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fortasse Inner circle 1201 Posts |
Johnny Paul was one for sure. His cups and (sponge) balls performance on the Greater Magic Series DVD from Stevens Magic is a real treat to watch.
Fortasse |
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Gary Dayton Special user New Jersey 542 Posts |
JP was great, no doubt, but I think more in the realm of C&B, no? I wonder about who was well known for pure sponge balls. I guess Audley Walsh and Frank Garcia, but I think this only because they wrote books about the sponges. Were they known for their sponge balls? Were there others? Was anyone really known for sponge ball work?
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Bill Palmer Eternal Order Only Jonathan Townsend has more than 24312 Posts |
Goshman was also known for his sponge ball work, and not just for making them. Also, Roger Klause had a very nice routine in Roger Klause In Concert.
"The Swatter"
Founder of CODBAMMC My Chickasaw name is "Throws Money at Cups." www.cupsandballsmuseum.com |
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honus Veteran user 354 Posts |
Don Alan, if you include the Benson Bowl in the category of "sponge ball work."
Sponge balls are actually little fruits, didn't you guys know that? After my sponge ball routine, I show the kids the bush that they grow on. (Sometimes there's even a green one; that one isn't ripe yet.) Then we magically make blooms grow on the bush. |
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Bill Palmer Eternal Order Only Jonathan Townsend has more than 24312 Posts |
That's true. Also, Johnny Thompson.
"The Swatter"
Founder of CODBAMMC My Chickasaw name is "Throws Money at Cups." www.cupsandballsmuseum.com |
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Nathan Hastings New user Minneapolis, MN 78 Posts |
I will second Mr. Palmer in that Goshman was definitely at the forefront of sponge ball magic.
"As my plastic surgeon always said: If you gotta go, go with a smile."
-the Joker |
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SeaDawg Special user The Lunatic Fringe 718 Posts |
Garcia's Sponge ball Tooolbox is full of ideas and routines.
I call'em Clown noses and ask if they see any clowns around with noses. If there are no yong kids I tell'em I am a clown serial killer ( Watch your cheeiros) then start my routine. I do a 2 in hand one in pocket with a Colour change for the ending...
Crazy people take the psycho-path thru the forest...
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gadfly3d Special user 963 Posts |
I use a very radical approach I refer to them as balls.
Gil Scott |
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mcharisse Inner circle York. PA 1226 Posts |
I agree audiences aren't suspcious about the balls themselves, unless you do something that ameks them suspicious.
Like a lot of magicians, I open the routine by producing two from a purse frame. I show the purse, then ask the specs to guess what's inside. (By the way, when I do the aquitement to show the purse empty, I say, "Doesn't look like it could hold much. But appearances can be deceiving - look, I can get my whole hand in there." I like this because it justifies the move, which looks unnatural otherwise.) But I've never needed to "justify" the balls themselves. As I produce them, I ask the spectator to hold out her hand (I always use a woman) and put one of the balls in each of her hands. "This is the trick with the two little red balls," I say. "Do you know why they call it the trick with the two little red balls?" You'd be surprised how many say no, which gets a chuckle from the quicker audience members right away. "Because it uses two little red balls." I continue. The rest chuckle. "Go ahead, give them a little squeeze. Kinda fun, isn't it?" This too gets a chuckle, but is subtle enough to pass with any audience, no matter how straight-laced. I then ask the spec to hand me back one of the balls (no magicians force here) and do a couple of vanishes and reappearnces using only the one ball while she continues to hold the other. I think the handling and patter work to remove any suspicion from the balls, if there ever was any. Notice I never ask them to examine the balls -- just to give them a squeeze. They're little balls, they got to handle them, what's to be suspicious about? By the way, I never do any of those "sawing the ball in half" type of effects because I certainly don't want to suggest that one ball could split in two -- that would undercut the climax in the spec's hand. By the way, I've set up my routine so that it can be done standing up away from tables, making this my favorite walk around trick. Marc the Magic Man |
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Dave V Inner circle Las Vegas, NV 4824 Posts |
Check out Whit Haydn's "Tribbles" routine on his My Space page. Basic sponge routine with some built in opportunities for gag lines.
No trees were killed in the making of this message, but a large number of electrons were terribly inconvenienced.
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gaddy Inner circle Agent of Chaos 3526 Posts |
Quote:
On 2007-09-26 19:37, kosmoshiva wrote: yeah... "Hardcore Underground Street Sponge Balls"... Maybe Penguin Magic is up to the challenge? On a more serious note, I'm a fan Of Eugene Burger's handling of the Sponge Balls- especially his use of the Squeaker at the beginning. This gives a tiny bit of context to the props, and it also prevents anyone from dismissing them after the fact , saying: "Oh, well... he could have just been squishing them up..." because everyone sees, at the beginning that he can squish them up, and he even makes a silly joke about it. Thus justifying the props thru use, rather than words. Personally, I love the sponge balls. And the dismissive words of other magicians has never bothered me at all...
*due to the editorial policies here, words on this site attributed to me cannot necessarily be held to be my own.*
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kosmoshiva Loyal user Canada 255 Posts |
I don't find sponge balls any stranger than those funny little knitted fellas ...
Don't forget to breathe.
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darkhawk New user 39 Posts |
Very interesting post
I am rather new to sponge balls but I noticed no one has mentioned Jay sankeys earplugs, according to him this is the solution to justifying the balls. He he he I just like the red balls and have fun with the fact that it is a ball and leave it al that. |
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Dave V Inner circle Las Vegas, NV 4824 Posts |
You gotta have pretty big ears to justify those things as earplugs. He's just swapping one justification for another. It might be a cute routine, but sometimes you have to admit that a ball is just a ball.
No trees were killed in the making of this message, but a large number of electrons were terribly inconvenienced.
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darkhawk New user 39 Posts |
The routine is good but I agree a ball is a ball, deal with it. I actually found the quality not there with his earplugs compared to gosh's super softs, night and day.
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