Andy Martin

T.A. Waters created his amazing routine, Box Office c. 1979, and although I have personally owned at least 13 different versions there has never been one like Brian Cook’s amazing Pagoda Mystery.

The basic effect is the standard Box Office routine: show all four pieces and you make a prediction by placing a token into the bottom of the box. The spectator is allowed to choose any of the pieces they want. They can even change their mind as many times as they want and the prediction will always match. But Brian has added so much more, this popular effect is finally getting the implementation and routine it deserves, so not only is it a true collectible, but it is also a solid performance piece.

Unique features of Pagoda Mystery include:

• Spectator or Magician can place prediction into the box themselves and unlike, for example, Magic Wagon’s Mental Safari, the prediction is seen in the box right up until the moment when the spectator removes it at the end.
• Spectator can select one outcome and then change their mind – this has never been possible with any other version of Box Office I have seen.
• Set-up is a breeze and does not require any contortions or upside down placement guesses
• Once set-up you can show all sides of the tray and box.
• Detailed custom construction streamlining each phase of the routine.
• It comes with an entertaining routine that will engage the audience, and due to the thoughtful props other meaningful routines are also possible.

The main presentation box is made from solid Walnut with Maple inlays and the selection pieces are all made by hand from solid maple and walnut, with acrylic and brass like inlays. The Pagoda Mystery is 6″ x 6″ x 10″ and the selection pieces are approximately 1.75″ x 2.75″.

Brian has spent 15 years perfecting this beautiful piece and it shows.  There are only 12 available so if you have been looking for the perfect collectible miracle with an entertaining routine, clever method and beautiful props, don’t delay, click over to Brian’s site and get one before they are all gone!

Click here for more information.

Robert Harbin was probably most responsible at a young age for me getting into magic. Every time I saw this illusion performed growing up I was just amazed by it. Harbin created this beautiful illusion c. 1965 and it is probably the most copied stage illusion of all time. I was lucky enough to perform this to my family and friends in 2000. What I most remember is when I would practice with my wife, my two young children were sitting on the rug in front looking up at Mommy in awe. My son said “Daddy, where has Mommy’s tummy gone?”.

What makes this illusion so enduring is not just the fact that it is a beautifully deceptive and impossible illusion, but that it can be performed surrounded and even close-up. You can read more details of the history of this remarkable illusion here.

Click here for more information.

Another in a series of superbly-crafted close-up illusions from the hands of Robert Jackson, the Zig-Zag bill is handmade from select hard and softwoods, then varnished and rubbed to perfection.

• Show an ordinary bill and then insert it into a wood frame covered by three doors.
• One at a time remove the doors to reveal the bill inside.
• Now, push on the center section of the frame and the middle portion of the bill completely detaches itself from the ends!
• Re-position the center section, replace the doors and remove the restored bill from the frame.

This is a really wonderfully clean version of this effect and you will love how it works and how it fools the audience!

Click here for more information.

The original version of this effect known as Bending Glass (or Flexible Glass) was invented by British Magician Oswald Rae c. 1945, and was released by Max Andrews. A later improvement replaced the glass with a mirror which is what Owen’s are showing here.

A framed mirror is placed within a cloth bag and a large knitting needle is pushed through the bag and mirror.  As a finale, the mirror is folded in half! The mirror is then removed from the bag and shown to be completely restored. The mirror can be handed to an audience member to examine!

The Owen’s version is one of the best because the gimmicked frame can be show freely on both sides which is not true in some versions and it is made of a solid and beautiful hardwood that will last a lifetime.

Click here for more information.

One of my favorite glass penetrations is the Glass (Quadruple) Penetration that was invented by Peter Warlock in 1937. It is sometimes known as the English Glass Penetration and there have been a number of versions created, even as recently as 2008 when Magic Wagon created their Mod Quad Penetration.

The basic effect is as follows: an attractive square frame has four windows, and two doors. An unprepared sheet of glass fills the frame covering the 4 windows. Doors are closed and a solid rod or pencil is then poked clear through the holes in the center of each door. Ribbons also run through all holes. When doors are finally reopened, tho glass is seen to be unharmed and there is no sign of damage or holes. Only one piece of glass is used. It is a wonderful illusion and a real fooler for sure.

