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THE MAGICAL WORLD
OF

SLYDINI
Text by

KARL FULVES

Illustrations by

JOSEPH K. SCHMIDT
 Contents
Foreword ............................................................................................................................. 6
Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 30
1 Close-Up Miracles ........................................................................................................... 34
Sweet Salt ....................................................................................................................... 34
Sugar Express ................................................................................................................ 43
Encore Sponge Balls ...................................................................................................... 49
Reincarnation ................................................................................................................ 59
2 Slydini On Rope Magic ................................................................................................... 65
Slydini’s Cut Rope .......................................................................................................... 65
Equal-Unequal Ropes .................................................................................................... 77
Slydini’s Rope Knots ...................................................................................................... 90
3 Cards In Close-Up .......................................................................................................... 99
Slydini’s Wild Card ........................................................................................................ 99
The Slydini Aces........................................................................................................... 107
Slydini’s Table Shift ...................................................................................................... 112
The Slydini Invisible Pass ............................................................................................. 117
The Slydini Switch II .................................................................................................... 121
4 The Torn and Restored Newspaper ............................................................................. 125
5 More Slydini Coin Classics ........................................................................................... 154
Encore Coins .................................................................................................................155
Wrong Way Coins ........................................................................................................ 159
Gemini Coins ............................................................................................................... 162
A Coin Gag ................................................................................................................... 169
Sliding Silver ................................................................................................................. 171
6 The Coin Clip ................................................................................................................ 179
7 Slydini’s Silk Knots ....................................................................................................... 190
Houdini Silks ................................................................................................................217
Splitting The Knot ....................................................................................................... 229
8 Slydini’s Sympathetic Silks .......................................................................................... 242
9 Slydini Close-Up Classics ..............................................................................................271
The Ring On The String ................................................................................................271
The Torn and Restored Napkin Corner...................................................................... 280
10 Slydini’s Linking Rings ............................................................................................... 292

4
1 Close-Up Miracles ......................................................................................................... 365
2 Slydini On Rope Magic ................................................................................................. 381
3 Cards In Close-Up ....................................................................................................... 400
4 The Torn and Restored Newspaper ............................................................................. 414
5 More Slydini Coin Classics ........................................................................................... 429
6 The Coin Clip ................................................................................................................440
7 Slydini’s Silk Knots ....................................................................................................... 445
8 Slydini’s Sympathetic Silks .......................................................................................... 473
9 Slydini Close-Up Classics ............................................................................................. 491
10 Slydini’s Linking Rings ............................................................................................... 503

5
 Foreword
Doug Henning and I were sitting in a midtown New York restaurant one day in 1974 and
Doug was thumbing his well-organized datebook. Peeking, I saw the name ‘Slydini’
followed by ‘10:30 Vesuvio Restaurant.’

Slydini has been a legendary name to me since I bought my first Svengali deck at age
fourteen at the Nebraska State Fair and discovered the joys of magic. Henning said
Slydini was going to give a demonstration at Vesuvio and that I could come if I wanted
to. I told him I would have to cancel an audience with the President—or was it cocktails
with Garbo?—but that I would be there.

Two days later, I sat at Slydini’s elbow and witnessed as fine a demonstration of close-up
miracles as this world has ever seen. Coins vanished while I was looking at them,
handsful of tobacco turned into whole cigarettes in an instant, and a match
dematerialized without a trace while I was looking at it. I found it hard to sleep that
night, wondering how—knowing what I knew about magic—I could have seen what I
saw. If a man had come into my apartment and walked up the wall, it would have been
no more amazing.

6
I had met Tony (the lurking mystery as to why he is called ‘Tony’ has to do with his
extreme politeness in failing to correct someone decades ago) the night before the
demonstration while visiting Henning’s dressing room, and ever since we have been
good friends. I live for the times when he says in his charmingly accented English, "Dick,
you come over tonight, I’m-a gonna show you something. You not-a gonna believe." He
is always right.

The fact that Slydini, without the help of books, personal instruction or past experience
simply sat down and re-invented an already existing art is too well-known by magicians
to go into here. His Imp-Pass, Revolve, and use of the concept of Timing, to name a few,
broke new ground in magic— as if a musician had discovered a way to add new notes to
an already existing scale.

Because I was willing and eager to put him on television with the care and attention to
detail that his high standards require, he has, out of gratitude, refused to accept any
kind of payment for the master classes he has given me. One day I clumsily produced a
beautiful gold coin I had bought for him which he accepted as a present only when I
insisted that I would throw it into the Hudson River if he didn’t. He is a generous and
rare friend.

In the same way that no great dancer looks like any other great dancer, even though they
may be doing the same steps, no other magician looks anything like Slydini. You could
spot him in silhouette or shadow the way you can Astaire. His hands are legendary, and
he once told me part of the reason they have such a distinct look. He asked if I ever
noticed that he rarely moves both hands at once. "This hand goes around this-a way,
then this hand moves this-a way ... both hands at once looks flourishy."

When I ask magicians what they think his unique contribution is, they invariably say
that it is mastery of misdirection. You need only spend an hour trying to take a coin
from your hand convincingly (without taking it) to realize what a great artist he is. It’s as
if every hair and muscle is choreographed to bring about the total illusion. "To do this
simple thing perfectly," he says, "is the hardest thing I teach." I sometimes try to
imagine a mystified eavesdropper hearing, "No, no, your body knows it's in the other
hand" or, "Listen to the dollar that isn’t there ... your hand is ALIVE ... dead ... ALIVE ...
dead."

When he demonstrates the principle of ‘Shooting The Gun’—a sharp, thrusting gesture
coupled with a word, followed by a total relaxation during which the dirty work is done,
the entire art of misdirection is contained in these two simple gestures.

Laymen, of course, don’t have a chance, and I often regret that they don’t realize the
difficulty of what they’re seeing. For all they know a rubber band is pulling coins up his
sleeve. Sometimes I wish he would expose a trick on the air, so people would appreciate
what they are seeing. Once on a television show of mine he performed his classic "Paper
Balls in a Box." I asked a layman how he thought it was done and he said, "They
obviously came up through the table. There’s no other way." Tony chuckles at this sort of
thing, realizing it is, in fact, a compliment.

7
Earlier this year, the International Brotherhood of Magicians gave me their coveted
STAR OF MAGIC award for my "contributions to magic." Obviously, at least 95% of that
award was for bringing Slydini to the wider audience he deserves. Wherever he travels
in the world today, magicians proudly produce cherished tapes of his appearances with
me.

No book can ever be anything but an approximation of the man himself and his work,
but in Slydini’s case this is more than enough to be grateful for.

Dai Vernon once told me that he lives for those rare moments when he is still fooled.
They are sometimes years apart. I asked him who can still fool him. "Nobody," he said
regretfully, and then added, "Of course, Tony can."

Magic would be a much poorer art if Slydini had not existed. As a friend, teacher, and
artist, I wish he would go on forever.

Vive Slydini!

Dick Cavett
New York 1979

8
Dear Tony:

Nineteen years ago we met, Slydini. Do you recall the incident? It is one I can never
forget, for it was the most important event in our lives. Charlie had seen you perform in
Norwalk several years before and was so moved by the show that all I heard from then
on was, "If I could do just one trick like Slydini I would die a happy man!" He bought
hundreds of dollars worth of magic tricks a year, buying everything that came up for sale
but the lament was always the same.

And then that fateful night when he talked to you on the phone and realized that you
were coming down to star in the Installation Show and that you were coming in the
night before to stay at our house. He was so beside himself with excitement ... nothing
was good enough for his idol. New floor covering for the dining room, homemade wine
and new glasses to serve it in, and a special trip to Stamford to have spaghetti sauce
made because mine was not good enough.

How vivid is the memory of our first meeting with the first words out of my mouth
being, "I have just one thing to say to you. You had better be good or I will be the first
one to let you know about it." And your reply, "I’ll fool you once, and then I’ll fool you
again!" I couldn’t wait to get dinner over with so that I could see what was so great about
Slydini. All you had with you was one suitcase and a very small briefcase.

Oh, Lord, when I think of it!! The impact has lasted all these years! The very first effect
floored me. How many times during that night did I ask to have you do it again? I could

9
not believe what I was seeing. I remember Charlie looking at you that night and saying,
"Why couldn’t you have been my father?" And still it never entered his head to seek you
out for lessons. I don’t even think he realized that you taught! He took the course, and so
complete, so totally satisfying was it that he has never felt the need to go anywhere else.
He stopped the yearly purchases of tricks. He was content.

It is always with intense pride that our publicity always states that he is a student of
Slydini. It is with profound gratitude that I write this letter to our friend and teacher, for
it has not only been quite profitable financially, but has left us rich in confidence and the
knowledge that nowhere will we find better magic than that taught to him by Slydini.
Our Jeanne was not quite two years old when Charlie took the course and had been
brought up with her father doing much of the close-up learned from you. It wasn’t until
only a few years ago that we saw your lecture at Tannen’s get-together and I was not
surprised that she followed you from room to room as completely captivated as we had
been years before. She claims that the only person she has ever seen that was better than
her father was Slydini. To this I can only add Amen. There never was any secret about
the way I feel about the magic of Slydini. It is incomparable.

Sincerely and with much affection

Terry Cambro

10
Dear Slydini:

During my recent lesson with you I was able to read some letters from your other
students expressing their appreciation and they were beautifully written. As I began to
write my letter to you I was unable to find the words that I wanted to say. So I started
searching and still could find nothing. It was then that I realized I was searching in all
the wrong places. To write a letter of this nature, the words can only come from one’s
heard, and it is from one’s heart that makes a letter beautiful. So it is from my heart that
I now begin this letter.

It is with great honor and pride that I am able to write such a letter. So many people
know you as Slydini, Master of Misdirection, Master Magician, but I am truly proud to
know and call you friend. It has been through these past years as your student, that I
have gained the knowledge of timing, coordination and grace that truly makes magic an
art. With your persistence, patience, and unselfishness you developed me into the truest
form of a magician. I will always be in debt to you for what you have taught me.

It is my intention to pursue magic as a career and with a teacher such as yourself behind
me I have a good start. I have been performing magic professionally for about two years
and wherever I perform I receive applause which is always unforgettable. It is always at
this time that I know I have been taught by a master.

I believe that the best way to express my appreciation to you is by performing your
magic with excellence and grace so that you will be proud to call me your student, as I
am proud to call you my teacher.

Sincerely, John Lucich

11
I had the great fortune to start studying with the Master in December 1973 and have
been asked to write several comments about my teacher, the great Slydini.

Slydini is majestic simplicity.

He possesses psychological genius.

He possesses the ability to bring a student’s hidden ability and value to the surface, and
to aid greatly in the development of that ability.

He possesses warmth, kindness, and generosity of a rarely seen nature.

He possesses extreme concern for people and carries as his motto, "If you are happy, I
am happy."

He possesses the mind and ideas that have literally revolutionized entire branches of the
magical arts.

He possesses the mastery and knowledge of his art, that is totally unique and refreshing.

He possesses everyone with his magic. ...

Slydini is the "possessor."

Bill Wisch

12
It was in 1957 that I first met Slydini. At that time I was the owner of a dry-cleaning
plant. I had been doing small tricks since I was a child and had seen my first magician at
the Circus. However, coming from a small town, I had never met a magician and didn’t
know that you could.

In 1957 I hired Dick Bruch as a driver for my dry cleaning route. I found out that Dick
was a magician and had worked with Blackstone. He told me there was a place in New
York where you could buy all the magic you wanted.

This is where I first met Al Flosso. My first magic was bought there and Al Flosso and I
became very good friends. We then went to Tannen’s shop. I met Lou Tannen and asked
him about a scissors that he had in the showcase. He said he was out of it but that he
would send me to the inventor who lived nearby. This was Slydini.

I told Slydini I was interested in the scissors. He told me to come sit close to the table.
He took out a cigarette, broke it in half, and not more than one foot away from my
bulging eyes proceeded to put the cigarette back together again. Now I had seen tricks
before but this was the first time I had seen a miracle.

When Slydini told me that he could teach me to do the same thing I nearly fainted with
delight. I told him if I could do that one trick and never learn another one, I would be
thrilled. He said not only would I learn that one but many more and he then did the
coins through the table and other miracles.

13
I took my first lesson immediately and then made weekly trips to New York for many
months. I then proceeded to develop my own technique to fit my personality. To make
this short, I sold the dry cleaning business and have been a full professional for ten
years. Since I have been very busy I do not see my dear friend Slydini as often as I would
like but he knows that every time I put on my tails and start my act, I thank Slydini for
making me what I dreamed of being since I was six years of age (a real magician), and
most important, giving me the confidence to believe it myself when performing.

Best wishes to my friend Slydini

Scalzo

14
Dear Tony:

It has been some time since I took lessons from you, and throughout all these years I
have thought of putting down on paper what this has meant to me and how it has
influenced my life.

At the time we met in Boston, I was already doing magic, but after seeing you perform, I
appreciated the difference between the magic I had seen before and the quality of your
performance. Then and there, I decided that this was the kind of magic I wanted to do. I
was very fortunate that you accepted me as one of your students, and the personal
interest that you took in my progress.

As I think back, I recall what I went through and the many details that are so important
to accomplish your magic. The precision of your teaching methods made this an
enjoyable task. I still remember the process of learning the fine touches of presentation,
the precision of your misdirection, the psychology of the routining, and finally, the
gratification of mastering all these phases, which combined, create the incomparable
illusion of your magic.

The routines that I learned from you have been kept intact in my repertoire and have
entertained many audiences. One of my most memorable experiences was Fu-Man-
Chu’s (the late David Bamberg) reaction of excitement when I performed "the magic of
Slydini" for him and his group in Buenos Aires, Argentina. I could not help but feel
honored to be the representative of your magic on such an occasion.

15
The principles of your teachings have influenced everything I have done throughout the
ensuing years, and in all my presentations there is the clear evidence of Slydini's
magnificent touch.

I do not want to close without saying thank you for the unique experience of having been
your student, and for the honor of being your friend.

With all sincerity

Abel Pabon

16
Dear Tony:

I would never have thought that the "Louis Tannen Jubilee" could have been such a
rewarding experience for me. At the convention I came to realize the true meaning of the
art of magic. I was able to see the beauty of magic through your eyes, the eyes of the
"artist." Since that time, it has been my greatest ambition to learn your techniques and
gain your wisdom.

I deeply appreciate all the time you have dedicated to me. I feel that my life has been
greatly enriched by this experience. I now have gained confidence, grace, and an even
deeper desire to pursue the art of magic.

Thank you for your continued help. I shall try to follow your example by bringing
happiness to people through the wonderful world of magic.

Sincerely yours,

J. P. Laramee

17
We all dream, everyone of us, and it is said to think how many of us will never see our
dreams come true. If, in our lifetime we could meet a person who could teach us all the
things we would need to know to make our dreams come true, it would be a most
wonderful thing. It would be a gift for which we would be forever grateful.

In my lifetime I have met such a person; his name is Slydini.

I can recall the first time I ever saw him, the first move I ever did for him. I remember
his expression as he watched me, the way he smiled knowingly then rubbed his hands
together and encouraged me to begin again. That encouragement, the almost fatherly
criticism, and most of all the patience has never ceased all the years I have known him.

Each time I see him, each time I watch him perform, it is as if I am seeing him for the
first time. The wonderment of his being and his magic never stop.

I recall kindness upon kindness as he helped me to gain confidence in myself and my

work. I remember how I would miss him when he was away and the good feeling I
would get when he called to say he was home again. I remember the stories he would tell
me, and the pictures he would show of places I dreamed to go.

I remember the first suit I ever bought, just to perform in. It was paid for from the
money I earned doing chores he found for me to do.

I remember the first check I received for a professional appearance and how proud I felt
when I handed it to my wife.

I know that if I can learn to be as fine a person as he is, my dreams will come true.

How can you ever thank a person who has given you the opportunity to truly enjoy your
life? I do it by saying that I love and respect him, and will all the days of my life.

Dennis Barlotta

18
Dear Tony:

At last I have the opportunity to write this long overdue letter of sincere thanks.

Recalling the many trips from Hartford, Conn. to New York, by train, as a young man to
study magic under the legendary Slydini, I can honestly say it was a most rewarding
experience and the best decision of my career. The lessons were exciting and extremely
knowledgeable.

How can I ever thank you for giving me the most memorable days of my life? I confess I
felt sad when they came to an end.

Perhaps the greatest gift of all is the friendship and kindness you extended and continue
to extend to the present day. Instead of growing apart as with most teacher-student
relationships, we’ve grown closer. I consider it a privilege and count myself lucky to have
such a friend. My respect and admiration are absolute, my sincerity unquestionable.

As a young man I had a dream. Thank you for making it a reality. Where once my magic
was ordinary, commonplace, and mediocre, today it has style, beauty, and grace. And
today, after countless shows, after thousands of compliments, I still feel the same thrill
whenever I see or hear the name Slydini. I am proud to have been a student. Thanks for
allowing me to become a minute part in the legend of Slydini.

Respectfully,

Richard Sullivan (Cellini)

19
Once upon a time there was a young man who took life and what God had given him for
granted. This went on for some time. Then an untimely accident occurred. This young
man was in a car with some friends when the car went out of control at 100 miles an
hour. The car hit a telephone pole and flew over the trees about 40 feet in the air, and
then down a 40-foot cliff. He wound up in the hospital with two broken legs and a
broken nose, which left him laid up for four years because of many complications.

During this time of healing he was touched by the magic bug. He started out doing
magic like every other magician ... cards, coins, cups and balls, etc. He became just
another magician in the crowd until he saw a magician do something that sent shivers
up his spine. He did not know what this was because it was not regular magic. It was as
if God had bestowed a gift on this magician and only on him. This man with the special
gift was Mr. Slydini. But God did not stop with giving him one gift of beautiful magic.
God also bestowed on him the virtues of love for all human beings, charity, common
sense, and the ability to teach. Every art or craft has one genius within its ranks. Mr.
Slydini is that genius of magic and has been for decades.

This young man found himself having a very hard time sleeping at night. This went on
for sometime until he decided to try to get in touch with this genius of magic. He called
Mr. Slydini and found out that he was a warm and kind human being ... this genius who
sits on top of the world came down and built up this young man and others and brought
them to the top of the world with him.

So this young man went from Cleveland, Ohio to New York to start learning. But after a
short time he ran out of funds and had to go home. Then God looked down on him and
smiled. Good things started to come his way. One day he received a letter from the state

20
of Ohio. Through this letter he was able to go back and take lessons from Mr. Slydini.
Yes, the state of Ohio decided to let him go to New York and take lessons all expenses
paid. At this time Mr. Slydini started his miracle-working, taking this mere magician
and turning him into an accomplished magician.

This young man’s name is Fred Gray. I would like to say this to Mr. Slydini: There is so
much I feel toward this man that I cannot put it into words. Little did I know that after
taking lessons with Mr. Slydini it would change my life forever. So, I would like to thank
you very much for everything you have done for me.

Love,

Fred Gray (The Saint)

21
Dear Tony:

As a student who was fortunate to begin study with Slydini at age 15, I am grateful for
my father’s love, who afforded his son the opportunity to pursue his dreams of curious
youth, and to Slydini whose love for his students, his art, and humanity made those
dreams more than a reality. Lessons with Slydini were always subject to my father's
condition that I maintain successful grade averages in the more traditional areas of
study. The irony is that a thorough pursuit of his works facilitates the mastering of other
subjects by virtue of the transferability of his meticulous method of approach and
analysis.

Slydini is in one sense a man whose message of life is articulated through performances
and teaching—but these aspects are but the polished product of his incredible ability to
understand and perceive those psychological variables of humanity which transcend
conscious thinking. The power of Slydini as a magician is derived from his genius to
transform those variables into the mechanics of a magical effect. If we as magicians and
friends of his can think of him as teaching his notions of psychology and philosophy
through magic, just as Socrates taught through questioning, Slydini’s works then
become capable of universal application not only to all magicians regardless of style, but
moreover, to all human endeavors. In other words, the mastering of even one of his
effects cannot occur without developing a heightened sensitivity to underlying aspects of
human interaction. Once developed, such sensitivity becomes integrated into the
student’s personality and is useful in all human encounters, not just between the
magician and his audience.

22
Certainly any discussion of Slydini involves a number of complexities difficult to make
clear. But after a period of time spent as his student, if it can be said that the true test of
a teacher is that his wisdom should transcend his subject matter, that test has clearly
been met.

The subject matter of my lessons with Slydini has encompassed mostly close-up work.
At a number of magicians’ affairs, he has presented me as his student for performance of
certain effects. For me there could be no greater honor.

It is from this student’s love for Slydini that flows the emotion that is required to
perform his work with beauty and grace, and from that emotion stems the confidence to
continue his art’s challenge.

Philip T. Varricchio

23
Once upon a time there was a wizard. This wizard, called The Great Wizard by many,
was very special. He was not like all the other wizards who were only clever people
skilled in the magical arts, and who performed only the ordinary feats of conjuring using
the usual magical secrets known to all wizards. Unlike these other wizards, who spent
countless years studying and training ultimately to perform only tricks of illusion and
sleight of hand, The Great Wizard was born with the genius of creation. He could
conceive new and wonderous things for he was given two very special magical
influences; a mystical transforming power over inanimate objects, and a spellbinding
aura over the people who witnessed his miracles.

IN the beginning, The Great Wizard might have used his forces in many ways, for good
or for evil. But seeing that there was much unrest among his fellow men, he chose to use
his God-given power to promote goodwill, to entertain, to make people happy and to
share with others the secrets of his ways.

SOON, a decree went forth to all the peoples of the Earth that The Great Wizard had
come and that he truly is the Father of Modern Close-Up Magic. Books were written,
teachings were given, the lectures were performed, all spreading the magic of The Great
Wizard. Thousands of wizards flocked about him to learn his captivating mysteries. Yet
from this vast multitude of faithful followers, The Great Wizard has honored only a
select few as true apprentices with whom he has chosen to share his deepest and most
cherished secrets. Upon them, he bestowed the fundamental techniques and concepts
that are inherent in the intricate lattice of The Great Wizard’s style: Philosophy, grace,
confidence, psychology, timing, precision, and creativity.

BUT most of all, to this wizard’s apprentice, The Great Wizard has been a spark of
inspiration. His kindness, his gentleness, his thoughtfulness, and his sincerity have
touched me. Because of him I have found new and untold horizons in my life. I shall
strive to do my best in his honor ... always. Thank you Great Wizard, Slydini.

Love, Palmer

24
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 Introduction
Slydini’s contributions to the art of close-up magic are so profound and far-reaching
that he has influenced every aspect of close-up work. His theories and approaches are
considered so fundamental to contemporary close-up magic that they are the most
widely used techniques in the world. Jacob Daley pointed out that although the use of
the lap "as a stratagem in magical performances was described in The Discoverie of
Witchcraft" in 1584, it was Slydini who revived interest in the concept, and Slydini who
"mystified hundreds of magicians by utilizing this stratagem and has literally floored
them with apparently impossible effects." In the same way Slydini’s other theories have
not only revived interest in techniques associated with close-up magic, but they have
shown some of the staggering effects which can be achieved with these techniques.

In this book you will find many Slydini close-up classics with coins, cards, sponge balls,
salt, sugar, the torn napkin corner, and the ring on the string. All have been developed
over a period of many years and all bear the distinct Slydini stamp of magic done in a
casual, natural manner without cover or awkward moves.

But there is another side to the Slydini creative talent that is not generally recognized,
and that has to do with his achievement in the area of stage magic. Indeed, Slydini has
said that if there is to be a third book, it would deal only with stage magic. For decades
Slydini has entertained and astounded thousands of people with his spectacular stage
act. He has developed his own theories about stage magic, his approach is uniquely his
own, yet his theories are so sound that he has started dozens of stage magicians on their
way to successful careers in this field.

This book describes in great detail the nucleus of the Slydini stage act, from the
Sympathetic Silks to the Rope routines, to the Torn Newspaper, to the finale, Slydini’s
spectacular version of the Linking Rings. During the course of the step-by-step
instructions for these routines you will find out why the routines are structured the way
they are, why certain moves are done at certain times, and why the tricks have such a
tremendous effect on any audience.

If you are an amateur magician seeking to make the transition to semi-pro or fulltime
professional status, you know that you don’t stand a chance of making it unless you have
a standup act. You also know that quality standup material is the hardest to find,
especially in books and magazines catering to a largely amateur audience. It should
therefore be of particular interest to you to know that almost all of Slydini’s famous
platform/stage act is included in this book. It does not contain the barehanded
production of silks, but everything else from the opening effect to Linking Rings, is
included and in great detail.

The reader will find occasional references to the first book, The Best of Slydini ... and
More. Where practical, the details have been included here, but in some cases the
original text and photos are of such length that they could not reasonably be included in
this book. In particular, the reader should note that the standard Slydini encore stage

30
trick, "The Paper Balls Over The Head," is described in complete (one might say,
"lavish") detail in the first book. The reader who has The Best of Slydini ... and More as
well as The Magical World of Slydini possesses all of the fundamental secrets of the
great close-up and stage tricks of this century. If you doubt the truth of this, consider
that the impact Slydini achieves is accomplished without special props, assistants, trap
doors or any of the other paraphernalia associated with magic acts. It is natural magic at
its best.

Not mentioned thus far is Chapter Seven, the treatise on the Slydini Silk Knots. Slydini
has presented the silk knot routine for close- up audiences, and he has performed the
identical routine from the platform and stage. The impact is exactly the same in any
case. Starting from what must be the simplest premise in magic, Slydini builds on the
basic plot, extracting humor and mystery from the natural ingredients of the routine,
elaborating on the premise until the trick becomes so impossible, so far beyond rational
explanation, that the final sequence is greeted with thunderous applause from the
audience.

***

Since every Slydini trick is greeted with superlatives, magicians who have not seen him
work may be inclined to wonder if the praise is really justified. After all, they reason, no
one could be that good. There is an interesting answer to this matter, and it is contained
in the testimonial letters included in this volume. (There are dozens more— probably
hundreds—but space does not permit including more than a small fraction of them
here.)

Every successful magician is praised for his work. Comment usually centers on a man’s
stage presence, his choice of tricks, amusing patter, skillful pantomime, flawless moves
and steals, terrific sleight-of-hand ability, excellent use of volunteer assistants from the
audience, and so on. All of these superlatives apply to Slydini, but they are not really the
subject of the testimonial letters in this volume.

In each case, those who have commented on Slydini refer in part to his work, but mainly
to his character, his warmth, the quality and integrity of his personality. This is not
unique among his students and friends. I have been with Slydini when he appeared on
television and in public shows. After doing one TV show, Slydini was backstage when the
producer approached him, shook his hand and said, "I’ve been in this business twenty-
five years and I have respect for only two people, Harpo Marx and you." At the same TV
show, people who filed past to shake Slydini’s hand or asked for his autograph, thanked
him for the privilege of seeing him work. Because he is able to project his unique
personality across the footlights, Slydini is admired, respected and even loved by
audiences who see him perform. So, to answer those who ask if Slydini is really that
good, it is probably most accurate to say he is so good that it is not possible to convey
the appropriate superlatives in print.

***

31
In 1974 preliminary discussions were held on the subject of a book of Slydini’s magic.
The idea was simple. Slydini would explain his theories and routines, I would write them
down, Art Manfredi would take the necessary photographs, and Tannen’s would finance
the book. It is safe to say that no one realized at that time how complex the task would
be, nor how much time and money would be expended during the next five years. In
short order the project began to develop into an enormously complicated undertaking. It
was decided in 1975 that The Book would have to be divided into The Two Books if we
were going to go about the task in anything like a practical way.

Those five years included countless hours of commuting through rain and snow,
thousands of hours of writing and analyzing, dozens of all-day sessions at the
photography studio, more hours reviewing and correcting text and reshooting photo
sequences, an exhaustive schedule for all concerned. By way of one small example, at
one point, blurred with fatigue, I typed an "r" instead of an "f," with the result that the
text appeared as Slydini’s Table Shirt. For an hour we discussed the "Table Shirt,"
neither of us realizing the mistake. Finally, Slydini paused and quietly asked, "What’s
this about a shirt?"

Ultimately, the reason why The Best of Slydini ... and More and The Magical World of
Slydini exist is because of Slydini’s willingness to impart the exact details of his famous
work onto the printed page, and Tannen’s willingness to take on the financial
responsibility to publish this work. The resultant four volumes, two of text and two of
photos, comprise The Slydini Library, the most complete investigation yet on the
creative work of a single individual in magic.

Karl Fulves
June 4, 1979

32
33
 1
Close-Up Miracles
There is no question that Slydini is the most influential figure in Close-Up Magic in this
century. His theories and concepts, his ingenious use of Psychology and Misdirection,
combine to produce natural magic of the highest order. To see him work is to see the
nearest thing yet to real magic. His highly developed theories are neatly balanced by a
quiet, charming manner. The air of innocence ("Me? Fool you? Impossible!") and soft-
spoken sense of humor are totally disarming. When this quiet, unassuming fellow
proceeds to do miracles, the audience is left dumbstruck.

The soundness of Slydini’s theories can be proven by the fact that they work equally well
with any apparatus. Whether he uses a coin or a sponge ball, a piece of rope or a
cigarette, two silks or two linking ropes, Slydini, working within the system that is his
own creation, entertains and astounds his audiences with the ease of the true virtuoso.

Anyone reading this book can gain an insight into the true structure of Magic by
studying the way Slydini develops close-up tricks. The routines in this chapter are a
good starting point because they are tied together by a common thread. The routines
concern themselves with the vanish or reappearance of an object, or with the secret
switch of one object for another. These are fundamental concepts that date back to the
dawn of Magical history, but note that in every case, and without exception anywhere in
this book, the vanish or switch occurs without awkward covering moves.

All of the handling seems open and honest. That is the hallmark of Slydini's work; there
appears to be no room for a move or a switch. There seems to be no chance for the
magician to get ahead of the spectator, yet Slydini is ahead almost from the beginning.
There is little or nothing in the way of sleights in the tricks in this chapter. Almost
always in Slydini’s work it is a matter of handling rather than sleights, and almost
always the result is a kind of natural magic that can’t really be approached by sleights.

The reader will gain much by reading the effect of each trick, then devising a method
that he thinks would be adequate. Only after this should the reader go on to read
Slydini’s method. The difference should come as a revelation.

Sweet Salt

In all of his work Slydini constantly reviews tricks and approaches to streamline them,
making perfect tricks that much more perfect. If you see him perform a routine, and a
month later you see him perform the same routine, chances are that there will be
differences. "Sweet Salt" is a case in point. Although the basic routine has been in the
Slydini repertoire for many years, he continues to tinker with the working. What follows
is the latest and best handling of an excellent close-up trick.

34
From an ordinary salt shaker a quantity of salt is poured into the spectator’s hand. He
verifies that it is salt by the simple expedient of tasting it. Then the salt is poured into
the magician’s hand. The magician closes his hand and opens it. The salt has vanished.

The performer now makes a "catching" motion with the other hand. The salt has
reappeared in this hand and is poured into the spectator’s hand. This is impressive
enough, but the spectator then discovers that the salt has changed to sugar!

Requirements

You will need an ordinary salt shaker plus a simple gimmick that makes the trick easy to
perform. The gimmick is a tube made from cardboard or wrapping paper. The tube is
about 3 inches long. When Slydini makes up a tube, he takes a length of gummed paper
used to seal packages and wraps it around a pencil two or three times. The paper is
moistened as it is wrapped around the pencil.

The cardboard tube is then removed and one end sealed with paper or cork. The result is
an open-topped tube measuring about 3 inches in length and about a half-inch in
diameter. The tube is filled with sugar and the top closed with a cork plug. The gimmick
is shown in Photo 1 with the cork plug removed.

1 2

The gimmick is carried in the pocket until you are ready to perform the trick. Then you
remove the cork plug and place the gimmick in the lap, Photo 2, with the open side
pointing to the left.

Performance

1. The trick is best performed in a restaurant as an after-dinner trick because the salt
shaker will be conveniently available. Also, done with a borrowed salt shaker in a
restaurant or someone’s home, the trick appears to be completely impromptu,
something you just thought of. Approached this way, the end result looks like a genuine
mystery.

35
2. Ask the spectator if you may have the loan of his hand. Slydini usually phrases this
with a smile, turning to a spectator on his left, "May I have your hand?" The spectator
extends his hand as shown in Photo 3. Then Slydini grasps it loosely with his left hand to
keep the spectator’s hand in place. This point in the routine is indicated in Photo 3.

3 4

3. With the right hand unscrew the cap from the salt shaker. You may have a spectator
on the right unscrew the cap, or you may do it yourself before the trick begins. Then say,
"We pour some salt here." Pour a quantity of salt into the spectator’s right hand, Photo
4. The exact amount is left to individual judgment. It should be an amount that is about
equal to the amount of sugar in the gimmick.

4. Replace the salt shaker on the table, Photo 5. "Taste it to make sure it’s salt." As you
say this, gesture by extending your right first finger toward the salt and then placing the
finger to the lips, Photo 6.

5 6

5. The spectator dips his left first finger into the salt, Photo 7, and tastes it. Have him
verbally confirm that it is salt. If spectators are seated around the table, Slydini says, "I
want you to be sure, too." He takes a pinch of salt and gives a few grains to each of
several spectators at the table, Photos 8, 9, and 10.

6. Slydini brushes the remaining salt from his hand, Photo 11, as he says, "It’s salt,
right?" The spectators verify that it’s salt.

36
 7 8

9 10

11 12

7. "Please pour the salt into my hand." Point to the palm-up left hand so the spectator
knows where he is to pour the salt. He then pours the salt into your left hand, Photo 12.

8. "Thank you." As you say this, sit back in the chair, bringing the left hand naturally
back to the edge of the table. The back of the left hand rests at the edge of the table,
Photo 13, as you set up for the Slydini Revolve Vanish.

37
 13 14

9. "Now ..." Slydini turns his hand to a palm-down condition, Photos 14, 15, 16, 17, and
simultaneously laps the salt as the left hand closes into a fist. The word "Now" is said
just as the left hand reaches the position of Photo 18.

15 16

17 18

10. There is an important detail in the handling at this point. It is typical of the micro-
fine attention to detail that Slydini invests in all his work. The left hand is extended
away from the body at this point. The right hand is going to wave over the left hand and
then drop to the lap. But if the right hand actually waved over the left hand at this point,

38
the right hand would be close to the center of the table and therefore too far from the
table edge to drop directly down into the lap.

So, to get the right hand into proper position without hesitation or awkward moves later
on, you set things up by this simple but effective expedient. As the right hand begins to
move up to the left hand, move the left hand back toward the body and out to the left.
This is shown in the Photo sequence 19 and 20.

19 20

11. The right hand moves toward the left with the right fingers kept closed, Photo 20.
Open the right fingers as you wave the right hand at the left hand, Photo 21. Pause, drop
the right hand straight down to the lap, Photo 22, then immediately bring the right hand
up into view and wave it at the left hand again, Photo 23.

21 22

12. The body backs up away from the table. As soon as the right hand stops waving at the
left hand, it drops straight down to a rest position in the lap.

13. Since part of the method comes in at this point, it is necessary to see this action from
the magician’s point of view. After the right hand waves at the left hand the second time,
Photo 24, it drops straight down to the lap, Photo 25.

39
 23 24

25 26

14. The right fingers immediately curl around the gimmick. The gimmick is grasped
between the right thumb and first finger, near the open end. The right second finger
pushes the bottom end of the gimmick so it is against the right palm. The gimmick is
then held in place between the right palm and the right thumb as the right hand moves
up into view again, Photo 26. The action of the palm from Photo 24 through Photo 26 is
instantaneous. The palm itself is the Slydini version of a cigarette palm.

15. The right hand is waved at the left hand again. Then the left hand is extended over
the spectator’s outstretched right hand, Photo 27.

27 28

40
Before proceeding, it is wise to look at this from the spectator’s point of view. All
attention is on the performer’s left hand at this point. The audience thinks there is a
quantity of salt in the left hand. Actually the left hand is empty and there is a quantity of
sugar in the right hand. Thus, from the point of view of the method, the trick is over,
whereas from the audience point of view, the trick hasn’t really begun yet. This
exemplifies the Slydini approach; using natural actions, he moves far ahead of you in the
very preliminary phases of the routine.

16. Slydini says, "Give me your hand" as the action of Step 15 is performed. He then
opens his left hand. The spectator expects salt to pour out, but the salt has vanished,
Photo 28. The vanish is startling and most people will think the trick is over at this
point.

17. "That’s all." Slydini drops both hands on the tabletop away from the edge of the table
for a moment. The hands drop to a rest position. Then he reaches up, Photo 29, with the
right hand, back of the hand to the spectators. The left hand simultaneously drops to the
lap, Photo 30.

29 30

31 32

18. The back of the right hand is toward the spectator, but note in Photo 30 that because
of the way the gimmick is palmed, the right fingers are spread wide apart. The right
hand closes into a fist, Photo 31. Apparently the salt has reappeared. Pause, then pour
the salt into the spectator’s outstretched left hand, Photos 32 and 33.

41
 33 34

19. The gimmick is shown in the exposed view of Photo 34. When all of the salt is in the
spectator’s hand, the performer’s hands drop to a rest position at the edge of the table,
Photo 35, long enough for the right hand to release the gimmick. The gimmick falls into
the lap. The right fingers don’t move; they simply release pressure, allowing the
gimmick to fall to the lap.

35 36

20. The hands raise, palms up, Photo 36, as you say, "That’s all." Pause here because it
isn’t quite all. Say, "Taste it." The spectator does and is amazed to discover that the salt
has changed to sugar!

Important Note

In performing this routine Slydini will sometimes delay the finish, producing the illusion
that the substance poured into the spectator’s hand is indeed salt. It is a convincing
illusion produced in a clever and subtle way.

After the supposed salt is poured into the spectator’s hand in Photo 34, Slydini’s right
hand drops to a rest position in his lap. He gets rid of the gimmick, but he takes a pinch
of salt between right thumb and first finger.

42
The right hand is brought up into view. At the same time the left hand grasps the
spectator’s outstretched hand to hold it in place. The right hand pretends to take a pinch
of salt from the spectator’s hand. He then places a few grains into the hands of two or
three spectators seated at the table, inviting them to taste it. Of course, they taste salt
and will say so.

Slydini says, "Salt, right?" to each spectator. After each agrees, he sits back and says,
"No. Sugar." This elevates the trick to the impossible category, since the substance in the
spectator’s hand changed from salt to sugar while it was in his hand and in full view of
the audience.

Sugar Express

This is one of the simplest tricks Slydini does. Whenever he is in a restaurant with
friends, he will borrow a packet of sugar and then perform an astounding trick with the
sugar. As simple as the trick is, and despite the fact that it is impromptu, it has a
tremendous effect on the audience.

The effect is this. In a restaurant you ask the person sitting across from you to pick up a
packet of sugar and hand it to you. You tear it open and pour the sugar into his hand.
Then he pours it back into your hand. You close the hand and turn it palm-down. The
empty sugar packet is placed on the back of the hand.

At your command, the loose sugar penetrates back up through the hand to a position
inside the sugar packet from whence it came. At the finish the sugar is poured from
inside the packet.

Sometimes Slydini will be asked to repeat this trick at a later date, for people who have
already seen it or heard about it. Instead of doing this trick, though, he will do "Sweet
Salt," the opening trick in this chapter. If one of the spectators says that the last time he
did the trick, Slydini used sugar, Slydini will smile at the finish of "Sweet Salt" and say,
"It is sugar." This is the point where the spectators taste the alleged salt and discover
that it has changed to sugar.

