I just recently did a family magic show for about 30 people and had a little (LOL) accident. During my intro to my cups and balls, that darn little fourth ball decided to make an appearance. Yeah, it came flying out during me turning over the cup (inertia move). It flew out so fast, I couldn't help but to laugh. Never before had it happened, I guess my hand must of gotten lazy during the turn over.
Anyway, as soon as it flew out, I grab it and put it back under the cup. Now, thinking back, I should've pretended to put it away and loaded it back under the cup.
Wish I knew how many people actually saw it. The applause were still at the usual spots. Nobody said anything afterwards, my character is a semi-clumsy jester, and people probably just thought it was part of the show. Lesson learned; don't get too comfortable, stay focused!

One time I was doing a color silk change with a TT, and when I pulled the silk out, the TT came flying off my T and landed on the floor across the room. I laughed, walked over and picked it up, put it in my pocket and finished the trick with out skipping a beat. It was a kids show, and none of them said a word about it. I laughed inside about it the whole show, and still to this day as I think about it because when it came flying off, my head followed it the whole way... It was 8 years ago.

I was doing the bill in lemon at a Bar Mitzvah one afternoon. It was my second show of the day, and I had done the trick in that show as well. When the volunteer read off the serial number of the bill that I had "borrowed," I realized I was "in caca profunda." I had made a technical error. As I put the blackboard with the serial number aside, I reached into my jacket pocket and found the other bill (from the first show). With the aid of some impromptu sleight of hand, I was able to do the necessary to make it all come out right at the end.

Scared the ^*(*& out of me, though!

I was doing the color changing silk in hand and dropped the Dye Tube... I looked up at the ceiling and said, "Gee, what fell?" Picked it up and pretended to put it into my pocket and went right back into the routine.

Just last week, I was working at a corporate party. The room was very dark, too dark really. As I was finishing a coin routine, I did the disappearing part to wrap up the routine. Without giving away anything, suffice it to say that the coin did not disappear, and I knew it instantly. It hit the floor and sounded like a cannon to me even though the floor was carpeted. I took a step forward, put my foot on the coin and showed how it was gone from my hand. The dark room helped and, as far as I am aware, no one even noticed.

At last year's WMS teen magic contest, one contestant dropped the standard gaff to the billiard ball routine near the end of a sequence. As he continued through the rest of his production routine to music, the gimmick sat there on the stage. When the MC asked how he felt he did, the kid replied in the tone of a younger disappointed child, "My ball broke. "

Carlos, almost the exact same thing happened to me. I was experimenting with something I had read in a book about having a "genii" or invisible assistant, who does not like you and tries to "mess up" your magic, and was performing a few things for one of my sisters. Well, I realized the value of this idea when I flashed the fourth ball--matter of fact, it fell right out of the cup, rolled across the table and fell on the floor. I immediately blamed the "assistant", picked up the fourth ball and "put it away" (palmed and reintroduced). So far as I know, it worked.

By the way, I sent you a PM.

You know what? They all think there are four balls anyway. I think Gazzo actually shows the fourth ball deliberately at one stage. (But, don't quote me on that.)

We've all had things go wrong. Anyone who says they haven't is either lying or never performs. I could share a couple of mine, but they are far too embarrassing.

We should all combine any live footage we have of our goof-ups and put them on DVD!
At the end of the year, all Café members would receive a free copy as a stocking stuffer. That would be awesome!!! I can see myself choking on some apple cider and laughing my butt off at some of this footage. Santa, make it happen...please! LOL

Thanks, guys, for all your confessions...I mean contributions!

I just did a color change with a dye tube, and when I took the tube away, both silks remained. Now, the silk looked half-and-half. I was shocked. I've done this 1000 times. I could not even re-create it later. Anyway, I just restuffed the one silk back in and finished the routine with no issue, but I really was shocked.

It could be that it was the 6th show in a few days, and I was getting tired? I do not know. Very bizarre.

Day before yesterday at a Christmas party I loaded a lemon under a paper cup and tabled it during an "impromptu" chop cup routine. The lemon was a little bit big for the cup and the cup flexed, and slowly just tipped up and almost all the way over, all by itself, and exposed the lemon for a moment before I brought my hand down on the cup and held it down. The 3 spectators were so close they saw it, but said nothing for a moment, it was just a flash and I don't think they really believed their eyes. As I rushed to the finale and start to ask "Is the ball in my pocket or..." the one guy stammers, "whoa, whoa, whoa, wait a minute, wait a minute, I think I just saw a lemon!" and the gal standing next to him says, "ya me too!"
I felt like the finale was blown, but they still responded very positively.
If that cup would have done it's little "self-levitating" reveal a bit slower, it would have been a Perfect Effect.