How To Do A Lot

With A Little

Six
Powerful
Routines
You Can Do
Barrie Richardson
Shreveport, Louisiana
Winter, 2005
 Table of Contents

I. Introduction

II. Routines

The Memorized Magazine Demonstration ...............................4

The Color in Your Mind ...........................................................8

Business Card Center Tear......................................................16

Birthday Cards ........................................................................20

Richardson’s Easy Diary Code ...............................................27

The Blind Voice Detector .......................................................31

Contact ....................................................................................36

III. Lagniappe

Lazy Magician’s Memorized Deck.........................................44

Barrie Richardson
620 Delaware Street
Shreveport, Louisiana 71106
USA
Tel: 318-865-8502
Fax: 318-868-9587
email: richardsonbarrie@netscape.net
 Introduction
These notes contain some of my favorite performance pieces.

They all have two things in common. First, they do not rely on any unusual props,
so the audience will never think the secret to what you do is in the apparatus. The
second thing they have in common is what some people call simplicity of method,
but I choose to use the word that scientists use when you accomplish ‘a lot with a
little.’ The word is ‘elegance.’ The methods used to accomplish these astonishing
and uncluttered demonstrations are all within the reach of the readers of this
manuscript.

I personally have a preference for stunts that have few ‘moving parts.’ If we
actually performed real magic, there would be no special props, sleights, or
apparent misdirection.

Even though the methods utilized are simple, that does not mean the routines are
self-working. Our job as performers is to create an environment for participants to
feel that they are part of an extraordinary experience.

Good luck!

Barrie Richardson
 Memorized Magazine Demonstration
Some Hints and Suggestions
Introduction

This is a venerable stunt and a reputation maker.

In over fifty years of being around platform speakers and magicians, I have only
seen this stunt performed three times. This is not a demonstration which is
mastered in a few hours, but it is not ten percent as difficult as most people believe.

There are several books and monographs which teach basic memory techniques
such as a phonetic alphabet and memory pegs which must be mastered to do this
stunt. One of the best I know of is The Art and Artifice of Memory by William
Scott (1997, H&R Books). The chapter on the memorizing a magazine by William
Tadlock is an excellent source.

My contribution is to share some practical ideas and tips that will help performers
be successful in both preparing for the stunt and performing it.

Typical Routine
There are few demonstrations that are more exciting and memorable to an audience
than the memorization of a magazine.

The performer tells the audience that he has spent about forty-five minutes speed-
reading the most recent issue of Time magazine. He explains, he then reviewed the
magazine a second time, quickly linking each page number with the information on
the page.

“Let’s see how well I have done.”

He opens the magazine in the middle, removes the staples, and after dropping the
cover on the table, he tears the magazine in half as he notes there are one-hundred
twenty-one pages in this week’s magazine.

The pages are widely distributed throughout the audience, and people are invited to
call out the page numbers they hold. A page number is called, and without
hesitation, the performer tells what is on the page in some detail. This continues in
rapid succession, with occasional banter with a spectator about the picture on the
page he or she is viewing. Most pages are described with absolutely astounding

4
detail. The final page is described with even more minute detail, for example, the
license number of a vehicle featured in the advertisement.

The applause is spontaneous.

Suggestions
Probably the most difficult part of the demonstration is having the confidence that
you will be able to recall the information on each page during the pressure of
performance.

It is most likely, if you are not successful the first time you do this stunt, you will
not do it again. Therefore, it is probably a good idea to start with a magazine
which has only fifty pages. Then expand the number of pages as you gain
confidence.

Here are some ideas and suggestions that have worked for me:

1. Practice the memory pegs from one to one hundred so that you can immediately
see the ‘pictorial trigger’ in your mind. This is not hard. You can practice in the
shower, sitting in a boring meeting, waiting for a train, or alone in your den.

Do these exercises hundreds of times. Even though you know that 67 is a baseball
bat and ninety-two is a handgun, make yourself convert numbers you see into these
mental pictures. (i.e. serial numbers, seat numbers, bus numbers, pages in a book,
birth dates, etc)

Now you are half-way home. Any page number called will immediately generate a
picture in your mind. This first step is to develop an unthinking automatic visual
response to a page number called.

2. Next you will link the information on the page to the visual memory peg. One
strategy I have found useful is to immediately determine if the page is an
advertisement. For example, all pages with advertisements will be linked to a key
object covered in snow. Sounds funny, but if page forty-two is called and my
mental picture is a rainstorm crashing in on what – a snow- covered woman – I
know immediately this is an advertisement. There will be no hesitation as you
patter. Page seventy-two of the April 10 Time magazine is an advertisement. Is
that right?”

5
By the time the person indicates you are correct, you are going on to say, “There is
a woman in the ad. She has long black gloves and a green dress, and she is
stepping out of a new car. The car is black, and it is a Lincoln. Look at the bold
letters on top. They say…”

If the number called is forty-three and your memory peg is, say, a witch on a
broom and she is hovering over a book, I would say, “Page forty-three is not an
advertisement. No, it is a book review section. There are four books being
reviewed. The one featured in the center of the page is a biography of John
Adams. It is written by David McCullough, has five hundred, fifty-six pages and
sells for $24.50.”

3. As you memorize each page, actually link together information which is on the
page. You should start with something that immediately stands out to you – a
picture or graph or bold print.

Once you have gone through the magazine one time, go back and do ten pages and
rehearse these pages. Then go on to the next ten pages.

The idea at first is not to study the page in great detail, but to be able to identify the
basic thrust of the page – i.e., it is an advertisement, an advertisement for Vodka,
for Smirnoff.

4. I fudge. I do not use all the pages. If there are one hundred, ten pages, I may
only use seventy-five pages. I tear out pages – generally when you remove one
page, you also remove another page since the magazine is made of folded sheets.

I remove pages that have no dramatic trigger for me or ones that are all too filled
with text. Some articles run several pages. I shorten the article.

