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mark lewis wrote: I have been told that Doc Eason holds the view that you should never open a close up performance with a card trick.

I'm not sure, I have the Doc Eason DVD Volume 3 (Openers, Closers and Standalone effects) in which he suggests opening with either a full deck colour change (blue back to red back) or with a trick where a person chooses a card from a blue back deck which also has a red back card in it, The card they pick matches the red back and the rest of the deck is a one-way forcing deck of a different card.
Those are his two suggested openers on his DVD all about openers. He says they attract a crowd because the involve a full-deck spread to finish them off.

That said it was a BAR magic DVD, which isn't quite the same as close-up.

- Stacy

In that case I have no idea. He gave a lecture here in Toronto which I did not attend. I was told that he insisted that this policy was the best one and it seemed that some people disagreed although perhaps not openly. I also heard that there was some fuss and bother on the magic cafe over this opinion of his. I certainly know that Don Alan believed in this because I read it in black and white. Perhaps it is a general rule rather than an iron clad one. I certainly break the rule myself on the odd occasion.

I think possibly that my own personal reasoning is simply that card tricks are the strongest thing I do. I like to hold them in reserve. First I pummel the spectators rigid with astonishment with the other stuff and it is a wonderful feeling that "you ain't seen nothing yet" when holding back the card tricks and finally go in for the kill. But this is my personal reasoning and it may not apply to others.

The phone just went and I have now spoken to someone who was at the Doc Eason lecture and he was indeed referring to this philosophy in a bar or restaurant situation. It seems that his reasoning was that people have an antipathy to card tricks and it is better to establish yourself first with the other stuff. Anyway who knows? Perhaps he will hear about this chatter and come and clear it up here himself. On the other hand perhaps he won't. I heard things got out of hand on the Magic Cafe over it but for all I know this is just a rumour because I didn't see the thread in question.

I don't have strong opinions either way. It is more a gut feeling on my part that this is a good philosophy to follow.

Usually for an opener I tend to prefer to build a decent to good rapport with people before even pulling out a deck of cards, then from there I'd either go into Chicago Surprise or Jon Armstrong My Opening Act or Michael Vincents Brainwave My Way. Thus doing things that a bit deeper and more personal than the standard "pick a card effects."

Is it because some people have a childhood memory of 'Uncle Charlie' doing the 21 card trick (or similar) that puts the Magician at a disadvantage striaght away? So to start with something else dispels this thought because even Uncle Charlie didn't 'do' sponge balls or coins etc.

Yes indeed. I think that was the Eason reasoning. It doesn't apply to me personally simply because I am so associated with cards and everyone I come in contact knows that this is what I do. I just like to hold back on it a trifle. A bit like the principle of don't shoot until you see the whites of their eyes. At one time I used to do card tricks only but I knew it would be better if I varied things a little for my own sanity and for the welcome change it gave to the spectator, variety being the spice of life. I do like to keep things impromptu so the other non-card items I do are things I can easily carry with me and of course that leaves me with a whole gamut of coin and other tricks that I can do at any time. I will often open an impromptu set with Dotty Spots which happens to be my favourite trick. It is regarded as a mere beginners trick but I regard it as a masterpiece. I think a massive amount of my repertoire comes out of books for beginners. Somebody once said of me that I get all my tricks out of children's books. An exaggeration but not much of one. These tricks are the simpler ones and usually the simpler tricks are far more effective than a lot of complicated nonsense that you see where you have to have 15 fingers to do the moves properly and even then people don't know what the effect was all about.

mark lewis wrote: I will often open an impromptu set with Dotty Spots which happens to be my favourite trick.

Is that similar to Sach's Spotted Sourcery or am I completely barking up the wrong tree?

I ask because I'm currently trying to put together a dice based routine and I'm trying to harvest as many sources as possible for inspiration...

- Stacy

Wrong tree but if you are referring to the Dr Sack dice trick I do that as well for certain audiences. It is very easy to carry two dice around with you.

mark lewis wrote:
you should never open a close up performance with a card trick. Don Alan held the same view. My gut feeling tells me that they are right although I am not sure why

I think it is because if you start a routine with a card trick the spectators don't think "This person is magic" they instead think "This person is good at cheating with cards", thus wrongly establishing yourself in the eyes of the spectators. The purpose of a good opener is usually to establish yourself as someone who is magic, not someone who can perform dodgy card moves.

double back for me.

sammy_789 wrote:double back for me.

Is this similar to the Darwin Ortiz "Back Off" routine sammy?

CArl...

CArlight1958 wrote:Is this similar to the Darwin Ortiz "Back Off" routine sammy?

Probably more similar to Jon Allen's Double Back.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzwxcfQ4pUc

Part-Timer wrote:Probably more similar to Jon Allen's Double Back.

Nice trick PT

mark lewis wrote:Wrong tree but if you are referring to the Dr Sack dice trick I do that as well for certain audiences. It is very easy to carry two dice around with you.

Is the Dr Sack's dice trick a one in the hand, one in the pocket effect? If not, what is it? I love magic with dice.

No. Different trick entirely. It uses the paddle move but with dice. I did it on BBC's Crackerjack programme once and showed it to Michael Aspel. It went over well because the camera comes right up on the hands and not a whiff of the secret can be detected.

I'm liking a card to wallet opening effect,, always gets em talking.. Especially if its a JOL wallet, just love his wallets..