Pogue, David: Magic for Dummies
©1998 IDG Books
Softcover, perfect-bound, 369 pages

Comments: Magic for Dummies is a great book for beginners, and has some material even the more experienced magician will appreciate. Highly recommended.

Contents:

ix About the Author, About the Magic Consultant (Mark Levy)
xi Acknowledgments
xiii The Advisory Pantheon: Michael Ammar, Mike Bent Christopher Broughton, Eugene Burger, Lance Burton, Mike Caveney, John Cornelius, Daryl, Doc Eason, Roberto Farini, Paul Harris, Bill Herz, Jade, Kevin James, Aye Jaye, Chad Long, Harry Lorayne, Jay Marshall, Jeff McBride, Tom Mullica, Rich Marotta, Mike Maxwell, Billy McComb, Jon Racherbaumer, Richard Robinson, George Schindler, Jeff Sheridan, Looy Simonoff, Jim Sisti, Tony Spina, Jamy Ian Swiss, Dan Sylvester, Johnny Thompson, Torkova, Gregory Wilson, Meir Yedid, and others
xxii Publisher's Acknowledgments
xxvii Contents
1 Introduction
1 About this Book
2 Where the tricks came from
2 Of handedness (left vs. right)
3 How This Book is Organized
4 Icons Used In This Book
5 The Process of Learning a Trick
6 Welcome to the Circle
7 5th Wave comic (Rich Tennant)
9 Chapter 1 All Form No Content: quick "puzzle" or "gag" tricks to develop personality and practice in showmanship (these are not "brilliant" effects)
10 The Importance of Patter
10 The Anti Gravity Pencil: a pencil "sticks" to the open hand
13 Truths of Magic Part 1: Nobody Questions the Procedure
13 The Disappearing Anything: a lesson in misdirection
14 Keeping Your Eye on the Prize: note about eye contact
15 The One Legged Leg Vanish: One leg vanishes behind your coat (gag)
16 Grace Under Fire Part 1: Learning to improvise
18 Fingertip Munch: crunching your fingertip in your mouth
19 How to Get Rubbery: three ways to stretch (stretchy thumb, finger, and arm)
24 Off the Wall: quick illusions from behind a wall (you're flying, you're climbing, you're being mugged)
26 Chapter 2 Instant Gratification Chapter
26 Two Card Sleight of Hand: in an apparent demonstration of great skill with cards, two cards inserted in the middle of the deck instantly appear on the top
33 The Tale of the Tightrope Walker: two pieces of string magically meld together
34 Truths of Magic Part 2: Give 'em Something to Believe In. Providing semi-plausible explanations
37 The Pencil and Quarter Double Vanish (Tony Spina): a trick in which a quarter about to be vanished with the tap of a pencil fails when the pencil vanishes instead. The pencil is shown on the ear, and then the quarter really vanishes
38 Truths of Magic Part 3: Anticipate the dumb guess. Eliminating some of the most obvious though silly solutions
41 Grace Under Pressure Part 2: improv au natural
43 Part II Wizardry Anywhere
43 The 5th Wave (Rich Tennant): cartoon
45 Chapter 3 The Financial Wizard
46 Hard Cold Pencil Breaking Cash: breaking a pencil with a dollar bill
48 Truths of Magic Part 4: The Third Time's the Charm: magic and 3's
49 Sheep and Thieves (Johnny Thompson): Seven quarters seem to be evenly taken in each hand, but at the end, two are in one and an 5 in the other. Plot is around sheep thieves
52 The Vanishing Quarter, Show Off Edition: quarter vanishes during an elbow grab maneuver
54 Truths of Magic Part 5: The Element of Surprise
54 The Big Money Rises: $1 is rolled on top of $20, but when unrolled, the $20 is on top
57 The 7 Penny Reflex Test: 7 pennies are counted into spectator's hand, but magician is always able to grab the last penny
60 You Can't Catch the Money: a real reflex test with dropping a bill
61 Don't Show Me the Money: self working trick, the magician always knows the position of the $20 bill amongst 3 $1 bills
64 Heads or Tails: the Shadow Knows (Gregory Wilson): predicting the toss of a coin on every toss using a regular coin
67 Chapter 4 New Uses for Old Office Supplies