5. Here is a tip that I have never previously revealed. Time Magazine publishes a
special edition each January. This Time annual issue is a review of the previous
year. There are no articles, only photographs and some advertisements. The pages
have no numbers. I would buy a few dozen copies and then select around ten or
twelve pages which had dramatic pictures or advertisements which had detailed
information such as an address, phone number or credit card numbers. These
pages I would learn in very specific detail, for example, the name of the
photographer that is in small print on the bottom of the page or possibly memorize
the printed description including names and dates on a page with a striking
photograph. When I prepared a current Time Magazine, I would insert these pages
and in bold black letters, write in the appropriate page number.

6
6. I also use a dark pen to write the page number in large numerals on the page.
This makes it easier for the person to find, especially if the lighting is poor. This
also allows me to mismark the pages. Some advertising pages have no page
numbers.

7. Which is the best magazine to use? Years ago, Life Magazine was perfect. It
was filled with pictures, and people related to it. Now, I personally like People
magazine and US News & World Report, or Time. There are other magazines
found in the supermarket dealing with home and family topics which have less
than one hundred pages and many advertisements.

8. How to end the routine? The routine should move quickly. Eight or ten
persons is sufficient. I do both sides of the called page, and with good banter and
speed will establish that you know what is on every page.

One way to bring the routine to a close is to say, “Let’s do one last page.” Then
point to the person who has a page where you know the material in great detail,
i.e., the license plate on the car or a credit card number shown.
You know the location of this page because you handed this page to the person
during the distribution phase.

Another ploy is to ask people to call out numbers. You say, “Let’s try page
seventy-three. Actually, this is the page you want to end on, so you pause and look
stumped. Then say, let me come back to you later.

Then, at the end, you ask, “Who is the person who had the page that troubled me?”
Then describe this page on both sides in great detail and end by calling the long
number.

Conclusion

This is not a stunt for the timid person. You must think quickly, act with
confidence and leave the audience with a sense of absolute astonishment and at the
same time, they must like you as a person.

Good luck!

Barrie Richardson

7
 “The Color In Your Mind”
An Experiment

The Demonstration

“How many of you in this room believe in mental telepathy?

“Raise your hands.

“Do you know that a recent study published in a Journal of Parapsychology found
that nearly seventy percent of the people asked believed in this phenomenon, and
nearly fifty percent said that they had personally had such an experience in the last
six months.

“Personally I am agnostic on this widely believed phenomenon, and the older I get
the more skeptical I become about the existence of all aspects of ESP. Of course, I
could be wrong.

“Yet, like many of you, I have a pretty well-developed sense of intuition. I now
believe people reveal information to others even when they would swear they do
not.

“Let’s try an experiment in thought transference. Rather than attempting to

communicate something complicated like a thought or a picture, let’s limit our
experiment to four colors.”

The performer picks up a small, brown paper bag, opens it and removed four small
plastic Easter eggs. He points out that these eggs are colored – green, white, blue
and yellow.

He drops them in the bag, shakes the bag, and holding it open – fingers on the
inside and thumb on the outside – invites four different persons in succession to
remove an egg from the bag, but in so doing that they hide the small egg not only
from everyone in the room, but also from their own eyes.

The performer holds the bag at about shoulder-height, and his head is turned away
as different persons around the room remove a colored egg.

8
“Will the persons who are hiding a colored egg in your hand please stand? In a
few seconds I am going to ask each of you to turn around and peek into your hand
and learn the color of your egg. No, not yet.

“Please listen to me. When you view the egg and learn the color, I want you to
dramatize the experience in your mind. Imagine you are looking at Mount Everest,
and it is the color of your egg.

“Please turn and look at your egg.

“Good, turn around. Now say the color over and over in your mind. Turn up the
volume so that you can imagine that the color is being shouted. You are doing a
good job.

“Now we will start the experiment. I will announce one of the colors. I will pause
and look at each of you. I will try to intuit which one of you is thinking of that
color. Then I will repeat the procedure three more times.

“Your job is to try your best not to communicate that I have named your color. Do
not shake your head or in any way knowingly use body language to reveal that you
have that color in your mind.

“You are to remain outwardly totally passive. You will show no more emotion
than a marble statue. Yet when I name your color, I want you to say to yourself,
‘That’s it.’

“Do you understand my instructions? How well we do depends on how vivid your
imaginations are.”

“Everyone else in this room – if you desire – can participate by trying to guess who
has each color.”

The performer calls out ‘green.’ He carefully looks at each of the candidates and
says ‘green’ to each one of them. He repeats this procedure slowly and
deliberately with the other three colors.

“I will now point to each one of you and reveal the color that I feel you have in
your mind.

9
“When I point to you and say a color, you will have a difficult job. You will not
affirm or negate my guess. You will stand perfectly still. After I have assigned a
color to each of you, I will clap my hands once. When you hear this clap, if I
intuited your color correctly, you will take your seat. If I am wrong, you will
remain standing.

“Your total cooperation is vital. How well I do depends on your mental

concentration. Do you understand? Do not move until I clap my hands.

The performer closes his eyes, breathes deeply. He opens his eyes and points in
slow succession to the four persons. He assigns a color to each person as he points
to them.

Taking a step backward, he spreads his hands apart, pauses, and then claps them
together sharply.

All four persons sit down.

He nods to the audience accepting their applause. “How many of you got most of
the colors right?” Then he says “My creative associates are the ones who deserve
your applause.”

With a smile, he moves forward and retrieves each egg, giving each person a
Hershey Kiss and a firm handshake.

Explanation

This is a demonstration where you ‘get a lot from a little.’ The trick requires no
preparation and can be done for almost any size audience. It is not a miracle, yet it
is a believable and memorable experience in which the participants should feel
good about their own performance.

The paper bag is unprepared. It should not be so large that a person can ‘fish’
around in it. A lunch-size bag sold in supermarkets is ideal.

The colored plastic eggs are sold in drug stores, supermarkets and hobby shops
around Easter time. The eggs come in various sizes. The ones that are under two
inches are probably best. These eggs open and are normally filled with candy and
then snapped closed.

10
Let’s assume there are four eggs – green, white, blue, and yellow. Two eggs – in
this example – the green and blue eggs – are opened and filled with lead fishing
weights or sand. The idea is to pack the small weights as tightly as you can,
because it is the weight of the eggs that make the trick work.

