Stephen Minch - The Aretalogy of Vanni Bossi [PDF]

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!he }retalogyof Ianni Jossi A Chronicle of Marvels

Designedto bring Pleasureto every Knight & Lady. COMPOSED AND BROUGHT TO LIGHT BY STEPHEN MINCH. Illuminated

byTONY DUNN. Pre-illustrative photography by RICK ANDERSON.

HERMETIC

PRESS

MMXVI.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

P. G. Varola, Roberto Giobbi, Aurelio Paviato, Tony Binarelli, Curtis Kam, Mauro Massironi, Jeff Dial, Davide Costi, Anthony Brahms and Stefano Bossi all kindly provided the author with help and information that contributed to the completion of this book. Further thanks are due Roberto Giobbi, who supplied the photograph on which Tony Dunn based the portrait of Vanni on page viii. The various printers' devices used throughout this book have been taken from Horatio Galasso's 1593 treatise, Giochi di carte bellissimidi regola,e di memoria, a work of tremendous importance to the history of card conjuring, which Vanni Bossi, along with William Kalush and Daniel Rhod, brought to the attention of magicians.

Copyright©

2016

by Penguin Magic, Inc. and the Estate of Vanni Bossi.

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. Published in the United States by Penguin Magic, Inc., Rancho Cordova, California. Printed in China.

First Edition 6 5 4 3 2 l

Contents Introduction-Roberto Giobbi Preface THE ANGELS' PLAYTHINGS La Belle Captive Framing the Sandman Milking the Force The Moth of Tosh The Scrunch Fold The U.T.N. Card Fold The Money Card Card in the Head With Your Peanuts Bottom Feeder The Folding Color Change The Card in Finger Ring AllConditionsMet With a DuplicateRing Fresco Stolen Goods The Fan Flip Steal Cornered The IncisedComer The Thin Comer The JointedComer A Germain Twist A Golden Change A Rested Palm Buckle Fan Hideout The Bossi Four-as-Three Display The Case of Mistaken Identity Stick-Stab The Surfing Card Stab Double Toss The Secluded Card Rise

vi X

l

3 8 15 17 19 22 26 31 33 38 42 48 49 53 57 60 62 65 65 66 66 68 71 74 76

Bo 84 88 93 95 97

Straight Up with a Twist Under a Tack THROUGH THE EYE OF A NEEDLE Prematrix Hangups Hole-Due-Chination No Fleshly Barrier A Trick to Please the Pope The Flaming Coin-Fold Spin Master Okito, Italian Style Turnover 1 Turnoverz Turnover3 Turnover4 Turnover5 Turnover6 Turnover7 Turnovers Turnover9 Righting the Base1 Righting the Basez A SimultaneousTurnoverand Steal The JetMasqueLoad Half-Buck Torture Cell The Other Gypsy's Switch Stick It to Them High Strung and Lapless MIRABILE Vrsu The Vacuumb Tip True Pencil through Bill MEMORABLE

WONDERS

We're Being Followed Resealingthe Wrapper The Deep End

IOI

106 109 III

II5 123 132 136 141

144 146 146 148 149 150 150 152 154 155 156 157 159 160 162 164 166 168 172 177 179 182 185 187 188 190

n

HERE is deeply implanted in every sane human heart, the love of mystery, the desire of wonder. Indeed, it is not too

much to say that the man without this desire is no longer a man; for this aspiration for the mysterious, the secret, and the marvellous is but one

expression of that quality which makes man to be what he is, which differentiates him from the cleverest of monkeys and the wisest of pigs; and causes a human community, however vicious and senseless, to be something infinitely above the best regulated ant-hill or beehive. ARTHURMACHEN-"The Black Art" from The Academy,May

n

20, 19II

HE Greeks said, "All this is untrue, but it is beautiful." LAWRENCEDURRELL-Monsieur

Vanni Bossi:A Forewordand an Appreciation ROBERTO

GIOBBI

SEVENYEARShave passed, as I write, since Vanni left us. He departed on the Sixth of December, 2008. When I received the gloomy news from his son Stefano, it was totally unexpected, for me and for all of us who thought we were his close friends. He had left us without saying a word about the illness he had suffered for several years. At first I was speechless, then angry with him, and then incredibly sad. Stephen Minch, in a letter to me, wrote: "How can we explain how a rather shy man can, within just a few hours, endear himself to you and instill a high level of respect as well? That is the case with me, and I think it was with others. I doubt I spent a total of three hours total with Vanni, but that was enough to make me regret his early death more deeply than I did some friends I'd known for years." Now, after more than seven years, and after losing a few more friends, I think I understand him better. VANNI,

THE FRIEND

I have just read through Stephen's book about Vanni, and I can attest to the effectiveness of his creations: original magic, solidly constructed, certain to have a high impact on any lay audience, and on connoisseurs as well. How do I know? I consider myself highly privileged and most fortunate to have been very close to Vanni. Our friendship began when I was in my early twenties-we Aurelio Paviato-and

were introduced by our friend

it lasted until his untimely exit. That's an affectionate bond of more

than thirty years with one of the most distinguished characters in magic I've ever known. During that time he showed me practically all of his discoveries. He carefully shared their details with me, and he almost invariably gave me any gimmicks required as well. What I call the "Vanni Box" is one of my most prized possessions. It contains most of these items, which he either made for himself and for a limited number of friends, or which he sold at his lectures around the world. When I read the descriptions in this book and looked at the beautiful illustrations, they combine to capture the technical details as well as the person. I could hear Vanni's voice, speaking a polished Italian with an extensive vocabulary, the sign of a well-educated man. But I was even more pleased to discover a few tricks and techniques I had never seen him do.

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I don't want to diminish the pleasure of discovery as you read, by pointing out specific items, and I wouldn't know where to start. Instead I'll leave you to enter on your own a gold mine of miraculous creations. VANNI,

THE MAN

AND

Hrs

WoRK

Vanni Bossi deserves a biography of his own, but we have neither the space, nor do we wish to keep you much longer from enjoying the gifts ahead. Let me then say just a few more things about my dear friend Vanni: If it weren't a cliche, I would call Vanni a Renaissance Man par excellence. When thinking of him, Miguel de Unamuno's quote comes to mind: "I like outward simplicity that hides great complexity." Here was the quietest, humblest person you could imagine, but beneath this exterior was a sophisticated being, a humanist in the true European tradition, with an affinity for all those disciplines that have formed our civilization in general and the Italianita,in particular. When he performed his magic, Vanni was an Italian gentleman of the traditional school. As a creator of tricks, sleights and gimmicks, he was unconventional and original. As a scholar of magic and its related arts, he curated an enormous private library, perhaps the most complete collection extant of magic books and magazines in Italian. Many top professionals of the time were his close friends. When it came to finding practical and elegant solutions to their magic problems, they relied on his vast knowledge and creativity, and they trusted him to construct the precision gimmicks they required. Fred Kaps, as an example, had several of his gimmicks and props made by Vanni, including the glass for Ring on Glass, the leather box for his take on Hennig's Folded Card to Box, and the giant Chinese coin for his famous coin routine. Once he asked me if I'd be interested in purchasing a set of Linking Rings he was about to make. He manufactured only three sets, one for himself, one for Aurelio and one for me. To this day I haven't seen a finer set of Linking Rings. It might come as a surprise to some to learn that magic was never Vanni's profession. His was the owner of a shop that manufactured and sold medals and trophies. As a magician, he was what I would call an inspired amateur. His original training was in chemistry, but he also had keen interests in various manual crafts. For instance, he was an expert bookbinder and had a thorough knowledge of fireworks. All this resulted in the creation and manufacture of the most unusual and exquisite items. For a short period he and David Costi ran a magic business that produced some remarkable tricks, props and videos. X

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However, business and marketing were not among Vanni's accomplishments, which is why outside of Italy his name was not as well known as he deserved. Through his association with Richard Bloch, who for some years organized the World Magic Seminar in Las Vegas, Vanni visited the USA several times and was invariably a hit when he lectured and performed. Whenever he had a new lecture, he called me up, and I would invite him to my home in Basel, Switzerland, where he would stay for a few days and deliver the lecture to the Zauberring Basel, our local magic club. I was often among the first to appreciate his original effects and methods, and this remains an unforgettable part of my magic life. VANNI,

THE COLLECTOR

AND SCHOLAR

Along with similar tastes in magic, Vanni and I shared interests in gastronomy, wine and cigars. These were the perfect ingredients, as you can imagine, for many day-long sessions of intellectual, artistic and epicurean pleasures. My family originally comes from the Piedmont region. On returning from my yearly visits to my uncles and aunts there, I would invariably stop at Vanni's shop in Castellanza, which was an easy exit from the motorway to Basel.Whenever I arrived, he would show me his latest magical discoveries; then we went for an extended (Italian!) lunch. We usually spent the afternoon at his home in Legnano, where he lived in a comfortable villa with Piera, his amactive and charming wife, and Stefano, his son who is now a successful engineer. At that time, he stored his extensive (and expensive) library at his home. We would spend hours going through his latest acquisitions, which he expertly restored, using complex techniques that always left me wondering. He possessed practically every important book of magic, from the beginning of printing to modern times, in many languages, but above all in Italian. He also knew what was in them, how to place their contents in the evolution of magical ideas and who invented what. He was one of the most educated and well-informed people in magic I've ever met. VANNI,

THE ITALIAN

STAR

Vanni gained some public recognition through an early book he authored on parapsychology-another

of his many interests-which

sold very well. And he was occasionally invited

to perform on television. But it was in the world of Italian magicians that Vanni was famous. He was close friends with all the important magicians of his time; Silvan, Binarelli and Alexander, to mention just a few. His lectures, convention appearances and literary output were held in the highest esteem. For many years he served as president of the Milan magic club and as editor of Ars Magica,a journal that dealt with the history and culture of magic. It is also through his research and initiative that important books lost in the dust of obscurity

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were brought to the attention of historians of conjuring; books by important authors such as Galasso and Cardano. His hand-bound volumes will always have a special place in my library, which hosts quite a few titles I bought from Vanni-not

an easy accomplishment, as he was

very selective not only with whom he shared his magic, but also who received his duplicate books. When he departed, he left a void that to this day no one has been able to fill. VANNI,

Hrs

MAGIC

IN THESE

PAGES

In this book Stephen Minch presents to you the work of an individual who is on my very short list of geniuses in magic. Those who knew him will peruse it and be reminded of the genteel man and complex practitioner of conjuring he was. Those who didn't know him will discover a multifaceted and versatile talent, which was hidden behind an unpretentious yet brilliant mind. I promise that both types or reader may expect a few most pleasant surprises, for Vanni, being the reserved and private person he was, never told everything to everyone. You are in for a treat, and I look eagerly forward to receiving the finished book, as it will enable me to session with him, as we did so many times at his home and mine. *¢

¢

Thank you, Vanni, for many years of inspiring friendship; and, for the readers of this book, thank you for allowing us a glimpse into your manifold genius.

