Purple Reversed Deck:
The Purple Deck along with its gaffed cards, is one of the best values you can find. In addition to getting a unique deck of cards, you are supplied with three gaffed cards.
Initialed Card Telepathy – Ted Annemann
The Effect
A card is freely selected and initialed. It is returned and the pack shuffled. The spectator thinks of a number. Performer openly and s lowly counts down until the spectator stops him and there is the initialed card. Performer does not know the card or the number until the finish of the trick.
The Performance
Place the double-backed card on the top of the pack. Put a light pencil dot on the upper left and lower right corners of that card on both sides so that it can be found instantly in a slightly fanned pack. Have a spectator freely select a card and initial its face. Undercut the pack, have the card replaced on the double-backed card and complete the cut. Cut several times and finally, by sighting the dot, cut to bring the chosen card to the top with the double-backed card below it. Ask the spectator to think of a number below fifteen s o that the effect will not be too prolonged. Now say, ‘Your number is odd, isn’t it?’ If so you continue, ‘I thought so, but don’t tell me or anyone else just what the number in your thought is.’ If the answer is ‘No,’ say ‘Well that’s odd. However, don’t let me or anyone else know the number you are thinking of.’ You know now whether the number is odd or even which is all the information you need.
If even, with your right thumb lift the rear ends of the top three cards and insert the tip of the little finger. Turn the three cards as one, take off the face-up card and push it into the middle. The double-backed card is now on top, the selected card is face up below it. If the number is odd simply leave the double-back on the top with the selected card below it.
Riffle shuffle the pack, leaving the two cards in position, and announce that the chosen card is now at the number thought of. Lift and turn three cards as one as you ask ‘Are you
thinking of One?’ On the negative reply take off the top faced card singly. Drop the card on the table.
Again lift three and insert tip of little finger as you ask if he is thinking of Two. If again the answer is ‘No’ turn the three cards, take off the top faced one and drop it on the table. When finally you get the answer ‘Yes,’ push off the top faced own card and it will be the initialed card. Try this out with the cards and the details will be clear but the lifting of the three cards as one requires practice.
OVER AND OVER
The Effect:
You take five cards from the deck, and give five more to a spectator. Your helper is to duplicate each move you do as you turn cards face up and face down. When you finish, all of your cards are facedown but he has one face up in the center.
The Performance:
Put a double back card second from the top of the pack. Fan out the top cards of the deck, separate the top five from the rest, and drop them in front of you. Take off the next five cards, give them to someone, and put the rest of the deck aside. Tell your helper to do each move exactly as you do, as you want to see if he can follow instructions. With your left thumb push the top card to the right so your right fingers can turn the card over. Put that card on the bottom of the packet. The next card, the double back, is taken off and put on the bottom. The third card is turned face up and put on the bottom, and the next card is put on the bottom without turning it over. Spread out your cards to show that you have two face-up cards and three that are face down, and your helper has the same.
Square up the cards and turn the packet over by turning it end over end and away from you. The top card is face up, and you turn it over. Again, turn the entire packet over lengthwise. The top card is face down, and you turn it over. Turn the packet over again. Spread your cards and they will all be face down, but your friend has one face up.
To repeat the trick, count the cards off into your right hand, one at a time, showing that they are all face down, the last one going under the rest of them. You can again do the same moves to make all of your cards face down.
The Trick That Fooled Houdini
Legend has it that the Great Harry Houdini was fooled by a young magician using a double-back card for an Ambitious Card routine. The Effect:
Someone shuffles the deck, removes any card, and puts their initials on the face of it. You put it face up on top of the deck so everyone can see which card it is and the initials of its owner. It is then turned face down, slid slightly forward on the deck, and the second card is slid out from under it and then back over on top of it. After you give the deck a magic riffle, the new top card of the deck is turned over and shown that it is still the selected card. The same moves are repeated, and the selected card again pops to the top. The third time, however, you put the face down selected card into the center of the face-up deck, and when you give it a riffle, the reversed selected card again jumps to the top.
The Performance:
A double back card is in your right-hand pocket. Hand the deck out to be shuffled, and, as a card is being selected & signed, you add the double back to the top of the deck and you’re ready.
Have the selected card put face up on top of the deck. Call attention to the name of the card and the initials as you square the deck in your hands . At the same time, your right thumb (which is at the end of the deck closest to you) lifts both the initialed card and the top card of the deck (the double back). Holding the two cards between the tips of your thumb and second finger, move your right hand to the left side of the two cards, and turn them over like turning the page of a book. The double back is now on top and the selected card is the second one.
Hold the pack at the tips of your left fingers, and use the tip of your second finger to slide the top card away from you until its outer end is about an inch over the outer end of the deck.
Leaving that card in place, slide your fingertip back toward you until it is touching the back of the second card. Pull this card toward you until it clears the inner end of the top card, and then (with your middle finger and thumb) push that card over the top of the other card. Keep pushing until the inner end is flush with the inner end of the deck, and then, while your thumb stay s on the inner end of the pack, your middle finger pulls the outer card flush with the deck.
You do all of those moves slowly and so your audience can see that the selected card is now the second card from the top of the deck.
Your right thumb riffles the inner end of the deck from the bottom up, and then lifts the left inner corner of the top card. Placing the tip of your middle finger on the left outer corner of the card, you turn the top card over to show that it is again the initialed card. Square up the pack as you bring attention to the fact that the card has jumped back to the top.
Again, lift the left inner corner of the top card and the second card together, turn them over sideways on the deck, and square up the cards. You do the same moves as before to exchange the positions of the top two cards, and then show that the top card is again the selected one.
For the third time, turn the selected card over so it is again face down, use your thumb to pick up the two top cards, but this time hold them face down as your left hand turns the deck over so that it is face up. Put the two face-down cards under the deck (so that they are back on top), and square up the cards. Use your left middle finger to slowly slide out the top card of the deck (the double back card) to the left, using the tips of your right fingers and thumb to keep the reversed selected card even with the rest of the deck, and then slide the double back card into the center of the pack. Square up the deck and riffle the inner left corner of the deck upwards.
You turn the deck face down and spread it across the table and the initialed card is back on top and all the rest of the cards are face down.