Another Vanishing Birdcage!

I recently aquired a new vanishing birdcage!

YIMKA vanishing birdcage

There’s a couple of interesting things about this vanishing bird cage. The big thing is that the corners are upside down, the wires are on the inside of the cage and not on the outside.

The corners also feel longer than they need to be, and it turns out that’s a characteristics of YIMKA vanishing birdcages. All of the pictures of them that I’ve now seen have longer corners than most cages.

After a chat with Doug Edwards who is the Vanishing Birdcage guy, it appears that YIMKA made cages with the corners upside down and the standard way. YIMKA also stamped his cages, but not all of them. The cage I have is unstamped, but based on what I’ve learned, I’d say my new cage is probably a YIMKA!

One of the fun things for me is the detective work and figuring out what I’ve just bought!

-Louie

EDC for TV spot

Yesterday morning I headed down to the local TV station to promote National Magic Week. I was on their morning “lifestyle” show and it was a lot of fun. One of the challenges of doing TV is that you don’t know how much time you have, they tell you about how much time, but you never really know for sure.

Here’s what I had in my pockets right before the start of the segment:

EDC magic tricks for a tv spot

These props would keep me covered for most situations that I could encounter. You may also notice the deck of cards isn’t a bicycle deck, it’s the Penguin Marked Deck. When I do TV spots, I try to always use a marked deck. That can potentially bail me out of some situations, like when the weatherman grabs a card and tell me to name it.

The other thing that I threw in my backpack was my vanishing birdcage.

Sometimes they ask you to do a quick trick as part of a teaser segment. These are usually a 5 – 10 second bit where you don’t talk, the host is introducing your segment. You need a very visual bit to be able to do in the background.

What I ended up doing for the show was my close up card set. I didn’t do the whole thing, but the reason I chose that was that it’s a modular trick. I can take things away from in to shorten it and it has multiple points that feel like the end. That makes that routine very useful for TV spots!

-Louie

The Big 10 Vanishing Bird Cage

I was chatting with my friend who makes vanishing bird cages and he was showing me picture of his Big 10 vanishing cage. The picture below is a normal full size (Owen) cage on the left and the Big 10 on the right.

vanishing bird cage

What’s crazy is that the Big 10 cage is actually smaller when collapsed!

vanishing bird cage

I use one of his smaller cages in my school assembly show Incredible Idioms® and I love it!! He makes great cages, and if you’re in the market for a vanishing birdcage, shoot me a note and I can get you in touch with him!

-Louie

New Reels For My Collection!

One of the things in magic that I collect are reels. Specifically locking reels, not so much plain reels like the Paul Diamond Reel or a P&L Fingertip Reel. I have those, but don’t actively hunt them down.

Recently Mike Caveney sent out an email and one of the things he was selling were some reels. It was a set to two reels, and I jumped on it!

I’m more interested in the locking reel on the left than the reel on the right. These reels were used more to reposition the cage after the vanish that for the actual vanish of a birdcage. I hope it looks a cool in person as it does in the pic!

-Louie

Jeki Yoo’s Vanishing Birdcage!

Here’s a great version of the Vanishing Birdcage by Jeki Yoo.

The cool thing about this is that he’s wearing what he normally wears for all of his videos. The downside is this method isn’t practical for a normal stage show presentation. In my opinion any different method for the cage is great, no matter how practical or impractical it is for different venues. The normal stage version of the Vanishing Birdcage is already a very impractical trick due to the set up when compared to pretty much any standard magic trick, so it’s hard to say any method isn’t “practical”.

-Louie

Custom Vanishing Birdcage!

A couple of months ago I had my first custom made vanishing birdcage made. Then a recently the maker reached out to me and offered to tweak it as he found a better way to make part of it and if I sent it back, he’d send me an updated vanishing birdcage!

vanishing birdcage
vanishing birdcage

The new cage came in the mail a few days ago and it looks great! It’s always great when I can have props made to how I want them, not having to work around the “off the shelf” model of props.

Finding this maker was a lot of work! Someone mentioned his name a long time ago, then I made a trip to Canada to see a show and his name got mentioned by another magician. Then a few emails and I got the maker’s contact and arranged a meeting!

I think we get spoiled by how instant and easy things are on the internet, that we forget sometimes you gotta put time in to hunt down people. I’m glad I put in the time!

