Modern Coin Magic

shewed."

Chapter I

COIN CONCEALMENTS

The Classic Palm • The Edge Palm • The Thumb Palm • The Downs Palm • The Finger Palm • The Front Finger Hold • The Back Palm • The Back Finger Clip • The Back Thumb Palm

The Classic Palm

The coin is held in the center of the palm by a contraction of the muscles at the base of the thumb and little finger, Fig. 1. It is transferred to, and pressed into this grip by the tips of the second and third fingers. Several coins may be held in this manner.

Fig. 1

This is one of the most difficult of all concealments to master but it is one of magic’s finest secrets. The layman cannot imagine it possible to conceal a coin in this way.

The beginner may experience difficulty in retaining a coin in this position at the outset, but the ability will come with practice. Once the knack is acquired coins of various sizes can be retained.

A minimum amount of pressure is sufficient to hold the coin in place. Too much grip tends to make the hand appear cramped and tense. A coin is not a heavy object, so hold it lightly and the hand will appear natural. Actually it should be held so loosely that a mere tap with the other hand will dislodge it.

An important point to remember is that no one is misled because the fingers are apart. Only when the hand looks natural will it be above suspicion. The ability to palm a coin should be mastered first; naturalness will come later. Make use of the hand that has the coin palmed by picking up something with it, such as another coin, or a small wand or pencil; use it to pull back the sleeve; to snap the fingers or make a gesture. Any of these actions subtly direct attention away from the hand with the concealed coin. Sometimes I grasp a spectator by the arm to draw him closer for a better look, with the very hand that has the coin concealed.

The parlor rug offers an excellent surface for coin work. It is advisable to spread a pocket handkerchief on the rug and place the coins on that, as some rugs have a confusing design, thus making the coins difficult to see. Whether operating from the floor or a table, a natural pose to assume is to rest the fingertips of both hands on the working surface. The hands will then look empty even if something is concealed in one of them, Fig. 2.

In some instances certain tricks must be done while standing and occasionally the spectators will be crowded around you. Just a little thought will solve this problem and make you master of the situation. Watch your angles. Form the habit of keeping the palm of the hand in which the coin is palmed, toward the body. Or, if the hand that has the coin concealed is held parallel with the floor there is little chance of detection. The coin, can only be seen from a point directly below.

Fig. 2

The Edge Palm

The coin is held in the same spot as just explained, by the muscles of the hand which press together from opposite directions against the edge of the coin. It is not held flat as in the classic palm but in a slanting position of about forty-five degrees, Fig. 1.

This palm is more difficult to acquire than the classic palm, but once it has been mastered this one becomes easier. A fairly new coin with a sharp milled edge is easier to hold than one with a well worn or smooth edge.

Fig. 1

To place the coin in this position you must first hold it by its edge between the tips of the forefinger and thumb. Then place the tip of the second finger in front (nail against edge of coin) and third finger behind and grip it with these two fingers as the thumb and forefinger are removed from the coin. Now by bending the two middle fingers inward the coin is carried to the palm, Fig. 2. and retained there while the fingers straighten out again, Fig. 1.

A simple reversal of these moves will return the coin to its starting position.

To palm several coins in this fashion you would proceed exactly as you would with one, but as each coin is palmed it is placed on top of the preceding one with the final coin being closest to the wrist.

Fig. 2

To produce them again bend the second and third fingers inward, place the tip of the third finger on top of the coin nearest the wrist and the tip of the second finger underneath the outer edge of the coin closest to the palm. With the tip of the third finger, slide the top coin forward about a quarter of an inch, then grip it between the tips of the two fingers and bring it into view by straightening these fingers.

The number of coins that can be palmed and produced in this manner depends entirely on the ability of the performer.

The Thumb Palm

The coin is clipped by its edge in the fork of the thumb by pressure of the latter against the base of the first finger, Fig. 1. The coin should be held rather loosely to permit the thumb to assume as natural a position as possible.

Fig. 1

To place the coin in this position, begin with it between the tips of the first two fingers, Fig. 2. Curl these two digits inward until the top edge of the coin touches the upper palm at the crotch of the thumb, then bring the thumb down and grip it by its edge, Fig. 3, as the fingers straighten out.

Fig. 2

To transfer the coin from the thumb palm to the classic palm, bend the second and third fingers inward as you lower the thumb (which action brings the coin closer to the palm), press the tips of these two fingers against the flat side of the coin and press it into the palm.

Fig. 3

The Downs Palm

The coin is held horizontally in the fork of the thumb by pressure of the latter and the base of the first finger pressing together against opposite edges. Fig. 1 shows this position but from a different angle than viewed by the audience.

Fig. 1

To bring the coin to this position, hold it vertically between the tips of the first two fingers, Fig. 2. Then curl these two fingers inward, depositing the coin behind the thumb, where it is gripped against the base of the first finger. When the fingers are straightened the hand appears empty, Fig. 3.

