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Center Tear

the thinking persons journal

Volume 2 Issue 4

Jul 2003

Giving this issue the once over after 'The G' has double-checked for spellies, I had to ask myself
"WHY?"

Why have so many great people given this little lot away for nothing? Ask yourself: "Where else
could I get 16 pages of mentalism effects and essays for the sum of zero pounds and zero dollars?"

I'd like to thank everyone (again!) for contributing. The issues just seem to be getting bigger and
bigger. Maybe I'm giving you too much!!

All I hope is that you get as much out of Center Tear as I do, and long may it continue!

Arcane
=

edited by 'The G'

BINGO! by Ken de Courcy

Teleport-Professional by Ted Lesley

Magazine Mentalism by Banachek

Project Arcana - An experiment in thought projection by Gardinski

Write-Write by Ken Driscoll

The K Factor by Barry Cooper

NLP and Products for Mentalists: part 4 by Rex Sikes

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BINGO!

by Ken de Courcy

Effect
The mentalist takes a small card from his pocket and writes something on it with a pencil. Then he
hands the pencil and a Bingo card to a spectator.

“Please cross out any two numbers on the cards, Sir”, says the mentalist. “Then pass the card and
the pencil to anyone you like, and I’d like that person to also cross out two numbers that have not so
far been crossed out.”

THIS IS REPEATED UNTIL ALL BUT ONE OF THE NUMBERS HAS BEEN CROSSED THROUGH.

“I think you will agree, ladies and gentlemen, that since so many of you were involved in crossing out
these numbers, it could not have been ‘arranged’. In other words you can’t all have been ‘stooges’!
(Since the average Bingo card contains around fifteen numbers, this has to be true.)

“Who has the card now? You, sir? Is there one number left not crossed out? There is? Good, what is
that number?”

“Number 27? Would you be kind enough to pass the Bingo card to someone else - and would that
gentleman please confirm that the only number not crossed out is - what number did you say?”

At this point the performer has already passed this small piece of card to another spectator.

The man confirming says, “Yes, the only number left is 27.”

Turning to the man holding the small piece of card, the mentalist says, “Would you read out what I
wrote on the card at the very beginning.”

And the man reads, “THE ONLY NUMBER NOT CROSSED OUT WILL BE 27.”

Requirements
A small card, such as a visiting card with one blank side, a Bingo card, a pencil and a nail-writer.

Method
Since a nail-writer is listed in the list of requirements, you already know most of the secret, but a little
more explanation will be helpful.

First make sure your pencil and the lead in your nail-writer are a good match, both in colour and
thickness…variation in thickness of writing is rather a giveaway, and it can be overcome easily by
sanding the tip of the pencil down to match (rather that trying to alter the nail-writer).

Second, count the number of numbers on the Bingo card. If it is an odd number, simply deduct one
and divide the remaining numbers by two. This tells you how many people you have to ask to cross
out two numbers. (Most Bingo cards have fifteen, so you will ask 7 people to do the crossing out).

If it’s an even number, of course, the last person must be asked to cross out only one number.

When you write on your card, you put “THE ONLY NUMBER NOT CROSSED OUT WILL BE “.
Then you leave a place for the insertion of the figure.

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If you wish, you can place the card back out into a glass on the table in full view, rather than hold it
all the time. Then go straight to the spectator and very obviously hand him the pencil. Stress this by
some remark, such as, “Use the pencil. I know it works, I’ve just used it!” At the same time reach into
your pocket and take out the Bingo card, then hand it to the same spectator.

It is important that you immediately return to the performing area, you must be well away from the
people crossing out the numbers. Furthermore, the people not involved must not be left watching an
empty stage.

Immediately the number is called, take the card from the glass; give it a casual glance, AND WRITE
THE NUMBER INTO THE SPACE. Then drop the card back into the glass.

Pick up the glass and go to someone else. Offer it to them so they can take it.

Now you ask for confirmation of the number, and finish as described.

Many thanks to Ken for allowing us to re-print BINGO. It first appeared in Sam Dalal’s SWAMI (issue
3, March 1972). If you don’t already own a copy of SWAMI MANTRA, I highly recommend picking up
a copy.

Arcane additions:
There are a couple of things I’ve added and tried with BINGO! over the years. One was to make the
freedom of choice seem even more 'free'.