The tricks may be used in this way or they may be used following one another.

Preparation

When you are seated at the table place a handkerchief in the lap. An easy way to arrange
this is to remove the handkerchief from the trouser pocket, wipe the hands and pretend
to return it to the pocket. Really the handkerchief is left on the lap. It should be folded
so a ridge or channel is formed in it. This ridge is to aid in holding a sugar packet
upright.

During the course of the meal it is an easy matter to cop a sugar packet without being
noticed. Secretly tear the top off the packet, Photo 37. Open the packet by squeezing the
sides, Photo 38. Then place the sugar packet into the ridge so it is upright or vertical,

43
Photo 39. If no handkerchief is available, you can arrange the sugar packet in a fold of
the tablecloth as indicated in Photo 40. The sugar packet can also be clipped between
the legs. The intent is to keep it in an upright condition to set up for an instantaneous
switch later on.

37 38

39 40

Obviously there is no need to carry the prepared sugar packet with you. When you are in
a restaurant, unobtrusively take a sugar packet, tear off the top and position it in the
handkerchief. Done casually, it will not attract attention.

Presentation

1. Start by asking the spectator across from you, "May I have a packet of sugar?" Gesture
toward the sugar bowl on the table as you talk. Make it plain without saying so that your
hands are empty.

2. When Slydini gets the sugar packet, he will lap the table with it, saying (with a smile),
"Attention, attention. I want to show you something special." If people at the table are
talking or otherwise distracted, Slydini doesn’t begin the trick until they have quieted
down.

3. Display the sugar packet as shown in Photo 41. Then say, "May I have your hand?"
Address this comment to someone on the left.

44
 41 42

4. "Watch closely." Tear off the end of the packet, Photo 42, and deposit the torn end
into an ashtray, Photo 43. Note that the fingers are wide apart, emphasizing that except
for the visible sugar packet, the hands are empty.

43 44

5. With the spectator’s hand palm-up, pour the sugar out of the packet and into his palm
as shown in Photo 44. Transfer the now-empty packet to the left hand momentarily. The
right forefinger snaps the packet to emphasize it is empty, Photo 45. Sometimes Slydini
will hold the packet up to the light as he says, "You can see for yourself that it is empty."

45 46

45
6. Take back the packet into the right hand, clipped between the first and second fingers,
Photo 46. Although laymen are unaware of it, this is the starting point for what will be
an instantaneous switch later on.

7. The right hand now assumes the position of Photo 47, as you say, "Taste it. See if it’s
really sugar.".

47 48

8. As you speak, gesture with the right hand, Photo 48. You have just said, "See if it’s
really sugar." As soon as you finish the word "sugar," the right hand freezes (the
shooting-the-gun theory described in The Best of Slydini ... and More, p. 38). Then the
right hand drops straight down to the rest position in the lap, Photo 49.

49 50

9. This is where the switch comes into play and it follows the Leave-And-Take theory. As
the right hand goes to the lap, do not think of leaving the empty sugar packet behind.
Rather, grasp the prepared sugar packet between the right thumb and forefinger as you
think "Take." The empty packet is simply left behind. A stop-action exposed view of the
switch is shown in Photo 50.

10. The full packet, after it is grasped between the thumb and forefinger, is immediately
brought up into view, Photo 51. Say, "Take your time." Again gesture with the right hand
as you speak.

46
 51 52

11. Drop the right hand to the rest position on the table, Photo 52.

12. Now say, "May I have the sugar?" Extend your left hand palm-up, Photo 53, allowing
the spectator to pour the sugar into your left palm.

53 54

55 56

13. Bring the left hand back to the edge of the table, allowing the back of the left hand to
rest on the tabletop, Photo 54. You now perform the Revolve Vanish. As the hand turns
palm-down and closes into a fist, you lap the sugar, causing it to fall secretly into the

47
handkerchief. The position of the left hand as it moves to a full palm-down position is
shown in Photo 55.

14. Both hands are now raised at the same time. The right hand places the supposedly
empty sugar packet on the back of the closed left hand, Photo 56. Say to the spectator,
"Now ...."

15. "... I’m going to put the empty packet on top." Raise the hand, Photo 57. "The sugar
will go through the hand and into the packet."

57 58

16. Gesture to the left hand with the right hand, Photo 58, and say, "Do you think it’s
possible to pass the sugar through the hand and into the bag?" The spectator will say,
"No." Open the left hand, Photo 59, as you dramatically show it to be empty.

59 60

17. Remove the packet from the back of the left hand, Photo 60, extend it to the
spectator, Photo 61, and pour the sugar into his hand, Photo 62.

The same trick can be done with a match packet. You tear out the matches and close the
empty packet. Hold the packet in the right hand. The matches are placed in the
spectator’s hand, then poured back into your left hand. Close the left hand and turn it
palm down. Place the empty packet on top of the left hand. On command the matches
leave the left hand and assemble back inside the packet. The handling is, of course, the

48
same as already described. If you devote attention to the details of the handling, you will
always be able to perform an amazing trick that will be remembered.

61 62

Encore Sponge Balls

Classically simple in plot, this routine can be used by itself or as a follow-up to Slydini’s
famous "Purse Frame" routine (The Best of Slydini ... and More, p. 54). As seen by the
audience, four sponge balls vanish, then reappear one at a time. The routine can be done
any time in a sequence of close-up tricks as there is nothing to set up. There are no
gimmicks and no extra sponge balls.

Slydini’s handling is a lesson of economy and smoothness, strong misdirection and

psychology, all combining to produce a completely deceptive routine. Study the
handling, and particularly the throw-offs and subtle touches, because this routine is a
model of how to fool the mind as well as the eye. The basic secret is Slydini’s handling of
what has become known as the pop-up move, but note the unusual and deceptive
application of the concept.

63 64

1. Start with four sponge balls on the table, Photo 63. Slydini’s introductory patter is to
the effect that he would like to show the audience something a bit different. "The first
sponge," he says. Slydini picks up the sponge ball on the right and displays it, Photo 64.

49
The sponge is then placed on top of the left fist, Photo 65. Note that the body has turned
slightly to the left as the sponge ball is deposited on top of the left fist.

2. The left hand is just clear of the tabletop in Photo 65. In other words, if the left hand
were to drop straight down, it would drop to the lap without contacting the edge of the
table. The left first finger is curled in a bit more than the other left fingers. The ball
actually rests on top of the left middle finger, with the left first finger curled around the
base of the sponge ball.

65 66

3. The right first finger pushes the ball down, as if into the left fist, Photo 65. The right
thumb helps in apparently stuffing the sponge into the left hand, Photo 66. Actually the
sponge is pushed into the space formed by the top of the left middle finger and the left
first finger.

4. The right fingers also help to apparently stuff the sponge ball into the left hand, Photo
67. At this point the ball is completely held in place by the left middle finger at the
bottom, the first finger curled around the sponge ball, and the left thumb on top.

67 68

5. The right hand now moves away in a highly suspicious manner, Photo 68, as if it
awkwardly palms the sponge ball. Then with a smile Slydini turns the right hand so the
palm is toward the audience, Photo 69. "No, it’s here," he says, as he points to the left
hand, Photo 70.

50
 69 70

6. Pick up the second ball, Photo 71, as you say, "The second sponge." Pretend to place it
on top of the left fist as you did the first ball. The situation from the audience’s view is
shown in Photo 72. It is here that you enact the pop-up move.

71 72

7. What actually happens is that you bring the right hand over to the left and almost
place the second sponge on top of the left fist as shown in the exposed view of Photo 73.
The right hand allows its sponge to contact the fingernail of the left first finger. Then
this sponge is pushed back into a right-hand palm position, Photo 74.

73 74

51
8. At the same time the left thumb and forefinger release pressure on the compressed
sponge. This sponge pops up, concealed by the back of the right hand. An exposed view
is given in Photo 74.

9. The right hand moves away in a sweeping motion, sweeping down to the table’s edge,
Photo 75, and allowing its sponge to drop into the lap. The release of the sponge ball is
done by relaxing pressure on the palmed sponge, but the fingers do not move apart.
Also, there must be no hesitation as the right hand sweeps to the right. You can’t move
the right hand down to the edge of the table, stop to lap the sponge ball, then continue to
move the right hand to the right. The right hand must move to the right in a smooth,
continuous motion. The right hand continues to move to the right, Photo 76, and up and
away from the edge of the table, Photo 77. All attention is on the sponge ball in the left
hand. The audience thinks that this is the second sponge.

75 76

77 78

10. The visible sponge is pushed down into the left fist in exactly the same way as the
first sponge was handled. That is, the sponge is compressed into the space between the
top of the left second finger and the curled first finger. When it has been fully
compressed, the sponge is held in place by the left thumb.

11. The sequence showing the lapping of the second sponge ball is shown in the exposed
views of Photos 78, 79, and 80. The right hand, holding the palmed ball, moves down

52
toward the edge of the table, Photo 78, releases the ball, Photo 79, and then moves up
away from the edge of the table, Photo 80.

79 80

12. The right hand now picks up the third sponge ball from the table.

13. Handle the third sponge, and the fourth, exactly the way you did with the second
sponge. After the apparent fourth sponge ball has been pushed into the left fist, the
empty right hand starts to wave over the closed left fist. The right hand moves in a
clockwise fashion over the top of the left fist, Photo 81. The left hand releases its sponge.
This sponge pops up and is secretly taken into the right palm and stolen away. The left
fist remains closed. The right hand moves down to the table edge, Photos 82 and 83, and
laps the final ball.

81 82

14. Slydini pushes the right thumb into the left fist as if compressing the four sponge
balls, Photo 84. Then he suddenly opens the hand, Photo 85, and shows that all four
sponge balls have vanished.

53
 83 84

85 86

Phase Two: The Recovery

Here the sponge balls will reappear one at a time in a manner that is magical and
amusing. The four sponges are in the lap at this point.

15. With the hands still in the position of Photo 85, lean back so that the left hand is
behind the edge of the table. This means that the left hand is free to fall straight down to
the lap.

16. The hands now move to a rest position. The right hand drops straight down to the
table and the left hand drops straight down to the lap, Photo 86.

17. The left hand grasps two sponges and pinches them between the first and second
fingers. Say, "That’s all." Gesture with the right hand as you speak, Photo 87. It is
important to understand the theory here. When Slydini assumes a rest position at the
table, the audience assumes the trick is over. It appears as if Slydini is merely pausing
before going on with the next trick. But it is precisely here, when nothing appears to be
happening, that Slydini cops two sponges with the left hand and sets up for the next
phase of the routine.

18. You are now going to do the Imp Pass in which the two sponges are transferred from
the left hand to the right hand in an indetectable manner. To accomplish this, the right

54
hand drops straight down to the edge of the table, Photo 88. At exactly the instant when
the right hand contacts the table top in Photo 88, the two sponges are transferred to the
right thumb and forefinger. Photo 89 shows an exposed view of the two sponges in the
right hand at this point. This explanation should suffice for those already familiar with
the Imp Pass.

87 88

89 90

91 92

If you are not familiar with the move, here it is in more detail. When the left hand drops
to the lap, it pinches two sponge balls as shown in Photo 90. The right hand gestures,

55
Photo 91, as you say, "That’s all," and then drops to a rest position at the edge of the
table, directly above the left hand.

The left hand places the two sponges into the right hand. Actually it would be more
precise to say that the left hand remains motionless while the right hand takes the two
sponges, Photo 92.

The right thumb and forefinger draw the two sponges into the right hand as the right
hand moves up and away from the edge of the table, Photo 93. The right hand then rests
on the table as shown in Photo 94. You can now produce the first sponge from behind
the left arm or from the air as shown in Photo 95, but this is getting a bit ahead of the
story. The main purpose of these three paragraphs is to acquaint the newcomer with a
brief description of the Imp Pass. A complete description, plus brilliant applications,
appear in The Best of Slydini ... and More.

93 94

95 96

19. You are at the point in the routine where two sponges have been secretly transferred
to the right hand by means of the Imp Pass. Say, "Wait a minute." Lean forward and
focus the eyes on an imaginary object to the left. Reach forward with the left hand and
grasp an imaginary sponge, Photo 96.

20. While still leaning forward, Slydini reaches under the left arm with the right hand
and removes the two sponge balls from the palm position. The two sponges are held so

56
that one is pinched and concealed behind the other. The apparent single ball is brought
into view, Photo 97.

Note that in the process Slydini draws his body back. The left hand also draws back to
the position of Photo 97. This can be considered a momentary rest position. From the
audience’s view, Slydini has produced a single sponge ball.

97 98

21. If you study Photo 97 you will see that one sponge is completely hidden. A detail is
shown in the exposed view of Photo 95. As soon as the visible sponge is produced, it is
transferred into the left hand, Photo 98. The other sponge is loosely palmed in the right
hand. The right hand rests on the table while the left hand displays the visible sponge.

22. The right hand is placed over the left hand. The palmed ball is allowed to fall from
the right palm to a position against the other sponge ball. This is shown in an exposed
view in Photo 99. In practice (which is to say, actual performance), the back of the right
hand is toward the audience at this point, screening the action.

99 100

23. The left middle finger squeezes the second sponge against the first. The fingers of
both hands then close around both sponges, Photo 100.

24. Take a sponge in each hand and slowly separate them, Photo 101. It appears as if you
have caused one sponge to multiply to two, Photo 102.

57
 101 102

25. The two sponges are placed on the table. Slydini claps his hands and says, "That’s
all." The hands drop to the rest position again, the left hand dropping into the lap. The
left hand grasps one sponge ball from the lap and gets it into position for the Imp Pass.

26. Slydini smiles and says, "Wasn’t that beautiful?" He gestures with the right hand,
Photo 103, drops that hand to the edge of the table and immediately transfers the
sponge from the left hand to the right hand. An exposed view of the right hand holding
the sponge is given in Photo 104.

103 104

105 106

58
27. The right hand holds the ball below the edge of the table. The right hand then
reaches to the right and produces the third sponge, Photo 105. At the same time the left
hand grasps the sponge ball in the lap. This sponge is held between the left thumb and
fingers.

28. The right hand drops to the table edge. In the same gesture the left hand comes up
behind the right hand. This is indicated in an exposed view of Photo 106. You have to
practice to get the coordination just right. The left hand should move up into position
just as the right hand moves in front of it. When it looks perfect it will look like Photo
107; the right hand completely screens the sponge from audience view.

107 108

29. Both hands are raised from the table, Photo 107. The same twisting motion
described earlier is done, Photo 108, and you "break" one sponge into two, Photo 109.
This completes an elegantly simple sponge routine that is a complete departure from
traditional tricks with sponge balls.

109

Reincarnation

This routine is completely different from other cigarette tricks in the Slydini repertoire.
It can be used as an encore after you have performed one of the torn and restored
cigarette routines from The Best of Slydini ... and More. There are no gimmicks, so the

59
trick can be done at any time. Like many other routines in his repertoire, Slydini first got
the idea for this effect almost accidentally while thinking about torn and restored
cigarette tricks. In most such tricks the cigarette is torn in two pieces. Suppose it were
torn into three pieces? The method took shape after much analysis of the most natural-
looking handling, until it evolved into the present masterpiece of close-up magic.
Consistent with the other tricks in this chapter, the handling is open and without
awkward covering moves, seemingly so honest in appearance that there could not be
secret moves or switches.

Preparation consists merely in having a cigarette in the lap. You are then ready to
perform the routine.

1. Take a cigarette out of the pack and hand it over to the spectator for examination,
Photo 110. Show the hands empty as the spectator looks over the cigarette. After the
spectator has scrutinized the cigarette, Slydini will say with a smile, "Now look inside
the cigarette and you will see my picture." At this point the spectator will usually glance
at the cigarette, then break out laughing.

110 111

112 113

2. Take the cigarette back. Say, "This is an illusion. An illusion means that you see
something which is not there." Display the cigarette as in Photo 111 as you talk.

60
3. "I’m going to tear the cigarette." This you do, about a third from the right end, Photo
112, but only tear the cigarette part way.

4. Stop. Ask, "Did I tear it, yes or no?" The spectator will say, "yes." When he does, shake
your head and say, "Not true." Grasp the cigarette as in Photo 113 and cleanly break off
the right third, reaching the position of Photo 114, as you say, "Even this way it’s not
true."

114 115

5. Drop the right third of the cigarette onto the table. Say, "I’ll do it again." Tear the
remainder of the cigarette in half, Photo 115. Then say, "Did I tear it this time?"

6. The spectator says, "Yes." Slydini shakes his head, saying, "It’s not true. Take my word
for it." Place the three pieces on the table, apart from one another, Photos 116 and 117.
In Photo 117 the hands assume the rest position at the edge of the table.

116 117

7. "Now I’m going to ask you a question. How many pieces do we have here? Tell me." As
he says, "... have here," Slydini gestures with the right hand, Photo 118, and then drops
the right hand straight down to the lap, Photo 119. The right hand grasps the restored
cigarette.

61
 118 119

8. When you say the words, "Tell me," raise the right hand to gesture as shown in Photo
118, except that now the right hand has the cigarette palmed between the right thumb
and palm. The right hand then drops to the edge of the table so the hands are back to the
position of Photo 117 again. The exact distance of the right hand from the left hand is the
length of the cigarette.

9. Open the left hand, revolving it at the wrist, so it rotates to a palm-up position at the
edge of the table. This is the position for the Revolve Vanish, and is shown in Photo 120.
The right hand then picks up one piece of the cigarette and places it into the left palm,
then a second piece, bringing you to the situation depicted in Photo 120.

120 121

10. As you place the last piece into the left palm, the right hand moves back to the edge
of the table to the position of Photo 121. Again the right hand is a cigarette’s length away
from the left hand.

11. Close the left hand as you revolve it at the wrist. As the left hand turns palm down
and the left fingers close, the three pieces are allowed to fall secretly into the lap. At the
same time that the left hand revolves to the palm-down condition, the right hand swings
the palmed cigarette to a horizontal position. The hands meet as shown in Photo 122.
The whole cigarette is fed into the left hand as the left fingers close. The back of the left
hand screens the loading action from audience view.

62
 122 123

12. Raise the hands off the table, keeping them together. Then push the whole cigarette
through the left fist, Photo 123. Take the cigarette with the right hand and display it.
Finally drop it onto the table, clearly showing the hands empty in the process, Photo
124. As done by Slydini, the trick is fast and visual, and looks impossible.

124

Note: Slydini constantly changes the patter and presentation of his tricks and often
changes the handling as well because his magic is continually evolving. The above
description of "Reincarnation" was written in 1975. Four years later Slydini performed
the trick, and the opening was as follows:

"You’ve seen magicians perform illusions on the stage, the vanishing elephant, the
floating lady, cutting a woman in half. I like to do everything in miniature. For instance,
let’s pretend that this cigarette is a beautiful girl. The advantage I have is that while they
cut a girl in two pieces, I cut her in three."

Now Slydini breaks off a third of the cigarette and says, "This is her head." He breaks the
remainder of the cigarette in half and says, "This is the body, and this last part is the
legs."

He then drops the three pieces to the table and claps his hands to show indirectly that
they are empty. At the same time he says, "I'm going to ask you a question." The right
hand points to the pieces of the cigarette as he says, "How many pieces?" The right hand

63
then drops straight down to the lap, gets the lapped cigarette into palm position and
then reappears as Slydini says, "Tell me." The trick then proceeds as written.

64
 2
Slydini On Rope Magic
It is a mark of Slydini’s virtuoso ability, both in the creative sense and as a performer,
that he has been tremendously successful in fields as dissimilar as close-up magic and
stage or platform magic. His platform act is a model of economy. The props fit into a
slender briefcase, yet the act seems to fill the stage when you see it performed. There are
no special angles, no trap doors, no special lighting or music, not even one assistant.
There is no secret to his success; it is plainly evident in the performance. The tricks are
incredible, and Slydini’s personality rivets audience attention. The combination
produces spectacular natural magic in its purest form.

This book contains almost all of Slydini’s stage act. One of the highlights is the sequence
using a piece of rope. He begins by doing the Cut and Restored Rope, followed by the
Equal-Unequal Rope plot. This may sound unexciting, but that is only if you relate these
titles to routines you already know. Slydini’s methods are outstanding for the ease of
handling. Remember that you are getting here routines that are in the repertoire of one
of the world’s most successful magicians. These are professional routines, highly
polished through years of work and study, routines that have been presented before
hundreds of thousands of people.

As a bonus, and another example of Slydini’s virtuosity, this chapter also contains a
Slydini close-up rope routine, completely different in concept from the opening tricks,
yet just as effective for the intended audience. All of the material in this chapter uses just
the visible apparatus, no gimmicks.

Slydini’s Cut Rope

In this routine a rope is cut at the center and the rope restored. Immediately the rope is
cut again at its center, and immediately it is restored. After the double restoration,
Slydini proceeds instantly into the Equal-Unequal Rope trick.

It should be emphasized that in doing his version of the cut-and-restored rope, Slydini
uses an amusing patter line that brings laughter from the audience. In terms of the
handling, while the routine begins somewhat along the lines of a standard cut- and-
restored rope trick, Slydini’s handling ideas quickly take over, leading into a sequence
that is elusive and deceptive, especially to magicians who know traditional methods.

1. The length of rope is determined as follows. Measure the distance between the hands
when the arms are outstretched. The rope should be this length. In Slydini’s case the
rope is about 60" long. Aside from the rope, you will need a pair of scissors. The scissors
are on the table. If no table is available, keep them in the jacket pocket until they are to
be used.

65
2. "You know, all magicians do rope tricks." Pause. Smile. "Why shouldn’t I? I’m a
human being." The smile deepens. "Besides, it’s a free country. The only thing is that
this is the first time I’m doing this trick. I’ve never done it before."

3. "The reason I say this is that I might make a mistake. If I do, you’ll have to excuse me.
I'm going to tell you why it’s possible I’ll make a mistake. One year I was out west with a
friend of mine and we went to Las Vegas. While we were walking on the main street we
saw a poster advertising a French magician. My friend said we should see this magician.
I said, I came here to rest.

4. "He said, No, no, we have to see this magician. I had to go." Pause. "He wasn’t so hot.
But he did one trick, so beautiful that people stood up and cheered. I never saw anything
like it. Afterwards we went backstage and I said, here is the most beautiful thing I’ve
seen in my life. The French magician said, Do you like it? I’ll show it to you. And this is
the piece of rope he gave me."

5. Display the rope as in Photo 125A. Say, "He told me, if you don’t practice, you’re going
to make a mistake. I said I'd do all right." Pause, then add, "But you never know."

125A 125B

6. "Let’s see, from the beginning he said, take the two ends and bring them to the top."
Bring the ends together, Photo 125B. It should be stressed that throughout the routine
Slydini acts unsure of himself.

7. "Then he said ...." Pause. "What did he say? Oh, he said, take the bottom and bring it
to the top." Grasp the bottom with the right hand as shown in Photo 126, with the right
thumb. The rope is held taut as the right first and second fingers grasp the rope as
shown in Photo 127. Note that the first and second fingers are extended so that they are
some distance from the right thumb. The reason for this will become apparent if you
glance down at Photo 134: Because of the way you started in Photo 127, the two loops of
rope in Photo 134 will be even. It is only a touch, but one that makes the handling more
convincing.

66
 126 127

8. As you say, "... bring the center to the top," bring the center of the rope up, Photo 128.

128 129

9. The right fingers remain spread far from the right thumb as the hands move together,
Photo 129.

10. The right thumb and forefinger catch the leftmost strand of rope that is hanging
down from between the left thumb and forefinger, Photo 130.

130 131

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11. The right hand grip on the center of the rope is released. The right thumb and
forefinger retain their grip on the leftmost strand however. The situation is then as
shown in the exposed view of Photo 131.

12. Retaining its grip on this strand, the right hand moves up above the left hand, Photo
132. The left fingers then curl around the rope as shown in Photo 132. This is actually an
exposed view. In practice the left hand closes around all strands of the rope. Adjust the
strands so they appear as in Photo 133.

132 133

13. Photo 134 shows the situation as the rope is displayed to the audience. It looks just
the way it should if the rope were handled honestly.

134 135

14. "Did he say to cut it at the top?" Pause, think it over, act uncertain. "Yes, he said the
center. Then he said, cut it at the bottom. Wait a minute. He said to cut it at the top."
Pick up a pair of scissors and tut the rope at the top, Photo 135.

15. It is important to underline the importance of the magician acting with uncertainty.
Since he is cutting a rope, there is no turning back if he makes a mistake. Thus,
performed this way, there is an element of comedy as well as tension created by the
presentation.

68
16. As soon as the apparent center is cut, retain the strands in the left thumb crotch and
drop the other strands, Photo 136. Note that Photo 136 is an exposed view to show the
reader the position at this point. The situation as seen by the audience is actually as
depicted in Photo 137.

136 137

17. "Then he said, take one end from the bottom." Suit the actions to the words by taking
an end as shown in Photo 138.

138 139

18. "... and bring it to the top." Bring the end to the top as shown in Photo 139, but note
that it is a bit longer than the ends that are clipped by the left thumb.

19. Clip this end between the left first and second fingers as shown in Photo 139 and
allow it to fall to the position shown in Photo 140.

20. "Then he said, don’t forget to count the ends." Start with the long end. Grip it
between the right thumb and forefinger as in Photo 139 as you count "One." Release it,
bringing you back to the situation of Photo 140.

21. Grasp the end that is deepest in the left thumb crotch as you count "Two," then
release this end.

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 140 141

22. For the count of "Three," grasp the remaining end, Photo 141, and say, "Three," and
place this end directly against the left forefinger. It is held in place with the left thumb,
Photo 142.

142 143

23. Another view is shown in Photo 143. Note that the end is exactly flush with the tip of
the left first finger in Photo 143.

144 145

70
24. "Then he said, take the last one..." Grasp this end at the very tip as in Photo 144. "...
and bring it to the top." Bring this end up, Photo 145, and place it directly against the
end between the left thumb and forefinger, Photo 146.

146 147

25. The right hand does not release the end it holds. Instead it grasps the end between
the left thumb and forefinger and brings these two ends away from the left hand, Photo
147. An exposed view at just this point is shown in Photo 148.

148

26. The right hand begins to move to the face since you are going to blow on the rope. As
the right hand moves up, say, "Now you ..." You are just about to say, "Now you blow on
the rope like this...." but you hesitate for at least three seconds and say, "You know
something, I forgot." As you say this, separate the hands wide apart to show that the
rope is restored. This may seem mild in print. You have to try it before an audience to
realize the impact it has.

The Repeat Phase

27. You will get applause at the startling restoration of the rope. Wait for the applause to
subside. Then say, "Oh, now I remember." You’re holding the rope as in Photo 149.

71
 149 150

28. "He said ..." The right hand approaches the left hand. The end held by the left hand
is clipped between the right first and second fingers, Photo 150. Note that the rope is
taken just at the end.

29. As you take the end in Photo 150, say, "... he told me to take the rope."

30. "And ..." The left hand releases its grip on the rope. The right hand draws the rope
away to the right, Photo 151.

151 152

31. Hold the rope taut as shown in Photo 152. You have just reached the word "And ..."
Also, the hands freeze for a second just at this point.

32. Note in Photo 152 that the center of the rope is held between the left thumb and first
finger. The left second, third and fourth fingers curl around the rope, Photos 153 and
154, as you say, "... he said, cut the rope." Photo 154 is an exposed view. The hand
remains in the relaxed position of Photo 153 at this point.

33. The right hand turns palm-down, Photo 155. The left thumb and forefinger are
stretched or extended as shown in Photo 155, but more clearly in Photo 156.

72
 153 154

155 156

34. The dangling end of the rope from the right hand is grasped between the left thumb
and forefinger, Photo 157. The right hand continues moving to the left. This forms a loop
as shown in Photo 158.

157 158

35. The right hand continues moving downward and to the left, pushing the bottom of
the loop against the left thumb and forefinger, Photo 159.

36. It should be clear that you have formed a new "center" in the sequence of moves
from Photo 155 to Photo 159. Once the hands touch, the right-hand end of the rope

73
segment is grasped by the left thumb and forefinger, Photos 159 and 160. The right hand
then moves down and away, Photo 160.

159 160

37. The words that are said are, "... he said, cut the rope right in the center." The words
are keyed to specific parts of the action. This will be tedious if you are just reading the
text without following the handling with rope in hand, but a word-for-word analysis is
crucial to an understanding of just what Slydini does at this point and how words and
actions are coordinated. "... cut the rope" is said as you reach Photo 154. "... right ..." The
right hand turns palm down, Photo 155. "... at ..." The end is caught between the left
thumb and forefinger, Photo 157. "... the ..." The right hand pushes the end of its
segment against the left hand, where it is caught and held between the left thumb and
forefinger, Photo 159. "... center ..." The right hand drops the rope strands it holds,
bringing you to the situation of Photo 161.

161 162

38. "Wait a minute ... No, that’s right." Take the scissors. Again hesitate as if you are
unsure of what the instruction is supposed to be. Say, "He said, in the center. No, maybe
he meant here." Slide the scissors down to the position of Photo 162, that is, the center
of the strands.

39. "No, I think he meant the center here." Now engage the rope at the top, Photo 163.
Again withdraw the scissors, Photo 164, as you say, "That can’t be."

74
 163 164

40. "But that’s what he said, so we’ll cut the center." Cut the apparent center, Photo 165.
By this time, because of the hesitation on your part, the audience will be positive that
you’ve made a mistake.

165 166

41. "Then he said, cut two small pieces on the bottom." Cut an inch away from the
bottom of the two strands, Photo 166.

167 168

42. "Cut two small pieces from the top." The scissors move in close to the left thumb,
Photo 167. Slydini instructs his students at this point, "Mumble with the scissors." What

75
he means is to mimic the action of making several quick cuts. Actually the two ends are
pushed out by the action of the left thumb and forefinger. This is depicted in Photos 167,
168, and 169. The end result is that the two loose segments are allowed to fall to the
floor as you simulate cutting them away.

169 170

43. "Then he said, take one end and stretch it to the right." Grasp the rightmost strand
between the right thumb and forefinger and stretch it to the right, Photo 170.

44. "Catch it with the two fingers of the left hand..." The left thumb and forefinger pivot
down from the position of Photo 170 to that of Photo 171, grasping the rope as shown.

171 172

45. "... give it a little..." Again hesitate as the rope is brought up, Photo 172. The audience
anticipates that you will blow on the rope but you do nothing. Instead, pause, then say,
"... This is so difficult." The left hand releases its end of the rope. The rope falls free,
Photo 173, and the audience is once again startled. When Slydini performs the routine
and reaches this point, where the rope has once again restored itself, there is a
spontaneous round of applause.

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 173

Equal-Unequal Ropes

This brilliant routine incorporates Slydini’s unpublished get-ready for the "Equal-
Unequal Ropes" or "Professor’s Night mare," plus his complete routine and handling.
This routine startles even magicians who know the many versions of the original
because it contains so many elegant handling ideas.

Slydini starts with a single piece of rope and proceeds logically and effortlessly into the
routine. The handling has been polished and simplified over a period of many years,
resulting in the best (and possibly the easiest) of all versions of this plot. The get-ready
is devastating; without cover or fancy moves, it sets up the trick in a natural way that
defies detection.

It is assumed that you have just completed the Slydini cut and restored rope routine
which opens this chapter. You are holding a single piece of rope. The applause from that
trick has just subsided and you say, "I apologize. You know, I thought I was going to be
able to do the trick, but it didn't work. I do another trick. I’ve been doing it for twenty
years, such a beautiful trick. Why do I get mixed up with somebody else’s trick? You’re
going to like this trick. It’s beautiful."

The Get-Ready

1. Slydini approaches a young lady in the audience and says with a smile, "Do you have a
little time?" She must, of course, say yes. Slydini then asks, "How much?’ When the
laughter subsides, he says, "Can I ask you a question?" Holding the rope doubled as
shown in Photo 174, Slydini says, "If I hold the rope like this and cut it in the center, how
many pieces would I have?" She says "two."

2. Now bring the center up and place it in the left hand. Gesture toward the bottom of
the strands, and toward the top, Photo 175. "And if I cut it here and here, how many
would I have?" She says "four."

3. "It’s too difficult. Let’s start again." Slydini drops the center of the rope but retains the
two ends in his left hand. The situation is shown in Photo 176.

77
 174 175

176 177

4. "I’ll make it easier for you." Take one end with the right hand. At this point you are
holding an end in each hand. Release the left hand grip, and then re-grip the rope, but
this time about a quarter of the way in from the left hand. You are now holding the rope
as shown in Photo 177.

5. Make certain the right hand grips the rope about five inches from the end. The right
hand then moves toward the left hand. The right-hand end of the rope is clipped
between the left second and third fingers, Photo 178.

178 179

78
6. While the left hand holds firmly to the right-hand end of the rope, the right hand
slides back about four inches, Photo 179, to the position of Photo 180. Note that the
strand that was in the left hand in Photo 178 now rests on the rope in Photo 180. This is
done by the left hand turning palm-down, allowing its strand to fall onto the right- hand
strand.

180 181

7. The right hand now raises its strand, Photo 181, to form a loop. At the same time the
left thumb moves back. The loop is placed against the left first finger. The left thumb
then presses against the loop and holds it in place, Photo 182.

182 183

8. The right hand releases its grip on the rope. Then it grasps the end that is between the
left first and second fingers, Photo 183, and draws it up so it is even with the loop, Photo
184. After the right hand has grasped the rope-end in Photo 183, the left hand releases
its grip and re-grips the rope as shown in Photo 184.

9. This completes the preparation. A note is in order regarding the performer’s stance.
In the photos up to this point Slydini has turned so that the back of the left hand is
toward the camera. This is to expose and make clear the essential action of the get-
ready. But in performance before an audience the spectators would see the rope as
depicted in Photo 185, that is, with the back of the left hand away from the audience. If
the ends are not exactly even, you can make any minor adjustments at this point.

79
 184 185

A technical note may be in order. When you see Slydini perform this get-ready, it
happens so quickly that if you blink you will miss it. The reason is that he does not form
the loop as depicted in Photos 181 and 182. Rather, he starts to form the loop, then
gathers the end clipped between the left second and third fingers, and then draws the
loop and the end up to the position of Photo 185. It happens in one continuous
movement. Although simple to perform, it is not easy to explain, even with film, so the
action has been broken down to make it easier to grasp.

Finally, although the above action has been necessarily detailed and may seem difficult
or time-consuming, to the audience it appears as if a quick and minor adjustment is
made to the rope as it is gathered into the left hand. The get-ready is done in a second
and cannot be detected.

Phase One

If you find that rope tricks generally seem dull, it is almost always because they are not
accompanied by entertaining patter. When Slydini performs the rope routines in this
chapter, because of the patter and especially because of the atmosphere he creates with
his personality, the audience laughs, gasps, and applauds even as they are being
mystified.

10. "Suppose I cut it here and here. How many pieces will I have?" Point to the loop at
the top and the loop at the bottom. The spectator will answer "three pieces."

11. "Fine." We cut it at the top, we cut it at the bottom, and we have three even pieces."
Cut the top loop and cut the bottom loop. It appears as if you now have three equal
strands of rope.

12. "So, we have three pieces." You are now going to count the pieces by taking them
from the left hand, supposedly one strand at a time.

13. Before you count the strands, grasp the three upper ends with the right hand. The
left hand now shifts its grip as follows. The left third and fourth fingers move between
the leftmost strand and the other two strands, Photo 186. This single strand is held by

80
the curled left third and fourth fingers. The left fingers now close around the three
strands of rope. The start of this action is shown in Photo 187.

186 187

14. Although the three strands appear to be the same length, one is short, one is medium
length, and one is long. This is self- evident, but we will refer to them by these names in
the handling of the count, so it is wise to agree on what it is we will be talking about.

15. The right hand grasps the top of the medium-size strand and slowly draws it to the
right, Photo 188, as you say, "One ..."

188 189

16. The right hand now moves to the left to take the second strand, Photo 191. Notice
that the right second, third, and fourth fingers are wide apart and separate from the
right thumb and forefinger in Photo 191. Note also that the double strand in the left
hand rests on the fingers, not in the thumb crotch.

17. The right thumb and forefinger deposit the medium-size piece directly into the left
thumb crotch, Photo 192. The right second, third, and fourth fingers slide behind the left
hand during this action.

18. It should be pointed out that the right first and second fingers automatically slide on
either side of the double strand in the left hand in Photo 192. This double strand
consists of the short piece and the long piece of rope.

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 190 191

192 193

19. As soon as the single strand is placed in the left thumb crotch, this strand is held in
place by the left thumb. The right first and second fingers immediately clip the double
strand and draw it to the right, Photo 193. An exposed view is shown in Photo 194.

194 195

20. This next point is vital to the elegance of the illusion that is being produced. As the
right hand moves to the right, the right third finger curls around the double strand just
at the point where the short piece loops around the long piece. This is shown in the
exposed view of Photo 195.

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21. The real deceptiveness of the count can be shown in the front view of Photos 196 and
197. This is exactly what the audience sees in terms of the handling of the count. Note
that you do not hide the looped condition of the double strands behind the right hand.
The hand is open, fingers wide apart as the second strand is apparently taken on the
count of "Two."

196 197

198 199

200 201

22. At the completion of the count of Two, the situation is as depicted in Photo 198. For
the final strand, say, "And three," as you hold up the last strand with the left hand,
Photo 199. Do not place this strand into the right hand.

83
23. The left hand remains stationary, back of the hand to the audience. The right hand
comes up behind the left hand, Photo 200. An exposed view is shown in Photo 201.

24. The right hand now turns at the wrist so it is palm toward the audience. This is
shown in an exposed view in Photo 202. Check Photo 203 for the audience view. With
the right hand in this condition the two ropes from the right hand are deposited into the
left hand.

202 203

25. The patter line as the pieces are deposited into the left hand is, "We have three even
pieces." The right hand slides down the rope to the end as you display three pieces equal
in length, Photo 204.

204 205

26. The right hand releases its grip on the rope as you say, "It’s not true that they’re
even, and I’m going to prove it to you."

27. "You know, this is the only trick I know how to do, and I don’t know how it’s done.
So please don’t ask me questions. Look, if I take those three ends from the bottom ..."
Grasp the bottom ends with the right hand and place them into the left hand, Photo 205,
clipped between the left first and second fingers.

28. "We magicians, we know where the magic is. On the right side it’s called red magic."
He pretends to pluck invisible dust from the air and sprinkle it onto the ends of the rope.

84
"It’s very weak. We sprinkle, we sprinkle. The left side is called black magic." He plucks
invisible dust from the air on the left and sprinkles it over the ends of the rope. "This is
what we use to split the atom." When Slydini says this line, it gets a laugh.

29. "We blow on the ropes." Open the left thumb, Photo 206. Look at the ropes as if
looking into a secret chamber. Really you are looking for the short piece of rope. When
you spot it, close the thumb over the ropes again.

206 207

30. The right hand now grasps the leftmost end of the small loop and pulls it up, Photo
207, as you say, "The small one ..." The small strand is pulled free, Photo 208.

208 209

31. "The medium one ..." He pulls the leftmost end of the medium strand, drawing the
medium strand up, Photo 209, and free of the left hand.

32. "And the long one." But you don’t take the long strand. Drop one end of the long
strand, then display the long strand with the left hand as shown in Photo 210. "See, I
knew they weren’t even. I never miss..."

