Sterling Publishing Co., Inc.

New York
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Longe, Bob, 1928-
Easy card magic / Bob Longe.
p. cm.
Includes index.
Summary: Explains the secrets and presentation techniques of
seven maneuvers and sixty-four card tricks.
ISBN 1-4027-0791-6
1. Card tricks—Juvenile literature. [1. Card tricks. 2. Magic
tricks.] I. Title.
GV1549.L5277 2003
793.8'5—dc21
2003005722

2468 10 97531

Published by Sterling Publishing Co., Inc.

387 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10016
© 2003 by Bob Longe

Distributed in Canada by Sterling Publishing

c/o Canadian Manda Group, One Atlantic Avenue, Suite 105
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M6K 3E7
Distributed in Great Britain by Chrysalis Books
64 Brewery Road, London N7 9NT, England
Distributed in Australia by Capricorn Link (Australia) Pty. Ltd.
P.O. Box 704, Windsor, NSW 2756, Australia

Manufactured in the United States of America

All rights reserved
Sterling ISBN 0-4027-0791-6
 CONTENTS
The Real Magic.7
Moves .8
Quadruple-Cut Control .8
Roll-Over False Cut.10
One of Two Force .11
Up-and-Down Shuffle.11
One-Two-Three Shuffle .13
Hay-Mow Shuffle.14
Small-Pile Shuffle..16
TRICKS.19
Discovery Magic.19
Take Your Choice.19
Double-Header.21
The Oldest Process..24
A Center Cut .26
Hand Them Over.27
Find Them Both.29
At Milt’s House .30
Use Your Mentality .31
A Little Work.33
A Lovely Couple .35
Let’s Both Choose.36
Four by Four .38
A Good Deal .40
Likewise.41
Four of a Kind Magic.43
Easy Aces.43
The Pick of Four .44
All for One.45
4 Easy Card Magic

Match-Ups.48
Miss You . .50
It’s Reigning Queens.51
Countdown Magic.53
A Count for Yourself.53
The Psych Count .55
Bottoms Up .57
And Four to Go.58
Twenty Plus .59
Face-Up Magic.61
Two by Two.61
Expansion .63
Mental Magic. 64
Experimental Mind Reading.64
The Very Thought of It.66
Q the Audience .68
After Dinner. 73
An Odd Number .75
Just Keep Dealing! . 76
Prediction Magic .77
Double Trouble .77
We Have a Winner.79
Got the Time? . 81
Coincidence Magic.82
Same Old, Same Old .82
You Belong to My Hearts.84
A Little More Work.86
What’s in a Name?.89
Alone By The Phone Magic.91
We’re Off to Hear the Wizard .91
A Phoney Routine .95
Simplicity Itself.98
 Contents 5

Number Magic.99
Two for the Price of One .99
Piles of Magic.101
It All Adds Up .103
The Good Word.105
Setups.107
Detection by Inflection.107
Three to Get Ready .109
Odd or Even.Ill
Match Them Up.112
The Elite Set.113
Spelling Magic. 114
It’s All Yours.114
Name Calling.115
Piles of Spelling .116
Computer Speller.117
Shake, Rattle, and Spell .119
Cut and Count.120
Red-and-Black Magic.122
Another Hummer.122
I Just Can’t See It.123
Mastery Levels Chart 5c Index.125
 7

The Real Magic ;

H ere you’ll find 7 maneuvers and 60 excellent card tricks that
require no mastery of sleight of hand. This doesn’t mean, how¬
ever, that you need not practice. You must master the secrets and
presentation techniques. I’ll thoroughly explain the secrets. And I’ll
help out with presentation. But you must contribute time and effort.
When I was in the service (many years ago), I pulled duty with a
fellow soldier, Bobby Kelly. He had seen me perform card tricks and
asked if I’d teach him some. I was flattered and delighted. I started by
teaching him a number of easy tricks, but soon advanced to far more
complicated effects. Bobby, from South Carolina, had a deep voice
and a naturally grand manner—so much so that I was reminded of a
traditional Kentucky colonel, so I dubbed him Colonel Kelly. One day,
I observed him showing card tricks to a number of fellow soldiers.
Imagine my surprise that he was doing the tricks better than I did.
What was he doing? He just naturally presented them in the grand
manner, as I imagine a P.T. Barnum might have. Picture a sideshow
barker in slow motion and you’ll have a fair idea of Colonel Kelly’s
technique.
“My friends, here we have an ordinary deck of 52 pasteboards.
Is it possible that hidden inside these ordinary cards are wondrous
miracles? Oh, yes. For example, let’s see what happens when Joseph
makes a single selection from the 52.”
And so on.
He certainly baffled his fellow soldiers, but even more, he enter¬
tained them. They were seeing a show, an artist at work. I’m not rec¬
ommending that you adopt Kelly’s grandiose technique, unless of
course that’s your natural way. That’s certainly not my way. I prefer
a fairly humorous approach, making occasional asides intended to
evoke laughter or at least snickers. Furthermore, I am more
restrained and, if a miracle occurs, I’m as astounded as everyone
else. “I can’t believe this. So help me, this is the first time this has
ever happened.” Everyone knows it’s nonsense, but, for me, it works
much better than being either a Colonel Kelly or a Mr. Know-it-all.
8 Easy Card Magic

Whatever your natural personality, presentation is everything. If

you’re a reserved individual, you must unbend somewhat and offer
a reason for performing a particular trick. If you have a tendency to
be a bit brash, incorporate that into your performance as you pres¬
ent your patter.
What kind of reason, and what patter? I think of it this way:
Backing up most tricks is a story, something that will interest specta¬
tors, independent of the magic. It might be something fairly slight,
like the idea of a specific kind of shuffle from Australia (See “Double
Header,” page 21), or it might be an extensive tale, something involv¬
ing the three musketeers, for instance (See “All for One,” page 45). I
provide direction on the vast majority of the following tricks, but you
must do the major work yourself. Adapt, originate, and develop
clever new themes that will work for you.
Yes, the secrets here are clever and marvelously deceptive, but
the entertainment is up to you. That part you must think about and
practice.

Moves

For many tricks, it’s vital that you be able to control a selected card.
There are many methods that require considerable skill. But Fred
Braue, superb magic innovator, came up with this simple control.
The only requirement is that you be able to insert your left little fin¬
ger above a selected card when it’s returned to the deck.
You do this by tilting the cards above the returned card slightly
(Illus. 1). This makes way for you to insert the tip of your left little
finger above the card. Simply close up the deck and keep your right
hand over it, concealing the break. You need only do this for a sec¬
ond or two because you immediately begin fanning the cards out.
“Fet’s take a look at some of the possibilities.”
You fan to the break and turn over all the cards above the break.
More or less even up the cards.
 Moves 9

The Selected Card.

“You could have chosen this card.”

Fan to several cards beyond the break. Turn over the entire batch
and return them to the deck fairly evenly.
“Or you could have chosen this one.”
Don’t spread out the cards this time. Just separate the deck some¬
where in the face-down cards. Turn the entire batch over.
“Perhaps this could have been your choice.”
Fan to the end of the face-up cards. Hold the face-up cards in
your right hand as you flip the remainder of the deck face up with
your left thumb (Illus. 2). Touch the card at the face of those in your
left hand with the pile in your right hand.
“Or maybe this one.”

Illus. 2
10 Easy Card Magic

Drop the cards in your right hand on top of those in the left
hand. Turn the deck face down.
The chosen card is now on top.

Roll:OverFalseCut
From time to time, it’s essential that you appear to mix the cards.
Presenting a fairly simple method:
You will lay out six packets of cards. Start by picking off about
one-sixth of the cards and set them down face up somewhat to your
left. To the left (or outside) of this packet, set down another sixth
from the top face down. Another sixth from the top goes face down
to the right of the first pile. Thus far, you have the piles like this:
2nd pile from top face down, 1st pile from top face up, 3rd pile
from top face down
Leave a space of several inches to the right of these three piles.
The next sixth goes face up to the right several more inches. The next
sixth goes to the right (or outside) of this packet. The last packet goes
to the left of the fourth pile. The present position:
2nd pile face down, 1st pile face up, 3rd pile face down, 5th pile
face down, 4th pile face up, 5th pile face down
With the left hand, turn the pile on the left end over on top of the
pile to its immediate right. The entire packet on the left is now face up.
At exactly the same time, with the right hand turn over the pile
on the right end so that it goes on top of the pile to its immediate left.
The entire packet on the right is now face up.
With the left hand, turn the combined face-up pile on the left
over on top of the pile to its immediate right. The entire packet on
the left is now face down.
At exactly the same time, with the right hand turn over the com¬
bined pile on the right end so that it goes on top of the pile to its
immediate left. The entire packet on the right is now face down.
At present there are two face-down packets, with an empty space
of several inches between them. Roll the packet on the left over so
that it’s face up. Immediately roll the pile on the right on top of it.
The deck is back to its original order.
 Moves 11

One of Two Force

Occasionally, it’s good to be able to make a spectator select a card of
your choosing. Perhaps this method will work for you.
You must know the names of the top and bottom card of the
deck. One way to do this is to peek at the bottom card as you speak
and wave the deck around. Shuffle that card to the top with an over¬
hand shuffle, making it a point to shuffle off the last several cards
individually. Then, in the same way, peek at the current bottom card.
Another method, less skillful and more daring, is to fan through
the cards face up, saying, “Notice that the cards are thoroughly
mixed,” or “Here we have an ordinary deck of cards,” or “In a
moment, I’ll ask you to select one of these cards.” As you go through
the cards, note the one on the bottom and the one on the top.
After you know these two cards, set the deck down.
Say to Don, “Please cut off a small pile, Don. Then turn it over
and put it back on top.” While he does this, turn away. Continue,
“Now cut off a larger pile, set it down, and put the rest of the deck
on top of it.”
Pause. “Pick up the deck and turn it over. Fan through the face¬
up cards. You can, if you wish, choose the first face-down card you
come to. If so, take a look at it and show it around. Return it and fix
the deck so that all the cards face the same way. Then give the cards
a shuffle. Or do you prefer to go on?”
If he chooses to go on, continue, “Fan down further and look at
the first face-up card you come to. Look at it, show it around ...” And
so on.
In the first instance, Don looks at the original top card of the
deck. In the second instance, he looks at the original bottom card.

Up-and-Down Shuffle
Here is a clever maneuver that is the key to many tricks. Under the
guise of “giving the cards a little mixing,” the magician arranges a
packet in an order that is useful for the trick at hand. Learning it is
not at all difficult.
12 Easy Card Magic

nius. 3

Start by holding the cards in the left

hand in the dealing position. With your left
thumb, push off the top card and take it
into your right hand. Move your right hand
forward (away from you) a few inches and
push off the next card; take it below the first
one. You’re now holding two cards. The
top one extends about half its length
beyond the lower card.
Move the right hand back to its origi¬
nal position and take the third card below
the other two; it should be more or less in
line with the first card. Move the right
hand forward again, taking the fourth card
below the others; it should be more or less in line with the second card
(Illus. 3). Continue through the packet.
When you’re finished, hold the upper group with your left hand as,
with your right hand, you strip out the lower group from the others
(Illus. 4). This group goes on top of the cards remaining in your left
hand.
 Moves 13

One-Two-Three Shuffle
I developed this pseudo-shuffle some time ago. It’s quite useful for
retaining the exact order of a small group of cards while apparently
mixing them. It also can be used to move a particular card to a spe¬
cific position in a packet without resorting to serious sleight of hand.
I recommend its use in two of the tricks in this book, and it could be
used in others as well.
Let’s suppose you have a packet of 12 cards and you wish to
retain its exact order. You must transfer 12 cards to the bottom of the
packet, moving one, two, or three cards at a time.
You may do it any way you wish, as long as you move 12 cards.
Here’s one possibility:
Fan off two cards and put them on the bottom, saying mentally,
“Two.”
Fan off three cards and put them on the bottom, saying mentally,
“Five.” (You have added three to the two.)
Fan off one card and put it on the bottom, saying mentally,
“Six.”
Fan off one card and put it on the bottom, saying mentally,
“Seven.”
Fan off three cards and put them on the bottom, saying mentally,
“Ten.”
Fan off two cards and put them on the bottom, saying mentally,
“Twelve.”
All done, and the cards are back in their original order.
Suppose you know the bottom card of that 12-card packet and
that you’d like to move it to the third position from the top. Subtract
3 from 12, getting 9. You must transfer nine cards from the top to
the bottom, moving one, two, or three cards at a time.
Suppose you know the top card of that 12-card packet and that
you’d like to move it to the fifth position from the top. Obviously,
you want to put four cards on top of that known card, so you sub¬
tract 4 from 12, getting 8. Transfer eight cards to the bottom, using
the usual method.
The key to success with this shuffle is to appear casual; the spec¬
tators should have no hint that you’re counting to yourself.
14 Easy Card Magic

Illus. 5

Illus. 6

Hay-Mow Shuffle
This is sometimes known as the Charlier shuffle because the tricky
version, presumably, was developed by a Frenchman of the same
name. Apparently the deck is sloppily mixed up; actually, the cards
are only cut, which disarranges nothing.
 Moves 15

nius. 7

With your left thumb, push off a packet of several cards from the
top of the deck. Take the packet into your palm-up right hand (Illus.
5). With the left fingers, push off some cards from the bottom of the
deck (Illus. 6). These go on top of the packet in your right hand.
Push off some more cards from the top of the deck with your left
thumb. These are taken below the cards in your right hand.
With your left fingers, push off some more from the bottom. Add
these to the top of those in your right hand.
Continue until the pile of cards in your left hand is exhausted. You
should now be holding a messy pile in your right hand. Straighten them
out. Basically, nothing has happened except that the deck has been cut.
If you wish the deck to retain its original order, you can do this:
When you first push off a pile with your left hand, push the top card
out to the rear, about an inch or so (Illus. 7). Pile up the cards as
described. When done, take the jumbled deck into your left hand.
Cut off all the cards above the card sticking out at the rear. Place
these onto the table. Put the rest of the deck on top. The deck is back
in its original order.
16 Easy Card Magic

Small-Pile Shuffle
I developed this so-called shuffle for a particular trick, but it has
many applications for other tricks. It’s useful when you want to
retain the order of a relatively small packet of cards—say, 20 or
fewer.
Deal the top card of the packet face down onto the table. To the
right of it, deal the next card face up. The third card goes face down
on top of the first card you dealt. The fourth card goes face up on
top of the card on the right. You continue alternating like this until
all the cards are dealt out.
Pick up the packet of face-up cards, turn it over, and replace it
onto the table. Put the other pile face down on top of it.
Complete the “false shuffle” by “milking” the packet of cards to
the table. This is actually a fairly simple procedure with a small pack¬
et of cards. The idea is to slide off the top and bottom cards togeth¬
er and place the two together onto the table. Again you slide off the
top and bottom cards together and place these two on top of the first
two. You continue like this until the pile is exhausted.
Start by holding the packet from above in your palm-down left
hand, thumb at the inner end, first finger resting loosely on top, and
the other fingers at the outer end (Illus. 8). Your palm-up right hand
lightly grips the top and bottom cards, thumb on top and fingers on
the bottom. The right hand pulls the top and bottom cards to the
right until they clear the packet (Illus. 9).
The two cards are set
onto the table. Draw off two
more cards, dropping them
on top of the first two.
Continue until all the cards
are in a pile on the table.
The packet is in the same
order you started with.
This works when you
have an even number of
cards. But what if the num-
 Moves 17

Illus. 9

ber is odd? You have dealt the last face-up card, and you have one
card left over. The number you’ve dealt is obviously even. Set the
card that you’re holding face down to the right of the two piles
you’ve dealt out. Turn over the face-up pile and place the other pile
on top of it, just as before. Perform the “milking” routine, only place
the first two cards you milk on top of the card you set to one side.
Continue putting pairs on top of the pile. You’ll end up with exactly
the same order as when you started.
Suppose that you want to have your packet in reverse order. Deal
out the two packets as described. (If you have one card left over, deal
it onto the face-down cards.) Turn the face-up pile face down on top
of the face-down pile. Perform the “milking.” One card will be left;
place it on top. The pile is in reverse order.
 Discovery Magic

Take Your Choice

Ask Alice to give the deck a good shuffle. Take the deck back and
casually fan through the cards, counting off 16. Try to make it look
as though you’re just grabbing a bunch of cards of any size. The illu¬
sion will be augmented if you count the cards in groups of three until
you get to 15; add one card and lift them off.
“Here’s a bunch of cards, Alice. Please give them a shuffle.”
When she’s done, continue, “Now take off the top card and
show it around to everyone. Except me, of course.”
She does.
“Put it back on top of the pile and set the pile down.”
She does. Set the rest of the deck on top of the pile. Carefully
even up the cards.
“Please cut off a pile of cards, Alice.”
She does.
Chances are overwhelming that she’ll cut off an appropriate
amount. This means that she must cut off at least five cards and less
than 36. In other words, she must not cut into the bottom 16.
Have her set aside the cards she cut off as you pick up the
remaining cards.
You’re going to deal the cards alternately into two piles. At the
end of the deal, you discard the pile that you dealt to last.
Take the other pile and deal it alternately into two piles. At the
end of the deal, you discard the pile that you dealt to first. (Usually,
20 Easy Card Magic

this will be the pile on your left.) So, on the first deal, discard the pile
you dealt to last; on the second deal, discard the pile you dealt to
first; continue alternating the discard piles.
Continue on like this.
This works fine until you come down to the last two or three
cards. At this point, always discard the card or cards you dealt to
first. This is really important: At the end you’ll have either two
cards on the left and one on the right, or one card on the left and
one on the right. (This is assuming that you deal to the left first.)
Always discard the card or cards on the left. The choosen card is
always on the right.
Just remember to alternate your discard pile: First discard the
pile you dealt to last, and then the pile you dealt to first. Continue:
Last, First, Last, First, Last, First. Finally, when two or three cards are
left, the one on the right is the one chosen.
On with the trick:
“I’m going to give you some choices, Alice. Watch.”
Deal the cards into two piles, alternating.
“Right or left, Alice?”
Whatever she replies, discard the last pile you dealt to.
After the next deal, say, “Put your hand on one pile, Alice.”
She does. If it’s the first one you dealt to, have her lift her hand
and discard the pile; deal out the other pile. If it’s not, say,
“Excellent,” and discard the first pile you dealt to. Pick up the pile
she chose and deal it out.
After the deal, say, “Hand me a pile please, Alice.”
Again, simply discard the inappropriate pile—in this instance,
the last one you dealt to.
After the next deal, tell Alice, “Put one hand on each pile (or
card).” She does. “Now lift one up.”
Once more you discard the appropriate pile or card.
At this point, you either have one card remaining on the right
side, or you have enough cards to require one more deal. In the first
instance, ask Alice to name her card and turn it over. In the second
instance, deal out the cards; this time, however, you simply pick up
the card on the left and discard it. You’re left with the chosen card.
 Discovery Magic 21

Note:
Chances are overwhelming that Alice will cut off an appropriate
number of cards—that is, somewhere between 5 and 36. My experi¬
ence is that there’s no need to be nervous about this. But if you are,
just ask Alice to cut off about half the deck.

Pouble-Header
John P. Hamilton came up with the following interesting variation on
the “Australian Shuffle.” Actually, he combined two original tricks,
forming a charming routine. I have added patter and adjusted a few
minor points.
Address the group: “There are many ways to shuffle the deck.
For example ...”
Give the deck a few different kinds of shuffles if you can.
“But there is one kind of shuffle that’s incredibly magical—the
Australian shuffle. I’ll demonstrate in just a moment. But first, I’ll
need a little help.”
Louise and Randy are Euchre enthusiasts, so they surely know
how to handle cards. Ask them to assist you.
Rapidly count off 16 cards and hand them to Louise.
“I’d like you to think of a number from one to seven, Louise.
And, Randy, I’d like you to think of a number from eight to fifteen.
In a moment, I’ll turn my back. When I do, Louise, I’d like you to
hold the packet face down and fan through the cards to your num¬
ber, and notice what card is at that number. Remember the card and
your number. Make sure you keep the cards in the same order.
“Then hand the cards to Randy. Randy, you should also hold the
packet face down. Then fan through the cards to your number. Look
at the card that lies at that number and remember it, along with your
number. And also make sure you keep the cards in the same order.”
Turn away from the group. When the two are done, turn back.
Take the pile of cards and put it behind your back. “I’m going to
shift the cards around now.”
Actually, all you do is put the bottom card on top of the pile.
Give yourself a few seconds to do it so that people will believe that
22 Easy Card Magic

you did something somewhat more impressive.

