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What The Audience Sees:
'This week Jamie said he had something special for our Christmas tree. He twisted a rubber band he had into the shape of a star. He then said some magic words and when he let go of the rubber band, it stayed in it's star shape. Cool!!'
How It Went:
I've always been a big fan of rubber band magic and this trick is a good one. There's a lot of offices in town now with little rubber band stars on top of their trees so, all in all, I'd say it's great trick. It is more for the ladies and children crowd, however, as I'm not sure I'd be busting out the Stargazer at a biker bar or anything- but it went over really well on Friday.
Best Lines:
It must be the magic of Christmas! - said seriously.
You're a rubber band ninja! - I'm going to add that to my resume!
Angry Bob Rating:
I have a co-worker (Bob) whose uncle was a magician and thereby has a good working knowledge of how magic works. He's pretty grumpy but likes Magic Friday's because he can tell me how he figured out how the effect is done... A high rating means he'll never figure it out.
I actually didn't see Angry Bob on Friday. I'm sure he was too busy voting for my bottle at http://www.ripleys.com!
My Rating:
I'm going to give this a solid 8.5. Not changing people's lives but, for the moment, making them special.
The JDG Tip:
Magic Café member That Magic Guy (Mark Fitzgerald) sells really good #19's and replacement Stargazers. That's a good tip. You'll need to know the routine, however...
Closing Thoughts:
Well, aside from the Ripleys contest, which is driving me to near madness, everything's been going extremely well. I've had a record number of corporate shows this year and I'm really happy with how things are in my life.
Which brings me to a special announcement that I think I'll be making next week. It will involve the future of Magic Friday...
HAVE A GREAT WEEK!
Jamie D. Grant
Vancouver Magician
visit: www.whatizit.net
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What The Audience Sees:
'This week Jamie took my ring and threaded it with an elastic band. He then stretched the rubberband and my ring crawled along the band...Uphill!'
How It Went:
I really hope I've got the right credit here and, from what I can tell, Martin Gardner is the right guy. If not, please let me know.
I had a pretty busy day and I thought I'd perform this one because of its simplicity and it's pretty quick. You can never underestimate what magic does for people, however. I do this effect all the time and think it's pretty cool but from the reactions on Thursday (I took Friday off ) you would think we were making a T.V. special. Someone explain to me why I took years to try and perfect my pass?
Best Lines:
"NO...YOU..ARE NOT!"- I thought her eyes were going to shoot out of her head and hit me in the face!
"GETOUTOFHERE!"-always a classic.
Angry Bob Rating:
I have a co-worker (Bob) whose uncle was a magician and thereby has a good working knowledge of how magic works. He's pretty grumpy but likes Magic Friday's because he can tell me how he figured out how the effect is done... A high rating means he'll never figure it out.
I remember showing Angry Bob this years ago and he thought he knew how to do it right away (as a lot of people do) so I gave the rubberband to him and asked if he wanted to try. This is usually something I'll never do with a spectator as it's pretty much a blatant challenge and I don't want to go into that. Sometimes though..."%$^%#! You must have twisted it! ^%$%$^!"- tooooooo funny.5/5.
The JDG Tip:
I know some people suggest breaking the band (I don't, personally) and I think that's valid. I always tell people, "The band is stretched as far as it can go, and it's going uphill. My hands will also never move farther apart. But watch..." I kind of try to eliminate any possible argument before they even have time to think of it. Works for me.
Closing Thoughts:
This are going really well these days. I'm liking writing on Sunday nights as opposed to Fridays and the booking are coming in for Christmas. All in all, a good life. Hope it's the same for all of you.
HAVE A GREAT WEEK EVERYONE!
Jamie D. Grant
Vancouver Magician
visit: www.whatizit.net
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What The Audience Sees:
'Last week Jamie did this neat trick with an elastic band but this week was crazy! He took these 2 elastics, stretched them apart, and then made them pass through one another. It was a miracle! Then he turned the 2 elastics into only 1 and then he made that one disappear completely! It was Crazy, Man!'
How It Went:
Is there anyone reading this that doesn't know this trick? I didn't think so. We all know it, most of us love it, and a few of you hate it. Me? I love it and, more importantly, I perform it while working all the time.
I know some people don't like it because of the very fact that every magician knows it but that doesn't concern me at all, really. I just read a great quote that said, "People don't come to see Needle Through Arm. They come to see Harry Anderson perform Needle Through Arm..." That quote has really hit home for me. Not because I think I'm the most amazing magician of all time or anything, but because if people enjoy you and your personality then it doesn't matter if anyone else is doing the same tricks as you. They are enjoying your company. As I've read, and said, before- The magic is you.
Having said that, though, this just happened at a party I worked at on Thursday night (They actually rented a tiger for the party as well!)...
Best Lines:
I had just completed the first phase where the bands pass through each other. I was performing for the owners of two big clubs in town and a couple of their friends.
'No offense but I've seem some homeless guy do that one.' -4 of the 5 people were freaking out but then this guy said this.
"No, really? Did he do this?" -I made the two bands turn into one.
'Ummm. no. He didn't do that...' -the people are back to freaking out.
"And how about this? Did he do this?" -I make the last one disappear and chaos reigns supreme...
'WTF! No, he definitely didn't do that! You're $%^&^%$ GOOD!'
So even though I'm a firm believer in having an entertaining personality, it also doesn't hurt to know your magic...
Angry Bob Rating:
I have a co-worker (Bob) whose uncle was a magician and thereby has a good working knowledge of how magic works. He's pretty grumpy but likes Magic Friday's because he can tell me how he figured out how the effect is done... A high rating means he'll never figure it out.
