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michaelvincent V.I.P. 567 Posts 
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I must have been about 7 year old when I saw “The Cincinnati Kid” and I know for sure I was 9 years old when I saw “The Sting” as this film was released in 1973. These two films have become iconic for card men around the world, why? there is no magic to speak of. However, the context of of both films and the outstanding performances somehow embedded itself into my young mind.
The scene on “The Sting” where Paul Newman is gambling with Robert Shaw is a classic moment. For me, it was astonishing at the final showdown when Paul Newman reveals has poker hand. Forget about methods for a moment and just connect with the situation, it was truly amazing. I have loved card magic ever since. Mike
Magic for the 21st Century
"Why be mediocre, when you have excellence as an option" Mastering Magic Elegant Decpetions Learning Tools The All Cards Blog The Vincent Academy of Magic |
Bill Hallahan Inner circle New Hampshire 3226 Posts
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I really like that scene too. I particularly like the looks on everyone's faces, i.e. the somewhat smug look on Henry Gondorff's (Paul Newman's) face when he wins; Mr. (Doyle) Lonnegan's (Robert Shaw's) poorly suppressed rage at being out-cheated by someone that he thought was very drunk; and the look of surprise and fear on Mr. Lonagan's bodyguard, Floyd (Charles Dierkop), when he realizes the Mr. Lonagan might blame him!
A bit earlier, Henry Gondorff motivates Mr. Lonnegan to later participate with Johnny Hooker (Robert Redford) to hurt Gondorff by enraging Lonnegan before finally beating him at poker. Heny Gondorff is a pretty overbearing and obnoxious mock-drunk, and I don't think he ever says Lonnegan's name correctly. It's very funny. It's a classic scene. There is a great deal of deception throughout that movie, and while it's not magic, it's definitely very entertaining. I'm sure you know this, but others might not. John Scarne did the false shuffling in that film, so there is a magician, well at least a magician's hands, shown in that poker game. The Sting is one of my favorite films.
Humans make life so interesting. Do you know that in a universe so full of wonders, they have managed to create boredom. Quite astonishing.
- The character of ‘Death’ in the movie "Hogswatch" |
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michaelvincent V.I.P. 567 Posts
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Thanks for sharing Bill.
You can learn so much about deception from that film, from the very start to the end of the rolling credits. For a successful performance of magic, you must sustain the "con" or "The Sting" long after the deal is done. Our audience must never feel for one moment, we are trying to sting them. They must feel part of the happening from beginning to end. Cheers Mike
Magic for the 21st Century
"Why be mediocre, when you have excellence as an option" Mastering Magic Elegant Decpetions Learning Tools The All Cards Blog The Vincent Academy of Magic |
fonda57 Inner circle chicago 3080 Posts
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One of the most brilliant aspects of that poker game in The Sting is that they provided plenty of opportunities for Gondorf to have switched cards---goingfor the cigar or the lighter, bringing the cards close to his chest---but they never actually showed him doing it.
And I love Longegan's line later, "What was I supposed to do, call him for cheating better than me in front of the others?" |
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michaelvincent V.I.P. 567 Posts
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Quote:
On 2009-08-08 13:04, fonda57 wrote: Well put, I noticed theses physical actions many years later. How to act natural, this establishes a pattern of mannerism which are accepted as normal. When it comes time to do the move, it flies by the visual senses and does not register in the mind. Good stuff Mike
Magic for the 21st Century
"Why be mediocre, when you have excellence as an option" Mastering Magic Elegant Decpetions Learning Tools The All Cards Blog The Vincent Academy of Magic |
pepka Inner circle Uh, I'm the one on the right. 5041 Posts
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The Sting also had a huge impact on me. I saw it when I was about 13 and at the time, Copperfield was the big star in magic. But, when Gondorff "warms up" before the big came, dealing seconds and controlling the aces, that was SO much cooler than anything Copperfield was doing at the time.
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michaelvincent V.I.P. 567 Posts
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The Sting and The Cincinnati Kid aren't the only films to inspire me.