“I actually changed the cards around. Let’s prove it. Louise, what
was your number?”
She tells you. Deal into a pile that number of cards, counting
aloud. Turn over the last card you dealt and show it.
“That isn’t your card, is it, Louise?”
Of course not. Replace the card face down on top of the pile
you dealt.
“What was your number, Randy?”
He tells you. To the right of the pile you just dealt, continue the
count to Randy’s number. For instance, if Louise’s number were five,
you’d deal five cards into a pile. Let’s say that Randy’s number is 12.
Say, “All right, we have dealt five cards, so we start here with six.”
Deal the sixth card into the new pile and continue dealing up to 12,
again counting aloud.
Show the last card dealt in the same way as you did with Louise.
“This isn’t your card, is it, Randy?”
No. Replace the card face down on top of the pile.
The present position: Randy’s card is on top of those that you’re
still holding. Louise’s card is at the bottom of the second pile you
dealt.
Place the cards in your hand on top of the first pile you dealt.
Lift up the combined pile and place it on top of the second pile you
dealt. Randy’s card is now on top of the packet, and Louise’s is on
the bottom.
“I’m now going to perform the magical Australian Shuffle. How
do we refer to Australia?”
Perhaps someone will know.
“It’s down-under, right? So that’s the way we do the magical
shuffle.”
Deal the top card down onto the table. Place the next card under
the packet. Deal the next card on top of the one on the table. Put the
next card under the packet. Continue until you’re holding only one
card.
“Louise, what was the name of the card you chose?”
She tells you. Turn over the card you’re holding. While the
 Discovery Magic 23

applause is dying down, turn the card face down and put it on top of
the cards on the table.
“Let’s try the Australian Shuffle again.”
Perform the same shuffle, retaining the last card.
“What was your card, Randy?”
He names it. You turn the card over. Everyone agrees that you’re
wonderful.
But it’s only the beginning. Mr. Hamilton has prepared another
treat for us.
Count off eight cards from the packet and hand them to Louise.
Give the remaining eight cards to Randy.
“You each have eight cards, and I’ll take eight for myself.”
Take eight cards from the deck and set the rest of the deck aside.
“Please mix up your cards.”
You do the same.
“Now look at your bottom card and remember it.”
They do.
“Just to be different, I’ll take a look at one in the middle.”
Oh, that’s a good one! You fan the cards out and look in the mid¬
dle, all right. But actually, you remember the bottom card of your
eight.
Take Randy’s pile and put it on top of yours. Then add Louise’s
pile to the top.
“Lor the last time, I’ll perform the Australian Shuffle.”
Quickly start dealing to stifle any possible applause. As before,
deal the top card down, and place the next one on the bottom.
Continue on until your hold only three cards.
“My card was ...” Name the card that was on the bottom of
your pile. It’s the top card of the three you’re holding. Toss it out face
up.
“What was your card, Louise?”
She names it. It’s the top card of the two you’re holding. Toss it
out face up.
“And yours, Randy.”
He tells you. Toss it out face up.
Extend your arms out to your side as you sing out, “Ta-daa\”
24 Easy Card Magic

That should get you at least mutters of approval.

Note:
At the end, you’re holding three cards. The top one is yours. The next
one belongs to the person whose pile you put on top.

TheOldestPrqcess
Let’s try a very effective impromptu stunt. To perform it, you must
be able to do the Up-And-Down Shuffle. (See The Up-And-Down
Shuffle, page 11.)
To start, explain, “I’ll need all the spades.”
Fan through the deck, removing the spades, along with one red
card. Arrange the spades so that they’re in this order from top to bot¬
tom:
A23456789 10JQK
And at the very bottom, place the red card.
Fan them out for Helen to see. “Think of any one of these
spades, Helen, and I’ll try to figure out which one.”
Close up the cards and turn them face down. Perform an up-and-
down shuffle, the first card going up. With the right hand, strip out
the cards that are lower. Turn this pile face up onto the table.
Looking up at you is the red card.
Fan out the remaining cards, so that you’re not looking at them,
but Helen can see them.
“Do you see your card, Helen?”
She answers.
Turn the pile over and place it face up onto the face-up pile on
the table. Pick up the combined pile and turn it face down.
Go through the exact procedure again—that is, do an up-and-
down shuffle, strip out the lower group and place it face up onto the
table, and fan out the remaining cards, asking Helen if she sees her
card. After she answers, place the pile face up onto the face-up group
on the table. Pick up the combined group, and turn it face down.
Perform the procedure two more times.
You’re holding the face-down packet in your hand. Stare at
Helen for a moment, and then tell her the name of her card.
 Discovery Magic 25

How? Let’s start with something basic. With the numbers 1, 2,

4, and 8, you can make the value of any card. Nine, for example,
would be 1 and 8. Seven would be 1,2, and 4.
Jack, queen, and king have a value of 11, 12, and 13 respective¬
ly. Jack would be 1,2, and 8. Queen would be 4 and 8. King would
be 1, 4, and 8.
So you perform an up-and-down shuffle, and then show a pile to
Helen. If she sees her card, you say to yourself, “One.” If not, you
simply proceed.
The second time, if Helen says yes, you consider 2. If she said yes
the first time, add that in as well. Now you have 3. Or if she says no,
and she said no the first time, you have nothing.
The third time, you add 4 if she says yes.
The fourth time, you add 8 if she says yes.
The first time is 1, the second time 2, the third time 4, and the
fourth time 8.
Total up the yeses, and you have her card.
Now that’s a pretty good trick all by itself. But why not make it
a superb trick? All it takes is a little concentration.
Have two persons think of one of the spades. After doing the
first up-and-down shuffle, have each of them comment on whether
they see their card. Continue on. You’ll have to keep separate track,
of course, but it really isn’t all that difficult. Just take your time.
You’ll have an extraordinary effect.
26 Easy Card Magic

A Center Cut
Ask Eric to give the deck a good shuffle.
“Cut off about half, will you, Eric.”
Eric does.
“Look at the bottom card and remember it. Then put the pile
back on top.”
Eric is obliging enough to perform as requested.
“Let’s play some showdown. Deal out ten hands face up please.”
Indicate that Eric should deal five cards face up in a row, and
then, in order, one card face up on top of each card (Illus. 10). He
then starts at the beginning and places one card face up on each of
the previous cards. He continues until he holds only two cards.
“I’ll take those,” you say, doing so. “Eric, please pick up the pile
that contains your card and turn it face down.”
He does.
“You’ve heard of down-under, haven’t you?”
Of course he has.
“Using Australia would be too easy, so we’re going to try the
under-down deal. Take the top card and put it on the bottom. That’s
under. Put the next card onto the table. That’s down. Next one on
the bottom; next one on the table.”
Eric continues until he holds one card.
“What’s the name of your card, Eric?”
He names it. Indicate that he’s to turn over the one he holds. It’s
the one, all right.
If his original cut was anywhere near the middle, his chosen card
will always be the middle one of the five cards, and the under-down
deal will work perfectly.

Illus. 10
 Discovery Magic 27

Hand Them Over

Tony Spina developed a startling trick based on an old principle. I
have added a slight adjustment.
Margie is good at estimating, so ask her to help out. First, hand
her the deck to shuffle.
“Please set the cards down, Margie, and cut them in half. Make
it as close to a half as you can.”
She does.
“Next, cut each of those piles in half, as best you can.”
(Each pile must contain at least ten cards.)
“Pick up one of the piles, Margie, and count it. I’ll turn my
back.”
Turn away. When she’s done counting, say, “You should have
two digits, right? Please add them together. Now count down to that
number in your pile. Look at the card that lies at that number, and
remember it. Be sure to keep the card at that number from the top.
But you need not remember the number down.”
She follows these directions carefully.
“Finally, set one of the other piles on top of your pile.”
She does.
You face the group once more and ask Felix to help out. Tie’s an
automotive engineer, so he should be able to follow simple directions.
“There are two piles left on the table, Felix. Please pick one up
and count it. Fll turn my back.”
Tie does.
“Add the digits, and look at the card that lies at that number
from the top. Be sure to keep the card at that number, Felix. But you
can forget the number down.”
Fie does as you command.
“Now place that last pile on top of your pile.”
Turn back to the group. Pick up one of the piles and turn it face
up. Riffle shuffle it into the face-down pile. Fan out the cards,
showing how mixed they are. Fan to the bottom of the pile. Begin
counting the face-down cards from the bottom up. This is easily
done by simply fanning the cards into the left hand. Count off ten
face-down cards from the bottom. Take out the tenth face-down
28 Easy Card Magic

card. Close up the cards. Turn the deck over in your left hand. Place
that tenth face-down card face down on top of the deck.
Again count the face-down cards from the bottom up. Take out
the tenth face-down card. Turn the deck over in your left hand. Place
that tenth card face down on top of the deck.
At each end of the deck, you now have a chosen card.
Set the deck onto the table. Have both Margie and Felix give it a
tap. Pick up the deck and hold it in the left hand, fingers on the bot¬
tom and thumb on top (Illus. 11). Toss it into the right hand, squeez¬
ing slightly with the left fingers and thumb. The top and bottom cards
should remain in your left hand as the deck is caught in the right hand
(Illus. 12).
Ask Margie and Felix to name their cards. Reveal that you hold
them in your left hand.
Note:
If the toss is too difficult for you, simply reveal the two cards at the
end of the trick.

Illus. 11
 Discovery Magic 29

Find Them Both

Dick Seaman worked out this clever stunt. Start by peeking at the top
card.
As mentioned before, you can gesture with the hand holding the
deck and get a peek at the bottom card. Give the deck an overhand
shuffle, drawing off the last several cards individually. This puts the
glimpsed card on top.
Get two spectators to assist you. Since Joan and Harold always
seem to sit together, they would be perfect.
Hand the deck to Joan, saying, “Please think of a number from
one to eight. Then deal off that many cards into a pile.”
She does. You remember the number of cards.
Turn your back and continue. “Please look at the last card you
dealt and remember it. Then put it back on top of the deck. Finally,
on top of it, put the rest of the cards you dealt off. ”
When she’s done, with your back still turned, continue: “Harold,
I’d like you to think of a number from nine to sixteen. Deal off that
many cards into a pile. Do it quietly. Tell me when you’re done.”
When Harold announces that he’s done, say, “Now look at the
last card you dealt and remember it. Then put it back on top of the
deck. Finally, on top of it, put the rest of the cards you dealt off.”
When he’s done, turn back to the group.
“Joan, please give the deck a complete cut.”
She does.
You may offer Harold the opportunity to cut the deck also.
Pick up the deck, turn it face up, and fan through to your key
card, the one you peeked at. The card just beyond this is the one cho¬
sen by Joan. Slide it to the top of the deck.
Remember the number that Joan counted off? Starting with the
key card, count that many cards forward in the deck. The one you
land on is Harold’s choice. Slip this to the bottom of the deck.
You can now toss the deck from hand to hand, retaining the top
and bottom cards, as explained at the end of the previous trick. Or,
simply draw off the top and bottom cards together. Ask them to
name their cards. Show that you have them in your hand.
30 Easy Card Magic

Note:
Because the second number is counted out so fairly, spectators tend
to forget that you actually know the first selected number.

At Milt’s.House
For many decades Milt Kort has been a leading authority on magic
and a wondrous close-up performer. Despite his extraordinary
manipulative ability, he also can be extremely sneaky. Many other
magicians have been taken in by various Kort subtleties. I’m no
exception. One Friday evening, when a group of magicians met in
Milt’s basement, he fooled me with this one.
Fan off 15 cards from the top of the deck. As suggested above,
count them three at a time. In this instance, make sure that you do
not separate them into groups of three; you want to create the illu¬
sion that the number of cards is completely random.
Hand the 15 cards to Judy, who is probably as unsuspecting as I
was.
“Give the cards a good shuffle.”
Hand the rest of the deck to Cecilia, saying, “Please give those a
shuffle. When you’re done, just set them down.”
Turn away and address Judy: “You’ve shuffled your cards, Judy.
Now take out one card, memorize it, and show it around.”
Pause.
“Put that card on top of the cards that Cecilia just shuffled.”
Pause.
“Put the rest of your pile on top of all.”
Turn back to the group. Patter briefly: “It’s extremely difficult to
find a chosen card when the deck is face up. Just imagine how hard
it must be when the deck is face down. Please pick up the deck, Judy,
and deal the cards into a pile one by one. Please go fairly slowly so I
have a chance to pick up the appropriate vibrations.”
As she deals, you make several false moves, as though to turn
over the card she just dealt. Actually, you’re simply counting to 15.
When she deals the 15th card, say, “Uh-huh, I think we’re on to
something.”
 Discovery Magic 31

Rest your finger on the 15th card, saying, “What’s the name of
your card, Judy?”
She names it; you turn it over.

Use Your Mentality

All right, so Milt Kort fooled me with the previous trick. But his per¬
formance inspired me to create this fooler.
Vince has played cards for years, so he should be able to give the
deck a good shuffle. When he’s finished, take the cards back. Turn
the deck face up, saying, “I need to find one of my two lucky cards
to make this trick work.”
Fan through the deck, ostensibly looking for a lucky card; actu¬
ally, you’re counting 18 cards. The best way to count the cards rap¬
idly is in groups of three. When you have fanned 18 cards into your
right hand, stop and show the card at the face of those in your left
hand (Illus. 13). Let’s suppose it’s the 4S. Say, “Ah, there it is—the
four of spades, one of my lucky cards.”
Thumb the card face up onto the table. Immediately, turn your
right hand palm down so that the 18 cards in your right hand are
face down (Illus. 14). Hand them to Vince, saying, “Give these a
shuffle, will you.”
Hand the remaining packet to another spectator, saying, “Please
shuffle these and then set them face down onto the table.”

Illus. 13
32 Easy Card Magic

Make sure you don’t touch

these cards after the spectator sets
them down. Say to Vince, “Cut
off some of your cards, Vince, and
look at the bottom card. You can
show it around, but don’t let me
see it.”
When he’s done showing the
card around, tell him, “Put that
card on top of the pile on the
table.”
He does.
“Now give the pile you’re holding another shuffle, and then put
it on top of all.”
His chosen card is 18th from the top. To make sure that no one
notices this, chat for a moment. You might mention that all the cards
have been thoroughly shuffled and that Vince had complete freedom
of choice in selecting a card.
“Now I have to find my other lucky card. Maybe my two lucky
cards will help me find the selected card.”
Pick up the deck and start dealing the cards into a face-up pile. You
now mentally subtract the value of your lucky card from 18. In our
example, your lucky card was the 4S, so you subtract 4 from 18, get¬
ting 14.
“Let’s see if I can find my other lucky card.”
Very deliberately deal 14 cards face up onto the table, inspecting
the faces as you deal. Suppose that the 14th card is the AH. Point at
it, saying, “There it is, my other lucky card-—the ace of hearts. Let’s
see if my first lucky card can help out now. It’s the four of spades. So
let’s count off four cards.”
To one side, deal out four cards, counting aloud.
“What’s the name of your card, Vince?”
He tells you.
Turn over the last card you dealt off.
It’s magic!
Note:
Suppose that your original “lucky card” turns out to be a face card.
 Discovery Magic 33

When you’ve found your second “lucky card,” say to Vince, “Let’s
see if my first lucky card can help out now. It’s the (let’s say) jack of
clubs. As you know, with face cards, the jack counts eleven, the
queen twelve, and the king thirteen.” Then proceed with the count.

r/5 A Little Work

fsfc
V9 * jv C? I recently came up with this trick, which
requires a bit of concentration on the part
9 of a spectator.
“First,” you announce, “I’ll need a
nice variety of cards. In fact, it would be
perfect if I could get one of each value.”
Illus. IS Fan through the deck and find an
eight. Place it face up onto the table. Fan
through further to a king. Place it face up on top of the eight. Continue
through, adding a face-up three to the pile (Illus. 15).
Build the pile until you have 13 cards stacked up. And they are
in the oldest setup I know of:8K3102795Q4A6J. How can
you remember such a stack? Easy: Eight kings threatened to save
ninety-five queens for one sick knave. Or:
8 K 3 10 2 7 9 5 Q 4A6J
Eight kings threa-tened to save ninety-five queens for one sick knave.
As well known as this is in magic circles, it is not at all familiar
to non-magicians. And the trick is such that even those who do know
it may not recognize it.
Gather up the pile and give it several cuts as you explain to
Margaret: “I’d like you to help out, Margaret, if you don’t mind.
Here’s what I’d like you to do. Deal out some cards into a pile.” You
do it. “Pick the pile up and turn it over.” Do it. “Place the pile either
on the top or the bottom of the main pile.” Do it. “Then cut the
cards.” Do it.
Repeat the procedure several times with various numbers of
cards. “Notice that you turn the entire pile over, whether or not you
have face-up cards in it. Do this as often as you want. Then take a
look at the top card. That will be your selection. Put it into the mid-
34 Easy Card Magic

die of the pile. You can put it in either face up or face down. Finally,
continue dealing off piles of cards, turning them over, and placing
them either on the bottom or top of the main pile. And after each
time, give the pile a cut.”
Make sure that Margaret understands; hand her the pile. By this
time, the pile should appear to be substantially mixed, which will
enhance the trick.
Turn away, saying, “Tell me when you’re done.”
After a while, Margaret will be finished. Take the pile from her.
“Tet’s straighten them out.”
(Your setup still exists. Despite Margaret’s efforts, the packet, in
effect, has only been given a complete cut. And a complete cut does
not affect a sequence. One card follows the other in order, and,
regardless of complete cuts, the top card follows the bottom card in
sequence.)
Begin dealing the cards face up one on top of the other.
Obviously, you turn the face-down cards over as you go through.
Count the cards. You will notice that one card is not in the proper
order. For example, the cards might run:
2795QJ4A 6 8K3 10
As you can see, the jack is out of position; therefore, the jack is
the selected card. But you don’t announce this. Instead, you note the
number down at which the jack lies. In this instance, the jack is sixth
from the top. After going through the entire pile, you pick it up and
turn it face down. Spread it on the table face down. As you move the
cards out, separate the sixth card a bit.
Pass your hand back and forth over the face-down cards. Finally,
stop above the jack—the sixth card—and pick it up.
“What’s the name of your selection, Margaret?”
She names it. You turn it face up.
Note:
Why does it work? I’m so proud of this. Margaret deals out a num¬
ber of cards into a pile. When she turns the pile over, she returns it to
its original order. Complete cuts do not change the order of your
setup, so it doesn’t matter whether Margaret places the pile on top or
bottom.
 Discovery Magic 35

A LovelyCouple
For your magical enjoyment, here is a spectacular adaptation of a
well-known principle.
Joe and Joyce are a cute couple, so let’s see if they can be cute and
cooperative.
Count off 12 cards from the top of the deck and hand them to
Joyce. Count off 12 more and slip them to Joe. Both set their pile on
the table.
Turn your back and provide these directions:
“Joyce, please cut off some cards from your pile and look at the
bottom card of those you cut off. Joe, you should cut off some cards
from your pile and look at the bottom card of those you cut off. Each
of you, please remember your card.”
Pause.
“Joyce, put the pile that you cut off on top of the rest of Joe’s
pile. Joe, put the pile that you cut off on top of the rest of Joyce’s
pile.”
Pause.
“Joyce, please put one pile on top of the other.”
Turn back to the group.
“Joe, give the pile one complete cut.”
When he’s done, invite Joyce to do the same.
Pick up the pile. Fan out the top four cards. Show them to Joe
and Joyce. “Does either of you see your card here?”
If not, put the four on the bottom, and repeat until someone sees
a selected card. When either does, set the four cards face down in
front of that person. Tet’s suppose that Joyce has seen her card. Put

nius. 16
36 Easy Card Magic

the four-card pile face down in front of her.

Deal the remaining cards face up into four piles, alternating.
Each pile ends up containing five cards (Illus. 16). Turn the piles face
up.
“Which pile contains your card, Joe?”
He points it out. You immediately know both chosen cards. Joe’s
card is the middle card of the pile he indicates.
Joyce’s card? Which pile did Joe indicate? Is it the first pile you
dealt to? If so, Joyce’s card is the first, or top, card of her packet. The
second pile? If so, Joyce’s card is the second card from the top of her
packet. And so on.
But there should be some subtlety in the way you reveal the
choices. First, gather up the three piles that Joe has not indicated.
Now, fan through Joyce’s face-down cards, apparently contemplat¬
ing. Pick out the one Joyce chose.
“What’s the name of your card, Joyce?”
She names it. You turn it over.
Take out the middle card of the pile Joe picked. Hand it to Joe.
“And here’s your card, Joe. Right?”
Absolutely.

Let’s Both Choose

Fan out the deck for Lucy so that she can choose a card. As you do
this, count off the top 12 cards and hold them slightly separate from
the rest of the deck. It’s best to count them in threes so that it won’t
be obvious that you’re counting.
After she chooses a card, close up the rest, but hold a break with
your left little finger below the 12 cards (Illus. 17).
Hold the deck in both hands, thus concealing the position of your
little finger. Run your left thumb down the side of the deck a few
times. Then run it part of the way down the side and lift off the 12
cards. Hold the portion in your left hand out for Lucy to place her
choice on top (Illus. 18). Put the 12 cards on top.
“Lucy, for us to find your card, we’ll each have to choose a
number. You can choose any number from two to six—two, three,
 Discovery Magic 37

nius. 17 four, five, or six.” You mention this

latter bit to make her choice seem
fairly wide.
Lucy chooses one of these. You
choose a number that, multiplied by
hers, produces 12. This works when
she chooses 2, 3, 4, or 6. Later, I’ll
explain how you handle 5.
Suppose that Lucy chooses 3.
You say, “All right. And I’ll choose
four.”
Naturally,
because 3 times 4
equals 12.
“It’s up to you,
Lucy. Should your
number be for the
number of piles, or
the number of
cards in the piles?”
Oh, you fast-
nius. is
talker, you! It obvi¬
ously makes no
difference, but it
certainly sounds good.
Suppose Lucy wants her number to represent the number of piles.
“So we’ll have three piles. And my number was four, so we’ll put
four cards into each pile.”
Any way you wish, make up 3 piles with 4 cards in each one.
However you do it, make sure you act deliberately. There’s certainly
no hurry.
You’re done forming the piles. Remove the next card from the
deck. Ask Lucy to name her selection. She does. Turn the card face
up, saying, “Your choice.”
It clearly makes no difference whether Lucy selects the number
of piles or the number of cards in the pile. Twelve cards are going to
be dealt out. And the 13th is the one she chose.
38 Easy Card Magic

But. . . what if she chooses 5? Let’s say that Lucy does.

You say, “All right. And I’ll choose three.”
Let’s say that she wants five piles.
“So that’s five piles with three cards in each pile.”
You fan off three cards and place them down, saying, “One.” Do
it again, saying, “Two.” Continue on to the fifth pile. Then go back
and recount the piles, touching each one. “Let’s see . . . we have one,
two, three, four, five piles.”
Pick off the top card of the fifth pile (the 13th from the top) and
ask Lucy to name her card. Linish as above.
Let’s say that she wants each pile to contain five cards.
“So that’s three piles with five cards in each pile.”
Pan off two cards and place them onto the table, saying, “Two.”
Pan off three cards and place them on top of the first two, saying,
“And three is five.”
Do the same for the other two piles.
Do the review as before: “Let’s see . . . we have one, two, three
piles.”
You take off the top card of the third pile (the 13th from the top).
Linish up.

