When assembling the material for this book we received several letters from Ross containing practical suggestions. In one of the letters he "When the Professor was in I believe you recorded details of his Slow Motion Card Vanish. I feel this should be included as I can personally vouch for the effectiveness. It was the very first effect I saw Dai perform - at the Club in
We actually did take and at the time Dai told us that Nate
Slow Motion Coin Vanish had always intrigued him, so he had set about devising a method for producing a similar effect with a card. We expressed doubts about the because it seemed that the of the card would create a problem of handling, in that it would be impossible to conceal the card from almost any angle. However, the Professor put us to shame by taking a card and performing the fine effect about to be described. In addi- tion he expressed some words of wisdom which we will endeavour to set down as we go along.
To understand the main principle it is necessary to practice holding a card with one edge under the thumb the card protruding from the nail as in Figure 1. The nail may have to be worn a little longer than usual when you first start, as the card has to remain in position due to its weight creating leverage between the nail and the underside of the flesh at the top of the thumb. The card must be kept in a horizontal plane; a tilt out of plane will cause the card to fall.
In Figure 1 the card is being held so that its length protrudes from the thumb nail - this is for practice so that one can understand the prin- ciple and gain confidence in handling the card in this position. In perfor- mance the width of the card will protrude, as it is held near the corner of one long side. By practicing handling the card the more difficult way it becomes so much easier when it is held in the other position. This may sound like the story of hitting oneself on the head with a hammer be- cause it is nice when you stop! Actually the theory is the same as practicing tricks with wide cards - if you learn to handle these cards, then your task is so much easier when you use bridge cards.
Once the principle is understood, the reader can proceed to learn the moves.
1
In the illustrations we have concen- trated on showing only the grips and hand positions. In performance the moves are made head that in front of the performer's face.
For a reason that will be apparent later, the performer should be smoking a cigarette.
1. Hold a card upright in the left hand, thumb on the centre of the back of card and fingers extended across the face of the card. The face of the card should be protruding for about half its length above the side of the left forefin- ger - Figure 2.
2. Place the right hand at the top of the card, fingers in front of the top right hand corner - Figure 2. Slide the right thumb nail onto the corner of the card, then slide the thumb down the side of the card; simultaneously lever the card backwards until it is out of sight. By now the right thumb nail is about half an inch from the bottom right hand cor- ner of the card; the card itself being in a horizontal position, the right hand hav- ing turned palm towards the audience with the fingers open and thumb at right angles to the palm. Only the top of the right thumb is behind the tip of the left fingers but, of course, the whole of the card extends behind the left fingers.
3. Move the right hand from side to side exposing all the palm and right to the tip of the thumb. Now move the right hand up a little so that the edge of the card is behind the horizontal left forefinger. Open the left fingers (Figure 3 - exposed view).
4. Close the left fingers, then move the right hand to the left so that the card is behind the left hand, now turn the left hand over so that the palm is
towards the audience with the fingers pointing upwards. Bring the card behind the left thumb and open all fingers (Figure 4 - rear view). The illus- tration shows how the outer left corner of the card can be rested on the flesh at the fork of the left thumb to steady the card, whilst the whole of both palms (with fingers wide open) are exposed to the audience.
5. Now blow a dense puff of smoke at the hands and move the hands apart for a brief then bring them back to the position shown in Figure 4. This sounds a bold but as the card is edge on to the audi- ence, and the vision is further obscured by the puff of smoke, the card is not seen.
6. Move the right hand to the left to bring the card behind the left hand, then turn the left hand to bring the back towards the audience, with fingers pointing to the right. Move the right hand a little to the right so that the outer corner of the card be clipped between the sides of the left first and second fingers. Release the nail grip and move the right hand to the right, leaving the card in the left hand. The right hand moves to the right just sufficiently so that the palm and extended thumb are exposed.
7. Turn the right hand to bring the back towards the with fingers pointing to the left. Bring the hands together and place both thumbs behind the card and lever it upright into view.
In Dai Vernon's hands this little cameo of card magic is a thing of beauty. He performs it with graceful hand movements and at a slow, even tempo. Some years ago he included it in his night club act, and the American show paper, hailed it by "Here is something new in
It is a fine example of how a little thing can create quite a stir when given importance by expert presentation.
Dai Vernon has released the secret for the benefit of the magical frater- but he stresses that it needs a considerable amount of practice before a perfect illusion can be created. Give it the practice it deserves and you will have a real gem.