Card Trick: By Bill Abbott

WORLD’S FASTEST

This is a killer close-up/parlor effect that ends with a complete deck switch -ready for whatever you now need a new deck for! (Stacked deck, gaffed deck, etc.) I created this effect because Eugene Burger already came up with The Greatest Card Effect of the 21st Century! Eugene doesn’t have a specific effect for The Greatest Card Effect of the 21st Century. The title alone for the effect is there to create interest. Which it does. Of course, if you were to state that you will now be performing The Greatest Card Effect of the 21st Century and proceeded to do the 21 card trick (you know, the one with 3 rows of seven), then you will have wasted all that interest on something that clearly is not The Greatest Card Effect of the 21st Century. Inspired by Eugene’s ingenious concept, I came up with The World’s Fastest Card Trick to create interest, perform an impressive effect and to switch a deck of cards (that had been previously inspected and shuffled by an audience member) for a gaffed/stacked deck for my next effect. This is not something I personally use for walk-around but it’s a great opener for a formal close-up, parlor or house party show. Anytime audience members shuffle a deck of cards you need to allow the necessary time for that to happen. When a spectator has to handle a deck of cards for any length of time it should be saved for occasions when you have the full attention of the audience, unlike most walk-around or strolling gigs.

CARD TRICK by Bill Abbott

Basic Effect: You hand the spectator a deck to inspect and shuffle. They choose a card and shuffle it back into the deck themselves. You hand them the card box to place the deck into and two thick elastic bands to wrap around the card case to seal the deck inside. The card case is placed into your empty jacket pocket. Instantly you reach into your pocket and pull out their selected card! You then pull out the deck, in its case, still sealed with the elastic bands. Props Needed & Pre-Show Set-Up: Two thick elastic bands in your outside right hand jacket pocket. Regular deck of cards with corner shorted card in it. (See photo 1 of corner shorted card.)

Same brand and colour deck that is gaffed/stacked for another trick, inside the card box with one elastic wrapped once vertically around the middle of the case and another wrapped horizontally around the middle of the case. (See photo 2 of elastic wrapped deck) Slip a duplicate of the corner shorted card under one of the elastic bands of the gaffed/stacked deck. (See photo 3) Place this deck in your rear right trouser pocket. Creating & Handling A Corner Shorted Card: You will need to create a corner shorted card for my handling of this effect. I use a corner rounder found at art and craft supply shops and is used for scrapbooking. (See photo 4 of the one I use.) Finger nail clippers can also be used to create your corner short. Cut a rounded slice off the card on the two corners opposite to the pip corners. (see photo 5 of the corner shorted card). Now by simply riffling your left thumb down the top left corner of the deck held in dealing position, it will naturally stop at the break created by the corner short. If you cut the cards and complete the cut at that point the corner short will end up on the bottom of the deck.