Four By Four
Larry Becker invented the basic trick. I’ve done a bit of remodeling.
Ask Roy to shuffle the deck. When he’s done, take the cards back
and deal out four rows of cards with four cards in each pile.
“Roy, I’d like you to pick up one of the piles.”
Start to turn away as he reaches out, but wait long enough to see
which pile he chooses.
“Look through those cards, Roy, and think of one of them. Then
mix up the four cards until even you don’t know where your card is.”
He does.
“Now put your pile back on the table.”
If he should ask where, tell him to put it back where he got it. In
any event, if he should put it back somewhere else, it will be sepa¬
rated from the other piles.
 Discovery Magic 39

“I’m going to pick up all four piles, Roy, and put them one on
top of the other. Which one should I pick up first?”
You proceed to follow Roy’s instructions as you pick up the piles
one on top of the other. You must make sure you know the number
of the pile that Roy picked. That is, if Roy has you pick up that pile
first, you must remember number 1. If he had you put it on top of
that first pile, remember number 2. If he had you pick it up third,
remember 3. If he had you put that pile on top, remember 4.
Rapidly deal the 16-card pile into two 8-card piles, alternating.
Pick up one of the two piles. Avert your head as you fan through the
cards so that Roy can see the faces.
“Is your card there, Roy?”
If it is, place that pile on top of the other eight-card pile. If it is
not, set the pile down and put the other pile on top. In other words,
the pile containing his choice goes on top of the other pile.
Put the cards behind your back, saying, “I’ll try to locate your
card.”
Remember that number you got? If it’s one, Roy’s card is one of
the top two cards. If it’s two, Roy’s card is in the second set of two.
If it’s three, Roy’s card is in the third set of two. If it’s four, it’s in the
fourth set of two.
So, suppose the number is 1. Put the top card on the bottom.
This makes sure that his card is either on top or at the bottom of the
pile.
If the number is 2, put the top two cards on the bottom. Then
put the top card on the bottom.
If the number is 3, transfer two sets of two cards to the bottom.
Then put the top card on the bottom.
If the number is 4, transfer three sets of two cards to the bottom.
Then put the top card on the bottom.
Whichever occurs, the chosen card is either on top or the bottom
of the pile.
Bring the pile forward, saying to Roy, “Please hold out your
hand palm up, Roy.”
Extend your arm to place the pile on his hand. As you do so, tilt
the pile slightly so that you can get a peek at the bottom card (Illus. 19).
40 Easy Card Magic

Your work is done.

“What’s the name of your card,
Roy?”
He names it.
If he names the card you sighted
on the bottom, indicate that he is to
turn the pile face up. If he names some
other card, tap the top card of the
packet and tell him to turn it over.

A Good Deal
Hand John the deck and ask him to give it a shuffle. Since he’s been
so accommodating, he’ll probably be glad to continue assisting.
“Now please deal the cards into a pile. Deal fairly quietly so I
can’t hear when I turn my back. Stop when you want and let me
know.”
As he deals the first several cards, mentally count the cards. Turn
away and continue counting at the same pace. Eventually, John says
that he has stopped. You also stop, and remember the number.
“John, please look at the last card you dealt and remember it.
Then return it to the pile, and put the rest of the deck on top.”
Turn back to the group. Pick up the deck. Gesture with the hand
holding the deck, getting a look at the bottom card. As you gesture,
say something like, “Your card is now buried somewhere in the deck.
Where? No one knows.”
Set the deck down and invite different spectators to give it a com¬
plete cut.
“Next, I’ll attempt the impossible, John. I’ll try to locate your
card.”
Pick up the deck. Mentally subtract the number you counted
from 52. Remember that number.
Fan through the face-up cards until you come to your key card,
the original bottom card. Start counting with the next card until you
reach the appropriate number. (If, as you count, you get to the top of
the deck, simply continue at the bottom.)
 Discovery Magic 41

Suppose you counted 18. You subtract that from 52, getting 34.
You find the key card and, starting on the next card, count to the 34th
card. Cut the deck so that this card goes to the bottom. Look over the
cards so that you can see what’s near the bottom and top. Set the deck
down.
“John, what’s the name of your card?”
If he’s really a good sport, he’ll tell you.
It could be the bottom or top card. If not, it’s nearby, and you
know where.
“John, your card is somewhere in the middle. I’m going to move
it down (or up) in the deck.” Tap the deck several times, saying, “It’s
moving little by little.” Look disgusted. “I can’t move it anymore. It’s
now third from the bottom (or whatever).”
Show that the card is there.
Note:
Sometimes when the spectator shuffles the cards at the beginning,
you may be lucky enough to get a look at the card that ends up on
the bottom. Then you need not bother with any math. At the end,
just fan through the cards from the bottom to the top. The card on
the near side of the original bottom card is the one chosen.

Likewise
You must know the names of the top and bottom card of the deck.
As I explained earlier, one way is to sneak a peek at the bottom card
as you gesture and then bring the card to the top with an overhand
shuffle, taking off the last few cards singly. Then sneak a peek at the
bottom card.
Another, less courageous, way is to fan through the deck, saying
something like, “You’ll notice that there is no special arrangement of
the cards, and all the cards are different.” As you blather, note the
bottom and top cards.
Keep repeating their names to yourself as you continue.
Elmer is always eager to help everyone, so ask for his assistance.
Hand him the deck, saying, “When I turn my back, please deal the
cards into a pile. You can go slow or fast, or change your pace, what-
42 Easy Card Magic

Ulus. 20 ever. But make sure

you do it quietly so
that I can’t hear.
And when I say
stop, stop. Okay?”
Turn away.
After a while,
say, “Stop.” Pause.
“Look at the last
card you dealt.
Show it around
and replace it.”
Wait. “You
now have some options, Elmer. You can give the pile that’s on the
table a complete cut, and then put the ones you’re still holding on
top. Or you can put the cards you’re holding on top, and then give
the deck a cut.”
After he does his work, add, “Regardless, give the deck another
complete cut.”
Finally turn back and take the deck from Elmer.
Turn the deck so that the faces are toward you. Fan through till
you come to one of the cards you noted. The card in front of this may
be the one chosen (Illus. 20). Cut the deck so that this card goes to
the top.
As you do this, comment, “This is really tough. No luck so far.”
Continue fanning through
until you come to the other Illus. 21
card you noted. Again, the
card in front of this may be the
chosen one. Take all the cards
below this into your right
hand and slide them into the
remainder of the deck (Illus.
21). While doing this, shake
your head. Apparently your
efforts are fruitless.
 Four of a Kind Magic 43

You now have the chosen card either on the top or the bottom of
the deck. Note the bottom card and then place the deck face down on
Elmer’s hand.
“Elmer, name your card.”
He does.
Have him either turn over the top card or turn the deck over.

Four of a Kind Magic

Easy Aces
Sometimes it’s the very simple tricks that are the most deceptive. In
this one, I’ve taken a well-known principle and fashioned it into a
four-ace trick. It amazes spectators, but the reaction it inspires
amazes me even more.
My good friend Ron Bauer—not only a proficient and talented
writer, but also an amazing and inventive practitioner of magic—lent
his approval of my adaptation of this old principle.
In advance (or while chatting and fussing with the cards), put
two aces on top of the deck and two on the bottom. Perhaps you can
enhance the effect by starting with an overhand shuffle. Start by shuf¬
fling the top two cards off singly, and end by shuffling off the last sev¬
eral cards singly. This means that you’ll end up the same as you start¬
ed: two aces on top and two on the bottom. The shuffling business,
however, is not really necessary.
Linda is generally quite helpful, so hand her the deck, saying,
“Please deal the cards into a pile one at a time.”
Wait until she has dealt off at least 15 or 20 cards. Say, “Stop
whenever you wish, Linda.”
She stops eventually.
“Hand me either the pile you’re holding or the one on the table.”
She does.
“Now you have one pile, and I have one. Let’s both deal the
cards into two piles.”
You deal your cards into two piles, alternating—first a card on
44 Easy Card Magic

the left, then one on the right, one on the left, one on the right, and
so on. See that Linda does the same.
“Let’s see how you did.”
Turn over the top card of each pile: the four aces!

The Pick of'.Four

Here we have a more complex variation of the previous trick.
You must do a bit of preparation ahead of time. On top of the
deck, put four aces, followed by four kings.
Start by dealing out the top four cards in a row. Below this, deal
out the next four cards. One row consists of aces, the other of kings.
Margie is delighted to assist you. Ask her to choose one of the
rows. She does. Place the other four cards on top of the deck.
“Please pick out one of these cards, Margie. Draw it toward yourself.”
She draws out one card. Casually pick up the remaining three and
put them on top of the deck. As you’re doing this, say to Margie, “You
can look at your card, Margie. And, in fact, show it to the group.”
After Margie finishes, say, “Let’s mix up the cards a bit. I know!
I’ll attempt the little-known roll-over cut.”
Perform the Roll-Over Lalse Cut (page 10). The cut is vital to the
success of this particular trick.
When you’re done, deal out three cards in a row. Deal one card
onto each one. Continue dealing like this for at least 12 cards. Then
say to Margie, “Just tell me when to stop, Margie.”
She does, and you stop dealing immediately.
“Turn over your card, please, Margie.”
At this point it’s best to insert a bit of time misdirection, helping
all to forget the true composition of the three piles.
When she turns over her card, take it and put it down onto the
table. Comment on it. Suppose it’s the KS. “Ah, the king of spades.
In my experience, that is the card that is chosen most often. It’s also
one of the luckiest cards in the deck. Let’s see if that operates now.”
Turn over the three piles. At the face of each is a match for her
chosen card.
“What a coincidence!”
 Four of a Kind Magic 45

All for One

In his fine old book More Card Manipulations, Jean Hugard pre¬
sented a trick that featured the Three Musketeers and D’Artagnan.
(The Musketeers are Athos, Porthos, and Aramis, though you don’t
actually need to know that. You should, however, remember
D’Artagnan.) Unfortunately, Jean Hugard thought that you could
easily and inconspicuously remove three cards from the top of the
deck to drop onto the table. Actually, it is neither easy nor incon¬
spicuous. But it can be done in a much more natural way, as I will
explain. I have also simplified the trick somewhat.
Start by fanning through the deck and tossing out the four jacks.
“These are the Three Musketeers and the dashing D’Artagnan.” Tap
the jack of spades, indicating that it stands for D’Artagnan. “As you
know, the musketeers were supposed to be very close, but let’s see
what happens when we separate them.”
Jeanine is very selective, so she’d be the perfect assistant for this
trick. Say unto her, “Jeanine, please take out several cards from the
deck—a little bunch.” Fan the cards out so that she can get her little
packet from the middle of the deck. As you do so, hold a position
below the third card from the top with your right fingers. When you
close up the cards, you should be holding a break beneath the three
cards with your left little finger. Turn your left hand so that the palm
is toward your body, thus
hiding the break.
“Set those cards down
for a minute, Jeanine.”
As she does this, per¬
form the following:
Hold the deck in the
dealer’s grip in your left
hand. Also, your right hand
grips the deck with fingers
at the front and thumb at
the rear. Riffle down the left
side of the deck with your
left thumb (Illus. 22). Your
46 Easy Card Magic

thumb should move down about a third of the deck. Stop and imme¬
diately lift off the three cards with your right hand. The illusion is
that you have riffled off a random number of cards and picked them
off the deck. Set the three cards onto the table next to Jeanine’s pile.
Lift any jack other than the JS and place it face down on top of
the three cards. “One musketeer goes here.” Pause. “Take another
small pile, Jeanine.”
After she does, instruct her to place it on top of her first pile.
Meanwhile, you follow the procedure where you lift off three cards
from the top of the deck. Place these on top of the first jack.
Place the JS on top of the pile. “We’d better get rid of D’Artagnan.”
Again spread the cards out for Jeanine. “Take another small
packet, please, Jeanine.” Again, you secure a break below the top
three cards and turn your palm toward your body.
“Please put the cards you just took on top of your pile on the
table.” She does. Put the entire pile on top of the pile Pm forming
here.” Point to the pile containing the two jacks.
She does as she’s told. You pick up another jack and place it face
down on top of the pile, saying, “Here goes another musketeer.”
With your left thumb, you riffle down the pile you’re holding.
Immediately, lift off the top three cards and place them on top of
your pile.
Put the last jack on top of the pile, saying, “And here goes the
last musketeer.”
The pile on the table is now set up like this: On the bottom are
three cards, followed by a jack; then come three more cards and the JS;
next comes a substantial group of cards placed there by Jeanine, fol¬
lowed by another jack; finally we have three cards, followed by a jack.
Promptly hand Jeanine the remaining cards you’re holding.
“Give these a shuffle, will you, Jeanine.”
Then point to the pile on the table. “And I’ll mix these up a little.”
She shuffles her cards. You give the pile containing the jacks a
complete cut around the middle.
Indicate the jack pile. “Put your packet on top or on the bottom,
Jeanine.”
She does. Finally she is told, “Give the deck a cut, please, and
complete it.”
 Four of a Kind Magic 47

At this time, the deck can be given any number of complete cuts.
Take the deck from Jeanine and fan through it face up. “Notice
how well mixed the cards are,” you say. Actually, you’re watching for
the jack of spades. When you see it, count two more cards and cut the
deck, bringing the jack of spades to third from the top (Illus. 23).

But this is not apparent to the spectators. Why? Because, as you

cut the cards, you call attention to the card that goes to the bottom
of the deck. Let’s suppose that it’s the ten of hearts.
“Notice that we have here the card that has always been consid¬
ered lucky by the French royalty.” Whatever the card is, you can add
a bit to your story. With a heart, you can mention that French royal¬
ty often suffered from affairs of the heart. With a diamond, you can
point out that French royals invariably had extraordinary wealth. A
spade could stand for digging out the truth about potential rebellion.
A club could stand for the brutality of some French royals.
It doesn’t matter, just so it makes some kind of sense. The value
of the card might be used. If you get a seven or a three, you could
point out that one of these has always been considered lucky. Just
make it brief and moderately logical.
Turn the deck face down. Deal out four cards as shown below:
1 2
3 4
In the same order, deal three on top of them. Continue until each
pile contains four cards. The pile indicated by the number 3 contains
the four jacks.
Say to Jeanine, “Please choose a number from one to four.”
48 Easy Card Magic

She does.
“Start wherever you wish and count to that number.”
Suppose she ends up on Pile 3. “Perfect,” you say. “The Three
Musketeers and D’Artagnan just cannot stay apart.”
Turn over the pile, showing the four jacks.
Since the JS is at the face of the pile, you might add, “And, of
course, D’Artagnan is once more outstanding.”
I think it’s even better, however, when she doesn’t pick the right
pile. You turn over the pile she picked and show the cards. Toss the
pile aside.
“No,” you say. “You can do better than that. Let’s try again.
Name a number from one to three.”
She does. You count the piles so that you don’t land on the jack
pile. For example, suppose she says three. You start on Pile 3, go to
Pile 2, and end on Pile 1, counting, “One, two, three.” Turn over the
pile, showing the cards. Discard the pile.
“Wrong again!” Apparently this is quite disappointing. “We’ll
give you one more chance. Name a number from one to two.”
She does. You count the piles so that you end up on the pile con¬
taining indifferent cards. Show it and discard it.
“There’s only one left. As you know, the Three Musketeers and
D’Artagnan just cannot stay apart.”
Turn over the pile, showing the four jacks.
“Good going, Jeanine. You did it perfectly.”

Match-Ups
Hand the deck to Bill, saying, “Please remove the kings and the
queens, Bill. Pd like to demonstrate how sensitive my fingers are.”
Blow on your fingertips. “This morning I rubbed my fingertips with
sandpaper, so they should be in good shape for this demonstration.”
When Bill has taken out the kings and queens, fan them out
before you. Move the queens to the near side of the pile so that they
match the suits of the kings. For instance, suppose you have this
order, from the back to the front:
KS QH KH KD QS KC QC QD
 Four of a Kind Magic 49

You would remove the QS and place it at the face of the pack;
this means it will now match the first king, the KS. Then remove the
QH and place it at the face of the pack, thus matching the second
king, the KH. Next you’d move the QD to the face, and finally the
QC. Thus, the packet now lines up like this:
KS KH KD KC QS QH QD QC
Note that the set of queens is in the same suit order as the set of
kings. The sorting is usually quite easy, often requiring no more than
two moves. As you begin the procedure, comment, “Let’s see if
they’re all here.”
Sort them out. Briefly show them to the group, saying, “Yes, we
have all four kings and all four queens.”
At this point, if you wish, you can perform a false shuffle of
sorts. In an overhand shuffle, take four cards one at a time into your
left hand; throw the other four on top. Repeat the move. The cards
are back in their original position.
Hand the packet to Bill. “I’d like you to give the cards as many
complete cuts as you want, Bill.” Demonstrate what a complete cut
is. Turn away.
“When you’re ready, place the packet in my hand—either face
up or face down.”
Place your hand behind your back. When he puts the cards in it,
face the group once more.
Count four cards into your right hand from the top of the packet.
Be sure to take the cards one under the other. The packet of four should
be held well under the thumb in the right hand. With the thumb of each
hand, push off the top cards (Illus. 24). With the right hand, take both

Illus. 24
50 Easy Card Magic

Illus. 25

cards (Illus. 25). Bring them forward (along with the cards remaining
in the right hand) and set the pair face down onto the table. Repeat,
placing the second pair next to the first. Repeat twice more.
The entire production of the pairs takes very little time.
One by one, turn over the pairs. Each one contains the K and Q
of the same suit.
Please, don’t repeat.

Miss You
Presenting an extremely cute trick that includes a nifty little story.
This is a particularly effective stunt to perform using a female spec¬
tator. Janet reads three romance novels a week, so she loves stories;
ask her to assist you.
Remove from the deck the king and queen of spades and the king
and queen of hearts.
Elold them up, announcing their values: “The king and queen of
spades are very happily married, of course, as are the king and queen
of hearts. In fact, neither pair can stand being apart. Ah, true love!”
As you chat away, turn either pair face up—that is, turn the KS-
QS combination face up, leaving the other pair face down, or vice
versa. Give the four cards an overhand shuffle or two.
“Please take the cards, Janet, and put them behind your back.”
She does.
 Four of a Kind Magic 51

“Now mix them up as much as you want. Just don’t turn any
more cards over.”
She obliges.
“Now pick out one card and bring it forward.”
She brings a card out. Obviously, it will either be face up or face
down.
Suppose it’s the QH, which is face up. Say, “The queen of hearts,
all by herself. She must long for her mate. Turn her face down and
put her back in the packet.” Janet does so.
If Janet brings out a face-down card, tell her to look at it and
announce the value. Tell her how the card must long for its mate, and
tell her to turn the card over and return it to the packet.
Continue: “Now mix up the
cards some more, and then bring
them all forward. Let’s see if the
queen of hearts (or whatever) found
her mate.”
Take the packet from Janet and
fan through it. Three cards face one
way, and one card the other. Turn the
packet so that the one card can be seen
by all.
It will be the card that matches
the one that Janet put back into the
packet (Illus. 26).
“It’s just like the movies: True Illus. 26
love will always triumph.”
Perform the trick at least once
more.

It’s; Reigning Queens

The following is a William Simon creation. I have added a minor
touch or two.
At the start you have sneaked four cards of the same value to the
top of the deck. I usually use the four queens. (Sometimes, when I’ve
52 Easy Card Magic

done a four-ace trick earlier, I fan through the deck and cut them to
the top.) Let’s assume that you’re using the queens.
Set the deck down and ask Harvey to cut them in half. You take
the top half, leaving the bottom half for him.
“Let’s each put our cards behind our back and pick out four
cards.”
Harvey takes four cards at random. You, of course, take the four
queens off the top.
Each of you sets the rest of your cards aside.
“So, Harvey, we have two piles of four cards. I’ll turn my back,
and you put one on top of the other. I don’t want to know which.”
Turn away briefly. When you turn back, pick up the eight-card
pile.
“I’ll mix these up a little.”
Perform The One-Two-Three Shuffle (page 13). In this instance,
you shift 8, 12, or 16 cards—a multiple of four.
Hand the eight cards to Harvey.
“You have some work to do, Harvey. Lirst deal a card to me, and
then put a card on the bottom of the pile. Or put a card on the bot¬
tom of the pile and then deal a card to me.”
He does it.
“Do it again, please.”
He does.
“Now do the same thing for yourself. Either way; deal one and
put a card on the bottom, or put a card on the bottom and deal one.”
Have him do it again.
“Next, do the same thing for me—only just do it once.”
Have him do it once for himself.
He now holds two cards.
“Where do you want to put that top card, Harvey?”
He tells you.
If he indicates he wants to put it on your pile, say, “Good idea.
And the other one goes to you.”
If he wants to deal the top one to himself, say, “No, Harvey, it’s
my turn. And you get the other one.”
In any instance, the top card goes on your pile, and the second
card goes on Harvey’s.
 Countdown Magic 53

One of you has four queens. Look at your pile. If you have a
group of indifferent cards, show them, saying, “A lovely bunch of
nothing cards. Thank you so much. Let’s see what you have?”
Take the cards from him, and spread them out face up on the
table.
If you have the four queens, reverse the procedure. Ask him to
show what he holds. “Nothing. But just look what you gave me.”
Spread the queens out face up on the table.
Review:
Harvey has the choice of dealing out the top card and placing the
next one on the bottom, or of placing a card on the bottom and then
dealing out the top card.
(1) . He does the procedure twice for you.
(2) . He does it twice for himself.
(3) . He does it once for you.
(4) . He does it once for himself.
(5) . He has two cards left; he must deal the top one to you and the
other one to himself.

