Taking the fun out of magic – IOTW Report

Taking the fun out of magic

People complain when magic acts are busted and the secrets are revealed.

For me, the fun part is figuring how tricks are done. No magic act is “magic.” There is always an explanation.

Some guy on America’s Got Talent blew away the judges with his disappearing coin trick.

Here is some guys explanation for how it’s done.

17 Comments on Taking the fun out of magic

  1. Penn & Teller are pretty adamant about dispelling the notion that illusions are really magic, so they frequently show how illusions are done. I find this as interesting as the illusion itself.

    Besides, there is a difference between knowing how magic is done, and actually doing it. Youtube has a lot of videos on how to do sleight of hand, but it takes hours of practice to do much of it passably, and most people will never do it expertly. Some tricks, such a cups and balls, have been around for decades yet some magicians have put spins on these tricks that still boggle the mind.

  2. I like magic tricks from the old style
    This new David Blane stuff does not amuse me.
    Wyatt has it right
    Sleight of hand is an art. It requires years of practice.
    The difference between knowing how to do it and actually doing it well is a vast distance.

  3. Seems to be touch-screen tech plus four each real coins and rose petals. Those 8 pieces are the mystifying part…where does he keep them? Amazingly adept at sleight of hand! It took much more than a few hours to get it this polished!

  4. Watching the first video and then the second, going back to the first is interesting though. When I first watched it, I was concentrating on the hands, cards, coins, and pedals.

    The “revealed” video speaks of foot actuated rods and the table moving. When re-watching the “magic,” you can clearly see the table jiggle at times, it appears he’s not touching anything and you can’t see his legs or feet.

  5. Shazzam: How about this one?

    Father O’Malley was driving down to Boston when he got stopped for speeding in Medford. The highway patrol officer smelled alcohol on the priest’s breath and then saw an empty wine bottle on the floor of the car.

    He said, ‘Father, have you been drinking?’ ‘Only water’, replied Father O’Malley. The policeman asked, ‘Then how come I can smell wine?’ The priest looked at the bottle and said, ‘Good Lord! He’s done it again.’

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