Hello! I was just wondering if anyone had picked up Bob Farmer’s “Bammo” ebook, and if so, what your thoughts were. I’m intrigued by this as a possible stage effect.

Bob Farmer’s Bammo Lost Mentalism Principle resurrects and refines one of the most powerful and overlooked ideas in mentalism. Building on the historic 5/3 Principle, this 153-page book teaches you how to perform self-working miracles that leave no trace of method.

Throughout history, the "lost principle" has allowed three people to choose objects while the magician's back is turned away. Then, without without complicated processes or sleight of hand. the magician reveals who holds which object. The older methods are obsolete. Here, as always, Bob takes this in all sorts of interesting and unexpected directions involving many more choices and combinations.

Our favorite effect amongst this large collection is "Psychic Blackjack" in which three participants secretly choose and hold blackjack hands while the magician’s back is turned. Without asking a single question (or even looking), the magician impossibly reveals the exact Blackjack totals each spectator holds. As a jaw-dropping finale, he names every single card in their hands. All this happens without mathematics, memory, or sleight of hand.

But that's just the start. You’ll discover:

Ready-to-perform routines – From "Psychic Blackjack" and "Psychic Tarot" to "Psychic Shakespeare," ESP demonstrations, and even a mind-bending Reservoir Dogs-themed routine. Each comes complete with methods, patter, and performance notes. In total, there are over a dozen effects.

No math, no sleight of hand, no stooges – Every effect is designed to be direct, deceptive, and practically self-working, freeing you to focus on presentation.

The History & evolution of the Lost Principle – Trace its journey from 19th-century roots through classics like Jack Miller's "The Boxes of Chang" and "Pay Day", to Eddie Joseph’s refinements, and more recently Robin Dawes’ revolutionary streamlined method.

A Treasure Trove of Effects – Over a dozen full routines, including Miracle 91, A Clue to a Lie, Celestial Lights Aura, and The Gambler’s Third Eye.

Table of Contents
Introduction
Psychic Blackjack
Psychic Tarot
Psychic Hold-Em
Psychic Shakespeare
Psychic ESP
A Clue to a Lie
All Access ESP
Your Move!
The Gambler’s Third Eye
Celestial Lights Aura
Psychic Reservoir Dogs
Miracle 91
History of the Lost Mentalism Principle
The Formulae for the Lost Principle
Dawes 5/3 Method
Presentation
Thank Yous
How to Use the Appendices
Schedules
Ebook. 153 pages.

Great review. Thank you. Yes, I think "Psychic Blackjack," is also my favorite routine since you just need a deck of cards.

Not a review, just cut and paste the ad copy.

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Hello, I'd like to respectively contribute my unsolicited opinion on this piece. I just spent the afternoon reading it cover to cover

I want to say straight out of the gate that I am enormously fond of Bob Farmer and his Dossier on ten card poker deals remains one of the most treasured books in my collection. It is meticulously researched, clearly organized and contains all the thoroughness and peer reviewed contributions of any post-graduate academic work.

As far as Bammo Lost Mentalism Principle, the work is -again- thoroughly researched, well presented and Bob is enormously generous with the amount of material he provides on the topic. You get so many adaptations and variations of the routine, plus all the material and inspiration you need to make it your own.

That said, this method isn't for me. It is a fun curiosity, and it certainly scratches an itch for clever mentalism and historic technique, but without tipping anything about the method, I can't see this being an effect that makes it into my working repertoire.


It may be down to a matter of taste. I feel there are so many modern methods to accomplish the same or similar plots that putting this much new thinking on it wouldn't be time well spent. I have encountered this method before. I think maybe in The Jinx or an old release of Docc Hilford and it was refreshing to see new thinking applied to it.

I will end by saying this: money spent on Bob Farmer is always money well spent. This is because you're not just buying an effect. You're buying an entire lineage and pedigree to an effect. Despite the fact that I don't care for this one, I still got a lot of joy out of reading the history of the method and seeing how far this concept could be pushed into different themes. I thought the backstage pass and the Shakespeare test were particularly clever.

I hope this is helpful in some regard.

-Alex

PS -- with this work, like others from the same author, a lot of the meat is in the afterwards and appendixes. If you do read this book, don't skip that bit.

Is this based on the Hummer principle?

No, this is entirely different. The Hummer principle is a little procedural and funny looking to me, although Juan Tamariz had a wonderful version of it in VERBAL MAGIC where the spectator essentially performs an oil and water effect in their own hands.

Bob Farmer's book is a different method entirely. If I'm giving away too much I'll delete this. It is essentially an algorithm of choices for three spectators to make where, despite things looking very free and random, you come away with perfect information.

Thanks for the insight Alex!!

This sounds intriguing.