Muttenz, February2016

xii

Preface VANNIBossr was a short man of slender build, bearded, with a rugged handsomeness. There was an aspect of the ursine about him: teddy, not grizzly. My time with him, face to face, was just a few hours, but some quality in Vanni earned my love. When I heard he had died-just fifty-six years old-I

wept as I would have for a lifelong friend. There was something super-

naturally endearing about him. To prepare for this book, Vanni sent me all his English-language lecture notes, booklets, a few marketed tricks and a number of videos, some culled from the past, others made specially for me. We went over much of this material and began an initial selection of items for inclusion. We had agreed on about two-thirds of what is in these pages when he died. The loss was a double one; that of a friend and of an invaluable collaborator. I had so many questions only Vanni could answer, and I was now reduced to relying on the scantly written materials and the videos he had given me. Luckily, one of Vanni's close friends, P. G. Varola, came to the rescue. P. G. gathered dozens of video recordings made of Vanni in performances and lectures over many years, and he made copies for me that filled eighteen DVDs. That labor doesn't give the full measure of P. G. Varola's love of Vanni, but it is a fine indicator. From all this written and visual material I now had to choose the content for a book. In the process a number of decisions were made, most involving what to leave out. Vanni was a prolific inventor, and his inventiveness flourished for almost forty years. Some of Vanni's ideas had to be excluded because of the interval between their invention and its documentation here. They were good, frequently trailblazing ideas in their time. But due to years of progress in card and coin magic, they no longer gleam like they once did. Some of his ideas have become commonplace in the present stream of magic. Had he recorded them when he conceived them, the aggregate value of Vanni's contributions would be even greater . It is now too late. These things are not in this book. Occasionally, too, Vanni would reinvent an existing idea. These things are not in this book. Vanni, like Tommy Wonder, was a skilled craftsman, with the tools and taste to manufacture beautiful props and gimmicks. Some items he manufactured in small quantities for magicians. While many of these ideas are inventive and worth inclusion in the record of magic, for the average magician the information would be only history. The props would be too difficult or expensive for most to make or have made. And some of the special materials Vanni used are difficult to find these days. So these things are not in this book.

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Some of Vanni's tricks require items no longer commonly used and therefore they have ceased to seem impromptu or natural. An example is Vanni's Ring in Light Bulb, one of his best-known tricks and a fine one. The method uses a clear light bulb with a transparent half-shell made from the blister pack in which the light bulb is sold. With light-bulb technology LED-round,

rapidly changing-from

incandescent

to fluorescent to

clear bulbs like those Vanni used are becoming hard to find. They look

less normal than they once did, and my guess is that this perception will only worsen. Another strike against the inclusion of this trick is that the method was an adaptation, although a smart one, of Bob Chesbro's "Coin in Lighter", which diminishes its level of inventiveness. Vanni, being a devoted smoker, also had some very good tricks and ideas using cigarettes. For instance, he noted that one could perform a standard color change with cards while holding a cigarette between the fingers of the hand that did the palming. This little touch made palming a card in the hand look impossible and gave the color change a more deceptive and natural appearance. But in many Western countries, smoking in most social circumstances is no long condoned, making magic with cigarettes a genre of the past. Props such as cigarettes and clear light bulbs have, to the detriment of the magic performed with them, outlived their usefulness. My decision may be misguided, but these things are not in this book. Then there is all the material that Vanni left out. Vanni was a warm and generous friend to many. He was nevertheless secretive. From the body of work he created, he shared select items with select people. Even his closest friends would find that Vanni had let them in on a certain secret that equally close friends were not told, and vice versa. And some secrets he kept just for himself One unfortunate aspect of this was that Vanni came up with some wonderful ideas for which he has never received credit. Some of them were reconstructed and published or marketed by others. Some of them were more honestly reinvented. And some of his secrets went with Vanni when he died. These things are not in this book. Vanni's final secret was that he had lung cancer. When he died suddenly, so young and without betraying a hint of his disease, it was a genuine shock to his friends. So another thing that is not in this book is Vanni. He exited before he could be included. There are many pieces of him, but the whole of him got away from us. And that makes me deeply sad. But this book is a record of some of his brilliance; and perhaps other material will eventually be gathered into another book of Vanni's magic. What is in this book is a start. I hope it worthy of the man. Stephen Minch

xiv

fhe )ngels' flaythings

THIS TRICKwas born from a chance comment. Aurelio Paviato, the Italian close-up master and FISM winner, was a close and long-time friend of Vanni Bossi. Aurelio knew that Vanni had a keen interest in the magic of Matt Schulien, so one day in 1983, while sitting in Vanni's shop in Legnano, he mentioned having just read Eugene Burgeron Matt Schulien'sFabulous

Card Discoveries , and they began to discuss Eugene's treatment of Schulien's "Corner in the Glass".Suddenly Vanni wondered out loud, La BelleCaptive "Why just a corner? Why not the whole card is selected, noted and lost in card?" and he immediately went to work the pack. The face-down deck is on a method for accomplishing just that . • then ribbon spread. Picking up a The result was a startling and highly visual clear drinking glass, the performer turns effect, with a method much easier than you it mouth down in one hand and sweeps might imagine . it along the spread. As the glass stops The cards and glass are as they seem, but over the center of the spread, the selected the glass must be large enough to receive card pops into view, captured inside the a playing card, slightly bowed lengthwise . glass. The person who chose the card may A size Vanni preferred was approximately remove it. four inches tall and three inches wide at the mouth. The sides of the glass should be slightly tapered. Glasses of this size and shape are common , which means you can find yourself in a position to perform this trick extemporaneously with a drinking glass your host or hostess has sitting on the table . Have the glass placed somewhere to your left. Begin the effect by having a card freely selected and noted by the group. When the person who chose it returns it to the deck, control it to the top. With your right hand, take the face-down deck by its ends from above and move it to your left in preparation for making a ribbon spread . Protected by this leftward action, you execute a One-Handed Top Palm. Vanni had an alternative handling for the palm, which provides a nice safety feature . Instead of doing the palm within the windup for the ribbon spread, he rested the right edge of his hand and deck on the table, the deck held about thirty degrees left of perpendicular (drawing 1). In this position, he would apply the usual outward pressure of the right fourth fingertip to the outer, lower corner of the top card, causing the card to pop up into the

3

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palm (drawing 2).The main problem most magicians encounter with the One-Handed Top Palm is that the inner right side of the card sometimes angles out beyond the edge of the hand and is exposed. Practice will eventually eliminate this error, but Vanni found that the tabletop does, too. With the hand and deck resting on the table as described, the card cannot pivot into misahgnment with the hand.

If you still haven't mastered this sleight, while you are getting there, this tip avoids the problem. While your right hand does the Palm, use your left hand to pick up the glass, holding it upside down with its mouth turned shghtly to your right (drawing 3). At the same time, make some brief remark while directing attention to the glass, so that everyone sees it is empty. The remark should

3

be something less obvious than "Here I have an empty glass." Your right hand follows this by ribbon spreading the deck from left to right. Immediately bring the hand smoothly back to your left to take the glass from the left hand. As the right hand meets the glass, extend your right forefinger and thumb to grasp it around the rim. In doing this, your forefinger moves away from the left side of the palmed selection, so that you may easily introduce the outer left corner of the card into the glass (drawing 4). Grip the glass between your right thumb and first two fingers, while your fourth finger continues to exert hght control on the palmed card. Keep the bottom of the inverted glass tipped toward your

5 4 left. With your left hand positioned at the left, the card is completely concealed (drawing 5: audience view).

