FIRST EDITION, MARCH 1985
COPYRIGHT 1985 BY JUSTIN HIGHAM
[Recently added comments in square brackets.]
CONTENTS
Foreword
High-am Rise
One by One Ascanio Style
The LAP Side Steal
EZ2 Third Version
The Carnivor-ace Aces
Revolving Aces Lead in
The Bold Assembly
Paddling in the Oil and Water
Kard Kontrols 3 and 4
No Force Impossible Countdown
The Crandall Assembly
FOREWORD
All Hands On Deck! contains twelve effects, ideas, sleights, and routines for the cardman.
I haven't described any of the standard moves like the HaLo Cut, Ascanio Spread, or Tilt because most of the people who will buy this sort of book will probably know these sleights and techniques. However, I have made references to some of the lesser-known moves for those who may be unfamiliar with them.
I also haven't given any of my thoughts or ideas on presentation; this is because I have none (mainly due to the fact that I rarely perform for laymen).
A 2nd book is already being planned and should be out later on this year, but for now I hope you enjoy this small collection of effects.
Justin Higham (London, March 6, 1985).
HIGH-AM RISE
This is a simplified version of John Mendoza's 'On The Elevator', First Method and Routine (The Book of John, Mendoza, pp. 49-51).
Mendoza's addition to Marlo's 'Penetration' or 'Elevator' effect is that at the end of the routine the three Spade cards change to Hearts.
Stack the deck as follows from the top down: 3H, 3S, 2S, AS, AH, rest of deck, 2H.
1. Double Lift and Turnover to display the 3S. Turn the double face down and deal the top card to the table, to your right. Double Turnover again to show the 2S, then turn it face down and deal to the left of the Three. And again Double Turnover to show the AS. With the Ace still face up, use the KM Move to dump the card behind it, then deal the Ace to the left of the other two cards. (The reason for dealing the Ace face up is simple: after a short period of time the spectators may forget which end of the. row starts with the Ace if it is face down.)
2. Double Undercut the top card, the 2S, to the bottom of the deck.
3. Position the top card for Tilt and at the same time reach for the face-up Ace. Turn it face down and place it 2nd from the top, apparently into the centre of the deck. Collapse the Tilt break then Double Lift to show that the Ace has risen to the. top. Turn the double face down and deal the top card back into its space on the table, i.e., to the left of the other two cards.
4. Pick up the middle card, the 2S (?), and place it onto the deck. Riffle down the side of the deck then turn it face up to show the 2S on the bottom. Execute Elliott's Card Change (Controlled Miracles, Simon, pp. 22-23) to end up with the supposed 2S face down in the right hand, and the deck face up in the palm-down left hand. Place the Two onto the table between the other two cards. As Mendoza suggests, the Glide could be used instead of the Elliott Change.
5. Re-grip the deck so it is face down in the left hand. Take the deck from above with the right hand and take a thumb break above the bottom card. Place the deck onto the 3S (?) and pick it up, maintaining the break. Immediately cut the bottom two cards to the top as one, and take the deck with the left hand.
6. Marlo Pull Down the. bottom card and place the top card 2nd from the bottom, apparently under the deck.
7. Riffle upwards then Double Lift to show the 3S on top. Turn palm down to show an X card on the bottom, then turn palm up and flip the double face down. Deal the top card to the right of the other two.
8. The effect is apparently over; pause a few seconds then turn the cards face up to show that they are now red.
The switch in step 5 is based on JK Hartman's Bototo Switch (Packet Magic, Hartman, p. 8). Alternatively Marlo's Bottop Change (The Cardician, Marlo, pp. 35-36) could be used, i.e., pick up the 3S (?), do the Change, then go into step 6.
(December 15, 1984)
ONE BY ONE, ASCANIO STYLE
This is a version of Ian Land's 'One By One' routine. (See his various ideas in Five Knuckle Shuffles 1 and 2. As he says the basic Diminishing Twist idea comes from Bob Walker). All of the Land routines used various counts, so I set about finding a method where the cards could be spread:
1. Run through the deck and out the AC to the top. Holding the deck in Standard Peek Position, have a card peeked at and hold a break below it. Execute the following four-part Running Cut sequence: cut off approximately half the cards above the break and drop them onto the table. Cut off all the cards up to the break and place them onto the tabled portion. Cut off another packet and place them onto the tabled cards, then place the remaining portion on top. (This is a Marlo Key-Card Placement).