Fig. 2

Fig. 3

This concealment is used mainly as a coin vanish and production. The correct moves for accomplishing this are as follows: Stand with your left side toward the audience and display a half dollar held between the tips of the first two fingers as described. Quickly bring the hand down, then up, in a tossing motion. Under cover of this brief movement, palm the coin. Follow the flight of the non-existent coin upward with your eyes, and if you have executed the moves as described the coin seems to vanish in midair. Show the hand empty as in Fig. 3.

To produce the coin, reach out with the hand and seemingly pluck it from the air by a reversal of the above moves.

After you have mastered the moves with a single coin try vanishing several in the same manner. A good number to start with is four. Show them in your left hand and stand with your left side toward the audience. Take the first coin with your right hand and vanish it as described. The remaining three are handled in the same manner but as each coin is placed behind the thumb it goes underneath the preceding one. At first this may seem a bit difficult but if you have spent sufficient time in mastering the moves with one coin the extra number should give you little trouble.

The next step is to show the back of the hand empty and produce the coins again. To do this, turn slightly to the left, and as you swing your arm across your body, curl the fingers inward and touch the tip of the thumb with the tips of the first two digits (which prevents the onlookers from getting a flash of the coins), straighten the fingers and exhibit the back of the hand empty. Reverse these moves, show the palm of the hand empty and proceed to pluck the coins from the air one at a time. As each coin is produced, take it with your left hand, or better still, drop them in a goblet which you hold in your left hand.

A certain amount of care will have to be exercised to prevent the coins from talking as they are brought together behind the thumb. The use of old, well-worn coins, such as the Liberty head half dollar, will help greatly in eliminating the noise caused by the coins sliding across each other.

Read Arthur Buckley’s description of the Downs palm which he employs in Four Coins to a Glass, (page 160).

A more beautiful coin vanish and reproduction has not been devised.

The Finger Palm

Here is probably the easiest and most natural of all palms. The coin is held at the base of the curled second and third fingers, as in the figure below.

If you will stand in front of a mirror with your arms relaxed at your sides, you will notice that the fingers curl inward naturally. If a coin is placed in the position described above, it can be retained without further movement of the fingers. Apply just enough grip on the coin to hold it in place, for if it is held too tightly the hand will not appear natural. With a coin thus concealed you will find that you can still snap the fingers and use the hand almost as freely as you do normally.

The transfer of the coin from classic or thumb palm to this position can be made during a slight movement of the hand or while the hand hangs naturally at your side.

The Front Finger Hold

The coin is held flat, near the tips of the extended second and third fingers by pressure on its opposite edges with the tips of the first and fourth fingers, The Back Palm, Fig. 2.

The ease in holding a coin in this position depends on the diameter of the coin and the size of the performer’s hands. For most hands the half dollar is about right.

The coin can be transferred to this position from the thumb, finger, or classic palm.

The Back Palm

The coin is hidden behind the hand, being held flat against the second and third fingers by the tips of the first and fourth fingers which press together against opposite edges, Fig. 1.

Fig. 1

To get the coin in this position start with it in the front finger hold, Fig. 2. Bend the second and third fingers inward, then outward, passing them from one side to the other of the coin, which revolves in this action between the tips of the outer two digits, Fig. 3. When the fingers straighten out the coin will be hidden behind the hand, Fig. 1, as you show the front of the hand empty, Fig. 4. A slight upward movement of the hand as if tossing the coin into the air will cover the action of back palming.

Fig. 2

Fig. 3

Fig. 4

To show the back of the hand, reverse the moves as follows: With the palm toward the front, bend the hand downward at the wrist as far as it will go, Fig. 5, and close the hand as it continues to turn until it becomes a loose fist, as illustrated in Fig. 6. At this point the two middle fingers bend inward and outward, revolving the coin between the first and fourth fingers as the hand completes its turning and the fingers are straightened out. The back of the hand is seen as in Fig. 7. All these moves must blend together in the one action of turning over the hand to show its back.

Fig. 5

Fig. 6

Fig. 7

An alternate and preferred method of showing the back of the hand is as follows: After the palm is shown, begin turning the hand to show its back just as described above until the position depicted in Fig. 6 is reached. Bend the thumb upward over the lower edge of the coin and release it from the fingers so it can be thumb palmed as the fingers are extended to show the back of the hand. In other words, the coin is transferred from the back palm to the thumb palm as the hand turns over. This method is not only easier but has several advantages as a trial will show.

To show the front of the hand again, do this: Bend the fingers inward, grip the coin by its edge between the tips of the first two digits and turn it parallel with the floor as the thumb releases its grip and moves out of the way. Now bring the thumb back and press it against the edge of the coin, holding it in the Downs palm position. Still keeping the first finger below and the second finger above the coin, close the hand into a tighter fist and turn it palm toward the audience before straightening the fingers. The position of these two fingers prevents the spectators from getting a flash of silver as the hand is turned palm outward. At the completion of these moves the spectators see the hand as depicted in The Downs Palm, Fig. 3.