In the UK bingo cards come in books. You can pick these up at most stationary shops. The books
have about 10 pages. Each page has 6 bingo cards/games. By allowing the first spectator to choose
from 5 books, the next to choose from the 10 pages, and then finally let them rip out any card. This
gives the impression that there just couldn’t be any trickery. And of course there isn’t!!

One other thing I toyed with was to make up a tick sheet with the numbers 1 to 100 on it. This was
easily made up on a PC. So that rather than writing out the number I only needed to mark/circle/tick
the appropriate number on the sheet.

Even if you use BINGO! just as it comes, I think you’ll find that it plays really well. Give it a go and
see…

Teleport-Professional

by Ted Lesley

A Brief History :

This, like many of Ted Lesley's items, is an utility prop. Baldly stated, it is a
special two-compartment switching-envelope, but it has some remarkable
features. Many years ago, in 1981, Ted described an early version of this
envelope in the German periodical "MAGISCHE WELT" but we have never
seen or heard of another mentalist or magician using it. This once again proves
the old magical adage that the best way to hide a good idea is to publish it !

To construct one "Teleport-Envelope" was a very time-consuming affair, but
over the past years the basic idea was taken many steps further, and it was

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only a short while ago that Ted found another way to construct this versatile gimmick, which takes,
with practice, less than two minutes.

In this "STARTER KIT-PACKAGE" you'll find the following items :

1. 50 Envelope - sheets printed;
2. 50 Envelope - inserts;
3. 1 Tube rubber-cement;
4. 1 Glue-Stick;
5. 1 Sample envelope.

To construct ONE "TELEPORT ENVELOPE" You'll need TWO of the included sheets, (one printed,
one unprinted) and proceed as follows (Fig. 1):

1. From one of the unprinted envelope-sheets you need the "address side" with the top and

bottom flaps attached only, so you must cut along both long edges with a sharp knife. We
will call the remaining front (address) side the "insert". Don't discard the bigger flap. It will be
useful later.
(The new set comes with the envelope-inserts already cut!)

2. The "insert" is now ready for use!

3. Coat the entire top flap of the "insert" and an area roughly half an inch long below the fold

line with a coat of rubber cement. When you apply the cement, use a piece of paper to mask
the lower portion of it, so that the edge of the glued area is perfectly straight. (Fig. 3)

4. Take another (printed) envelope sheet and put it address side down on the table. Unfold the

small flap at the long side and insert a letter sized piece of paper between the bigger flap and
the inside of the sheet. Next, neatly apply a thin layer of cement to the back of this flap, (Fig.
5) coating only the area covered by the top flap, when it is folded down. Again you can use
the already mentioned piece of paper to help guide the application of the cement.

Before you assemble the envelope for use, let the cement dry completely!

5. After the rubber cemented areas have dried take the protective paper out of the assembly and

unfold the bigger flap towards the left. Next, put the insert on the sheet in such a way, that
both creases of the bottom flaps are perfectly aligned (Fig. 2 and 3).

6. Apply normal glue to the smaller long side flap, then fold the bigger one to the right. The

smaller flap is now folded to the left, that it adheres to the big one. Now apply glue to the
small bottom flap of the insert and fold it upwards, that it also sticks to the back of the now
nearly finished envelope.
Do the same with the bottom flap of the envelope, thus entirely concealing the smaller flap
(Fig. 4, 5 and 5a)

7. Now you have a normal looking envelope with the difference, that it has TWO flaps at the top!

The object, what has to be switched or that is destined to appear is inserted between these
two flaps.
(Fig. 6) You than glue the flaps together - sealing the item into its secret compartment - and
carefully trim away any overlap that may result at the edges.

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The sealed "Teleport-Professional" looks exactly like Fig. 7a!

I recommend that, to save time and trouble, you make up a number of Teleport Envelopes at one
sitting.

At this point I suspect that you'll fully understand, how this envelope works in performance:

Once the envelope has been constructed, you put it in an appropriate pocket of your jacket. When it
is needed in performance, simply take it from the pocket and hold it with the back of the envelope up,
so that the double wall can't be noticed. Press on the sides of the envelope, bowing it open and let
the assisting spectator clearly see, that the envelope is completely empty. Then hand it to him and let
him seal it. In all innocence, he has just done the compartment switch himself, because this natural
action securely seals the first compartment while simultaneously opening the second (secret)
compartment.

