The Second

16th Card Book

By

Tom Craven & Paul Gordon

(Compiled & Edited by Paul Gordon)
 The Second 16th Card Book

ISBN: 978-0-9555256-0-5

Original Copyright  1982 by Tom Craven and VIP Magic.

2007 Copyright © by Tom Craven (VIP Magic) and Paul Gordon (Natzler
Enterprises). No part of this publication may be copied, translated, transmitted,
transferred or reproduced in any way whatsoever without the prior written (and
agreed) permission from Natzler Enterprises. All Rights Reserved.

Dedicated To
all the people
who selected all the cards

With Special Thanks To

Alex Elmsley who most probably started the 16th card premise.
Harry Lorayne, Karl Fulves, Stephen Minch, Louis Falanga (L&L Pub) and
Nick Trost for permission to include previously published items. Phil
Goldstein for his generous contributions and Jim Lee and John Quine who
have been a constant source of help and inspiration in Tom’s magic
journey. Plus, thanks all the contributors (new & old) for their excellent
tricks, routines and wonderful ideas. Sincere thanks to all!

This Edition Published & Printed by

Natzler Enterprises
Worthing – Sussex – United Kingdom
www.PaulGordon.net

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The Second 16th Card Book

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 The Second 16th Card Book

Contents

Publisher’s Preface – 2007 .................................................... 6

Tom Craven Preface – 2007 .................................................. 7

Tom Craven’s original 16th Card Book – 1982

What’s In A Name ................................................................ 8

Preface ................................................................................... 10
Top Ten (Craven) .................................................................. 11
Suite Sixteen (Goldstein) ...................................................... 12
Suite Sixteen Variant (Goldstein)......................................... 14
A Perfect Mis-Match (Craven) ............................................. 15
Cut N’ Count Double (Craven)............................................ 17
My Card Is (Craven) ............................................................. 18
Conjuring With Cards (Trost) .............................................. 19
Siamese Suite (Goldstein) ..................................................... 20
Which Card’s Company? (Craven)...................................... 21
Three’s Company (Lorayne) ................................................ 23
Oracle (Fulves) ...................................................................... 25
Oracle Jr (Blake) .................................................................... 26
Oracull (Walton) ................................................................... 27
Moracle (Searles)................................................................... 28
7-16 (Taylor) .......................................................................... 29
Another Aussie (Craven) ..................................................... 31
Last Word .............................................................................. 33

New Additions for the 16th Card Book – 2007

Sirius (Robert) ....................................................................... 37

16th Card Double Elimination (Craven) ............................... 42
The Two Pile Idea (Gordon)................................................. 43
D-U-D (Gordon).................................................................... 44

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 The Second 16th Card Book

D-U-D With Prediction (Gordon) ........................................ 45

That’s Odd # 2! (Gordon) ..................................................... 45
Mars Life (Gordon) ............................................................... 49
Thoughts On That’s Odd (Higham) .................................... 50
The Love Detector (Higham) ............................................... 51
Equivocal Lie Detector (Higham) ........................................ 53
Minor Moracle (Kane) .......................................................... 55
Modern Day Moracle (Kane) ............................................... 57
Self Help Guide (Kane)......................................................... 60
The Great Thirstin’ (Kane) ................................................... 65
Jack Of All Trades (Kane)..................................................... 68
Optical Illusion (Kane) ......................................................... 70
David Copperfield Down Under (Kane)............................. 73
I Love You My Queen (Kato) ............................................... 74
Spelldowned (Hartman)....................................................... 76
Card Of The Oracle (Duffie)................................................. 79
7-16 (Elmsley)........................................................................ 82
A Double Prediction (Elmsley) ............................................ 85
Melbourne (Elmsley) ............................................................ 88
Australian Self-Help (Elmsley) ............................................ 92
Double Decker (Craven)....................................................... 94
Lucky Number Aces (Hucko) .............................................. 96
The Hemeroid Effect #1 (Gordon) ....................................... 99
The Hemeroid Effect # 2 (Gordon) ...................................... 100
The Hemeroid Effect # 3 (Gordon) ...................................... 101
The Hemeroid Effect # 4 (Gordon) ...................................... 102
Aldo On That’s Odd (Colombini) ........................................ 103
The Moves Used In This Book .................................................. 104

Final Farewell........................................................................ 108

About Your Authors ............................................................. 109

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 The Second 16th Card Book

Publisher’s Preface - 2007

Back in 1982, Tom Craven wrote a charming little booklet entitled

The 16th Card Book. There were no photographs, and it didn’t
contain much in the way of commercial or modern whiz-bang type
of magic. Guess what! It gently glided into relative obscurity, and
it shouldn’t have. It was – it is – a very good book!

I first purchased the book circa 1984. To me, it beat – into a cocked
hat – most of the over-weight outsized coffee-table tomes of the
era. I still feel that way. Well, in 2005 I nurtured the idea of asking
Tom Craven if he/we could resurrect it. I wanted to add updates
(to the original material), additions, thoughts and new items. What
with a bit of re-typesetting and new layout – here we are. The first
half of the book contains Tom’s original work, the second half is
the new (some never before published) material and also an item
Tom couldn’t gain copyright permission for back in 1982. Both
Tom and I are proud of this work. We think it’s a good book, but
then we are biased. We hope that you enjoy it, though!

Paul Gordon
2007

Publishing Note

When I reprinted, re-formatted and newly published Ed Marlo In

The United Kingdom, Hull’s Complete Eye-Openers and Joseph’s
Complete Dumbfounders, I had the same dilemma that I have here.
That is, it’s often quite tempting to re-do a few phrases and tinker
here and there. But, in the first chapter, I have left well alone;
mainly for historical reasons. I’ve not changed a thing; except for a
few obvious typos, and a few grammatical issues. As for the second
half of this book, please note that there are a few (excellent) authors
at work here, so the style often differs; but certainly needs no
alteration. To help you, there are a few descriptions of obvious
moves. To be frank, the contents of this book are not very
technically demanding. Most of you should easily sail through most
of it; and boy – what fun you’re gonna’ have! – Paul Gordon

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Tom Craven Preface – 2007

Wow! After over 25 years (digital root of 7), my little booklet has
been resurrected by Paul Gordon & Natzler Enterprises. Not only
does the reader now have the original work, but some new items
from some exciting and distinguished magicians. Little did I
realize there would be this much interest in this topic. I often
wonder if Alex Elmsley realized that as well. I guess the ideal time
to have revived this....would have been after 16 years (digital root
of 7 as Rick Johnsson pointed out), but at least it's being done in a
year that ends in 7! Enjoy.

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 The Second 16th Card Book

What’s In A Name?

It’s an obviously contrived “coincidence” that Tom Craven, after

sixteen years in magic, should pen a monograph on the principle
of the sixteenth card; containing exactly sixteen variants on that
theme. You can’t begrudge Tom that bit of poetic perversity.

It may just have been serendipitous that I received the manuscript

on the sixteenth of the month, though Tom’s clever enough to
have engineered that. But, for the life of me, I cannot believe that
he could have had any prior knowledge or control over the fact
that the manuscript was delivered at sixteen hundred hours by a
postman who was celebrating his sixteenth year with the postal
service; not that said manuscript was delivered, apparently by
error, to my neighbor, George Zourzoukis, who lives at sixteen
Banbury Cross and who was, as strange as it may seem, hosting his
sylph-like daughter’s Sweet sixteen party. I absolutely refuse to
place any numerological significance on the number of letters in
my neighbor’s name.

Be that as it may, I cannot ignore the chilling significance of the

facts that the word “sixteen” has seven letters and that the number
“16” has a digital root of seven. Further, Tom’s V.I.P. Magic Co.
was founded in 1978, a year with a digital root of seven!

Why seven is of peculiar significance is obvious to those who

realize that the seminal (a seven letter word) influence of most of
the material in this book is the “7-16 Card Game” developed by
Alex Elmsley whose last name contains exactly seven letters. I
don’t suppose any of you would like to check out upon which
page of what issue of Ibidem that routine first appeared?

While numerology may seem like so much garbage to you, I took

that chain of “coincidences” as a sign that I should carefully read,
edit and comment here on the text. I’m not sorry. Let me hasten to

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 The Second 16th Card Book

remind you that Alexander the Great, Napoleon, Hannibal, et al

placed great stock in the “numbers”. Should you and I do less?
Perhaps Julius Ceasar could have avoided his Brut-al demise had
he heeded the soothsayer’s cry.

Assuming that you bought the copy of the book that you’re
reading (as opposed to owning a Xerox rip off), you have already
avoided any evil side effects of ignoring the “numbers”. Instead,
your enjoyment and that of your future audiences is assured, if not
by numerology per se, certainly as a direct result of Tom’s
collection of “number- games”.

Q.E.D.
Rick Johnsson
3/3/82

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Tom Craven’s Preface - 1982

For sixteen years now, many of my ideas on card magic and other
magic have appeared in several magic publications. The card ideas
had many premises, unlike those contained here. None, however,
require a great amount of skill, as I firmly believe in doing it the
easy way.

This book contains items, which for the most part, have not
appeared in print. All the items share a common ground which is
the 16th Card Principle and are audience-tested.

I know this effort will only scratch the surface, but if it serves as an
inspiration to other effects, then it will have served its purpose.

The reader might wish to check Apocalypse Vol. I, No. 9 for an

outstanding effect using this principle, which I was unable* to
secure permission to include here.

I only hope you find something of interest.

Tom Craven 1982

* Oh yes we did; 25 years after the fact! See page 37.

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Top Ten
Tom Craven

Effect: A card is selected and lost in the pack. Now a second card is
chosen and is used as an indicator to deal cards into two piles. The
top card of each pile is turned up with the request that the
spectator tell you which of the two you should use to complete the
trick. The card he indicates is used to count down in the pile and it
is shown that the card at the end of the count is the originally
chosen card.

Method: The only set-up here is to get a 10 to the top of the deck.
The following is a Faro handling, but it will be seen that a Faro
shuffle is not necessary to be able to do this effect.

Start to spread cards from hand to hand for a selection to be made.

Get a little finger break below the 8th card from top. When the
selection is made, square up the deck retaining break. Lift off the
cards above break and have the selection replaced. Now do an Out
Faro. This places the selection 17th. Now you need to force the card
on top (the 10 that was there to start). This can be done either by a
slip cut or cutting so it is in the center and do a riffle force.

If the latter is used, you must remember to cut the original top half
back to top after the force. Tell the spectator that the card you are
stopped on will be used to tell how many cards will be dealt into
two piles. If he stops you on a 5, five cards in each pile, if a 9, nine
cards in each pile, etc. After he stops you on the 10, deal ten cards
in each pile. Ask which you should use to complete the effect. If
the spectator chooses the card on top of pile containing the
selection, simply remove the other pile and finish as follows:

You can always count or spell down into the pile arriving at the
selection. You can always end on it. If the card used is an Ace, you
remove it and spell A-C-E and take next card, same for a 2, 6 and

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10. If a three, turn it down and use it in the spell T-H-R-E-E. Last
card is the chosen one, or do as in first example and remove it and
count 1-2-3 and take the next card. You can spell F-O-U-R, F-I-V-E,
Q-U-E-E-N, etc. You can always get to the selection. If they choose
the card on the face of the first pile dealt...say, "We'll count/spell in
the other pile. Then you can discard the turned-up card on that
pile, or turn it face down and use it.

If you don’t do the Faro shuffle, you can start with the 10 on the
bottom, have a card selected and replaced on top. Under-cut the
deck and shuffle 15 cards on top of the selection. Force the 10 and
proceed as before.

Suite Sixteen
Phil Goldstein

The following is a version of Alex Elmsley’s seminal “7-16 Card

Game” which appeared in Ibidem. It has been orchestrated for
commercial appeal via the inclusion of a surprise finish, of a type
which has been around for a long time – the precise origins of
same being unknown to me. There is some similarity,
methodologically, between this version and an approach of Bill
Taylor’s “7-16”, which ran in Pallbearer’s Review.

You will need a blue-backed deck of cards, and two red-backers.

These should have contrasting suits and values – say, the ace of
spades and the queen of hearts. The duplicates from the blue-
backed deck should be out of play. At the start of the routine, the
red-backers are also out of the pack – but accessible (i.e. in your lap
or pocket). The pack is handed to the spectator for shuffling. Upon
the return of the pack, the two stranger cards (which you have
palmed during the spectator’s mixing) are loaded at the back of the

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 The Second 16th Card Book

face-up deck. The two red-backers are controlled to positions 8 and

16 from the face of the pack, via standard Milk Build technique.

Explain that you will demonstrate an odd coincidence with the

thoroughly shuffled pack – and, in order to keep things honest (!),
everything will be done with the cards face up.

Hand the pack to the spectator, and instruct him/her to name a

number between 7 and 16. The spectator is told to deal that many
cards into a pile in front of you and then to deal the same amount
in front of him/herself.

As soon as the first pile is dealt to you, you must pick up the cards
and casually re-locate the odd-backer to the needed position, while
the spectator is dealing the second pile. In order to avoid altering
the face card of the pile (as such a change might be noticed by the
spectator), proceed as follows: Subtract 8 from the number of cards
in the pile. Holding the packet with the right hand from above,
obtain a break above the number of cards equal to the key number
just determined (by the subtraction). The left hand now milks off
the top card of the packet, plus the cards below the break. The left
hand stock is then replaced on top of the right.

For example, if the number of cards in the packet were 12, your
key would be 4. Breaking above the lowermost four cards of the
face up packet, you would perform the Slip Cut just described,
thus bringing the odd-backer to the required position of (in this
case) ninth from the top – without changing the face card.

This Slip Cut action takes but a moment, during the misdirection
of the spectator’s dealing of the second pile. Now, with the packets
held face up, you explain that both you and the spectator will
perform a “random sorting procedure” upon your respective
packets, and, in spite of the shuffled condition of the cards, and the
freely chosen quantities, the two cards thus arrived at will match.

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 The Second 16th Card Book

Both packets are given under/down shuffles. The AS and QH will

be arrived at – clearly a match. Explain that you did indeed
succeed, by turning the cards over to show the matching stranger
backs.

Suite Sixteen Variant

Phil Goldstein

The effect is essentially the same as in the proceeding routine.

However, in this version, two different quantities of cards are
used. The method belongs to J.K. Hartman, used in his “Down &
Deal” which ran in Pallbearer’s Review. Applied to this effect, the
handling is as follows:

Following the spectator’s shuffling, the two stranger cards are

added to the back of the face-up deck. Hold the pack with the right
hand from above with a thumb break above the lowermost card.
The spectator names a number between 5 and 20. Your key is
found by subtracting the named number from 8, 16, or 32,
whichever is closer. (E.g. if the number called is 12, your key is 4. If
it is 19, your key is 13.)

The left thumb draws cards singly off from the face of the pack, as
you count aloud. When you reach your key number, you secretly
milk the lowermost card beneath the card taken at that key
position. When you finish counting off the named quantity of
cards, you will actually have one extra card – but as the piles are
never counted again, this will not be known.

A second spectator calls a number between 5 and 20, and the same
procedure is followed.

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The “Coincidence” patter is delivered. The spectators are

instructed to perform down/under shuffles on their packets. The
two stranger cards will be arrived at, and you conclude as in the
previous routine.

Notes from Tom Craven: I prefer to always use under/down

shuffle (that way I don’t have to try and remember which to do).
So – do as above, but at the end of counting off cards, you always
transfer one card from bottom to top. My patter line is “wouldn’t it
be something if the top and bottom cards added to your number?”
Take bottom card off to show and replace it on the face as this is
said. If your key number is 1 (e.g. spectator chose 7 or 15) it is
harder to cover milking that bottom card off as you take the first
one. So I hold break, count off the named number (7 or 15) and
packet in left hand goes under the pack and adds the card from the
bottom as your thumb starts to count another card. Then say “Oh!
That is enough – your number was 7 (or 15)”. Now you have
already transferred the card from bottom to face and are ready for
the under/down deal.

A Perfect Mis-Match
Tom Craven

Effect: A spectator freely selects a card from a red deck, but does
not look at it. Now a blue deck is introduced and shuffled.
Spectator chooses any number, say, between 4 and 13. This many
cards are counted off the face of the blue deck. Now a small packet
is cut from the face and shuffled into the talon. The top and bottom
cards are eliminated until only one card remains. You ask if it
would be a good trick if it matched the selected red card. The red
card is turned face up and the cards do not match. You call this a
perfect mis-match. You then state that you didn’t mean they would
match on the face, but rather on the back. Both cards are turned

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 The Second 16th Card Book

face down and they are seen to have red backs. Both decks can be
examined as there are no other red cards in the blue deck!

Method: From the face of the blue deck, set up as follows: Any 15
blue-backed cards, any red-backed card; A-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10 of
any blue-backed suit; the balance of the blue deck. The duplicate of
the red-backed card should be removed from the blue deck.
Spread the red deck and have the card selected but not looked at.
Take out the blue deck and hold it face down and Hindu shuffle
from center (any shuffle can be used here that leaves the bottom 26
cards undisturbed). Have the spectator name any number between
4 and 13. Turn the deck face up and count that many off into a pile
on the table. Turn them face down and spread them. Now you are
going to cut a packet from bottom and Faro it into the talon as
follows: Whatever the number of cards were counted off, subtract
that number from 16 (let’s assume in this example, the number is 6)
and riffle into your Ace to 10 set up so that your resulting number
stays on the face of the talon. In this case, 6 from 16 is 10. Riffle up
from the bottom of the deck until you see the 10 on the face. Cut
off the small packet and Out Faro it into talon, letting the faro’d
cards extend. That is, you don’t square them up. Take all the cards
not involved in the Faro, place them with the cards originally
counted off and spread them. Now you eliminate top and bottom
cards alternately until only one card remains using the Klondike
Shuffle. End as in the effect. If cards are given a slight bend as you
let top and bottom cards fall off, it will keep any other cards from
slipping out on the table.

