vintage magic trick – MagicShow.Tips

Ditching the Invisible Deck!

The idea of using a Nest of Envelopes as a running gag with a magical payoff is taking shape. In the first version of the trick, the magic trick was going to be card prediction. Playing cards are uniquely grouped to allow several choices of groups to get to a single card that nothing else I could think of can. Ideally, this trick wouldn’t be a card trick, but it’s looking like it will.

When I first came up with the idea, as a placeholder for the trick, I used an invisible deck. The goal is to have something more original or less common than an invisible deck. Also, the invisible deck is less punchy of a reveal. It takes time and steps to get to the reveal.

What I want is a single card in the envelope. That’s it, the card is chosen (in 3-4 steps), the last envelope is opened, and that’s the card in the envelope! I didn’t have a method, but with the re-release of Phil Goldstein’s trick Shinkansen, that jogged my memory.

A few years ago I made a vintage magic trick video of that trick:

@louiefoxx Is a magic trick from 2002 vintage? #vintage #magictrick #cardtrick #shinkansen #magic #packettrick #cardsacross #maxmaven #wow #louiefoxx #philgoldstein ♬ original sound – Louie Foxx

I also made a jumbo version of the trick and did it onstage as a filler piece. Part of the method of the Shinkansen led me to the method I’m going to start to use to do the prediction in Nest of Envelopes!

If you’re a magic creator, this is why having a broad knowledge of magic tricks and methods is a huge help! Part of the method for cards across got me closer to my vision for a playing card prediction!

-Louie

Jumbo Tom Foolery Transformation

The Jumbo Tom Foolery Transformation is a series of changes of four playing cards. One at a time, the cards flip over, then the backs change color, then the faces change.

Here’s a quick demo of it:

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The challenge with this is that you use the same move 13 times in the routine. I think this routine was originally done with poker sized cards, but then someone decided to sell it in jumbo size to have an additional product to sell. The move doesn’t really lend itself to the jumbo cards, especially with the provided thick 8082 Bicycle Cards!

I came up with a different handling, the move still has to be done 13 times, but I think it makes more sense with jumbo cards. Here it is with my move:

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A post shared by Louie Foxx | Comedy Magician (@louiefoxx)

While this is a trick I’ll probably never do for an audience, figuring out a better way to do it was a nice way to exercise my brain!

-Louie

Abbott’s Surrounded Livestock Vanish by Arturo

Thanks to the power of social media, I figured out what the magic prop that I found at a junk shop yesterday is!

It’s an Abbott’s Surrounded Livestock Vanish by Arturo!

After reading the description, I’m amazed that I pretty much nailed the handling of the box with my guess!

-Louie

Vintage Magic Junk Shop Find

Magicians always ask me where I find all the vintage magic tricks that I have. The answer is simple, I hunt for them. Recently, I was performing in a small town and was walking through a junk shop and found this box:

It’s clearly an older prop, my guess is 1960’s. Here’s a pic in the mirror of my hotel room so you can see the front and back:

What’s really weird about this is the arrangement of the window and door. Here’s a video walkthrough of the prop and what I think is going on:

It’s definitely interesting….

-Louie

Out of Context Vintage Magic Illustrations!

On my Facebook page I’ve started posting OUT OF CONTEXT VINTAGE MAGIC ILLUSTRATIONS. These are pictures from old magic books that I’ve come across that without context look strange. Here are the ones I’ve posted so far:

I normally post these on Sundays on my Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/louie.foxx/
Pop over there, all of these are public, however if we’re not friends, shoot me a friend request!

-Louie

Die Box

In a box of old magic that I bought, there were a couple of Die Boxes without the dies. Here’s one of them:

Instead of throwing them away, I tried to 3d print the die and shell. Here’s what I made:

For the inside of the shell, I used black adhesive fabric. Here’s the everything:

The end result was great and works! I’m glad I could give this prop some more life!

-Louie
Click here to learn more about building your own magic props!

The Stop Trick

In my collection of old magic stuff, I had a pack of FAKO cards. This is a deck of gaffed cards and novelty cards.

The pack I had was just the cards without the booklet, so I’m not 100% positive as to what tricks the cards do. One of the cards has a big stop sign on it, and here’s what I’ve been doing with it:

It’s just a second deal until they say stop, and then a timing force for the second time. Every time I do it, the person has a great reaction when they see the card!

-Louie

Vintage Magic Trick from Glen!

My buddy Glen knows that I love old magic tricks. He brought one to show me in Reno, so here’s The Farmer’s Daughter:

It’s a great little packet trick with a story that’s consistent with the time it was created. Thanks Glen for sharing it with me!

-Louie

Does Flash Paper Go Bad?

Recently, I bought an old box of magic props from the late 1950s/early 1960s, and it contained some 65ish year old flash paper. People frequently ask in magic social media groups, “Does flash paper go bad?” Well, let’s find out!

I’m amazed that it worked as well as it did and that it didn’t burn my fingers!

I think the issue that people have with flash paper is that they store it wet for safety, which is absolutely what you should do. Then dry out what you need to use a few days before you need it. That said, I think the paper sitting wet in a sealed bag over time will deteriorate. That takes years, and you really should be buying decades worth of flash paper at one time. It’s something you really should be buying a few months supply at a time. I personally wouldn’t want to store a ton of it at home.

Be safe.

-Louie

Flying Spots by Lubor Fielder

A couple weeks ago when I was in Las Vegas, I visited Trick Supply. One of the tricks that I picked up was Flying Spots by Lubor Fielder. There’s nothing crazy about this trick, it’s a paddle trick that I’m guessing he put out in the 1980’s.

I had an idea with it. Here’s my idea:

I’m not sure where I’m going to go with this, however I do like the look of the googly eyes a lot more than the black spots. Now I just need to write a routine!

-Louie