Any ideas for a story behind the Coke Bottle Vanish?

I came up with this (I'm gonna edit out some details):

When my grandfather was a kid he would always walk to the corner store after school and buy a bottle of soda. He too being a magician, a less experienced one at the time, would always wonder how to make it disappear (show Coke bottle). After various tries (make it look like you're trying to hide the bottle) he got no reaction from his peers. Finally...he just decided to give up (crumple bag with bottle in it and toss it away).

Maybe a little cheesy, any ideas on how to spruce it up?

Justin David

JD,

What's wrong with that?

I do it a little differently but there is no medication known to man that will keep me from being a little strange. The Coke isn't the only thing in the bag.

In my #10 brown bag is also an orange juice, milk or V-8 (my favorite). I start with both in the bag closed and complain about people who don't listen. I sent Bubba to the store to get me a V-8 but he never listens. So he came back with (get the Coke from the bag) this Coke because he just thought I just wanted a drink of some sort. He's from Atlanta anyway and they think that Coke is all there is. (Put the Coke back into the bag.)

I really wanted a V-8. If I were a real magician this wouldn't be a problem. I could just make a pass over the bag like this, reach in and get my V-8, (do that) and wad this old bag up and throw it away. (Do that too!) Well, well, well, look at this! Don't tell Bubba. He'll want one too.

I bang the V-8 bottle (still inside the bag) on the table when I pull the Coke out of the bag and put it back. It leaves folks sure it's solid. Of course, they can inspect the V-8 bottle forever. It's the real thing!

Bob Sanders
Magic By Sander

Nice routine, Bob!

I used to do Coke—but the little bubbles kept making me sneeze and my nose got all sticky!

Lee Darrow, C.Ht.
http://www.leedarrow.com

Hmmm...maybe it's just me, but I like the sense of closure of seeing the Vanished Coke Bottle return. I think it plays better that way and the focus is now on the ordinary bottle, not the crushed up bag. Lots of opportunity for interesting creative routines that way.

Jack Shalom

Can you do an impersonation of a grandfatherly character (voice and gestures)? If so, you could make the routine more endearing and comical. Then add some dialog between your grandfather and yourself as a kid. Maybe think of a plot or some conflict to resolve. Use the imagination, and make the story come to life!

I like the V8/Coke routine above, but isn't it obvious that they were both in the bag to begin with?

It is powerful crumbling up the bag with the coke in it, but it seems the audience would know the V8 was there from the start.

Thoughts?

-R

I have another thought about the coke bottle and without wanting to give away any secrets I'll ask simply:

Does anyone have any problems manipulating it in that if you actually pick up a real coke, the liquid inside would slosh around. Has anyone had the audience pick up on that?

-R

Hey Richard,, good to see a fellow magician friend on here! it does not really matter that the audience assumes that the bottles were always there to begin with. that is what we are trying to make them think, as well as that the bag is as full of solid glass as possible. we want them to think we are using the bag to hide the bottles, as that makes the crumbling even more amazing.

it is actually stronger because they say to themselves, "the bottles" are still in the bag. I personally prefer the vanishing ketchup bottle, as you don't have the problem you talked about with coke, as far as "sloshing" is concerned. that was a good point.