2. Turn the deck face up and spread through it. Cut the AC to the face, then place the 4C, 2C, and 3C onto it in that order from the face. Lift off the top five cards as four, then table the deck face down. Cut the deck into three equal portions and leave them side by side.
3. Spread the packet as four Clubs, keeping the last two squared as one. Square up and turn face down. Double Lift to show the AC, then execute Jerry Hartman's Underturn (Epilogue 7, pp. 1-2; Means and Ends, Hartman, pp. 10-11) to end up with the Ace secretly face up 2nd from the top.
4. Back Spread the packet as four, and at the same time side-jog the face-up Ace. As you close the spread allow the Ace to slip under the right long edge of the 2nd face-down card. After squaring the Ace will be 3rd from the top.
5. Ascanio Spread to show all face down. Square up and transfer one card from top to bottom. Ascanio Spread again to show that the AC has turned face up. Take the double card with the right hand and use it to flip the squared left-hand packet face up. Immediately place the Ace onto the face of the packet to keep the selection from coming into view. Take the Ace off the packet with the right hand, Wrist-Turning the packet to kill the reversed card, and place it onto the leftmost tabled packet.
6. Turn the left-hand cards face down and transfer one card from top to bottom. Execute a Partial Ascanio Spread, but don't remove the double card from the packet; leave it in place. (See The Ascanio Spread, Racherbaumer, p. 31; Kabbala Vol. 2, No. 3, pp. 17-18). Square up, transfer one card from top to bottom, then Partial Ascanio Spread again to show the 2C face up (this time the double card is removed and placed onto the packet). Once again take the double card, square the others, then flip them face up and add the Two to the face of the packet. With the right hand remove the Two, Wrist-Turning the packet, and place it onto the 2nd tabled portion face up.
7. Turn the two (?) left-hand cards face down and transfer the top card to the bottom keeping it side-jogged to the left. This shows two face-down cards. Square up.
8. Keeping the top and bottom cards squared in Deep Mechanic's Grip, pull out the face-up 3C with the right hand and place it onto the other card(s). Buckle the bottom card and with the right hand, take the top two cards as one and place them onto the 3rd tabled packet.
9. End by turning the supposed 4C face up to show the selection.
(January 23, 1985)
THE LAP SIDE STEAL
The Longitudinal Angle Palm was first described by Ed Marlo in The Tabled Palm, pp. 10-11. For another description of the sleight as well as the history of the move, see Kabbala Vol. 3, No. 2, pp. 17-20.
1. Have a card peeked at and hold a break above it.
2. With the right hand move the deck forward so that the lower left corner is almost in the crotch of the left thumb. As this happens the left 3rd finger takes over the break from the pinkie.
3. Lift all the cards above the selection slightly, and move them forward about half an inch or so. Press down with the right thumb on the back of the selection at the centre of the near short edge, then move the right hand back, squaring the top half with the lower portion. The selection will pivot out of the side of the deck, the left thumb base acting as the pivot-point. (Step 3 will appear to be simply a squaring action.)
4. Grip the card in Longitudinal Angle Palm position and remove the right hand with the selection.
Steps 2 and 3 are almost identical to the first few steps of Marlo's Left Hand Side Steal (The Side Steal, Marlo, pp. 16-18).
Note: Roger Crosthwaite has a couple of Side Steals which use the Longitudinal Tenkai Palm; compare them with the method above. (You will find them in Lecture Notes 1, Crosthwaite, pp. 17-19).
(January 7, 1985)
EZ2 THIRD VERSION
This is my third method of my E.Z.2. (Spell-Binder 18, pp. 339-340). Other versions by Ian Land, Reinhard Müller, and myself appear in various other issues of Spell-Binder.
1. Spread through the deck and remove the four Kings, at the same time Culling the four Sevens to the top of the deck. Cut the deck keeping a break above the Sevens, and Riffle Force one of the Sevens, cutting the deck at the 'stopped-at' place and dealing the top card to the table. The other three Sevens should be on top.
2. Have three other cards chosen, then switch them for the top three cards of the deck, e.g., use Jerry Hartman's Multiple Count Change (Packet Magic, Hartman, pp. 4-5). Have the backs of the Sevens signed.