I realize this effect takes some set-up, but it plays extremely strong
for laymen. Please give it a fair trial!

You will see that the ending is the same in this effect as in Phil
Goldstein’s Suite Sixteen, but Phil and I were unaware of each
other’s thinking when the two effects were created. The methods
are, however, very different.

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Cut N’ Count Double

Tom Craven

Effect: A card is selected and replaced. The deck is shuffled and

cut. The spectator now cuts a small packet from top of deck, and
the card he cuts to is used to find the selection by doubling its
value and counting down in the deck that far. The spectator has a
free choice as to where he cuts and the card at the end of the count
is the selection.

Method: A small set-up is required as follows: From the face of

deck; AS, 2S, 3S, 4S, 5S, 6S, 7S, crimped indifferent card and
balance of deck. The crimped card is 8th from bottom and AS is the
bottom card. Have the spectator select a card and Hindu shuffle for
it to be replaced. When it is replaced, drop the set-up on top of it.
(You could just cut off top half and have the selection placed on
top of it, then place the bottom half on top). The idea is to get the
set-up on top of the selection. Now any false shuffle can be used,
but you end by cutting the crimp to bottom. Now do one In Faro
shuffle. This does not have to be perfect. Only the top 16 cards
must interlace perfectly. Now have the spectator cut off a small
packet of cards, “Say less than a dozen or so”. Tell him that the
card he cuts to will be used, and you will double its value. That is,
if he cuts to a 6, you will double it to get 12. Tell him, Jacks are 11,
Queens 12, Kings 13. (This is a red herring as you won’t ever use
any of those values.) Have him cut and turn the packet face up on
the table. If you see one of the spade cards in your set-up on the
face of the cut-off cards, call it the one the spectator cuts to, double
its value and count down to the selection. If you do not see one of
your set-up cards on the face of the cut off packet, take the next
face down card (it’s the top card of the talon), call it the card cut to
and proceed as before.

The cards in the set-up do not have to be spades. They could be

hearts, clubs, or diamonds. They could be of mixed suits, but you

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 The Second 16th Card Book

would have to know what the seven cards are so when the
spectator cuts, you know instantly whether the card on the face is a
card in the set-up or not. Use whatever works best for you.

My Card Is
Tom Craven

Effect: The magician tells the spectator the magician’s card is the
ten of hearts. The spectator is to select a card, but if he should get
the magician’s card, he will choose another. The chosen card is
replaced and the deck shuffled and cut. You now state you will go
through the pack and find your card (ten of hearts in this
example). Now, the cards are shuffled again and spread on the
table. The card face to face with the reversed ten of hearts proves to
be the previously selected card.

Method: This is a simplified version of an old principle. You

simply need to know the card at the 16th position from the face of
the deck. This is the card you name at the start of the effect when
you say, “My card is the ten of clubs” (or whatever that card may
be). The deck can be shuffled as long as you keep the known card
at 16th from face. Start spreading cards from hand to hand for a
selection to be made, getting a little finger break below the 9th card
from the top. When the card is taken, square up deck maintaining
the break. Lift off all cards above break for the return of the
selection. Name your card, turn the deck face up and spread
looking for it. Turn it face down, square the deck and do one In
Faro. Spread the deck face down. Remove the one face-up card and
the card face to face with it. Ask for the name of selection and turn
it over. You can get the identity of the 16th card under the pretence
of looking through the deck to remove any jokers or by simply
looking at the bottom card and shuffling 15 cards from top to
bottom . . . or simply use YFM.

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Conjuring With Cards

Nick Trost

This is my own combination of two relatively new principles or

handlings in card magic. This will be hard to describe, but here
goes!

Have the pack shuffled. (A full deck is not required.) As you

spread the cards face down as if to have one selected, count over
16 cards. Hold a break under them as you re-square the pack. “I
could have you select a card in the normal manner, but you may
think I could influence your choice”, you explain. “So I’ll have you
select a card in a very fair manner.”

Split the pack at the break for a riffle shuffle. Riffle the bulk of the
pack into the 16-card packet so the top and bottom cards are part
of the 16-card packet. Push the halves together about halfway so
the bulky part of the pack extends beyond the 16-card half. Hold
the pack in the left hand so the 16-card half is in the hand and the
other half protrudes from the top. Riffle the upper tier asking
someone to call stop. When stopped, the right fingers reach into
the break gripping the cards above the break. The right hand lifts
the top half of interlaced cards and swings this group end for end.
The spectator is told to remember the top card of this interlaced
group.

This group is now returned to the top of the rest of the interlaced
deck, and a break is held under the inner half of pack.

The outer cards are now stripped out and spread face up on the
table. Turn your head away as you tell the spectator his card is
somewhere in this group, but that you have no clue. (The break is
maintained on the half still in the left hand.) Return the tabled
cards to those in the left hand, cut at the break and complete the
cut. His card is now 16th from the top of the pack. Note: this

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 The Second 16th Card Book

sequence of moves to position a card is described by Fulves in an

issue of the “Epilogue”.

Now for the automatic discovery: Place the pack face down on the
table and have someone cut off about half the pack and hand it to
you. (He must cut off at least 16 and no more than 31 cards.)

State flatly that the selected card is not in the tabled half. Spread
them face up to prove it. Explain that even though you have no
clue as to what his card is, or where it is, the card will find itself by
elimination.

Reverse Faro the cards in hand, out-jogging the first card.

Eliminate the outjogged cards. Reverse Faro again, eliminating the
out-jogged cards. Continue until one card remains – it will be the
selected one!

Siamese Suite
Phil Goldstein

The following is a two-card prediction effect, in which the actions

take place in the spectators’ hands. As with the preceding items, it
stems from the Elmsley “7-16 Card Game”.

A simple stack is required. You must know the cards in the first
eight positions, plus the card 16th from the top of the pack. Prepare
an eight-billet index, covering the eight-card stack. Have two blank
billets to match those in the index; a pencil and an opaque cup. At
the start of the routine, announce that you will write a prediction
for each of two spectators. On one billet, write the name of the 16th
card. On the other, write anything. The two papers are folded, and
dropped into the cup – but actually, the dummy billet is retained
in the hand, and only the slip predicting the 16th card is dropped.

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 The Second 16th Card Book

A spectator names a number between 7 and 16. This time, to find

your key, you subtract the named number from 16. (e.g., if the
number is nine, your key is seven.) Two piles are dealt from the
top of the deck, each of the named quantity. While this is going on,
you have more than ample time to secretly obtain the billet
indicated by your key number from the index.

The spectators perform under/down shuffles with their respective

packets. The cards thus arrived at will be the former 16th card (for
the second spectator), and the keyed card (for the first). The billet
from the index is finger-clipped. Pick up the cup, secretly dropping
the clipped billet inside as you hand the cup over to a spectator.
The two billets therein – apparently both isolated prior to the
spectators’ action and choices – are found to correctly predict the
two cards.

In the May, 1980 New Tops, I detailed the “Siamese Billet”. With
that approach, the two prediction slips can be seemingly left in full
view during the routine, and the cup thus eliminated.

Which Card’s Company?

Tom Craven

Effect: The spectator selects a card and it is shuffled back into the
deck. The spectator now names any number between 10 and 20.
The magician counts down to that number and finds the selected
card.

Method: This is a simplified version of Harry Lorayne’s 3’s

Company which follows this effect in this book. The selection is
controlled to 16th from the top (as in Harry’s routine, you could
have a prediction there instead of having a card selected). The
spectator now names any number between 10 and 20 and you will

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proceed as follows: The easiest numbers are 11, 12, 15, and 16. If
the spectator names 15, you count off 15 cards and show the next
card. If 16 is named, count down to it and show. For 11, count off
11 cards, turn up the next card and use it to either count or spell as
in Top Ten in this book. For 12, count to it, turn it up and proceed
as above. Hold the deck in dealing position in left hand, with the
faces toward the spectator – back of cards facing you. You are
going to count the cards off in groups of five taking the top card
counting it as 1. Take the next card on the face of the first one (not
reversing order) and count it as 2, etc. As you take the 5th card, you
will steal back the first one onto the deck using the left thumb to
draw it back.

If 13 is named, you count 5 stealing back one card and place them
on the table (there are only four card). Count 5 more, but don’t
steal one, place them on the table with the others. (As these cards
are taken, you will be saying 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10.) Take the next card,
calling it 11, then another, 12, and turn up the next card saying 13
(this card is really the one that was 12th). Now proceed to spell or
count to the required card.

For 14, you count and steal twice. Then take 11, 12, 13, and turn up
next and proceed.

For 17, count three times making the steal once. Show the card at
17.

For 18, count three times making the steal twice. Show the card at
18.

For 19, count three times making the steal three times and show
the card at 19. Or proceed exactly as in 18, but only steal twice,
count off to 19th card and show next card, whichever you find
easier to remember.

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 The Second 16th Card Book

This routine is not meant to be an improvement of Harry’s trick. I

just can’t remember that many outs without my thinking showing.

Three’s Company
Harry Lorayne

My thanks to Harry Lorayne for allowing me to reprint this routine

from his book, Quantum Leaps.

Search through the deck to get your “prediction” card. As you do,
you toss a three spot on the table and get its mate to 16 th from the
top. The deck is squared and placed on the table. Point to the face-
down 3 on the table and say, “this is a prediction, but it also serves
another purpose”. (That purpose may or may not have to be used
and if not, you simply don’t mention it again, but if it does have to
be used, you casually have mentioned it here.) Ask the spectator to
name any number between 1 and 20. Build it up here by saying,
“take your time – make it difficult, look into my eyes, etc.” The
build-up is up to you. You now work according to the number he
names. Please become familiar with each number. There must be
no hesitation here? For…

#2 (Unlikely), indicate the prediction and say you told him it

would serve another purpose. Turn it face up and say, “that tells
us we must add 3 to your number. That gives us 5. It also tells us to
deal 5 cards 3 times.” Have him do so. Take the next card and
show it matches the prediction.

#3 Turn up the prediction and show it is also a 3 (you could

end here) or mention the other purpose. Have him add 3 to his
number (3) giving him six. He deals six cards three times and then

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 The Second 16th Card Book

counts down three cards in last pile dealt. It will be the prediction
card.

#4 Turn up the prediction and have him deal 4 cards three

times and then look at the fourth card down.

#5 Show your 3, have him deal five cards three times and
look at the next card.

#6 Deal 6 three times and end as in #3.

#7 Deal 7 cards three times into a pile. Then spell “t-h-r-e-e”

down into that same pile and arrive at the prediction.

#8 Add to your 3, which gives you 11. Have him count off 11
cards, spell “t-h-r-e-e” down into the deck and arrive at the
prediction.

#9 Add to 3, count twelve cards off and then count three more
and look at the next card.

#10 Same as #9 except the last card is the prediction instead of

the next one.

#11 Same as #9 except your prediction 3 is placed on top of the

deck first.

#12 Add your 3, count off 15 and show the next card.

#13 Add your 3 and count to 16th card and show it matches
the prediction.

#14 Count off 14, place the prediction on the deck and count to
the 3rd card.

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 The Second 16th Card Book

#15 Count off 15 and show the next card.

#16 Count to the 16th card.

#17 Turn up the prediction, place it on the top, and have the
spectator count to the 17th card.

#18 Deal 18 cards on table, show the prediction, and say it tells
to count down 3 cards in the dealt packet.

#19 Same as 18 except you count down 3 in the dealt packet

and show the next card.

Oracle
Karl Fulves

This is a prediction trick using any borrowed deck. Although it

would appear that the outcome is beyond the performer’s control,
the trick is automatic in operation.

A prediction is written on a slip of paper, the paper folded and

placed aside. A deck of cards is then placed before the spectator.
He is asked to cut off about half the pack.

Taking the cut-off portion from the spectator, the performer

eliminates cards in the following way. Every other card, beginning
with the first, is out-jogged from the packet. The out-jogged cards
are then stripped out of the packet and discarded.

With the cards remaining, every other card (beginning with the
first) is again out-jogged. The out-jogged cards are stripped out
and discarded. Repeat the “elimination shuffle” with the cards

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 The Second 16th Card Book

remaining, performing it in identically the same way each time,

until you are left with one card. This may be the 8D.

The prediction slip is now opened. It reads, “You will choose the
eight of diamonds,” thus correctly naming the randomly chosen
card.

As to method, simply note the 16th card from the top and write this
as the prediction. The spectator is asked to cut off “about half the
deck,” but in fact he can cut between 16 and 32 cards, so there is
wide leeway.

Other variations are possible, but the foregoing is straight forward,

requires an absolute minimum set up, and looks fair.

Oracle Jr.
George Blake

The original effect appeared in the November, 1970 issue of

Pallbearer’s Review. Here the idea is used a location rather than a
prediction. The only preparation consists of having a corner short
card 16th from the top. Shuffle the lower 2/3 of the deck and have a
card chosen from the lower portion. Explain that you’d like the
card returned to the upper half, telling the spectator, “You’ll see
why in a moment.” Lift all the cards above the corner short and
have the chosen card replaced. It is now 16th from the top of the
deck.

The spectator cuts off approximately half the deck. During the
elimination shuffle, point out that “the card we eventually arrive at
will vary according to the number of cards you cut.” It is not true
of course, but seems logical.

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 The Second 16th Card Book

Continue to shuffle until you’re left with the chosen card.

Prediction or location, the effect is quite offbeat.

Oracull
Roy Walton

The principle used in “Oracle” can be applied to an effect of Bob

Veeser’s. Before proceeding, remove 8 cards from the deck and
place them in a face-up spread on the table. Now remove the 8
matching cards to these and arrange them in the same sequence.
Place the second packet of 8 on top of the tabled packet. Turn the
combined packet face down, give it a slight crimp and drop it on
top of the deck.

False shuffle the pack so that the top 16 cards are retained in order.
Then place the deck on the table. Cut at the crimp and hand the 16-
card stack to the spectator.

Request him to cut the packet as often as he wishes and then

remove the top card and place it in his pocket.

Say that you wish to arrive at a second card completely by chance.

To help in this direction, the assisting spectator should divide his
remaining cards into two unequal packets, retaining the larger one.
The smaller heap is returned to the deck.

As he cuts the deck, note whether the portion he retains comes

from the face of the packet or the top.

Take the packet of cards from him and if it came from the top, hold
it face-down. If it came from the face, hold it face-up.

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Point out that the first feature in arriving at a card by chance is that
you are using an unknown quantity of cards. Now the elimination
shuffle (Ed: Reverse Faro) procedure is carried out – that is, cards
are jogged up and down throughout the packet; the jogged section
containing the original face and top cards is stripped out and
discarded. This is repeated until you are left with a single card.

When this card is compared with the card the spectator pocketed
earlier, it is found to match in color and value.

If the spectator were to examine the deck at this point, the cards
would appear randomly arranged.

Moracle
Lin Searles

This stems from “Oracle” in the November, 1970 issue of

Pallbearer’s Review but even those familiar with the original will be
surprised at the unexpected conclusion. Start with the four Aces on
top of the pack. You have noted the 16th card from the top.

Write your prediction, naming the 16th card, and place it to one
side. Now pick up the deck and perform the following overhand
stock shuffle.

Run eight cards and throw the packet on top of the deck. Run
seven cards and throw back on top. Run four cards and throw on
top. Then run three cards and throw on top. This places the Aces at
positions 1, 2, 4, 8 from the top of the deck.

Follow with the regular “Oracle” routine, but do not combine the
discarded outjogged packets. In other words, as each outjogged
packet is removed, it is placed aside in a separate heap. You will

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 The Second 16th Card Book

end up with four face-down packets, although the last may consist
of just one card.

Show the card remaining. Have the prediction opened and

checked.

Turn over the top card of each of the four packets. The face-up
cards will be the four Aces.

7 - 16
Bill Taylor

Here is my addition to Alex Elmsley’s “7-16”. Magician and

spectator play a new Australian card game, Seven Sixteen. With the
spectator as dealer, the rules are as follows:

1. The dealer deals the player any number of cards between 7

and 16.

2. Dealer deals himself the same number of cards.

3. Dealer and player both do the under/down shuffle with
their packets. The first (top) card goes under the packet and the
next card is discarded, and so on until each player has only one
card remaining.

4. The person with the higher card is the winner.

Before the cards are dealt, the magician has made a little side bet
on the outcome of the game, in the form of a folded dollar bill. At
the conclusion of the game, the bill is unfolded, revealing a
prediction not only of the loser, but also of the winning and losing
cards.

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Method: As I do the trick, the spectator-dealer is always the

winner. His winning card is 16th from the top of the pack. By
following the above rules, he will always end up with this card.
This is Elmsley’s brilliant effect which originally appeared in
Ibidem.

The magician-player’s losing card is 8th from top of the pack. The
magician observes the number of cards dealt him and makes an
adjustment to bring his losing card to the correct position in his
packet.

The adjustment is easily calculated by subtracting 8 from the

number of cards in the packet. The reminder is the number of
cards that must be cut from bottom to top.

Example: Ten cards dealt, 10–8=2. So, two cards are cut to the top.
Plenty of misdirection is provided for this cut, by the spectator
dealing his own cards.

The prediction is written, “Dealer wins with the l0S; player loses
with the 5H.” Naturally, any two cards may be substituted.
The original patter is hard to beat. It went something like this:
“Here’s an Australian card game they play in the bars down there.
It’s called “7-16”. I guess it’s called that because the bars don’t
open until 7:15 at night and it takes about a minute to pour the first
drink.”

