May 2006 Newsletter

A Beginner's Journey

Well, another issue come and gone.  Today I'd like to share with you all the progression of A Beginner's Journey, as well the development of The Journeymen, which is an off-shoot of ABJ, giving you the Street Magic perspective of my progress.

ABJ is coming along very smoothly.  I've been keeping my blog updated, (which you can view from the 21Ace website) and practicing regularly to improve my skills.  Since my last article, I've really come a long way.  My finger dexterity grows stronger each day that I work, and my knowledge of magic and its history has more than doubled since March.  I recently finished my Senior Research Paper and posted it on the forums.  Researching magic was probably one of the most rewarding things I've done since I started this project, and I would strongly suggest to all of you to do the same.  Over the last two months, I've learned a few new things, and built on a few old ones.  First and foremost, my fans have developed exponentially.  Second, I've really come a long way on my two-handed cuts, like the KFC cut, the Ragnorak cut, and a few false cuts that I learned from my Xtreme Beginnerz DVD (another highly-suggested addition to anyone's collection or library).  XB taught me so much about fanning.  I changed the way I was holding the deck, the amount of pressure I was using, everything.  The finger exercises that Greg Irwin provides on the DVD are second to none, and have helped to increase my finger dexterity for two-handed cuts.  You can read detailed accounts of my progress on my blog, but I will go no further here.

Now comes the juicy part.  Recently I've tried my hand at Street Magic, and I think I'm in love.  Here's one specific account of street magic from The Journeymen Project:

The man walked out of the mall, bag in one hand, car keys in the other.  JT nudged me and whispered, "Hey, try two-card Monte out on that guy."  I walked over, a little bit nervous, as I hadn't performed TCM in quite some time.  "Sir?  Could I interest you in seeing a magic trick?"  I asked.  "Uhh...yeah, sure..." said the man.  I suppose it is a bit intimidating to be cornered by a 6'5'' guy and a dude with a video camera in the dark in a big city.  However, I took the opportunity.  I immediately explained that I was a senior at Marshall County High School, doing a project for my Senior English class.  I told him that for our community service grade, I had chosen to do Street Magic for total strangers from all over.  He seemed to loosen up a bit.  I casually took out my cards, replaced the box in my pocket, and shuffled them on my leg.  I cut the deck a few times, and went right into the trick. 

"Have you ever been in a big city," I said, "and seen one of those street performers doing the three-card Monte, or find the lady?"  He said he had, so I went on, saying, "Well, I can usually mess with those guys, with only two cards."  I held up the deck.  Fanning the cards out slowly so that he could see the faces, I said, "A lot of people will accuse me of using one of those trick decks...you know, the ones where all the cards are the same?"  He said, "Yeah, I've seen those."  "Well, I just want to show you that these cards are all different, and in no certain order or anything", I continued.  I found my two red queens and my two black aces, and cut the deck.  I asked him to hold out his fingers, and demonstrated how he should hold them.  He did.  "Now, I'm going to give you the Queen of Diamonds."  I handed him the card, face down.  "You can check it to make sure I didn't do anything funny", I said, "It's cool?"  "Yeah, it's cool", he replied.  Then, I showed him my queen, and finished up the trick.  From here it was all downhill.  "Now, could I impress you if your Queen of Diamonds was back on bottom and if my Queen of Hearts was on top again, if I really switched them?"  "Yeah, I'd be a little impressed, haha", said the man.  "Turn your hand over," I said.

The man turned over his hand, saw that the two Queens had changed to the two black Aces, and I immediately understood why men like David Blaine, Criss Angel, David Copperfield, Harry Houdini, Penn and Teller, etc; all loved what they did.  The man's face lit up so brilliantly, I couldn't help but laugh.  He said, "Well yeah, that's pretty good brother.  Can I see that one more time?"  I, however, wanted to stick to the rule, and said, "No, magician's not supposed to show his tricks twice, haha."  "I don't wanna know how it's done, I just want to see that again, that was incredible", he said.  "Nah, I'll have to show you some other time man", I replied.  We shook hands, and he walked off.  A few minutes later, JT and I were talking about what trick to show next, so I could go ahead and set up, when we heard a car horn honk from behind us.