The eggs can be packed with putty, cotton or play dough to keep the weights from
‘talking.’ Glue the two halves together.

Each person will select only one egg, and there is no reason for them to assume
that all the eggs are not basically the same as the one he or she is holding, other
than the color.

The Procedure

When you begin the routine, all four eggs are in the brown paper bag. The
performer pulls them out to show them to the helpers and to the audience. When
the performer replaces the eggs back into the bag, he secretly holds the blue,
weighted egg under his fingers, which are inside the bag.

As he continues to explain what the helpers are supposed to do, he pulls out the
white, light egg to show the helpers. As he apparently places it back in the bag, he
actually does not do this. He hides this one with the blue egg in his fingers –
between his fingers and the bag.

Now he has a green, weighted egg in the bag and also a yellow, light egg in the
bag. The blue and white eggs are hidden – in his fingers – and ready to be
released.

The first helper removes one of the eggs. How do you know which one? After a
little practice, you will feel how light the bag feels if the green, weighted one is
removed. If the weighted egg is not taken, there will be no perceptible change in
the weight of the bag. To gain confidence, the performer can give the bag a little
shake as he moves on for the next selection. The weighted egg will make a
‘clump’ sound.

In this example, let’s assume that the first helper removes the green, weighted egg.
As the performer walks toward the second helper, he shakes the bag and releases
the weighted blue egg which falls from his fingers into the bag.

11
Now there are once again two eggs in the bag – a weighted blue egg and a light
yellow egg.

The light white egg is still hidden in the performer’s fingers.

The second helper makes his choice. Let’s assume the second helper selects the
light, yellow egg. If this happens, the performer – as he walks toward the third
helper – shakes the bag and simply releases the light white egg hidden in his
fingers.

This is the ideal situation. The performer now has one heavy and one light egg in
the bag and none in his fingers. He has a great deal of freedom to have someone
else hold the bag for the selection by the third person or give the helper the option
to change his minds.

The performer then gives the bag to the fourth helper to pull out the last egg.
Based on the weight of the bag, the performer knows where the last two eggs are.

If we change the assumption, and the second helper selects the weighted, green egg
from the bag, the performer does nothing. The egg left in the bag at this point is
the light, yellow egg, and the egg in the performer’s fingers is the light, white egg.

The performer walks to the third helper and invites him to reach into the bag and
pull out an egg which, obviously, will be the only egg in the bag, the light yellow
egg. As the performer walks toward the fourth helper, he drops the remaining egg
from his fingers into the bag. The fourth helper, of course, gets this egg, which is
the white light egg.

What happens if the first person selects the yellow egg and not the heavy green
egg? All the performer has to do is release the light white egg and continue with
the routine as described above since there is now one light and one heavy egg in
the bag. The rule is simple. You always release the egg selected with a hidden egg
of the same weight.

This explanation sounds more complicated than it is in practice. Yet one might
call it a fairly heavy methodology.

Good luck!

Barrie Richardson

12
 Business Card Center Tear
The classic center tear can be a powerful weapon for discovering written
information. The best demonstration I ever saw was done by Eddie Fields in a
Chicago bar in the 1970s. He treated the folded slip with complete indifference as
he ripped it up quickly, and casually dropped the pieces into an ashtray. He then lit
a cigarette and went on to reveal my thoughts. There was no fumbling, no apparent
opportunity to look at the paper and no nervous patter while stalling for time.

In recent years several people have developed and published clever ways of
reading the information without actually stealing away the torn center. As far as I
know, all of these methods (Richard Osterlind, Bruce Bernstein, and Lee Earle)
involve opening the paper and getting a glimpse of the message in the course of
tearing it up. This usually involves either squeezing the small center piece, or else
inserting the thumb nail into the folds to secretly open it. I have found problems
with doing either. Having a dry skin, the paper does not always "cling" to my
fingers well enough to enable a positive execution.

I have been told that Gary Kurtz has a clever method, but I have never seen it.
Anthony Blake, the Spanish mentalist, also has a way, but I am told his is based on
squeezing. Tim Conover does an amazingly quick tear using a business card. His is
a variation of the Bernstein approach, I believe.

My method may not be any better than those that already exist but it works well for
me. There is no squeezing or fumbling to insert the thumb nail. The message
almost pops open of its own accord (not quite, but almost) and you get a clear view
of it as you tear it to bits and destroy the evidence.

The tear can be done with any kind of paper, but, like Tim Conover, I prefer to use
a business card. Its extra thickness helps to keep the actions clean and sure.

Two other points before I go on to describe the mechanics. First is that the message
is not enclosed in a circle in the center of the slip. You draw a line for the person to
write on and their word(s) can occupy up to a third of the card. Secondly, when the
moment comes to glimpse the message, it will always be the right way up. You
will not have to turn it over, or try to decipher it while upside down.

13
Explanation

Fold a business card in half, as in Figure 1. The plain side is inside. The important
detail to notice in the drawing is that the card is folded slightly off center, so there
is an overlap of roughly one eighth of an inch.

Next fold the card in half lengthwise as in Figure 2. Now unfold it and draw a line
on the inside just below the central crease as shown in Figure 3.

This preparation can be carried out in front of the audience. In fact it is probably
best done while everyone is watching, as part of the overall presentation.

Hand the card to the spectator and request him or her to write something. Point to
the line, making it clear that this is where the message must go, without actually
saying so. Turn your back while the writing is done, and ask the person to refold
card when they have finished.

The spectator will naturally fold along the existing creases and return the card to
you. Take it back, holding it as in Figure 4 and begin to tear the top piece only
where the drawing shows. It is vitally important that the slip is held exactly as
depicted, i.e., the long folded edge is to the left and the short one farthest away
from you.

Do not glance down at your hands as you tear. Just make some remark about not
needing the slip any more, the writing only being to help the assistant consolidate
his or her thoughts - or similar garbage.

As soon as you have torn off the upper portion, place it below the other, to the right
as in Figure 5. Simultaneously, open out the larger/upper segment bookwise as
shown. Your fingers obscure what is happening and as you are not looking at your
hands, nobody will be paying close attention to them. As soon as the flap has been
fully opened, tear the card in half lengthwise. Note that you do not tear along the
crease. Rather, use the first torn-off piece as a guide to indicate where the tear
should be made.

