I could proceed w ith the entertainm en t as soon as I w as re a d y . “ I w as not asleep th is tim e hut wide aw a k e.” M y audience consisted o f the fo u r people and no children. I t seemed the v e ry old lad y w as a siste r to a lad y whom I had done quite some w ork fo r, and havin g previous en tertain ed her “ g irls sewing cla s s ” , she thought it would be a tre a t to have me entertain h er “ v e ry old s is te r ” who w as v e ry deaf. F o r one hour, I w as doing tricks, th a t is doing a trick , and then y ellin g to the top o f m y voice in the old la d y ’s ear, try in g to te ll h er w hat I w as doing. On anoth er occasion my audience consisted o f six children, ranging fro m 3 to G y e a rs o f age. Im agine six little chairs in a row , a little boy o r g irl on each chair, and then five women seated a t a table ju s t behind them sipping tea and talk in g to beat the band. F o r alm ost an hour I was on m y knees in fro n t o f the six little chairs try in g to b ark like a dog, o r try in g to do som ething fu n n y to m ake the children laugh. I n ever knew I could te a r up so much paper and m ake so m any d ifferen t things. I was g etting along ve ry nicely un til one o f the little fe llo w s fe ll asleep and was carried up to bed fo r his aftern o o n nap. 'The poor little fellow missed the grand finale. A t the opening o f m y program m e I produced a bowl o f gold fish swim m ing in re a l w ater, placing it on a ped estal it m ade a v e ry p re tty ornam ent (so the ladies said ). A t the end o f m y program m e I produced a large flag, so when the children arose to salute the flag one sweet little dear, pushed o ver the pedestal. Needless to sa y also the bowl, fish and w ater. So a fte r the storm , some o f us had w et fe e t. The lady o f the house, told me it had done no harm and as th e w a te r was clean, it had not ruined anythin g and she thought I was v e ry in te r esting, but as I had to buy anoth er fish bowl and some m ore fish, I d id n ’ t have the same thoughts. (B u t how m any m inds a re th e re w ith b u t a single thought) 1 I re c a ll an engagement one aftern o o n in an uptow n A p a rtm en t House. The L ad y w anted a M agician w ith a lo t o f live stoek, I did not know o f th is a t the time. I w as using a t this time a ra b b it and a. chicken. She w anted me to produce birds, ra b b its and ducks out o f the variou s articles around the room, such as a vase, lam p o r the M usic Box. The p a rt o f the room I selected w as in fro n t o f the F ire-p lace, as it gave me a v e ry good back ground, I also used a large le ath e r ch air to hide m y tw o grips. D ur ing my program e I produced the poor little ra b b it a t three different tim es and the chicken had to ap p ear twice. The Lady could not understand w here in the w orld they a ll came fro m . W hen I w as packing up the L ad y wanted to know w here a ll o f the anim als w ere, as she could on ly see a chicken and a rab b it. I tried to convince her they w ere like the M u ltip ly ing B illa rd B all, you s ta rt w ith one and then they m ultiply. She wanted me to show h e r how th ey became invisible. The m an o f the house w as very nice he told me it would be a good idea to tie a different colored rib :
ADVANCED MAGIC.
