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The Magic Cafe Forum Index Books, Pamphlets & Lecture Notes HN Review 12:
Theater of the Mind Barrie Richardson(0Likes)

Posted: May 15, 2003 04:45 am

Harvey Nerzof 0

HN Review 12: Theater of the Mind Barrie Richardson

AD:
Hermetic Press has always taken pride in producing only the very best books on mentalism: Waters's
Mind, Myth & Magick, Lesley's Paramiracles and works by Phil Goldstein. For years we wanted to
Regular user bring out a book by Barrie Richardson, and when we did it was an instant success, selling out three
193 Posts
printings within a year. In a recent poll, Theater of the Mind showed up on a number of lists of the ten
best magic books of all time!

1999 recipient of the Psychic Entertainers Association award for creativity, and with over fty years of
professional performance behind him, Barrie Richardson has gathered together 53 of his best mental
routines, most with complete presentations, for this large volume of baffling experiences. In Theater
of the Mind you will nd page after page of fresh, practical material, tested and perfected before
thousands of audiences; astonishing feats that use only ordinary items, and few of them; entertaining
mental experiments that involve the whole audience, that pack small and play big, that exploit a
devilish combination of simplicity and cleverness. What you will discover in Barrie Richardson's
Theater of the Mind is a wealth of professional material at a pauper's price. 320 pages in hardcover.

REVIEW:

Big book from Stephen Minchs Hermetic Press, you will surely nd something to use. At least I did,
courtesy of Pencil Pusher.

There are regrettably a lot of magic tricks with cards, envelopes, billets etc. which constitute the bulk
of the book do not except cutting edge techniques or revolutionary mentalism methods.

Interesting solution for the Berglas Any card at any number problem, even though I would have liked
him to lay out all the cards arrangements, instead of leaving part of the work to the reader!

Overall rating: very good

H.
Download all reviews at http://magicreviews.tripod.com/HN_Magic_Reviews.PDF
Posted: Jul 20, 2003 05:32 pm
jasonchr 0

I just recently got this book and am very pleased with it. The routines are incredible and include some
great presentations as well. I do not perform much mentalism, but I found at least six things to add to
my current repertoire. Denitely one of my top ten books!

Jason X
Regular user
North Carolina The aspirant should acquire the resolve to explore and expand his talents to the best of his ability. With a thorough commitment to
173 Posts quality comes a sense of accomplishment and unique satisfaction.

John Carney
Posted: Jul 20, 2003 11:23 pm
marko 0
 Flat-out great book. Tons of usable material. Denitely a modern classic.
Thought: Why does man kill? He kills for food. And not only food: frequently there must be a beverage.

Inner circle
2110 Posts

Posted: Jul 21, 2003 04:23 am

Scott F. Guinn 0

Quote:

There are regrettably a lot of magic tricks with cards, envelopes, billets etc.
which constitutes the bulk of the book do not except cutting edge
Inner circle techniques or revolutionary mentalism methods.
"Great Scott!" aka
"Palms of Putty" &
"Poof Daddy G"
6575 Posts

I don't think this is regretable at all. Like Osterlind, Webster, Kreskin and most successful WORKING
mentalists, Barrie includes magic in his mentalism performances. This is an outstanding book with
many usable effects for both the magician and the mentalist.
"Love God, laugh more, spend more time with the ones you love, play with children, do good to those in need, and eat more ice cream.
There is more to life than magic tricks." - Scott F. Guinn
My Lybrary Page
Posted: Jul 21, 2003 08:37 pm
Magicmike1949 0

This is a terric book with lots of great ideas. I especially agree with Scott's comments about it being
for those who combine magic & mentalism in their performance.