85
 Phase Two

33. Place the two strands from the right hand into the left hand. Then transfer all three
strands to the right hand, Photo 211. The tops of the strands are even. "Don’t ask me
why, but they are going to be even again. I don’t understand it."

210 211

34. Take the small piece into the left hand, Photo 212. Then place the medium strand
into the left hand, Photo 213. Note that the strands are held in place by the left thumb.
Finally, place the long strand into the left hand, Photo 214.

212 213

214 215

86
35. Keep the strands separated from one another. This will make the subsequent move
easy to do and prevents the strands tangling. The small strand is at the left, the medium
strand in the center, and the long strand at the right as in Photo 214. The right hand
takes the bottom end of the small strand, Photo 215, brings it to the right, Photo 216,
and then twists it around behind the right strand, Photo 217. In essence you have
exchanged the position of the rightmost end and the end second from the right in going
from Photo 216 to Photo 217.

216 217

Keep in mind that these photos depict exposed views. In Photo 214 you show the
audience the three strands. Their view is exactly that of Photo 214. Pick up the bottom
end of the small strand, Photo 215, and as you bring it up and twist it around the
rightmost end, turn so that the back of the left hand is toward the audience.

36. During the action of Step 35, say, "I take the small one and bring it to the top." After
the switch of ends, the rightmost end is clipped between the left first and second fingers.
This is shown in Photo 218, but is more clearly shown in Photo 219. This end that is
clipped between the left first and second fingers is really the top of the long strand of
rope.

218 219

37. The bottom end of the medium strand is grasped, Photo 218, and brought to the top,
where it is clipped between the left first and second fingers, Photo 219. The patter line is,
"The medium one goes on top."

87
38. Place the bottom end of the long strand between the left first and second fingers,
Photo 220, as you say, "And the long one goes on top."

220 221

39. Point to someone in the audience as you say, "See, you are suspicious. I know what
you are thinking. You think I switched something here." Smile. "You’re so wrong." Grasp
the three ends that are clipped between the left first and second fingers, Photo 221.

222 223

224 225

40. Draw them down, Photo 222. Please note that the left hand is open here only to
expose the action. In practice the left hand remains closed as the three ends are drawn

88
down. The three strands are actually pulled about an inch by the right hand. The left
fingers then curl firmly around the three strands, Photo 223. Then the right hand
releases its grip on the three strands. The strands now appear as they did in Photo 214,
so all seems fair. The situation at this point is shown in Photo 224.

41. "I didn’t do anything. In fact, I don’t have to bring the ends to the top. I can do it
from the bottom." This is the phase which floors magicians. Pay close attention.

42. Grasp the bottom of the longest strand, Photo 225. Bring it to the bottom of the
medium strand, Photo 226, then bring these two ends to the bottom of the short strand,
Photo 227.

226 227

43. Now the right hand slowly draws the three strands down, Photos 228, 229, and 230.
Photo 230 is an exposed view. The left hand is closed during this sequence, but it has to
ease up pressure on the strands so they slide freely when pulled down by the right hand.

228 229

44. The three strands now appear to be all the same size, Photo 231. "They’re all the
same size. I don’t understand it." Count them from hand to hand using the count
depicted in Photos 186 through 204, ending up with the three ropes in the left hand.

89
 230 231

45. "I know what you think. You think I have trick rope." Smile. "You are wrong." The
three bottom ends are gathered and brought up and into the left hand. "I’m not going to
put magic dust on them anymore. All I do is blow on them like this," Photo 232.

232 233

46. Withdraw the small segment, toss it to someone on the left. Withdraw the medium
strand and toss it to a spectator in the center. Then withdraw the long segment and toss
it to another spectator, Photo 233.

Slydini’s Rope Knots

We turn from Slydini’s platform rope magic to his close-up rope magic. He has many
close-up tricks with rope and some have appeared in print. What is to follow is not a
trick but rather an interlude that is magical and curiously illusive to the eye. Also, it
introduces a technique of secretly tying a knot that is instantaneous and invisible. It is a
method that Slydini sometimes demonstrates in after-lecture sessions with magicians.

1. Start with a rope about three and a half feet in length. The rope is tossed onto the
table. Pick up one end with the right hand, Photo 234. Grasp the end with the left hand
and run the right hand down the length of the rope, Photos 235 and 236. When the right
hand reaches the end of the rope, drop the rope onto the table, Photo 237. All you have
done is show the audience a length of rope. There are no secret knots in the rope and

90
your hands are empty. In sliding the hand along the rope you are straightening it, taking
out any twists in the rope. Later this same action will be repeated to achieve a vastly
different end result.

234 235

236 237

2. Tie a half-hitch (also called an overhand knot) in one end of the rope as shown in
Photo 238. Hold the end of the rope between the right thumb and forefinger, Photo 238.

238 239

3. Tighten the knot with the left hand, Photo 239, and display the knot as shown in
Photo 240.

91
 240 241

4. Transfer the end to the left hand, Photo 241. Study the knot and say, "Wait, this is too
short." As you say this, grasp the knot between the right thumb and forefinger as
indicated in Photo 242.

242 243

5. The left thumb and forefinger grasp the knot, and then the right hand slides out of the
way, Photo 243.

6. The right hand now begins the fake untying of the knot. In Slydini’s hands it appears
absolutely convincing that the knot is being untied. Further, even knowing the method,
the onlooker cannot tell if the untying is being faked or is genuine. Success with this
move lies in the combination of proper technique and acting ability. You have to believe
in what you are apparently doing.

7. The right thumb and forefinger grasp the top strand of the knot, Photo 244. The right
hand now turns or curls the knot under the end segment of the rope, Photo 245, to the
position of Photo 246. This is shown close-up and more exposed in the next three
photos. In Photo 247 the right hand grasps the knot. In Photo 248 it curls it to the right
and then under the end segment of the rope, to the position of Photo 249.

8. The knot is now held in place between the left thumb and middle finger as indicated
in Photo 250.

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 244 245

246 247

248 249

9. The right thumb and forefinger pretend to untie the knot. But if you study Photo 250,
you will see that what is actually happening is that the right hand pulls the end segment
of the rope (that is, the short portion of the rope between the knot and the end of the
rope).

10. The untying action continues in Photo 251. Remember what it is you are trying to
simulate. When you start to fake the untying action in Photo 250 you must pretend to
apply great force to loosen the knot. Pretend to have difficulty, stop and regrip the rope.

93
Tug on it. When you reach the position of Photo 252 the knot is apparently loose so you
ease up pressure and quickly complete the untying action, Photo 253.

250 251

252 253

Keep in mind that beginning with Photo 247 it is all a question of acting. The technique
is simple, but without pantomime and convincing acting, technique means nothing.
Properly done, you will fool the audience every time. You should strive for the ultimate
illusion; no one, not even magicians, can tell if the action is real or fake.

11. As soon as you reach the position of Photo 253, without hesitation grasp the rope
with the right hand below the portion held by the left hand and draw the rope out to the
right, Photo 254. The eyes follow the movement of the right hand.

12. Display the rope as shown in Photo 255. It appears, because of the casual handling,
that the knot has been removed from the rope.

13. The right hand is about two-thirds of the way down the rope in Photo 255. The right
hand now brings this portion of the rope over to the left hand. The right hand holds onto
this portion and grasps the left- hand portion just at the secret knot, Photo 256.

14. The right hand immediately tosses out the knotted end of the rope, Photo 257. It
appears as if a knot has magically materialized at the end of the rope.

94
 254 255

256 257

You are now in a position to immediately repeat this phase of the handling. Pretend to
untie the knot exactly as described earlier and continue through Step 14. It seems as if
you toss out the rope, a knot appears, you untie the knot, toss out the rope again,
another knot appears, you untie it only to have another knot appear, and so on.

Repeat this phase of the handling until the audience begins to suspect that you just
might be faking the untying of the knot. Then you switch to the following technique. In
Slydini’s hands it is a beautiful and indetectable method of secretly tying a knot in a
rope.

Phase Two

15. After you have just shaken or tossed a knot into the rope for the second or third time,
Photo 257, say, "I know, you don’t believe it. I can tell by the look in your eye."

16. Grasp the rope at about the center with the palm-down right hand, Photo 258. The
right hand begins to draw the rope down toward the edge of the table.

17. The right hand turns palm-up, Photo 259. Note that a loop of rope has begun to form
at the back of the right hand in Photo 259.

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 258 259

18. At this point the right hand has moved down and below the edge of the tabletop. But
in order to demonstrate the action, it will be exposed in the next four photos, with the
right hand in view above the level of the tabletop.

19. The right second, third, and fourth fingers open, Photo 260. These fingers extend
through the loop as shown in Photo 260 as the right hand grasps the rope about a third
of the way from the end, and pulls it down below the edge of the tabletop, to the right.

260 261

262 263

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20. The right second and third fingers clip the end of the rope, Photo 261, and draw it
back through the loop, Photo 262. The right hand continues moving to the right, thus
causing the knot to tighten, Photo 263.

21. The entire action from Photo 258 through Photo 263 takes place with the right hand
out of sight, below the level of the tabletop, as indicated in Photo 264. This is the
situation as seen by the audience during the entire knot-tying sequence.

22. All the audience has seen is this. In Photo 257 you toss out the end of the rope,
showing that a knot has materialized at the end. The right hand draws the rope down to
the right, Photo 264, as all attention is on the knot. The right hand releases its end of the
rope and now really unties the visible knot, Photo 266. The action of genuinely untying
the knot must be the same as the simulated action in Phase One. If not, there is no
illusion.

264 265

23. The genuine untying action is shown in Photos 265, 266, and 267. All attention is on
the untying process because if the audience suspects anything, they suspect you of
perhaps faking the untying of the knot. But note in Photos 265, 266, and 267 that the
other end of the rope, the end no one suspects, is below the edge of the table and out of
sight. It is also out of mind even though there is a knot in this end.

266 267

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This is the key to the success of the routine. Slydini has structured the trick so that
attention is most sharply focused after the move has been made. Just when you begin to
suspect you know how the trick might be done, at exactly that point, Slydini switches to
a completely different method.

24. As soon as the knot is untied, the left hand grasps the rope about one-third of the
way from the visible end. The right hand slides along the rope to the right, Photos 268
and 269, until it contacts the hidden knot on the right end of the rope. The hidden knot
is concealed behind the right fingers as the right hand brings this end of the rope into
view.

268 269

270 271

25. The right hand grasps the visible end of the rope, Photo 270. The left hand releases
the center of the rope as the right hand tosses the knotted end out into view, Photo 271.
Once again, this time under the scrutiny of the audience, a knot has magically appeared
in the end of the rope.

From here it is a matter of improvisation. You can go through Phase One again, that is,
the fake untying action, or you can genuinely untie the knot, then secretly tie it as in
Phase Two, or you can secretly tie a knot in the other end of the rope as you display the
knot in Photo 271, thus giving you a knot in both ends of the rope. There are many
possibilities. It all depends on how you perceive audience interest and what you think is
the best way to exploit these brilliant methods.

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 3
Cards In Close-Up
Once, in conversation with Slydini, I asked him why he was so prolific in other areas of
magic, but had developed relatively little in the way of card magic. With the exception
(admittedly spectacular) of "The Helicopter Card," his work in this area seemed mainly
limited to the development of moves rather than card plots.

His answer is in keeping with his general philosophy on the subject of magic. He said
there was no problem developing card tricks, but there was a serious problem in
developing card tricks that actively involved the audience. Without interplay between
magician and audience, the trick is merely a puzzle.

Happily, Slydini will from time to time take a standard card trick and restructure it to
make it stronger and visually more appealing. One such trick is "Wild Card," the
opening routine in this chapter. The "Slydini Aces" is a card control that does away with
moves like the multiple shift in a clever way. Slydini’s Table Shift and a truly invisible
pass are also included here. The final item is a knockout. Shortly after The Best of
Slydini ... and More was published, Slydini demonstrated an improved method of
performing one of the prize items in that book, "The Slydini Switch." The streamlined
method is included here. As a no-cover method of switching one packet of cards for
another, it has no equal.

Slydini’s Wild Card

Although Slydini does not perform tricks with gimmicked cards, he will occasionally
consider ways of strengthening such tricks in terms of their visual impact. One excellent
example of such restructuring is the Slydini handling of the routine known as "Wild
Card."

The effect follows the standard lines. You start with, say five 10s and five Jacks. You
then cause the Jacks, one at a time, to change to 10s. There are various standard
handlings of this effect, but Slydini has added a finish that is much stronger in visual
terms than previously published versions.

Slydini suggests this handling for those magicians who are not adept at sleight of hand
but wish to perform an impressive trick. The Slydini handling is certain to surprise and
impress laymen.

Requirements

You will need five ordinary cards and four double-face cards. Try to get cards that
contrast well. Slydini uses black 10s and red Jacks. The cards depicted in the photos for
this routine are the 10S and the JH.

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The five Ten of Spades are ordinary cards. The other four cards are double-faced,
showing the Jack of Hearts on one side and the Ten of Spades on the other. The set-up is
to alternate the cards, beginning with an ordinary 10S on top, followed by a double-face
card, then a 10S, then another double-facer, etc. The set-up is shown in a spread
condition in Photo 272, and the same set-up from the top down, with the spread flipped
over, is shown in Photo 273.

272 273

Performance

With the packet squared and held face-up in the left hand, Photo 274, the face card is an
ordinary 10S. The handling is now as follows.

1. Holding the packet face-up as shown in Photo 274, Slydini says, "I have eight red
cards and one black card." He takes the face card off the packet, Photo 275, and
transfers it to the back of the packet, Photo 276, as he says, "We’ll put the black card at
the back of the packet."

274 275

2. When the 10S is squared up with the packet, the left hand turns palm-down, Photo
277. The left fingers glide back the bottom card. The right forefinger takes out the card
above the glided back card and deals it face down onto the table, Photo 277, as you say,
"We’ll put one red card here."

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 276 277

3. Now turn the packet face-up again, Photo 278, but note that the glided-back card is
not yet squared with the balance of the packet. The reason is that you flash two red cards
seemingly as an accident, Photo 279. This reinforces the idea that all cards are red.

278 279

4. The left forefinger then squares the packet with the glided-back card, Photos 279 and
280. At the same time, the left hand turns palm-up, Photo 281, as you say, "... and one
red card here."

280 281

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5. The right hand deals the face card of the packet onto the table above the face-down
card, Photo 282.

282 283

6. Repeat Steps 2 through 5 three more times, always mentioning that you are dealing
red cards onto the table. The end result of this dealing process is shown in Photo 283.
You are left with a single card in the left hand. Show it to be the 10S as shown in Photo
283. At the same time tell the audience, "This is the only black card."

7. "Whatever this black card contacts, it changes to black. I’m going to prove it to you."
The right hand now takes the 10S, Photo 284, and slides it under the rightmost face-
down card, Photo 285. Note that the left hand steadies the tabled card as the 10S slides
under it.

284 285

8. The pair of cards is placed into the left hand, Photo 286, and turned over, Photo 287.
Then the packet is snapped by buckling it, Photo 288. Accompanying this, Slydini says,
"Just give it a little squeeze and it turns to black."

9. Turn the top card of the pair over, Photo 289, to show two Tens of Spades.

10. The 10S held by the right hand is now slid face up under the first face-up JH on the
right, Photo 290, and the packet turned face down, Photo 291.

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 286 287

288 289

290 291

11. Now repeat Steps 7, 8, 9, and 10, three more times. The very end of this process is
shown in Photo 292. At the finish you will have four pairs of cards on the table. Each
pair will consist of a face-up 10S and above it a face-down card presumed to be a JH.
There is a 10S in the left hand.

Up to this point the routine follows familiar lines, but from here there is a distinct
departure. The Slydini handling produces a stunning visual change of each face-down
card for a very strong finish to the routine.

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 292 293

12. The right hand takes the 10S from the left hand and slides it face-up under the
rightmost pair of cards, Photo 293. The packet is lifted off the table, Photo 294, and
deposited into the left hand, Photo 295.

294 295

13. The packet is squared in the left hand, and then turned over, Photos 296, 297, and
298, into the left hand.

296 297

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14. The audience thinks that you are merely going to deal off the top card to show that
another card has turned black. That is the psychology at work here, because the
handling abruptly changes. Buckle the bottom card with the left fingers.

298 299

15. The right hand now grasps the top two cards, but at the near end exactly as shown in
Photo 299.

16. The right hand turns its two cards over, Photo 300. But in the process it spreads the
two cards by pulling the facemost card down (with the fingers) and the top card up (with
the thumb). The result is that the cards spread as shown in Photo 301, showing three
10Ss!

300 301

17. The right hand releases its grip and then grips the facemost card as shown in Photo
302, and tosses it onto the table.

18. Then the right hand grasps the next 10S, Photo 303, snaps it, Photo 304, turns it
over to show the back, Photo 305, and then face up again, Photo 306. This 10S is then
tossed face up onto the table.

19. The remaining 10S is then revolved face down between the hands, Photo 307, and
then face up, Photo 308. You have apparently shown each 10S front and back. In
Slydini’s hands the illusion is perfect.

105
 302 303

304 305

306 307

20. The 10S in the hand is now slid under another pair of cards, Photo 309, and you
repeat the process of Steps 12 through 19 for each of the remaining pairs of cards. You
will end with nine 10Ss on the table.

106
 308 309

The Slydini Aces

In this routine the four Aces are placed into different parts of the deck in the fairest
possible manner. The deck is squared. Despite the fairness of the handling, the Aces
have been completely stolen from the deck.

The handling rests on an ingenious premise that does away with the need for a multiple-
shift or diagonal-palm-shift type of action. The basic routine described here originally
appeared in a magic magazine. What follows is a more detailed treatment.

1. Start with the four Aces displayed in a row on the table, Photo 310. The deck is in the
left hand dealing position.

310 311

2. Pick up the first Ace and display it as shown in Photo 311. The left thumb then opens a
break about a quarter of the way down from the top of the deck.

3. The right hand inserts the first Ace into the break, Photo 312. Note that your body is
turned to the left in Photo 312. After the first Ace is inserted, the left thumb releases a
single card. The first Ace should be inserted into the deck for about half its length.

4. Repeat Step 3 with each of the remaining Aces. At the finish, Photo 313, you will have
the four Aces outjogged. There is a card between the first and second Aces, a card

107
between the second and third Aces, and a card between the third and fourth Aces at this
point.

312 313

5. Cover the deck with the right hand in a deliberately suspicious gesture as shown in
Photos 314, 315, 316, and 317. Drop the right hand to the table, Photo 318, as you say,
"Okay?" Pause here, smile, then say, "You’re in doubt."

314 315

316 317

6. The left hand lifts the deck so that the faces of the cards are visible to the audience.
The right hand then fans the Aces. The Aces are displayed as shown in Photo 319.

108
 318 319

7. Close up the fan, Photo 320. Note that the Aces are still visible to the audience. When
the fan is closed, the situation will be as shown in Photo 321. Note that in closing up the
fan of Aces that the Aces are squared a bit further down in the deck so they protrude for
about one-third of their length.

320 321

8. Lower the deck to the position of Photo 322. The left thumb is at the side of the deck
as indicated in the photo.

322 323

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9. Pressure of the left thumb against the deck is light at this point. The Aces are out-
jogged for about a third of their length. What happens next might be called the reverse
plunger principle and it is ingenious.

10. The back of the left hand rests against the table as shown in Photo 322. The right
hand moves to the front of the outjogged Aces. The right thumb and forefinger grasp the
outer left corner of the protruding Ace packet, Photo 323.

11. In Photo 323 the back of the right hand is toward the audience. The right hand does
not move. If it did, the move about to be performed would be tipped. The left thumb
eases away from the side of the deck. It does this by rolling back as indicated in Photo
324. For a clean steal of the Aces, the left thumb must be back away from the front of the
deck.

12. The Aces are grasped in Slydini Palm position as shown in Photo 324. This is a
completely automatic result of the right hand moving to the position shown in Photo
323.

13. The left hand moves back but the right hand remains stationary. The result is that
the deck moves away from the Aces as shown in Photo 324.

324 325

14. But something else happens also. The three cards trapped by the Aces also move out
of the deck. Since the Aces started at a position one-third of the way out of the deck in
Photo 321, and are now two-thirds of the way out, the three trapped cards slide to a
position where they are a third of the way out of the deck. You cannot see this in Photo
324 because the three indifferent cards are intermeshed with the Aces at this point.

15. When the deck has been pulled back to a point where the Aces are two-thirds of the
way out of the pack, the left thumb applies firm pressure against the side of the deck.
This traps the three intermeshed cards and holds them in place.

16. The hands move to the left. The left hand stops its movement and the right hand
moves to a position above the deck, Photo 325, taking the Aces with it. The left thumb,
now firmly against the side of the deck, holds the three indifferent cards in place.

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17. When you have reached this point in the handling, say, "Watch." The right hand is
away from the deck and the audience sees the back of the right hand and the back of the
deck.

18. Photo 326 shows the position of the left hand as seen by the audience. The spectators
assume the outjogged cards they see are the four Aces.

326 327

19. The right hand has never moved very far away from the tabletop. When you say,
"Watch," and call attention to the deck, the right hand moves to the edge of the table
and laps the Aces.

20. For the finish, Slydini places the deck in a vertical position on the table as shown in
Photo 327. Then he taps the apparent Aces into the deck, Photo 328, as he says, "I’m
going to push them into the deck, slowly ... slowly." When the outjogged cards have been
pushed flush with the top of the deck, toss the deck out for shuffling.

328

The revelation or discovery of the Aces can now follow any procedure you desire.

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 Slydini’s Table Shift

This move, or at least a form of it, appeared in print some time back. Although Slydini
was properly credited with the move, it did not appear with his permission, nor was the
exact technique and handling described. What follows is a most valuable sleight in
which any group of cards, say the four Aces, is shifted from the bottom of the deck to the
top during the process of a tabled cut of the cards. This is the first time that the complete
details of this fine technique are appearing in print. If you are at all serious about card-
work, you should immediately add this sleight to your repertoire.

The opening move will be shown in two views, the first from Slydini’s left, the second
from over his right shoulder. Essentially, it is a method of copping the required packet
in an action something like a gambler’s cop. As done by Slydini it is instantaneous and
completely covered.

Assume you have the four Aces, or any desired number of cards, on the bottom of the
deck and wish to shift them invisibly to the top of the deck. This can be done by the
classic pass, and in fact something like the action of the pass is at work here. But the
move is broken down into segments so that each segment is easy to conceal. First the
Aces are copped, and only then, when the deck has been cut and the cut completed, is
the action of the pass performed.

Because the Aces are copped and therefore away from the deck, and because the action
of the pass is made as you draw the deck off the table and square up, the sequence of
moves is easy to handle. Before performing the move, Slydini gives the Aces a downward
crimp. Then he can later steal them easily because the crimp or bridge provides an
automatic break.

1. Begin with the Aces on the bottom of the deck. Retain them in place during a riffle
shuffle. Place the deck into left-hand dealing position. The right hand squares up the
pack by the thumb and fingers running along the bottom and top edges of the deck from
left to right.

329 330

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2. Slydini sometimes riffles the end of the deck as shown in Photo 329 to emphasize that
no breaks are held. Actually there is no need to hold a break because of the bridge or
crimp in the Aces. The hands are up and away from the tabletop at this point.

3. The deck is picked up by the right hand from above as the left thumb and fingers
square the sides of the deck, Photo 330. The hands remain above the tabletops.

4. The right hand now deposits the deck into the left hand, but relatively deep in the
hand, Photo 331, below the left of the left first finger.

331 332

5. The right thumb releases the bridged Aces in Photo 331 and slides the balance of the
deck forward, Photo 332, into normal dealing position. The Aces are left behind in the
cop position. Then the right hand again squares the ends of the deck. The back of the left
hand is now allowed to rest against the tabletop.

6. The left hand pivots to the left as the right hand draws off the portion of the deck
above the Aces and slaps it onto the table. Say, "Give the cards a cut." The left hand has
in the meantime moved to the position of Photo 333. The left thumb rests at the edge of
the table during the pivoting action. The copped Aces are below the edge of the table.

333 334

7. For the sake of clarity the action to this point will be repeated, but now the camera
angle will be shifted to Slydini’s right. The deck is held as in Photo 334 in the left hand

113
while the right fingers square the short ends. The right hand rests, Photo 335. Then the
deck is gripped by the right hand, Photo 336, and slid back in a squaring action, Photo
337.

335 336

337 338

8. The Aces are released. Actually it would be more accurate to say that the right hand
lifts off the portion of the deck above the crimp, leaving the Aces in the left hand. The
balance of the deck is slid forward, Photo 338. The left thumb is in place in Photo 339.
The right hand starts to move forward with the deck, Photos 340 and 341.

339 340

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 341 342

9. The left hand pivots at the wrist, bringing the copped Ace packet down, Photos 342
and 343, as the right hand slaps the deck onto the table. The left thumb rests on the
table during the pivoting action. Invite the spectator to cut the deck.

343 344

345 346

10. As the spectator cuts the deck, the left first finger curls under the Ace packet, and
pivots it over to a face-up condition, Photos 344, 345, and 346. The left thumb remains
on top of the table throughout this part of the sequence. (Somewhere along the way the
Ace packet acquired a 7D at its face. The error was spotted too late to make a correction.

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Beginning with Photo 345, the reader should realize that the 7D should not be at the face
of the Ace packet. KF)

11. The right hand takes the deck after the deck has been cut and the cut completed,
Photo 346, and draws or slides the deck back toward the left thumb, Photos 347 and
348, until the right hand clears the edge of the table. In Photo 348, and because of the
camera angle, it may appear that the right hand has raised the deck. Actually the deck
remains flat on the table until the deck clears the edge of the table.

347 348

12. The right hand deposits the deck into the left hand against the left thumb, Photo 349.
The left thumb contacts the face of the deck exactly as shown in Photo 349.

349 350

13. The left fingers pull the Ace packet around and up against the top of the deck, Photos
350 and 351, thus adding this packet to the top of the deck. The action occurs while the
deck is below the level of the tabletop, so the move is completely screened from audience
view.

14. Both hands then bring the deck into view as the cards are squared and then dropped
face down onto the table.

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 351

The Slydini Invisible Pass

Through the mid 1940’s there were claims, counterclaims, and controversy about the
feasibility of a truly invisible pass. There were two sides to the argument. One insisted
that an invisible pass was impossible. The other side held with equal intensity that with
proper attention to technique and angles, there were several passes that were indeed
invisible. Slydini was one of those who did not join in the argument because he knew he
had a pass that was, without question, invisible. Further, it was relatively easy to do. Still
further, not only did it work well in the traditional application where a chosen card is
brought from the center to the top, but it worked equally well in the much more difficult
situation where you might want to bring a single card from the bottom of the deck to the
top.

This is a unique creation and is indetectable in Slydini’s hands. It is easily performed

while seated, but is even easier when done standing because you can move about freely,
thus creating the necessary misdirection with natural movement. The move can be done
to bring any number of cards to the top of the deck.

1. To perform the move, say that a card has been chosen and replaced about a quarter of
the way up from the bottom of the deck. You are holding the deck in left-hand dealing
position with a left little finger break over the selected card.

352 353

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2. The right hand grasps the deck from above. The break is taken over by the right
thumb. You are going to place the deck into the left hand. The position at this point is
shown in Photo 352. An exposed view, indicating the right thumb break, is shown in
Photo 353.

3. Say, "Do you remember your card?" As you say this, gesture with the hands, spreading
them apart from one another.

4. Now bring the hands together in a kind of rest position. The left fingers are naturally
curled. The hands will reach the position of Photo 358, but in the process you will set up
the deck for exactly half of the move.

5. As the right hand approaches the left hand, it will pass over the left fingers. When it
does, Photo 354, the packet below the break is dropped so that the forward or leading
edge of the packet falls into the curled left fingers at the base of the fingers. This is
shown in Photo 355, where the packet is shown as it falls. Photo 356 is an exposed view
of the lower packet as it hits the base of the fingers.

354 355

356 357

6. Without hesitation, the right hand moves further to the left and deposits the upper
packet into the left thumb crotch, Photo 357. It is well to point out now that the move is
done with the back of the right hand toward the audience. The back of the right hand
screens the entire action of the shift.

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7. The right hand then slides to the right, to the rest position of Photo 358, where it
grasps the lower packet, Photo 359. This is actually a rest position. The right hand
remains motionless for a second.

358 359

We’ll interrupt the discussion at this point. Aside from the approach and handling, the
technique that sets this pass apart from most others is that you do half the pass, then
rest, then complete the pass. Thus, the action begun in Photo 352 and carried through to
Photo 358 represents the first half of the pass. You have simply deposited the deck into
the left hand and then moved the right hand to the rest position of Photo 358. All the
audience sees thus far is depicted in Photos 352 and 357. The actual handling of Photos
353 through 357 is completely concealed.

Note, too, that the packets pass laterally over one another in a kind of sliding motion.
This is one feature of the Slydini pass that makes the handling easy to do and easy to
cover from audience view.

8. The packet resting on the left fingers is grasped between the right thumb and second
or third finger. Slydini prefers grasping the packet between thumb and third finger
because it means that the packet is deeper in the right hand and thus more securely
hidden from the audience’s view.

360 361

119
9. The left fingers are now raised. This causes the lower packet to rise as shown in
Photos 360 and 361. The fingers continue raising the packet as indicated in Photo 362
until the packet is clear of the original upper part of the deck.

362 363

10. Then the left fingers pull the original lower packet flush onto the deck, Photos 363
and 364.

364 365

11. The right hand remains stationary as this part of the pass is completed. The position
of the right hand at the completion of the pass is shown in Photo 365.

Again, to grasp the action as actually seen by the audience, look at Photo 352, then
Photo 358, then Photo 365. This is all the audience sees, and should convey a clear idea
of why the move is invisible. If you have small hands, it may be necessary when grasping
the lower packet in Photo 359 to draw it a bit to the right so that it clears the upper
packet. This action occurs as the right hand slides to the right to the rest position and is
thus natural and completely covered.

The move can also be used as a form of the half-pass. If you want to secretly reverse half
of the deck, get the packets to the position of Photo 360. The left thumb then curls
under the upper packet and levers it over onto the lower packet. The two halves of the
deck are now back to back.

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The Slydini Pass is one of the very few that can be used, with absolutely no change in
technique, to shift one card or 30 cards from the bottom to the top of the deck.

The Slydini Switch II

The original description of this brilliant card switch appeared in The Best of Slydini ...
and More. It was the closing item in the book, on the theory that you should close
exceptionally strong. The Slydini Switch is one of the most deceptive moves in card
magic. To reiterate the text in The Best of Slydini ... and More, "Even though you know
that a switch is going to be performed, even when you know the move, even when you
know the exact instant the move is going to be done, even then you can’t see the switch."

As so often happens with Slydini’s magic, shortly after the original switch was perfected
and sent to press, Slydini made a change in the handling that strengthened it even more.
Thus, a brilliant move was made even better. Here are the complete details of the new
handling. It is as close to a completely impossible card switch as anything likely to be
invented.

To underline what sets this switch apart, consider that traditional methods require a
cover of some kind. Either the deck provides the cover, or individual cards provide
cover, or the cover is obtained through some movement of the hands such as a squaring
action (the only switch that appears to be an exception is the Mexican Turnover, where a
flip- over or snapover action covers the move). In Slydini’s card switch there is no
covering action. The packet is held at one corner by the fingertips of one hand, yet the
move is invisible.

1. The poker hand to be switch in is in the lap. Assume it is a Royal Flush. You have the
spectator shuffle and cut the deck. He deals you five cards and you wish to switch the
random five cards for the Royal Flush.

2. Pick up the random hand and fan the cards to study them, Photo 366.

366 367

3. Square up the cards, Photo 367, and drop the poker hand onto the table. The action is
important. First the hands back up slightly, so that the left hand can fall straight down

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to the lap. As the right hand drops the random hand onto the table, the left hand
simultaneously falls into a rest position in the lap, Photo 368. The left hand immediately
grasps the Royal Flush as shown in Photo 368.

368 369

4. The Royal Flush is grasped between the left thumb and fingers. The left hand cannot
raise up naturally at this point without calling attention to it, yet it is necessary to
elevate the Royal Flush to a point just below the edge of the table. Slydini solves this by
resting the left hand on the left leg. He then raises the left leg slightly, that is, by raising
the left heel off the floor, the left hand is imperceptibly raised. The correct position is
shown in Photo 369.

5. The right hand in the meantime goes back to the table and scoops up the poker hand.
Quietly tap the poker hand on the table as shown in Photo 370. This is not an idle grip
on the cards. The grip must be exactly as indicated in Photo 370. This is to say that the
random packet is gripped at the upper right corner, exactly as shown.

370 371

6. Note that the right hand is near the edge of the table. The move is now going to be
enacted, and it will be done with one covering word of patter.

7. Slydini turns to the spectator who dealt and asks, "Who goes first?" Pause. Then he
says, "You?"

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8. As he says, "You?" the right hand raises, Photo 371. The right hand reaches the
position of Photo 371 just as the word "You" is spoken. The movement of the right hand
is used to punctuate the word. (You can also say, "Go ahead," if you feel that a single
covering word is too little in the way of covering patter.)

9. As soon as the right hand has reached the position of Photo 371, it drops straight
down to the edge of the table, Photo 372. The concept of "Leave and Take" is enacted
here. Do not think about leaving the random packet behind. Instead, only think of
taking the Royal Flush from the left hand. As the right hand opens to take the Royal
Flush, the random packet automatically drops into the lap. In Photo 373 the random
packet already has reached the lap as the right hand takes the Royal Flush from the left
hand.

372 373

10. Note that the heel of the right hand rests on the table. This is the key to the
deceptiveness of this beautiful move. The right hand is always in view. The right hand
drops to the table, rolls to the position of Photo 373, then rolls back, Photo 374. Note
that the packet held by the right hand in Photo 374 is gripped the same way as the
packet in Photo 372.

374

What makes the move so deceptive is that it is completely a natural action. The right
hand, in dropping to the table, will naturally roll slightly toward the body, then roll back.

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The right hand rolls a fraction of an inch in a fraction of a second, but in that small
movement the switch is enacted.

Practice this switch until you have the handling down perfectly. You can switch cards or
other small objects (coins, rings, match packets, etc.). When Slydini demonstrates this
move at lectures, audiences do not believe he switches cards. Even when you stand
behind him and view the move as it is being done, it is so deceptive that you are still
likely to be fooled. The move can be done with a single card or a packet of cards. It can
even be done—read closely—as a full deck switch. In order to convince audiences that he
really does switch one packet for another, Slydini will sometimes switch a packet of red-
backed cards for a packet of blue-backed cards. Even then he is suspected of using some
kind of mechanical holdout. The move is that good.

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 4
The Torn and Restored Newspaper
In the opinion of many working magicians, Slydini’s "Torn and Restored Newspaper" is
the finest routine of its kind for the working professional. Completely fair in appearance,
easy to handle and seemingly impossible in effect, it has all of the ingredients of a
magical classic. If you are a working professional, this is an ideal method. The extreme
casualness of the handling is what elevates a basically simple trick to the miracle class.

Slydini’s method has appeared in print and has been marketed. What follows is a
completely new description. The complaint most frequently heard about torn-and-
restored newspaper routines is that it is difficult to prepare the trick from the printed
instructions. With this point in mind, extreme care has gone into the preparation of
these instructions. What follows is the most detailed account yet of this amazing trick. It
is meant for the working professional who knows the value of an astounding effect
coupled with a foolproof method.

Although many people do the torn and restored newspaper, and although there are
many fine methods in print, no one except Slydini has developed the trick to the point
where there are no false moves at any time, nothing to conceal, no awkward fumbling
with the gimmick, and most important, absolutely no hesitation at the moment of the
switch. Indeed, the switch is part of the open handling seen by the audience. The routine
can be done surrounded. It makes no difference to the method because the method is so
cleverly concealed in the natural handling that angles are not important.

Preparation

For the sake of clarity it was thought best to use hand-drawn illustrations rather than
photos to detail the preparation, and for this we turned to the famous artist Joseph K.
Schmidt. The text below is accompanied by two and a half dozen of Mr. Schmidt’s clear,
easy-to-follow drawings, making the reader’s task as simple as possible.

The step-by-step preparation is not for the dilettante, but for the professional magician
who wants detailed instructions, and who knows that the apparatus, the instructions
and the routine are as complete as possible.

A tabloid size newspaper is used. Illustrations 1 through 5 show you how to take a
tabloid-size paper and fold it to get the approximate size of the compartment you will
need. Figure 5 is the crux of the matter. After folding the paper four times, it should
measure about four inches by five and a half inches. These illustrations are here only so
that the reader can see how to estimate the size of the compartment that will be used.

To understand the intent of the method, an overview might be in order as to what is

going to be achieved. The newspaper originally seen by the audience will be called "A" in
this description. The "restored" newspaper will be called "B." At the start "B" is inside

125
"A." At the finish of the routine, "A" will be inside "B." Thus, the newspapers will change
places during the course of the routine.

126
When Slydini prepares the newspapers for this routine it takes him about five minutes
start to finish. More than one set of newspapers can be made, so that in a short time you
have the necessary apparatus for several shows. You need a total of four matching
papers. Remove the front page from each of three duplicate copies. The front page
actually consists of the first page, the second page, plus the last two pages.

When he was preparing a sample for this write-up, Slydini used a 96-page copy of the
Daily News. The front sheet thus consisted of pages 1, 2, 95, 96.

From one of the duplicates cut out a segment from the front page measuring about six
by ten and a half inches, Figure 6. Apply glue along the dotted lines shown in Figure 7.
Take care to line up the segment so the picture is exactly in line with the picture on the
front page of "A." In these drawings you will see a star at the upper corners. These would
correspond to some prominent feature in the pages you choose, and make it easier to
follow the construction of the apparatus.

Fold "A" in half, Figure 8, then in half again, Figure 9.

Now you’re going to prepare the "B" paper. From a duplicate, cut out a front page
segment measuring about eight and a half inches by ten and a half inches, Figure 10.

127
Apply glue along the dotted lines shown in Figure 11 (the glue is, of course, applied to
the back of this segment) and glue it in place over newspaper "B," lining up the front
page pictures so they match. The glued-in-place segment is shown in Figure 11.

Fold the "B" paper in half, Figure 12, then in half again, Figure 13. You are now going to
fold down one thickness of the paper along the dotted line shown in Figure 14. This is a
diagonal that runs from the upper left corner to the lower right corner.

After the single thickness is folded down and to the left, the situation is shown in Figure
15.

Note that part of the folded-over pieces overlaps the bulk of the paper. Fold this segment
around onto the back of the package, Figure 16.

This almost completes the preparation. There are a few minor details. But Slydini leaves
these until he is almost ready to go on during the show. In the meantime, paper "A" is
slipped into "B" as shown in Figure 17. The complete apparatus is now as indicated in
Figure 18, and this is the way the apparatus is carried when Slydini is about to leave for
a show.

128
When he arrives at the auditorium, Slydini removes "A" from "B." Then "A" is opened as
shown in Figure 19. The secret compartment is at the back of the left panel at this point.

You are now going to fold "B" in half, across the middle, as shown by the dotted line in
Figure 20. The fold is just below the center as shown by the dotted line in Figure 20.
When "B" has been folded in half, it looks like Figure 21.

