talkmagic.co.uk

Working in various public houses, restaurants and private functions, the most popular question I seem to be asked is: "So are you psychic then?"

My stock reply thus far has been to state that I'm not a psychic, I'm a magician and that all I do is perform tricks. One can see the disappointment manifesting itself on people's faces as I say this. They genuinely want the magic to be "real".

I've been pondering on this for a while and have realised that I often use the "I'm only a magician, this is just a trick, I'm not really psychic" line as a get-out clause should a performance go belly up. A trick flops or doesn't work - not to worry, it was only a bit of fun, I'm not psychic etc. etc.

So perhaps by telling the punters "the truth" I am in fact cheating them on two levels:

1) I am taking away from them the magic that they so yearn for in their lives.

2) I am sub-consciously giving a 2nd rate performance because hey, it's just a magic trick, I'm not a real psychic.

Perhaps by actually claiming to have supernatural powers, we can give our audience a) a more powerful performance and b) that little bit of mystery that will stay with them forever.

Perhaps in the case of conjuring the truth is in fact a cheat, and the most honest thing to do is to lie. After all, isn't that all that magic is anyway in the end - a series of lies and falsehoods but produced in order to create a higher good, ie one true moment of magic?

Any thoughts???

I see a vision.... A strange man known as Graig posts a very long, interesting and useful answer

This is exactly why my friend hates magic... it's all a bunch of lies and she hates liers. It's only entertainment! lol

I've never gotten the "Are you psychic?" thing before mainly because I don't do too many mental routines but when I do, I do simple ones.

What I would do is say is just, "no no... I'm just gooooooood! ". I say that anyways lol and it gets quite a funny reaction .

Steve

Paul,

I've been into magic for 16yrs. I learnt all I ever thought I needed in card sleights and performed well. Then along came Blaine and Brown Now I use an ESP deck more than I use a pack of cards. A mention of Magic of the Mind or Powers that the Mind can do blow away women spectators.

I think that you have to go with the flow of what suits you, but mentalism is currently in vogue. Get an ESP deck and see the reactions you get.

I'm too tired tonight, but I will return

Personally, if I did a trick and truly claimed that I did it through supernatural abilities, I'd feel like I was no better than a televangelist 'healer' or a talk-show phychic.

There are enough gullible people in the world who already believe silly preposterous things; I wouldn't want to make it any worse.

It's probably an obvious answer, but why not just not say anything when someone asks you that question? Or say 'what do you think' or something equally ambiguous. I do understand that just flat-out saying 'it's a trick' can be a disappointment to people.

I like the ambiguity ploy here...I did some PK ring stuff last night and they had a hoot with the effect, not least of which congratulating me on entertaining their teenage kids who had been bored all day until I turned up at their table...

There are so many ways not to commit to the question and leave them guessing. Keep the twinkle in the eye and continue to amaze them.

My answer to the question as to whether I'm psychic or not is "maybe - it depends on what you mean by that.."
I think it's important to clarify in your own mind what it means to be psychic - and then decide whether you fit that definition. If not - then don't say that you're psychic - it could put a lot of unnecesary pressure on you in your 'normal' life.

I currently use an ESP deck a lot in my performances, and they do get a bigger reaction than a normal set of Bikes. People look at them and are immediately put in mind of psychics, mediums, and "that scene in Ghostbusters". Mindreading tricks also draw the loudest gasps.

I came to magic from a strange direction anyway, in that I was heavily interested in the world of the psychic and spiritualism as a youth and have worked professionallyas a tarot card reader. It was only when Blaine came onto the scene that I realised how powerful conjuring could be, and I started what has been a steep but enjoyable learning curve. I'm now a full time pro - a precarious tight-rope of an occupation, but one that is indeed full of wonder.

As the old saying goes: "A magician is just an actor playing the role of a magician". In that case surely there is no moral dilema in answering the question "Are you psychic?" (should it be asked) with "Yes, but I use my powers to entertain." One would surely be no more lying than an actor playing the role of Macbeth? And as I stated in my original post, magic is all about illusion, half-truths, and downright lies anyway.

Very interesting debate this...

...just don't answer them if they ask!

or perhaps "if you believe i am psychic, then i am..."

I AM psychic so I dread the question. Once people know you are psychic you never get any peace. They yap to you about their dreams and they want you to do free readings for them and it is no fun at all.

I know a professional psychic who when asked what his occupation is he says "I work in the metaphysical area" since he doesn't want people to know what he does for a living. Much like an American undertaker I once heard of who when asked his occupation said "I'm a Southern Planter"

Which reminds me that there actually used to be an undertaker in Blackpool called Box Brothers. It may still be there for all I know.

