Zanthor's Card Magic: Mercury Card Fold
Zanthor's back to hit you with some more card tricks revealed. He's a man on mission to expose simple magic tricks to the world, from his home under South End pier.
Step 2: The Trick
Watch now as the master of misdirection catches these saps off guard. He starts by showing them a deck of cards, slipping them through his salty fingers. He asks one of the bumkins to shuffle the deck which she can just about manage. David the grockle takes the cards back and explains he's going to riffle through the deck and that she is to tell him when to stop. Because he can't stop himself.
The Zantanator tells the natives to take a peek at the card and remember it, it's the ten of diamonds, if you're playing along then you remember it too. Now the Zanthmeister shuffles the deck like a pro, and mixes the cards like a bag of jelly beans. Now Davros explains that as the card is in their mind in a way it's an imaginary card, only fair then that Zanthor should use an imaginary deck, and so he hands the cards to one of the Southenders and crosses the rubicon into the land of makebelieve. Now Zanadoo thumbs his way through the pretend deck and asks the chicas to tell him when to stop. When they do the human zoetrope shows them their selected card, they are nonplussed.
David folds the thought card once twice and into eights and then puts it in between his mits. He instructs the beach maidens to mindfax their memory of the card right between his palms. Confused but obedient the girls do as they're asked and as a result David begins to slide his clappers apart revealing, yes, there it is, it's an actual factual card, its materialized between his claws. Folded, just like the imaginary card, look at the girls they cant believe it, now David unfolds the card to reveal that it is the ten of diamonds, the same card they chose, the girls are flabbergasted. Utterly flummoxed.
Reality has been banged out of shape right in front of them. This is chaos.
Cards appearing out of thin air? Are there no rules any more??
Step 3: How it's Done
Ok Zanthor we've all had a few, let's just calm down and talk it through. Go on let us in on your little secrets how the heck did you make that card materialize from thin air, if I know you it wasn't magic, but a hoodwink, am I right? Spill the beans.
Right so first up DZ shows the girls his deck, it's nice to use a brand new deck for this trick but Zanthor is using a tatty old one he found by a bin, its not even got all the cards in it, shhhhh don't tell the punters. Next he gets the lass to give the deck a shuffle, not a truffle or a kerfuffle but but an ordinary shuffle. Then he takes the cards back, so far everything is above board. Now he riffles the deck and gets her to stop him in his tracks, no forcing here it's a random choice, DZ has no idea what the card is, but what he does know is where her card is because he makes a pinky break in the deck at her chosen card. This is done by inserting his wiggly little finger into the deck as he closes the two halves together. Its invisible from the front but plainly obvious to the Zanthman.
Next he cuts the deck to bring the chosen card safely to the bottom, now you're free to do any manipulation you like that will bring the card to the top of the deck, Zanthor's doing a basic thumb shuffle because he's got clumsy hands, this is easy, just pull packets of cards off the top of the deck until your left with one card - the chosen card – and plonk it on the top. Now you're ready for the good bit. While Zanthor's spinning a yarn about holding an imaginary card in your mind, he's actually performing the mercury card fold. Watch closely because the magic happens as fast as Cheetah speed.
To do this, flip the deck upside down so the chosen card in now on the bottom with its back facing outwards, hold the deck high in your hand with your thumb sticking out, in one simple action fold the card twice pushing it up against your thumb and then wrapping it round your thumb and moving it away from the deck. Now it will be folded in quarters in your hand ready for the next part of the trick. With practice you can make this one smooth imperceptible movement that happens as fast as quick silver.
From here on in its all performance, David mimes thumbing through an invisible deck, this allows his hands to be crooked disguising the fact he's holding a card, when he puts his hands together the card is already there so it needn't materialize at all. He's just feeding the girls a load of waffle to make them think that magic exists. The charming charlatan. When he reveals the card the girls are amazed, and Zanthor's work is done.
