jose prager - goats grimore
DESCRIPTION
MentalismTRANSCRIPT
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Goat's
Grimoire
Jos Prager
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I dedicate this book to my father, and to my soul mate, Mnica.
Father, you taught me the game, and you taught me how to play it right.
Mnica, yes, it was love at first sight.
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Illustrations by Gonzalo Carrera Graniel
Proofread by Mike Vance & Mauricio Jaramillo
C op yr i gh t 2013 by Jos P r ager
The Author asserts the moral right to be identified as the creator of this
work. All rights reserved.
No p ar t of th i s p ubl i cati on m ay be r ep r oduce d , s tor ed i n
a r e tr i eval s ys tem , or tr ans m i tted , i n any f or m or by any
m eans , e l ec tr oni c , m ech ani cal , p h otocop yi ng , r ecor di ng ,
th e i nter net , or oth er wi s e , wi th out th e p r i or p er m i s s i on
of th e auth or i n wr i ti ng .
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Contents Preface. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
3386. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
This eye. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Duplo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
This eye 2. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
This eye 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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51
The goat knew me.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Heavy amnesia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Mind flight. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Scanner. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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Psychological jar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Mr. Green's system.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 04
Goat touch.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 1 6
Blank bank.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Leatherface. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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PK team.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cliff. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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Acknowledgements. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 40
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Preface
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What you are holding between your hands is a collection of nine, fully
scripted, mentalism routines and five utility devices that have been
carefully developed and successfully tested by me with the help of Luke
Jermay and Peter Turner.
After each effect, you will also find what I like to call Peter Turner's
"Golden Touches," which take each effect to a level you never thought
possible. Read carefully. There are many hidden gems between the lines.
Jos Prager
April 201 3
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3386 Jose Prager & Luke Jermay
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3 3 8 6 E f f ect :
The performer begins, addressing a woman in the group:
I can already sense that you are the type of person who is open to new
and unusual experiences. I get the feeling that you have a great deal of
untapped creative energy; you are the type of person who has 10
proj ects going all at once; you find it a little difficult to finish those
proj ects, but you have a really active imagination. This is good news, as
for successful demonstrations of telepathy, a strong imagination is one
of the vital elements. Would you like to try an experiment?
The spectator smiles and agrees. The performer continues:
OK , I am going to try to tell you one of your most deeply protected
secrets. Already many things are coming into your mindthose things
that you would really rather I not know, the things that you really
would rather I not tell everyone here.
The performer allows the weight of his claim to set in, and then after a
beat smiles to break the tension, and continues:
I n your mind, focus on a piece of information that I could not know.
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The performer pauses, and after a moment or two continues:
OK , not that. Change your mind and go for something else. J ust allow
your mind to cycle through different pieces of information that a
stranger would not, could not, know about you. I will work with
whatever my imagination brings to me.
The performer pauses and then smiles:
P erfect. We will go for something personal but safe, something you
will be able to change: your P in number. J ust focus your mind even
stronger on your P in number.
The performer pauses and writes something on a piece of paper. After a
moment or two, he looks at the paper and then scribbles it out, without
anyone seeing what he has written. Seemingly, he has made a mistake,
but continues addressing the participant:
P lease really focus your mind on your P in number. I know this is
something that perhaps you would prefer I not know, and that makes
sense, however the brain is an amazing thing. The moment we even begin
to think about something, the full thought forms. So right now, even if
you try to resist, the moment I plant the idea of walking to the ATM
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and pressing the numbers, your numbers, your P in number, into the
machine, it appears fully in your mind. I t is odd, isnt it?
The spectator agrees that even as they were trying to not think about
their Pin number, they did. The performer continues:
P erfect. I knew you were the perfect person for this.
After a moment, the performer writes something new on the paper,
which he folds and hands to the participant, who holds it in their hand
in a closed fist. He mentions:
I am committed. I cannot change my mind. H owever, I do not think I
will regret my final decision.
Addressing the participant, the performer continues:
P lease be 100% honest. What is your P in number?
The participant replies: 2678
The performer smiles and continues:
Good. I do not regret my decision. I will show you my decision in a
moment, however first I want to try something else, something more
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difficult. I knew that you were the type of person with great untapped
creative potential, the type of person with great imagination, the vital
skill when it comes to successful telepathy. So I want to see if you can
read my mind. I t is only fair. I know your P in number; now it is time
for you to try to find out mine.
The performer takes a second blank page of paper and opens it and
writes something on it, and refolds it, handing it back to the spectator
to hold. He continues:
I have again committed myself. I have written my P in number on the
paper. I want you to follow my guidance, and I am confident you will
be able to read my mind. I am 99% sure of that. Do not try to work this
out logically, there is no way you can. Do not try to rely on reasoning,
there is no reasoning. J ust follow the first thought, the first idea that
comes into your head. Listen to my instructions and do not second-guess
your first thought, your first intuition.
The performer leads the participant through a series of instructions, at
the end of which she forms a set of numbers in her mind, which she says
aloud. The performer takes the paper from the participant and opens it,
so only he can see what is written on the paper. The performer once
again asks that the participant say aloud the number she had in mind,
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the number she formed when trying to guess the performer's Pin
number. She replies: 3386.
The mentalist turns the paper around dramatically, revealing that the
participant guessed the performer's Pin number accurately.
The performer again asks the participant to say her own Pin number
aloud. Amazingly, written on the other piece of paper for all to see is the
very same number.
3 3 8 6 S etup :
On a blank billet, in the centre, write "0000." Now scribble over these
numbers until they cannot be read. Ensure you have rendered these
numbers totally illegible by scribbling them out. This will be used later
to subtly prove that you wrote their Pin number before they told you
theirs.
3 3 8 6 M eth od :
As with much mentalism, the real secret to this routine is in the
scripting and the delivery of that scripting in performance. The
mechanical method is simple, allowing you to really focus on delivering
the performance your audience deserves. We will detail the mechanical
method for this routine in this part of the manuscript. I suggest you
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follow along with some billets in hand to really understand how simple,
easy and smooth this routine will be in performance. When you have
fully understood the mechanical method for this routine, please go
back and read the performance script again a few times. It has been
designed to make the performance of this routine as smooth and easy
for you as possible. While it is possible to change the script to suit your
own personal style, I suggest you retain the general structure and form
of the script, as it includes many hidden linguistic deceptions that will
increase the impact of your performance.
Begin by asking your participant to think of their Pin number. After a
dramatic pause, pretend to write 4 digits on the blank billet, and after a
few seconds to scribble them out; use your nail against the paper to
simulate the sound of the pen on the paper. Ask your participant to
concentrate harder, and after a few seconds write 3386, fold it into
quarters, place it into your spectator's hand and ask her to make a fist
around it. Claim that you have committed yourself and that you can't
change your mind. Ask them to be honest and to say their Pin out loud.
At this point, commit their Pin to memory! It is only 4 digits, so this
should not be too difficult; however, I tend to turn the numbers into
images in my mind using some simple memory techniques, just to be
sure I will not forget them. Say that, before showing if you are right or
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wrong, you want them to try to read your mind. They will attempt to
guess your Pin number.
Take the prepared billet (the billet on which you earlier wrote 0000 and
then scribbled out), and write their Pin just below the scribbles, fold it
the same way as the first one and place it inside their fist. They now hold
their Pin and your Pin in their fist.