Performing The World’s Fastest Card Trick: “I would like to start by performing the World’s Fastest Card Trick. I think it’s important to note that the deck used is not only normal, but it’s downright boring. Here, take it, look at it, inspect it, be one with the deck. When you’re happy it’s unremarkable in every way, please shuffle it well.” Remove the deck from the case and hand it to the spectator. “It’s also important to note that my sleeves will be pulled up for the duration of the World’s Fastest Card Trick as many people have been led to believe that my sleeves had something to do with the trick. They don’t.” Roll up your sleeves and take the deck back again. Run your left thumb down the top left corner to locate the corner short. When you do, simply swing cut the deck and complete the cut, placing the corner short at the bottom of the pack. As you are doing this ask the assisting spectator, “Did you notice how dreary and mundane this deck of cards was? Before we commence I need you to commit a random card to memory. As I run through the cards say stop and remember the card we stop at.” [I use the Hindu Shuffle force at this point, as cutting to the corner short puts the force card at the bottom of the deck in perfect position for this force. Please feel free to use any force you wish. I will not be explaining the Hindu Shuffle Force so please refer you to any of the basic card magic texts for excellent explanations of the force. The Royal Road To Card Magic and the Card College Book #1 Chapter 11, are excellent texts to learn this shuffle force from and should be on your shelf anyways.] Run through the cards in classic Hindu Shuffle manner and when they say stop, do so, showing the bottom card (the corner shorted-force card), which they commit to memory. “Please remember everything about this card, the colour, suit and value. If you forget this card, it will become The World’s Longest Card Trick, okay?” As soon as they have committed the card to memory place the top half of the deck in your right hand (with the corner short on the bottom), on top of the lower half still in your left hand, burying the force card in the middle of the pack. Instantly hand them the whole pack and ask them to shuffle the cards completely. As they do this hand them the card case asking them to place the cards inside when they are done shuffling. “Now you have a card locked in your memory, you shuffled the deck losing it somewhere in there and now it’s all back in this case your holding. All right we’re going to place it inside my jacket pocket but before you do I need you put your hand inside and see that it’s empty.” You're going to turn toward the spectator so the right outside jacket pocket holding the two elastic bands is facing them. As you turn and push the jacket pocket towards them you will place your right hand into your back pocket where the second gaffed/stacked deck resides. They will place their hand inside your jacket pocket and feel the two elastic bands you placed there previously and will do one of two things. 1. They will say to you, “I feel something in there.” And will take their hand out. 2. Or they will say to you, “I feel something in there.” And will take out the rubber bands to show them to you. Whatever they do you should act surprised and say something to the effect of, “What is it?” or “What is that?” At which point you turn to your right, remove the gaffed/stacked deck from your back pocket (the duplicate card under one of the bands should be against your palm) with your right hand and place it immediately into your outside right jacket pocket. This is done in one motion, smoothly, directly and without haste. Just do it. Now depending on the current situation, you will do one of two things; 1. If the elastics were left in the pocket you will remove them and hand to the spectator saying, “Right, I forgot about these. Please wrap one this way...” 2. If the spectator has already taken them out, remove your hand and say, “Right, I forgot about those. Please wrap one this way...” Show the spectator in pantomime that you would like them to wrap the elastic vertically around the centre of the card case. Once they have done that say, “Now wrap the other elastic around the case like this...” Demonstrate again in pantomime how you would like them to wrap the elastic horizontally around the centre of the card case. This is to make sure that the elastics are wrapped in the same manner you wrapped the other gaffed/stacked deck. Take the deck and hold it high above your head in your right hand and say, “Are you ready for The World’s Fastest Card Trick?” Let the audience respond. “If you blink, you will miss it. Name your card out loud please!” Wait until the spectator has done that then bring the case down to your right side and directly into your right hand jacket pocket placing it

behind the gaffed/stacked deck, instantly pull the duplicate card free from the elastic band on the gaffed/stacked pack and pull it out of your pocket - display it proudly. “The 3 of Clubs!” Toss the card to the spectator or onto a nearby table and dive right back into your jacket pocket with your right hand and remove the gaffed/stacked pack wrapped in elastics saying, “And look the deck is still signed, sealed and...delivered!” It’s fun to take the deck out at the precise moment you say the word, “delivered.” (the expression ‘Signed, Sealed and Delivered’ is taken from the song of the same name made famous by Stevie Wonder) The End. Clean Up The World’s Greatest Card Trick is done and you now have a gaffed/stacked deck ready for another serious miracle (or miracles). The only ‘clean up’ I do is to take back the duplicate card holding in my left hand in dealing position and after unwrapping the elastic bands from the gaffed/stacked deck, I place the cased deck onto the duplicate card. Then I remove the deck from case leaving the duplicate card underneath and immediate place the card case into my empty left jacket pocket along with the duplicate card. Afterthoughts: This is really a dynamite effect that is ALL build up. The key is to get everyone’s undivided attention when you’re holding that deck high in the air, before you perform the revelation of the remembered card. Resist the temptation to remove the duplicate card with it’s back towards the audience and then ask the spectator their thought-of card. This is incredibly anti-climatic and kills the momentum of the revelation. Oh and about that deck ditch in the pocket you’re stressing over...don’t. Practice the move a hundred times in front of mirror to see how it looks and create the best cover you can using your right hand. Then do it another hundred times without the mirror. Get comfortable with it. Then go out and do it. You’ll be so glad you did. Enjoy!