Countdown Magic

A...Count for Yourself

You’ll need a little help and, since Darren is usually little help, he’d
be perfect for the occasion.
Start by fanning the cards face up from the bottom, saying,
“Darren, if I ask you to think of a card, you might choose something
obvious, like a face card or an ace.”
Note the bottom card and fan out six cards from the bottom; put
them on top.
“So I want to be completely fair, as you’ll see.”
Fan out six more cards from the bottom and put them on top.
Fan off several more cards and close them up, leaving them on the
bottom. Your key card is now 12th from the top of the deck.
Remember it. Close up the deck and set it face down onto the table.
54 Easy Card Magic

“In a moment, Darren, I’ll turn my back. When I do, Fd like you
cut off a small pile of cards—say, less than ten, but don’t count
them—and set them down on your right. Then take a small pile of
cards from the bottom and set them down on your left. Don’t count
those either. Tell me when you’re done.”
Turn away.
When Darren’s ready, continue: “Take off the top card of the deck
and show it around. Put it back on top. Then give the deck a complete
cut.”
Turn back to the group. Take the deck and fan through it, faces
toward yourself. When you come to your key card, count it as one.
Continue counting the cards until you come to the eleventh card. Cut
the deck immediately after the eleventh card. This brings the eleventh
card to the top of the deck.
Set the deck down between the two piles on the table. You want
Darren to select the pile on your left as you face him. In other words,
you want him to choose the pile that he cut off the top (Illus. 27).

Illus. 27

“Hand me one of the small piles, please, Darren.”

If he hands you the pile on your left, hand him the deck. If he
hands you the other pile, set it aside and indicate that he is to pick up
one of the two remaining piles. Now one of you is holding the deck,
and the other is holding the pile originally taken from the top of the
deck.
“Let’s deal the cards down together, Darren. You make a pile,
and I’ll make one.”
 Countdown Magic 55

When the small pile is done, both of you stop dealing.

“What’s the name of your card, Darren?”
He tells you. Turn over the last card dealt from the deck.
Shazam!

The Psych Count

In an ancient trick, the chosen card is brought to tenth from the top.
The magician deals the cards into a pile, telling the spectator to tell
him when to stop. The spectator does, and there is the chosen card.
That is the idea. Unfortunately, this ancient trick doesn’t always
work. A psychological principle is supposed to operate. The chosen
card is tenth from the top. After you have dealt six cards, you tell
your assistant to tell you when to stop. The spectator, wishing to
accommodate, will speak out fairly soon—usually after you have
dealt three or four additional cards. But what if the spectator doesn’t
have enough sense to stop the magician in time? There have been
solutions. I invented a fairly laborious one myself. But here’s some¬
thing I recently came up with which has proved very effective. In fact,
I keep hoping the spectator won’t stop me at the appropriate time.
First, let me explain how the regular trick operates. Fan through
the cards face down, offering Shirley the selection of a card. As you
fan the cards from hand to hand, count off the top nine cards and
hold them slightly apart from the rest. Don’t worry about anyone
noticing; it looks sloppy and completely natural. How do you count
the cards in a natural way? Count them in groups of three.
After Shirley picks one, close up the deck, securing a little-finger
break beneath the nine cards. (See Illus. 17 in “Let’s Both Choose,”
page 37.) Have her show the card around. Run your left thumb down
the left side of the deck a few times, riffling the cards. Then run the
thumb halfway down and lift off the nine cards. The illusion is that
you casually riffled to the middle of the deck. Offer the lower portion
with your left hand for the return of the card. Place the cards in your
right hand on top. The chosen card is now tenth from the top.
(You can avoid using any sleight of hand by taking a peek at the
bottom card, planning to use it as a key. Then have a card chosen. Cut
56 Easy Card Magic

off half the cards and place them onto the table. Have the selection
placed on top on the pile. Put the remaining cards on top of all. Your
key card is now above the chosen card. Fan through the deck to your
key card. Count it as one, and continue the count to nine. Cut the
cards at this point. The chosen card is now tenth from the top.)
Casually deal five cards into a pile at a fairly rapid rate. As you
deal the sixth card, say to Shirley, “Tell me when to stop.”
Pick up the pace a bit. If all goes well, she’ll tell you to stop when
you are holding her card, about to deal it onto the pile. Ask her to
name the selection. You show the card. It’s a miracle!
Actually, there is quite a bit of leeway. If, for example, you have
just dealt down the eighth card and are holding the ninth in your
hand, simply place the ninth card down and show the present top
card of the deck. If you have dealt the ninth card down and are hold¬
ing the tenth, it is the perfect conclusion. If you have dealt the tenth
card and are holding the eleventh, simply return the card in your
hand to the top of the deck and turn over the card you just dealt off.
After you have tried the trick a dozen or so times, you will devel¬
op a feel for it that will bring success the vast majority of the time.
How about the rest of the time? Here comes the good part!
Suppose Shirley stops you early—at card seven, for example. No
problem. Simply begin dealing again. Deal off one card, saying,
“When you’re ready, say stop.”
Deal the next card and the one after that fairly deliberately, again
counting mentally. If she stops you at the ninth or tenth card, you’re
all set. Ask the name of the chosen card.
“Shirley, you’ve chosen the place to stop twice. Now let’s look at
the card.”
Turn it over.
But suppose she restrains herself until you reach number twelve.
Set down the cards you’re still holding—the main deck—and pick up
those on the table.
Deal a card back onto the deck. “Say stop.”
You’re now counting backward. 12, 11, 10, 9. If she stops you
when you’re holding card number 11, perfect. Put it down onto card
number 12. The top one of those you’re holding is the right card.
 Countdown Magic 57

If you’re holding card number 10, that’s obviously perfect. If you

have placed 10 onto the main deck and are holding number 9, just
replace it on top of the pile from which you’re dealing.
Ask her to name her card, and then say something like, “It’s your
choice, Shirley. You’ve stopped me exactly three times.”
Reveal the selection.
Suppose, however, that she fails again, stopping you at card
number 7. Set down the ones you’re holding. Pick up the main deck
and start dealing onto the cards on the table. “Say stop.”
Once more you mentally count forward.
I’m sure you see how it works.
Needless to say, you don’t repeat the trick.

Bottoms Up
Let’s try my variation of an oldie.
Ask Leonard to divide the deck into five piles.
“It doesn’t matter what size the piles are, Leonard.”
He divides the deck appropriately.
“Pick up one of the piles, Leonard. Fan through and just think
of one of the cards.”
He does.
“Turn the cards face down. Now deal them face up into a pile so
that you can tell what number your card is from the top. Deal
through the entire pile.”
You turn away, but not before you’ve had a look at the first card
that Leonard deals out face up.
“Tell me when you’re done.”
Leonard tells you.
“Turn the pile face down and set it with the other piles. Gather
up all the piles in any order. When you’re done, give the deck a com¬
plete cut. Tell me when you’re ready.”
You turn back and pick up the deck. “My job is to try to find
your card.”
Look through the cards with the faces toward you. Cut some
cards to the top. Actually, you’re looking for that first card that
58 Easy Card Magic

Leonard turned over. When you come across it, cut it to the top.
“I can’t seem to find your card. Maybe I’ll have better luck
behind my back. In face, I think I’ll try to locate your card in a mys¬
tical way.”
Turn the deck face down and put it behind your back. From the
top of the deck count off 15 cards, one on top of the other; do this
as quietly as possible. Put these cards on the bottom. Bring the deck
forward.
Bring the deck forward.
“Leonard, do you remember what number your card was in
your pile?”
Yes.
“I believe that I have it at that number from the bottom of the
deck. What was the number down?”
He tells you.
“And what was the name of your card?”
He also tells you that.
Turn the deck face up and count off the given number of cards.
At that number from the bottom is the chosen card.

And Four to Go
Fan through the deck and remove a four. Hold it up so that all can
see it.
“Here we have a four. You’ve probably heard all the myths
about the power of three, or the magic of nine. It’s all nonsense. The
most powerful card in the deck is the four. Let’s demonstrate.”
Stick the four face up into the deck about a third of the way
down.
Fan down to it, saying, “There it is.”
Continue fanning three cards beyond the four. Hold these cards
somewhat separate from the rest of the deck as you continue fanning
down (Illus. 28).
“Please select a card, Maurice.”
He selects a card from below your separated group.
“Show it around, please, but don’t let me see it.”
 Countdown Magic 59

Separate your hands and put those in your right hand on the bot¬
tom. The face-up four is now the fourth card from the bottom.
Give the cards an overhand shuffle, taking small packets with
each move. “Tell me when to stop, Maurice.”
He tells you. Hold out the cards in your left hand for the replace¬
ment of his selection. He places his card on top. You drop the rest of
the cards in your right hand on top of all. His card is now the fourth
card beneath the face-up four.
Let Maurice give the deck a few complete cuts.
“Now let’s check out the four.”
Fan down through the deck and cut the face-up four to the top.
Take it off and set it aside. “So we have a four. Let’s count it out.”
Deal off four cards into a pile, counting aloud as you do so.
“What’s the name of your card, Maurice?”
He names it. You turn over the last card dealt out.
“I told you. The four is truly mystical.”

Twenty Plus
Colm Mulcahy, mathematical genius and magician, came up with
this clever use of a math principle. The result is one of the very best
counting tricks. What’s particularly clever is that spectators never
realize that the magician is actually counting.
Start by having the deck shuffled. Speaking of counting, Marie is
a bank teller, so she should be able to manage the following chore.
“Marie, please think of a number from one to twenty. While my
60 Easy Card Magic

back is turned, count off that many cards. Very quietly, let everyone
know how many cards you count off, and then give those cards to
someone else to hide.”
Turn your back.
“Take your time, Marie. And don’t be too loud.”
When she’s done, turn back to the group.
“Give me the rest of the cards, Marie.”
Take the deck.’’Remember your number, Marie? Please notice
the card that lies at that number from the top.” A number of other
spectators will also note the card.
Fan the cards one at a time, faces toward Marie. Take the cards
one under the other, so that they retain their order. As you slowly
show the cards, count them aloud.
Stop after counting off 20 cards. Set the pile of 20 down.
Hold up the remaining cards. “To confuse things even more,
Marie, name a small number—something between one and ten, for
instance.”
She does. Let’s suppose she names five. Count off five cards into
a pile on the table. Place the 20-card pile on top of them.
You still hold a pile of cards. Put them on top of all.
“Pm going to go through the cards and try to detect your card
totally by the sense of touch.”
Fan through several cards face down. Stop and feel the face of a
card. (Illus. 29 gives the view from below.) Look thoughtful.
Continue on. Stop several more times, going through the same rou¬
tine. Finally shake your head, “That doesn’t seem to be working.”

Illus. 29
 Face-Up Magic 61

Give the cards a cut.

But you cut them at a very
specific spot. You see, before
you start through the cards, you
perform a modest calculation.
Remember the small number
that Marie chose? It was five.
Simply subtract this from 32.
This gives you 27. So you simply
count down 27 cards, with
occasional pauses. At this point, you make the comment, “That
doesn’t seem to be working,” and cut card number 27 to the bottom
of the packet.
This puts the selected card on the bottom. Fan off some more
cards and test the last one with your fingers. “No, that isn’t it either.”
Straighten the cards out by tapping their long side on the table,
faces toward you. This enables you to get a look at the bottom card
(Illus. 30). Give the cards a shuffle (without revealing the bottom card).
Or, if you prefer, tilt the packet a bit as you give the cards an
overhand shuffle, glimpsing the bottom card.
You can now let Marie shuffle the deck, as you proceed to read
her mind, gradually revealing the color, suit, and value of the select¬
ed card.

Two.By Two
As I mentioned earlier, Colm Mulcahy is a master mathematician and
inventive magician. He called my attention to this trick, based on a
Bob Hummer creation.
You should start by sitting at a table opposite Leroy.
Spread cards from the top of the deck, asking Leroy to tell you
when to stop. Actually, you’re counting the cards in pairs to make
sure you end up with an even number. When Leroy speaks up, lift off
62 Easy Card Magic

the even number of cards and set the rest of the deck aside.
“I’m going to mix these up a bit,” you declare.
Put your arms well under the table. Push off the top card with
your left thumb; take it in your right hand. Turn your left hand palm
down as you push off another card with your left thumb. Take the
card face up on top of the face-down card in your right hand. Turn
your left hand palm up and take another face-down card. Follow this
with a face-up card. Continue on until you’ve transferred all of the
cards.
At this point the cards are alternately face up and face down.
“Leroy, I’d like you to do some work under the table. First, reach
under and take the cards. Then cut them, fan off two cards from the
top, and turn them over. Cut the cards again. Fan off two cards from
the top and turn them over, and then cut the cards. Continue like this
for as long as you want. Tell me when you’re done. ”
He tells you.
“Take the top card off, look at it, show it around, and then put it
back on top of the pile. Only make sure that it’s reversed. For instance,
if it starts off face up, turn it face down. If it starts off face down, turn
it face up.”
Avert your head, so that you won’t get a glimpse of the card.
“Ready? Now cut the cards and turn two over. Continue on until
you’re satisfied.”
He’s finally satisfied.
“I’ll take the cards back.”
Reach under the table and take the packet.
“I’ll have to mix them a little more.”
You perform the same “mixing” as you did originally. This
restores the cards. Only one will be face-up, the one that Leroy chose.
When you’re finished, bring the cards out.
“What was your card, Leroy?”
He names it. Spread out the cards, showing that the chosen card
is now face up among all face-down cards, or it is face down among
all face-up cards.
Note:
For a trick based on the same principal, see “Another Hummer,” on
page 122.
 Face-Up Magic 63

Expansion
The original version of this trick was just fine, but someone expand¬
ed on it, making it even better.
Hand Shirley the deck, saying, “Shirley, would you please cut off
about half the cards and give them to me. ”
Of course she would.
“Here’s what I’d like you to do. And I’ll do the same thing. Put
your cards behind your back, like this. Take off the top card and
bring it forward so you can get a look at it, like this.”
Tet’s say that the card you bring forward is the KH. Show it, and
announce the name slowly and clearly.
“And then return the card to the top of your pile.”
So you say. But you don’t actually do that. In fact, you put the
KH on the bottom of your pile. And you’re not done yet. You turn
the top card of your packet face up and put it on the bottom. Then
you turn the second card from the top face up. Just lift off the top
card, use it to flip the next one over, and return the card to the top.
(If it seems too difficult to do all this behind your back, show your
top card, and put it on top behind your back. Then say, “I’ll turn
away while you show your card around.” Turn away and do the
dirty work.)
You’re now holding a packet that has a face-up card second from
the top, a face-up card on the bottom, and the KH second from the
bottom.
Bring the packet forward, making sure not to tip it, revealing the
bottom card. By this time, Shirley should be done.
“Bring your pile in front, Shirley.”
She does. Put your pile on top and then guide her arm so that the
combined pile goes behind her back again. Make sure that she’s
standing so that no one can see behind her back. If this isn’t the posi¬
tion, shift her around.
“You’ll do some work behind your back, Shirley, and we’ll dis¬
cover whether you have any magical power. First, take the top card
and . . . No, that seems suspicious. Take the top card and put it on
the bottom. Take the next card, turn it face up, and stick it into the
middle.”
64 Easy Card Magic

Pause.
“What do you think? Did you have enough magic power to do
something truly mystical? Well, let’s just see.”
Indicate that she’s to bring the deck forward. Take it from her
and fan through the deck until you come to the face-up card.
Separate the deck into two sections, taking out the face-up card,
along with the card on either side of it. Set a section of the deck on
either side of the three cards.
“You’ll recall that my card was the king of hearts.”
Turn over the card above the face-up card. It should be the king
of hearts.
“You did it, Shirley. Amazing! How about your card. What was
it?”
She names it. Turn over the card below the face-up card. That
should be it.
“You did it again, Shirley. You are truly magical!”
Note:
Why do you separate the deck into two sections? It just might be that
Shirley will stick in the face-down card on either side of the face-up
card you’ve arranged to be in the middle of the deck. If she does,
either your card or hers will be one more card away from the face¬
up card.
Nothing to it. If the card above the face-up card is wrong, sim¬
ply show the bottom card of the packet on the right. If the one below
it is wrong, show the top card of the packet on the left. In either
instance, say, “A great job, Shirley. You only missed by one.”

Mental Magic
Experimental_Mind Reading
Performed properly, this is one of the very best mental tricks.
Apparently, a spectator only thinks of a card, and you correctly iden¬
tify it through mind reading.
Take the face-down deck into your left hand, gripping it near the
 Mental Magic 65

bottom, thumb and fingers at

the sides (Illus. 31).
Marsha believes so many
strange things that it’s quite like¬
ly that she believes in telepathy.
In any instance, get her to help
you out.
“Pm going to flip through
these cards, Marsha, and I want
you to think of any one that you
see. All right?”
nius. 31
Get her positioned properly
so that you and she can both see the cards as you flip through. Hold
the deck so that you can both see the bottom card. Now your right
hand joins the left in gripping the deck. The hand is turned palm-up
with the thumb resting on the
high end of the deck, the first fin¬
ger doubled behind the deck,
and the remaining fingers hold¬
ing the lower portion of the deck
(Illus. 32). This is the perfect
position for riffling the deck
from face to back with the right
thumb.
So riffle through the entire
deck in this manner.
“Did you think of a card,
Marsha?”
If not, she may not have
been able to see the cards ade¬
quately, or perhaps you went too fast. In either instance, riffle
through again. When she finally has a card, you gradually read her
mind.
Tell her to think of the color. Concentrate and slowly reveal it.
Do the same for the suit. And finally the value.
But how are you able to do this?
You also note a card as you riffle through. Chances are over-
66 Easy Card Magic

whelming that it will be the same card as the one chosen by Marsha.
Sometimes two cards will present themselves. Simply differentiate
them as soon as possible. Suppose, for example, that you note the 6S
and the 9C. You think for a moment and announce that you’re get¬
ting a dark color—black. Continue: “I believe that it’s a spade.”
No.
“That’s right. The spade was very fuzzy. It’s a club. Let’s see . . .
the nine of clubs.”
Nothing to it.
Notes:
(1) You must riffle through the cards at a fairly rapid pace. You don’t
want to reveal too many cards. It will take some practice to get
the timing just right. You don’t want to consciously pause at any
point. So spend a fair amount of time trying it out by yourself.
(2) And what if you don’t get the card right? Forget it. You simply
tried an experiment in telepathy, and it failed to work properly.
Don’t try it again. Do something that works every time.
(3) Whether it works or not, don’t repeat the trick.
(4) Don’t pass this one up; it’s really quite astounding.

The Very Thought of It

On the surface, this feat of telepathy appears similar to the previous
one. It is, however, quite different in method, as you’ll see.
Start by holding the deck in your left hand as though about to
shuffle. Tilt it slightly back toward your
palm, getting a peek at the bottom card
(Ulus. 33). This is your key card. Now give
the cards one overhand shuffle, but start
by squeezing the top and bottom cards
together before shuffling off. This keeps
the key card on the bottom.
With the palm-down right hand,
draw off half the cards from the bottom
(Illus. 34). Place them on top of the rest
of the deck, but first insert your left little
 Mental Magic 67

nius.

finger so that you hold a break below your key card. Let your left
hand drop to your side.
Approach Lulu with an engaging smile. “Lulu, I’d like you to
simply think of a card that you see in the deck.”
As you speak, fan down to your little-finger break. Raise the
cards up so that the key card is the first one that Lulu sees.
“Just tell me when you’ve thought of one. I’ll look away.”
Turn your head away as you begin mentally counting, starting
with the key card.
When Lulu says that she’s thought of one, stop counting. But
remember the number you counted. Close up the cards. Set the deck
down, offering a complete cut. Or several complete cuts. (As you
know, complete cuts do not destroy the order of the cards.)
Pick up the deck. Turn it so that only you can see the faces. Fan
through to your key card. Next you’ll have to fan forward in the
deck, which involves moving the cards back with your left fingers. As
you do this, count to the number you remember. Cut this card to the
bottom of the deck. Before you do this, however, note the cards on
either side. Suppose the card at your number is the 8C. Note the three
cards below it, that is, the three that will go to the top when you cut
the 8C to the bottom. Suppose they are a 6, a 4, and a 3. Say to your¬
self, 6, 4, 3. Note the two cards that precede the 8C, that is, the two
that will be above it when you cut it to the bottom. Suppose they are
a 2 and a 10. You would say to yourself, 2, 10, 8.
68 Easy Card Magic

Repeat to yourself several times, 6 4 3, 2 10 8.

Turn the deck face down.
“What’s your card, Lulu?”
Quite often, it will be the 8, in which instance you turn the deck
face up. If it’s the 6, you turn over the top card. But what if it’s one
of the others? You simply follow the method recommended near the
end of “A Good Deal,” page 40.
Say, “Lulu, I’m going to move your card down (or up) in the
deck.” Tap the deck several times. “It’s moving bit by bit.” Pause. “I
can’t move it anymore. It’s now second from the top (or whatever).”
Show that the card is there.
The trick can be repeated. The different methods of revealing the
card don’t affect the strong audience acceptance.
Note:
You may prefer to end the trick this way: Once more you fan to the
8C. Leave the deck spread out before you, but don’t let anyone else
see the faces. Say to Lulu, “I believe that your card is a black card.”
If she says no, say, “That’s right. I wasn’t getting a very clear sig¬
nal as to the color. Yes, it’s definitely red. But now the suit.” Note the
red cards in the immediate neighborhood of the 8C. If there are more
of one suit, name that suit. If you get a no, you’re probably down to
the chosen card. Name it. If you’re correct on the suit, differentiate
further with such comments as, “I think it might be a face card,” or
“It’s a fairly low card, isn’t it?” or “I believe that your card is an even
value—like 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, Q. Right?”
You rarely have to make more than one guess. As in the other
method, feel free to perform the trick again.

