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March 2014
Official Publication of The Society of Young Magicians
How to be a Magician
S.A.M. Spotlight
S.A.M.
SPOTLIGHT
WWW
Whats on the Web
A brief look at what’s happening in magic on the Internet
Card tricks are a fun and easy way to amaze friends and family. This website is for magicians of any skill level
looking to learn free card tricks.
Be sure to check back often since new card tricks are added often! If you haven’t already, you can sign up for
the newsletter to receive tricks in your email!
Click the logo to see the site. http://www.falseshuffle.com/
2 March 2014/The Magic SYMbol
CONTENTS
WHAT’S INSIDE
2 Spotlight - Convention Ad/What’s on the Web
8 How to be a Magician
4 Letter From the Editor
9 Card to Wallet
5 How to be a Magician
10 SYM Pin Program
6 Young Magicians Seminar info
11 SYM Pin Program
7 ImPULSEable Card Trick
12 Magic Fun Page
“The world is full of magic things,
patiently waiting for our senses to grow sharper.”- W.B. Yeats
S.Y.M. WEBSITE
www.magicsym.com
S.A.M. WEBSITE
www.magicsam.com
The Society of Young Magicians (S.Y.M.) sponsored by The Society of American Magicians, is a world-wide organization for
youth, ages 7 through 17. (At age 18 you graduate to membership in The Society of American Magicians.) The purpose of S.Y.M.
is to promote interest in magic as a wholesome hobby that will help develop self-confidence and skill, the ability to speak in public, discipline that comes from learning, practicing and performing magic, and a sense of service to others through helping others
learn magic and by performing magic at charitable events.
The Society of Young Magicians has nearly 100 local chapters, called Assemblies, around the country. Adult supervision and
instruction are provided by qualified members of the Society of American Magicians, one of the most prestigious world-wide
organizations of its kind.
HAVE A QUESTION? NEED ADVICE?
CAN’T FIGURE OUT A TRICK? NEED GUIDANCE?
DON’T KNOW WHAT TO DO NEXT IN MAGIC?
The S.Y.M. has a panel of mentors ready to help you.
Associate members who do not have an Assembly in their area now have a place to turn.
Even members of a local Assembly can participate in this mentoring program. This is a
free service and part of your S.Y.M. membership. To contact the SYMentor, simply e-mail
your questions to:
SYMentor@magicsam.com
Your question will be directed to someone who will help you from our panel of experts.
Parents of SYM’ers may also write with questions.
Be sure to get permission from your parents before writing.
Letter from the editor
Michael A. Raymer
Spring is nature’s way
of saying, “Let’s party!”
~Robin Williams
Magic SYMbol
The
Volume 30 Issue No. 3 • March 2014
The Magic SYMbol is a monthly publication
Michael A. Raymer, Editor
Bruce Kalver, Consulting Editor
Articles are written by the editor
unless otherwise noted.
Editorial Offices:
Well, as I write this we had all the snow melt around the house
but now they say we have more on the way. Last report was maybe 78 inches. Now I know some of you live in areas that get 10-12 inches
of snow and you are laughing at me for the small amount we get and
some of you don’t get any snow. I think it is very pretty as long as you
don’t have to drive in it.
I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for Spring and some
warmer weather! As Robin Williams has said - “Spring is nature’s way
of saying let’s party”. Spring is like a party; the animals are active,
trees and flowers begin to bloom and that also means magic conventions are just around the corner!
When you receive this magazine, I will be preparing to send
my son off to Germany for 5 months to study abroad. He is a senior in
college, majoring in language and computer programing. He speaks
German and Japanese and a few words in other languages. So it’s
been hectic around the Raymer household getting his paperwork
passports and plane tickets all lined up. I will miss him but I hope he
really enjoys it.
I’ve been busy interviewing former SYM members who are
now professional magicians and we’ll be publishing those interviews
in the next few editions. Next month will be Kayla Drescher and if you
don’t know much about her, in March of 2012, she was honored to
appear on NBC’s “Today Show” as one of three finalists in David Copperfield’s “Search for the Next Great Magician”. Copperfield chose
Kayla as the winner. She has always been active in the SYM and now
in the SAM. She is currently lecturing at magic assemblies and performing every chance she gets.