3. Interlace the face-down Sevens with the face-up Kings so the order is: face-up King, face-down Seven, face-up King, etc. Holding the packet in the right-hand KB Grip, peel the 1st King off the packet into the left hand. As the next card, a face-down Seven, is counted onto it, execute the Kardyro-Biddle Move to steal back the King under the right-hand packet. Continue counting the cards into the left hand; each time a King is counted off, it is stolen back when a Seven is peeled onto it.
The seventh card, a King, will be four cards held as one, and is placed onto the packet as the last card. The position is: four face-up Kings, three face-down Sevens.
4. With the packet in the left hand, pick up the card case with the flap uppermost, and slide the packet into it. However, the bottom three, the Sevens, secretly go outside the case. Push the Kings right in (making sure that the Sevens can't be seen through the half-moon cutout) and close the flap. Make sure that the deck is tabled on your right.
5. Ask the spectator to hold out his left hand palm up, doing so with your left hand to show him exactly what you mean. Under this misdirection, move your right hand, which is holding the case, over the tabled deck, and release the three cards. Smoothly (not guiltily!) move the right hand away from the deck and place the case onto the spectator's palm. Tell him to place his right hand onto the case.
6. Pick up the deck, take a break below the top three cards, and execute the Braue Reversal. Cut the face-up deck again to centralise the Sevens.
7. The work is done; riffle the cards towards the case, then table the deck. Have the case opened and the cards removed to show just the four Kings. Spread the deck to show the three signed cards. Have the 1st selection turned face up to show a Seven, then turn the signed cards face-up for the final surprise.
(July 9, 1984)
[The above description contains an error which makes the effect unworkable. If you try it out as is, you will find that the signatures on the backs of the Sevens are visible after the Sevens are unloaded atop the deck. In looking through my notes from 9 July 1984, I found that they did not contain the above error, but in writing up the effect I added a different procedure which creates the problem mentioned. The original method from my notes is as follows: After Step 4 above, place the case onto the tabled, face-up deck, then lift off the case plus half the deck and table them, followed by completing the cut, i.e., placing the remaining half deck on top of the card case, sandwiching the latter in the middle of the deck. Say your magic words, then flick the card case sharply with your second finger, causing the case to spin out of the deck onto the table. (Ian Land showed this move to me at the Magic Lounge c. 1982.) Now end from Step 7 where it says, 'Have the case opened....']
THE CARNIVOR-ACE ACES
As you might have guessed from the title, this is a version of the classic Lin Searles plot, 'The Cannibal Cards'. If you are going to use the 'Cannibal Cards' patter theme, adding all the goodies like flexing the cards to represent the bones cracking, then use the Jacks or Kings. If not, use the Aces.
My 1st method, 'What's Eating You', which inspired this one, should be appearing in a forthcoming Apocalypse.
Order of Aces from the face: B, B, R, R.
1. Have the four Aces face up on the table. Riffle down the side of the deck until stopped, then cut the deck at that point. Double Lift to show, e.g., the 6H. Turn the double face down, and place both cards as one into the face-up Ace packet, 3rd from the top or bottom. Square up.
2. Execute an Ascanio Spread to show that the 6H has vanished. To further prove (?) this do the following: square the packet then do Jack Avis's Siva Count [last card to the bottom] (Epilogue 11, p. 2). After this the selection will be 4th (and 5th) from the top. Execute a Single Buckle Spread then square up. Take the packet from above with the right hand, and obtain a break above the bottom three cards with the right thumb.
3. Pick up the deck and push the top card half way over the side, then flip it face up with the edge of the right-hand packet. This card (e.g., 9C) is flipped face down, but execute the Drop Switch, releasing the three right-hand cards onto the deck. Immediately thumb over the top card onto the table. Table the deck after doing a Charlier Cut.
4. Take the Aces into the left hand and place the 9C (?) into the packet 3rd from the top. Elmsley Count to show that the 2nd card has vanished.
5. Place the Aces onto the deck then deal off the top three cards; one of the Aces has vanished. Spread the deck to show the missing Ace. Remove it plus the card on either side of it, then turn them face up to show the two selections.
Step 5 was inspired by Phil Goldstein's 'A Fine Mesh', steps 10 and 11 (Quasimodo/A Fine Mesh, Goldstein, pp. 2-3).
(March 3, 1985)
REVOLVING ACES LEAD-IN
The following idea allows you to cleanly place the four Aces into different parts of the deck before going into Herb Zarrow's 'Revolving Aces' (Close-Up Card Magic, Lorayne, pp. 98-100).
