I was wondering if you could give me your thoughts on this book. What kind of material does in contain, is it gimmickless. I have heard that it is a refreshing book, which is for what I am looking. Any comments are greatly appreciated.

Thanks

It is an excellent book for the close-up / parlor worker. There are great coin and card routines, some with gaffs. These are all strong routines, with some unique handlings.

I'm not sure about "refreshing". "Leading with your head" is refreshing in the sense that it's on magic theory. I would recommend that Kurtz book(let) too.

-- Frank

"Leading With Your Head" is a must-buy!!!

Kurtz leans toward the difficult, but the methodologies are very well constructed and the effects magnificent in the right hands. Well worth $30.

Gary Kurtz strives very hard to make his magic look like magic. Sometimes (ok..most times) it is difficult sleight of hand. Other times he'll exploit unorthodox uses of gaffs. The book is amazing! I use 'Inside/Outside' every night I perform. 'Hypothetical Possibilites' is also an amazing trick that I often use as a closer.
Great stuff! Ed

Many thanks to all who have replied. I was wondering if you could give me some kind of indication of the amount of gaffed effects there are, and what gaffs are needed. I know this may sound picky, and I am not overly concerned with using a gaff, but I do enjoy performing more knowing that I am using something that everyone has access to. I think the spectator has can sense when they are seeing an ordinary object do amazing things opposed to some specially made magician's prop.

Thanks

If I recall correctly, you'll need a shell to do some of the effects, but that shouldn't be a problem for an audience.

There are also a couple of Gary Kurtz video tapes available. These might give you a better idea how an audience would respond--- they don't even know a gaff's in-play (and probably some magicians may not know either).

-- Frank

This book is remarkable. Don't worry about the audience having any feeling that something "strange" is responsible for the magic. In some of the routines, it's pretty clear that you are responsible (i.e. the more manipulative routines) in others, the magic just happens. The most unusual thing the audience sees is a jumbo coin. And the way it's presented, you'll get the credit, not the coin.

The "refreshing" aspect is that most of the routines are driven by Mr. Kurtz's imaginative premises, and they include: A card that staggers backward and forward through time, a mirror image that changes places with the real thing, card that are stapled together flip inside out because you wrote the word "inside" on their outsides, Colors that blend on a playing card in response to a critique of the excesses of Modern art, A simple game involving coins chosen from a cloth bag in which you manipulate the laws of chance, making the spectators lucky or not, as you will, and a prolonged visual fantasy with coins designed to instill a sense that the audience is hallucinating.

This is a book to use, and to come back to later.

I concur with the above assessments. A few of the routines are a bit "movier" than I like, but for the most part it is chock full of wonderful magic, great presentation and deep thinking. Even if you don't do any of the effects, the book is worth careful study.

Does anyone know where to get a copy, at least here in the U.S.? I've checked the "usual" sources but am coming up empty...

Hi Vilago,
The book is published by Kaufman and Greenburg.
I've just checked and it's listed as still in print.

Although it's one of my favourite books and Gary infuses the routines with poetry and strange humour, I find that a lot of the routines require large or special coins and two require different card wallets.
I think the routines expect commitment rather than skill. The two long coin routines are worth the cost of the book in themselfs.
Eddie

When you say that the routines edge on being difficult, how difficult do you mean. Are you talking in the realms of an average card handler (Dble Lift, Pass, False Shuffles, palming)or the more specific skills (side sleals, aone hand top palm etc.)
Are there any magicians you could could compareKurtz to?

Thanks Eddie, but I should have been more specific...I was actually looking for copies of "Leading with your head"

Dan

Kurtz card stuff is really not that difficult. More difficult than Ammar or Daryl, but easier than Ray Kosby. Kurtz is comfortable using palms and such. The book is mainly about coin magic and he has some extremely challenging coin stuff.

Vilago,
The book " Leading with your Head " is out of print as far as I know.
But it is advertised on a web site in, I think, Norway.
Try http://www.leirpoll.com/leading.htm
or http://www.leirpoll.com
The price is about $21 + postage.
It is only a small book. 60 pages.
Good luck
Eddie