SIMPLICITY TRANSPOSITION

By Lt. Royal H. Brin, Jr., USN

Effect: The deck is shuffled by spectator and the performer turns his back during the rest of the proceedings.

One spectator is instructed to think of any odd number between one and twenty-six; another spectator is requested to think of any even number between one and twenty-six, so that the two will be sure not to select the same number.

The first spectator takes the deck and counts off a number of cards equal to the number he thought of. He hands the balance of the deck to the second spectator who counts off a number of cards equal to the number he thought of, and puts aside the rest of the deck.

The cards taken by the first spectator and those taken by the second spectator are put together and shuffled by the first spectator. He then spreads the cards in his hands, notes the card at the number he thought of, then hands the cards to the 41 second spectator.

The second spectator spreads the packet in his hands, notes the card at the number he thought of, and squares up the cards. Performer now turns around for the first time, takes the packet and holds it behind his back. He announces that although he does not know the number either spectator thought of, nor the card either spectator looked at, he will cause the two cards to change places.

Thereupon he brings the packet forward, requests spectators to call their numbers and then shows that the first spectator's card is now at the second spectator's number and the second spectator's card is at the first spectator's number, and the cards have truly been transposed in a magical fashion!

Method: This effect is similar to an older trick performed with the names of famous persons written on the pages of a loose-leaf note book. The application of the principle to playing cards is original.

Everything is done fairly just as related above, up to the point where the performer takes the packet of cards behind the back. He then holds the bottom card and deals off the rest of the cards onto the bottom card, reversing their order, as he patters about the strange effect he is going to produce. Simple as it sounds the two cards will now have changed places, and the performer now brings the cards forward, demonstrating as impressively as possible the mysterious transformation that has taken place.

NAME YOUR CARDS

By Bo Bo

Some time ago at the Round Table in Chicago, Bo Bo was there from Texarkana, Texas, and I asked him for a card effect, and he gave me this clever little trick, and I am passing it on for your approval.

Routine: Shuffle the cards and if you have 5 people or more in your gathering, have 6 piles of five cards each, one pile in front of each person. Now pass the remaining cards to a spectator and ask him to select two cards and, so as he won't forget their names, he is to write their names on a piece of paper for the time being. As he is writing their names you gather up the piles, making sure the selected cards go one on pile three and the other on pile six. 

When you have the cards in hand you say "you will pardon me if I write a couple of names also" and you spread the cards in front of you, noting the eleventh and the twenty-seventh card from face of packet as you fan them left to right, and names of the 11th and 27th cards are placed in your pocket or folded up on the table.

Now take the packet of cards and deal out one card at a time, starting at your left and alternating. When the 32 cards have been separated into two stacks, the left hand stack has the spectator's selected cards and the right hand stack your cards. Now spectator has a free choice of using his selected cards or the performer's cards, whichever pair he desires will be left on the table at the conclusion of the trick. Should he select his cards, then discard the right hand stack and pick up the left hand stack, and redeal cards as before. Discard the right hand stack and redeal again and continue this redealing and discarding the right hand pile until only two cards are left in your left hand selected pile — one on the table in the left and on the right. These two cards are the cards that the spectator wrote down — but don't reveal same until he reads their names from his paper.

Call attention to the fairness of the whole thing from start to finish. Should he ask to use your selection of cards — follow the same course only discard the left hand pile each time. If by chance he should say, "use my selected cards" and then points to the pile that has your cards in it, tell him that the cards he wrote on the paper will be left on the table and discard the right hand stack until only two cards remain. He will not notice the discarding of the left hand heap or the right hand heap. This trick was pulled on a lot of us at the Round Table and caused quite some talk. 

FIGURES DON'T LIE 

This is not a trick but a little demonstration in order to bring your audience's attention to a deck of cards. There are many times you would like to get the audience's attention to a deck of cards, but you have no real occasion to say "Oh, I want to show you a trick". You bring this about as though you had heard, or read about something and want their solution to the demonstration. 

