Issue 4

July 2002

Center Tear

the thinking persons journal

Well it sure doesn’t feel like 2 months have passed since the last issue...

I don’t know what you all been up to, but for me the last couple of months have been fairly quiet. So
I’ve taken the opportunity to flick through my notebooks. Maybe its time to add something new to the
act!!

The next couple of months in Edinburgh are going to be pretty hectic with the Festival and all. This year
there seems to be a lot more ‘magic’ than usual, so I’m making the most of it. On the mentalism front
Marc Salem is back for another tour of duty and Danny Buckler also makes an appearance.

On the magic side we have Mr Sadowitz rearing his head again and Paul Zennon returns with his usual
style of ‘bill in lemon’!!!

So all in all its going to be a pretty busy couple of weeks...

Arcane

+++++ +++++ +++++ +++++ +++++

Chairvoyance Revisited by Sean Carpenter

Been There - by Christopher Taylor

Revelations by Tony Jackson

O.T.L. Dictionary Test by David Lang

The Channel : From "Weerd Enough" by Kenton Knepper

Suggestive by Prof Peter Arcane

Reviews

THE COMMERCIAL MANUFACTURING RIGHTS OF ANYTHING DESCRIBED IN CENTER TEAR ARE RETAINED BY THE CONTRIBUTOR

Chairvoyance Revisited by Sean Carpenter

The inspiration here is TA Waters' routine "Chairvoyance" from his book "Mind Myth and Magick". If you have
the book go and look it up now while I make a cup of tea - it's on page 639.

Welcome back. If you checked the Waters book you will know that the effect goes like this; A prediction has
been in full view since before the show. It proves to accurately describe the spectator sitting in "row 3 seat 6",
even though the prediction was made before the audience took their seats, and any spectator could have chosen
to sit in that chair! This is a strong effect, but there are a couple of things that restrict where you can perform
it. Firstly, you must display the prediction envelope so that everyone will notice it BEFORE they sit down. This
is essential as, otherwise, you will appear to have predicted the occupant of the chair AFTER they were already
sitting in it. This is not very impressive, so you really need a venue where the prediction can be hanging from
the ceiling, or somewhere similar. Another restriction is that, for the original method to work, you must decide
on a specific spectator pre-show. You then have to spot that individual during your act and be able to identify
(by number) the seat they are sitting in. This is not always easy, especially if the chairs are set out in an irregular
fashion, or your chosen spectator fails to sit near the front. If the seats aren't in easily identifiable rows, or your
spectator sits more than a few rows back, then you can't do the routine.

Here then, is an alternative method for the same effect. It eliminates both the problems I've mentioned, allowing
the routine to be performed reliably under a wider variety of performing conditions. It also gives you something
to do with the billet knife you've had in you drawer for years and never used. If you have such a knife in your
armoury then the method is very easy. When you arrive at the venue simply take an empty envelope, seal it,
and stick it underneath a prominent chair. One near the front of the audience where you can easily spot it is
best. Then, when the seats start to fill up, jot down a brief description of the spectator who sits in your chosen
chair. This description (surprise surprise) is loaded into the billet knife just before you begin your act.

In performance, reveal that before the show you sat in the audience and had a premonition. In fact it was so
strong that you felt compelled to write it down, seal it in an envelope, and stick it underneath the chair you were
sitting in at the time. Everyone is asked to feel underneath their seats and the spectator who finds the envelope
is invited to bring it onto the stage. Naturally, when the envelope is cut open, the prediction inside is found to
correctly describe that individual. The fact that the envelope was stuck to the bottom of the chair demonstrates,
very clearly, that the prediction must have been made before the spectator sat down, and makes for a very clean
effect.

+++++ +++++ +++++ +++++ +++++

Been There - part 2 by Christopher Taylor

(see Center Tear issue 3 for ‘Being There’)

This effect lends itself to endless variation. Here are a couple of my favorites:

1) I carry a decorative glass vial containing the ashes of several burned incense sticks and a sharp piece (about
2 inches long and half an inch wide) of soft, clear, glycerine soap. I give the vial to the participant and ask her
to open the cork and smell the pleasant scent. I explain that the vile came into my possession by way of a friend
who had been studying in China. I go on to modify the story a little to include another bench near the one the
'dreamer' is sitting on. On that bench is a small pot in which is burning a stick of incense. I ask her to remember
the scent she has just sampled from the vial. As she counts the rings, I simply write the digit on the back of my
hand with the soap. I have had the soap stick finger palmed all along and my hands are behind my back. When
she opens her eyes, I take the vial from her and have her tap out a small amount onto my hand. I then have
her rub the ash around on the back of my hand at this time I explain that the ashes in the vial are the very same
incense ashes from the garden. The number from her dream appears.