To produce the coin simply pluck it from the air as described in The Downs Palm.

All hands are not the same size, consequently all hands cannot handle the same size coin. For most, a half dollar will be just about right, while others will require a larger coin like the silver dollar. The Mexican Peso is slightly larger than the half dollar and the Canadian silver dollar is a trifle smaller than the American coin of the same value. It is advisable to use as large a coin as can be safely handled.

Many interesting foreign coins can be purchased for small sums at coin shops, some almost as cheaply as palming coins. Most coin manipulators prefer real money over the magic shop variety. Palming coins are usually suspected by the layman as being manufactured for magical purposes and for that reason are not recommended for close-up work.

Foreign coins also offer wonderful patter possibilities. Some of the coins available are quite beautiful and interesting in themselves. Use a few foreign coins and weave a story around them—you will find that the spectators will be much more enthusiastic about the trick.

The Back Finger Clip

The coin is clipped behind the hand by its edge, between the first and second fingers, Fig. 1.

Fig. 1

To get it in this position hold it by its edge between the thumb and the fleshy second phalanx of the middle finger. The forefinger rests on the top edge, Fig. 2.

Fig. 2

Bring the forefinger down and place it against the lower edge of the coin as the thumb moves away. Clip the coin between the first two fingers and straighten out the hand, which appears empty, as in Fig. 3.

Fig. 3

To use this as a vanish, stand with your left side toward the audience and hold the coin as described above. As you pretend to toss it into the air quickly transfer it to the back finger clip. The coin appears to vanish as you apparently toss it into the air. The coin is behind the hand and the hand appears empty.

To show the back of the hand you will have to transfer the coin from one side of the hand to the other. Proceed as follows: Turn the wrist as far as it will go and point the fingers toward the floor. The hand appears the same as shown in The Back Palm, Fig. 5. Now close the hand into a loose fist as you continue turning the hand. The back of the hand is now toward the spectators and it should appear the same as shown in The Back Palm, Fig. 6. With the hand in this position move the thumb around the forefinger and press its tip against the underside of the coin. This is done as the forefinger moves away, and the thumb presses the coin tight against the second finger. Thumb slides the coin inward toward the palm where it is clipped by its opposite edge between the first and second fingers. Open the hand and show its back as in Fig. 4.

Fig. 4

To bring the coin from front to back of the hand again place the tip of the thumb against the edge of the coin. Push the coin between the fingers to bring it to the back of the hand as the hand turns over. The thumb screens the coin in this action. Finally the palm is shown empty as in Fig. 3.

The Back Thumb Palm

The coin is clipped by its edge with the thumb and is concealed behind the hand, Fig. 1.

Fig. 1

The moves necessary to get the coin into this position are harder to acquire than the Downs palm but this palm has the advantage of being considerably more angle proof. For this reason it is excellent for close work.

There are three ways to get a coin into this position. The first is a method used by T. Nelson Downs, while the other two are my own.

For the Downs method the starting position is the same as The Back Finger Clip, Fig. 1, (page 7). Bend the thumb down and clinch the fingers, Fig. 2. As you raise the thumb and return it to its normal position, move the coin along with it, Fig. 3, and clip it at the back of the fork of the thumb, Fig. 1. Straighten the fingers, keeping them slightly separated and show your hand empty, Fig. 4. Because the coin has a tendency to slant upward the hand must be tilted backward slightly to prevent the spectators getting a flash of silver.

Fig. 2

Fig. 3

Fig. 4

The moves of transferring the coin from the back finger clip to the back thumb palm are made as you make an upward grab at an imaginary coin in the air. Feign disappointment as you open and show your hand empty.

Fix your eyes on another spot in the air even higher than before, then as you make a grab for it raise your thumb and allow the coin to slip into the clinched fist. Triumphantly open your hand and display the coin lying on your palm.

A simpler and easier method with less movement of the hand follows: Stand with your left side toward the spectators and display a half dollar between the tips of the first two fingers of your right hand as in The Thumb Palm, Fig. 2, or The Downs Palm, Fig. 2. Quickly lower, then raise your hand in a tossing motion, pretending to throw the coin upward into the air. Under cover of this movement, bend the first two fingers inward (in practically the same manner as you would for the thumb palm) and clip the coin behind the thumb. The main difference between this move and those used in the thumb palm is that the fingers must clinch tighter and the thumb must go under and not above the coin, Fig. 5. When the hand reaches its highest point it should be open and appear empty, Fig. 4.

Produce the coin as already described.

