Max Maven - Memorizing The Telephone Book.pdf

Memorising the Telephone Book. Effect: Spectators cut a shuffled pack, and the first four cards below the cut are handed to four other spectators. The four ranks of the cards are written down to represent a threedigit number. The telephone directory is fetched by a spectator, and the page denoted by the three-digit number is turned to. The entry denoted by the odd number is found, and the magician, from memory. reads out the name, address and telephone number of the entry thus chosen. Required: A prepared pack, a telephone directory, pencil and paper. Skills: False shuffle, double-turnover force (see card force booklet), and memorising one entry from a telephone directory. Method: • Tell the audience that you are going to perform a prodigious feat of memory. Tell them that these days, so many people have forgotten the knack of remembering telephone numbers, because they just enter them into their telephones’ memories. Explain that you have been working on developing your memory and will prove the possibilities. • Produce a pack of cards, which is prepared, to the extent that you know the top four cards. For example, let us say that they are the two of Diamonds, Ace of Clubs, eight of Hearts, and nine of Spades. • Say something like ‘I’ll give the cards a good shuffle.’ Execute a few false shuffles, making certain that you keep

the top four cards intact at the top. Now you must force these four cards on to members of the audience. For this, use the double turnover force, which you can find in the ‘card forces’ booklet. • When two volunteers have each cut and turned over part of the pack, and you get down to the first face-down card, you ask one of your audience, let’s say Daniel, to take the card and look after it for you. As you know, it is the two of diamonds. Then, ask Hermione to take the next card, which of course is the Ace of Clubs. Tell Hermione to hold on to it for a minute, and ask Megan to take the next card. Megan needs to look after the eight of Hearts, and you can now turn to Tom. Ask him to take the next card, which will be the nine of Spades. • Now take the pencil and paper, and say ‘We’ve got four cards taken completely at random from a well-shuffled pack. Now Daniel, what’s yours?’ Daniel tells you, and you say ‘A two. I’ll write down two.’ You ask Hermione and Megan in turn and add their numbers in the same way, saying ‘Now we’ve got 218.’ (An Ace counts as one, of course.) ‘So let’s take 218 as a page number. Now what is your card, Tom?’ Tom says nine of Spades. You say ‘Right. We’ll take that as the ninth entry on the page. So we have page 218, entry 9, both numbers which you agree I couldn’t possibly have predicted. Now Emily, would you go over there and fetch that telephone directory over there, please? Thank you. Now if you open it at page 218 and look down to the ninth entry on that page, I will attempt to tell you the telephone number.’ • Make a great show of concentrating hard, fingers pressed against temples and all the rest. Then, you slowly -with concentration pauses - reel off the name, address and number which you memorised from page 218, entry 9.

• Now you can wallow in your audiences amazement, and let the cards, directory, and pen and paper be handled freely and examined.