I have tried this using a body index, pre-writing the most common numbers on various parts of my arms and
under my shirt etc. I have found however, that I still have to keep the soap stick handy in case of unusual numbers
(like 21 one time!) as well as the space on the back of my hand free to write and reveal those unusual numbers
on. At those times, I found that the impact was just as strong as when I revealed a number that had been pre
written. Now, I do not bother doing the pre writing, which requires less preparation.

As an aside, it has occurred to me recently, that the ashes could have come from 'a garden that had been
destroyed by fire long ago'.

2) On a more 'magic' bent: I place the folded prediction message openly on the table (no envelope). At the
appropriate time, I open the message to show it is blank, role it up and burn it. It burns in a flash but rather than
being destroyed, the paper ball remains intact. It is opened to reveal the correct message. This is achieved by
combining the pocket index with Eugene Burger's 'Spirit Message' (Part II of Burger's Magical Voyages video
series). In other words, the blank message is a piece of flash paper, which is wrapped around the appropriate
billet that I have stolen from the pocket index.

3) An approach that I have not actually performed, but am keen on trying, is to use a fortune cookie from which
I have removed the message with a pair of tweezers. The cookie is placed on the table as the prediction. At
the appropriate time, a 'fortune billet', created on my computer, is stolen from the pocket index and finger palmed.
The hand holding the billet would then pick up the cookie off the table, crush it and place the crumbs and the
message into the participant's hand for her to pick through.

Revelations by Tony Jackson

Performer picks up a copy the Bible, flicks through it randomly and calls out
about 10 different words to a chosen spectator - asking them to remember
just one of the words and forget the rest.

You explain that you are now going to try and read their mind but before you
do this you would like to demonstrate just how hard this is to do. Point to
another spectator and tell them they are to try and receive a letter mentally
from the first spectator.

Turn to the first spectator and tell them to think of a letter in the word. Not the
first letter because that's too easy and not the second because that's usually
a vowel. Ask them to think of the third letter and try and project that letter into
this persons mind (alternative handling: use the entire audience as receivers!!).

When done ask the second spectator if they received a letter and to name it. Now unless the spectator really is
psychic the chances will be that they named the wrong letter (unless they're lucky!!).

After they name their letter ask the first spectator if they are correct, if they are then really play on it by saying
that they may have a really strong psychic link (laypeople love this kind of flattery). However if they were wrong
get the first spectator to name the letter to see how close they were.

If using the entire audience get the first spectator to think of a the letter, then name it aloud and ask the audience
to raise their hand if they were correct.

This is all a smokescreen as far as you are concerned it is all just a ploy to find out the third letter in a word.
Because once you have this letter you instantly know what the word is. Then it is up to you how you reveal the
thought of word.

Workings
When you call out the ten words from the bible it should appear that you are just flicking through and calling out
random words. What you actually do is call out a list of ten words which you have remembered using your
favourite mnemonic system.
Below is the list and an example of the mnemonics I use in the brackets:

1 (gun) thank
2 (shoe) overcome
3 (tree) faithful
4 (door) pilgrim
5 (hive) almighty
6 (sticks) promise
7 (heaven) Jerusalem
8 (gate) water
9 (line) counted
10 (hen) devotion

These words have all been chosen from the bible and have a different third letter. The following are the third
letters in order, from each word:

A, E, I, L, M, O, R, T, U, V

These are easy to remember as the first three are the first three vowels: A,E and I.
The fourth is L, as in 'heaven and L (hell)'.
The next four spell MORT (death).
The last two U and V, as in Ultra Violet

Of course if you do not wish to memorise all this, you could use a small crib sheet made up on a bookmarker.

So now it's easy, as soon as you find out the letter you know what the word is e.g. if the letter is L. The list tells
you L is the fourth letter and the fourth word is PILGRIM. If the third letter is M, M is the fifth letter and the fifth
word is ALMIGHTY.