I do this as a platform effect with jumbo cards. The instructions are

typed out for the spectator to read. This last eliminates any
thoughts of alternate procedures in the minds of the hip.

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Another Aussie
Tom Craven

Effect: The spectator takes any 16 cards from the deck, shuffles
them and the performer then makes a prediction. After the
prediction is made and is in plain sight, the spectator takes away
some of the cards from the packet. He then proceeds to do the
under/down elimination until only one card is left. The prediction
is read and it matches the remaining card.

Method: After the 16 cards have been removed and shuffled, you
take the packet from the spectator to show him how to eliminate
some of the cards. As you do this, you glimpse the bottom card.
This will be your prediction. Make the prediction at this time.
Have the spectator count off cards from the top of the packet into a
pile on the table. He may count off up to half the packet, tell him.
That is, he may take one card off, or 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8. You watch as
he deals and count the number of cards. Now you take the packet
from him to show him how to do the under/down elimination, but
you must cut from top to bottom, a number of cards equaling one
less than the number the spectator counted off the packet. That is,
if he counted 5 cards off, you must shift 4 cards from top to bottom
before the spectator does the under/down elimination. The last card
left will then be the predicted one.

You could have a card selected (either forced or controlled so you

know what it is) and then steal it from the pack. Then you remove
15 cards (not letting the spectator know how many you take), have
them shuffled and, as you take them, add the selection to bottom.
Now proceed as before, having the spectator count off some, cut
appropriate amount from top to bottom, and have spectator do
under/down deal to be left with his selection. This way, no
prediction is necessary unless you want to predict that the card left
will be the selected one.

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This is a variation of Alex Elmsley’s “7-16” game and Bill Taylor’s

“7-16”, but the reader, upon comparing, will see different routes to
the same destination.

Aussie Table
For Under-Down Deal & Down-Under Deal

If a 16-card packet is used and the under/down elimination done,

the following table will show which card in the stack will be left
when a determined amount of cards are removed.

Number of Cards Removed Original Position in stack of cards left

1 16th
2 15th
3 14th
4 13th
5 12th
6 11th
7 10th
8 9th
9 16th
10 15th
11 14th
12 13th

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If a 16-card packet is used and the down/under elimination done,

the following table will show which card in the stack will be left
when a determined amount of cards are removed.

Number of cards removed Original Position in stack of cards left

1 15th
2 14th
3 13th
4 12th
5 11th
6 10th
7 9th
8 16th
9 15th
10 14th
11 13th
12 16th

I don’t think anyone would want to do an effect where more than

half the packet is eliminated before proceeding, as it makes the
amount of cards left too small to be effective in the minds of the
audience. The above tables were only worked out that far to show
the pattern that exists in this kind of thing.

Last Word
Tom Craven

So, there it is. As I look back, I now remember other effects which
could have been included. I have used all the effects in the book at
one time or another, and all play well. You’ll find favorites that
appeal to you more than others.

If you like the items here, you can drop me a line at the address
below. If you didn’t – drop Rick Johnsson a line and he will write

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 The Second 16th Card Book

you sixteen pages of sophisticated oddities in sixteen colors and

sixteen languages. But whatever you do, don’t ever pass him by
when booking trade shows in Vegas ‘cause his wrath comes down
on you “Sixteen Fold”.

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 The Second 16th Card Book

New Additions for

The 16th Card Book
(Although some have been published before, most haven’t.)

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The Second 16th Card Book

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 The Second 16th Card Book

Sirius
André Robert

[This is the effect that Tom Craven was referring to

in his 1982 preface. Sincere thanks to Harry
Lorayne for allowing us to reprint this outstanding
effect from the first year – 1978 – of Apocalypse.
From here on in, its Harry’s writing.]

You need a full 52-card deck; no jokers. Pencil dot the corners
(upper left and lower right) of any card. Place this card eighth from
the bottom of the deck. As you say that you’ll need four people to
help you, do a Hindu Shuffle, a riffle shuffle, and a faro shuffle.
This should be accompanied by patter - “There are many different
ways to really shuffle a deck of cards,” etc.

During the Hindu and riffle shuffles, be sure to keep your key card
at eighth from the bottom. Easy enough; there’s plenty of leeway.
When you do the faro, the cut is unimportant, but you must do a
perfect “in” from the bottom up. That is, the original bottom card
becomes second from the bottom. This places your pencil—dotted
key card to sixteenth from the bottom.

Immediately ribbon spread the face-down deck from left to right.

The next action appears as if you simply break the ribbon-spread
deck into four approximately equal packets. That really is what
you do, but the packet to your left must have exactly sixteen cards.
This is the only reason for the pencil-dotted key.

Spot the key card in the spread — knowing that it lies at exactly
sixteenth from the left end of the spread, makes this an instant
action. Break the spread at, and including, your key card. Square
these (16) cards and place the packet face down to your left.

Break approximately a third of the remaining cards, square and

place this packet to the right of the first one. Break the remaining

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 The Second 16th Card Book

(spread) cards approximately in half. Square, and place these two

packets to the right of the first two. All you’ve done is to form a
horizontal row of four packets. The one at the left end has exactly
sixteen cards. It doesn’t matter how many cards are in each of the
other packets.

Hand each of the four packets to a different spectator — or let

them take the packets themselves. Ask each person to thoroughly
shuffle his cards. Then, take back the three indifferent packets,
replacing them to the table – or let the spectators replace them
themselves.

Turn to the spectator who is still holding, and shuffling, the

sixteen-card packet. Ask him to remove any card, look at and
remember it, hold onto it, and to replace the remaining cards unto
the table.

He is now to place the selected card onto any one of the other three
shuffled packets. As soon as he does this, place his original packet
(15 cards) onto his card. In other words, you’ve combined two
packets, burying his card. (This is how André does it. I prefer to
have the spectator remove any card, place it onto one of the three
tabled packets, then he shuffles the cards he’s holding, and he
places them onto his card. It doesn’t matter, of course. Either
handling accomplishes the same thing. )

Pick up this combined packet and drop it onto either one of the
remaining two packets. “We’ve placed one group of shuffled cards
onto your card, and another group beneath your card — your card
is now completely lost. I’ll place this last group in the center.” Do
so, but be sure that this last packet goes below the sixteenth card.

What you’ve accomplished with all this is to place the selected

card to exactly sixteenth from the top. Now, do a false cut to the

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table. (I usually throw in a jog shuffle keeping the top sixteen cards
intact.)

Now do two faro shuffles — as convincers that the selected card is

hopelessly lost. Do them like this: Cut about twenty cards from the
top. Faro shuffle these into the larger portion — but faro from the
bottom up, doing an “Out” shuffle (see Afterthoughts). In other
words, the bottom card of the deck remains at bottom; the bottom
card of the smaller portion goes to second from the bottom. (I
usually faro from the tops of the portions down. It doesn’t matter; I
just have to judge it properly. ) The faro must be perfect.

As you’re about to square the halves, point out that some of the
top cards haven’t been shuffled. (This is true, of course, and it will
throw a knowledgeable cardman; he sees that it’s not a perfect
faro.) As you say that it doesn’t really matter cut, or double cut,
this top, unshuffled, group to the bottom. (Don’t forget this; the
effect won’t work if you do.) Square the cards first, of course.

Now, do another faro as just described. Cut about twenty cards

from the top, and do the “out” faro. Except, this time, don’t cut the
unshuffled top group to the bottom. Simply square the deck. (See
Afterthoughts.)

Believe it or not, the selected card is now the tenth card from the
top of the deck!

Do a wide face-down ribbon spread. (I usually throw in one jog

shuffle before spreading. Whether you do or not, if your audience
isn’t completely convinced that the selected card is hopelessly lost
— you’ve done something wrong!)

I love André’s ending because it affords the opportunity for some

acting. Ask the spectator to concentrate on his card, and then start
to remove small groups of cards from the left end of the spread,

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 The Second 16th Card Book

the middle of the spread and, occasionally, from the right end of
the spread.

These removed cards are discarded. (I go wild here! I toss away –

all over the place – the cards I remove. ) The idea is to make it
appear as if you’re trying to read his mind, and trying to find his
card by elimination.

Try not to look at the cards as you do this. Rather, stare into your
spectator’s eyes. Only occasionally remove a few cards from the
right end of the spread (top of deck). Be sure to keep track of how
many you remove from this end – so that you always know the
position of the selected card.

Finally, remove all cards but the selection (When I do this, at this
point, I make sure some perspiration is running down my face or
forehead!)

Only one card lies face down in front of you. Ask the spectator to
name his card. Turn up the one remaining card to show that it is
the correct one — and to end!

Afterthoughts: I don’t think you can realize the strength of this

until you perform it. I haven’t bothered to work out the
mathematics of it — but be assured that, if you do the faros, etc.,
properly, the selected card will always be tenth from the top.

After playing with this for a while, I found that the first faro (of the
two vital faros) is even easier than André realizes. You don’t have
to do an “out’ shuffle. Look; after that first faro, and after cutting
the unshuffled block from top to bottom, the selected (16th) card
must fall to 22nd position from the bottom. If you do an “in” faro, it
will still fall to that position! As a matter of fact, as long as the
cards that do interlace do so perfectly, it doesn’t matter if there are

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 The Second 16th Card Book

up to, say, four cards unshuffled at the bottom — at either portion.

The selected card will still fall to 22nd from bottom!

And – for the second faro, I found that if you cut exactly twenty
cards, the selection will end up eleventh from top. To make it
work properly, you must cut at least twenty-one cards — and no
more than thirty. So, if you cut anywhere from twenty-one to thirty
cards for that second faro, it will work perfectly.

What I do is to cut near center – or a card or two less – do the “out”

faro, as explained, and it can’t go wrong.

If, when you do that second “off’ center” faro you accidentally do
an “in” instead of an “out” — that is, the bottom card of the
smaller portion goes to the bottom instead of second from bottom –
don’t panic. Complete the shuffle, square the deck — and the
selected card will be ninth from the top.

Obviously, you can manage to get the selected card to sixteenth

from the top any way you like. If you don’t want to pencil dot a
card, you can simply count (with your eyes, if you can do it
quickly) to the sixteenth card and break there after your first
ribbon spread.

Or — as I often do, shuffle a known card to eighth from the

bottom. Get it to sixteenth via a faro. Then, spread the deck face
up. Simply break the first group at your key card. It doesn’t matter
since all four packets will be shuffled.

And, of course, you can end any way you like. You’re limited only
by your imagination. Knowing that the selected card is tenth from
top enables you to, for example, end by spelling the selection.
Simply shuffle two cards onto the top, bringing it to twelfth. Any
card can be spelled, one card per letter, with twelve cards.

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These are just rambling thoughts; the basic effect is just fine — as
is.

Paul Gordon note: When I do this most wonderful routine, I ‘get’

my 16-card packet like this: From a shuffled deck, I spot the top
card and jogshuffle it to 5th from top. Two Straddle Faro’s later and
it’s 17th from top. I then spread the deck face up (not ideal, but –
that’s how I do it) and split the deck into the various piles; the
‘key’ pile is formed by splitting the deck to the left of the noted
card. In other words, 16 cards. (Or crimp the 5th card so that you
can spread the deck face down.) Carry on as written.

16th Card Double Elimination

Tom Craven

Effect: A deck is fairly shuffled. The deck is spread to show that

all the cards are different. The spectator now says “stop” as the
magician cuts the deck. The top two cards at the stopped point are
used to determine how many cards are to be used in the effect, as
you tell the spectator it would take too long if you used the entire
deck. From the balance of the deck, a prediction is made and set
aside face down. You then count off a number of cards equal to the
cards at the stopped point. You explain that you will show the
spectator two different types of card elimination until only one
card remains. That card matches your prediction.

Performance: The deck is fairly shuffled (the spectator can shuffle.)

The deck is spread face up to show all cards are different. As you
spread, you look for two cards side by side that total sixteen. These
could be two eights, a nine and a seven, Jack and five, etc. The deck
is cut at that point making those two cards the top two cards of the
deck. But, you must memorize the card below them. (You’ll see it
as you find the two cards that total sixteen.) The mate to this card

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will be your prediction. Remove it and place it aside. I now use a

timing force. I cut the top of the deck to center and hold a break
above it. Start cutting the deck and time it so the spectator stops
you as you get to the break. Now have the spectator look at the
two cards and announce their total. That many cards (16) are
counted off without reversing their order. (If you reverse the order,
you must shuffle the card on the bottom back to the top.)

You now go into the two types of elimination as follows: First, do a

Reverse Faro, that is, outjog every other card starting with the 2nd
card. Eliminate all the outjogged cards. Using the cards still in the
hand, the second elimination is done by placing the top card
beneath the packet, the next is eliminated, the next beneath, next
eliminated, etc. until only one card remains. It will match the
prediction.

I always stress that the spectator shuffled, they stopped me at a

random position in the deck, any two cards could have been used
to determine the number of card used, etc. You will always find
two cards together that total sixteen!

The Two Pile Idea

Paul Gordon

The routines in this section are mostly based on a two pile idea
which, I believe, has not been utilised in quite this way before. Try
the effects first, and then peruse this table. My routine, That’s Odd,
is possibly the strongest of the two-pile effects. It’s certainly
commercial.

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This table may help assist you ‘understand’ my ‘two pile’ handling of
the 16th Card Principle
The amount of cards Position of Key Card (from top) once the Number of
dealt in each pile. inhand remainder has been dropped onto cards in larger
one of the tabled piles. pile.
1 (Total 2) 14 15
2 (Total 4) 12 14
3 (Total 6) 10 13
4 (Total 8) 8 12
5 (Total 10) 6 11
6 (Total 12) 4 10
7 (Total 14) 2 9

D-U-D
Paul Gordon

This is the first routine I devised after re-reading Tom Craven’s 16th
Card Book, 1982. When I bought the book back in 1984, I was only
‘into’ finger flinging. Age has calmed me down a bit. I prefer
maths-based ideas. I like to make them commercial…and this is
one such idea.

From a shuffled deck have a card chosen, and once noted and
returned, control it to top. Say, “Have you heard of the Australian
Down Under Deal? No! Well, let’s show you using the deck!”

Here you false shuffle the deck, retaining the top card, and deal
(reversing their order) one card per letter (16 cards) from the top of
the deck onto the table using the 16-letter phrase “t-h-e-d-o-w-n-u-
n-d-e-r-d-e-a-l”. The deck is placed aside and you ask the spectator
to pick up the face-down 16-card packet. (Position check: The
selection is on the bottom.)

Say, “Assume you had a dice (die), throw it and whatever the
number, deal two piles of cards onto the table – each pile

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 The Second 16th Card Book

containing the amount of cards on your rolled imaginary die!”

Actually, he can deal up to and including seven cards, but the die
patter/presentation ‘works’ best. And, he can deal in rotation, or
one pile at a time. Tell him that.

Assume he deals two piles of five cards each. Ask him to drop the
inhand remainder (in this case, 6 cards) on top of either tabled pile.
He then picks up the combined 11-card pile.

Ask him to do the Australian Down Under (Deal & Duck) Shuffle
and the last card he holds is his! It always will be. Reveal it with
panache!

D-U-D With Prediction

Paul Gordon

If you own a marked deck, try this: Have it shuffled and note the
top card by using the marking system. Make a written prediction
of this card. Proceed as in the above routine (from para. 3) and they
will be left with one card; the prediction card.

Or, instead of using marked cards, use a really good glimpse. It

must, I stress, be a very good ‘invisible’ glimpse.

That’s Odd # 2!
Paul Gordon

This routine is one of my favourite effects. It is a very magical,

commercial, utilitarian and easy routine. I use it all the time; at
every trade show and magic convention. Read all the variations
before you judge this trick. In fact, try it first before you judge it!

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If, by the way, you purchased my manuscript (That’s Odd) a couple

of years ago, still try this handling; it’s different in a few subtle
ways.

What you need: 16 playing cards (a mixture of even and odd

valued cards), one of which must be of an odd value (Ace, Three,
Five, Seven or Nine) and with an odd-coloured (from the other
‘same back’ fifteen cards) back. This card we will call the Key
Card. (For instance, maybe you could have 15 red-backed cards
and 1 odd-valued blue-backer!)

How to set: Shuffle the 16-card packet, hold it face up and place
the Key Card second from face.

How to Perform: Reveal the packet and hold it face down. Spread
the packet but don’t spread and flash the second-from-bottom
Key Card. Say, “Here we have about a third of the deck. It’s not a full
deck, but what the heck – I’ve not been working with a full deck for
years!” This display and patter subliminally displays cards of one
back colour. Don’t, I repeat don’t, over do this. Don’t say anything
about the back colour!

Flip the packet face up and casually mix the cards (whilst face up),
but end up with the Key Card at the bottom/rear of the face-up
packet. As you do this say, “Note that the cards are made up off odd-
valued and even-valued cards.” Point out a few values as you mix
them. (On occasions, I give the cards a tabled face-up ‘Salad
Shuffle’*, and then let the spectator shuffle. The Salad Shuffle
won’t reveal the backs! After they’ve shuffled, one quick cut will
get the key card back to the rear.)

Say, “I’m going to make a prediction!” Here you write (secretly), on a

piece of paper, “You will end up with an odd card!” Fold the
prediction and leave it on the table.

