Al Mann - The H Factor

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An Al Mann Exclusive

FOREWORD It is a naive magioian or mentalist who leaves home without his ,flip-over wallet. ' When 'Eel Mellon first saw Kimber's Bill Fooled, he called it "The Perfect Utility Pieoe of 1001 Uses." But most important ,Ed sai'd that the wallet did not look like a gimmick. Here is an item that is normally oarried by everyone, yet with the gimmioked.wallet the magioian oan perform miracles. The magician t s change bag and card box look like gimmioks. Yet the flip-over wallet oan do prac ... tioally everything that can be done with the change bag and the oard box You wish to exchange a handtul of billets? or do the out and restored ribbon? th. wallet oan do itt Harry Lorayne's NInstant Money" that appeared in his book "Best of Bill... FooledN is the ultimate in magic with bills. There appears to be no limit to the possibilities with the flip-over wallet. Many vol~s the sise of this one oan be written without exhausting the possibilities. " This treatise offers you some of the best, (for the mentalist), so enjoy it • . 0

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!HE ItH" FACTOR

AN AL MANN EKCLUSIVE

91,,.,6,., ~: made The original Himber wallets were luxuriously of fine calf leather and inlined with silk.

The fine craftsmanship in these wallets has never been duplicatedt The original wallets are no longer available and are today a collector's items. Richard Himber put out several versions, Billfooled, Improved Billfooled, Super Billfooled, The Trickarette Case and the Identification wallet. The original flip-over Billfooled, was very light in weight measuring j i by 7 inches and only 1/4 inch thick when closed. It had a flap at the top which was eliminated in the Super Billfooled. This author's Billfooled has a strip of magnetic tape cemented to the back for doing "The Flight of the Psycards" from the Third Ecstasy.

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This. excellent flip-over wallet is available today from Flying Carpet Magic, Repro 71, 48 Emu Road, S.W. 8, London, England. This wallet!s larger and bulkier than the Himber Wallets,buteXQallent for a nUmber of effects not possible with other wallets. It measures 4 by 7i inches and is 9/16 inch thick when closed. Its larger size accomodates a letter size envelope. It has a large glassine window, :3 by )i in., for photos and picture cards and tricks therewith. It is perfect for doing the Instant Mindreading effect.

-,., fi}0IIIft,,(,.A.1.~'{ tl/l)a({ct': This amazing wallet which has a zippered pocket makes possible many mystifying effects that cannot be done with other wallets. Anything placed into the fold of the wallet ends up inside the Zippered pocket and visa versa, anything placed inside the zippered pocket ends up out side so that a sUbstitution appears most convincing.

"t-C:AMif"e .Every magician who owns a flip-over wallet will in time develope a ,technique in handling that will become second nature to him. Most flip-over wallets available today, look exactly alike from both sides, front and back, and from both ends, top and bottom. So in order to avoid fumbling during the presentation of an effect, the magician must secretly mark the wallet! A tiny scratch or ink spot on the top edge of one side, to be oonsidered the front side, is recommended. A flip-over wallet has two compartments. designated as compartment ItA"' and ItB."

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-H" FACTOR t'.&::HNIQUEI •••••••

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If you hold the wallet flat in the palm of your left hand with the front side -facing you. compartment "A" should be the exposed compartment when the wallet is opened from left to right. Compartment "B" will show when the wallet is opened from right to left. Compartment "An is what you show to the audience at the beginning of the presentation. Compartment "B" is what shows after the "switch" is made at the cUlmination of the effect. THE TURN-OVERMOVE. Let us assume that you have a wallet like Himber's Super BIllfooled. that looks the same (to the audience) from both sides. In presenting an effect with this wallet. you must always 0ten the wallet In the same fashion. For examplea Always open t e wallet from eft to right. In order to do that, you must make the Turn-over move. secretly. of course, after the "A" compartment is shown. In Fig.l,let the tiny mark at the top designate the top front of the wallet. The magician has already Shown compartment "An to the audience and closed the ~ wallet. He then, during his patter, lifts the wallet ....,,;.J up for all to see. The front of the wallet faces the magician. He then does a half tutn, so that the front is now facing the audience. This is done to show that all is in order. However when the magician lowere the wallet, the back of it is now facing him as he places it on the palm of his left hand. NOW if the wallet is again opened from left to right, as before. compartment "B" will now show, due to the .Pi... 1 turn over movel Miracles followl P Another good handling iSI with the wallet flat on your left palm, front-side up, pick it up by placing the right thumb under it and the right fingertips over it and place its back side against your right temple, in the pretence of getting 'vibs.' Then lower the wallet and place it again in your left palm back-side up_ The turn-over move has been made and the wallet is ready to show the "B" side by opening it from left to rightl Some magicians favor placing the wallet across their left palm and then either flipping it forward towards the audience or backwards towards the performer. depending on w~at compartment is needed. AT ALL TIMES the Mentalist must avoid fast movements of the hands or body while.handling the flIp-over wallets. That will only throw suspicion on the act. Slow and smooth direct movements are the best. A most natural turn-over move is to simply give the wallet to someone in the audience to hold. You know the secret mark on the front of it so when you retrieve it you simply open the other side. You must caution the person not to open the wallet.