Tell your participant that you will concentrate on your Pin and they are
going to receive it; you will guide them since they have never done
something like this. Ask her to let go of reasoning and to allow the
numbers to come to her mind. You will make use of an adjusted
psychological force. At first glance this may appear to be the same as the
classic 37 force. However, please pay close attention to it as you read it
and you will soon see the differences. Frame the use of this
psychological force as a guided process, to help them succeed as they are
new to this and instruct the spectator to bring the numbers to mind at
each stage of the force.
For example:
I am going to guide you. Since this is your first time, please do not
second-guess yourself; go with your very first instinct, your true
intuitive reaction. We will work 2 digits at a time. Let's begin with the
first 2 numbers in my P in. The first two digits, together, make a
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number lower than 50. Both digits are odd in fact; they are the same
number repeated11 would work, but 15 would not. Already I know
there are two numbers that have come into your mind. Lock those
numbers in your mind and do not change your mind. I t is vital we work
with the very first reaction you have.
You have now successfully executed a modified psychological force.
This is my method to force the number 33 , and it will hit 99 .99% of the
time. In the years I have been using it, I have found it to be highly
reliable and highly effective. You will now continue with the forcing
process, having the spectator focus their mind on the final 2 digits in
the number:
You are already doing remarkably well. Let's now turn our attention to
the final 2 digits.
Together they form a number bigger than 50, and this time both are
even and different one from the other. Again I can sense you already
have numbers in mind. P lease lock those into your mind for me. Do not
change your mind. Trust your first reactions.
You now explain that they have to mentally place the first two digits
followed by the other two digits to form a complete Pin:
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Great. P lease take the first numbers that came into your mind, and put
them in front of the others. You should have 4 digits in your mind, 4
digits that have come to your mind, with no real reasoning or logic.
They are j ust arriving in your mind from your own imagination, your
own intuition and instinct. I can already tell you, I am thrilled I asked
you to do this
You will next take the billets from the spectator's hand. Open and hold
one in each hand, making sure that the writing on them is facing you
and not visible to anyone else. Ask the participant to name out loud the
Pin they formed inside their head when trying to guess your Pin
number. Turn around the 3386 billet to reveal that they successfully
received your Pin! This is the first formal climax within the routine.
Allow the impact of this moment to really sink in, and for your
audience to show their appreciation. Do not be tempted to rush to the
final climax and in the process not give this strong moment the time is
deserves to sink in.
I am a mind reader, so I know as you read this you are thinking to
yourself: What happens if the force misses? Thanks to my 33 force,
they will always get at least two digits out of four. If they get two or three
digits correct, it is still very impressive; don't forget to congratulate
them! If they do not get the force 1 00% correct, simply handle this as a
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warm-up test and congratulate them for whatever success they did
achieve.
Now continue with the second formal climax of the routine. Ask the
participant to name their Pin number out loud. After a suitable
dramatic pause, turn the other billet around to reveal that you correctly
received their Pin! The subtle detail of the scribbled number convinces
everyone that that is the first billet you used, making the one-ahead
principle completely invisible.
You need to deliver the Pin force smoothly and quickly. One of the
easiest ways to do this is by memorizing the Pin force script. Here is the
complete Pin force script; read out loud and repeat, repeat, repeat, until
you are 1 00% comfortable with delivering the script each and every
time in performance:
I am going to concentrate on my P in, and hopefully you are going to
receive it. Let go of reasoning and allow the numbers to come to your
mind. I am going to guide you since this is the first time you have done
thisTo make it easy for you, I will think in two digits at a time. The
first two digits I am concentrating on, together, make a number lower
than 50. Both digits are odd, and in fact they are the same number
repeated. For example, 11 would be OK , but 15 would N OT. Got a
number in mind? P erfect. P lease remember it. N ow I am going to
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concentrate on the last two digits. Together they form a number greater
than 50; this time both are even and different one from the other. Got a
number in mind? Great! N ow please place in your mind the first two
digits followed by the other two digits to form a complete P in, and
make sure you remember it.
A ddi ti onal th ough ts by P eter T ur ner :
One thing I always take into account in performance is logic; an effect
minus logic is often so transparent that it makes the effect see-through
and easy to work out from an audiences perspective , often making the
simplest pieces of mind reading seem bolder in performance than they
need to be.
One such principle that has long been a problem for me and other
performers I have talked to is the one-ahead: a devastatingly simple
principle that is so easy to perform badly. It is not so much the principle
or effect of a one-ahead that is the difficulty, but a logical reason as to
why the participant should say their thought out loud at all. Here I offer
a logical reason that I have been using for a long time and perfectly fits
this type of routine (a one-phrase one-ahead).
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C l ose up
{I will frame this in the context of the current routine.}
I would like to try something a little interesting with you. Can you
generate a four-digit number in your mind for me? And please, for the
purpose of this, make it as random as possible.
For all intents and purposes, this number could be a pin code, but to
protect your privacy, I am obviously not going to reveal your actual pin
code, so this will make a nice substitute.
Lets take this a step further. I want you to constantly keep changing
the numbers, so even you dont know what numbers you are going to
generate.
I am going to commit to my thoughts on this card, and after this I will
give you a chance to change your mind further. Then whatever four
digits you say out loud after this point, after you have changed your
mind as many times as you like, will be your final decision. I want you
to j ust keep changing the numbers in your mind.
The performer writes down his impressions. (Write 3386.)
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Change your mind a few more times (pause a few seconds) and say the
four digits that are in your head right now (snap your fingers) . These
four digits are the four digits that you have committed to. Are you
entirely happy that these numbers are completely random?
(Let the participant answer)
From this point onward, I will refer to these numbers as your pin
code.
[What is great about this approach is that there is now a logical reason as
to why the participant is saying the numbers out loud. Look at this in a
simplified sense. They are repeatedly changing their mind and only
commit to the four digits when they say them out loud. So they have to
say them out loud, which is great as it logically makes sense.
Another interesting thing to point out here is that anybody who steps
into the effect at this point will hear the four digits being called a pin
code and see a much more impressive effect! ]
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S tage
An interesting principle for stage with a one-ahead is something that is
often overlooked, but very simple, and from the audience's perspective
makes this entire thing completely impossible.
Ask a member of the audience to stand. After you have repeated the
above script about changing their mind and mentioned that whatever
digits they say out loud are going to be the digits that they commit to,
you write your impressions (WRITE NOTHING) and place it
somewhere everyone can see.
Make a point of saying to the audience that you have committed to the
number on which you think they are going to settle. Say to the
participant:
I am going to ask you what the numbers are in few seconds, but for
now let me ask you a couple of questions.
(Ask a couple of random questions.)
In fact, I am going to change my mind, pick up the prediction, pretend
to scribble it out and now write "3386." (THIS OBVIOUSLY SETS US UP
FOR OUR PLOY LATER, BUT ALSO SOMETHING EVEN MORE
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BEAUTIFUL.) Approach the participant, take his/her wrists and look
right at her and say:
I think I am happy with what I chose.
Ask for a round of applause and walk the participant to the stage. Under
the round of applause, say:
Sorry , I forgot to ask. What were the digits you chose?
The participant will sing like a canary, believing you have committed to
something. And now you have your piece of information.
[As you can see, this is beautiful, as no one else in the room knows that
you know the four digits, meaning no one else in the room could ever
even begin to work out the method.]
After you have proceeded to get the participant to make a guess at your
number, say to the participant:
Can you tell the audience FOR TH E FI RST TI ME what your four
digits were?
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[This one line will psychologically imply to the audience that the digits
were never said out loud before that moment.]
