A Stranger Hands You A Pen, And His Business Card. You’re Told To Write Your Pin Number On The Card, And Place It Back Into His Wallet

A stranger hands You a pen, and his business card. You’re told to write your PIN number on the card, and place it back into his wallet.

Would You do it?

ALSO BY SASHA CRESPI

How to Annihilate Your Stage Fright

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Sharing Magic A book about Passion, Compassion & Making Magic Badass again.

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BLACKPOOL EDITION Copyright © 2020 by Alessandro Crespi You’re welcome to illegally share this book on the internet with your troll friends, just tell them to read the whole book. It’s not that long. Also: You are NOT welcome to perform these effects on Youtube, Television or other digital media unless stated. History & credits found at the end of the book. Thank You.

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To Nonna, for making this (and me!) possible. I love You.

1928-2010 Sasha Crespi - 5

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Sharing Magic Wonder comes at the price of certainty. It doesn’t come from one particular way of seeing the world, but by fracturing the way we do, at present. Our perception of reality is limited and malleable1 . Magic- ie what we believe as impossible, reminds us there’s more to life than what we’ve led ourselves to believe, and this realisation helps expand our boxes of conception. As Francesco Dimitri says in his wonderful (!!) book That Sense of Wonder “We are the ones weaving our web of perception. Most of us are the spider weaving the web, and the fly trapped inside”. If our perception were planet Earth, the truth would be the size of the entire Universe, with its multitude of dimensions. 1

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Phrased colloquially, this is a book about blowing people’s minds through Magic, so that they literally have to expand their box of conception. Our ideal, is to do so with passion, compassion and finesse. * Magic is meant to be shared, not demonstrated. I think of it this way: magicians are the possessors of a great gift (Magic) that is only ‘activated’ through sharing. Magicians represent hope. They touch a deep-seated desire to reconnect with something bigger than any of us. Yet over the twentieth century, magicians have gone from sharing the impossible, to demonstrating magic tricks. From a contagious celebration of the unknown, to a shallow exposé of the ingenuity of humans.

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Too often, Magic is performed to an audience for the sake of validating the magician’s ego. * But why does any of this matter? It matters because what we do isn’t as important as how we do it; and how we do things is informed by why we do them. Presents gifted with an agenda turn into burdens. A simple dish cooked with care elevates it from nutritious to life-affirming2 .

WHY —> WHAT—> HOW The magic trick isn’t as important as the performance, and the quality of that performance is based on the philosophy behind it. Ultimately: are we here to make love, or to masturbate? This explains why mom’s lentils still taste better to me than Alain Passard’s. 2

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PRINCIPLE # 1

Share What You Want.

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TRICK I: The Minimalist Bill in Sharpie

PERFORMANCE:

A banknote is

b o r ro w e d a n d s i g n e d . I t disappears, and reappears inside the pen used to sign with.

DIFFERENCE:

There are other methods for getting a

signed a piece of paper inside of a pen. This design is the guerrilla version- it loads, switches and locks the bill inside of a casually inspectable Sharpie marker- and it does it all with You in under five seconds. It’s dirt cheap to assemble, instantly resets and they’re holding the pen as the banknote vanishes.

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NEEDED

Two Sharpies

A Scalpel or X-Acto Knife

Scotch or Cellotape

Matches or a Lighter

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CONSTRUCTION

STEP 1: Remove the Sharpie cap and let the ink dry. Heat the blade with a flame.

STEP 2: Gently press the heated blade through the middle of the Sharpie ‘head’; cutting all the way through. Discard the ink cartridge.

STEP 3: Scrape the blade on the inner wall of the opening You just made until smooth. This will create a smoother point of entry when loading.

STEP 4: Wrap a piece of tape around the opening. You want enough so there’s that the cap wouldn’t fall off when closed. Trim.

