Fool the Guesser

“Step right up and win a prize”, shouts a carnival worker. “Fool the guesser! If I can’t guess your weight within 2 pounds, your age within two years or the month of your birth within 2 months, you win a prize!”

Intrigued, you watch as the first person steps up and hands over a dollar. The operator looks them up and down, checks behind their ears and makes them lift up each foot to show the bottom of their shoe. Everyone is giggling at the silliness of it all. As if he was doing a final mental calculation and factoring the size of the man’s shoe into the equation he shouts out, “You sir, weigh no more that 176 pounds! Step on the scale and see if you win a prize”.

The scale’s pointer tips right, then left, then right again. Swinging like a pendulum of truth, slowly settling on 176. “You look disappointed sir, but the bigger prize is that you have clearly lost some weight and are a fine specimen of good health. You!—young lady!” He points at a woman who was just laughing at the contortions the Guesser had the prior player do in order to guess his weight. “Care for me to guess the month of your birth? Come on, step right up, you just might win a prize. The odds are in your favor. Anything on this bottom shelf for a quarter and anything from the top shelf for a dollar. You might win big!” She sees the flash—a TV, a watch, some large stuffed animals.

Reluctantly, the women hands over a dollar. “Hmmmm. Let’s see. You have beautiful brown eyes. I can tell you have been unlucky in love (no ring on her finger) but that is changing (isn’t it always)….I’m going to write this down.” The carny writes something on a pad of paper and asks, “So, madam, the month of your birth?” “February”, she announces. She looks down and sees “Jan” written down. Just as she looks back up, thinking she’d won, the carny cuts her off with “Surprised I was able to guess it within two months aren’t you?”. He gestures to the sign that clearly says, “Guess the month of your birth within 2 months”.

The worker shouts out again, “Step right up and win a prize! Fool the guesser. If I can’t guess your weight within 2 pounds, your age within two years or the month of your birth within 2 months, you win a prize!” Knowing that many people have difficulty placing your age and you have been called anything from 18 to 35, you finally step up. “What’s my age? You ask” He extends his hand and you pony up the dollar. He writes a number on a pad and you tell him you are 23, he immediately turns over the pad showing “23”. He smiles as you—knowing you were skeptical and knowing you were hoping to put him in his place. He bested you. You now realize he spotted you watching the other two players and all he had to do was raise your curiosity just enough to make you think you just might be able to take him down a notch. But you didn’t, did you? You are out one dollar.


COMMENTARY:

There are several key points of interest in this scene. The methods used, the techniques used to make the game profitable and finally, a 3rd point of interest is that (unlike most magic) this is a very different, very believable mentalism routine. Most mentalism routines are very powerful because of their seriousness. So are séances. So is the Girl to Gorrilla--the subject of my last article. Let’s take a look at a piece of mentalism that works really well because it isn’t serious at all.

The worker is not claiming any “special powers”. He is not looking deeply into your eyes. He is simply saying “I am a great guesser—see if you can fool me.” This is an interesting tactic for mentalism to take. But it is a path down which performers rarely travel even though it is successful. So, point one is: entertainment first, methodology second. The very same piece, using the very same methods can look very different. When choosing and creating a routine ask yourself, “Which is right for which audience and which setting?”.

Let’s go back and speak to the first two points. Novices will read this article and only look to find only the methods. They may miss the major points. But to feed their interests….In the example given above, there were four possible methods used. A gaffed scale, the use of the “J-line” technique and a gimmick all mentalists have come to know and love.

The fourth (most important) technique used was that the workers did get really good at sizing people up and, if they lost, the slum won was (usually) less than the cost to play. Hence, in its ultimate distillation “Fool the Guesser” was really selling slum by using a little entertainment. For a quarter, you could pick anything from the bottom shelf (usually worth less that a nickel), for a dollar you could choose any top shelf item (also worth less than a dollar). Then, there was unobtainable flash…..