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bon on the rabbits so th ey could tell them a p a rt. He gave me a c ig ar and said it was a good trick . Speaking about w orking in fro n t o f a fireplace, it rem inds me o f a sto ry told by a b ro th er M agician. ITe was en tertain in g a t a p riv a te house, stan ding in fro n t o f- the fireplace to do his tricks. l i e produced finite a num ber o f silk flowers, paper g arlands, tlow er-balls and a lo t o f oth er things th a t was pleasing to the eye. A ft e r the perform ance the M agician was invited to partak e o f a cold bottle (o f which he was v e ry fo n d ). S o g ath ering up his paper (lowers, etc., and placing them in the fireplace fo r safe keeping, there being no fire at the tim e e ve ryth in g would be sa fe and out o f the w ay o f the children. So he w ent down s ta irs to fill up. The children w ere in another room enjoyin g a feed, as it was about the tim e o f the y e a r when ,the days were w arm and the nights w ere cool, the L ady told the b u tler to light a low fire just to take the chill out o f the room. (He did so) using the m agician's paper, flow ers, etc., which no doubt made a good starter. I t was not v e ry pleasant at the tim e, but w h y do these M agicians make people think th at a ll those p re tty things come out o f the a ir? On another occasion I was engaged to entertain a p riv a te p a rtv o f nine people at the A p artm en ts o f a Russian Colonal. T was to be there a t 10 P. M. I was supposed to be one o f the guests and not a re a l M agician. O f the nine people three could speak a little broken English. I started to w ork about 1 0 :4 5 and tried to entertain them till ve ry n e a r 1 A . M. I noticed every once in a while one o f the men would say som ething in R us sian to the others and they would laugh, a( the time I thought; they w ere laughing at som ething T had done, but a fte rw a rd s 1 found out they werp laughing at my frien d who was somewhat o f a M agician him self, and he was tellin g the rest how some o f mv trick s were done. This is what we. gel by doing tricks that other people know. 1 w as treated ro y a lly , but i f any one thinks it is .pleasant to en tertain a p a r ly o f nine fo r tw o hours and not understand a word they w ere saving, they a re welcome to think so. W h a t would a M agician do when he a rriv e s at Hie show place and finds it to be a big dancing pavilion, space to seal about 1000 people w ith a six fo ot high p latform in tlie cen ter o f the floor to be used fo r Boxing Bouts. I come along w ith m y little bag o f trick s, w hat a p leasant tim e I was going to have, you had to climb a lad der to get upon this p la tfo rm and a fte r you w ere there you w ere in the cen ter o f about 800 men out fo r a good time. (T am not tellin g what I did) enough to say I got, my money and a rrive d home safe. A t a F a ir held a t the W a ld ro f-A s to ria fo r the B aby Fold. A trained dog and a M erry W izard were on exhibition at 25 cents adm ission. I was the W iza rd , the trained dog was at an oth er p a rt o f .the balcony. W hen business was slow the Lady in charge wanted us to lean over the ra ilin g o f the balcony and make a noise like a dog. I inform ed h er that T was there to do trick s and not to do an anim al act. A B ro th er p erfo rm er tells me a fu n n y sto ry o f a M agician and him self, p layin g an engagement on Long Island. They had played a show fo r some Club, and in this Town one o f the S ta te L unatic A sylum s w ere situated. A ft e r the show was o v er and it being a v e ry pleasant evening they decided to w alk to the S tatio n , on Hie road they fe ll in w ith anoth er gentlem an who said he had been to the show and enjoyed th e ir e n te rta in ment v e ry much, and as lie was a member o f a local Club he would like to engage them fo r th e ir a ffa ir which was to be held at a n ea r date. A s the B o y s'h a d this p a rtic u la r date open they booked it at a good figure. So
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ADVANCED MAGIC.
bidding the B oys good night, the gentlem an lo ft them w ith a prom ise to send fu rth e r instructions. The S tatio n Agent had seen tlie hoys speaking w ith the man so inquired what he had said, on tellin g him the sto ry the A gent laughed and told them th at the C ent was an inm ate o f the A sylum . So the Boys did not p la y the date. Such conditions as the fo llow ing take a ll the pleasure out o f M agic: You go to a place w ith the understanding you a re to show a t the L y ceum, when you get there it is too w arm to show indoors, so they w alk you about a m ile out in the woods to a Picnic G round and stand you upon' one o f the tables to do you r act requ iring the assistance o f tw o o r three boys to hold down y o u r stuff to prevent the wind from blow ing y o u r act up in the trees. Then again you go to a B oat House, the night is so hot they c a n ’t hold the entertainm en t inside so you are put out on the veran d a w ith a h a lf a dozen Jap an ese lan tern s hanging around fo r light, the ceiling is so low the Ju g g ler has to get down on his knees to do his act. I w ant to say one w ord in closing, a fte r von have had these exp eri ences o r those sim ilar, I can s a fe ly say you are able to stand up against an yth in g in the line o f doing trick s fo r the public. L a te r I got busy doping out some new effects and staged a Chinese magic act th a t ‘ took the house’ w h erever I played. A gents and m anagers throughout the cou ntry got to know my act but eve ry season I changed a num ber o f item s in m y program so I could p lay re tu rn dates a t a num ber o f the th eatres w here m y act w ent big. W hich again fo rces me to state th a t the magician who keeps his act up to date can make good on not only any bill but can p lay retu rn dates successfully.
