Dear friend,

Today we’ll be exploring a collection of professional level magic tricks, and breaking them down into two distinct categories. You’re going to learn some of the best professional tricks, resources, and gimmicks that will provide you will all the ingredients needed to transform you into a truly amazing magician – they are that good! First things first…

What are professional magic tricks?

I personally feel a little bit worried when I see just how much magic is out there. Why? Because I love magic! And I am an impulsive buyer, the two do not go well together.

That’s why I am very selective when it comes to buying tricks and gimmicks, I have a strict criteria that I follow to make sure I’m confidant these tools and tricks meet the high standards required for professional performance.

What sets the truly exceptional magicians apart (like myself) is our ability to discern and utilize the top 1% of gimmicks and props, along with mastering the top 5% of magic tricks. This elite selection forms a robust foundation, allowing magicians to significantly expand their creative horizons, refine their craft, and deliver performances that astonish and delight.

For instance, the classic ‘Cups and Balls’ trick—accessible to any magician—possesses an incredible depth of potential that, in the hands of a skilled artist, can be transformed into a mesmerizing professional-level performance. This principle applies across the board; selecting the right magic tricks and props is about seeking those with the greatest capacity for innovation, depth/skill, and power of sheer impact on spectators!

Another example, is in our classic magic book collection we have around 368 classic magic books with an index ripe with 4429 effects! We knew any magician who bought this could very well be overwhelmed (as well as struggle with digesting 20th Century magic literature) so we handpicked the top 138 and made a video collection for magicians to learn (more on this later)!

5 Professional Level Magic Gimmicks

Including, Switch One, the holy grail of card effects?

1: Switch One by Christian Grace – When it comes to the holy grail of card effects, there are a lot of contenders. (and we’d love to hear your opinions!) Personally, we love a good old ACAAN but Christian Grace’s ‘Switch One’ might just be a contender. Here’s what it looks like: You display a folded card under an inverted wine glass. You ask someone to name a color, a suit, and a value, to generate a truly random selection. The card under the glass is revealed to be this exact card. Pretty insane right? Click HERE to watch, Switch One being done!

2: Spider Pen X – The Spider Pen X by Yigal Mesika revolutionises magic with its unparalleled levitation capabilities, designed for magicians to perform astonishing, gravity-defying effects seamlessly and silently. It’s not just a tool but a game-changer, allowing for impromptu miracles with everyday objects, enhancing performances with its sophisticated, discreet design, and ensuring reliability and durability. Click HERE to view Spider Pen X on Monster Magic!

3: Smoke Watch Pro – This device allows for programmable time delays before smoke production and can be activated via a crown or an invisible button in the strap. It’s virtually silent, making it ideal for close-up performances, and features wireless charging, with a battery that supports over 20 performances on a single charge. The smoke amount can be configured to last for either 3 or 5 seconds, according to the user’s preference, and refilling the watch with the provided liquid is quick and easy, taking just 3 seconds. Click HERE on Merchant of Magic.

4: SvenPad® – The SvenPad are special pages for mentalism, allowing for seemingly impossible predictions and mind reading. Its quality ensures reliability, while its concept allows for a wide range of routines and personal touches. Click HERE to view on Vanishing Inc.

5: Tarantula II by Yigal Mesika – This is an electronic device designed for levitations and animations. Its updated design offers reliability and control, providing a platform for stunning visual effects that can be customized to the performer’s style! Click HERE to view on Vanishing Inc.

BONUS – Professional Magic Props! The Cups and Balls Set – This classic trick, with its simple premise of balls disappearing and reappearing under cups, is a testament to the magician’s skill and creativity. The routine can be adapted in countless ways, incorporating sleight of hand, storytelling, and audience interaction, making it a timeless piece for magicians to personalize and perfect! I love it, while it’s not a gimmick I think it is perhaps, the most professional level magic prop on the market. Click HERE to learn the Cups and Balls Routine!

BONUS 2 – Where Can I Learn From Professional Magicians – Danny Goldsmith is one of the worlds best coin magicians and he has a website with products all about coin magic! He’s amazing, and a really great teacher. There is also a magic membership called Magic Mastery, run by pro magician Steven Bridges that has a community full of amazing magicians with unique stories and adventures in magic (and much more)! Click HERE to view Danny’s Magic, and HERE to view Magic Mastery!