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 The Second 16th Card Book

Say, “From the face of the packet, I’m going to deal two piles of face-up
cards; each packet containing the same number of cards, but no more
than, say, - oh, I don’t know – seven in each pile. [Here, make it sound
as if it doesn’t matter how many cards are dealt in each pile. In my
experience, no one says more than seven. If they do, say – ‘Not too
many or we’ll be here all night!’] Continuing: But, be judicious. Later
on when I reveal my prediction, you may wish we had dealt more, or dealt
less! And, we can either deal in rotation or one pile at a time! Your call!”
You do as they ask. You can deal from one card to seven cards in
each pile, but it won’t work if you deal more than seven in each
pile. See above comment in square brackets. Once again – strongly
reiterate that he could have named any(?) amount of cards to be
dealt in each pile, and that you could have dealt one pile at a time
or in rotation. Stress all this! Ham it up!

Say, “Shall we shuffle the packets? This pile? Or this? Or the ones I
hold? All three? Your call!” Whatever he says, do so. But, when you
shuffle the inhand cards, retain the key card on the bottom/rear.
Now, what I do is this: In an off-hand carefree manner I shove the
two tabled packets to two spectators and say, “Help me out – you
shuffle them!” How strong is that! But, only you – the performer –
shuffle the inhand cards! (Or, let them Salad Shuffle – as before –
and cut the key card back to the rear!)

Say, “I will place the inhand remainder on any pile you want and then
we will use the larger combined pile. Your choice! But, - once again - be
judicious. Later on when I reveal my prediction, you may wish you had
chosen differently!” So, you place the face-up inhand remainder (on
either face-up tabled pile) as instructed. Say, “As I said, we’ll use this
combined pile up; the big pile!” Hand the larger combined face-up
pile to the spectator. (Audience management required so he
doesn’t turn it over!)

Now, you – the performer – pick up the smaller face-up pile and
use it as a demonstration packet, like so: Say, “In a moment, I want

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 The Second 16th Card Book

you to give the bigger pile an Australian Down-Under (deal & duck)
Shuffle by placing the first card to the table and the next to the bottom
of the face-up packet. Repeat this procedure until you are left holding one
card!” Here you demonstrate the ‘deal & duck’ with your packet
(tabling the cards as you do), and drop the last card on your tabled
face-up pile. Remind the spectator that the procedure and outcome
will be random (not so!) because he could have chosen any number
of cards in each pile at the start and that you could have placed the
remainder on either pile etc., etc.

So, he does the Australian Shuffle (placing the ‘discards’ onto your
face-up tabled pile) with his face-up packet and, thanks to the
principle used, he will be left holding just the Key Card. Point to a
few of the tabled even-valued cards and point out the (odd) value
of his card; the one he’s holding.

Open and read the prediction. You will get groans and sighs of
disbelief! They will think it’s a pretty lack-lustre trick. However,
after the emotional ‘lull’ – the kicker is this: Say, “But, it really is
odd! Look!” Flip all the tabled cards face down and then ask him to
flip his card face down. The ‘visual’ backs display and contrast
says it all! Strong!

Credits, Thoughts & More: My first ‘stab’ at this particular effect

was in a routine of mine (Oddity) from 1988. Looking back, it
wasn’t much cop. This is!

Here are some other better ways of doing this trick:

a. You can, with Jumbo Cards, do this as a cabaret trick.
b. Trade Show workers can use the company logo/message
on the rear of a blank-backed card.
c. You can make the back of the Key Card as odd-looking
and bizarre (funny, rude, naughty etc) as you dare! You
are only limited by your imagination. I once used an ‘ugly

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Lady’ card, and just as the kicker unfolded – a Lady of ‘not

the best looks’ joined the group. Oops!
d. The rear of the Key Card can have a Garden Spade picture
on it. The prediction would read, “You will end up with a
Spade!” End in the obvious manner. Or, you could use a
Diamond Ring, Love Heart or Golf Club.

* The Salad Shuffle is where the cards are simply mixed whilst
randomly spread/mixed on the table. It’s how a child might shuffle
cards. But, it is a good true shuffle that doesn’t allow for the cards
to be turned over.

Mars Life
Paul Gordon

Life On Mars from my 1996 book, Nocturnal Creations, is one of my

favourite tricks. It in itself was based on Richard Vollmer’s Earthly
Powers from Apocalypse. Richard’s routine is a close cousin of the
Oracle/Moracle effects in the first section of this book. Mars Life is
based on Life On Mars. It’s easy, fun & visual. What more could
you ask for?

On the top of the deck, set the four Queens with the QH
uppermost. Cull, or preset, any X card to between the Queens. So,
from top of the deck: QH, Q, X, Q, Q. Force the QH on a spectator.
As he’s showing it around, add three X cards to the top of the deck
using a jogshuffle, or double undercut. The QH is returned to the
top of these (standard addition by kicking over, with right
forefinger, top half of deck into left hand, selection returned and
after bottom half placed on top – break held and doublecut to top)
and then five more X cards are jogshuffled, or doublecut to above
these. So, from top of deck: X, X, X, X, X, QH, X, X, X, Q, X, Q, Q.

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Say, “Was your card red or black?” When they say ‘red’, deal three
cards, from the top of the deck, to table, one card per letter: r-e-d.
Say, “Heart or Diamond?” As above, when they say ‘heart’, spell
h-e-a-r-t (one card per letter) onto the three already-dealt cards.
Finally, say, “Spot card or Court card?” When they say ‘court’,
spell c-o-u-r-t (one card per letter) onto the eight tabled cards.
Place the deck aside and pick up the tabled thirteen-card packet.

Say, “To find your actual card, I have to do this.” Here you
perform a Reverse Faro (up and down-jog the cards, starting with
the second-from-top card being upjogged) with the packet. Hold
the elongated packet in the left hand and with the right hand, strip
out the out-jogged cards. The left hand tables its seven-card
packet. Repeat the Reverse Faro with the remaining six-card
packet and as before the left hand tables its three-card packet to the
right of the seven-card packet. Finally, perform the Reverse Faro
with the remaining three cards and strip out the single card with
the right hand as the left hand tables the two-card packet to the
right of the three-card packet.

Ask for the name of the selection and flip over the single card to
reveal the Queen of Hearts. As a kicker, turn over the top cards of
the tabled packets to reveal the other Queens. End.

Thoughts On Paul Gordon’s ‘That’s Odd’

Justin Higham

The following idea has been waiting in my notes for quite a few
years waiting for an appropriate application to come along. When
Paul Gordon sent me his ‘That’s Odd’ application of the 16th card
principle, I realised that this was just such an application. The
Down/Under Deal is made with a random number of cards, and
yet the outcome is controlled.

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 The Second 16th Card Book

The idea that I had, which I have grafted onto Paul’s effect, is a
presentational theme for the Down/Under Deal, based on the
ancient pastime of removing petals from a daisy to ascertain one’s
romantic fortune. (I am advised by ‘the internet’ that this is of
French origin, and is called effeuiller la marguerite: ‘de-leafing’ the
daisy.)

Holding a packet of cards, you say, ‘She loves me not’, as you deal
the first card down to the table. You then say, ‘She loves me’, as
you ‘duck’ the next card under the packet; and so on, repeating
these two phrases alternately as you deal and duck, all the way
through the packet. Interestingly, if you always start with, ‘She
loves me not’, then the final card which is left over will always fall
on, ‘She loves me’, regardless of how many cards there are or
whether there is an odd or even number.

The reason for this can be understood if you have, say, a pile of
matches. You slide one match away as you say, ‘She loves me not’.
You then simply touch the remaining matches as you say, ‘She
loves me’, followed by sliding another one away on, ‘She loves me
not’. Touching the pile is equivalent to retaining a match, or a card
via the ‘duck’ procedure. The result is that all of the matches or
cards get discarded on the negative phrase, leaving you with one
left which has to fall on the positive phrase, ‘She loves me.’

The Love Detector

Justin Higham

So with a sixteen-card packet, with a prediction card on the bottom

(say, the QH), Overhand Slip Shuffle retaining the QH in place,
then with the packet face down, say that you will deal pairs of
cards, ‘like this.’ Deal two cards to the table face up, one to the left
and one to the right, explaining that, because love has a positive

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and a negative side, you will deal two piles to represent this dual
nature. (That way, you are not specifically saying, ‘This pile is
negative and that one is positive’; which might confuse the issue.)

Say, ‘As I continue dealing, please say “stop” at any time after I
have dealt a pair.’ Continue dealing – quite slowly, and pausing a
little after each pair – until stopped. Ask the spectator whether
you should drop the remainder onto ‘this’ pile or ‘that’ one, then
hand them the larger pile. (As in Paul’s original, emphasize that
the talon can be placed on either dealt pile, and whichever pile
they indicate, they will then take this combined packet.) If they
now go through the D/U handling, saying ‘She loves me not’ on
the first card as it is dealt to the table, and so on, then the final card
– the QH – will fall on ‘She loves me.’ Say that, in a pack of cards,
the card which represents love is the QH; then have them reveal
this card. Finally, as a convincer, show them that you had
previously predicted this card.

The QH could, of course, be the only printed card, all the others
being blank-facers; or maybe black spot cards. (Alternatively, it
could be performed so as to ensure that the last card reveals, ‘Love
me not’! In this case, for a humourous presentation, all of the cards
could be the QH, except for the force card, which is blank.)
Alternatively, if the cards are dealt face up as in Paul’s version,
then the QH could be the only red-backed card. Say, ‘Do you
know how you can tell that the Queen of Hearts is in love? Look,
she’s gone red with embarrassment.’ Similarly, as Paul suggests,
the back of this card could feature some kind of risqué design.

Of course, whether you use the Queen or King of Hearts as the

force card, and the masculine or feminine version of the phrases,
depends on who you are performing the effect for. Alternatively,
you can use the ‘gender neutral’ version which is simply, ‘Loves
me, loves me not....’ Regardless, the effect is perfect for
engagement parties, hen/stag nights, Valentine’s day, etc.

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Equivocal Lie Detector

Justin Higham

This is exactly the same idea as applied to a lie-detector theme

(inspired by my own, as-yet unpublished, ‘NoBo Lie detector’).
The reason why this version is ‘equivocal’ is that the phrase which
they use when dealing the first card is dependent on whether or
not they lied. In other words, in ‘The Love Detector’, they always
start with the same phrase. In the following, they are instructed by
you to start with either ‘Truth’ or ‘Lie’, depending on how they
answered your previous question. (Of course, the spectator is
never made aware of the equivocal nature of the phrasing.)

With a selection controlled to the bottom of the face-down, sixteen-

card packet, deal the cards face up into two piles, one to the left
and one to the right. This time the two piles represent the ‘dual
nature of truth’, i.e., truth, and the negation of truth. (Again, you
do not want to say that one pile represents truth and the other,
falsity, as this might confuse the issue.)

As before, the spectator stops you at any time after you have dealt
a pair. Spread the two dealt piles towards the spectator and have
them look for their selection. Square these two piles up, turn them
face down, drop the talon onto either pile as indicated by the
spectator, and hand them the larger pile. Now explain that you are
going to ask them if they saw their card. However, they can either
lie or tell the truth. Once they have answered your question,
explain that the lie detector – the cards which they are holding –
will determine the truthfulness of their response.

At this stage you know whether or not they lied, because you knew
all along that the selection was at the bottom of the undealt talon;
hence, they won’t have seen their card in the face-up piles.
Therefore, if they told the truth, they are instructed to deal the first
card to the table while saying, ‘Lie’, place the next card under as

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they say, ‘Truth’, and so on. The last card has to fall on the word,
‘Truth’. Say that the lie detector indicates that they were telling the
truth. Have the selection named and revealed.

If, however, you know that they lied, then they are instructed to
table the first card while saying ‘Truth’, followed by ducking a
card on the word ‘Lie’, and so on. In this case, the final card will
fall on the word lie: indicating, so you say, that they lied. Now
say, ‘For the first time, would you tell the truth, the whole truth,
and nothing but the truth: what is the name of your card.’ They
name and reveal it as before.

End Notes: It would be possible, of course, to simply have a

sixteen-card packet, and with the selection controlled to the top,
deal cards to the table until stopped by the spectator. The rest are
placed on top if the ‘Love Detector’ theme is being used – the
stopped-at point representing, say, a moment in time when two
people meet – and the combined packet handed to the spectator for
dealing; or if using the ‘Lie Detector’ theme, the talon is spread
with faces towards the spectator as they look for their card,
followed by being turned face down and dropped onto the tabled
cards; the spectator then being asked if they saw their card,
followed by their picking up the tabled pile and dealing. (In the
latter effect, you could table the talon next to the first dealt pile,
and magician’s force the lower pile before showing the faces, etc.)

This is all well and good. However, the advantage of the Gordon
handling is that the pile handed to the spectator contains a random
number of cards, thereby making the resulting D/U Deal all the more
seemingly impossible to control or predict the outcome of.

Finally, in both of the above versions, the D/U Deal is never

referred to by any name – such as an ‘Australian shuffle’ – or even
as a ‘random sorting process’. It is simply a nameless procedure,
the nature of which becomes apparent as the packet gets whittled

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down to one card.

Postscript: Occasionally, when I have performed the truth/lie

theme (as part of my ‘NoBo Lie Detector’), the spectator will
emphasize the word or statement which they say on the
penultimate card, which is dealt to the table; as if this word
somehow indicated the nature of the last, remaining, card. This
therefore confuses the effect, as the last card now seems to be a
failure, falling on the wrong word or phrase. For example, if the
final card is to fall on ‘Truth’, the spectator might deal the
penultimate card while saying, ‘Lie’, and then simply stop and look
at me: as if the word ‘Lie’ signified the last, remaining, card. What I
therefore always do, now, is point to the last card that they are
holding and say (in rhythm with their previous dealing) whichever
final word or phrase is appropriate. This way, regardless of
whether they say the final phrase or not, the resulting effect is
clear.

Minor Moracle
Marty Kane

Prepare a deck by stacking the 7’s on top. Now slip cut the top
card, say 7 of hearts, into the bottom quarter of the deck. The deck
is ready.

“The number 7 has always been associated with lucky and magical
powers. Let me show you one of its many magical ones. We’ll use
a 7.”

Turn the deck face up. Spread the deck to the 7 of hearts. Table it
face up. Square the deck and turn it face down. Double cut the
top card to the bottom.

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“We’ll use 7 cards - 6 cards and the 7 of hearts.” Spread off 6

cards without reversing their order as you count them aloud.
Table the deck. Openly insert the face up 7 into the 4th position of
the face down spread, saying, “We’ll position the 7 in the center of
these 7 cards for the demonstration.”

Square the spread. “I’ll now perform a strip-out shuffle.” Perform

a slow Reverse Faro, outjogging the cards at even numbered
positions, as you say, “Notice how I’m extending alternating cards.
Notice also how the 7 remains in the center.” Square the sides of
the spread. Strip out and retain the outjogged cards, while the
remaining cards are dropped to the mat. Perform another slow
Reverse Faro, saying, “Again, alternating cards are extended and
the 7 remains in the center.” Strip out the 7 and drop the
remaining 2 cards onto the 4-card pile.

Place the 7 face down onto the deck. Drop the 6-card pile onto the
deck. Pick up the deck and say, “Let me put the 7 of hearts into
another position.” Reverse double undercut the bottom card to the
top. The 7’s now occupy the 1st, 2nd, 4th, and 8th positions from the
top.

Spread off the top 7 cards without reversing their order as you
count them aloud. Table the deck centrally and forward. Say,
“This time I’ll let you test this power of the 7. We’ll use these 7
cards. Somewhere in this spread is the 7 of hearts. Please think of
any number from, naturally enough, 1 through 7. I will add that
number of cards from the deck to the bottom of this spread. If
your choice is the exact number needed to centralize the 7 of
hearts, then the strip-out shuffle will eventually produce that 7 at
the end. Please think carefully about your choice.”

After the response, add that number of cards singly from the top of
the deck to the bottom of the spread. Close the spread.

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Perform a Reverse Faro, retaining the outjogged cards and tabling

the remaining cards just left of the center of the mat. Perform
another Reverse Faro, retaining the outjogged cards and tabling
the remaining cards in the center of the mat behind the deck.
Perform a final Reverse Faro, retaining the outjogged card and
tabling the remaining card(s) just right of the center of the mat.

“We’ve now come to the moment of truth. If your guess were

exact, what would be the name of this card?”

After the response, turn over the card to reveal the 7 of hearts.
Place it face up on the deck as you say, “Congratulations!”

“There’s one more power of the 7’s, which would only work if
your choice were exact. Please turn over the top card of each pile.”

The remaining 7’s will be revealed.

Notes: This was published in Onyx #4. It was inspired by Lin

Searles’ “Moracle,” which was based on Karl Fulves’ “Oracle,”
both of which appeared in the Pallbearer’s Review, July 1971 and
November 1970 respectively. (And, in this book!)

A series of Reverse Faros produces the central card only when the
packet size is 3, 7, 15, or 31. It’s the Klondike Shuffle that always
produces the central card.

Modern Day Moracle

Marty Kane

Prepare a deck by stacking the aces on top. Double cut the bottom
card to the top. Crimp the inner right corner of the bottom card of
the deck. Perform the following actions casually while pattering.

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Overhand shuffle 3 cards singly into the left hand and toss the
deck atop these. Overhand shuffle 1 card and toss the deck atop
this. Overhand shuffle 4 cards singly and toss the deck atop these.
The aces are now the 1st, 2nd, 4th, and 8th cards below the crimped
card. Perform a false shuffle, keeping the bottom 9 cards intact.
The deck is now set to begin the effect.

Spread the deck for the removal of a selection. In closing the

spread, acquire a left pinky break under the 7 th card from the top.
This could be achieved by injogging the 8 th card that was spread
over and pushing down on it from above by the right thumb when
closing the spread, or by having the right fingers under the spread
maintain contact on the face of the 7th card and guiding the card to
form the pinky break when closing the spread. Double cut the 7
cards above the break to the bottom.