FINIS.
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DADDIES GRAND OLD ARM CHAIR OR THE TRIPPLE M YSTERY EFFECTS A hand truck loaded w ith w h at looks to be picces o f fu rn itu re , and which is in re a lity p a rts o f one a rtic le o f fu rn itu re , n a m e ly : A n U p h o lster ed Chair, is wheeled on the stage. The load consists o f five pieces o r p a rts which, when assembled, fo rm s a large easy arm -chair, complete. Now, as the p e rfo rm er and bis assistan t unloads the truck, they a s semble the five p a rts, fo rm in g the ch air com plete, in fu ll view o f the audi ence. .The fo llow in g is the mode o f procedure in d e ta il: F irs t, the legs arc placed on tlie stage. Next the cushion seat is shown, also, the reve rse 'sid e o f which is turn ed to the audience th a t th ey m ay see the underside contains only springs and springs only. P e rfo rm e r th ru sts his wand in among the springs to prove only em pty space there. The cu shion is then placed, fo rm in g the seat. N EXT, the back is ad ju ste d —then the arm s are put in place. The chair, which is on casters, is now w hirled around, so th a t the audience can get a good view o f re a r side o f chair. (The chair-back is made w ith a door th a t opens giving fu ll view of in te rio r o f chair-back.) P e rfo rm e r states th a t bis F a th e r w as v e ry w ealth y and when he died he w illed him his “ Old A rm -C hair.” This gave occasion f o r my relatio n and others, to sm icker and laugh and poke fu n at me be cause M y G ran d fa th e r le ft me nothing but “ The Old A rm -C hair” ! “ B ut, sh o rtly T turned the laugh on them ,” says the .perform er, “ when one day I discovered a sec ret—“ I discovered th a t the C h air had a door opening into its in te r io r !” S u itin g action to bis w ords, the p erfo rm e r opens th e door o f the Chair-back; thus giving audience fu ll view o f in te rio r o f Chair-back, which contains springs and springs only. P e rfo rm e r pokes his wand a ll among the springs which proves the statement true. P e rfo rm e r fu rth e r states th a t it was in the secret enclos ure th at be found Eight hundred thousand dollars ($800,000) in gold and legal tender! B u t, savs the p erform er, the closet is —i s — empty—now! The door o f the Chair-back is now closed and the ch air is turned h a lf w ay around again leaving chair facin g audience. N ext, an o rd in ary looking wooden box—soap box—is shown on all sides and placed on the C hair S e a t where fro n t side, hinged as a door is opened giving fu ll v ie w -o f in te rio r o f the box. P e rfo rm e r taps with his wand a ll around on inside o f box to show a ll to be ju s t as it look s—P erfectly
Em pty! M YSTERY NO. 1. P e rfo rm e r closes door o f b o x —C ra ck ! C ra ck ! The re p o rt o f pistol shot rings out and in sta n tly a huge howl, 30 inches in diam eter appears upon the box. (N o te :—Box measures 20 in, across eith er w ay, w hile the bowl is 30 inches in diam eter!) NOTE these points: There are no m irrors used. No stage traps. There is no other fu rn itu re on the stage. The m aterialization takes place in full view ,and without any c o ve rin g .. and in the center of a b rillia n tly lighted stage. No “ Black A r t ” W in gs, D rops, Screens, etc. etc. have nothing to do w ith this scheme. The view underneath the C hair remains p erfectly clear all the time. Unadulterated “ New E ra M agic” , B affles the most A stu te and analetycal intellects. Most wonderful magic the world has ev
er known!