When the time comes to have the envelope opened, give the spectator a pair of scissors and ask him
to cut the envelope open along one of the dotted lines.

One final note: The scissors you hand the spectator should be short, with blunt ends. This avoids the
possibility of your helper using them as a letter opener to slit the flap open rather than snip off the
end! The blunt ends have another advantage also: They can't damage the pockets of your clothing!

Final Notes:
The prepared envelopes should be stored in a "Zip-Lock"-type of plastic bag, which keeps the
envelopes nearly airtight. This makes sure, that the rubber-cement doesn't dry out prematurely!

IMPORTANT!!!

We have again improved the Kit for our "Teleport Professional" . The "INSERT" is cut already

to the right size. So the steps "1" and "1a" (see drawings and text) are not needed anymore.

We want to thank our friend and fellow mentalist/magician Michael Gerlach - Styx, who made the
excellent drawings for this trick. He and his wife Tina are always at hand , if help is needed. We want
to thank both for their kindness and continued friendship.

If you want to buy the Starter Kit-Package, check out Ted’s web site:

www.wonderworkshop.de

© COPYRIGHT LESLEY´S WONDER WORKSHOP 1995/2002

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in any retrieval system, or
transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or
otherwise without written permission of the publisher.

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Magazine Mentalism

by Banachek

Subject: A full show with just a Magazine

I was snowed in at Harrisburg, PA the one day. Could not sleep and thought of
this routine that one could do if stuck with no props. All you need is a magazine
and you have almost a whole show, none of the effects are original but the
routine could help you out if in a bind.

Magazine Mentalism (for want of a better name.)

Mentalist comes out with a magazine under his arm. He removes the staples

from the magazine. It is a recent edition. He asks a spectator to remove a full sheet (four pages)
from anywhere in the stack of pages. This spectator is then asked given a calculator and asked to
ad all four page numbers together.

While the spectator does this, the mentalist takes and cuts the spine of the remaining pages so he
has single double-sided pages. These are given to someone to mix and distribute amongst the
audience.

Turning his attention back to the spectator with the calculator he asks "you had a completely free
choice of what pages you wanted to select. There is no way I could, by normal means, know which
pages you would decide upon. You have aded those page numbers together, what is that total?"

Spectator reveals total, and performer removes a sheet of newspaper from the wall, which reveals
the total written in advance.

Now the Performer turns to the audience. "I am going to read the minds of a few people in the
audience. The majority of you have a sheet of this magazine. There is no way that I could know
what is on the pages you have received. Those that do have a page of the magazine will note that
you actually have two pages. Please look and remember which page numbers you have.

Performer asks the person that did the earlier adding to call out a number between one and
(whatever the amount of pages are in the magazine). That person is asked to stand and look at that
page keeping it hidden from the performer.

"Look at the page, scan it with your eyes. I see a picture of a crane, no three cranes in the picture
that is taken at the Florida Everglades. Also a picture below it to the right, of a blue frog and a word,
poison, no poison Dart Frog, and to the right of that there is a picture of a car, a Jaguar. Am I
correct?"

The spectator calls out another number.

"This is a full page advertisement. I see comparisons. I get the words ATT and MCI, oh yes also
Sprint! I think it is an ad for Voice Net and they are comparing their price per minute. Am I right?
And I get the number 17. Is that the price in cents of Voice Net charges?"

Performer is indeed correct.

Another number is called.

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"This is a column. It is about the year 2000. Scan the column please. I get the name Steve? This is
the author’s friend, is her name Kay? Keep scanning, ah yes at the end their is something about
Steve spending the celebration on a cruise ship in the Antarctica and icebergs? Please read the last
paragraph aloud!"

Sure enough the mentalist is correct and he then continues with about three more people.

Finally the performer asks a final person (6th or so) to bring their sheet up to the stage. He hands
this spectator an envelope. The sheet is taken and torn into smaller pieces. These pieces are dealt
upon the hand of the spectator one at a time and the spectator calls out stop. The envelope is
opened and it has the exact word or paragraph that is upon the small sheet the spectator holds.

