talkmagic.co.uk

Hi all,
I'm soon to perform an effect merged from two others: effect from Andrew Mayne's "Mind FX", working from "The Unexpected" from Marc Spelmann and Peter Nardi. It's a fairly basic prediction and force, the fun part being that the prediction is a vital organ on ice in a box! Mayne suggests using a rubber organ, I intend to just go down the butchers

I don't really like using the gimmicked deck suggested though - not examinable enough. So I've decided to use the patio force explained in The Unexpected, although I think they said it's originally Nyman's? Or someone's, not sure.

Get to the point: I can't decide whether to use totally blank cards or blank faced cards for the names of the organs. I have to be able to find one card (the force, funnily enough). Blank backs would require a nail nick, whereas I think normal bicycle backs would be more examinable as you could use a basically un-findable mark such as etching a single extra butterfly.
However, would a playing card design suggest too much trickery? Or be more open to accusations of marking?

I know we get a lot of "silly" polls on here, sorry to waste your time, but I'm really undecided about which to use and have decided to let TM be the judge!
Thanks for your help.

First off, it's PATEO force - It's way older than Nyman, too.

Personally, I would go with blank cards. Given the nature of the effect, it would seem out of the ordinary that bicycle cards would have organs on the faces, don't you think?

I'm assuming you are using HUMAN organs for your examples? If so - perhaps you could create custom cards with an identical human figure on one side, and the organ (name or image) on the face. This way - the cards make a bit more sense in relation to the effect.

Not to mention that it gives you a number of subtle ways to work up a marking system.

Perhaps try that? If you need some help with designing them or anything, let me know. I'd be glad to help.

The PATEO (Pick Any Two Eliminate One) originates with british magician Roy Baker I think.
Anyway, if handled well, it wont mater what is on the backs, as the whole point of the pateo force is to make it look like a free choice. Saying that, you don't have to use blank backed cards, only blanked faced. There are many different (and less card trick style) backs that can be used.

well, if this is a medical thing, and not to be played as too serious, why not make up your own mini x-rays of each organ or body part?

some photocopiable acetate, a quick google search, or in your case - you could probably get hold of the real things, and just get them reduced down?

The PATEO is indeed a Roy Baker creation (RIP), and is a fantastic force.

I don't think the backs of the cards matter in the slightest to be honest, as mentioned, as the force basically eliminates 'WITH' user choice.

Using blank cards with a mark is a little odd, seeing a blank card looks wonky. But then again, so does using a 'regular' backed card.

As a suggestion: could you get hold of some little envelopes with medical stuff on them, or even those little yellow 'biohazard' bags? Then simply put the object card inside.

This not only totally isolates the cards, but also adds yet another medical twist.

Yeah, I hadn't thought about adding some extra medical dimension, I think you're right.

Thanks for the help guys

Not knowing the patter, is there anything wrong with actually having medical disposal (or storage) boxes as the pateo objects?

Nice idea, but the effect is that you force the organ and then reveal the prediction, which is an organ. I suppose you could do it with all the other boxes empty, but then there are issues about them all being light, and one of the good things about the pateo force is the "do you want to mix them around?" convincer.

What I have opted for are brown luggage tags, so there's plenty of scope for patter about mortuaries and specimens.

They would not be light if they all had ice in them.

Wouldn't it be fun to have the spek put the gloves on and thrust their hand into the eliminated box.

Magic's a pretty insular world, a simple force like the PATEO will have been around for 1000s of years.

If you are putting the organs in an ice-box you can put 3 in one box and make it look like there was only one. I have put suggestion for such a box in the mentalist only section.

copyright wrote:I have put suggestion for such a box in the mentalist only section.

Well, thank you very much indeed! It takes long enough to get into the magicians' only section, let alone that

I use blank-faced bicycle cards all the time and no-one has ever raised any suspicions. The minute you say "I've written xyz... on some blank-faced cards..." spectators will think you went out and bought some blank-faced cards and wrote stuff on them. Which is exactly what you did.

Yeah I use blank Cards to write on all the time. Make my own Esp symboils with and all that. Plus blank back removes the ol "the cards are marked". Plus if they are looking for mark sometimes with a normal back they will find thats not there at all.