KenTheriot
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I was at a holiday party last weekend and did a trick for someone that I do as part of my extended impromptu close-up "set." It usually gets a predictably strong reaction, which is why I continue to do it. But this time...Wow! The lady said "Oh holy f#*$!! What the hell did you do?!! My mind is completely blown!!" and other similar exclamations. It was hands-down the strongest reaction to this trick I've ever gotten. What was the trick? It was "Be Honest, What Is It?" by Eddie Fechter (I believe). I actually learned it from two different Penguin lecture videos - one by Michael Vincent, and one by Paul Gertner. This is just one more example (as if we needed more) of the power of magic when it happens in the spectator's hands. There is one other noteworthy reaction from summer when I did this that I need to report. The lady literally was upset. I don't know if that is good or bad, but I come down on the bad side for this one. She was utterly fooled and that shook her a bit. She prides herself on being intelligent and able to figure things out. But when she felt like she could not explain what happened, she was visibly upset. I never try to make a spectator feel "fooled" in an "I got you" kind of way. So I spent a little time talking to her about the trick. without giving away any of the actual secrets, it made her feel much better about things when I explained that it was just a few bits of sleight of hand with a regular deck. that was a werid one, but something I thought worth sharing. Anyway - powerful trick everyone! If you haven't learned it yet, check it out.
chris w
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Posted 1545340609
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It's always gratifying to get a reaction like that, isn't it? "Be Honest, What Is It?" is a reliable producer of those reactions, which is why it's in the performing repertoires of so many magicians. The case of the second spectator you mention reminds me of a little talk that Jerry Andrus used to give about how it's the wonderful, intelligent minds of the spectators that allow them to be deceived, because (paraphrasing) they're using perfectly logical, functional shortcuts that work quite well when a magician isn't around intentionally causing them to misfire. From his mouth, it seemed a nice, gentle way of giving the audience not just permission to be fooled, but also credit for being foolable.
Anthony Vinson
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Posted 1545341291
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Good for you, Ken! That there's a Penguin Magic video audience reaction. It is a great trick, David Blaine sure got lots of mileage out of it. I do not perform it, being one of those odd balls who prefers Dr. Dailey's Last Trick; the in-the-hands version taught by John Bannon is my favorite. Av
Mike Powers
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Posted 1545342176
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People becoming upset by magic is difficult to deal with. Someone (Burger or McBride?) pointed out that one of the functions of magic is to remind us all that we don't know everything. Not everyone receives that message with grace. I wonder what percentage of people don't like magic i.e. have a negative reaction when they see magic. Experience tells me that it's fairly low. I think Ken was right in trying to give the spectator who had a negative reaction a new and nonthreatening way to perceive magic. I wonder if anyone else has found ways to deal with the "I hate magic" response we occasionally experience. Clearly the goal is to "convert" the person. How can we do that? Mike
Michaelblue
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Posted 1545351949
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I once saw a woman run screaming when i did the rising cards. You never can tell. As for the other: most people do like magic. Someone who doesnt i would not take it personally
Bmat
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Posted 1545396991
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Originally Posted by Mike Powers People becoming upset by magic is difficult to deal with. Someone (Burger or McBride?) pointed out that one of the functions of magic is to remind us all that we don't know everything. Not everyone receives that message with grace. I wonder what percentage of people don't like magic i.e. have a negative reaction when they see magic. Experience tells me that it's fairly low. I think Ken was right in trying to give the spectator who had a negative reaction a new and nonthreatening way to perceive magic. I wonder if anyone else has found ways to deal with the "I hate magic" response we occasionally experience. Clearly the goal is to "convert" the person. How can we do that? Mike
Experience has taught me that very few people have a negative reaction to magic. Even those that will tell you up front that they don't like magic will usually have a positive reaction. What they mean when they say they don't like magic usually means they had a bad experience with a magician. People have negative responses to magicians not magic but the equate the two together. It is frustrating because people understand that when they listen to a bad piano player they suddenly don't hate music or the piano. But one experience with a bad magician and it can be a fight to get them back. I imagine that this is because bad magicians are usually full of themselves, they don't engage the audience and when they do it is insulting, (even when the magician is trying for funny) "hold out your hand...no the clean one please" that type of thing is typical of magicians, moronic at the least, insulting at the most.