The spectator places the selection on top of the deck and cuts the
deck several times.

Say, “In a moment I’ll ask you to lift some cards off the top of the
deck like this and hand them to me,” while lifting all cards above
and including the crimped card with the right hand. After the
spectator acknowledges understanding, table these on the left side
of the mat and put the remaining tabled cards onto them while
saying, “We’ll start with the deck on this side for reasons that will
become apparent.”

“I’ve been struggling with a math problem. I think you can assist
me with it. The problem is easily illustrated with playing cards.
Please hand me about half the cards.” After you’re given these (16
– 31) cards, say, “If this is half the deck, there’s a 50% chance your
card is in this packet. Let’s cut those odds exactly in half by
removing exactly half the cards. This is one way to quickly
remove exactly half the cards.” Perform a Reverse Faro,
outjogging cards at even numbered positions. Square the sides of

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the spread. Strip out and retain the outjogged cards. Discard the
remaining cards onto the top of the deck.

“There’s now a 25% chance your card is in this packet. Let’s cut
those odds exactly in half.” Perform a 2nd Reverse Faro, and table
the discards as a pile to the right of the 1st pile.

“There’s now a 12 1/2% chance your card is in this packet. Let’s

cut those odds exactly in half.” Perform a 3rd Reverse Faro, and
table the discards as a pile to the right of the 2 piles.

“There’s now a 6 1/4% chance your card is in this packet [of 2 or 3

cards.] Let’s cut those odds exactly in half.” Perform a 4th Reverse
Faro, and table the discard(s) as a pile to the right of the 3 piles.

With tongue in cheek, say, “There’s now a 3 1/8% chance your card
is in this packet,” while flicking the 1 card you’ll now be holding to
emphasize its singularity.

“Remember, when you gave me half the cards, you could have cut
anywhere near the middle. By the way, what was your card?”
After it’s named, slowly turn over the card you hold, revealing the
selection.

“I calculated the very low odds of that occurring. That wasn’t the
math problem I was struggling with. What I’ve been struggling
with is calculating the odds of that which occurs when you turn
over the top card of each packet.”

Motion for him to turn over the top card of each packet. The 4 aces
will be revealed.

Notes: This was published in Steve Beam’s Trapdoor #64 and later
in his Semi-Automatic Card Tricks Volume IV. Other than creating a
way to prearrange the aces – rather than starting them at positions

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1, 2, 4, and 8 – this is merely a verbal variation of Lin Searles’

“Moracle,” It was inspired by Lin Searles’ “Moracle,” which was
based on Karl Fulves’ “Oracle,” from the Pallbearer’s Review of July
1971 and November 1970 respectively. (And, in this book!)

Self Help Guide

Marty Kane

Alex Elmsley developed the 16th card principle in the early 1950’s.
He has published many effects showcasing variations of the
principle. One such variation, “Australian Self - Help,” was
written in October, 1975, and later appeared in The Collected Works
of Alex Elmsley, Volume 1 by Stephen Minch.

Effect: A spectator deals a pile of cards (while being subtly

restricted to 8 –16 cards), discards the deck, and notes the top card
of the pile. The performer asks, “Have you heard of the Australian
Shuffle?” The spectator spells aloud “a-u-s-t-r-a-l-i-a-n-s-h-u-f-f-l-
e” while transferring one card per letter (17 letters) from the top of
the pile to the bottom of the pile, and then performs a Down Under
Deal. The final card held is the selection.

This chart summarizes the mathematics of this 16th card principle

variation.

# of cards in # of letters to Location of Mode

key pile spell/transfer selection in pile
8 – 16 (or 4 – 8) 17 (or 9) Top card Down under
8 – 16 (or 4 – 8) 16 (or 8) Bottom card Down under
8 – 16 (or 4 – 8) 16 (or 8) Top card Under down
8 – 16 (or 4 – 8) 15 (or 7) Bottom card Under down

Many tricks using the “Australian Self - Help” variation have been
published. Each of the following begins with a spectator shuffling

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and tabling the deck. You then announce the name of the trick.
It’s that name which later in the trick will be simultaneously
spelled and transferred.

Most of these tricks suggest a substitute name for the ‘Down

Under Deal.’ The substitute name may refer to the actions of the
Down Under Deal, the name of the trick, or the theme of the trick.
Some of these names are interchangeable amongst tricks.

(As an aside, both the long and short versions lend themselves to
creating a personalized card trick by using some form of your
name or the name of a spectator as the name of the trick.)

Long Versions (8 – 16 Cards in Key Pile)

“Color Suit And Value”

After announcing the name of the trick, turn your back. Each of 2
spectators takes half the deck, turns it face up and notes the face
card. Starting with that card, each simultaneously spells and deals
- one card for each letter - his card’s color, suit, and value into his
own single face up pile. Each discards his leftover cards into a
combined face down pile and turns his dealt pile face down. Turn
around. Each spectator spells/transfers the name of the trick. “I
don’t know how many cards are in your pile, and you may not
know either. I don’t know where in your pile your card is, and
you may not know either. (These 2 sentences should be stated in
each trick.) But you may be able to find it using a magical card
maneuver developed in Australia called the ‘Outback Shuffle.’”
Pick up the discard pile and demonstrate how this is performed:
deal off the top card as you say “Out” and deal a card under your
pile as you say “Back.” (Demonstrate the actions of the deal in
each trick.) Each spectator performs a DU Deal and then
announces the color, suit, and value of his selection before
revealing the final card he holds. This – and the next – could be

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performed by 3 spectators if you carefully divided the deck into 3

piles with no less than 16 cards in each pile.

“Triple Lie Detector”

Each of 2 spectators takes half the deck, notes the top card, and
tables the card. “I’ll ask you 3 questions about your card. Your
answers may be lies or the truth. Please spell and deal each
answer aloud to form a single pile beside your card.” Starting with
their card, each spectator - one at a time - spells/deals the answers
to 3 questions. 1. Is your card red or black? 2. if “red,” then ask: is
your card a heart or diamond? if “black,” then ask: is your card a
club or a spade? 3. is the value of your card odd or even?
(optional 3. is the value of your card high, low - or in the case of
an ace – both?) Each discards his leftover cards and places his
selection onto the pile. “Your pile is really a Triple Lie Detector. To
program it, you’ll spell/transfer its name.” After this is done, say,”
To activate it, you’ll now perform an Interrogation Rotation.’”
Each spectator performs a DU Deal, reviews his 3 answers,
announces his selection, and turns over the card he holds.

“Alternative Names”
Openly remove the aces, twos, threes, and jacks as you say, “We’ll
be using the cards that have alternative names. We’ll be using the
bullets, deuces, treys, and knaves.” Set the deck aside. A spectator
cuts the face down pile and places the smaller of the 2 piles onto
the deck. “I’ll now give you alternatives. You can note the bottom
card or the top card of the remaining pile.” Whichever the
spectator notes, he then spells/transfers the trick name, and
performs an ‘Alternating Eliminating Shuffle’ - a DU Deal if he
noted the bottom card, or an UD Deal if he noted the top card.
(This choice can be offered with any trick spelling with 16 or 8
letters – see above chart.) He states the full name of his card -
using the alternative name - before revealing the final card.

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“Police Profiling”
Openly remove the court cards from the deck, saying, “Just as
police profile the color and sex of certain people, we’ll profile the
color and sex of certain of these people.” Each of up to 4 spectators
chooses a court card from the face down 12-card spread, notes it,
and tables it in front of him. The remaining court cards are added
to the deck. Divide the deck into quarters. Each spectator uses a
pile to spell/deal the color (red or black) and sex (male or female)
of his card onto his selection. Leftover cards are discarded. Each
spectator spells/transfers the trick name and performs an ‘Arrest -
Release Shuffle’ – an UD Deal.

Short Versions (4 – 8 Cards in Key Pile)

These offer the advantage of less time to perform and less chance
of error in spelling and in performing a DU/UD Deal. A
disadvantage in some versions is the possibility that only 4 cards
will be in play, and identifying 1 out of 4 cards may not offer great
impact.

“Yes Or No?”
Divide the deck into quarters. Each of 4 spectators notes the top
card of his pile. “I’ll ask you 3 yes or no questions about your
card.” Starting with their card, each spectator – one at a time –
spells/deals the answers to 3 questions: 1. Is your card red? 2. Is
your card one of the [name a suit of the card’s color, based on the
answer to the first question]? 3. Is your card the [name any
value]?” (If you get 3 ‘Yes’ answers, the trick is over – just name
the card.) Leftover cards are discarded. Each spectator
spells/transfers the trick name and performs an ‘Interrogation
Rotation’ – an UD Deal.

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“Diamonds”
Remove the diamonds from the deck. Turn your back. Each of up
to 8 spectators removes a diamond from this face down pile, notes
it, tables it in front of him, and takes turns using the deck to
spell/deal the value of his card into a pile beside his card. Leftover
cards are placed on the remaining diamonds. Turn around. Each
spectator places his card onto his pile and spells/transfers the trick
name. “Diamonds are found underground, so you’ll perform the
‘Underground Shuffle’” - an UD deal. Or, only use the 13
diamonds and discard the deck. Only 2 spectators choose a
diamond, note it, and use the remaining diamonds to spell/deal the
value into a pile. Continue as above.

“Good-Bye”
Write down adios / sayonara / shalom / ciao / au revoir / aloha
“Here are 6 ways of saying ‘Good-bye.’” Ask up to 6 spectators to
choose a word. Each spectator takes turns using the deck to
spell/deal the word of his choice. Each spectator notes the bottom
card of his pile, spells/transfers the trick name, and performs the
‘Hello Goodbye Shuffle’ – an UD Deal. Or, title it “Good-Byes.”
Proceed as above but have each spectator spell/transfer this trick
name and perform a ‘Good-bye Hello Shuffle’ - a DU Deal.

“Deck Brand”
Display decks of playing cards with different brand names:
Bicycle, Hoyle, Arrco, Aviator, Tally-Ho, Maverick, Piatnik, etc.
Each spectator chooses any deck, removes the cards, shuffles them,
spells/deals the name of the deck brand into a pile, discards the
deck, notes the top card of his pile, spells/transfers the trick name,
and performs a ‘Diminishing Returns Shuffle’ - a DU Deal. (If all
the spectators happen to choose brand names of 7 letters, have
them note the bottom card of their piles, spell/transfer their brand
name, and perform an UD Deal.)

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Note: A longer form of this was published in Steve Beam’s Semi

Automatic Card Tricks, Volume 7.

The Great Thirstin’

Marty Kane

“You may have heard about the concept of subliminal messages,

that a brief exposure to a visual stimulus can unconsciously create
a specific response. One particular card in a deck is known to
generate a slight physiologic sensation upon seeing it. Not
everyone is susceptible to this phenomenon. In this experiment,
we’ll see if you have this susceptibility. Let me first remove a card
that will serve to predict the response you might have.”

Hold the deck faces to self. Spread through it left to right and
casually cut it so there’s a red 7 at the face. Spread through it
again. At the first red 7, start with the 7 in a silent count to 16.
Place the right 1st or 2nd fingertip on the back of the last card of the
count. When you reach the remaining red 7, upjog it. The right
hand, holding only the face 16 cards, removes the upjogged card
and tables it face down as both hands turn palm down. The right
hand cards are placed atop the left hand cards. The first red 7 is
now 16th from the top.

(If the 2nd red 7 is within the count to 16, then count to 17 and the
left 1st or 2nd fingertip is placed on the back of the 17th card. Now
reverse directions of the spread. When you reach the red 7, upjog
it. The left hand, holding all cards from the 17 th to the rear,
removes the upjogged card and tables it face down. The right
hand cards are placed atop the left hand cards.)

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“You are going to be dealing cards one at a time. So that this

doesn’t take too long, let’s use just half the cards. Please cut about
half the deck towards yourself.”

After this is done, pick up the bottom half, look through it and say,
“Good - the card is not in this half.” Table the half.

“I think there’s still too many cards in your pile. There’s a way to
eliminate half of them while at the same time you’ll start the visual
exposure process. Please pick up your pile, deal the top card face
down onto the remainder of the deck. Deal the next card face up
in front of yourself to start a new pile. Deal the next card face
down onto the deck and the next card face up onto your first card.
Continue in this fashion until you’re out of cards.”

Once this is completed, point to the face up cards and say, “I’ve
seen that you’ve now been exposed to the stimulus. Do you feel
any physiologic changes?”

After the negative response, say, “Well, let’s expose you again.
We’ll also narrow the focus by getting rid of some cards. Please
turn your pile face down. Now repeat the deal, starting with the
top card being dealt face down onto the deck and the next card
face up in front of you to start a pile. Please go through your pile.
Maybe you could concentrate more fully on the face up cards.”

After this is completed, say, “Now that you’ve been exposed again
to the stimulus, are you having any new physiologic sensations
other than boredom?”

After the negative response, say, “Well, let’s re-expose you again.
We’ll again narrow the focus by getting rid of some cards. Please
turn your pile face down. Please repeat the deal, starting with the
top card being dealt face down onto the deck and the next card

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face up in front of you to start a pile. Please go through your pile

and maybe the card will trigger the response this time.”

After this is completed, there will be 2 or 3 cards in the face up pile.

Ask, “Are you now having any new physiologic sensations?”

After the negative response, say, “Let’s expose you to the stimulus
one last time. Let’s again further narrow the focus by getting rid of
some cards. Please turn your pile face down. Please repeat the
deal, starting with the top card being dealt face down onto the
deck, the next card face up in front of you, and any last card face
down onto the deck.”

When this is completed, a red 7 will be staring face up at the

spectator.

“Are you now having any new physiologic sensation? No? There
is only one card up. I predicted that a susceptible person at this
point would experience the physiologic sensation of - thirst, for
maybe a soda, for maybe a cherry-flavored soda, for maybe a
cherry-flavored 7…up.”

Reveal the prediction to show the match.

Notes: This was published in Aldo Colombini’s Impromptu Card

Magic. An earlier version was published as “Drink Think” in
Precursor #89. The face down/face up binary elimination was
developed in seeking a method for the spectator rather than the
magician to perform a Reverse Faro; it was demonstrated in Aldo
Colombini’s Impromptu Card Magic DVD Set on Disc #1.

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Jack Of All Trades

Marty Kane

Tell your 3 spectators as you openly spread through a face up deck

and outjog the jacks, “The name of this trick is - ‘Jack of All
Trades.’ That’s because all jacks have a trade. Ironically, three of
the jacks are involved in ‘rough trade.’ I can’t reveal what that
means, because they are trade secrets. Each of you will choose a
jack. Your jack’s trade secret may be revealed if you’re an effective
detective to track your jack.”

Square the sides of the deck. Strip out the jacks. Turn the deck
and the jack packet face down. While still holding the deck, mix
the jack packet. Table the jack packet and give it a spread.

“Please slide out a jack, slide it in front of yourself, but don’t peek
at it yet.”

After each spectator has a jack, pick up the last jack and begin to
insert it into the middle of the deck. As you say, “Take a peek at
your jacks,” secretly acquire a pinky break below your jack as you
square it into the deck.

“To help you remember the name of your card, you’ll take turns
holding the deck and silently spelling out its name. As you silently
spell, you’ll deal one card for each letter of the name onto your
card. For example, if you chose the jack of clubs, onto your card
you’d go…”

Whisper, “…j-a-c-k-o-f-c-l-u-b-s.” For each letter you whisper,

deal a card, forming a single pile. When done, place the pile onto
the deck, and double cut all the cards below the break to the top of
the deck. The bottom card of the deck is the last jack. Hand the
deck to a spectator.

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When the spectators are all done, take back the remains of the
deck.

“Please pick up your pile. To give your pile a mix, together you’ll
spell aloud the name of this trick, ‘Jack of All Trades.’ For each
letter you’ll spell, you’ll transfer one card from the top of your pile
to the bottom of your pile. I’ll demonstrate this for you, so follow
along.”

Spell j-a-c-k-o-f-a-l-l-t-r-a-d-e-s as you transfer one card per letter

from the top of your pile to the bottom of your pile.

When done, say, “At this point I don’t know jack about your jack’s
location in your pile, and you may not know it either. And now
you’ll give your pile another mix. Because we’re talking about
trades, you’ll give your pile a Trade-in / Trade-out Shuffle. I’ll
demonstrate this for you, so follow along.”

Perform an Under Down deal, saying, “Trade-in” and “Trade-out”

aloud for the first few actions of ‘Under’ and ‘Down,’ respectively.

“As you realize, nobody knew what card you’d choose, how many
cards were going to be in your pile, or where your card would end
up in your pile. Will each of you please name your card?”

After the replies, say, “Please turn over the top card of your pile.” The
jacks will be revealed.

“Congratulations on being an effective detective to track your jack!

And congratulations on finding the 3 jacks that are involved in
rough trade. That one is a Carjacker! That one is a Highjacker!
That one is a Skyjacker!” (Point to a jack for each trade name.)

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“You certainly know the tricks of the trade. By the way, the last
jack is involved in the roughest trade. He’s...” Turn the top card of
your pile face up. “…Jack the Ripper.” Pause.

“You can now call yourselves - trade show performers!”

Notes: The mechanics are an extension of “Australian Self - Help”

from The Collected Works of Alex Elmsley, Volume 1 by Stephen
Minch. If there’s no jack of diamonds when the spectators turn
over their jacks, identify the trade names by saying, “Clubs starts
with a C and so does your card’s trade - Carjacker! Hearts starts
with an H and so does your card’s trade - Highjacker! Spades
starts with an S and so does your card’s trade - Skyjacker! If your
jack is the jack of spades, you can point to it as you add a kicker,
“And as I remember, the name of this trick is - Jack of
All…Spades.”