That man came back up to us, begged me to do the two-card Monte again, and then sat with JT and me for almost an hour, watching me do magic.  I showed him several tricks, including Stigmata, which he went nuts over.  That man absolutely made my weekend.  He was awesome.  When he drove back up to us, he rolled down his window, and asked to see some more tricks...I told him to park his car and come back over.  He did.  That's the most fun I've ever had in my life.  For all of you aspiring magicians out there, go out, take a friend with a camera, and just meet new people.  It's incredible.  You'll be nervous at first, and find yourself apprehensive to walk up and strike up a conversation with total strangers.  But you have to move on, and just go for it.  I dove in head-first, and found out that it was one of the most rewarding things I could have chosen to do with my magic.  I hope you can all experience it for yourselves.  I'm at a new point in my journey; the fog is starting to clear, and I can see the beauty of it all.  I promise you, when you work hard, and don't give up, it all starts to click.  Just keep at it, and your fog will clear soon too.

An0n

Recommended Websites by DeadPeopleAllOver

Cards and Supplies
People often want to know where they can get the best prices on playing cards and other supplies. Well, here's a list of websites that I've personally purchased from. If you know of any other places, don't hesitate to let me know.

A site that probably doesn't need an introduction, Brad Christian's Ellusionist offers outstanding DVDs, playing cards that you can't get anywhere else, and many other items for your magical and flourishing needs.
Ellusionist

Here's a site that sells many different cards in bulk (among other items) at really good prices. Definitely worth a look.
http://www.pokerchips.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Category_Code=SC

This is where I buy my Tally-Ho fan back decks by the dozen, arguably the best cards (and best looking) for flourishes. 12 packs for $20! Shipping not included, though. However, I bought 12 packs of blue and 12 packs of red. Now I won't have to worry about buying any more for a long time.
http://www.batteriesandbutter.us/tallyho-9.html

This is one of the very few sites (that I know of) that sells Aladdin’s. They also offer a ton of rare and unusual cards. Good customer service, fast shipping (although often expensive - especially if you live in the USA).
http://www.cards4magic.co.uk/acatalog/USPCC_American_Regular_Packs.html

Aaron Smith's site. Offers a ton of different items. This is where I like to purchase decks like Pastel Bikes and other unusual cards. This site has without a doubt the best customer service. Great prices with free shipping for purchases over $40. Tip: Type "Bicycle" in the search field and check out all the sweet decks for sale. Highly recommended website.
http://www.magic.org/store/index.php

Sound Effects
Often times you'll see videos that feature cool sound effects (slams, whooshes, thunder claps, etc.). A great video can be even greater if the right sound effects are used in moderation and in the right places. I personally don't get my sound effects from the internet. I get them from newsgroups. But if you don't have a newsreader, check out these sites.

Nice collection of sound effects, all organized nicely. Not bad.
http://www.sounddogs.com/start.asp

This site has links to other websites that have downloadable sound effects.
http://www.stonewashed.net/sfx.html

Fonts
If you're into making videos, you know you need to have a good collection of fonts at your fingertips to make your title and credit screens look good. Here are a couple good sites.

Lots of free downloadable fonts.
http://www.1001freefonts.com/

Another site with tons of fonts. Also has Scythe, the font that was used in the Fusion video, and is the best looking font, in my opinion.
http://www.abstractfonts.com/

Other Websites
This is just a website that pisses me off. It has information and pictures of various playing cards (many of which I can't purchase because they're no longer available... damnit). Many of you already know about this site.
http://www.nls.physics.ucsb.edu/~nathanb/cards/

Ian Kendall's website. This is where I learned my very first flourish, the one-handed shuffle. Thanks to his outstanding tutorial, I can do this flourish in my sleep with both hands. He offers other card and chip tutorials as well.
http://www.virtualmagicshow.com/

Chip trick tutorial videos made by the best chip trick specialist, Anders (TheEMan) Lundkvist. It doesn't get any better (or easier) than this. Most people who are reading this newsletter already know about this tutorial thread. But just in case, here it is.
http://www.21ace.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=3677

DeadPeopleAllOver

Interview with Pokerfanatic

1.) What got you started playing?
I always grew up around cards, so I guess you could say it was in my blood. However, I got more serious about poker specifically Texas Hold’em just before Chris Moneymaker’s WSOP win was aired on TV, and then I knew I could make solid money at the game when I saw poker explode as what some call a “fad”. ‘Fad’ or not poker is going to be around a lot longer then we are.

2.) What books did/do you read?
Well, I started out playing live games so one of the first books I read was Mike Caro’s Book of Poker Tells. I also read the outdated Super System 1, I did read Phil Hellmuth’s book Play Poker like the Pros. However it was a bad source of information for a beginning player. I also read a great general poker book called Theory of Poker. Once I moved to online Limit games I read Small Stakes Hold’em, Hold’em 4 Advanced Players, Middle Limit Hold’em, Weighing the Odds of Hold’em Poker, and I have read some other not so great Limit books that I won’t mention.