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FINISHING TOUCHES: Make identical marks on both pens (ex: barcode stickers in identical locations). Choose a dummy bill (any paper object). Fold it and place it inside the opening. Place the cap on the opposite end. HAND POSITION: Hold the gimmicked pen in your dominant hand, concealing the protruding portion with your fingers. If You’re performing surrounded, tilt the hand down towards the floor to cover weak angles. BODY POSITION: Place the gimmick in your back pocket, so the bill is sticking out. Place the unaltered pen in the same pocket. You’re setup.

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FINISHED GIMMICK

FRONT

EXPOSED

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THE FOLD I’ve tried dozens of ways to fold the bill, and this is the easiest and best. It works with all currencies (including plastic) and leaves the banknote folded in an ultra-tight packet.

STEP 1: Hold the banknote on the short end so the signed portion is towards You. STEP 2: Roll upwards with your thumb to make a tube. Flatten. STEP 3: Use your thumbnail to fold the folded tube in half. Crease hard. Done. 18 - Sharing Magic

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THE LOAD STARTING POSITION: Hold the folded banknote between index finger and thumb; gimmicked pen in the opposite hand. Cover the gimmicked portion with your thumb and fingers, as explained.

STEP 1: Push the pen upwards, separating the dummy banknote loose. Cover the remaining opening with Your index and middle finger.

STEP 2: Shift your body to the left so that the hand holding the Sharpie covers the one holding the bill. As your hands come together, push the tip of the signed bill into the opening. You only need to load a centimetre. 20 - Sharing Magic

STEP 3: In a continuous action, grab the dummy bill with your left fingers and separate. Pause, and hand someone the switched banknote.

STEP 4: By removing the cap, the banknote will come into contact with the palm of your hand and be pushed farther into the pen. This is automatic.

STEP 5: Place the cap around the protruding banknote and recap. Hand someone the pen.

Done.

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Scan the QR code to see the load in real time.

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As You can see, after just a little bit of practice, the load is fast and virtually invisible.If You’re nervous about speed- don’t be. You can create the needed misdirection by asking someone to find a lighter, or a simple question. The sequence is best broken up into two parts: the handing of the banknote, and recapping of the pen.

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THE REVELATION STEP 1: Bring the Sharpie up to eye level. Hold the cap between fingers and thumb of one hand, and the tube in fingers and thumb of the other.

STEP 2: Gently wiggle back and forth, until the barrel of the Sharpie opens and something can be seen inside. Separate the hands so the banknote is seen protruding.

This may take some practice. Struggling is the best subtlety- if You can’t seem to open the marker, it would have been really hard to sneak a bill inside ;)

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THE LOCKING MECHANISM This may be my favourite part. Because of the design of the gimmick (the tape around the opening3), it can lock into place; making the pen casually inspectable (no one will care to do soattention will be on the banknote). STEP 1: Wrap your index finger and thumb tightly around the nib of the Sharpie (that’s the little piece protruding from the cap). Then allow the participant to remove the banknote. STEP 2: Press downwards, pushing the nib down into the cap, locking it into position. Drop everything on the table. Test the tightness so it’s just right. Add/remove tape accordingly. 30 - Sharing Magic 3

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FINAL THOUGHTS I created this piece back in February 2017, and it’s been a life-saver. It’s a strong piece of improvised Magic that makes a wonderful gift once framed. The hardest part of the entire piece is creating (one’s own) compelling routine for it. As a result, I’m not providing a finished routine- just a barebones performance (p 12) so You know it works; and can structure your own4. You’re welcome to use Osho on YouTube or Television, just shoot me an email so we can help it (and You) shine in the best light. My email is [email protected] The best structures make it so they’re holding the pen/the bill is loaded before (it feels like) anything important has happened. 4

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PRINCIPLE # 2

Share Your Best With Others. If They Copy It, Create More & Better.