Effect: Count the deck of cards to see if they are all there. Then say "I want you to count the cards in series of piles, each pile consisting of a count of ten. For instance, count all face cards at a value of ten and other spot cards at their true value." As an example, should your first card be a three spot, you would add seven more cards -to it, which would give you a total of ten.

Now, place those cards in a pile with three on top of the pile face downward. When the full deck has been counted in piles of ten, you might find you have extra cards, but not enough to give you a total of ten, Just lay them aside for a moment.

While the spectator is making the piles of ten I usually am away some place where I cannot see what they are doing. When all the piles are counted and face downward on the table, I am called back for the demonstration. I request spectator to gather up all the piles and leave only three piles face downward on the table.

After they have gathered all the piles together, pick them up and mention they might add a few left over cards to the big pile, and give the pile of cards to some spectator to shuffle. Performer now sits down at the table and after a moment's deliberation, give them the total of spots on the three remaining piles, that is, the total of the three top cards of the piles left on the table.

Secret: Upon receiving the cards from spectator, count nineteen cards. Then start counting the remaining number of that number, and the cards you hold over nineteen will total the spots on the three top cards of their three piles. For instance, if you had in your pile a total of 26 cards, subtracting 19 cards from that number, you would have a total of 7 for the three top cards. I usually perform the trick, or rather, do the counting under the table. I keep my cards out of sight, and the best place is in your lap while sitting at the table. 

YOU REMEMBER THIS ONE

By Bert Allerton

Here is an old timer the twenty-one card trick in new dress and a real fooler.

Effect: You lay down three rows of six cards each and ask spectator to concentrate on any one of the cards and re- member the pile it is in. Now pick up that pile and place it on top of other two piles and again start and run the cards one at a time into three piles. Again ask what pile it is in. Upon receiving his answer, pick up the three piles leaving one card on the table and that usually is the selected card, if not you have it right handy on the top of your packet.

Secret: When you lay down the three six card piles and spectator chooses one now pick up the packet his card is in and place the packet on top of the other two packets. So now you deal the cards again into three piles.

The first two cards in each piles consists of the pile the spectator selected. So when he tells you what pile it is in, it must be the first or second card in that pile.

Now proceed to pick up the cards leaving his pile until the last.

Now as you pick up the last pile, just pick up five cards leaving the first card there and watch the expression on his face and if that card isn't his, just say, "oh, I meant to leave this card there", and lay the second card there picking up the first card.

This is a sure fire trick and a quickie and your audi- ence will think you are trying to do the old twenty-one card effect. 

SPELLING CARD TRICK WITH DUPLICATE QUEENS

By W. E. (Bill) Salisbury

Here is a trick that my friend Bill Salisbury has made a masterpiece of, and I am sure with a bit of practice you can do likewise. It will bring forth a lot of laughs from your audience, and that is what you are striving for. More laughs, more money. Keep this in mind.

Effect: Get some young lad to assist you on the stage who you think is capable of spelling a few simple words. The magician shows the assistant how he wants him to spell the cards by spelling "One" taking a card oft the top of the deck for each letter and placing cards on bottom of deck one at a time. Turn the next card which will be a "One". Then lay the Ace, after showing it, face down on the table. Now do the same with the spelling of "Two" and "Three". Now you think the boy understands, and you ask him to spell "Four", and he gets the Queen. Performer takes the cards from the assistant and places the Queen on bottom of stack and again demonstrates the spelling of "Four" and lays same on the table after showing.

Now ask assistant if he can spell "Five". Of course he can, but again he gets a Queen. Performer again takes stack, places  Queen on bottom of stack, proceeds to spell "Five", and shows and lays same face down on table. Now ask boy to spell "Six", and again the lad arrives at the Queen. Again performer takes stack, places Queen on bottom and spells "Six" and lays same on table.

Now performer spells both "Seven" and "Eight" and shows them and lays them on the table. Assistant trys again and gets Queen. Performer now lays the Queen on the table with some comment about "getting rid of that card —". Now proceed to spell "Ten" and lays that on the table face downward. Assistant now trys to spell "Jack" and again gets a Queen. Performer now spells "Jack" and shows and lays same on the table. Now performer with two cards left reverses Queen and King and spells "Queen" and lays same on table face down. Performer now shows "King" and places it face down on table.