Optical Illusion
Marty Kane

Prearrange the JH, JS, and KD (in any order) to the bottom of the
deck. Shuffle the deck, maintaining the bottom stock. Acquire a
left pinky break above the 3rd card from the bottom.

Tell your 3 spectators, “In ancient Greek Mythology, there’s a

famous creature called the Cyclops. In modern day magic, there’s
a famous card trick called the Cyclops. You’re going to perform
that card trick now. Please stop me at any time and I’ll use
whatever card’s on top of the deck to demonstrate what you’ll be
doing.”

Grip the deck from above with the right hand, the thumb taking
over the pinky break. Swing cut about half the deck into the left

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hand. With the left thumb, pull cards singly off the deck and onto
the left hand cards. When told to stop, pull the top card of the
deck onto the left hand cards while releasing the bottom 3 cards of
the deck underneath that top card. Table the deck as a pile in front
of you.

“I’ll use this card and you’ll use the next cards.” Deal the top card
of those you hold between you and your pile. Deal the next 3
cards to the spectators. Lift off a third of the cards you hold and
table it as a pile in front of a spectator’s card. Divide the remaining
cards in half and table them as piles in front of the remaining
spectator’s cards.

“Place your card onto your pile and pick up your pile.” Place your
card on top of your pile and pick up your pile.

“Take a peek at your card so only you see it.” Peek at your card.

“Now silently spell out the suit of your card, dealing one card for
each letter to form a pile. If my card’s suit were clubs, I’d go…”
Whisper as you spell “c-l-u-b-s,” dealing one card for each letter
into a pile. (Always spell ‘clubs.’)

“Okay? When you’re done, place your leftover cards onto my

pile.” Drop your cards onto your pile and slide the pile towards
the spectators.

When they’re done, pick up the combined pile and say, “Please
pick up your pile. The name of this trick is Cyclops, so now you’ll
give your pile a little mix by spelling aloud the word Cyclops,
while you transfer one card for each letter from the top of your pile
to the bottom of your pile. I’ll demonstrate how to do this, so just
follow along with me.”

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Spell “c-y-c-l-o-p-s” as you transfer one card for each letter from
the top of your pile to the bottom. “After that little mix, I don’t
know where in your pile your card is and perhaps you don’t know
either. Now you’ll give your pile a special shuffle. Because the
Cyclops always slept in an underground cave, you’ll now give
your pile an ‘Underground Shuffle.’ I’ll demonstrate how to do
this, so just follow along with me. You’ll deal the top card under
your pile, the next card to the ground, the next card under, the
next card to the ground, and so on until you hold only one card.”

Perform an Under Down Deal until each spectator holds a single

card.

“Let’s review. Each of you created a pile based on the suit of a

card. Please name the suit of your card.” Place your cards onto
your tabled pile.

After the suits are named, say, “Okay, your cards were of 3
different suits. You gave your piles a mix and then gave them a
shuffle. It’s time to reveal why this famous card trick is called
Cyclops. In every deck there are exactly 3 Cyclops cards. They are
called that because, just like the Cyclops, they’re famous for having
only...” Cover one of your eyes with your palm. “Please turn over
your cards.” The spectators will reveal their selections - the 3 one-
eyed playing cards.

Note: The mechanics are based on “Australian Self - Help” from

The Collected Works of Alex Elmsley, Volume 1 by Stephen Minch.

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David Copperfield Down Under

Marty Kane

“Thanks for picking up your phone, mate. Have you a deck of

cards handy? Good! Only half a deck is really needed for this, so
if there’s someone there, you can give him half the deck.

“This is a trick David Copperfield performed when he toured

Australia.

“Begin by shuffling your face down cards. When you’re done, take
a look at the top card and remember its name. Deal it face down.
You won’t see it for awhile, so to help you remember its name, I’d
like you to silently spell the name of your card. As you spell the
name, please deal one card for each letter all onto your selection.
For example, if I selected the ten of clubs, I’d deal it face down.
Then I’d spell t-e-n, dealing one card for each letter of the word
“ten.” Then I’d spell o-f, dealing a card for each letter. Finally I’d
spell c-l-u-b-s, dealing a card for each letter of the name of the suit.
All the cards are dealt into one pile and then you can set the rest of
your cards aside. I’ll wait while you do that.

“Okay? Now, if you would, pick up the pile of cards you dealt.
Hold it in your left hand. At this stage of the trick, David
Copperfield would put a magic spell on the cards. Because he’s
not here, I’d like you to put the David Copperfield spell on your
cards. To do this, simply spell aloud “David Copperfield.” As
you spell, your right hand moves one card from the top of your
pile to the bottom for each letter you say. We’ll do this together.
Let’s move a letter for D-a-v-i-d. Okay, now let’s move a letter for
C-o-p-p-e-r-f-i-e-l-d.

“Let’s review what has been done. As you know, I don’t know
how many cards you have in your pile. I don’t know where in the

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pile your selection is located, and maybe you don’t either. But
with magic, maybe you can find your card.

“When David Copperfield performed this trick in Australia, the

Land Down Under, he wanted to use something about the country
to help find the lost selection, so he developed a shuffle called the
Down Under Shuffle. I’ll teach it to you. Remove the top card of
your packet and deal it down. Put the next card under the packet.
Deal the next card down. Put the next card under the packet.
Continue in this fashion, dealing a card down and the next one
under, until you hold just one card.

“Have you reached this stage? Good. Now, what is the name of
your selection? Turn the card in your hand face up.”

Notes: This is based on “Australian Self-Help” from the Collected

Works of Alex Elmsley, Volume 1 by Stephen Minch. It was
published in a different form in Genii, May 1995.

I Love You My Queen

Hideo Kato

This is a combination of Fitch Cheny's 'Cast a Magic Spell' (June

1961 issue of M-U-M) and Alex Elmsley's 7-16 trick. This is Hideo’s
writing, with just a bit of editing (with Hideo’s blessing) from your
publisher.

Control the two black Queens to the top of the deck. Count and
take 16 cards from the top without reversing the order and put the
deck aside. (If you need a ‘rationale’ to do this, use a 16-letter
phrase. Your call.) The two black Queens are now on top of the
packet. Double Under Cut (or Slip Shuffle) the top Queen to the

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bottom. (Or, at the start, count 16 cards – reversing their order – to

the table and slip shuffle one back to top.)

Hand the 16-card packet to the first spectator. Have him deal
(reversing their order) any number of cards to the table. As he
deals, mentally count them. If he dealt more than 8 cards, have him
discard the remaining cards in his hand back onto the deck. If he
deals less than 8, have him discard the dealt cards onto the deck.
The spectator now has a packet of between 8 and 15 cards. (A good
mnemonic is that the smaller packet goes back onto the deck.)

Now it is time for “confession of love.” Have the spectator shift

cards from top to bottom (one at a time) spelling "I love you my
Queen." (15 letters/15cards.)

Next, have the spectator do an Under/Down Deal and turn the last
card face up. The last card will be a black Queen. Patter, "A Queen
appeared as you confessed your love.”

Say, "But, if you love a Queen, she will appear even if you don't
confess verbally but just think about her strongly in your mind.
Watch.”

Have the first spectator count the number of cards he used,

including the Queen. Have a second spectator take the deck and
deal the same number of cards (to the table, thereby reversing their
order) as the first spectator used.

Have the second spectator take the dealt cards and think strongly
"I love you my Queen". (No shifting/displacing this time). Have
him do an Under/Down deal, and the last card will be the other
black Queen! End.

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What a lovely routine. Naturally, you can personalise the effect by

using other phrases. Or, as I have tried – use two selections instead
of Queens.

Spelldowned
J.K. Hartman

This application of the Elmsley 16th Card Principle does not

appear to restrict the spectator’s choices in any way. In fact, it does
not involve any outward numerical counting and requires no
advance preparation. A spectator selects a card which is then lost
in the deck. Following the performer’s instructions, he “spell-
deals” the name of his card, forming a pile on the table. He repeats
the process, creating a second pile. He decides on either of the two
piles and uses a procedure described by the performer as an
“Australian Deal” to eliminate all but one card. It is his.

Begin by having the deck shuffled. Take it back and explain that
you will introduce the spectator to some technical magic terms.
“The first is known as the Spell-Deal,” you go on. “Say we’re using
the…Queen of Diamonds,” naming the card as if you are pulling it
out of the air. “This is how you spell-deal the Queen of the
Diamonds.” So saying, spell Queen, dealing a card into a pile on
the table for each letter, and repeat, “Queen.” Do the same with
Of, dealing to the same pile, and then Diamonds. Conclude by
saying, “Queen--Of--Diamonds.”

Ascertaining that the spectator understands the process, take the

deck with the right hand from above in end grip, set it on the
tabled pile left-jogged a half-inch or so, and pick up the pile
beneath it. Return with the deck to the left hand, the right hand
masking the jogged condition, and secure a left little finger break
above the lower block as the deck is otherwise squared.

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If you wish, you can give the upper section a Hindu Shuffle or a
couple of Swing Cuts, in either case retaining the break above the
lower block. Say that before the spectator can try the spell-deal
himself, he has to select a card. As you so patter, perform a simple,
quick action, which, if noticed at all, looks like an idle fiddle.

With the right hand over the deck, shift the upper section forward
three-eighths of an inch or so. Immediately return it to starting
position, the right thumbtip at the same time injogging the
uppermost card of the lower block, and release the break. The jog
should be no larger than a little more than the white margin, and
you can adjust it easily with the right thumb if it is too prominent.

Start to feed the cards from left hand to right in standard fashion,
asking the spectator to point to any one of them. Do so at a normal
pace, and the spectator will make his selection well before the injog
is reached, the handling in no way disturbing it. When he
designates a card, separate the deck so that his card is lowermost
in the right-hand section, well-spread and held in place by the
right second finger.

Raise the right hand to an upright position to display the selection.

Then lower the hand to reassemble the deck. In doing so, allow
the selection to settle flush on the left-hand section, and obtain a
left little finger break above it as the deck is closed up and
seemingly squared. Proceed by performing the following
sequence of Drop Cuts that appears to lose the selection randomly
within the deck. In fact, the selected card will end up exactly 16th
from the top.

Cut off half the block above the little finger break, and set it on the
table. Cut off the remainder of the block above the break, and set it
on the tabled pile. Press down on the injog as the right hand
returns, cut off the block above it, and place it on the tabled pile.
Take the balance of the deck, and drop it on top of all.

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All your work is essentially over. Ask the spectator to neaten up

the deck and to pick it up. Say, “Now it’s time for you to do that
spell-deal I showed you – remember: Queen--Of--Diamonds – but
you do it with your card, whatever it is, and spell to yourself.”
When he has done so, go on, “You did that so well, try it a second
time. Same card, but deal over here,” tapping a separate spot on
the table.

When he has completed the second spell-deal, extend your left

hand and say, “Please give the deck to me…and you pick up either
of those two piles,” waving your right forefinger over them. If he
picks up the first pile dealt, continue as if you intended to do so all
along by saying, “Drop it on top of the deck…” Continue, “…and
pick up the one you’ve left for last,” pointing to the remaining pile.
As he does so, set the deck on the table.

If, when given the choice, he picks up the second pile dealt, say,
“OK, that’s one we’ll use.” At the same time, take the deck with
the right hand and drop it squarely on the remaining pile.

Continue, “You decided perfectly freely on a card which I couldn’t

have known ahead of time, you did all the spelling and dealing, you
ended up with a single pile, and now you have one more thing to
do. The second technical term I’m going to explain to you is the
Australian Deal. So far you’ve eliminated all the cards but that
group you’re holding, and now you’re going to eliminate all but a
single card.”

Give him Under-Down dealing instructions. Say, “Start out by

transferring the top card of your pile to the bottom,” pointing to
both places. “Then transfer the next one to the top of the deck,”
again pointing to both places. “The next one to the bottom, the
next one to the top of the deck [pointing as before], and continue
that way until a single card remains.” When he reaches that stage,

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have him name his selection, and, finally, ask him to turn the final
card face up. It is one and the same.

The Card Of The Oracle

Peter Duffie

(Ed: This effect of Peter’s first appeared in Effortless Card Magic.] I

based this routine on Marty Kane’s “The Spell of the Oracle,” sent
to me by Marty in correspondence. Marty’s routine appeared in
Precursor No. 21, based on an Allan Slaight trick called “The Spell
of D.H.L.”

Before beginning, reverse the Four, Five, Nine, Jack, or King of

Diamonds at the sixteenth position from the face of the deck. We
will assume that this card is the King of Diamonds for this
description. (See End Notes for details of how to accomplish this
under the eyes of the audience.)

Spread through the deck and mime the actions of removing an

invisible card and placing it onto the table, while you say, “This is
a very interesting card. I’ll leave it there for the moment.” At this
point, the audience will think you are nuts. That’s okay. Maybe
you are. Spread the deck between your hands and invite two
spectators to each select a card. Do not spread beyond the upper
two thirds of the deck or you will expose the face-up King of
Diamonds.

You will now have both cards returned. Swing Cut about one third
of the deck into the left hand and ask the first spectator to return
his card to the top of the left-hand portion. Drop the right-hand
portion on top and square the deck. The reversed card is near the
middle. Lift a section of the deck near the midpoint so that it
breaks at the reversed card—this card should be the bottom card

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of the upper section. Ask the second spectator to replace his card
on top of the lower half then drop the upper half square on top.
Everything appears very fair up to now.

Place the deck face down onto the table, saying, “Although both
cards are completely lost in the deck, my special card, which has
been lying on the table from the outset, will find them.” adding,
“This card is known to alchemists as The Oracle Card.” Mime the
actions of picking up the card. Look at it, then go through the
motions of turning it over, saying, “That’s better. Now we can see
the face! The King of Diamonds.” Pretend to stab it into the deck
then square the deck. Ask the spectator to tap the deck because, if
he does, the Oracle Card will become visible. Spread the deck to
reveal the King of Diamonds face up in the middle.

Place all the face-down cards that are above the King of Diamonds
to the bottom of the deck, then place the King face up onto the
table. Explain that all you have to do is call the name of Oracle
Card and something significant will happen. Call out, “The King of
Diamonds.” Now spell “T-h-e K-i-n-g o-f D-i-a-m-o-n-d-s,” dealing
one card for each letter into a face-down pile on the table. Turn
over the card that falls on the final letter to reveal the first
selection. Leave it in front of the first spectator.

Pick up the dealt cards and drop them back on top of the deck.
Give the Oracle Card to the second spectator and ask him to use it
like they do in casinos, as a Cut-Card, adding, ‘This eliminates any
cheating on the part of both the dealer and the player.” Hold the
deck in dealing position and riffle down the outer left corner with
your thumb. Tell the spectator to stick the card face up into the
deck near the middle. Hold the deck up so that he can gauge this.
Now tell him to lift off all the cards above the Cut-Card, as you
place all the remaining cards to one side.

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Note: The reason I do not allow the spectator to simply stab the
Cut-Card into the deck is because, in practice, I have found that a
spectator has difficulty hitting the center with a card. The card
must enter the deck between the sixteenth and thirty-second cards.

Take the half deck from the spectator, saying, “You might not
believe this, but the Oracle Card actually guided your hand and
forced you to insert the card at a special point. This should cause
your selected card to appear precisely in the middle of these cards.
If you don’t believe me, watch. We will work our way gradually
and fairly to the exact mid-point.”

You now perform a Reverse Faro elimination procedure devised

by Karl Fulves. The principle appeared in an effect called Oracle in
The Pallbearers Review (November 1970). [Ed: Also in this book.]
Here are the details:

Spread through the packet and, starting with the first card, outjog
every second card, that is, at the cards that occupy an odd position.
Strip out the outjogged cards and drop them onto the previously
discarded half deck. Spread through again and outjog all the cards
at odd positions. Strip out the outjogged cards and discard them.
Repeat this procedure until only one card remains.

Ask the second spectator to call out the name of his card. Turn
over the card you are holding to conclude the experiment. The
Oracle Card may deserve a short round of applause!

End notes: As I stated at the beginning, it is not too difficult to

arrange the deck openly to begin. You do this as you talk to the
audience and decide on two spectators to assist you. Spread
through the deck and cut the 4, 5, 9, Jack, or King of Diamonds to
the face. For this description we will assume that the King of
Diamonds is at the face. Mime the actions of removing an invisible
card and placing it face down onto the table, saying, “Here’s a very

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interesting card. You won’t be able to see it just yet, but it’s there!
Go on, examine it.” As the spectator is playing along with you,
turn the deck face down and secretly reverse the bottom card.

You now need to add 15 cards to the bottom of the deck. There are
two ways I would do this:

a) You now select two spectators to participate in the experiment.

As you are talking, run 5 cards from top to bottom, then repeat two
more times. The reversed King of Diamonds is now 16 th from the
face. Now have each spectator select a card. Ensure that you do not
expose the reversed card as you spread the deck.
b) Spread the deck between your hands and invite both spectators
to each select a card. As you spread the cards, mark off the
fifteenth card from the top. After the two cards have been taken,
casually cut the top 15 cards to the bottom.

Publisher’s note: The following four effects are here courtesy of

Louis Falanga of L&L Publishing. Thank you, Louis – you are very
generous. All four effects have been copied from The Collected Works
of Alex Elmsley, Vol. 1. We’d also like to thank Stephen Minch who
not only helped us in our efforts to ‘obtain’ these effects, but also for
his original excellent writing. This book would have ‘felt’
incomplete without Alex Elmsley’s original thinking and creativity.
So, thanks due the late Alex Elmsley, too.