67 Pencil Up the Nose: gag in which a pencil is apparently pushed up the nose
70 Cheapskate Houdini: The Triple Rubber Band Escape
71 Stage 1: The Rubber Band Jumps: from two fingers to two fingers
72 Stage 2: Locked In Place: as above, with another rubber band locking the fingertips
73 Stage 3: Dueling Bands: two different colored rubber bands transpose
76 How to Shoot a Rubber Band
76 The Antigravity Ring: a borrowed finger ring slides UP a slanted rubber band
78 Post-It-Ive Identification (Mike Bent): a selected card is revealed through use of a set of Post-It notes
82 The Photocopied Card Trick (Michael Ammar): a photocopy of random, face up cards is shown with one car face down. You ask the spectator is their selection is amongst the cards she can see. When she says no, you turn the page over. Now the picture shows the cards face down, with one face up card: the selection
84 Truths of Magic Part 6: The Card You Chose. Using effective wording
85 Chapter 5: What to Do With Other People's Clothing
85 Give Me a Ring Sometime - And a String (Eugene Burger): a borrowed finger ring is pulled off a loop of string held between the spectator's thumbs
88 Walking Through Ropes: the spectator penetrates two ropes
92 Self Decapitation: a long scarf penetrates your neck
94 Give That Purse a Hand (Meir Yedid): you borrow a purse and pull out a lot of strange items, including a large rubber hand

99 Chapter 6 Take It Outside, Pal
99 The Missing Spray Paint Marble (Chad Long): a spray can is missing the marble that let's it be shaken up. You slam a marble into the can, and now it rattles
102 The Ninja Key Catch (Chad Long): your set of keys is thrown in the air and you catch them, with the proper key all ready for the door
104 Straw Through the Jaw (Kevin James): a drinking straw passes through your chin into your mouth
106 The Astonishing Straw Wrapper Restoration (Mike Caveney): a straw and empty wrapper are rolled in a napkin. When unrolled, the straw is in the wrapper
109 The Creepy Little Baby Hand (Bob Farmer): You need a hand, so a doll size hand reaches out from between your palms, gropes about, and vanishes
110 Grace Under Fire Part 3: Torkova continues even when the music dies
113 The $100 Life Saver Trick (Bill Herz): You open a roll of Life Savers and pull out a $100 bill rolled up inside
116 Dan Sylvester's Bubblous Glasses: blowing bubbles from your glasses
116 The Unforgettable "Cloudy" Toilet Paper (Jeff McBride): a water fountain streams from bunched up toilet paper
121 Part III Restaurant Zone
121 The 5th Wave (Rich Tennant): cartoon
123 Chapter 7 Cutlery Is Your Friend
123 The Bendy Spoon, Part I: bending a spoon, handle in view
126 Bendy Spoon II: The Return. Spoon is bent so much, it vanishes
129 The Classic Saltshaker Penetration. In an effort to pass a coin through the table, it is covered with a saltshaker and a napkin. The coin fails to pass through, but the saltshaker does instead
132 Forks A Lot: a fork balancing stunt
134 Truths of Magic Part 7: Don't Pre-announce the Trick Unless You Are Lying
134 The Three Mug Monte (Jim Sisti): spectator places a crouton under one of three inverted coffee mugs and mixes them up. Magician finds the bread crumb every time
137 Three Object Monte, Freakout Edition (Greg Wilson): Using three of anything, magician is always able to tell which was touched, or even just thought of (confederate)
138 Truths of Magic Part 8: The Confederate Army
143 Chapter 8 Playing With Your Food
143 A Sugar Substitute (Greg Wilson): sugar packet changes to sugar substitute packet when dropped through the fist (performed seated)
146 The Evaporating Sugar (Brad Stine): a sugar packet is opened and all the sugar poured into your fist. When you hand is opened, it is empty
149 The Linking Pretzels (Chris Broughton): two mini pretzels are shown. One is tossed in the air and the other hit against it. The pretzels link!
