Okay, what are the best walk around bizarre effects for working the lines at a haunted attraction. Keep in mind that it's outside, most likely cold, and dark. Anyone have any experience in this.

I'm thinking along the lines of haunted key, spirit message a la OTL...

Any suggestions?

Dan:

My favorite piece has been my Salem Witch Test (OTL based), and I do a little pendulum work as well as quick group palm readings, if they fit the venue. Ash on the palm works great as well (as a sypathetic magick effect).

Tony

Thanks Tony,

I've got a few personal pieces as well that I plan on doing. I just haven't been keeping up with the "latest and greatest" and posted this to see if maybe there was something that I was missing.

I often use my "Revenge of the 8th dwarf" : an unknown and horrific version of the famous tale Snow White. Due to a curse each day a dwarf kill another one. The seventh day the survivor is revealed as being the father of the unknown 8th dwarf , guess who is the mother, who then kills his father himself. Effect use cards with names of dwarfs on it (personnal version of PATEO) and a little mirror wich reveals at the end, by blowing on it, the name of the guilty father.

-----

Another of mine is Scatterbrained Mage : a transformation of an old belgian's 5 Francs large silver coin, into a gold coin using witchcraft (Buddha Papers personnal version). The man is arrested as soon as he tried to spend the coin and beheaded. As he was a stranger he didn't know that there is no golden 5 Francs in Belgian at his time and he forgot to verify !..

And many more...

A photo of the coins. I made one gilded by a specialist.

Click here to view attached image.

That little voodoo doll that stands up in your hand always freaks people out. Forgot what its called.

Gede Nibo ?

I think it is called the wicker man

Here is my routine SOUL’S TRIP under the name of "Loth Christian" (my other name) in Krypts Quaterly Crier, Vol. 4, Issue 2

"From somewhere outside comes the rhytmic sound of a tom-tom. It is night. A hot night … a very hot and very dark night. The room is lit by the dancing flame of a single red candle.

In one corner of the room the wizard is manipulating a small, strange doll which is clothed in black garb. He says to his friends, "When a man dies, his soul roams in the darkness. This doll is a soul trap".

The doll is placed on the table and a small pair of silver scissors are brought out. Using the scissors, the wizard cuts off a lock of his own hair which he then ties to the doll with a piece of red string.

Now, a long needle is produced and carefully pushed through his forearm. Blood begins to drop onto the table, and onto the doll. The needle is removed and it is seen (but not mentioned) that there is no wound. Dipping a finger into the blood and dust on the table the wizard draws a voodoo 'Veve' on his left palm.

Placing the doll on the drawing the wizard lifts a small bottle of a very strange elixir to his lips and drinks.....and, then begins to mumble quietly to himself.

The tom-tom play louder.......

Speaking with an urgent tone the wizard says, "Quickly, take my pulse!" to one spectator. As this is being done, the candle starts to sputter, and the tomtom stop, and so does the pulse! Then, slowly, the doll begins to stand up in the wizards hand!

In a low whisper he says, "My soul is now in the voodoo doll".
Then, as he sighs, the doll drops down and the tom-tom begin to play again. And the time has come to finish the excellent and bizarre elixir.

….. And so on …..
The voodoo doll is actually Joe Lantiere's (Old World Magick) "Wicker Man", which is clothed with cigarette paper that has been colored black (Paper, is much lighter than cloth) ... and so on …"

Ite missa est

Thanks for the feedback but before we all get crazy with submissions, let's go over the parameters again.
1. This is strolling magic for people waiting in line to get into a haunted house/attraction.
2. It's going to be outside in October. This means it will be cold and I'll be wearing a coat. So that kills the needle thru arm.
3. No table involved. It's walkaround with no table. Everything is done in the hands. So that kills any candles.
4. Should be easy to reset. Again, this kills needle thru arm.

I do have 2 versions of the Wicker Man. Anyone ever see that Haunted Hand that Hocus Pocus sells? I think the Wicker Man looks better because it's wicker and more "organic" looking than a plastic skeleton hand. Any thoughts???

Oh yes, me consists of your anxiety, and to make Wicker Man with mittens it is not easy either.
... may be a snowball zombie under a shawl?

Hi Dan,

Your post caught my eye! Every year I work the line up at a Haunted House here in Vancouver, Canada as a mad surgeon. I also work the inside of the house where I have a butcher block that I operate on! I do this 5 nights in a row from 7pm to 10:30pm with a cast of about 8.