It turns out, that with practice, odds were in the favor of the guesser to begin with. Guessing people’s ages and weights within a few pounds on either side, just isn’t that hard. Now guessing people’s birth month—that seems random. With a straight spread on either side, the guesser already gets 5/6 odds. Well, if they are wearing a birthstone (as people often did in the past), you are in.

Another technique that was employed was regarding the birthmonth technique was the use of the “J-line”. There is a way of drawing Jan, Jun and Jul so they all look the same. This covers every possibility except October (giving you 11/12 odds.) I have seen only two references to this technique in print and only one example of the scrawl. (Figure it out for yourself).

The most powerful method is using a gimmick known to everyone interested in mentalism. With this gimmick, you could write a prediction down on a pad and then, after learning the answer, turn the pad over to show a match. This gimmick makes guessing weight and ages easy. A birthmonth might be challenging for a novice. I will leave you to open up a book and do some research on your own.

The most important point of a successful “Fool the Guesser” is something I admittedly know the least about since I have not worked it. Also no reference book I have ever seen has included the “real work” on it. It is also the hardest to learn. The most important and hardest point to master is knowing how to build and turn a tip—getting people to gather around and finally, step up and take a shot. You can have all your slights perfectly mastered, but if you can’t get people to bite, you are going to starve. This is what carny workers had down to a science and what is missing so often in great magic—generating interest. As a carnival worker, if you can’t generate interest, you can’t put food on the table. In most magic hobbyists’ world, the importance of generating interest is overlooked. If their friends don’t care to see the trick—no big deal, just change the conversation. This is another reason why there is so much bad magic out there.

I have been told by personal communication, that since “Fool the Guesser” is straight selling it doesn’t matter who wins or loses. If it is a woman, the guesser often guesses way low on her weight or age. So, she wins a prize. She is happy, she looks good to her friends and everyone thinks carnivals are just plain good fun. If it is a man only the other hand, take him down if you want. Sometimes a guesser might have a string of wins. This would attract interest in that a crowd might wonder “How does he do it?”. Sometimes, the guesser would overtly have a string of losses—thereby lining up a bunch of people interested in making an easy win and setting them up for losing.

While the question posed to you in the second (last) installment of “The Blowoff” was, “how to you generate believability in your magic?”. The question in this month’s installment is the same as the first month’s: How do you generate interest in your magic.

One more thing: Now, that isn’t to say that people aren’t going to get taken for a ride with “Fool the Guesser”—sometimes they are. And, in that sense perhaps “Fool the Guesser” crosses a moral line. Bilking people out of one dollar is still stealing. But not everyone loses and even the loser is still getting something for his money—entertainment. On the other hand mentalists who claim real psychic powers can take advantage of people for hundreds of thousands of dollars. Not to mention the potential psychological damage that may be incurred by the layperson believing they were talking to their dead identical twin. There is no entertainment to be had except by the psychic who is laughing all the way to the bank.

Girl-to-Gorilla

So now you have left the ten-in-one and out of the blue, you hear some terrifying screams. Not the screams of people cresting the top of a roller coaster and not the recorded screams of The Haunted House….what you are hearing are the screams of real fear—people trying to get away. It is the screaming of people who are running for their lives. “Is there a fire?”, you ask yourself.

You follow the noise until you have reached the back end of the lot at the carnival. You don’t see the people running as you expected but you know the screams must have come from somewhere nearby. Just as you turn to leave, a loud voice comes over a speaker. “Yes, indeed, she was the victim of a cruel medical experiment. He father was a biologist who dabbled in genetics and experimented on his innocent daughter. She is now forever cursed. See Zabora the girl who turns into a gorilla. You will see the clothing fall away from her breasts as her skin sprouts hair and fur. Slowly you will see this poor girl become an uncontrollable fierce, wild gorilla right before your very eyes as she descends back down the evolutionary chain.”

