I just got a magical coloring book, but I'm having trouble coming up with a good story or patter that works well with it. I like the effect alot, but it didn't come with much performance ideas.

I want this trick to be part of a small story. but so far I'm drawing a blank.

Here's the patter I use.

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How many of you like to color in coloring books? Tommorow is my nephew's birthday and I decided to get him a coloring book because he loves to color too! So, I stopped at the store on my way to the show today! While I was looking at all of the coloring books at the store, I spotted the perfect one!

It's a coloring book with pictures of magicians, magic tricks, bunny rabbits, and everything magical. <show un-colored pages> I thought to myself, 'Hey! This would be the perfect gift coming from me, since I'm a magician and all...' So I bought it! I can't wait to give it to him!

Hey I've got an idea! Why don't we all color it by magic!? Everyone touch a color on your shirt and then toss it up here toward the coloring book! <act like you are catching the colors with the coloring book and that the colors keep coming at you faster and faster - then put your hand over one eye> Ouch! OK, who gave me the black eye!?

Let's take a look and see how you did. WOW! <show colored pages> Every page is now colored and you guys did a great job staying inside the lines too! Give yourselves a big round of applause!

Hey wait a minute! I can't give my nephew a 'used' coloring book for his birthday! I have an idea! We need to erase the colors! Everyone hold up your hands and erase the colors! <have the kids move their hands in a circular motion>

OK! OK! That's enough! You almost rubbed me out! Let's take a look and see how you did! Uh Oh! You guys erased too hard! Now there's nothing in the coloring book at all! <show all blank pages> Oh well, that's OK, I think he would like a new X-Box better anyway! I guess it's back to the store after the show today! But first, give yourselves another big round of applause for being such great artists!

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Lyndel

Lyndel's patter works very well, but similar patter is used all the time and may be "over exposed" in your market.

Another magician mentioned to me possibly doing a "shell" game with three books . . . this may put a twist on it.

Also, the disappearing crayons are easy to make and fit in well.

Colouring Book Monte is a routine from magician Cody Fisher. He calls it "Three Kid Monte". I think it's available commercially here.

- Donald

Hey,

I tell a story that when I was little and I was first learning magic that this was my first magic trick. I tell the children that my mean sister would always steal my new coloring books and color in all the pages before I could ever get a chance to color them, and she wasn't even that good. So, now I want to show the children my solution. I vanish some crayons, faint having the colors in my hand and then rub them on the book. Then I show all the pages colored. I usually have a boy or girl on stage with me watching. And this point I say that because of the magic I must not every let anyone that is not a magician touch the book. While I am saying this I am dangleing the book infront of my helper and 9 times out of 10 they will reach oout and touch it. At this point I act suprised and sad as I show that everything is gone, the pages are blank.

In the past I have made the crayons reappear from the book after I show the pages blank. I took a toliet paper roll and colored it black and capped of the bottom. I basically had a cylinder closed on one end and I would load these with crayons. This had a peice of velcor on it and the back of the coloring book had the other peice of velcro it. After showing all the pages blank I would secretly load the crayons to the back of the book, role the book into a tube, snap my finger and dump the caryons out....

Anyway, I hope I have been able to contribute..

Dorian LaChance

To make the coloring book an integral part of a story might require that you make one yourself. This is not difficult to do, and Jim Gerrish's Coloring Book - Revisited (in the Kid Magic Section on my site) shows you how. I have seen him incorporate a new story for the coloring book every year.

One year it was the Wizard of Oz, where the pictures of the characters appeared in the blank book as the children called them out. The story was then told, picture by picture, each starting out as a black and white picture and then becoming colored in as part of the magic of the story. I remember little flying monkeys coming out of the book at one point, and it ended with a production of ruby slippers.

This past year, the trick has been entwined with the Harry Potter journal that starts out made of blank pages, then writing appears, then the writing turns to drawings illustrating the story, and finally they become colored in. The crayons have been replaced by quill pens (and yes, he has a box of colored quill feather pens where the pens all vanish, the pictures are colored, then the colors vanish and the pens reappear).

I hope these ideas give you some ideas in return. That's Gerrish's method- he comes up with an idea first, and then rebuilds an old effect or builds a brand new effect to make the idea work.

Don, I looked for it, but could not find it . . . any other ideas? Perhaps I am blind.

Posted: Jul 13, 2007 1:46pm
Prof, Just bought it.

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I have been planning on making a downloadable MCB on my site, free to clients. Does anyone have any ethical problems with this? If so, please explain.

Some great ideas! I like the one about redoing the book to match a story. it shouldnt be hard to do. I'm trying to build a show for kids and I think Lyndel's sounds cool. good to do the penutbuter and jelly trick, maybe the vanishing bandana, some sponge ball/bunnies.

not sure what else to do. does rope magic work well for kids? (i like the proffessor's nightmare alot). to be honest most of my stuff is more for adults. I do the linking lifesavers, but not sure how it'd do with kids. (maybe if I passed out the candy after). I want to aviod cards and my needle thro arm trick is a bad idea. lol

I have no idea the kind of tricks kids go for, but I keeop getting asked to do kid parties.

oh by the way as for my market, I'm prety sure me and one other guy are the only magicians in town, and he is more of a mentalist.