7-16
Alex Elmsley

Effect: While a spectator shuffles the deck, the performer explains,

“I’m going to introduce you to a game on which a lot of money is
lost and won in Australia. It’s called ‘Seven-Sixteen’, because in
Australia the gambling houses open at seven-fifteen and it takes a

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minute to pour the drinks. [Australian performers will want to locate

this game in some exotic and distant location, like Hoboken.]

“Essentially, it is a game of matching cards. The cards have their

usual values, ace high, and the order of the suits is as in bridge. But
to avoid any possibility of cheating, they go through rather an
unusual procedure.

“A lot of side bets are made on this game. I shall ask two of you to
play, and I shall make a side bet. Here is my stake...” The
performer takes out a bill of respectable value. “...and on it I shall
write my bet.” This is done. The bill is then folded and handed to
one of the players. “As I always win, I’m not going to ask you to
put down any money against me.”

The deck is handed to the other player. “So that the dealer can’t
cheat, the player has a free call of the number of cards he wants
dealt; anything between seven and sixteen. Will you call the
number, please.” This is addressed to the player with the
prediction. When he names a number, the performer says to the
dealer, “Please deal him that many cards—face-down, and no
dealing off the bottom... .Now deal yourself the same number of
cards.

“Next you must both discard cards until you have only one left;
but to avoid any cheating, you must use what is called ‘The
Australian Shuffle’. Will you each move the top card of your hand
to the bottom. Discard the next card. Move the next one to the
bottom, discard the next, and carry on until you each have only
one card left.

“Now comes the moment of truth. Will you each show your
remaining card.” The dealer turns up the ace of spades, while the
other player displays a lesser card. ‘The dealer wins!
Congratulations. And will you read everyone my bet.”

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The spectator reads from the performer’s bill, ‘The dealer wins
with the ace of spades.” The performer shrugs and admits, “Yes,
that’s how I paid for my passage home.”

Method: This is next best to self-working. It is also a fine example

of how a simple effect can be built into an entertaining mystery
through clever presentation.

When the spectator finishes shuffling the deck, retrieve it from him
and briefly spread it face-up between your hands, ostensibly to
show the thorough mixture of the cards. As you do this, spot the
ace of spades, count fifteen cards past it and break the spread at
that point as you gesture and talk. Then reunite the two portions,
transposing them, and close the spread. In other words, in the
guise of a nonchalant gesture, cut the pack, bringing the ace of
spades sixteen cards from the top.

That is the whole of the trickery. Write your prediction, have one
spectator name a number between seven and sixteen, and have the
other spectator deal that number of cards to his opponent, then to
himself. If they now perform an under-down deal, the dealer will
be left with the ace of spades and your prediction will prove
unbelievably accurate.

The “sixteenth-card principle” on which this method is founded is

most intriguing. “A Double Prediction”, immediately following, is
another trick that employs it. Those interested in further
applications are advised to locate a copy of Tom Craven’s 16th
Card Book (1982), which is devoted to tricks using this principle.
March 1958

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A Double Prediction
Alex Elmsley

Effect: The performer writes a prediction and sets it message-side

down on the table. He then asks someone merely to think of one of
a number of cards shown from a shuffled deck.

It is explained that whatever card the spectator thinks of will in

turn influence the selection of a second random card. Cards are
dealt into a face-down pile as the spectator silently spells the name
of his mental selection, one card for each letter. When he reaches
the end of the name he tells the performer to stop.

The performer now writes a second prediction and sets it with the
first. He then counts out a second pile of cards for another person
to use. That pile consists of the same number of cards as the pile
determined by the first spectator’s mental choice—obviously a
number beyond the control of the performer.

Each spectator is asked to pick up the pile before him and to

eliminate cards until only one is left. This they do. The two
predictions are given to them. The second spectator is asked to
read his prediction aloud, then turn over the card that remains to
him. The card and prediction match.

The first spectator is asked to name the card he only thought of,
then to read his prediction slip and turn over the card he holds.
The prediction accurately names his mental selection and the card
is found to be that very selection.

Method: Careful readers will scent the one-ahead principle, but

will most likely be puzzled about the means of learning the
identity of the mentally selected card, and the method by which
the second selection is forced. The modus operandi is delightfully
subtle.

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The discovery and the force hinge on Mr. Elmsley’s sixteenth-card

principle (introduced in the preceding trick) coupled with a simple
spelling setup. A six-card arrangement is required on top of the
deck. From the top down the cards read: queen of diamonds, four
of diamonds, eight of spades, king of hearts, two of spades and six
of clubs. If you examine this list you will find that each card spells
with one less letter than the one preceding it, starting with fifteen
letters and dwindling to ten. You must also know the identity of
the card sixteenth from the top of the pack. For this explanation we
will assume this to be the queen of hearts.

Begin with a casual false shuffle that leaves the top sixteen cards of
the pack undisturbed. Set the deck down and pick up a slip of
paper and a pen. Select someone in the group who looks like he
can follow instructions, and gaze intently at him. Then jot down,
‘The second card chosen will be the queen of hearts.” Set the slip
writing- side down on the center of the table. The queen of hearts,
of course, is the card you know lies sixteenth from the top of the
pack.

Lift the top six cards from the deck, fan their faces toward the
spectator and ask him to think of any card he sees. When he has
one in mind, close the fan and drop it back onto the deck.

Explain to the spectator that you want him to aid in the random
selection of a card for a second person. To do this he must mentally
spell the name of the card he is thinking of, not telling anyone its
identity but stopping you when you have dealt the same number
of cards as there are letters in the name. Name any card that is not
among the seven you have stacked, and spell it aloud for him so
that he knows precisely what is expected of him.

Then pick up the deck and deal cards into a face-down pile in front
of the spectator, silently counting them, until he tells you to stop.
By knowing the number of cards dealt, you now know which of

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the six cards he has mentally chosen, as each spells with a different
number of letters.

10 = six of clubs
11 = two of spades
12 = king of hearts
13 = eight of spades
14 =four of diamonds
15 = queen of diamonds

Set down the talon and pick up the pen and a second slip of paper.
Write, “The card thought of will be the...” and fill in the name of
the selection. Set this slip beside the first and pick up the dealt pile.

Without altering the order of the cards, quickly count them, as

though you didn’t know how many were there. Announce the
number and set the packet before the spectator again.

Turn to a second person and ask if he will participate. Pick up the

deck and deal a face-down pile before him of the same size as the
first pile. Point out that the number of cards was determined by the
first person’s mental selection and is obviously beyond your
control.

Ask each person to pick up the pile of cards before him and
eliminate them one by one with an under-down deal. It may be
helpful to demonstrate the procedure with the portion of the deck
you hold, to make everything clear.

As they are occupied with their dealing, push the appropriate

prediction in front of each of them. That the first prediction is
given to the second spectator and the second prediction to the first
is a minor detail that is covered by an abundance of misdirection.

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At the end of the dealing, each spectator will be left holding the
proper cards and the effect is pursued to its proper finish.

On reviewing this trick thirty-nine years after its initial publication,

Mr. Elmsley remarks, “Perhaps I have lost my faith in human
nature—but I don’t think nowadays I would trust the spectator to
spell correctly.” This is a sad comment on the current state of
education, but it is a fact that must be considered when doing any
trick the success of which requires a spectator to spell a card
silently and accurately. Choose your helper carefully. July 1951

Melbourne
Alex Elmsley

Effect: Someone shuffles the deck and thinks of a number between

seven and sixteen. The performer spreads the cards before the
spectator’s eyes, counting sixteen aloud. The spectator is asked to
remember the card that lies at her number. The performer turns his
head as this is done, to prevent him from seeing the cards or the
spectator’s face, should she unwittingly betray something through
her expression. Once a card has been noted, the pack is cut and
shuffled as a precaution.

Now the spectator, for the first time, announces the number she
selected. She is given exactly that many cards from the top of the
pack and asked to eliminate all but one through the process of an
Australian shuffle. When she holds only one card she is asked to
name the card she is thinking of. She is then told to turn over the
card in her hand. It is hers.

Method: The deck can be genuinely shuffled, as there is no

arrangement to the cards. Ask someone to think of a number
between seven and sixteen. With the deck in left-hand dealing

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grip, hold it with its face toward the spectator and count sixteen
cards from the top into the right hand, gripping each with the
fingers at the upper end and the thumb at the lower. Take each
card onto the face of the last, without reversing their order, and
catch a thumb break between the seventh and eighth cards.
(Alternatively, you can take the cards into a right-hand pinch grip
and downjog the eighth card. A break can be formed above it later,
when the packet is returned to the deck.)

Let the spectator see the face of each card as it is counted, so that
she can memorize the one that rests at her number. Turn your head
from her as she does this.

When sixteen cards have been counted, ask her if she has one in
mind. Then place the right hand’s packet face-down on the deck
and double cut the top seven cards to the bottom. This brings the
actual selection stock to the top.

Follow the cuts with an out-faro. Neither the faro cut nor the
shuffle need be perfect for this trick, so long as the top eight cards
of the pack are properly interwoven. In fact, Mr. Elmsley
purposely performs an imperfect shuffle and lets it be observed.
This tends to throw knowledgeable observers off the scent.

Ask the spectator to tell everyone what number she chose. Slowly
and fairly count that many cards from the top of the deck, without
reversing their order, and hand them to her. Explain how an
under- down deal is performed, ducking the top card, dealing the
next, and so on, until only one card remains. Mr. Elmsley openly
calls the procedure an Australian shuffle. The name is mildly
humorous to those not familiar with it, and it lends interest to the
operation.

Nothing more need be done. The faro shuffle has placed the
selection to turn up last when the packet is given an under-down

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deal. Have the spectator name her card and turn over the one that
remains in her hand.

If the spectator should think of the number fifteen, take care not to
expose the bottom of the packet as you hand the cards to her. The
fifteenth card is restored to fifteenth position by the shuffle and lies
at the face of the packet.

Mr. Elmsley recognizes that restricting the choice of a number to a

range between seven and sixteen seems somewhat artificial.
Asking for a number between seven and seventeen seems slightly
less so, and that is what he does. On the off chance that the
sixteenth card is thought of, it will rest seventeenth from the top of
the deck after the shuffle. Therefore, on hearing sixteen
announced, you can count that many cards into a face-down pile
on the table. The selection now lies on top of the talon. Turn up the
dealt pile and spread it, asking if the spectator sees her card. She
will not; but while everyone is distracted, palm the selection from
the deck. Then spread the balance of the pack face-up across the
table and ask her to point to her card. She cannot. Do not make her
search for it. After a short pause produce it from your pocket and
conclude.

Here is another handling that offers several appealing touches.

When showing the sixteen cards for selection, downjog the eighth
card roughly a quarter of an inch. When all sixteen have been
displayed, lay them back onto the deck and, as the palm-down
right hand squares the pack from above, press down with the right
thumb on the inner right corner of the injogged card, crimping it as
you push it flush.

Now perform a faro shuffle; it makes no difference if it is an out or

an in-weave. Square the cards and cut at the crimp, sending it to
the bottom of the pack. Ask the spectator her number and hand her

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that many cards from the top of the deck, preserving their order as
you count them off.

Have the spectator perform a down-under (n.b., not under-down)

deal and she will be left holding her mental selection. June 12, 1953

Note: A few years alter having invented “Melbourne”, Mr. Elmsley

discovered a method for achieving this effect while eliminating the
faro shuffle. This made the trick literally self-working.

Again have someone think of a number between seven and

sixteen. Count fifteen cards from the deck, displaying their faces to
the spectator so that she can remember the card at her mentally
selected number. As you do this, however, deal the cards one by
one into a face-down pile on the table. This reverses their order.
When all fifteen have been dealt in this manner, pick them up and
drop them back onto the deck.

Now do a false shuffle or cut that reserves the top stock of fifteen
cards. This shuffle isn’t necessary to the working of the trick, but
without it the method can be too easily reconstructed.

Hand the face-down deck to the spectator and say, “Do you still
remember your number? We will use that number again. Will you
please deal down the same number of cards that you thought of
into a face-down pile.” In doing this the spectator reverses the
order of the dealt cards. If she now performs an under-down
shuffle with the counted packet, she will be left holding the
thought-of card.

This method will appeal to those who don’t include among their
skills the faro shuffle. Yet, given a choice between the two
procedures, the faro method will be the more confounding to a
sophisticated audience, and its secret is unquestionably more
difficult to fathom.

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Australian Self-Help
Alex Elmsley

Effect: Someone is asked to shuffle the deck. He is then told to

make a small pile of cards by dealing as many as he wishes. Alter
doing so, he puts the deck aside and picks up the dealt pile. The
performer points out that, since the spectator has shuffled and
dealt as he wished, the top card of the packet is a random one, the
identity of which no one could know. The spectator is asked to
peek at this card and remember it.

“Have you ever heard of the Australian shuffle?” the performer

asks. “It is known as the down-under shuffle. But before you start
the shuffle, please lose your card by spelling Australian shuffle,
while you transfer a card for each letter from the top of your
packet to the bottom.” The spectator does this.

“You are now ready to do the Australian shuffle; down and under.
Deal the top card down onto the table; place the next card under the
packet; deal the next card down, the next under, and so on until you
are left with just one card.” The spectator whittles down the
packet, as instructed, until he holds one last card. The performer
asks him to name his selection.. .and turn over the card he holds.
They are one and the same.

The deck may be borrowed, the procedure is always the same, and
the performer never touches the cards.

Method: This is certainly not the most profound mystery in Mr.

Elmsley’s oeuvre, but it has a certain charm and does amuse and
puzzle people. The only part of the procedure not disclosed in the
effect description is the limit necessary to the size of the packet. It
must contain from eight to sixteen cards. The spectator is allowed
to deal as many as he wishes—up to a point. You can simply ask
that he deal something between seven and seventeen cards. Or you

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can handle the dealing more subtly, by exercising psychological

control:

Tell the spectator to begin dealing cards into a face-down pile.

When he has dealt four or five, nonchalantly mention, “We only
need a small pile to work with.” As he deals the seventh card, say,
“Stop anytime you like.” If you treat the procedure casually, as if
his dealing is of no great consequence, the average person will deal
a few more cards and quit, stopping well within the eight to
sixteen range required. It is mainly a matter of attitude on your
part, and a bit of timing. Managing the spectator’s actions within a
nine-card range is not difficult. Should he deal too many, have him
cut off a few cards and hand them to you, thus arriving at a
random card on top of the packet; or have him deal a second
packet, “one a bit smaller to work with, drawn from the very
center of the mixed pack.”

With a packet of the specified size, if he looks at the top card, loses
it by spelling “A-U-S-T-R-A-L-I-A-N S-H-U-F-F-L-E”, then
performs a down-under deal, he will automatically be left holding
his selection. By transferring seventeen cards from the top to the
bottom of the packet, his card is positioned for the deal. You may,
if you like, substitute another phrase or name for Australian shuffle.
So long as it spells with seventeen letters, the trick will work.

The important points to stress in your presentation are that the

spectator shuffles the deck, deals as many cards as he likes, and
that you never touch the cards. Given these conditions, the trick,
though simple, can be quite puzzling. October 1975

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Double Decker
Tom Craven

Effect: Two decks are introduced. Both are shown to be normal.

One deck is spread face down on the table, and a spectator slides
any card out of the spread. This card is not looked at, but is placed
aside. Now the second deck is given to the spectator to shuffle.
Once that has been done, the spectator turns the deck face up and
proceeds to deal one at a time, all the cards into four piles. These
piles are assembled, and the performer eliminates cards until only
one remains. It matches the card placed aside earlier.

Needed: Either a marked deck that you can read from the backs, or
a deck set up in Si Stebbins (or another stack) order. A regular deck
with a different back design.

Performance: The marked (or stacked) deck is removed from its

case. If you are using a marked deck, the spectator can shuffle. If a
stacked deck is used, the spectator can cut the deck a number of
times. This deck is ribbon spread across the table for the spectator
to slide a card out. You either know it from the marking, or you cut
the deck at the point the card is removed, and glimpse the bottom
card as this deck is cased. Either way you know the identity of the
removed card.

The second deck is shuffled by the spectator. The spectator turns

the deck face up and deals the cards into four piles, one card at a
time. You need to watch each group so that you know the position
of the mate in whatever pile it falls. You now assemble the piles so
you can get the mate to a position 16th from the top (or bottom) of
the assembled deck. For instance:

There will be thirteen cards in each pile. Let's say the mate fell at
number three in one of the piles. By placing any of the other piles
on top of this pile, the target card will be 16 th. Let's say the target

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card fell 11th in its pile. That means if you place any other pile on
the face of this pile, and the others beneath, the target card is 16th
from the face.

What you are going to do once you have the card 16th from top or
bottom is to eliminate cards by doing a Reverse Faro. The first card
will be outjogged, the next injogged, etc. This is the same
elimination as used in Moracle.

How do you get the card to 16th if it is an awkward position? Let's

say the card falls 6th in one of the piles. By placing another pile on
top of it, makes it 19th. You need it 16th. Pick up the pile and explain
how you are going to eliminate cards. Start a Reverse Faro until
three cards are outjogged. Tell the spectator you will always
eliminate the outjogged cards. Strip those three out and drop on
the table. Now the deck is placed on top of them. The target card is
now 16th.

Once you have the target card at 16 th, have the spectator cut off
about half the deck. Proceed to do the Moracle elimination, and
you'll end up with the mate to the card placed aside earlier.
Remember, the spectator doesn't know you know the identity of
this card. Show the match!