This month we have a guest article from John Kurlak who has
developed a website on performing card tricks called false shuffle.
You can see the link for his site in the What’s on the Web ad.
See you next month......
The Magic SYMbol
Michael Raymer, Editor
5512 Pavilion Way
Louisville, KY 40291
502-231-0689 or 502-644-7829
funmagic@iglou.com
S.Y.M. National Director
Jann Goodsell
329 West 1750 North
Orem, UT 84057
801-724-9758
Fax: 801-802-8925
bravesjann@comcast.net
Dues Payment
Change of Address/ New Memberships:
S.Y.M c/o
Manon Rodriguez
National Administrator
P.O. Box 505
Parker, CO 80134
manon@magic.bz
The
Societyofof
The Society
Young
Young Magicians
Magicians
Board
Board of
ofDirectors
Directors
Executive Board
Board
JannExecutive
Goodsell • Andy
Dallas
Bruce Kalver
Jann
Goodsell
• Andy
Dallas
Ed
Thomas
• Hope
Anderson
Bruce Kalver
Ed Thomas
Hope Anderson
Lance
Burton ••William
Andrews
Jay Gorham • Char Gott
Lance Burton
Andrews
Connie
Hatherill• William
• Arlen Solomon
Marlene Clark
Connie Hatherill • Arlen Solomon
HAS YOUR S.Y.M.
MEMBERSHIP EXPIRED?
4 March 2014/The Magic SYMbol
If it has you should be receiving your renewal
information by mail, please remember to renew
your membership.
How to Be a Magician
Guest Article
How to Be a Magician
by John Kurlak
your time as a magician will initially be spent learning
and practicing sleights. Some sleights can take years
to master, while others can be learned in a single day.
Magic is a fascinating hobby! It is fascinating Many sleights accomplish similar things.
because it uses dazzling displays and mysterious Now that you understand a little bit about the
illusions to captivate audiences of all ages. Because jargon and philosophy of magic, I will now teach you
magic is so fascinating, many people want to learn how how to become a magician. To become a successful
to be a magician. However, becoming a magician is a big magician, you must:
responsibility—one that requires practice, dedication,
and respect. By reading this article, you already have
• Have the necessary equipment
shown an interest in learning magic. Today, I am going (e.g., a deck of cards, handkerchiefs, ropes, etc.)
to expose you to the underground world of magic, and
• Learn magic tricks and sleights
by the end of this article, you will be well on your way
• Organize the tricks you know into a routine
to becoming a great magician.
• Develop your own style and patter
The first thing you need to know about being a
• Practice, practice, practice
magician is that there is a magician’s code. This code
exists to protect the art of magic so that it can continue Having the necessary equipment is easy. If you
to dazzle audiences in the years to come. The main wish to do card magic, buy a deck of cards. If you wish
points of the magician’s code are as follows:
to do coin magic, find some large coins.
Once you have everything you need, you can
Practice all tricks thoroughly before performing in start learning magic tricks and sleights. There are
front of others
hundreds of places to learn what you need to know.
These sources include:
Never repeat the same trick twice unless you use a
different method for each performance
• Books
• Websites
Never expose the secrets to tricks that are currently
• DVDs
being sold by other magicians
• Magazines
• Other magicians
Never tell your secrets to non-magicians
As you learn, try to start with easy tricks and
The next step in becoming a magician is to easy sleights. Some of the best tricks in magic are easy
understand more about the hobby. Every magic trick to perform, so do not think that you will be unable to
you learn can be categorized into an “effect” and a perform great magic as a beginner. Great magic is the
“method.”
result of confidence, practice, good patter, and good
• The effect of a magic trick is a description of what style.
the trick looks like to the audience.
Once you have learned a few tricks, you will
want to develop a routine. A good routine consists of
• The method of a magic trick is an explanation of about five to fifteen magic tricks. Some situations might
how to do that magic trick.
dictate fewer tricks, and other situations might dictate
more.
Magic tricks are often composed of “sleights,” or If you have a good routine of five to fifteen
special moves/illusions that accomplish a desired effect tricks, you should be able to adapt to most situations.
without the audience’s knowledge. Some sleights are When developing a routine, it is good to have smooth
used quite a bit in magic, and other sleights are used transitions between tricks. For example, if you start with
infrequently. Sleights are helpful because they make it a card trick that reveals the four aces, a good next trick
easier to explain how to do a particular trick. Most of would be a trick that involves the four aces.
