ALL MAGIC / WAP

Coincidence
Simon Lovell Answers
The Card Question
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Hi Simon,
I've become intrigued with the two deck effect where the spectator puts a card from his deck into the magician's and the magician does the same to the spectator's deck. The cards then prove to be identical. It was in an old booklet I found by Rufus Steele. Are there any cautions in using two decks for an effect? The premise seems not to be used these days and I was wondering why.

Dear Card Worker,
Actually I'm quite a fan of the You Do As I Do premise and have read and used a great many of them over the years.

Perhaps the main reason that the plot line is not used so much, especially by walk around and restaurant magicians, is that it requires the carrying of two decks and that's more pocket management than practical especially if you are carrying other props as well.

Another obvious reason is that many of the routines of this nature require a working surface with some available space on it. In many professional working situations this is simply an impossibility.

The one area I always used such effects was when I worked as a bar magician. There was plenty of space to store extra decks and, of course, there's a working surface that's often the length of the room i.e. the bar top.

My favorite version of the plot line is Three In A Million in the great card book "Million Dollar Card Secrets" by Frank Garcia. It's a tough book to find but, along with it's partner "Super Subtle Card Miracles" by the same author, it's well worth the search.
Best, Simon

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