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SHOWMANSHIP
For
MAGICIANS
CHAPTER NINE
Timing and pointing are two very closely related tools of the expert showman. Without a good sense of these two essentials, it is almost impossible to be a good entertainer. They are perhaps the two most important expedients in that most difficult of all branches of the show business, comedy.
Perfect examples of timing and pointing are available weekly to everyone through the performances of the top radio comics such as Bob Hope, Edgar Bergen, Jack Benny, Fred Allen and many others. Notice the tempo of delivery, the pauses, the emphasis, the slowing down of tempo as a point is about to be reached and the longer pause just before the carefully timed delivery of the punch line. This is not extemporaneous. It is the most deliberately studied arrangement in the program.
Part of it rests in conveying the situation leading up to the gag. The slightly slower tempo is to set up the exact set of conditions unmistakably, clearly, to the spectators. The pause, often, is psychological, to tease attention and anticipation so that the surprise or devastating punch will hit the auditor with full impact.
Pointing indicates, or shows, the objective. Timing has to do with EMPHASIZING that objective. Pointing tells you, "This is it." Timing says, "Look how important it is."
Timing might be defined, in this sense, as the deliberate control or regulation of tempo as to speech, movement or business, selecting and spacing time, as portions of duration, in such a manner as to accomplish a definite objective unmistakably. That objective might be to secure understanding clearly, to add surprise, to develop punch, to add meaning, to build up to a climax, to build up suspense, provoke anticipation or any of the multitudinous objectives possible in public entertainment.
A familiar example of timing is the gradual retard in volume or diminuendo a singer uses, if he is a good showman, as he approaches the end of his number. Notice how he gradually slows the tempo, more and more, as he comes to the climax of the song, building it up to a smash finish.
The writer has always gotten a good reception for his presentation of the razor blade trick. It is almost entirely a matter of build up and suspense through timing.
Because in the theater it is almost impossible to distinguish the razor blades, particularly from the rear seats and the balcony in a large house, it was found necessary to prelude the routine with the explanation that "These are razor blades." Except for these words, and the piano solo, even when an orchestra was available, background of Rachmaninoff's "Prelude In C-Sharp Minor," painstakingly timed to the routine, the presentation is silent.
With no lighting, except for a white spotlight, the package of razor blades is exhibited. The explanation is given, after which each blade is unwrapped and shown individually. Just once during this unwrapping I seem to cut myself accidentally. It is a minor cut of no consequence and the appearance is given that the performer is trying to cover his awkwardness, even though bothered a bit by the cut. Once only, a blade is shown to be sharp by slicing a piece of paper.
The emphasis is on unwrapping the blades and showing each individually. This is done with some deliberateness. Then, one at a time, in a tempo just a bit slower, the blades are dipped in a glass of water and, thus moistened, are placed within the mouth.
A sip is taken from the glass after the last blade is out of sight and simultaneously a spool of thread is taken from the pocket.
With great care and deliberation a length of white thread is unreeled from the spool and broken off. This is folded and also placed in the mouth. There is a pause of approximately ten seconds, without any movement on the part of the performer. Then he slowly reaches towards his mouth.
The end of the thread is seized and one blade is brought forth. On the first of the final seven grand chords in the Prelude the second blade is brought into view. The chords, impressive, magnificent, lifting, gradually retard slower and slower-and with each chord a blade appears-until with the final chord the last blade is revealed. And the performer grasps the free end of the thread, holding the flashing blades dangling in front of him. And slowly bows, even as the chords are still echoing.
I am aware that amateur magicians criticize me severely because they believe I take too much time with this trick. But the criticisms of amateur magicians, generally, are valueless. As a matter of fact there is invariably more destructive criticism from an amateur magician, in discussing almost any performance of magic, than there is constructive. There is a psychological reason for this, going back into the critic's ego.
So it is best not to listen to the volunteer critic, unless one has reason to know that his taste is sound and his advice valuable.
I have performed this trick hundreds of times in hundreds of different ways. The blades have been used both wrapped and unwrapped. They have been placed in the mouth in a bunch and singly. The tempo has been varied, slow and fast and combinations of both. I've tried it with and without patter. It has been tried with and without music. Other musical settings have been used with it.
That routine has been developed on a basis of AUDIENCE RESPONSE. It is the culmination of years of experiment in selling the trick to the public. For ME, it is the most effective method of presentation. That is why I use it.
Now I don't particularly enjoy performing the razor blade trick. It is the one trick in my repertoire I least enjoy doing. I made this statement to a chap one time, and he immediately rushed into print with the statement that I said it was the least effective trick I did. He, of course, didn't understand me and took me to task because in his opinion it was the most effective thing I did.