You say to yourself, “What? Really? This has to be some trick. A girl who will turn into a gorilla?! Did he say ‘clothes fall away from her breasts’? Wait, ok. It’s a dollar. Genetic mutant? Come on who experiments on their daughter? Ok. I’ll bite”

As you walk into the already crowded tent, you can see that the “stage” is really just an elevated cage with iron bars. Sure enough there is a bikini-clad girl who walks right out on stage and behind the bars. “No gaff here”, you say to yourself. “There is a girl on stage…where is a box”. You are surprised when the girl who is just standing there seems to be commanded by an offstage voice who is putting her into some sort of trance.

“Sleep Zabora. SLEEP. Go deeper, back in time….back thousands of years ago….back”. Wait. Did you just see something? She walked right on stage, is standing right there in front of you and she closed her eyes. But now her bikini is getting a little transparent or…disappearing. But you can’t see anything. It is as if she is fading out and slowly on that very spot a gorilla is…is…appearing. “Whoa!” You say to yourself, “The gorilla is moving!”

Sure enough, the girl is gone…she has slowly transformed into a gorilla. No box. No curtains. No nothing…and the gorilla is moving. Clearly it is alive and jumping up and down, wiggling back and forth. As your mind just settles into becoming comfortable with what it just “saw”, you are snapped out of your visual trance by the voice overhead. “WAIT. Something is wrong!”, the voice booms.

The gorilla is starting to look pretty aggressive by beating its chest, bearing its teeth and threatening the audience. “Back Zabora! BACK!” shouts the voice as the gorilla begins rattling the bars of the cage—the very cage that separates the audience from this wild beast. “Back”, shouts the voice. “RRRAAAAAARRRR”, roars the gorilla as the massive animal shakes the cage, which can just barely contain the animal. “BACK ZABORA!” you hear, as the animal rips the door off of the cage. Everyone in the audience screams in terror. The gorilla is loose and as it leaps into the audience, people scatter, running from the tent in all directions. They scream in terror. The very terror that attracted you to the back end of the lot….


COMMENTARY:
In a recent discussion on a popular magic bulletin board, there is a discussion of “what is the greatest illusion of all time?”. Although it wasn’t mentioned, there is no doubt in my mind, that the Girl-to-Gorilla is one of the greatest illusions if not the greatest illusion. Not only is it a portable money making machine, but the showmanship of this illusion cannot be topped.

First, the fantastic psychology makes is an almost irresistible attraction. Hearing the screams of others, people are attracted to the tent. Then, there is the recorded voice that makes a pitch about an attraction so unbelievable, it demands to be seen. (Besides, who can resist seeing a girl whose clothes are going to fall away?!)

Then, there is the illusion itself. Based on Pepper’s Ghost, the transformation is beautiful—a live girl becomes a live gorilla in plain view. It all happens right before your very eyes. There are no boxes or curtains. There is no mylar. The illusion is beautiful in its simplicity. Finally, there is the drama of the escaped gorilla, causing the audience to scream running from the tent. Thus, the cycle begins again. In itself, this is a thing of beauty. But the Girl-to-Gorilla takes it further than that. The Girl-to-Gorilla gives the experience few illusions do. It is the experience of believable magic.

Magic, by its very nature is saying, “Look, the world works in rational ways and when something doesn’t work that way, it is called ‘magic’”. Magic is when things can levitate unsuspended, objects can appear and disappear. When things don’t follow the rational rules we have come to expect, we call it “magic”. So magic requires the audience to be convinced that all rational explanations are absent.

When you saw a magician fly on stage, did you think to yourself “Wow! That man can really fly!” or did you think, “Wow. That is beautiful. I don’t know how he did it”. Probably, you thought the latter. Rationally, you know the magician can’t fly. Nor can he make an elephant disappear; walk on water or up the side of a building. At no time were you convinced the mage could do it for real. You may have left the theater amazed, but unconvinced. A real wizard would have left the audience both amazed and convinced. Effective mentalism accomplishes this feat all the time. So much so, that there is often a debate regarding disclosure of trickery.