March 2014/The Magic SYMbol 5
WE NEED YOUR NEWS!
We want to hear from you! Send us photos of your Assembly
show. Write up a report about the lecturer you saw at your
S.Y. M. meeting. Become our field reporters and keep other
SYMers in touch with SYM Assembly activities. If you don’t
write in, then we don’t know about it! Send your story to the
editor at funmagic@iglou.com.
DID YOu KNOw?
The symbol Has Hidden Easter Eggs!!!
Bruce Kalver who places The Magic SYMbol online for us each month
has been hiding easter eggs in the magazine. Have you found them?
Last month if you clicked on the phone of the front cover it rings.
6 March 2014/The Magic SYMbol
ImPULSEable Card Trick
by John Kurlak
Card tricks
Effect:
The magician shuffles that deck and then has the
spectator choose a card. The spectator remembers her card
and places it back into the deck. The magician then shuffles the
deck and spreads it out across the table face up. He then asks
for the spectator to extend her hand and stick out her index
finger.
Next, he gently holds her by the wrist, getting her pulse. As he is reading her pulse, he begins guiding her
hand over the face up cards on the table. After a pass or two over the cards, he singles out one card: the spectator’s
card!
Method and performance:
Begin by riffle shuffling the deck.
(As you perform the riffle shuffle, peek at the bottom card of the deck and memorize it.)
Now spread the cards in your hand, and allow the spectator to take one and memorize it.
Just after the spectator removes a card, split the deck into two halves at the location where the spectator removed her card.
When the spectator has memorized her selection, extend the original top half of the deck out, and ask the spectator to place her card on top.
Next, place the original bottom half of the deck on top of the spectator’s card.
In effect, this places the key card you memorized from earlier on top of the spectator’s card.
Now, perform a few loose overhand shuffles.
(A quick overhand shuffle shouldn’t separate the key card from the spectator’s card.)
After shuffling, ribbon spread the cards face up on the table from left to right.
Make sure that every card’s value is visible.
Now ask the spectator to point at the cards with her first finger.
Take her by the wrist, explaining that you will use her pulse to find her card.
After getting her pulse, slowly moves her hand along the cards.
Make a few passes for effect.
Then, move her hand back towards the ten or so cards surrounding the key card.
Gently lower her hand until her pointer rests on the card to the right of the key card.
It should be her card!
March 2014/The Magic SYMbol 7
Guest Article
How to Be a Magician Continued
The order of the magic tricks in your routine
is also important. You want to start with one of your
better tricks to catch the audience’s attention. However,
you also want to finish strong, so save another one of
your better tricks for the end.
Part of developing your routine is to plan the
patter for your routine and to develop a style for
yourself as a magician. What you say during a trick
greatly correlates to your style as a magician. Everyone
can perform the sleights involved to create magic.
However, good magic is the result of good patter and
good style. A great magician can amaze audiences
with a bad trick. A bad magician struggles to amaze
audiences with any trick. Some magicians try to have a
comical style, making jokes with the audience as they
go. They might pretend that even they have no idea
how the trick worked. That kind of style might suit you.
Other magicians try to be mysterious, rarely
talking, but instead, focusing intensely on what they
are doing.
Finding a style that is right for you may take
time. The best way to develop your style is to watch
professional magicians perform and then to go out and
try different things yourself.
What you say during a trick is up to you. Just
make sure that what you say makes sense. If a spectator
cannot follow you during a trick because your patter is
confusing, the trick will not work.
Finally, the last part of becoming a magician is
practice. Practice is extremely important, but you have
to be sure that you are practicing well. If you do not
already have a mirror, buy a mirror that you can perform
in front of to see what your trick might look like to the
audience.
It is important that every sleight you perform
is nearly flawless. You do not want the audience to
see anything out of place. You are trying to create the
illusion of real magic, remember? It is important to
try to do everything as naturally as you can. If you get
nervous in front of people, practice can help build your
confidence. You want to be sure to practice not only the
sleights you plan to use but also the words you plan
to say as well as the flow of your routine. You want to
make sure that you know which trick comes next at any
given time.
