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Whit Haydn V.I.P. 5449 Posts |
Here is a performance of Chink a Chink with the new School for Scoundrels set of weights manufactured by James Riser:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=09vQ5H4NY84 |
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flimnar Special user Salt Lake 577 Posts |
Fabulous! I enjoyed the story that goes with the weights. When and where will these new chink a chink weights be available?
"This one goes to eleven..." Nigel Tufnel
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funsway Inner circle old things in new ways - new things in old ways 9982 Posts |
Always great to see an old effect given new life and to demonstrate the value of a story. For me, the brazen association of magical tricks with con games is powerful with the subtle suggestion that the weights are thrown from hand to hand; making things more magical when the spectator realizes this cannot be happening. Verbal misdirection needs a revival.
"the more one pretends at magic, the more awe and wonder will be found in real life." Arnold Furst
eBooks at https://www.lybrary.com/ken-muller-m-579928.html questions at ken@eversway.com |
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spatlind Special user still moving 863 Posts |
That was wonderfully entertaining, Whit. Thanks for sharing!
Actions lie louder than words - Carolyn Wells
I believe in God, only I spell it Nature - Frank Lloyd Wright. |
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pabloinus Inner circle 1683 Posts |
Very nice, Whit. How much of the story is true, and how much is fiction to make the little things to fit in the story?
Thank you .. Pablo |
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cupsandballsmagic Inner circle 2705 Posts |
I had seen those previously on Mr. Riser's site and thought they looked deliciously deceptive, but Whit sure did bring them to life...
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silverking Inner circle 4574 Posts |
When will they be available?
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Dave V Inner circle Las Vegas, NV 4824 Posts |
The historical references are for the most part true. I like the way Whit wove the weights into the story to blur the lines between truth and fiction.
No trees were killed in the making of this message, but a large number of electrons were terribly inconvenienced.
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RS1963 Inner circle 2734 Posts |
I'm glad to see they're going to be available again! I missed the boat last time. I won't let that happen again!
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Tom Fenton Inner circle Leeds, UK (but I'm Scottish) 1477 Posts |
Beautiful, Mr. Haydn. Thank you for sharing this with us.
"But there isn't a door"
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Whit Haydn V.I.P. 5449 Posts |
The story of the weights is fictional. All the rest is true. Wilson Mizner was the founder of the Brown Derby along with Sid Graummen and some others.
He did use the carpet trick when assaying gold. He was famous for cynical aphorisms like: "Hollywood is like a trip through a sewer in a glass-bottom boat." "Steal from one man, they call it plagiarism. Steal from four, it is research." His brother Addison was the architect, gigolo and con artist who founded Bocca Ratan. It was meant to be a swampland con scheme that went South and somehow unexpectedly became successful. Other people associated with Soapy's gang were Claude Alexander Conlin, who became Alexander "The Man Who Knows" and made 20 million dollars as a phony psychic in vaudeville, and Alexander Pantages, who as a bartender stole steaks from the kitchen of Soapy's bar, using leather pockets he had sewn into his jeans. He escaped Soapy's wrath by crossing the border into Canada--where the Mounties wouldn't let Soapy go--and then fell in love with a Dawson saloon entertainer named Klondike Kate. He parlayed her talents into a huge empire of vaudeville houses, including the still operating Pantages Theater in Hollywood. Colonel Smith (Soapy) was a close friend of Wyatt Earp, who had a saloon in Nome at the time, and of Bat Masterson. The chink a chink was a popular trick in the 1890's, and the weights were meant to look heavy like real scale weights, but were in reality hollow. The story was often about Chinese merchants who would entertain customers by playing with the weights. Since people are unfamiliar with scales like they used to be, the weights draw more attention and should be examinable. In this comparison, the shell and a weight from our previous collaboration with Chris Reesman (an identical reproduction of the 100 year old hollow set that Vernon always carried with him) is compared with the new design of solid brass weights and a shell created by Jim Riser for School for Scoundrels. The left hand weight, and the third weight from the left are both shells. The only change we have made from this set pictured is that the weights are now engraved with oz measurements instead of grams, as would have been the case in the 1890's. |
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Whit Haydn V.I.P. 5449 Posts |
To find out more about Soapy Smith, check out Jeff Smith's site (Jeff is the great-grandson of Soapy) at http://www.soapysmith.net