Professional Level Magic Tricks

Want 24 FREE classic magic books, including this one? CLICK HERE

Want 368 more books plus commentary for this one for just $10? CLICK HERE

If you asked any magician—whether a seasoned professional, top-class children’s magician or a member of the magic circle—THIS question…

“Where are the REAL secrets?”

They would most likely give you THIS answer… 

They’re in the books.

We couldn’t agree more.

In fact, two years ago this very week we launched our ‘classic magic book collection’ project where you could pick up 368 of these books.

That project sold in the thousands—but ever since we created it we’ve been acutely aware of one big problem….

For a lot of people these books are difficult to read, and so bulky it’s hard to find the really good stuff.

Our friend Danny Goldsmith (considered by many the world’s best coin magician) recently lamented to us that he learns better from video and struggles with classics such as Bobo—that would otherwise undoubtedly hold so much power for him.

That among many other reasons is why we’ve created this project.

This project is a VIDEO collection of 138 of the BEST tricks from our library of 368 classic magic books.

First, we spent hours upon hours pouring over these books, sifting through the material, and finding the very best ‘hidden gems’.

And there were a LOT of them.

In fact, while creating this project we quite literally found the method for one the best selling magic tricks of 2023 in a single throwaway paragraph written by Theodore Annemann.

(this is no exaggeration, check out trick 39 of this project upon purchase to see the proof!)

Next, we spent nearly two weeks practically living in our studio, filming high quality videos going over each of these tricks and making them as EASY to understand as possible.

Our goal was to do ALL the hard work for you.

We’ve taken these tricks, added our own modernizations, touches, alternate handlings and most importantly brought them into the modern age in the form of video.

We’ve also made sure the original excerpts are right below the video because reading and watching can create an even better experience!

This was a mammoth task.

This project has taken 2 years to be fully realized.

As Black Friday and ‘crunch time’ approached, we even had to carve out 2 weeks of our schedule to create a ‘magic bootcamp’ where we did nothing but read, film, edit, learn and produce.

(spending regular 12, 13 and even 20 hour days immersed in this stuff)

The result? 

Imagine knowing more about magic than you ever have.

Imagine being able to sit down with magicians such as Hugard, Annemann, Vernon, Erdnase, Cardini, Hunter and others, knowing you could have kept up with them.

(and perhaps show them a few things of your own!)  

That’s how we felt at the ‘peak’ of this project, while we were so immersed in their work. It’s a feeling we tried to capture in the product.

This project is about reaching into the past and bringing the best of that era of magic into the modern day.

We’ve talked to magic circle members, top magicians and clients about it for a while now.

But we’re finally sharing it with you…

138 Classic Effects

Dear friend,

Imagine a man whose hands spoke a language of their own, turning a simple deck of cards into a conduit for wonder. Picture this individual, not merely as a performer, but as an innovator and philosopher in the realm of card magic, a person who saw beyond the paper and ink to unlock the mysteries held within a pack of cards.

Visualize him, with cards effortlessly weaving between his fingers, each movement a testament to years of dedication and understanding. His performances were not loud or flamboyant; they were intimate, masterful demonstrations of what can be achieved with skill and imagination.

Feel the focused energy of a man who found his life’s calling in the flick of a card, the subtle shift of a hand. In his world, the complexities of card magic were distilled into pure, mesmerizing artistry, where every shuffle, every cut, every palm was a narrative in its own right.

Imagine the quiet anticipation of an audience, gathered not for grandiose spectacle but for the chance to witness a true artist at work. He didn’t just entertain; he invited spectators into a world where each card was a character, each sleight a story, each routine a revelation!

Picture the kind of man who cherished simple pleasures, like a warm summer evening spent playing cards and enjoying jazz, his love for magic as deep as his understanding that each card was a gateway to endless possibilities. In the world of Ed Marlo, magic was more than an act; it was an expression of endless curiosity and relentless pursuit of perfection.

that’s nice, but

Whenever we think we’ve created a new effect or technique, we like to remind ourselves…

“…that’s nice, but Marlo probably already invented it.”

This is mostly a joke.

(although according to Magicpedia, Marlo DID create an incredible 2000+ routines, and you’d be surprised how often the inspiration for ‘new’ ideas can be found tucked away in some notebook of his.)

But it raises an important question:

Do you NEED to study ‘the classics’?

Well, we don’t want to tell people that they NEED to study the classics.

The truth is, they don’t.

You can totally become a world-class magician without ever touching ‘the classics’, and solely relying on more modern resources.

That is a 100% valid approach.

However…

…it PAYS to study the greats.