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Now move the right hand and glass, with no pause in the action, to the leh end of the spread

(drawing 6) and sweep the glass swifily along the cards, across their backs, before stopping sharply near the center. At the same time, let the glass settle mouth down onto the spread and over the palmed card (drawing 7). And as you reach the end of the sweep, cock your hand rightward at

the wrist, turning it palm outward. This rotates the glass, turning the face of the card toward the audience (drawing 8). As you drag the rim of the glass over the spread, the cards will scatter out of alignment, which adds to the visual effect. The action also creates a noise that enhances the illusion. From the spectators' viewpoint, the card pops instantly into sight inside the glass. Move your hand away to give everyone a clear view of the card captured in the glass. Vanni would comment, "The glass sucks your card out of the deck" A few trials will teach you that gravity does most of the work for you. Just let the glass settle with its mouth flat on the ribbon spread, moving your lower fingers slightly away to permit this to occur. Pause for a moment, to allow everyone to appreciate what they have just seen. Then slide the glass slowly in front of the person who chose the card, turn it mouth up and invite him to remove it. Or set it mouth up on the table and turn the card 90° inside the glass, so that it stands on end for a nice final display (drawing 9). *o,¢

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If you know Jose Carroll's "Card in the Glass" from his book 52 Lovers(1988, p. 34), you may extend this effect by palming

two cards (perhaps two selections) and loading the double card into the glass. The double is perceived as being one card. After displaying its face, you turn the glass

IO

out of the glass and to a horizontal position against the inner rim (drawings

II

& 12).The

fourth fingertip may help the third, if you like. If this steal of the card is done with the glass just above the scattered cards on the table, the card can be instantly loaded onto them, and the hand can move the glass to the left and set it onto the table, with the back of the remaining card visible to the audience. After a dramatic pause, rotate the glass to reveal that the card inside has changed. Vanni's production and Carroll's change seem to have been made for marriage. Vanni also used this combination to produce four selections or four cards like the Aces or Kings. He palmed the four cards from the top of the deck and loaded them into the glass as he swept it over the ribbon spread. The four cards appeared as one inside the glass. Producing the 'card" in the glass, he then did Jose Carroll's sleight, but as a production rather than as a change. Moving the glass forward of the scattered cards on the table, he used Carroll's move to pull the first card from the glass, released the card onto the table and sat the glass momentarily on top (drawing 13).

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Done quickly, the face-down card seems to appear from nowhere under the glass. Moving from left to right, he repeated the sleight three times in rapid succession, producing a row of four face-down cards (drawing 14). When turned face up, they were seen to be the spectators' selections or four of a kind with which to perform the next trick. You really have to see this production performed to understand how visually striking it is. The card seems to appear miraculously inside the glass. It draws genuine gasps of amazement from audiences of all types, including the many magicians for whom Vanni performed it.

7

THE EFFECTis a classic, and over the years, mainly in the 1800s, various prepared picture frames using such ideas as black roller blinds, cloth flaps, glass overlays and sand between double panes of glass were invented to produce the restored card. The initial stimulus that fired Vanni's efforts in this area was "The Card in the Frame" in Hilliard and Downs's The Art ofMagi.c(1909, p. 229). In I 908, an

excellent, atypical and brilliant method by Martin Chapender appeared in WillGoldston's

Tricksand Illusions(p. 36). It is still well worth reading. Vanni was impressed by Chapender's

Framing

the Sandman

bled its pieces after displaying them. Vanni

n

took Chapender's idea of using an ungim-

back together. The frame is obviously unpre-

micked frame and found a way to eliminate

pared and is held face down on an audience

the palming. His method fooled everyone,

member's lap. That person also selects a card.

even well-posted magicians, and when the

A piece is indisputably tom from it and given

latter learned his method, their enthusiasm

to the person who selected the card. The rest

increased. The working of the frame will be

of the card is tom to pieces. These vanish with

explained here, along with Vanni's method

the pass of a hand and appear restored, less

for a close-up or parlor staging of the Tom and

one piece, inside the picture frame. All this

Restored Card.

is discovered by the person holding it and

method of making the restored card appear in an unprepared picture frame. Chapender palmed the card into the frame as he reassem-

The picture frame is truly unprepared.

he performer presents a classic with a strong difference: An empty picture frame is disassembled, each

piece is clearly shown and everything is put

everything may be closely inspected. The

A good size, and a common one as well, is

piece of card she has kept fits the restored

approximately five inches by seven inches.

card perfectly.

Such picture frames almost invariably have four pieces: the frame, a glass pane, a piece of matting on which a photo is meant to be mounted, and a backboard (drawing 1). Some sort oflatching device on the back of the frame releases or locks in the other components. To prepare the picture frame for performance, small amount of repositionable

8

use a

glue to tack the card you will

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produce, sansone non-index corner, lightly and face outward to one side of the inner matting (drawing 2). In performance, you must be able to remove the card easily, without it becoming apparent that it is attached to the matting. This matting, by the way, should be colored , identically on both sides. Assemble the glass, matting and backboard in the frame, but with the playing card turned inward, facing the backboard. This makes the frame appear empty. You have naturally kept the comer you have tom from the card in the frame. Apply just a touch of repositionable glue or magician's wax to the face of this comer, at its lower left comer, at which the two tom sides meet

3

(drawing 3). Take a duplicate of this card from a full deck and stick the piece, face to back, in alignment with the comer, but set in a hair's breadth from the edges, so that a double edge cannot be perceived from the

4

face. Set this prepared card on top of the deck. Then place two duplicate Jokers (or some other duplicates,

if you wish) on the bottom of the deck and crimp the lower one downward, so that you can cut to it later. The Jokers should be oriented identically. Your first task in presentation is to disassemble the frame and show all its parts. First, turn it back upward and undo latches. While your right fingertips support the contents of the frame, let the frame drop away from them (drawing 4). With your right hand, grip the contents by their right sides while your left hand lays the frame, rear-side up, to the left on your table. 9

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Bring your left hand back to the stack consisting of backboard, matting and glass, and slide the glass away from the other pieces (drawing 5). Show both sides of it and set it to the right of the frame. As your left hand performs this task, turn your right hand palm down to bring the underside of the matting into view (drawing 6).

Lower this hand and let the matting slide off the backboard and to the right of the glass (drawing 7).

7

8 Immediately and smoothly turn the right hand palm up, displaying both sides of the backboard. Then lay it to the right of the matting (drawing 8). IO

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While you seem to have shown all sides of every piece, the side of the matting with the card stuck to it has been concealed. A relaxed and regular rhythm in your series of actions, and a slight confusion created by the various motions, makes the hiding of the card completely deceptive. The sequence is related to old Spirit Slate concealments, the False Hindu Shuffie Display and similar ruses that rely on topological confusion. Despite its simplicity, it is so deceptive, it still fools even magicians. You now pick up the empty frame and place the pane of glass back into it. Ask the person you wish to assist you to sign the glass in the frame. Give her a marker that will write on glass and hold the frame and glass front upward while she adds her signature. You give no explanation for this request, but later it will pay a handsome psychological dividend. Now pick up the matting and, keeping it parallel to the tabletop so that the underside isn't exposed, set it onto the glass in the frame; and finally, pick up the backboard and lock it into the frame . All the actions of taking the frame apart and reassembling it are carried out casually and at a brisk but not hurried pace. You are showing the pieces of the frame, but you are not concerned with proving anything since your attitude indicates that the frame is completely ordinary. You treat its display as an expected and familiar protocol the outcome of which everyone accepts in advance; so you run through the procedure quickly and efficiently, in order to dispense with it. The card is now visible behind the glass (draw-

ing 9), but you keep the face of the frame turned down to hide the fact, and hand the frame to the

9

person you've chosen to help you. Ask her to hold it securely, using both hands. If she is seated, she can rest it on her lap. Now pick up the deck, with the attached piece of torn corner lying at the inner end. Give it one

.. 9

or two fast, casual overhand shuffies that return the top card to the top and that do not separate the two Jokers. Then give the deck a straight cut, moving the prepared card to the center, and hold a fourth-finger break above it. Since your helper's hands are occupied with the frame, ask her to choose a random card by calling stop as your II

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thumb riffles down the comer of the deck. If these words have led the perceptive reader to anticipate a Riffle Force, they have served their purpose. Stop riffling where your helper commands, but cut the deck at your break. Set aside the cut-off packet, remove the top (prepared) card of the bottom packet and set the rest of the deck onto the tabled portion. Meanwhile, you turn the face of the forced card toward the audience. The extra corner on the back of the card is camouflaged by the back design, so if it should be briefly glimpsed, nothing suspicious is likely to be seen. But no one will be looking for anything, so you needn't be overly concerned with concealing the back. You will now appear to tear a corner from the card, but will switch the honest comer for the extra corner stuck to the back of the card. (This is Vanni's variant handling of a corner switch published by Michael Ammar in The Command Performance:PremierIssue,1980, p. 6; an augmented description of which appears in The Magic of MichaelAmmar, 1991, p. 44.) As you display the face of the card, hold it with the corner-bearing corner at the top left. Using both hands, openly tear the top

IO

end of the card along the vertical edge of the hidden corner, stopping just before you reach the bottom edge of that comer

(drawing 10).

II

Now turn the card 90° counterclockwise,

bring-

ing the hidden corner to the lower left of the card. Make an upward tear along the edge of the hidden corner (drawing II) and stop short of the top edge of the piece. You wish to leave the upper right corner of the freshly torn piece slightly attached to the card. With no pause in the tearing action, your left hand folds 12

THE

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the attached corner diagonally rightward, behind the card (drawing 12), and simu-

Bossi

1

lates tugging it free. However, in reality it leaves the attached corner folded behind the card and comes away with the extra corner, the one belonging to the card in the frame

(drawing 13).

Since the extra corner has been lightly stuck to the card by just one corner until the instant the tearing is completed, and since the freshly torn corner hangs concealed behind the card at the finish, the card can be handled with relative freedom. The switch is made in an instant and the illusion is perfect. (If you are working surrounded, this tear-and-switch procedure can be done with the card held face up at waist level.) Run a fingertip over the face of the torn corner to remove any wax or adhesive that might be clinging to it. Then tuck the corner face up under one of your helper's thumbs on the frame. Tear the rest of the card into five more pieces (the hidden corner makes six) and ask another person to hold the packet of pieces for a moment. Give the deck a Charlier OneHanded Cut (or a two-handed cut, if you prefer) at the crimped Joker to bring it to the bottom of the deck. Turn the deck face up and hold it in left-hand dealing position. As you complete this action, execute a Top Palm of the first Joker. Hold out the deck and have the packet of torn pieces laid onto its face; that is, onto the second Joker. Perform a Color Change. This sleight, combined with the use of the duplicate Jokers (an old ploy, but still a very deceptive one), creates a starling vanish of the pieces. This vanish is actually a deeper mystery than a normal color change, since it appears you would somehow have to manipulate five loose pieces of card, and that seems impossible.

