Homing Card
© Copyright 2001 - 2006. All rights reserved. eManuscript
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Homing Card The entertaining “Five Card” trick.
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Homing Card
BACKGROUND/CREDITS Robert Houdin rst suggested that, “a magician is merely an actor playing the part of a magician.” If this is true, then it can also be said, no one has ever played this role better than the late, great Dutch magician Fred Kaps. Homing Card was one of Kaps’ signature effects and a trick that seemed tailor made to showcase his natural acting abilities. In the
end, it isso. theAnd presentation which isroutine all important. The to actual are less so, the following owes much bothmechanics Fred Kaps and his friend, the wonderful British magician Trevor Lewis. The presentation retains the spirit and general patter of the Kaps’ routine, while the underlying method offers you another means to the same end. We hope you enjoy learning and performing it. THE EFFECT The performer humbly explains he has “always envied magicians who can manipulate 52 cards,” and so he’s been practicing and is “already up to ve cards!” He shows these – four of the cards are spot cards and the fth is a Queen of the opposite color. The performer discards the court card, only to have it reappear in the packet. As the routine progresses, the performer becomes increasingly perplexed by his inability to discard the Queen. This is repeated until the performer is left with a single card, which changes from a spot card into the elusive Queen a moment later. THE MOVES Our handling is accomplished using just two moves. The rst move is a simple spread of the cards, which is used to conceal the top card of the packet. Although not a true Ascanio Spread, the technique is closely related to it and quite easy to do. The second move is an easy transposition of two cards. Both are explained in detail. THE CARDS You’ll require six cards – four high value red or black spot cards (the actual values are irrelevant) and duplicate Queens of the opposite color.None of the cards aregaffed. You’ll note, in the photo-illustrations that follow, we use two QS with four red spot cards.
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Homing Card
PERFORMANCE Patter shown in italics.
First card contacts pad at base of left forenger.
Begin with the two Queens on top followed by the four red spot cards. Your right hand holds the face down packet in a Biddle Grip as shown in Figure 1. The right hand moves over the palm up left hand and uses the pad at the base of the forenger to engage the rst card. The right hand now draws the packet to the right until the forenger touches and engages the second card. See Figure 2. Continue sliding the cards in this manner using the second nger to engage the third card and the third nger to engage the fourth. The right hand continues to the right holding the two Queens squared up as one. Figure 3 shows your view of the cards and Figure 4 shows an exposed view from underneath. Hold up the fan of cards and show the faces to the audience.
Figure 1
Figure 2
“I’ve always envied magicians who could manipulate fty two cards, so I’ve been practicing. I’m already up to ve cards. So tonight, I’d like to show you my famous ve red card trick or just my red ve card trick. It’s the same trick no matter how you look at it.” Wait for someone to point out that one of the cards is black. Look surprised and slowly turn the fan of cards toward yourself, as though you are checking. Close the fan and hold the packet in your left hand dealer’s grip. Take the top card and show its face to the audience. See Figure 5. Make a gesture with it, such as tapping it against your hand or face. But don’t overplay it. You just want to make sure the fact that you are holding the Queen sinks in. Drop the card into your right coat pocket or on a side table.
Figu3re
Figu4re
Figu5re
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Homing Card
“Ladies and gentlemen, I regret that tonight, due to unforeseen circumstances you are going to see the FOUR RED CARD trick. Who knows this may be a better one, because it’s quicker.” You are now going to spread the ve cards to show only four. The spread is almost the same as the one just learned, except you spread the rst card with your left forenger, the second card withnger. your left second nger, andhand the third card with your left third Once again, the right continues moving to the right with the top two cards squared up so they appear to be a single card. Figure 6 shows an exposed view of the cards after the spread. Hold up the fan of four cards with the faces to the audience. Note, only red spot cards are showing (the Queen on top is concealed).
Figure 6
“Yes, four red cards and one hand. A hand that can make even the simplest moves look difcult.”
Figure 7
Split the cards – taking a pair into each hand. See Figure 7 above. “Now then, the idea behind this trick is to make these two red cards y over from my right hand and land in between these two red cards in my left hand. Of course, the cards don’t have to be in this order. They could be in any order.”