Studying the work of legendary masters like Vernon, Marlo and others will give you huge insights into how the modern era of magic was shaped.

In fact, being a card magician without ever studying Marlo is somewhat like building computers without ever studying the life and work of Steve Jobs.

You COULD do it…but why would you?

See, studying the greats helps you understand the foundational building blocks and origins of modern magic.

The more you understand the foundational ideas, principles and effects that have shaped magic—the more effectively you’ll be able to combine those principles and ideas in new ways.

(Often, creating magic is often no more complex than taking a bunch of existing ideas and putting them together in a way that nobody else has thought of.)

Most of today’s great magicians spent a lot of time studying these legends—so by turning to the classics, you can go ‘straight to the source’ and learn from the same resources they did.

Here’s a great way to get started:

BigBlindMedia is currently running a 25% discount on a 3-hour documentary all about Marlo—and Daily Magician readers can use the code ‘DAILYDOSE10’ to get another 10% off that price!

(we’re not sure if this code still works but give it a try anyway)!

The documentary is called ‘It’s All In The Cards’ and features…

Part 1: The History

Documentary of Ed Marlo’s life in card magic.

Historic and rare footage of Ed Marlo performing a collection of his original card effects and sleight of hand (including Devilish Miracle, Unbelievable Aces and Cards To Pocket, Open Prediction and 8 perfect riffle Faro Shuffles).

First-hand stories highlighting Marlo’s unique personality.

Part 2: The Card Effects

Marlo’s students perform and explain card effects inspired by their mentor.

• Open Prediction
• Aces Of Spades Trick
• Matching Routine
• Soc Thru
• Repeat Card To Pocket
• Future Reverse
• Oddity
• Oil and Water
• Vanishing 11
• Gaffed To The Hilt
• Have Another Sandwich
• Web Shuffle
• Olram Aces

BONUS: Historic footage of Ed Marlo, Charlie Miller and Dai Vernon at the Magic Castle in the Palace of Mystery. Circa 1983 filmed by James Lewis.

Remember to use code ‘DAILYDOSE10’ at checkout for 10% off!

Click below to claim your discount:

https://bigblindmedia.com/products/ed-marlo-its-all-in-the-cards-video-download

Enjoy!

Ed Marlo’s Revolutionary Card Techniques

I personally know Ed Marlo best as the master of The Faro Shuffle!

The Faro Shuffle is a precise method of interweaving cards, typically involving a full deck divided into two equal halves.

It’s a type of false shuffle, used especially in card magic, because it maintains the order of the deck while appearing to mix the cards. When executed perfectly, each card from one half alternates with a card from the other half, creating a perfect weave!

While this shuffle is challenging as it requires exact alignment of the cards to interlace them one-by-one. Its precision allows magicians to perform complex tricks by controlling the deck’s order in a seemingly random shuffle!

Probably the coolest thing about a False Shuffle is the fact that 8 perfect faros would return a deck of cards to its original order! How insane is that!

>>The Faro Shuffle: Explained Like Never Before<<

Marlo has written extensively on this type of false shuffle, in his two books ‘Faro Notes’ and ‘The Faro Shuffle! (these are chapter 6, and 7 of his legendary revolutionary card technique book)!

1: The Faro Shuffle by Ed Marlo

This is a small little book by Ed Marlo that details his approaches to the Faro Shuffle!

It encompasses strategies for performing a faro, including…

• Initial Faro Technique
• The Faro Riffle Shuffle
• The Rear End Faro Shuffle.

It also introduces supports for the Faro, like the Table Support with the Fourth Finger and the Stabilize and Interweave method. Additionally, the guide delves into more intricate variations such as the Eccentric Faro, the Top Crimp Faro, and the 26th Card Check in Faro!

Click the link below to read the chapter on lybrary…

https://www.lybrary.com/the-faro-shuffle-revolutionary-card-technique-no-6-p-922443.html

2: Faro Notes by Ed Marlo

This is a small little book by Ed Marlo that features over 30 effects and concepts utilising the Faro Shuffle!

This collection encompasses Marlo’s comprehensive study of the Faro Shuffle, including the In Shuffle, the Out Shuffle, and additional faro methods.

It delves deeply into the transformations the deck undergoes through these various shuffles and contains a collection of card effects that can be executed using these intricate shuffling techniques!