Fig. 5

Another way of getting the coin into the back thumb palm is as follows: Stand with your right side toward the audience and display a half dollar between the tips of your right first two fingers, (The Thumb Palm, Fig. 2). Pretend to place the coin in your left hand but thumb palm it in your right, (the Thumb Palm Vanish, page 25). Close your left hand as if it actually held the coin, then swing to the right and show the right palm empty. It is under cover of this movement that the transfer of the coin from the thumb palm to the back thumb palm must be affected. Here are the moves: Bend the second finger inward, place its tip against the lower edge of the coin, then under cover of the swing to the right, push the coin upward between the thumb and base of the first finger and clip it in the orthodox back thumb palm.

This transfer is made while ostensibly showing the right hand empty, thus proving that the coin is actually in the left hand. Make no verbal comment as you do this—merely show the hand empty and turn your attention back to the left fist. Make crumbling motions with the left fingers, then open the hand and show it empty. Before attention returns to your right hand look up to your right and exclaim, There it is! Reach up with your right hand and produce the coin as already described, but do it with only one grab.

Chapter II

BASIC TECHNIQUE

The Bobo Switch • Utility Switch • One-Hand Switch • Shaw-Judah Coin Switch • The Click Pass (3 methods) • The Coin Flip • Change-Over Pass • The Bottom Steal • Producing a Coin from a Spectator’s Clothing • Taking Advantage of a Fumble (3 methods)

To gain a firm foundation in coin conjuring it is necessary that you learn certain basic principles. Some of these will be described in this chapter. Practice well and master every movement and you will be another step along the road to becoming a proficient coin operator.

The Bobo Switch

One of the most valuable of all coin sleights is a good method for switching one coin for another. Here is one that I have used with success under all conditions for many years. It can be used as an effect in itself or as the means for accomplishing numerous other effects, several of which will be found in the chapters that follow. Learn this sleight and you will have a valuable tool that will serve you well as long as you do close-up magic.

For the sake of clarity suppose you learn this with two coins of contrasting color, such as a silver half dollar and a copper English penny. Have the English penny concealed in finger palm position in your right hand while you show a half dollar in your palm up left hand. Pick up the half dollar with the first two fingers and thumb of the right hand, toss it back into the left hand and close the fingers over it. Do this again. For the third toss, the switch is made and the copper goes into the left hand instead of the silver, yet there is no perceptible change in movement. Regardless of which coin is thrown, the action appears the same.

Instead of tossing the silver coin the third time, the copper one is tossed, as follows: Always hold the visible coin (silver) between the first two fingers and thumb, Fig. 1. When ready to make the switch merely open the second, third, and fourth fingers slightly, releasing the copper coin, but retaining the half dollar with the forefinger and thumb, Fig. 2. It will be noted at this point that the silver coin is completely masked from the spectators’ view by the extended second, third, and fourth fingers. Only a slight movement is necessary to place the half dollar in finger palm position where it is retained. This should be mastered so that all moves blend into one action of merely tossing a coin into the left hand.

Fig. 1

Fig. 2

The sleight is not difficult but requires practice to make it indetectable. Performed correctly it is impossible for anyone—layman or magician—to tell that a switch was made.

Remember to close the left hand over the tossed coin each time, and throw the coin in even, consistent speeds—not too fast, yet not too slow, either.

If it is desired to finish with the copper coin in the classic palm position, this can be accomplished as follows: Continue up to the point shown in Fig. 2, but instead of finger palming the half dollar curl the fingers inward pressing the coin into the palm (with the aid of the two middle fingers) and immediately snap the fingers over the closed left hand, which supposedly holds the coin. It is the snapping of the right fingers which covers the move of palming the copper coin.

Master the method first explained, and this one will come easier later. This is the preferred method of the two because it leaves the fingers of the right hand free to pick up other objects or handle them in a natural manner.

The first and most important thing to remember about this exchange is that it must be made under cover of a natural gesture and carefully timed to coincide with an appropriate remark.

Utility Switch

Here is a move that is not only the basis of many coin transposition routines—it aids materially in accomplishing other effects as well. It is a dual purpose move in that it can be utilized to show a number of coins and still keep an extra one hidden.

Suppose you have three half dollars and want the spectators to know of only two. Have these two exposed in your palm up left hand, with one of them lying at the base of the two middle fingers in finger palm position. The right hand, with the third coin concealed in finger palm position, points to the left hand, Fig. 1. Call attention to the two coins in your left hand as you show them to the spectators on the left. Swing slightly to the right, retain the forward coin finger palmed in the left hand as you turn that hand inward and over and toss the other one into the right hand, which turns palm upward to receive it, Fig. 2. Show two coins in your right hand to the spectators on the right—one just received from the left hand and one which was already there.

Fig. 1

If the moves are made in a natural, unhurried manner, it should appear that you merely showed two coins in your left hand, then tossed them into your right hand to show them to the spectators on the right. This is a convincing method of retaining an extra coin while apparently calling attention to the fairness of the procedure.