Once the tear is complete, place the single piece in the left hand on top of the two
pieces in the right. Next, twist everything a quarter turn to the right as in Figure 6.
(Note that all the folded ends are to the right.)

14
Because the card was originally folded off center, the left thumb can cleanly duck
under the topmost layer and flip it open like a book. The right fingers completely
cover it, preventing the audience from seeing. Again, this must be done without
glancing down. The position will be that shown in Figure 7.

Now is when you glimpse the message. Do not look down! Rather, as part of
the tearing, bring your hands up until you can read the writing out of the corner of
your eye. As soon as you have sighted it, tear down the central crease, ripping the
message in half. Place the right hand's piece on the bottom of the packet then tear
the whole lot in half. Put the pieces in the right hand on top of those in the left,
turning them "face down" in the process, so burying the message in the middle of
the fragments.

Drop the whole lot into an ash tray or waste basket and you are clean.

With a little practice you will be able to do the glimpse without breaking the tempo
of the tearing. This is very important. A smooth, continuous rhythm is essential.

Good luck!

Barrie Richardson

15
16
 Birthday Cards
My late friend, Eric Mason, was a skilled close-up worker. Although he was a
keen sleight-of-hand man, the trick of his which people like best was when
somebody would apparently freely select a card, then find its name written against
his birthday in his pocket diary. The plot itself is generally credited to Ted
Danson, but many other people have published versions, including Bob Cassidy
and Alex Elmsley.

Eric’s method required him to ascertain the birthday prior to the card being
selected. But his did not have to be done secretly; he would simply ask. Once he
knew the date, he would glimpse a crib to learn the card written against that day,
locate it in the pack and force it. Simple, but the impact was out of all proportion,
especially as the revelation was accompanied by a brief character reading.

The beauty of his method was that he could repeat the trick. In fact, I can recall
one occasion when several women were waiting in line to have their birthday cards
discovered.

Inspired by Eric’s repeatable version, I devised my own method to reveal a number

of birthday cards, but one designed for larger audiences.

Presentation and Effect

Three women are invited onto the platform and given seats. After the usual
preliminaries, the performer turns to the first and inquires, “Were you born in the
spring?”

‘No,” she replies, I was born in February.”

“On what day?”

“The 10th.”

“Let’s try an experiment,” continues the performer. “All of the cards in this pack
are different, aren’t hey? Will you please cut it somewhere near the center and
leave the cards you cut off on the table.”

17
The remaining portion is then laid on top of this, but at right angles, making a
cross. Then the performer introduces a small book.

“Look at this. It is my pocket diary. I’ve been pretty busy as you can see. Please
look up your birthday.”

The woman opens the diary and flips through the pages.

“Notice that every date has a particular playing card assigned to it. Look, this one
is the eight of spades; here’s the Queen of hearts.” A few are pointed out t random,
and the woman acknowledges the truth of the statements.

“Now,” continues the performer, “What card is next to your birthday? The seven
of hearts? Will you please remove the card you cut to in the pack.”

She picks up the card from the point where she cut and turns it over. It is indeed
the red seven.

After the applause, the performer addresses one of the other women. “OK, Martha,
let’s try again. What is your birthday?”

“April 18th.”

The pack is handed to her, and she is instructed, “Please deal the cards face down
onto my open palm until you feel you want to stop.”

She deals a few, then stops. She is asked again if she is sure that is enough or
would she care to continue. The choice is hers. When she is satisfied, she is told,
“Open the diary to your birthday.”

She does so and finds that the card assigned to her is the four of spades. The one
upon which she stopped dealing is then shown to be the very same.

Turning to the third participant, the performer says, “Let’s try another experiment.
Please take this envelope out into the audience and hand it to anyone you like.”

She hands it to a woman at the back of the room. The performer addresses this
person. “Tell me, what is your birthday?”

The woman answers “March 15th.”

18
The performer quickly locates the appropriate page. Addressing one of the two
assistants on the platform, he extends the diary towards her pointing to the entry
and saying, “Please read the card assigned to the 15th of March.”

“Jack of hearts.”

“And do the other dates all have different cards assigned to them?”

“Yes.”

“If that woman’s birthday had been different, would she have been assigned a
different card?”

“True.”

“And would you say that this card, the Jack of hearts, is sort of an ‘exotic’ card?”

The assistant usually responds with a quizzical look before deciding to play along.

In a dramatic voice, the performer asks the woman with the envelope to come
forward. She does.

“Please open the envelope and remove whatever is inside, but don’t open it yet.
It’s a birthday card, right? Please hold it up and show it to everyone. It is also a
prediction. Will you please open it and read the message inside?”

She reads, “I wish you many happy birthdays. I predict that good things will
happen because your birthday falls on an ‘exotic’ card.”

Here the performer acts as though he expects tumultuous applause. But when none
comes, he continues. “Open the card right up! Unfold it and hold it high!” (The
card is the common type where everything is printed on one side and then folded in
four.)

She does so, disclosing a large drawing of a Jack of hearts.

19
 Method
You will need to prepare a special diary, although it is not gimmicked in any way.
The best type is probably the long thin one which shows a complete week on every
page. But only because more card names will be visible to the participants –
fourteen on most double pages. The smaller diaries which need two adjacent pages
to display an entire seven days could also be used.

Write the name of a random card against each date as shown in Figure 2. Notice
how they are written small and close to the edge of the page. To the participants,
this looks as though you are conserving space for appointments, etc. The rest of
the audience does not get to see the writing, so they do not know how it is laid out.

The cards you write can be in any order you wish so long as no sequences are
apparent. You must, however, have some means of knowing what card is entered
against each date. So before you rush to do it, consider the following points. You
do not need the entire fifty-two. Eric used only thirty-one, so that he could always
have the same card entered against the same day in each month. Then he made a
simple crib on one of the blank pages at the front of the diary. As soon as he knew
the date, he would casually open the cover and read the card for that day off the
crib.