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Mike Powers
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Good points Bmat. Even magicians on TV can come across as A holes and hurt the cause. One of our jobs is to fix any damage that's been done. Stay away from stupid old sexist lines like "I hate it when women say 'stop'" and demeaning lines like "No.. the clean one." We can do better than that. Mike
ianmcrawford
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Posted 1545431242
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#8
This reminds me that we tend to focus on the negative reaction and forget about the positive. I think we can learn from the negative, but we shouldn't become focused on it. A few days ago I was doing walk around magic at a Christmas hospital fundraiser. I respectfully approached a group and asked permission to show them something and started into my set. A gentleman (we'll call him Mr. Grumpy) in the group suddenly spoke rather abruptly, saying "we don't want to see magic". So I walked away. I couldn't shake the negative reaction all evening (and even now). Later in the evening I passed by most of the same group (sans Mr Grumpy) and they asked me to show them something. I did a 3 piece set, ending with an Omni deck routine (a variation of Bill Abbott's Cntl Alt Del) which got a fantastic reaction including a scream. One of the group approached me later and asked if I was available New Years Eve. So, I did a gig, got positive reviews from the client, booked another gig, and all I can focus on was Mr Grumpy.
EVILDAN
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Posted 1545608090
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hypothetical strolling gig for a law firm's holiday party: Me: Hi, would you like to see some magic? Guest: No, I don't like magic. Me: That's okay. I don't like lawyers. adjust as needed.
Blathermist
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Posted 1545677476
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re: Ian Crawford's experience. Similar things happen to most regular Walkabout Close-Uppers.
I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve approached a group and been "advised" by the self-appointed group leader that "WE" aren’t interested. Sometimes the Mouth gets shouted down and things are fine. But all too often the Mouth rules the roost and all others remain mute. Reluctantly mute, it seems to me.
Fair enough, no skin off my nose. I’m being paid come what may and one less group allows more time to spend with folk who are interested. My unchanging view is that if you go to a party, you join in. If you want to be a miserable sod, stay at home and do it on your own time. If you happen to be the CEO, then it’s time to take stock and get yourself on a refresher course.
That said, in my experience it’s never been the CEO. Mostly they’re up for anything. Keen to be seen to be able to get down with the kids/staff.
Meanwhile back with Mouth. Without fail sometime soon one of "his" group would catch my attention or actively seek me out and ask how soon would I be visiting them. Or why was I ignoring them.
Laughing inside I always ever-so-politely reminded the person that I wasn’t ignoring them, that I had been to their table ad and had been told in no uncertain terms by the Mouth-In-Charge that no one was interested. If in fact they were interested, I was at their disposal.
They were always interested. Sometimes Mouth would offer a hollow laugh and say he (sometimes she) was only joking. Mostly they would leave the group whilst I was there or shrink inwards, stare at their glass and sulk. I ignored them and allowed the general enjoyment (mine and the rest of the group’s) to raise the irritation factor up to level eleven. Or even more with any luck.
Sometimes they melted and the enjoyment level moved up to where it should have been all along.
Mostly they didn’t, at least not outwardly. They’d taken a position and wouldn’t budge. They were seriously chafed that they had been "overruled" by their friends, relatives, contemporaries, whatever. They preferred to let their mardy arsed ego ruin their "fun". Yippee.
I learned all I’m interested in learning from negative responses long long ago. The people with the negativity own that negativity. I don’t need it and I’m not going to have it. The world is full of shoegazers, well let them gaze away.
And there are are more than plenty of "Blimey-Cripes-Yikes-How-The-Flippinek-Did-You-Do-That-It-Was-Great!! people around to compensate for the infernal ingrates.
Meanwhile back with Ken. Great stuff. Being upset is not the same as being a fully paid-up professional misery and deserves attention.
