While in Las Vegas attending the LVMI/Coinvention I had the good fortune of meeting Chris Randall. At the tender age of 22, Chris has sparked the interest of many in our art, and with good reason. Chris has some very interesting ideas that are sure to entertain not only laypeople, but magicians as well. Easy to talk to, willing to share, I look forward to spending more time with him. I was lucky enough to receive this, his first dvd offering, and thought I would give you a sneak peek. Enjoy.

Chris Randall's SWEET DVD
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Disc description: Chris Randall's fast-paced, original effects and cutting edge thinking all culminate into several highly visual, entertaining routines. Ranging from easy to advanced, there is absolutely something for everyone on this disc .

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With so many magic dvd's appearing on dealers shelfs almost daily, aspiring young magicians must be ever so careful about the purchases they ultimately choose to make. After all, at an average cost of $30 a disc, one can only afford to buy so much. We all look for the good stuff and hopefully avoid the bad, simple as that. That said, many magic consumers have the notion that if the dvd carries a respected name on the package, the material will automatically be good, but a title by an unknown is probably not worth the gamble. Well, many times this is true, but often this is just not the case. Friends, unknown magician Chris Randall's disc proves my point exactly.

Filmed live at the Theatre of Dreams (Joe and Carol Givan's variety arts theatre up in Colorado) the disc contains some seventeen effects plus bonus material and some of Mr. randall's philosophies on proper magical performance.
The performance's were shot in front of an audience (fun to watch), with the explanations naturally having a studio feel.

In addition, the disc comes pre-packaged with a special set of gaffed playing cards which will not only aid you in performing one of Chris' effects, but will come in handy for other tricks that are probably buried away somewhere in your current magic library, of this I am sure.

The video quality is good and the sound is okay. My only gripe (this is probably just me) is some of the obvious in camera editing. Many people use this, but I prefer to avoid such things. However, this does not in any way take away from the great material that is included on this; Chris Randall's first offering to the magic community.

Ashes - A very visual four ace assembly that will amaze your spectators and probably fool the guys at your next club meeting. This uses the supplied gaffed cards and is very easy to do. Very nice.

Sugar High - The magician introduces a sealed packet of sugar and has the spectator think of a color. In the end, the sugar is emptied and is now seen to have changed from white to...? This would make a great table hopping trick and is not difficult to do. I like.

Silverose - A very sexy coin production routine using half dollars, fire and a rose. A real show piece here and worth your consideration.

Pip Squeek - The center pip from an ace vanishes leaving a real hole, then is istantly restored. Interesting idea, though not something I would do...worth a look.

Frankenfish - A very strange routine that has the performer (accidently?) killing a fish, only to later use CPR to bring the poor thing back to life. Very visual and could be histerical in the right hands. I loved this one.

Jumbo X - A visual appearance and vanish of three jumbo coins at your fingertips. Supply your own coins.

Phone Card - A chosen card turns into a cell phone, then appears inside the phone itself. This looks cool and may appeal to many of you.

Portable Phoenix - A live bird appears from within the flames of a burning wallet. This looks cool and is not too difficult to learn and perform.

Pop Go the Aces - A flashy four ace production sequence that may interest you, but does not fit my particular style. If you're really into cards this may be right up your alley.

Re-Fly - This is basically torn and restored card meets 3 Fly. A nice routine that will take a bit of work, but is certainly worthy of your attention.

Mouthing Off - While holding a card in his teeth, the magician mysteriously causes the card to instantly change.

All Rolled Up - a great audience participation trick that could come in handy for the right performer. Cool.

7 Digits - A nice mental mystery which has a spectators phone number appearing onto a blank sheet of paper. Looking for a date?

Influence - Another mental mystery involving the prediction of a shape. Not my cup of tea, but will no doubt appeal to many of you. Easy to do.

8 Ball - The magician calls attention to a blank playing card which has a picture of an eight ball. The performer then proceeds to squeeze a real eight ball out of the card, the card is now totally blank. I like this a lot!

There are a few more items on this disc, but I think you pretty much get the idea. Most of this material is actually quite good and worthy of your consideration. Recommended.

My rating:

Available from your favorite dealer.

Dealers - contact Murphy's Magic Supplies, Inc.
Toll Free: 1-800-853-7403
Or visit Murphy's website:
Click here!

Suggested retail is $30.00

You can order direct ($32.00 postpaid) from:

Five Star Magic Media
3721 STARFLOWER ROAD
CASTLE ROCK, CO. 80109
Phone/fax: (303) 660-2357
Contacts - Joe Givan joegivan@earthlink.net
or Danny Archer LECTURENET@aol.com