Hi everyone. Was just browsing an old davenports catalogue,(I know, it's Friday night and I should be out!) and was thinking, and would like to hear...
If you lost your whole magic collection, I.e it was stolen, destroyed by fire ect, and you only had say, £20 (about $40) left in your wallet,and had a show to do that night, which effects/props/anything would you buy to perform a potentially successful gig?
there are no restrictions except the £20 limit,so cant see a reason for an argument. looking forward to your replies, and I will ponder it, and post later tonight.

One ordinary deck of cards.

I've already told this story before on the Magic Café. At the risk of being repetitive, I'll tell it again. It's a true story.

I had an interesting experience in Tempe, Arizona quite a few years ago. I was sitting by myself in a Japanese restaurant, reading Kaplan's The Fine Art of Magic. I was in Tempe on a business trip (I work in the electronics industry), and I wasn't carrying any props.

The waitress interrupted me and asked if I was a magician. (She'd seen the title of the book!) Upon hearing my positive reply, she took me to the manager of the place. The manager explained that there was a party going on in one of the private rooms, and the magician that the restaurant had hired for this special event had just called and was unable to perform. She asked if I could help out.

I stepped out the front door, and looked up and down the street. There was a Walgreen's store a few doors down. I went in and quickly bought:

A couple of decks of cards
A Sharpie
A cheap metal container (it was for house plants, if I remember correctly)
Rope
Cheap (but sharp!) pair of scissors
Safety pins
Thread
And a roll of quarters as $10 in change!
(I'm guessing that this meets your requirement of a £20 limit.)

I did a show that included a card set (with Haunted Pack and Ambitious Card), a nice rope sequence, Gypsy Thread, and the Miser's Dream. (I'd forgotten the Gypsy Thread the first time I told this story, and I'm not sure why. For what it's worth, I obtained the thread for the Haunted Pack by unraveling part of one black dress sock.)

The audience was incredibly receptive, loud, and enthusiastic. (I'm not sure if the manager told them about the other magician not showing up.) The experience was a delicate combination of terror and exhilaration.

Haha! Thanks ssybil, I actually bet my wife earlier that the 1st post would be the exact answer you posted. Cheers!

Thanks Barry that's an amazing story! Seriously well done on getting it together. Yeah I know that feeling VERY well. Slightly off topic but I make my living as a musician.One evening a friend told me that a bassist that I didn't really care for had mentioned that he was trying to get an audition with one of my favourite bands, Killing joke. Kinda niggled me. So from the pub I was in that evening, I searched the web, and eventually got a number for the current keyboard player (who I knew, but lost contact years before). I left a voicemail saying if they needed a bassist, I would do it, as I'd rather me than this other guy playing for a band I loved.
Be careful what you wish for.
I got a call early Sunday morning.a flight was booked for Monday morning, so I had 24 hours to learn 18 songs, one day rehearsal in Prague, then a sold out 8 week tour including most of Europe and Japan. As you can imagine, a few days later, walking out on stage with a favourite band in front of 5000 people defiantly gave me that feeling of sheer terror,mixed with pure adrenaline! Anyway sorry, back to the topic!

Nice stories Orchid and Barry! (I'm a musician as well Orchid).

Anyhow, I don't have the presence of mind of Barry, so my answer would be two packs of cards and four 2 Euro coins.

Note to self: If I ever meet Barry - which I sincerely hope to do - never wear dress black socks.

Best,
Vlad

Finger Guillotine

Hey vlad! Who you playing for? Gimme a pm and lets chat! And just curious...2 decks and 4 coins. For one routine or the whole show?

A couple of packs of Cards
Thumb Tip
Thread
Copper/Silver or Folding coin
Ribbon/Rope

Here's hoping that this day comes sooner rather than later. But don't worry about your socks, Vlad. After I show you what I've been planning to perform, you won't be wearing them for long!

These are wonderful stories to get to know...may happen to anyone of us..being prepared for in advance is essential to fix problems on these unexpected situations. I was invited years ago as a guest of Jo Soares, the leading TV talk-show national broadcast all over Brazil, a type of Johnny Carson TV program. I was launching my new book for children and presenting at that time a national TV program for kids. I expected only to talk and show the book as a gift to Jo but the TV producer asked me to present a magic trick. I had only 2 types of sculpture balloons with me, so I bought a thumb tip on magic shop nearby and performed the production of the well known "bee baloon". When I was invited to the stage in the TV program, to add some new twist on the presentation, I asked to Jo Soares a bill, say $50.I made a switch using the thumb tip and the bill disappeared. The audience laugh a lot becasuse Jo was worrying to loose his money. Only to discover minutes after, when I finished the "Bee Balloon", there was a $50 bill inside the body of the bee. It was a great applause that I don´t forget because it was a trick I developed inpromptu that same afternoon..
By the way, on this topic of magicians stories, I strongly recommend a wonderful book called MAGICIANS MOST AMAZING STORIES a collection of incredible stories from world famous magicians, compiled by IVAN AMODEI.

