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Rocky Elite user 486 Posts |
I was invited to a party last weekend. The hostess asked if I could do some magic and jokingly asked that I don't use my "Trick Deck". Curious, I asked her to clarify.
Her response was an eye opener...she replied by describing a red backed Bicycle Deck! I asked her why she thought it was a trick deck. The hostess replied that the only people she has seen who use such a deck are magicians...the decks of that she grew up playing card games with were "normal" decks with pictures of flowers or other designs on the back. Her conclusion was based on an interesting theory that undermines the thought process magicians have in using red backed bikes...all laymen grew up using that brand so it's a no-brainer to use such a deck in order to convince the audience that it's normal. Another case of running when nobody is chasing? |
lynnef Inner circle 1407 Posts |
It's funny what we magicians assume about the lay public. In the workers forum, there's a topic about "only using Bikes"! Even Tally-Hos were thought suspicious, etc. I guess the only appropriate thing in your case would be to borrow the hostess' deck! And prove that it's also a trick deck! Lynn
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Mindpro Eternal Order 10587 Posts |
Come on, who else other than magicians would ever carry a deck of cards with them? Understanding then that they are magicians, it only stands to reason for most (lay and common) people that it would likely be some kind of a "trick" deck. Why do magicians find this so hard to understand?
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Rocky Elite user 486 Posts |
I think that most magicians are not performers...other than for other magicians and friends/family. They will assume things shared by others as being gospel without having real world performance opportunities to prove these theories.
I remember watching Jerry Andrus use a bridge sized Aviator deck during a performance at a magic convention...all the newbies were cringing based on the fact that Jerry used a deck like this for magic. Once his performance was over, the newbies stood slack-jawed. No longer did they give a dang about what type of deck he was using, they realized they had just been fooled by a master of card magic and nothing else really mattered. |
Mindpro Eternal Order 10587 Posts |
Quote:
On Feb 25, 2018, Rocky wrote: So true. Also, many that do perform for more than family and friends are really only executors of magic and not actual performers either. |
WitchDocChris Inner circle York, PA 2614 Posts |
Quote:
On Feb 24, 2018, Rocky wrote: Some of us have been saying this for years.
Christopher
Witch Doctor Psycho Seance book: https://tinyurl.com/y873bbr4 Boffo eBook: https://tinyurl.com/387sxkcd |
Nikita Regular user 120 Posts |
Rocky what country are you from?
Have to say that the same is in mine - you can't buy regular bicycle (bee, tally ho, theory11) deck anywhere except magic stores. So if you see any of this cards (even just a few cards) in someone's hands - he is a magician 150%. |
lynnef Inner circle 1407 Posts |
Quote:
On Feb 28, 2018, Nikita wrote: What brands are commonly used for playing cards in your area? |
Brad Burt Inner circle 2675 Posts |
It doesn't matter what they think. Use your preferred deck. Have it shuffled by numerous spectators. Borrow a deck. Whatever.
Here's a funny story in this regard: I was doing a show in a home. Grumbling about the deck. Asked hostess to loan me her deck of cards. She looked around while I did some coin work. Gave me deck finally. Bridge sized. Took cards out and noticed that she had given me a Stripped Deck. Apparently it had been one of her son's decks and it gotten in with the "family" cards. I had a great old time. I know guys who have been handed marked and Svengali decks. Another time I borrowed a deck not knowing it was a Pinochle deck. It really messed with MY mind. Spectators will ascribe all kinds of solutions to what you do. It just doesn't matter. All that matters is the effect produced. If all it took to turn folks away from any particular magic act, trick, routine, etc. was to simply say, "Hey, it must be a 'trick thing'", then no one would ever do magic and no one would ever find what we do entertaining. But, that's not what happens. In many, many cases the performers FIRST and most important job is to get the folks watching to get folks to not care how it's done or to have a grand ole time trying to figure it out if that's what floats their boat.
Brad Burt
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Doc Willie Regular user 160 Posts |
Daniel Madison's "Kitten's" deck is made for this situation.