Click the link below to read the chapter on lybrary…

https://www.lybrary.com/faro-notes-revolutionary-card-technique-chapter-7-p-283679.html

His Legacy…

“Palming separates the men from the boys” (Ed Marlo)

Ed Marlo’s Revolutionary Card Technique was initially a series of separate publications. This comprehensive body of work, covering a wide range of card sleights and techniques, was initially released in parts over several years. These parts were later compiled into a single volume!

This book is not merely a collection of card tricks; it is an in-depth study of the finesse, theory, and mechanics of card manipulation.

Marlo’s writing is technical and detailed, catering to those who seek to understand the minutiae of every move.

The book covers a vast array of techniques including…shuffles, deals, palming, and the infamous Faro Shuffle, explained with a level of precision and clarity that is rare in magic literature.

I personally think one of the standout qualities of this work is Marlo’s innovative approach. He doesn’t just teach the methods; he explores variations and improvements, encouraging readers to think creatively and critically about their magic.

However, this book is NOT beginner friendly!

The techniques described are very complex (literally one of his variations of the Faro Shuffle is regarded as the hardest sleight in magic) and require a significant amount of practice to master! This is a book for the magician who’s already bled, someone who is willing to invest the time and effort to elevate their skill to a higher level!

Click HERE to view on Amazon.

Thank you for reading Ed Marlo’s Revolutionary Techniques in Card Magic! We hope you enjoyed it!

Did you know?

Last month we made a sleight of hand ladder from beginner to grandmaster, from a standard shuffle all the way to a tabled faro shuffle! This is our most comprehensive resource on sleight of hand to date, and we give away some amazing free gifts!

Want to see where you are?

Click the link below:

How To Become Scarily Good At Sleight of Hand

Dear friend,

In today’s post, we’re sharing some fascinating insights and stories from the life of one of the great magicians of history—Robert Houdin.

What I find super interesting about this man, is that despite his mantle as a legend of magic and being worshipped by the magicians who came after him (like Houdini himself), I never really new exactly WHY he was considered the best, or a legend, or if he was even all that good at card tricks!

Thankfully researching and writing this post today has satisfied my itch and if you’re anything like me, than you’re going to enjoy this one!

The Amazing Life of Robert Houdin…

Jean-Eugène Robert was born on December 7, 1805 in Blois, France to Prosper Robert, a watchmaker. Originally, Robert’s father wanted him to become a lawyer.

However, Robert was more interested in mechanical gadgets and clockmaking. As a young boy, he was sent to school in Orléans thirty-five miles away. At age 18, he graduated and returned to Blois to train as a watchmaker under his cousin.

During this time, Robert ordered a two-volume set on clockmaking but received books on magic instead. Captivated, he began taking magic lessons from a local performer named Maous who taught him the cups and balls trick and sleight of hand. Robert practiced incessantly to improve his skills. He soon began performing at private parties as a professional magician.

In 1830, Robert married Josèphe Cecile Houdin, daughter of a Parisian watchmaker. He then hyphenated his name to “Robert-Houdin” in honor of his wife. The couple had eight children but only three survived.

Robert-Houdin moved to Paris to work in his father-in-law’s watch shop, using his earnings to fund his magic innovations.

When his wife died suddenly in 1843, the grieving Robert-Houdin remarried a younger woman named Françoise Braconnier who helped run his household.

In 1845, with funding from a friend, he opened his own theater in Paris called the Théâtre Robert-Houdin. His unique illusions like Second Sight and The Ethereal Suspension brought him fame.

However, his trusted mechanic Le Grand began selling duplicate illusions, leading to piracy issues. Competitors like Herrmann stole Robert-Houdin’s ideas.

After the 1848 revolution closed Parisian theaters, Robert-Houdin toured Europe. He performed for Queen Victoria in London twice. When he returned to Paris in 1850, he passed management of his theater to his brother-in-law so he could focus on inventions and writing.

At age 48, he retired from public performing.

His Tribal Conquest…

In the 1850s, France was working to gain control over Algeria. The French Army had pacified much of the region, but was worried about influential local religious leaders called Marabouts. The Marabouts had spiritual influence over their tribes and were encouraging rebellion against French rule.

Emperor Napoleon III decided to send famed magician Robert-Houdin to Algeria to showcase the superiority of French magic and technology. The goal was to impress the tribal chiefs and undermine the authority of the Marabouts.

Robert-Houdin gave many performances for tribal leaders, featuring illusions like The Light and Heavy Chest. In one famous trick, he invited a strong tribesman on stage and apparently sapped his strength so he could no longer lift a small wooden box. The man yelled in shock and pain from a hidden electrical shock device and ran from the theater.