Fig. 2

For the sake of clarity the moves have been described with three coins, but any small number above this amount will work just as well.

Several tricks and routines in the following pages depend partially or entirely upon this switch for their accomplishment.

One-Hand Switch

Although this one-hand switch is usually made secretly while attention is on the other hand or directed elsewhere, it can be executed openly during some natural gesture or movement of the hand, once it has been completely mastered.

Suppose you have just borrowed a half dollar and wish to exchange it for one of your own which you have finger palmed in your right hand. Proceed as follows: Take the borrowed coin between the tips of your right first two fingers and thumb, Bobo Switch, Fig. 1. Now while you pick up some object with your left hand, or make a gesture with that hand, drop your right hand to your side and switch one coin for the other in the following manner: With the tip of the forefinger, slide the borrowed coin along the inside of the thumb, Fig. 1, to the thumb crotch, where it is thumb palmed, Fig. 2. Now place the tip of the thumb on top of the finger palmed coin and push it to the tips of the first two fingers. Then allow the thumb palmed coin to drop to finger palm position. At the completion of these moves you will have the spectator’s coin finger palmed and your own visible at the tips of the first two fingers and thumb in exactly the same position as formerly occupied by the borrowed coin, Bobo Switch, Fig. 1.

Fig. 1

Fig. 2

The switch, which takes only a moment to make, can be executed while you turn to the right to address the spectators on that side, or during any other natural action.

Shaw-Judah Coin Switch

Quite often the trick at hand requires that a borrowed coin be switched for one of your own, then your own kept in plain view while you do something else with the borrowed one—like secretly loading it into some apparatus or a spectator’s pocket (see In a Spectator’s Pocket, page 57). This switch of many uses was shown to me by Stewart Judah, who in turn credits it to Allan Shaw.

Fig. 1

Besides a coin like the one you intend to borrow, you will require a regular glass goblet. Have the glass on the table and a half dollar classic palmed in your right hand. Ask for the loan of a half dollar and request that it be marked for future identification. While this is being done, pick up the glass by its stem, with the right hand. As you approach the spectator, transfer the goblet to your left hand, then take the marked coin between the tips of the first two fingers and thumb of the right hand and immediately toss it into the glass. This is what you seem to do. Actually you throw your own coin from the palm, Fig. 1, and retain the borrowed one hidden behind the curled fingers after the fashion of The Bobo Switch. The instant the coin arrives in the glass, rattle it and thumb palm the borrowed coin, Fig. 2.

Fig. 2

The exchange is not suspected because every move appears fair and natural. The sound of the coin clinking in the glass adds greatly to the illusion and automatically directs the spectators’ attention there. To the spectators it appears that you merely took the borrowed coin with your right hand and tossed it into the glass.

The glass containing the duplicate coin is placed in full view and the borrowed coin is secretly loaded into the piece of apparatus the trick requires. Later in the routine the duplicate coin is taken from the goblet and vanished, and the borrowed coin produced according to the trick at hand.

The spectators believe they see the borrowed half dollar right up to the last minute. Little do they realize that subterfuge entered into this part of the trick!

The Click Pass

Here are two sleights which aid in accomplishing numerous effects. Although both moves appear the same, the results differ slightly. Method (a) is the brainchild of Chester Woodin; the originator of (b) is unknown.

Effect (a): Two half dollars are on the table. The performer picks up one with his right hand, places it in his left hand, and closes his fingers over it. He takes up the second coin with his right hand and drops it into his left hand, where it is heard to strike the first coin. When the left hand is opened it holds only one coin; the other is shown in the right.

(b) This action appears the same as described above, but the results differ slightly. In this case when the left hand is opened it is empty. The right hand opens and displays the two coins.

Method (a): After showing the two coins on the table, pick up one with the right hand and apparently place it in the left, but really retain it in the right hand in the regular palm position. (See Standard Vanish, page 22.) Left hand is closed. The second coin is picked up by the fingers and thumb of the right hand, which seem to deposit it in the left hand. The left hand opens to receive it, but at the moment of the pretended deposit the coin in the right hand is released, and as it falls into the left hand it strikes the other coin in the process, Fig. 1. The right fingers then press the second coin into the palm, where it is retained.

Fig. 1

When the first coin strikes the second coin, as it falls into the left hand, it makes a clink which simulates the sound one coin makes on being dropped onto another. The illusion is so perfect it fools the eye and the ear. Apparently the two coins are in the left hand. Open the left hand showing one coin, then open the right to show the other coin.