I first saw this method of book/word test on Lee Earle's SYZYGY videos. I believe that effect was credited to
Richard Marks. I Just thought a bible would work better for a Bizarre presentation. Hope you like it…

O.T.L. Dictionary Test by David Lang

© David Lang 2002

Yes, I know. There are hundreds of book tests already out there! This certainly
isn't new, but it's simple, direct, clean, logical, and very strong. And it doesn't cost
much! If we could really read minds, we would just have the spectator think of a
word and then tell him what it was. Regrettably we can't, so we need to justify the
use of a book. This is usually based on the premise that people always think of
small, common words, which don't make it difficult enough. We want the spectator
to think of a truly random word, so we introduce a book, or sometimes three.

But if you wanted to look for a word, would you choose a dodgy looking book that
nobody has ever heard of? Would you make a big point of choosing one book
from three? I think not. You would use a dictionary. After all, we are looking for a
word and a dictionary has every word in the English language doesn't it? Dictionaries
are also imposing volumes that are utterly respectable and have a great authority.

Nobody questions its use. I use a large print dictionary from Collins. It's a truly impressive tome, containing
nearly 1,000 pages and measuring 8" x 10" x 2" thick. The large print helps the spectator and makes the book
bigger.

The spectator takes the dictionary and you tell him there are nearly 1,000 pages and over 45,000 entries. Ask
him to count them - it gets a laugh and prompts him to examine the dictionary without actually being asked to.

Having set up the premise that a word will be chosen from this large & impressive dictionary, you now need to
establish two further ideas. (A) That three page numbers will be selected at random by members of the audience
and (B) That you will never know which page numbers have been selected. Book tests where the performer
obviously knows the page number lead the audience to suspect that he has somehow memorised the entire
book. An impressive feat, but not the one we are presenting.

Three possible pages are forced using a variation of the Out to Lunch pad. Obtain a packet of 8" x 5" file cards.
Cut one down to 5" x 5", place it on top of the pack and secure all with a wide rubber band to cover the join.

The page numbers to be switched in are under the 5" x 5" card. Choose one near the front of the book, one
near the middle & one near the end. Memorise the header words either side of the page number for all three
pages, or if your memory is as bad as mine is, use a crib.

In many OTL effects, the card is signed. This is done for two reasons, to 'prove' that the card wasn't switched
and to make sure that the spectators don't write on the wrong side or half of the card. I've never been happy
with this; it attracts suspicion in my opinion. Using an OTL pad with the join offset and a little subtlety solves both
problems nicely. Who said the rubber band had to be around the middle anyway?

Assuming it's the 24th of February, pad in hand, look at the audience and say "23rd of February?" and write it
above the rubber band. Someone will correct you, if not correct yourself. Cross out the incorrect date & write
the correct one below. The pad can now be handed to three spectators with the instruction that they each write
down a page number between 1 and 1,000. Tell them not to let you see the numbers, nor to call them out loud.
Perform the OTL switch and hand the card to the spectator with the dictionary.

Ask the spectator with the dictionary to choose one of the numbers, look at that page and concentrate on the
word at the top. (It's best to show him/her what to do when you first hand them the dictionary). Do this with your
back turned towards him. A brief glance over the shoulder to ask, "have you done that" will tell you if he is looking
at the front, middle or back and you have the words. A little pumping will tell you which one, normally it's the
one on the outside edge of the page.

Instruct the spectator to use the card as a bookmark in case he needs to go back to the page, and then close
the book. If you were unsure of where he was looking first time, the bookmark confirms it. It also removes the
card from the spectator, without you having to ask for it.

After the usual concentrating bit, write the word on your clipboard. Take the dictionary in one hand and the
clipboard in the other, ready for a revelation & applause cue. Almost all of the time, the bookmark will protrude
from the dictionary with the crossed out date showing. Make sure the audience sees it. Recap about one word
from a choice of 45,000, free selection by the audience, free selection by the assisting spectator, no knowledge
of which page etc, show the clipboard first to the assisting spectator, then to the audience - and take a bow!

The Channel : From "Weerd Enough" by Kenton Knepper

The look from the audience view is a spectator deals some cards silently to the table, while the
performer's back is turned. The spectator then places a card into his own pocket. Finally he
reassembles the deck and the performer turns back around.