After the shows, Robert-Houdin would reveal the rational secrets behind the tricks to prove they were skilled illusions, not supernatural powers like the Marabouts claimed. This increased French prestige.

One prominent tribal chief, Bou-Allem, challenged Robert-Houdin to catch a marked bullet between his teeth. After succeeding, Bou-Allem gave him a loyalty declaration that Robert-Houdin presented to French authorities as proof of his mission’s success in pacifying the rebels.

Through these performances, Robert-Houdin impressed the tribal leaders, undercut the influence of the rebel Marabouts, and helped establish French control. His skills as both a showman and diplomat made the mission a renown success.

The Last Dance…

Returning to France, Robert-Houdin gave his last public show in Marseille in 1856.

He retired happily to his home in Blois until the 1870 Franco-Prussian War. The news that his son Eugene was killed in battle damaged Robert-Houdin’s health. He contracted pneumonia and died on June 13, 1871 at age 65.

Robert Houdin is regarded as the father of modern conjuring, and his memoirs and books preserved the magic tradition he pioneered!

The Memoirs of Robert Houdin

Want 24 FREE classic magic books, including this one? CLICK HERE

Want 368 more books plus commentary for this one? CLICK HERE

Want 138 Classic Magic Tricks (36 hours of video, 1,000’s of hours work, hidden gems from Vernon, Annemann, Cardini, Erdnase, Hugard, Thurston and more…)? Click HERE

This book containts memoirs of the man that practically invented modern magic: Robert Houdin, the fascinating tale of the watchmaker turned theatre owner. His life took him places you’ll never expect even all the way to the tribes of Algeria where he won them over for France with his ‘stronger’ magic!

Did you know?

Jean Hugard was a big fan of Robert Houdin and it really shows in his work. He is quick to credit Robert Houdin with ideas and methods, and even wrote a book defending his honour when his reputation was called into question!

We too, respect our elders and we thing all magicians should!

Last black friday, we made a project that involved reaching into the past and bringing the best of that era of magic into the modern day…

This project is a VIDEO collection of 138 of the BEST tricks from our library of 368 classic magic books!

First, we spent hours upon hours pouring over these books, sifting through the material, and finding the very best ‘hidden gems’.

And there were a LOT of them.

In fact, while creating this project we quite literally found the method for one the best selling magic tricks of 2023 in a single throwaway paragraph written by Theodore Annemann.

(this is no exaggeration, check out trick 39 of this project upon purchase to see the proof!)

Next, we spent nearly two weeks practically living in our studio, filming high quality videos going over each of these tricks and making them as EASY to understand as possible.

Our goal was to do ALL the hard work for you.

We’ve taken these tricks, added our own modernizations, touches, alternate handlings and most importantly brought them into the modern age in the form of video.

We’ve also made sure the original excerpts are right below the video because reading and watching can create an even better experience!

This was a mammoth task.

This project has taken 2 years to be fully realized.

As Black Friday and ‘crunch time’ approached, we even had to carve out 2 weeks of our schedule to create a ‘magic bootcamp’ where we did nothing but read, film, edit, learn and produce.

(spending regular 12, 13 and even 20 hour days immersed in this stuff)

The result? 

Imagine knowing more about magic than you ever have.

Imagine being able to sit down with magicians such as Hugard, Annemann, Vernon, Erdnase, Cardini, Hunter and others, knowing you could have kept up with them.

(and perhaps show them a few things of your own!)  

That’s how we felt at the ‘peak’ of this project, while we were so immersed in their work. It’s a feeling we tried to capture in the product.

We’ve talked to magic circle members, top magicians and clients about it for a while now.

But we’re finally sharing it with you…

138 Classic Magic Tricks

Dear friend,

In today’s post, we’re sharing some fascinating insights and stories from the life of one of the greatest mentalists of history—Theodore Annemann.

Here’s a video we think really explains everything you need to know that we made:

(We’d like to thank ‘The Magic Detective’ for providing a lot of this information. Go check out that podcast if you haven’t already!)

His Life in Magic…

Theodore John Squires (later known as Theodore “Ted” Annemann) was born on February 22, 1907 in Waverly, New York.

He became interested in magic around age 10 after seeing a friend perform the ball and vase trick.

His mother disapproved of his interest in magic and burned all his books and props, leading to lifelong resentment from Ted!