After the "B" paper has been folded, it is slipped into the compartment in "A" as shown
by the arrow in Figure 22. The orientation of "B" as it slides into the compartment must
look exactly as indicated in Figure 22. Slydini refers to the pattern made by the fold in
"B" as an arrow pointing toward the compartment in "A."

129
With "B" in place, the situation is as indicated in Figure 23.

Paper "A" is open and rests flat on the table at this point. You are going to fold the
newspaper so that it can later be picked up and handled without fumbling. The following
handling must be followed exactly. Grasp the newspaper with the thumb and forefinger
on top, the other fingers at the back of "A." This is shown in Figure 24.

Fold the right half of the sheet over to the left, and slip the thumb on top. Do not move
or alter the position of the other fingers. The situation now is shown in Figure 25.

Fold the bottom half up, again slipping the thumb out and over onto the top of the
folded sheets, Figure 26.

Now the three thicknesses above the left forefingers are folded over or dog-eared as
shown in Figure 27. You can hold them in place as shown in Figure 27 with the left
thumb if you are going to do this trick first in your performance.

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If the trick is to be done later, place the apparatus on the table and put a pair of scissors
or other object on the corners to hold them in the folded or dog-eared condition of
Figure 27.

Finally, place the apparatus at the edge of the table or chair as shown in Figure 28, so
that it can be picked up without hesitation when you later do the trick.

Regardless of when the trick is done, you pick up the newspaper exactly as indicated in
Figure 27. To perform, pick up the newspaper with the left hand as indicated. Then open
it as follows.

Grasp the bent corners with the right hand as shown in Figure 29 and gently pull the top
edges down so that the newspaper opens, Figure 30. Don’t pull too firmly because you
may tear the newspaper.

Now grasp the bent corner at the upper left with the right hand and open the newspaper
from left to right, Figure 31. This displays the inside of the newspaper. The presentation
of the routine picks up from this point. It should be mentioned that you previously tear

131
the newspaper down the center for about an inch, Figure 31, so that the paper will easily
tear later on.

Presentation

The key element that makes the Slydini "Torn and Restored Newspaper" so mystifying is
the extremely casual nature of the handling. There is never a false or hurried move, nor
is there any secret handling that must be concealed from the audience’s view. The trick
thus falls into that charmed category where a series of completely logical moves results
in a completely illogical result.

1. There is a crossover between the Joseph Schmidt drawings and the photographs. At
the start of the presentation you grasp the newspaper as shown in Figure 27. This is the
last of the Schmidt drawings. From here you will refer to the photographs. Stand
naturally in front of the audience, Photo 375. The newspaper is gripped by the left hand
as already described. The hidden compartment is clipped between the left forefinger and
middle finger.

2. Slydini recommends soft background music as suitable accompaniment to this effect.

It adds atmosphere and heightens the effect. The routine can be done silently or with a
patter story as follows. "Ladies and gentlemen, I’m now going to do for you a trick with
paper dolls." Step to the right, point to someone in the audience, and say, "This is for
you." The reason for the paper- doll patter is that this lifts the trick out of the usual cut-

132
and-restored format. If you say you are going to cut or tear a newspaper, the audience
knows you are going to restore the newspaper (why else would you tear it?). Thus they
wait for the inevitable end of the routine. In Slydini’s presentation, because he says he is
going to make a string of paper dolls, the audience is curious, so audience interest is
created from the very beginning of the routine.

375 376

3. Turn to the left. The feet must point to the left. The situation is shown in Photo 376.
Grasp the bent upper left corner of the paper between the right thumb and fingers, and
pull the corners down, Photo 376.

4. The right hand now grasps the upper left bent corner, Photo 377, and opens the
newspaper, Photo 378.

377 378

133
5. Grasp the bottom right corner of the paper with the right hand and display the other
side of the newspaper, Photo 379. Look at the paper as if reading it, Photo 380, turning
to the front as you do so. This allows the audience to see the paper from front to back.
Note that the feet have turned so you are facing front at this point.

379 380

6. Holding the paper at the sides, tear it down the center, Photo 381. You should pretear
the paper at the top to start the tear as already indicated in Figure 31, so that when you
do the actual tear, it starts cleanly.

381 382

7. Place the right-hand half in back of the left-hand half as shown in Photo 382. You will
always place the ungimmicked thicknesses behind the gimmick, so this is easy to
remember.

134
8. Once the pieces are squared, Photo 383, curl the left forefinger over onto your side of
the paper. Display the paper as shown in Photo 384. Note that once again you have
stepped with the left foot to the left. The body is inclined half-left at this point.

383 384

9. Sometimes Slydini will point to a prominent headline at this point, Photo 385, so that
later, when the paper is restored, the audience will more likely remember that headline
and think it is the same paper.

385 386

10. The lower left corner of the newspaper is now grasped as shown in Photo 386,
thumb below, fingers above.

11. The newspaper is folded in half from the bottom up, Photo 387, so that the gimmick
can be clipped between the right first and second fingers, Photo 388. The left hand

135
remains stationary during this action. The right first and second fingers grasp the entire
back of the newspaper, which consists of three thicknesses of paper plus the "restored"
newspaper "B."

387 388

12. Immediately the left hand releases its grip and moves out of (he way. The right hand
gives the newspaper a quarter-turn as you face front again, Photo 389.

389 390

13. Crease the left side of the newspaper firmly with the left hand, Photo 390, working
down to the bottom of the left side, Photo 391. Leave the right first finger between the
folds.

136
 391 392

14. The left forefinger now enters the opening where the right forefinger lies, and slides
across to the left to tear the newspaper, Photo 392. This tear is made at the top left
corner of the folded paper. It is the starting tear.

15. The left hand now grasps the two thicknesses of newspaper held between the right
thumb and forefinger. These thicknesses are unfolded to the left and you then tear the
newspaper down the center along the crease, Photos 393 and 394.

393 394

16. The left hand pieces are now placed around in back of the gimmick, Photo 395.
Square the pieces. Crease the left side, Photo 396.

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 395 396

17. Give the packet a quarter-turn to the left (counter-clockwise), Photo 397. The left
hand grips the left side of the newspaper between the forefinger and middle finger.

397 398

18. The right hand shifts its grip from the top to the right side of the newspaper, then to
the bottom of the newspaper, Photo 398.

19. Fold the newspaper in half from right to left, Photo 399. Photo 400 is an exposed
view showing the left-hand grip, and Photo 401 is a view showing the right half being
folded over onto the left half. Note that the right half is folded over onto the left
forefinger so that the forefinger remains inside the paper.

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 399 400

20. The right hand creases the right side of the paper, Photo 402. Then the right
forefinger makes a starting tear at the top right corner of the paper, Photo 403.

401 402

21. The right hand grasps all of the layers above the left forefinger and opens the
newspaper out, Photo 404. The newspaper is torn down the center, Photo 405, and the
right-hand pieces are then placed behind the gimmick, Photo 406.

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 403 404

405 406

22. Square up the pieces, then turn them once more a quarter-turn to the left
(counterclockwise), Photo 407. Grip the newspaper with the left hand as shown in Photo
408. Then slide the left forefinger under the top layer or thickness, Photo 409, so that it
lies on top of the gimmick.

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 407 408

409 410

23. The right hand folds its half over onto the left hand, Photo 410. Crease along the
right side, Photo 411.

24. The right forefinger now enters the newspaper at the opening provided by the left
forefinger, and slides to the right to make a starting tear at the upper right corner, Photo
412.

141
 411 412

25. Tear the paper in half, Photo 413. Place the right-hand pieces behind the left- hand
pieces. The loose pieces always go behind the gimmick, Photo 414.

413 414

26. Square up the pieces, Photo 415. Now turn the packet to the right (clockwise) a
quarter-turn to the position of Photo 416.

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 415 416

27. The right hand folds its half over onto the left half, Photo 417. Crease the paper,
Photo 418. Hold the folded paper like a book and allow it to spring open, Photo 419. The
right thumb pulls the gimmick over as shown in the exposed view of Photos 420 and
421. In actual performance the newspaper is tipped up so that this action is not seen by
the audience. The thumb pulls the gimmick to the right.

417 418

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 419 420

421 422

28. The gimmick is now on the right side. Both hands now shift to the top (without
allowing the gimmick to move) and you tear the newspaper in half once again, Photos
422 and 423. You will have to do this tear a bit at a time. Get it started as shown in
Photo 422 and then complete the tear as shown in Photos 424 and 425. The completion
of the tear is shown in Photo 425.

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 423 424

425 426

29. This next is important. After tearing the paper in half, the loose pieces are placed in
back of the gimmick as before. The situation now is indicated in Photo 426.

30. Here Slydini adjusts the two packets to form what he calls "a frame." The packets are
offset so that the gimmick is jogged to the right and down, about an inch in each
direction, with respect to the ungimmicked portion. This is indicated in Photo 427. The
reason for this offset condition of the gimmick is to insure a troublefree finish. You don’t
want the torn pieces to show at the finish, and this handling will guarantee that the torn
pieces will be completely hidden.

31. The right thumb moves to the bottom edge of the gimmick and slides between this
edge and the loose pieces, Photo 428.

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 427 428

32. The right thumb moves or slides all the way up to the crease, Photo 429, to open the
gimmick.

429 430

33. The right fingers now enter this break or opening, Photo 430, and the thumb slides
out. The right thumb grips the packet at the outside.

34. The left hand releases its grip on the packet. At the same time the right little finger
pushes the top half of the gimmick so that it begins to unfold, Photos 431 and 432.

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 431 432

35. The back of newspaper "B" is now unfolding toward the audience, Photo 433. The
left hand then moves to the left side of the paper, Photo 434.

433 434

36. The left fingers find the folded corner of the gimmick, pull it up and close it up and
over the torn pieces of newspaper "A." This is shown in the sequence of Photos 435, 436,
and 437. It is all done in one move. As soon as you reach the situation of Photo 437. the
right hand turns the newspaper over to the left, Photo 438. This brings the pocket with
the torn pieces to the back.

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 435 436

437 438

37. Hold the newspaper as shown in Photo 439. Open the paper from left to right,
Photos 440 and 441. Pretend to read a few lines.

148
 439 440

441 442

38. The right hand grasps the left side of the paper, Photo 442, and turns the newspaper
over, Photo 443. Pretend to read a few more lines.

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 443 444

445 446

39. The left forefinger now enters the left side of the paper between the two layers,
Photo 444, and slides all the way around the top, Photo 445, to the upper right corner,
Photo 446. As soon as the gimmick is firmly between the left thumb and forefinger, the
right hand allows the back of the newspaper to drop, Photo 447.

150
 447 448

449 450

41. Turn to the left, open the right-hand page, Photo 451, and open the newspaper,
Photo 452, to its full length, Photo 453.

151
 451 452

453 454

42. Grasp the newspaper at the lower right corner, Photo 454, show it on both sides,
Photos 455, 456, and 457. You will undoubtedly receive a tremendous round of
applause. Acknowledge the applause as Slydini does, with a humble smile.

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455 456

457

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 5
More Slydini Coin Classics
In May 1975, Bill Wisch and I accompanied Slydini to a show in Stamford, Connecticut.
Slydini was the hit of the show, with two standing ovations, but that is not the subject of
this introduction. Rather, it is what happened afterwards. We went to a restaurant; it
was late, we were told the kitchen was closed. Most of the patrons were young people
gathered in a small room listening to a folk singer.

When we were seated at a table, Slydini was asked to demonstrate the One-Coin Routine
for the wife of one of the magicians present. The waitress taking our order saw the
famous trick in which a coin melts into thin air, only to vanish and reappear again, and
she collapsed into a chair, saying, "This is so strange." She called another waitress over,
then the owner, then the chef.

A crowd began to gather. The young people left the other room to congregate around the
humble, soft-spoken magician doing such amazing magic. Except for the oh’s and ah’s
there was complete silence. All that could be heard was Slydini’s voice ("And if I place
the coin here ..."). The folk singer stopped singing, put down his guitar and joined the
crowd. People from other parts of the restaurant gathered to watch. In time, everyone in
the restaurant had come to watch the master close-up magician perform his curiously
illusive brand of magic.

When it was over and the applause died down, the owner said that for Slydini and his
friends the kitchen would be reopened and we could have anything on the menu.
Waiters and waitresses, patrons, even the guitar player, filed past the table to thank
Slydini for the opportunity to see his work. The waitress who served us later said an odd
thing. Watching Slydini work, she had the immediate impression that he did real magic,
and that Bill Wisch and I looked after him, taking him from place to place to perform for
a few minutes, then moving on to another town.

Anyone who has been with Slydini at restaurants, dinners, or other occasions where he
is asked to perform impromptu can tell similar stories by the hundreds. Always the
impression of laymen is the same; the magic is so clear and simple, so unexplainable,
that they think it must be real magic.

The creator of such beautiful magic is faced with an enviable but difficult problem; what
do you do for an encore? Specifically, after doing the sequence of coin tricks described in
The Best of Slydini ... and More, beginning with "Six Coins and English Penny," and
leading to the inexplicable "One Coin Routine," Slydini receives such a long and
sustained standing ovation that he must acknowledge the applause by doing just one
more trick. This seems reasonable until one considers that the trick has to be at least as
strong as the "One Coin Routine."

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It would not do to perform another trick with one coin. The audience would only be
disappointed or confused. Better to perform a completely different trick, or series of
tricks, but they must use approaches that are different from all that has come before.
Although the task would seem impossible, Slydini has, in fact, developed not one, but
three coin routines that he uses as encore tricks, and they are described here in complete
detail.

You can use one of these routines only, or you can use two of them, or all three. Slydini
presents them in no particular order, and he’ll do one, two, or all three as the applause
warrants. This material is so strong that it is in a class by itself and should be reserved
for occasions when you want to devastate the audience with an excursion into the realm
of pure magic.

The chapter closes with a "Coin Gag" and the "Sliding Silver" routine, which introduces
the idea of remote lapping into a fine bit of close-up coin magic.

Encore Coins
In this routine you start with six coins, three in each hand. On command three of the
coins penetrate the tabletop. The trick is over so fast, it amounts to a startling
penetration of three coins that never fails to bring applause.

1. Start with six coins on the table in a row, the coins touching one another. Starting at
the ends of the row and moving in toward the center, pick up three coins with each
hand. Display the coins as shown in Photo 458. Say, "Three coins and three, and here
they are."

458 459

2. "You think I could do something just by doing this?" The left hand moves over the
right hand in a suspicious manner as shown in Photo 459. "... or this ..." now moving the
right hand over the left hand, Photo 460, "... or this way," now shifting the hands to the
grip shown in Photo 461. This last is done by starting with the hands as in Photo 460,
then moving the hands inward, rotating them at the wrist, the left thumb then moving
over the right fingers; you will have reached the highly suspicious position of Photo 461
at this point.

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 460 461

Usually in reply to any of the above questions the audience will say, "Yes." But when you
ask, "Do you think I could do something just by doing this?" it is possible that someone
in the audience will reply, "No." If this happens, Slydini replies, "You’re right. I didn’t do
anything and I’m going to prove it to you."

3. Bring the hands apart, Photo 462, and drop them to the rest position of Photo 463.

462 463

464 465

4. The audience has in the meantime said that yes, it is highly likely that you did
something suspicious. You reply, "No, nothing happened. I’ll prove it to you." The left
hand rotates at the wrist to a palm-up condition, then opens to display its coins, Photo

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464, as you say, "I have three coins here." Time the movement of the left hand so that
when you say, "... here," the left hand is completely open, and the back of the left hand is
touching the tabletop.

5. "And three ..." The left hand remains in contact with the edge of the table, in position
for the Revolve Vanish. The left hand revolves to the palm-down condition of Photo 465.
At the same time the left fingers curl inward and the coins are about to fall into the lap.
In the same movement the right hand moves forward and drops its three coins onto the
table, Photo 466.

6. As you complete the sentence, "... and three here," the right hand drops its coins and
the left hand simultaneously drops its three coins, allowing them to fall to the lap. The
left hand reaches the position of Photo 466 as the right hand’s coins just contact the
tabletop. The right hand must be a distance above the table equal in height to the
distance of the left hand from the lap. This insures that the coins from the right hand
will hit the table at the same instant as the coins from the left hand hit the lap.

466 467

468

7. What has happened is this. The left hand has lapped its coins, and the noise has been
covered by the noise of the right hand’s coins hitting the tabletop. Also, in the natural
action of moving the right hand forward toward the center of the table to drop its three
coins, the body leans forward. The end result of this is that the left hand is naturally
pushed forward, so that the left hand ends up away from the edge of the table. This is

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most clearly shown in Photo 468, a view from the performer’s angle, but the forward
angle of the body is shown in Photo 467. Photo 467 also indicates that the right hand is
clearly shown, fingers widespread, to emphasize that the hand is empty.

8. The right hand picks up its three coins. Now you are going to enact a beautiful bit of
business that deceives the mind because the sense of hearing is deceived. Holding the
three coins in the palm-down right hand, the performer extends the right hand as shown
in Photo 468. Say, "How many coins here?" When you say this, allow the right- hand
coins to clink by a sudden up and down movement of the right hand. This produces the
sound which the audience hears. After you ask "How many coins," the audience will, of
course, know there are three coins because they heard them clink in the hand.

9. Now back up the right hand immediately, drawing it back toward the chest, as you
wait for the spectator’s reply.

10. The audience says, "Three coins." After they do, move the left hand straight up, and
then sharply downward. The audience hears three coins clink together in this hand also,
even though the hand is empty. How? When the right hand moved back toward the
chest, the right fingers curl in, pulling the coins in against the heel of the right thumb,
where the coins are held in place. The right fingers then move down. When you shake
the left hand, simultaneously asking the spectator, "... and how many coins here?" the
shake of the left hand is accompanied by the heel of the right thumb releasing the coins.
The coins fall to the fingers and produce the clink. Thus the clink is produced without
any visible movement of the right hand. Practice to get the timing right and you will
have a beautiful illusion.

Touches like this elevate Slydini’s magic above even the expert level. After the ultraclean
lapping of the coins from the left hand, Slydini goes right on to show that the left hand
does indeed contain three coins. He does not accomplish this by means of a sleight like
the Han Ping Chien move, but by an auditory illusion done almost as an incidental part
of the handling. Audience attention bears down now, hoping to catch him in a
suspicious move, but it is far too late.

A final point. The reason that the audience has no chance to see any movement of the
right hand when the auditory illusion is produced is that the right hand is behind the left
hand when the "click" sound is produced by the right hand. Thus, any slight movement
of the right hand is covered by the left arm and left hand.

11. If you find that the right thumb moves slightly in releasing the three coins, and if you
cannot correct this by practice, keep in mind that the slight movement is covered by the
left arm. In fact, there is no reason why the right hand should move at all. Properly
done, the right hand should remain motionless during Step 10.

12. Now bring both hands up, hands closed into fists, fingers toward the audience, as in
Photo 462. Say, "And now through the table." As the right hand moves down and under
the table, hesitate, and bring the right hand back out into view as you say, "Wait a
minute."

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13. Open the right hand and show the three coins to the audience. Look down at the
right hand as if to check that you still have three coins in the right hand. But at this point
a very subtle bit of business comes into play. You do not look at the coins in the right
hand. Instead, you have to know where the coins in the lap are because they have a
tendency to spread when they drop from the left hand in Step 6. You do not want to
hesitate on the pick-up of these three coins at the finish of the trick. So, although it
appears as if Slydini is looking at the three coins in his right hand, he is actually looking
down into the lap to check the position of the three lapped coins.

14. "Oh, yes. Everything is all right." The right hand closes about its coins and then goes
under the table. It picks up the three lapped coins. The left hand meanwhile moves over
to the center of the table.

15. Slap the left hand against the table- top, simultaneously opening it so that the left
palm slams down against the table. At this point Slydini will usually say, "Yup, yup, yup,
here they are," bringing the right hand out and dropping the six coins onto the table.

Although a basically simple routine, "Encore Coins" contains the kind of subtle throw-
offs and ingenious handling details that qualify it for the master class of coin tricks.

Wrong Way Coins

In this trick Slydini places three coins in each hand. He extends one hand under the
table, instructing a spectator to quickly grab his hand. But no matter how quickly the
spectator grabs Slydini’s hand, he finds that the hand is empty. The coins have jumped
to the other hand.

1. The starting position is to have six coins on the table in a row. There is a spectator
seated on your left at the table. Pick up three coins in each hand and display them as
shown in Photo 469.

469 470

2. "Do you think it’s possible for me to do something secretly?" As you say this, close
each hand about its coins, but do it with a snap, as if you did something suspicious.

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3. Regardless of how the spectator answers, say, "It doesn’t matter. I’m not going to
show you the coins anymore." Said with a smile, it will get a laugh from the audience.
Come to the rest position of Photo 472 momentarily, hands at the edge of the table.

471 472

4. Say, "By the way the coins jingle you should know how many I have in each hand."
Now, holding the coins loosely in the right hand, jingle them as shown in Photo 470. The
thumb-side of the hand is partly toward the audience.

5. Say, "You can hear three?" If someone says they can also see the coins, Slydini replies,
"You’re not supposed to see them. That’s not your business." Again, if said with a smile,
the line will bring a laugh.

6. The right hand rests on the table, Photo 471.

7. Now swing the body to the left, and jingle the left-hand coins, Photo 471. The thumb-
side of the left hand is toward the audience and you allow them a flash of the three coins
as you jingle the coins.

8. Drop the left hand to the table. You are in the rest position of Photo 472 again.

9. Say, "Once more and I’ll fool you." Jingle the coins in the right hand as you ask, "How
many here?" The audience says three. The position is the same as Photo 470 at this
point.

10. Swing the body to the left, bringing both hands to the left, because you want to jingle
the three coins in the left hand at this point. Photo 473 shows the position.

11. The left leg moves to the left to get out of the way when you later bring the left hand
under the table. The right elbow rests on the edge of the table in Photo 473. Be sure that
both hands reach the position of Photo 473 simultaneously.

12. Jingle the coins in the left hand again, Photo 473. The right thumb and forefinger do
not hold the coins at this point. In Photo 473 these two fingers are extended slightly,
almost touching one another.

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 473 474

13. Say, "Okay? Right? Three?" as you jingle the left-hand coins. Slydini will sometimes
say at this point, "One more time and I’ll fool you." The right hand swings to the right
and jingles its coins. Then both hands swing around to the position of Photo 473 and
you jingle the left-hand coins again.

You are now going to place the left hand under the table so that the spectator can grasp
it. Several things happen simultaneously here, with psychology, timing, and
misdirection all interlocking. In describing these actions, the photos must also depict
them in exposed views. Thus it will be necessary to follow text and photos carefully, step
by step, so that Slydini’s intent is clear.

The left hand starts to swing under the table, Photo 474. As the left hand moves down
and under the table, the body naturally leans to the left, and the right hand naturally
leans down, pivoting at the elbow, until you reach the position of Photo 475.

475 476

14. The actual position of the left hand is not as shown in Photo 475, as this photo is only
to show the mechanics of what happens. The move is basically the Slydini Imp Pass. In
actual practice the left elbow is below the edge of the table and the left arm touches or
almost touches the edge of the tabletop.

15. When the hands reach the position of Photo 475, the left-hand coins are transferred
to the right hand per the Imp Pass. The three coins are taken by the right thumb and

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forefinger. As soon as the right hand has the three stolen coins, pull the coins in closer to
the right palm, Photo 476, without actually transferring them to the right palm. Keeping
the back of the right hand to the audience, say to the assisting spectator, "Give me your
hand under the table."

16. The instruction for the spectator to reach under the table with his right hand is given
just as the performer’s hands meet in Photo 475. It looks to the audience as if the left
hand is extended under the table in Photo 475 (even though it isn’t) so the instruction
appears logical. Actually, the left hand is curled in toward the right at just this point, but
as soon as the coins have been transferred to the right hand, the left hand extends
toward the spectator.

17. In Photo 477 you get a clearer view of the right hand gesturing to the spectator as you
say, "Come on, move in closer." The coins are not actually palmed, but because the right
hand is curled inward, the audience cannot see the coins.

477 478

18. Say, "Too late, too late ..." as the spectator grasps your left hand. At the same time
slap the six coins onto the table, Photo 478.

Slydini considers this version of the coins across the most deceptive, but I would vote for
the following version.

Gemini Coins

The first time that I saw Slydini perform this routine was at an after-lecture session
years ago. The effect is the same as the two tricks which opened this chapter; three coins
leave one hand and join the other. This trick was as close to an impossible coins-across
as I’d ever seen. Even today, knowing the method down to microscopic details, I have to
mentally resolve to follow every move or I will be taken in again. In the opinion of many
this is the ultimate version of the coins-across, the best of the best, a grand excursion
into pure magic.

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The text and photos were assembled in June 1975, but four years later we decided to add
photos which show the action from different angles to make the handling as clear as
possible.

In his coin work generally, Slydini is seated a quarter turn to the left. There is an
exception and it is this trick. Here he is seated a quarter turn (or quarter profile) to the
right.

To cover for this shift in position, and to avoid working so that his back is toward the
assisting spectator, Slydini covers for this with a joke. Addressing the spectator, he says,
"You know, maybe you can see better if you sit over here." Now direct him to move from
his position on your left to a position on your right.

If he is going to follow this routine with a trick where the spectator should be seated at
the left, Slydini says, at the conclusion of the first routine, "You know, that didn’t work
out so well. I think you can see better on the left." Now the spectator moves to a position
on the performer’s left.

If there happen to be spectators seated at the right and at the left side of the table,
Slydini simply works this trick for the spectator on his right.

Before proceeding, it might be pointed out that in this version of the coins across, the
coins do not penetrate the tabletop. There is no Han Ping Chien move, no lapping move.
Both hands are in view at all times, thus ruling out the possibility of an Imp Pass or
other dodge performed below the edge of the tabletop. With these constraints, and
keeping in mind that Slydini never resorts to awkward covering moves, the reader might
try to reason through a method that reasonably fits the given conditions.

1. Start as before with six coins in a row on the table. Slydini uses silver dollars because
they provide maximum visibility. Beginning at the ends and working in toward the
center, pick up three coins with each hand. Display them by gripping them at the edges
and displaying them as shown in Photo 479. Photo 480 is another view indicating that
the coins are held at the fingertips.

479 480

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2. As you do this, say, "You always show suspicion when I do something. This time,
believe me, I’m not going to do anything. You can’t miss." Spoken with the customary
Slydini charm, these lines never fail to bring a laugh from the audience. If they know
anything by now, they know it’s impossible to follow anything Slydini does.

3. You’re now going to call attention to the coins in the right hand and ask the spectator
how many coins are in that hand. As you do, a secret action occurs with the left hand.
The starting position for the left-hand move is shown in Photo 481, clearly an exposed
view in the sense that no attention is focused on the left hand during the get-ready
action. The stack of three coins in the left hand is gripped between the left thumb and
middle finger.

481 482

4. The left fourth finger now moves under the left-hand stack, Photo 482, and pivots the
stack to the horizontal position. The stack is then clipped between the left second and
third fingers, Photo 483. The left hand fingers are then curled, bringing the stack in
toward the left palm.

483 484

5. This action takes place during the following visible handling of the coins in the right
hand. Starting at Photo 480, focus attention on the right hand as the right hand curls
around its coins and jingles them. This is done as the left hand curls inward. As you
jingle the coins in the right hand, say, "How many coins do I have here?" The left hand

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meanwhile moves down to the position of Photo 484, but in the process it performs the
moves described above in Steps 3 and 4.

6. The left hand does not rest on the tabletop in Photo 484. This is an important point
because it prevents suspicion that the left hand leaves its coins on the table, laps the
coins, leaves them on the knee, or some other underhanded maneuver at this point.

7. The right hand now comes to rest on the tabletop, Photo 485. The left hand very
slowly approaches the right hand and lightly contacts the top of the closed right hand as
shown in Photo 486. This is an exposed view showing the three coins clipped between
the left second and third fingers. A view from the front is shown in Photo 487. At the
same time as you do this, say, "Do you think it’s possible for me to just touch the right
hand like this ..." After the left hand touches the right hand, the left hand moves back to
the position of Photo 485, up and away from the table, "... that I have six coins in the
right hand now?"

485 486

487 488

8. When you say, "... now," raise the right hand as shown in Photo 488, simply for
emphasis. An audience view is given in Photo 489, and an exposed view emphasizing
the position of the left hand is depicted in Photo 490.

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 489 490

9. If the spectator says "no," you say, "Regardless of what you say, I know that in your
mind you think I did something." If the spectator says "yes," act surprised and say,
"How could I do anything?"

10. In either case, these are the words that allow you to perform the crucial move. You
say, "I don’t care what you say, I know you think I did something."

11. "But it’s not true. I’ll prove it to you." Now allow the right hand to back up. When it
reaches the position shown in Photo 491 (audience view in Photo 492), open the right
hand and show the three coins as you say, "I didn’t do anything." The body turns to the
right and backs away from the table slightly as you display the coins.

491 492

12. The right hand starts to move forward. Say, "Everybody thinks that I did something
funny." The right hand closes as it moves forward almost to the level of the tabletop. The
right hand continues to move in an arc, moving upward to the position of Photo 493 just
as you reach the word, "... funny." An audience view is shown in Photo 494.

13. The word "funny" is thus emphasized by the right hand in Photo 493. To complete
the motion, the right hand drops to the rest position at the edge of the table behind the
stationary left hand. During the action of Steps 12 and 13, don’t blink. Smile at the
audience and look directly at them. When the right hand reaches the position of Photo
493, it stays frozen for a fraction of a second, and then you allow the right hand to drop

166
to the rest position on the table. The weight of the right hand is what allows it to drop in
a relaxed manner.

493 494

14. The right thumb and forefinger now clip the stack of coins from the left hand. Photo
495. The left hand is still held up and away from the tabletop when the steal is made. An
audience view is depicted in Photo 496. The left hand is held above the tabletop for two
reasons. The first is to prevent suspicion of some sort of move. The second reason is that
the right hand is automatically in position to receive the stack of coins from the left hand
without fumbling, stalling or hesitation, any of which would kill the smoothness of the
move. Performed as Slydini does it, the steal is pure elegance.

495 496

15. The right hand now remains absolutely stationary. The left hand moves straight to
the right, Photo 497. An audience view is given in Photo 498. The stack of stolen coins
thus slides along behind the left arm. The left arm now pushes against the stack,
pushing or pivoting it back into the right hand, Photo 499.

16. Immediately the hands are turned so that the backs are toward the audience, Photo
500. (The audience sees the view given in Photo 501.) At the same time the stolen stack
is curled into the right hand, completely concealing it from audience view.

17. Say, "Watch," Photo 502. Then move the two hands sharply together until they are
about a foot from one another, Photo 503.

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 497 498

499 500

501 502

18. Open the hands. The left hand is empty. Allow the coins to fall from the right hand
onto the table, Photo 504. You have just completed the strongest of all existing versions
of the coins across.

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 503 504

A Coin Gag

Sometimes at the finish of a coin routine Slydini will add a humorous touch by
apparently giving the coins to the spectator. As the spectator reaches for the coins, they
vanish. Instantly Slydini produces the coins from the hand.

This interlude is far more a matter of presentation than fancy moves. All that is required
is six coins and the ability to act or sell the part. It begins at a point after you have
completed a six-coin routine.

1. Start with six coins in a row on the table as shown in Photo 505.

505 506

2. The right hand gathers the coins in a stack, beginning at the right end of the row as
shown in Photo 506. The left hand is stationary and in a rest position on the table.

3. This trick is designed to follow some other trick, so as you gather the six coins you say
to the audience, "Did you like that trick?" As the spectator replies, the right hand has
gathered all six coins in a stack and begins to move toward the left hand, Photo 507.

4. You say, "Now what I want you to do ..." As this is being said, the right hand slides to
the left hand, Photo 508, as if to square the stack against the left palm.

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 507 508

5. The right hand leaves the stack behind, where it is concealed by the left hand. The
right hand then moves forward, Photo 509, fingers curled around an imaginary stack.
The covering patter line is, "... I want you to try it for yourself." The motion of the right
hand toward the left hand and then forward amounts to a sweeping motion to the left
and then a sweeping motion away from the left hand and forward.

509 510

6. The left hand must remain absolutely stationary during the entire action of Photos
505 through 510. Also, in leaving the stack behind, the right hand must not hesitate, nor
must there be movement of the fingers because this will kill the illusion that the stack
remains in the right hand.

7. As the right hand extends toward the spectator, the body will naturally tip or tilt
toward the right. As part of this same action, the left hand revolves slightly to the right.
The situation is depicted in Photo 511. The reason why you want the left hand to roll to
the right is that this provides more cover for the coins.

8. The right hand opens, Photo 511, just as the spectator reaches for the coins.

9. As the spectator registers surprise, the left fingers curl around the stack and secretly
lift it off the table. The left hand moves to the center of the table. The right first finger
presses down on the back of the left hand. The left hand opens suddenly and the coins

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fall to the table. It appears as if the coins materialized from nowhere. It is over in a
second and is a spectacular interlude.

511

Sliding Silver
This Slydini routine should be new to most magicians as he does not often perform it. It
is a repeat vanish and appearance of a coin, and one of the few such routines that does
not use or require palming. The routine introduces the idea of remote lapping and other
novel techniques. When Slydini performs the routine the mood is extremely relaxed and
casual. The coin seems to melt into thin air, only to reappear magically a moment later.

1. Toss a half-dollar or silver dollar out onto the table. Point to it and say, "Now watch
this coin. I’m going to show you something different." Point to the coin as you speak,
Photo 512.

512 513

2. Place the right fingertips at the forward edge of the coin, Photo 513, and slide it
forward, Photo 514. The right hand moves in a circle with a light touch, taking the coin
with it.

3. After moving the right hand in a circle two or three times, the right hand moves in a
counter-clockwise circle once more. When it gets to the top of the imaginary circle (the

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12 o’clock position), Photo 515, it releases the coin. The coin secretly slides to a position
under the left hand, Photo 516.

514 515

You are correct in questioning whether the flight of the coin to the left hand can be
detected by the audience. When Slydini performs this move, it is not detected. Photo 516
is a stop-action shot showing the move at the instant it is performed. The point is that
the right hand never approaches the left hand, yet the secret transfer is successfully
made. If you have trouble getting by with the move as depicted in Photo 516, try it with
the right hand closer to the left hand.

516 517

4. As soon as the right hand releases the coin, allowing it to slide to a position under the
left hand, the right hand moves forward, toward the spectator, Photo 517. The body
leans to the right to reinforce the movement of the hand to the right.

5. Say, "Did you see the coin?" As the spectator reaches for it, open the right hand as
shown in Photo 518. Note that the right wrist still contacts the table. When the spectator
sees that the right hand is empty, he will suspect that the coin is under the right wrist or
under the right arm.

6. Wait a moment for suspicion to build, then raise the right hand completely off the
table as shown in Photo 519.

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 518 519

7. The right hand now moves forward to the center of the table. Because the body moves
forward also, this allows the left hand to move to the right in a natural way, Photo 520.

520 521

8. The right hand draws back to the near edge of the table and then slides along the table
to the position shown in Photo 521. The left hand is stationary at this point, and the
right hand and right arm cover the left hand.

522 523

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9. The body moves back to a rest position. At the same time, the left hand releases the
coin. The right hand also moves back to the right, Photo 522. It stops when it gets to the
position of Photo 523. The right hand is now covering the coin.

10. Move the right hand in a counterclockwise direction two or three times. Then, when
the right hand is close to the edge of the table, lift the right hand to reveal that the coin
has returned, Photo 524.

524

Remote Lapping

This looks like a repeat of Phase One but in fact it is brought about by a completely
different means. The concept of remote lapping is introduced here. Although the coin is
lapped, the hand responsible for the lapping action is not near the edge of the table.

11. The right hand moves to the position of Photo 525. The right middle finger
supposedly contacts the forward edge of the coin, but it actually contacts the tabletop at
a point just in front of the coin, Photo 526.

525 526

12. The right hand moves forward, apparently holding the coin, Photo 527. Photos 526
and 527 are exposed views. In actual performance the hand would be close to the
tabletop.

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13. The right hand moves forward quickly in the sequence from Photo 526 to 527. When
the right hand reaches the position of Photo 527, the coin will be directly below the base
of the right thumb.

527 528

14. The right hand stops its forward movement when it gets to the position of Photo 528.
The right hand is flat against the tabletop at this point.

15. The right hand moves back quickly, taking the coin with it, Photo 529. The right
hand stops at the position indicated in Photo 530. The coin, because of the momentum
it has picked up in the quick trip back toward the edge of the table, keeps moving and
falls silently into the lap.

529 530

16. Immediately the right hand moves out again to the position of Photo 531. The left
hand is placed over the right hand, Photo 532, and moves around the right hand in a
clockwise circle.

17. The body leans forward when the left hand is at the position of Photo 532. When the
left hand moves back, the body also moves back to a rest position. Thus the left hand can
drop naturally into the lap. This is shown in Photo 533.

18. The right hand opens to show that the coin has vanished. At the same time the left
hand secretly gets the lapped coin.

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 531 532

533 534

19. The right hand now moves forward and it makes a circular movement as it moves.
This allows the body to move forward. As the body leans forward, the left hand gets the
coin against the edge of the tabletop in a position somewhat similar to that used in the
Imp Pass.

535 536

20. The right hand, still moving in circular fashion, moves to the left and toward the
edge of the table, Photo 535. When it reaches the edge of the table, Photo 536, the coin is
clipped by the right thumb. Photo 537 shows an audience view of the situation at this
point. The right thumb holds the coin against the edge of the table.

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 537 538

21. As soon as the coin is securely clipped, the right hand moves forward toward the
center of the table. The right thumb drags the coin up and over the edge of the table as
the right hand moves forward. The situation at this point is shown in Photo 538. This is
an exposed view.

22. The right hand continues its forward movement toward the center of the table. The
body leans forward naturally, and as the body moves forward, the left hand drops to the
lap. The point is important. After the coin is held against the table by the right thumb,
the left hand does not move. This would be the wrong approach since there is no reason
for the left hand to move. Even though the left hand no longer holds the coin after Step
20, it remains stationary until the body moves forward. Only then do you allow the left
hand to drop to the lap.

539 540

23. When the right hand reaches the position of Photo 539, it releases pressure on the
coin. The coin thus remains stationary on the tabletop while the right hand moves back
about two inches. The right hand then contacts the coin again and slides the coin out to
the middle of the table. The reason for the right hand doing this is so that the coin can
be transferred from a position under the right thumb to a position under the right
fingers. The coin is then revealed by opening the fingers, Photo 540.

By combining the vanishes and recoveries of this routine in different ways you can
produce many different routines. Some readers may also wish to experiment with the

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use of other coins. Thus, when a coin is vanished by remote lapping, you do not have to
retrieve that same coin. Rather, a coin of different size, shape, or material (copper rather
than silver, for example) can be loaded into the right hand for a surprise change.

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 6
The Coin Clip
If the literature on magic is any indication, the coin clip is one of the best kept secrets of
the art. Although its existence and use go back at least 50 years and was one of the most
closely guarded secrets in the T. Nelson Downs arsenal of coin methods, the device itself
rarely enters any discussion on coin magic. Perhaps the reason is that there has not been
a really excellent routine to justify the use of the coin clip. If that is the reason, the
following routine should be welcome indeed by those who own the gimmick but don’t
know how best to utilize it, because this routine is spectacular.