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Freedom to Do Anything A stranger hands You a pen, and his business card. You’re told to write your PIN number on the back of the card, and place it back into his wallet for “safe keeping”. Would you do it? * Let’s try that again. The same stranger keeps touching Your arm and ordering You around. To make things worse: he just stole your wallet, your watch and your keys. This was done without your prior awareness or consent. How would you feel? Sasha Crespi - 35

Under the right context, you’d be grateful for it! You’d applaud the stranger, and congratulate him for his ingenuity and finessed touch. I know this, because I’ve been that stranger, and have lived out those scenarios with thousands of people in twenty-something countries; yet I can only remember three individuals who wouldn’t give me their full PIN number5. All I had to do was frame them as demonstrations of magic/mindreading. * When we see an actor, a musician or a public speaker, we get the rules of the engagement: the performer performs, the audience silently appreciates, and (if the performer is any good) the audience politely applauds. This is needn’t be the case with a magician. A millionaire gave me the code to an old locker, and the remaining two gave me 3 out of 4 numbers of their PIN. 36 - Sharing Magic 5

Although some may have seen a magician on television, few will have experienced Magic first hand. In other words: although some audience members will think they know the “rules” to a magic performance, their expectations will be so unfounded that, once broken, they’ll be left like Alice in Wonderland: a disoriented visitor in an exciting new world. Which empowers us (the guide) with a tremendous amount of freedom. Freedom to set whatever rules we’d like. * Here’s some more examples. If someone told any previous generation that in the XXIst century, millions of humans would willingly let their sixteen year-old be taken to school by a different stranger each day, they ’d have called us irresponsible- and yet, Uber. Sasha Crespi - 37

If I told You that a porn star would become a role model to hundreds of millions of girls, one of the richest women on planet Earth and a public figure so significant she’d have direct influence on the President of the United States, You’d have call me a bullshit artist- and yet, Kim Kardashian. All this to show that under the right context, anything becomes acceptable. *

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PRINCIPLE # 3

Don’t Play by the Rules. Set Them.

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TRICK II: Derren’s Favourite PERFORMANCE:

(THIS IS ALL HANDS OFF) A card is

thought of and fairly shuffled into the deck. She deals the cards one by one on the table as she looks the magician in the eyes. After some wine time, he slams his hand loudly on the table, and intuits the card she’s thinking of. The last card dealt to is turned over- it is the thought of card.

DIFFERENCE:

This is variation on Derren Brown’s

Extreme Mental Effort6, itself a variation of Think Stop. I call it Derren’s Favourite because it’s my favourite card trick of Derren’s. His version looks absolutely realistic, but required a one-way force deck. This looks exactly the same, but doesn’t. It took me years to streamline the method to where it is: as simple as possible, but no simpler. 6

Found in his excellent DVDs The Devil’s PictureBook.

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NEEDED

A Deck of Cards

A Pen or Sharpie

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STEP 1: Choose the card You’d like to force. I chose the archetypal participant I wanted to share this piece with, and matched person to card. The Queen of Hearts. Make a small but recognisable mark on the back of the card (emphasised).

STEP 2: Make another small mark on the long edge of the card, near the rounded corner. Turn the card 180 degrees and repeat7.

STEP 3: Hold the card with thumbs on the face and fingers on the back. Gently bow the card by applying downwards pressure with your thumbs; pulling outwards in an X shape as You do so. This is a breather crimp. If You don’t have a pen, this part can be improvised by applying a little moisture/saliva to the corner of the card. Eww, gross- but it works. 7

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SETUP Place the card anywhere into the deck. Use as normal.

PERFORMANCE Have the cards shuffled and placed in front of You. Glance the edge of the deck to find your mark, and mentally note the rough location of your gaff (1). Ask the participant to reach over, and cut “that” number of cards off the top. Because of the crimp, they’ll cut to the gaff (2). Glance the mark, then turn your back and ask them to peek the card they’ve cut to, keeping it a secret from anyone else8. Notice they never take the card out. From here, I refer to this as a “thought of ” card, that exists only in their mind. And so it becomes, because that’s how they remember it. 44 - Sharing Magic 8

