Sterlingcupsandballs PDF

The Sterling
Cups and Balls

Routine
Harold Sterling
Copyright 2015 by Trickshop.com. All rights reserved. TRICKSHOP.COM

THE STERLING CUPS AND BALLS ROUTINE
(HAROLD STERLING)
Three cups, four sponge balls and six large balls, onions, potatoes or any
object that you care to use for the finale. Use the largest size sponge ball
that will fit between two cups when they are nested. The six balls can be
large enough so that one only will just fit in a cup.
Have the balls stowed away in various pockets and the cups on the table,
nested with one sponge ball in the bottom cup as shown.
Pick up the three cups and point them mouth towards

the audience. Turn them vertically and pull off the
bottom cup with your right hand and put it mouth
down on the table to your left. This is the cup
with the ball inside. Of course in putting this cup
down, make sure to turn it upside down by reversing
it with the mouth away from the audience, otherwise
they will see the ball in it. The centrifugal force
will hold the ball in the cup while it is being
turned over. Again point the two cups mouth toward
the audience. Turn them vertically and pull off the
bottom cup and put it on the table in the middle.
Repeat the same move with the last cup. Apparently
you have shown all three cups empty but there is
a ball now under the left cup. Now take the three
sponge balls out of your pocket one at a time and
put them on the three cups. The idea of taking the balls out of your pocket
one at a time is to accustom your audience to the move of reaching into your
pocket so that later on when you reach into your pocket unnecessarily no sus-
picion will be aroused.
Return the three balls to your pocket one at a time. Pick up the middle and
right cup and say, a peculiar thing about these cups, is the fact that they
are deeper on the inside than they are on the outside, therefore, it is pos-
sible to pass one cup right thru the other cup. Do this by holding one cup
in your left hand, by the tips of your thumb and middle finger at the extreme
top edge of the cup. The other cup is held in the right hand just above the
cup in left hand. Drop the cup from the right hand into the other cup and the
cup in the left hand will be knocked loose from the fingers and the cup that
was dropped is retained in place of the cup that was knocked loose. At the
same time the right hand moves quickly beneath the cups and catches the fall-
ing cup. Repeat this move about three times. Put the cups back on the table,
- 2 -
mouth down. Pick these same two cups up, nest them and put them to the right
side of the table mouth up. I find that by doing this, the audience is not so
confused as to what takes place. Reach in the pocket with the right hand and
grab two sponge balls, compress them between the fingers so that they appear
as one ball when displayed. Reach over with the left hand and pull one ball
away with a twisting motion and show two balls. Put one back in the pocket,
This may not register as anything special to the audience, but later on when
this is repeated again, it will appear very funny.
Hold the ball in the right hand and pretend to throw it into the left hand;
the left hand immediately closes as though holding the ball and makes a
throwing motion at the cup which is on the table. The left hand is opened and
shown empty and picks the cup up exposing the ball on the table. The left
hand passes the cup to the right hand and the concealed ball in the right
hand rolls down into the cup.
While this takes place, the left hand picks