As a teenager in the 1920s, Annemann began contributing tricks and articles to magic magazines like The Linking Ring and The Sphinx. He sometimes published effects without crediting the creators, earning him some enemies, two of those being Newman, the mentalist, and also Robert Geisel, the escape artist!

Annemann started performing as a mind reader in turban and cape, but magician Al Baker suggested he modernize his appearance. Though initially bitter rivals, Baker and Annemann later became close friends. In 1934, Annemann launched his own magazine called The Jinx, focusing on mentalism and card magic.

Annemann was best known for his dangerous version of the bullet catching trick using a method by Orville Meyer!

He struggled with health issues, alcoholism, panic attacks and mood swings. In financial difficulty, he committed suicide in January 1942 at age 34, leaving behind his second wife Janet and daughter Mona Lee.

Though troubled, Annemann made major contributions to the art of magic during his short but impactful life, which we’ll be exploring further…

But before we get into that, if you want to hear Theodore Anneman’s full story than I highly recommend you check out ‘The Magicians Detective Episode 38.’

In this episode you’ll learn all about Theodore Annemann, including…

• How a burning of magic books forged Annemann’s bitter determination
• How a ball and vase trick ignited his lifelong passion for magic
• The heated rivalry with Al Baker that sparked an enduring friendship
• The eerie cold hand shake gimmick that unnerved Annemann’s audiences
• Why his Jinx Five-Foot Shelf selection reveals key magic influences
• The quirky “Matter of Policy” card trick that could bring down the house
• Annemann’s dangerous fixation with the bullet catch illusion
• The repeated handcuff escapes that dazzled police chiefs
• How Annemann’s last show brought his demons into fatal alignment
• The tragic early loss of a tortured creative genius
• The holiday outreach mission inspired by Annemann’s lonely ending

Click HERE to listen to the story of the great Theodore Annemann!

The Jinx: The Greatest Magazine in Magic?

“‘I don’t care if the audience is 1 person and I need to employ 99 people to fool them—if that is the required method, that’s what I’ll do.’”

The Jinx was a notable magic periodical edited and published by Theodore Annemann from October 1934 to December 1941.

It started as a monthly magazine but switched to weekly publication with its 61st issue in October 1939. The magazine is often celebrated as one of the greatest magic magazines ever published, having significantly influenced the field of magic and mentalism. Many publications in the magic community have followed the format set by The Jinx.

The Jinx included a variety of content, ranging from mentalism and other magic effects to editorials and discussions about the magic community. After Annemann’s death, the publication of the magazine ceased, and original copies have since become collector’s items.

The content and effects from The Jinx have been compiled and published in various books and manuscripts, with Annemann’s Practical Mental Magic being considered a classic in the field of mentalism.

The Jinx Magazine (150+ issues)

https://askalexander.org/browse/88/Jinx

Ask Alexander is an incredible resource for magicians ran by Conjuring Arts. 

Use the link above to sign up for a free account and read 150+ back issues of Theodore Annemann’s classic ‘Jinx’ magazine!

Learn more about Ask Alexander here:

https://conjuringarts.org/askalexander/

The Books He Left Us With…

Want 24 FREE classic magic books, including Practical Mental Magic? Click HERE

Theodore Anneman was most well known for three major works…

1: 202 Methods of Forcing (1933) – This book is a comprehensive guide on the methods of ‘forcing’ in magic and mentalism. Forcing is a technique where the performer influences a spectator’s choice in a way that appears random. Annemann’s book covers an extensive range of methods for forcing cards, numbers, and other items. Click HERE to view 202 Methods of Forcing.

2: Practical Mental Magic (1944) – This book is a compilation of Annemann’s mentalism effects. It includes a wide range of mentalism routines, including mind reading, predictions, psychic phenomena, and more. The book is organised and covers the principles and performance aspects of each effect. Click HERE to view Practical Mental Magic.

3: Sh-h-h–! It’s a Secret (1942) – This book delves into various aspects of magical performance, including tricks, theories, and psychological nuances. It’s a collection of effects and thoughts that reflect Annemann’s innovative approach to magic and mentalism. Click HERE to view Sh-h-h–! It’s a Secret!

Did you know?

We actually made a video adaption of Theodore Annemann’s famous book ‘202 Methods of Forcing’.

There are of course 202 forces in the book, but we wanted to get it down to something you could process and learn within an hour.

So here it goes…

the 22 card forces we’ve ‘cherry-picked’ and gone over in detail!