It should be emphasized that because he has such fabulous skill with coins and can
invent coin tricks even while he is working for his audience, Slydini does not have need
for gimmicked coins or other secret aids used in coin work. But he has worked out
brilliant handlings for certain gimmicks, and if you want to know the level he works at,
the following routine is a stunning example.

The gimmick, as mentioned, is the coin clip and it is available from dealers. For those
who have never seen one, the coin clip is somewhat like a money clip, except that it
holds coins rather than bills. A glance at Photos 541 and 542 will give you an idea of
what the coin clip looks like.

541 542

The effect under consideration here is the traditional coins through the table. Slydini
takes three coins in each hand. He places the right-hand coins into the left hand. Then
he places the empty right hand below the table. Instantly all six coins penetrate the
tabletop.

The trick is very strong and the handling will fool you. But the sensational aspect of the
routine, the angle that destroys magicians, is that Slydini now proceeds to repeat the
exact same effect and still fools the audience. If you know how to use a coin clip and if
you suspected Slydini of using the clip in this trick, then you also know that the coin clip
is disposed of during the course of the handling. This is the usual procedure.

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But in Slydini’s routine, even though the hands are repeatedly shown empty, the trick is
repeated and proves to be even stronger the second time than the first.

As in "Sliding Silver," this routine uses the concept of remote lapping. This subtle
principle will be covered at the appropriate point in the routine. First we’ll describe the
apparatus and the basic handling of the clip.

The Coin Clip

1. The coin clip is shown in Photos 541 and 542. The clip should be made from spring
steel and it should be adjusted to hold six coins snugly. Decide on the coins you want to
use (Slydini uses six half-dollars in the photos that accompany this write-up). Then
adjust the clip to handle just these coins and no others.

2. Photo 541 shows the clip has a wire projection at the back. This is to hook or slip the
coin clip onto a finger ring. Photo 542 shows the clip when it is in position on the finger
ring.

3. To get the idea of the basic handling, display six half dollars in the right hand as
shown in Photo 543. The full face of the leftmost coin is visible. This is the correct
starting position.

543 544

4. The right thumb contacts the stack, applying just enough pressure to hold it in place.
Then the left hand closes into a loose fist to take the coins.

5. The stack of coins is "poured" into the coin clip. They will enter the clip as shown in
Photo 544. This is an exposed view. In practice the left fingers would be curled in and
would thus keep the coins in line as they entered the clip.

6. Note in Photo 544 that only the lowermost coin has fully entered the clip at this point.
This coin acts as a guide, allowing the other five coins to slide smoothly downwards and
into the clip. This is the correct technique, and is the easiest and best way to load the six
coins into the clip. Properly done, there is no hesitation and therefore no suspicion that

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you are doing something. As far as the audience knows, you are simply placing the right-
hand coins into the left hand.

7. When the coins are in position, the left thumb pushes down on the topmost coin,
Photo 545. By means of the smooth application of pressure, all six coins are pushed
snugly into the clip, Photo 546.

545 546

This is the basic loading method. You’re going to find that if you have any problem at all,
it will be a mechanical problem in the sense that the clip must be correctly adjusted to
take the six coins. When correctly set, the coin-clip will hold the coins snugly, but not
too tightly, for a smooth release later on. That’s why Slydini suggests that you set the clip
for six coins and then use those six coins and no others when working with the clip.

What follows is a detailed and elegantly constructed routine for the coin clip, perhaps
the first published treatise on this useful coin aid, and by far the best routine using the
clip.

The Routine

1. Begin with the clip properly in place on the ring as depicted in Photo 542. If this
routine is done as an opener, you can start with the clip in place. If the following routine
is done later in the close-up act, you can easily get the clip into place while reaching into
the close-up kit for other apparatus.

2. Six half dollars are displayed as shown in Photo 546, as you say, "Now this is
completely different from anything I’ve shown you, so you have to be very alert." The
idea here is to get audience attention by promising to show them a routine that is special
and different from all that has come before. With the clip in position, Slydini claps his
hands together. This gets audience attention and indirectly implies that the hands are
empty. Of course, the palm of the left hand must be kept away from audience view.

Gesture with the palm-up hands as shown in Photo 547, again showing in an indirect
way that the hands are empty.

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 547 548

3. "I’m going to take three coins in each hand." When you say this, gather the coins one
at a time, beginning at the ends and working toward the center, Photo 548.

4. When you’ve taken three coins in each hand, display them as shown in Photo 549.
Then say, "I’m going to put them together." Place the fanned right-hand coins behind
the fanned left-hand coins, Photo 550.

549 550

551 552

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5. The left hand holds the six coins fanned, allowing the right hand to turn palm-up. The
six coins, still in a spread condition, are allowed to drop into the right hand, Photo 551.
As the coins are displayed, say, "You can’t miss."

6. The six coins are "poured" into the left hand, Photo 552, entering the clip as already
explained. With the hands exactly in the position of Photo 552, the left thumb pushes
the six coins snugly into the clip. This is the action already depicted in Photos 545 and
546.

553 554

7. As the hands now separate, the right hand pantomimes stealing some coins from the
left hand. The right fingers curl inward. As the hands move apart from one another, the
situation is as indicated in Photo 553. There is always some sort of byplay like this in a
Slydini routine because it evokes audience interest.

8. "Where do you think the coins are?" If the audience says the right hand, say, "You’re
wrong." Open the right hand, Photo 554, to show it is empty. If the audience says the
coins are in the left hand, say, "This time you’re right," and show the right hand empty
as in Photo 554.

9. "Once more. Watch closely." The right hand goes back to the left. The right thumb
(below) and the right second finger (above) firmly grasp the stack of coins, Photo 555,
and slides the clip plus the stack to the right and free of the ring.

555 556

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10. As far as the audience is concerned, the right hand has just squared the stack of
coins. With the right hand still retaining its grip on the stack and the clip, the entire
apparatus (stack plus clip) is pivoted over to a horizontal position by the right hand. The
apparatus is now gripped as shown in Photo 556. This is somewhat like an edge palm
position. It is held by the curled left little finger. You want the stack plus clip as low in
the hand as possible so that when it is allowed to fall to the table it doesn’t have far to
fall. This makes for a noiseless steal of the apparatus later on.

11. The right hand moves away from the left hand, fingers curled, as shown in Photo 557.
Again you’ve made a suspicion move with the right hand, the intent being to get the
audience to suspect that there are coins in the right hand.

557 558

12. Gesture with the hands as you say, "Now where do you think the coins are?" Again,
regardless of the spectator’s reply, show the right hand empty as indicated in Photo 554.

13. Turn the body to the right so that the left forearm can rest comfortably on the
tabletop. "Where do you want me to cause the coins to penetrate the tabletop?"

14. As you talk, allow the left hand to drop straight down to a rest position on the
tabletop, Photo 558. Note that the hand is slightly to the left of center of the chest. As
the left hand comes to rest in Photo 558, say, "Here?"

15. Relax pressure of the left fingers on the stack. Do not open the fingers. If the stack
was properly positioned in Photo 556, it will fall noiselessly to the tabletop in Photo 558.
The strategy used to lap the coin clip should be of interest. Rather than bring the hand
back to the edge of the table and lap the clip, Slydini unloads the clip onto the table.
Then, later, without the hands approaching the edge of the table, the clip and its
contents is lapped. It is this offbeat perspective on handling the coin clip that makes the
routine so deceptive.

16. Make sure that when the hands reach the position of Photo 558 that the right hand is
well to the right of the left hand. This is to avoid the right hand being in the way when
the left hand slides to the right a moment later.

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17. Slide the left hand straight to the right, Photo 559, leaving the stack of coins (in the
clip) behind. Thus in Photo 559 the stack of coins is actually about twelve inches to the
left of the left hand. The stack is, of course, hidden by the left arm. As the left hand
reaches the position of Photo 558, say, "Or here?" The body leans to the right as the left
hand moves to the right.

559 560

18. The body now moves back away from the table. The left hand swings out to the
center of the table. But because the body moves back, the left arm also moves back. As a
result, when the left hand reaches the position of Photo 560, the left forearm has
contacted the stack of coins and caused it to slide backwards and off the table. The coins,
still in the clip, fall noiselessly into the lap.

19. The left hand continues to straighten and move to the center of the table, reaching
the position of Photo 561. As the left hand moves to the position of Photo 561 it is raised
slightly off the table. This is an indirect but effective way of showing that you did not
leave the coins behind on the table.

561 562

20. "Tell me where?" As you say this line, raise the two closed fists, Photo 562.

21. The spectator indicates a point on the tabletop. Say, "Oh, here?" as you point to the
spot with the right forefinger, Photo 563.

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 563 564

22. Say, "Fine," and again gesture, Photo 564. The right hand then goes below the level
of the tabletop, Photo 565, and immediately grasps the clipped coins. The left hand, still
closed, moves to the center of the table, Photo 565.

565 566

23. Under the table the right hand grasps the clip as shown in the exposed view of Photo
566. The thumb and middle finger contact the edge of the coins. The clip is pushed away
from the stack by the action of the right forefinger-nail contacting the top of the clip,
Photo 567, and pushing the clip back until it falls free of the coins, Photo 568. The clip
falls noiselessly into the lap.

567 568

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24. As soon as the stack of six coins is free of the clip and securely held by the right
hand, the left hand slams palm-down against the tabletop, Photo 569.

569 570

25. The right hand then comes up into view and allows the six coins to fall onto the
table, Photo 570.

Phase Two

The above version of the Coins Through the Table is bewildering enough to stand on its
own in any company. But if you want to repeat the trick, still using the clip, then you
want to perform the following Slydini handling. It is this version which causes magicians
to believe they have seen the impossible.

The Repeat Version

Aside from the apparatus already used, you will need six additional half dollars. These
are in a stack on the chair, between the legs, from the beginning of the routine. You can
get a clue to the strategy by the fact that a duplicate stack of six half dollars is used.
Although the gimmick is the same, the handling is based on a different premise. It is this
fact which stops magicians. The trick is almost the same, but anyone trying to relate the
first trick to the second in terms of method will be led down a blind alley.

1. At the conclusion of the first phase, say, "That’s all." Gesture with the empty hands,
clearly show them empty, then clap the hands and drop them to the rest position in the
lap.

2. As you acknowledge the applause, grasp the clip with the right hand and place it back
on the ring.

3. Now offer to repeat the trick. Say, "This time you will really see something different."
This usually brings laughter from Slydini’s audiences because they can’t imagine how
anything could top what they just saw.

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4. Now perform Steps 1 through 8 (Photos 547 through 554) of the first phase. The only
difference is that you do not release the clip from the finger ring. All the audience sees is
that you have placed the six visible coins into the left hand and have gone through the
business of making a suspicious move.

5. You’ve just shown that the coins are not in the right hand. Now show that the coins
are actually in the left hand, Photo 571. by turning the left hand toward the audience so
the spectators can see the coins. As the photograph makes clear, the audience can see
the coins but they can’t see the clip.

571 572

6. Say, "All I have to do is push the coins like this." Push down on the stack with the
right second finger, Photo 572. Lift the right hand away with a quick snap as you say,
"That’s all."

7. Show the right hand empty, Photo 573, then place the right hand under the table. The
right hand immediately closes around the duplicate stack of six coins.

573 574

8. Slam the left hand down against the tabletop, Photo 569. There are actually six coins
in the coin clip at this point, but the left hand can be opened wide, fingers apart, as the
left hand slams down on the tabletop.

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9. The right hand comes up into view with the duplicate stack of six coins. The start of
this action is shown in Photo 574. Note that Slydini is looking at the right hand so that
all attention is focused on that hand.

10. In the same action the left hand slides back across the table to the near edge. Just as
the right hand allows the six coins to cascade onto the tabletop, Photo 575, the left hand
releases the clip.

575

11. The clip actually releases itself. Because of the weight of the coins inside the clip,
when the left hand gets to the position of Photo 575, the clip will slide from the ring
finger and fall into the lap. It works automatically. You have just to try it to prove to
yourself that it works as easily as indicated here.

Notes

In Step 7 of the second phase Slydini will sometimes add the line, "Can I go now?"
indicating that he wants to place the right hand under the table. Since there appears to
be no harm, the spectator will say, "yes."

Slydini says "Thank you." It is a small point, but it is humorous and will bring audience
laughter.

In Step 12 of the second phase, as soon as the clip falls into the lap, the left hand casually
gestures towards the visible coins on the table, palm toward the audience. This shows
the left hand empty and is the finishing touch to a master routine.

A final note may be in order. This chapter instructs the student in how to load the clip,
two methods of releasing it from the ring, and explains two methods of lapping the clip,
one a remote method, the other a direct method where the clip slides off the ring. These
individual techniques, combined with the ingenious handling and the use of a duplicate
stack for the repeat phase, combine to form a manuscript in itself, a short course in the
use of one of the most sophisticated devices in coin magic.

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 7
Slydini’s Silk Knots
Asked to name his favorite tricks, Slydini will reply, "The One Coin Routine and the
Silks." Not without reason. The "One Coin Routine" is considered to be the single great
achievement in coin magic, an excursion into natural magic of the purest and most
exalted kind; no sleights, no gimmicks, no duplicates, one sequence flowing effortlessly
into the next, each phase more mysterious and bewildering than the last, culminating in
the final, unexplainable vanish of the elusive coin.

To appreciate what Slydini has achieved with the "Silk Knots," consider the following
problem. You are asked to perform twelve minutes before an audience of 1,000
spectators. You are expected to entertain, amuse, baffle, and delight the audience. You
cannot ask for special angles, special conditions, special lighting. You have no assistants,
no gimmicks, no custom props. The only apparatus available to you is two ordinary silk
handkerchiefs.

There are even further constraints. The silks don’t appear, disappear, multiply, or
change color. They don’t do anything. All they do is unknot themselves. That’s the entire
premise; two silks are tied and they magically untie themselves. You know in your heart
that it’s not possible to go onstage and actually do an act like this. But if you are reading
this chapter you also know that Slydini has indeed achieved the impossible.

Magicians have known for centuries that certain knots, no matter how tightly tied, can
be upset by a simple, easily concealed action. This concept has long been part of the
magic tradition and figures into many individual tricks with silks, rope, and string. But
it took a creative genius to see the possibilities in this classically simple concept and
then to develop them to their fullest potential. It took a still greater leap in imagination
to realize that this concept could be developed, not just for close-up work, but for stage
work, and to then go ahead and develop a stage act using just two silk handkerchiefs.

Magicians who work on the same bill with Slydini usually have the unsettling experience
of seeing him set up his act backstage. When asked where the act is, Slydini will point to
a slender briefcase. Those not familiar with his act will then ask, almost always in
disbelief, "That’s it?" To this Slydini smiles. He’s been asked the question hundreds of
times, and he knows the implication of the question; how can a magician achieve a
reputation of the magnitude of Slydini’s based on an act that fits into a tiny briefcase?

The question has been answered before in this volume. Slydini’s work is based on two
basic secrets. The first is the development of the tricks. No one sees the long, hard hours
spent devising approaches and handlings, no one sees the wrong avenues and blind
alleys that were discarded. What is seen is the final product of analysis and
development, the beautifully casual handling that is the Slydini signature.

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The second secret to Slydini’s work can be found in the man himself. He has an instinct
for theatre, a flair for the dramatic. Every movement of the arms, the hands, and the
body, every facial expression, even the tone of the voice, has been thought out and
rehearsed long in advance. The seemingly incidental details, the almost accidental
touches, are neither incidental nor accidental, but calculated down to microscopic fine
points. Ask him to do one of his tricks and he will pause first. There is a moment of
silence, and then he says, "Okay, let’s begin." During that moment of silence he is doing
what any great stage actor does, putting himself into the proper frame of mind for that
trick. He knows the lines, he’s mentally walked through the part. Each Slydini routine is
like a miniature play, and each contains all the ingredients of great drama. The silk
routine happens to be the greatest of his achievements.

Except for the Linking Ring chapter which closes this volume, more time was spent on
the "Silk Knots" than any single chapter or subject described in this text. After much
discussion about the best way to proceed in order to teach the concepts in a way that
would make the reader’s task as easy as possible, it was decided to first describe the
method of tying the Granny Knot and the Square Knot, and of course, the methods of
upsetting the knots. After this the "Silk Knots" routine will be described in complete
detail. Following this will be the Split-Knot routine and "Houdini Silks." The next
chapter describes one of Slydini’s most closely guarded routines, the complete text of the
Slydini version of the "Sympathetic Silks." If all of the above seems like a logical way to
teach the student the Slydini system of handling knotted silks, you might keep in mind
that this is the first time this approach is being used.

The reader should keep in mind that the methods described here, while bearing a faint
similarity to previously published methods, are in fact different. Slydini has taught these
methods to only a few students. This means that what you are about to read is a second
approach to the Slydini "Silk Knots" routine, different from what has come before. When
work on these chapters was completed, I was astonished to learn that Slydini has
devised yet a third system, different from the other two!

The Granny Knot

Later on a more precise account of the type of silk to be used will be described, but for
the present the discussion will be easiest to follow if you use just one white silk and one
red silk. They are easy to distinguish in the photos and the handling is that much easier
to follow. Each silk should measure at least eighteen inches square. Nylon is more
durable than pure silk and less likely to snag or tear.

There are two reasons for learning how to tie and upset the Granny Knot and the Square
Knot. The first reason is the obvious one; you must be able to tie the knots in order to do
the tricks in this chapter. The second reason may not be quite so obvious. In some parts
of the handling of the silk knots routine, the spectator ties the knots. You can’t control
the kind of knot he ties, but you will learn that he is restricted to one of two knots—the
Granny and the Square Knot. Thus, you must be able to recognize the type of knot he
ties so that you know which technique to use to untie the knots.

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For practical reasons the photos accompanying this article depict Slydini tying the
knots. But in practice it will be the spectator who will tie the knots. Recognition of which
type of knot he ties is not difficult. With only a little practice you should have no trouble
recognizing—and even anticipating— the knot the spectator ties in the silks.

1. First we’ll cover the sequence used to tie the Granny Knot. Then we’ll explain how to
upset this type of knot. Begin with the silks held as shown in Photo 576.

576 577

2. The right-hand end goes under the left-hand end, Photo 577. The crossed ends are
held by the left hand, Photo 578. The right hand then grasps the end of the red silk and
moves it under the crossed silks, Photo 579.

578 579

3. The left first finger rotates the red end under and around the point of the knot, Photo
580. The red end is then retaken by the right hand, Photo 581.

4. The right-hand end goes under the left-hand end again, Photo 582, and the second
knot is tied in the same way as the first, Photos 583, 584, 585, and 586.

5. The knot is then tightened, Photo 587, and the result is a Granny Knot, Photo 588.
You can tell this is a Granny Knot (as differentiated from a Square Knot) because the
ends are at right angles to the silks themselves. Another way of saying this is that the
ends are at right angles to the body of the silks.

192
 580 581

582 583

584 585

The above is the basic method of tying the Granny Knot. Tie and untie the knot a few
times so that you become accustomed to the pattern of the tying sequence. Then proceed
as follows.

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 586 587

588 589

6. To upset the Granny Knot, grasp the end that points away from you. Slydini calls this
the forward end of the knot. In Photo 589 it is the end of the red silk. This end is grasped
between the right thumb and forefinger and pulled, Photo 590. The result is that the
knot has been upset. Of course, the upsetting action must be covered by the handling.
This point will be described in detail during the course of the routine itself. The only
purpose of these opening pages is to acquaint the reader with the basic mechanics of
tying and upsetting the knots.

590 591

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7. After the ends have been secretly upset, to even up the ends, the left thumb and
forefinger push the knot forward, Photos 590, 591, and 592.

592 593

8. You can display the knotted silks at this point. To bring about the complete release,
under suitable cover, the left fingers pull the red silk down while the left thumb and
forefinger hold the knot in place, Photo 593.

9. The end result is that the red silk will be pulled free, Photos 594 and 595.

594…595

The Square Knot

The only other type of knot the spectator can tie is a square knot. You will learn here
how to recognize this type of knot, how to tie it and how to upset it. Just follow this
description with silks in hand. Again a red silk and a white silk will be used for the sake
of clarity.

1. Hold the two silks as shown in Photo 596. Bring the white end under the red end,
Photo 597.

2. The right hand grasps the red end, Photo 598, and brings this end down. The left first
finger aids in bringing this end under and around the white silk, where it is re-grasped
as shown in Photo 599.

195
 596 597

598 599

3. The red end now goes on top of the white end, Photo 600. The left thumb is placed on
top of the red end to hold it in position, Photo 601.

600 601

4. The white end is then pushed down through the loop and around, Photos 602 and
603.

196
 602 603

5. The knot is tightened as shown in Photos 604 and 605. The knot is then displayed as
shown in Photo 606.

604 605

606 607

6. When a spectator ties this knot, Slydini pretends that he has never seen this type of
knot before. He acts as if he is going to study it. The left hand pushes the red end over to
the right, Photo 607.

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7. Then Slydini allows the knot to straighten back to the position of Photo 606. With the
thumb and forefinger of each hand in contact with the knot, he rotates the white end to
the left, Photos 608 and 609.

608 609

8. The left thumb now shifts position so it is in contact with the right first finger, Photo
610. As soon as the thumb achieves firm contact, the right hand slides to the right along
the white silk, Photo 611.

610 611

9. Through this casual handling you have succeeded in reversing the two silks. Now the
red corner is at the right so it appears logical for the right hand to grasp this corner to
tighten the knot, Photo 612. In fact this action has the opposite effect in that it upsets
the knot! Thus, in a beautiful and indetectable manner you have achieved the desired
end.

10. All of the above applies if the spectator tied a firm knot but one that isn’t too tight. If
the knot is very tight, you have to upset it in the act of supposedly making it tighter. The
covering action is shown in Photo 613. The tension you must put into the silks to upset
the knot is covered by the apparent tension you exert in supposedly tightening the knot.
In other words, things are exactly opposite to what they seem.

11. Show the knotted silks as in Photo 614. Photo 615 indicates the true condition of the
silks and indicates that the red silk is not at all knotted to the white silk.

198
 612 613

614 615

12. If you want the spectator to tie one more knot in the silks, pull the red silk so the red
end is shorter than the white end, Photo 616. Now the spectator must tie the long white
end around the short red end. But this has absolutely no effect on the already- upset
knot. After the spectator has tied the extra knot, the red silk still pulls free of the white
silk, and no adjustment is required.

616 617

13. All of the above represents an introduction to the Slydini "Silk Knots" routine. If you,
as the performer, tie the knots as indicated above and then cause the silks to magically
unknot, you may wish to practice a kind of miniature second phase. In this the spectator

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ties two silks together. To do this, hold the two silks as shown in Photo 617, red silk on
top of the white silk. By doing this you have already started the spectator on his way to
tying the first knot.

He begins to knot the silks, Photo 618, and you proceed from here. He can tie either a
Granny Knot or a Square Knot. Either way you know how to upset the knot and can
show that the silks have magically separated.

618

Notes On The Square Knot

Photo 599 shows the formation of the first knot. The second knot is tied at the finish of
Step 4. If you examine the knot thus formed you will find that the ends are parallel with
the silks. This is what visually distinguishes the Square Knot from the Granny Knot.

In Step 8, when the right hand slides to the right along the white silk, it is done as a
flourish. Slydini has been acting puzzled that he doesn’t recognize the knot just made.
As the right hand moves quickly to the right along the white silk, Slydini says, "Well, it
doesn’t matter."

In upsetting the silk knots, beginning at Step 9 and Photo 612, the right hand grasps the
end of the red silk while the left fingers curl around the body of the red silk. The left
fingers maintain a firm grip on the body of the red silk, but the left thumb and forefinger
do not grip the knot tightly because this would be self-defeating. In other words, if you
grip the knot tightly, the red silk will not slide free of the white silk and the knot will not
be upset. Follow the handling as given above and you will have no trouble achieving the
end result.

There are two places where you can tip the method or otherwise leave a clue as to the
true working. The first is when you upset the knot. If you hold a silk in the left hand and
pull the end of the silk with the right hand, it is true you will upset the knot. But it is also
true that without cover, the action will be obvious to spectators. You must use as a
covering action the fact that you are apparently tightening the knot, and it must appear
that you are indeed tightening the knot for the illusion to work.

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The second point where a possible tip-off can occur is when you separate one silk from
the other. You can’t simply pull the silks free. You must use the covering action
described in the routine in this chapter, where the silks themselves provide the
necessary cover. Follow these guidelines, look for exactly these points when practicing,
and you will have a perfect illusion.

Slydini’s Two Silk Routine

This is the world-famous routine that has been presented to universal acclaim,
unqualified praise and standing ovations. The routines that comprise the balance of this
chapter have been performed in Atlantic City, Las Vegas, Carnegie Hall, Latin America,
Europe, Cuba, Japan, everywhere that magicians can be found. Slydini was the first
magician to even attempt to entertain an audience, from the stage, with a routine using
two silk handkerchiefs and nothing else. In Slydini Encores Leon Nathanson summed
up the feeling of many when he wrote, "Slydini is the only modern performer I know to
whom all superlatives are applicable. His virtuosity and creativity are incredible, and no
amount of description can ever do justice to his performances. ... If Magic is an Art,
Slydini is its Michaelangelo." This chapter and the next provide ample evidence of
Slydini’s creative gift.

At the technical level, the material described here is not the same as the Slydini knot-
tying sequences described elsewhere. Slydini constantly changes and improves his work.
What is described here is the latest development in his work. If you know earlier
routines, you should be aware that this is the bonafide Slydini method. It is not the
routine he teaches to most students, so it will be new even to them.

There is no uniform way Slydini presents his material because he constantly improvises.
Always in tune with the mood of the audience, he adjusts routines to fit that mood. But
in order to provide the reader with a general guideline as to the structure of the Slydini
"Knotted Silks" routine, it would proceed approximately as follows:

First Slydini knots two silks together in the fairest possible manner. Instantly the silks
become untied. Then Slydini knots the two silks together again, but this time he lets the
spectator add one or more knots on top of the knots Slydini has tied. In spite of this, the
silks instantly separate from one another. Then comes the impossible phase where the
spectator himself ties the two silks together, adding knot on top of knot. In spite of this,
the silks become unknotted. The routine may end here, but if Slydini senses that the
audience wants more, he will proceed with the "Houdini Silks" or "Splitting The Knots,"
generally the latter. The knot-splitting routine contains its own spectacular sequel, a
built-in encore as it were, so the entire sequence of tricks ends on an extremely strong
note.

Getting to the basic details, Slydini prefers nylon to silk because it is stronger and less
likely to bind or snag. Photo 619 shows the type of silk Slydini recommends for the
student. The silk is white. The right and left hem are stitched with a yellow thread. The
reason for this is that you can later distinguish this silk from the other white silk you use
(which has no yellow hem). The point is important. If in tying the silks the spectator gets

201
the ends mixed up, you are able to instantly upset the knot because you can distinguish
one silk from the other at a glance. If the two silks were identical you might pull the
wrong end, thus tightening the knot instead of upsetting it.

619

In the following description (text and photos) we will continue to use a red silk and a
white silk for clarity. But in actual performance you should use one nylon handkerchief
and one nylon handkerchief with the yellow thread. Slydini suggests that to tell one silk
from the other, get in the habit of glancing at the silk held by the left hand. Say this silk
has the yellow thread. You do this under the guise of studying the knot, pretending
you’ve never seen this type of knot before. If the silk held by the left hand has the yellow
thread, then the right hand pulls the end that contains the yellow thread. This is done
while apparently tightening the knot, but of course, it has the opposite effect; the knot is
upset.

When performing for a large audience, Slydini will usually bring a chair out to stage
center, stand on the chair and tie the knots. This way the entire audience can see what
he is doing. For later phases of the routine he will go into the audience and have a
spectator tie the knots. But sometimes he will work the effect from the stage by having
spectators sit at a table onstage. The effect is so visual that even performed this way it
can be seen by those in the audience.

1. The two silks are on the table at the start. It is assumed that you have people sitting at
the table with you. Begin by picking up both silks and handing them out for
examination. Slydini says, "Here I have two handkerchiefs. Would you (turning to the
spectator on his right) open up this handkerchief and see if there is anything wrong. And
(turning to the second spectator with the second handkerchief) how about you?"

2. Slydini takes back the two silks and holds them as shown in Photo 620. He says, "I’m
going to tie the two handkerchiefs together. I’m going to make a good knot, really good.
But (here he smiles) you’re not going to believe me. Do you know why?" He pauses. The
spectator asks why.

3. "Because I’m a magician, and magicians do a lot of dirty tricks. Not me." Pause. He
looks over to the left. Then he adds, "... much."

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 620 621

4. "But if I let you tie the knots yourself, would you believe it? You must believe it,
right?" The spectator says, "yes."

5. "So, I’ll tie the knots first and then I’ll let you tie them. Don’t worry, you’re going to tie
them."

622 623

624 625

6. Now the right-hand silk is brought under the left-hand silk, Photo 621, and you begin
the first knot-tying sequence. Photos 622, 623, 624, 625, and 626 show the tying of the
first knot.

203
 626 627

7. The end of the red silk is crossed over to the left under the end of the white silk, Photo
627, where it is held by the left thumb and forefinger. The second finger of each hand
slips into the loop as shown in Photo 627. The right hand grasps the end of the white
silk, Photo 628. This end is pushed down with the left first finger through the loop,
Photos 629 and 630, and is taken by the right hand, Photo 631. Note that the right
fingers are curled around the white silk all the way through this sequence. Also, the
hands are away from the tabletop. Don’t rest the hands on the tabletop.

628 629

630 631

204
8. When the white end is pushed through, it is taken by the right hand, Photo 631. The
right fingers then release their grasp on the white silk, Photo 632.

632 633

9. The ingenious move comes into play at this point. The silks, because they are tied as
they are, have a tendency to reverse or change position. You see the beginning of this in
Photo 633. The left fingers extend between the silks and help rotate (or "unwind") them
so that the red silk is on the right and the white silk on the left. As the silks quietly
change places, the hands tighten the knots, Photo 634. This is the key to the method.

634 635

10. The right second finger contacts the red silk, Photo 635, and applies pressure,
pulling this silk down and away from the white silk, Photo 636, as the fingers tighten the
knots.

To say this another way, the right second finger pulls down on the red silk while the
right thumb and forefinger hold the end of the red silk. The result is that you are pulling
only the red silk. Once this silk is taut, the knot is completely upset.

The result is shown in Photo 636, and in more detail in Photo 637. Thus you have
already created the slip knot and the trick hasn’t really begun.

205
 636 637

11. The left second finger curls around the end of the red silk and holds tightly onto it,
Photo 637. Photo 635 shows the knot as you display it to the audience. Photo 636 is
another view. Only after the knot has been upset and tightened do you display it to the
audience.

12. The right hand releases its grip on the silk and slides down the silk to the end. You
then bring the hands together and separate them quickly to snap the silk, Photo 638.
The tension that is created by snapping the silk does not tighten the knot because
pressure is transmitted only along the red silk.

638 639

13. The snapping action is here shown in more detail. The right hand approaches the
left, Photo 639, crosses over the left hand, Photo 640, then suddenly moves to the right,
Photo 641.

14. You don’t want to give the impression that you have pulled only one silk, so
immediately you display both silks. This is done by releasing the left-hand grip on the
white silk, Photo 642, then regrasping the white silk at about its center and displaying
the two silks, Photo 643. Slydini will also pretend to tighten the knot as indicated in
Photo 671. In his hands the knot-tightening process appears so convincing that one is
led to believe that nothing short of dynamite could separate the silks.

206
 640 641

642 643

15. The silks are regrasped near the center of each silk, and the silks displayed as shown
in Photo 644.

644 645

16. You are now going to perform a change-over move in which the silks are once again
reversed. In this case the red silk will end up back on the left. This is done by grasping
the red silk with the right hand, Photo 645, slipping the left hand under the knot, Photo
646, then bringing the silks over to the edge of the table so they are free to revolve or
rotate, Photo 647.

207
 646 647

17. It appears as if you are merely adjusting the silks a bit as this action takes place.
Since both silks are white in actual performance there is no way anyone seeing the trick
can be aware that you are switching one silk for another.

18. The silks are now regrasped as shown in Photo 648. If you compare this photo with
Photo 645, you will see that the red silk has been switched to the left.

648 649

19. The reason this is done is to present a more legitimate-appearing knot to the
audience, Photos 648 and 649.

20. If the knot is viewed from the magician’s perspective, it will appear as in Photo 650.
You can see from this that the red silk threads its way along a more or less straight path
through the knot in the white silk, but that the red silk is ready to slip free of the white
silk if the silks are pulled apart.

21. If you practice the trick often you may notice at this point in the handling that at
times the end of one silk is noticeably longer than the end of the other silk. You can
adjust the ends so they are even, and this point is taken up in the next sequence of
photos.

22. The knot is held by the right hand, Photo 651. This allows the left hand to regrip the
knot as shown in Photo 652.

208
 650 651

652 653

23. Once the left hand has the knot in a firm grip, the right hand slides down the white
silk, Photo 653, and free of the white silk. Then the right hand grips the red silk and
retains it as shown in Photo 654.

654 655

24. The left thumb and forefinger can now push the knot up, Photos 655, 656, 657, and
658, until the end of the red silk is as long as the end of the white silk, Photo 659. You
can now display the silks once again as shown in Photo 636.

209
 656 657

658 659

To cover the actual adjustment of the knot, Slydini moves to the spectator on his left,
saying, "See how tight the knot is?" He makes the adjustment while the silks are in
movement, then turns to the front again.

660 661

25. When the knot has been adjusted, Slydini then says, "Would you mind holding this
silk in your hand?" As he speaks this line, he grasps the red silk with the right hand,
Photos 660 and 661, and gives it to the spectator, Photos 662, 663, and 664. As the right
hand moves forward, note in Photos 661 and 662 that the right hand slides down the silk
to a point even with the tabletop, then forward in Photo 663. At the same time the left

210
hand moves behind the right hand. The result is that the left hand is screened or hidden
by the right arm. Photo 664 is a stop-action shot.

662 663

As an added note on the technique, the left thumb and forefinger grasp the knot while
the remaining left fingers curl around the red silk. This can be seen in the sequence of
Photos 660 and 661. Thus, when the red silk is handed to the spectator in Photo 664, the
left fingers can draw the red silk free of the knot. At the same time, the left thumb and
forefinger keep the red silk in contact with the white silk, so it appears as if the two silks
are knotted together.

664 665

26. At this point the left thumb and forefinger push the knot free of the red silk, but the
thumb and finger still hold the two silks together, Photo 665.

27. The spectator takes the red silk, Photos 666 and 667. You start to turn to the left
even as the silks melt free from one another, Photos 666 and 667, as you say to the
audience, "Isn’t this a beautiful thing?"

28. Photo 668 shows the end of this phase. The sudden separation of the two silks is so
surprising that the audience laughs and applauds spontaneously.

211
 666 667

668

In presenting the routine Slydini proceeds at a fairly brisk pace, as if moving relentlessly
toward a predetermined end. The result is a feeling of helplessness on the part of the
audience. They know that no matter how tightly the knots are tied, no matter who does
the tying, no matter how impossible it is to get the silks unknotted even by normal
means, the silks are going to magically come free of one another.

Second Phase

To repeat the trick, tie two knots in the silks as already described above. You are at the
point of Photo 669. Now proceed as follows.

669 670

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1. Grasp the silks with the palm-up hands, Photo 670. Bring the hands in toward the
body as you pretend to pull the silks tight, Photo 671. Let the facial expression mirror
your apparent efforts to tighten the knot as much as possible.

671 672

2. Now bring the hands to the position of Photo 672. The left hand moves to a palm-up
position, Photo 673, and closes around the red silk.

673 674

3. The right hand slams palm-down onto the tabletop. At the same time the left hand
moves abruptly against the right arm, Photo 674. Again the facial expression mirrors the
apparent effort expended. The above actions are more than ample proof that the knot is
really tightened beyond human ability to get it untied.

4. Slydini then asks the spectator to tie yet another knot on top of the double knot
already in the silks, Photo 675. Slydini always adjusts the silks so that the white end is
longer than the red end. This forces the spectator to knot the white end around the red
end. This in turn means that it will be easier to upset the knot later on. Should the
spectator do the opposite and knot the red end around the white end, Slydini will turn to
the other spectator and ask him to try to unknot the last knot just to see how long it will
take. Of course, the spectator will fumble, but eventually he’ll get the final knot undone.
Then Slydini asks him to tie the knot again. Always, this spectator will tie the white end
around the red end.

213
 675 676

5. Once the knot is tied, it is upset as follows. The description assumes the red knot was
upset originally. Slydini pretends to tighten this knot by grasping the end of the red silk
as shown in Photo 676. The left fingers grasp the body of the red silk, Photo 677, as he
pulls on the knot. The end result is that the added knot is upset, Photo 678. Again the
cover is that Slydini turns to the spectator on the left as he upsets the knot. The line is,
"Now it is impossible to separate the silks."

677 678

6. The release is done differently this time. That is, it is not the same as shown in Photos
664 and 665. Here Slydini says, "How long would it take to open this knot by the use of
the fingers alone?" The spectator will say ten minutes or ten hours, depending on his
sense of humor.

7. "You know, I can tie the best knot in the world, and still you don’t believe it. Do you
know what I’m going to do? I’m going to let you tie one knot on the bottom and we’ll see
who ties the better knot, you or me." As he says, "... on the bottom," Slydini points to the
silks, Photo 679. At this point the two silks have dropped over the edge of the table.

8. Slydini grasps the ends of the silks near the knot and slides the right hand down,
Photo 680. The right hand slides down to the free ends of the two silks, Photo 681, and
then brings these ends into view, Photo 682.

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 679 680

681 682

9. The free ends of the silks are given to the spectator, Photo 683. At the same time the
left hand drops below the edge of the table with the knotted ends of the silks and
immediately releases the silks by pushing the knot off the red silk with the left thumb
and forefinger.

683 684

10. The release must be instantaneous. The left hand immediately rejoins the right hand,
Photo 684. As this is done, say, "Don’t get nervous. Everything will be okay."

215
11. "Tie it for me please," Photo 685. As the hands extend forward with the two silks, the
right hand and left hand move in opposite directions in a sudden motion. This causes
the two silks to flutter in the air, quite obviously separate from one another. It comes as
a tremendous surprise to the audience.

685

Phase Three

The third phase of the Slydini "Silk Knots" routine seems to be the most impossible, but
it is really a repeat of concepts already described in the previous text. The difference is
that the spectator does the knot-tying.

1. To proceed with this phase, hold the two silks as shown in Photo 617, the red silk on
top of the white silk. This starts the spectator on his way. He begins to knot the two silks
together, Photo 618, and because of the way the silks are held, he can tie either a Granny
Knot or a Square Knot.

2. Upset the knot as already described. Then have him tie another knot on top of the
knot he just tied. Upset the knot, again as already described. If it is possible, have him
tie still another knot on top of those already tied. Upset this knot.

3. All the while study the knots and comment that you’ve never seen knots like these. At
the finish, with knots piled on top of one another, the situation appears hopeless. The
audience knows the situation is hopeless, but they know with equal conviction that
somehow, using means not yet clearly explained by science, Slydini is going to cause the
silks to magically separate.

If you’ve seen him work, encouraging the spectator to tie the knots tighter, to make
really sure the knots are secure, to try to add that fifth knot on top of the other four, you
know the tremendous entertainment value Slydini extracts from this phase of the
routine.

The finish is handled just as above. As the silks are handed to the spectator, they have
magically separated. This finish never fails to bring a standing ovation. It is one of the
great highlights in magic.

