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I was just wondering what everones opinion was about these two dvds...
Royal Road To Card Magic with R. Paul Wilson. -------V.S ------ Easy To Master Card Miracles vol 1-9 by Michael Ammar

Witch set do YOU recomend and why?

oh....haha....IM just starting in magic.... and would like to learn as much sleight of hand as I can...

Im not too fimialr with the card miracles, but royal road is definatly something that most people will advise, probably because it will take you through the main basic slieghts that is key to becomming a good magician.

Good luck in your quest

Get the Royal Road to Card Magic as a book, and buy the Ammar DVDs.

Simple.

I have all of the michael ammar dvds and they are worth the money especially the earlier volumes, but RRTCD is an essential.

As others have said, buy RRTCM in book form, and buy Ammars DVD's vols 1 through 5 as and when you can. If you must, buy the others to complete the set, but IMHO they did get gradually weaker.

RRTCM in paperback will cost £10, and is great value. Also you can take it anywhere with you (train, plane hols etc.)

Zack wrote:Get the Royal Road to Card Magic as a book, and buy the Ammar DVDs.

Simple.

i think that IS the way to do it!
the ammar DVDs are quite amazing though, i learnt a lot from them

thx 4 the replys you guys...
Is there any other ways other people went?? that works...and that they recomend?

I saw an awful clip of the Royal Road DVD on the equally awful Genii forum.

I don't know why people can't leave the book alone. In my capacity as a psychic medium I have been receiving irritated mutterings from a Mr Braue and a Mr Hugard concerning the matter.

The clip I saw was of a dreadful performance of 3 cards across. It had the spectator deal the cards into a neat little pile when anyone who has read the book properly knows that you are supposed to drop the cards all over the bloody place.

I know the book better than anyone else. In fact I would say that 50% percent of my repertoire comes from there. If this videoclip is representative of the rest of the book my inclination is to keep well away from it. I know I shouldn't be judging the DVD from one clip but there it is.

I also remember reading all sorts of hints and tips about showmanship and presentation in the book. Regrettably I didn't see much evidence of showmanship in the clip. Obviously the presenter didn't read the book as thoroughly as he should.

The clip was put up on the Genii Forum to be compared with a supposedly inferior DVD version of the Royal Road presented by a chap called Rudy Hunter. Rudy used to work for me and I remember him being a good performer. However his videoclip showing 3 cards across was as equally dreadful as the Paul Gordon (or is it Wilson-I can't bloody remember) one. I would have thought that Rudy would have learned something from working for me. Alas it appears that he hasn't.

Anyway I am not pleased with Rudy because a few years ago he put out a mentalism tape and called me "quite criminal" on it. He also called me "an atrocious little man" He justified the character assassination to me by saying that he didn't mention my name on the tape. The bloody idiot didn't realise that was what annoyed me. I didn't care about the libel-I cared that my name wasn't mentioned.

Anyway I am delighted belatedly to get my revenge by saying sincerely that although he has a bit more personality than Paul Wilson (or Gordon or whatever his bloody Scottish name is) he still manages to murder 3 cards across.

No. Leave the book alone. It doesn't need silly DVDs to prove it's worth. Besides Braue and Hugard told me that they don't approve.

Mark, it is possible you saw the magic makers version. That is not good, always get the proper L & L one (i think Seige has it ). I started with Royal Road book and the BOBO coin book.

I saw BOTH versions and they were both bloody awful. I didn't see the DVD's themselves. I saw the clips which were supposed to sell me. They didn't and in fact have prejudiced me against them.

Rudy did the Magic Makers one and the Scotsman did the other one. Both were hideous. Before purporting to teach the Royal Road it might be a good idea for the teachers themselves to learn the book properly.

And they should start by studying three cards across again and learn to do it properly.

Paul Gordon is called dreadful by some, but he's English. The Scotsman you refer to is (R) Paul Wilson.

The book, RRTCM, is basically what got me seriously started in magic.

It sets a base for any enthusiastic card magician, and should be considered a pretty essential read.