We celebrate the anniversary of the famous gunfight in Skagway in 1898 between Frank Reid and Soapy (they both were killed) every July 8th at the Magic Castle with a huge event. Everyone dresses in 1890's finery, and the joint is filled with roulette and faro tables and con men working three-card monte and the shell game. All the money stolen is given to the Vernon Fund. There is a beautiful oil painting of Soapy Smith headed for the gunfight on the walls of the Inner Circle at the Castle. Soapy was a hero of Dai Vernon, who talked about him often, and Dai hunted down and met with Jeff Smith's father to talk about the great con man and gangster. BTW, the Chink a Chink will only be available from http://www.ScoundrelsStore.com and from Jim Riser's site. They should be available next week. I like this way of doing a story trick, where the story and the effect are so intertwined, and yet the trick is framed by the story in such a way that the story doesn't interfere with the effect of the trick. I know there are so many ways one could extend this effect, but I like the bam, bam, bam of it, and wouldn't want to do any more moves really. The buildup with the story makes the effect last a little longer, without stretching the effect itself. It makes a very nice little interlude in a magic act, and yet is really surprising and impressive. On the DVD, we also show and teach Ed "Roscoe from Biloxi" Parrish's routine, which is a little more complicated and involved, but quite effective. |
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Lawrence O Inner circle French Riviera 6811 Posts |
Among the several good routines published since the 1880s, one of the ones I prefer is Al Schneider's take on the routine.
Years ago, I worked with Johnny Thompson on Chink A Chink, and he ended up using a move that I was not at ease with when I ended up with his handling for the same phase (and still use it). Just funny.
Magic is the art of emotionally sharing live impossible situations
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Pete Biro 1933 - 2018 18558 Posts |
Kaps has a nice handling with the special cones. I think he did it on The Parkinson Show on TV in England. Also, did the Gypsy Thread and Driebeek Die.
The one that still has me BAFFLED is his Gypsy Curse... doing it in front of Brother Hamman and NOT USING the Hamman Count but an overhand shuffle to do the same thing. It is a fooler in his hands. (OK, he does have big hands.)
STAY TOONED... @ www.pete-biro.com
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Gary Dayton Special user New Jersey 542 Posts |
Great routine, very entertaining. Love that accent, too!
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Mr. Mystoffelees Inner circle I haven't changed anyone's opinion in 3623 Posts |
Whit-
First, your performance is inspiring! I don't know if I have enough persistence left in me to master this anywhere near that level. Second, I have the original set. No need for detail as to the difference, but what is your opinion on the wisdom of getting the new set if you have the previous iteration? Thanks for any light you care to spread on this... Jim
Also known, when doing rope magic, as "Cordini"
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Whit Haydn V.I.P. 5449 Posts |
Well, the new set is examinable, it is much prettier and heavier, and the shell looks the same size as the weights. The shell is thicker, has the engraving on the top, and is less likely to dent or bend or change shape. It doesn't ever stick to any of the weights. It goes on and off as smooth as silk. The weights, of course, are solid brass and will last forever. They only get more beautiful as they develop a patina.
They are also a better size for doing more sleight intensive moves, like finger palming and shifting from the finger palm to the thumb/second finger pinch. I think the improvement is very significant, and if you enjoy your S4S/Encore set, you will find the new S4S/Riser set well worth the investment. Also, a DVD comes with it and explains my routine and moves, and also has two routines by Ed "Roscoe from Biloxi" Parrish that are explained. Besides, now you will never be quite so happy with your original set as you were... The cool thing is, the original set is an exact duplicate of the 100 year old set Vernon used, and is going to be a collectible. If you want to do the heel palming or classic palming of the weights, that is only possible with the older set. |
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The Big Q New user Sydney, Australia 49 Posts |
Very nice!
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Mr. Mystoffelees Inner circle I haven't changed anyone's opinion in 3623 Posts |
"Besides, now you will never be quite so happy with your original set as you were..."
How did you know, Whit? How did you know...
Also known, when doing rope magic, as "Cordini"
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Michael J. Douglas Inner circle WV, USA 1645 Posts |
The steal was excellent. That's one of my biggest concerns with things like this; sometimes you see too much of an unnatural up and down movement. Yours was super smooth, Whit.
Michael J.
�Believe then, if you please, that I can do strange things.� --from Shakespeare�s �As You Like It� |
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