Design for laughter

Struggling with an effect? Any tips (without giving too much away!) you'd like to share?

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Design for laughter

Postby Soulnafein » Mar 30th, '08, 23:13



I'm trying to find an alternative script for the effect "Design for Laughter" explained in RRTCM.
The part that I find difficult to justify is the point where the spectator cut twice the deck. Do you have any suggestion?

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Postby magicdiscoman » Mar 30th, '08, 23:20

don't know the trick and havan't looked it up but how about.
"cut once for luck and again because i cheat".

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Postby Soulnafein » Mar 30th, '08, 23:26

The problem is not the double cut but the fact the after that I watch the card under each pile of cards and I say: "Sorry... you didn't get your card". Actually their card is there but the trick is based on the fact that I did it wrong. It's a bit weird :)

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Postby Flood » Mar 31st, '08, 00:11

you have to present the effect so that they beleive that you are making a mistake whereas you are really in control.The most important part is that they dont blab their mouths when you claim the chosen card isnt their card.The best way to do this,i find is that you say:

''im going to test your poker face and try read by minute expressions on your face whether or not the next 3 cards will be your card but do not say anything if you see or dont see your card,just remain silent and expression free''

then you proceed to show the 3 cards,one of which is in actual fact their card although they beleive youve made a mistake...Thats why the climax to this trick is so excellent and produces so much laughter.I've personally found this to be one of the best tricks in the book for getting a good reaction

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Postby sleightlycrazy » Mar 31st, '08, 01:39

Flood, I think Soul's issue is with the lack of reason in cutting the deck. Somewhat like Jamy Ian Swiss' issue with turning over DLs. Why should the deck be cut twice?

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Postby EckoZero » Mar 31st, '08, 03:58

This is one of my all time favourite card tricks. Ever.

I don't do much card magic anymore but if I mention magic and someone asks to see a trick, this will be guaranteed to be included in those I showcase.

My patter line normally goes as follows "Ok, now Im going to see if you can find your own card. But since you're not a magician yet, I'm going to give you three tries to find it rather than the once chance that I get. So if you can just cut the deck... and again... thats great. Thanks. Now, do you think you found your card? Because, and this is really important, the aim of this is to test your poker face? You play poker much? Got a good poker face? Ok, so I'm going to guess your card by reading your expression, but if I get it wrong, don't tell me..."

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Postby ArcticBanana » Mar 31st, '08, 05:49

I tell the spectator to watch me shuffle, see if they can remember the position of the card. then I have them try to cut to where they think the card is. When none of the three cards are the selected card, I accuse them of trying to make me look bad and intentionally cutting to the wrong card. I ask them to help me save face by telling me how many cards I will need to deal to get to their card.

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Postby mark lewis » Mar 31st, '08, 12:36

I have been doing this trick for around 45 years or so and it is one of the strongest card tricks in my repertoire. However just recently I read Vernon's Fingerprint Trick which is quite a similar effect but with a different and excellent presentation. I am very impressed with it and am wondering if it actually may be better in some ways.

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Postby cragglecat » Mar 31st, '08, 20:32

I absolutely love this trick and don't feel any particular need to justify the two cuts. I normally just say something along the lines of 'I think I can get you to cut to your card but for this to work you really need to have faith in your abilities, I want you to cut about a third of the deck and as you do this say 'I will cut to my card' ,over and over in your mind'. I then get them to cut a second time with similar patter. For displaying the cards I use virtually the same approach as flood. This trick gets a fantastic reaction but you need to make sure the spectator shows everyone the card and stress the need for a 'poker face' so they don't blab when they see their card (I actually stress this on the display of each card in turn).

One final point, out of interest (I hope!) Harry Lorayne has a version of this trick in 'close up card magic' where he suggests that the spectator puts a coin over each of the three cards as they are tabled - his view was that this strengthened the effect I guess because it makes the transposition even more miraculous. I haven't found this necessary but who am I to question?!

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Postby cragglecat » Mar 31st, '08, 20:35

Has any tried to adapt this to walk around, for example using the spectators hands? Any view on how well it works in this situation?

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Postby Soulnafein » Mar 31st, '08, 22:16

It's a wonderful trick! It works really well but I'm interested in different script. An important thing I would like to avoid is that the spectator is somehow wrong. Also I would like to see if I could create one script that will permit do avoid the "magician mistake" part.
Sorry if I'm boring :)

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Postby ArcticBanana » Apr 1st, '08, 04:52

maybe your could turn it into a three card monte type effect, seeing as you have three face down cards, one of them being the spectators card.

This is just off the top of my head but how about this.

You have a very straight forward trick: the spectator picks a card, and finds it him/herself, they get three chances since it is their first card trick, and they find the card on their third try. Then you start a new trick with a three card monte routine, and they find that their card is not in the mix at all, but you deal out the number of cards that is the value of their card, and their card has jumped back into the deck at that point.

I'll think about that some more, but the only way you could avoid the "magicians mistake" is if you either don't look at the card on the bottom of the third pile, and don't say if it is or is not the selected card, or if you say that it is their card, and have two revelations.

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Postby magicmonkey » Apr 1st, '08, 09:27

I too love this effect, and have never had the problem of the cuts.

Also as aked above, I have adapted this to do it in the specs hands a number of times.

You need to change the patter somewhat and watch your spec management carefully, that and choice of specs. Drunks are not a good choice. You need 3 specs obviously, and reiterate if necessary during your checking of the cuts that they are not to give away which card is theirs which helps stop them turning over the cards when you have "got it wrong". "Poker faces guys, don't let me know".

I make the spec who chose the card place the pile with chosen card into someone elses hand, along with one in another's one in theirs, but then reorder as I check the cuts leaving this spec with the choice at the end. In other words, pick one up as I put the previous cards in its place. As I place the cards back down, I also put their other hand on top sandwiching the card. This additionally helps stop them turning the card early.

It floors, it really does.

Hope this helps.

Have checked for exposure but seems ok, please edit if necessary.

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Postby Neyak » Apr 1st, '08, 21:26

It's definately one of the best card-based effects I have encountered. I remember once doing it to two friends and I could tell by their faces that they felt really sorry for me when I apparently got it wrong, but just didn't know how they could tell me without making me feel bad about myself. No need to say that it blew them completely off their feet in the end.
I think one important factor in presenting it is to put on some clumsy card handling, i.e. no fancy flourishes or whatever. Otherwise the presentation is incoherent - you seem really skilled but then you get it wrong, which just doesn't make sense. Clumsy handling also means that they won't suspect anything. For safety, i.e. to stop them from calling out that it is their card at the critical point, I also tend to casually say when explaining what I am about to do that if we fail the first time, we'll try something else.

But yes, I love this effect.

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