I have to agree that whilst inspiring in some ways, Rudy Hunter isn't what I would term a great teacher. I have seen the clips in question, and I did feel let down.

However, the Paul Wilson RRTCM DVDs in my opinion are an ACCOMPANIMENT to the book, not a replacement.

The DVDs do not do the book justice at all, and although some of the stuff taught is helpful, the essential essence of the book is left out. I feel this may have been done on purpose.

The advice from me would be to get the book. Read it. If it appears unclear, consider the RRTCM DVD. Then, re-read the book accompanied by the DVD.

I strongly believe that watching the DVD without getting the book is a step backwards, as what you are getting is Mr Wilson's own interpretation of the book.

As with many Hollywood translations of great books, I find sometimes my original thoughts and feelings I had when reading the book of the film were more enjoyable than watching the on-screen version dictated by the actor/director.

Ammar's DVDs are very good. No doubt. You'll learn some fantastic magic, perhaps even enough to form a repertoire and set from.

However, consider the RRTCM as your 'basic training', as not only does it cover many of the fundamental card sleights needed to perform as a magician, it also contains many routines and ideas to utilise your new skills.

And it's a book you can reference time and time again, going back and re-discovering moves or ideas which can help you along your way.

When I watched the RRTCM DVDs, I was initially amazed at how little I felt I'd got from them. I felt rather cold towards them.

However, like Mark states, much of my knowledge was born soley from the RRTCM—way before the days of the internet and commercially available DVDs and Video.

I guess I feel honoured in a way to have been a part of magic before all the 'new media' came about. I learned what most new internet/movie generation magicians would deem 'the hard way'. But I feel I'm a better magician for it. It taught me to be patient in my learning, and to qualify the time spent practicing by the reactions I get.

Whereas simply learning in a 'do as I do' fashion from DVDs is to an extent making magician's lazy. I feel that items such as 'born to perform' by Oz Pearlman show moves and tricks from one perspective, which many students of these will possibly accept as THE ONLY perspective.

It's been said 100s of times before, but learning from a book may seem a long way round, but frankly I believe it's still the most thorough way. Everyone's physical makeup is different, and seeing a performer on a DVD make something look easy just isn't teaching us anything concrete, wheras going through the process by text somehow engrains it I feel.

Then again, I've seen many discussions that people find it far easier to learn from DVD and video. But I must say that many DVD and video purchases are possibly a waste of money, as most of the stuff out there can be learned from the aforementioned gem of a book for about £8.

To get the most from the book, you need patience, time and a lot of practice. But I am sure that many of the older generation of magicians who learned this way would concur that the RRTCM book paves its road in gold, and the rewards and benefits are simply immeasurable compared to learning an interpreted view from a DVD.

However, the Paul Wilson RRTCM DVDs in my opinion are an ACCOMPANIMENT to the book, not a replacement.

Certainly that is what Paul Wilson claims on the L&L DVD, and as such I see an accompanying set of DVDs can only be a good thing. The idea is you have the book, learn from the book, but then you always have the DVD's if you wish to see something a little more visually (as many prefer to do).

Personally I am happy with just the book, but I see the DVDs as being a useful tuition aid for many people.

I say DVD's. I am refering to the L&L set which by all accounts are superior to the Magic Makers set.

The demo for the 3 card across routine that Mr. Lewis refered to - I believe was Magic Makers. I currentl;y have not found a video demo of the R. Paul Wilson (not Gordon!) set.

thx for everyones thorough reveiws..... I went and bought the book rrtcm yesterday..... and within a week i will have enough money to start to get Easy To Master Card Miracles one buy one........ I was also recomended to start with the second dvd.......

does anyone else have a suggestion as to witch one (Easy To Master Card Miracles dvd) I should start with???


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I WAS HERE

thx for everyones thorough reveiws..... I went and bought the book rrtcm yesterday..... and within a week i will have enough money to start to get Easy To Master Card Miracles one buy one........ I was also recomended to start with the second dvd.......

does anyone else have a suggestion as to witch one (Easy To Master Card Miracles dvd) I should start with???


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I WAS HERE