Paul Gordon notes: I guess, instead of a marked or stacked deck,

you could use a darned good force. Or, if you know my Twin
Peeks effect (Professional Card Magic Miracles) – use my gaffed deck
used there. But, it must look like a totally free choice. In Tom’s
handling, it is! Or, be bold and use a one-way force deck. Secondly,
when the second deck is dealt into four piles – I’d like to have a
good rationale for this action. One would be to say, “If you shuffle
a deck for exactly ten seconds – it’ll be set according to your
actions. Let’s look!” Then, during the dealing you could say, “Yes,
two Tens together…four Blacks…three Kings huddling etc., etc!”

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Lucky Number Aces

Richard Hucko

Effect: The spectator thinks of a magic number and the number is

used to find the four aces one by one. The nice feature of this is
that the spectator handles the cards to find the first and the last
aces. (You could actually have the spectator handling the cards to
find all the aces if you want, but I prefer to have them handle it on
the first and last reveals.)

Set-Up: Red ace 16th from the top, red ace 27th from the top, 2 black
aces at the face of the deck; the deck starts face down. [Ed: I don’t
bother about the order of each particular ace. I don’t think it spoils
the trick, and it certainly gives me less to think about when setting
the deck.]

Method: Ask the spectator to think of a number between 7 and 16

(they cannot choose 7 or 16). Ask him to deal that many cards from
the top of the pack onto the table without telling you his number.
As he does this, you look away. You say that this is their ‘magic’
number and it will be used in the following demonstration, but he
is not to tell you the number just yet.

After he has dealt, take back the remainder of the deck and cut the
remaining cards in approx. half (you must cut below the card that
was originally in the 27th position) and have the spectator place his
dealt packet into the spot cut to. In other words, his packet is
‘sandwiched’ somewhere in the middle of the deck. [Ed: My
rationale for the choice between 7 and 16 is to say, “Think of a
number up to, say, fifteen. A magic number, if you will.” If they
say a number below eight, I simply say, “Oh, a bit higher…make it
hard for me.” More often than not, they will say a number from
eight to fifteen.]

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Reveal # 1: (Revealing the first red ace - originally positioned 27th

from the top)
Cut the cards exactly (26/26 – use a Faro Check if you know it) in
half. Place the bottom 26-card portion aside. Flip the top half face
up and hold it in dealing grip.

Now, the red ace originally placed in the 27th position will be the
same number of cards from the face as the spectator’s number. (I.e.
if they dealt 8 cards to begin with, the red ace will be 8th from the
face). Spread the cards face up to show the apparent mixed
condition, but get a pinky break under the red ace (the one
originally placed at 27th from the top). Transfer the break to the
right hand thumb-tip as you transfer the deck into an overhand
shuffle position. Cut at the break then run the cards (run the red
ace – singly – first, then the rest randomly) onto those in the left
hand. (Standard run/jog shuffle procedure.) This places the red ace
the same number of cards from the top as the spectator’s number.

Give the packet (in your hand) to the spectator and ask him to deal
(onto the table) to their ‘magic’ number. Whilst he is dealing the
cards, pick up the tabled half-deck (original bottom half of the
deck) and double undercut the bottom black ace to the top of the
packet. Once the spectator has dealt to their number, have him
turnover the ‘last’ card to reveal the first red ace.

Reveal # 2: (Revealing a black ace - originally the bottom black

ace, now positioned on top of packet in hand)
Continuing, place the red ace to the side and pick up the small
packet of cards that the spectator has just dealt (one less than the
magic number) and place it on top of the half-deck in your hand;
this places the black ace the same number of cards down (from
top) as the magic number. The remaining cards in the spectator’s
hand (i.e. the one’s that haven’t been dealt) are placed aside for the
moment. (For clarity, I will refer to this packet [spectator’s undealt
cards] as the ‘undealt cards’.)

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Ask the spectator for their magic number (if not apparent by now)
and deal down (to the table) to their number to reveal the second
ace (first black ace). Place the second ace aside, next to the first ace.
Next place the cards that you just dealt under the packet in your
hand (this positions the black ace the same number of cards from
the face as the spectator’s number). Take the ‘undealt cards’ and
place them on top of the packet in your hands.

Reveal # 3: (Revealing the next red ace – originally positioned

16th from the top)
Deal down to the spectator’s number again (as before, dealing to
the table to reverse the order), but this time mention that you will
now give the cards a mix to ensure that all is fair. Pick up the
packet and do an Under/Down Deal, starting with the first card
going to the bottom of the packet, next to the table, etc., etc. Keep
going until one card is left in your hand. This card will be the third
ace (other red ace - originally positioned 16th from the top).

Reveal # 4: (Revealing the next black ace – originally positioned

second from the face, now positioned the same number of cards
from the face as the spectator’s number)
Finally, give the cards to the spectator – face up – and ask that he
deals to his number one last time to reveal the fourth and final ace
(second black ace)!

That’s it! What a lovely routine; and clever thinking on Richard’s

part. It goes without saying that if you throw in a few false shuffles
(at salient points of the routine), all the better!

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The Hemeroid Effect # 1

Paul Gordon

No prizes for the origin of the title of this trick. This effect is very
utilitarian. The modus-operandi for ‘getting’ a 16-card packet is
nice, and the ‘impossible’ effects later on are magician-puzzlers! I
know I’m biased, but I’m very fond of these ideas! And, I use them.

There are a few handlings, but let’s get to basics. From a shuffled
deck, spread through it – face up – and look for the KD. Cut the
deck bringing bringing it to 4th from top and then cull the KH (its
mate) to top. In other words, from top: KH, X, X, X, KD, rest of
deck. If you can’t cull, just set the deck, prior to performing, as
above.

Flip the deck face down and say, as you false shuffle (I jogshuffle),
“When I shuffle a deck, I can always locate my ‘magic’ card, the
King of Diamonds. I can always spell to it.”

Now, cut the deck (in readiness for a Faro Shuffle) at at least ten
cards and do a Straddle Faro, strip out and cascade to top. Repeat
the Straddle Faro, cutting more than ten cards to start with. Position
check from the top: KH, fifteen X cards, KD, rest of deck.

When you’ve finished faroing, spell t-h-e-k-i-n-g-o-f-d-i-a-m-o-n-

d-s (17 cards), one card per letter, to the table. Turn over the top
card of the tabled pile to reveal the KD. Climax one. Place the KD
to one side. Pick up the tabled 16-card pile and do a swift
deal/duck procedure. The last card is the KH. Reveal it with flair!
Climax two. End.

Another, even easier, handling: From a shuffled deck, cut the KD

to 5th from top and note the top card. Assume 4S. Remove its mate
(4C) and place it face down to one side as your prediction. (If the
mate comes from within the top five cards, you’ll need to cull one

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to replace/compensate.) Do the usual spell/deal to reveal the KD.

Then, using the deal & duck, reveal the 4S. Finally, show the
prediction as the 4C.

But, it gets better…

The Hemeroid Effect # 2

Paul Gordon

This is a four-King revelation. Set the four Kings on top of the deck
so that you have: KH, KS, KC, X, KD, rest of deck. The black Kings
are interchangeable, but an indifferent card is between the third
and fourth King.

Jogshuffle, retaining the stack, and do two Straddle Faro’s as in the

last effect. As before, deal/spell to the KD and place the KD to one
side. Pick up the 16-card remainder and deal/duck to the KH. Place
the KH with the KD. Pick up the remaining 15 cards and shuffle
the top two cards (black Kings) to the bottom. (Just run the first
two cards and then shuffle off.)

Deal the 15-card packet into two face-down piles (by now, you
should ‘get’ the origin of my title); deal alternating, as in a card
game. Turn the top two cards over (of the two tabled piles) to
reveal the other Kings. End!

Patter/presentation is your call. I love this routine a lot.

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The Hemeroid Effect # 3

Paul Gordon

This is, I think, my favourite of these tricks. Prior to performance,

get the four Aces to the top of the deck with the KD at fifth.

Jogshuffle, retaining the five-card stack, and do two Straddle

Faro’s as in the last effect. Flip the deck face down and say, as you
false shuffle (I jogshuffle), “When I shuffle a deck, I can always
locate my ‘magic’ card, the King of Diamonds. I can always spell to
it.” As before, deal/spell to the KD and place the KD to one side.

Say, “If, however, I want – say – an Ace…I do this.” Pick up the 16-
card remainder and deal/duck to an Ace. Place the Ace to one side.
Pick up the remaining 15 cards and shuffle the top three cards
(Aces) to the bottom. (Just run the first three cards and then shuffle
off.)

Deal the 15-card packet into three face-down piles; deal

alternating, as in a card game. Turn the top three cards over (of the
three tabled piles) to reveal the other three Aces. As you turn the
cards, say, “But if I get one Ace…how about the other three!” End!

I think that, what with all the shuffling, the ‘reveal’ is very strong
and quite surprising to knowledgeable onlookers.

Notes:

1. I think the ‘way’ of getting a 16-card packet is pleasing.

Using a card that spells with 17 letters (including ‘the’),
leaving a 16-card packet, works. So, naturally – you can
use the 4D, 5D, 9D, JD and, of course, the KD.
2. The Straddle Faro and ultimate deal/duck is puzzling.
Most magicians, I think, will be surprised that a simple-to

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–set four/five card set-up will make for such an interesting

‘reveal’ after two Faro’s and a deal/duck procedure!
3. To eliminate the deal/duck (fairly tiresome with 16 cards),
pick up the 16-card packet and Reverse Faro. Lose the
injogged cards to the table. Repeat the Reverse Faro and
lose the injogged packet. The remaining four cards are
Aces! Nice!
4. Finally, there are many ways of utilising this idea. Go play!

The Hemeroid Effect # 4

Paul Gordon

How about a non-deal/duck handling? It’s quicker. Prior to

performance, get the four Aces to the top of the deck with the KD
at fifth and the AD at top.

Jogshuffle, retaining the five-card stack, and do two Straddle

Faro’s as in the last effect. Flip the deck face down and say, as you
false shuffle (I jogshuffle), “When I shuffle a deck, I can always
locate my ‘magic’ card, the King of Diamonds. I can always spell to
it.” As before, deal/spell to the KD and place the KD to one side.

Say, “If, however, I want – say – The Ace of Diamonds…I spell

again.” Pick up the 16-card packet, drop it on the top of the deck
and jogshuffle retaining the top 16 cards in order. Spell/deal to the
AD (don’t forget to spell ‘the’). Reveal the AD at 16th position.
Place the Ace to one side. Pick up the remaining 15 cards and do a
Reverse Faro. Eliminate the injogged cards back to the deck.
Repeat the Reverse Faro & elimination. The remaining three cards
are the other three Aces. Reveal with flair!

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Aldo On That’s Odd

Aldo Colombini

These ideas of Aldo’s are late additions. They arrived as the book
was going to press, so we just squeezed them in. I’m glad we did;
they are very good. They all relate to my (Paul Gordon) “That’s
Odd” ideas. So, make sure you are conversant with that before you
read Aldo’s thoughts.

First: Have 15 cards with the words My Card written on the back.
Have one card with the words Your Card written on the back. Do
Paul Gordon’s routine with all the cards face up. At the end ask the
spectator, "Is this your card?" He’ll say ‘no’ because he hasn’t
chosen one. But, turn over all the other cards and reveal My Card.
Then, turn over the spectator’s card (the one left) revealing Your
Card.

Second: On 15 blank-faced cards write the letters (one letter for

each card) Queen Of Diamonds (15 letters). Have a regular QD.
Keep all the cards face down. Perform the trick as explained. At the
end turn the 15 cards face up placing them in an overlapping row
to reveal the words Queen Of Diamonds, then turn over the
selected (?) card to reveal the QD.

Third: You have 16 cards with a corner removed (the index

corner). Remove them from an envelope where you also have a
corner inside it corresponding to the bottom card of the face-up 16-
card packet. Do not reveal the corner yet. Go through Paul’s trick
and at the end, once the card is selected, dump the corner from the
envelope to reveal the match!

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The Moves Used In This Book

The Reverse Faro (A.k.a Eliminating Cards – Elimination):

This is not, I repeat not, a sleight. It’s a procedure. And, it’s easy.
Its technical name is The Reverse Faro. It is often performed with a
small packet. So, for this description only, hold a packet of fifteen
cards in dealing grip. (I assume you are right handed, in which
case you’ll most likely hold the packet in your left hand.)

Your left thumb pushes off the top card and it’s steadied/held by
the right hand as if you were spreading cards from hand to hand.
The next card is pushed over (to under the first card) but upjogged.
The third card is pushed over, but aligned with the first card. This
procedure (up & down jogging) is continued with the whole
packet so you end up with half the cards upjogged and half
in(down)jogged. But, the order of the cards is not reversed.

Note that the whole procedure is done very swiftly. For a fifteen-
card packet, it takes about five seconds! It must be that fast, or
you’ll bore your audience. So, practice accuracy & speed!

Now, when completed you need to strip out (remove) the

outjogged packet. The best way is to push/tilt the outjogged packet
to the left using the right hand, and then pull/strip them out. Doing
it this way prevents extra cards, from the inner packet, dragging
out with them. Depending on the routine, the stripped out cards
are either placed above or below the inhand cards, or even tabled.
This concept will be described at the appropriate time. Each
routine’s application of the Reverse Faro is slightly different.
Finally, I must reiterate that the Reverse Faro must be performed
quickly. Practice.

Note: Sometimes the first card is upjogged and the second

injogged, but it depends on the routine. It’s a point worth noting,
though!

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The Australian Deal (A.k.a Deal & Duck, Duck & Deal,
Down/Under or Under/Down. Or, even ‘Eliminating Cards’):
The Australian Deal (as in the joke, ‘down-under’) is where you
hold a packet of cards (number depends on the routine) and deal
the first to the table, next to the bottom of the packet, third to
table, fourth to bottom etc., etc. Eventually, you are left with one
card.

On occasions, you will deal (duck) the first to the bottom of the
packet, next to the table etc., etc. Either way, you are left with one
card.

As stated, it can be called deal & duck, duck & deal, down/under
(DU), under/down (UD) or sometimes known as the elimination
deal. This can often confuse newcomers to magic when the Reverse
Faro is sometimes (rarely) called the same.

The Faro Shuffle (In/Out), Off Centre and Straddle Faro:

This move is used a couple of times in this book and it isn’t easy at
first. The perfect Faro Shuffle is where you cut the deck exactly in
half (at 26/26 juncture) and perfectly weave the cards together. (In
other words, each card interlaces – one-by-one – from both halves.)
An ‘in’ Faro Shuffle is where the original top card becomes second
from top. An ‘out’ Faro Shuffle is where the original top card
becomes the ‘new’ top card. But, more often than not – I use The
Straddle Faro Shuffle (sometimes called The Off Centre Faro, but
basically a mini ‘out’ Faro) which doesn’t, I can assure you, take
years of practice. Basically, you cut a small portion of the deck (size
of portion depends on each trick, but usually about 10 to 15 cards)
and weave it (anywhere) into the larger portion. In other words,
your goal is to weave/interlace one card (and only one card)
between each card in the right-hand smaller portion. (Weaving
tips: 1. Make sure deck is fully squared to start with. 2. Weave by
‘butting’ just the corners/edges of the packets. This alleviates too
much area-friction.) See Figs. 1, 2 & 3. The ‘caught’ cards are then

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removed (aided by the right hand ‘bending’ the cards – and

gripping tightly – to keep the interlaced cards, well, interlaced)
and cascaded (waterfalled) onto the top of the left-hand remainder.
Figs. 4 & 5. That’s it.

Fig. 1

Fig. 2

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Fig. 3

Fig. 4

Fig. 5
(The ‘black’ block designates the unshuffled cards)

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Milk Shuffles, Double Undercuts etc., etc:

These are very basic terms in card magic. But if you haven’t heard
of them, I refer you to Robert Giobbi’s Card College series of books.

Final Farewell

Well, that’s it! Tom Craven is proud of this book, and I don’t blame
him. I am, too! There’s a lot of great magic in this book. In fact, I
think that this book proves that maths-based card magic can be
entertaining, commercial and – magical! If you like this book, I
urge you to try a few of the titles listed below.

Paul Gordon

 Explorations, Paul Gordon (With Peter Duffie & Marty Kane)

 The Complete Dumbfounders With Cards, Eddie Joseph

The above two titles published by Natzler Enterprises

 Semi-Automatic Card Tricks 1-7, Steve Beam

 Finnell’s Free-Cut Principle, Gene Finnell
 Card Concepts, Arthur McTier
 Principles and Deceptions, Peter Duffie
 Gene Finnell’s Card Magic, Karl Fulves

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About Your Authors

Tom Craven has been doing magic since 1962. His main interest
has been close-up magic, but he performs from platform and stage
as well. Married, 3 children, 13 grandchildren, none of which are
likely to become magicians!

Tom Craven is one of only four persons that have attended all of
the FFFF conventions. He did trade shows full time for seven
years. Little did he know what would become of his little 16th card
booklet. Now, here we are with an expanded version and some
elite contributors!

Paul Gordon has been ‘into’ magic since 1967, but in a serious
manner since 1977. He has contributed tricks, since 1979, to Abra,
Precursor, Genii, Magic, The Budget, The Magic Circular, Abacus,
LaBal, Onyx, Apocalypse, The Conjuror and books by Peter Duffie,
Aldo Colombini & Harry Lorayne. Since the early 1990’s, he has
written and published over 20 books on magic. He is a professional
magician, entertainer, author, lecturer and motivational speaker.

Paul Gordon is married, again, (love is lovelier the second time

around) and has never attended any FFFF conventions, but hopes
to soon! He has, however, lectured in five different countries.

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Quality Magic Books

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Paul Gordon’s
Best-of Books
Gold Dust &
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270 Killer Tricks & 577 Pages
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