216
 Houdini Silks

The effect is this. You knot two corners of a silk to form a ring. Another silk is threaded
through the first silk and two corners of that silk knotted. In essence you now have two
linked silks. Immediately the silks are caused to unlink.

Whereas the effect is well known, the method and handling described here are new and
never before published. Further, Slydini has, by means of natural handling and the
complete absence of false moves, transformed the trick into a work of true artistry.
Finally, because of the ingenuity of the method, the trick can be repeated immediately.
This is another way of saying that the trick automatically resets itself.

1. To start we will explain how to tie the knot in preparation for the effect. Hold a silk by
the corners exactly as shown in Photo 686. The corner held by the right hand is brought
under or beneath the left-hand corner, Photo 687.

686 687

2. The left thumb presses down on the point where the ends of the silk cross. This allows
the right hand to release its grip and regrasp the end now on the right. The situation at
just this point is shown in Photo 688.

688 689

217
3. The left hand turns inward at the wrist and the left forefinger is placed on the silks at
the point where they cross, Photo 689.

4. The right hand releases its grip on the silks. The left forefinger pulls the right-hand
corner so that it rotates under the point where the silks cross. When the end has gone
under and back up, it is regripped by the right hand as shown in Photo 690. You have
tied the first knot in the silk.

690 691

5. To tie the second knot, the right-hand end again goes under the left-hand end, Photo
691. The second knot is then tied the same way as the first. See Photo 692. Photo 693
shows the complete knot.

692 693

6. The hands move in toward the chest as you pretend you are tightening the knot.
Photo 694 shows the start of this action, and Photo 695 shows the completion of the
action.

7. While the right hand holds its end of the knot, the left hand releases its grip on the
end and slides back. The silk is then regrasped by the left hand as shown in Photo 696.
Note that the left hand is to the left of the knot. The left thumb and forefinger just touch
the knot.

218
 694 695

696 697

8. The right hand then grasps the forward end of the knot, Photo 697. This is a Granny
Knot and you are now going to upset the knot.

9. The left fingers, which have been loosely curled around the silk since the beginning of
the sequence, now tighten their grip on the silk. The right fingers release their grip on
the silk. The right hand pulls its end to the right, Photo 698.

698 699

219
10. The knot is now upset, but the ends are not equal. To get them equal, the left thumb
and forefinger slide forward, Photos 699 and 700, and literally slide the knot to the right
to even up the ends.

700 701

11. This is the method used to upset a Granny Knot. In this trick, however, you are not
tying the knot for the benefit of the spectators. What you have just done is tie a Granny
Knot in the silk in preparation for the trick.

12. At the finish the knot will look as shown in Photos 701 and 702. If you were to
release the knot in Photo 702 so that it fell back onto the table, and then grasped
diagonally opposite corners of the silk (that is, the corners that are not tied) from the
front the silk would look completely unprepared. In other words, the knot would be
hidden from view.

702

13. From this point on you would use two white silks to perform the trick. One is
prepared as described above and the other is unprepared. However, for ease in following
the handling, we will use one red silk and one white silk, as in previous tricks in this
chapter.

220
 Phase One

14. The red silk and the white silk are placed together and tucked into the inside jacket
pocket. At this point you are ready to present the routine.

15. Take out the two silks together, Photo 703. Stretch them out diagonally between the
hands and place them into the lap.

703…704

16. Pick up either silk by the end with the right hand and raise it up into view, Photo
704. The left fingers curl around the silk and slide down to the center, Photo 705, as if
straightening out the silk. Actually the left hand detects whether this silk has the knot at
the center. We will assume it doesn’t. In this case, when the left hand reaches the end of
the silk, the silk is displayed as shown in Photo 706.

705 706

17. This silk is then placed on the table, stretched out to its full length diagonally.

18. The right hand now drops to the lap and picks up the second silk. The left fingers
curl around the silk and run down to the point where the fingers detect the knot, Photo
707.

19. The fingers then close around the silk at the center where the knot is. The important
point in this handling is that after the silks are taken out of the pocket and placed in the

221
lap, you must reach to the lap and take a silk immediately, without looking and without
hesitation. If you hesitate, it implies that one silk is somehow different from the other,
and this in turn implies preparation or a secret gimmick. In the Slydini handling you
must know which silk contains the hidden knot, but he has arranged the handling such
that it doesn’t matter which silk you take first.

707 708

Because of the handling depicted in Photo 707, you are able to detect if the silk in hand
does in fact have the hidden knot. If it does, this silk is placed at the near edge of the
table. If it is the unprepared silk, it is placed near the center of the table. Later when you
have a silk chosen by the spectator, he will choose the silk nearest to him, the one at the
center of the table.

20. When the white silk is placed on the table, the right hand holds the right end and the
left hand holds the center of the silk.

21. The right hand lets go of its end. Then the right hand moves to the center of the silk.
With the palm-down right hand, flatten the silk as the right hand slides to the right,
Photo 708.

22. When the right hand reaches the right end of the silk, Photo 709, it remains in
contact with the end of the silk. Then the left hand slides to the left, smoothing out the
left side of the silk as shown in Photo 710.

709 710

222
23. Regarding the presentation, Slydini says, "All magicians have books on Houdini. But
none of the books explain the real methods Houdini used. Somehow—I can’t explain
how, I found out how he really does his escape tricks."

24. Pick up the red (unprepared) silk and tie a Granny Knot as previously explained. The
end result is shown in Photo 711. Don’t upset this knot. Then display the knot as shown
in Photo 712, saying, "I tie a small but secure knot."

711 712

25. "Let’s pretend ..." Hold the silk in the left hand at the knot. The right hand then
slides through the loop, Photo 713. "... that this is the prison."

713 714

26. The right hand then withdraws and the right fingers curl around the right side of the
silk, Photo 714, as you say, "... and these are the bars."

27. Allow the silk to drape over the back of the left hand. Open the fingers so that there
is a large loop as shown in Photo 715.

28. The right hand grasps the prepared silk at the center, where the knot is, Photo 715.
The white silk is brought over to the left hand and pushed part way through the loop in
the red silk. The left hand then grasps the nearest end of the white silk. At the same

223
time, the left hand allows the red silk to slide off the back of the left hand and onto the
white silk, Photo 716.

715 716

29. The right hand slides to the right end of the white silk. The silk is now pulled taut so
that the knot doesn’t show in the center as you display the silks, Photo 717.

717 718

30. Allow the center of the white silk to sink below the edge of the table, Photo 718. The
reason for this is that when you knot the ends of this silk, the knot in the center will not
accidentally show.

31. Knot the two ends using the Granny Knot, and upset the knot as already described.
This is shown in Photo 719. Display the knotted silk for a moment, Photo 720. The
patter for Steps 28, 29, and 30 is, "They put Houdini into the prison cell and secured
him with a heavy lock. He couldn’t escape."

32. When you get to the last sentence above, the knotted silks are displayed in the right
hand as shown in Photo 720.

33. The right thumb and forefinger hold the white silk at the knot, and grip the knot
firmly.

224
 719 720

34. The left hand moves inside the loop of the white silk, moving in from the left side
and curling in as shown in Photo 721. The fingers go around the silk, but the thumb
slides between the folds, Photo 721.

721 722

35. The left hand remains motionless. The right hand, still grasping the knot, moves
forward and down. This allows the white silk to slide past the left thumb. The silk will
continue sliding until the left thumb contacts the secret knot.

723 724

225
36. The right hand stops. The left thumb now moves to a position under the secret knot,
Photo 722. An exposed view is given in Photo 723.

37. The hands move to the left. As they do, the right hand moves the knot it holds
behind the left hand. Photo 723 shows how the silk is draped over the left hand at this
point. The end result is shown in Photo 725. The visible knot in the white silk is the false
knot that the audience saw you tie earlier. You haven’t switched knots, but you have
succeeded in bringing the secret knot to a position over the left thumb. This knot is
covered by the fabric of the white silk.

725 726

38. "Houdini first checks to see if there is any way out of the cell." Grasp the red silk as
shown in Photo 726 and pull it through the white silk so that it rotates around in a circle.
This is to depict in action the patter line about Houdini walking around the cell.

39. In rotating the red silk around in a circle, do it with a light touch. Otherwise, you will
cause the false knot in the white silk to release. You finish this part with the knot in the
right hand, Photo 727.

727 728

40. The false knot in the white silk should show exactly as indicated in Photo 727.
"When Houdini was certain no one was watching, he escaped this fast."

226
41. Pull the silks apart, Photo 728. In the same motion, shake the two silks downward.
The white silk will slide off the back of the left hand, and you will end up as shown in
Photo 729.

729

The Instant Replay

42. Slip the fingers through the silks, Photo 730. Display the silks for a second, then
lower them onto the table, Photo 731.

730 731

43. Almost always someone will ask you to repeat the trick. When asked, you proceed as
follows. First note that a free end of the white silk points to the right in Photo 732. The
left hand picks up the white silk at the knot, Photo 733.

44. The right hand picks up the red silk at the knot, Photo 734. As it moves to the left,
the right hand also picks up the loose end of the white silk and brings it to the left hand,
Photo 735.

45. Pause and say to the spectator, "Perhaps you’d like to help me. Please untie this silk."
As you speak, give him the red silk, Photo 736. The right hand then grasps the free end
of the white silk as you pretend to untie the white silk, Photo 737. In fact, you tug a bit
on the end, then make a snapping sound with the thumbnails as if untying the knot.

227
 732 733

734 735

736 737

46. The right hand holds the free end, and you immediately snap the silk downward. But
this sets up the white silk. The knot is now hidden behind the silk as depicted in Photo
702.

47. Take back the now-untied red silk from the spectator. You are now at the situation
shown in Photo 707, and you proceed to repeat the routine.

228
 Splitting The Knot

At the finish of the "Silk Knots" routine Slydini is invariably asked to perform an encore
trick and this is the routine he is most likely to perform. It is one of the most visual silk
tricks in the literature because it seems that a knot visibly splits into two knots.

Again for the sake of clarity a red silk and a white silk will be used in the explanation of
the handling. In actual performance you would use two white silks.

1. Grasp two silks between the left thumb and fingers. The right hand then pulls the ends
upward so that the ends are about four inches above the left thumb. The ends are held
by the right hand.

2. As the right hand winds the ends around the left first and second fingers, Photos 738
and 739, ask the audience, "Do you know what kind of knot this is called?"

738 739

3. You will get a variety of answers. After hearing them, Slydini sometimes says, "I don’t
know myself." Straighten out the ends so they stand upright. Grasp them between the
right thumb and forefinger. This time, slip the left thumb between the silks, Photo 740.

740 741

229
4. The right hand releases its grip. The ends of the silk are now clipped between the right
third and fourth fingers, Photo 741.

5. The right thumb then presses against the red silk from below, Photo 742.

742 743

6. The left hand holds the silks firmly in place. The left fingers remain curled around
both silks, but the left thumb contacts only the white silk. The right hand moves up. The
result is that the white silk slides between the right thumb and forefinger. Continue this
movement until the end of the white silk is held between the right thumb and forefinger,
Photo 743.

7. Now the right hand winds both silks loosely around the left first and second fingers,
Photo 744. When the right hand reaches the position of Photo 745, the left third and
fourth fingers move around to the outside of the silks, Photo 746.

744 745

8. The ends of the silks are now between the left second and third fingers. Release the
right hand grip on the end of the white silk, Photo 747. The right hand continues
without hesitation to wind just the red silk up and over the left fingers, Photo 748.

230
 746 747

748 749

9. The right hand moves behind the left hand as shown in Photo 749. The loop is pulled
away from the back of the left hand to loosen it up a bit, Photo 750. The loop is loosened
with the right second finger in Photo 750. Then the right hand tucks the end of the red
silk into this loop, Photo 750.

750 751

10. The left first and second fingers slide out of the loop formed by the red silk, Photo
751. The loop is held, at this point, by the right thumb and fingers.

231
11. The right hand places the end of the red silk against the back of the left fingers. The
left first finger then presses against the end of the red silk, Photo 752.

752 753

12. The right hand grasps the red silk at the loop and simultaneously grasps the free end
of the white silk, Photo 753. This allows the left first finger to push the end of the red silk
through the loop, Photo 754.

754 755

756 757

232
13. When the red end starts through the loop, the right hand aids in pulling this end
completely through, Photo 755. At the finish, you will have two ends in view, one white
and one red as shown in Photo 756.

14. In Photo 756 the left thumb is placed on top of the loop. This conceals the fact that
the white end was not threaded through the loop. In Photo 756 it thus appears as if both
the red and the white end were knotted.

15. The two ends are now grasped between the right thumb and forefinger, Photo 757. If
the ends are not even, make sure that you line up the tip of the red silk with the tip of
the white silk, Photo 758. Then pull the ends so that the knot tightens. The result is that
the ends will line up, Photo 759.

758 759

16. You’re now going to have the spectator tighten the ends. If you’ve seen Slydini
perform this trick, you know how convincing this appears. It seems as if the knot really
does tighten to the point where it could never be untied. In fact, if you follow the simple
procedure given here, the knot won’t tighten. The trick is to grasp both silks evenly and
firmly below the knot. Remember that you must hold both silks together. Then let the
spectator pull on both ends together, Photo 760. The result is that the knot will tighten a
bit, but it can be instantly upset.

760 761

233
17. After the knot has been tightened, have the spectator release the ends of the two
silks. Then display them as shown in Photo 761. Then move the hands apart and again
display the knotted silks as indicated in Photo 762.

762 763

18. Turn both hands at the wrists so that both hands are in a palm-up condition. Curl
both hands around the silks as shown in Photo 763. Bring the hands to the chest,
pretend to further tighten the knots and grimace as if tremendous pressure were being
applied, Photo 764.

764 765

19. Point to the silks as shown in Photo 765 and indicate how tightly they are tied by
saying, "You can’t do any better than that."

20. Remember that in actual performance you are using two white silks, and that at this
point you don’t know which one will slide free of the other. Thus it is necessary to
perform a simple test.

Hold both silks as shown in Photo 765 with the left hand. The right hand grasps both
ends near the knot. The left hand pushes up against the knot. If the knot begins to slide,
you are okay. If it doesn’t, you turn the silks over so that the other silk is on top. Again
check the knot and you will find that it does slide along the other silk.

234
21. As you are doing this, say, "A knot tied in this manner has to be opened up by the
fingers, true? Answer yes or no." The spectator must say "Yes." "So it can’t be done by
magic."

22. Pause a fraction of a second, then grasp the sliding knot with the right thumb and
forefinger, Photo 766. You are going to separate the two silks in one sudden motion. It is
shown here a step at a time. Photo 767 shows the red silk being pulled to the right by the
right hand. When the red silk is free of the white silk, the two silks are displayed as
shown in Photo 768.

766 767

23. Just as the hands suddenly move apart, you complete the previous sentence by
saying, "... unless it is done this way."

The Split Phase

Apparently the trick is over. Actually you have a knot in the red silk and it is concealed
by the right fingers in Photo 768. This knot is shown in Photo 769. The concealed knot is
put to devastating use in the follow-up trick, because it is in this trick that you perform
the celebrated Slydini effect of apparently splitting a knot in two.

768 769

24. To perform the follow-up, say, "I don’t think you paid attention. I'll do it again. Here,
I’ll do it very slowly." Remember that these lines, when spoken by Slydini, are said with

235
gentle good humor. Spoken the wrong way, they might annoy the audience. If you’re not
sure how they would be received when said by you, change them a bit; apologize to the
audience for doing the trick too fast. In any event the audience thinks they are getting a
chance to see the same trick again, but actually this version leads to a very different
conclusion.

25. Place the two silks in the left hand, taking care to conceal the knot in the red silk.
The situation now is shown in Photo 770.

770 771

26. Now repeat the knotting sequence exactly as you did before. The only difference is
that now the silks are reversed and it is the end of the white silk that passes through the
loop. For the reader’s convenience, this knotting sequence is shown in Photos 771
through 784.

772 773

236
774 775

776 777

778 779

237
 780 781

782 783

27. The two silks are apparently tied together in Photo 784. The true situation is shown
in Photo 785.

784 785

28. The right fingers and thumb grasp the ends of the two silks. Pretend to pull on them
to tighten the knot, Photo 786. Actually the right hand pulls the secret knot in the red
silk up so it is partially hidden by the knot in the white silk, as shown in Photo 786.

238
 786 787

29. While the right hand holds the ends of the silk, slip the left fingers between the silks.
You then display the silks as shown in Photo 787. Note that the knot in the red silk
appears to be part of the double knot holding the two silks together.

30. The left hand turns partly at the wrist. At the same time the left thumb slips between
the two silks and contacts the left fingers, Photo 788. Allow the silks to slide off the
fingers and onto the thumb. Then display the knotted silks as shown in Photo 789.

788 789

790 791

239
31. Drop the knotted silks onto the table, Photo 790. Say, "Last question. I won’t bother
you after this. Do you think it’s possible for me to cut the knot right in half, split it in
two, without scissors, knife or a saw? Do you think it’s possible?"

32. The spectator says, "No." You reply, "You never saw this before? You never heard
about this before?" The spectator says, "No." Pause, then say, "I have news for you. This
is the only one you can do yourself. If you put the two thumbs together, while you hold
the knot, all you have to do is this."

33. As you speak the above lines, you pick up the two silks between the hands, Photo
791. The action of separating the silks is shown in a step-by-step series of photos, but in
actual performance it is done as a sudden, instantaneous move. The right hand pulls the
red silk to the right, Photos 792 and 793, until the red silk is free of the white silk,
Photos 794 and 795.

792 793

794 795

34. As this is being done, Slydini says the words, "... all you have to do is ..." Just as the
silks separate, the hands slam against the tabletop, Photo 796, and you finish with the
word, "... this."

240
 796 797

35. The effect is flabbergasting. It appears as if you have performed the impossible and
caused a knot to split into two knots. Pause here because it is a stunning finish. Then,
because you are going to toss the two silks out onto the table in front of the spectators,
tighten the knot in the white silk, Photo 797. Finally, toss the two knotted silks out.

241
 8
Slydini’s Sympathetic Silks
This is the routine Slydini uses to open his stage act. He wanted a trick which would
catch the audience’s attention right at the beginning, because if you impress the
audience at the start, you will have their attention all the way through the act. This
routine fills the bill in spectacular fashion. It is the ideal opening trick, done virtually in
pantomime, easy to follow, eye-catching, and exceptionally deceptive. The trick is done
in slow, casual fashion and is logical right up to the unexpected finish.

The effect is this. On the table are two glasses and four handkerchiefs. Two of the
handkerchiefs are shown and placed in one glass. The other two silks are shown and
placed into the second glass.

The two silks in the left glass are knotted and replaced into the glass. The two silks in the
right glass are knotted and replaced in the second glass.

The hands are passed over the glasses. The silks in the left glass are picked up. They
have unknotted themselves. Then the two silks in the right glass are picked up and
shown to have unknotted themselves. The handling is so clean it appears impossible
that the knots could dissolve. This is an extremely strong trick as it stands, and it always
brings an enthusiastic round of applause from the audience, but there is more.

The two silks on the left are tied and placed into the left-hand glass. The two silks on the
right are shown positively to be separated. They are tucked into the right-hand glass.

Slydini passes his hands over the silks. He picks up the two knotted silks on the left and
slowly draws them apart. The knots have dissolved again.

Then he picks up the two separate silks on the right, and they are now knotted. The
knots have passed from left to right. It is a stunning finish to a brilliant trick.

The reason why this routine brings such an electric response from the audience is that it
appears so fair and natural that there is no room for sleights and no reason for audience
suspicion at any time. Even the most attentive observer will see nothing in the way of
method or secret handling. The fact that so magical an effect is accomplished with such
grace and casual ease elevates it to the miracle class.

There is also the not incidental matter of how those two separate silks suddenly became
knotted at the finish of the routine. This detail has haunted magicians for years, not
because they couldn’t duplicate the effect, but because they couldn’t figure out how
Slydini accomplished it. The handling is so clean that unless you know precisely what to
look for, you cannot spot the method. It is divulged here for the first time.

242
 The Apparatus

Slydini uses two ordinary clear drinking glasses and four silk handkerchiefs. Each silk is
eighteen inches square. The routine can be done to soft background music because the
handling is so graceful. You will also need a rubber-band. This point alone will come as a
revelation to many magicians who have seen the routine performed because until now
the presence of a rubber-band may have been suspected but was never positively known.

At the start the rubber band is on the left ring finger at the base of the finger. The details
of the handling of the rubber-band will be deferred until the very end of this description
because it does not come into play until then. In Photo 798 you can just barely see the
rubber-band on Slydini's left ring finger and that is only because you know what to look
for.

It should be emphasized that for decades the presence and handling of the rubber band
have been the source of much speculation among magicians. The reason for the mystery
is in part that the rubber band is all but invisible. But also, the handling is so natural
that you cannot tell when the rubber band starts to enter the picture. This is the first
time anywhere that the complete details of the entire routine have appeared in print.
The handling of the rubber band will itself come as a revelation to magicians who have
for years tried to figure out how and when it is used.

1. At the start you have the four silks on the table. Further to the left and right are the
two glasses.

2. Pick up the four silks with the right hand and transfer them to the left hand. Then
take a single silk with the right hand and pull it to the right. Shake it to show it separate
from the other silks. Withdraw a second silk from the left hand, taking this silk also into
the right hand. Place these two silks together on the table at the right.

3. The right hand withdraws another silk from the left hand and shows this as a single
separate silk. Then the fourth silk is taken with the right hand. The two silks in the right
hand are now placed on the table to the left. The situation is shown in Photo 798.

798 799

243
4. Slydini now picks up the two silks on his left, one silk in each hand, Photo 799, and
walks to the left side of the table, Photo 800, and says, "Watch."

800 801

5. Slydini now goes through the sequence of tying a Granny knot, Photos 801 and 802,
stopping when he gets to Photo 803 to show the knot.

802 803

6. He catches the knot between the left second and third fingers, and then, to tighten the
knot, he runs his right hand out along the right silk, Photo 804, to the end of the silk.

804…805

244
7. The right hand crosses over the left arm, Photo 805, and he snaps the right hand silk
straight out to the right, Photo 806.

806 807

8. As soon as the right hand silk snaps out to the right, Slydini tosses the left silk into the
air, Photo 807, and catches the silks at a point near the knot, Photo 808. The action of
Photos 804 and 805 simulates what you would do if all were honest, that is, you would
take one silk in each hand and pull them to tighten the knot. Since you can’t do that
without upsetting the knot, you simulate the handling as described above.

808 809

810 811

245
9. To apparently further tighten the knot, the hands turn palm up, Photo 809, and grasp
the silks. As you pretend to pull on the silks, there is a secret to making it appear as if
considerable force is involved. The right shoulder moves up as the hands move in
toward the body, Photo 810. It now appears as if the knot is so tight that no one could
untie it ever.

10. You are now going to turn the silks around. The silks are clipped at the knot between
the left first and second fingers, Photo 811. The right hand then turns the silks around by
casually flipping the right silk over to the left. The action of the right hand is shown in
Photos 811 and 812. The reason for turning the silks around is that you have brought the
back of the knot into view. The "front" of the knot might tip the possibility of a slip
action, whereas the back of the knot shows nothing.

812 813

11. At this point the knotted silks are held in the left hand as shown in Photo 812. If you
find that the ends of the silks are not equal at this point, there is a simple way to make
the required adjustment. The right hand grasps the right end of the knot, Photo 813, and
the left thumb and forefinger push the knot to the right. The action of both hands is
indicated in Photo 813. The adjustment is made as you show the silks to the people on
the right.

12. The silks are then displayed as in Photo 814.

814 815

246
13. Now the left third and fourth fingers curl in around the left silk. The right hand then
encircles both of the silks, Photo 815, and slides down to a point about halfway down the
silks. This is shown in Photo 816. The separation between the silks as created by the left
hand is shown somewhat exaggerated in Photo 816 for the sake of clarity.

816 817

14. The right hand now clips both silks between the right first and second fingers. The
right third and fourth fingers curl behind the two silks.

15. You now start to place both silks into the glass on the left, Photo 817. Thus far
nothing has been done to dissolve the knot, but now the crucial move comes into play.

16. As the right hand moves in front of the left hand with the center of the silks, Photo
818, the left third and fourth fingers pull the left silk free of the knot. The action is
completely screened by the portion of the silks held by the right hand.

17. If the end being pulled through the knot doesn’t come free because the left third and
fourth fingers can’t pull any further, the left second finger can assist in pulling the extra
fraction of an inch needed to free the silk.

18. In Photo 818 the silks have been freed from one another, the knot has dissolved, and
it is at this point that the left hand aids in tucking the silks into the left-hand glass.

818 819

247
19. With both silks in the glass, pick up an end with each hand and separate them a bit,
Photo 819.

820 821

20. Now pick up the other two silks, Photo 820, and walk to the right side of the table,
Photo 821. Tie the two silks together exactly as you did the first pair of silks. For the
reader’s convenience, the sequence with these two silks is shown in Photos 822 through
836. Note in Photo 834 the action of the left hand as the knot is about to be dissolved.
The right hand has just begun to move up in front of the left hand to screen the action.
After the knots are dissolved, the silks are placed into the right-hand glass and the ends
separated and adjusted so they rest on the table.

822 823

21. Now a magic pass is made over the left-hand glass, Photo 837. Slydini pretends to
pluck the knot off the silks, Photo 838. The invisible knot is placed into the left hand and
the left hand closed into a loose fist. He gestures over the palm-down left hand, Photo
839, brings the left hand over the glass, Photos 840 and 841, then opens the hand,
Photo 842, to imply the disintegration of the knot.

248
824 825

826 827

828 829

249
830 831

832 833

834 835

250
836 837

838 839

840 841

251
 842 843

22. The hands now approach the ends of the silk that are on the table, Photo 843. The
ends are grasped, Photo 844, and pulled slightly out of the glass.

844 845

23. At this point Slydini stops and looks, Photo 845, pulls the silks a bit more, stops and
looks again, Photo 846. He peers at the glass from the back, Photo 847, then pulls the
ends slowly, Photo 848, drawing the silks out of the glass. Applause follows
automatically.

846 847

252
 848 849

The action depicted in Photos 843 through 848 builds dramatic tension and heightens
audience expectation that something magical is about to happen. When the silks are
shown to have magically separated, there is a release of tension, expressed (without
exception) in applause.

24. The silks come free and the knot is seen to have dissolved, Photo 849. This is the
point where applause builds to a crescendo. Place the silks on the table at the left, Photo
850.

850 851

852 853

253
25. You now repeat the same series of flourishes with the knotted silks in the right- hand
glass, Photos 851 through 856. Withdraw the silks and show that the knots have
dissolved here, too. Although it is the same effect, and even though the audience knows
it is the same effect, they apparently feel that if they watch real closely this time, it will
be impossible for the magician to cause these silks to unknot. Unaware that the trickery
was accomplished long before they decided to watch closely, the audience will applaud
more strongly now than they did back in Step 23.

854 855

856 857

Phase Two

This phase might be called the "Sympathetic Silk" phase of the routine. It is this phase
which has fooled magicians for decades. It is very strong with laymen and that is why
Slydini opens his stage act with this routine.

26. Having concluded the first phase, you now return to the left side of the table and
pick up the two silks on the left, Photos 858 and 859. You will note in Photo 860 that
Slydini is gesturing to the audience to "Wait, wait. ..." The reason is that the applause
continues as you enter this phase of the routine. That’s how strong the effect is. Also, by
telling the audience to wait, you are implying that however miraculous the first phase
was, there is something even stronger to follow.

254
 858 859

860 861

27. The two silks are knotted exactly as they were in the first phase. So that the reader
doesn’t have to refer back, for convenience the knot-tying sequence is shown in Photos
861 through 864.

862 863

28. The two silks are then placed into the left glass and the knot is upset in the process.
The placement is shown in Photo 865. Slydini says, "Remember, the two tied silks are in
the glass on my left ... on my left, remember."

255
 864 865

29. Slydini picks up the two silks on his right, Photo 866, and displays them as shown in
Photo 867. "These two are not tied."

866 867

At this point it is necessary to break into the text to describe the gimmick Slydini will
use to cause the two separate silks to appear knotted.

868 869

30. Take a small rubber band, cut it open, and then knot the ends. The result will look
like Photo 868. The size of the "ring" you have just made should be such that it fits

256
snugly about the left ring finger. The knot must be secure. If it slips open, you will have
no way to finish the routine.

(The real secret is more sophisticated than that. Slydini actually uses material from
surgical gloves. The material is taken from the rim or edge of the glove at the wrist.
Slydini trims the rim away from the glove, then cuts the rim, and then knots it. The
gimmick you see in Photo 868 is actually made from this material. Slydini prefers this
material to a rubber band because there is almost no chance of it breaking, whereas with
a rubber band the chance is always present.)

31. Place the gimmick at the base of the ring finger, adjacent to the ring. You have to be
wearing a ring, first because it helps conceal the gimmick, and second because it allows
you to keep the gimmick securely in place away from the base of the ring finger, where it
would be too snug for a clean steal later. The position of the gimmick is shown in the
close-up view of Photo 869.

32. You have just picked up the two silks and are holding them as shown in Photo 867. A
close-up view is shown in Photo 870. In extreme close-up you can just see the gimmick
on the ring finger.

870 871

33. If working from the platform, Slydini goes to the edge of the platform and asks a
spectator in the front row to please step forward so that Slydini can give him one of the
silks for examination. If doing the trick close-up, he simply steps around to the front of
the table and hands a silk to the nearest spectator.

34. Slydini then hands the left-hand silk to the spectator, Photo 871. The other silk is
then transferred to the left hand, held near the corner.

35. Slydini now turns to his right and starts to walk toward the right side of the
platform. He is going to start to do the steal of the gimmick at this point. After
exhaustive analysis, Slydini concluded that to do the move at just this point would
require too much cover. Therefore, he broke down the move into two steps. It works as
follows. Keep in mind that the steal of the gimmick is invisible, but only if you adhere to
every detail described here.

257
36. Slydini starts to walk to the right. Then he stops, turns to the spectator on the left,
and says, "Take your time."

37. The silk in the left hand must be held between the thumb and forefinger. The crucial
point, the detail that makes the steal work without fumbling, is that the silk must be
held away from the left palm, and therefore away from the gimmick.

38. As you start to turn back to the right, the right hand meets the left and the right
thumb and forefinger encircle the silk, Photo 872.

872 873

39. These two fingers immediately grasp the two ends or "ears" of the gimmick, Photo
872. The gimmick is pulled or stretched as shown in Photo 873. If you miss and don’t get
the gimmick, pause, turn, peer at the audience as if searching out just the right
spectator. The hands come together and now you grasp the gimmick.

40. The right first and second fingers slip into the gimmick, Photo 874.

874 875

41. The left hand then moves away from the right, taking the silk with it. The result is
that the gimmick slides off the left ring finger. The sequence is shown in Photos 875 and
876.

258
 876 877

42. Remember that the right hand remains stationary. The gimmick is hidden behind
the silk as shown in Photo 877.

43. The left hand continues pulling the silk through the right hand until the bottom
corner of the silk is about to slide through the right fingers. The right hand grasps this
corner as shown in Photo 878. The gimmick is actually hidden by the silk as shown in
Photo 879.

878 879

44. You have been walking to the right and have asked a spectator on the right to please
approach the platform so you can hand him the silk for examination. You have just
reached the point of Photo 879 when the left hand gives the silk to the spectator.

45. At this point, with nothing in his hands, Slydini claps his hands together. Photo 880
is an exposed view. He says, "Okay? Satisfied?" This tends to rush the spectator along a
bit, so there will be no waiting for microscopic examination of the silks and thus no
stage wait that would kill the pace.

46. After clapping his hands, Slydini holds his hands as shown in Photo 881. The
gimmick is concealed by the left hand. Actually, if the right hand is in motion, the
gimmick cannot be detected.

259
 880 881

47. Slydini gestures as shown in Photo 882 as he again says, "Okay?" He now takes the
silk back from the spectator on the right, but no matter how the silk is handed back,
Slydini always makes sure he grasps it by a corner, Photo 883.

882 883

48. He then takes back the silk from the spectator on the left, Photo 884. A close-up or
zoomed-in shot is provided in Photo 885 to emphasize that the gimmick on the right
fingers is completely concealed by the silk in the right hand.

884 885

260
49. The silks are then held at the corners, Photo 886. A close-up view is shown in Photo
887 to again indicate that the gimmick is covered. To say this another way, if the cover
holds up this well in a special stop- action close-up photo, it must be obvious that the
audience has no chance of spotting the gimmick in actual performance of the trick.

886 887

Slydini says to the audience, "We have two silks tied over there," indicating the glass on
the table with the two knotted silks in it.

50. The right hand then places its silk between the left thumb and forefinger, Photo 888.
As soon as the two silks are firmly grasped by the left hand, the right hand slides down
along the right silk, Photo 889, to the end, as you say, "And two silks here, untied."

888 889

51. The right hand slides free of the silk and gestures, Photo 890, as you say, "Watch the
hand." A close-up shot, giving an exposed view of the gimmick is provided in Photo 891.
As soon as Slydini gestures in Photo 890, he drops the right hand to the side so that it
slaps against the leg. It is just a gesture, but it seems to emphasize still further that the
right hand is empty.

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 890 891

52. The right hand, palm down, now regrasps the two silks at a point near the left hand
and slides down to the right, Photo 892, to the right corners of the silks.

892 893

53. As soon as the right hand reaches the right end, the left hand releases one of its silks,
Photo 893, as you say, "They’re still untied ..." Photo 894 is a close-up shot showing that
the gimmick is again concealed by the silks.

894…895

262
54. As the left hand releases the second silk, Photo 895, Slydini says, "... watch my
hand." The back of the hand is shown, Photo 896. Actually, Slydini slowly turns the back
of the hand to the audience to emphasize that the hand is really empty.

896 897

55. The palm-down left hand now grasps both silks near the right hand and slides to the
left, to the position shown in Photo 897.

56. The left ends of the silks are clipped between the left first and second fingers, Photo
898. The audience view at this point is shown in Photo 899.

898 899

900 901

263
57. The right hand holds the bottom of the silks, Photo 900. An exposed view showing
the gimmick is given in Photo 901.

58. The left hand will now twist the upper ends of the silks together. This is a vital point.
If you don’t twist the ends, the gimmick might slip from the silks later on. If you handle
the silks exactly as shown here, this will not happen.

59. The upper ends of the silks are held as in Photo 902. It is impossible to show the
twisting action in photos. It is simplest to say, twist the ends at least twice. The ends
after one twist are shown in Photo 903, and after two twists in Photo 904.

902 903

60. The right hand is about to release its ends. If this were done directly, the silks would
untwist. You don’t want this to happen, so, to prevent it, curl the left ring finger against
the silks as shown in Photo 904.

904 905

61. The right hand now releases its grip on the lower ends of the silks, Photo 905. The
right thumb slips into the rubber band as the right hand moves up toward the left hand.
An exposed view showing the position of the gimmick at just this point is given in Photo
906.

264
 906 907

62. The left thumb now contacts the silks so that the silks are held between the left
thumb and ring finger below the twist and the first and second fingers above the twist.

63. The right thumb, first, and second fingers now grasp the silks right at the twist,
Photo 907. Slydini’s right side is toward the audience, so that the view of the right hand
they get is that shown in Photo 908.

908 909

64. A detail showing the position of the gimmick at precisely this point is shown in
Photo 909. Another detail, again an exposed view, is given in Photo 910.

910 911

265
65. The right hand remains stationary. The left hand releases its grip on the silks. The
left thumb and fingers then encircle the silks at a point below the right hand and slide
down, Photo 911, to about the center of the silks. Remember that the right hand remains
motionless. The position of the right hand is given in Photo 912.

912 913

66. The left hand now raises the center of the silks up, Photo 913, until the center of the
silks cover the gimmick from the front, Photo 914. Now the right thumb and fingers
move in so that the gimmick rolls off them and catches onto both silks. The result of this
action is indicated in the exposed view of Photo 915.

914 915

The action in progress is caught in Photo 916. At this point the ends of the silks are held
together by the rubber band. They are not knotted together but they will later appear to
be genuinely knotted.

67. An audience view of the silks going into the right-hand glass is shown in Photos 917
and 918.

68. Now Slydini says, "Here ..." indicating the glass on his left, Photo 919. "... they are
tied ..." He links his forefingers as shown in Photo 920 to visually mime the tied
condition of the silks.

266
 916 917

918 919

920 921

69. "And over here ..." indicating the glass on his right, Photo 921, "... they are not tied."
As he says "not tied" he gestures as shown in Photo 922.

267
 922 923

70. "Watch now ..." He gestures as in Photo 923, sweeping the hands over one another.
More magic gestures, Photo 924, then he calls attention to the glass on the left.

924 925

71. He grasps an end of each silk in the glass on the left, Photo 925, and slowly draws the
silks out a bit from the glass. He stops, looks, Photo 926, looks over at the other side of
the glass, Photo 927, looks behind the glass, Photo 928, and withdraws the silks to show
that the knots have dissolved, Photo 929. So dramatic is his presentation that Slydini
always receives a round of applause for this part of the effect.

926 927

268
 928 929

72. The silk in the right hand is transferred to the left hand. Then the right hand reaches
for one of the ends of a silk in the right-hand glass, Photo 930.

930 931

73. Holding just the end of the silk, Slydini pulls both silks out of the glass with a
dramatic gesture, showing them knotted together. In the same gesture he tosses the two
silks into the air, Photo 931, catches them, Photo 932, bows, Photo 933, and stuffs all
four silks into a glass, Photo 934. The trick is finished and the applause is tumultuous.

932 933

269
934

270
 9
Slydini Close-Up Classics
In this chapter we return to that Slydini specialty, miraculous effects under ultra close-
up conditions. All of the Slydini trademarks—perfect misdirection and psychology,
natural handling and ingenious methods—can be found in the two routines featured in
this chapter.

The Ring On The String

A borrowed ring becomes magically threaded onto the center of a string while the ends
of the string are in full view. In this trick the ring is actually on the string at the finish,
and the apparatus can be handed out for examination immediately.

The origin of the effect (or at any rate, this version of it) is not clear. Although a startling
trick, it appears to be little known. Slydini heard of the obverse effect where a borrowed
ring, threaded onto a string, is magically removed. Not knowing the original method,
and thinking that it would be stronger to cause the ring to appear on the string, he
created this method. The Slydini method produces a trick in the miracle class. A little
known secret combined with brilliant handling and perfect misdirection, the result is a
routine that has all the Slydini hallmarks of great magic.

You will require a book, a length of string, and two rubber bands. The book can be any
reasonable size. In the photographs accompanying this description a larger-than- usual
size volume is employed simply to add clarity to the description. In actual performance
the book would measure about six inches by nine inches. It should be a hardcover book
because such a book is easier to stand upright when opened. A softcover book with
quality binding and covers will work as well.

A ring is also used. If possible use a borrowed signet ring. If none is available then use
your own ring, but you can also borrow a light bracelet (wooden or plastic) if one is
available.

The props are shown in Photo 935.

935

271
 The Book

Open the book to about the midpoint. Snap a rubber band lengthwise around each half
of the book. This will keep the pages firmly in place and prevent fumbling later on. With
the rubber bands in place, stand the book upright as shown in Photo 936. The book will
serve as a screen behind which the secret threading of the ring onto the string occurs.
With the book positioned as in Photo 936, check that there are no people sitting at the
far left or far right because they might be able to see behind the book.