-Louie

New Vanishing Birdcage

It’s always fun to get to test a magic product. I recently got a chance to play with a birdcage that someone is taking to market…or planning to.

Vanishing Birdcage

This one has a nice action and I gave some notes to the maker. Hopefully it will fill the gap between what’s currently available. Right now for a new cage your options are basically the $40 India cage or $1,500-$2,000 for the cages made by Daniel Summers. There’s really no mid range cage, just cheap or super nice.

-Louie

Vanishing Birdcage with Sleeves Rolled Up

Today I was playing with doing the vanishing birdcage with my sleeves rolled up like Tommy Wonder.

I’m using my Take Up Reel, but I’m not using a double action pull like Tommy Wonder used. The double action pull would reduce arm movement a little bit, however I have a lot of stuff happening on my back and I’m worried that adding another line and the bulk associated with that would be asking for trouble!

Honestly, I’m fine doing the vanishing birdcage with my sleeves down, it was fun to play with it today to see if I could!

-Louie

Garbage Article on the Vanishing Cage

I’m a nerd when it comes to the vanishing birdcage and the other day I came across an article that was written to promote a magic kit website, so not intended for magicians. This article I’m guessing was written for SEO purposes. What struck me is that I’m 99% sure that this article was written by Chat GPT or something similar. It’s not written how anyone really writes.

Here’s the article:

Today, we delve into the realm of illusion again to explore a classic trick that has mesmerized audiences for decades — the Vanishing Bird Cage. Prepare to be amazed as we unravel the secrets behind this awe-inspiring illusion that never fails to leave spectators spellbound.

The vanishing bird cage magic trick is a masterful illusion that creates the illusion of a live bird disappearing in the blink of an eye and this trick has its roots in the rich history of magic, and its execution requires a combination of skill, precision, and showmanship. It has long been a favorite among both amateur and professional magicians alike.

A magician walks on stage, holding an ornate bird cage with a vibrant bird perched inside. Our cage is displayed to the audience, allowing everyone to see the bird inside. With a flick of the wrist or the utterance of a magical incantation, the bird and the cage appear to vanish into thin air, leaving spectators shocked and eager for an explanation.

While the Vanishing Bird Cage appears pure magic, it is a meticulously choreographed illusion. The cage itself is specially designed with hidden compartments and clever mechanisms. Or concealed elements allow the magician to manipulate the cage, giving the illusion that the bird has vanished.

Timing and misdirection play crucial roles in the success of the trick. The magician’s movements, gestures, and patter divert the audience’s attention from the cage itself, allowing them to precisely execute the necessary sleight of hand. The magician’s showmanship keeps the audience engaged and captivated throughout the trick.

Performing the vanishing bird cage trick requires significant practice and dedication and magicians spend hours perfecting their technique, ensuring their movements are seamless and natural. Mastery of the illusion requires understanding the cage’s mechanics and the ability to perform the trick smoothly without arousing suspicion.

The Vanishing Bird Cage trick is a testament to the power of magic to captivate and astonish audiences. Whether performed on stage or up close, this illusion has a timeless quality that continues to enthrall spectators of all ages. It serves as a reminder that magic is not merely about tricks but about creating moments of wonder and enchantment.

Conclusion:

The Vanishing Bird Cage trick is a classic illusion that has stood the test of time. Its allure lies in the combination of artistry, skill, and showmanship to execute it successfully.

The article is factually inaccurate. What’s interesting about the vanishing birdcage is there are a couple of styles of it, the handheld style and the bigger style that sits on a table. And I’m pretty sure the AI that wrote that article can’t tell the difference between the two.

My advice is learn to write. If you’re trying to publish something for SEO purposes, you could do a better job and put more keywords into the article.

-Louie

Vanishing Bird Cage on the News

Here’s one of the short media spots that I recently did. For the short spot, I decided to do the vanishing bird cage.

@louiefoxx Parakeet Trick on the News! #birdtricks #parakeet #birdcage #magictrick #kgw8 #magician #washingtoncountyfair #bigfairfun #louiefoxx #disappear #drewcarney ♬ original sound – Louie Foxx

The nice thing about this trick is that it’s really visual, and doesn’t require really any explanation. For something like a pick a card type trick, there’s a lot of explanation and process that needs to happen before the magic. With these news spots, they say you have a minute or whatever, but in reality you may have a lot less!

-Louie