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4 THE "H" FACTOR

TECHNIQUE ••••••.•

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AN AL MANN EXCLUSIVE "

Always place all things into your wallet in the same fashion. For example. Bills., Place bills face -up. That way you will never have a bill show face down when it should be face up. This refers to either side of the wallet. ' Cards I Unless otherwise necessary, always place playing cards face down. That way the audience will rec,eive a surprise when the card is turned face-up AND you will never end up with a card face-up that should have been face down. - ENVELOPES I Always place envelopes, flapside up. They look more impressive that way arid look like envelopes. Buisness cards are always placed address-side up. When using the Bombshell wallet, always keep both zippers sippered-up. That way you will not end up with an open zipper that you have just closed. Always close the zipper after removing its contents. ~CUSES. For bringing your wallet out. Take out your wallet, open it and give your assistant spectator your business card and while the wallet is out you might as well, use it as a tray, etc.

PACTICE, With your wallet putting envelopes and nipping it to see how things look. With ,the Bombshell wallet, practice , putting envelopes or, cards into the zipper compartment and then flip it to see how the cards look after the flip. They should , look, the same • Practice swi t.ching or exchanging sealed envelopes until you know excatly what will take place. MORE TIPS, Every flip-over wallet has a pocket that leads into both compartments. The ideal gimmick for this pocket is to glue two one dollar bills together faces-out. When this bill is placed into the pocket it will look the same from both sides. Another excellent gimmick for this are the double face cards that show the same card on both sides. These are easy to get. Place one of these cards crosswise into the pocket with the number and suit showing, say the 9 of clubs. Now both compartments show the same card and of course look identical. You can tell your audience that the card is your lucky card. You can make a double face card by glueing two cards together. NOTE. In the following effects, the Turn-over move is called 'flipping. ' More techniqUe is given in the effects.

.5 AN AL IIIANN _p.x.tJSlVE . '. ,the' ~a te 1950' s. Rich8.l:'d Hiplber,gl~lIlori~ed the roJ..:~tt

_giclan and mentalist bY.irttr0411cipghis l\lxuriant\#lb_ .....,.... t ..hich he called ~J111tooled. ft, ", :\ ~", UJ"""""I!i'.n H1mber had been toying w1 th'plastic modele of these .:avera1 years, he didnptinve;n.t the. prinicp1e. ' wallet has been a _giciap '$" PrQP 'since the before that. It is a sub1l. .~lon of the blocks which have been with us tor centuries are' sold asnoveltles and children's toys. ~~ .._' clan Richard F. McKinney of Mexico, Mo. wri ting in the f·.J~nlmt Vol. 24, No. 8 ,for October , 92.5, states that when he was a ohild magi 0 ian , he OWl1$d '~ •.rufma,gi,c prop, the "Old,"" October, 111& 'bUltotcl t1i:'i"ck.· '.," .. the 'article is reproduced THB' aPIBI'l' IIB88AGJC in Pig. )., ., Rfd&arcl ..,~ IIcKlDDW, )11.1:1. . 110. " .' That statement alone puts; . Iti._ ' . . .... .... fOr IOIIle time :theflip-over ,.all;;et~ck' ,in: 'RN._ the 1890'sl . :. .Ojleof Himber' s or:1g1~ Billto.l.)led.. wall,taj di"t\o·t." .'

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:ew~:n;;lrtO~; ~;a~c.rJ~e. :fiap~hat was held inplac.' pencil, (see the Ed

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ad) • When the magician rolled the pencil to the left .1treleaeed·the loose' flap and then was held' down by the . .right thumb expos1ng:'bwo new ·sid.•• of the wallet. The walle1i w1. ththe flap on top (l,lke,~ envelope) "as-called "lmprovedBillfooled, 1'I$ee the ad in Fig • .5.

The flap was. next el,imi,,:,na.ted and "Super Bil1fooled" ':.··«:'1g. 6 ) became popular. Himb8l'.next released his Trick-A-Rette Case wlU.chw. a flip·· ··A.,;rA... · . wa1l,et with a pocket' for exchanging , ·'t. !h1$ item not become too popular. Who smokes '> '. . Al Ko;ran Wallet· put out by Flying" '. anet- :the _ ;iIJO'.J>1ShElJ.J. wallet put out by Roy Roth came' ," "late 1970"s. ',Man;y. 'fine wallets have been ~debY-'~~~1J ~(t~lI.e 'prices ;'.fl.~gllif up to $100 each. A pr6:f'essionallDen'Cdl.at; DQ.uld not ·· ... _,eo.". . . in paying top money for fine quall'tJ props.

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