So last night I went and saw some old friends. I took three decks of cards, some silver coins, my skeleton key, and a pen. (I was ready and armed to the teeth to present some killer effects.)

One effect lead to another and pretty soon I was grunting and sweating as "levitated" a good three inches off the floor! (David Blaine, eat your heart out! w00t!)

Anyway, I had to get the involvement of one of my friends, a police officer, for an apparent "mind reading" effect I do with a pyramid of 10 cards. Fortunately for me, Roger can keep a secret and has a good poker face (Native American, college educated police officer moving up in his department-- yeah, he's been to court enough to keep a pretty tight mouth and a stoic expression!)

So, after doing the "pyramid" trick about three times for Roger, his wife, and their children, Julia (Roj's wife) is pleading with me to know how it's done. Roj chimes in and says, "I think I've got it figured out!" I turn and say, "Yeah? Really?" He says, "Yeah. The cards being all one color is a big part of this, right?" I agree enthusiastically (not even a real part of the effect but certainly a bit of psychological misdirection.)

So Roj leaves the room and returns upon being summoned. He goes through the routine as I did and then turns the previously selected card over. By now his wife is in near hysterics, demanding to know how it's done. So I said, "It's so simple you'd slap me if you knew." Roj agrees to perform again and twice more we go through the routine.

Julia, mind racing frantically, is desperate to know and is now playing 20 questions. I find this method of "revealing a secret" to be the best because you can deliberately mislead the spectator and make the effect all the more mind boggling!

So Roger goes to bed (he has police training early today) and I quickly move on to Dunninger's "You Do As I Do" routine with two packs of cards. In the end, she's pleading with me to tell her this one. Not a chance! I'm not about to ruin the mystery! =)

I do a couple of telekinesis effects using my skeleton key and a ball point pen. I go into some effects with dice and some mentalism.

By the time I'm leaving for home it's 2:00 a.m., the kids are tired but happy, and Julie-- poor, dear lovely Julia-- is mystified and kinda mad because I won't spill the beans!

I hope she could get to sleep. =)

Just last week a couple of guys at work did a mental epic type effect with papers and another, where I was the stooge. These guys are not magicians but obviously know a couple of tricks.
Most who saw it just enjoyed it.

One guy, who knows I 'dabble' in magic, would not leave me alone.
"Please tell me. Please. I'm your friend, please." hahahaha
Very annoying but I didn't tell.

Finally someone told him after he begged everyone.
Pathetic really.

Most people who ask don't want to know THAT badly. It's just idle curiosity. If you deftly buff off the question and move on it's usually enough. When they beg like you've described I usually give them vague directions to my local magic shop and tell them all the secrets they want to know can be found there. Then I warn that the mystery is what makes magic so much fun, so they should be prepared for the consequences of learning.

I haven't had anyone come back to me yet, having gone to the store and learned anything.

It is kinda sad when people actually find out the secret behind the effect they seem more disappointed in the trick. People usually wish they hadn't found out the secret after they do.

Joe,

I know most people's curiosity passes after a put off or two.

Believe me. With this guy I used a dozen catch phrases, some of what you suggested and other excuses until I just had to get firm and tell him to bug off. He thought he could bet with the tricks and make some cash.

Beware! They are out there and are often close aquaintances who won't let go.

Once he did find out how the tricks were done he called them cheap.
So right on!

I don't understand why any magician would even consider revealing the secret. If someone wants to know, you've obviously baffled and mystified them. They probably want to see more! By revealing the secret, all you are doing is removing all doubt in their mind that you really are magical, or that what you are doing is very complex.

Mikeflex,

I don't see where anyone here said they revealed secrets.
If you read my posts you'll see that I certainly didn't.

I agree with you.

Great story's!

This is a little off topic but it's similar in lines of false method adding more mystery. My friend Tony Gerard told me about this one. Rig something up to float inside a bottle and just leave it on a shelf. If someone goes to pick it up you frantically stops them and say, "It took me days to get the air pressure in the bottle just right to hold it there".

Now you know that some day they are going to try it by sucking the air out ofa bottle then get the cap back on fast enough...

Ron Jaxon

Um.... No secrets were revealed except for the necessary revelation to a confederate for the purpose of working an effect. (Which is essential for that effect to work at all.)

Sorry guys, I wasn't trying to insinuate that you do reveal the secrets. When I read this:




It made me think of the people where I work, who will learn one or two tricks from a book or the internet, and then as soon as they perform them, can't wait to tell everyone how they did it.

I would expect all users on this board to uphold the magicians code and never reveal the secret.

Sorry for the confusion - I am new around here and I guess I didn't type my thoughts clearly enough.

Ah! Understandable. Thanks for the explanation-- no need to apologize. Just thought I was gonna be black-balled before I ever joined the SAM or the IBM or the AMA! (Or "The Alliance" a la GOB Bluth from "Arrested Development.")

Yes, if there really is some "secret" to the effect, it shouldn't be revealed. However, I'm not above slipping someone a piece of paper that says, "Go along with this and have a good laugh with me as they try to figure it out. The answer I'll need from you is 'New Zealand.'" ;-)

I wish I had friends that I could perform for. I have actually lost friends because I wouldn't tell!

To appease people that must know how a trick is done and won't take "no" for an answer, I usually show them a really simple self-working trick that I learned when I was 10. It's not the effect they were bugging me about, but they're happy to have learned something and I still maintain my friendship.