The performer refuses to touch the deck. Instead, he tells everyone he will "channel" the spectator.
So saying the performer drastically changes his posture and attitude. He closes his eyes and
begins to deal down invisible cards, all the time muttering to himself about what he is doing.
The spectator is a bit uneasy as he recognizes these are similar to the thoughts and actions he
himself had silently made.

Suddenly the performer seems to "snap out of it" and looks around at his invisible dealings. As he analyzes the
invisible layout, he names precisely the number of cards the spectator had previously dealt - including the card
in his pocket. Remember that the performer never touches the deck.

How can this be? First let's look at the easy but not-as-fun part.

The deck is a stacked deck. I use only the top ten to thirteen cards as a stack however. This means I can shuffle,
cut, and do all sorts of things to the cards - as long as I keep the top thirteen cards intact.

These thirteen cards I have marked on the back. This is no fancy ordeal actually. The top card of the stack is
marked with a small number "1" on it at both ends. I originally used Ted Lesley's excellent marking system for
this effect. I still recommend this when you can get it. If you cannot find this wonderful set of marking tools, I also
use the now common gel-pens that essentially contain "white out" in ballpoint pen form to do the marking.Yeah,
that alone should be worth the price of this manuscript to some of you. (In fact it has since become rather popular
- K)

Since I have thirteen cards to care about exclusively, I need mark just thirteen. Each is marked with a number,
but no suit. I can remember the same thirteen cards in the same order without too much of a headache. I hate
to try and memorize such things, but this is SO easy after a few attempts. These stacked cards are marked 1-
13 in order from the top down.

If that is not to your liking use a simple stack you already know. I used the thirteen spade cards in order no less,
when I first began performing this effect! That was pretty bold, but the audience never sees all of the top cards
anyway, so I did that before I memorized thirteen cards. Do what you will, naturally.

The marked thirteen cards are on top of the deck in order, marked card #1 on top. I instruct the spectator before
I turn around that he is to deal cards face down one at a time on to the table into a pile. He is also to recall how
many cards he has dealt on to the table. This is important, so be sure he understands. He should deal quietly
though so you cannot hear how many cards he is dealing of course. Notice that this last instruction also reminds
him indirectly to deal the cards one at a time. I love sneaky phrases like this, as you know.

The spectator is to tell you when he has stopped dealing, or maybe you can tell him - if you are a mentalist. Just
before you turn your back remark, "Let's keep this short and deal say about ten cards or less so you don't forget
how many you dealt, and mainly so this won't take all night, okay? It's really boring otherwise"!

Find your own words and style naturally, but you get the drift. This subtly tells him to stay within the top thirteen
cards or under without being obvious. You have overloaded the spectator now with so many instructions he will
likely do all he can to get it right. This is devious stuff. Put the emphasis on BOREDOM and "taking all night"
and "then we'd have to do it all over" and then LISTEN as he deals.

In my experience, you can TELL when a spectator may be taking too long to deal. If you get this feeling, remind
them not to take too long, ten cards or less, that it will take forever otherwise, that sort of thing. You MIGHT have
to say this, but usually you do not. I've said it four or five times now in I cannot say how many years.

Of course, do not choose a completely rebellious person to use in such affairs.

Once the spectator has stopped dealing, ask him if he knows how many
cards he has dealt himself. If not, tell him that's okay. Regardless he is to look at the top card of the deck. He
is to place that card into his pocket without showing it to anyone else. Finally, tell him to pick up the pile on the
table and place the entire pile back on to the top of the deck. Point out this way you could not tell how many
cards he dealt himself.

NOW we get to the fun part! You turn around and glance at the deck as you say, "I don't want to touch the cards
at all". You don't have to touch them - you just looked to see the marking on the top card of the deck. This number
tells you how many cards he dealt.

continued over...

If the top card's number is a "6", then he dealt SIX cards. If the top card's number is "11" then he dealt ELEVEN
cards, and so on. Now you secretly know how many cards he dealt and because the deck is stacked - you know
what the next card is in your stack - the very card he has in his pocket.

You know it all without doing a single thing as far as the audience can tell. The work is finished. Playtime is here!

Say that you will now channel an entity to help you. This might get a few laughs depending on how you play it.
Shake your head and say, "But he is still with us, alive and right here… For I will channel the essence of YOU",
you remark as you point to the spectator. Chances are you will get a few laughs at this point at least.