Method:
Well actually the method is not really relevant, as you probably know them all

The first effect is based upon the fact that if you remove the staples from a magazine. Despite the
numbers on all the sheets being different, they will all ad up to the same number.

IF you would rather, you could just have spectators in the audience write down the numbers of the
pages they received and these are added by using your favorite Ad a number effect. An easy way is
to switch the equals sign and the memory recall on a calculator. Put the number you want to force in
the memory. Make sure you use a calculator that does not show the “m” when the memory is added
or you could cover that area with a marker, or better yet, you can use my method from my book
"Pre-thoughts".

The Next effect is the magazine or Newspaper memory stunt in the guise of thought reading. Play it
out as reading their thoughts and it is just as effective. Remember to ad some details to each page,
such as the license plate number on a car in the picture or credit card number in an ad. A few of
these go a long way and I find using the pictures on the page more effective than the headings on
the page. Also saying things like, "there are 6 people in the picture, no wait, in the background there
is a seventh person that is not supposed to be part of the picture, is that right? And is he wearing a
red jacket?" Plays very strong.

Also, I suggest using a not so large magazine such as a small in-flight magazine on planes. This
way you can use the same magazine for a month. The National Enquirer and such change each
week and the newspapers each day. And for crying out loud, actually read the paper all the way
through, this way when you remember it is a column titled business you know what kind of business
and such.

The last effect can be your favorite version of the torn magazine test. Barry Richardson has a version
amongst others. The method I use is based upon Fed Lowe’s version published in the New
Pentagram, Vol 4, No 1, March 1972: Page 1. In Fred’s version you made sure the force section
was third from the bottom.

As I tear the sheet, I make sure my ad goes on top the first time, after that all tears go on top of my
ad section I want to force. In other words, my ad remains second from the bottom force side up.
The hard part here is just making sure the ad stays where you need it to be when you are done
tearing., keep it under you thumb to keep track. When done tearing, ask for the spectator’s number
(see the difference here, you ask for the number after you are done tearing). You ask them to hold
out their hands so you can deal into their hands. You deal the pieces into their hand turning each
one over as you do so until you come two from the force number. Now ask them to dramatically let

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the pieces fall to the floor so there will be no confusion. As you do this, you make a sweeping
gesture to the floor and turn over the entire stack. Now the force piece is two pieces down upside
down. You ask them to hold their palms out again, you take the next piece, and throw it up in the air
to join the others on the floor and finally dealing the lone force piece on their hands. As you can see,
the reason for turning all the pieces over as you deal them is so that when you deal the final piece
and turn it over, it is force side up in their hand and the move looks the same throughout.

As said at the beginning, very little new here but I thought it would make an interesting routine that
takes naught but a magazine, a marker and marker board or sheet of paper. This could all fit in your
pocket.

© 1999 Banachek

Project Arcana

- An experiment in thought projection

by Gardinski

Project Arcana can be played either as a piece of straightforward 'psychological' mentalism in which
the 22 cards of the Major Arcana are used to add a little colour, or as a much darker routine for the
out-and-out bizarrist. It utilizes my own variation on the principle of the edge-marked deck As far as
I know, this is an original spin on a strangely underused concept, but I may be mistaken, as I am
young and stupid, and far too lazy to research things thoroughly, so feel free to correct me if you
know otherwise...

Effect:
You introduce your audience to the tarot, speaking briefly of the way in which the cards portray the
journey of the naive young 'fool' as he seeks wisdom, justice and eventual mastery of his world.
Along the way, his quest may be aided by the sagacious old hermit, or hindered by dark temptations.
You explain that these images represent universal archetypes found throughout the many
mythological and religious systems by which humanity has sought to explain its experience of the
world. As such, they are ideal tools for an experiment in thought projection. (This gets you off the
hook if you're playing to an audience of uber-cool skeptics. A few references to Carl Jung always go
down nicely with such people.)

A spectator is selected and invited to cut the cards a couple of times. The cards are then table-
spread face down, and you invite the participant to select one, in a suitably mysterious and dramatic
manner. ("Try not to be too alarmed if you feel yourself drawn magnetically to a particular card", as
opposed to "Pick a card, any card!").