{As you can see with the above two pieces, they are beautifully
constructed in a way that not only makes them logical, but also makes
the method more water tight. These principles dont have to be applied
to just this routine, but can be applied to any routine that requires any
sort of one-ahead, making them great for flexibility purposes.}
T h e swi tch
Another thing that always bothered me about a one-ahead (or one
behind) was the switch at the end. You can always mis-number the cards
if there is more than one phrase, but in this circumstance there is only
one phrase.
So I have found this method to be the most convenient and disarming.
All you need for this is a wine glass or shallow glass (not a shot glass).
When you have committed to your thought, screw it into a ball and
drop it into the glass. Once the participant has committed to their
thought, ask them to crumple theirs and drop it into the glass also.
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Now stay away from the glass and reiterate the events to the audience;
this creates a time delay. Bring everyones focus back to the glass and
ask the participant to tip it onto the table.
When the participant pours out the glass, it naturally makes it
impossible to keep track of whose ball of paper is whose and makes
them only identifiable via the squiggle inside.
[As you can see, this technique will work in stage, parlor or close-up
scenarios.]
T h e l og i c f or th e p ar ti c i p ant s r es tr i c t i ons
This is something I often talk about in depth: restricting without
seeming restrictive. The force at the end of this routine (in order to get
the participant to guess your pin code) is a very old force reframed.
What I am going to do here is offer my personal opinions on how to
make it seem even fairer, shedding a new light not only onto this force,
but any force that has the same (or similar) restrictions.
I am going to guide you. Since this is your first time, please do not
second-guess yourself; go with your very first instinct, your true
intuitive reaction. We will work two digits at a time. Let's begin with
two of the numbers in my P in. For now, it doesnt matter which two.
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Do you think this two-digit number is above fifty or below fifty?
Let them answer. Give them a completely FREE CHOICE. [The reason
you give them a free choice is that they can either aim at the first two
digits or the last two.]
If they say below fifty, apply this force.
The only clues that I am going to give you are that both digits are odd.
I n fact, they are the same number repeatedeleven would work, but
fifteen would not. Already I know there are two numbers that have come
into your mind. Lock those numbers in your mind and do not change
your mind. I t is vital we work with the very first reaction you have.
You have now successfully executed a modified psychological force.
This is my method to force the number thirty-three, and it will hit 95%
of the time (in my opinion).
If they say above fifty, great. Just have them go for the second two digits
with this force.
The only clues I am going to give you are that both digits are even, and
they are both different from one from the other. So sixty-six would not
work, but sixty-eight would. I can sense you already have numbers in
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mind. P lease lock those into your mind for me. Do not change your
mind. Trust your first reactions.
This sets you up for something so psychologically fair.
I f th ey went for be l ow f i f ty th e f i r s t t i m e
Because you went for a number below fifty last time, lets make it
interesting this time. Go for two digits higher than fifty, and this time
because YOU WEN T FOR ODD, make both of these digits even and
different one from the other. So sixty-six would not work, but sixty-
eight would. I can sense you already have numbers in mind. P lease lock
those into your mind for me. Do not change your mind. Trust your first
reactions.
[You will notice the little line I slipped in that will fly right by, but will
be great when the participant creates a false memory later on. They will
think they chose odd or even the first time. The reason this flies by is
that you are giving your participant instruction, and because of the
social compliance created (with them guessing a number), they are
practically forced to stay mute until you have finished giving them
instructions. By the time you have finished giving them instructions,
they are focused on the instructions and forget the one slipped-in line.]
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I f th ey went for above f i f ty th e f i r s t t i m e
Because you went for a number above fifty last time, this time go for a
number below fifty, and because YOU WEN T FOR EVEN , this time
make both digits odd. I n fact, make it the same number repeatedeleven
would work, but fifteen obviously would not. Already I know there are
two numbers that have come into your mind. Lock those numbers in
your mind and do not change your mind. I t is vital we work with the
very first reaction you have.
[This is all about reframing the force depending on the participants
choices. You may notice by doing the force this way that the two digits
might be back to frontIs that a problem?
In all honesty, I would not be bothered if the participant gets the four
digits in the wrong order. This can look stronger sometimes (after all, it
is their first time mind reading).
If this is something you potentially worry about, dont! Fifty percent of
the time, they will (based on probability) accidently get them in the
right order, so again this is not something you have to worry about, as
you get the kicker of revealing their pin code .]
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A noth er subtl e ty f or ensur i ng a s tr ong f i ni sh
There is another thing I took note of when reading this routine. You
have to ensure that the routine ends on the strongest possible outcome.
With the problem of the participant missing a couple of numbers (it is
not likely but still possible), you HAVE to ensure that their guess is
opened first.
The reason is, if by some anomaly in probability they miss the numbers,
then you can still open yours and be 100% perfect, meaning you are
going to finish on a really high note.
The way to achieve this is to draw a black dot on the back of the first
billet (before you start the routine), and when you crumple it up, ensure
that you can see it. Dont make the dot so big that the participant
notices it. Just to reiterate, the dot goes on the back of the billet on
which you are going to write 3386.
When the glass is tipped over, nonchalantly remark, I am not sure
whose is whose, but open that one first, while pointing to the billet
with the dot.
Now, even if the participant only gets two of the four digits, she gets a
round of applause, which is great for a first attempt, but it ensures you
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get a more rapturous round of applause when you open the one with
their pin code.
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T h i s eye e f f ect :
The performer hands one spectator a pen and a blank card.
He begins:
I would like to try an experiment of a specific skill . This skill is
known as psychometry. I t is the idea that an obj ect handled by someone
somehow retains information about that person. To do this, we need
some target information.
P lease, I would like you to write on the paper you have a place that
you would like to travel to in the future. I t can be anywhere you would
like, but it must be somewhere you have not travelled to in the past, but
somewhere you would like to travel to in the future. When you are
finished, fold it in half so the writing is on the inside and recap the
pen.
The performer turns his back to ensure that he cannot see what is being
written. When the spectator has finished his writing, the performer
extends his hands behind his back and asks for the paper.
The performer turns back to face the spectator and continues:
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I get the sense that this is the desire of someone who has faced many
challenges in their life, someone who finds themselves at a crossroads.
Soon a mentor figure will present themselves to you, and if you follow
their guidance you will begin to move in the direction you want to.. .this
has been your past. I n your present you are faced with decisions on a
personal level, decisions that you must deal with now.
The secret is to allow the past to stay in the past so you can move
toward the future you deserve.. . look at this eye.. .
The performer points with his left hand to his right eye.
After a moment of focus the performer continues:
I have good news for you.. .
The performer turns his back and hands the paper back to his
participant. After the participant has taken it, the performer again
faces him and says:
I see you in the future on a beach, in a sunny place, relaxing with a
significant other, someone very special to you, that you have not yet
met. I see you in Brazil. . .where is it you wanted to travel?
The spectator confirms that this is indeed where she desires to travel.
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T h i s eye s e tup :
My Duplo gimmick is at the core of this method, so let me please first
explain to you how to construct what I like to call an organic
duplication system.
Mater i al s R equi r ed :
A black Sharpie (fine point) marker
A black Crayola washable ink marker
Pair of scissors
I ns tr ucti ons :
1 . Open the Crayola marker from the bottom and remove its ink
cartridge.
2. Using a pair of scissors, cut off approximately one inch from
the Crayola cartidge.
3 . Take the Sharpie and remove its ink cartridge (do not remove
the tip).
4. Once the Sharpies cartridge has been removed, insert the
Crayola cartridge into the Sharpies barrel and reassemble the
Sharpie.
