Hello !

I'm no specialist in card magic, in fact this is the only card trick in my close-up set. But I love it to bits.
On these boards, there has been a serious debate about the skinner monte, covering highly interesting points.
But the main problem for me is that it can't be done standing up without a table.
Though some people have suggested it IS possible.
So, I wonder if those who know a method to do this would be kind enough to share their knowledge.
Thanks in advance !

I have absolutley no doubt that the Skinner Monte ( as well as its predecessors and many variations) can be performed without a table. However, in my mind, this is detrimental for the effect. I know people will disagree (case in pointe--> stand-up montes) but Monte's need to be performed on a table. Not only does it make the handling simpler but it makes it cleaner. Whilst cards are in the hands, the spectator will always be a bit guarded.

There are several montes that can be performed in-the-hands. The question is whether or not you're going to be performing a monte presentation that has a "mix" or not (even if only a funny-style slow one such as what Bill Malone and others use). The mix is the heart and soul of traditional monte presentations, and if you're abandoning the mix it'll need to be for a handling so clean a switch doesn't seem possible (eg: Amaso).

I've performed Skinner's monte for many years and I've always used a table. I can not imagine performing the routine any other way. For me, no table means no monte.

You could try out Bob Farmer's "BAMMO Monte Monster" that is a version on Skinner's Monte, done entirely in the hands.

The "Dutch Looper" / Kitson's Miracle is also a great "in the hands monte"

Monte 2.0 by Gordon Bean is also a monte routine "in the hands"

Get Temptation by Gordon Bean.
Gordon is a genius!!!
I sure miss Gordon at the Magic Castle Library!

Good Luck,
Roger I.

A short correction: my "Bammo Monte Monster" IS NOT a version of the Skinner monte (which is actually a monte by Eddie Taytelbaum). However, I designed the Bammo Monte Monster to be done completely in the hands. It is superior in every way to the Skinner routine.

Bammo Monte Monster is a very nice handling of the monte. And the fact that it is done in the hands makes it a versatile routine. I use it often. However, personally I still think the Skinner Monte has s simple directness that is hard to beat.

Kevin

Is there a video demo of Bammo Monte Monster?

There is an "in the hands" version that Eric Jones (that's his name on the forum too so you can PM him) showed me at an IBM meeting here in Richmond. He uses a shirt pocket for "stowing" one of the cards.

I agree with the others here though. While the monte may be POSSIBLE in the hands, I have a very clear vision of the 3 card monte on the street...laid out and "choosable." If it's in the hands I feel like my specs will think it's just another packet trick. It's supposed to be different. Eric replied to this that Skinner's monte isn't "real tossing" and therefore it can be done however, but I disagree. When you play this as "teaching you how to not get cheated" it can pass as a "real" monte because you've theoretically "removed" the tossing part of it.

The version I showed you (loyaleagle) was garrett Thomas' Stand Up Monte. I honestly believe it to be one of the best Monte effects on the market and on par with(if not superior to) Michael Skinner's Ultimate Monte. The Thomas routine contains more magic, is just as easy to follow and has some added convincers that really make the routine worth learning. The only con to the routine is the same pitfall that Ultimate Monte has. You actually have to remember the order of the cards and play the sequence, or you're screwed. So if you don't perform this all the time, you have to take time to go over everything again....lol

I've performed Stand Up Monte for years, and think it would certainly be worth your consideration. You don't need a table, there are only a couple of points where 1 card needs to be placed down, and for that you could use a spectators hand. In retrospect, it would be stronger if you did....

Check it out guys.....you'll enjoy it....

The only video of the Bammo Monte Monster on the internet is, unfortunately, awful -- the performer runs through the routine at warp speed, the complete opposite of what I intended. Even I couldn't follow the *** trick.

There are some very, very good montes in Harry Anderson's book, Wiseguy.

To keep the credits straight: Mike Skinner did not invent the monte atrributed to him. It was invented by Eddie Taytelbaum and published in Ultimate Secrets of Card Magic by Lewis Ganson (that's why it's called Skinner's Ultimate Monte). Skinner made a few slight handling changes.

A much superior version of the same routine, is Mike Rogers' "The Unconquered Card." Rogers solves several of the problems in the Taytelbaum routine (i.e., parts of the routine make no sense).

A complete history of all of the routines is contained in "The Bammo Monte Monster Reloaded" which includes two sets of cards and imnproved on-the-table versions of the Taytelbaum-Skinner-Rogers routines.

Thanks a lot, guys.
I see the value in the argument that the monte should be done in the hands. Still, I'll have a look at what you recommend, Eric.
Gracias !

For in the hands, it is very hard to beat the Patrick Page three card trick, also known as the Kenton Miracle (I may have that spelling wrong).

Even the orginal dutch looper is very strong.

On the table, to each their own, I learned the real item from expert at the card table long ago, so that is what I do there.

Oh, and this is really a quesiton not a slam, am I the only one who sees flashes of the "do dah" then the cards are being turned over? I have seen it often and was just wondering.

Eric Jones is right about Garrett Thomas' Stand Up Monte, lots of magic happens and it doesn't require a table. Thomas told me that he was inspired to try to duplicate Scotty York's monte in the hands, and York claims to have been inspired by Martin Lewis' monte, so this has a very strong pedigree. However, Eric points out the difficulty with this and many similar tricks. It is crucial to know the order of the cards and which is which. This is especially hard to remember if you don't perform the trick constantly or if you have any similar tricks in your repertoire. I often mark the backs of the cards or at least the critical card or end of the card similar to the way a homemade marked deck is marked. By doing this, I don't have to remember the order of the cards; I only have to glance at the backs to see where they are. This allows me to concentrate on the presentation and minimizes the risk of flashing the wrong card at the wrong time. Hope this helps, Duane Gillam