Close your eyes. To make this truly effective you must use your
imagination. That's the real secret to this effect. IMAGINE that you are this spectator. Stand as he stands. Feel
the weight he has or doesn't have compared to your own. Feel his timing, motion,and movements. You have met
him, so there are certain things you have noticed about this person right away. Use this in your imaginings of
being this person. Don't "act". BE. Imagine.

You may not think you can do this, but you can and you can do it easily right away. Most people just never try.
It's even easier with your eyes closed, as they are in this case during your "channeling". Now imagine picking
up the deck, and move your hands as if you hold the actual cards. Imagine dealing the cards one at a time on
to the table. Do these actions with the invisible deck the way you IMAGINE the SPECTATOR would do. Speak
out loud, but almost as if you are trying not to be heard. Say the sort of things you think might have gone through
the spectator's mind as he dealt.

You might not know for a fact, but you can IMAGINE that you know at least some of it. Mutter these words as if
the spectator is speaking out loud to himself as he deals. Even if you get one idea or sentence that he recognizes
particularly, he will be entirely amazed.

PLAY this up. Imagine that you are actually "channeling" the spectator, and it will appear that this is the case
somewhat at least. This is funny. It is eerie. It is spooky. It is WEERD. You have to have the fortitude to DO it
that's all. Risk. Recall that you will end fine regardless, as you will reveal the EXACT number of cards dealt as
you mutter and channel dealing these cards. You will end fine, so have fun playing it up!

I might say as the spectator for instance, "I am concerned in that this odd man has told me many things to do
yet in his excitement he was not completely clear and factual. I am willing to help him naturally, as I wish him
no ill will. I am taking up a bit of time. I had best deal a few cards… not too many. Quietly he said. One, two
three… in a pile as I recall correctly… four should suffice… Yes I am finished dealing. Yes I will look at that
card…Let us see… we have the ten of diamonds… I will place that away… (Then snapping out of the trance)
Huh? What the…?

Wait! I get it. I see that he, I mean YOU dealt four cards and then you put that card in your pocket- the TEN OF
DIAMONDS! That's it isn't it? Thank you for allowing me into your being…"

The words used, as well as the body posture, timing and motions should all reflect the spectator at least in a
superficial way. IMAGINING allows for some very amazing revelations in thought and action that at times only
the spectator alone could have known. This makes for wonderful reactions.

In the worst case scenario you might turn around and see the marked number "1" still sitting on top of the deck.
If the spectator insists he dealt cards down and has one in his pocket and so forth, do NOT worry. Go through
the whole channeling bit, but in such rare cases USE the deck as you "channel". When you deal the cards down
you will notice a number missing from your stack. That will tell you which card he has in his pocket and one less
than this number is the number of cards he dealt or pushed aside.

Don't forget the sheer entertainment of the "channeling" is what makes this a riot. I mean that in the most sincerely
humorous way imaginable. In other words play it as it fits you and you will succeed - be it serious or comedic.

The bonus to all of this is how often you will "hit" on certain thoughts, feelings and/or actions of the spectator
which you simply could not have otherwise known. That is when this entertaining piece turns "brutal". I mean
that in the best sense of the word as well.

Suggestive by Prof Peter Arcane

Sometimes its tough to get THEM to believe! We need something up our sleeves. When faced with the non-
believer I have used the following ideas, and I have done successfully for many, many years.

Do not under estimate the power of the following. Use them wisely and BELIEVE...

Eyes on the back of your head

Ask your seated(!) volunteer if they are happy to cooperate in an experiment of suggestion. Having been given
the ok, you are ready to begin.

Ask your volunteer to close their eyes and as they do so you repeat,
"Close your eyes - tight - tighter - absolutely tight. Now roll your eyes back and imagine Ask your seated(!)
volunteer of they are happy to cooperate in an experiment of suggestion. Having been given the ok, you are
ready to begin. Ask your volunteer to close their eyes and as they do so you repeat, "Close your eyes - tight -
tighter - absolutely tight.
Now roll your eyes back and imagine you are looking at the back of your head. I am going to count to six slowly.
As I begin to count I want you to try and open your eyes. Because of your deep concentration you cannot open
them, you will find that no matter how hard you try your eyes will refuse to open."

Now you start to count. Use the following script as a guide:
"ONE - eyes closed, look at the back of your head. You cannot open the.
TWO - your eyes are fixed tightly shut
THREE - you try to open them; you cannot open them Your eyes are getting tighter.
FOUR - tighter still, absolutely tight. It's impossible to open them.
FIVE - try as hard as you can, your eyes fail to open. You cannot open them."