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At this point, I ask the person if they like the card or would prefer to change it. Because I match person to card, they won’t and this makes for a great subtlety. I then tell them to focus on it and thoroughly shuffle the deck. I again ask them if it’s safe to turn around (this emphasises the secretive tone I’m

trying to set), and only once given

permission do I do so. Pause. I find no matter where in the world I’m at, humans are afraid to shuffle playing cards, and will try to get them out of their hands as soon as possible. This means that most of the time, the cards will be squared on the table ready for me to glance. If they aren’t, I’ll take a deep breath and ask them to hold hands with me. The result is the same: they place the cards down, and I get my peek. Note the position (ex: ≈ 30 cards down). 46 - Sharing Magic

The choice is now stylistic. You can either look the person in the eye, pick up the cards and begin dealing; or leave the cards on the table and have the participant deal them to You. What I like to do is hold hands with the person in front of me, and ask a third person to slowly drop cards into the circle made by our embrace. This way, I can look at the faces of the cards as they fall and not break eye contact. The choice is yours. At this point, it’s all about connecting, withholding downward glances and stopping at the mark. About glancing: I try to be disinterested in the cards throughout, and will only glance when they get near the position I gues-stimated (≈ halfway). In my experience, the best glance is a pause or relaxation- merited and muchappreciated due to the intensity of the piece. Sasha Crespi - 47

THE LIGHT FORCE My favourite way to share Derren’s Favourite is using Max Holden’s Cross Cut force, though I perform… differently. tips. What’s wonderful with my handling is there’s no time-delay, the card really comes out of the middle of the deck, and the audience confirms the freeness of choice before the selection is shown. It’s also easy- very easy.

STARTING POSITION: Have the participant in front of You. Start with the force card on top of the deck- cards closest to You. STEP 1: Ask the participant to reach over and cut some cards towards herself; but take her time to do so to make a conscious decision.

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STEP 2: Use your index to point to the cut-off packet (force card on top) and ask her if she’s happy with where she cut to. If not, let her try again. Pick up the packet closest to You in a modified Biddle grip, with middle finger extended beyond the short edge. STEP 3: Bring the biddle-held packet forwards, so the middle finger makes contact with the top card of the tabled packet (the force) and pushes it forward. Let the packet go and ask her to remember “it”. She’ll go for the out card sticking out of the middle ;)

(Pictures from participant’s POV)

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IMPROMPTU HANDLING I sometimes find myself in situations where I’m asked to “perform” with a borrowed deck. Here’s what I do. First: peek the edge of the deckoften one or more cards will be edge marked from moisture or use. If so, proceed as taught. If not: have the deck shuffled and a card freely selected (or force the top card). Up to this point, the tone of the piece should be casual, though your head should be turned away. Apply strong pressure as You take the card back. The result is an impromptu crimp. Place the card back into the pack, and have the cards shuffled. The crimp will act similarly to the edge marks; though You’ll have to pay closer attention as the cards are dealt. Proceed as taught9. I often fish for the card, and often get close but not perfect. This makes the finale (stopping at the card) more impressive. 9

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FINAL THOUGHTS Let’s not confuse simplicity of handling for simplicity of effect. This has the potential to be a strong piece of hands-off mental magic, using a shuffled deck. It’s one of my favourites. Anyone familiar with Derren’s effect Lift10 will see a natural way to have the participant stop at the card. I leave this up to You. I sometimes have a third participant attempt to divine the thought of card, with (seemingly) no help from me. In actuality, I’m using a variety of psychological forces to get them as close to the Seven of Hearts (my force card in such occasions) as possible. It appears I’m detached from the performance, which gives me ample time to spot the mark focus on being present. 10

Again, found in The International Lecture and 1st ed Pure Effect.

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PRINCIPLE # 4

Make Your Work as Simple as Possible, So You Can Focus on Being Present.