Have your victim take their card, and ask them to 'burn the image into their mind' so that they have a
distinct mental picture, whilst you square up the remaining cards. Having done so, ask them to use
all their concentrated mental energy to 'beam' the image towards you, like a cinema projector. To
help them focus, you hold up the squared-up deck (with the back facing them), so that they may use
it as a 'screen' onto which to project their 'mental film' of the tarot image.

As they do so, you apparently gaze into the 'projector beams' emitting from their eyes and gain an
impression of the image they are sending "...direct from the retina". You may then reveal it in your
preferred manner. I think it plays best if you take a drawing board and sketch a stylized impression
of, say, a crooked old man in a long cowl (for the Hermit), or a circle with odd inscriptions and

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nebulous shapes attached to it (for the Wheel of Fortune), as if gradually building up a sense of what
it is, before dramatically declaring the identity of the card.

Method:
As I mentioned earlier, the key to the routine is a variation on the 'edge marked deck'. When
apparently studying the image being beamed onto the back of the deck by your trusty 'mental
projector', you are in fact decoding a set of tiny 'dots' which you have placed on the edge of the
remaining cards.

J.G. Thompson's "On Edge" (Between Two Minds p.23) used sets of 13 pencil dots to encode the
value of standard playing cards, with the suit being dependent upon the cards placement within the
stacked deck. However, by colour-coding the edge dots in the manner I will describe, you can avoid
the problem of having to keep the cards in precisely the order of the original stack, as it is still easy to
determine the identity of the target card regardless of the volunteer's cutting of the deck.

Preparing The Cards:
You might want to 'practise' the coding system on an inexpensive set of playing cards before
wrecking your £14/$20 Rider Waite Tarot. Alternatively, much cheaper tarots are available. (Last
time I checked, Magick Enterprises in Sheffield had Italian imports at around £5 a deck). With these
cheaper decks, you will often find that the 56 minor arcana cards are pictorially less sophisticated
than in the Rider Waite, but as we're just using the Major Arcana here, that doesn't matter for our
purposes. I apologise in advance if the following instructions sound like an outtake from the Blue
Peter Halloween Special, but it's the only way I can think of describing the process.

Fig 1. shows you the positions of the individual marks which we will use to encode the identities of
the cards. You will need a red pen and a black pen. I've used Sanford Sharpie Markers, but
anything similar will do. Be aware that any ink that gets onto the cards from such markers is
indelible, so it helps if you have a steady hand.

Take the first card, 'The Fool'. Holding the card face up, place it between two scrap cards (such as
the spare jokers from a bicycle deck, or any sort of index card) which you don't mind getting
unpleasantly inky. This is to ensure that the ink doesn't mark the faces or backs of the card, as we

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really want the ink to be visible only on the very edge. Mark the edge of the Fool card in black ink, in
the position indicated on the diagram. Then take the second card (the Magician) and place a mark
slightly lower down, as indicated, also in black ink. Continue in the same manner for the first 4 cards.

When you get to the 5th card (The Emperor), leave a substantially larger gap than you have done for
the first four, and leave a similarly large gap between the marks on the 8th and 9th cards. You can
easily judge where the marks have been placed on earlier cards because the jokers/index cards
you've used to protect the faces/backs of the cards during the marking process will act as a sort of
template.

Once you've marked the first 11 cards in black ink, switch to the red marker and mark the next 11
cards (from Justice to The World) as indicated in fig 1.

When you've finished, if you place the marked cards together in their original order, you will notice
that the marks are clearly visible when you look directly at the edge. (See fig 2).

Now remove one of the cards, and look again. You will immediately be able to see a conspicuous
gap in the pattern. Even when the deck is well mixed, it should still be quite evident (unless thorough
shuffling has placed two of the marks right next to each other, but as we've only had the pack mixed
by means of cutting, the order of the cards has remained intact). You should be able to see whether
the missing card is from the 'black sector' (the first 11 cards, 'Fool' to 'Wheel of Fortune') or the 'red
sector' (the last 11, 'Justice' to 'The World'). Then it's just a matter of counting down the dots to
determine which 'number' the missing card is. This process of counting is made much easier by
means of the large spaces after the first and second sets of four dots. With very little effort you will
be able to establish that it is, for example, the 7th red dot that is missing.

During the 'image projection' part of the routine, the cards should be held with the backs facing the
spectator in a landscape rotation (wide sides on top/bottom, short sides on the edges), so that the
'dots' are visible to you on the uppermost side.