(We’ve also added our own modern twist to quite a few of them…)

• The Miscount Force – A genius method for placing a card at ANY chosen number, completely impromptu and the spectator is the one dealing the cards!
• The Number Force – You shuffle the deck and deal out 3 random cards, the spectator picks ANY of the cards (no magicians choice here) and you count down the value of the card in the deck, they land at your forced card!
• The Visual Force – You riffle through the deck and tell the spectator to glimpse ANY card, the card they glimpse will always be your force card.
• The Packet Force – A hilarious force that allows your spectator to pick 1 of 3 piles, your prediction about their choice will ALWAYS be correct.
• The Spirit Crosscut – A fantastic variation for the most fooling force of all – the crosscut force.
• The Palm Force – The spectator takes and genuinely cuts the deck ANYWHERE they want – they always cut to your force card.
• The Tray Force – A ballsy method for forcing either the left or right packet – with no magician’s choice.
• The Pass Force – The magician asks for any number, utilizing the pass, he instantly moves the force card to the correct spot.
• The Slip Force – The magician riffles through the deck telling the spectator they can tell him to stop at any point. He genuinely stops when asked – revealing the forced card at the chosen location.
• The Four Card Force – A devilish method with a 100% success rate at forcing 1 of 4 cards.
• The Runoff Force – You genuinely shuffle the deck in plain view of the spectator, telling them to name any number, they name the number – you will ALWAYS deal down to your force card.
• The Old Force – This is one of the most classic forces that has been used for centuries. It’s extremely easy.
• The Water Fountain Force – You overhand shuffle the deck, telling the spectator to stop you at any point, when they call stop, they arrive at your forced card.
• The Coin Force – A hilarious method for forcing a packet of cards, using just 7 coins.
• High Card Force – The spectator picks out a packet of cards, they pick one card from the packet, this card will ALWAYS be your force card. (also included a full mem deck routine using this method…)
• The Impossible Prediction Force – This force like many others could be its own routine! The spectator reaches into the deck and picks out a card – you tell them whatever the value of the card is will be how far you deal down in the deck. Whatever the value – 6,7,8, you always land on the force card.
• The Blatant Force – A ridiculously ballsy method for forcing a card when a number under 15 is named. (also included a theory on how to apply this method using the mem deck and ACAAN…)
• The reversal force – an easy method for forcing a card at ANY named number (only one move required to pull this off, and minimal setup…)
• The Crosscut Force – the most fooling force in all of magic (as proved by psychologists)
• The Brave Force – As indicated by the name, a ridiculous force that requires a lot of bravery to pull off – but when it works you’ll always force the top card at ANY desired number. (also included a full routine that works with this method…)
• The Joker Force – Force two cards at a random position the spectator cuts to, all using just a joker card.
• The Chan Canasta Force – An entirely mental force that works 70% of the time, and works off the premise of genuinely free choice.

Now that’s a lot of forces – View our videos HERE

Thanks for reading our post on the sad life of Theodore Anneman. It’s tragic that annemann had such struggles in his life. We hope to pay homage to his him by re-introducing his material to magicians around the world and reminding people of his methods and ideas. 

Many of the tricks in our 138 Classic Effects are from Anneman, and many of these were hidden gems (we loved the Yogi Book Test)! In fact, while creating this project we quite literally found the method for one the best selling magic tricks of 2023 in a single throwaway paragraph written by Theodore Annemann.

Sounds intresting?

Simply click the link below and you’ll be sipping tea with the greats in no time…

138 Classic Magic Tricks

Dear friend,

In today’s post, we’re sharing some fascinating insights and stories from the life of one of the great magicians of history—Harry Kellar.

(We’d like to thank ‘The Magic Detective’ for providing a lot of this information. Go check out that podcast if you haven’t already!)

Now, chances are you haven’t heard of Harry Kellar. But in the late 1800s and early 1900s, he was one of the most famous and influential magicians in the world.

The wizard from the classic story ‘The Wizard of Oz’ was actually based on Harry Kellar—which you’ll notice if you check out the early illustrated versions of the story!

So how did this now little-known illusionist make such an impact during the golden age of magic? Let’s dive in…

The Amazing Life of Harry Kellar…

Kellar was born Heinrich Keller in Erie, Pennsylvania in 1849. He dropped the “H” from his first name and tweaked his last name to the more stage-friendly “Kellar” after beginning his career.

Following a successful international tour early in his career, Kellar suffered a shipwreck and lost nearly all of his equipment—forcing him to rebuild his show.