13

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Immediately give the deck a cut, centering the Jokers and the pieces between them. Follow this with a ribbon spread of the deck, and flip the spread over. The pieces will remain concealed in the spread. Now turn everyone's attention to the person holding the frame and ask her to raise its face toward the audience. Everyone sees the restored card lying inside the frame-and

it is

missing one corner. Have your helper hold the corner to the glass to confirm that it belongs to the card. As this is done, everyone also sees her signature on the glass, over the face of the card. This is a cunning touch, as when people later remember the trick and describe it to others, thanks to the foibles of human memory, they are likely to recall that the card was signed, rather than the glass over it, and that makes the effect seem all the more impossible. Disassemble the frame in the most open way possible and remove the card. Conclude by giving it to your helper along with your thanks. You can easily clean up the deck by holding it in left-hand dealing position and forming a break where the torn pieces rest . They make the task an easy one. Tip the outer end of the deck downward and, with your right hand, draw the lower half of the deck inward, rather like a Hindu shuffle, pulling it from beneath the upper half Continue by placing the right hand 's half on top of the left's, doing a simple cut. This leaves the pieces lying in your left palm, which finger palms them and disposes of them as it goes casually to your pocket for some prop . For a parlor presentation, with the audience at a distance from you, you may wish to just set the frame on your table with its back outward. But in a close-up performance, placing the frame into a spectator's hands adds much to the mystery.

14

IN RECENTYEARS,there has been an increased study of procedures sometimes grouped under the classification of"illogical" or "discrepant"; that is, they depend on a blatant inconsistency that should be obvious but nevertheless goes unnoticed. This force of Vanni's, created in 1992, falls into that category. You will read it and doubt it can be deceptive. Try it. It is.

Milking the Force

The card you wish to force is on the bottom of the deck. Hold the face-down deck

he performer draws cards off the

in left-hand dealing position. Use your right

deck in pairs, one card from the

forefinger to contact the face of the deck,

top and one from the bottom .

and your right thumb to contact the back.

He continues to do this until someone

With this finger and thumb, draw the top

requests that he stop. At that point, the card

and bottom cards to the right and off the

that happens to be on the bottom of the

deck (drawing 1). Tilting the right edge of

deck is shown. Despite a complete honesty

the deck up a bit will allow gravity to aid you

in the performer's actions, and a complete

in cleanly extracting the bottom card. When

freedom in their termination, the card has

you have the two cards pinched between

been forced .

your right thumb and fingers, slip them together under the deck (drawing 2).

Repeat this "milking" procedure once or twice. Then, as you continue

I

it, point out that you are removing two cards each time and ask someone to stop

you whenever he wishes. When he does, place the right hand's pair of cards calmly under the deck, in the same way you have the previous pairs. Grip the deck by its inner right corner, right thumb above and forefinger below. Turn your head to avoid seeing what happens next, raise the deck, its face toward your

15

THE

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helper, and ask him to note the card at which he has stopped you (drawing 3). The deed is done, and you can proceed with whatever effect you have in mind. Naturally, this process retains the bottom card throughout, no matter how many pairs of cards are removed and replaced. This should be painfully obvious. But for some peculiar reason, it is not. It is important to understand that you do not try to hide any part of your actions. To the contrary, they must be done in a casual and scrupulously fair manner. When a specific card needn't be forced, Vanni liked to have someone shufile the deck. He would then glimpse the bottom card and force it. While keeping his gaze averted, he would hold the deck out to the helper and ask him to shufile it again, losing the card. But it was too late. Vanni knew it and proceeded to some strong effect that used that secret knowledge. If you don't think this force will fool anyone, the only person fooled will be you. Several trials will prove its worth.

16

THIS IS REALLY just window dressing for Bob Driebeek's "Tosheroon" change of a card under a coin, using a method by Fred Kaps. But what window dressing. Fire is inherently fascinating and it builds a simple color change into a much more impressive effect. The object that contains the flame is an ordinary metal cap for a beer or soda bottle . Slice off a quarter-inch stub from the wick end of a candle and fix it with a drop of hot wax or putty inside the cap. To invest this simple prop with a little more

TheMoth ofTosh

importance, Vanni carried it in a ring box.

fter a chosen card has been noted

Ask someone on your left to choose a card .

and lost in the deck, a squat burn-

Have him note it and return it to the pack.

ing candle is set on the face of the

Mix the cards while controlling the selection

deck. The audience is asked to gaze at the

to the top. Take the deck face up into left-

flame and picture the selection in it. As

hand dealing position and ask your helper to

they do so, the performer passes his hand

open the ring box and remove what he finds

through the flame and the card on the face

inside . When he has brought out the candle

of the deck, under the candle, changes into

in the cap, give him a book or box of matches

the selection.

and have him light it.

•

As he does this, and all eyes are drawn to the flame, do a Side Slip, placing the selection into right-hand classic palm in preparation for a color change. Vanni learned this particular color-change variant from Fred Kaps, who in turn learned it from Hugard and Braue's ExpertCardTechnique(The Impossible Color Change, p. 163). Have your helper set the lit candle onto the center of the face of the deck while you

I

invite everyone to picture the chosen card in the flame . Before you execute the color change, you must bow the palmed card away from the palm, gripping it lightly by its index corners between the outer crease of the fourth finger and the fork of the thumb

(drawing 1). You should be turned toward your helper, on your left, which protects the vulnerable angle on that side. Now execute a color change, sweeping your right hand leftward over the deck, while

17

THE

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you slip the left edge of the bowed card between the deck and the candle

2

(drawing 2). The polished, slightly rounded bottom of the bottle cap aids in slipping the palmed card beneath it. Release the card squarely onto the face of the deck and move the right hand back to your right, revealing the change of the card under the candle. Like all color changes, this one requires practice to make it smooth, unhesitating and accurate. But unlike other color changes, if it isn't done unhesitatingly, it can be painful. Practice

--

it until the action is swift and sure every time before you light the candle . It is also wise to trim the wick to a length no longer than a quarter of an inch. Vanni liked to call the candle "St. Peter 's insurance policy". He would pretend to fail in finding the selected card, and then bring out his "insurance" to produce a successful conclusion. The effect is striking, whatever presentation you settle on.

*c -o Vanni used a set of these little candles in caps in another original trick that won him recognition in competitions and standard performances: his "Chink-a-Flame", a novel treatment of David Roth's "Chinese Coin Assembly". He drew on a pair of black gloves and arranged four of the little candles, all lit, in a square formation on the tabletop. Then, as he passed his hands above the flames, the candles would magically jump from place to place, until all four had gathered together . This trick was good enough to earn the compliment of at least one marketed knock-off

18

IN E XPERI CARDT ECHNIQUE , Hugard and Braue published what has become known as the Mercury Card Fold. They gave no source for the sleight, but it has subsequently been attributed to John Scarne. In ensuing years, a number of alternative methods for secretly folding a card have appeared, some quite good; but none to date has exceeded the popularity of the Mercury Fold. While devising several methods for the task, Vanni kept in mind Jack Miller 's advice: "A sleight must be executed with the same amount of natural motion used to perform the same operation when not using the sleight," and he managed this to such a degree, his card folds

The ScrunchFold his is an ingenious method of Van-

may give the old Mercury Fold serious competition. Two of them will be taught. The first of these is the Scrunch Fold.

ni's for secretly folding a card into

The deck is held in left-hand dealing grip.

sixths. It occurs within the short

The card you wish to fold is on top. Extend

and simple action of turning over the deck. The secret actions are fused perfectly with

your left thumb across the back of the deck at the outer end and turn the back of the

the open ones.

hand toward the spectators , tilting the back

of the deck out of their line of sight . At the same time , bring your palm-down right hand to the deck and position the tips of the right fingers on its upper end . Simultaneously plant the pad of your right thumb on the back of the top card at the lower left corner. It is also recommended that you move the left fourth finger to the bottom end of the deck, to help prevent the cards from dropping . Press the thumb firmly against the card and immediately move the thumb upward .This causes the lower two-thirds of the card to buckle upward behind the length of your left thumb (drawing 1). Continue to press the card up and flatten its bow against the back of the left thumb (drawing 2). When you feel the bow in the card becoming a fold , move

19

THE

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your left thumb to the left side of the deck and out of the way.The right thumb can now complete a double fold, pressing the card flat against the back of the deck. The card ends Z-folded in thirds (drawing 3). Now adjust the position of your right thumb so that its pad contacts the folded card just to the left of center and slide the card rightward, until its right end projects beyond the edge of the pack and can be contacted by the tips of the left fingers

(drawing 4). Curl your right fingertips onto the face of the deck, clamp the folded card firmly to the back of the deck and begin to turn the pack sidewise and face up against the left fingers. This begins to form the final fold, crosswise to the other two, and around your right thumb (drawing 5). Shift your left thumb onto the face of the revolving deck and use it to finish turning the deck over onto the left fingers . At this point, withdraw your right thumb and move your right hand away from the deck (drawing 6). Your left thumb presses the deck firmly against the left fingers, flattening and sharpening the final fold of the card underneath . The card is now folded into sixths and is in position to be finger 6 palmed. 20

THE

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With practice, you will learn exactly where to place your thumbs to make surprisingly neat folds . The sleight is completely angle-proof if you tip the right side of the deck down a bit to cover the extreme left angle . While the fold is concealed within a natural action, you nevertheless do wish to draw attention away from the deck and your hands as they work. Engage your audience with some diverting comments, so that attention on the hands is marginal. Given this light touch of misdirection, even the moment of the sleight will pass unperceived.