152 Alternative Pretzel Magic for the Klutzy: alternate, easier method
152 Beans Through the Orifices (Tom Mullica): beans are placed into your tear ducts, nose, and ears and all come out of your mouth
156 Bouncing the Roll: a dinner roll bounces
158 The Floating Dinner Roll (George Schindler): a dinner roll levitates behind a napkin
161 Grace Under Fire Part 4: Chad Long and Halloween gone wrong
163 Chapter 9 Matches Made In Heaven
163 Making an Ash of Yourself: a mark of ash transfers through your hand
165 Ashes Through Someone Else's Palm (Jade): mark of ash transfers through spectator's hand
168 The Three Matchbox Shell Game (Christopher Broughton): spectator can't find matchbox that contains nickel.
171 Weighing the Matchbooks (Jim Sisti): magician determine which matchbook has had a single match torn from it
173 The Static Electricity Test (Dan Harlan): a toothpick jumps when touched by another. Spectator cannot repeat the effect
177 Intermission
177 A Day In the Life of the Semi-Pro: the start of a career
179 Entertainment Weekly: the teen years
179 The Restaurant Summers: table hopping
180 The Offer: for a trade show
181 The Show: the first trade show experience
182 It's In the Cards: just the beginning...
183 Part IV Pick A Card...Trick
183 The 5th Wave (Rich Tennant): cartoon
185 Chapter 10 I Could Have Dealt All Night
185 How to Shuffle Without Really Accomplishing Anything: riffle shuffle control
187 You Do As I Do: magician and spectator each select a card from one of two deck. They select the same card
190 Truths of Magic Part 9: Cutting the Cards Doesn't Accomplish Much
190 The Hands Off Mixed Up Pure Impossibility: spectator shuffles and mixes up cards face up and face down, yet magician finds the card just by touch
193 Aces by Touch (Lance Burton): Deck is placed in jacket pocket, and magician pulls out the 4 Aces one by one just by touch
195 Dealing the Aces: Follow up to above. Spectator deals four piles of cards, and an Ace appears on the top of each pile
198 The Envelope, Please. The spectator thoroughly shuffles the deck. The magician removes an envelope with a prediction. The top card of the deck matches the prediction
200 Truths of Magic, Part 10: The pre-climax recap
200 Soul Mates (Jon Racherbaumer): Two cards inserted into the deck find their mates
203 Pick A Number Spelling Bee: spectator removes 10 cards, then selects a number from one to 10. Cards are dealt one at a time, say to 12, and spectator memorized card at his selected number. Other 10 cards are returned to deck, magician spells spectator's name, and last card is the selection
207 The Shuffling Lesson (Chad Long): In a shuffling demonstration, 8 piles of cards are made. Your four piles end up with Kings on top, spectator's end up with the Aces
211 Sleight of Foot (Jamy Ian Swiss): Spectator finds a card with his foot, and magician locates this card with his foot (a variation of the salt trick)
214 Truths of Magic, Part 11: Whose Trick is it Anyway? (crediting)
215 The Future Deck: Magician writes prediction on a card and places it in an envelope. Spectator freely chooses any card and places it in the envelope, too, sight unseen. The prediction matches the selection
219 Dream A Card, Any Card (Daryl): Magician says he dreamed of a card. Spectator fans cards toward magician and magician selects one and places it face down. Spectator deals cards into two piles. The top cards of each pile indicate a value and suit that match the face down selection
223 Chapter 11 The Build Your Own Card Trick Kit
223 How This Chapter Works: most card tricks are pick a card, and magician reveals it
224 Forces
224 The Cut Anywhere Force
226 The Under the Hanky Force
227 The Bottom Deal Force
228 The Countdown Force
229 Grace Under Fire, Part 5: Harry Lorayne story
230 Revelations
230 The Geiger Counter
230 The Jumping Out Revelation
232 Feeling by Muscle
234 Grace Under Fire, Part 6: John Cornelius story
234 The Name of the Card Is Revelation
235 Slap It!
236 The Above and Beyond Revelation
237 The Magic for Dummies Grand Finale
241 Part V Party Time
241 The 5th Wave (Rich Tennant): cartoon
243 Chapter 12 Rope
243 The Classic Cut Rope Restoration: a rope is cut and tied together, then restored
247 Ring Off Rope: a borrowed finger ring is removed from a rope even though a spectator holds both ends
250 Grace Under Fire Part 7: Mike Bent
251 Escape from the K-Mart Tie: Your arms are tied at the wrist, and a rope is looped between the "cuff", yet you are able to escape
