Magic Tricks

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I've used this trick for many years. It is not like 20 questions! Rather, you simply reveal their card part by part. It happens in one of three ways, even the weakest of which does not come across like 20 questions. If you so choose, you can show all the cards different at the start and at the end—yes, all 52. They view the cards and mentally select one. You tell them how difficult it is to determine someone's thoughts, so you will determine each feature of their card, bit by bit.

Situation 1: You correctly indicate the color of their card, then you correctly indicate whether it is high or low, then you correctly indicate the suit. Their reaction at this point is not like you are playing 20 questions with them. Rather, they are getting more and more amazed as you go along. It is building to an amazing finish as you then name the card they mentally selected. No equivoque is involved.

Situation 2: This unfolds like situation (1) except one of your comments about one of the features of the card is incorrect. You then announce that if you make another such mistake, you will abandon determining their card piece by piece and simply name their card. You proceed as before and name their card. I've yet to notice a difference in reaction between situations (1) and (2).

Situation 3: This scenario is like (2) except you make a second mistake, at which point you name their card! This is the worst case scenario and it still stuns people. This is the least probable scenario and statistically you will run into it much less commonly than (1) or (2) above. And it can be as startling as the others depending on your presentation. When you make the second wrong response, you look ponderously, then your eyes light up and say, "Oh wait, I know! It is the thus and such" as if you had a brief mental glitch and it is all now clear to you. Again, statistically and practically, this is the least likely scenario. But that doesn't seem to matter. All three scenarios seem totally unbelievable to spectators.

One of the times I experienced this third situation, a very astute gentleman said after my second miscall, "I know what you are doing, you are just narrowing it down" at which point I correctly named his card and he was floored! There is no way you can get their card reliably after making two mistakes. Try it without the Mind Power Deck and you will be wrong most of the time. With the Mind Power Deck, you will be right (except in that annoying situation when people forget the card they were thinking of—a problem for most tricks involving cards).

I'm assuming the person who gave the Mind Power Deck such a poor rating has not used it much or at all. He thus does not know how startling it is to spectators. When I first got it over 20 years ago, I immediately incorporated it into an all day walk around at a local Boat Expo. I must have done it 20-30 times in a row (along with other tricks). The reactions were 100% positive. People were spooked. In the 20+ years I've used it, I've never had anyone unimpressed because I revealed their card incrementally. The bottom line is that this does not come across like 20 questions.

I'd recommend the person who provided the poor rating give it a try. I think he'll really like the reactions.