On the other hand, you may prefer to have your crib somewhere other than in the
diary itself – say on the card box. In that way you will not have to handle the diary
too much. If, like me, you have a memory system, you do not need a crib at all.
The classic Nikola, Bart Harding, and Martin Joyal systems both lend themselves
admirably to the purpose.

Also, it is best not to write the name of your ‘exotic’ card anywhere in the diary.

By now the working of the first two dates/cards should be reasonably apparent. As
soon as you know each person’s birthday, glimpse the crib or use your memory
system to determine the card written against that date. Simply locate the first
person’s card in the pack and force it one them. You can do this from a shuffled
pack by fanning/spreading the cards casually while talking, spotting the desired
one and cutting it to the top – or wherever you want it. If you have the pack
stacked in a known order (which can be the same as the system you use for
entering them in the diary) then it is easier to locate the cards because you know
roughly where to look.

20
I usually get the first one to the top and then work the age-old crossing-the-cut
force. It is good for this particular stunt, because it does not involve much
handling of the pack, and there is a natural time delay between when the cut is
made and the correct entry being located in the diary.

The second card is brought to the top in the same way, once you know the date.
The person is then given the pack and instructed to deal onto my upturned palm,
stopping whenever she wishes. When she stops, the card will be on the bottom of
the packet in my hand. I freeze in this position while she finds the date. After she
announces the name of the card, I simply turn the block I am holding over, and
reveal it on the face. Again the delay makes people forget where it originally came
from.

You do not have to use either of these forces if you know some others which you
think would be better.

There is only one problem which can occasionally arise. If you have entered the
same cards against the same dates for every month, what happens when having
done the trick for the first spectator whose birthday was, say, the 10th of May, the
second assistant announces that her’s is the 10th of November? Both will get the
same card, thereby tipping part of the method. This will not happen often, but a
very simple way out is to hand the second person the prediction envelope for the
third revelation and then move on to spectator number three, using her for the
second revelation. The odds against all three having birthdays on the 10th are great
enough to take this risk. In the unlikely event that it happens, make that the trick!
Claim that you chose these three people because you sensed an affinity between
them. Then move straight on to the third revelation.

Here the method is completely different. The prediction is fixed. Your ‘exotic’
card cannot be changed. Nor do you know the date. So you must cheat and
contrive matters so that whatever date you are given the Jack of hearts is the one
entered against it.

The technique for doing this is one which I described in Club 71 (December, 1991)
in an item called “A One in a Million Prediction.” This was an elaboration of an
earlier handling which I submitted to Pabular (December, 1977). It uses Bruce
Elliott’s paperclip gimmick in The Phoenix (May, 1949). This is shown in Figure
1 and is made by simply sticking a sliver of paper to the rear of a large paperclip,
and writing the name of the ‘exotic’ card where it can be read between the arms. If

21
the clip is then placed over the edge of a page in the diary, it masks the name of the
card actually written there and replaces it with the Jack of hearts.

You will need two such clips, one for the left hand pages and the other for those on
the right. Simply have them both in the diary as though being used a bookmarks –
a lot of people mark important appointments in this way. When the woman
announces her birthday, you simply locate it and then remove the appropriate clip
from wherever it happens to be, replacing it on the desired date. If anybody
notices your doing this – and very few people will – it simply looks as though you
are marking the page so as not to lose it.

Do not mention the paperclip at any time. Just act as though it is of no

significance. The fact that another such clip is in the diary elsewhere – and you
can insert one or two more ungimmicked ones on different pages if you like –
make it seem unimportant.

The revelation of the prediction inside a greeting card is stunning, and credit for it
goes, I think, to Max Maven.

Good luck!

Barrie Richardson

22
23
 Richardson’s Easy Diary Code
This is a simple system to determine the card matching a particular birthday. You
can learn it in a few minutes and master it in an hour.

Exhibit I shows the specific cards allocated to each day in the month of a one-year
diary. All the months have the same sequence of cards, but this will not be noticed
since the book is never scrutinized.

The Exhibit shows the sequence of 31 cards. They are arranged in a fashion that
will enable you to almost immediately determine the appropriate card.

Here is how it works.

There are two procedures to learn, both of which are quite straightforward and easy
to execute.

Procedure #1 – How to find the cards assigned to even dates in the month.

Even dates are days 2,4,6,…..30. If you look at Exhibit I, you will note that all of
the even dates have red cards assigned to them.

To find the card assigned to any one of these even dates on the calendar, you
merely divide the birthday by two. For instance, if the birthday is April 4, the value
of the card on this date in the diary is two. If the birthday is
April 18, the value of the card on this date in the diary will be nine. Note: the jack
is eleven, queen is twelve, and the king is thirteen.

Now that you can determine the value of the cards, how do you determine whether
the card will be a diamond or a heart?

The answer is that the value of the card itself will give you a signal. Obviously,
the card value will either be an odd number or an even number. If the value of the
card is an even number, the suit will be a diamond. If it is an odd number, it will
be a heart.

24
If we apply this formula to the examples above, it will proceed as follows. The
card value for April 4 is two. Since two is an even number, you know it is a
diamond. The two of diamonds is found on April 4.

The value of the card at April 18 is nine. Nine is odd. The card found in the diary
on April 18 is the nine of hearts.

Here is a hint. You only have to recall that even value cards are diamonds, and
you will know by default that the odd cards are hearts.

With a little practice, these simple calculations can be done effortlessly. Try these
dates and check your answers: May 2, October 12, and November 24.

Procedure #2 – How to discover the cards assigned to odd dates on the calendar.

The odd dates are obviously 3,5,7,……..31. There are 15 odd dates that use this
procedure. All of the odd dates have black cards.

Day 1 has been arbitrarily assigned the ace of clubs and is not part of this system.
Therefore, you must remember that the first day of any month is the ace of clubs.

In order to determine the card at an odd date on the calendar, you must first move
back one day. For instance, if the birthday is June 17th, you must first subtract one
from seventeen to get sixteen. This subtraction gives you an even calendar date.

You then follow Procedure #1 and discover the card assigned to this calendar date.

The even card then signals the succeeding odd card. This is the case because all
the cards that immediately succeed the even cards are arranged following the Si
Stebbins system. All the odd cards are three higher in value than the preceeding
even card.