Bob Farmer
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Posted 1545678692
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The Eddie Fechter book, Magician Nitely, has many great effects. I just saw a copy advertised for $1,700! Seems very high. As to people who hate magic or have a bad reaction to it or don't want to be fooled, I have no solution, other than here's an opener I'd use with every group even before you've discovered their feelings: "Hi there--I've made a pact with the Devil and I was wondering if you'd like to see some of the results?"
Dave
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Posted 1545684254
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Hey Anthony, Another oddball here who likes "Dr. Daley's Last Trick." My favorite take on it is "Weighted Aces" by Greg Wilson. It's on his video, "Double Take." You might find it interesting. Also includes his version of Darwin Ortiz's "Jumping Gemini." Dave
X
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Posted 1546160369
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I still continue to do a variant of the Blaine handling
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SpareTopChange
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Posted 1546187955
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#14
Ken, doesn't that effect ("Be Honest") require a sleight that you hate (and almost rhymes with "lip balm")? I've rarely done that sleight in public and I thought I remember that you said you kept getting called out on it. I'd love to hear about your progress there. Feel free to take this into the session room!
KenTheriot
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Posted 1547706543
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Originally Posted by SpareTopChange Ken, doesn't that effect ("Be Honest") require a sleight that you hate (and almost rhymes with "lip balm")? I've rarely done that sleight in public and I thought I remember that you said you kept getting called out on it. I'd love to hear about your progress there. Feel free to take this into the session room!
It actually has one that rhymes with "slop range," which yes, I was having problems with. But I found a way to do it that works much better than I was doing it in the past. So far, the only person who has caught me doing it this new way was a spectator's husband who was standing beside her. My "new way" is to do 2 things differently. 1. I studied Steven Youell's video(s) and work that method hard, along with David Williamson's video, which is very similar. It's very different from the way it was taught on both of the videos. 2. I do it at a different time when there is less heat.
Wayne T
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Posted 1547805991
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Originally Posted by KenTheriot It actually has one that rhymes with "slop range," which yes, I was having problems with. But I found a way to do it that works much better than I was doing it in the past. So far, the only person who has caught me doing it this new way was a spectator's husband who was standing beside her. My "new way" is to do 2 things differently. 1. I studied Steven Youell's video(s) and work that method hard, along with David Williamson's video, which is very similar. It's very different from the way it was taught on both of the videos. 2. I do it at a different time when there is less heat.
I often screw up the top change so this thread got me to try and rewatch Steve Youell's video which was posted here but now it comes back as unavailable. If Steve or someone else has a new link please post it. Anyway back to my crappy top change, I started practicing this trick but always stumble at the top change phase but one thing I tried which seems to work and can be done with direct heat on your hands is Harry Lorayne's Illogical Double Lift. I agree it changes the trick a bit and obviously if you have a good flow going and can execute the top change under proper cover then their is no need to change but if you get stuck it might be a good out. Your milage may vary... Wayne
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Rudy Tinoco
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Posted 1547821670
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Originally Posted by Dave Hey Anthony, Another oddball here who likes "Dr. Daley's Last Trick." My favorite take on it is "Weighted Aces" by Greg Wilson. It's on his video, "Double Take." You might find it interesting. Also includes his version of Darwin Ortiz's "Jumping Gemini." Dave
Two versions that I like to perform are “Color Blind” by John Guastaferro (video below) and David Williamson‘s “Vision Test”.
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Gareth
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Posted 1547859390
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Originally Posted by
Rudy Tinoco Two versions that I like to perform are “Color Blind” by John Guastaferro (video below) and David Williamson‘s “Vision Test”.
Rudy since you showed me this one it’s been a staple of my performances and my prefered Dr Daley’ Last Trick version. It is sooooo strong. G
SpareTopChange
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Posted 1548189385
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Originally Posted by
Rudy Tinoco Two versions that I like to perform are “Color Blind” by John Guastaferro (video below) and David Williamson‘s “Vision Test”.
Nice performance! I'm still amazed by the turnover at 0:27.