Angry Bob's seen this many times, as we all have, and has a good idea of what's going on so 2/5. But don't let that throw you off. If you don't know how to do it (and the public doesn't, or at least shouldn't) then it's one of the most magical effects there is, imo.
My Rating:
I use it, I love it, I earn money with 2 elastics- that's crazy. 10/10.
The JDG Tip:
IMO, CMH is all about the subtleties- the movement of the hands as they're demonstrating the impossibility, the little twitch as they pass through each other, the slow movements as they come apart...Really give it some thought as opposed to just pulling them apart.
Closing Thoughts:
Aside from Magic Friday, I think I performed this at least 20 times at that party. It's a worker. Have fun!
And HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!
Jamie D. Grant
www.whatizit.net
Vancouver Magician
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What The Audience Sees:
'This week Jamie did this crazy stunt where he shot an elastic band and it landed like ten feet in front of him- and then it rolled back to his feet like a little wheel! And he kept saying, "This one's for You!"'
How It Went:
Before we start, let's all take a minute to Thank Al Angello for not only teaching us the Boomerang Rubberband but for just being Al Angello. Thanx!
I believe, and this is just me, that magicians should know some things that normal people don't (and I'm not talking about magic here). The whole part of being a magician, in my mind, is being mysterious, magical, and slightly off the wall a bit. People obviously know that we put insane amount of time into practicing magic (at least some do), so wouldn't it make sense that we put that effort into other things as well? Whether it's speaking another language or knowing bizarre facts, I like the idea of magicians, as a whole, being unique apart from performing wonderful pieces of magic. So I took the time to learn to shoot a rubberband and make it come back to me.
I didn't even do any setup, patter, or anything. I just went all around today and said, "Hey! It's Magic Friday today. Check this out! This one's for you!" Some people would say, 'That's not magic...' to which I'd reply, "No, but it's pretty cool, though.' and they'd say, 'Yeah, you're right!' So there you go. Others, though, went...
Best Lines:
'NO IT DIDN"T! NAH UH! IT DID NOT COME BACK TO YOU! GUYS, CHECK THIS OUT! HAHAHAHHAHAH!'- some people got realllly excited. Why not?
'What the $%^& just happened there...'- that's what I thought the first time I saw it.
Angry Bob Rating:
I have a co-worker (Bob) whose uncle was a magician and thereby has a good working knowledge of how magic works. He's pretty grumpy but likes Magic Friday's because he can tell me how he figured out how the effect is done... A high rating means he'll never figure it out.
5/5. Yes, he knows the trick is in the way I shoot it, but he'll never in a million years (which is almost as long as it took me) learn it without being taught.
My Rating:
It did blow some people away but it is just a stunt. Maybe I could have presented it as 'Magic' but I just left it as a unique skill. So magically it receives a 7.5/10. Maybe 8. Don't let that fool you, though. It's something that'll come in handy one day, I'm sure. And you know what? It is pretty cool.
The JDG Tip:
Okay, here we go:
1) Elastic band selection is crucial. I found that the smaller ones work better for me because I can max out the tension necessary to put the crazy backspin on it. I ended up using ones that could fit over two of my fingers.
2) Coloured bands work better. Don't ask me why. I went to Staples and bought a bag of coloured bands and used the smaller ones. Some would come back amazingly fast.
3) Your hand needs to be turned over clockwise a fair bit. You want to shoot the band at almost a 2 o'clock position (I'm talking the index finger here. It should be upside down with just a slight bit of finger nail seen on the left) because it'll rotate counter clockwise in the air (the band, not your finger). You need it to hit the ground dead up and down on it's edge.
4) You want the band to hit the ground just before it ends it's flight.
Closing Thoughts:
It was a fun day today but I won't lie to you, I'm not 100%- it took more than a few times for some people. But if you keep at it you'll get it. I'd say I'm 90% now on the first try. Have Fun!
THIS ONE'S FOR YOU!
Jamie D. Grant
www.whatizit.net
Vancouver Magician
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The Effect:
A borrowed object (finger ring). An everyday object (rubber band. Two of the strongest components of powerful magical experience combine in this four-phase presentation, whereby a rubber band penetrates on and off a finger ring-one strand at a time!
How It Went:
Really well. There's a couple of things that I really like about this routine. It's visual, it uses only my wedding ring and an elastic, and there's no concrete explanation on how it's done. That said, however, I find that's it's not really a shocker per se. I performed Pinnacle around 20 times for about 60 people yesterday and found that the reactions, for the most part, were low key. A dozen were astounded, 1 was unimpressed, but everyone else was magically satisfied. I felt that everyone enjoyed it, minus 1, and that's the important part.
Best Line:
"Heeeeeeyyyyyyyyyy!"
The Angry Bob Rating:
I have a co-worker (Bob) whose uncle was a magician and thereby has a good working knowledge of how magic works. He's pretty grumpy but likes Magic Friday's because he can tell me how he figuered out how it was done...
5/5. There was no way Bob could ever recreate this effect without the hours of practice that I had put into it. He took the elastic and tried to entangle it aroung the ring somehow but gave up in disgust.
My Rating:
4.5/5. A solid worker.
The JDG Tip:
Keep it slooooooow. If you move too fast, people will just see a flurry of elastic, hands, and metal. I also performed it on a horizontal plane as opposed to a vertical one.
Closing Thoughts:
Not much to say, really. Highly recommended. Good work Russ!
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