Q the Audience
Let’s take a look at a challenging variation of a very old trick. It is
fairly well known as “The Q Trick.”
A number of objects—usually coins—are placed in a circle. A tail
is added at the bottom of the circle. Let’s say that the tail consists of
four coins (Ulus. 35). Let’s suppose that Harold is asked to think of
a number from five to ten.
 Mental Magic 69

“Harold, start at the bottom of

the tail and count your number up
o °o
the tail and around the circle to the
left. Then, starting with the coin you o o
landed on, count the same number
back around the circle to the right.
o o
But don’t go down the tail—just stay
on the circle.”
Turn away. When you turn back,
you know the exact coin he landed
on. The number of coins in the tail is
four. So you start counting with the
first coin to the right of where the
coin is connected to the circle. Count
counterclockwise four coins, the
number in the tail. The one you land on is the one chosen by Ron.
Using Illus. 35 as a reference, try counting out different numbers
from five to ten. Notice that you always end up on the same coin.
The trick may be repeated, but you must change the number of
coins in the tail each time; otherwise, Harold will always end up on
the same number.
This variation of the Q trick will seem much more difficult till
you get the hang of it. Once you’ve had a little practice, however,
you’ll find that the method is not as complex as it appears.
Let’s continue with Harold. Hand him a deck of cards and ask
him to shuffle. “Harold, please deal the cards into a face-up circle.
Just to make it interesting, make sure you have at least twelve cards
in the circle.”
Take the deck back. At the bottom of the circle, add a tail con¬
sisting of three cards (Illus. 36). Harold is told this: “Mentally choose
a number from five to ten. Then count to your first choice. Suppose
your number is seven. You would count up to seven like this.” Show
how he counts to 7. “That would be your first card. So you’d have
to remember that one. Then you’d count back, like this. You’d start
on your first choice, and count back seven cards.”
Do not count to the second choice. Simply touch a few cards to
show the direction in which the count should go.
70 Easy Card Magic

You already know the sec¬

ond card chosen. You have a tail
consisting of three cards. So, as
described above, you start at the
card that is to the right of the
point at which the tail is
attached. You mentally count
three cards to the right. The last
one you count is the one chosen.
An X marks this card in Illus.
37.
You will now identify both
of Harold’s selections.
Your advantage is that the
spectators are unaware that you
know the name of the second
card chosen. As you grope for the
identity of the first card, virtually
Cards Are Face Up.
all of your references are based
on this. Any time you miss, you
follow up with a statement that’s
absolutely true. These occasional
misses followed by absolute
statements add to the notion that
this is real mind reading.
So you know one card, a
tremendous advantage as you
figure out the first one chosen,
which is one of the six cards
marked with an X in Illus. 38.
You’ll use a process of elim¬
ination to determine the first
card chosen. In general, you’ll
make comparisons with the card
you already know. Here are the
steps you’ll follow:
 Mental Magic 71

Let’s assume that you know

that the second chosen card is
the 4C. We’ll refer to this as the
Master Card. First, determine
the color of the chosen card:
COLOR:
Say, “Both cards are the same
color.” (Whatever the answer,
you now know the color.)
Yes. Lucky you, you got one

No. Say, “All right your first

choice is a red card; the second is a
black.”
(Or vice versa.) This is
0
I^J Illus. 38

a
always correct. Second, deter¬
mine the suit of the chooser card.
SUIT:
(The first answer was yes.) Look
over the six possibilities.
Suppose you have two clubs and one spade. You’d say, “Both cards
are the same suit, is that right?” If the answer is no, you know the
chosen card. If it’s right, you’re down to two cards. (Always name the
dominant suit. The Master Card is the 4C. If on the board you have
two spades and one club, you’d say, “I believe that your two choices
are of different suits.)
(The first answer was No. But your second statement about the
color is correct.) You now know that the first choice is a red card.
Look over the red cards. If they are all the same suit, you have a
problem. But let’s assume that two are of one suit (diamonds) and
one is of the other (hearts). Whichever dominates, you name. In this
instance, you’d say, “I believe that one of your cards is a diamond, is
that right?”
If it’s wrong, then you know the chosen card. If it’s right, you’re
down to two cards. Third, determine the value of the chooser card.
72 Easy Card Magic

VALUE:
You may already have identified the chosen card. If not, you’re down
to two cards of the same suit.
How do you distinguish them? If one is odd and the other is
even, there’s nothing to it. The Master Card is even, so you say, “I
believe that both cards are even—that is, two, four, six, eight, ten, or
queen.” Whatever the answer, you can now identify the first chosen
card. But you don’t do that—instead, name the second chosen card,
and then the first chosen card.
But suppose that both cards are odd or even. Good! You can
make another true statement. Let’s suppose that both cards are odd.
The Master Card is even, so you say, “I believe that one of your
choices is of an odd value, like ace, three, five, seven, nine, jack, or
king. And that the other one is an even value, like two, four, six,
eight, ten, queen.”
Obviously, you must distinguish the chosen card further. Again,
go back to the Master Card, the four of clubs. Perhaps one of the two
is higher and the other lower in value. If so, you might say, “I believe
that your first choice is a card that’s higher in value than your second
choice. Is that correct?” Whatever the answer, you know the chosen
card.
But suppose that both are higher or lower than the Master Card.
Make another absolutely true statement. Suppose they’re both high¬
er than the Master Card. “I’m sure of one thing: Your first choice is
higher in value than your second choice.”
Suppose that the two cards you’re wondering about are the six
of hearts and the ten of hearts. Add this: “I’m not sure, but I think
your first choice is two values higher than your second choice. Is that
correct?” If so, you know the card. If not, you also know the card.
However you figure out the value of the first choice, end up by say¬
ing, “I think I know which card you chose second.” Name the four of
clubs. “And the one you chose first might have been ...” Name the first
choice.
In other words, first name the second choice.
Note that in the procedures indicated, you can be wrong only
twice. And when you are wrong, you know absolutely the name of
the first chosen card.
 Mental Magic 73

Concentrate briefly and then name the first card chosen.

Despite the long-winded discussion of alternatives, the trick is
actually quite easy. Your best bet is to do the trick for yourself a few
dozen times, working out the conclusion each time.
There’s nothing wrong with repeating the trick; just change the
number of cards in the tail.
Note:
After the spectator lays out the cards originally, you can simplify
things by making sure that three of the six possibilities are red and
three are black. Just shift some cards around, saying, “Let’s mix them
up a bit.”

After Dinner
There you all are, sitting at the dinner table, full of the wonderful
food that’s been served. Someone says to you, “You’re supposed to
be some magician; let’s see you do a trick right now.”
Lucky you! I’ve devised an extremely effective stunt that’s perfect
for such an exigency.
Take out a deck of cards and give it a good shuffle. Let’s suppose
that George is sitting opposite you.
“George, in a moment, I’m going to extend the deck under the
table. Also, under the table, I’d like you to cut off a pile with your
right hand and place it in your left hand. Then hand that pile to
Natasha (who is sitting at his left).”
Address Natasha, “Take the pile from George in your right
hand, Natasha, and transfer it to your left hand. Do this under the
table. Bring the pile up, and look at the card that’s on the face of the
packet. You must remember that card. Finally, place the pile face
down onto the table.
“To insure that there’s no cheating, George and I will turn our
heads away all through the procedure.”
Encourage George to do so. Make sure that all instructions are
clear.
Hold the deck in your left hand so that the sides are parallel to
the floor. Your thumb is on the left side, resting on the card that’s on
74 Easy Card Magic

the face of the deck. Your fingers

are on the right side (Illus. 39). As
you place your left hand below the
table, tilt the deck slightly to the
right so that you get a glimpse of
the bottom card. As you extend
your hand farther, flip the deck face
up with your left thumb. Thus,
George cuts off a pile from the face¬
up deck. And the card that Natasha
will look at is the one you glimpsed.
As soon as George cuts off a
portion, stick your left thumb under the remainder of the deck and
flip it over so that it’s face down. Immediately bring the cards out and
set them onto the table.
After Natasha finishes, hand her the rest of the deck and tell her
to shuffle it along with the pile in front of her. Make sure you turn
your head away while she does this.
Take the deck from Natasha. Marie is sitting at George’s right.
Reverse the instructions to George. He is to cut off a pile with his left
hand, place it in his right, and hand it to Marie. She is to take the pile
in her left hand, transfer it to her right, and then bring it up and look
at the card at its face. She’ll place the pile face down onto the table.
You and George will look away while all of this is going on.
You perform the same sneaky move as you did the first time.
Ready for the finale? Point to Natasha and Marie. “I’d like you
both to concentrate on your cards. Just clear your minds and think
of nothing else but the suit and value of your cards. Concentrate
fiercely, or mildly—your choice. Point to Natasha. Name her card.
Do the same with Marie.
Don’t repeat the trick.
 Mental Magic 75

An Odd Number
Let’s try an experiment in mentalism that really works. At least it
works the vast majority of the time. Adding a touch to the original
trick, I have increased the chances for success.
Briggs always seems quite thoughtful, so he’d be perfect for this
trick. Say to him, “Briggs, please think of a number between fifty and
a hundred. You should have two different digits, and they must both
be even.”
He thinks for a bit.
“Your number is 68.”
Exactly. Sometimes, however, he chooses 86. So if he says that
you’re wrong, say, “Of course I am. I got the digits turned around in
my head. Your number is 86.”
And if that’s wrong, get another subject for the next phase. But
let’s assume that you got it right.
“Let’s try again. Briggs, please think of a number from ten to
fifty. You should have two different digits, and they must both be
odd.”
Let him ponder for a moment.
“Your number is thirty-seven.”
You’re right! Except that sometimes he chooses 35. If he says
that 37 is wrong, say, “Of course it’s wrong. I’m always doing that.
I confused that with 35.”
Suppose that both are wrong. “Sorry about that. My mind just
isn’t working properly today. ” Shift to a mental trick that’s bound to
work.
If the trick didn’t work the first time, you have a much better
chance on the next try if you use a deck of cards. By way of prepa¬
ration, put a three on top of the deck, and below it put a seven. On
the bottom put a five.
Say, “Let’s add a touch of mystery by using this deck of cards.”
Then ask Briggs to think of a number from ten to fifty, and so on.
This time you ask him, “What’s your number?”
If he says 37, deal off the top card face up, saying, “Three.” Deal
off the next card face up, saying, “Seven.” Then say, “Thirty-seven.”
76 Easy Card Magic

If he says 35, deal off the top card face up, saying, “Three.” Turn
the deck face up and show the five, saying, “Five. Thirty-five.”

Just Keep Pealing!

Here we have a variation of an excellent trick by Michael Nabel.
Simone is the type of girl who will never be lost in the shuffle, so
hand her the deck, saying, “Simone, please mix up the cards.”
After she finishes shuffling, say, “Simone, I want you to notice
how thoroughly mixed the cards are, so please deal out sixteen cards
into a face-up pile.”
Note the first card she deals, and remember it. Immediately look
away and pointedly keep your head averted during the balance of the
deal. You’ll notice when she’s done. Nevertheless, turn your head
back, saying, “Are you done yet?”
The reason? You also note the last card she dealt. Suppose the
first card she dealt was the 9C, and the last one was the QH. Say to
yourself again and again as the trick proceeds, “Nine of clubs, queen
of hearts.”
Avert your head again. “Turn the cards face down and hand
them to me, please.”
She does.
“In a moment, you’re going to have to make a decision.”
Deal out four cards in a row. Deal four more on top of them, mov¬
ing from left to right (Illus. 40). Continue on until all 16 cards are dealt
out.

Illus. 40
 Prediction Magic 77

“All right, Simone, we have two outer piles and two inner piles.
Which should we take?”
This is ambiguous. Do you “take” them to keep, or “take” them
away? If Simone says, “The inner piles,” pick up the inner piles and
set them aside. If she says, “The outer piles,” push them forward and
set the inner piles aside.
The bottom card of the pile on your left is the first one you sight¬
ed (9C in our example). The top card of the pile on your right is the
second one you sighted (QH in our example). So place the pile on the
right on top of the pile on the left.
Pick up the pile and deal the eight cards into four piles. “Once
more we keep your selection,” you say, as you set aside the inner
piles.
Again, put the pile on your right on top of the pile on the left.
Deal the four cards into a row.
As before, eliminate the two inner cards.
Place a hand on the card on the left as you close your eyes in
quiet concentration. Name the card. In this instance, it is the original
top card, the 9C. Turn the card over.
In the same way, name the QH.
Ho-hum, just another miracle.

Prediction Magic

Double Trouble
Marlene plays a weekly bridge game, so she should be able to shuf¬
fle the cards. Hand her the deck and make the request.
When she finishes, take the deck back, explaining, “Using all the
mental powers that Pm fortunate enough to possess, I’m going to
make a very unusual prediction.”
As you say this, spread out the cards near the top, noting the top
two cards. You combine these two as you seek a prediction card. For
example, if the top two cards are the KC and the 7H, you would seek
either the KH or the 7C. Continue fanning through the cards from
78 Easy Card Magic

the top until you come to your

prediction. Let’s say that you
choose the 7C.
Set the card face down onto
the table, announcing, “This is my
prediction. Now it’s your turn,
Marlene.”
Hand her the deck.
“Please deal the cards into a
face-down pile.”
She deals. Wait until she has
dealt out at least a dozen cards
before you say, “Stop whenever
you wish.”
She finally stops. Take the remaining cards from her and set them
aside. Pick up the pile she dealt onto the table. Place it in your left
hand. Also, grip it from above with your palm-down right hand
(Illus. 41). This will enable you to run your left thumb slowly down
the left side of the cards. Do this once. Then tell Marlene, “Tell me
when to stop.”
Run your thumb slowly down the cards. Stop precisely where
Marlene indicates. Separate the cards slightly. “Is this all right, or do
you want to try again?”
If she wants another try, oblige her.
Hand Marlene the bottom packet.
“Turn the packet face up please. Then deal the cards alternately
into two piles.”
She does.
You even up the piles and turn them face down.
Time to toss a little dust into the minds of the spectators.
“Marlene, you had complete freedom of choice throughout. First,
let’s have a look at my prediction.”
Turn your prediction face up. “There you are, the seven of clubs.
Now let’s see what you selected.”
Turn over the top card of one of the piles. “There you are,
Marlene ... a club. Now let’s see the other card.”
“Turn over the top card of the other pile. “Good heavens,
 Prediction Magic 79

Marlene ... it’s a seven. A seven and a club. You exactly matched my
prediction card. You’re amazing!”

We Have a Winner
I wish I knew who invented this splendid trick so that I could give
proper credit. It’s not only quite astonishing, but can be repeated
without any fear of detection.
Explain: “One of the most difficult things to attempt in magic is
prediction. It’s beyond me how some people can do it so consistently.
For instance, some magicians can tell in advance what card will be
selected . . . every time! Occasionally, I’m fairly lucky with numbers,
so I’ll try to make a prediction that relates to numbers.”
Go through the deck and take out any four cards that add up to
22—a three, a five, a six, and an eight, for instance. Set these to one
side face down.
Solicit the aid of Marvin, who is a bean counter, and should be
able to do the same with cards. Rapidly count off 12 cards from the
top of the deck and hand them to Marvin.
“Just set those down, Marvin.”
Count off another 12 and hand them over, asking Marvin to set
them next to the first packet.
Count off a pile of 12 for yourself and set it down. And, of
course, you have another pile of 12 remaining, which you set by your
first pile.
Pick up one of your piles. “While I’m looking away, Marvin, I’d
like you to turn over a certain number of cards at the bottom of one
of your piles. Then I’d like you to turn over the same number of cards
at the bottom of your other pile. Fair enough?”
Make sure he understands.
“While you’re doing that, I’ll do the same with my piles.”
Pick up one of your piles and turn aside. Spread out five cards at
the top; turn the remainder over. You now have seven face-up cards
at the bottom of your pile.
Turn back and, without looking at Marvin, set the pile down and
pick up your other one. Turn aside again and again spread out five
80 Easy Card Magic

cards at the top of the

pile; turn the remainder
over. You also have
seven face-up cards at
the bottom of your sec¬
ond pile.
Marvin should be
done by now. Face the
group. Place your second
pile on top of the first
Illus. 42 pile. Pick up the com¬
bined pile.
“Set one of your
piles on top here, Marvin.” Extend the pile toward him. Marvin does
so. With the left thumb, tilt the pile clockwise so that it’s on edge
between the two hands (Illus. 42).
“Marvin, please give your other pile a cut.”
As he does this, with your right hand turn over the pile you’re
holding. As the pile now lies in the left hand, all the face-down cards
are now face up.
Extend the packet toward Marvin again. “Put your pile on top,
please.”
He does.
Give the deck a thorough shuffle. “I’ve made a prediction,
Marvin. Please add up the cards I’ve set aside and tell us the total.”
The total, of course, is 22.
Hand the deck to Marvin. “Count the face-up cards, please.”
He does. The total is 22.
You’re really good.
Notes:
(1) It might go a little faster if you do the counting yourself.
(2) If the group keeps shouting “Encore!” you can readily oblige. The
first time, you took a pile, counted off five cards from each pile,
and turned the balance over.
After Marvin added his first pile of cards, you turned the pile
over, giving you at least ten face-up cards (five plus five).
Marvin has turned over the same number of cards in each pile.
 Prediction Magic 81

One pile joins yours and is reversed; the other simply goes on top of
the reversed pile. This means that if seven cards are reversed in one
of Marvin’s piles, an equal number is face-down in the other pile. So,
since Marvin has two 12-card piles, no matter what, his two piles
will work out to 12 face-up cards.
Add this number to your ten face-up cards and you get 22.
If you do a repeat, perhaps take out four cards equaling 25.
Marvin will have face-up cards totaling 12, so you must provide 13
to make up the 25. This means that you must have 13 face-down
cards in your piles. In your first pile, count off seven cards and turn
the rest over. In your other pile, count off six cards and turn the rest
over. When you turn the pile over, you will have 13 face-up cards—
seven plus six. Whatever Marvin does, he provides 12 more face -up
cards. 13 + 12 equals 25.
Obviously, you can make a variety of predictions.

Got the Time?

You start fanning through the cards, faces toward you. “There is
nothing quite so difficult as trying to predict the future. I find that a
clock is very helpful. After all, it contains all of the lucky digits and
all of the mysterious ones.” Pause. “Anyway, I hope that one of these
cards will hit me as a suitable prediction.”
Note the bottom card. Fan off six cards and put them on top.
Fan off seven more cards and put them on top. You now know the
13th card from the top of the deck. Continue fanning through the
deck, looking for the card that matches it in value and color. For
instance, if the 13th card is the 5H, you find the 5D. Set this card to
one side onto the table, saying, “Here’s my prediction.”
(If the mate to the bottom card happens to be among the first 13
cards you fan through, you must move 14 cards to the top. Then you
continue fanning through and take out the mate to the card you noted.)
Say to Cathleen, “I’d like you to think of an hour, Cathy—any
hour from one to twelve. But don’t tell me what it is. So that you
don’t forget it, please take the deck, and count off that many from
the top of the deck.”
82 Easy Card Magic

Turn away while she

does this.
“Hide the cards you
counted off, please, Cathy.”
Finally, turn back to the
group. Pick up the deck.
“Fm going to form a clock
now. ”
Deal out 12 cards from
the top of the deck into a
clock. But you start with a
card at 12 o’clock, the next
at 11, and so on—dealing
backwards to one o’clock.
Push the 12 o’clock card up
a bit, so that all will be able to tell the various hours (Illus. 43).
“Here’s twelve o’clock,” you say, pointing to the appropriate card.
“Here’s one o’clock, and two o’clock.” Again, you touch the indicated
cards.
“Now, Cathy, I’d like you to count around to the time that you
selected and turn that card face up.”
She does.
“Good,” you say. Turn over your prediction card. “I think I got
it right.” Pause. “Oh, thank you, good old clock!”

S^e_01d,__Same__01d
I believe that the late Ed Mario, a master card technician, invented
this intriguing trick.
Edwin and Shelly arrived together, so maybe they’d be willing to
help you out.
Count off 26 cards from the top of the deck and hand them to
Shelly. Hand the remaining 26 cards to Edwin. (Best to count the cards
 Coincidence Magic 83

in segments of three so that the exact number seems unimportant.)