Recording your routines with a video camera is
8 March 2014/The Magic SYMbol
also helpful because it shows you what your performance
looks like to the audience, and it helps you learn to be a
better public speaker. Video cameras also allow you to
record your performance from different angles.
Some magic tricks are angle-sensitive, so
practicing for different angles is important. If possible, it
is also helpful to practice in front of magician friends. If
you do not have any friends that are magicians, you can
try posting videos of your progress on forums online.
Many magicians out there can give you helpful tips.
Worth noting, however, is that some aspects of
magic are hard to practice. Misdirection, for example, is
hard to practice without an actual audience.
Learning how to recover from mistakes in the
middle of a trick is also something that requires practice,
but is difficult to learn without experience.
Learning how to adapt your routine to handle
hecklers is similarly difficult. Understand that you will
make mistakes.
The more you practice ahead of time, the less
likely you are to make a mistake. As you become more
experienced, you will learn how to handle difficult
situations a lot better.
Now that you have learned everything you
need to know to get started as a magician, you need to
decide what kind of magic you wish to perform. Some
options include:
•
•
•
•
•
Close-up magic
Street magic
Stage magic
Platform magic
Children’s magic
You also can specialize in one or a few types of
magic. You could learn:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Card magic
Coin magic
Rope magic
Spongeball magic
Dove magic
Mentalism
So try a little bit of everything, decide what you like,
and get practicing!
Card to Wallet
Advanced Magic
Effect: A signed card is found in your wallet after some funny by-play.
This routine will take some work to put together but if you want to do something different, you’ll have a routine
that is more unusual than what everyone else is doing.
What You’ll need:
1. Some kind of gimmicked wallet for the card-to-wallet.
2. One clear-plastic accordion pleated wallet insert.
The kind that has about 8 or 10 separate pockets for credit cards.
3. About 20 duplicate cards. You need enough to fill all the plastic pockets on both sides. I just went down to my
local magic shop and bought a cheap one-way forcing deck. Make sure that you get a card that has a lot of
white-space so that there’s plenty of room for a signature. Don’t use court cards.
4. You’ll also need any regular deck of cards.
Preparation / Set-up:
Have a bunch of your friends sign different names in different kinds of ink on all your duplicates. Put two duplicates
back-to-back in each of the plastic compartments, and hook the insert into your gimmicked wallet. Make sure
that the insert will flop open easily when you flip open the wallet, but will not interfere with the loading part of
the wallet.
To perform:
While doing some cards tricks, force the duplicate of the 20 duplicates that are in your wallet.
Have it signed, palm it out, and load it into your wallet.
Have spectator hold onto the deck while you show the wallet.
Tell the spectator that if he aims the deck at your wallet and riffles the edge, his card will fly out of the deck and
land inside your wallet. Have him riffle, then announce dramatically that the card has arrived. Ask him the name of
his card. Remind him that he wrote his name on it, so that there is now only one card like his in the whole world.
(This is a key humor point)
As you flip the wallet open to reveal all the duplicates, say the line,
“Four of Clubs, fine. (or whatever card you happen to be using)
Now, what was YOUR NAME?” Look through the duplicates as if trying
to find his name. This last line should never fail to get a laugh, when
all those duplicates pop out. Finish up by finding his real card inside
See the Card to Wallet Performed on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vTfsU6kE9X8
March 2014/The Magic SYMbol 9
S.Y.M. ACHIEVEMENT PIN PROGRAM
The S.Y.M. Achievement Pin Program allows S.Y.M. members to explore 10 areas of magic,
demonstrate skill in these areas, and receive recognition for their accomplishments. The
progressive nature of the Achievement Pin Program also measures how young magicians are
advancing in their magical journey. As candidates work from bronze to gold, they will learn
valuable leadership skills aimed at increasing their confidence in all areas of life.
S.Y.M advisors are available to help members work toward earning their pins and to ensure that
candidates meet all requirements. S.Y.M. members who do not belong to an S.Y.M. assembly
will be able to receive help from advisors via mail or electronically.
GENERAL INFORMATION
1. The Achievement Pin Program coordinator will provide worksheets in which candidates and
adult supervisors can record candidates’ progress.