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5 . After the Sharpie has been reassembled, take a blank piece of
paper, business card, etc., and scribble on it until the remaining
Sharpie (permanent) ink is gone.
W h at does th e g i m m i ck do?
It allows you to obtain an impression from a business card. You will
need to place some saliva on the palm of your hand. Then, you will need
to apply a bit of pressure while ensuring that your palm makes direct
contact with the spectator's drawing on the unfolded card.
T h i s eye m eth od :
The key to the routine is to ensure that the touching of the paper causes
the spectators to understand, without saying it, why the paper is being
held behind the back. This process, when performed, makes total sense.
Review the scripting for this performance piece to properly understand
the manner in which this is handled.
Hand out your Duplo gimmicked pen and instruct your spectator to
record the name of a destination they would like to travel to in their
future.
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Here is the first major performance point: you will turn this routine
into a performance piece of predicting the spectator's future.
You can use any single piece of information the spectator can desire in
the their future. It could be the number of children they would like, an
item they would like to own, the car they would like to driveanything
that a spectator can desire owning/attaining in the future. If you wish to
make this routine more spiritual in nature, you could ask the spectator
to record the quality that they wish to improve in their personality. In
this manner, the routine becomes about personal growth.
Whatever presentational hook you decide upon to achieve the
revelation of the information, you will hear the spectator recap the pen
while your back is turned. As soon as you hear it, you are going to lick
the palm (fleshy part near your thumb) and immediately to place both
of your hands behind your back (right over the left). Have the spectator
hand you the paper behind your back, turn around and deliver this line
while you apply the impression of the word to your left palm:
I get the sense that this is the desire of someone who has faced many
challenges in their life, someone who finds themselves at a crossroads.
Soon a mentor figure will present themselves to you, and if you follow
their guidance, you will begin to move in the direction you want to.. .this
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has been your past. I n your present you are faced with decisions on a
personal level, decisions that you must deal with now.
The secret is to allow the past to stay in the past so you can move
toward the future you deserve.. .
Bring your hand with the impression to the front (hiding the
impression inside your hand), and point to your eye and continue:
Look at this eye.. .
After a few seconds of focus:
I have good news for you.. .
Turn your back to hand the billet back to your spectator with your right
hand, and at the same time take a peek at impression in your left palm,
which will be very close to your face. This is a beautiful, invisible, fluid
peek.
Face your spectator and finish:
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I see you in the future on a beach, in a sunny place, relaxing with a
significant other, someone very special to you, that you have not yet
met. I see you in Brazil. . .where is it you wanted to travel?
The spectator confirms that this is indeed where she desires to travel.
A ddi ti onal th ough ts by P eter T ur ner :
This is a great routine; the scripts and presentations are fantastic. I
thought I would add a variation with a few of my touches and subtleties
that I thought of when I read this wonderful piece.
The first thing about this that stood out for me was the title The eye ;
when I think of a psychic eye, I instantly think of the center of my
forehead, and because of that I want to shape that around the core of my
presentation.
The scripts for the routine are going to stay the same. The only
difference is that I am going to use three cards instead of one, making
this a "sneak thief"-type routine (but I think you will agree that this is a
beautiful method) and not similar in any sense to sneak thief
(confused??).
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[Here is the streamlined presentation]:
The performer places a blindfold upon his head and is verified to be
essentially blind. Three business cards are introduced and handed one
at a time to the participant. On these business cards, the participant is
instructed to write, upon two of them, places they have been and, on
one, a place she wishes to go.
(The performer can be out of the room at this point if the participant so
wishes.)
The cards are mixed up into ANY order; they are examined to ensure
that there are no bumps in the cards and no way to feel that they are
different. (Thats right, no nail nicks or visible differences . )
The performer states that he is going to identify the card that has the
place that the participant wants to visit by his skills of intuition.
The cards are then brought one at a time up to the performers third eye
(his forehead), and after a little deliberating he says to the participant:
Something amazing is about to happen. I f I correctly identify the card
that has the destination you want to travel to on it, stand up and walk
back to your seat. When you walk toward your seat, the audience will
burst into a round of applause.
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The participant freaks out and makes her way to her seat while the
audience applauds rapturously.
The performer removes his blindfold and stops the applause. He calls
for the participant to stop and looks right into her eyes for a few
seconds and says:
I s the place you want to go Brazil?
When it is confirmed by the participant, the audience breaks into
another round of applause. Sounds interesting, right?
B r eak down
First I will tackle how to identify the card and then get into the
subtleties.
The trick to this is a technique called olfactory. There is not much
written on this subject, but this makes for a very simple way to tell on
which card the place is writtenso simple I think it will make you
smile.
Take a business card, spray it with perfume from a distance and let it
dry out. Now take two identical cards and place them behind the
perfumed card.
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I n p er f or m ance
Hand the card with the perfume on it to the participant to write the
destination they want to travel to first. Then have them write
destinations they have been to on the other two.
All you have to do when you bring the cards up to your forehead is to
smell them, and whichever one kicks off the smell of perfume is the
right card!
Simple, but so effective.
[This part of the routine is all about theatrics; pretend you are having
trouble divining the exact card, and in close-up performance always
reveal the destination card last. By saying, "I dont think this is it or
this I think this is it! "
A quick note: the only difference between close up and stage is the
blindfold; when close up you can close your eyes. It is just the same.]
T h e p eek
Performing the routine this way also gives us a massive amount of time
to peek and a disconnection from the billet, which makes the thing
seem even more impressive from the audience and participant's
perspective.
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Not only that, it gives us two ways to gain the information. The first way
is simple and requires no gimmicks, as you say to the participant:
I believe it is this card.
All you have to do is hold the card below your nose, face up, so the
participant is looking down, giving you all the time in the world to
employ a downward peek from the blindfold, and the misdirection
creates itself logically.
[For those new to blindfold work, tie a blindfold around your head and
you will notice you can clearly see straight down the sides of your nose! ]
What is great about this is that you have set up your participant to take
the card and to head straight back to their seat, to a round of applause.
This is your cue to remove your blindfold.
If you are in a close-up environment and you arent using a blindfold,
you can place it (after finding what you believe the card to be) behind
your back and use the impression-to-hand (Duplo) described in the
actual routine.
BUT
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I would create a time delay here and hand her the card to fold and to
place away and then move into another routine. During the dead time
in the next routine, I would turn and reveal the place.
[This is great, as it not only kills dead time in another routine, meaning
you dont have to make up filler, but it also ties the two routines
together and is so disjointed from the participant placing the card into
their pocket that it is impossible to backtrack, making the reaction
larger.]
An important thing to focus on here is the time-delay principle; it is
something I have discussed at great length in the past. Dont be tempted
to reveal a piece of information just because you have it. You can save it
for later in use for a one-ahead, or part of a Q&A. If you let three or four
pieces of information like this build up (remember the aim of the effect
was just to locate the card), you will have a beautiful Q&A that is sure
fire.
You could also take this piece of information and place it into your
confabulation at the end, or use it as part of an ultra-clean mental epic.
The point I am trying to express (forgive me for my tangent) is that you
can use this information for much, much more later.
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Describe the feelings you get from this place. If you know what it looks
like, describe a few things from there and go on a remote viewing
journey with your participant.
Doing this, you can apply something so wonderful; after revealing the
place, after having them feel and mentally travel with you, you can
nonchalantly say, You can now tick this off of your to-go list.