To set matters right: I least enjoy doing that trick. But I do it because it receives the STRONGEST RECEPTION OF ANYTHING I DO. I know it is one of my best audience registrations. That's why I do it. That's why, as I've often said, a magician should not necessarily select the tricks he likes to do best. He should select those that the AUDIENCE likes best.
The entire impression is made through timing.
Another example of timing comes from a specially written finish for a low comedy magic act we used in the International Magicians. In this act nothing the comedy magician tried came out the way he intended it to. But instead of taking the blame for the failure, every expression of the performer plainly showed that he blamed his poor, stupid, silent low-comedy assistant.
As his final number the curtains opened and two added assistants were seen standing on either side of the piece of illusion apparatus known as The Disembodied Princess. After some by-play, the magician entices his assistant into the cabinet and the doors are closed after which the usual blades are slid through, trisecting the hapless helper.
Now comes the illustration in timing:
The magician opens the door, disclosing the helper's legs. He opens the upper door, showing the head. Then he swings open the front middle door and likewise opens the door at the rear. The assistant has no middle. His body is missing from thigh to neck.
Without any further ado, satisfaction on his face, he picks up his hat and starts for the left downstage wings, not even looking back at the illusion.
One of the assistants yells, "Hey. Aren't you going to put him together again?"
The magician continues, unanswering, until he reaches a position about four steps from the exit. Then he turns and asks, "What the hell do you think I am?" He turns and takes three steps further, bringing him about one step from the wings.
Then he turns again and adds, "A magician?"
He claps on his hat and steps out of sight.
Curtain.
Pointing is emphasizing and accenting, by word and action, in such a manner that the material is aimed at a particular effect. It is the directing of all effort towards a specific objective upon which the entertainer desires to fix attention with special importance. It is a matter of interpretation, resembling misdirection, under which classification misdirection really belongs. Misdirection is a minor division under the heading of pointing.
The mere recitation of patter is not pointing. The delivery of lines, with interpretation, facial expression, gestures and other accentuation, in such manner that attention is directed to a specific end, is pointing. An example of pointing is shown in the substitution trunk routine we developed for the International Magicians.
The curtain opens to disclose a lazy Mexican, lying flat on his back, head comfortably cradled in his arms, hat over his face, thoroughly partaking of his siesta. Behind him is an adobe wall and one corner of the hacienda. To one side, tired and dejected, may be seen the drooping form of his long-suffering spouse, sitting patiently atop a large trunk.
Finally the girl says, "If we do not be moving right away, we will never get thees trunk to Mexico City."
From beneath the hat: "I cannot walk another step until I have rested. I am very tired."
"You are very lazy," the girl exclaims indignantly. "It is I who have carried thees trunk all the way from Juarez. And I am not tired."
"You have not the brains to be tired-so I have to be tired for you."
The girl says scornfully, "Oh, I have not the brains, eh? I have the brains to ask two dollar for to carry thees trunk."
The man gets to one elbow. "Si , Si , muchacha. But I have the brains to collect the money." He waves the bills in the air nonchalantly.
The girl grabs at the money, saying, "Here. That is mine."
But without exerting undue energy, the man pulls the bills out of reach. "Don't ever try a trick like that again. If I am on my feet now, I teach you a lesson., Remind me to beat you sometime when I am stand up." He settles back to sleep again.
At this juncture four men tourists enter and one of them says, "Could you tell us the direction to Mexico City?"
Pointing with his foot, but otherwise unmoving, the Mexican says, "It is six kilometer that way."
When one of the men remarks, "Those are the laziest instructions I ever heard," another says to the Mexican, "If you do a lazier trick than that I'll give you a dollar."
Languidly the Mexican rolls over so that his pocket is upper-most and says, "Put the money in my pocket and I show you."
Having received the money, the Mexican gets to his feet reluctantly and shuffles lazily over to prop himself comfortably against the proscenium arch. Then he directs his wife to show the trunk to the men. While this is being done, incidentally showing the trunk as well to the audience, the Mexican dozes peacefully. But a large cutout caricature of a head pops up over the top of the adobe wall and ducks out of sight again.
Presently it returns, but accompanied by two others. They are disreputable-looking Mexicans with an overwhelming curiosity directed towards the trunk.
Suddenly the dozing Mexican whips out a revolver and lets fly at the eaves-droppers. They fall behind the wall.
One of the tourists cries, "Who's that?"
"Oh," says the Mexican with a shrug, indifferently, "They are my brothers. All the time they try to steal this trick."