The suits of all odd cards are black, and they follow the ‘chased’ formula. See
Exhibit I.

One example, and then some practice problems should help.

Assume the birthday named is August 23. You know this is an odd date, so you
subtract one and get twenty-two, an even date. You follow the rules of Procedure

25
#1 and divide the even date – twenty-two – by two and get eleven. Eleven is an
odd value, so you know the card is the jack of hearts. The succeeding card – the
23rd – is three higher, i.e. the ace (queen, king, ace). You also know the suit is
spades because of the ‘chased’ order.

These mental calculations are not demanding and should be easily mastered.

Try these dates: April 9, February 15, July 21, and October 4.

There are only two exceptions to these guidelines: calendar dates 28 and 30.
When the formula is used, the cards at these dates should be the ace of hearts and
two of diamonds. Unfortunately, these cards were used earlier. In both cases, you
must remember to reverse the suits. In these two cases, the even numbered cards
are hearts and the odd numbered cards are diamonds.

Good luck!
Barrie Richardson

26
 Exhibit I
Calendar Date Card

1 Ace of clubs
2 Ace of hearts
3 Four of spades
4 Two of diamonds
5 Five of clubs
6 Three of hearts
7 Six of spades
8 Four of diamonds
9 Seven of clubs
10 Five of hearts
11 Eight of spades
12 Six of diamonds
13 Nine of clubs
14 Seven of hearts
15 Ten of spades
16 Eight of diamonds
17 Jack of clubs
18 Nine of hearts
19 Queen of spades
20 Ten of diamonds
21 King of clubs
22 Jack of hearts
23 Ace of spades
24 Queen of diamonds
25 Two of clubs
26 King of hearts
27 Three of spades
28 Ace of diamonds
29 Four of clubs
30 Two of hearts
31 Five of spades

27
 The Blind Voice Detector

When I was a boy in Chicago, we had what we called ‘candy stores.’ These
shops sold newspapers, cigarettes and other sundries along with penny candy.

The shop in our neighborhood was owned and operated by a short, barrel-chested
Russian immigrant. His last name was Baruck, but everyone called him Mr.
Barrel.

Mr. Barrel was blind. Not one hundred percent blind, because he could hold an
object close to one eye and see it. No one could pass a one-dollar bill off as a five-
dollar bill with Mr. Barrel.

He had strong hands with thick fingers, and yet he played a violin with grace and
feeling. He had an unusual sense of hearing, and he could – so he told us –
determine when a person was fibbing by the intonation of his or her voice. None
of us would dare to try to cheat him when we declared our merchandise to him at
the counter. Anyway, we all liked him.

Mr. Barrel had a hearty laugh and a happy personality. He knew the names of all
of his customers – never forgot a voice – and he took an interest in people of all
ages who would pop into his little shop.

Sometimes he would play the violin or sing a Russian song to entertain his
customer-friends. He also did one card trick. Well, actually it was not a card trick,
but a way for him to demonstrate his phenomenal abilities to discriminate changes
in a person’s voice.

He said the only reason he used cards was that they had colors, shapes and
denominations which enabled him to do a lot of detecting with one common
object.

Let me try to replicate what Mr. Barrel did.

The performer invites someone to help, and if possible, asks to borrow a deck of
cards which the performer has neither seen nor touched.

28
The person who is helping with the experiment is invited to mix the cards and then
make a row of five facedown piles, each with approximately ten cards.

The performer points to the first pile and says, “This is pile number one.” Pointing
to the second pile, he says, “This is pile number two.” The remaining piles are
give numbers three, four and five.

“Now this is important,” the performer says. “I want you to follow my

instructions. Do not anticipate what I am going to say. Just listen and obey,” he
says with a smile.

The performer picks up pile number one. “When I tell you to mix a pile, I want
you to mix them like this.”

The performer mixes the cards horizontally moving a few at a time back and forth
between his hands. This is a convenient and fairly normal way to mix a small
bunch of cards.

“Now you try it with pile number two.”

The helper does this mixing and both parties place the piles down so that once
again, there is a row of five piles on the table.

The performer now moves several feet away from the helper.

“Please pick up a pile.”

“Good. Now fan them out and mentally select any card you see. Now say it over
and over in your mind. It is imperative that you remember your card.

“Pull the card out, and place if face-down on the table. Mix the pile of cards in
your hand, and return it to its position in the row.

“Now pick up pile number one. Mix it, and replace it. Pick up your card, look at it
again, and place it on top of pile number one.

“Pick up pile number five, mix it, and place it one top of pile number one. Now do
the same with pile number three. Mix and place it on pile number one. Now mix
pile four and place it back down. Now put pile number one – the big pile – on top

29
of pile number four. Finally, mix pile number two and put it on top of pile number
one.

“There. The cards are mixed and now assembled. That’s it!”

The performer ignores the deck and says “Are you ready for the voice detection
experiment?

“You will notice that I have not shuffled, cut or looked through these cards.”

Saying this, he picks the deck up and hands the cards directly back to the owner or
to another person to put them away.

“Now, put out both hands, palm-up like this. I will touch your fingertips with my
fingers.

“Think of the color. Just the color. Now say ‘My card is a red card.’ She does
this. “Now say ‘My card is a black card.’” She does this. A pause.

“Your card is red.”

She nods.

The process is repeated for hearts and diamonds and then for picture cards versus
number cards. Each time the performer gives the right answer after listening to the
statements.

“Now say this, ‘My card is an ace. My card is a two, and so on.’”

She does this.

The performer says with some hesitancy, “Your card is a three,” and then quickly
corrects himself with confidence. “Your card is the four – the four of hearts.”

The only apparent explanation is that the performer must either receive tactual
signals from the persons’ fingertips or from her voice.

30
 Explanation
Don’t let the simple method deter you.

This effect has stumped some of the best card persons I have known over 30 years.

There is no preparation, and no gimmicks are used.

If you reconstruct the presentation, you will note the only time the performer
touches the deck is to show the helper how to mix the cards.

While she is doing this, the performer gives his pile a good concave bend. This is
not a move. You just place your right hand over the packet and give them a
squeeze as you watch the woman do the mixing.