Secret: Set the cards up as follows using all red cards and omitting the nine and using two Queens of Spades:

3-5-Q-A-K-10-Q-2-8-7-J-6-4

As you spell the cards take one card at a time from top of deck and place the card at the bottom of deck. 

SIMPLICITY POKER DEAL

By Lt. Royal H. Brin, Jr., USN

This feat is based on an idea of Martin Gardner. The original version seemed too involved and a little unhandy in handling.


Effect: After the spectator cuts the deck, the performer deals four open hands of poker, announcing that the fourth hand will be his own. The hands are face up an each draws according to its needs. At the end of the draw performer is found to have the winning hand — four aces!

Secret: While toying with the cards, performer gets the four aces on top of the deck and also notes and remembers the 8th card from the bottom. This is his key card. This preliminary preparation can also be made in the course of a preceding trick. The deck is offered to the spectator, who makes a genuine cut. Performer now takes the cards and begins to deal four face up hands in a fair, open manner. He watches for the key card, knowing when it turns up the aces will be seven cards down. If the key card appears in the original face-up hands, performer knows how far the aces are from the top of the deck and proceeds with the draw, each drawing being made face down. Performer regulates the number of cards drawn by each hand, giving plausible reasons, so that the four aces will be on top when he draws for his own hand. This is an easy matter, in that he may cause hands to drop out or stay in, to keep a kicker or not, to split a pair and draw for a flush, or to keep the pair, etc., thus using up the necessary number of cards in the draw for the first three hands.

If the key card doesn't show up in the original hands, the draw for the first three hands is made face up. The first hand should draw as large a number of cards as will seem plausible. When the key card does turn up, the performer at once knows the position of the aces and proceeds as above, regulating the rest of the draw as necessary.

Further variation is possible. The draw for the first three hands may be made to end with one indifferent card above the aces, this is more convenient. In that case, the performer throws his whole hand away and draws five new cards.

Also, if the performer received a pair in the original deal, he may keep it and draw three cards, ending with a full house.

This effect is best presented as a demonstration of how gamblers always win. The fair cut made by the spectator just before the deal begins makes the feat puzzling yet convincing. 

TWENTY CARD SEQUEL

By Lt. W. T. Williard

Here is an effect shown me by one of the hospital staff and he said it was shown him by a patient in the Walter Reed Hospital. I later found it was one of my friends tricks, Dai Vernon. This trick is of the same family as the Sequel only you use 20 cards in one and fifty-two cards in the other and the up and down movement is used in counting instead of on the table. I think the trick is well planned and I sure owe a vote of thanks to its author as the sequel has always been one of my favorites and is in all my other books.

Effect: If the deck has a Joker it is used, if not, the Ace of Spades. At the start of the trick you take deck and remove three cards one of which is the Ace of Spades or the Joker the other two cards remain face downward. Now the spectator is asked to shuffle the deck and remove 20 cards. The index card which we will call the joker is now handed to a spectator with instructions to insert it anywhere in the 20 card packet, then he looks through the packet and remembers the card at the left of the index card. The deck is now passed to a second spectator with instructions to look at the card at the right of the index card and remember same. Now the cards can be given a square cut by both spectators.

Now the performer takes the packet of 21 cards and says to the first spectator please note and remember whether your card is in the upper portion or lower portion of this packet. Now the back card of the packet is taken by the right hand saying "up" and the next card is taken saying "down" and placed about half way down so that it covers the lower portion of the first card. This is carried on thru the packet keeping the up cards squared even and the down cards squared even. Now withdraw the "down cards" and place them on top of the remaining "up cards". Now go thru this same routine with the second person and ask was your card in the packet — of course it was as this is only a bit of misdirection.