2. Advisors or organizers must return completed forms to the Achievement Pin Program
coordinator. Completed paperwork will be forwarded to the S.Y.M. director, after which pins
will be awarded.
3. Pins will be awarded for completed tricks only. In other words, demonstrating a Double Lift or
a French Drop does not count. The Double Lift must be presented within a completed trick; e.g.,
using a Double Lift to force or find a card.
4. Members may receive pins in more than one category, as long as all requirements are met for
each category.
5. S.Y.M. assembly members will test for pins at an assembly meeting.
6. Associate S.Y.M. members will test for pins by submitting an application, along with a video,
DVD or electronic link to the Achievement Pin Program Coordinator.
7. Each candidate will submit an application fee of
$4.00 for each bronze and silver pin, and
$5.00 for each gold pin.
Make your check out to the Society of Young Magicians.
Mail it and your Completed Application to:
Marlene Clark
SYM Achievement Pin Program Coordinator
274 Church St., #6B
Guilford, CT 06437
10 March 2014/The Magic SYMbol
S.Y.M. ACHIEVEMENT PIN PROGRAM
1. Categories: Members may perform stage, standup (parlor), and/or close-up magic. They will be
awarded bronze and silver pins in the following categories and gold “Excellence in Magic” pins.
Cards
Sponge
Cups & Balls
Coins
Silk
Paper
Rope
Animals
Mentalism
General Magic (Miscellaneous)
2. Requirements
A. Bronze:
(1) Candidates must be a member for at least three months.
(2) Candidates must give and explain the S.Y.M. Pledge.
(3) Candidates must demonstrate skill in three effects in one category: three card tricks or three
sponge tricks, for example.
(4) Candidates must be able to describe each effect and provide the proper or technical term for
the effect or move, if applicable: Professor’s Nightmare, French Drop or Glide, for example.
(5) Candidates will be judged on execution and basic skill; e.g., don’t tip the method.
B. Silver
(1) Candidates must give and explain the S.Y.M. Pledge.
(2) Candidates must have earned two bronze pins in the same category – a total of six tricks for
that category.
(3) Candidates will perform a three-to-four minute routine. There is no limit to the number of
effects used, but at least two must be from a bronze routine in order to get a silver pin in that
category.
(4) Candidates will be judged on execution, skill and presentation.
(5) Candidates must write a report of at least 250 words on one famous magician for each silver
pin.
C. Gold
(1) Candidates must have earned a Silver pin in three different categories to qualify for a gold
pin.
(2) Candidates will present an 8-to-10-minute act with a unifying theme or presentation. One
effect must be from a silver routine. The act will be judged on skill, presentation, appearance, stage
presence (even in close-up), confidence, audience appeal, appropriateness, timing, and public
speaking ability (if applicable).
(3) Candidates will also present their gold pin performances as a community service project for
the public at a venue of their choice.
(4) Candidates will make a five-to-10 minute oral presentation on any area of magic before an
S.Y.M. or S.A.M. meeting or public venue, such as a classroom or library. The candidate will be
judged on knowledge of material, organization, delivery, appearance, and public speaking ability.
Suggested topics include, but are not limited to, magic history, biography (different from the Silver
presentation) and magic theory.
(5) Candidates are responsible for organizing and making all arrangements for all presentations.
Following presentations, candidates will submit a report to the adult advisor detailing the work done.
SOCIETY OF YOUNG MAGICIANS
www.magicsym.com
March 2014/The Magic SYMbol 11
Magic Fun Page
Larry Crane was an American vaudeville
headlining magician. Usually billed as
“The Irish Wizard”, Crane’s specialty was
sleight-of-hand manipulations.
Larry Crane
“The Irish Wizard”
Crane’s father, the magician known as
“The Great Crane”, brought the family
from Ireland to the United States in
1885. Joining his father’s act at age six,
Larry learned from him the magical skills
needed to launch a vaudeville career.
Larry learned the business side of magic
while working for Alexander Herrmann
in 1892, and for the Maskelynes in
England in 1893.
March Birthdays
01- Cardini
11- Ching Ling Foo
24- Harry Houdini
He was married to female magician
Grace Andrews.
What’s your leprechaun Name
Find your leprechaun name by selecting your
birth month and favorite color.
Monday, March 17
St. Patrick’s Day 2014