His breakthrough came when he purchased the rights to French magician Buatier de Kolta’s famous “Vanishing Birdcage” illusion. Despite its controversial method (which we do NOT condone) this effect became wildly popular in the USA though Kellar.

Over his decades-long career, Kellar toured extensively, performing across the world.

One of his biggest contributions to magic was his work on “The Levitation of Princess Karnac”—a brilliant method for making someone levitate on stage while apparently demonstrating that there was nothing supporting them.

John Northern Hilliard said that this act was “the crowning achievement of Mr. Kellar’s long and brilliant career.”

Kellar influenced many 20th century greats including Houdini, Howard Thurston, Horace Goldin and more—either directly as a mentor or through his pioneering style of showmanship which brought illusion theater to the mainstream.

Known as the “Dean of American Magicians”, Kellar forever changed the art we know and love!

If you’re interested in hearing more of Harry Kellar’s story then I highly recommend you listen to all the episodes on ‘The Magicians Detective” about him…

The Amazing Harry Kellar (Part 1, 2 3)

In these episodes you’ll learn all about Harry Kellar, including…

• The 6-year-old’s magic “awakening” that foreshadowed Kellar’s career
• How a chance dog encounter landed Kellar his first magic gig
• Kellar’s rebellious act that got him fired…yet propelled his fame
• The shipwreck that robbed Kellar of his fortune…and gave him a historic new illusion
• The illusion that sparked controversy – was Kellar really killing birds each night?
• The rag-to-riches story of how Kellar rebuilt his career from nothing
• Kellar’s stripping act: Why he willingly went on stage wearing only his underwear
• How Kellar was the real-life inspiration for the Wizard of Oz
• The lost treasure worth a fortune…is it still sitting on the ocean floor?

Click HERE to listen to the amazing story of Harry Kellar!

So what lessons can today’s magicians take from Kellar’s trailblazing career?

1: Be resilient – Whether physical or mental, all magicians will face set-back at some point in their career. Kellar’s ability to rebuild his show and career following a devastating shipwreck is pretty inspirational stuff.

2: Market yourself effectively – Kellar knew how to brand his magic, hype up his shows and draw crowds. Honestly, we think some of the ‘old school’ effects have the coolest names.

3: Don’t just recreate, innovate – According to Wikipedia, Kellar was originally unable to duplicate the levitation act he was hoping to. Instead, he designed a new method with the help of the Otis Elevator Company. His version would become hugely successful!

4: Mentor others – Passing on knowledge to the next generation is powerful. Be generous in teaching if you can.

We’re doing our part to mentor the next generation of magicians by sharing our journey mastering different elements of magic.

Last black friday, we made a project that involved reaching into the past and bringing the best of that era of magic into the modern day…

This project is a VIDEO collection of 138 of the BEST tricks from our library of 368 classic magic books!

First, we spent hours upon hours pouring over these books, sifting through the material, and finding the very best ‘hidden gems’.

And there were a LOT of them.

In fact, while creating this project we quite literally found the method for one the best selling magic tricks of 2023 in a single throwaway paragraph written by Theodore Annemann.

(this is no exaggeration, check out trick 39 of this project upon purchase to see the proof!)

Next, we spent nearly two weeks practically living in our studio, filming high quality videos going over each of these tricks and making them as EASY to understand as possible.

Our goal was to do ALL the hard work for you.

We’ve taken these tricks, added our own modernizations, touches, alternate handlings and most importantly brought them into the modern age in the form of video.

We’ve also made sure the original excerpts are right below the video because reading and watching can create an even better experience!

This was a mammoth task.

This project has taken 2 years to be fully realized.

As Black Friday and ‘crunch time’ approached, we even had to carve out 2 weeks of our schedule to create a ‘magic bootcamp’ where we did nothing but read, film, edit, learn and produce.

(spending regular 12, 13 and even 20 hour days immersed in this stuff)

The result? 

Imagine knowing more about magic than you ever have.

Imagine being able to sit down with magicians such as Hugard, Annemann, Vernon, Erdnase, Cardini, Hunter and others, knowing you could have kept up with them.

(and perhaps show them a few things of your own!)  

That’s how we felt at the ‘peak’ of this project, while we were so immersed in their work. It’s a feeling we tried to capture in the product.

We’ve talked to magic circle members, top magicians and clients about it for a while now.

But we’re finally sharing it with you…

138 Classic Magic Tricks