Now you ask someone to remove the index card as you run the cards face towards them. Saying please remember I do not see or know any of these cards except the index card which you are removing. When the index card is removed cut the deck at the point of removal. Now say, "I will divide the packet in two heaps of ten cards each" (making sure you don't dis- arrange their order) . Placing one heap in front of one spectator and the other heap in front of other spectator. Patter "here I have two cards face downward that you recall I placed there before you even shuffled the deck, the purpose being to tell me the location of your card in the pile. "Please turn over your card". It is a 5 spot. Count down to the fifth card hold same in front of spectator face downward ask the name of his card and throw card on table face up and it is the selected card. Now turn the other card face up it is a six spot and count down and the second spectator's card is found at that location. If you can force the five and six spot it helps the trick a lot. This is a very wonderful effect and I am sure you will like it.

I usually have a five spot on top of deck and a six spot on the bottom of deck. When I have the twenty cards drawn, they 48 are taken from the center of deck — now at the conclusion of trick I have the packet cut and each half placed in front of the spectator's ten card packet — this gives me a five spot on top and a six spot on bottom. 

RIFFLE SHUFFLE 

Here is a quickie if you don't mind a previous stack and I find that it always fools the lay audience when you use it as an opening close up trick.

Effect: Take thirteen cards of a suit and place same on top of deck. Now remember the top card of your deck — say it is the Jack of Spades. The spectator now gives you any number lower than twelve and you count the cards off the deck one at a time until you reach that number — say it was eight and the card looked at was the five of spades. Now that places the key card Jack of Spades on top of it. Now ask that deck be given a riffle shuffle and for good measure another riffle shuffle and a square cut. Now performer takes the deck and looks for his key card Jack of Spades and the next spade below it or at its right is the spectators five of spades which you produce as you see fit. 

TWO DIGITS 

Here is a four Ace trick with an old idea for producing the Aces.

Effect: You place four Aces tenth, eleventh, twelfth, and thirteenth, cards from the top of the deck. It makes no difference what cards are above same as the trick is self working. Ask spectator for any number between ten and twenty. Say he gave you sixteen.

Then you count sixteen cards off the deck a card at a time face downward in a pile. Now you say "sixteen has two digits which added together totals seven, 1 plus 6 equal 7 so I will count seven cards back on to the deck" when you come to the seventh card instead of placing same on deck just throw it face down on the table and place the re- maining nine cards on top of the six cards placed on the deck.

Now ask for another number, say you get "eleven" count eleven cards one at a time onto the table and again you add the two digits which gives you a total of two, so one card goes on the deck and the second card face down on the table, the balance goes back on top of the deck.

Now ask for another number and say you get fourteen, again deal fourteen cards on the table face down one at a time. Again total the digits, which gives you a total of five. Four cards one at a time go on top of the deck and the fifth card is placed on table, the balance of cards placed back on top of deck.

Now again ask for a number and say you get nineteen. You count off nineteen cards face down one at a time on table. You total the digits and get ten. Count nine cards back onto the deck and the tenth card goes on the table. The trick is now finished, turn over the four cards on the table which are the "four aces." 

TAPPING TRICK

By Ed Miller

Here is an effect that my friend Ed Miller gave me the last time I was in his shop. It is a nice little trick for husband and wife, or any two people to perform.

Effect: Have ten cards placed on the table, four cards in one row, two cards in center row, and four cards in other row, all face up. Call the attention of the audience to your assistant who will leave the room while they touch any card they desire. Your assistant will then return and give them the name of the card touched. Start touching the cards and continue until you have touched all the cards on the table. After you have completed this your assistant calls the name of the card. Repeat the trick and request the assistant to leave the room. Tell spectator he can arrange the cards in any order, or that you will start counting from any card he desires. The assistant then returns and gives spectator the name of the card touched.

Secret: Very simple. Among your ten face up cards, be sure to have a ten spot. That card is the pattern of the ten cards on the table. All you are obliged to do is touch the spot on the index card on the table that tallys with the location of the lay out on the table. For instance, you started with your index card and it was located on the right hand corner. The assistant would call that card, after you had completed your count of cards. Start with the right hand corner and when the spectator touches a spot on your key card the "ten spot", notice the spot he touches and that spot will denote the location of the touched card on the table. Should there be two or three tens in your ten card selection, the key card will always be the higher ranking "ten spot". With a bit of practice you can do this with the cards face downward, using one of the two outside piles and Poker.