“Okay, you each have about half the deck. I’d like you each to
decide on a number from one to ten. Now you should have different
numbers, so please decide between you while I turn my back. Then
count off that many cards from your packet, and hide them.”
Turn away until Edwin and Shelly are done. Face the group once
more. Take Edwin’s remaining cards.
“Em going to deal these out one at a time, Edwin. I’d like you to
take note of the card that lies at your number.”
Deal the cards one at a time into a face-up pile. As you do, count
aloud. Stop counting aloud after the tenth card, but deal out three
more cards, as you say, “Did you catch your card all right, Edwin?”
Let’s hope that he did.
Turn the thirteen-card pile face down. Put the cards you’re hold¬
ing on top of the pile.
Turn your attention to Shelly. Take her remaining cards and go
through the same routine as you did with Edwin. She also notes the
card at her number as you count up to ten. As before, deal out three
more cards, as you ask something, like, “Did you see your card,
Shelly?” Turn the face-up cards over and place the remaining cards
on top.
Two piles are on the table. Set them side by side. Give each pile
a magical tap.
“That should do it.” Pause. “What’s the name of your card,
Edwin?”
He tells you. Repeat the name.
“And your card, Shelly?”
She names it. Repeat the name.
“You each chose a different number. Wouldn’t it be a marvelous
coincidence if the cards turned up at the same place in the piles?”
Turn over the top card of each pile together (Illus. 44 on page
85). (It’s best to grasp the cards at the inner side, fingers on top. This
makes it easier to take them off and turn them over.) Continue on.
As you do, repeat the names of the selected cards several times.
Finally, you stop when you come to both chosen cards at the same
time. Stop and announce the names again.
“Quite a coincidence!”
84 Easy Card Magic

Dave Altman adapted a move invented by Paul Curry for a quite

astonishing effect. Eve added a few touches.
By way of introduction, say, “Have you ever noticed that there
is a rather startling correlation between hearts and spades?”
As you speak, fan through the deck, taking out the hearts and
spades from A to 10—that is, A23456789 10.
“In bridge, they are the major suits. As a matter of fact, in every
respect, they are the most dominant suits in the deck.”
Separate the spades and hand them to Lorraine, who is a bridge
addict. “Let’s try a bit of duplicate bridge, Lorraine. To start, please
arrange the spades from ace to ten. Put the ace on top, followed by
the two, the three, and so on. Meanwhile, I’ll arrange the hearts.”
Pick up the hearts and arrange them, from top to bottom, in
this order:
10 89756423A
It’s simple. Hold the stack face up and start arranging them from
the bottom up. Consider them in groups of three. The first group is A 2
3. You start with the lowest card, A, and put that on the bottom. Then
comes the highest of the three cards, the 3. Linally, the 2 comes in.
So from the bottom up, you have:
A3 2
The next group of three is 4 5 6. The lowest comes first, the 4.
Then comes the highest, the 6. And finally comes the 5. So from the
bottom up you have:
465
The last group of three is 7 8 9. Again you have the lowest, fol¬
lowed by the highest, and then comes the middle value. So from the
bottom up, you have:
79 8
One card, the 10, is left. This goes on last.
Turn the pile face down and set it aside without comment.
Take the spades from Harriet and fan them out face up, showing
everyone that they run from A to 10. Turn the pile face down.
Turn over the top card, the A, and deal it out face up. “Here we
have the ace.”
 Coincidence Magic 85

Take off the next card. Shove off the card below it. Place the top
card beneath it and take off both cards together.
“If you were to say, ‘Switch,’ I’d take the cards like this.”
Turn the two face up together and place them on top of the ace.
“But if you don’t say, ‘Switch,’ I deal like this.”
Deal off the next card face up on top of the pile.
“Let’s try another switch.”
The top card goes below the second card and both are turned
face up and dealt together on top of the pile.
“Then a single card.”
Deal one face up on top of the pile.
“Another switch.”
Once more, the top card goes below the second card, they are
turned face up together, and placed onto the pile.
“And the final card.”
Place it face up onto the pile.
Pick up the pile and spread it out so that all can see.
“Notice that the cards are well mixed because of the switches.”
Close up the pile and turn it face down.
“I’ll go through the cards again, Harriet. This time I’d like you
to let me know when you want me to switch. I’ll go slowly so that
you’ll have plenty of time.”
Take off the top card. Look inquiringly at Harriet. If she says
nothing, deal it face down onto the table.
Take off the next card. “Regular or switch, Harriet?”
Follow whatever she says. If it’s regular, deal a single card onto

Illus. 44
86 Easy Card Magic

the pile. If it’s switch, place the top card under the second card and
place them both face down onto the pile.
Continue through the rest of the spades. Square up the pile. Put
the pile of hearts next to it.
“I said that we’d try some duplicate bridge. So let’s see how it
worked out.”
Using both hands, take off the top card of each pile, turning it
face up and setting it forward of the pile. (See Illus. 44.)
Continue through all the cards. Every one matches.
“Now that’s what I call duplicate!”
Note:
I assume that Paul Curry developed the basic idea: the difference
between dealing cards out face up and face down. Initially, you take
off a card, place it below the next, take the two together and place
them face up onto the table. Let’s assume that the cards are the A and
the 2. When you place them down face up, the ace will be the upper
card and the 2 will be below it. But when you deal them out face
down, the A will be the lower card and the 2 will be on top.
So when you deal the various pairs face down, it’s the equiva¬
lent of dealing out cards individually. When you deal the pairs face
up, they reverse. Thus, after you sort out your prediction pile, it
precisely matches Elarriet’s pile after you alternately do pairs and
single cards face up. Going through the pile again doesn’t change
the order; it simply reverses it.

A. Little..More Work
The following is based on the same principle used in “A Little Work”
in the Discovery Tricks chapter. Here I use a slight variation of the
setup known as “Eight Kings.”
Once again, the mnemonic is “Eight kings threatened to save
ninety-five queens for one sick knave.” Or:
8 K 3 10 279 5 Q 4A6J
Eight kings threa-tened to save ninety-five queens for one sick knave.
The nonsense phrase is easy enough to memorize. But to throw
 Coincidence Magic 87

off those familiar with the setup, in this trick we’ll eliminate the face
cards. So the expression becomes:
8 3 10 27 9 5 4A6
Eight threa-tened to save ninety-five for one sick.
Eddie has stayed in a doctor’s waiting room for as long as two
hours, so he should have sufficient patience for this trick.
Fanning through the face-up cards, say, “I need some help,
Eddie. First of all, Em trying to get one each of the spot cards.”
Remove an eight from the deck and place it face up onto the
table. On top of it put a face-up three. Continue on until you have a
pile consisting of the entire setup. Even up the pile and turn it face
down.
“That’s probably pretty close.”
Fan through the deck and find the queen of spades. Place it face
up on top of the face-down pile.
“Do you realize, Eddie, that the queen of spades has special pow¬
ers? In fact, it’s the most magical card in the entire deck. And we’re
going to use her for this demonstration, and hope that she cooper¬
ates.”
Pick up the pile, which consists of the face-up QS on top and the
remainder of the setup face down (Illus. 45).
Give the pile several cuts as you explain to Eddie: “Here’s what
I’d like you to do, Eddie. Deal out some cards into a pile.” Do it.
“Pick the pile up and turn it over.”
Do it. “Place the pile either on the
top or the bottom of the main
pile.” Do it. “Then cut the cards.”
Do it.
Make sure that Eddie under¬
stands; hand him the pile. By this
time, the pile should appear to be
substantially mixed, which will
enhance the trick.
Pick up the rest of the deck.
Turn away, saying, “I’m going to
Illus. 45 turn away and form a prediction
88 Easy Card Magic

pile. Meanwhile, Eddie, you tell me when you’re done.”

Turn away and fan through the face-up cards. Find an 8 and put
it on the bottom. Find a 3 and put it on the bottom, below the 5. Find
a 10 and put it on the bottom. Continue on, forming an Eight Kings
setup, minus the face cards:
83 10 27954A6
Count off the bottom ten cards and separate them from the rest
of the deck. By this time, Eddie should be done. Turn back to the
group. Set the pile of ten onto the table, saying, “Elere’s my predic¬
tion pile.”
Put the rest of the deck aside.
Take Eddie’s pile from him. “Let’s find that magical queen of
spades.”
Fan through the pile face up. If the queen of spades shows up,
take it out. The way you do this is critical. Place all the cards above
it into a pile on the table. Take out the queen and set it down near
your prediction pile. Put the rest of the cards on top of those you just
set down.
If the queen of spades does not show up, turn the pile over. Fan
through to the queen of spades. Place all of the cards you’ve fanned
through into a pile on the table. Again, remove the queen and set it
down near your prediction pile. Put the rest of the cards on top of
those you just set down. Turn the pile over.
In both instances, the pile is now set up in the variation of the
Eight Kings order.
“We can hope that the queen of spades did her work in your pile,
but let’s see what she can do in my prediction pile.”
Pick up the prediction pile. Place the QS on top.
“Go to work, Queenie!”
Give the packet a complete cut.
“The cards must be cut three times, Eddie. How about giving
them the second cut.”
He does. Either Eddie or another spectator should give the pack¬
et a third cut.
“Let’s hope she did her job.”
Fan down to the QS. Set all the cards above her onto the table.
Discard the QS. Set the remainder of the cards on top of those you
 Coincidence Magic 89

just set down. Your pile is now in the variation of the Eight Kings
order.
“If one or two of these match up, Eddie, I think we have a minor
miracle.”
Set the two piles side by side. Using both hands, grasp each top
card of each pile at near end. Lift off each one. Turn over the card
from the prediction pile. If the card from the other pile is face down,
turn it over also; otherwise, deal it off as it is. Each card is set for¬
ward of the pile it comes from.
Continue through all the cards. Every one matches.
As you turn over the pairs, make exclamations of surprise, even
amazement, such as:
“I can’t believe this.”
“Four matches! What’s going on?”
“So help me, this has never happened before.”
“My goodness, this must be my lucky day.”
“Good old queen of spades really did her job.”
“Good heavens, I should have bought a lottery ticket.”
They all know you’re spoofing, but it really adds to the trick.

W h a t ’s in a. Nam e ?
I’ve taken an old trick and added a wrinkle that makes it more decep¬
tive. Let’s see if you agree.
Spencer and Katherine get along well, so you should ask them to
help you out.
“Spencer and Katherine, I’d like you each to think of a name. It
could be your own name or someone else’s. It could be a first name
or a last name, or both. It could be a movie star or a public figure—
anything.” Pause. “Do you each have one?”
They do.
Hand the deck to Katherine. “Give the deck a shuffle, Katherine,
and then spell out the name you thought of. Deal one card into a pile
for each letter. I’ll turn away while you do that.”
Turn away. Katherine does as directed.
“When you’re done, Katherine, hand the deck to Spencer. When
90 Easy Card Magic

you get the deck, Spencer, spell out the name you thought of. Do the
same as Katherine did; deal one card into a pile for each letter in the
name. When you’re done, set the rest of the deck aside.”
Spencer announces that he’s done.
“Good. Now, Spencer, put Katherine’s pile together with yours
and give the entire pile a little shuffle.”
Turn around and take the pile from Spencer.
“Which one of you wants to go first?”
They decide. Let’s say that Spencer is to go first.
“Spencer, I’m going to deal the cards out into a face-up pile. As
I do, I’d like you to mentally spell out the name you chose. For each
card I put down, mentally say a letter. Don’t stop me when I put
down a card for the last letter in the name. But do remember that
card. So you’re to remember the card that turns up at the last letter
of the name you thought of.”
From the face-down deck, slowly deal the cards into a face-up
pile. Instead of dealing the last card on top of the others, turn it face
up and use it to scoop up the pile. In other words, place it under the
pile and pick up the other cards with it, leaving it at the bottom of
the pile.
“Katherine, I’d like you to do the same thing. Mentally spell the
name you thought of and note the card I place down for the last let¬
ter in the name.”
You’re holding the face-up pile. Slowly deal the face-up cards
into a face-up pile.
When you’re finished, pick up the pile and give it a shuffle.
“At the count of three, I’d like you to each name your card quite
loudly. I’ll see if I can identify both cards, even though you’re both
speaking at once. Ready? One, two, three.”
They both shout out the name of the same card. Ponder briefly.
“Oh, that’s tough. Let’s try again. One, two, three.”
Everyone knows that they both shouted out the name of the
same card. But you’re having a bit of trouble. After they shout it out
the second time, say, “Oh, my goodness, you both chose the same
card! You two certainly have a lot in common.”
 91

We’re Off to Hear the Wizard

“The Wizard” is a type of mentalism done over the phone. There
are two types: One, a spectator chooses a card, dials a number, and
the wizard names his selection. Two, you do a solo. Call someone;
have him do stuff with a deck of cards, finally choosing one. You tell
him what it is. (This type can often be done from another room.)
The original trick is quite well known. You ask Jane to name any
card. “I’ll call the wizard, and we’ll see if he can guess which one you
chose.”
Your confederate, Josh, is always on the alert for your call. So
dial him up and ask for the wizard. If Josh answers, he’ll start work
immediately. If he is called to the phone, he’ll pick up and start nam¬
ing values: “Ace, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten,
jack, queen, king.” The minute he names the value of Jane’s card, you
say, “Hello.”
The wizard then says, “Clubs, hearts, spades, diamonds.” When
he names the proper suit, you say, “Just a minute.”
Hand the phone to Jane, who says, “Hello.” Josh promptly says,
“Your card is the eight of clubs
Illus. 46
(whatever).”
That’s the original. This clever
version was the invention of John
P. Hamilton. It’s well worth the bit
of work necessary to learn it.
Hand the deck to Cedric and
ask him to take out any nine cards.
“Mix the nine cards up,
Cedric, and then deal them into a
face-up circle. As you deal, put one
card in the middle of the circle and
then continue to the end.”
He finishes (Ulus. 46). The Cards Are Face Up.
92 Easy Card Magic

“That card in the middle is your selection, Cedric. I’d like you to
telephone the wizard and see if she can tell you the name of the card.
Just dial this number and ask for the wizard.”
Give him a piece of paper on which you have placed your con¬
federate’s phone number. In this instance, your confederate is Louise.
Cedric does as requested. Louise tells him that she is the wizard
and that he should name all eight cards that he didn’t choose.
As Cedric names them, you gather them up.
Meanwhile, Louise has written down the names of all eight cards
in a column. Let’s say, she has written this:
10H
7H
8C
JH
2D
2S
9C
AD
She now adds the code symbols, or perhaps can have them pre¬
written, like this:
10H: C
7H:H
8C: S
JH: D
2D: 1
2S: 2
9C: 4
AD: 8
Let’s go back a bit. How exactly do you pick up the cards as
Cedric names them? As Cedric names each card, you pick the card
up and place it face down in your other hand. Within the first four
cards you will signal both the suit and the value of the card Cedric
selected.
Lirst, the suit. You must remember the order, clubs, hearts,
spades, diamonds. A convenient mnemonic is CHaSeD. As you gath¬
er up the cards, mentally say clubs for the first card, hearts for the
second card, and so on. Place the cards one on top of the other. But
 Alone By the Phone Magic 93

after you have placed the card that signifies the suit on top, place the
remaining cards of the four on the bottom.
Suppose that Cedric’s card is a spade. Put the first two cards one
on top of the other into your left hand. Also put the third card (which
stands for spades) on top. (In our example, the 8C goes on top.) The
fourth card (which stands for diamonds) goes below the others.
If Cedric selected a heart, the second card (which stands for
hearts) would go on top of the first card. (In this instance, the 7H
would go on top.) The remaining two would go below the others.
We’ll assume that you’ve signaled a spade and that the third card
named by Cedric is on top.
Arranging the value is just as easy, maybe easier. You are going
to do this by thinking of these numbers in order as Cedric calls off
the next four cards: 1, 2, 4, 8. With these four numbers, you can sig¬
nal any value in the deck. For instance, if the chosen value were 3,
you would signal only the 1 and 2, which equal 3. If the chosen value
were 9, you would signal 1 and 8, which equal 9. (Jack is 11, queen
is 12, and king is 13.)
You have already picked up cards to indicate the suit, and the
appropriate card is on top of the four-card packet in your hand. The
cards that indicate the value go on top of this card; the others go on
the bottom of the packet you’re holding. In our example, you have
signaled that the suit is spades.
Let’s say that the value is 5. Since you’re bright as a whip, you
know that you must signal the 1 and the 4, which will equal 5. Cedric
calls off his next card; you think of 1. You need a 1 to signal 5, so
you pick up the card he named and place it on top of the packet in
your hand. Fie names the next card; you think of 2. You don’t need
the 2, so you place this card on the bottom of the packet in your
hand. Cedric names another card; you think of 4. You need the 4, so
you place it on top of the packet in your hand. That completes the
message, so the remaining card that Cedric calls will go to the bot¬
tom of the pile you’re holding.
Back to the action.
Louise claims that she has heard the names of only seven cards.
“I must hear the names of all eight cards, so would you mind read¬
ing them again.”
94 Easy Card Magic

You ask Cedric what’s wrong. He explains. Hand Cedric the

number of cards that convey the message. It could be two, three, or
four cards. There will be a pause before you hand Cedric more cards.
The pause will tell Louise that the signaling is over. She is to figure
out the selection from these cards.
“Start with these,” you say. As an afterthought, you add, “Mix
them up if you want to.”
(Until you really think about it, this seems impossible.)
Louise, the wizard, now puts an X in front of the names of the
cards being called off, regardless of the order. After she has put in
two, three, or four Xs, she is done and can identify the card.
Naturally, however, she waits until Cedric finishes calling off cards.
You hand him the remainder of the cards in small groups—three
or four cards in each segment. Or, if you prefer, just hand him the
rest.
In our example, Cedric will first be handed three cards—9C, 2D,
8C. He mixes these however he wishes. Then he calls them off to
Louise. She marks them off with Xs or checks:
10H: C
7H: H
X 8C: S
JH: D
X 2D: 1
2S: 2
X 9C: 4
AD: 8
Since there is a significant pause, she realizes that she should not
make any more Xs.
She can see that the suit is spades. She notes that cards number
1 and 4 are checked off. 1 and 4 = 5. Therefore, the value is 5.
She waits till you hand Cedric the remaining cards and he fin¬
ishes calling them off. Then she names the card—the five of spades.
Note:
You may choose an alternative closing. When you hand Cedric the
prepared cards, you may simply hand him the top four cards. If you
do, however, they may not be mixed by Cedric. In all likelihood, he
 Alone By the Phone Magic 95

won’t mix them himself, and you certainly won’t invite him to do so,
nor caution him not to.
When Louise hears the cards being read, she stops checking after
she hears a card signifying the suit. This may take two cards, or all
four. But once she’s heard that, she’s done. She knows the suit, and
can calculate the value.

.4 Phoney Routine
This telephone routine was created by Ed Mario, with variations by
P.H. Lyons, and a few suggestions from me. It’s more than a trick; it’s
an extensive routine in which you reveal a number of chosen cards,
proving that you are (a) psychic, (b) a magician, or (c) incredibly
sneaky.
As usual, you will need a pencil and paper, along with a willing
acquaintance who is not awaiting an important phone call. Brandon
usually has time on his hands, so why not phone him?
Ask Brandon to get a deck of cards, along with a writing instru¬
ment and a piece of paper.
“Shuffle the cards, please, Brandon. Now deal them from the top
into a face-up pile, naming each card. While you’re doing this, think
of one of the cards.” If Brandon starts naming the cards rapidly, have
him slow down so that you can concentrate. What you’re concen¬
trating on is writing the cards down, using the traditional shorthand:
IOC
AH
2D
3S, etc.
After Brandon has named about 10 cards, ask, “Do you have a
card in mind?”
No? Then draw a line under the group you’ve listed. Let him deal
about 10 more, while you continue writing down names. “I assume
you have one now.” The idea is to narrow the choice to about 10
cards.
You will now have to “fish” for the correct card. This means that
you must make a series of speculations as you apparently attempt to
96 Easy Card Magic

read Brandon’s mind. If you’re good at it, you’ll get the proper card
quite quickly. If not, it doesn’t matter, because the follow-up is com-
pletely baffling.
How do you fish? Let’s suppose you have these cards listed:
KH
QS
9S
4H
5C
8D
2C
3C
8S
7D
You might start by saying, “I don’t visualize a face card. I believe
your card must be a spot card, right?” If you’re wrong, you know
that the chosen card is either KH or QS. You eliminate one of these
by visualizing either red or black.
Chances are, however, that the card is a spot card. Since five of
the spot cards are black suits, you next envision a black card. If
you’re wrong, the possibilities are reduced to three: 4H, 8D, 7D. You
can then eliminate by going for an odd- or even-numbered card, or
go directly for the suit.
If it is a black spot card, you have these possibilities: 9S, 5C, 2C,
3C, 8S. I’d proceed like this:
“Your card is a club, right?”
Yes.
“And it’s an odd-numbered club, right?”
Right.
“I’m having trouble getting the exact one. I’d say it’s a three,
right?”
No.
“No? Oh, that’s right, that’s right. It’s the five—the five of
clubs.”
Suppose that it’s not an odd-numbered club. You know that it’s
the 2C.
Suppose that it’s not a club at all. You know that it must be the
 Alone By the Phone Magic 97

9S or the 8S. You envision either an odd- or even-numbered card,

eliminating one.
By the end of this phase of the trick, you’ve proved that you’re
really trying to read Brandon’s mind. Now comes the good stuff.
Brandon is holding most of the deck in his hand. He has a num¬
ber of face-up cards in a pile on the table. Leave appropriate pauses
as you provide the following directions:
“Let’s try another experiment, Brandon. Shuffle the cards you’re
holding and put them face down on the table next to the face-up pile.”
“Pick up that face-up pile. Turn it face down and give it a com¬
plete cut. Set it face down by the other pile.”
“Look at the top card of one of the piles and replace the card
face down on top of that pile. Write down the name of that card.”
“Now look at the top card of the other pile and replace the card
face down on top of its pile. Also, write down the name of that
card.”
“Put one pile on top of the other. Give the pile a complete cut.”
“Now please name the cards as you deal them from the top into
a face-up pile on the table.”
Brandon goes all the way through the deck. You make a separate
list of all the cards as he calls them out.
Compare the two lists. Note which card from List 1 is the first
one named on List 2. This is one of the chosen cards. On List 2,
check off the remaining cards from List 1. The other chosen card is
the one that immediately follows the cards from List 1. Gradually
reveal the names of both cards.
You now have a list of all the cards in the deck in order and can
perform any number of miracles. We’ll confine ourselves to two, so
that Brandon does not catch on. From here in, you’ll be using only
List 2.
Again leave pauses as you give directions.
First, ask Brandon to turn the face-up pile face down.
“Please cut off about a quarter of the pack, Brandon. Look at the
bottom card of the portion you cut off. Now shuffle the packet that
contains your card.
“Now please deal those cards into a separate face-up pile and
name them as you go along.”
98 Easy Card Magic

As he names the cards, you check them off your list. When he
finishes, you will have checked off a block of cards. The last card in
this block is his chosen card. After a suitable build-up, you name it.
When he names the cards, you have to search through your list.
You may have to stall, so that he’ll slow down. For instance, he
names the three of clubs. You say, “Hold it. Three of clubs, three of
clubs. Strikes a familiar note. Hmmm. I’m not sure. What’s the next
one?”
For the last trick, you have him pick up that same packet he just
called off.
“Shuffle the packet, Brandon, and then look at the bottom card.
Put the packet on top of the deck and cut the deck.”
Pause.
“Again, deal those cards into a separate face-up pile, naming
them as you go along.”
This time, you watch carefully for any card from the block
you’ve checked off. When he finally names any card from that block,
you place your pencil by the first card in that block. He names the
next card; regardless of what it is, you move your pencil down to the
next card in the block. You keep moving the pencil down as he con¬
tinues naming cards. Brandon names a card, and your pencil is now
resting on the last card in the block. The card he just named is the
chosen card.
Say, “Stop! That’s your card.”
If you wish, you may perform one more miracle. Have him turn
over the next card and concentrate on it. You name it. It’s the card
that immediately follows the checked-off block on your list.