Now clearly, you know that a girl cannot turn into a gorilla either. But unlike levitations or signed dollars appearing inside of lemons, for a very short period of time this illusion does something few others accomplish. For a few moments, the audiences’ senses of reason and rationality have gone out the window and they actually believed what they saw. They believed it so much that they ran from the tent fearing that they had just narrowly escaped being torn apart by a wild animal. They were amazed by the illusion, convinced of the danger and of the reality of the gorilla. It is only after they stopped running, and their pulse has slowed back down to a normal rate that their reason kicked back in and they realized that they were duped. That is the moment the magic fell away, leaving them just amazed and amused.

But at that point, it is too late. Their screams were like the calls of the Sirens, beckoning others to the tent. Others who will, if only for a few moments, get a chance to experience real magic.

The Story of My Banner (Painted by Johnny Meah)

Hanging outside the sideshow are usually a series of canvas paintings which advertise the acts on the inside. These canvas paintings are called "banners" and there still a few master painters around. One of the the most famous is Johnny Meah. When Johnny Meah speaks, his voice is so distinctive that once you hear it, you will NEVER forget it. If you click on the link you can hear it.

Anyways, I wanted to have a banner painted for my show. And, if I was going to get one done, why not get an original Meah....if I could afford it. These are collector's items. They hang in galleries. So, I left Meah an e-mail and lo and behold, one day, I get a call. I look at my cell phone and I catch a glimpse of the area code. It is one I was very familar with. "Johnny", I said, "where are you calling me from?" "Ohhh, its a small town in Florida, you probably don't know it...its called, Safety Harbor.".

I was stunned. "Uhhh....that's basically the town I grew up in." As it turns out, Meah, being an artist, was quite familiar with the most prestigious art gallery in Safety Harbor. His work has hung on those walls a number of times and he knows the owners of the gallery quite well.

Well funny thing is that we too know the owners of the gallery. In fact, my family has been close to them for over 35 years. Weirder still...the son of the gallery owners set me up with a young lady who became my wife.

It turns out, that I have been crossing paths with Johnny Meah for probably my whole life and didn't know it. My life might have been a lot different If I had known who he was....I might never have gone into medicine.

Doctor Performs Entire Operation Blindfolded!

Wouldn't that be an amazing headline?!? I can do it. I know how.

In 1943 there was a surgeon named R. Ofey who passed away. He was considered to have the best set of hands in his hospital, having honed his skills during World War I. In his small town in Iowa, hundreds of people gathered for the funeral of this beloved practitioner. He was always level-headed even during a challenging case. He had the lowest complication rates not just in his hospital, but in the state. He took his time. He was methodical. When there was a difficult case, he was always the first surgeon called.

But he also had some peculiar affects that the hospital staff simply could not understand. He refused to wear loops--the magnifying lenses doctors use to see small structures. However, whether or not he was operating, he did always wear a special set of dark glasses that colleagues assumed had special loops built in. He never asked to used the spotlight when suturing shut a patient. When he was operating and came to a particularly difficult part, he didn't use the typical maneuvers of mobilizing the organs into view--he didn't even seem to look at what he was doing. Instead he "did it by feel" reaching up into the body cavity out of visual site. Nothing irritated him more than when he asked his assistant for a particular surgical instrument and it was not put in his open, waiting hand in what Dr. Ofey would call "the right way". When asked about his techniques he simply stated, "Well, that was just how I was taught".

Upon his death, Dr. Ofey donated his body to science and allowed an autopsy to be performed by the local medical school. The medical community and the townspeople were stunned to learn that in fact, all this time, Dr. Ofey was blind. His eyes were congenitally absent from the day he was born. The medical school assumed there must have been some mistake, some mix-up. But his widow confirmed that indeed, Dr. Ofey had been blind his whole life.

Is it possible that surgeons could lower their complication rates by increasing the sensitivity of their hands? In an effort to learn how Dr. Ofey could have been so effective, I tried to interview his granddaughter and obtain a copy of his notes. There wasn't much there. But I believe I might have uncovered his technique. I think I could successfully complete an operation, while blindfolded....I know the secret. It is a method of increasing the sensitivity of the hands and finges beyond what we typically use. It is even more helpful to close the eyes and allow your fingertips to become your eyes.