A couple decks of cards, 6 half dollars from the bank, a couple sharpies, pick up a stick from the ground for a wand, and I can probably do a couple hours.

-Leo

One deck of cards, Brainwave, pencil and paper and a TT should be all I need to entertain for a few hours. Maybe throw in a Sharpie (if not... an ordinary pen would also work).

Ray

Great stuff dazulay.another good story. I remember one of my first books on magic was mark wilsons cyclopedia of magic. Haven't read it for ages,but if I remember correctly,he wrote a piece on why magic was a great hobby to take up. He noted that someone seriously studying the art was likely to react better in an emergency situation.after 15 years of study and practise, I could not agree more with that statement,and always repeat it when anyone asks me for advice,for instance if their kid has become interested. On top of that I find the study of all forms of magic promotes improved memory and concentration,quick and rational thinking,hand to eye coordination,and a great way of dealing with a sudden situation or last minute change of order that others would find just too overwhelming. The stories posted here have reinforced that theory.

Oh and by the way, I would also buy 2decks of bikes,a sharpie,a pad of paper,and possibly a large paper clip. the main difference on my list is that I would buy a new routine with whatever I had left. Just for example, the elmsley 4 card trick or card warp booklet are only a few pounds from davs, and I love the challenge of getting something unfamiliar,having to learn it fast, and pulling it off successfully,and acting well enough do the specs would never suspect that they're watching the first time I have ever done it. I guess I've always worked/performed better under pressure. k

Great question, orchid666, and amazing stories from you guys. I salute BarryFernelius for such quick thinking. I was going to say 2 decks of cards and some coins ... but not everybody lay person likes card tricks as much as we do. I would also throw in some paper napkins (for an impromptu Sponge Napkins a la Gregory Wilson, and possibly Dan Harlan's Starcle).

I'm also a musician/magician, so here is one of my own stories: I grew up in South Africa and had already established a successful career in music, performing on keyboards and guitar for various bands, doing studio work, musical director for shows, and composing original songs for recording artists. But I wanted to learn more, so I saved up my pennies and eventually enrolled in Berklee College of Music (USA), where I studied jazz composition, orchestration and film scoring. After graduation, I was asked to teach at the College, which I did for the next for 2 years.

But I wanted to perform again full-time, so put out some feelers ... and the first audition I went to was for Peter Frampton. He had already auditioned 30 potential replacements for Bob Mayo ... none of whom worked out. But I got the gig! And ended up touring with Peter for several years. Our first tour was in South America, where we played in huge football stadiums in Brazil, Argentina, Venezuela, Panama, Puerto Rico, etc. So I went from teaching classes of 30 students at Berklee College, to rocking out for over 100,000 screaming fans! Talk about an adrenaline rush!

Arthur Stead
http://www.arthurstead.com

Stage, closeup or strolling? And how long do the shows need to be?

Stage: A coffee can or metal flowerpot and some coins. An aspirin/pill tube and two different-coloured bits of fabric. Maybe a deck of cards. To finish: scissors and rope.
Closeup: A sharpie. Some coins. A shoelace (ring and string; borrowed ring). A deck of cards. To finish: a smallish paper coffee cup. A couple of crumpled pieces of paper. A small orange. A small potato.
Strolling: A sharpie. A couple of coins. A deck of cards. A bill (I would borrow another bill). To finish: again, scissors and rope.

1. 3 decks of cards 9.00
2. 5 half dollars 2.50
3. Invisible deck 13.00
4. Eye exam 13.00
5. Sponge balls 7.00
6. A sharpie 3.00

Mentalism costs next to nothing.

Just my Hypnosis and Suggestion routines would be enough.

Pendulum work itself would suffice.

I'd perform Body Catalepsy on three chairs if a "big thing" is needed.

I'd also get Duct Tape for my Blindfolded Act and two coins for the eyes.

And some balloons. Gotta have balloons.

I've actually done this.

Tarot cards 10 euros
Normal deck of cards 2 euros
Some screws and cord to make improvised pendulums 2 euros
Pack of index cards 3 euros
Some pens and a Sharpie 3 euros

Should be enough for an evening of entertainment.