936 937

The Effect

Since the trick is likely to be new to many magicians reading this text, it was thought
wise to describe the effect in some detail before going into the working.

1. The string is displayed as shown in Photo 937. You can have a spectator grasp the
ends and tug on the string to verify that it is just what it appears to be.

2. Grasp the ends of the string and raise the string so that the audience can see the
center. Then lower the center of the string behind the book, Photos 937 and 938. In
Photo 937 you can stand up and stretch the string between the hands so the audience
gets a clear view of the string.

938 939

272
3. Drape the ends of the string over the sides of the book, Photo 939. Then raise the
book to show the center of the string resting on the table, Photo 940.

940 941

4. Borrow a ring, making sure that it is clear you don’t borrow it from a confederate or
from someone who the audience might suspect of being one.

5. Display the ring, Photo 941, as you say, "I’m going to put the ring on the string
without the ring going through the end of the string." Place the ring on the table behind
the book.

6. "I’ll show you once more." Raise the book, Photo 942, displaying the ring on the table.
Then lower the book to the table again.

942 943

7. Now both hands go behind the book. Slydini taps the ring against the table, studies it,
makes a few adjustments, Photos 943 and 944, then raises the ends of the string and
draws the string over the book as shown in Photos 945 and 946. The ends are always in
sight.

273
 944 945

946 947

8. The center of the string comes up into view with the ring on it. The audience is usually
electrified to see the ring on the string, Photo 947. Slydini slides the ring back and forth
by tilting the string, Photo 948.

948 949

9. Then both ends of the string are gathered into the right hand, Photos 949 and 950,
and then given to the spectator, Photo 951.

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 950 951

How It Works

The handling as seen by the audience is exactly what it appears to be up through Step 6.
From that point on, the actual handling is concealed, not just by the physical obstacle of
the book, but by the psychological misdirection as well.

The basis for the method lies in the string. Once when he removed the core from a
length of rope, Slydini made the discovery that the core of the rope could pass as a
length of string. The string had a high tensile strength, meaning that you could tug on it
and it wouldn’t break. But if you unravel the string at its center, it would melt apart
silently and easily.

This is the type of string used here. Some brands of soft uncoated cotton string work as
well. You will have to experiment to get the right string, or you can take the easy way out
and simply remove the core from a five and a half foot length of rope. The core you
remove should contain three or four strands. Even at extreme close-up range it looks
like an ordinary piece of cotton string.

952 953

1. The situation from the performer’s view after Step 6 of the effect is shown in Photo
952. At this point Slydini picks up the ring and examines it. He scratches his nail against
the ring, Photo 953, to make a slight clicking sound. He taps the ring against the

275
tabletop. He pretends to examine the ring further, again tapping it against the tabletop
behind the book.

2. The reason for all of this is that he is moving his hands closer to the strand on the left
side. The strand is eventually clipped between the left thumb and forefinger, Photo 954,
as the right hand taps the ring against the tabletop. You clip the string at a point about
halfway down the page of the book, that is, about halfway from the top of the book.

954 955

3. Leave the ring on the table. Grasp the string with the right hand as shown in Photo
955, and twist it against the "grain" or natural twist of the string. The result is that the
string unravels, Photo 956, and is easily separated into two pieces when you pull on it.

956 957

4. The right hand now picks up the ring, Photo 957, and drops it over the larger piece of
string. Then the right hand grasps the end of the longer piece of string and further
unravels it into two strands as shown in Photo 958 (the book has been replaced by a
dark screen so the handling here will be clearer). Slydini then taps the right first finger
against the tabletop behind the book as if tapping the ring against the table.

5. The short segment is then placed between the unraveled strands of the long string,
Photo 959. Hold the strands together with the left thumb and forefinger while you
moisten the right thumb and forefinger with the tongue. Transfer the moisture to the
strands as you twist or ravel or roll them around the short segment, Photo 960.

276
 958 959

6. All of the above appears to the audience as if you are merely studying the ring. There
is no undue motion of the hands to distract attention or create suspicion. The "restored"
string now appears as shown in Photo 961.

960 961

7. Now Slydini pulls up on the string, beginning at a point just below the join in the two
segments, Photo 962, and pulls the string through the ring until the ring is just to the
left of the center of the string, Photo 963.

962 963

277
8. Now Slydini transfers string up and over onto the front of the book, Photos 964, 965,
and 966, until most of the string is on the audience’s side of the book.

964 965

966 967

9. Slydini stops, releases the string, and taps the ring against the table again. Then he
grasps the strands, one in each hand, and lifts the strands, Photo 967. This brings the
ring into view as shown in Photo 968.

968 969

10. Slydini invariably gets a round of applause at this point. He allows the ring to slide
down the string, Photo 969, to the right.

278
11. The ring is now closer to the right end than to the left end. The reason is that you are
about to get rid of the short segment of string, and when you do, the ring will appear to
be more centered on the string.

12. The left-hand strand is now brought to the right-hand strand, Photo 970, and
grasped by the right thumb and forefinger, Photo 971. Slydini backs up, bringing the left
end of the string near the body.

970 971

13. The left hand slides back along its strand, Photo 972. The left hand slides down,
toward the edge of the table, while the right hand extends the string to the spectator,
Photo 973.

972 973

14. As the body leans forward and to the right, the left hand slides behind the book,
Photo 974. When the left hand reaches the end of the string, it simply pulls the short
strand off and deposits it into the lap, Photo 975.

279
 974 975

The audience may now examine the string even as they verify that the borrowed ring has
indeed been mysteriously threaded onto the center.

The Torn and Restored Napkin Corner

Many magicians perform the torn and restored cigarette paper. The problem is that the
paper is so small that visibility is limited. You must generally perform the trick for a
small group at a table to achieve maximum impact. Also, the extremely small size of the
balled-up cigarette paper is in itself suggestive of possible methods. Any intelligent
layman can reason that the balled-up paper can be hidden behind the thumb nail, under
the fingernail, between the fingers, in the natural fold of skin between thumb and
forefinger, and so on.

To achieve maximum visibility, Slydini began to develop a trick using a corner torn from
a paper napkin. The piece of napkin is about four times the size of a cigarette paper and
therefore much more visible. It can be any color. Once balled up, it is clearly too large to
conceal in the hand, between the fingers, etc. When Slydini does the trick, he goes out of
his way to show the hands empty, fingers wide apart.

In performing this trick it is necessary to have an object like an ashtray or a coffee cup
on the table. It is a tribute to Slydini’s acting ability that although he needs the ashtray
as cover, he acts as if the ashtray is not needed. He acts the part so convincingly that
when he starts the trick people are anxious to get the ashtray out of the way. I fell for
this myself and had just reached the point of lifting the ashtray off the table when I
remembered that the ashtray was part of the method.

Commenting humorously on this, Slydini says that frequently when he performs the
trick he begins by telling people with a smile, "If you move, you’ll be fooled. Stay where
you are." This discourages people from trying to be "helpful" by reaching over and
removing the ashtray.

Even at that, Slydini will prepare two or three napkin corners and keep them in his
pocket just in case someone decides to clear off the table before the trick begins. He can
then ask for an ashtray and set up the apparatus without raising suspicion.

280
The effect is that you tear a corner off a napkin, a rather large piece, and discard the
remainder of the napkin. The napkin corner is then openly and slowly torn to shreads,
balled up, then opened and restored. It is a masterpiece of misdirection.

There is a previously-unpublished repeat which provides a surprise ending. It appears

here for the first time.

Preparation

Use a soft paper napkin. The paper should be thin so that it can be balled up into a fairly
compact ball. Open the napkin out flat, Photo 976. Place the right forefinger against the
rightmost corner and fold the napkin over, Photos 977 and 978. Then fold it again,
Photo 979. And then fold it over once more, Photo 980. Hold the napkin as shown in
Photo 981 and tear off the corner, Photo 982. The corner shown in Photo 981 is about
four inches long. Open up this piece so that it is flat, then ball it up by putting the ends
in toward the center, and then balling the remainder around the center.

976 977

978 979

281
 980 981

982 983

Ball up this corner, Photo 983, until it is about the size shown in Photo 984. Then hide it
behind an ashtray, Photo 985. The ashtray must be to your left and preferably some
distance away from the body as shown in Photo 985. The balance of this napkin is never
used again, so it is discarded.

984 985

The above preparation assumes that paper napkins are readily available at the place of
performance. If not, carry three or four napkins in your jacket pocket. When ready to
perform, just remove the napkins and place them out on the table to your right.

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 Performance

Taking a paper napkin and opening it, Slydini says, "Now I’m going to show you a trick,
the smallest trick in the world. In your mind, when it’s finished, you'll say it’s the biggest
trick you ever saw."

1. There is a spectator seated on the left. Slydini is seated near the ashtray as he makes
the opening statement. But then he shifts around so he faces to the right. He then picks
up a paper napkin and tears off a corner as already shown in Photos 976 through 982.
He says with a smile, "If you saw an elephant disappear this moment, it wouldn’t
impress you as much as this little piece of paper."

2. As he tears the corner from the napkin, he says, "I’m going to use a corner of the
napkin." The torn corner is dropped onto the table, Photo 986. Then the rest of the
napkin is tossed out of the way onto the floor, Photos 987 and 988, or into the pocket,
just as long as it is away from the spectators so they can’t later pick up the napkin and
see if the corner matches (it won’t).

986 987

988 989

3. Always address the people on the right even though the trick will ultimately be done
for the spectator on the left. There is a reason for this and it comes about later when you
invisibly steal the extra napkin corner from behind the ashtray.

283
4. After the corner is torn from the napkin, slowly and clearly show both sides of the
hands, Photos 989 and 990, as you say, "First, watch my hands, both sides."

990 991

5. Now the napkin corner is opened out flat on the table. Once again Slydini shows both
sides of the hands, Photo 991.

6. "Watch." Slydini gestures with the empty left hand, Photo 992, then tears the napkin
corner, Photo 993. The pieces are put together and the right hand now shown empty,
Photo 994.

992 993

994 995

284
7. The tearing process continues until the napkin corner has been shredded. The pieces
are then held in the left hand, Photo 995. In Photo 995 note that some pieces are placed
crosswise to form a kind of paper flower.

8. Slydini says, "Now I’ll make a paper flower." He rolls the pieces between the right
thumb and forefinger, Photo 996. Note that all attention is away from the left, away
from the ashtray, away from the spectator on the left, and, in essence, away from the
method.

996 997

9. He spreads the paper petals a bit. Then he extends it to a spectator on the right, Photo
997, as he says, "If you don’t mind, touch the center of the flower and see if you feel a
little ball." The spectator says no. Slydini says, "That’s funny."

10. Slydini pretends to adjust the paper petals. Then he turns to the spectator sitting
directly across and repeats the request. Again the spectator says no, and again Slydini
says, "Isn’t that something."

11. He now turns to the spectator on the left. He raises the torn pieces with the right
hand and pretends to adjust them with the left hand. In reality his eyes are not on the
paper but on the balled-up extra piece behind the ashtray. As soon as he glimpses the
extra piece he positions his left hand so it is directly above the extra piece.

12. Now he finishes adjusting the torn pieces and extends them with the right hand to
the spectator on the left. Again he says, "Do you feel a little ball in the center?"

As he extends his right hand, he allows the left hand to drop straight down to a position
behind the ashtray where the left hand picks up the extra ball. This is shown in the stop-
action shot of Photo 998. In actual performance the misdirection is so strong that all
eyes are on the spectator, not on the left hand. Remember that the left hand drops to a
rest position. In other words, it is not reaching for something, it is merely resting.

13. To coordinate words with actions, Slydini says, "You try," to the spectator on the left
as he extends the torn pieces. At the same instant the left hand drops to the position of
Photo 998. As soon as the spectator reaches for the torn pieces, Slydini says, "That’s

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enough." Now both hands draw back to the position of Photo 999. The extra (stolen)
piece is held between the left thumb and forefinger. But in Photo 999 the extra corner is
behind the torn pieces, so it is completely concealed from view.

998 999

14. The torn pieces are taken by the right hand, Photo 1000. If you look carefully you can
just see the stolen corner between the left thumb and forefinger. This is a deliberately
exposed shot. In performance the torn pieces are held close to the left hand as the right
hand takes the pieces and then bunches them up between the hands, Photo 1001.

1000 1001

1002 1003

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15. The torn pieces are balled up as much as possible, Photos 1002 and 1003. At that
point they are held between the left thumb and forefinger, Photo 1004.

1004 1005

16. The torn pieces are grasped between the right thumb and forefinger, Photo 1005,
and simply rotated around to a position behind the restored piece, Photo 1006. The
switch is invisible, even in the photos. The only way the switch would be visible would be
to use two different-color napkin corners. That is the ONLY way you can catch Slydini
perform the switch.

1006 1007

17. The left thumb pushes the restored piece into view at exactly the same instant the
right thumb and forefinger rotate the torn pieces around to a position behind the
restored piece. As soon as the restored piece comes into view, it is held in place, along
with the torn pieces behind it, by the right forefinger. The right thumb drops back out of
the way. This is indicated in Photo 1007 and is the small but crucial detail that makes
the switch so convincing. It appears as if the performer is going out of his way to show
both hands empty except for the balled-up torn pieces.

18. Now the right forefinger pushes against the visible balled-up pieces (Slydini tells his
students, "Wiggle the finger") without losing contact with it. Then the right thumb
moves back into position as if to further flatten and compress the paper ball, Photo
1008.

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 1008 1009

19. Actually the right thumb and forefinger grip the balled-up torn pieces. The right
hand drops to the rest position on the table as the left hand is extended to the left, Photo
1009. The torn pieces are lapped.

20. Then the balled-up piece from the left hand is dropped onto the table, Photo 1010.
For the purposes of timing, Photo 1009 is reached on the count of "One," and Photo
1010 on the count of "Two." Immediately both hands back away, palms out, fingers
widespread.

1010 1011

1012 1013

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21. Sometimes at this point Slydini will gently blow on the ball of paper so it rolls around
on the table and say, "No ... no ... Ah, it’s done, it’s done."

22. All that remains is to slowly and carefully open the ball, Photos 1011, 1012, 1013, to
show the paper restored.

The Repeat

This part of the Slydini routine has never before appeared in print. He begins to repeat
the trick, tearing the napkin corner as before and balling it up, but this time,
unexpectedly, the balled-up pieces completely vanish. The reason for the repeat is that
the reaction to the original is so strong that people ask if they can see it again. But there
is a subtle reason for repeating the trick; since the napkin corner vanishes, the magic-
wise spectator can’t match it to the torn napkin to see if the corner fits. Thus the repeat
seals off the true method.

1. Slydini takes the just-restored napkin corner and says, "I’ll do it a little differently."
Here he tears about an inch off the end, Photo 1014, and discards it. Then the remainder
of the napkin corner is held at the fingertips, fingers spread wide apart, and Slydini
slowly twists the napkin, Photo 1015.

1014 1015

2. He continues twisting the corner until he forms a ball, Photos 1016 and 1017. The ball
is held at the left fingertips in Photo 1017.

3. Slydini says, "The paper is too stiff." He makes sure the audience sees that the right
hand is completely empty at this point. Then he wets the right forefinger, Photo 1018,
and applies the moisture to the ball, Photo 1019. He then taps the right forefinger
against the ball. Again the idea is to hammer home the point that the right hand is
empty.

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 1016 1017

1018 1019

4. He pinches the ball tighter, Photo 1020. Note that he is leaning forward at this point.

1020 1021

5. The right thumb and forefinger pinch and steal the ball. Immediately the right hand
moves to the mouth with the stolen paper ball, Photo 1021, as the body leans forward
toward the spectator. The paper ball is left in the mouth. Be certain that the right hand
moves toward the mouth while the body moves forward.

6. Instantly the right hand moves to the left hand as you lean further forward, Photo
1022, and say to the spectator, "Here, come closer." The steal of the paper ball is

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completely indetectable if done right. The right forefinger taps the non-existent paper
ball in Photo 1022, as if imparting further moisture to it.

1022 1023

7. The right thumb and forefinger then pinch and tighten the non-existent paper ball
two or three more times.

8. All that remains is to open the hands, Photo 1023, to show that the ball has vanished.

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 10
Slydini’s Linking Rings
When he was still living in South America Slydini conceived the idea of closing a show
by performing the linking rings. It was obvious that standard linking ring routines, no
matter how well constructed, were fine routines to be performed as part of an act, but no
one had thought of constructing a routine so spectacular that it could close an act, stop
the show, and bring a standing ovation.

If a magician never saw Slydini do the rings, and if they were told simply that he did the
rings, they would no doubt shrug and change the subject. But after seeing him perform
his routine, they would talk about nothing else. Why the difference in response? Because
in most versions of the rings the audience may be puzzled, amused and amazed, but in
Slydini’s version of the rings the routine produces an atmosphere of enchantment in
which the unbelievable gives way to the impossible, in which the audience is caught up
in a way they will never forget.

Slydini has been doing the linking rings for more than forty years. When he began giving
lessons, he performed less, with the result that the new generation has in all probability
never seen Slydini perform this routine. At conventions, where he might do the rings
during an evening of stage magic, he is usually booked for close-up and hence may not
have the chance to perform the linking rings. Thus, for many, this chapter will be their
first exposure to Slydini’s unique creation.

Slydini worked paid shows for seven years in New England. Having no car, he was
usually picked up by the booking agent for a magic show. When all magicians were
gathered in the car and they were on the way to the show, one or more of the magicians
present in the car, who had never seen Slydini perform, would ask him what he did
during his act. Slydini would reply that he produced some silks and did the rings. The
magician would nod, wish Slydini luck, and would say that he had a set of rings in the
trunk of his car. This, of course, was before the magician saw Slydini do the rings.
Afterwards, in the car on the way back, everyone in the car talked about nothing but the
rings. This happened so often that it became a standing joke. Almost always, magicians
who had never seen the routine were not impressed because they knew—and disliked—
the rings. Many said they had a set of rings. Some said they had two sets or three. All
said they never used the item in their act because it was too well known. After seeing
Slydini’s routine they were ready to junk their own act and do only the Slydini routine.

One of the unique and astonishing characteristics of the Slydini routine is that when two
rings are linked or unlinked, you clearly see one ring penetrate the other. Thus the usual
handling of bringing the hands together (to slip a ring through the gap in the key) is
never done. This is but one characteristic of the rings that magicians appreciate because
it is so different from the standard (and much disliked) handlings.

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In traditional stage routines there are phases where you hand two rings to a spectator in
the audience and ask him to link them. He can’t. You take back the two rings and link
them. Then you hand two linked rings to a spectator and challenge him to unlink them.
Then the rings are taken back. You link three and challenge a spectator to unlink the set
of three. Then you take them back. All of this is guaranteed to puzzle but hardly
entertain the audience. There is a confusing and seemingly never-ending exchange of
rings with the spectators. In Slydini’s routine there is a two-minute sequence involving a
single spectator. The spectator is invited onstage as an audience representative. In full
view, before the assisting spectator and the audience, Slydini repeatedly links and
unlinks the rings under impossible conditions. This is one of the strongest interludes in
the Slydini routine.

A brief outline of the routine is as follows. The music is up-tempo and the routine is
done with snap and relative speed. Slydini displays eight rings. He links two, then a set
of three. Immediately he goes into the audience and passes out all the rings for
examination. Different people are invited to examine the rings. He then gathers the
rings. When he gets to the spectator who holds the linked set of three, he invites the
spectator holding these rings to assist him onstage.

The spectator is seated and facing the audience. Slydini stands behind the spectator.
Before the eyes of this spectator, with the spectator literally only inches away from the
rings, Slydini causes two rings to melt through one another so they are linked. The two
rings then unlink, The spectator’s astonishment is so great that it brings tremendous
laughter and applause from the audience.

After this interlude, in which the linking and unlinking are repeated to the spectator’s
increasing amazement, the spectator is thanked and allowed to return to his seat in the
audience. Keeping the same up-tempo pace, Slydini does a few designs (the designs
form instantly) and then moves to the famous finale. The rings cascade singly into the
air and fall with a crash onto the stage. The sight of eight single rings shooting into the
air is a spectacular sight and brings an enormous ovation.

The astute reader will immediately appreciate certain details of the routine. After
opening with a linking ring sequence, how do you pass all of the rings to the audience
for examination? Who gets the key ring? Do you switch it out? How is it possible to link
and unlink two rings with the spectator only inches away? How do you cascade the rings
singly into the air?

This chapter will answer all questions. It represents the first time anywhere that the full
and complete details of the Slydini Linking Rings have appeared in print. And because it
introduces the reader to the Slydini Count, the Slydini method of linking and unlinking
two rings, the close-up spectator sequence, a variety of switches and handling
techniques and many other brilliant innovations, it really represents a complete treatise
on the most spectacular of all linking ring routines.

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 Requirements

Besides the set of eight rings (linked set of three, linked set of two, and three singles)
there is a key ring that is set up behind a chair. The beginning of the routine is a linking
ring sequence that doesn’t use the key ring. Later you steal the key ring in a natural,
indetectable manner. There are two ways of stealing the key. One is the older method,
generally well known. The other is the Slydini method. The method about to be
explained is Slydini’s.

Required is a square-backed wooden chair. If a round-backed chair is the only kind

available, you would use the older method. This method will be described later on.

If the back of the chair is upholstered, you can hide the key ring behind it. If it is a
bridge chair, with only a simple frame, you cannot hide the key behind the back of the
chair. Therefore, in this case, you would drape a large silk scarf over the back of the
chair and pin it in place. This scarf would then look like part of the chair and will never
be questioned or suspected by the audience. The key ring is easily hidden behind the
back of the chair in this case because, after the scarf is pinned into place, a nail is placed
through the scarf near the top center of the chair, and the key-ring hung on the nail.

The older method of loading in the key is as follows. Place the key ring on the seat of the
chair. Place a scarf over it. Place the remaining rings on top of the scarf. The rings are
linked in various combinations without using the key. Then they are handed out for
examination. The rings are later collected and placed on the seat of the chair, on top of
the scarf (and on top of the key). The scarf is drawn up through the center of the rings
until it is free. The magician uses the scarf to dry his hands. Then he drapes the scarf on
the back of the chair.

Slydini’s handling of this traditional method varies from the original and is more
deceptive. He deposits the set of rings on top of the scarf with one hand. As he does, the
other hand pulls the scarf away. The rings are thus placed directly down on top of the
key ring. Unobtrusively, the key has been loaded in with the rest of the set of rings.
Slydini uses this handling when the only available chairs are round-backed or metal
chairs.

Preparation

When you work from the stage or platform, performing conditions will vary. Sometimes
you will find spectators on all sides. Sometimes the audience is directly in front. In the
same way, the single item of borrowed apparatus needed for this routine, an ordinary
chair, may or may not be available in a style appropriate to the requirements. The
preparation described here will consider each case separately so that you can meet any
contingency.

First, you will need two chairs, one for the rings and one for the spectator who will assist
you in the second phase of the routine. The chairs should be straight-backed, without
arms, and made of wood. The back of the chair must be wood because you are going to

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push a small nail into the wood and hang the key ring from the nail. Naturally you
cannot expect to always find the ideal chair, so we will consider the possibilities and how
they are handled. What follows is the kind of information the working professional must
have.

First Situation

Arriving at the hall where you are going to perform, you find that the only available
chairs are wood but the chairs have wooden slats as backing. It is necessary to pin a
piece of cloth around the back of the chair. Slydini uses a gold silk cloth which he carries
with the rings. The cloth is heavy silk, and will appear to be an upholstered part of the
chair. When pinned in place, the cloth should be of such a length as to conceal the key
ring. After the cloth is in place, push a nail through the back of the cloth and into the
wooden backing of the chair. Then hang the key ring from the nail. The preparation in
this instance would look like Photo 1024 from the front. From the back the preparation
looks like Photo 1025.

1024 1025

Although Photo 1025 doesn’t show it, the nail should have a head, and it should be bent
in a slight "V" shape. This will help keep the key ring in place.

Note in Photos 1024 and 1025 that there is an extra cloth draped over the chair. If there
are no spectators seated or standing behind you, this cloth is simply draped over the top
of the chair as shown in Photo 1024. You can use it to shine the rings at some point in
the routine. But you always carry it with you when you are going to perform, because
there is a case where the cloth will be used. This point is described next.

Sometimes when you get to the place of performance, you will find that there are
spectators in back of you. To cover the key ring, the cloth is draped diagonally over the
back of the chair. A front view is shown in Photo 1026. A view from the back is given in
Photo 1027. Remember that this beforehand- preparation is done before the show
begins. Give yourself plenty of time. Get to the hall or theatre early and set up for the
act. Don’t try to set up the apparatus just before you go on because if something goes
wrong you won’t have time to correct it.

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 1026 1027

The Steal Of The Key

We will jump the gun a bit and explain here how to steal the key ring. It is not actually
stolen until after the completion of the first phase of the routine, but by describing it
here, the reader will better understand the reason for the preparation depicted in the
previous text.

Assume the worst case. There are spectators on all sides and you want to steal the key
ring in an absolutely indetectable manner. H ere is the Slydini method. Properly
performed, it cannot be seen. It isn’t even suspected.

1. You have just finished the first phase of the routine. You hold the rings in the right
hand. You walk to the chair as shown in Photo 1028 and grasp the cloth as shown.

2. Note that Slydini is not right on top of the chair at this point. He extends the right foot
to a position about twenty-four inches from the chair, leans forward, and grasps the
cloth as shown in Photo 1028 with the left hand.

1028 1029

3. At the same time the right hand, holding the rings, swings to a position behind the
chair, Photo 1029. The left hand sweeps the cloth off the chair. The head swings to the
left and the eyes follow the movement of the cloth as shown in Photo 1030. The right
hand just meets the back of the chair at this point.

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 1030 1031

4. The left hand grasps the forward edge of the seat of the chair as depicted in Photo
1030. The right thumb rests over the top of the chair. Slydini picks up the chair and
moves it slightly forward as shown in Photo 1030. This is done as if for the reason of
adjusting the position of the chair.

5. In continuous action as depicted in Photos 1028, 1029, and 1030, the right hand adds
the key ring to the rings in the right hand. The add-on of the key ring is never suspected
because it is covered by a completely natural handling sequence.

6. To finish the sequence, as the chair is moved forward, step forward with the left foot
so that the feet are together. Then immediately straighten the body and shine or wipe
the rings with the cloth as shown in Photo 1031.

The Other Situation

This might be called the worst case situation. You arrive at the theatre and find that the
only available chairs are ones with tubular metal backs. There is no way to drive a nail
into the metal. You might think of using an S-shaped hook on which to hang the key, but
there is an easier alternative. Just make sure that the chair has a squared-off back, not a
rounded or curved back. The reason why this is necessary is that you will later hang
rings on either side of the chair. You can get a sneak preview of this situation if you look
at Photo 1177.

If the chair is metal, place the key ring on the seat of the chair, at the center. Then cover
it with the cloth.

There are two ways to add the key ring to the set of rings. In the first, the right hand
lowers the set of rings on top of the cloth as shown in Photo 1032. At the same time the
left hand pulls the cloth off the chair. This method was mentioned at the beginning of
this chapter, but is described here in more detail. Photo 1033 is an exposed view of what
happens. The set of rings is lowered onto the key ring. The right hand picks up the key
and immediately adds it to the set of rings. Leave the rings on the chair and immediately
use the cloth to wipe or dry the hands.

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 1032 1033

The other method is the older technique. Prepare by putting the key on the chair with
the cloth on top. Pull the center of the cloth up to leave a wrinkle at the center. This is to
better grasp the cloth later. The right hand places the set of rings down on top of the
cloth as shown in Photo 1034. The wrinkle in the cloth protrudes as shown in Photo
1035. Then the left hand picks up the cloth, drawing it through the center of the rings as
shown in Photo 1036. The cloth is then used to clean or dry the hands as shown in Photo
1037.

1034 1035

1036 1037

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You are now prepared for any situation that may arise when you enter the theatre and
set up for the linking ring routine.

The Opening Phase

Slydini uses up-tempo instrumental music to accompany his presentation of the rings.
The routine is done in a quick, snappy manner. There is no hesitation and, except for
introductory patter, no patter at all in the first phase. Remember that you are about to
perform a complete linking ring routine without the key ring. This routine so closely
resembles the standard routine in outward appearance that magicians are astounded
that Slydini is able to pass the rings out for examination immediately after he completes
the first phase. Where, they ask, is the key ring? Some speculate there is a switch they
didn’t catch. No one believes the entire first phase is done without a key ring.

If you want to add a short but incredible linking ring routine to your act, even to a close-
up act, this would be the routine to consider, because it is visually stunning, yet uses no
key ring.

Slydini was doing this routine in Argentina years before he came to the United States. I
related a story to him that was associated with this phase of the linking ring routine. As
the story had it, Slydini saw someone perform the rings and decided he wanted to do
them himself. He purchased a set of rings, couldn’t read the instructions because they
were in English, and so threw them away. He noticed that one ring was broken, so he
threw that away, too. Not knowing he had thrown away the key ring and therefore the
entire basis of the trick, he went on to develop a complete routine without the key. Alas,
the story is apocryphal.

1. The starting position is either that of Photo 1024 or 1026. The key ring is behind the
chair as already explained. It is not used in this phase of the routine. Resting on the seat
of the chair is a set of eight rings in the following order. At the bottom of the stack is the
linked set of three rings. On top of this is the linked set of two rings. On top of this are
three single rings.

2. It may seem an incidental point that there are three single rings instead of the
traditional two singles, but this is important to the routine and a touch that makes the
routine even more baffling to magicians in the audience. As the routine evolves, you will
see how the three single rings are exploited to make the routine seem fair and yet so
amazing to the audience.

3. The routine begins. Slydini picks up the group of eight rings from the chair, and holds
them in the right hand. He then says to the audience, "Ladies and gentlemen, now I’m
going to present to you the Chinese Linking Rings. The rings are all of steel. There is not
one that has a secret opening. I’m going to pass the rings around. I want you to try to
find an opening. After you see the rings and you can’t find an opening, I’ll (with a smile)
find the opening. I’m going to put them all together and take them apart one by one,
before your eyes. (He looks toward the offstage person in charge of recorded music and
says ...) Professor, music please."

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4. The rings are now grasped between the hands. Extending his arms, Slydini rolls the
rings between his hands as shown in Photo 1038. Sometimes a single ring will slide
along the right arm as shown in Photo 1039. This only strengthens the illusion that you
have eight separate rings.

1038 1039

5. After you roll the rings so they rotate three or four times between the hands, lower the
hands as shown in Photo 1040. You are now going to count the rings. You do not do a
drop count. The count is Slydini’s and it is excellent.

1040

The Slydini Ring Count

6. The rings are held in the left hand. The left hand is palm-up and the rings rest on the
fingers. The three singles are to the right of the other rings.

7. You are now going to take the first five rings, but the take is done with the right
second finger. This finger flicks the rings off the left fingers one at a time, flicking them
so they are propelled back onto the right forearm.

8. The right second finger engages the first ring as shown in the stop-action shot of
Photo 1041. This first ring has just been picked off the left hand. It is actually in motion
at this point because the right second finger propels it onto the right forearm. The end
point is shown in Photo 1042. The first ring has come to rest on the right arm.

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 1041 1042

9. The second single ring is similarly flicked away from the left hand and propelled onto
the right arm. The third single ring is then flicked onto the right arm.

10. The next ring is one of the linked set of two. Slydini has counted the first three rings
onto the right arm at a brisk pace. When he gets to the fourth ring he quickens the pace
just slightly. Photo 1043 is a stop- action shot showing the fourth ring being taken, and
Photo 1044 shows the situation after the fifth ring is taken onto the right arm. In
practice you cannot detect the fact that the fourth and fifth rings are linked. The count is
fast and extremely deceptive.

1043…1044

11. Stop at this point. Extend the right hand so it looks like Photo 1044.

12. You’re about to count the last three rings. Begin by slipping the left thumb inside the
linked set of three rings. This will take you to the situation depicted in Photo 1045.

13. Note that in going from Photo 1044 to Photo 1045 that the left hand moves from a
palm-up to a palm-down condition. The three rings in the left hand are allowed to slide
up onto the left wrist to the position indicated in Photo 1045.

14. Now the left hand is going to slide through the stack of five rings in the right hand.
With the right hand extended away from the body, the left hand begins to move forward
as shown in Photo 1046. At the same time step forward with the left foot. The left hand

301
continues its forward movement, Photo 1047, so that the right-hand stack is eventually
on the left wrist. At this point the right hand pulls away, leaving the entire stack on the
left wrist, Photo 1048.

1045 1046

1047 1048

It must be stressed that Photo-sequence 1045, 1046, 1047, and 1048, is done in one
continuous movement. The hands do not stop. As the left hand moves through the right-
hand stack, the right hand pulls away, leaving all the rings on the left wrist.

1049 1050

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15. Immediately bring the hands together so that the rings are held between the hands
as shown in Photo 1049.

16. Spin the rings in the air again as in Photo 1030. Then count five rings onto the right
arm again. The difference this time is that you will first count the linked set of two
(counting or flicking each ring separately), then each of the two single rings.

17. Take the third single ring in the right hand as shown in Photo 1050 and stop.

The First Link

18. The right hand holds a single ring. The left hand holds the linked set of three, but in
such a way that the left fingers are ready to drop one of the three rings. Photo 1050
shows the exact starting point for the first link. The left thumb holds one ring away from
the other two.

19. The right hand hits its ring against the three rings in the left hand, Photo 1051. The
left thumb releases its ring, allowing it to fall. The single ring from the right hand hits
the left-hand rings in an almost horizontal position as in Photo 1051. As soon as the left
thumb releases its ring, the single from the right hand places its ring over the left
fingers, where it is held in place between the left fingers and thumb. The right hand
immediately moves out of the way. The end result is shown in Photo 1052.

1051 1052

It is important that the right-hand ring be almost horizontal in Photo 1051 because it
looks as if you are really causing the single ring to link with one of the rings in the left
hand. This first linking may seem easy but you must practice it in front of a mirror to get
the illusion perfect. The thing to avoid is to make it look as if the right-hand ring hit a
left-hand ring, causing that ring to fall. It must appear as if the right-hand ring became
linked with one of the left-hand rings.

The Second Link

20. The right hand immediately takes the single ring out of the left hand. The single is
held in an almost horizontal position, Photo 1053, and struck against the left-hand

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rings. The sequence of the first link is followed in terms of handling, but now you will
have a linked set of three rings in the left hand, Photo 1054.

1053 1054

An Unlinking

21. The left hand lifts the entire set of rings up and at the same time the right hand
grasps the bottom ring, Photo 1055.

1055

22. Blow on the top ring. You want to release the linked set of three. In order to know
which ring the left hand should release and which it should hold back, a simple means is
employed. The two rings are held between the left thumb and forefinger. One ring will
feel lighter because it is the single ring. The other ring will feel heavy because there are
two rings linked to it and hanging from it. Simply drop the "heavy" ring.

23. The end result is shown in the stop- action shot of Photo 1056A. It appears as if a
ring suddenly released itself from the others, leaving you with a single ring in the left
hand and a set of three linked rings in the right. Act surprised at the unlinking, as if it
were unexpected and not under your control.

304
 1056A 1056B

24. The unlinking is unexpected and brings audience applause. Wait for the applause to
subside. Then the hands separate so that the audience can clearly see that there is a
single ring in the left hand. Then the linked set of three is put around the neck, Photo
1056B.

The Exchange

25. This next phase sets up the final linking of the rings. The starting situation is that
there are four rings on the right arm and a single ring in the left hand.

26. The right arm lowers so that the four rings slide down the arm and are caught by the
right hand, Photo 1057.

1057 1058

27. The right hand turns palm-up, and simultaneously the palm-up left hand slides into
the stack of three and takes it off the right hand. The sequence is shown in photos 1058,
1059, 1060. The stack is now held by the left hand.

305
 1059 1060

28. The palm-up right hand now slips into the stack of rings. The situation is shown in
Photo 1061.

1061 1062

29. The right hand closes around the stack of five rings and draws the stack off the left
hand. The right hand is still palm-up.

30. The right hand turns the stack around side-for-side and deposits the stack of five
rings into the left hand. You have turned the stack of rings around in order to bring a
single ring out to the front. The stack is now gripped by the left hand as shown in Photo
1062.

The Third Link

31. You have a single in front, then the linked set of two, then two more singles. The
right hand takes a single ring from the front of the stack. It hits the stack sharply with
the single, Photo 1063.

306
 1063 1064

32. At the same time the left thumb releases one of the linked set of two rings. The right-
hand ring is instantly taken by the left fingers. A stop-action photo is given in Photo
1064. The end result is shown in Photo 1065. It appears as if the single ring became
linked onto another ring.

1065 1066

The Final Unlink

33. This is the sequence that completes the first phase of the routine. The right hand
grasps the lower ring of the linked set of two, Photo 1066. The hands move up to the
position of Photo 1067. Blow on the rings. Simultaneously release the upper ring of the
linked set of two and hold back the two single rings in the left hand.

34. Photo 1068 gives a good visual idea of how the effect looks. It appears as if the linked
set freed itself from the other rings, and that it did it instantly. It seems matter-of- fact
in print, but it has strong visual impact.

35. The rings are displayed as shown in Photo 1069. You have just completed a linking
ring routine that will fool 99% of the magicians who see it and all of the laymen who see
it, and you have just begun the routine.

307
 1067 1068

1069

36. At this point Slydini walks down to the audience and distributes all eight rings for
examination. It is very important that this be done at a brisk pace. Encourage each
spectator to pass his ring or rings to a nearby spectator. This will kill the idea of a
confederate. In the meantime you look for a spectator in the audience who will be
suitable as an assistant. For a detailed analysis on how to choose the right spectator,
check the opening paragraphs of "The Paper Balls Over The Head" in The Best of Slydini
... and More.

37. Pick up the three linked rings, ask the volunteer spectator to escort you back to the
stage, and let him walk in front of you. Take the second chair (the one without the key
ring on the back of it) and invite him to sit in this chair.

38. Put the three linked rings onto your left arm. Turn to the audience, smile, clap your
hands, and ask them to join you in giving your assistant a nice hand. You are ready for
the unique and memorable second phase of the routine.

(If you are being accompanied by instrumental music, make sure the music stops at this
point so the audience can hear what you say.)

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 The Close-Up Phase

It is probably safe to say that Slydini was the first magician to conceive of the idea of
doing the linking rings as a close-up trick. The fact that the close-up phase could
logically be worked into a stage trick is further evidence of Slydini’s creative gift.

39. You now address the assistant, "Did you know why I asked you to assist me? I want
you to help me." You are standing at the spectator’s left, Photo 1070.

1070 1071

40. "Here I have three rings." Release two of the rings so that they fall in a chain, Photo
1071. Step on the bottom ring with the right foot and tug on the chain, Photo 1072. This
emphasizes that the rings are solidly linked. "The rings are steel. There’s no secret
opening." Here you display the three rings as in Photo 1072, and add, "I want you to see
if you can take them apart."

1072 1073

41. You continue, "After you try, I’ll show you this way." Holding two of the rings as in
Photo 1073, you slowly draw them slightly apart, Photo 1074. Then stop, deliberately
raising the suspense level because the audience expected you to unlink the two rings
right at that moment.

