Extension
to 'Miko'
It was
a typical day in the Magic Inc. store. De Yip
Louie was washing his chicken, Jay Marshall
was delivering obscenities to the printing machine
and Frances was writing a book, cooking a meal,
minding the store and stock-taking. It was 1966
and I was in the Seventh Heaven occupied only
by those magicians who have ever been let loose
in a magic store.
A
Germ!
During
my potterings, I came across six of the 3 1/2
Clubs, BUT, in the same drawer, there were some
Fourteen of Spades. I gathered up six of these
also. In a small box (with some title like "Dizzy
Dice" on the label), I found a normal die and
a mis-spotted die. The germ of an idea came
to me and I carry the results with me most of
the time now.
A
Double Kick!
"Miko"
is a wonderful trick for close-up. By adding
to it as I shall explain, we get a double-kicker
at the end and leave people a bit more baffled.
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I lay
out twelve cards in two rows of six.
They are face-down so nobody knows
the top row consists of Three-and-a-Half
of Clubs and the second row is all
Fourteen of Spades. Somebody is given
the normal die and asked to throw
it. The number, you say, will indicate
which card they are to have in the
top row. Naturally, whatever they
throw they get the Three-and-a-Half
of Clubs. |
Another person takes the die, throws and gets
the Fourteen of Spades. They are cautioned not
to look at the cards. The rest of the cards
are swept up and held by the magician. The next
throw of the die, by some other spectator, will
indicate the number of spots on the cards by
a simple mathematical system. When you turn
your back, they throw any number. They add that
to the number directly underneath, facing the
table.
In the
case of the first spectator's card, DIVIDING
that number in half will denote the number of
spots in his card, and MULTIPLYING it by two
will give the spots on the second card. As you
turn your back, you slip the cards in your hand
into your pocket and remove a matching back
set of ten indifferent cards (or, for a different
pay-off switch to ten blank-faced cards!).
Turning
back to the table, you will find there is an
argument going on about the results of these
mathematics. Join in and finally, point out
how ridiculous it is that the numbers arrived
at happen to be 3 1/2 and 14. Finally, decide
they must turn over the cards. As they do this,
you quietly pick up the die and switch it for
the mis-spotted one.
Having
gained the laughs and surprise, they start the
postmortem. First of all, some bright person
will tell you that all the top row were 3 1/2s
and all the bottom row were 14s. By then you
have laid the cards on the table which you have
switched. They will reach forward and turn them
over...and get one helluva shock!
Next,
you will be told that all dice add up to seven,
top and bottom. "Do they?" you ask. "Show me!"
They pick up the die which you have left on
the table and they start to show you.. It is
one of those daft situations where you get as
many laughs from the spectators telling you
how the trick is done as you get from the trick
itself.
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