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danaruns Special user The City of Angels 808 Posts |
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On Mar 1, 2018, Brad Burt wrote: I respectfully disagree. I think the magician's job is to remove all possible explanations for the effect, whether those explanations are the actual method or not. Only when they are left with no explanation for the impossible thing they have just seen can magic happen. If they think it's a "trick deck," then the magician hasn't done his/her job, IMHO, whether or not there is anything "trick" about the deck.
"Dana Douglas is the greatest magician alive. Plus, I'm drunk." -- Foster Brooks
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Dannydoyle Eternal Order 21219 Posts |
I agree Dana. Great magic not only removes those solutions, more importantly it removes their desire to seek them.
Danny Doyle
<BR>Semper Occultus <BR>In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act....George Orwell |
Terrible Wizard Inner circle 1973 Posts |
Just do what Harry Lorayne does and get the hostess to buy a couple of decks for you, and open them there in front of her.
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Dannydoyle Eternal Order 21219 Posts |
So then those who think it is a trick deck now think she is in on it.
If you do not manage to remove that during performance they will think it. Mind you there are some people who will think that no matter what. Life goes on. I remember seeing a mathematician talking about the "Bible Code". Branded Macay pointed out that he could use the same methods to find codes in any book of significant length. He went on to find them in Moby Dick. Insteadof bring convinced of the point the believers now claimed that Moby Dick was also written by God. This is not an uncommon position taken by people about magic performance. Trying to go down the rabbit hole and convince them will tend to lose the rest of the audience. It is also pointless because you will eventually lose. It is bad theater to jump through those hoops for at their direction. Taking away those solutions while performing is my solution.
Danny Doyle
<BR>Semper Occultus <BR>In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act....George Orwell |
Mary Mowder Inner circle Sacramento / Elk Grove, CA 3659 Posts |
Engage them and Entertain them.
If you do that, they are not trying to figure it out. You don't see people telling Bill Malone how they think he did it. They are along for the ride. -Mary Mowder |
Dannydoyle Eternal Order 21219 Posts |
Exactly the point. Very well put.
Danny Doyle
<BR>Semper Occultus <BR>In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act....George Orwell |
landmark Inner circle within a triangle 5194 Posts |
Quote:
On May 3, 2018, Dannydoyle wrote: 100 likes for this.
Click here to get Gerald Deutsch's Perverse Magic: The First Sixteen Years
All proceeds to Open Heart Magic charity. |
Brad Burt Inner circle 2675 Posts |
An audience is not some Sci-Fi mind controlled mob. They are not the same. Thankfully. Some folks try to figger it out no matter what you do. Some don't. It does not matter. As noted by others, and I thought this was implicit in my original post above, all that matters, particularly in a professional setting is that the audience is entertained. My point is this: It's impossible 'really' to take away ALL possible explanations of how something is done. Why? Because, people can come up with any bizzare idea on how something works and you can't do anything about that. Why? Because, short of interviewing each and every spectator at the end of a show...how would you know? And, who cares.
Once the initial "surprise" has happened, which IS the "magic" inherent in any presentation...folks mostly just don't care. Look, do you WANT people to care? Then spend all your time doing Mentalism. And, go all the way and claim you are the real deal. Seriously. Convince a certain sector the public that you really can do psychic stuff and watch what happens. Otherwise the very triviality of what we do as magic performers makes taking it too seriously a kind of low grade mental illness.
Brad Burt
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Ray Pierce Inner circle Los Angeles, CA 2607 Posts |
Years ago in the hay day of Hollywood Magic, Max Maven would come into the shop each day with a new and original effect. It was an example of his amazingly prolific talent with magic. One day he came in and as we were talking we asked, "What do you have for us today?" He asked us for a deck of cards. We scrambled to find an ordinary deck from the multitude of gaffed decks we had ready to go. He ended up having a deck with him and showed us what could only be described as an absolute miracle. We were all dumbstruck and clueless as to the method. The end result... he was using a Svengali deck. He had never used a gaffed deck in all the times we had known him and this was set up so brilliantly as we were looking for a "real" deck we were totally lured in by the subtle and nuanced psychology he employed. Always look for the best tool.
Ray Pierce
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