Simplicity Itself
Simplicity itself. That’s the prime requirement of a really good trick.
One of the best “Wizard” tricks is exactly that.
Patricia seems abstracted; call her back to reality by having her
choose a card. As you fan the cards for her choice, count off nine
cards in groups of three and hold these nine slightly separate from the
rest of the deck. She has taken the card and shown it around; it’s time
 Number Magic 99

to replace it in the deck.

Run your left thumb down the side of the deck a few times.
Holding the deck tilted down slightly, run your left thumb down to
about the middle of the deck and lift off the nine cards. Hold out the
remainder of the deck for Patricia to replace her card.
Set the deck down.
“Time to phone the wizard, Patricia.”
Give her the phone number of your confederate.
“Please dial this number and ask for the wizard, Patricia.”
She does.
The wizard says, “Please take the deck and start naming the
cards.”
She does. The wizard takes note of the tenth card she names, but
he lets her name several more.
Finally he says, “Stop! I think I know your card.” He then
names it.
Patricia is absolutely dumbfounded.

Number Magic

The original version of this trick was fashioned by William Simon, a

magician who specialized in mathematical magic. The trick involved
three objects, each spelled with a different number of letters. I’ve
changed it to a card trick.
Melissa once won a spelling bee in elementary school, so she
should be perfect for this trick. Take the deck and fan through it so
that all can see.
“Many of these cards spell out with a different number of let¬
ters.” Stop at a five-letter value—an eight, for example. “Notice that
the eight spells out with five letters.” Stop at a queen. “And the
queen. And many others.”
Fan to a four-letter card—a five, for instance. “Notice that the
100 Easy Card Magic

five spells out with four letters.” Stop at a nine. “And so does the
nine. And others.”
Fan to a three-letter card—an ace, for instance. “Notice that the
ace spells out with three letters.” Stop at a six. “And so does the six.
And others.”
Close up the cards. “So there’s plenty of variety.”
Here you’re subtly suggesting that other cards may spell out with
an even different number of letters. Absurd, of course. Which is why
you don’t push it.
“Melissa, please take the deck and give it a good shuffle. When
you’re done, take a look at the top card. Notice how many letters are
in the value. Then set the deck down.”
After she sets the deck aside, say, “Do you have the number?
Good. Multiply it by 5.”
Pause.
“Since I’ve only tried this three times, please add three to the
total.”
Pause.
“Just to make it tougher, please double your total.”
It’s Brody’s turn now. “Brody, please think of any number from
one to nine. I’ll turn away, and you whisper the number to Melissa.”
You turn away. When you turn back, say, “Melissa, please add
that number to your total.”
Pause.
“What number did you end up with, Melissa?”
She tells you.
“Clearly there is no way I could know what numbers you and
Brody selected. Just consider: Melissa, you chose a card that could be
spelled in any number of letters. Brody, you chose any number you
wished from one to nine. Yet, I am going to attempt something
heretofore never tried in the field of telepathy: double thought trans¬
ference. Each of you please think of your number. ”
You first announce Melissa’s number, and then Brody’s.
How? You simply subtract 6 from the total Melissa got. If she
got 43, for instance, you subtract 6, getting 37. The first digit gives
you Melissa’s number; the second gives you Brody’s.
Let’s see what happened. Melissa looked at a card that spelled
 Number Magic 101

out in 3 letters. She multiplies this by 5, getting 15. She added 3, get¬
ting 18. She doubled her total, getting 36. Brody provided the num¬
ber 7. This gave her 43.
You subtracted 6, getting 37. The first digit is Melissa’s number;
the second, Brody’s.
Why? Multiplying by 5 and doubling is, in effect, multiplying by
10. Brody’s number is added in. If this were announced as the total,
there would be no trick at all. So, early on, we have Melissa add 3,
which is also doubled. So when you solve, you must subtract 6.
Incidentally, if you wish to repeat the trick, instead of 3, use 4 as your
additional number. At the end, you must subtract 8 from the total
provided.
Review:
(1) . Melissa looks at a card and notes the number of letters in its
value.
(2) . She multiplies it by 5.
(3) . She adds 3.
(4) . She doubles the total.
(5) . She adds in the number provided by Brody (1 to 9).
(6) . She gives you the total.
(7) . You subtract 6. The two digits give you the chosen numbers.

Piles of Magic
Presenting an old trick that I’ve dressed up a bit. Stanley checks stock
at a supermarket, so he should be good at counting. Ask him to shuf¬
fle the deck.
“Stanley, please look at the top card. What is it?”
Suppose he says six.
“Fine. Put the card face down onto the table. Deal a card face
down on top of it, counting it as seven. Then deal another one on
top, counting eight. Another, counting nine. And, finally, one as ten.”
Have Stanley try the same thing with the next top card.
“If you happen to turn over a ten or a face card, just put it to one
side in a separate pile. In fact, any pile that contains only two or three
cards should also be set aside.”
102 Easy Card Magic

Make sure that Stanley understands perfectly.

“Pick up all the cards, Stanley, and give the deck another shuffle. I’ll
turn my back while you deal out the cards. If you can’t complete the
count at the end, just add the extra cards to the discard pile. Tell me
when you’re done. And be sure to deal softly so I can’t tell the number.”
Turn your back while Stanley does his job.
When he announces that he’s done, say, “Stanley, I want you to
mentally pick out three of the piles. Add the other piles to your dis¬
card group.”
Pause.
“You have three piles on the table. Turn two of those piles face
up. Now put your hand over the third pile so that I can’t tell the num¬
ber.”
Wait a moment and then turn back to the group. Pick up the dis¬
card pile. “I have to find a card for my prediction.”
Fan through the cards, faces toward yourself. Actually, you
count the cards in groups of three. After you count 19 cards, start
your count again, beginning with one. Let’s say that you end up with
the number 12. Note the two face-up cards on the table, the ones on
the piles turned over by Stanley. Suppose you see a seven and a two.
You add them together, getting 9. Subtract this from 12, getting
three. Fan through your cards once more and remove a three. Place
it face down onto the table, saying, “Here’s the card that should
match the bottom card of the third pile.”
Turn the pile over, and then turn over your prediction.
If the group seems particularly patient, you may repeat the stunt.
Once more, the procedure for identifying the bottom card of the
third pile:
(1) Fan through the discards, counting to 19. Start your count again.
(You may also count the entire pile and subtract 19. Or, as I do,
subtract 20 and add one to the result.) Remember the result.
(2) Total the two face-up cards on the table.
(3) Subtract this from the result of your counting.
 Number Magic 103

It AU Adds Up
I don’t know who invented this unique stunt. The basic principle isn’t
unique, of course, but the trick itself is. I’ve added a few wrinkles that
I think improve it.
“Let me explain something: It’s very hard to make a prediction of
a number that is chosen completely by chance. Yet that is what I’ll
attempt to do. If it works, great. If it doesn’t work, well... better luck
next time.”
In high school, Lillian got a B in Algebra, so she should be able
to handle the work required.
“I’ll turn my back, and then here’s what I’d like you to do,
Lillian: First, give the deck a good shuffle. Then turn over the top
card. If it’s a spot card, deal it face up onto the table. If it’s a face card,
put it on the bottom and turn over the next card. In any instance, the
card you put face up on the table must be a spot card.”
Deal the top card face up onto the table. Let’s say it’s a five.
“Suppose you turn over a five, Lillian. Then start by saying,
‘Five.’ Deal a card face up on it, saying, ‘Six.’”
Do so.
“Deal another card face up on it, saying, ‘Seven.’ Continue on to
the number 13.”
Do as you described.
“Then start another pile with a spot card, and proceed the same
way, counting up to 13. And then do it yet a third time.”
Hand her the deck.
“I’ll turn away. Tell me when you’re done. And, by the way,
don’t count out loud, and deal the cards quietly, so you won’t give
me any hint as to the number of cards in the three piles.”
Turn away. When Lillian says she’s done, with your back still
turned, continue: “Set the deck down, Lillian. Next, even up the
piles, and turn each one face down. Now cover one pile with your
hand so that I can’t tell the number of cards in it.”
When she’s ready, turn back to the group. One pile is covered by
Lillian and two are not. Pick up one of the two and turn it face up.
Casually fan through rapidly, noting the top card.
“So you didn’t select this pile.”
104 Easy Card Magic

Set the pile well to one side. Pick up the remaining pile, fan
through, and note the top card. “And you didn’t pick this one.”
Set this pile on top of the first one. This pile will not be used
again in this trick.
Mentally total the two numbers you discovered. For instance, if
the top card of the first pile was a six and the top card of the second
was an eight, you’d add the two together, getting 14.
You add 10 to the total. In the example, you’d add 10 to 14, getting
24.
Pick up the remainder of the deck. You’re now going to form
three piles. The total number of cards you’ll use in the first two piles
will be 24 (in our example). Simply count down 24 cards in the pile.
Your best bet is to count the cards in groups of three; not only is it
faster, but it makes it appear that you’re not counting. Separate the
24 cards from the rest. Cut off a portion from the top of the group
and put it down to the right. Place the remainder of the 24-card
group several inches to the left of the first pile.
The remaining cards are placed between the other two piles.
Gesture toward the middle pile, saying, “Using your free hand,
touch a pile, Lillian.”
Chances are she’ll touch the middle pile. It doesn’t matter; she’ll
end up getting the middle pile regardless. If she touches one of the
end piles, pick it up, and set it a little to one side.
Say, “Excellent. Now hand me a pile.”
Gesture toward the two remaining piles.
If she hands you the original middle pile, say, “That’s fine,” and
set it near where her hand is covering a pile.
If she hands you the other pile, place it a little to one side, near
her first selection. Pick up the remaining pile and place it near where
her hand is covering a pile.
“Let’s see how many cards are in your selection.”
Slowly count aloud as you deal the cards into a pile. Suppose you
deal out five cards.
“So we have five cards here.” Pause. “Lillian, please turn over
the top card of the pile you’re hiding.”
She does. It’s a five.
 Number Magic 105

Review:
(1) Lillian deals out a card face up. She starts with the value of that
card and counts up to 13, placing another card face up on the pile
for each number. She deals three piles this way. (If the card she
begins with is ever a face card, that card goes to the bottom of the
deck.)
(2) She covers one pile with her hand.
(3) You fan through each of the other piles, noting each top card.
You comment, “You didn’t select this pile,” or something similar.
Set the two piles aside; they’ll be used no longer in this trick.
(4) You mentally add up the two numbers, and add 10 to the total.
(5) Pick up the remainder of the deck and count off the total you
arrived at. Put part on the right, and the rest several inches to the
left. Put the remaining cards in the middle.
(6) Force Lillian to choose the middle pile.
(7) Count the number in the middle aloud. Ask Lillian to turn over
the top card of those she’s covering.

TheGood\yqrd
Presenting another clever William Simon invention, an extremely
easy book test. For those unfamiliar with the jargon of magic, a book
test occurs when a spectator picks a word from a book and the
“mentalist” identifies it.
To begin this, casually leaf through a book and note the sixth
word on the first line of page 15. Set the book aside.
Bonita is an ardent reader, so choose her as your assistant. Hand
her the deck, saying, “Bonita, please remove cards from one to nine,
in any suits. The ace, of course, is one.”
She removes them.
Pick up the group, saying, “Let’s see if they’re all here.” Set them
up from ace to nine, from the top down.
“They’re all here. Let’s mix them up a bit.”
You give the nine cards the One-Two-Three Shuffle (described
on page 13). In this instance, you transfer 18 cards from the top to
the bottom of the packet, moving one, two, or three cards at a time.
106 Easy Card Magic

Thus, the packet retains its original order.

Deal the top five cards into a face-down row from left to right.
Starting at the left once more, deal out the other four on top of the
first group:
A 2 3 4 5
9 8 7 6
“We seem to have an extra card, Bonita.” Point to the face-down
five. “Please pick it up and drop it on any one of the pairs.”
She does this perfectly. Gather up the other pairs, give them a lit¬
tle overhand shuffle and place them on top of the deck.
“I’ll turn my back, Bonita. Then you pick up your three-card pile
and add the cards together.”
Turn away.
“When you have your number, pick up the book, and turn to
that page. For instance, if your total were twelve, you’d turn to page
twelve.”
Pause.
“Tell me, Bonita, was there more than one digit in your total?”
Of course.
“All right. Add the digits together to get a single digit. Does that
work?”
Yes.
“Then count over on the top line to that word. For example, if
your cards totaled fourteen, you would turn to page fourteen. Then
you’d add the one and the four together, getting five. You’d look at
the top line and count over to the fifth word.”
You, of course, know the word. After she looks at it, turn back,
saying, “Please concentrate on the letters in the word.”
Fet’s say that the word is “possible.”
“I see a p at the beginning. Fet’s see, at the end is an le. The rest
isn’t very clear.”
You could, of course, simply name the word. But I think that it’s
more believable if you come up with a similar word, like plausible or
passable.
Use your own judgment.
 107

Setups

Detection by Inflection
Dave Altman, one of the keenest minds in magic, kindly gave me
permission to present this trick, to which he gave the above clever
title. The version below is Dave’s with no additions to speak of.
The deck is set up in any full-deck order you wish. The Eight
Kings setup is one possibility. The manner of setting up the values is
described in “A Little Work,” page 33. Another good one is the Si
Stebbins setup. In this, the order advances by threes. You start out
with a 3. The second card is a 6. Then comes a 9, and so on. The
sequence of values is:
369Q258JA47 10K
Note that the jack has a value of 11, the queen 12, and the king
13. The sequence repeats itself three times.
In either setup, the order of suits is repeated throughout: Clubs,
Hearts, Spades, Diamonds. (Again, the mnemonic CHaSeD is help¬
ful.)
Because there are 13 values, the suits never clash. For instance,
in the Si Stebbins order, the setup would be:
3C 6H 9S QD 2C 5H 8S JD AC 4H 7S 10D KC
3H 6S 9D QC 2H 5S 8D JC AH 4S 7D 10C KH
3S 6D 9C QH 2S 5D 8C JH AS 4D 7C 10H KS
3D 6C 9H QS 2D 5C 8H JS AD 4C 7H 10S KD
Incidentally, contrary to popular belief, any number of complete
cuts do not affect this basic order, which is circular. That is, cards retain
their relationship to each other as they move from bottom to top.
You can begin by giving the deck a Hay-Mow Shuffle (page 14).
Next, fan the cards out, faces toward the group, letting them see the
cards. Don’t let them look for too long, however. As you show the
cards, make some comment, like, “An ordinary deck of marked cards.
Of course most of the marks are on the side you’re looking at.”
Set the deck down and ask Don to give it a complete cut. When
he’s done, pick it up, saying, “Let’s put some on the table.”
108 Easy Card Magic

You’re now going to place exactly 12 cards onto the table, tak¬
ing some from the top and then some from the bottom. Here’s one
way to do it: Fan out four cards from the top and place them face
down onto the table. With your left fingers, push four cards from the
bottom of the deck; place these onto the table on top of the others.
Again fan out four cards from the top and place these on top of the
others on the table.
If you prefer, you may do it in threes, taking them alternately
from the top and bottom. Whichever way you do it, make sure you
have 12 on the table.
When you finish forming the pile on the table, meticulously set
the remainder of the deck onto the table next to the other pile, mak¬
ing a point of averting your eyes so that you’re clearly not observing
any of the cards.
Point to the smaller packet and say to Don, “Please shuffle the
pile, Don.”
He does. “Please set the pile down.” He does. “While I look
away, please take the top card of the other pile, look at it, and show
it around. When you’re done, place it on top of the smaller pile.”
You look away while all this is done.
“Obviously, if I pick up that small pile, I’ll have no trouble locat¬
ing your card. It’s the top card, right? So it might be better if you give
that pile a good shuffle.”
As he does this, explain, “I have the uncanny ability to tell
whether a person is lying or telling the truth. In other words, I can
detect your veracity based on the inflection and tempo of your voice.
Let’s test it. Don, I’d like you to shuffle your packet again and then
read off the names of the cards one by one. After you name a card,
place it face down onto the table. As you go through, name the value
and suit of each card. But when you come to your card, name the
value, but miscall the suit. For instance, if your card is the six of dia¬
monds, miscall it as the six of clubs, or the six of hearts, or the six of
spades. Try not to change the inflection of your voice, Don. But, to be
honest, I doubt that you’ll succeed.”
Don goes through the cards. When he misnames his chosen card,
you instantly stop him, saying, “That’s it, Don. There was a slight
change in your voice.”
 Setups 109

How clever! What a keen ear you have! What a sneak you are!
For while Don was shuffling the small packet, you picked up the
larger packet and placed it in the card case. As you did so, you took
a peek at the bottom card. The value of this card is the same as that
of the selected card, which is all you need to know. When Don names
a card of that value, you stop him.
Note:
There’s no need for you to know the suit, but for your information,
the chosen card will always be the next in the CHSD order. If the
card on the bottom is a club, the chosen card will be a heart. If the
bottom card is a diamond, the chosen card will be a club.

Thr eetoGetReady
From Steve Ehlers to Cody Fisher to you—with a little help from me.
I came across this extremely effective trick in a version by Cody
Fisher, which appeared in MUM, a magazine for members of the
Society of American Magicians. Fisher’s trick requires a setup deck
that is also a deck of readers—that is, a deck in which every card
reveals itself by a secret marking on the back. It’s a very good trick.
I decided you could accomplish a similar effect with only a setup
deck. As described above, you may use either Eight Kings or the Si
Stebbins setup.
Solicit the aid of three spectators: Agnes, Betty, and Carla. Have
each of them give the deck a complete cut.
Say to Agnes, “Please cut off a small pile of cards.”
Say the same to Betty, and then to Carla.
Back to Agnes: “Turn the cards so that you can see the faces.
Take off the first two cards that face you and set them face down
onto the table.”
When she’s done, continue: “I’d like you to choose one of those
two cards. Just pick it up.”
You note whether she took the bottom card or the second card
from the bottom. Pick up the card she left on the table. Show it
around. Casually toss it face up onto the table.
Say to Agnes, “You’ve made your selection, and you’ll not have
110 Easy Card Magic

another chance to change your mind. Please look at your choice and
commit the card to memory.”
You now deduce what card was chosen. Let’s suppose you’re
using the Si Stebbins setup. The card you just turned up on the table
is the 7H. If that was the original bottom card of the deck, then
Agnes chose the card that comes before it in the setup. That would
be the 4C. (Subtract 3 and take the previous suit in CHaSeD.) If it
was the card second from the bottom, then the chosen card is the one
after it in the setup, the 10S. (Add 3 and take the next suit in
CHaSeD.)
Remember the first selection by repeating it to yourself until it’s
time for the revelation.
Perform exactly the same procedure with Carla, the third person
to cut off a packet. The only difference is that Carla is to remove the
top two cards from her pile. She chooses one of the two. Show off
the remaining card, noting what it is. Once more, you know the cho¬
sen card.
Urge Agnes to concentrate as you do the same. Eventually, name
the color, suit, and value of her chosen card. Do the same with Carla.
The only person remaining is Betty, who cut off the second pack¬
et. Have her place her top two cards onto the table. She chooses one
of them.
“Look at your card, Carla, and remember it. Then just add it to
your pile.”
This time, don’t turn the odd card face up; just leave it on the
table. You don’t need to look at it; you already know the original bot¬
tom card of the first pile (Agnes’s pile) and can deduce Betty’s choice.
(If she chooses the top card of the two, you count forward one; if she
chooses the second card from the top, you count forward two.)
Instead of revealing the card, however, you say to Carla, “I don’t
want to name your card, Carla. Instead, I’ll try to focus my mind and
name all the other cards you hold. If I name a card correctly, please
hand it to me.”
You begin by naming the card that comes after the first two cards.
Carla hands it to you. Continue until Carla holds only one card.
Say, “Through sheer luck I have correctly named the cards in
 Setups 111

your pile . . . except for your chosen card. Please concentrate on it.”
With a tremendous effort, you name the selection. You are a
whiz!

Odd or Even
In his 19th-century book Modem Magic, Professor Hoffmann
(Angelo John Lewis) explained many clever tricks. Not the least
among them is this simple adaptation of an old principle.
This should probably be your first trick, since you must prepare
the deck. Just arrange the cards so that every other one is the same
color. It shouldn’t take long. Note the color of the bottom card. Or,
if you prefer, at the beginning, have the deck given several complete
cuts. Then pick up the pack and, as you gesture, glimpse the bottom
card.
For example, you can gesture as you deliver your opening lines.
“Since I handle cards quite a bit, I’ve developed some skill at weigh¬
ing them so that I can tell whether the number is odd or even. For
instance ...” Hold the deck at the ends of your thumb and fingers,
studying it carefully. “ . . . the number of cards here is . . . even.”
Pause. Then nod to both sides of the group, saying, “Thank you,
thank you. Thank you so much.”
Pause.
“All right, so that wasn’t so clever.”
Turn to Shirley. “Please cut off a pile of cards, Shirley.”
She does.
“Put them in my hand.”
Hold the cards as before, bouncing them slightly, gauging the
weight. Get a look at the bottom card of the group. If it’s the same
color as the bottom card of the deck, the number of cards is even. If
it’s not, the number of cards is odd.
Announce your decision.
You now count the cards. You may use one of two techniques:
(1) Deal the cards into a pile on the table, counting aloud. If the num¬
ber is even (which you know before you start counting), when you
take the last card, use it to scoop up the other cards. Thus, the last
112 Easy Card Magic

card becomes the bottom card of the group dealt. Pick up the pile
and put it on top of the deck. If the number is odd, simply count the
cards out and then return the pile to the top of the deck. (2) Count
the cards into your right hand, taking them one under the other. Place
the pile on top of the deck.
Using either method, the deck remains in order.
Repeat the trick several times.