up the ball on the table and puts it back
in the pocket. The cup is put on the table
mouth down. The right hand reaches into the
pocket and pulls out two balls held as one.
The balls are pulled apart; one is put into
the pocket and the other is put on top of
the cup on the table. One of the two nest-
ed cups are now picked up and placed over
the cup on the table. The two cups are new
lifted exposing the ball on the table. Ap-
parently the ball has penetrated the cup.
The ball on the table is put in the pock-
et. Turn the two cups that you are holding,
mouth toward the audience; return them to
LOADING PALMED BALL INTO CUP
a vertical position mouth up. Pull off the
(AUDIENCE VIEW)
bottom cup and put it on the table mouth
down. Put the other cup to the right in the other cup which is there. Pull
two balls from the pocket, held as one. Pull them apart and put one in the
pocket and the other on top of the cup. Pick up the two nested cups, show the
to be empty, nest them and put them on top of the cup on the table. You re-
mark that this makes it twice as difficult when two cups are put on the ball.
Lift all three cups and expose the ball on the table. This ball remains on
the table and the three nested cups are turned mouth toward the audience,
brought to a vertical position, and the bottom cup pulled off and put on the
table to the right.
- 3 -
The cups are again turned towards the audience, brought to a vertical posi-
tion, the bottom cup pulled off and put over the ball on the table, mouth
down. This makes two balls under the cup. The third cup is put to the left on
the table. The right and left cups are now picked up and nested and put over
to the right out of the way.
Reach into the pocket and remove two balls as one, pull them apart, put one
back, and pretend to throw the other ball into the left hand. The left hand
makes a throwing motion as though throwing the ball at the cup. The left hand
picks up the cup exposing the two balls on the table, the left hand passes
the cup to the right hand and the ball in the right hand rolls into the cup.
The two balls on the table are picked up in the left hand and put into the
cup which is held in the right hand. If you are using good size sponges you
will have to jam them in. The cup is then put mouth down on the table in the
middle. The two nested cups are picked up. One is put to the right and one to
the left; mouths down. The 1st sponge ball is taken from the pocket with the
right hand. Pretend to throw it into the left hand which then makes a throw-
ing motion towards the middle cup. The right hand picks up the middle cup,
the left hand is shown empty as you start pulling the three balls out of the
cup. The left hand puts a sponge on top of each cup.
The right hand picks up one of the sponges and puts it into the left hand,
at the same time putting the ball which is palmed in the right hand into the
left hand. The left hand is quickly closed over the two balls. Another ball
is picked up and pushed into the left hand. The third ball is picked off the
last cup and put into the pocket; in reality it is retained in the hand. At
the same time the left hand puts the three balls back on top of the three
cups. Repeat this routine three times, the last time the ball is really left
in the pocket.
The three sponges are then put under the three cups. Reach in your pocket
with the right hand and palm one of the big balls or whatever you are going
to use for the finale. Lift up the right cup with the left hand and transfer
it to the right hand. Insert the palmed ball into the cup, pick up the sponge
with the left hand. Put the cup back on the table, mouth down. Transfer the
sponge from the left to the right hand. Put the sponge into your pocket and
palm another big ball. Repeat this move with the other two cups. From the
audience point of view the three cups are now empty, although each one con-
tains a big ball. You have been reaching into your pocket so many times that
now the audience will pay no attention as you continue reaching in. Palm an-
other big ball in the right hand. Pick up the right cup with left hand, ex-
posing the ball on the table, transfer the cup to the right hand loading the
ball that is palmed in that hand. Put the cup back on the table mouth down
- 4 -
and at the same time pick up the ball from the table with the left hand and
put it on top of the cup. Repeat these moves with the other two cups. If you
are able to juggle, pick up the three balls that are on top of the cups and
juggle them for a few seconds. This takes the minds of the audience off the
cups and makes the climax more of a surprise. Put the three balls back on top
the cups. Lift the cups up and display the three balls on the table. Put the
balls into the cups and set them to one side.
I have had very good success with this routine. It is easy to do and is not
too complicated. The audience is able to follow it without seeing how it is
done. Dont be under the impression that this is only for adults. I have
worked it for groups of children around five and six years of age and al-
though they may not have realized just what was supposed to take place they
never the less got a lot of enjoyment in watching the balls.
I have given no patter with this as I dont know what you could say other
than the thoughts that will come to you naturally as you work the trick.
By all means go thru this routine slowly and with a rhythm. If you have to do
your sleights like lightening the audience will be so confused they will not
appreciate the trick.
The sponge balls are made out of an automobile sponge that can be purchased
at any 5 and 10 cent store or auto equipment store. With a pair of scissors
cut out squares of the sponge, then trim off the edges until they are spheri-
cal.
- 5 -

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The Sterling

Cups and Balls

Copyright 2015 by Trickshop.com. All rights reserved. TRICKSHOP.COM

Pick up the three cups and point them mouth towards

While this takes place, the left hand picks

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