If you say that line with conviction, I promise you it will make your
audience/participant feel amazed. Whats even more amazing is how
they describe the effect afterward to their friends!
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T h i s eye 2 e f f ect :
The performer hands two spectators a pen and a blank business card
each. He begins:
I would like to try an experiment in the unexplained, a blind test of a
specific skill. This skill is known as psychometry. I t is the idea that an
obj ect handled by someone somehow retains information about that
person. To do this, we need some target information.
P lease, I would like each of you to write on the paper you have a place
that you would like to travel to in the future. I t can be anywhere you
would like, but it must be somewhere you have not travelled to in the
past, but somewhere you would like to travel to in the future.
When you are finished, fold it in half so the writing is on the inside.
When you are finished, please hand them to me.
The performer turns his back and extends his hands behind his back, to
ensure that he cannot see what is being written. When the spectators
have finished their writing and handed the papers to the performer, he
openly mixes the papers as he continues:
We will pick one of the papers as a random target.
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46
The performer continues to mix the papers behind his back as he turns
around to face the spectators again. He then brings one of the papers
from behind his back in each hand and instantly hands them to the
spectators for which he is performing. He continues:
I will work with the paper I feel drawn to the most, the paper from
which I feel the most vibration.
The performer places his hands above the papers, and then after a
moment of focus, he continues by reaching forward, grabbing one of
the papers, closing it in his hand and closing his eyes.
After a moment or two, he continues still with his eyes closed:
I get the sense that this is the desire of someone who has faced many
challenges in their life, someone who finds themselves at a crossroads.
Soon a mentor figure will present themselves to you, and if you follow
their guidance, you will begin to move in the direction you want to.
The performer opens his eyes and locks his gaze with one of the
assisting spectators and continues:
I am talking to you, arent I ? This is you; this has been your past. I n
your present you are faced with decisions on a personal level, decisions
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47
that you must deal with now. The secret is to allow the past to stay in
the past, so you can move toward the future you deserve. I have good
news for you. I see you in the future on a beach, in a sunny place,
relaxing with a significant other, someone very special to you, that you
have not yet met. I see you in Brazilwhere is it you wanted to travel?
The spectator confirms that this is indeed where she desires to travel.
The performer then continues addressing the second spectator:
I can feel that you are a little disappointed. I can try to work with you
if you want.
The spectator confirms they would like a reading, and the performer
continues:
I see you in a cold place, a place that you have considered visiting
many times in the past, but for some reason or another it has not
happened. H owever, I do see within the next year or two, you sitting in
an ice bar, in Finland. Does this make sense to you?
The spectator confirms this is indeed accurate.
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T h i s eye 2 m eth od :
Duplo is at the core of this method. It will allow you to get one-ahead
with great ease. The key to the routine is to ensure that the mixing of
the papers as well as the target selection causes the spectators to
understand, without saying it, why the papers are being held behind the
back. This process, when performed, makes total sense.
Review the scripting for this performance piece to properly understand
the manner in which this is handled.
To perform the effect, you will hand one spectator a marked billet with
a small nick in the outside corner. This nick will be felt by running
your thumb along the outside edge of the billet, along with the
gimmicked pen and an ungimmicked paper. The second spectator is
handed an unmarked billet, ungimmicked pen and ungimmicked
paper.
When the spectators hand the papers back to you, instruct the
spectators to record the name of a destination they would like to travel
to in their futures. Here is the first major performance point: you will
turn this routine into a performance piece of predicting the spectators'
futures. You can use any single piece of information the spectator can
desire in the their future. It could be the number of children they would
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49
like, an item they would like to own, the car they would like to drive
anything that a spectator can desire owning/attaining in the future. If
you wish to make this routine more spiritual in nature, you could ask
the spectator to record the quality that they wish to improve in their
personality. In this manner, the routine becomes about personal
growth.
Whatever presentational hook you decide upon to achieve the
revelation of the information, you will have the spectator hand you the
papers, with your back turned to them, and spend a moment mixing the
papers. Draw attention to this moment, and then slowly turn to face
the spectators. Take a deep breath, as if preparing.
This sequence silently communicates to the spectators that we are
about to begin; it also communicates that what has happened until this
point is not of importance. In reality, as this is happening, you will
locate the marked billet by running your finger along the edge of the
billets. Next, you apply the impression of the word onto your palm.
Instantly bring both hands out, each holding one of the folded papers.
Be careful not to flash the impression on your palm. Hand the
spectators a paper each and then allow the hand with the
impression to drop to your side.
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Next, bring your non-impression hand close to the papers and pause.
Screw up the non-marked billet. You will pretend that this is the billet
that belongs to the spectator who really wrote with the gimmicked pen
on the marked billet. Review the effect description/script to see how
you will reveal the information. When you have conrmed that you
have accurately guessed the correct desired destination, you will,
without calling attention to it, open the screwed up paper as if to
conrm to yourself you were correct. In this moment, you will read
and remember the destination chosen by your second spectator.
At this point, pause and communicate to your spectators, through your
attitude and body language, that the demonstration is over. Gesture for
the second billet to be handed to you. At this moment, screw it up and
place it with the first billet.
When the time is right, continue by stating:
I sense you are a little disappointed that I did not work with you. We
can try if you want.
In this way, the second revelation seems totally off the cuff, and at this
point, all papers are out of play and you reveal the information you just
learned when reading the paper.
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T h i s eye 3 e f f ect (by Mi k e V ance ):
I would like to try an experiment of a specific skill. This skill is
known as psychometry. I t is the idea that an obj ect handled by someone
somehow is imbued with information from that person, even their
thoughts or intentions. To do this, we need some target information.
I need you to draw a quick simple picture on this card. I will turn
away so that I cannot see what you are drawing.
Once they are done, and with your back toward them and your right
hand held behind your back, tell them:
P lease fold the card into fourths, and place it into my right hand.
When you have the card, turn around, leaving your hands behind your
back. Bring out your left hand, point at you left eye and continue:
Look into this eye.. .
After a few seconds of focus, say:
I 'm getting an image, but it is not clear. I 'm getting the impression of a
house. I s that correct?
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52
The spectator replies that it is not. Continue:
I 'm sorry, but the image I was getting was too fuzzy. I 'm going to need
physical contact to get a clearer picture.
Move your right fist in front of you. Ask her to hold out her right hand
under yours. Stare directly into her eyes (or turn your head to the left)
as you put the card on her palm-up hand and then grasp her hand with
yours as if shaking hands, with the folded business card in-between the
hands. Pointing at your left eye with your left hand, again ask:
Once again, look into this eye. Ah, yes. The house was j ust the surface
of the picture. We need to walk through the front door and into the
kitchen. There, in a bowl on the counter, is an apple. Did you draw a
picture of an apple?
The spectator acknowledges that she did, and you get your well-
deserved applause.
T h i s eye 3 m eth od :
This is an alternative handling of the Duplo effect. Ask the spectator to
draw a picture. Turn around with your back facing the spectator and
take the folded card into your right hand while licking your left hand.
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53
Turn back around, facing the spectator, while transferring your left
hand behind you as well. While you patter, get your impression on your
left hand.
The patter plays the percentages as Banachek does. If you instructed
them to draw a picture, suggest that you see a house, one of the higher
percentage hits. If you are right, you are already done and don't need to
use your impression at all.
If not, then bring your left hand forward and gesture with your left
hand as you talk. Quick, sweeping movements with your palm toward
the spectator should not flash the transferred impression. You can also
look at your left palm in front of you, either openly during an open-
hand gesture, or by putting your left fingers to your forehead to
concentrate, etc.