Even though I know I can do it successfully, I don't think my malpractice would cover it. I don't think the hospital would allow it. I don't think there are any patient volunteers? But I can do it and if there are any tv crews that want to overcome those hurdles and film it...give me a call.

Videotaped Performance at Dante's

About two weeks ago, on a whim, I decided to perform at Dante's . It was very last minute but I still rocked the house. Instead of a small store-bought can of soup or beans to smash my hand, I used a massive, industrial-sized pizza sauce can they had in the back kitchen. And a go-go dancer was on hand to wrap my head in the saran wrap. I had terrific support from my friends Ken Magee and Reed McClintock.

The Story of The Blade Box

You paid your dollar, came in to watch the fire eater, the sword swallower, the woman with a beard, the contortionist and, as promised, you got to stay as long as you liked. After all, just a dollar for ten shows—what a great investment! You probably would have paid two dollars, but you were one of the lucky ones. The guy on the outside selling tickets offered a limited deal. If you got in the line right now, he would give you the kid’s price. And you barely made it—you may have been the last one in line to get that price.

Now you have finished seeing all the acts and they were, as promised, amazing. But just before the wonder dissipates, the man who has excitedly introduced each act reappears with a proposition and a really attractive young lady. Previously, after each introduction, you saw something quite amazing so your ears have perked up once again.

The inside lecturer tells you, “Ladies and Gentleman. I have a special bonus for you. I have one other act which I have not yet mentioned. In fact, this act is so special it is not even advertised outside. It is a bonus for the added fee of one dollar. For this small contribution you can see this once in a lifetime show. It isn’t for the faint of heart. You’ll see this pretty girl get into a small box, just barely large enough to contain her. Once she is in there, with no place to go, using powers unknown you or me, The Great Martini will run up to twenty blades of steel through the box and out the other side. These are actual solid steel blades folks and there is a $10,000 reward for anyone who can prove they aren’t. With no place to go in the box, this girl may not make it out alive. See this amazing one-time only act that baffled even the great Houdini.”

“Baffled the great Houdini” you think to yourself. “He was great for his time, but people are better educated and more sophisticated these days. Baffled Houdini? I bet I could probably figure it out. Besides 10K to prove the blades aren’t real? If I see a sliding blade, they had better pay up! Plus that girl standing next to him is pretty hot. Ok. It’s worth a dollar.”

Once on the inside of the annex, you turn on your eagle eyes. The hot girl wearing the yellow bikini gets into the box. The lid is closed. You check below the box to look for any black art or mirrors. “Nothing there.” You say to yourself. Clearly she has been switched out. Wait, you see the girl’s hand come through a hole in the box, so a switch isn’t the answer. Huh? The girl tosses out the yellow bikini she was wearing. “Woah! This is getting better”, you say to yourself.

THWACK! A blade goes in. Wait, you didn’t see it, you were thinking about the naked girl. “Ok. Pay attention” you say to yourself. THWACK…..THWACK….THWACK Hoping to make 10 grand you are checking for phony blades but indeed they are all coming through the box and appear solid. THWACK…THWACK….THWACK “Nineteen” shouts the magician and twenty!”. THWACK.

“Now ladies and gentlemen, I am going to give you an opportunity to learn about how this great illusion works. For the added price of one dollar you can come up here and see this pretty girl still inside the box, but like the day she was born. For one dollar more.”
You admit to yourself that you can’t figure it out. Better yet, you get to see a naked girl for a dollar. See a naked girl and learn how an illusion is done! What could be better? Your hands can’t hand the dollar over fast enough. As you sprint up the aisle and approach the box, you slowly peer inside. Revealed are two secrets. The first is that it is possible for the girl to be in the box and not get hurt by the blades. The second is that she was wearing a red bikini underneath her yellow bikini…and that is The Blowoff.