ADVANCED MAGIC.
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M YSTERY NO. 2. No sooner than the huge bowl appears. A stream o f “ B lo o d ” sp irts from center o f bowl several fe e t up into the a ir where it makes a g raceful curve and fa lls back into the bowl which soon becomes fu ll to overflowing. NOTE THE PO IN T S—No connection w ith w a te r w orks or slau g h ter house. P erfo rm er does not go n ear the bowl.
M YSTERY NO. 3. Thunders ro a r —te rrib le detonation and confusion, (lik e a th ird act in a m elo-dram a) and suddenly on the surface o f the blood in the bowl ap pears a bewilderingly strange and most w onderful sight—A sight fa re ly staggering in its Amazing Effect! A n Allegorical W onder which, thruout the ages, has only existed in the imagination but which now appears real and alive! Yes, very much alive! This strangest o f all freaks is known as a Mermaid—A F ISH WITH
A HUMAN H E A D !!!
A HUMAN HEAD OF THE FEM ALE S P E C IE S !!!
W h ile the Audience is w atching the p la y o f the “ fountain of blood” » ta il o f a m onster fish is suddenly seen to appear flapping about in the b o w l! This would seem the lim it—but w hat stage o f consternation do you suppose the m ental fa c u lties o f the audience is throw n into when the
head o f the fish appears and rests its chin over the rim o f the bo-wl? A ft e r an in terestin g and am using conversation between the p erfo rm er and the “ Mermaid” wherein comedy plays the leading p a rt the act closes w ith a song by the MERMAID accompanied by the O rchestra. D ear P ro fe sso r: Do you aspire to fame and a com petence1? W e ll, you can easily achieve both. Get the above Illusion and stage i t —th a t’s all! You have been calling y o u rse lf “ G reat” fo r some time, now h a v e n ’t yon p ro fesso r? V e ry w ell, now w hy not change things around and let yo u r audiences daub you “ G reat,” they w ill do it, i f you take our advise. The above Illusion
GRAND DADDIES OLD ARM CHAIR OR THE TRIPPLE MYSTERY is, an Illusion o f the H igher order. The N ew E ra Q u ality and makes a vaud eville act complete. W ill book yon across the continent and back as a H ead-Liner, w ith as m any re tu rn dates as you w ant, and w ith in a y e a r you w ill be g ettin g offers from G re at B rita in and oth er E uropean Coun tries. So you w ill have no more tim e to hang around Booking Offices w a it ing' fo r some vaud eville artists, to get sick and the tune th at “ magic is d ea d ,” w ill sound to you like a comic song. M an uscript w ith p a tte r and blue p rin t sketches w ill be furnished fo r $25.00. (A R E YTOU W I S E ? )
M AGICAL OVETTE, DUNDEE LA K E , NEW JE R SE Y . W , S. S. Accepted,
W ATCH FOR THE FIRST R EAL BOOK ON AND ENTITLED
VAUDEVILLE MAGIC By Magical Ovette, and
D. J. Lustig (La Velma) THE ONLY BOOK OF ITS KIND EVER WRITTEN. A work fo r the Professional and Am ateur Magical Entertainer. CHAPTERS-DEVOTED-TO-VAUDEVILLE
M AGIC;
SPIRITU ALISTIC-
EFFECTS and LATER D AY MENTAL-TELEPATHY. A book th at w ill contain many tricks and cffects, each worth many tim es the price of the work. Address fo r particulars. M AGICAL OVETTE, BOX 72, DUNDEE LAKE, N. J .
D. J. LUSTIG, (L A VELLM A), 207 MAIN ST., BRIDGEPORT, CONN.
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