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Homing Card
Figure 9
Figure 8
Suiting your actions to your words, turn the cards face down and place the two cards in your right hand between the two in your left. This will place a red spot card on top of the Queen. Spread the cards again, this time one of the red spot cards is concealed. Figure 8 shows an exposed view after the cards are spread. Take a pair of cards into each hand and hold them up to the audience, as shown in Figure 9. “You see, they could be in this order...it makes absolutely no difference to the trick. What?” As you are looking at the order of the cards, suddenly you catch a glimpse of the Queen. Turn the cards face down and place the cards in your right hand on top of the cards in your left. The packet is held in the dealer’s grip. Pick up the top card, apparently the Queen, and look at it momentarily – shaking your head as if you can’t gure out what keeps going Figure 10 wrong – before placing it in your right coat pocket or on top of the other tabled card. Of course, remember to keep the back of this card to the audience at all times. See Figure 10. “Mistakes will happen, but why do I have to give them so much help?” Spread the rst three cards – making a three card spread showing all red cards. The Queen, which is on top, remains concealed. Figure 11 shows an exposed view after the spread. Hold up the fan of three red cards to the audience.
Figure 11
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Homing Card
“I’m sure you’ve all heard of the three card trick. Well, tonight you are going to see yet another version done with three red cards.” Take the red card on the left into your right hand – retaining the two (actually three) in your right. See Figure 12. Turn the cards face down and place the single card in your left hand on top of the two in your right. Spread the cards again and
Figure 12
take double (now Queen showing into rightthe hand). Pointcard to the redwith cardthe at the right of the fan – your now the Queen. Take the double card in your right hand. “The idea of the trick is to take this red card.” “This red card...” Notice that it’s the Queen. “This red card...oh no!” Drop the double card face down on top of the cards in your left hand. Look in the direction of where you have discarded the other Queens. Shrug and take the top card, face to you, look at it and then place it with the others. “My mother was good at making mistakes, but then you’ve probably guessed that by now.” Spread the rst two cards and show two red spot cards – take the double into your right hand and the single in your left. “A trick with two red cards.” Look at the cards and beam with delight when you discover both are indeed red. See Figure 13. “Just two red cards. Now the trick is to make these two red cards change places. Look this is the easy way.”
Figure 13
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Homing Card
Turn the cards face down and place the card in your left on top of the double in your right. Spread the two cards – taking the single in your left and the double in your right. The queen is now showing again. See Figure 14. “And this is the hard way. Oh no, what happened?”
Figure 14
Look completely perplexed as you notice the Queen in your right hand. Turn the cards face down and place the double card on top of the single in your left hand. Discard the top card as before. “Ladies and gentlemen, I had hoped to show you my fabulous FIVE RED CARD TRICK, but as usual the best laid plans of men are ruined by, er, by a LADY!” Show the double card as one. A red spot card is showing on the face (the Queen is concealed). Hold it at the lower right corner – gripping it between your right thumb and rst and second ngers. Flick the upper left corner with your left forenger. “However you know what they say, unlucky in cards...” TRANSPOSING THE LAST TWO CARDS The only work that remains is the secret transposition of these two cards. You’ll note that the following actions are performed as one uid movement – the larger movement of the body and arms covering the smaller action of switching the cards. Begin with the double card is held face down by the right hand in the Biddle Grip. As you turn your body to the Figure 15 left, the back of your right hand momentarily screens out the cards. See Figure 15 (exposed view). At this point, your left thumb draws off the top card (the
Queen) and continues moving away until the red spot card held in the right hand Biddle Grip “clears” the Queen. The right hand then catches up and places its card on top. Remember to keep the back of your right hand to the audience with your ngers together and the switch will be completely screened. Note: You can, of course, substitute your favorite color change move to accomplish the transposition of the two cards.
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Homing Card
Now, without pausing, the right ngers slide along the short edges of the double card toward the left thumb crotch and turn the two cards over as one in a pivoting motion. Figure 16 shows an exposed view of the cards being turned over. The back of cards are toward the audience. As you turn back toward the audience, the double card is turned vertically and
Figure 16
re-gripped by the left hand. Figure shows theperspective. performer’s viewpoint and Figure 18 shows the17audience’s
Figure17
Figure18
Release your right hand and then re-grip the upper right corner of the card. See Figure 19. Now, slowly turn the card over – so the face (Queen) is toward the audience as shown in Figure 20. Don’t look at the card right away. After a moment, your curiosity seems to get the better of you and you look at the card.
Figure 19
“There she is again! I give up.” Shake your head and throw the card(s) away in disgust. GOOD LUCK! Figure 20
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