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For the past few months (summer), I've been fascinated by the potential of the double envelope concept. It's taught in the first Tarbell book as well as David Abbott's (he's a genius!) "Behind the Scenes with the Mediums". Tarbell taught the method to work with a small 'predicted number' type of effect. David Abbott taught the concept with the mediumistic approach of contacting spirits or the deceased.

When I was visiting my grandparents in Boston and Maine, I kept Teller's edition of David Abbott's book with me to read on the long car rides. His edition has photographs (with [the] Johnny Thompson, Pam Thompson and Teller) and notes by teller and Todd Karr. I'll review it when I finish reading it.

I digress.

Reading through the book, I structured what I thought would be a very effective mystery using the double envelope concept. I came up with it in just a couple days, but I fooled my grandparents and uncles. (I know family isn't the best people to have criticize ideas, but they seemed sincere in saying it fooled them) Because it would be a bit of exposure to describe it here, I'll PM people who ask for their opinion and advice on it.

The main thing I wanted to ask about was how to make the second letter (supposedly written by spirits) seem like it was written as a response to the letter written by the spectator. Abbott wrote that by dictating what the spectators write (essentially telling them exactly what to write without seeming to), you can get a 'response' that fits what was written. The spectator would slowly misremember that what she wrote was by her own will.

One subtlety I added was to have the spectator write to a 'spirit' (I used Penn and Teller's 'disclaimer' - you can find it at the deception unlimited 'voices' interview- before hand) named "Tom".

In the hidden reply, I wrote at the end:

"P.S. My name isn't spelled T-o-m, it's actually T-h-o-m. I hope you remember for next time"

or something like that.

The purpose of this is to cancel out the possibility (in the minds of the spectators) that the reply was just a pre-written note. It misdirects from the actual method.


Thanks.

You could use some of the well known psychological forces out of psychological subtleties. For instance (I don't know what you letter says, so this may be way of the point), you could ask them to mention the first colour that comes into their head. They will 95% of the time think of either red or blue. In the letter, you could hace a line such as "Most people think it was red, but it actually was blue." This would provide a hit for both colours depending on where you put the emphasis. There is also the trianlge -circle force. THere are plenty of others to find if you look.
If you are interested in envelopes, check the original aked envelope in Annemans practical mental magic. It is a triple envelope, and looks very clean when opened.

though it may look a tad corny, how about adding a length of IT to the envelope...then have it move...kinda like when someone passes you an item to look at...it would indirectly show its been read, but very directly show that something was there..

One thing that you could do after you've performed it a few dozen times is pick up on themes in the letters that the spectators write and include appropriate responses in the sprit's letter.

I actually used the triangle circle force.

I was considering doing the pulse suggestion while the spectator presses the envelope against the table.

Thanks for the idea of looking for patterns. I'm not a pro (at the age of 15, that's no big surprise) and I'm not sure how often I'll be able to use this routine. If I can get consistent, I'll look for patterns.

RobLaughter wrote:One thing that you could do after you've performed it a few dozen times is pick up on themes in the letters that the spectators write and include appropriate responses in the sprit's letter.

This is an excellent suggestion.

I really liked the idea of the name being misspelled. There are a few names like that, such as John/Jon, Eric/Erik, Sarah/Sara (I know someone called Sara, but who pronounces it as Sarah). There's always a slight risk of them spelling the name correctly, but the one you opted for is a very rare variant, so it's probably about the best choice you could have made.

I'm not entirely sure about psychological forces, in this context. If they go wrong, it destroys the very plausibility you've been trying for. In the right situation, they are very useful.

How about including a forced playing or Tarot card?

I force a card as well so I can have a solid hit. The force I use is a strong one (the triangle circle is bound to work for at least one person out of 5. I also have the spirit say it's a bit hazy and unclear, but that it's receiving the impression of a circle or a triangle. After the card is correctly named, I think the slight hesitation in naming the shapes will be forgotten.

Thanks for the other names. If I can consistently do this effect, I'll experiment with various names.

I don't give much slack regarding what the person writes. David Abbott wrote that eventually, the spectator will remember writing everything without assistance and will tell people of that condition.

Thanks for the great input so far.

I just wrote a five page description in Word. It covers everything that I can think of regarding this routine so far. PM me if you're interested. A few of you already did, and I'll send it to you asap.

I'm very excited about this!

I just received an email from Banachek saying that, with my permission, he might put the Thom subtlety into either PS3 or PS4.

Well, needless to say, I said I would be honored.

Great news - well done!!

That is brilliant news, well done

good on yer!