When I went to a Gerry McCambridge workshop a few years ago, he talked about how it was important for a mentalist to show the process of how they’re reading a mind. A common process shown by mentalists is reading someone’s body language. In the mentalism I do that’s not presented as a coincidence, I try to show a process that’s believable.
I’ve been playing with unbelievable processes. One idea I had was for someone who it thinking of a work, they whisper it into their fist, then the need to get that idea into my head…so they slap me in the face!
That was just an idea, but it lead to a couple other ideas that were more workable. The idea I think I’m going to go with is to have someone think of a word. Then I hand them a paper roll and they are going to swing it like a baseball bat at my belly in a way that feels like their word.
I think there’s a ton of comedy potential that can happen around how the hit me. They can’t hurt me with the paper roll as it just collapses if they swing it hard.
Then after I verbally reveal the word, I can unroll the paper tube and it says the word they are thinking of!
I think this routine has potential.
-Louie
Category: Tricks
A Tip for Mentalists
A while ago I worked with a mentalist and they did a “psychometry” sort of routine where they matched things with the object’s owner. To do that the objects were put in bags then mixed up before the mentalist returned them to the proper owner. This mentalist (and many others that I’ve seen) put glasses on to do the part where they needed to read the marks and removed them after they read the marks.
DON’T DO THAT!
Sure probably 90% of audiences won’t notice that or make the connection, however many do. It’s like casually looking at an Apple Watch to get information, people notice. A friend of mine who isn’t a magician, but books big events had a mentalist and I asked how they were. My friends response was, “they looked at their watch a lot” and that told me all I needed to know.
Audiences do notice these things. Can you come up with a different way of making the prop?
Sew beads into it’s marked by feel?
Or use something that’s easier to see?
Can you wear glasses your whole show?
Think outside of the prop you bought that will work better with your eyesight!
-Louie
Oil and Water
Awhile ago I found a set of lecture notes called Something From the East by Haruhito Hirata. In the notes there was an oil and water trick that wasn’t for me, but it did have one part that did appeal to me. The cards were dealt out in rows and then the rows were mixed. The cards then separated by color.
The method was fairly complex and involved. I thought the trick could be streamlined a little bit, so I came up with this:
Then I realized that I could get a bonus trick out of it if the cards had different colored backs, so here’s the second version:
I’d like to get a third effect out of it, but not sure what that would be. Maybe it’ll come to me one day…
-Louie
Seance Spirit Hand!
One of the things that I make every now and then are seance/spirit hands. These are hands that tap messages from ghosts. I just make and sell the shell of the hand, it’s up to the buyer to gimmick them or use a gimmicked board wit them. The hands are also unpainted so that they can be decorated for whatever look the buyer wants.
Here’s one of the hands that was decorated and packaged beautifully by someone who bought on of my seance/spirit hand shells!
No one really makes a these hands and if you want one, the hand shells that I make are a good starting point!
-Louie
Jumbo Coins Thru Table
Sometimes I see a trick and I’m not sure how I feel about it. The effect is a coins through table, but with jumbo coins.
Watch the video:
From a magician’s standpoint the jumbo coins add difficulty. From a non-magician standpoint, I’m not sure if it enhances the effect. Sure, everyone knows that doing sleight of hand with a 3 inch diameter coin is much harder than with a 1 inch diameter coin. That difference is something that doesn’t really matter in the moment, unless you sell the trick as a “try to catch me” sort of trick.
Also, why jumbo coins?
I get that it’s a coin trick made bigger, but wouldn’t drink coasters work instead of the jumbo coins. Now you have a trick with a natural object that belongs on a table.
I think the effect in the video is very well done, however not sure how I feel about the trick.