At the count of "SIX" snap your fingers and say,
"OK, wake up. You can open your eyes quite comfortably. Everything is normal."

The above experiment is really "a cheat". For it is impossible to open your eyes when your eyeballs are turned
up and towards the back of your head. Try this yourself.
your fingers and say,
"OK, wake up. You can open your eyes quite comfortably. Everything is normal."

The above experiment is really "a cheat". For it is impossible to open your eyes when your eyeballs are turned
up and towards the back of your head. Try it yourself...

Hands up!

Ask your (seated) volunteer to clasp their hands tightly, and place them over their head with palms outward and
to press tightly but firmly on their head. Then repeat the following:

"You cannot unclasp your hands. I shall again count to six slowly. While I am doing this, if you concentrate very
hard on not being able to take your hands away from your head, you will be unable to do so."

"ONE - you cannot take your hands away. Try hard. It is impossible.
TWO - absolutely impossible
THREE - you cannot take your hands away
FOUR - impossible, absolutely impossible
FIVE - your trying very hard, the harder you try the more difficult it becomes."

Then at the word, "SIX" snap your fingers and tell them to bring their hands down from their head and that they
can unclasp them.

Again this is "a cheat" for it is a physical impossibility, with clasped fingers in the position described, to unclasp
them.

continued on next page...

Suggestive cont...

Invisible Thread

I think as kids we must have all played with this once or twice.

Ask the volunteer to clasp their hands togther. Now get them to un-clasp their first fingers and extend them. So
it looks like a church with a steeple…
You ask them to part the first fingers so there is about an inch gap between the fingertips. You now explain that
you have some fine invisible thread and you are going to bind it round the fingers.

Take your first finger, either right or left and extend it. Now start to circle the volunteers finger with your finger.
Just imagine you are winding thread round their fingers. Slowly their fingertips will start to move closer and closer
together.

OK, there's not much to this, but as a way of breaking the ice or to justify the way the mind works when given a
suggestion - it's a winner. Follow it with the next little gem to really create something special.

No attraction!

Hand the volunteer a pendulum. This should consist of a small metal weight attached to ribbon or string (about
300mm long). You now ask them to hold it above a small metal bar that you place on the table.

You explain to the volunteer that the bar is magnetised and that its properties are such that the pendulum will
swing in the direction of the bar. Show the direction you mean with your first finger, pointing first at one end of
the bar and then moving along its length to the other.

Ask the volunteer to hold the pendulum above the bar. The pendulum will start to swing - left to right. After a
moment, stop the pendulum and turn the bar so that it is running away from the volunteer. You now state that
the pendulum will now move forward and back, again following the bar.

To end this experiment remove a large round ring. Lay it on the table and explain to the volunteer that again this
is magnetised. So this time the pendulum will rotate round the ring.

SO WHAT! I hear you cry?

Well the bar and the ring are not magnetic in any way. Actually no magnets are used, the volunteer moves the
pendulum involuntarily. You plant a suggestion that the pendulum should follow the bar and the ring, and move
in a certain direction. When in actually fact it shouldn't move at all!! It's the volunteers subconscious controlling
the movement. Try it I think you'll be surprised.

Reviews

WHAT'S YOUR TRINE? - a review by Prof. Peter Arcane m.e.m.c.

I don't want to tell YOU about this, I want it to be MY secret…

WHAT'S YOUR TRINE? Is something of beauty and wonderment. They'll be talking about it before you even
start and they'll leave wanting - pleading you to come back.

Dennis Marks has created the prefect tool for those serious about giving a Zodiac reading that the sitter will never
forget. And guess what - it even works if you've never given a reading before. Everything is there before your
eyes!

For the ones who have knowledge of the Zodiac don't turn your back. You will be more than amazed at the
reaction this little beauty gets. It's incredible!!

When I gave this a run through at one of my bookings, it certainly floored me. Starting my first reading with
'WHAT'S YOUR TRINE?' left them with no doubt that I had more than a gift. I wouldn't like to admit it but I think
the reason for my repeat booking was WHAT'S YOUR TRINE? alone!!

You start by knowing nothing - you end with THEM begging for more…

A serious tool for those you want to be taken seriously.

DENNIS MARKS presents WHAT'S YOUR TRINE?