(b) The two coins are on the table. Pick up one coin with the right hand, apparently place it in the left, but palm it in the right. Left hand closes as if it held the coin. Take up the second coin with the right hand and repeat the previously described maneuver of apparently placing the coin in the left hand, but, at this moment it is palmed in the right hand and strikes the coin already there, Fig. 2, creating the illusion, by sound, of falling on top of the coin supposedly held in the left hand. Close the left hand again, both coins being palmed in the right hand. Wave right hand over left, snap right fingers, close right hand and hold it some distance away from the left. Open the left and show it empty. Open the right hand and show both coins. The halves have traveled from hand to hand.

Fig. 2

The performer apparently places the coins in his left hand, but, with the aid of either of these two passes he can retain one or both coins in his right hand. Although described as tricks, these moves are more effective when used secretly in other routines, several of which are explained in the following pages.

The Click Pass

PAUL MORRIS

Mr. Paul Morris, the famous New York sleight-of-hander, has an entirely different conception of this useful sleight.

In his version the effect is the same as described in method (a) of the foregoing description of The Click Pass. That is, the performer places one coin in his left hand. Then a second coin is ostensibly dropped onto the first, the sound of the two coins coming together offering convincing proof that the left hand actually holds two coins. Nevertheless, only one coin is in the left hand while the other is retained hidden in the right.

Method: Let’s say you are using two half dollars. You may start in several ways: (1) While facing front, hold a coin at the fingertips of the two hands about chest high. Place the coin from the left hand between the teeth—most of the coin protruding from the teeth as you smile. The right hand places its coin in the left hand and then takes the coin from the teeth and places it in the left hand with the first one. (2) Place a coin on each of a spectator’s hands, then take the coins one at a time and continue from there. (3) Or, have the two coins on the table at the beginning and pick them up one at a time as you commence the trick.

Fig. 1

At any rate, that is how to start. Now let’s learn the sleight.

Exhibit coin number one between the tips of the second finger and thumb of the right hand. Hold the left hand palm up and place the coin on it—not on the center of the palm, but near the fingertips. Now take coin number two in the right hand, holding it in the same fashion described for number one, and place it on the left hand. It is not placed directly on the center of the left palm but a trifle off-center to the right, as in Fig. 1, the right middle finger and thumb still retaining a grip on the coin. In fact, the right hand never lets go of coin number two. Close the left hand, which action causes the first coin to fall onto the second coin, Fig. 2, and an unmistakable clink is heard. Immediately withdraw the right hand from the left, still holding on to the second coin. Fig. 3 shows the beginning of this action. The left fingers hide the movement and what is happening to the coins. The closed right fist hides coin number two, which is withdrawn under the right fingers. Just before the hands separate the spectators see the two hands as in Fig. 4. Now, move the right hand away, stealing the second coin with it as in Fig. 5.

Fig. 2

Fig. 3

Fig. 4

At this point the coin in the right hand is in perfect position for back palming. Simply straighten out the right hand, palm up, and you will find it a simple matter to back palm the coin, Fig. 6. Or, if you prefer, merely push the coin into finger palm position.

Now make a fist of the right hand also, bringing the back palmed coin into the hand as this is done. From here on, the trick is over. The main thing is that the spectators have the impression two coins were placed in the left hand. When you open your left hand, however, there is only one coin there. Show the second coin in the right hand, or finish any way you like.

Fig. 5

The sleight is very useful in performng numerous ‘coin passe’ effects, such as Coins into the Glass, Coins Through the Table, etc.

Fig. 6

The Coin Flip

Right hand has a half dollar classic palmed, while the fingers flip another coin into the air a time or two. This is merely a disarming move which tends to show, without saying so, that the right hand holds only one coin. The spectators reason that there is only one because it seems impossible that a second coin could be hidden in the hand flipping a coin in the air so naturally.

Fig. 1

Fig. 1 shows the concealed coin in the palm and the visible coin ready to be flipped into the air. Coin is caught on the extended fingers as shown in Fig. 2. Back of hand is towards spectators.

Fig. 2

A little practice will be necessary to keep the coins from talking as the visible one is caught. Once the move is mastered it will be a useful sleight to add to your repertoire of close-up chicanery.

Change-Over Pass

Occasionally the coin operator may wish to vanish a coin and then show both hands empty before reproducing it. This adroit bit of trickery will fulfill that requirement nicely.

Pretend to place a half dollar in your left hand but retain it thumb palmed in the right. (For a method, see Chapter III, Coin Vanishes.) Open the left hand to show that the coin has disappeared. Hands are about waist high and fingers of both hands point toward the left, Fig. 1. Both hands swing to the right so the right palm may be exhibited empty, and it is in this action that the coin is stolen from the right hand with the left, thusly: About midway in the swing the hands come together and the two middle fingers of the left hand take the coin from the right thumb palm, Fig. 2. The left fingers curl inward, hiding the coin as the hands continue without hesitation to the right, where the spectators see the left forefinger pointing to the empty right palm, Fig. 3.

Fig. 1

Fig. 2

Fig. 3

Left hand can then produce the coin according to the trick at hand.

