"Decisions! Decisions!"
(Invented by Harry Baron. Additional ideas by
Ken deCourcy and Ted Lesley)
This trick was invented by the late Harry Baron
and was published in the first volume of Ken
deCourcy's wonderful magazine "Coffeebreak Chronicle". Harry Baron was very ingenious in
giving old gimmicks and tricks a new "twist".
Let us give a typical example of his creativiness:
Ken deCourcy found in the February
1946 issue of "Mac's Monthly"
a bright idea of Harry's: Predicting the amount
of loose change in a spectator's pocket (via
"Swami Gimmick"), which well known mentalists
(Maurice Fogel and Punx for example) used for years as an opener to their mental
act!
Ken de Courcy and Ted Lesley talked the trick
over on the phone recently, and Ted, too, found
an improvement to Harry Baron`s routine. Finally
Ken deCourcy was so kind, granting us permission
to put this mental-miracle with playing cards
on the market. We promise, you will have a lot
of fun performing "Decisions! Decisions!"
EFFECT:
(Harry Baron's Routine):
The performer asks a gentleman to come up and
help, then hands his wife or girl-friend a small
bell.
The man is given a wallet to hold in the form
of a tray while the menta-list shuffles a pack
of cards. he starts to deal the cards face down
on the wallet and the lady is requested to ring
the bell at any time she likes.
When she does so, the gentleman is given the
choice, whether he wants the card just dealt,
the one in the performer's hand, or the card
which would be dealt next. He chooses one of
the three and that goes into his pocket unseen.
He is shown the other two cards, then all the
cards are placed away and the mentalist reclaims
the wallet. From it, he extracts one card which
is shown to the helper and the audience.
The assistant takes the card from his pocket
and finds it matches the one from the wallet.
As you`ll realise, good stand-up mental card
effects are rare these days, particularly when
they are as fair-looking (and easy) as this
one.
REQUIREMENTS:
A fairly large wallet (so that cards can be
dealt on to it) which will hold three cards
hidden in different pockets. Harry Baron used
paper jumbo cards, which fold, but Ken deCourcy
has three ordinary cards (with different backs)
in his.
You also need a faked deck (supplied)
consisting of thirteen each of three different
cards and thirteen cards all different. For
clarity we'll say the pack is made up with thirteen
4H's; thirteen 8D's; thirteen QS's plus thirteen
other indifferent cards. (NOTE: The cards vary
in each pack!) The cards are already
arranged in performing order: 4H,
8D, QS, 4H, 8D, QS, 4H and so on down
for thirty-nine cards. The bottom thirteen are,
of course, the mixed ordinary cards. Have this
deck in its packet in your pocket. Put a piece
of tissue paper into the mouth of the bell that
it can`t make any noise during your performance
and put it in a convenient pocket also.
PERFORMANCE:
Choose a man who is with a lady and invite him
to stand up to help you. Hand the lady the bell
and instruct her she is to ring it whenever
she likes as long as it's when you are actually
holding a card in your hand. (Don't forget to
take the tissue-paper out of the bell beforehand!)
Take out the wallet and have the man hold it
as shown in the illustration. He stands sideways
on to the audience. Extract the pack from its
case, then shuffle it (just the bottom thirteen
cards) faces towards the audience. Replace them
on the bottom of the pack.
Now start dealing cards slowly from the top
of the deck face down on to the wallet.When
the lady rings the bell, stop and ask the man
whether he wants the card just dealt, the one
in your hand, or the one you're about to deal.
Whichever he wishes, place it (without anyone
seeing its face) into his top outside pocket.
Show him the cards he didn't choose, which
tells you the name of the card in his pocket!
Take all the cards back and get them safely
out of the way into your pocket, then relieve
him from the wallet. Open it, remove the correct
card and show it, then have him take the card
from his pocket, to find it's the same.
This finishes the Harry Baron / Ken deCourcy
routine.