-Louie
Vintage Magic Trick – Destiny Deck by Nick Trost
The Destiny Deck by Nick Trost is a fun little routine that has a few effects that happen one after the other. Here’s what the trick looks like:
@louiefoxx Vintage Magic Trick! Destiny Deck by Nick Trost! #magictrick #cardtrick #vintagemagic #cardmagic#nicktrost #louiefoxx #dice #closeupmagic #antiquemagic #antique ♬ original sound – Louie Foxx
What I’d probably do to change the trick is eliminate the dice and have people hold up fingers for their number. That frees up some pocket space and the trick will still work. It’s a fun trick to do, the only problem is the reset and because of that it’s something that I really won’t carry with me. However I did have fun doing it for a couple of days!
Also it looks like Abbott’s Magic has a few left in stock: https://abbottmagic.com/shop/ols/products/nick-trost-destiny-deck
-Louie
Magic Monday in Seattle!
I was up in Seattle on Monday last week, so went and performed at Magic Monday! This show happens on the second Monday of the month and has been running for something like 25 years!
Before the show I met up with Chris Beason for a quick drink at Teddy’s. This bar was one of the places where Cliff Gustafson used to perform when I was a teenager (and not old enough to get in to see him)
The performers were Jim, Evan, Payne and me.
Sorry Jim, somehow I didn’t get a picture of you.
It’s not just the show, a lot of magic happens, like Ruben doing some close up magic for the audience after the show.
I look at this show like a magic open mic. It’s a place to try new stuff for a great audience! It’s also like a magic club meeting as we all get together in the pub downstairs and hang out after the show.
If you’re ever in Seattle on the second monday of the month you should come out to the show!
-Louie
Fixing a Vanishing Birdcage!
A while ago I got a text from a friend who found a vanishing birdcage that was for sale. It was in really rough shape, it was missing a bar, had another bar that was loose and two of the corner bars needed to be fixed.
I bought the cage with an experiment with my bird cage guy to see if he could repair it. It came back and it looks like a totally different cage!
Not only were the bars replaced/fixed he also cleaned the cage. The cage was pretty loose when I got it and he tightened it up a little bit so it’s less like handling a jellyfish!
I’m glad I tried this and it’s good to know that there can be a second life to some of these old broken cages!
-Louie
Best Spoons and Forks for Metal Bending!
Frequently, I see people ask in social media groups “what are the best spoons/forks for metal bending?” The answers are all over the place, from ones specifically being sold at magic shops to Walmart. For me, you can’t the the Costco spoons and forks!
The cheap ones less than 31 cents per fork and less than 27 cents per spoon. They’re soft and ready to go out of the package. The normal Costco doesn’t normally stock these but the Business Costco does! A normal Costco membership will get you into the business Costco and walking around you might find other things you need for your show that the normal Costco doesn’t have.
I don’t know if Costco sells them online, but you should be able to search based on the info in the pictures above.
Happy spoon/fork bending!
-Louie
My Summer Library Show
Now that I’ve had a chance to do the summer library show a bunch, it’s gotten tweaked and changed. It’s now in its (mostly) final form, at least the trick list is. I’ll keep adding gags, etc to the show, but the set list is solid.
Here’s what the show looks like from the front.
I only use the table cover when they give me a giant table and don’t have something smaller for my prop box to sit on.
I use a rope for my front row, but move the rope a few minutes into the show. I’ve learned over time, that noting will keep the one or two kids that are going to cross the line from doing that. As I say, “scooters gonna scoot” and nothing short of a fence will stop that.
Here’s what the show looks like from the back:
Early on, I didn’t like the Milson Worth Silk Cabby in the show. It’s too much of a magicy prop for me. The prop’s use is justified in the show. The effect is a small scarf turns into a 20 foot streamer. There’s a lot of silliness/clowning that can be done with a silk cabby, and it’s a great prob (it just doesn’t fit my normal show aesthetic). What fixed the routine is that I added a hotdog production from the streamer at the end and that’s what made the routine click! It when from my least favorite routine to one of my favorites to do!
Here are the props that are on me during the show:
The PopSchticle by Whit Hayden is a prop of opportunity, and not something written into the show. I don’t use it often, but look for places where I can “organically” add it, like when I ask a kid a simple question and they tell me a long story that’s unrelated to the question. It’s a great prop for things like that!
So that’s what my library/summer camp show looks like.
-Louie