The same moves can be used to transfer a stack of coins from the edge palm of the right hand to the left hand.

The Bottom Steal

PAUL MORRIS

Here is a subtle sleight which should find many uses in performing such tricks as Four Coins to a Glass (Chapter VIII), Coins Through the Table, and numerous other effects.

Fig. 1

Fig. 2

Fig. 3

Suppose you have a number of half dollars in your right hand and wish to retain one concealed in that hand as you place the others into the left. The Paul Morris Bottom Steal (with coins!—not cards) accomplishes this in an ingenious manner without any telltale movement whatsoever.

The method: After showing some coins and calling attention to their number, square them into a stack and hold them by their opposite edges between the tips of the right second finger and thumb—the back of the hand toward the spectators and the flat surface of the coins parallel with the floor, Fig. 1. The hands should be held about waist high, the left being palm up a few inches away and in position to receive the coins, Fig. 2. Move the hands toward each other casually. The right hand is about to place the coins in the palm of the left hand. Take a look at Fig. 3. Fig. 4 shows the performer’s view of the action.

As the stack of coins moves toward the left palm the two middle fingers of that hand come in contact with the bottom coin and it remains balanced on their tips hidden from the spectators’ view by the right fingers. Fig. 5 shows the spectators’ view, while Fig. 6 depicts the action as seen by the performer. As the right hand deposits the stack of coins in the left palm the left middle fingers push upward and press the stolen coin into the right palm, Fig. 7.

The action of sliding off the bottom coin from the stack and pressing it into the right palm is completely hidden by the right fingers which are held close together. Now separate the hands. Allow the spectators to get a brief view of the coins lying in the left hand, then close the fingers over them. In a perfectly natural manner you have placed a stack of coins in your left hand but in this action you have stolen a coin, which is now hidden in your right palm. No visible movement of the right hand is necessary to retain the coin as that hand reaches for a glass tumbler and picks it up by its brim. The glass is held between the fingers and thumb of the palm down hand in such a manner that the coin, when released from the palm, will fall into the glass.

Fig. 4

Fig. 5

Fig. 6

Fig. 7

Hold the hands some distance apart, make a tossing motion with the left hand toward the glass and release the coin in the right palm, permitting it to fall into the glass. Open the left hand and show one coin missing. The move can be repeated to cause a second coin to pass into the glass but the third and remaining coins should be caused to pass into the glass by employing different sleights.

This steal is so natural it can be executed in perfect safety at very close range. You may stand face to face with a spectator and execute the sleight without him being aware of anything unusual taking place. After becoming proficient with the sleight you will find that you can even curl back the forefinger to give a view of the coins from above. Even though you may permit the top of the stack to be seen the steal cannot be detected because the chicanery takes place underneath the stack while the spectators can only see the top of the stack. As far as they are concerned, nothing is hidden—they can see everything as the coins are placed in the left hand. Yet the sleight takes place without their knowing it!

Producing a Coin from a Spectator’s Clothing

A prettier and more convincing method of producing a coin from a spectator’s clothing has not been devised.

Effect: The wonder worker vanishes a half dollar, then the spectators see both hands empty as he reaches underneath a man’s tie and extracts the coin with his fingertips.

Method: Vanish a half dollar, using any method where it is retained in the right hand. Suddenly point to a man’s tie with the left hand. The right has dropped to the side and back palms the coin as the left lifts the end of the tie. Right palm is seen to be empty as the fingers reach underneath. Bring the coin to the front palm and come away with the half dollar lying on the fingers, Fig. 1.

Fig. 1

This procedure can be used to produce a coin from other places, such as the bottom edge of a coat, underneath a scarf, or a sweater, or from behind your own knee. When done correctly it appears that you merely reached under the edge of the article and immediately came forth with the vanished money. It looks like real magic!

Taking Advantage of a Fumble

What would you do if you accidentally dropped a coin, or missed one of your vanishes? Would you pick up the coin and apologize for your carelessness, then continue with something else, or would you take advantage of this little mishap and do some unscheduled effect?

The better prepared we are to get out of such difficulties, the more capable we become. Of course, we should be able to perform our tricks so well we do not make mistakes. There is no excuse for a fumble, but mortal man is never perfect. So, why not try to turn a fumble to advantage?

The following are tried and tested ideas that have served many close-up workers well. If you are not familiar with them, here they are for your edification.

For one reason or another you have dropped a coin. Prepare to pick it up by straddling it—that is, the coin is lying on the floor about midway between the feet. Bend down, or rather squat over the coin and pick it up with the right hand.

Now comes a bold move.

Immediately toss the coin backwards between the legs, catching it in the left hand, Fig. 1. The throw should be made just as soon as the right hand removes the coin from the floor, the body and the legs concealing the maneuver from the spectators. Then raise yourself up, pretending to hold the coin in the closed right hand. While attention is on the right hand the left sleeves the coin. Both hands are shown empty.