21

VANNIWASPROUD,

and rightly so, of this second method for secretly folding a card. He

worked for years to devise and perfect it. Like the best of such procedures, once again overt actions of the hands with the deck cover and expedite the secret actions. Vanni exploited natural actions to an extent that make the folding semi-automatic (in a literal rather than a Beamish way). In any context where displaying both sides of the top card

TheU.T.N. CardFold

wider use. Several of his tricks employing

n

it will be taught. But now let's learn the

secretly folded into sixths, in preparation

fold itself.

for its being loaded into a container for

of the deck or packet is necessary or can be given a believable motivation, Vanni's fold is a remarkable tool and one that deserves

Starting position: The deck is held face down in left-hand dealing grip. (Alterna-

n the open and natural actions of turning the top card of the deck face up, then face down again,

another card, palmed in the right hand, is

subsequent revelation there. U.T.N. stands for Under Their Noses.

tively, the deck may be face up.)The card you wish to fold secretly is in right-hand

I

classic palm, probably having arrived there through a Top Palm. With your right forefinger, point at the top card of the deck (drawing 1). In making this gesture, you naturally curl in the rest of the right fingers. As these fingers bend inward and closed, they automatically fold the outer third of the palmed card in against the middle third of the card (draw-

ings

2

22

2

&3).

3

THE

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With your left thumb, push the top card about half an inch to the right, so that the right thumb can move under its inner right corner. Meanwhile, your right forefinger remains on the card, behind its outer right corner. By extending the right thumb to reach beneath the card, the inner third of the palmed card is curled automatically forward and over the folded two-thirds of the card (drawing 4).

4

Without a pause, slide your right thumb outward, under the card, to meet the tip of your right forefinger. This action has two results. Outwardly, it

begins the turning of the top card end over end on the deck. Secretly, it completes the second fold of the palmed card, the heel of the thumb pressing the fold flat against the base of the fingers (drawing 5). The second, third and fourth fingers uncurl partially to allow this to happen. In a continuous action, move your right thumb further forward while curling in the left forefinger to complete the turn of the top card face up over the deck. Within this action, the right second, third and fourth fingers curl in once more, pressing flat the second fold of the palmed card

(drawing 6). Place the outer phalanx of your right forefinger on the outer right corner of the now face-up top card, and run this fingertip inward over the face. Simultaneously,

6

your right thumb contacts the left side of the folded card and pushes it downward, beginning the third fold, which is applied

23

THE

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Bossi

crosswise to the first two and over the side of the curled second finger

(drawing 7). Outwardly, this action is motivated by your need to place the thumb once more under the inner right corner of the top card, in preparation to turn it face down. You will feel a natural urge to move the second finger out of the way, so that the thumb can continue to fold the palmed card into sixths. Do so. Keep the third and fourth fingers curled to grip the right end of the folded card

7

momentarily against the heel of the palm

(drawing 8).

8 As soon as the thumb can press the folded card surely enough to hold it against the palm, briefly uncurl your third and fourth fingers. At this moment, your right thumb moves forward to begin turning the face-up card face down on the deck; and your right second, third and fourth fingers curl closed again, pressing the folded card flat against your palm (drawing 9). Continue to move your right thumb outward, and curl the right forefinger inward to complete the second revolution of the top card of the deck, returning it face down there, or inserting it, as Vanni preferred, into the middle of the deck Hidden

in your right hand

you now have a card folded into sixths and ready to load wherever you desire. With practice, this sequence can be done smoothly and naturally, and the folds can be neat and precise.

24

THE

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Of course, there must be motivation for your turning the top card of the deck up, then down again. In most circumstances, a credible motivation can be found without looking far. Unlike most sleights, which benefit from misdirection, the U.T.N. Card Fold is designed to be done with the spectators' attention on the cards. Nevertheless, talking and looking up at the audience as you execute the fold, gently diminishing scrutiny of the hands, is wise.

25

IN THIS

EFFECT,

Vanni combines the method from Bruno Hennig 's Card in Ring Box with

Card to Wallet . The result: The signed card appears in your wallet even though the wallet has been in full sight and untouched on the table before the card is selected . The effect of Card to Wallet is greatly strengthened, since the usual solution of "He is really fast sneaking the card into his wallet " becomes impossible to entertain . The trick uses Vanni's U.T.N. Card Fold (p. 22) to fine advantage . Other card folds

The Money Card

Vanni's method. Fortunately, it is a common

n

one . Instead of having a pocket for bills, this

money. A card is selected, signed and lost

wallet has a hinged metal clip to hold the

in the deck. The performer promises the

bills secure at its center (drawing 1).

fastest card trick in the world and ribbon

can be employed, but the U.T.N. Fold works extremely well, as we'll see. A particular type of wallet is needed for

he performer sets his wallet full ofb~s on the tab~e and promises that, if the next tnck goes wrong ,

the person who helps him will get the

You will need a dummy card, which

spreads the deck face up. He next points

is folded in sixths in exactly the manner

to his wallet, and on opening it, the signed

the U.T.N. Fold leaves a card. The card can

selection is found folded and clipped

be folded back outward, as is usually done

among the bills.

when using the Hennig switching strategy. However, Vanni preferred to fold the card face outward. He started doing this after suffering a performance in which he had a blue-backed dummy card inside a ring box, but by mistake had a card selected from a red-backed

I

deck. When the folded card was dumped from the box, it changed from blue to red. Fortunately, the psychological prin~--

.

~

\~ ~

ciple of change blindness was operating during this performance, and the audience didn't notice the

extra effect. But Vanni took steps to ensure this would never happen to him again .

His solution was to use a court card, folded face outward. If you fold the card in thirds , the central third of the card will be exposed on one side of the packet. Fold the card once more , this time crosswise to the other folds and with the central portion of the card inside . The card will look very similar to a card treated to the U.T.N.fold. You also need to put some illegible

26

THE

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scribble along one of the long borders of the face of the card; something that will stand in for a spectator 's signature. Do this with a pen, not a felt-tip marker. With a strong adhesive, securely glue the vertex of the card to the center of the bill, so that when the bill is folded in half, its fold is aligned with the third fold of the card (drawing 2).

To prepare the wallet for performance, place two bills under its clip. Then put the prepared bill over them, with the clip lying along the fold in the card (drawing 3). Put two more bills over this, also under the clip

(drawing 4). Close the wallet and put it into your pocket . Vanni used a court card for the dummy, having noticed that the center sections of all court cards look much

4

the same. Seen at a glance, the folded dummy will pass for any court card. He then made sure that a court card was chosen . Any force might be used to accomplish this, but since any court card will do, it makes perfect sense to force from a bank of court cards, which gives the selection, and you an easy task in providing it. This does require that you stack or cull a number of court cards-as like-together

many or as few as you

in a bank from which you control the spectator 's selection of a card. Before

doing this, though, bring your wallet from your pocket, open it and briefly display the bills inside as you propose your wager to a nearby spectator. "I'm going to do a trick with this wallet-and

if something goes wrong, all this money is yours. Okay? So this could be a very

good trick for you-and

for me ... not so good. Shall we see?" Lay your wallet closed on the

table, away from you but within a range that allows you to control it if anyone reaches for it.

27

THE

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Shuffie the deck, controlling your court-card bank to a central position in preparation to force one of these cards. Do so and have your helper sign its face, giving her a pen like the one you used to sign the dummy card. There is a good reason for using a pen rather than a marker. Most people, given a court card and a pen, will put their signature along a long margin. But given a broader-point marker, they will sign across the face of the card, because it is easier to do so with a marker, and they feel it can be seen. Vanni would also use a mild bit of humor to suggest subtly that the signature should go along a margin of the card. He would say, "Would you sign it on the face? Oh, not on the face like this ..." Here he held a card up to his forehead, its face outward, and made the motions of writing on it with the tip of his forefinger. "No, like this ..." And he would lower the card to chest level and pass his fingertip over one long margin of its face. If the spectator writes on some other area of the face, the trick will still work, as your dummy card will be in view for only a moment. But the suggestion given within the joke, along with a pen instead of a marker and the fact that the margin of a court card offers the only clear space to write in, makes your psychological guidance quite likely to succeed. Take a few moments to retrieve your pen and put it away. This gives time for the ink to dry on the card. Now have the signed selection returned to the deck. Mix the cards, controlling the chosen one to the bottom, and take the deck into left-hand dealing position. With your right hand, turn the top card end over end, face up. Point at its face and say, "This isn't your card, is it?" Your actions in turning over the card and pointing at it mimic those used when executing the U.T.N. Fold. "No, of course." Turn the card end over end, face down onto the deck. "If it were, it would have your name on it." As you deliver this little joke, look up at your helper and smile. Everyone will follow your gaze. Meanwhile, flip the deck face up, bringing your right hand momentarily over the face, and palm off the selection. Again lower your eyes to the deck and point at the card on its face. In doing so, you begin the U.T.N. Fold and ask, "You did sign your card on the face, didn't you? ..."Turn the card end over end and face down as you secretly continue to fold the palmed card. "Not on the back?" Your helper will assure you she signed the face of her card. Turn the card face up again on the deck, completing the U.T.N.Fold. "Good. Otherwise it will be too easy for me." The signed and folded card is now in right-hand finger palm. With that hand, grasp the face-up deck-using end-and

28

your first two fingers on the outer end, and your thumb on the inner

widely ribbon spread the deck in front of you as you announce dramatically, "And

THE

ARETALOGY

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Bossi

now, the fastest card trick in the world! Look!" Point with your right forefinger toward the wallet lying several feet away from it. "IfI take the wallet ..." With your left hand, reach out and pick up the wallet . In doing this let the hand be seen empty without making an obvious display of it. Use your right forefinger to leaf open the wallet, with the opening of the clip turned outward, toward the audience. ".. .inside there are some bills." With your palmdown right hand, grasp the right end of the top bill

5

between your right forefinger and thumb, and pull it to the right and out of the wallet (drawing 5). Turn your hand palm up and toss the bill casually onto the table with the apex of its fold upward. Do this with the second bill as well. "And there is also a card with a signature." They see the dummy card under the clip, but only for a second as your right hand returns palm down to the wallet and grasps the remaining three bills at their right ends. Smoothly draw the bills and card

forward(not rightward) and free of the clip (drawing 6). In a continuing action, turn your hand palm up and the bills over, in the same manner you did with the first bill. At the same time, release the folded selection from finger palm, letting it fall onto the table. The switch of the card seen under the clip for the palmed card is extremely deceptive. The card appears to leave the clip along with the bills and to fall to the table. Toss the bills down casually, keeping the attached dummy card hidden beneath them. Give no attention at all to the bills. At this point they

6

should be entirely unimportant. Focus instead on the folded selection, which everyone else should naturally be doing, and ask, "Will you open it?" She does and finds it is her signed card.

