the wife vs.

husband format, but it is my the drawing IS a circle with an X through

guess that it would play very nicely in it!
this context. Surely the patter oppor- The mentalist picks up the other two
tunities are rampant. envelopes, one in each hand. He concen-
One might want to alter the wording trates and says, "In my right hand I get
involved in having the name chosen so the impression of a drawing of a boat
that the audience wouldn't suspect that and in my left hand, I believe, is the
the wife guessed the name based on number 69!" The envelopes are opened
previous conversations with her husband and both impressions are 100% accurate.
(ala "The Newlywed Game"). A brave
performer might ask the husband to Method: Actually, this item has TWO
think of an old girlfriend that his wife effects — one good and one spectacular!
does not know about, then proceed to Before the show, find an early arrival
let the wife divine the name through and ask him to help you with an experi-
"woman's intuition." I refuse to be held ment for later. Give him three pieces of
responsible for any onstage alercations paper and tell him to draw a circle with
as a result of such a presentation ... in an X through it on one piece. Turn your
such a case, hold PRW responsible! back as he draws, then hand him an
envelope in which he is to seal the draw-
Comment: No, you won't, if you can't sweet talk
yourself out of trouble in such an instance, you
ing without your ever having seen it.
shouldn't be doing mentalism! Next, ask him to draw a simple figure
I think this effect is WONDERFUL, and the of a boat on one of the remaining pieces
method is both easy AND demanding enough to and to seal that in the envelope you hand
make ME want to perform it. Sandwiched berween him, and to write the number " 6 9 " on
other powerful mental effects, this should be stun-
ning in its impact on an audience. And, the pat- the other piece and seal that up also.
ter potentials ARE rampant! Keep your back turned so that you "can't
If you are nervous about the spectator handling see the order you stack the envelopes in.''
the portfolio, why not hold it for her yourself so Instruct him to shuffle the order of the
as to make it easier for her to write? Then you could envelopes and to hide them in his jacket
subtly point to the name with an out-of-sight
finger. You could have her tear out the sheet and pocket until you call him up later.
put away the portfolio (and the evidence) before
the climax. You could even go so far as to routine
When you call him up, state, "Earlier
your show to use a duplicate but ungimmicked tonight I asked this man to draw a
portfolio earlier and/or later as a further throw-off. geometric figure, a number, and a draw-
However you plan to do it, YOU'LL not know how ing, to seal each in an envelope, and to
strong this is unless YOU try it, too. —PRW
* * *
mix them up while my back was turned
so I couldn't see them. Is that correct,
SINS OF OMISSION sir?" Of course, he will assure the au-
Effect: A spectator brings three enve- dience that this is so. However, the au-
lopes on stage which the mentalist had dience will assume that you have no idea
given him prior to the performance. The what the drawings and the number were.
spectator states that the mentalist had By the wording "mix them while my
asked him to make three simple geo- back was turned so I couldn't see them,''
metric drawings and seal each one in a they'll assume that since you had your
separate envelope. The spectator has back turned, you couldn't see what he
thoroughly mixed the envelopes and lays was drawing. They will never dream that
them out on the table before him. you told him exactly what to draw. The
The performer holds an envelope to assistant will understand the effect as a
his forehead. "Although I haven't seen good demonstration of knowing which
this drawing, I get the impression that drawing was in each envelope even
it is round ... like a circle. Yes, that's it though he mixed them up. The audience
... this drawing is a circle with an " X " will perceive the effect as a spectacular
through it!" The envelope is opened and demonstration of clairvoyance in which
November, 1987 81
you divine not only what was where, but a small hole through the back of the vase
what each drawing/number was out of at the bottom.
a virtually limitless range of possibilities! The gimmick which causes the vase to
The envelopes, of course, are subtly shatter is hidden inside the vase. This is
marked by bending a corner or nail nick- made by tying a heavy lead fishing sinker
ing or both. Literature abounds on to the bar of a mousetrap with a three
methods for marking envelopes. Since inch length of fishing line. A long length
you hand the envelopes to the spectator of thread leads from the "bait lever" of
one at a time after each drawing is com- the trap to the medium. (See Fig. 1.) The
pleted, you know exactly which envelope gimmick is placed inside the vase, the
contains which drawing. trap set, and the remote control thread
This would be an excellent effect for (I read too many Johnson Smith catalogs
a newspaper reporter doing a story on as a boy, they always called threads tied
you ... the next day he would write in to anything "remote control.") is run
the paper something like, "I drew three through the hole in the vase to where the
different drawings, he held them up to medium will be sitting. A slight tug on
his head, one at a time, and was able to the thread causes the trap to go off which
tell me what they were!" This could easi- slams the lead sinker against the inside
ly be interpreted as a miracle. of the base and shatters it. Figure 2
Even better, do this stunt on a radio should make everything clear.
program for the interviewer. The draw- Naturally, this sort of gimmick will on-
ing is done "off mike," and the listen- ly lend itself to performances in your
ing audience would think you were get- home or on stage. However, because of
ting impressions of the drawings, never this, you can devise intricate rigging
suspecting that before air time you systems for the thread (i.e., behind fur-
TOLD him specifically what to draw or niture, under rugs, etc.).
write. Play this for all it is worth. This gimmick can also be taped to the
Comment: This is professional mentalism at its backs of mirrors or picture frames. Of
highest level. The opportunities for customizing course, the mirror must be positioned in
this effect to be topical are many and the such a way that there is room for the lead
methodology is diabolical. Even if the spectator
"tells all he knows," you are not hurt, for he should weight to swing around and smack the
still be puzzled as to how you knew the locations back of the glass. The mirror, if a large
of the various items and so should the rest of your one, could cover a small alcove in the wall
audience. Thanks, Dan, for sharing this.—PRW or be propped up elsewhere.
A table-top type picture frame would
SHATTERDAY NIGHT lend itself rather well to this. Jut be sure
Effect: During a sceance, the medium to secure the frame so it doesn't tip over
has trouble controlling the forces he has during the shattering and give away the
invoked. As a result of this lack of con- modus operandi. (See Fig. 3 )
trol, a large vase across the room sudden- Several of these gimmicks could be
ly shatters into many fragments! They're fastened under a table or behind doors
hereeeeee!!!!" and walls to produce some exceptional-
Method: This is a utility gimmick that ly loud "spirit raps." I must point out
can be used in many ways to cause dam- the obvious fact that since a tiny tug on
age during a seance. To begin, buy a the thread will set off the trap, the
cheap opaque vase, as large a vase as medium can easily work the effect by
possible. Garage sales and flea markets tugging the thread with his/her knees or
are usually overrun with such junk, so feet, enabling manifestations of spirit
you shouldn't have much trouble locat- activities to occur when the medium is
ing one for less than a couple of bucks. holding hands with the others.
Once the vase has been obtained, drill I'm sure with a little thought you can
82 The Linking Ring