3.) How much poker do you play a week?
It depends, since I’m in college and all my hours per week depends on what is going on with school, but on average, I would say 15-25 during the school year and 25-40 in the summer months or on break, maybe more then 40 but not very often.

4.) About how much have you won/lost in your career?
Well, over all I’m up around 7k and I really have only been playing online limit for about 8months give or take. As for a single session my biggest win is 65bb, my biggest lose so far was over 8 days for -$1300 @ 3/6.

5.) Do you have any superstitions?
Nope, I’m a math and odds guy, in the long run it will work out so you are a winning player if you follow the math short term I guess you could have them but I don’t see a reason.

6.) Have you played any live tournaments, how well did you do?
No I have never played any liver tournaments though I have played live cash games at the local casinos. I’m a cash game player, though I want to play a Limit WSOP event sometimes in my carrier.

7.) Any advice for new players?
Read books, study the game, bust your ass, become friends with better players, even if you are playing 30/60 there are better player then you around just have to find them, but small stakes it’s easy. In a nut shell you have to be willing to commit 110% to poker to become one of the best in the world over time.

8.) Do you see yourself staying mainly with limit holdem for the long run or do you think you'll start spending more time on other forms of poker in the future?
Actually, I started learning Omaha H/L Limit and Omaha Hi PL, so I still think Limit is my game of choice but as my roll get larger it’s easier to learn at small stakes new games.

9.) Who is your favorite professional poker player?
Umm interesting question, I really respect a lot of poker players games out there but I have to give a shout out to one of the better limit players most people have not even heard of and that’s Liz Lieu, she plays the big limit games all over and still plays 100/200 on Poker Stars… I think she is a force to be looking out for.

Favorite online player?
LOL myself, joking… umm again I totally respect a lot of online players games, if you can crush the 100/200 on stars then well you’d be one of my favorites too, so I guess I’ll go with Liz Lieu again.

Least favorite professional player?
Umm, that would have to be… Mr. Sheiky, though he is a huge dick he still played the GSN 300/600 NL 100 antes, so I mean I don’t disrespect he’s game, he is just a dick.

10.) Do you think the next WSOP main event winner will sign with Pokerstars the way the last 3 ( Moneymaker, Raymer and Hachem ) did?
Well, given that Stars send SO many players to the WSOP I’d say 20-50% MORE players then the other sites do, I think it isn’t too far a stretch to say it is probable, however you never know since they are saying the prize pool is going to be like 10 million this year or more.

11.) What is the most tables you've played online at the same time?
Umm, I think it was 8 1/2 Full Ring Tables, there is a Screen Shoot post that is linked here:
http://www.21ace.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=3717

12.) How many tables do you typically play at a time?
Now that I am playing 6 max I play 2-4 tables, full ring I play 4-6 most the time.

13.) Do you think you will ever play in the WSOP Main Event??
Yes, I want to play a Limit WSOP event but that might turn into a few other events depending on my current BR and such.

14.) Do you think anyone will ever repeat in that event??
Well, it’s possible but it’s a HUGE and I mean HUGE long shot…

15.) Is there anything else you would like to add or say to the 21ace community?
Yeah, when it comes to poker you need to have a lot of conflicting personality traits. At the table I’m very aggressive and I’m not real concerned with offending someone by c/r or anything like that. Away, from the table I try to be a friendly person unless someone is shitty to me to begin with then I’ll be shitty back but other wise I’m a nice guy I think. Another thing that I find interesting at the table I talk big and loose about money and how I am playing but in reality I’m playing tight selective aggressive, so at the table I lie a lot, but away from the table I’m one of those people that might piss you off because I’m bluntly honest and only sugar coat things if it’s at a corporation type job.

The point I’m trying to make is that you almost have to lead 2 lives, one on the table, and one off it. That is probably one of the harder things to do as a poker player.

Walter Scott Gambling Routine

The following is a very simplified version of a demonstration performed by Walter Irving Scott numerous decades ago and reported in Sphinx Magazine in 1930.  The method is not the same as his, nor is the feat as difficult, but it makes for a good demonstration all the same.

Effect: The performer borrows a deck, counts to cards to make sure they are all there, and then hands the deck to another spectator to shuffle.  The spectator shuffles the deck as much as he or she wants.  At this point the performer asks how many hands should be dealt any number will suffice.  The performer proceeds to deal off one card to each hand, then hand the deck back to a spectator and have the deck shuffled again.  The spectator hands the deck back to the performer who deals off another round of cards.  This process is repeated until a full five-card poker hand is dealt to each player.  The spectators are then asked to turn over the performer’s hand; it consists of four aces and a king (or whatever other hand you desire).