29

THE

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As the audience is reacting, you calmly clean up and reset. Taking the first two single bills, use them to scoop up the other three, which are lying in an unsquared pile (drawing 7). Then slip all five bills under the clip of your wallet, turning the stack over in the process.

7

Close the wallet and put it into your pocket. It is now ready for the next performance. Some may prefer to work with the backs of the folded cards outward. With a few minor and obvious adjustments, Vanni's method works just as well that way. Doing so eliminates the need to force a court card, but it also eliminates the convincing touch of seeing-or seeming to see-the face of the selection in the wallet just before it is removed. Each performer must decide which element is more important. No matter what the choice, the trick is highly deceptive. *0¢

The effect is described here as an instantaneous flight of the selection from the deck to the wallet. Vanni was very fond of the "magician fails" gambit and did use it in this trick He would ask for a number to be named, something between ten and twenty. He then counted to that number from the top of the deck and turned up the card there, as if expecting it to be the selection. When it proved not to be, it seemed he had made an expensive error. With obvious reluctance, he picked up the wallet and slowly removed the first bill, asking, "Will this be enough?" It seldom was. He then recovered by finding the folded selection in the wallet. The "magician fails" ploy can be very entertaining-if

the performer can act his part con-

vincingly. Most can't. In addition, the ploy is heavily overused by magicians, which robs it of its power. For these reasons, an alternative presentation has been suggested.

30

THIS IS a simple idea and a novelty revelation . However, it can be much more than that

if used to close a Card under Glass routine. A number of excellent versions of Card under Glass have been published, and almost any of them can be enhanced with this effect used as a surprising finish . The idea is simple enough , and the method straightforward . When the selection is returned to the deck, you control it to the top or bottom, secretly fold it, and then palm it. To

Cardin the Head

•

get it secretly into the glass of beer, you use a loading move Vanni learned from Fred Kaps,

chosen card is lost in the deck.

who used it in his Cups and Balls routine. In

A few moments later it is found

the action of picking up some object that

folded up and floating on the head

lies in front of the glass, your hand travels

of someone 's beer .

over the glass and drops the palmed, folded card inside it (drawing I ). The load is done

in flight , and as the hand descends to land on the object before the glass, it shields the glass momentarily from view (drawing 2), and then misdirects from it by picking up the object. It seems a simple idea, but it can be very deceptive and has fooled people from both camps, ours and theirs.

I

The load can be framed in a number of ways, including several approaches designed to conclude Card under Glass. You might , for example, return the card to the center of the deck and do a Diagonal Palm

(

\\\,,.,,....,.,......._

Shift to steal it. Set the deck in front of someone sit- ~ .

2

ting before you, between him and the ~ glass of beer. Ask him to cut the deck once or twice to ensure the card is lost. While attention is on him, you have ample time to fold the palmed selection. Then, as you reach over the glass to retrieve the deck, you load the card into it. Keep attention focused on the deck as you perform some bit of business with it. Then look at the glass. The spectators will be puzzled , because they expect to find the card under it, as they have several times before . But it's not there . Wait for them to spot the folded card sitting on the foamy head

31

THE

inside the glass-or

ARETALOGY

OF VANNI

Bossi

floating on the surface of the beer, since the head will hkely have dissi-

pated by this time (unless it is a Guinness ). Another intriguing approach is to do a Top Change, switching the selection for another card after you 've taken it from under the glass. Set the switched-in card face down in front of the glass. Now do Vanni 's Scrunch Fold (p. 19) with the selection on top of the deck and set the deck squarely on top of the card on the bar. Tell your helper to put a forefinger on top of the deck and to press. When he has done this, reach over the glass to pick up the deck in a portentous manner, loading the folded card inside the glass. As you raise the deck , turn it face outward . The chosen card is gone . Everyone 's eyes naturally dart to the glass, expecting the card to have once more appeared under it-and

then discover it floating inside .

Can you orchestrate a strong enough stretch of misdirection to load another card (perhaps a selection from a previous trick) face down under the glass as the audience is kept occupied with the current chosen card and deck? Within that misdirective stretch , you could steal that card from the deck before you have the cards shuffled; or conceive of some other action to keep eyes away from the glass. Meanwhile, secretly fold the card. Now let attention return to the glass-and

the card is discovered under it. With your empty hand , grasp the

glass near its base and raise it enough to slide the card forward. Set the glass down again and reach over it with your other hand, loading the palmed card as the hand passes by to pick up the one on the table. After a suitable pause for suspense, display the face of the card. But it isn't the selection! Or it's a previous one; a good callback. Then wait for someone to spot the folded card riding the foam inside the glass. Vanni's idea is one rich with potential. Use your head.

32

IN

THIS

TRICK,

Vanni takes Bruno Hennig 's Card in Ring Box further than anyone yet,

building splendidly on ideas by Scott York and Jamy Ian Swiss. You will need to gimmick a tall can of unshelled peanuts. The can must have a snap-on plastic lid. You also need a magician 's reel. This should be a very basic reel, not a locking one; the cheaper the better.

With YourPeanuts

In fact, one of those reels sold for practical jokes, "Bill Snatchers", can be used.

he performer, playing the perfect host,

Dump all the peanuts from the can and

opens a can of peanuts and offers them

securely glue the reel inside, at the cen -

to a member of his audience, who is

ter of the bottom (drawing 1). Fold a card

invited to take a few. The lid is snapped back

into sixths, back outward, and attach the

onto the can and it is set aside. A card is now

end of the reel line to a solid point inside

freely selected and signed by the performer's

the folds . Since this card will be switched

guest, and is lost in the deck The guest next

for one you have folded using one of

guesses how many peanuts the can holds. It is

Vanni 's techniques, it should be folded in

opened again and the peanuts are spilled out.

a matching manner .

Everyone sees a folded card fall out of the can

Next, cut a disk of sponge foam about

with the peanuts. The card is picked out of the

half an inch thick and with a diameter

pile of peanuts and given to the peanut estima-

matching the inside of the peanut can. Cut

tor, who opens it to find it is hissigned selection.

a slit in the radius of the sponge disk and feed the line through it (drawing 2). Then

push the sponge down to the bottom of the can, so that it covers the reel. The sponge will cushion the retraction of the card into the can and deaden any sound it makes upon arrival.

I

33

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Pull the card and line a foot

3

or more out of the can and use your thumb to clamp the line against the outside of the can

(drawing 3). With your free hand replace enough peanuts in the can to fill it to about an inch and a half from the top. Next place the folded card, attached to the line, onto the peanuts and fill the can with the remaining peanuts. If any of the card can be seen, push it further down into the peanuts. Finally place the lid back on the can, trapping a loop of the line outside (drawing 4). The can is ready. Besides the usual deck of cards and marking pen for their signing, have a sheet of stiff paper or thin cardboard, measuring roughly a foot by a foot and a half This is to make cleaning up quick and neat. As an appetizer to the effect, bring out the can of peanuts. While gripping the can in your left hand, plant the left thumb firmly on the bottom of the loop of line, trapping it against the side of the can so that it cannot retract. With your right hand, remove the lid and offer a few peanuts to your helper. After he has taken a few nuts (and incidentally has seen inside the can), snap the lid back on and set the can aside. Secretly note the number of peanuts taken. Now ask your helper to select a card and to sign its face. You appear to lose it in the deck, but actually you control it to the top, and then use either of Vanni's folds-the (p. 22) or the Scrunch Fold (p. 19)-to

U.T.N. Fold

fold the selection secretly into sixths, back outward.

Turn everyone's attention back to the peanut can and ask your helper to guess how many peanuts it contains. Perhaps he says, "Sixty-two." "Almost," you say, "but you're off by three." Here you have named the number of peanuts you saw him take from the can. "Remember? ..." Point toward them. "That leaves fifty-nine."This should bring a laugh. "But that's close enough. I think you deserve a prize for that." Having the folded selection in right-hand fingerpalm, set down the deck and, with your left hand, pick up the peanut can, again trapping the loop ofline firmly under your thumb.