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How To Cheat:
"But surely," I hear you cry, "it will take months of backbreaking work to memorise the sequence of
the 22 cards, and even then it will eat up precious seconds of stagetime struggling to convert the
code!". Not so. In fact you don't HAVE to memorise anything at all if you don't want to.

The entire code can be written out on a tiny crib sheet which you keep secreted on the back of your
drawing board or in your sketchpad, or in a palmed billet, or even in a post-it note which you can
subtly attach to the reverse side of the deck during the 'projector-screen' portion of the routine. All
you need to know is "red 7" or "black 10", and you can instantly refer to your crib sheet and know that
the card is the Star, or the Hermit, and then, provided you can remember what a star or a hermit
looks like, you can set to work doodling your artistic masterpiece.

Lighting & Other Considerations:
The only thing you really need to be careful of is lighting conditions. Obviously you might struggle to
perform this in a pitch dark crypt or seance room. Should you find it hard to distinguish the black
dots from the red, you can still figure out the card's identity with little difficulty: let's say you've
determined that one of the dots in position 8 is missing, but poor light means you can't tell if it's red or
black. The crib sheet tells you that the two options for position 8 are 'The Chariot' & 'The Moon'. To
figure out which is missing, glance at the bottom card of the packet (ie. the card facing you). Let's
say the card facing you is The Magician (the second card of the major arcana). If the 'missing' card
is in the part of the packet nearest to this card, then it must be The Chariot (assuming the cards
haven't been shuffled, but merely cut as instructed). If the 'missing' card in this instance is from the
rear of the packet (nearest the audience), then clearly it's from the 'red' section, and must therefore
be The Moon. I'm sure you get the picture.

Throughout the effect, the cards should be treated with a degree of reverence in order to maximise
dramatic impact. The impression we're striving to create is one of mystery and ritual, an experiment
in thought projection using strange and ancient symbols, as opposed to 'just another card trick', so
the table-spreading of the cards should be done with a smooth, fluid movement, not with a swift
flourish designed to show off your manual dexterity. (Riffle shuffling is definitely out, no matter how
slickly you think you can pull it off. Warlocks don't do sleights.) When you perform the spread,
ensure that you spread the cards towards the 'dotted side' of the pack. In this way, the marks will be
invisible to your spectator.

With a little thought, this routine will play equally well in a straight 'psychological' mentalism act (in
which you would play up the Jungian / archetypes / semiotics aspect), or in the darkest bizarre act,
depending on your patter. Have fun.

© 2002 Gardinski

Write-Write

by Ken Driscoll

Effect
The performer explains that he has written a word earlier on the bottom of a large pad (for stage) or
business card (for parlour/walk around) and that he will call on several members of the audience to
attempt to read his mind. Upon selecting a spectator the perform asks his/her initials and writes them
on top the pad/card then ask that they attempt to discern the first letter of the thought of word. That
done the performer writes the called out letter and moves on to the next spectator again initials are
asked and written on the pad/card a letter is called out and again written on the pad/card under the

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spectators initials… This is done until a word is written. In the end you reveal that the letters they
called out match your pre-written word exactly, once more your word was written with a different pen
in different color ink. The fact is you will only be using one pen, no stooges and no pre-show work.
Also, everything you need to perform this effect can be bought at most office supply stores or Wal-
Mart Stores

It is important to note that the spectators are each told they are trying to read your mind to come up
with the word you are thinking of, so you will remind them of the letters already called leading them
toward a word… you will end up with a different word every time you perform this, however once the
first two people call letters you are limited as to what the final word can be.

Method
The method is in the title; this effect relies on Double Writing. However there is a little more to than
just double writing… the ink from your thought of word is a different color than you are writing with
when letters are called out to you… this is accomplished by using Magic Transformer markers they’re
made by PENTECH using the Color Change/Color Eraser Marker color in an area that will later be
the area where you double write your thought of word. When you ask the spectator their initials you
write them on top of the pad/card then pause to get their letter, once their letter is called into you
write it down in the previously colored in section on your card/pad… Now you ask the second
spectator for their initials… as you go to fill them in re-write the first persons letters under their initials
and then write in the second persons initials… Again pause and ask the second person for their letter
and write it down in the previously colored color changing ink section continue this process until you
have a word… On the last letter first write the called up letter in the previously colored color changing
ink section, then act as if you are going over all the called letters so they can be seen from a
distance… re-write the last letter up under the initials go over it a lot and start to back track going
over all of the other letters as you do this turn the pad/card to face your audience. This will later have
some remembering watching you fill in the letters with the pad toward facing them the whole time.