Method: This is trick actually surprisingly simple, yet deadly effective.  I perform a variant of it quite often where I simply take the “shuffled” deck, ask which how many hands I should deal out and which player the spectators would like to win, then give the deck two rapid shuffles and deal a winning hand (usually four aces) to the player in question, which generally elicits responses such as “you’re coming with me the next time I go to play poker with the boys” or “remind me never to play cards with you”.  But that’s of course another effect and we’ll save it for another time.  What I like about this one (which in theory is more impressive), is that you have some good patter to go along with it.  Namely, you will be talking about the card legend Walter Irving Scott, of the Phantom of the Card Table publications.  Thus, I suggest, you tell of how he fooled the greatest magicians and card men in the world.  You may even wish to build up to the effect by playing a couple straight hands while you patter mentioning how Walter used to like letting other cheats take him for the first couple nights and then on the last night, to take them for all they were worth.  There is actually a more complex demonstration that I like to perform where I let the spectators set up the deck against me during that phase and this can be turned into quite a long and effective routine, but that goes beyond the realm of this article and becomes too complicated.  For now, we shall focus on a simple method. 

The key to the method occurs when you go through the deck to ensure that all the cards are in the deck (it actually doesn’t matter if they are, so long as you can get your four aces and a king, or whatever other hand you might choose, such as a royal flush).  You have a number of options as follows.  The first is to jog them downward slightly as you go through the spread, then, either steal them as you square the deck, or strip them out as you hand the deck out to someone to shuffle.  The second is to cull the cards via something like a Hofzinzer spread cull and then palm them from the deck.  Alternatively, while pattering you could shuffle the deck, culling the cards and then steal them later, the method really doesn’t matter, though for beginners I’m going to recommend the first method.  Ideally though, you use the shuffle method (overhand or riffle) because it’s less contrived.
A quick note here in regards to the presentation.  You don’t want to start the effect until after you’ve located and stolen out the cards.  In other words, someone hands you a deck and asks you to perform some feat, or magic etc.  You casually talk while going through your setup, then once you’re done, perhaps give the deck a couple false shuffles, or shuffles that maintain your set up (the set up, but the way, should be the five cards on the bottom of the deck, though if you prefer you could place them on the top and then palm them off and transfer to gambler’s cop).  At this point you do a retake, as though you remembered that they wanted you to perform for them and creating the psychological effect that you weren’t doing anything specific earlier, you were just playing with the cards as people are want to do.  You then proceed by saying something like “well ok, here, give the deck a few shuffles” and proceed into the routine.

As I just mentioned, your goal is to get the cards to the bottom of the deck, actually, that isn’t entirely true, you want the cards in gambler’s cop while the deck is out being shuffled and so it is possible to top palm the cards with your right hand, lap them, and then under the cover of the table, take them in gambler’s cop with your left hand, but I prefer just copping the cards directly.  I’m sure you can see where this is going.

The spectator hands you back the deck and you take it, copping the cards back onto the bottom and asking how many players they want in the game.  (Naturally you’ve been pattering the whole time and you will continue to do so as you deal).  You deal normally for all players except yourself.  To yourself, you bottom deal.  Then you cop the cards again and hand the deck out to be shuffled again, repeating the process identically for each round until all five cards have been dealt out.

The method is simple, the effect decent and the presentation key.  I recommend you pick up a copy of the original Phantom of the Card Table manuscript, which is available for free in e-book format and is only about 20 pages long.  I don’t feel the technical descriptions are terribly valuable, but the stories may help you a bit with patter.

Just one fine point, assuming your bottom deal is decent (refer to my March article for a description of a working bottom deal).  Make sure you cop at least the required number of cards from the bottom of the deck, in other words, 5, then 4, then 3, then 2, then 1, but if you’re uncertain, cop more, it doesn’t matter, I sometimes employ a buckle or pinky count to get the correct number of cards, but it’s unnecessary and sometimes cop off two or three extras to ensure I’m safe.

Drey

Members Welcome

Without members a forum would be pretty boring. Without new members a forum would not improve thus adding to its boringness. So this is just the little piece of the newsletter that allows us, the members of 21ace, to extend a heart felt welcome to all those that have joined the 21ace community this month.
 
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CREDITS

The people that contributed to the making of this newsletter include:

Eric and Shadow – Technical Support.

Fattyonadiet – Editor.

Drey, DeadPeopleAllOver and Anon – Authors.

Also; a big thanks to Pokerfanatic for allowing us to interview him.