34

THE

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Hold the can out to him and ask him to remove the lid. "What do you see?" He will state the obvious: "Peanuts." "No, down deeper. Here, look" With these words you begin to shake the peanuts from the can and onto the paper or cardboard sheet on the table. Don't dump them all at once. You want everyone to see the folded card tum-

5

ble out of the can with the peanuts

(drawing 5). Be sure you have left enough slack in the line to prevent your accidentally pulling the card once it hits the table. You are not seeking an animation effect here. Once the card has appeared, pour the rest of the peanuts over it, emptying the can. You must now time your hands' actions accurately: Move your right hand toward the pile of peanuts, with the apparent intention of picking out the folded card

(drawing 6). As the right fingertips begin to dig into the pile, your left thumb releases the line, the reel pulls the dummy card swiftly into the can, and your right hand releases the finger-palmed selec-

6

tion and picks it up at the fingertips

(drawing 7). Timed correctly, the switch is a perfect deception. Hand the card to your helper and let him unfold it to verify that it is his signed selection. As the audience is reacting, gather a couple of handfuls of peanuts and dump them back into the can, covering the sponge disk and card. Then set down the can, pick up the sheet of paper or cardboard,

35

THE

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bend it into a trough and pour the rest of the peanuts back into the can (drawing 8). Snap the lid on the can and you are done. Vanni would sometimes present

his

helper with a new, unopened can of peanuts in thanks for his assistance. He would also sometimes add a kicker to the effect. After the card had been produced from the can of peanuts, he would tum the bottom of the can toward the audience to show a label stuck there, and on that label was a prediction of the number of

8

nuts the helper guessed was in the can. Some further gimmicking of the can is necessary to do this. Several strong magnets are glued to the inner bottom of the can, surrounding the reel. These attract and lock into place a metal flap, a second bottom

for the can. Vanni concealed this bottom, with an adhesive label on it, behind a pad of paper. He would note the helper's guess on the pad and would double-write it on the label as well, a strategy borrowed from Al Koran's "Gold Medallion" (drawing 9). He palmed the false bottom and label from the pad and did a palm-to-palm transfer of it, bringing the label side against the

9

fingers. This was an in-transit action within the motions of putting down the pad and picking up the peanut can. He then loaded the false bottom onto the bottom of the can. If the size of the can bottom is too large to make palming the false bottom practical, you can mount the label onto a thin piece of shim steel, cut to the same shape as the

label, making a smaller gimmick that is easier to palm. When Vanni used this kicker, he did not intend it to top the effect of the card appearing inside the can. He downplayed it, making it a grace note to the main effect. Scott York devised the idea of anchoring the dummy card with a short piece of thread inside a ring box, so that the dummy would move and look loose inside the box. Jamy Ian

THE

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Swiss discovered that having other loose objects fall from the container as the card is switched greatly enhances the illusion of the card coming from the container. Vanni has taken both ideas and pushed them further. Jim Krenz has worked on a trick similar to "With Your Peanuts". Vanni and he compared their ideas. "With Your Peanuts " is Vanni's version. Jim's, using a jar of jellybeans and a different gimmick, is as yet unpublished.

37

WHEN IT CAMEto the Folded Card in Box effect, Vanni was always among the avant-garde. When Bruno Hennig came up with his seminal method, Vanni designed and built special boxes intended to enhance Hennig's idea. Vanni gave one to these boxes to Fred Kaps, whose performances with it led to the popularization of the Hennig method. Vanni also designed his box to catch the palmed folded card in the mouth of its lid and base, so that the card could be clearly seen coming from the box. This work paralleled that of Tommy Wonder in Holland. Neither man knew of the oth-

BottomFeeder

er's efforts at the time. Vanni continued to explore Hennig's principle, eventually

signed, folded, chosen card appears

expanding on it to create "Money Card"

in a jeweler's ring box under impos-

(p. 26) and "With Your Peanuts" (p. 33).

•

sible-seeming circumstances. There

But Vanni devised another method for

are no switches, all handling is clean and

Folded Card in Box, one that produced the

direct, and the box is capable of producing

same effect as Hennig's, but that avoided a

other phenomena.

switch of the card. The signed, folded card is genuinely taken from the box. This method was simple yet extremely clever and extremely deceptive. He fooled everyone with it. The secret was a jeweler's box from which most of its bottom had been removed, so that the folded card could be loaded into the box from beneath. That may seem too obvious a solution, but Vanni added various physical and handling details that never allowed the suspicion of a bottomless box to arise. Vanni was a fine craftsman and built his handsome Hennig Card in Box from scratch. But in the case of the bottomless box, he simply modified an appropriate ring box. The box must have a hinged lid and be large enough to contain a folded playing card comfortably. Vanni used his U.T.N. Fold (p. 22), after palming the selection from the deck. This method produces a card folded in sixths. If you use another method that folds the card into quarters (like the Mercury Card Fold) or eighths (like Wonder's Two-Second Card Fold), the size of the box you use may vary accordingly. You will need to remove most of the bottom of the box, leaving a "frame" about a quarter of an inch wide around the edges of the bottom (drawing I). The hole must be big enough to receive the folded card easily, but not be overly large.

38

I

THE

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The box must also have two cloth flaps that fold down to cover the top of the compartment under the lid. You may be lucky enough to find a ring box with such protective flaps, but it is more likely you will have to add them. The first flap is attached just below the hinge of the lid and is about half an inch long. The second flap folds from the rim of the base opposite the hinge and, when lying over the first flap, falls about a quarter of an inch short of the hinge. The flaps should be made from some

2

satiny fabric that is flexible but not limp; something that looks suitable for the lining of a quality ring box. They should also be creased so that they naturally fold down to lie parallel with the bottom of the box (drawing 2).

The central concept is quickly explained: The selection is secretly folded and finger palmed. The empty hand picks up the box, which has sat on the table throughout the preliminaries, and transfers it to the other hand, which inserts the folded card into the hole in the bottom of the box. The lid is then opened, the cloth flaps are pushed aside and the folded card is removed from the box at the very fingertips (drawing 3). Before the card is removed and afterward, the flaps fall over the top of the box base, making a glimpse of the missing bottom impossible. Having covered the basics of handling, let's turn to the finer points that completely disguise the method. Vanni would frequently bind the box closed with a rubber band, twisted crisscross fashion around it in two directions (drawing 4). This further suggested that nothing could enter

the closed box. When the banded box is set over the finger-palmed folded card, the strands of the rubber band that are crossed over the bottom of the box will stretch, allowing the card to lie out of sight, within the box but unable to enter it fully. For the needs of explanation, we'll say the card and box are in your right hand. You can now hold the partially loaded box between the right thumb on top and second finger on the bottom, pressing the card slightly up into the

39

THE

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box as you display it very openly (drawing 5). Return the box to rest on the flats of your right fingers, with the right

5

thumb pressing the box down gently, and use your left hand to strip the rubber band off the box (drawing 6). This clears the obstruction of the hole in the bottom, so that the folded card can freely enter the box. You can now open the box and produce the card from it.

You can add a further bit of obfuscation before opening the box. Once the folded card is inside, use your palm-down left hand to grip the box from above, and then slide it leftward and forward over the right fingers. This action pushes the card to the right and rear, inside the box, so that it becomes supported by the inner right corner of the frame around the bottom of the box (drawing 7).

7

Vanni used to say that the right fingertips "caressed" the card into place. In this position, the right hand can move away from the box and the card will not fall out (drawing 8). This touch makes the handling of the box more open and casual, and adds further silent proof that all is as it seems. This handling detail may be used whether you previously bind the box with the rubber band or not.

Depending on the sequence of tricks Vanni was performing, he would sometimes introduce the box in a disarming way during a preceding effect that used other small props that could be carried inside the ring box. If at least one of the objects was too large to pass

40

THE

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8

through the hole in the bottom, such as a large coin, Vanni would carry that object, with any smaller ones stacked on top of it, in the box. If none of the props were large enough to prevent them from falling out, the crossed rubber band was used to hold them inside. At the appropriate time, the box is brought out and shaken, so that the objects inside can be heard rattling around. The rubber band is removed, the box opened and its contents dumped out. The lid is then closed, the rubber band replaced around the box and the unit is set aside, ready for Card in Box when its time comes. After producing the card from the box, other small props, such as coins, can be tossed into it, resting on top of the cloth flaps, so that they won't fall through the hole. The box is then put away.All this handling, before and after, treats the box casually and establishes an innocent use for it. It will also have occurred to the reader by now that this box can be used to produce, exchange or vanish other small objects, such as coins, finger rings, etc. It is an excellent method for Card in Box, but is beyond that a utility device. The uses are-if

you will-bottomless.

For an excellent extension of this effect, see the next page for Vanni's "Folding Card Change".

41

CHANGINGONESIGNEDSELECTIONinto another is just one possible application of this procedure . Another would be to unfold the card and find it is not the expected selection, and then to refold it and unfold it again to transform it into the correct card. As was observed earlier, the magician-in-trouble premise is popular; so much so that it has become trite to the point of predictability. The transformation of one folded selection into a second one holds more potential for surprise, and less chance of inspiring an unconvincing pretense of failure . Vanni's method for this effect resembles

The FoldingColorChange

Charles Jordon's classic method for the Tom and Restored Tissue Paper, published in 1915

fter two cards are selected, signed

and applied to playing cards by others by the

and lost in the deck, one is produced

early 1930s. However, both the effect and the

•

handling are quite different. This effect makes a

place, such as a ring box that has been sit-

fine extension to Card in Ring Box, alaHennig,

ting in full view. The card is unfolded and

Kaps, et al.(See "Bottom Feeder" on p. 38.)

shown to be one of the signed selections. It

Vanni had a very efficient way of preparing the cards for this sequence: his U.T.N. Card

in a folded state from an impossible

is refolded and, when unfolded again, it has transformed into the second signed card.

Fold (p. 22). Have two cards selected and, if desired, signed. Apparently lose them in the deck, but control both to the top. Then palm them together in the right hand. Since the deck is face down, when you execute the U.T.N. Card Fold, both selections will be folded with their backs outward. Doing the U.T.N. Fold with a double card produces a packet with the cards nicely aligned. Load the packet into your ring box, or whatever prop you desire, and produce it. Hold the packet at your fingertips and open the first fold. This leaves the double card folded in thirds. Orient the cards with the outer ends turned toward you and to your right. With your left thumb, engage the right edge of the outermost card (drawing 1) and open this third to the left, leaving the inner card folded (drawing 2).

42

THE

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Shift the left hand's grip on the outer card to its left upper and lower edges, first two fingers clipping the top edge, thumb on the bottom edge. Immediately use your right thumb to slide the folded inner card to the left end of the outer card (drawing 3).

4 Both thumbs now work in near synchronization: The left thumb folds the bottom of the inner card up, so that this card is once more folded in sixths (drawing 4) ...

... and the right thumb unfolds the right end of the outer card (drawings 5 & 6).