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ON BEING SEXY I can be insecure. There, I said it. I used to be so insecure, in fact, that between the ages of seventeen and twenty one I wrote, researched and compiled three notebooks of information on how to be more charming and charismatic. The content ranged from the neuroscience of obsession to the importance of living by (clearly written out) values. In hindsight, I consider those notebooks highly important to my (ongoing) evolution towards manhood, and to resolving some childhood insecurities they helped unearth- but that’s not the point. The point is this- I may just have found The Secret. The secret to magnetic charm and charisma. Sasha Crespi - 57

To me, the difference between charm and charisma lies in their interaction with the other: the charmer seduces the individual, the charismatic the masses. The charmer is interested (in Life/the person in front of them), the charismatic is interesting. The charismatic’s force lies in the richness of his/her inner world, the charmer’s magnetism in their willingness to discover others’. Charismatic performers are often wonderful communicators, charming

performers wonderful

listeners. Each of us is a bit of both. Famous charmers include Bill Clinton, Audrey Hepburn, Derren Brown (offstage), and Giacomo Casanova. Famous charismatics include John F. Kennedy, Derren Brown (onstage), Betty Dobson and Steve Valentine.

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CHARISMA = PRESENCE + AUTHENTICITY

CHARM = PRESENCE + CURIOSITY

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Let’s unpack that a bit. I used to believe that the moment people thought they understood me, would be the moment they’d lose interest. In my judgment, there’s no better way to add depth to your character on stage as letting the human being slip through. After all: there’s something so intriguing about knowing we don’t have the full picture, right? While that may be true on stage, I now know good people rather be around someone genuine and authentic, than someone who knows some really cool magic tricks. Both make a winning combination. To be authentic means to be unapologetically oneself, regardless of environment. To have done the work, and let go of what other people think.

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When was the last time someone actually listened to You? Humans, especially XXIst century humans, are longing to be listened to. As a result, they’re often terrible at listening and great at talking (about themselves). It’s rare to meet someone that’s totally immersed in the moment, willing to listen to others- which makes those that are wonderful to be around. To be present is to live and love the moment. It’s what allows one to be outward focused, undisturbed by the chatter continually going on within. One cultivates presence by… I don’t know! It’s something one works at every moment of every day, in their own way(s). What works for me may not work for You11 !

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See Further Reading section for what’s working for me.

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* Being curious means wanting to know (and celebrate) what’s in front of You. To be interested in the other, rather than interested in appearing interesting. This one took me the longest, because the only way to touch is to be touched. And as Magicians, if we’re not moving our audience, we’re failing to create the best experience.

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PRINCIPLE # 5

Don’t Perform. Be, & Share from the Overflow.

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TRICK III: The Unexpected Power of Love PERFORMANCE:

A lighter is

borrowed and lit. You slowly pass each finger through the flame, until a ball of fire suddenly appears around your thumb, which You hastily extinguish into your *nonalcoholic* drink. You kiss the blister forming in your flesh. Slowly, it morphs into a heart shape; then eerily fades away leaving your thumb unharmed and your audience delighted. BACKGROUND:

This piece came about as an exercise

in minimalism. I wanted to create the simplest piece of Magic; maintaining meaning, originality and incredibly strong images.

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NEEDED

A Thumb or Finger Tip

A Sponge ball

The Blister Gimmick (provided)

Lighter Fluid

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STEP 1: Shove the sponge ball into the thumb tip and souse the inside of with lighter fluid12.

STEP 2: Attach the blister gimmick (included) on your keychain.

STEP 3: Place the prepared tip into your trouser pocket (I like the ticket pocket) opening side up.

A single dosage of lighter fluid will serve 4-6 performances, and/or three or more hours without evaporating. 12

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NOTE: If You’d like to set to travel with the gimmick set up and not have the fluid evaporate, this setup will easily last the entire day. Place a second thumb tip into Your gimmick (gimmick lowermost) so that it’s airtight. Remove prior to performance.