309
 1074 1075

42. When you stop, look at the spectator, smile, and say, "But first I want you to try,"
Photo 1075.

43. Give him the three rings, Photo 1076, and let him try to unlink them, Photo 1077.
Signal for the music to start playing again. At the point indicated in Photo 1077, you go
back into the audience and quickly gather the remainder of the rings. The audience is
intent on watching the onstage spectator and are greatly amused at his efforts to unlink
the three rings.

1076 1077

44. The five rings you pick up from the audience are held in the right hand so that the
linked set of two is at the right, and the three single rings are on the left. Transfer the
five rings to the left hand as you go back onstage. The situation now is depicted in Photo
1078.

45. In Photo 1078 the linked set of two is still on the right, and the three single rings are
on the left, that is, the three singles are closest to the left thumb. Gesture to the assistant
with the right hand, Photo 1078, as you say, "Take your time."

46. The five rings are now passed from the left hand to the right hand as you walk
behind the assistant to the chair on the left, Photo 1079.

310
 1078 1079

47. The left hand grasps the cloth that is draped over the chair, Photo 1079. You then
adjust the position of the chair, Photo 1080. At the same time, the right hand, which is
naturally behind the chair, invisibly picks up the key ring in Photo 1080, and adds it to
the stack of rings in the right hand. The key is to the left of the three single rings at this
point.

1080 1081

48. The add-on of the key is complete at the point shown in Photo 1080. The right hand,
which has been out of sight for a fraction of a second, immediately moves up into view.
The loading in of the key ring is so natural that it gets by any audience. The reason is
that the right hand moves in a completely natural way during the sequence of Photos
1079 and 1080, so the audience has no time to anticipate that something is being done.

49. The cloth is used to polish the rings as shown in Photo 1081. Then the cloth is
draped over the back of the chair again.

50. The rings are placed into the left hand without disturbing their order. Then the right
hand takes the linked set of two, plus a single ring, and places them on the chair, Photo
1082.

311
 1082 1083

Key Ring Technique

This phase describes Slydini’s extremely deceptive method of linking a key ring with an
ordinary ring. If you dislike the linking rings because such methods look phoney (they
do), you owe it to yourself to learn the Slydini method because it is so deceptive.

51. Turn to the spectator, Photo 1083, and say, "You tried, you couldn’t get them apart,
right?" When he acknowledges, you say, "I’ll show you."

52. You’re holding three rings in the left hand. The key ring is the leftmost ring. The
right hand takes the rightmost single ring from the left hand, Photo 1084.

1084 1085

53. Swing the body to the right and tap the right-hand ring on the rings that are on the
chair, Photo 1085. This emphasizes the solidity of this ring.

54. The right hand swings back to the left. Simultaneously the left hand releases the
other single ring so that it can be taken by the right hand, Photo 1086.

55. The right hand again swings to the right, and this time it taps the two rings it holds
against the rings on the chair.

312
 1086

56. The right hand swings to the left to take the last ring. This is, not incidentally, the
reason for the motion of the right hand as it swings to the right, then to the left with
each ring. When the right hand swings to the left to take the third ring, the two singles
are linked into the key.

Slydini’s Link Technique

At this point we will break into the routine to describe the exact method used by Slydini
to handle the key ring. If there is a single reason why magicians dislike the classic
linking rings, it is probably that there seems to be no clean, indetectable way to link and
unlink two rings. Thus the absolutely indispensable single ingredient in the method is
itself a problem.

Some of the wrong ways of linking two rings are illustrated here. In Photo 1087 the
hands are vertical. The result is that even though the opening in the key ring has
deliberately been widened for this photo, the ring can just barely fit through the key
without scraping against it. The reason is that the solid ring in the right hand is at the
wrong angle with respect to the opening in the key.

The generally despised method of linking two rings is shown in Photo 1088. In this, the
hands come together, a clear and unmistakable tip-off that you are linking two rings.

The Right Way

The situation of Photo 1087 can be corrected by an extremely simple expedient. Hold
the rings exactly as shown in Photo 1087. To go from wrong to right, just raise the
elbows so that the hands are now palms toward the floor. This is the situation of Photo
1089. But note that in this photo and in Photo 1090 the position of the solid ring with
respect to the key ring is that it is at right angles to the slot in the key and thus can easily
slide through the key ring.

313
 1087 1088

1089 1090

This is one important point. The elbows must be raised when you link two rings because
this automatically sets the solid ring at the correct angle with respect to the gap in the
key ring. We now move on to the real secret of the Slydini technique.

The Extended Key

If you are familiar with a locking key ring you know that the locking segment is an extra
segment that either swings or slides back and forth. Slydini has a way of simulating this
action, but with ordinary rings. This is another way of saying that he doesn’t use special
gimmicks, but rather, makes maximum efficient use of the available apparatus.

A. To get the idea, you must hold the key ring correctly. It is held on the left fingers so
that it rests on the left second, third, and fourth fingers as shown in Photo 1091, with the
middle finger just in back of the gap in the key. In Photo 1091 it appears as if the left
middle finger is on top of the key. For this reason, and to completely clarify the point, a
detail of Photo 1091 was expanded and is shown in Photo 1092. The left middle finger
does not rest on top of the key, as can be seen by the Photo. The middle finger rests just
at the gap in the key. In other words, it is curled under the key, but at the gap.

314
 1091 1092

B. The left forefinger is now extended across the gap on one side and the thumb on the
other as shown in Photo 1093. With the forefinger in this position it acts in effect like
the extra segment of the locking key. The opening in the key ring is invisible if the key
ring is held as shown in Photo 1093.

1093 1094

C. To link two rings correctly, hold a solid ring in the right hand and the key in the left
hand as already described. Bring the solid ring against the key exactly as shown in Photo
1094.

1095 1096

315
D. Let the solid ring slide against the left forefinger, Photo 1095. Momentum will carry
the solid ring further to the left so that it slides under the left forefinger, Photo 1096,
through the gap in the key and then in back of the key, Photo 1097. All of this happens
instantaneously. Practice this move five minutes, try it in front of a mirror, and you will
never use any other method.

1097 1098

The In-Motion Link

When Slydini links or unlinks two rings, he uses all of the above technique plus one
more secret which makes an already invisible technique completely beyond detection.
The linking or unlinking is always done with the rings in motion.

To show this with the linking sequence, Slydini will hold a solid ring in the right hand
and a key in the left hand. He taps the solid ring on the table, Photo 1098. Immediately
he brings this ring in front of the key, Photo 1099 (linking is always done with the solid
ring moving in front of the key). The solid ring slides to the left, and under the left
forefinger, Photo 1100. The solid ring moves through the key and the hands are
separated, Photo 1101, to complete the linking sequence.

1099 1100

316
 1101 1102

The In-Motion Unlink

The philosophy of the unlink is the same. Holding two linking rings as shown in Photo
1102, Slydini raises them to the level of the shoulders, Photo 1103, slides the solid ring
through the key, Photo 1104 (note that here, too, the solid ring moves from the front of
the key to the back) and then lowers the hands when the rings are unlinked, Photo 1105.
Another view, from further back, is given in Photo 1106.

1103 1104

1105 1106

317
The reason why the solid ring always moves from the front of the key to the back is that
the microscopic movement of the left forefinger as the solid slides under it is far better
concealed than if the solid ring moved from the back to the front of the key.

This is a short, but invaluable, lesson in the correct handling of the key ring. To those
who perform the trick, it should be worth the price of the book.

The Routine Continues

Now we resume the close-up phase with the on-stage spectator.

57. Photo 1107 shows the rings just as the two singles are linked into the key. Photo 1108
is an exposed view showing the position of the opening in the key ring at the point the
rings are linked. Photo 1109 indicates how the key is drawn slightly to the left to reveal
that the rings are linked.

1107 1108

1109 1110

58. The right hand releases one of the single rings and holds onto the other. The result is
an instantaneous linking of three rings, Photo 1110.

59. The bottom ring is slipped under the right foot. You now tug on the rings to show
that they are truly linked, Photo 1111.

318
 1111 1112

60. The right hand drops the single ring it holds. The left hand retains its grip on the key
ring. The right hand then grasps the two single rings, Photo 1112, and spins them.

Unlinking the Rings

61. After the two single rings stop spinning, the right hand grasps one of the single rings
and brings it up to a point that is level with the key ring, Photo 1113. Tug on the rings as
you say, "You know, the rings are inside." Tug on the rings just as you say "inside."

1113 1114

1115 1116

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62. Both hands raise. Note that the elbows are also raised. The position is shown in
Photo 1114. Note in 1114 that as the rings are raised above the level of the eyes the
distance between the hands begins to close.

63. This allows you to release the single ring from the key. The hands are then lowered
to the position of Photo 1115.

64. In a smooth continuing action the right hand raises the single ring it holds until it
magically melts off the key. The sequence is shown in Photos 1116, 1117, and 1118. Just as
you reach this point smile and say, "Right?"

1117 1118

65. The ring just released is placed over the hand, Photo 1119.

1119 1120

66. You’re now going to unlink the second ring from the key ring. Point to the single
ring, Photo 1120, as you say, "Do you want to see the place where the rings come out?"
Grasp the single ring with the right hand and spin this ring. Photo 1121 is a stop-action
shot of the single ring spinning on the key ring.

320
 1121 1122

67. Before the ring stops spinning, the right hand reaches through the single ring,
moving from right to left, Photo 1122. Note that the right hand is palm-down in Photo
1122.

68. The right hand turns palm-up, Photo 1123, as it continues to move through the
single ring.

1123 1124

69. The right hand takes the key ring at the opening as the left hand releases the key,
Photo 1124. Both rings are now held by the right hand as shown in Photo 1124.

1125 1126

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70. Now the right hand turns palm- down, Photo 1125, and allows the single ring to slide
off the right arm, Photos 1126 and 1127.

1127 1128

71. The entire sequence of Steps 66 through 70 is repeated but with the left hand
performing the action. This sequence is depicted in Photos 1128 through 1135. Refer to
the text of Steps 66 through 70 for the details of the handling, simply substituting left
hand for right hand and vice versa. The whole point of the handling of Steps 66 through
71 is to apparently display each ring spinning freely inside the other. This dispels the
idea of a key ring. The handling must be smooth and relaxed. Once mastered, the
changeover sequence produces a completely convincing illusion that each ring is freely
and honestly displayed.

1129 1130

322
 1131 1132

1133 1134

1135 1136

72. Spin the bottom ring again, and point to the spinning ring, Photo 1136, as you
apparently spot some microscopic opening in the spinning ring.

73. The right hand now grasps the spinning ring, Photo 1137. Raise the right hand so
that the rings are on the same level, Photo 1138.

323
 1137 1138

74. Say, "You know ..." At the same time bring the hands together, then suddenly pull
the rings in opposite directions, Photos 1139 and 1140, as you say, "... the rings are
solidly linked." Pause, then say, "Right?"

1139 1140

1141 1142

75. Just as you say, "Right," bring the rings together, Photo 1141, unlink them, and bring
them back to the position of Photo 1141. The word "Right" is a trigger word; the rings are
unlinked at the precise instant you say, "Right?"

324
76. The spectator says, "yes." Immediately pull the rings apart, Photo 1142. As this is
done, Slydini says with a smile, "No, no, no."

The Ring Switch

Here you are going to switch the spectator’s linked set of three rings for the set
consisting of two singles and the key. This switch is a knockout. It happens so fast that it
does not seem possible from the spectator’s point of view that anything has been done.

77. The right hand, holding one of the single rings, reaches up and grasps the ring over
the head, Photo 1143. This ring is taken off the head, Photo 1144.

1143 1144

78. As the two rings are transferred to the left hand, the linking move is performed,
Photo 1145. The three rings, now secretly linked, are held in the left hand, Photo 1146.
Note in Photo 1146 that the two singles rest on the first and second fingers. They are
held in place with the left thumb. Photo 1147 represents an exposed view. In practice the
fingers are curled in, and the left thumb rests on the two single rings.

1145 1146

It should be pointed out that the inmotion concept is at work throughout this phase of
the routine. Thus, the first sentence of Step 78 really means, "The linking move is
performed as the two rings are transferred to the left hand." Since the linking is done
with the rings in motion, there is no chance that it will be spotted. It is also true that the

325
linking move is done during a seemingly incidental part of the handling and that the
consequence of this move is not apparent to the audience until long after they have a
chance to suspect secret moves.

79. The right hand now reaches to the chair and takes the three rings, Photos 1147 and
1148.

1147 1148

80. These rings are added to the rings in the left hand. This is done by resting these
three rings on the left first and second fingers, Photo 1149. The key is held in place
against the left palm by the left thumb, as shown in Photo 1149. At the same time you
have turned to the spectator. Say, "Did you try?"

1149 1150

81. The spectator says, "yes." You say, "You couldn’t take them apart, right? I’ll show
you." Take the three rings from the spectator, Photo 1150. The switch is now going to be
enacted.

82. The right hand moves into contact with the left hand, Photo 1151. At the same time
you are turning to your left to deposit the unneeded rings on the chair.

326
 1151 1152

83. As you turn, the left thumb releases all of the rings on the left first and second
fingers. All of the rings fall, except the key ring, Photo 1152, but two of them remain
linked to the key ring, Photo 1153. In Photo 1153 you have completely turned and are
now facing the chair. You are placing a set of rings onto the chair, exactly what you
should be doing if the handling were honest. But in the sequence from Photo 1151 to
1153 you have switched one set of three linked rings for the gaffed set.

1153 1154

84. Photo 1154 shows the completion of the sequence as the right hand deposits its rings
onto the chair. Note that the right hand took the spectator’s three rings, and that this
same hand deposited several rings on the chair. But because of the handling, and the
fact that you turn to the left, the illusion that is created is that you hold the spectator’s
three rings in Photo 1154. The switch is invisible to anyone not in the know.

The Spectator Sequence

This is the part of the routine that seems beyond rational explanation. An unlinking
phase takes place within inches of the spectator’s eyes. His look of amazement is
eloquent testimony to the fact that he has been completely baffled.

85. "I want to show you how this really works." As you say this, you are facing the
spectator, Photo 1155. The right hand grasps the two single rings and spins them.

327
 1155 1156

86. When the rings stop spinning, the right hand grasps one of the single rings, Photo
1156, and holds it up so it is level with the key ring, Photo 1157.

1157 1158

87. "You didn’t know that one of the rings was out already." As "already" is said, raise
the arms, Photo 1157, perform the unlinking move, and draw the rings apart, Photos
1158 and 1159. This will always get a laugh from the audience because of the surprised
look on the spectator’s face.

1159 1160

88. The ring that has just been unlinked is placed over the head, Photo 1160.

328
89. Now say, "This time I’m going to do it right in front of your eyes. You can’t miss,"
Photo 1161. Sometimes Slydini will add, "I’m going to do it for forty-five minutes if
necessary."

1161 1162

90. Perform the spinning sequence of Steps 66 through 71. Then walk behind the
spectator, Photo 1162.

91. Lower the rings in front of the spectator’s eyes, Photo 1163. The key ring is in the left
hand.

1163 1164

92. "I want you to touch the rings with your hands. Make sure the rings are linked." The
spectator will tug on the rings, Photo 1164.

93. The spectator will say that the rings are definitely linked. Reply, "Fine. You can relax
now." Revolve the hands to the position of Photo 1165. Do this slowly as you say, "How
about now?"

94. The spectator, watching like a hawk, will confirm that the rings are linked.

95. The audience, too, can see that the rings are linked in Photo 1165. After the spectator
says, "Yes," pause and say, "You mean to say they are still linked?" The spectator is

329
compelled to visually examine the two rings even more closely, and will loudly say,
"yes."

1165 1166

96. "How about now." All the rings to revolve to the position of Photo 1166. The rings are
hanging from the fingers at this point. At every stage of this part of the handling, from
Step 93 to the end of this phase, the action must be extremely slow and deliberate. You
are drawing out the action to heighten the suspense.

97. The spectator says, "Yes." You reply, "You mean they are still linked?" The spectator
again says, "Yes."

98. Now you make a large, sudden motion as the rings are raised, Photo 1167, and
immediately lowered, Photo 1168.

1167 1168

99. The spectator (and the audience) thinks that you have now made the crucial move.
You did nothing. The spectator scrutinizes the two rings and must conclude that they are
still linked. Say, "Really? You’re sure?" He says that he’s sure.

100. "Yes or no." It is here that you make a tiny motion, Photo 1169. This is done almost
as a shrug accompanying the words, "Yes or no." By this time the spectator has been so
vigilant that he cannot help but be slightly fatigued. The small motion is not noticed,

330
and it is here that the rings are unlinked using the unlinking move. Photo 1169 shows
the start of the action.

1169 1170

101. The hands move slowly apart, Photo 1170, and continue moving, Photo 1171. In
Photo 1171 Slydini, in a characteristic bit of business, looks off to the right and says, "No,
no, no." The spectator is nonplussed by what can only be explained as a miraculous
unlinking of the two rings.

1171

This is one of the high points of the routine and brings a burst of applause from the
audience. At this point you walk to the spectator’s right, ask the audience to give the
spectator a round of applause, and tell him he may return to his seat in the audience.

Solid Through Solid

When the spectator has returned to his seat, you begin the final phase of the Slydini
Ring Routine. In this phase a number of attractive designs are made with the rings.

At the finish you show that you are using nothing more than ordinary rings. This is done
in spectacular fashion as the rings are thrown one at a time into the air and allowed to
clatter onto the stage.

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102. The ring that was placed over the head is now taken off and placed at the right side
of the two rings in the left hand. The left hand now holds three rings, two singles, and a
key.

103. Now pick up the other rings from the chair, Photo 1172, and place with the rings in
the left hand, Photo 1173.

1172 1173

104. In Photo 1173 the rings are grouped as follows from right to left; three linked rings,
the set of two linked rings, and then three single rings and the key ring.

105. Remove the set of three linked rings from the left hand, Photo 1173, and place them
on the back of the chair as shown in Photo 1174.

1174 1175

106. The linked set of two rings is placed on the other arm of the chair, Photo 1175. Two
of the single rings are placed on the seat of the chair, Photo 1176. This leaves you with a
single ring and the key ring in the left hand.

332
 1176 1177

107. Allow the single ring to fall off the left fingers. Catch it with the right hand and hit it
against the rings on the seat of the chair as shown in Photo 1177. This is to emphasize
the solidity of the ring held by the right hand.

108. The right hand immediately moves toward the left hand. Link the single ring with
the key ring, Photo 1178. Allow the single ring to drop, then spin it as shown in Photo
1179.

1178 1179

109. Raise the left hand as the single ring spins inside the key ring. As the ring slows
down, lower the left hand slowly. Time this so that the ring stops spinning just as the left
hand reaches waist level.

110. The right hand reaches inside the single ring, moving toward the left, Photo 1180.
The right hand turns palm-up. Then the right hand is raised. The single ring rests on the
right wrist at this point and is taken up with the right hand.

111. As the palm-up right hand reaches the slot in the key, the left hand releases the key
ring, allowing this ring to fall into the waiting right palm. The right fingers close around
the key ring as shown in Photo 1181.

333
 1180 1181

112. To complete the changeover sequence, the right hand turns palm-down, Photo 1182,
allowing the single ring to fall off the right wrist, Photo 1183. The action of Steps 110,
111, and 112, is designed to produce the illusion that both rings have been fairly shown to
the audience.

1182 1183

1184 1185

113. You’re now going to repeat the sequence but from the left side. Begin by grasping
the single ring with the left hand and giving it a spin. When the single ring slows down
and stops, the left hand moves inside the single ring, Photo 1184, and moves upward,
carrying the single ring on the left wrist. When the left hand is near the slot in the key

334
ring, the right hand releases the key ring, allowing it to fall into the waiting left palm,
Photo 1185.

114. The left fingers close around the key ring. The left hand then turns palm down and
allows the single ring to slide off the left wrist. The single ring then drops to the position
shown in Photo 1186. In these photos the rings are at waist level when the hand reaches
in to grasp the single ring.

1186 1187

115. The right hand spins the single ring again. As the ring is spinning, the right hand
reaches through the opening in the key ring, Photo 1187, and points to the spinning
single ring. The idea here is that you are pointing toward an imaginary opening in the
spinning ring and that you are going to catch the single ring at that point.

116. The right hand pulls back out of the key ring and catches the spinning single ring as
shown in Photo 1188. Apparently you have caught the single ring at the point where an
invisible gap exists in the ring. To make this point convincing, to make it seem
important that the right hand catch the spinning ring at just the right point, the right
hand must move quickly from the position of Photo 1187 to that of Photo 1188.

1188 1189

117. Raise the right hand ring to the level of the left hand ring, Photo 1189. This is done
on the count of "One." The rings are unlinked in this position, using the Slydini method.
Then the rings are lowered to chest level on the count of "Two," as shown in Photo 1190.

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 1190 1191

118. The right hand is raised, Photo 1191. The illusion is that the rings are still linked.
When the rings get to the position of Photo 1192, the right hand makes a sudden upward
movement as if snapping its ring free of the left-hand ring, Photo 1193. The single ring is
placed on the seat of the chair, Photo 1194, to complete this phase.

1192 1193

Instant Link

The effect here is that the single ring will link instantly with the set of three linked rings.

1194 1195

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119. The right hand lifts the linked set of three from the back of the chair, Photo 1195. As
soon as this is done the right thumb slides between one of these rings and the other two
as shown in Photo 1195. The object of this is to separate one ring from the other two so
that you can link the single ring with this ring instantly. So you have isolated one of the
rings in the linked set of three by the action of the right thumb. This ring must be one of
the end rings in the linked set of three. You can mark the end rings as prior preparation,
or, in Photo 1174, when you place the linked set of three on the chair, make sure one of
the end rings is separate from the center ring.

120. The linked set of three is brought to the key ring, Photo 1196. The key ring is linked
to the end ring that has been separated from the other two rings by the right thumb. As
soon as the rings are linked, the right hand drops the linked set of three. The end result
is a set of four linked rings, Photo 1197.

1196 1197

All of Steps 119 and 120 are performed in one smooth, fast motion. The linking of the
four rings appears to be instantaneous. As soon as they are linked, slip the right foot
through the bottom ring. The left hand then tugs on the rings to show they are solidly
linked.

The effectiveness of this phase lies in the fact that the audience has no idea that when
you take three rings off the chair in Photo 1195, the rings are already linked. Thus the
effect of Photo 1197 is the instant linking of four single rings, an incredible feat that
brings immediate applause.

121. The right hand grasps the top ring of the linked set of three and raises it to the level
of the key ring, Photo 1198.

122. This ring is unlinked, then held by the left hand, Photo 1199. Slydini calls this
Unhook And Hold, meaning that you unlink the ring, but then hold it in place.

123. Now the right hand grasps the center ring of the linked set of three and moves it up
to a position level with the two rings in the left hand.

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 1198 1199

124. The left hand drops the top ring of the linked set of three. This is shown in Photo
1200. In actual performance what happens here is a continuous sequence, so the stop-
action shot of Photo 1200 is not actually seen by the audience. Thus, Photo 1200 is an
exposed view of the situation after the left hand has released the top ring of the linked
set of three.

1200 1201

125. In the same action the right hand moves the center ring of the linked set in front of
the key ring, links it to the key ring, Photo 1201, then allows the left hand to grasp this
ring, Photo 1202. The left hand now holds two rings.

1202 1203

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126. The right hand has released its grip on the center ring in Step 125. Now the right
hand grasps the rightmost of the two lower rings and raises it upward. At the same time
the left hand drops the solid ring of the two that it holds. The situation now is shown in
Photo 1203.

127. The right hand raises its ring to the level of the key ring held by the left hand. The
end result is the figure shown in Photo 1204. Slydini refers to this figure as Mickey
Mouse.

1204 1205

The Second Figure

128. The hands grip the upper rings as shown in Photo 1205. The hands snap to the
position of Photos 1206 and 1207.

1206 1207

129. The hands then move to the palm- down condition of Photo 1208. The hands move
apart, Photo 1209, then snap to the position of Photo 1210. Slydini calls this figure the
Horse.

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 1208 1209

1210

The Third Figure

130. The hands shift to the position of Photo 1211, palms down. Then the right hand
releases its ring, Photo 1212.

1211 1212

131. Bring the topmost ring of the linked set of three up and into the left hand. Unlink
this ring as it is placed into the left palm.

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132. You are essentially back to the point indicated in Photo 1202 right now. The
rightmost of the two bottom rings in the right hand is taken.

133. Bring this ring up so it is level with the key ring. At the same time the left hand
releases the top ring of the linked set.

134. In the same motion the right hand ring is linked with the key ring and allowed to
fall free immediately after it is linked. The end result is shown in Photo 1213. You are
back to a linked set of four rings. Slip the right foot through the bottom ring as indicated
in Photo 1213 and tug on the topmost ring to show that the four rings are solidly welded
into a chain, Photo 1214.

1213 1214

135. Figure 1215 is a stop-action photo showing the alignment of the rings at this point.
The position of each ring is important and in fact crucial to the next steps. The top ring
points forward. The second ring is at right angles to it. The third ring is parallel to the
top ring, and the bottom ring is parallel to the second ring. The alignment must be
exactly as shown in Photo 1215.

1215 1216

136. The left hand now pulls the chain free from the right foot, Photo 1216. At the same
time that the chain moves up, the right hand grasps the bottom ring exactly as shown in
Photo 1217.

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 1217 1218

137. The right hand pulls the bottom ring up, Photo 1218, to the position shown in Photo
1219, and immediately links the bottom ring to the key ring.

1219 1220

138. The right hand turns back upward immediately after the right hand ring is linked to
the key, Photo 1220. In this action it will appear as if the rings are tangled hopelessly.
But immediately the right hand assumes the position of Photo 1221 to show the four
rings interlinked.

1221

139. Turn from left to right to show the four interlinked rings.

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 The Fourth Figure

140. After the four rings have been displayed, the right hand throws or drops its ring,
Photo 1222. Then the right hand grasps the two center rings as a unit, Photo 1223, and
spins them.

1222 1223

141. The right hand grasps the rightmost of the center two rings and pivots it to the
right, Photo 1224. The right hand then grasps the top of the bottom ring, Photo 1225,
and pulls this ring out, Photo 1226.

1224 1225

1226 1227

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142. The resulting figure is a chair, Photo 1227. Slydini then swings the chair figure back
and forth, Photos 1228 and 1229.

1228 1229

The Fifth Figure

143. When the rings are at the position shown in Photo 1229, the right hand catches the
rightmost ring, Photo 1230.

1230 1231

1232 1233

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144. The rings are now slowly raised over the head, Photo 1231, then slowly lowered to
waist level. The hands then bring the outermost rings to the vertical position shown in
Photo 1232.

145. The hands continue to move toward one another until the outermost rings touch as
shown in Photo 1233.

146. The outer rings are now grasped by the left hand. The left hand then raises the rings
to the position of Photo 1234. In order for the figure to remain exactly as shown in Photo
1234 the left hand must grasp the two rings tightly. Slydini refers to this figure as the
Globe.

1234

The Sixth Figure

147. The left hand is now lowered and moved toward the right hand. With a tossing
motion the left hand releases the rightmost ring of the two rings it holds. This ring is
caught by the right hand, Photo 1235.

1235 1236

148. At this point the right hand holds the end ring of the linked set of three and the left
hand holds the key ring. If the right hand were to release its ring at this point you would
return to the chair figure of Photo 1227. The right hand does not release its grip,
however. The hands now flip the center ring upward. This is caught in the stop-action

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shot of Photo 1236. This ring is actually the end ring of the linked set of three. The right
hand holds one of the end rings, and the other end ring is the one flipped upward.

149. This ring is allowed to travel all the way up so that it sits on top of the other three
rings. This ring is caught and held in place by the thumbs. The left forefinger holds the
top ring in place. The right thumb applies forward pressure against the rightmost ring.
This creates tension in the figure and holds the rings in place. Photo 1238 is a detail
showing the grip of each hand. The result is a three-dimensional square shown in Photo
1237. Slydini calls this the Square or Cube.

1237 1238

The Seventh Figure

150. The right hand releases its grip, Photo 1239, allowing the rings to tumble down and
assume the position of Photo 1240.

1239 1240

151. The right hand grasps the rightmost of the center rings, Photo 1241, raises it upward
and secretly through the key ring, Photo 1242, and deposits this ring into the left hand.
The left hand holds the two rings as shown in Photo 1243.

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 1241 1242

1243 1244

152. The right hand now grasps the linked set of two rings, Photo 1244, and removes
them from the chair.

153. The right thumb moves between the two rings and lifts the rightmost ring above the
other ring of the linked set of two. The start of this action is shown in Photo 1244.

1245 1246

154. The right hand moves toward the left. You are going to do two things
simultaneously. The right hand links the ring grasped between the right thumb and
forefinger with the key ring. But at the same time the left hand releases the solid ring it

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holds and retains the key ring. Photo 1245 shows the right-hand ring being linked with
the key ring.

155. The result of the above two actions is that you have caused six rings to link
instantly, Photo 1246. The left hand conceals the slot in the key ring in this photograph.
The right foot holds the bottom ring in place as shown. This allows the hands to tug on
the chain to show it is solid.

The linked set of six rings may seem a commonplace, but the fact that it occurs instantly
is what makes it so impressive to the audience. Slydini delays the revelation of the six-
ring chain by this stratagem. When he completes Step 154, just as the chain opens up,
the right hand grasps the ring below the key ring and holds it a second. The rings appear
hopelessly intermixed and tangled. He raises the right hand and lowers the left hand,
blows on the rings, and releases the right-hand grip on the ring below the key.

The rings then seem to transform into the chain of Photo 1246. Photo 1247 shows the
hands just as the left hand releases its solid ring. Photo 1248 shows the right hand
grasping the ring below the key, and Photo 1249 shows the hands being raised as Slydini
blows on them. The rings drop into the chain shown in Photo 1250.

1247 1248

1249 1250

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 The Eighth Figure

156. The right hand releases its grip on the rings, causing the rings to reach the position
of Photo 1251.

1251 1252

157. The left hand is now going to change its grip. To do this, first bring the key ring over
the palm-up right hand. Drop the key ring into the right palm. To conceal the slot in the
key the right hand closes around the key ring immediately, Photo 1252.

158. The left hand now turns palm up and regrips the key as shown in Photo 1253. It
does this in exactly the same way the key was transferred to the right hand in Step 157;
the key is dropped into the palm-up left hand and this hand immediately closes around
the key.

1253 1254

159. The left hand turns palm inward, Photo 1254. The right hand grasps the topmost
ring of the linked set of three, Photo 1255, and raises it upward.

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 1255 1256

160. Both hands are now raised, Photo 1256. In the same motion you perform the
Slydini unlinking move. The hands are then lowered to the position of Photo 1257. Note
in this photo that the right-hand set of rings is already separate from the left-hand set of
rings.

1257 1258

161. Slydini now blows on the rings and slowly separates the hands, Photo 1258, to show
that three rings have melted away from the remaining three rings. It is an eerie and
dramatic effect.

1259 1260

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162. The bottom ring of each set is held in place with the foot. This allows you to tug on
both sets of rings, Photo 1259.

163. As you tug on the rings the right- hand rings are brought near the left-hand rings.
The top ring on the right-hand side is tapped against the key ring held by the left hand.
In the same motion these two rings are linked, Photo 1260.

164. The ring held by the right hand is pulled sharply to the right to emphasize that it is
securely linked with the top ring on the left side.

165. The top rings are again brought in contact and unlinked. The hands separate to
show the rings unlinked. Almost in the same action the hands move together and the
Slydini linking move is repeated.

The Ninth Figure

166. The right hand releases its grip on the rings. You now repeat the hand-to-hand
changeover of Steps 157 and 158. The result is that the left hand is now in a palm-down
position.

167. In the process of changing hands, you have also turned the rings around 180°. Thus
the linked set of two is now on the right.

168. The right hand grasps the top ring of the linked set of two, Photo 1261. Perform the
unlinking move (it is in progress in Photo 1261) and hold the linked set of two with the
left hand.

1261 1262

169. The palm-up right hand now slides under the bottom ring of the linked set of two. It
grasps this ring and the other ring in the linked set of two, Photo 1262. The right hand is
raised, Photo 1263, and the left hand simultaneously lowered. When the right hand
reaches the level of the face, blow on the rings and pull the right-hand two rings free of
the rest of the chain, Photo 1264. If you can’t tell at a glance which two of the three rings
in the right hand are the linked set of two, shake all three rings. One will feel much
heavier than the other two. Release this ring.

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 1263 1264

170. The linked set of two is now returned to the chair, Photo 1265.

1265

The Tenth Figure

171. Now take two of the three rings from the seat of the chair, Photo 1266. These are
two single rings. Link both of them with the key ring, Photo 1267. Hold these rings plus
the key ring in the left hand.

1266 1267

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172. The right hand takes the leftmost loose ring and slides it over the left arm, Photos
1268 and 1269.

1268 1269

173. The right hand then picks up the other single ring linked with the key, Photo 1270.

1270 1271

174. As the right hand moves to the right with this ring, Photo 1271, the left hand begins
to raise the key ring upward.

1272 1273

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175. The right hand releases its ring, Photo 1272. The right hand then grasps the key
ring. Both hands raise the key ring and put it over the head, Photo 1273. The slot in the
key is directly behind the neck.

1274 1275

176. The right hand now grasps the rightmost loose ring, Photo 1274, and moves to the
right with this ring, Photo 1275. The result is the cross shown in Photo 1276.

1276 1277

The Final Figures

177. The hands release the rings they hold, Photo 1277. The hands then go to the head
and grip the key ring. The key is rotated so that the slot in the key slides into the left
palm. Then the key ring is lifted from the head, Photo 1278.

178. The right hand grasps (from the front) the three rings linked with the key, Photo
1279, and unlinks them, Photo 1280. The left hand holds the key ring at this point and
the right hand holds the other rings, Photo 1281.

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 1278 1279

1280 1281

179. The right hand holds two loose rings and another ring. This latter ring is actually
the top ring of the linked set of three. The left hand links the key ring with this ring,
Photos 1282 and 1283. The left thumb helps in the linking.

1282 1283

180. The hands are raised. You can tell by touch which of the three rings in the right
hand is the one you want to release because it feels heavier than the other two. The
reason it feels heavier is that two other rings are linked to it. Blow on the rings, Photo
1284, and allow the "heavy" ring to fall from the right hand.

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 1284 1285

181. The result is that the two single rings in the right hand seem to melt off the chain.
These two rings are replaced on the seat of the chair, Photo 1285.

182. You now have a chain of four rings in the left hand. Take the linked set of two rings
off the chair and link one of them onto the key ring, Photo 1286.

1286 1287

183. The ring just linked with the key is held in the left hand. The other ring of the linked
set of two is held by the right hand. The right hand grasps the topmost ring of the linked
set of three, Photo 1287.

You’re going to form a simple figure, but as Slydini says, you don’t want the audience to
be aware of the fact that it’s simple. So, the rings will be mixed up a bit and then allowed
to fall dramatically into place to form the figure. The appearance from the front is that a
hopeless tangle of rings suddenly and magically forms into a pleasing figure. To start the
sequence the right hand lifts the two rings it holds, Photo 1288.

184. Blow on the rings. The right hand allows the "heavy" ring to fall, Photo 1289. The
result is that you end up with a linked set of six rings as shown in Photo 1290.

185. Slip the right foot through the bottom ring and tug on the rings, Photo 1291, to
show them firmly linked.

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 1288 1289

1290 1291

186. The left thumb curls tightly from the back around the second ring from the top,
Photo 1292. The right hand then drops or brings down its ring. The situation is shown in
Photo 1293.

1292 1293

187. The right hand grasps the bottom ring, Photo 1294. The right hand then grasps the
bottom ring of the linked set of two, Photo 1295. Note in this photo how the right thumb
grasps the ring.

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 1294 1295

188. The right hand now swings to a palm-out condition. The rings are thrown into a
tangle as shown in Photo 1296.

1296 1297

189. Pause here. Then blow on the rings and let them drop to the figure shown in Photo
1297. Make sure the upper right ring is level with the upper left ring. The pattern formed
in Photo 1297 is symmetric, which adds to the illusion that you now have six rings linked
in a closed circle, Photo 1298. Pressure of the thumbs against the rings actually keeps
the figure in the position of Photo 1297.

1298 1299

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 The Finale

190. The pace here is decidedly up-tempo. Both hands move upward in a tossing
motion. At the same time the right hand releases its grip on the rings. The action is
shown in Photo 1299.

191. Still retaining the left-hand grip on the rings, allow the rings to touch the floor. Note
in Photo 1300 that the left hand still holds two rings.

1300 1301

192. The right hand takes a single ring from the chair, Photo 1300. The right hand
moves toward the key ring, Photo 1301. The single ring is linked with the key ring and
simultaneously the left hand releases its grasp on the other ring it held. The result is
shown in Photo 1302.

1302 1303

193. The right hand grasps the two rings that are above the bottom ring of the chain. It
throws these rings into the air, Photo 1303.

194. As the rings fall, the left hand lowers so that the rings hit the floor, Photo 1304.

195. In the same motion the right hand grasps the remaining single ring on the chair, as
shown in Photo 1304.

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 1304 1305

196. Link this ring with the key. Immediately the right hand grasps the two rings that lie
on top of the bottom ring of the chain. These rings are tossed in the air as before, Photo
1305.

197. When the chain straightens out, grasp the two rings above the bottom ring and
repeat the action of tossing these rings, Photo 1306.

1306 1307

1308 1309

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198. Let the rings hit the floor, Photos 1307 and 1308. When you reach the position of
Photo 1308, allow the single ring on the left wrist to fall. This will give you five rings just
below the key.

199. The right hand grasps these five rings as shown in Photo 1309. These three rings
are instantly unlinked from the key ring, Photo 1310.

1310 1311

Since it may be difficult to visualize five rings moving through the key, the sequence is
shown in greater detail in the next photographs. Photo 1311 shows the starting position.
In Photo 1312 the right hand begins to move upward. This is shown in a close-up shot,
Photo 1313, where the action is clearer. Finally, the five rings move as a unit through the
key, Photo 1314. A magnified view of the action is given in Photo 1315.

1312 1313

200. Allow the set of three linked rings to fall to the floor, Photo 1316, then immediately
release the set of two and let it fall, Photo 1317. Then drop a single ring, Photo 1318, then
another single, Photo 1319, then another single. Then drop the key ring, Photos 1320
and 1321. The key ring is dropped flat so it won’t roll across the stage.

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 1314 1315

1316 1317

1318 1319

If you want to know how to distinguish between the set of three and the set of two, in
Photo 1315 the set of three is outermost, with the set of two next. Thus the linked sets
and the single rings are rapidly released off the fingers of the right hand. In these
photographs the left hand is kept close to the right hand as the rings drop to the floor.
This helps conceal the whereabouts of the key ring.

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 1320 1321

The effect you want to produce in Photos 1316 through 1321 is that of a continuous
cascade of single rings falling to the floor. It makes a spectacularly impressive sight and
if done in a smooth rapid sequence, appears as if you have nothing more than a group of
solid, single rings.

ADDENDA

In the Slydini Linking Ring Routine the assisting spectator is Dan Barlotta. The assisting
spectator in other tricks is Karl Fulves.

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 1
Close-Up Miracles

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Slydini On Rope Magic

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Cards In Close-Up

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 4
The Torn and Restored Newspaper

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 5
More Slydini Coin Classics

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 6
The Coin Clip

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 7
Slydini’s Silk Knots

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 8
Slydini’s Sympathetic Silks

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 9
Slydini Close-Up Classics

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 10
Slydini’s Linking Rings

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