At this juncture a lovely girl in shorts enters and is greeted by the tourists. The Mexican takes one look at her and says to his wife, "Ramona. You go home."
Ramona flashes a vengeful look at the other girl, but dutifully starts off. As she reaches the wings she stops and says, "Pancho. Someday I kick the hell out of you." But she leaves.
Under the Mexican's direction the girl is placed in the sack and into the trunk. The trunk is roped and locked after which a sort of a tent-like canopy is held over the trunk by the four men.
Still leaning against the proscenium, Pancho says, "You think Pancho is a very lazy guy, no? Well, I am now going to show you the fastest trick in the world."
One of men says "Oh, yeah?"
Pancho takes out a cigarette, calmly lights it. He blows out the match, apathetically. "I show you I move pretty damn quick.
WATCH!"
With that he suddenly galvanizes into action. He leaps across the stage. He dives into the canopy. Almost in the same instant the four men jerk the canopy away from the trunk. But the girl, in bewilderment, dashes forward crying, "Where's Pancho?"
Ultimately, after the trunk has been opened and the sack has been untied, Pancho, of course, is found sitting comfortably inside the trunk, smoking the cigarette.
Curtain
As is well known, the substitution trunk is particularly one of great speed. Miss Adair and myself had so routined every movement, economizing time and eliminating movements-even to the point that I dived directly into the trunk from the outside of the canopy, that we were out of sight only two-fifths of a second, by repeated timings with stop watch.
To emphasize this speed the lines and action were all pointed constantly to the contrast of the extremely lazy magician and the consequently unexpectedly sensational speed which the trick featured. The punch was made stronger by this contrast.
As an example of pointing, this routine was selected because the pointing is so clear and unmistakable. But the majority of such examples are much subtler and less direct, as employed usually in professional entertaining.
In the case of the finale to the comedy act outlined previously, the magician was building up to the eventual fate of his low-comedy assistant being left without his middle, in showing his increasing disgust with the clumsiness of his assistant throughout the earlier part of the act. This was definitely pointing to the ultimate laugh climax, building up a reason for the assistant's ultimate finale predicament and the magician's ultimate revenge.
Pointing is the stressing of all factors to a definite aim, stressing in every way attention on the desired end and lightening the emphasis on any distracting by-path. There should not be a multitude of objectives. Each trick to be most effective should concentrate on one single climax.
Such climaxes might be danger, comedy smash, surprise, impossibility, incongruity, action, sentiment or any other similar conceivable aim.
For a danger climax stress is laid on the factors contributing the danger. Often this may be done through subtle little touches, such as the feigned accidental cut mentioned in the presentation of the razor trick.
In the case of the comedy, emphasis should be put on those factors that will strengthen the comedy point, whichever type of comedy may be utilized. Everything which will distract from this ultimate goal should be subordinated or eliminated
For a surprise climax, stress should be placed on those factors that will lead away from a premature denouement. All attention should be given to insure no betraying clues.
Obviously the most effective pointing would accent the logic and reasonableness of something else when a climax of impossibility or incongruity is desired, with equal effort devoted to making what the ultimate result is to be seem entirely out of the realm of plausibility or reasonableness.
Where emotional responses are desired all of the possibilities of making the spectator place himself in the same situation, in order to secure his sympathetic reaction, should be emphasized. Remember that emotion results when the subject, confronted with a response deadlock during the conflict of impulses within himself, endeavors to determine a direction for reaction.
Good general rules for the presentation of a trick or a program of tricks follow: Gradually slow down your tempo as you approach the climax of your trick or act. During the last few moments of your final effect retard the action more and more. Pause two or three seconds after each IMPORTANT phrase. Pause almost twice as long just before the phrase establishing a point. These are general rules for insuring clarity and adding punch through captured attention.
Each trick may be regarded as a sub-climax. The first trick is started at normal tempo and that tempo is maintained except for a slight retard at the end. On the next trick pick up the tempo again, but not quite so much as at the beginning of the first trick. Slow down a little more this time at the climax. The third number is picked up in tempo again, but not quite as fast as the second effect, and it is retarded again during the last few moments. And so on with any additional numbers, each started not quite as fast as the preceding trick and retarded just a bit more towards the end.
It must be emphasized again. This is not an invariable rule. But it is generally useable for any ordinary routine of tricks where the performer is confident and poised.
Tricks of timing, tricks of pointing are available constantly in the performance of top-flight entertainers. Notice their pace, their pauses, the inflection and accent. Listen to the tone and character of the voice. And if it is a visible entertainment as well watch the posture, inclination, movement and other handling of the body. A few notes, taken now and then when you see or hear particularly effective illustrations will soon supply you with a notebook of practical applications.