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The Paranormalist Special user United Kingdom 702 Posts |
Many years ago I was booked to entertain at a trade show on stage in a Town hall in Truro, Cornwall. One of the demonstrations I did was 'Just Chance envelopes' using a Bank Nite tray to do the necessary work. Unfortunately on this occasion I forgot to load in the currency note. It wasn't until I was about to remove the said note when I realised my error. My only get out was to leave the four people in the audience who had made their choice of envelopes without showing the contents of my envelope or rather lack of contents and allow the curtains on stage to close.
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Fred E. Bert Veteran user New York, NY 359 Posts |
Last New Year's at a friend's house, I performed Challenge Mind Reading. The guy FREAKED but was the type person who would not accept the moment of mystery for what it was. He kept prying. I felt like playing with him so I told him about psychological subtleties (he wouldn't chose an Ace or a Queen since I had suggested those were obvious... Men tend to chose odd numbers and black suits while women tend to go for even numbers and red suits...) Some of it was true, other was B.S. Another guy walked into the room and wanted to see the effect. I repeated it, and while my instructions were very clear, this guy shuffled the deck... I was of course WAY off. It turns out he had selected a red 4, and the first spectator concluded jokingly that this guy must be gay! I then proceeded to recover with Out of Sight, Out of Mind. It KILLED.
Screw-ups will happen. Even the Greats goof sometimes. You just have to know how to recover. For those of you who forget your peeks -- I would suggest reading Harry Lorayne's material on memory, or just try the mnemonics routine in Corinda's 13 Steps... You will find that remembering as many as 30 words on the spot is not hard at all. And it's a good exercise to develop your memory. |
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hemisphere New user Chicago, IL 39 Posts |
Ok, a little off topic, but perhaps the best stage screw up I've ever seen was a performer (to remain nameless) performing Jumbo Sidekick. He forgot to load the blanks in the gun, so he decided (without explanation to the audience) to start stamping on the stage and clapping loudly. "Bizarre" magic at its best.
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RickSilmser Special user 869 Posts |
Getting married to my first wife.
~Rick~ |
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Jon Beetham New user Newcastle 71 Posts |
Biggest screw up had to be trying to force a page number using Larry's flashback book, however I had handed her a regular book.. I asked her a series of questions and obviously was missing by a mile, so I simply said "Great you think in a totally different to me and for my next effect I need a challenge..." I then went on with my next effect wiping the sweat from my brow..
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Samuel Catoe Inner circle South Carolina 1268 Posts |
I once used Flashback myself and during the routine, the assistant found out the books contain the same material. She exposed it to the rest of the audience. I responded "What? Did you expect me to play fair? Of course I cheat, I told you that at the start of the show. I tell you what let's get this book (Double Vision) and let you examine IT. Now check it out and make sure none of the pages are the same and all of the words are different..." I got out of it but learned a valuable lesson about the routine.
Author of Illusions of Influence, a treatise on Equivoque.
PM me for details and availability. |
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kcalB Special user Took me 16 years to make 999 Posts |
My screw up which is probably unique was while performing a comedy club gig. I was wearing an M5 on my wrist, and when I came onstage and reached for the microphone stand the M5 pulled my hand to the microphone like a tractor beam on Star Trek and made the most incredibly loud crashing sound when they made contact,
(I never even seen that one coming it happened so fast) Thankfully it was a comedy club so I began to joke that the polarity of the microphone was reversed and my incredably powerfull & expensive atomic wristwatch was attracted to it. I think they believed that line,.....LOL
"Klaatu barada nikto"
Former Member of P.E.A. Creator of The Clearly Q&A Board Alumni ECSSI ECSSII ECSSIII ECSSIV ECSSV BizarreHauntingsI |
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J ack Galloway Inner circle 1309 Posts |
Full theater with balconies.
One of the historic ones in Savannah. Was doing a book test. Nailed some cold reading stuff with the girl assisting working towards the target word. I wrote my prediction on a large white board. Tell me the word your thinking of I said, as I turned around the board. Yep the place seemed a lot bigger then. A full house and all that quite. Cheers Jack |
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Wolflock Inner circle South Africa 2257 Posts |
Oh hell. I have messed up on many occassions. TT's flying off, etc.
My worst was about 7 Years ago I did a stage show with a very low budget. During the show we proceeded to do the Mummy routine from the Tarbell collection, just with our own storyline. The Material we got was very thin and see through. Which would have been fine witht he lighting off from the back of the stage. But guess what, the lighting guy forgot to turn the back lighting off and we were stuck with a situation where the audience saw everything that happened. I tried to cover with some one liners but there was no saving that trick. I still cringe when I think about it. Regards Wolflock
Wolflock
Pro Magician & Escapologist Member of JMC (Johannesburg Magic Circle) South Africa |
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Ken Dyne Inner circle UK 2268 Posts |
Had a bit of an embarassing time on sunday. I work close up on Sundays at a local hotel and restaurant. It is a family place and I was workign the tables as ever with my act. As I walked past one table, which had been particularly enthusiastic, their daughter had been sitting playing naughts and crosses (tic-tac-toe). So over I bounded and began a tic-tac-toe prediction.
I went through the whole routine, saying I was suggesting to them where I wanted them to put their marks. At the end I turned over the prediction to find I had mis-remebered it completely and I had missed by a mile. Just proves that I should stick to what I know 110%. We live to fight another day. Best, Kennedy
MR GOLDEN BALLS 2.0: https://mentalunderground.com/product/mr-golden-balls-2-0/" target="_blank"> https://mentalunderground.com/product/passed-out-deck/
BAIRN: Named 'Best Mentalism Product Of 2014 by Marketplace of the Mind is my collection of more than 40 mentalism routines in a beautiful paperback book: http://www.mentalunderground.com/product/bairn |
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Wolflock Inner circle South Africa 2257 Posts |
Oh yes. Just grin and bear it. Magic Murphy's Law. Whatever can, will go wrong.
Tell me is it just me or do any of you find that you have a trick down perfect, until you perform it to another magician, then everything goes wrong? I have this happen quite often. Anyone else have a problem like this? Regards Wolflock
Wolflock
Pro Magician & Escapologist Member of JMC (Johannesburg Magic Circle) South Africa |
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Ken Dyne Inner circle UK 2268 Posts |
Absolutly. Its a great miracle to your lay audience, your partner and your mates however as soon as you sit down with a fellow performer in an attempt to impress them with your new piece of wonder all goes rather pear shaped.
Best, Kennedy
MR GOLDEN BALLS 2.0: https://mentalunderground.com/product/mr-golden-balls-2-0/" target="_blank"> https://mentalunderground.com/product/passed-out-deck/
BAIRN: Named 'Best Mentalism Product Of 2014 by Marketplace of the Mind is my collection of more than 40 mentalism routines in a beautiful paperback book: http://www.mentalunderground.com/product/bairn |
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Wolflock Inner circle South Africa 2257 Posts |
Here in SA I find that it happens all the time. Not just with myself. Most of the veterans here aer so afriad to do a show because they just know something is going to go wrong. And usually it does. I wonder if sometimes it is just psycological.
Wolflock
Pro Magician & Escapologist Member of JMC (Johannesburg Magic Circle) South Africa |
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