Never done a "reading" routine before? Now you can!

Bring out colorful ribbon-banded antiqued ZODIAC packets with the headings FIRE, EARTH, AIR, and WATER.
-The astrological Trines! Without your looking she chooses one. You place an envelope on the table. You ask
her...anything! You say you need her answers to know how she must cut her packet to reveal her fate, her future.
She'll giggle... She'll wiggle... She'll think! Her breathing grows huskier as she responds. She laughs to relieve
her excitement. Ahhh, now don't change a thing. That answer was perfect!

You begin a reading, (actually reading from the back of a "sign," designed by England's Ken deCourcy) giving
personal characteristics, traits, hints for the future, lucky numbers, lucky days, lucky gems! She agrees with your
reading! Now you display the Zodiac sign! You are right! It is hers! Then, to prove you knew which sign she
was before you asked a single question, you remove its duplicate from the envelope in sight before the reading
began! And you present it to her, her Zodiac symbol and your reading! You sign it (along with your phone
number?)

DENNIS MARKS has created the perfect reading routine for those who have never done a reading before as
well as for those more experienced. No memorization! No extra knowledge required! Everything supplied! You
will use it over and over and over! (You could even earn a living with it.)

WHAT'S YOUR TRINE? is worth at least $100. But now for a limited time this is a PEA exclusive. Only 100
made and now only $35.00 plus $9.00 postage for a total of $44.00! Will be sent in U.S. Priority Mail envelopes.
Cash or check to:

Dennis Marks / 5711 Camellia Ave./ Suite 209 North Hollywood, CA / 91601

email: [e-mail]

Reviews cont.

"The Arcane Approach" - a review by Gardinski

In his new manuscript, 'The Arcane Approach', the mysterious Professor Peter Arcane (a.k.a. Trevor McCombie)
addresses the dilemma which must eventually face every successful charlatan: What to do when an audience
member, overwhelmed by your onstage omniscience, comes up after the show and asks you to 'read their mind'
or 'predict their destiny'.

For the straight mentalist, such enquiries can be handled simply and elegantly with a nifty psychological force,
(or a slick one-liner, depending on your 'style'). But for the bizarrist, matters are a little more complicated. Bizarre
magick is inextricably intertwined with storytelling: long, involved presentations, heavy on symbolism, carefully
sculpted to build dramatic tension. It is an artform which does not lend itself to impromptu demonstration. Having
spent the previous hour convincing the punters that you are a Fifth Ipsissimus of the left-hand path who frequently
hangs out with demons and knows the Tarot back to front... suddenly admitting that you're really just a chartered
accountant from Basingstoke who only does this on his days off is going to seriously blow your cover.

Of course, you could take a few months out of your busy schedule to slavishly learn a 'proper' reading system...
or you could cheat!

'The Arcane Approach' allows you to deliver a swift and powerful Tarot reading in minutes, regardless of prior
experience, and with little or no preparation. Not only will it teach you a simple and convincing means of
interpreting a spread of cards from the Major Arcana, but there is an added twist which will undoubtedly endear
'The Approach' to mentalists and bizarrists alike. You may invite the querent to mentally select any card from
the spread, and then proceed to divine the thought-of card by means of a fiendishly cunning principle. The
'divination' aspect of the routine is essentially self-working, which enables you to concentrate on weaving a
spellbinding performance.

One of the great strengths of the manuscript comes in the final section: a skeletal cold-reading script for use with
the routine. This section provides a basic set of all-purpose generalities. Simply reciting these generalities
parrot-fashion would give you enough material to create a compelling illusion of eerily insightful psychic powers,
but Prof Arcane wisely advises readers to 'flesh out' the bare-bones of the material in accordance with their own
personality in order to give the readings a stamp of individuality.

For novice cold-readers, or those who have always wanted to look into this area, but might be unnerved by the
high price of much cold-reading material, 'The Arcane Approach' will provide an intriguing insight into the way a
seemingly-profound reading can be constructed. Make no mistake: this is no ordinary, throwaway 'magic trick'.
In the right hands, there is a serious risk that you could end up convincing people of your uncanny powers of
divination and mind-reading. Just don't say I didn't warn you when you find yourself surrounded by a cartload
of bewildered devotees.

Prof Peter Arcane

M.E.M.C

for more info: www.arcane.5u.com/
email:[e-mail]