255 Chapter 13 I Knew That!
256 The Three Card Pick by Touch Test: A spectator is asked to pick the 2 of hearts from the face down, scattered cards, a second spectator picks the Jack of Diamonds, and magician finds the 10 of spades. All cards are correct
258 Triple Prediction Spouse Clincher: Magician makes three predictions about obscure aspects of the spectator and all three are correct
263 The Math Geography Animal Color Test: grey elephants in Denmark
265 Divide and Conquer: objects are eliminated until only one remains, matching the prediction in your shoe
268 Truths of Magic Part 12: Distance yourself from the prediction
268 The Book Test: a number is arrived at and a word corresponding to that number is found in a book. The magician predicts the word
273 The Great Vegetable Prediction (Johnny Thompson): names of vegetables are written on slips of paper and placed in a bag. One slip is opened by a spectator and a sealed box is opened, the vegetable written on the paper is found in the box
275 The Telephone Trick 1: Call This Number (Jeff Sheridan). Someone in another building is called and they reveal the card chosen
279 Telephone Trick II: Call the Phantom. As above, another method
281 Chapter 14 Group Hysteria
282 The Torn and Restored Toilet Paper (Chris Broughton). A sheet of toilet paper is torn and restored
285 You Can't Do As I Do (Aye Jaye): Audience warm up. All clasp you hands and untwist your arms, but only the performer can untwist
287 Truths of Magic Part 13: Humans make terrible witnesses
288 The Strength Test: You lean against a wall and ask several people to line up and push against you, but your arms don't give in
290 Grace Under Fire Part 8: Looy Simonoff
291 The Phantom Photo (George Schindler): a photo frame is assembled piece by piece and a spectator selects a photo. The same photo appears in the frame
298 The Late Night Party Murder Mystery: while performer is out of the room, one spectator "murders" a cut out. When the performer returns, he can determine the killer
303 Part VI The Part of Tens
303 The 5th Wave (Rich Tennant): cartoon
305 Chapter 15 Ten Basics of Good Magic
305 Don't Reveal the Secret - Ever
306 Don't Repeat a Trick
306 Know When to Start
307 Know When to Stop
307 Build Up Your Audience
307 Suit the Tricks to the Crowd
308 One Great Trick is Worth Ten Not Ready Ones
309 Keep At It
309 Act the Part
310 Make It Yours
311 Chapter 16 Ten Classic Moments in Magic History
311 Robert-Houdin Prevents War with a Trick
312 Herrmann Pulls a Coin From a Roll
312 Malini Produces a Block of Ice
313 Houdini Becomes Dangerous
313 Blackstone Saves His Audience
314 Richiardi Jr. Bisects His Daughter
314 The Great Tomsoni Capitalize on His Mistakes
315 Doug Henning Comes to Broadway
315 Copperfield Changes the Scale of Magic
316 You See Your First Magic Trick
317 Chapter 17 Ten Dead Magicians Worth Knowing
317 Jon Henry Anderson
318 Harry Kellar
318 Servai Le Roay
319 Howard Thurston
319 Horace Goldin
320 Joseph Dunninger
320 Cardini
321 Slydini
321 Ed Marlo
322 Dai Vernon
322 Blackstone's Donuts
323 Chapter 18 Ten Things to Say When Things Go Wrong
325 Chapter 19 Ten Ways to Get More Into Magic
325 Watch Other Magicians
326 Magic Museums
326 Read
327 Go To Magic Shops
327 Watch Magic Specials
328 Join a Magic Association
328 Read Magic Magazines
329 Surf the Web
330 Watch Magic Tapes
331 Take a Course
332 Perform
333 Part VII Appendixes
333 The 5th Wave (by Rich Tennant): cartoon
335 Appendix A Magic Stores, Publishers, Societies, and Magazines
339 Appendix B Magic Words: A Glossary
345 Appendix C Tricography (credits)
347 A note about lecture notes
353 Index