Then, suggest that you need contact with the spectator to clarify your
vision. Turn your head to the left as you bring out your right hand with
the folded card and drop your left hand to your side. Ask them to hold
out their right hand under yours. Put the card on their palm-up hand
and then grasp their hand with yours as if shaking hands. Look into
their eyes.
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Explain that the house was the key, but that you didn't/couldn't delve
deeply enough without physical contact. Now, travel through the
picture in whatever way you need to arrive at the drawn object. If it is an
animal, find a stuffed animal. Food will be in the kitchen. A car will be
in the garage. Vegetation can be out in the yard. The sun and stars and
clouds lie overhead. Pictures of just about anything could hang on the
walls. Just about anything can be found in the house picture.
D up l o c l ean-up :
The impression can be removed openly as well. Before you do the trick,
establish the visual habit of holding your hands in front of you while
talking and rubbing your right thumb in the left palm. After the trick,
use the established behavior to clean up.
-
The goat knew me Jose Prager & Peter Turner
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56
T h e goat k new m e e f f ect :
The mentalist places his phone, his keys and a coin onto the table.
I n front of you on the table are three obj ects. These three obj ects right
now mean nothing. What's interesting is that sometimes the greatest
things in life can be right underneath our own nose and we dont even
know it."
The mentalist takes out a bill.
"I made a prediction.. . . I f it fails, you can keep this money."
The mentalist places the bill onto the table.
I f you were to instinctively choose one of these three obj ects right now,
which would it be? Go ahead and grab it.
The spectator grabs the phone, and the mentalist continues:
The choice you made speaks volumes about you. The interesting thing
is, you didnt j ust randomly choose the phone, no matter what you
believe. Subconsciously your mind told you to select the phone. A good
representation of this is every time you move your arm, you dont
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57
consciously think MOVE. A phone is a metaphorical bridge that
connects people from all demographics in seconds. I t is faster than a
plane; its an obj ect that is depended upon by most people j ust to get
through their day in an organised fashion. The sort of person that might
choose a phone would be someone who is a mediator, the glue that holds
everything together in social situations; a person that is relied
upon for organisation; someone who actually makes plans happen and a
person that people turn to in times of despair.
"I k new you were that kind of person bef or e you even came over here.
I k now you are thinking, right now, that there is no way I could.. .
"P lace the phone close to your ear.
The spectator now hears for his amazement a recording repeating:
I knew that you would pick the phone
T h e goat k new m e s e tup :
You have to make an audio recording of yourself saying:
I knew that you would pick the phone
Transfer this audio to your phone.
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Open the audio, and make sure to place the volume bar as low as you can
go without it being completely offjust enough sound so that when you
place the phone near your ear, you can hear the recording.
Now configure the song so it plays over and over again.
You can easily set it up in front of your spectators. There is nothing
strange with what you are doing; you are just checking your phone.
You can have the phone ready in your pocket; the recording will be
playing over and over as long as you want.
You also need a plastic keychain. There you will write, with small letters,
You will pick the keys.
Finally, write with a black marker on a bill: You will pick the money!
Fold the bill so the writing is hidden inside.
You will only make the setup once, and you will be ready to perform this
effect as long as you are carrying your Phone and your keys (the coin
can be easily borrowed).
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T h e goat k new m e m eth od :
We are simply making use of multiple outs and a little reading.
When they choose an object, it gives us the opportunity to talk in a
special light about them, to make the entire effect a lot bigger and to
take the attention away from the other two objects. It gives them a
reading that suggests why they chose the object they did.
This makes it personal.
Using these scripts below, they will believe you knew them and knew
the choices that they would make.
I f th ey p i ck th e p h one :
The choice you made speaks volumes about you. The interesting thing
is, you didnt j ust randomly choose the phone, no matter what you
believe. Subconsciously your mind told you to select the phone. A good
representation of this is every time you move your arm, you dont
consciously think MOVE. A phone is a metaphorical bridge that
connects people from all demographics in seconds. I t is faster than a
plane; its an obj ect that is depended upon by most people j ust to get
through their day in an organised fashion. The sort of person that might
choose a phone would be someone who is a mediator, the glue that holds
everything together in social situations; a person that is relied upon for
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60
organization; someone who actually makes plans happen and a person
that people turn to in times of despair. I knew you were that kind of
person before you even came over here. I know you are thinking right
now that there is no way I could.. . place the phone close to your ear.
*Make sure to place the phone volume as low as possible using the
volume bar. It does not matter if you are in a quiet place; the voice
coming from the phone will not be noticed by your spectator until they
place it near their ear or they turn it up so everyone can hear.
I f th ey p i ck th e k eys :
The choice you made speaks volumes about you. The interesting thing
is, you didnt j ust randomly choose the keys, no matter what you
believe. Subconsciously your mind told you to select the K eys. A good
representation of this is every time you move your arm, you dont
consciously think MOVE.
K eys are metaphorically depicted as the tools that open passageways
to new pastures, a must in security and essential in protecting privacy.
The sort of person that might choose the keys is someone that is
constantly thinking forward and investing in new ideas for a better
future. They are more often than not very private people that keep
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61
things bottled up, and at the best of times keep people at arms reach.
They are the sort of person that is trusted with secrets because of their
private nature. I knew you were that kind of person before you even
came over here. I know you are thinking right now that there is no way
I could.. . take a closer look at the keys.
I f th ey p i ck th e coi n :
The choice you made speaks volumes about you. The interesting thing
is, you didnt j ust randomly choose the money, no matter
what you believe. Subconsciously your mind told you to select the
money. A good representation of this is every time you move your arm,
you dont consciously think MOVE. Richness, to gain richness, is
something that all mankind seeks, but more often than not is unachieved.
I t doesnt represent greediness. Quite the opposite, it represents visual
progression. The sort of person that chooses the money might be the sort
of person who constantly aims to strive through adversity; often a
thinker, constantly refining his or her thoughts in order to ensure that
their life is the best it can be within their own circumstances; successful
and life enriched. I had a feeling you were that kind of person before
you even came over here. I know you are thinking right now that there
is no way I could.. .I placed this bill right here since the beginning I n
reality my money never was at risk
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A ddi ti onal th ough ts by P eter T ur ner :
This is my favorite effect in the book. I love this effect for the premise
and the fact that you get to give a reading. I am about to share with you a
way to do this without multiple outs. These methods will take some
practice, but genuinely work.
You will also notice that I have altered the script very subtly. Please do
not overlook the power that this piece has. It will blow your participant's
mind.
The mentalist places his phone, his keys and a coin onto the table.
I n front of you on the table are three obj ects. These three obj ects right
now mean nothing; they seem insignificant. What's interesting is that
sometimes the greatest things in life can be right underneath our own
nose and we dont even know it.
Take these three obj ects. When we look at them in their simplest form,
they are j ust a phone, keys and a coin, but look beyond the title and see
what these things really are.
A phone is a metaphorical bridge that connects people from all
demographics in a matter of seconds. I t is faster than a plane; its an
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obj ect that is depended upon by most people j ust to get through their
day in an organized fashion.
K eys are metaphorically depicted as the tools that open passageways
to new pastures, a must in security and essential in protecting private
obj ects that we wish to hide away from the world.
The coin is often wrongly associated with greed, when metaphorically
it is a universally understood language that is passed from hand to hand.
This small seed has the power to make the world stand still.