As a professional psychic I do magic to get away from the miseries of dealing with people's lives. I will even do the sponge balls at psychic fairs.
If people ask me when working impromptu close up magic if I am psychic I usually say "I used to be but I've lost my powers"

I find it very embarrassing to work trade shows in Toronto since I am a very well known psychic there. I am supposed to be doing sleight of hand with cards, coins and sponge balls etc; There is no mentalism whatsoever. However in each and every case the person that hires me finds out that I am a psychic because an attendee recognises me and will tell them. I find it embarrassing although I usually end up reading the palms of the trade show staff.

The true answer to the question is that everyone is psychic but not everyone develops it to it's full extent.

You could use the answer the Piddingtons always gave. "You be the judge" It was quite effective for them and Mrs Piddington when she became an old lady used to infuriate her grandchildren by using this line when they asked if she was really psychic in the old days.

Maurice Fogel thought the line to be a bit apologetic and was of the opinion that you should imply psychic ability but not come outright and say it.

I concur. This is the way to proceed in a mentalism show. I do not go along with the modern trend of implying you are using NLP, psychology and knowledge of body language. That is just as much a lie as saying you are really psychic. If you are going to fib anyway at least do a proper job of it and imply (only imply) that you can read minds.

However for impromptu work it is probably best for you not to go around saying you are psychic. It is too much of a strain to keep up and to cap it all it is quite unnecessary.

To best respond to this question one must be able to define what it means to be “Psychic”. Are you clinging to the boogieman ideas surrounding the term or the more analytical points of what it infers?

Edgar Cayce, one of history’s most noted Psychics explained that he believed psychic ability related to nothing more than being able to see things in the mundane world that the average person ignores and which is thus “invisible” to them. We find similar explanations in the annals of Occult and Metaphysical literature as well as lore & myth when it comes to the powers and abilities of the Seer and Soothsayer – all of whom had the ability to “read” the signs.

What signs?

How about what was accepted and implied by this or that critter in a field or bird flying over head, the number of items and the types of items, their distance to or fro from you, etc? All of these as “signs” and “symbols” – a language understood by those that studied the craft but not to the average everyday human being. Thus, it is occult lore or esoteric knowledge – a science and art known only to those that had proven themselves worthy and capable of understanding and properly employing such things (for the sake of the greater good of all vs. self-advancement, domination, ill-gotten influence, etc.)

Now, I’ve invested decades of my life into the study of the human animal, nature, symbolism, psychology and ideomotor happenstance (for lack of a better term – what Dr. Paul Ekman & company refer to as FACS and loosely, what Richard Busch refers to in both The Destiny Response and his new book The Busch Factor). Based on this alone, I’d have to say that YES, I’m very much as Psychic or “Mystic” in that I’ve passed through the rites of initiation, proven myself worthy and have graduated into the deeper realms of study; I am exactly what was once looked upon by our ancestors as being a Wise-ard (Wizard) – a learned elder within the village or “wise one”. Like Merlin himself, I know how to look at things from a unique point of view and in so doing, make the seemingly impossible (based on the common human’s point of view) possible; everything from engineering feats to apparently healing the ill.

The thing we must look at, at least in my mind, is “does knowing the secret behind something detract from its effectiveness or how it is perceived by others?”

Just because I know the methods, the very same methods stolen by the Mental Health industry from the esoteric world I might add, does not negate the fact that the average human being will still view what I do as being “Psychic” Again however, we must clarify…

Being Psychic has nothing to do with special powers or anything “super” natural; it is 100% natural and employs little other than logic, intuition and a bit of imagination. It is the combination of these three things that bring about the more common manifestations the public views (wrongly) as being “Psychic”. Bear in mind, a person with a near photographic memory is seen as being “Psychic” just as a person capable of forecasting something as trivial as the weather based on what the leaves on plants and certain insects are doing – these are people that know the signs and nothing more. Myth, religious propaganda, ignorance and of course the tall tales of storytellers are what have imposed around this idea seriously misleading points of misinterpretation/ misrepresentation. Add to this those caught up in the delusion – the fantasy of being “psychic” based not on truth but on lore.

“But what about those that move things with their mind or who speak with the dead?”

Most telekinetic (psychokinetic) manifestations can be explained away via ideomotor response. The act of bending keys & flatware can be traced in origin to an early 20th century magic book e.g. I give such things little to no credence when it comes to “legitimate” Psi study and manifestation (other than in haunted sites… in which I’ve gotten my fair share of “the willies” as they say).