Now another pile is selected, and a card removed. Pile number one is picked up by
the woman and mixed. The slight bend is not detected in the small pile. The
selected card is placed on top. Other piles are mixed and placed on top, and then
one underneath, and finally the last on top.

The deck is ignored for a while and then picked up to return to the owner or to
apparently clear the table. In this process, the deck is turned face-up in the left
hand.

There will be an opening about 20 cards from the face. When your right hand is
placed on top, you will easily locate the opening caused by the ‘locator packet’
with your right thumb.

You do not lift the cards; rather, you hold the top portion at the opening with the
right hand and slightly levers downward the remaining cards an inch or less to
create a viewing window. When the cards – held innocently in your left hand – are
lifted to shoulder level, you will see the top portion of the selected card. (See
illustration at end of text.)

From the front, the spectators’ view, there is no movement, and the deck will look
totally closed and neat.

31
When I told Ken Krenzel – ‘The Card Guru’ and my friend – about this idea, he
called it a ‘reverse tilt move.’ Not bad!

If desired, but not necessary since the heat is off the cards, a good upward or
downward bridging action on the cards will destroy the only clue.

P.S. The story I related is basically true. I do not know how Mr. Barrel did this
stunt.

Good luck!

Barrie Richardson

32
 “Contact”
Two-Person Thought-Reading Routine

Introduction
This routine can be performed for a few persons after dinner, or as a serious
demonstration of thought transference in a living room, on the platform, or on the
stage.

The effect can be astonishing and totally believable and also entertaining.

All of this with a few business cards.

The Effect
The conversation turns to the subject of thought transference and ESP. The
performer claims he is agnostic about this area, but does know that people can
communicate complicated information to other people subconsciously through
their body language, and that something called ‘contact telepathy.’ ‘Contact
telepathy is not a supernatural thing, but instead a physiological phenomenon.

“Let me give you a few demonstrations which will probably make the point quite
clear.”

The performer removes two business cards and a pen. He openly draws a rectangle
in the center of the blank side of the card and shows it around.

“This is like a small TV screen,” he says as he folds the card in half and in half
again.

The second card is not written on, but it is folded in the same fashion so that the
blank side is on the inside.

Both folded cards are on the table. Picking up the second card, the performer talks
to a woman on his left.

33
“Will you help me? I would like you right now to think of a simple – not complex
– picture that you can easily draw – for example a tree or a house. Obviously, it
could be anything that you and others would recognize such as am animal, fruit,
sporting equipment. You get the idea – anything.

“Then I want you to open this card like this, and on the blank side draw this simple
sketch of your object.

“Next I want you to look at it – and this seems strange, but it is important – that in
your mind, your hand traces over and over the drawing you have made. Don’t
actually do it, but visualize your hand doing this drawing.

“Is this clear? Then fold the card up like this. Please do not let anyone else see
what you have drawn.”

The performer unfolds the card and hands it to her and turns his head. A few
minutes later, he asks, “Are you through?”

He turns around and collects her card in his left hand and runs his right hand
fingers over the top to crease the card closed. He invites the woman to cover her
folded card with a coffee cup.

The performer picks up the folded card on the table in his left hand. He turns to a
man on his right.

“Will you help me, please? Your task is a different one. I want you to think of
some thing or place – not a person – that gives you a negative feeling. For
example, for some people, it might be broccoli, or razors, or motorcycles. Try to
summarize this negative thing in one word.

“Then print the word carefully on the center of this TV screen.”

During this conversation, the performer has opened the card, and he gestures as he
instructs the person about his assignment.

“Then fold the card over and then over again.”

This action is followed by the performer with the card in his hand.

34
Turning to the woman, he says, “Do you recall your picture, or do you have to look
at it again?”

She knows it, of course, and says so.

Turning back to the man, “You know the negative word, right?

“Let me show you something I learned at a Boy Scout Camp many years ago.
Each of us would write a negative thing in our life that bothered us at home – like a
mean little sister, or a bully on the block or bad grades in school. We would each
write it on a sheet of paper, fold it up, and then rip it up, like this.”

The performer has retrieved the card as he speaks, he tears it once, twice and three
times. Looking the man in the eyes, he says, “I have no idea what word you have
in your mind. Look at me. You can tell my body language, my voice and
especially my eyes that I am telling you the truth. Am I right?”

A pause, “Yes.”

The performer requests the man put out his hand, the pieces are torn into smaller
pieces and dropped into his hand.

“Now this negative thing is out of your life – at least, symbolically.

“The word you selected in your mind and then made it explicit in writing is the
word I want you to transmit to me. However, I want you to do it subconsciously.”

Picking up his closed hand holding the pieces, he says, “Please close your eyes and
relax your arm. Think of the first letter. Just the first letter.”

The performer moves the man’s arm upward, saying “A,B,C,D…W,X,Y, Z. “ He

moves back. “It is a ‘C.’ I think the first letter is ‘C.’ Nod if I am right.

“Now, the second letter.” The same process, and the letter ‘U” is determined.

“I thought you were thinking of ‘cancer,’ but not so. Take a deep breath. The next
letter.”

The process reveals an ‘S.’

35
The performer says, “Open your eyes. It is not ‘customs’ you find negative, it is a
food – it is ‘custard.’”

The man gives a weak and surprised smile.

Turning to the woman, “Do you absolutely remember what you have drawn?”

She says, “Yes,” and the performer lifts the cup, picks up her folded card and
places it in his pocket. He brings out an envelope and places it down in front of
her. He hands her a pen.

“What I want you to do is to concentrate on your illustration. Mentally see the

outline, but it is important that you do not push my hand, but rather, I will try to act
like a human Ouija board indicator and pick up – through a soft contact with your
fingers the drawing you made.

“Are you ready?”

The woman places her hand on top of the performers left hand, which is holding a
pen.

“Please shut your eyes. I am moving. Please, just a light touch. Don’t loose your
concentration.”

The performer scrawls about for five seconds and then stops.

Her eyes are still closed when he asks “What picture is in your mind?”

She says, “A mountain with an American flag on top.”

“Open your eyes. What was your picture? Look! How well have we done?”

There on the envelope is a crude outline of a flag on a mountain.