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PERFORMANCE (This is a hard piece to describe as it should look /feel different every time You perform it. My advice is to follow your impulse whilst sharing.) Without bringing attention to them, establish your hands are clean and empty. Go through your pockets in search for a lighter, using this time to get an impression of the heart onto your index finger or thumb. Have the lighter struck alight. Slowly pass your opposite (left) hand through the flame as You place your soon-to-be blistered finger into the ticket pocket, ready to press down into the thumb tip. We want this position to become the new normal, so don’t move and let them take a mental snapshot. Sasha Crespi - 69

Reverse the positions of the hands, placing your left hand into its pocket, and your “gimmicked” hand near the flame, with the soaked finger farthest from the flame. Slowly pass your hand through the fire to set it ablaze. This should be unexpected, so your movements should now get faster. Frantically move the finger around and extinguish it by blowing hard (don’t exceed 3-5 seconds or it will begin to hurt). Let the tension drain from your face, as You bring your blistered finger to your lips to kiss it cool. Look at the blister and react. From here, it’s a simple matter to show your finger to the audience, and let them register the transformation that’s taking place. Time will do the rest. 70 - Sharing Magic

PRINCIPLE # 6

El Amor Cura Todo.

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BONUS

TRICK IV: Outkast PERFORMANCE:

At dinner,

You borrow a glass of red wine, and a napkin. You pour some wine onto your outstretched open hand, and blow. Suddenly, the wine disappears and the audience is showered in a confetti of rose petals.

BACKGROUND:

I’ve had this image in my mind since

summer of 2019, when my father and I visited Umbria. The drama, simplicity and poetic nature of Outkast has turned it into a favourite. My audiences and I love this piece. 72 - Sharing Magic

NEEDED

A Red or White Rose

A Glass of Red or White Wine

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PREPARATION

STEP 1: Separate the petals from the stem. Place ten or so petals one inside the other, piling from big to small.

STEP 2: Fold the packet in half, and place it in your trouser or jacket pocket (whichever side You’d hold a glass of wine in).

A single rose holds enough petals to create 3 or 4 such packets, so I like to place several on my person at once, in different pockets of the same side. This provides flexibility of impulse when reaching for the load.

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PERFORMANCE Borrow a napkin and a glass of wine. Their search for the napkin should give You more than enough time to casually place your hands into your pockets, and palm the folded petals. Roll up your sleeves, using index finger and thumbs of each hand. Use the same fingers to place the napkin on the floor in front of You13, and receive the glass of wine (in index finger and thumb of your palming hand), holding it from the stem. Extend your opposite hand so it’s palm up, a foot below the one holding the glass. Pause. Slowly pour wine into the open palm.

I like to kneel at this point, to create importance and let the audience gather in a circle. 13

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You are now going to reverse the spatial position of the hands, by placing the glass on the floor and lifting the wine-tinted hand towards the sky, maintaining attention on the latter. Slowly bring your hands together into prayer position, keeping the rose petals concealed until contact. Gently rub the palms together, dislodging the rose petals from their packet-formation and spreading them between your cupped dingers. Lift your hands in front of your face and blow hard into the palms, confetti-ying the rose petals onto the dinner table & audience. They’ll thank You for it. Sasha Crespi - 77

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FINAL THOUGHTS

This is my favourite piece in the book; because it’s clear, surprising and totally poetic. Little need be said. Little should be said.

Try it out- I think You’ll love it.

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PRINCIPLE # 7

Let Magic Speak for Itself.

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To my Family, for their love and acceptance. To my friends, for their weirdness. To Clément and JC, for their guidance. To Chiara, for the pictures and spooning. To Anderson .Paak, for the Music. And to Benjamin Franklin, for being a badass.

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CONCLUSION THANK YOU FOR READING. I hope this work, and the Magic contained within, becomes one of your favourites. Let it mark a moment in time when I was slowly finding my artistic voice, and a home. Ha! If You like the book, there’s plenty more to share. I’m organising a lecture tour and would love to share Magic at your magic local club. Get in touch and we’ll make it happen. If You didn’tsimply know these were the thoughts of a fan of Magic, trying to give back to the art and community he loves. Apply what You like and disregard the rest. In Love, Sasha. PORTUGAL // FEBRUARY 2020 Sasha Crespi - 85

QUESTIONS, COMMENTS & FEEDBACK SHOULD BE DIRECTED TO [email protected]

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FURTHER READING (Books/Resources I love. Not necessarily Magic)