Special user
647 Posts

Posted: Jul 21, 2003 09:58 pm

Ed Oschmann 0

All I can say is that I'm not a mentalist by any stretch of the imagination, but I really like this book!
Tricks aside (which they are very good) he has an excellent prose style that is very engaging. His
close-up solution for the any card at any number is genius. I use this constantly in my close-up set.
Special user Worth the price of the book in my opinion.
Lake Worth FL
826 Posts By this book! Ed (a nger-flicker) Oschmann

Posted: Jul 22, 2003 07:21 am

Crippen 0

I think you could put together at least one or two stage and parlour mentalism shows from TOTM
without having to touch a deck of cards (although you would be wise to use some of his presentation
ideas from the "card tricks").

I return to TOTM often for new ideas regarding all the classic tools of mentalism.
New user
Washington, D.C.
79 Posts
Regards,

Crippen
Posted: Jul 28, 2003 06:06 am
Iain Moran 0

I had the pleasure of seeing Barrie lecture while he was in the UK a couple of years ago. I saw several
of the effects performed, and bought the book instantly. It is lled with lots of ingenious ideas and
routines, and although mentalism is not my main interest, I found the book totally fascinating, and
found it hard to put down. His Bill In Lemon is one of the best I have seen.

Special user And if like me you are interested in The Card At Any Number plot, Barrie has several versions, which
Manchester, England are real foolers. In fact when he performed the effect here in Manchester, the entire room of
662 Posts
Magicians were totally stunned, and had no clue whatsoever.

I also had the opportunity of spending a little time with him, and he is one of the nicest people you
would ever wish to meet.

What are you waiting for? Go and buy this Book!!!!!!

Manchester Magician

Robert Sixx Posted: Jul 28, 2003 09:31 am 0

I agree, this is an Excellent Book -- well worth the money!

Catch me on Twitter @RobertSixx or Facebook -- Robert Sixx

Special user
726 Posts

Posted: Jul 28, 2003 11:02 am

landmark 0

Wonderful. Wonder full.

landmark
"Don't believe everything you read on the Internet"--Abraham Lincoln

Inner circle You can read my daily blog at Musings, Memories, and Magic
within a triangle
4491 Posts

Posted: Jul 28, 2003 11:39 am

DaveS 0

Of all the books on mentalism and magic in my collection, "Theater of the Mind" ranks among the very
best. What I especially like is that Richardson doesn't just describe effects and the mechanics for
doing them, which many books do and leave at that, but he also offers complete presentation scripts
combining engaging storytelling and theatrical elements that enhance the entertainment value of the
effects. Even if you don't do mentalism, the creativity, thoughfulness and craft evident in his work and
Veteran user his respect for his audience offer a model for other magical genres. Like Ted Lesley and Max Maven, I
New York
328 Posts
hope he'll do a video or two.

DaveS
We shall not cease from exploration/And the end of all our exploring/Will be to arrive where we started/And know the place for the rst
time. (TS Elliot)
Posted: Jul 28, 2003 11:44 am
Gary 0

Truly excellent book and one that I return to again and again.
"I can see clearly now, the brain has gone"
- Anon

Veteran user
Market Harborough,
UK
367 Posts

Posted: Sep 22, 2009 07:04 am

daleshrimpton 0

I naly got around to purchasing this, and like the original reviewer, I too have found a great friend in
Pencil Pusher.

( Try it with a fork... Prongs in the palm... A natural lead into a bend routine)

Regular user
the u.k
135 Posts
 Posted: Nov 18, 2010 10:01 am
Caleb Wiles 0

This is one of my favorite books of all time. The bill in lemon routine is absolutely brilliant. If you're
interested, I just posted a video review of this on my blog: http://www.calebwilesmagic.com/?p=605

Caleb
http://www.CalebWilesMagic.com
Inner circle Check out my debut DVD!
Indianapolis, IN <BR>
1124 Posts <BR>Sign up for my newsletter to receive a FREE TRICK!

The Magic Cafe Forum Index Books, Pamphlets & Lecture Notes HN Review 12: Theater of
the Mind Barrie Richardson(0Likes)
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