I want you to think about these obj ects. I nstinctively in your mind be
drawn toward one of these obj ects; focus on it and concentrate on holding
that obj ect.
(This is where you have one of four options to gain the information of
which the participant is merely thinking.)
Meth od #1
Look directly into the participants eyes as you are telling them to
concentrate on holding the object and feeling it in their hands. You will
notice they look directly at the object!
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When you think you have a feel for which object the participant is
looking at, close your eyes and ask them to look at you and to see you
holding the object.
[This is great, as when the participant looks up, you have your eyes
closed. This means that there is no way for them to backtrack a method,
as they will believe you had your eyes closed the entire time.]
Meth od #2
If the above method fails, I would then proceed into this method. If you
are not comfortable with the above method, you can just move straight
into this.
This method is very old but underused. Take the participant's wrist.
This is where you need to make a quick decision: do you believe your
participant is compliant or non-compliant?
I f your p ar ti c i p ant i s non -com p l i ant :
As you have come into this with an air of skepticism, I want you to
try to lead me in your mind away from the obj ect.
Hold the participant's wrist above each object. There will be one of two
tells here which should give the game away very easily.
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One tell is that they will pull you toward another object, rapidly
eliminating that object and making it 50/50, and then you find which
object they subtly pull you away from, leading you to the object.
The second tell is that they will pull you away from the object instantly,
and you know it is that object.
(Sounds easy, right? Thats because it is, but it does require practice.)
I f your p ar ti c i p ant i s com p l i an t
This is the scenario you will find yourself in more often than not.
Ask the participant to guide you with their mind to the object and to
imagine being drawn toward it.
Hold their hand above the objects, and whichever object they pull you
back toward is the object of which they are thinking!
Again, it is ultra-simple and often overlooked, but so strong.
[The secret here is the framing; even though the principle is old, I
believe framing them like this is new. I took into account their natural
actions and framed them in a way that pulls the muscle reading in your
favor (mind the pun).]
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Meth od #3
This is the boldest of the methods I have found, but works in a tight
spot. Address the participant:
Can you please pick up the obj ect and show everyone else of what
obj ect you are thinking?
At this point just apply a gypsy peek. [To perform a gypsy peek, cover
your eyes with your hand and peek through the space between the little
and fourth fingers.]
Meth od #4
This is the simplest of the four. If I was going to perform this method, I
would ensure that there was only one key on the table as opposed to
many (but I will explain a subtlety should you want to keep the many
outs).
Ask the participant to pick up the object that appealed to them and to
show the audience.
All you have to do is place your palms face down onto the table and
listen/feel from where they pick up the object. Ensure your eyes are
tightly closed at this point.
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[As an added subtlety, if you say make sure you dont make any noise
and you leave the keys in a bunch on the table, what will happen is that
you will make the participant avoid taking the keys, because they will
take into account the noise factor, which is great for the reading you are
about to give.]
T h e r eadi ng
Instead of revealing the object at this point, you are going to give a small
reading based on the object you believe the participant has chosen. It
really doesnt matter how long winded the reading is (the less the better ,
of course), as when you reveal the object from an audiences point of
view, you confirm the reading.
Here are three simple and short readings:
I f you th i nk th ey ch os e th e m oney :
I get a nice feeling from you; I believe you are the sort of person who
constantly aims to strive through adversity; often a thinker, constantly
refining your thoughts in order to ensure that your life is the best it can
be no matter what the circumstance. You will always be successful and
life-enriched in any venture or path you take, and because of that the
choice you made speaks volumes about you. I believe, based on
everything I am feeling, that you went for the COI N .
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I f you th i nk th ey ch os e th e p h one :
I get a nice feeling from you. I believe you are the sort of person who is
a mediator; the glue that holds everything together in social situations; a
person that is relied upon for organization; someone who actually makes
plans happen and a person that people turn to in times of despair, and
because of this there is only one obj ect you could have chosen: the
P H ON E.
I f you th i nk th ey ch os e th e k ey :
The feeling I get from you is that you are the sort of person that is a
thinker. You are constantly thinking forward and investing in new ideas
for a better future. You are more often than not a very private person
that keeps things bottled up, and at the best of times keeps people at
arms reach. You are the sort of person that is trusted with secrets
because of your private and introverted nature. You often hold the weight
of other people's stress on your shoulders, dont you?
Let them answer.
Because of all of that, you most certainly thought of TH E K EY.
[A really cool thing to do here, if you did leave a bunch of keys and were
going to ask them to pick up an object, is to throw it into the reading. It
is an added hit.
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I think you are also the sort of person that second-guesses yourself; you
often think of what you are going to do or say, build yourself up and at
the last second talk yourself out of it. For that reason, I believe you
thought of one obj ect and changed your mind at the last moment.
You can now not only point out what object they thought of first (the
keys), but also point out the object that they changed their mind to! ]
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H eavy am nes i a e f f ect :
By a show of hands, how many people in this room have ever walked
into a room and completely forgotten what you went in there for? This
mental phenomenon interested me so intensely, for years I tried to work
out what it was that triggered a state of temporal amnesia to the point I
almost forgot myself why I was doing it.
The mentalist waits for a little laugh from the audience.
I am going to choose somebody I believe this will work perfectly with.
The mentalist selects a female from the audience.
Each one of these cards has a different word upon it. I want you to
randomly select one of them.
The mentalist asks his spectator to extend his left hand in front of him.
The mentalist begins to deal the cards one by one and asks his spectator
to call out STOP at any moment.
The spectator says, "STOP ."
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The mentalist cleanly takes the card he was stopped at and continues:
Stare at the word for a few seconds, concentrate, and you will
notice for a few seconds everything apart from my voice becomes very
difficult to focus on.
The mentalist holds the card facing his spectator, and he rips a corner
from the card.
Focus on the connection between yourself and the word that you selected
as it j ust seems to fade out as though you never actually saw a thing,
and the more you try to focus on things that seem important, the less
important these things become.
The mentalist now places the ripped card onto his spectator's empty
hand.
The more you focus on how unimportant these things become, the more
irrelevant they seem...What word do you TH I N K you saw?
The spectator unexpectedly names the word.
Great.
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The mentalists smiles.
As I mentioned earlier, I searched long and hard to answer the question
of why we forgot things when we walked into a room, and the answer
was so simple I overlooked it. . .D istraction. I t seems so obvious; surely it
cant be that simple.. but it is! I will prove it. This has not been about
remembering a word on a card. What it did was give me enough time to
distract your mind in a way that I guarantee you wont have noticed.. .
See the corner in my hand? I t's no longer here.
The mentalist slowly and cleanly opens his fingers, which were in full
view the entire time, to show that his hand is now completely empty.
Do you remember me going to the other side of the room and placing
the corner under that cup of wine? N o? Really?
The mentalist point to a man and continues:
H ow about you, sir? N o? You honestly don't remember me going to the
other side of the room and placing the corner under the cup?
The mentalist now addresses the whole audience:
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Does anyone actually remember me going there and placing the corner
under the cup?
Everyone moves their heads, saying no.
The mentalist points with his hand to a cup of wine and directs the
spectator to go for it.
The spectator grabs the corner and sees that it matches perfectly with
the torn card in his hands.
He addresses the whole audience:
You have j ust experienced amnesia.
H eavy am nes i a s e tup :
Take 25 blank billets, place them into a vertical position and write one
random word on each.
