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I've decided I am going to learn the Miser's Dream routine that was performed by T. Nelson Downs. It is one of the Miser's Dreams that is in Modern Coin Magic by J.B. Bobo. It seems that this routine will take at least a few months of practice to get to a perfect performance level. If anyone has any tips to speed up the learning of this routine, particularly how to do the new change-over palm with multiple coins and not make a noise, they would be greatly apprieciated.

The Misers Dream, like all the Great Classics is fairly easy to learn and perform BUT again, like All the Classics, may take months, years sometimes to Build up an Entertaining routine.. It's really step by step, rehearse, try out in front of friends and public ;cutting, revising & building up, till one day you feel happy that it is working for The Audience & You ; in that order.
With the Miser's Dream take Pat Pages's advice ( and he has performed it many years) ' The performer reaches into the air and produces coins at will'. Nothing else. No other fancy coin tricks added.
All the Classics have a simple plot but many magicians WILL over complicate the simplicity at their own peril.
Try to get hold of Pat Page's book on the M D; 24 pages of the RIGHT advice, techniques, even gags, all discovered through experience.
Also ask your magic friends if anyone has Son Of Tat No. 9. This was the news, history, tricks video magazine put out by Vic Pinto. Pat P had a tremendous amount to do with the series. In No. 9 you will see the late Al Flosso perform the Dream with tremendous comic timing. Don't copy it. Admire it & be inspired by it.
Allen Tipton

If you really want to see a good Miser's Dream performances get yourself a video of Jeff McBride's Vegas show (it's called "Abracadazel" or something of that nature). He performs a very good and rather funny routine with a kid from the audience (without saying a single word). So it will be a good place to get some neat ideas from.

^

Thanks, but I'm pretty sure I've already seen that one and it is not the version that I want to learn. I've been able to get the first part of the routine down (the "hide the coin moves") and am now working on the "dropping" into the hat. The only problem I am having here is that sometimes the coins make a bit of clinking noise on the side of the hat (when they are hidden). Sorry if this seems vague, but I can't say much more without revealing.

Do you guys think I should adapt this so I perform it with a baseball cap instead of a top hat? It would make the effect seem more up to date.