This beautiful version actually belonged to the famed inventor and prolific author himself: Peter Warlock, and it is easily the best version of this effect I have seen.

Click here for more information.

T.A. Waters created his amazing routine Box Office c. 1979 and he liked it so much that it is the first routine described in his 800+ page book Mind, Myth & Magick. Since it’s publication here are plenty of versions of the trick around, and I’ve even made up a couple myself. This is one of the few that actually had permission from T.A. Waters to create it for resale. It is Tabman’s Chest of Destiny c. 1994 and it is one of best versions I have seen of this effect.

The box looks like a real antique aged box. It is the perfect height and size for the effect and everything works precisely as it should. The spectator gets to choose any one of the five casted relics and when the tray is lifted there is just one prediction, and it matches the choice of the spectator.

Click here for more information.

So here is another version of the T.A. Waters’ amazing Box Office which has been recreated so many times it is hard to keep up.

Another entry from Magic Wagon c. 2012 and the mechanism works perfectly every time. Whatever painting the spectator chooses it matches the selection in the bottom of the box.

Magic Wagon have actually created at least four versions of Box Office including:

• Mental Safari
• Mental Safari Deluxe
• Mind Paintings
• Mind Paintings II

so it is a common theme for them.

Click here for more information.

This is a very impressive creation from Dave Powell in conjunction with Stevens Magic. Based upon a coin casket created by New York craftsman Otto Mauer in th 1870’s to vanish four silver coins one at a time when the lid was closed. Otto’s customers and friends included: Trewey, Imro Fox, Horace Goldin, De Bier, Ducrot, Hermann, T. Nelson Downs, Houdini and Thurston!

The coin casket that Dave based his one on was well over 100 years old with over 60 individual parts involving a complex mechanism of solid brass parts and springs, and it still worked perfectly. All handmade and fitted into a decorated wooden box with antique brass fittings! It took over six months to get this project to fruition. Four half dollars, one at a time, are put into the four slots on top of the inner casket. Upon closing the door one coin vanishes! This is repeated three more times until all four coins have vanished!

I’ve included four genuine Silver Walking Liberty Half Dollar Coins because something this beautiful needs the best coins. This casket is significantly nicer than the versions created by George Richbark and the most reliable Coin Casket I have handled – though I have not seen the Original Otto Mauer which I suspect is still going strong.

Click here for more information.

John Dahms was a master carpenter by trade and when he retired he started creating some amazing magic c. 1986. This is a small, but fine example of the classic Color Vision Box invented by New York Mentalist/Dealer: Martin “Kismet” Sunshine c. 1930. It was so successfully marketed by Adams and Co. that it became one of the most popular and pervasive magic props ever, and you’ll find one in pretty much every magic set and magicians drawer ever since.

It is the perfect divination effect. Always ready, you carry the neat box in your pocket. Anybody secretly places the cube in the box, closes the lid and hands it to you. Holding it behind your back, you instantly name the color uppermost. Uncanny, certain and undetectable.

This version from John Dahms is likely one of the prettiest you will ever see, with beautiful inlay work in the lid and a smooth feel to the box.

Click here for more information.

The idea to use a bulldog clip as a switch device is credited to Bob Ostin c. 1953. See Bulldog Switch Clip for more details.

This routine c. 2006 by Etienne Pradler comes with a well made clip and is really a unique routine with a signed card. The deck is shuffled by a spectator and then handed back to the magician, who spreads through it and takes out a card, the identity of which is kept secret from the spectators. The magician then proceeds to fold the card into quarters, with the back outermost and places it into the grip of a bulldog clip. He explains that the card is a prediction.

Now the deck is spread facedown and a spectator is asked to remove a card and sign it on the card’s face. The card is returned to the deck and shuffled. The magician now draws attention to the card trapped in the bulldog clip. He places the deck to one side, picks up the clip, which has been in full view the whole time and removes the folded card from it, immediately handing it to the spectator. It is unfolded and seen to be the signed card!

Comes complete with detailed instructions, special gimmick, and bonus handling material!

Click here for more information.