H eavy am nes i a m eth od :
A portion of the methodology involves forcing the top word card of the
stack. The top word card (force card) has a missing corner, which the
performer has previously torn and hidden. The forcing procedure is
achieved in the following manner:
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1 . Bring the stack of word cards into a vertical (necktie) position so
that the torn corner of the top card is not exposed.
2. Deal the cards singly until the spectator tells you to stop. As you
deal, you are leaving the force card in the topmost position. In
effect, you are performing a second deal. However, given that
the top card has a missing corner, it becomes a simple task to
perform this simplified second deal.
3 . Once the spectator calls stop, take the top word card (force
card) and slide it to the right, making sure to cover the torn
corner with the same hand you are using to remove the card
from the stack. When you take the card in your hand, use your
index/middle fingers and thumb, respectively, to conceal the
missing corner from your audience.
The performer now holds the chosen word card in front of him,
covering the torn corner with his fingers. Next, the performer takes the
card and pretends to tear it. The illusion is simple, yet deceiving.
The rest is simply a matter of the performer mimicking the tearing,
holding and vanishing of the corner while delivering the script outlined
previously.
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A ddi ti onal th ough ts by P eter T ur ner :
What Jos has ultimately offered here is an out, should the amnesia
effect not work. I would focus primarily on making the first phase of
the routine come off. I perform this type of routine all the time and can
vouch for the fact that if you are confident and come across as credible,
people will honestly forget the word that they saw on the card.
If they forget the word on the card, I would then forget the second half
of the routine, and know that I had an ultimately compliant subject and
proceed to make them forget their name. Remember about social
compliance when someone is in a group of people and you are going to
perform something like this a lot of the time; the participant is forced
via the pressure from everyone looking at them to comply.
Use this effect as a tool to gain confidence in using suggestion in your
routines; you can afford to fail as you have an out, which is ultimately
important here. If you find that you have a really compliant subject, you
can now add five or ten minutes of hypnosis to your set. Once you start
to gain confidence, eliminate the second part of this routine and the
cards; you have the basis here to have an effect that will teach you the
confidence you need to hypnotize.
Never overlook the importance of a good out!
-
Mind Flight Jose Prager & Luke Jermay
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Mi nd f l i gh t e f f ect :
The performer is introduced and walks onstage. He reaches the
microphone stand and begins:
H ave you ever heard the expression 'flights of fantasy'? I like it. I t
reminds me that with our imagination, our minds are capable of
achieving the most fantastic things. When I was a child I dreamed about
traveling the world, seeing the exotic mysteries of far-off lands. These
days I do get to travel a fair amount, but no j ourney I have ever made
has lived up to the fantasy destinations my imagination created as a
child.
The performer leaves the platform and hands a sealed envelope to a
spectator in the audience. He invites this spectator to accompany him
back onto the stage, where she takes a seat center stage. The performer
continues:
I would like you to make a fantasy j ourney right here and right now.
For a moment, I would like you to close your eyes and bring to your
mind a number of places you would like to travel. These can be any
places in the world. They dont even have to be real, they can be purely
fictional placessomewhere from a movie, a book, or even of your own
imagination. The choice of your fantasy destination is left entirely up
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to you. Begin by bringing into your mind a few different places you
would like to visit in this imaginary j ourney. I will give you a few
moments to bring those places to mind.
The performer pauses, and after a moment or two he continues:
Do not tell me any of those places you have in mind, but a simple yes
or no answer. Do you have a few different places in mind?
The spectator confirms they do. The performer continues:
I would like you to decide on one final destination: a place you would
like to visit, a fantasy location. P ick one, j ust one of the places you
have in mind for me now.
The spectator nods her head, confirming they have a single destination
in place. The performer continues:
The interesting thing about all the fantasy j ourneys I have taken in
my own imagination, is that they have never been taken alone. This
will sound hard to believe, but you were al ways with me. J ust last
night, we took a j ourney together in my imagination, and I can p r ove
i t . I did not know your name then. So I had to identify you in a
different way.. .
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The performer opens the envelope and removes a folded sheet of paper
from within. He then continues:
You have been holding this envelope from the beginning, from before
you even picked which place from the many in your mind you would
take a fantasy j ourney to, and you could have brought any number of
fantasy destinations to your mind. Which place did you end up
traveling to?
The spectator announces:
H ogwarts School, from H arry P otter.
The performer continues:
Yes ! That is perfect. That final choice was made right here and right
now, correct? You had other destinations in mind, but it was H ogwarts
that you settled on right here and right now?
The spectator confirms this is correct. The performer continues:
Like I said, in our fantasy j ourney I did not know your name, so I had
to describe you. P lease read what I wrote on the paper last night.
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The spectator reads aloud what is written on the paper. It is a perfect
description of her psychical appearance. It then reads:
"Together we visited H ogwarts school for magic."
The prediction is written in bold, large ink on a large sheet of paper. The
spectator is thanked offstage, and the performer accepts the applause.
Mi nd f l i gh t s e tup :
My impression pad called Scanner is at the core of this method, so let
me please first explain to you how to construct what I like to call an
examinable impression pad.
Mater i al s R equi r ed :
Notepad with spirals/rings on the top, front and back covers
made of clear plastic
Clear contact paper (sticky clear plastic used to protect book
covers)
Pair of scissors
I ns tr ucti ons :
1 . Take one of the covers from one of the sides of the pad, and
open it up. You should now be looking at the inside cover.
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2. Take your contact paper, and measure 2 squares about the same
size as the covers, and cut them out using the scissors.
3 . As you know, contact paper is sticky on one side and glossy on
another, so take the sticky side and stick one square on each of
the inside covers. You must apply the film gently and not rub it
down too hard.
Upon examining the pad, you will see that it resembles a normal pad,
even with the contact paper stuck to one side of both covers. It looks
very ordinary like it should. It even looks normal after an impression
has been made.
A bout th e p en/m ar k er :
Cheaper pens are better than expensive ones as you need to apply some
pressure to get them to write, I personally use an HB#2 pencil and it
works perfectly.
H andl i ng and p eek :
Take the two sheets that are closest to the cover you used in your
preparation and flip them over onto the contact paper.
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So in essence, if you are now looking down at the pad, you should see
one sheet, followed by another sheet, followed by a cover. Hand the pad
to your spectator and have them write down their thought. Tell them to
tear off the paper and fold it up and place it in their pocket. The pad is
now in this position after they tear off their sheet: There is one visible
sheet of paper that is blank, followed by a cover. Have the spectator
hand you back the pad.
To see the impression you will find a lonely place and will remove the
contact paper from the pad then. You can calmly look at the impression.
Mi nd f l i gh t m eth od :
This routine will blend the simple with the sophisticated in a really
elegant manner. It will make use of preshow work to achieve a
surprising and uncommon outcome. Normally preshow work is limited
to the harvesting and revelation of information. In this demonstration,
we are harvesting and revealing information, but we are disguising it as
a prediction. We are also able to eliminate the notion of preshow work
by having the spectator make their final choice in real-time onstage.
With your Scanner Pad ready to go, you will look at the audience before
the show begins and pick a spectator that has something interesting or
unique about their appearance; this might be a bright or odd-colored
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piece of clothing, hair color or some other element. The important
thing is that the spectator can be described in a few lines of text, and
later be instantly recognized by the audience. A quick scan of your
audience will instantly locate your spectator.
You will approach this spectator with your Scanner Pad. You will
address them:
Later in the show I would like to try a special experiment with you. I t
is all about creative thought and imagination, and I do not want to put
you on the spot in the show, so I want to get the hard work done now. I t
will make things much easier for you later.
By framing the appro