Year: 2020

This is Ed Massey’s beautiful and original creation Buried Treasure c. 1957. In 1964 (the same year that Ed Massed passed away) another effect with a slightly refined method, but same basic principle also called Buried Treasure was created by Arturo (Glenn Babbs) and marketed by U.F. Grant and Abbott’s.

As far as I could tell there was no mention of Ed Massey as the original creator.  If you look at both effects the main change is that Arturo added two extra nested boxes and a fixed gimmick but there is no doubt the effect is the same (a marked coin is found embedded deep in rice or beans) and the method is very similar too.  That being said the effect looks better in Arturo’s version and his method is probably easier to perform but it would be at least nice to credit the creator of the original idea. Without Ed Massey’s version being released seven years earlier it is unlikely Arturo could have “invented” his version.

Arturo’s version has become the more popular version with builders like Mel Babcock and Louis Gaynor creating beautiful versions along with other versions, and so most people credit this effect to Arturo.  But the original effect that began it all by the great Ed Massey is still a wonderful surprising effect and a real fooler.

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The Silk Cabby was invented by British Magician Tom Sellers c. 1933 in his booklet More Secrets, and it was originally called A Colour Change Handkerchief Box. Described in Dr. Albo 6, and also with historical detail in The Ultimate Thayer (pg. 71). The the name Silk Cabby was coined by Floyd Thayer as he advertised his first version November 1933.

This colorful and beautiful version was created by Michael Baker exclusively for Stevens Magic. As always with Michael’s creations he has added features that he has refined over the years as a long time performer.  This Silk Cabby does not use the older elevator method which means the mechanism is smoother and less error prone.  Michael has also added felt to dampen any sounds, a larger chamber to accommodate bigger loads, and uses magnets for the doors to streamline opening and closing the doors.  In addition, the box is painted in such a way that from a short distance it appears that the base is open, making the illusion even stronger.

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Krazy Rabbit (KR) Professional Magic was a British magic manufacturer dealer started by Stewart Murray in 1983 . They focused on high-quality props with significant original content for working performers and professionals.

The KR Ultimate Card Box is quite unique and although it has features found in Joe Berg’s Mento-Card Box among others, I don’t think there is any other Card Box with quite as many useful features found together.

It is the sort of box that you could play with and come up with some neat routines though sadly it only works with Bridge sized cards, not Poker.

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One more from the talented Kent Bergmann! Before Kent became the king of 3D printing he created quite a stir with his Z-Wood (Zebrawood) line of magic. This is a rare beauty from those times. Anything from his Z-Wood Magic line is highly sought after by collectors.

Betcha looks really pretty, but the effects that come with it are a little disappointing compared with the quality of the props.  In essence there is a magician’s choice, a mathematical game, a corny joke, and a surprising magical transposition to end. Luckily all is not lost … if I was to perform Betcha I would incorporate one or two other effects:

• Free Will using the props that come with Betcha (die, chess piece, domino, and prediction)
• And for a real optional kicker the new Anverdi Mental Dice.

This is the order I would run them in:

1. Play the game of NIM
2. Free Will (play this last if you don’t do the Anverdi Mental Dice)
3. Domino transposition
4. Anverdi Mental Dice (Extra Optional Bonus)

If you don’t have either Free Will or the new Anverdi Mental Dice I would strongly advise that you get them …

Of course you can stick with the original routine and you might decide to tweak it a little.  It is not bad, but just felt a little light for the beautiful props. If it was a cheaper item it would probably be fine.  But who are we kidding, if you are a collector you’ll probably never perform this anyway, so it will look great on the shelf regardless 🙂

I would give this 5 stars if Free Will had been incorporated into the original effect.

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For the types of shows I do these days I knew I was never going to perform this but I was very  intrigued by the effect so purchased and watched the detailed instructions though I have never actually opened the box.  I will say this is much better than I expected.  Jay goes into great detail on how to perform the effect to its best advantage and talks about how the whole effect came about.

There is no doubt performed well this looks like real magic.  Performed badly it will not look like real magic.  The fact that you start out by having everything minutely examined really removes any suspicions that the audience might have.  It is best performed in a formal close-up or parlor setting, and in the right situation this will leave then gasping.  It is easy to do but will take some practice to make it look as good as Josh does, but it is certainly not hard to do.

This could just be the effect you have been looking for to raise your game and really bring back moments of astonishment and true magic to your audience.

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This amazing vanish was created from an old 1940’s Hubley “Army 45” Cap Gun die-cast pistol.  The pistol is very solidly made and the gimmick added to make the card or bill vanish is also well engineered.  Hubley was from Lancaster, Pennsylvania and started in 1894. The Hubley company made some of the finest Cap Guns you ever saw. 

You will not believe how quick and effective the vanish is. You clip the card or bill or note into the special holder attached to the barrel of gun.  Point the gun at the target and simply pull the trigger and in an instant the card has disappeared.  There are some angle issues – you can’t be behind the gun or at the side in front of the gun, but from the front it looks very convincing.

A real nice prop from Tannen’s in the 1950’s and 1960’s 🙂

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This is a lovely effect which is as baffling as it is entertaining. The original idea comes from Karl Germain (1878-1959) using a large goblet to hold the cards. Eric Lewis also created a version called Comedy Come-back Card c. 1947 which is still available from his son Martin Lewis. The most popular version of this idea was created by Nick Ruggiero and Collectors’ Workshop.  Card Transformer is better than the CW version because the base can be shown all around before and after the effect, and the gimmick is more precise and requires less motion.

According to the instructions Eckhard Boettcher did not base this upon the CW version (which was released five years earlier c. 1986 vs c. 1991) but instead based it upon an idea from a German magazine c. 1957.  Which was then turned into an automated effect by Herbert Martin Paufler a few years later and Eckhard produced his Nepomuk II. Then c. 1991 he continued the idea with Tony Lackner and this effect was released.

If I had a choice I would choose this Tony Lackner version over the CW version but they are both beautiful and clever effects.

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For more details on Willi Wessel’s unique Alan Warner collection click here.

This is one of the funniest and earliest effects Alan created and just one look at Madison Hagler’s will sell you – Madison does an amazing job, and you can really feel the frustration he has with these perverse dice. This is the original painted version, not the teak version shown in the video, but the effect is the same.

Great magic and comedy all come together in this fine package 🙂

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For more details on Willi Wessel’s unique Alan Warner collection click here.

This is a rare item from Alan’s early works for Children. It is a large size paddle with multiple color changes. It works very well and unlike every other paddle of its kind I have seen, each color change is independent of the other side so one side can change and the other does not.

Whether you perform to Children or Adults or are just looking for a missing piece to your Warner Collection, you’ll love this unique paddle effect.

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For more details on Willi Wessel’s unique Alan Warner collection click here.

Runic is one of the more overlooked pieces from Alan. It is an incredibly clean and deceptive force of two runes that is simplicity itself to perform and it is performed in the spectator’s hands. It even comes with some blank runes to create your own symbols. It is also very easy to adapt the effect to use different symbols other than runes – such as these scrabble tiles.

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