Hi CaptainKid -

I didn't see the trick ("Three Kid Monte") listed there, either. Although it is mentioned in one of the quotes on the "Praise" page. Perhaps it's now out of print.

I think it was also published in one of his lecture notes, and also in a M-U-M column at one time. I could be wrong, this is remembering just off the top of my head.

Here's a Café link to a few threads about the topic. Type "three kid monte" into the Café search engine, in the Little Darlings area, and you'll find a bunch of mentions on a dozen threads.

- Donald

Thanks Donald - you are always a big help and I appreciate it.

Check out Silly Billy's new book.......

"Seriously Silly" How to Entertain Children with Magic and Comedy.

I just got it and can't put it down...it is awesome and I can see why many are saying it will be the children's performers what "13 Steps" is to mentalism...

Darth..do yourself a favor and buy this book now if you do not have experience performing for children...

Dorian

Enjoy! If you have any questions about how to apply what I discussed in this thread to Jim's e-book descriptions, just go to the Magic Nook Forum and you'll find detailed extensions explaining it all. PM me from there if you need the password (it's for purchasers only, but Hey! That's You!). Of course, as a purchaser, you can also ask questions about the effects you purchase either by e-mail or on the Magic Nook Forum.

Do you mean a downloadable "working" coloring book? Revealing the SECRET???

If this is what you mean I'm against it....Why expose a magicians secret? For FREE nonetheless.

Even though this is, to some magicians, one of the simplest of tricks ( "a baby trick") it is still used by working magicians.

I don't use it myself but many do.

Why do magicians like exposing secrets? Even the most simple and generic ones?

The secret to this trick could be used in so many creative ways in kids magic and for teens , adults, mental magic, bizarre magic.... by just being creative....taking the basic idea and making your own book and storyline which was mentioned by "Spellbinder"

Perhaps revealing the secret is not what you mean.

Another idea would be a downloadable coloring book that is a replica of your gimmicked book.

This way the client can print it out and the child becomes familiar with the pictures but it is just an ordinary coloring book that hey get.

When you show up and break out your coloring book they will be familiar with the pictures but will be AMAZED when YOU as the magician/performer create magic with the seemingly ordinary book.

Make your own book with colorable picture of YOU and your rabbit and props and things. It will take a little bit of work but then you will stand out from the crowd of every other magician using the same darn standard version.

Bak to your original inquiry ... to give away the secret in a downloadable fashion I would vote against it.

I'm still annoyed that FANTASMA magic has stripper decks and MENTAL PHOTOGRAPHY decks available in DOLLAR stores. DOLLAR STORES!!! and the INVISIBLE DECK is next I believe.

A major MAGIC sin in my opinion. Blasphemy!

CaptainKid...I applaude you for at least considering the fallout of revealing secrets and asking for opinions of your fellow magicians before doing so....and my rant on this subject is not directed to you.

For years ...many years... it was fair game to sell magic kits and such.

BUT... there seemed to be Sort of an unwritten code to only reveal a few secrets...Svengali Deck, ball & vase, coin slide, snapper, etc.

This is enough to get someone interested and those who are "bitten" will seek out more.

Those who are frustrated by the effort it takes to learn these few tricks do not deserve any more out of a magic kit for a few bucks IMO.

I do have BOR sales and do GREAT with the few simple tricks that I believe are okay for a beginner.

But not for FREE!

As far as downloadable stuff...how about puzzles or jokes ... but NOT the things that working magicians are paying for and using.

Actually... on the other hand....


Maybe it would be a good thing if the Magic Coloring Book went the way of the other simple crap that every child knows.

Maybe it's too late.

Stephen

Before revealing the colouring book method to the public, look at this thread. David Kaye (aka Silly Billy) might have beaten you to it!

-Donald

I did the same thing, but dummy that I am I didn't think of a toilet paper roll (although a paper towel roll would hold more crayons.) I had to wait until I saw "Crayon Production" in the Hank Lee catalog and order that! *sigh*

Don't complicate it. Use it as a quick thing. If you are performing a reading program just say:

I like books, like this book. No pictures. Matter of fact no words either. Like a mystery. Reading is like a mystery. Until you know how of course. First you look at pictures in a book to figure out the story. To some, color pictures are better. Letters turn into words, words turn into sentences, sentences turn into paragraphs then you have a story!

But, you have to begin somewhere. (show pages blank again!) I like books!

Let the kids answer some of these questions about the letters, words etc.

If you use a simple story and match actions to words by the time the effect is over they have been bamboozled and realize magic has just happened. They won't have time to yell they know the trick etc.


John