Fig. 1

If working without a coat the coin can be disposed of in the left hip pocket. However, if you have sleeved it and would like to reproduce it, use one of the methods described in Chapter VII, The Art of Sleeving.

Here is another way of disposing of a coin which has fallen to the floor:

Bend down and pick up the coin with the right hand. Immediately toss it into the left trousers cuff. Do this quickly and without hesitation as you straighten up. You are supposedly holding a coin in the closed right hand. Pretend to place it in the left. Blow on the left hand, then open it to show coin vanished.

Or, you could do this. Bend down and apparently pick up the fallen coin. Actually the coin never leaves the floor. The right hand reaches for it and as the fingers touch the floor in front of the coin they instantly close. This action propels the coin inward along the floor and it slides underneath the right foot which raises slightly, becoming wedged between the toe end of the shoe sole and the floor, Fig. 2. The coin travels inward only three or four inches and is hidden in its flight by the right hand.

This getaway can only be done on a rug-covered floor. On any other surface the sliding of the coin creates a sound, which would be a give-away.

You straighten up and pretend to vanish the coin from the right hand.

Fig. 2

Of course, the coin must be recovered—not left there on the floor. To get it, show a second coin and apparently place it in your left hand, retaining it in the right. Slap the left hand on top of your head, remarking that you will cause the coin to penetrate your body, the hard way. Show the left hand empty. Move the right foot to one side exposing the coin on the floor. With your left side toward the spectators bend down to pick up the coin with the left hand. The right hand secretly disposes of its coin in the right trousers cuff on the side away from the audience.

Chapter III

COIN VANISHES

Standard Vanish • Simple Vanish • Over the Top • The Tunnel Vanish • Thumb Palm Vanish • The Drop Vanish • The Bobo Coin Vanish • The Slide Vanish • The Illusive Coin Pass • A Coin Vanish • The Pinch Vanish • Gone • The New Era Coin Go • The Flyaway Coin • Behind the Back • The French Drop • The Reverse French Drop • The Elusive Silver Dollar • The Wrist Watch Vanish • The Pulse Trick • The Cranium Vanish • Vanish with the Aid of a Handkerchief • The Heads and Tails Vanish • Vanish for Several Coins • A Trio of Vanishes

It is impossible to become a good coin conjurer without mastering several methods for vanishing a coin. Here, combined with some of the old standbys, are the best modern methods, contributed by leading coin manipulators.

Standard Vanish

This is given the above title because it holds a high place in my repertoire of coin vanishes. I use this one as much as I do any other because it is so practical and easy to do under almost any conditions.

The coin rests near the ends of the two middle fingers of the right hand, Fig. 1. Right hand describes a counter clockwise movement, turning back upward as the fingers curl inward and press the coin into the classic palm position where it is retained. This action takes place under the guise of supposedly placing the coin into the left hand, Fig. 2. The left hand closes as if it holds the coin. Look at and point to the left hand. Then snap the right fingers at the left hand. Open the left hand slowly and mysteriously. The coin is gone.

Fig. 1

Fig. 2

Reproduce it from behind the knee or keep it concealed, according to the trick at hand.

Simple Vanish

This is a first-rate coin vanish, and in spite of its simplicity, ranks with the best of them.

Show the coin in the right hand where it rests in the classic palm position. Fingertips of the left hand gently touch the back of the right hand, Fig. 1. The right hand turns inward and over and apparently drops the coin into the waiting left hand, but actually the coin is retained in the right hand, palmed, as the left hand closes, Fig. 2.

Fig. 1

Fig. 2

With the right middle finger, tap the closed left hand once. Draw the left hand into a tighter fist by pressing the tips of the fingers into the palm, the thumb angling over the top of the fingers. Placing the fingers in this position makes the next move possible. Open the left hand, slowly and gracefully, a finger at a time, beginning with the little finger. When all the fingers are extended and apart the hand is shown on both sides. It is empty.

Care must be taken to perform this vanish slowly and gracefully. Grace is the important element. Make it look like you really dumped the coin into the left hand. Actually do this a few times before a mirror, then repeat this action but retain the coin palmed in the right hand.

Don’t open the left hand too quickly. Take your time and you will have a beautiful and effective coin vanish.

Over the Top

Here is a vanish I have taught in my coin lectures throughout the country. It has always been well received. I think you will find it off the beaten path.

Fig. 1

The coin rests on the two middle fingers of the right hand, near the tips. The left hand is nearby, held palm up and about the same level. Left hand moves to the right until it crosses over the palm of the right hand. Right fingers toss the coin upward, Fig. 1, into the left hand which immediately turns over, palm downward, the coin falling into the right as the left hand closes, Fig. 2. Almost simultaneously the right hand is turned so its back is toward spectators and the second, third, and fourth fingers curl inward slightly on