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drhackenbush Special user 686 Posts |
Just received mine yesterday - sorta feel like I've just been granted membership in a club of sorts... Of course, I'm working on holding the cage convincingly (and will continue to do so for a while) but the cage itself looks elegant and I can't wait to get it down for public performance.
Many posts regarding this style of cage have been very helpful in terms of ditching the cage after the vanish and strengthening its rigidity amongst other specific tips; does anyone know if there are any books or notes on the general handling of this this model, or do most people do what I'm doing, keep on practicing and practicing (nothin' wrong with that) until it's smooth by trial and lots of error? Posted: Aug 4, 2006 10:55pm Hmmm, just made a bunch of very short video clips with my digital camera of myself doing the vanish in a slooow way a-la Billy McComb, just holding it, and slowly closing my fingers in on nothing - it actually looks pretty good, so I must be doing something right. The video is very grainy, but it gets the point across, and I'll try to figure out where to upload it if anyone wants to see it. The whole Slow-Motion Vanish that Billy perfected doesn't just apply to his own cage, it seems to work with a variety of cages, the main thing being a concerted effort to NOT hold the cage with chicken claws and make your elbows do a bizarre chicken dance that certainly deflects any attention from the cage but leaves one looking like one has just been stung between the shoulder blades by a wasp. Billy's calm cage melt is one of the many facets of his magnificent legacy, and I only wish I could've met him while he was still around. Here's a link to the clearest video (again, it's pretty grainy but I don't have a video camera yet): http://www.folksinging.tv/vbc.AVI I don't mind any comments, both positive and negative, if I have the chutzpah to post it, you have the right to say whatever you want about it, if anything at all... Posted: Aug 7, 2006 8:09am Me again - just in case, here's the same clip but as a WMV that might be easier to play. http://www.folksinging.tv/vbc.wmv Enjoy! |
Pete Biro 1933 - 2018 18558 Posts |
Vanish looked just fine. Now you need to maybe hold the cage parallel to the floor and come up with a story line. Why are you carrying the bird in a cage on stage?
One line I used to use.... I would walk to and fro, then say "I'm taking my bird for a walk." I read this in a very old copy of the Gen magazine. Or.. "I used to work in a diamond mine and we had these litte birds to check if the air was safe. It seems safe here... so... (cage vanishes) I don't need it any more." Maybe you could ask the bird to SING A SONG... and it doesn't respond... Poof, it's gone. Think of what fits your circumstances and style.
STAY TOONED... @ www.pete-biro.com
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LeeDillingham Loyal user Las Vegas 263 Posts |
Lance Burton does this trick every night. He covers it by getting 7-10 kids on stage. He has them all put their hand on the cage. Before the vanish, the audience no longer sees it because it is covered by hands.
I saw his show (for about the 20th time) last week. It was very funny after the vanish and the kids were walking off the stage, a young girl yelled out to the entire audience... "That bird was fake!" The whole audience laughed for twenty seconds. Lance laughed too and went on to the next trick. |
drhackenbush Special user 686 Posts |
Pete -
Thanks for the words of encouragement - it's one of those routines that is so worth getting down, and I appreciate advice. Finding a context for carrying the bird and cage in the first place reminds me of a Far Side cartoon where there's a scientific lecture going on and one of the scientists looks mortified... the caption reads something like "It was at this point that Dr. Epstein realized he was the only person without his duck". Lee - Haven't seen Lance Burton live yet - I do want to! I did get to see and meet Harry Blackstone Jr. around 1979 when he came to Rochester NY where I lived at the time. Of course, I fancied myself quite the magician (with one actual show under my belt) and when I met him I told him "I know how you do the Buzz Saw"... He signed my business card and I wish I could find it now. I loved his birdcage routine, "Let me just go and get another one, now I need some volunteers..." Something I probably should consider is that this model is really made for the quick vanish rather than the "melt" (I just did it a few times for Denny, who steered me towards the Abbott's model in the first place and he reminded me of its being built for speed) and work the smooth but *ZOOP* here-and-gone-in-a-flash vanish. Heck, there is so much to learn with this 'un, and it's so worth the effort. Next, I'm gonna locate a copy of Mystic Craig's book, "The Elusive Canary"... |
Pete Biro 1933 - 2018 18558 Posts |
But... what you did, as far as the vanish, was just fine. What I NOW do is a gag Ken Brooke gave me combining the cage with a jumping stool.
STAY TOONED... @ www.pete-biro.com
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drhackenbush Special user 686 Posts |
Thanks! It's nice to hear I'm on the right track, and I'm looking forward to making it my own.
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hugmagic Inner circle 7655 Posts |
I have Mystic Craig's book. I loved Bill but don't get your hopes up on the book. Not much information in it.
Richard
Richard E. Hughes, Hughes Magic Inc., 352 N. Prospect St., Ravenna, OH 44266 (330)296-4023
www.hughesmagic.com email-hugmagic@raex.com Write direct as I will be turning off my PM's. |
drhackenbush Special user 686 Posts |
I'm buying it more for the same reason my father who was a physicist used to buy old turn-of-the-century Sears catalogues, for the popular culture/historical aspect of the book (actually, he liked to do statistical studies of the prices for the sheer enjoyment of it). I should be receiving my copy in the next week or so and even if I don't get any ideas it's the sort of thing I like for fun. But usually there are little tidbits in a lot of these books that make me take pause and go "Hmmm, I wonder if I could apply that..."
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hugmagic Inner circle 7655 Posts |
Did you know that Harry Blackstone Jr. was taught the birdcage by Bert Allerton not his father?
Richard
Richard E. Hughes, Hughes Magic Inc., 352 N. Prospect St., Ravenna, OH 44266 (330)296-4023
www.hughesmagic.com email-hugmagic@raex.com Write direct as I will be turning off my PM's. |
drhackenbush Special user 686 Posts |
Richard - I'd heard something about it but hadn't heard who his teacher was.
Pete - I read your description of your Ken Brooke gag with the stool - hilarious! Posted: Sep 26, 2006 11:11pm Here's my latest video version of the Birdcage. Ah, those grand days of yesteryear, when we roamed the Keith-Orpheum Circuit... Imagine you are watching one of those old newsreels filled with glamour, high class and exquisite taste. That's not what you'll see, but imagine it anyway. http://www.folksinging.tv/Pesky.wmv |
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