That Sense of Wonder by Francesco Dimitri The Laws of Human Nature by Robert Greene Letters from a Stoic by Seneca Methods of Persuasion by Nick Kolenda Riveted by Jim Davies The Spell of the Sensuous by David Abram Anything You Want by Derek Sivers Outwitting the Devil by Napoleon Hill The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz Abundance by Peter Diamandis Malibu by Anderson .Paak Acoustic Soul Vol 1 by India.Arie The Language of My World by Macklemore The Natural Lifestyles (YouTube) Sasha Crespi - 87

CREDITS & HISTORY OSHO: I created Osho back in February of 2017, after watching the trailer for Sharp Money by Ben Williams (first published in 2008, re-released by Ellusionist). Over the past decade, there have been several versions of this plot, including Sharp Money, B.L.I.S.S., C.I.S, Bill to Marker and more. None of them, to my mind, are as practical or easy to use. Any object to impossible location owes a great deal to Bruno Henning and his Card to Canister; though Osho is closer to a Bill Tube than a card to impossible location. The bill tube appears on page 781 of the 1938 edition of Greater Magic; though Walter Gibson is commonly accredited as its manufacturer. 88 - Sharing Magic

DERREN’S FAVOURITE: the piece in question is Extreme Mental Effort by Derren Brown, found on DVD 2 of The Devil’s PictureBook (originally cassette tape, re-published by Vanishing Inc in 2018 in DVD form). The breather crimp was invented by Dai Vernon and can be found in The Vernon Chronicles Vol 1, page 96. The Cross Cut Force (or Criss Cross Force) was created by Max Holden and first published in Issue 151 of the Phoenix, page 606 of the 151-200 edition. Also published in Bagshawe's The Magical Monthly Vol. 2 No. 18, July 1925. The earliest Think Stop I could find is 1934 in SH-H-H--! It's A Secret by Theodore Annemann, though he published it again in the Encyclopedia of Card Tricks in 1937. Sasha Crespi - 89

UNEXPECTED POWER OF LOVE: I came up with the idea of the disappearing heart blister with the kiss; yet felt it wasn’t enough. It wasn’t until I showed Mario the Maker Magician and his wife Jess that I came up with the missing ingredient- the dramatic, totally unexpected ball of fire. I first learned the thumb on fire method from Kieron Johnson, though I understand it predates him. The Blister effect was first created by Jack Kent Tillar in the early 1970’s, and can be found in his Blister Book. I first was introduced to the plot through Tim Trono’s Branded, which was the first in-the-open impression device on the market. The design of the impression gimmick (provided) is similar to one marketed by James Anthony, called Blistering. It has been provided with permission from Jack, Tim and James. 90 - Sharing Magic

I learned the thumb within a thumb idea from Taiwanese Magician G in his Penguin Lecture, though it’s for an entirely different use/context. 1972 – Blister Effect by Jack Tillar 1986 –Stigma by Eric Mason (lecture notes) 1986- SOREcery by Thomas Alan Waters 1989 Michael Weber publishes Thinkerprint 2002 Pyro Perception by Brent Walske 2006 Third Degree Burn by Jason Palter 2008 Branded by Tim Trono 2019 Blistering by James Anthony 2020 Method 01 by Calen Morelli (Thank You Tim Trono for list) Sasha Crespi - 91

OUTKAST: Naples inspired this piece. It’s a warm city, with passion, character & a history rich in alchemy It’s a metropolis near and dear to my heart- I was born in Salerno- and a major source of inspiration for the show I’m currently writing, and to which You are invited. The audience is served several glasses of Italian red. Regarding methodology, I was inspired by only one piece: Zamiel’s Rose (found in Derren Brown’s book Pure Effect and The Devil’s PictureBook). The construction of movements owes thanks to my friend Jack LeNoir; who’s goldfish production shares similarities. Finally, by my future audiences, who inspired this piece of Magic, which I deem beautiful.

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My name is Alessandro “Sasha” Crespi and I’m a Persian-Italian Author, Magician and Performance Consultant. I Love Magic, and am passionate about friends, great food, passion & meditation; amongst others. Thank You for reading.

www.sashalive.com [email protected] 94 - Sharing Magic

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