Speaking with the Dead is a seriously “tricky” subject (no pun intended) in that I’ve had two experiences in which I felt what certain Trance Channels have described, when a spirit “takes you over”. For that reason I tend to hold some reservations on the issue in that I know there are times information can come through us “from the other side” (?) that is applicable to the sitter or whomever that is with us. However, I am also inclined to believe that 95% of those claiming to be a Trance Channel is nothing but a money grabbing fake; again, it’s based on my experiences in such things. Simply put, I can’t imagine anyone wanting to feel that helpless and out of control of their own body or as “invaded” as I felt on those two particular occasions. It’s creepy! I don’t like it and I most certainly don’t understand it (analytically). I know it is possible but I also know that most who claim to do it aren’t for real and it’s a hustle.

In that this is something that comes up along with the original question I’m addressing it here, suggesting that if you wish to hold to the Psychic image for reasons already outlined, then you may wish to learn about doing Guided Séance sessions similar to that offered by Bro. Shadow in HAVE SÉANCE WILL TRAVEL. This way the onness is on the sitter not you and there is no sense of “trickery” involved. Just know that you will have people asking if you can help them speak with dead people… it’s a growing trend in our world these days and you need to be ready for it. BTW… a look at Docc Hilford’s $1,000.00 Séance manuscript will reveal to you just how lucrative the private Séance operation can be, so don’t sell this short based on certain industry based bias that has strings attached.

Richard Webster’s position on this is the best, why fight the image given to you by the public? They want to see you as being a gifted Psychic and if you want to work more and see a steady return, they you are going to allow for that image to exist in their minds, its part of the craft.

Stephan Minch pointed out nearly 30 years ago that most that have difficulty in accepting this “Psychic” image are magicians still stuck in the rut of “magician’s guilt” – individuals that will never “make it” as solid psychic entertainers in that they are not willing to walk the infamous tightrope this side of the craft demands of its artists.

Yes, we have a plethora of “experts” out there today who are saying that it’s really ok to sell yourself as a “fake” psychic and the old adage that “NO ONE WANTS TO HIRE A FAKE MIND READER” is bogus. We keep seeing fingers pointed to Derren Brown and others, denoting their success as openly admitted fakes. But, our contemporaries aren’t telling you about how much harder it is to get those gigs that pay the big bucks and deliver you the recognition at those levels. They don’t tell you about the calloused and cut-throat world of show biz and how you must buy your celebrity in order to obtain it. Nor do they explain to you that once the current trend dies (which it is doing at present) you will be nothing more than another magician with a bunch of over-done tricks with nowhere to go. Believe me, you will not be welcomed too readily into the New Age and Spiritually oriented markets jerks like I work in and are able to hold to a steady schedule doing… all because we allow people to assume what they will and, by way of a logical and common explanation, admit to being exactly what they perceive – a genuine Psychic.

I can make that claim with a straight face and without guilt. More important, I’m able to educate my public in how I see that term and how I feel it applies to me; doing so in a way that enlightens them to the role of the delusional believer as well as the charlatan. I’m also able to take away from them the whole boogieman or ET connections to the P word and in so doing, accomplish more good at invoking critical thought, that all the blasting and insults put forth in past years by Randi and his apostles combined. In other words, I can use our agreement (honey) to attract the bees (gain investment from the audience) and help them see things more realistically and on their own terms vs. the vinegar & bitters approach offered by my critics and detractors. One method has proven to work quite well over the years while the other has only resulted in division, hurt feelings, lost friendships and bitter contempt.

Enough said for now…

Good post, I can really recommend Richard Webster too. Fantastic stuff.

Mark,

Its a small World. My Great Grandfather was Thomas Edwin Box. He started Box Brothers business at Blackpool after he moved there for his health. He also started businesses up in Batley Carr, Mirfield, Ravensthorpe, Castleford and Wakefield. My mother sold the Wakefield business about the time I was born because she made a b**ls of running it after my Grandfather died. My second cousin, who runs the Blackpool business, was despatched to Wakefield to save the business but he got here too late. Had he not done so, I would have been a magical undertaker

The Blackpool business has 7 identical Rolls Royces with numbers BB1 to BB7. My Grandmother always used to tell me there was money in dying

The Box's were originally gypsies, maybe thats where I get my interest in magic from

Thanks Craig (and all others) for excellent thought provoking replies. There is much to think on.

When I first turned pro as a magician I dropped the tarot card readings that I had been doing as a side-line. I think I was over-enthusiastically accepting the magician's normal stance of debunking the "supernatural" world. However it has been slowly drawing me back, and now I see no reason why I shouldn't run the two enterprises side-by-side.

Whether it's magic or magik, I honestly don't think there's enough of it in the world. Or am I still that small kid that would spend hours climbing into wardrobes in the hope of finding Narnia??!!!