To give you a little background, the house is put together by a very good friend of mine (not a magician), he does this to raise food for the local food bank as people only get to go through the house with a donation of food. Every year he collects about $15,000 worth of food! The house & display takes the two of us about 4 weeks of constant building to put together, it is incredible to say the least. Here is a video that someone posted on you tube of just a small part of the outside display (not in the haunted house), it starts a little dark but gets better http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X95g1-PQOB8. You can also visit his website to see more pictures of the house here: http://members.shaw.ca/justinkyllo/halloween.htm


Now you did mention that you wear a jacket so you cannot do needle through arm. As the mad surgeon I perform the knife through arm and Saw (dental floss through neck) by Sean Fields. Now I know what you are going to say, "What about the reset?". I have a bottle of blood on the inside of the haunted house to reset the knife, however after a couple of times of doing the knife my arm is covered in blood so I don't have to pump more. As far as Saw, I dip in the haunted house and get ready and then come out and do the effect at the start of the line and then walk down the line with the floss through my neck, pulling it back and forth. Both these effects get people screaming. The great thing is that they play big in the line up and do not require much dexterity, not the easiest thing when you are cold.

Remember also that a Haunted House line up moves pretty fast so you don't have a whole lot of time to get into long winded routines. Haunted Houses can also be very noisy so you need to catch people visually not with patter, trust me I do it every year!!

By the way this year we are going to be putting my head chopper in the garden (6ft guillotine) and periodically pulling dad's up and putting them in. Again something visual and easy to do.

Hope all of this helps Dan and if you have any other questions let me know. Good Luck! By the way I have also attached a picture of me as the mad surgeon and before you all scream about this being a little scary for the little girl in the picture, it's my friends daughter and she helps with the display :o)

MJ

Click here to view attached image.

I just noticed the link for the youtube video did not work. This one should

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X95g1-PQOB8

Cheers,

MJ

http://www.thecorporatemagician.com/store.html

Something incredibly easy and that people really love is the "flaming fortune cookie" from Eugene. It's so easy it's not even fair, but it is very entertaining. We have had people freak out because sometimes we nail the fortune we pull at random. And it is VERY visual (FLASH AND FLAMES IN THEIR HAND!) and has people lining up to get their fortune.

As far as wicker men, Daniel Greenwolf sold a LARGE one that is beautiful. I have one but don't know if he is still doing them. You probably have that one Dan, I mention it for others.

Another good thing would be Andruzzi's smoking nail.

“I have something very special for you” says beyrevra to the small monsters which surround it.

He opens his hand, and shows that there is a small syringe on his palm.

Suddenly this one is rectified vertically and seemed to be emptied in the beyrevra’s hand.

“Owl” cry beyrevra starting to dribble while the children run away.

...


Some will say that the syringe and Wicker Man are same family.
That the piston slips as naturally as easily when the syringe is vertical. What will beyrevra has a little toothpaste in mouth to dribble like a clamping plate in front of its frog.

That the remainder… all the remainder… it is theatre.

Good luck to the translation ... :oops:

Hehehehehe, you are one sick puppy. Love it.

Thanks for the posts both public and private. I have a good idea where I'll be going with this. One other item for you haunters would be, for lack of a better title, "The Creature in the Palm." This in the hand that creeps out of your two cupped hands.

Oh, it's just a few hours old NOW...but wait until it gets bigger!!!

Or the professional stage version...

http://www.gagsandgoods.com/products_pic......ter2.jpg

This idea isn't fully formed yet but I'm just brainstorming here.
What if you combined the creey little creature with something like haunted matchbox.
In the box is contained a little monster. The box moves and jumps around due to the force of the little bugger trying to get out. These box moves would be less fluid and more jumpy and jerky. Like I said I'm still brainstorming here this may not work but I think it's worth experimenting to see what kind of little sudden movements you can get out of the box. Nothing big mind you. Just little movements.

Maybe the box begins to inch open just a bit. ( If the jumping around doesn't work then you can start from this point where the box creeps open) "Oh No!" You clamp your hand on it. Carefully open the box and make like your dumping something into your cupped hand taking care not to let it loose. ( You don't have to open the box too much just enough and then drop it back into your pocket in a closed position.

You do the creepy creature in your hand bit and then, "Uh Oh! Wha- Where!" It disappeared! It got away! Your hands are empty! You check your sleeves, your pockets, the childrens sleeves, the costumes of hot women...

"Oh Uuuu....I better go find him...."
And you move on to the next group down the line.
You should be reset to start the whole thing all over again.
Or of course you can leave the box open in you pocket and at the end put the little guy "back in the box" and still you are reset for the next group.

I'm only vaguely familiar with the little creature and his workings but I think this would all work....maybe?

C