Wow! I've been working cards most of my life (36 now). I can say reading and seeing a lot of material out there. If you want to get down to business with excellent card material; this is the guy. The material he puts out cuts out the B.S. For once in you life you can sit down and really play with a deck of cards. Great stuff and the routines flow in and out of each other.

Right on!

Indeed.

Kasper,
Mr. Lorayne is one of the legends of our art to be sure. In fact, I would place him alongside Vernon, Marlo, and Hofzinzer as being the most influential card magicians of the modern era. The thing is, Harry Lorayne is no slouch when it comes to close up magic in general. While cards are his forte, he will hurt you with non-card effects as well. Mr. Lorayne learns virtually every effect in every book he writes in addition to creating his own. So imagine Apocalypse for example: 2880 pages of magic, and Mr. Lorayne did the write-ups for 90+% of the effects in that massive collection alone. Considering his clear teaching style, you can rest assured that any effect taught by Harry Lorayne has been mastered and field tested by this great man as well. We are blessed to have him here. I have said in other threads that having him here would be like having Sir Paul McCartney in a music forum. The thing is, the biggest guns in music do not hang out in music fora. Yet Mr. Brooks, et. al, have provided a place where the best of the best are accessible to us. Just take a look at the archive of Special Guests!

To keep this strictly a card magic post, I would offer that one of the most devastating sleights ever created, the HaLo Cut, has made miracles possible from a technical standpoint.

I just returned from NYC and I had hoped by some divine intervention that I could have met the man at Tannen's or Fantasma. Alas, no luck. But, his writings make me feel as though he is here mentoring me.

Best,
Vlad

We are blessed to have him here.

Amen.....

Yes! He's put out an amazing amountcof great material.

I just got his Classic Collection books 1 & 2 in my mailbox today and don't have to work tomorrow.
I can hardly wait to dig in!

Here we have a forum where you can ask a question and have it answered by Harry Lorayne. I still haven't quite got my head round that.

No disrespect - but tell us something we don't know mate!

If you've been 'working with cards most of your life' and only just got enthusiastic about Harry Lorayne's material, then I have to ask..., which Desert Island were you shipwrecked on?

Ah - well. Why not big Harry up. He is, indeed, a genius and we are lucky to have him here.

It'll be the Paul Gordon fan club in the next thread. Another great writer, and very similar to Mr. Lorayne.

Hmmmm - just a thought - Has anyone seen Harry Lorayne and Paul Gordon in the same room?

Paul and I are friends, Roger. We've spent quite a bit of time together, so I assume we have been "seen." hl

I'll bet Harry! I wished I was there.

So similar styles was my point - Both of equal influence in my card magic education.

Yeah I know Merc Man. Ive studied Harry's material before. I got side tracked wanting to get better with other hobbies; like Djing, hynotism, mentalism. I wasnt putting new card material in my repertoire for a long time. Getting back into learning new material made me realize how much his material flows. I guess Im coming back and wanting to be REALLY good with cards. Of all the material and books I have around here I realized how well this material was. I knew it was good ;now Ive seen its real good. I just haven't had time to really DIG into it. I know its probably old news to the experienced hardcore card guys. Just got excited and wanted to share.

haha Deserted Island? That would be nice. but I would to put some people on here and maybe rule with these effects.

For those who only "know" Harry from his books may I suggest searching his name on youtube and seeing some of his effects performed by himself. I bet you'll appreciate him even more.

Picard - you raise a very good point. Seeing Harry perform - well what can I say other than I don't think you'll ever see a better performer/entertainer with just a pack of cards. There's a clip on YouTube of Harry performing for laymen in a Café - it's the real thing (and shows how card magic works for real people - instead of the sterile, fake, 'cardboard cut out' L&L audiences!).

Kasper - glad you saw the funny side and didn't take it personally (as some do with our patronising English wit on here).

I saw Harry lecture a long time ago, maybe 25-years or so. It was the single, best magical performance I have ever seen in my life.

When Harry dies, they should put his brain on display at the Smithsonian. Of course, they will need an entire wing to house it. He somehow has learned to use his brain like no other man before him. He leaves quite a legacy.

Doug Canning

Hey Merc Man I used to work for a British company here in the U.S. I am VERY familiar with the English Wit. Kept me on my toes all day, that's for sure!

I just recently bought Apocalypse after watching Harry blow me away on his DVD set.
The HaLo Cut RULES!!
Once again, can you tell I'm a fan?

I started with three books - Expert at the card table - The stars of magic and Harry Lorayne's close up card magic. I have been a Harry Lorayne fan as long as I have been doing close up card magic. And there are more Harry Lorayne routines in my show - since day one - than any other.

His books are "highly recomended."

I hope this helps.

Cheers!