Afterthought: For stage I like to put some sort of cover over the thought of word so that when I turn
the board around I don’t destroy the climax of the effect. This is accomplished using a piece of this
construction paper taped at the top and bottom however the top is taped loosely allowing me to drop
the cover much like a tape hinge… to move the cover out of the way while writing then simply flip it
back up for the revelation. On a business card you don’t a cover as you could use your thumb to
cover before the revelation. It’s also nice to build a little suspense by calling out the initials and
confirming they’re called out letter before showing your previously written word.

Note: CRAYOLA also makes these magic color change color erase markers, and finally this routine
works and it is truly a great effect with a totally new and original method. Try this one you will have
fun

© 1999 Ken Driscoll

UK: Tesco sell a set of pens that will do the job. I find the Green/Orange one gives the best contrast.

If you haven’t read Ken’s TheirWords, Linguistic Observations as they apply to Showmanship and
Performance get in touch with him; it’s an eye opening read.

[e-mail]

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The K Factor

by Barry Cooper

This is a presentation for the centre tear based on genuine psi research. It deals with the two basic
questions:

Why draw a circle?
Why tear up the paper?

Whately Carington was a British psychical researcher who followed Rhine into the quantitative field
of telepathy research. He believed that he could improve results by getting "agent" and "percipient"
(sender and receiver) to link their thoughts unconsciously by looking at a similar object during
telepathy tests - a "K" object or idea. In Carington’s experiments, the target was a picture (chosen at
random) locked in the experimenter’s study in Cambridge. Percipients - all over the world - were
given a photograph of the study as a K object.

Presentation

I’d like you to help me with an experiment in telepathy. I’m going to begin by drawing a circle [or a
square - especially if using Jack Avis’s excellent Off-Centre Tear] in the middle of this piece of paper
- I’ll explain the reason for that in a moment. Now what I’d like you to do, please, is write the first
name of a friend inside the circle. Please print the name in block capitals - I’ll explain that too shortly.
Now please fold the paper into four [or whatever].

Please visualise what you wrote - in capitals - flashing on and off like a neon sign inside the circle.
Can you do that OK?

We’re conducting an experiment in telepathy - direct mind-to-mind communication. I don’t want to
confuse things by picking up an image from that piece of paper- that would be clairvoyance, not
telepathy - so I’m going to destroy it now you have that flashing sign in your mind.

Now, I’m going to concentrate on a circle too - that’s known as a K object, and it’s a way for us to get
ourselves mentally in tune with each other. [Here you can either draw a circle on a pad, and use it to
record your impressions, or you can concentrate on a Circle ESP card.]

Please flash that neon sign again, while I concentrate on this circle…………

Credits
Carington’s experiments are described in his book Telepathy (Methuen, 1945). The neon-sign
imagery is suggested in Marvin Kaye’s The Complete Magician (Macmillan, 1974). Jack Avis’s Off-
Centre Tear is written up in Ahead of the Pack, available from Ian Rowland.

© 2003 Barry Cooper

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NLP and Products for Mentalists:

My thoughts and experience

by Rex Sikes

PART FOUR
NLP language is designed to help one become more influential. Other NLP approaches are designed
for you to create better rapport. Having greater rapport and the ability to influence seem pretty
important to me as an entertainer. How about for you?

Imagine what it would be like right now if you were to discover yourself becoming better at what you
do beyond your wildest dreams? Would if be worth the time and effort it took to move your abilities
so far? Would you consider the investment worth it if you were better able to improve your abilities
easily and get more bang for your buck in your performances?

Well, I have had a quarter of a century involvement training NLP around the globe, developing
applications, working hand in hand with developers and contributors to the field and I had always
dreamed of offering NLP to the "magic" community in some form of program or book. Kenton beat
me too it.