“You both were excellent participants in this experiment of ‘contact telepathy.’.

Thank you for your help.”

36
 Short Explanation
After the woman did her drawing and folded the card, it was secretly changed for a
dummy card which was hidden in the performer’s hand.

The second folded card was apparently picked up and opened during the
instructions to the man. In fact, this card was secretly exchanged for the first
person’s folded card, and this is the one that was viewed by the magician. It was
refolded and switched again for the card hidden in his hand and given to the second
person.

The information from the second person – a printed word – was peeked during the
course of tearing up the card.

The rest is acting.

More Detailed Explanation

1. Fold a dummy card the long way almost in half, but leave the top edge 1/8
inch less than the bottom half. Then fold it in half again. You hide this
card in a finger palm position. You openly fold the other two cards in the
same way and leave them on the table as you explain the experiment.

2. After the woman draws her picture and folds the card, you retrieve the card
and hold it openly between the first and second finger of the left hand. The
folded card in the right hand will now be imperceptibly switched for this
card. This happens as the right hand apparently creased the top of the folded
card. This should seem of no consequence. The illustrations show how the
switch occurs. The dummy card is left between the thumb and first finger,
and the woman’s card is now hidden in the right hand.

3. The left hand picks up the folded card on the table and apparently both
hands come together to open the card. However, in the process, this card
will be switched for the finger palmed card.

37
 The switch uses the same basic idea of taking the hidden card from the right
hand finger palm position with the left thumb and first finger and depositing
the left-hand card held between the first and second fingers. However, the
hidden card is just pulled away enough so that it looks as if both hands are
working to open the folded cards. This is not a magical move like a color
change, but a natural sequence which should be of no significance. (See
Figure 1)

4. The situation is that the card with the drawing, unknown to anyone,
has been switched for the finger-palmed card. The card with the drawing is
opened and visible to you alone as you look at the person on your right and
give your instructions.

The open card is held by the thumb and fingers of the left hand, and the
folded card in finger-palmed position in the right hand is moved over to the
left hand where it is hidden underneath the open card in that hand. This all
takes place quite easily in the course of opening the card.

As you patter on, your fingers fold over the visible card once and then again
so that it is refolded.

Now there are two folded cards held fairly tightly between your left thumb
and fingers. All of these actions are quite natural and after you have peeked
the drawing on the open card, you never look at your hands.

Now the bottom folded card will be subtlety switched back and put into
play.

The switch is, I believe, a variation of an Al Baker shuttle move. It is

extremely easy to do and totally deceptive.

The right hand moves over to retrieve the folded billet and as it does, the left
thumb pushes the top folded card outward a half inch or so. The right thumb
goes to the back of this card, and the right fingers curl over the front of the
folded card. This is exactly the way your right hand would take the visible
card out of the left hand.

However, the right fingers extend a little bit in the process, and the fingers
and thumb remove both cards. The bottom card in the process of shuttling is
now visible in between the right hand thumb and fingers.

38
 The visible folded card is handed to the person who takes the card from your
right hand leaving the other card hidden.

This is much easier to do than it is to describe.

5. The finger-palmed card which has the picture on it is dropped in your

pocket with the retrieved pen.

6. The second person’s card is destroyed. Note that I stop after the first tears,
and I tell them “I do not know what word you have in mind.” This is true.
As soon as they agree, I pop open the appropriate piece and peak and then
destroy the whole card. Any center tear in which you get a peek during the
tearing should work well, but mine has some advantages.

There it is. This is a lot of entertainment with a few business cards and no
preparation.

Good luck!

Barrie Richardson

39
40
 Lazy Magician’s Memorized Deck
The title is a little deceiving. This is a system for quickly identifying the location
of 26 predetermined cards. With this system, you will not be able to immediately
know the names of cards at every location or the location of every card.

This system is not a substitute for a memorized deck.

However, this is a virtual ‘no brainer’ system for finding a location of a card which
requires no memory and can be done with confidence and rapidity by an average
person. Many magicians found my ‘Card at Any Number’ effect daunting since it
requires a facile command of a memorized deck.. I developed this system to
remedy the problem, but it has other uses.

The order of the cards appears totally random. They are actually stacked.

This is how it works. First the diamonds. There are four points on a diamond, so it
is easy to remember four. Whatever the value of the card, its position will be its
value multiplied by four.

For example, the ace of diamonds is 1x4=4 or fourth from the top. The six of
diamonds is 6x4=24, so 24th from the top. And the king of diamonds is 4x13=52,
so the last card in the deck.

The second suit you select – let’s assume it is hearts – has a slightly more
complicated formula in so far that all these cards must be situated in odd-number
positions. Since the diamonds will always occupy even-numbered positions, we
use the following rule:

To locate the position of any heart, multiply the value by three. (If you turn a heart
on its side with its point turned to the left, the right half of the heart looks like a
three. This is a good memory clue, if needed.) However, if the answer is an even
number, you add one.

For example, the three of hearts would be 3x3=9, so the ninth card from the top.
The ten of hearts would be 10x3=30+1, so the 31st card from the top. The king of
hearts would be 13x3+39.

41
Since you are limited to two suits, you must use an ambivalent statement in the
beginning to select the desired suit. This is a snap.

For example, you can say “Please remove either all the red cards or all the black
cards” – a request made as you hold both hands palm-up supposedly holding
invisible cards. You can go from there using the magician’s choice procedure in
which you can have the color you desire selected. From there on, the selections –
suit and denomination – are free choices.

Here is the complete stack:

1,2,AH, AD, 5,6, 2H, 2D, 3H, 10, 11, 3D, 4H, 14, 5H, 4D, 17, 18, 6H, 5D, 7H, 22,
23, 6D, 8H, 26, 9H, 7D, 29, 30, 10H, 8D, JH, 34, 35, 9D, QH, 38, KH, 10D, 41,
42, 43, JD, 45, 46, QD, 49, 50, 51, KD.

The numbers between the red cards in the above list represent the black cards and
are in a random order. The complete pack looks fairly mixed and can be freely
spread. Of course, it has many uses other than for the ‘Any Card At Any Number’
effect.

Good luck!

Barrie Richardson

42