SUGGESTED PATTER (by Ken deCourcy):
"Have you ever realised that life consists of
making one decision after another. There are
decisions to be made from the moment you wake
up.....will you have cornflakes, or shredded
wheat.....to the time you go to bed.....when
your wife makes all the decisions."My brother
just made the decision to give up drinking.
For a start, he's using larger ice-cubes." I
made one decision earlier this evening.....which
I'll tell you about later.....and now I have
another decision to make, which gentleman to
ask up to help me. (Invite man up to help and
stand him on your left.)
"Does he belong to you, Madam? I only want
to borrow him for a little while. What's more,
I'll let you have this little bell.....as a
deposit on him. When I return him in good condition,
you can give me back the bell.
"Sir, I'm going to lend you my wallet. Don't
worry, there`s no money in it because having
money is only the second best thing in life.
The first best thing is having lots of money.
Would you hold the wallet between your hands
as if it were a tray because, in a moment, I'm
going to deal cards on to it from this pack,
which I'd better shuffle or afterwards people
will accuse me of no end of underhand things.
"Madam, we've reached the stage where you have
to make your decision. I'm going to start dealing
these cards slowly and I'd like you to ring
the bell, when I'm actually holding a card in
my hand. In other words, just before it is dealt
on to the wallet. The decision of when you ring
it is entirely yours. But.....would you like
a practice-tinkle first just to get the hang
of it? Good.....now I'll start dealing. (Deal
until lady rings bell.)
"Thank you, Madam, you made that decision beautifully
decisively. And that was hard to say with these
teeth in, they were made for a horse.
"Now, Sir, it's decision-time for you. You
have to decide whether you want the card I've
just dealt, the card in my hand, or the card
on top of the pack which I would have dealt
next. Your decision, Sir? Thank you.....I'll
place it into your pocket.
"Before we go any further, I'd like you to
see the cards you could have decided upon, but
didn't. (Show him the the other two and
name them!) I'll thake the cards from
you, if I may and also the wallet, which I think
you`ll agree, was in your hands before your wife made her decision and before you made yours. If you remember, I said I`d already
made a decision this evening. That decision
was to place one card in this wallet. Here it
is.....(example) the Queen of Spades.
"Sir, please take the card out of your pocket
and call out its name in a nice loud voice.
"The Queen of Spades"! You see, all three decisions were absolutely right!"
TED LESLEY'S ROUTINE:
We supply with this routine a very special "Three-Way-Envelope"
with the accompanying instructions. It is already
prepared and can be used for many shows. It
is, as you will see, easy to construct. The
envelope must be loaded with three cards with
contrasting backs, the faces must match the
force-cards of the deck. They are inserted into
the secret compartments looking from the seamside
of the envelope in ascending order. This envelope
is used by Ted Lesley for a lot of other mindbending
miracles. (See his book "PARAMIRACLES"
Pages 27-33). Before you perform "Decisions!
Decisions! you should practice the easy moves
with the envelope for a couple of minutes, to
get the feel of it.
For Ted Lesley`s routine, you do not need your
own wallet. Before you "borrow" your assistant
from the audience, ask him, if he has one on
him so you borrow that also! Now the trick becomes
really impomptu.
When you start the performance take the "Kismet-Envelope"
out of your pocket and insert it into the wallet
of your assistant. Then proceed with the routine
as already described.
At the end of the trick, let the spectator
open his wallet and hand you the envelope. The
appropriate card is shaken out on the top of
the wallet, which the spectator still holds.
Make sure, that it lands on the wallet face
down. Put the envelope away in one of
your pockets. Now take the card out of the spectator's
top outside pocket with your right hand and
the other one from the top of the wallet with
the left hand and show the audience that both
cards match. Standing before the audience with
a card in each hand and outstretched arms is
the perfect applause cue. To avoid any fumbling
during the routine it is advised, that you have
the cards not in its box.
Wrap a rubber-band around the deck instead!
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