Having half my life tied up in NLP and more than 3/4s tied up in magic, performing, acting, etc... I
think that whatever minor construed limitations there may be in Wonder Words, I find it an excellent
source for good effects, and for beginning to apply NLP concepts to one's magic and performance.
It is a resource that one should listen to again and again.

So it is true an experienced NLP person may evaluate a work differently than a newbie (at least I
would hope that would be the case) just as an experienced mind reader probably would do likewise
in our art versus a newbie. I still find value in Kenton Knepper's work and recommend it.

I also recommend my home study products and training in NLP (even though I am not currently
offering them for sale) and I do think a more in depth study of NLP is worthy of exploration and the
cost. I believe one can start applying NLP using Wonder Words and that provides a great advantage
for many people. Especially entertainers with our interests.

For those more versed in NLP they should look at the construction of the product, where it is good
and not so good or where it could benefit from some additions or subtractions or reworking and then
still consider how to utilize what they know and apply it to their area of expertise in magic.

I was disappointed when I learned of Wonder Words because someone beat me to the punch of a
long time dream. I was not disappointed in the product. In terms of effects - there are probably
somewhere between 18 and more than a couple dozen effects in the three volume series. Vol. 1.
effects are on audio tape and in Vols. 2 & 3 they are in booklet form.

Contributors include Kenton, Banachek, Dan Harlan, Hilford, Caldwell, and others. I think there are
some nice items.

As for the 7 Deceptions by Luke Jermay, a new book out. There are about 7 effects. Are they for
everyone - no, probably not. Are they good - yes, seem to be. Have not tried any yet. Are they 100%
successful all the time - no most likely not. But, like good equivoque they are do-able.

Consider equivoque as the art of using language to get a result - well Wonder Words, Completely
Cold, 7 Deceptions employs the same premise. Use language to create and enhance your effects
and effectiveness.

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But no, nothing is sure fire and these effects may take some effort and time to make work and get
regular results with.

BUT, I loved Luke's thinking, his applying NLP principles to effects and patter. I enjoyed his chutzpah
and his innovation. I was glad as a NLP'er to see what people are attempting to do and do with NLP
and hypnotic language patterns.

So yeah, I think there is some pretty good stuff in 7 Deceptions. Plus there are some tips and hints in
Wonder Words about directing attention, misdirection, creating ambiguity between what audience
hears and participant experiences. Plus suggestions on readings, tag lines, creating word pictures,
metaphors and emotional impact. And still there is more.

Are any of these products the end all to end all. No, - it is more of a beginning and a work in
progress. Worth it, - Yeah, I believe so. Is everything Kenton puts out worth it - my guess is sure - but
I haven't yet seen it all.

See for me, it is more about how people think about the art, the concepts and the principles. For me,
it is more about a body of work, about moving in a direction, than a particular piece of the puzzle.

Are there things I have been disappointed with - yeah, usually a prop, something I THOUGHT would
work as described but found that IT didn't. The difference with NLP is that I AM THE WORK - IT IS
UP TO ME - NLP is not a prop.

Writing about it can be strong or weak. There are both strengths and weaknesses in all that I have
mentioned here but the strengths outweigh any shortcoming. If you are a dedicated performer, a
student of mentalism, a student of people and you use language, patter or words to have affect on
people you should study Wonder Words, 7 Deceptions and NLP.

I hope this helps - but it is only my opinion.

Note: I don't offer training anymore because of my schedule performing. I still do consult and people
can sponsor training that I do. And I have produced and distributed NLP Home Study Programs. The
reason I bring this up - I currently have nothing to sell you. I have no investment in whether you
pursue NLP or not - other than to say that I find it immensely valuable - so valuable I spent a couple
of decades and more studying it, using it and making it available to others. Yes, it is some great stuff.
If you decide to pursue NLP training please read my article on my website about "How to find a good
NLP training."

Biography
Rex Sikes is a professional Mind Reader and motivational speaker. He has been performing publicly
since the age of 8. From Los Angeles, California, Rex performed as a Mind Reader, and appeared in
movies and on television. He speaks to international groups for corporations, small businesses, and
individuals.

Rex is also founder of IDEA Seminars, Inc., where he trains students from all over the world in
personal development and influential communication. Rex is a sought after speaker and presenter on
the powers of the mind and nonverbal communication for over 24 years now.

© 2002 Rex Sikes & Rex Sikes Productions, Inc.