Casino Royal in my opinion is the best Bond film of them all and the card game between bond and Le Chiffre is a classic showdown. I also enjoyed "Rounders" with Matt Damon. What others films hooked your imagination for cards. Mike
Magic for the 21st Century
"Why be mediocre, when you have excellence as an option" Mastering Magic Elegant Decpetions Learning Tools The All Cards Blog The Vincent Academy of Magic |
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fonda57 Inner circle chicago 3080 Posts
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Well, there was a scene in Oh God where George Burns does a card trick, but I don't think that really counts.
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Darwin Ortiz V.I.P. 486 Posts
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Gunfight at the OK Corral featuring Kirk Douglas as Doc Holliday. I saw the movie when I was eleven. Douglas did a couple of flourishes, including a ribbonspread and domino turnover (to this day, my favorite card flourish). As far as I was concerned, Holliday was the star of the movie. Wyatt Earp was just a secondary figure. The film had a major impact on my career choice.
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Yves Tourigny Veteran user Somewhere in Quebec 323 Posts
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I remember a film, a western where a chinese dealer did a card flourish which I still remember to this day. I do not remember the title of the film as I was in my teen in that time and I'm fifty now but I do remember the flourish very well. It fired some of my passion for card magic...... I'm not sure of the name of the flourish but it can be found in one of Jerry Mentzer CArd Calvacade book. I think it is name the Cartwheel flourish.. The only magician that I've seen used the flourish is Mike Skinner. Wonderfull moment!!!!!
Yves |
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sman Regular user 109 Posts
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I saw each of the films memtioned here and enjoyed the card play in each. I also remember seeing Dean Martin on his TV show doing a few card flourishes while he was sining and sitting on the edge of a couch. I remember he was smooth and did it without any thought to what he was doing with the cards. Just delivered his song with style.
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sman Regular user 109 Posts
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I saw each of the films memtioned here and enjoyed the card play in each. I also remember seeing Dean Martin on his TV show doing a few card flourishes while he was sining and sitting on the edge of a couch. I remember he was smooth and did it without any thought to what he was doing with the cards. Just delivered his song with style.
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Kjellstrom Inner circle Sweden, Scandinavia, Europe 5203 Posts
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Cincinnati Kid - 1965 Trailer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k7oG12PCZwA The Sting http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCfflhAHbT0 Gunfight at the OK Corral http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jx-Uz5JFO8U |
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michaelvincent V.I.P. 567 Posts
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Quote:
On 2009-08-12 17:58, Darwin Ortiz wrote: Speaking of Doc Holiday Darwin, Val Kilmer's interpretation was superb in 'Tombstone". I love that movie Mike
Magic for the 21st Century
"Why be mediocre, when you have excellence as an option" Mastering Magic Elegant Decpetions Learning Tools The All Cards Blog The Vincent Academy of Magic |
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Darwin Ortiz V.I.P. 486 Posts
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Quote:
On 2009-08-13 11:20, Michaelvincent wrote: Tombstone is one of my favorite films as well. A great movie with a great cast, including a wonderful performance by Val Kilmer. Another outstanding film version of the Wyatt Earp story is Hour of the Gun, which was directed by John Sturges, the same man who directed Gunfight at the O.K. Corral. (Sturges also directed another one of my favorite westerns, The Magnificent Seven.) Hour of the Gun can be seen as a sequel to Gunfight at the O.K. Corral. The first film climaxes with the gunfight; the second film opens with the gunfight. It stars James Garner as Earp and Jason Robards as Holliday. A book that I would recommend to diehard film fans is Hollywood at the O.K. Corral by Michael Blake. It’s an in-depth analysis of every film version of the Wyatt Earp story. [End of digression] |
| The Magic Cafe Forum Index » » The August 2009 entrée: Michael Vincent » » My Passion for The Pasteboards - “The Cincinnati Kid and The Sting” » » TOPIC IS LOCKED (0 Likes) | |
Posted: Aug 7, 2009 07:20 am 
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