Match Them Up
What are you going to do? You have a perfectly fine deck of cards
alternating red and black cards; surely there’s another trick you can
do. Yes, there is. And a mighty good trick it is.
You know that Bridget is a member of the Peculiar Pasteboard
Poker Club, so she should know something about shuffling cards.
Hand her the deck, saying, “Give the deck one good riffle shuffle,
Bridget.”
She does.
“Thanks. Now I have some real work for you. Please deal the
entire deck into two piles, alternating—first one pile, and then the
other.”
When she’s done, say, “Now pick up one pile or the other—your
choice.”
She selects a pile.
“I’ll take the other one.”
Pick it up.
“Turn over the top card, Bridget, and let’s see what color it is. If
it’s black, put it here face up.” Indicate a spot on the table. “If it’s red,
it goes here face up.” Touch a spot to one side of the first one.
“Where you put each black card, I’ll put a card from the top of
my pile in front of it. Where you put each red card, I’ll put a card
from the top of my pile face down in front of it.”
Bridget puts her first card down. Let’s say that it’s black. You
take one off the top of your pile and put it face down on your side
of her card. She puts the second card down. If it’s also black, you put
the present top card of your pile on top of your first card. If it’s red,
 Setups 113

Bridget sets it to one side. You put the present top card of your pile
on your side of her card.
The same procedure continues until all the cards are out.
Point out, “Here are all your blacks, and here are all your reds.”
Pick up the pile you’ve dealt in front of the blacks. Turn it over
and fan it out. “Here are all my reds.”
Pick up your other pile and fan it out.
“And here are all my blacks. An excellent shuffle, Bridget.”

The Elite Set

How about a setup that’s more of a diversion than a trick. I guaran¬
tee, however, that the idea provides plenty of entertainment.
From the top down, here’s the arrangement:
Red cards: A 9 2 7 3 J
Black cards: 4 8 5 10 6
To perform, simply take the deck, fan through, find your cards,
and set them in a pile on the table. Here’s what I do:
I find a red A and set it face up onto the table. Then I find a red
2 and set it face up on top of the A. I put a red 3 on top of the 2.
Then I must insert three odd cards: 7 9 J. But not in that order.
The red 9 goes between the A and 2. The red 7 goes between the 2
and 3. And the red J goes at the end.
Next, I deal with the black cards. I put a black 4, 5, and 6 (in
that order) on top of the red cards. Then I need two even cards, a
black 8 and 10. The 8 goes between the 4 and 5. And the 10 goes
between the 5 and 6.
(I find this fairly easy to remember, but it might be easier to jot
the order down on a calling card.)
You gather up the cards and turn them face down. You then pro¬
ceed through a series of deals in which you deal the first card out face
up, put the next card face down under the pile you’re holding, deal
the next card face up on top of the first card, and put the next card
face down under the pile you’re holding. Continue until you have an
entire face-up pile. Gather up the pile, and turn it face down. You will
perform the deal five times, as follows:
 114 Easy Card Magic

First time: “Let’s see if we can get the cards in order.” Deal.
Second time: “Let’s try to get all the odd cards, and then all the
even cards.” Deal.
Third time: “Let’s alternate colors.” Deal.
Fourth time. “Let’s do all reds, and then all blacks.” Deal.
Fifth time: “Let’s see if we can get them all in order again.” Deal.
Pick up the pile, return it to the deck, and give the deck a shuffle.

Spelling Magic

It’s All Yours

In a magic magazine, a magician came up with this trick. Everything
about it was fine—except that he had the number of cards wrong, so
the trick wouldn’t work.
What1 ’s so good about the trick? It’s one of the rare breed of tricks
in which the magician never touches the cards.
Hand the deck to Mary Lee, and ask her to give it a shuffle. Then
provide these directions, with appropriate pauses:
“Please cut the deck close to the middle. Look at the card at the
bottom of the group you cut off. Replace this pile on top of the deck.”
“Deal the deck into four piles, alternating one pile after the
other.”
“Pick up the first pile. Fan through and see if your card is there.”
Continue with this until Mary Lee finds the pile that contains her
card. When she does, continue:
“Close up the cards and turn them face down. Now spell out a
certain word, dealing out one card face up for each letter.”
You provide the word, of course. Any seven-letter word will do.
With Mary Lee, you could have her spell out her name. Or you could
have her spell “Magical” or “Mystery.”
“But first,” you go on, “what’s the name of your card?”
She tells you. Have her spell out the word.
Generally, her card will come out on the seventh letter. But if it
doesn’t, have her turn over the next card.
 Spelling Magic 115

Name Calling
Hand the deck to Cecilia, saying, “I’d like you to think of a number
from one to 20, Cecilia. When I turn my back, please count down to
that number and note the card at that number. Be sure to keep the
card at your chosen number.”
Turn your back until Cecilia’s ready.
“Now I’m going to put the deck behind my back and mess up
the cards.”
Put the cards behind your back. Turn the deck face up. Spell out
Cecilia’s name, taking one card from the top of the face-up deck for
each letter. Put these cards beneath the deck. In other words, a num¬
ber of cards spelling out Cecilia’s name are moved from the bottom
to the top of the deck. Turn over the card that’s now on the face of
the deck. Turn the deck face down and bring it forward.
The deck is perfectly normal except for the bottom card, which
is face up.
“Cecilia, what number did you choose? I want to prove to you
that I actually did mess up the deck.”
She names the number.
Count off that many cards. Show the last card. “That is not your
card, right?”
Of course not.
Hand her the pile you counted off, along with the card you
showed her. “Please look through those, Cecilia, to make sure your
card isn’t there.”
After she looks, cut off about half the deck and extend the lower
half toward Cecilia. “Put them back.”
She puts the cards on top of the lower half. You replace the top
portion.
Cut off about half the deck and place it on the bottom. “I turned
one card face up in the deck, Cecilia. Let’s see if that will help.”
Fan through until you come to the face-up card. Place the cards
above it on the bottom of the deck.
“That isn’t your card, is it?”
No.
116 Easy Card Magic

Turn the card face down and put it on the bottom.

“Let’s try spelling your name.”
Spell Cecilia’s name, removing one card from the top for each let¬
ter. Ask her to name her card. She does. You turn over the last card
you counted off. It’s hers.
Note:
You may either use just Cecilia’s first name, or use both it and her
surname.

Piles, of Spelling
To perform the stunt, you must remove from the deck eleven cards
that can be spelled in eleven letters. Probably, this is best done in
advance. But if you can do it fairly rapidly, there’s no reason not to
do it in performance.
What are the cards? All the clubs that have four-letter values:
four, five, nine, jack, king. And all the spades and hearts that have
three-letter values: ace, two, six, ten. From the 13 possibilities,
choose 11 cards.
Hand the packet of 11 to Julie, saying, “Please give them a shuf¬
fle, Julie.”
She does.
“Now deal them into two even piles.”
She has one card left over.
“Look at the card and remember it. Then put it on top of either
pile, and put the other pile on top.”
She does.
Take the pile from her. “Now let’s spell out your card. What is
it?”
She names it. Let’s suppose she names the ace of hearts. You deal
the top card face up onto the table, saying the letter A. You put the
next card on the bottom of the packet. The third card you deal face
up onto the first card, saying the letter C. The next card goes on the
bottom. The next card goes face up onto the pile as you say the let¬
ter E. The next one goes on the bottom. Continue until you’ve spelled
ace of hearts. The last card is the ace of hearts. Before turning it over
 Spelling Magic 117

and adding it to the pile, tap it, and then show it.
“Let’s try again, only with a different number of piles. We’ll need
one more card.”
Fan through the deck and pick out another eleven-letter card.
Add it to the pile.
“Pick up the pile, Julie, and again give it a shuffle.”
She does.
“Now deal out three even piles.”
When she’s done, say, “Pick up one of the piles and look at the
bottom card. That’s your card. Put that pile on top of one of the
other piles. And put the third pile on top.
Take the pile from her.
“And what’s the name of your card?”
She tells you, and you spell it out exactly as you did before. This
time, at the end of the spelling, you’re left holding a card. Tap it, and
then turn it over, naming it.

Computer Speller
According to my good friend Wally Wilson, who showed me the
trick, this is the invention of Tom Craven. An excellent trick it is.
You must do some preparation. From the bottom of the deck up,
you have a setup of the ace through ten. (The ace is on the bottom,
and the 10 is tenth from the bottom.)
George is a computer programmer, so he’d be the perfect choice
to assist you.
Have him select a card and show it around. (Make sure you con¬
fine his selection to the top two-thirds of the deck.) For replacement,
you can try one of two methods: (1) If you can do an overhand shuf¬
fle, begin and ask George to tell you when to stop. Hold out the cards
in your left hand for the replacement of his card. He puts it on top;
you drop the rest of the deck on top of all. (2) Cut off a small pile of
cards and place it on the table. Cut off another and place it on top of
the first. Continue, going fairly rapidly. Tell George, “Put your card
on top whenever you wish.” He puts his card down, and you place
the remainder of the deck on top.
118 Easy Card Magic

The upshot, in all instances, is that his card immediately follows

your setup.
The deck should be given at least one complete cut.
“This deck is actually a computer deck. You can see it’s true;
look at all the numbers.” Fan out the cards face up. Tilt them toward
you. “Let’s see. I’d better set up the computer program.”
As you fan through the pack, watch for your sequence of 10;
when you come to the 10 at the end of the sequence, count off ten
more cards. Cut at this point.
The situation: On top of the deck are 10 indifferent cards, fol¬
lowed by the ten cards of your sequence, followed by the chosen
card.
“Now you can lie or tell the truth, George. It doesn’t matter, for
the computer will detect a lie. Is your card high or low?”
He selects one. Spell out either high or low.
“Is it red or black?”
He selects one. Spell out either red or black.
“What’s the suit?”
Whatever he responds—clubs, hearts, spades, or diamonds—
spell it out.
“I believe that the computer can now find your card.”
Riffle the deck. Turn over the next card, and set it down next to
the pile. Call attention to the value. Deal that many cards onto the
pile.
“George, we need the truth this time. What’s the name of your
card?”
He names it.
You turn over the last card you dealt off.
That’s right.
 Spelling Magic 119

Shake, ..RMdej..A®d.Spell
Herman chooses a card. You want to make sure you can find it later,
so you arrange to peek at the bottom card of the deck.
This can be done in several ways: (1) You can peek at it as you
speak and wave your arms about. (2) You can give the deck a riffle
shuffle while you’re standing; in the preparation, you can glimpse the
bottom card. (3) You can turn the deck over and fan through sever¬
al, explaining, “Here we have an ordinary deck of cards.”
Meanwhile, you peek at the bottom card.
As I explain in the previous trick, you can use two methods of
having the card returned: (1) the overhand shuffle, (2) cutting off
small piles of cards.
Have Herman give the deck a few complete cuts.
“Let’s see if I can find your card, Herman.”
Turn the deck so that only you can see the faces. Fan through
several cards and cut them to the top. Do it again. (This is by way of
misdirecting attention from what you’re about to do.) Fan through
to the card you glimpsed. Count off three cards, starting with the
glimpsed card. Cut at this point. This brings the chosen card fourth
from the top of the deck.
“I can’t seem to find it, Herman. Maybe you’ll have better luck.”
Hand him a die. “Roll it out, Herman. Keep on doing it until you’re
happy with the result.”
He finally stops.
Whatever the result, you can arrive at his selection. If he chooses
one, two, or six, spell out the number, dealing off one card from the top
for each letter. Ask Herman to name his card. Turn over the next one.
If he chooses four or five, spell out the number and turn over the
last card dealt.
If he choose three, say, “Three.” Then deal off three cards, say¬
ing, “One-two-three.” Turn over the next card.
Note:
You don’t really need a die to perform this trick. Just tell Herman to
imagine that he has a die and to give it a roll. “All right, Herman,
what number did you get?” Pause. “Are you happy with that num¬
ber, or do you want to give the die another roll?”
120 Easy Card Magic

Cut and Count

Using an old principle, G. L. Kaufman invented this trick. Eve added
a few pointers.
Gloria teaches high school mathematics, so she should be able to
count fairly well. Hand her the deck, saying, “Please give the deck a
shuffle, Gloria. Then cut the cards in half.”
Make sure the two piles are approximately even and then turn
your back. The idea is that each pile should contain between 20 and
29 cards.
“Pick up either pile, Gloria, and count it.” She does. “You
should have two digits, Gloria. Please add them together. Turn the
pile face up. Count to that number that you just came up with. For
example, if you counted twenty-three cards, you would add the two
and three together, getting five. Then you’d look at the fifth card
from the bottom of the pile. Remember the name of that card.”
Pause.
“When you’re done, put that pile on top of the other pile.”
Turn back to Gloria. Take the deck into your hands and careful¬
ly even the cards up. (You want to give the group something to think
about other than that the trick is completely automatic.)
Hand the deck to Gloria.
“Now that you’re holding the cards, Gloria, I’d like you to
promise that you won’t use black magic.” Pause. “In fact, why don’t
you spell that out. I won’t use black magic. Deal out one card for
each letter in the sentence.”
If she looks puzzled, say, “Spell out, ‘I won’t use black magic.’
Deal out one card for each letter.”
She does.
“What’s the name of your card?”
She names it.
“Please turn over the next card.”
It’s the one.
If the group seems fascinated, you might continue with a further
exhibition.
“Give the deck another shuffle, Gloria. When you’re done,
please cut the cards into three piles—approximately even.”
 Spelling Magic 121

Watch to make sure she does a good job, and then turn away.
Each pile must contain between 10 and 19 cards.
"‘Pick up any pile, Gloria, and count the cards. Then add the dig¬
its together.”
She does.
“You should have two digits, right?”
Right.
“Deal a number of cards equal to the first digit on top of one of
the other piles. And then deal a number of cards equal to the second
digit on top of the other pile. When you’re done, put one of the two
piles on top of the other.”
She obliges.
“Now look at the bottom card of those you’re holding, and
remember it. Put that pile on top of all.”
Turn back and take the deck. Once more, carefully even it up.
Hand the cards to Gloria.
“This time, Gloria, you can use any magic. In fact, spell that out.
Any magic.”
She does.
“What’s the name of your card?”
She names it.
“Turn over the next card, please.”
She does and once more you have proven your magnificent mag¬
ical ability.
Note:
You can use any 18-letter sentence for the first revelation, and any
eight-letter sentence for the second. Undoubtedly, you can come up
with better ones than those I’ve contrived. Actually, my name works
out extremely well for this trick. Initially, I have the spectator spell
out my full name, Robert Charles Longe. And on the second try, I
have the spectator spell out Bob Longe.
122

Red-and-Black Magic

Another Hummer
Presenting a lovely trick depending upon a principle developed by
that great magical innovator, Bob Hummer. (Note that this is based
on the same principle as that used in “Two By Two,” page 61.)
Fan through the deck, faces toward yourself, removing all cards
that break up a black-red order. In other words, if you see three black
cards, followed by a red card, take out two of the blacks. After the
red card, you need one black. If there is more than one, eliminate
whatever extra blacks there are. What you’re striving for is a red-
black-red-black-red-black (and so on) order.
As you go through the cards, explain, “We have a great many
useless cards here that I’ll have to get rid of. There’s one. There are a
couple.” And so on.
Toss those you eliminate face down onto the table. After you’ve
accumulated about 20 or more red-black cards, set the rest of the
deck face down onto the table.
Make sure that the bottom and top cards of the red-black
sequence do not match. If the bottom card is red, for instance, the
top card must be black.
Hand the setup to Ralph. “Cut the cards, Ralph.” He does.
“Now fan out two cards and turn them over.” He does. Tell him to
continue until he gets tired.
You turn away while he works.
Ralph finally stops.
“Make sure you have a face-down card on top, Ralph. If not,
give the cards another cut.”
He follows instructions.
“Now turn over the top card. That’s your chosen card. Please
remember it.” And you, of course, also remember it. Or at least
remember what color it is.
“Continue cutting the cards and turning over two, please. Do it
at least a few more times.”
 Red-and-Black Magic 123

Ralph does.
Take the cards from him
and rapidly deal them into two
piles alternately. Turn one pile
over and place it on top of the
other (Illus. 47). Give the com¬
bined pile a good shuffle. Fan
out the cards briefly. If the face¬
up color is the same as that of
the chosen card, fine. If not, Illus. 47
turn the pile over.
Fan through, taking out each face-up card. Call attention to the
fact that they’re all of the same color. Turn over the remaining cards.
“Ralph, notice that these are all the same color ... except for the
card you chose.”

I Just Can’t See It

• •••*•£ •••••••• ....

Let’s try a trick where you not only don’t handle the cards but also
don’t even see the cards.
You’ll need two assistants. Max and Arlene hang out together;
why not choose them?
“I will now perform an experiment that is absolutely impossible.
I am going to perform a card trick without ever touching the cards.
In fact, I will turn my back throughout the experiment.”
Hand the deck to Arlene, saying, “How about shuffling the deck,
Arlene, while I turn my back.”
Turn away. When she’s done shuffling, continue: “Please call out
a number from 15 to 25, Arlene.”
She calls out a number; you remember it. Let’s say that she
calls out 19.
“Deal off that many cards, Arlene. Tell me when you’re done.”
She tells you.
“Give the rest of the cards to Max. Now, Arlene, take out all the
red cards from your pile. Hang on to them and set the rest of your cards
aside.”
124 Easy Card Magic

When she’s done, it’s Max’s turn. “Max, take out the black cards
from those that you hold. Let me know when you’re done.”
He tells you.
“Count the black cards, Max.”
He does.
“How many are there?”
He tells you. Suppose he says 16.
You now perform some mathematical wizardry. You subtract the
number Arlene called out from 26. She called out 19, so you subtract
that from 26, getting 7. You subtract this from the number Max called
out. Max called out 16, so you subtract 7, getting 9. So 9 is the key
number.
“Arlene, I’d like you to count the red cards that you hold. You
should find that you hold nine cards. That’s . . . nine.”
Turn to face the group.
When Arlene finishes counting, ask, “How many, Arlene?”
She admits it. Nine!
No reason not to do it again.
Note:
Why does it work? Good question. In the deck there are 26 black
cards and 26 red cards. So when Max says he has 16 black cards, it
means that Arlene must have 10. (26 minus 16 equals 10.) So, if you
wish, you subtract 10 from 19—the number that Arlene counted
off—and you get 9. She has 9 red cards.
In the original write-up, you subtract Arlene’s number from 26
and then subtract Max’s number of black cards. In the second
method, you subtract the number of black cards from 26 and sub¬
tract the answer from Arlene’s number. Either way, you end up with
the right answer.
The first method is the way the trick was taught to me, but the
second method seems more logical. But it’s your choice.
 125

Mastery Levels Chart & Index

Usually this section includes three categories: Easy, Harder,
Advanced. Since none of the tricks in this book requires advanced
skills, only the first two categories are included.

Difficulty
Card Trick Page Easy Harder
After Dinner 73 ★
All for One 45 ★

And Four to Go 58 ★

Another Hummer 122 ★

At Milt’s House 30 ★
Bottoms Up 57 ★
Center Cut, A 26 ★
Computer Speller 117 ★

Count for Yourself, A 53 ★

Cut and Count 120 ★
Detection by Inflection 107 ★
Double-Header 21 ★
Double Trouble 77 ★

Easy Aces 43 ★
Elite Set, The 113 ★
Expansion 63 ★
Experimental Mind Reading 64 ★
Find Them Both 29 ★
Four by Four 38 ★
126 Easy Card Magic

Difficulty

Card Trick Page Easy Harder

Good Deal, A 40 A
Good Word, The 105 A
Got the Time? 81 A
Hand Them Over 27 A
Hay-Mow Shuffle 14 A
I fust Can’t See It 123 A
It All Adds Up 103 A
It’s All Yours 114 ★

It’s Reigning Queens 51 A

fust Keep Dealing! 76 A
Let’s Both Choose 36 A
Likewise 41 A
-

Little More Work, A 86 ★

Little Work, A 33 ★

Lovely Couple, A 35 A
Match Them Up 112 ★

Match-Ups 48 A
Miss You 50 A
Name Calling 115 A
Odd or Even 111 A
Odd Number, An 75 A
Oldest Process, The 24 A
One of Two Force 11 ★

One-Two-Three Shuffle 13 A
 Mastery Levels Chart & Index 127

Difficulty

Card Trick Page Easy Harder

Phoney Routine, A 95 ★
Pick of Four, The 44 ★
Piles of Magic 101 ★
Piles of Spelling 116 ★
Psych Count, The 55 ★

Q the Audience 68 ★
Quadruple-Cut Control 8 ★

Roll-Over False Cut 10 ★

Same Old, Same Old 82 ★
Shake, Rattle, and Spell 119 ★
Simplicity Itself 98 ★
Small-Pile Shuffle 16 ★
Take Your Choice 19 ★
Three to Get Ready 109 ★
We Have A Winner 79 ★

Twenty Plus 59 ★
Two by Two 61 ★
Two for the Price of One 99 ★
Up-and-Down Shuffle 11 ★
Use Your Mentality 31 ★
Very Thought of It, The 66 ★
We’re Off to Hear the Wizard 91 ★

What’s in a Name? 89 ★
You Belong to My Hearts 84 'A
 Books by Bob Longe

Card Tricks Galore

Clever Card Tricks for the Hopelessly Clumsy
Clever Close-Up Magic
Easy Card Tricks
Great Card Tricks
The Jumbo Book of Card Tricks and Games
The Little Giant Book of Card Tricks
The Little Giant Book of Magic Tricks
The Little Giant Encyclopedia of Magic
Magic Math Book
Mind Reading Magic Tricks
Money Magic Tricks
Mystifying Card Tricks
Nutty Challenges & Zany Dares
101 Amazing Card Tricks
World’s Best Card Tricks
World’s Best Coin Tricks
World’s Greatest Card Tricks
 PUZZLES
/ # $5.95
an. $8.95

Illii'>
The most amazing things
about these card tricks are how easy they
are to learn and how astonishing they'll look
when you perform them. These seven
maneuvers and sixty incredible card tricks
require no mastery of sleight of hand.
Whether it's a mental trick like Experimental
Mind Reading or a spelling deception such
as Cut and Count, your performance will
be flawless. Flabbergast a crowd with an
ordinary deck of cards and your seemingly
magical abilities.

Sterling Publishing Co., Inc.

New York

Cover art by Bill Milne

ISBN l-4DB7-D7^1-b
EAN

7814 70791 49725 5079 '