Release the right hand's grip on the right end of the opened card and transfer the left end of the card and the folded card from the left hand to the right as follows: The right fingers

43

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he on the face of the opened card, roughly perpendicular to its length (drawing 7). The right thumb contacts the back of the unfolded card, completing the right hand's grip on the cards, and the hand turns them over, exposing the face of the unfolded first selection to the audience. At the same time, the right thumb presses the folded card, along with the corner of the unfolded card, against the pads of the right fingertips. With your left hand, grasp the free left end of the open card, helping to straighten it out while pivoting it to a lengthwise position (drawing 8). In doing this, you display the full face of the unfolded card to the audience. The folded card remains hidden between the right end of the open card and the right fingertips. The vertex of the outermost fold must be turned toward the right. Your right hand releases its grip on the open card and moves a bit to the right while retaining the folded card between the thumb and forefinger. Use the backs of your right fingertips to push the right end of the open card forward and to the left, refolding this end of the card against the center third (drawing 9).

As you complete this motion, let the bottom, right, folded edge of the left hand's card shp inside the "mouth" or> of the right hand's folded card (drawing 10).

44

THE

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Bossi ~ r----..::---t-

IO

''P'

\'

Grip both cards between your right thumb and forefinger, freeing your left hand to push forward the left end of the first selection and close it to the right, refolding the card into thirds (drawing n). The right second, third and fourth fingers curl in as you do this, clearing the path (drawing 12). The backs of the two folded cards blend together on the audience's side, so that two cards aren't apparent for the fleeting moment they

12

are in sight. Now use your right fingers to push the top half of the first selection forward

and down, folding this card into sixths again (drawing 13). Use the fingertips of both hands to give the folded packet a strong , visible squeeze. This is done as a gesture in which the magic is manifested. After a brief pause for effect, grip both folded, interlocked cards together, at their left

45

THE

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side, between your left forefinger and thumb. Then let the left side of the folded card nearest you escape your left thumbtip. This portion of the card will flip partially open. With your right thumb, pull it to the right and fully open

(drawing 14).

Pull the partially opened card to your right and free of the second folded card, which remains hidden behind the left fingertips. Place the right hand's card onto the left's (drawing 15) ...

.. .and continue to unfold it, face toward you

(drawings 16 & 17).

17 18 Tum your right hand palm outward, placing its fingertips on the face of the unfolded card at its bottom right comer (drawing 18). The right thumb goes behind both cards. • I

THE

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Bossi Clipping the folded card to the back of the lower right cor-

19

ner of the unfolded one, raise your right hand and turn it palm inward, revealing the face of the second selection to the audience (drawing I9). With the folded

card hidden behind the unfolded one, you can let both hands be seen otherwise empty. Grip the open card with one hand at each end, and secretly slide the folded card to the left and into left-hand finger palm. Let the left hand relax and drop while, with a small dramatic flourish, your right hand tosses the second selection to the table. Dispose of the left hand's card while the audience responds and relaxes, or as you go to your pocket for some prop.

47

IN r 9 ro, Ottokar Fischer included three pages in J.N. HofzinserKartenkii.nste describing unsolved effects. These effects had been gathered from various sources and were said to be inventions of Hofzinser. However, no trace of them has been otherwise documented then or since. Since Fischer's publication of the eighteen rumored effects, generations of magicians have been fascinated by them. Solutions for some of the effects have been easier to devise than others. Among the hardest is the Card in Finger Ring. This effect, as described by Fischer, involved having a selected card

The Card in FingerRing

appear rolled in a borrowed finger ring. Years later another complication was added: The

spectator is asked to remove his

ring had to be held by its owner when the

finger ring and to hold it behind

card appeared in it. This condition surfaced

•

in correspondence from a magician named

finger. A card is now selected, signed and

Herrmann. The location of these letters and

replaced in the deck Moments later it has

the identity of Herrmann (a common name

disappeared from the pack, and when the

for magicians during and for some time after

person's ring is brought from behind his

the reigns of Compars and Alexander) are

back, the signed card is found rolled inside it.

his back between one thumb and

presently unknown. The tale now travels from Hofzinser's Vienna to Tamariz's El Escorial. Juan Tamariz has for years organized an annual and exclusive card workshop, which Vanni regularly attended. Each year several topics are chosen for the group to explore. At the Escorial conference in 1993, the topic was J. N. Hofzinser. For his contribution, Vanni in typical fashion focused on

perhaps the most challenging of the so-called Hofzinser problems, the Card in Finger Ring. He came with not just one solution, but with six! He introduced his findings by laying out six conditions that defined the most demanding version of the problem. r) The spectator removes and handles his ring himself

2) No duplicates of the card or the ring may be used. 3) The card is freely selected and may be marked for identification. 4) The card must vanish instantly from the deck, with no suspicious movements. 5) The performer is never seen to touch either the card or the ring. If the performer does

touch the ring, it is only to show its owner how he is to hold it. 6) At the climax of the trick, the helper removes the card from the ring himself and imme-

diately recognizes both as his.

THE

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To find a solution that meets all these conditions is far from easy. Vanni devised one. By relaxing one or another of the conditions, he came up with several other fine methods capable of baffiing an audience deprived of a list of technical restrictions. Here we will focus only on two of Vanni's methods, the one that fulfills all six criteria and a less stringent one that he most often performed. ALL CONDITIONS

MET

Besides an unprepared deck of cards and a marking pen, you will need a magic wand of the usual length: around twelve inches. About using a magic wand in the modern era, Vanni commented, "You do not need an excuse to use a wand, as you are a magician." It comes with the archetype. However, the wand may be any type of rod, which you use ostensibly to avoid handling the borrowed finger-ring. Vanni used a clear plastic rod with slightly conical tips. The latter are not strictly necessary, but they aid in the loading procedure we will be using. Recruit the help of a cooperative-looking type from the audience, one wearing a traditional wedding-ring; nothing much more orate than a plain band. A gentleman is best suited to our purposes, as a ring with a larger circumference helps significantly with the loading of the rolled card. Women's rings are frequently small and present more of a challenge. It should also be noted that, due to the nature of the effect, all Vanni's methods require that you are not surrounded by the audience. No one should be positioned where they can see behind you and your helper. Once your man has joined you in the performing area, standing at your left, ask him if he can remove his ring.

I

Request that he hold the ring, at opposite sides of its circumference, between his left thumb and second finger

(drawing 1).The most efficient way to make clear what you wish is to take the ring and show him how he is to hold it. But if you do this, handle the ring as openly as possible, to avoid all suspicion. Then insert the tip of your wand into the ring and use it to return the ring in a manner meant to emphasize your fairness. This also establishes your use for the wand. Have him hold his left hand and the ring behind his back; and you clip the wand under your left upper arm, with its forward end pointing toward the audience. Next have your helper select a card. His choice is a totally free one. While it isn't strictly necessary, you may have him sign the face of the selection to eliminate any thoughts of

49

THE

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duplicates . If he is right-handed, this can be accomplished while his left hand remains behind him. Otherwise, he may need to use his left hand, in which case he returns it and his ring behind him after signing the card. Have the selection returned to the deck and seem to lose it there while controlling it to the top in an efficient and convincing manner. You now make some motion to indicate magic is happening, such as slapping the deck with your right hand or riffling it loudly. Look up and explain to your helper that you have caused his card to vanish and that you will prove it. As your gaze and words misdirect momentarily from your hands, execute a Top Palm, stealing the selection into your right hand. You must now secretly roll the palmed card into a tight cylinder. Vanni came up with a brilliant way to manage this, based on his U.T.N.Card Fold. The rolling is concealed within the actions of dealing the cards into a

~5'

... ..1,,~111!1 ~!Ill' ~'A" ~'r-~ .,,..I_,.,

-

face-up pile. Begin by using your left thumb to push the top card of the deck to the right,

2

so that your palm-down right hand may grasp the outer right corner of the card in the manner of a stud-poker deal (drawing 2).

// ~

"I will show yours is gone, a card at a time. If you see it, let everyone know."Turn the face of the card toward you and look at it for a moment. "It isn't here. Know how I know? ..." As you hold the card, it is natural for your second, third and fourth fingers to curl loosely in. This begins the secret rolling of the card at its outer end (drawing 3). Let

3

the card you are looking at drop face up to the table. "It doesn't have your name on it."This should earn some light laughter.

Push the next card to the right and, as your right hand moves to grip its outer right corner, curl in the right fingers further, rolling the card more tightly against the heel of the hand (drawing 4). Turn up the second card and toss it onto the

first. Everyone will be focused on the cards as they

50

4

THE

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hit the table. Deal the third card, then the fourth, and so on. Using the larger actions of your deahng, the right fingertips continue to work the palmed card into a tighter and tighter roll, until it is of a size that will fit inside your helper's finger ring (drawing 5). At this point, palm the rolled card in the fork of your thumb, as is done in cigarette manipulation (drawing 6). This prevents it from uncoiling and frees your fingers to assume a natural, relaxed position.

5

Meanwhile, increase the pace of your dealing, racing through the deck until you reach the last card. Open the left fingers, letting that card lie on your palm. At the same time, move your right hand to grasp the wand under your left arm. In doing this, secretly slip the rolled card onto the wand (drawing 7).

Holding the wand a few inches inward of its outer tip, place its other end beneath the inner end of the left hand's card and tip the card face up over the left fingertips and onto the table (drawing 8).This action again justifies the use of the wand with an action of extreme fairness (and a mildly dramatic flair). Simultaneously, it enables you to load the rolled card onto the wand.

51

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Now look your helper in the eyes and ask him not to move. Explain that you do not wish to touch his ring, so you will use your wand to take it from him. This statement is important , as it justifies the actions to follow. The precision of those actions is critical. Step to your left and partially behind him , holding your left hand palm outward and in view above his left shoulder in a sign of fairness as you

-- :::_::_-