1. The deck is face down in the left hand, the card 2nd from the top is face up. The four Aces are on the table face up.
2. Cut off about a quarter of the deck and table it to your left. Cut off another quarter and place it to the right of the 1st packet. Cut the remaining cards in half and table the two portions to the right of the other two. (If you like living dangerously then allow the spectator to do the cutting. What I do is to cut the 1st portion 'to show the spectator what to do', then allow her to do the rest of the cutting).
3. Pick up the pile on the left (i.e., the one with a face-up card 2nd from the top) with the left hand. Place one of the Aces face down onto the packet. As you reach for the 2nd packet take a break under the face-up card, then place the right-hand portion face up onto the left hand cards. Immediately turn all the cards above the break face down onto the remaining cards.
4. Pick up the 2nd Ace at the same time taking a break under the top three cards. Place the Ace face down onto the packet as before, then pick up the 3rd pile and place it face up onto the left-hand cards. Once again flip all the cards above the break face down.
5. Take a break below the top four cards and repeat the whole process with the 3rd Ace and the 4th packet. After this the order should be: A, X, X, A, A (underlined cards face up).
6. Place the last Ace face down onto the deck and execute any False Cut followed by a False Shuffle.
The cards are now set for the Zarrow routine.
(September 14, 1984).
[It may be better, in Step 3, to turn the right-hand packet face up and spread it out as you say, 'I'll quickly memorise the positions of the cards.' Square up and flip all the cards above the break face down. Repeat this with the next two packets. Place the last Ace onto the deck, Swing Cut three-quarters into the left hand, and One-Hand Fan the remaining quarter, face up. 'Memorise' these cards, then flip them face down, square, onto the deck with a break below them, and Double Cut. Tabled Riffle Shuffle retaining the top stock, then perform the Zarrow routine to apparently relocate the Aces. The routine as a whole may be used to fob somebody off with a cod explanation of 'how to do a magic trick' when pressed to reveal your secrets....]
THE BOLD ASSEMBLY
The following Ace Assembly uses the Bold FUFU Switch, i.e., the same idea as Marlo's Bold ATFUS (Kabbala Vol. 3, No. 5, p. 64) but uses his FUFU Switch instead.
1. The deck is face up in the left hand. Crimp the face card then spread off twelve cards into the right hand (if an Ace is among these cards up-jog it and continue the count with the next card). Place these cards under the rest of the deck, then continue spreading onto them. Up-jog the Aces as you come to them. Square up the deck and strip out the Aces with the right hand and place them onto the deck. Spread off the top seven cards then square them against the deck and take them into the right hand as four cards. Wrist-Turn the deck to kill the indifferent face card.
2. Flip the deck face down and take a pinkie break under the top twelve cards (i.e., under the crimped card). Square the Ace packet against the left thumb, stealing the twelve cards, then execute Marlo's FUFU Switch: count off the top three Aces onto the deck and hold the last Ace (with the extra cards bevelled to the right) with the right hand. Obviously Marlo's Edge Cover technique is used to hide these extra cards. Square all the cards, then with the right hand lift off the top four face-up cards and flip them face down. Deal the Aces (?) into the usual T formation, the last card acting as the Leader Ace at the stem.
3. Spread off the top three cards of the deck and turn them face up towards you, end for end. The top card of the reverse spread should be aligned with the top face-down card of the deck (this is for consistency later on). Flip the three cards face down and deal onto the 1st Ace (?) at the top left of the layout.
4. Turn the next three cards face up as before, then turn them face down and deal them onto the middle Ace. Repeat this with the next three cards and deal them onto the 3rd Ace.
5. When the next three cards are spread off, necktie the deck to keep the face-up Aces from coming into view. As before, turn the three cards face up end for end. The top card will be aligned with the deck. Lower the deck to display these cards. All six cards are turned face down and the top three are dealt off onto the last Ace.
The rest is obvious.
(September 14, 1984)
[I should have mentioned that the basic concept of the above routine comes from Marlo's 'Delayed Ace Assembly' in Magic Manuscript Vol. 3, No. 4, pp. 25-26.]
PADDLING IN THE OIL AND WATER
This version of Marlo's 'Oil and Water' effect gets right away from the usual twenty-seven phase routines; there is only one 'separation' and the method is quite novel.
1. Spread through the deck and remove the red and black Eights and Nines. Discard the deck.
2. Place the red cards onto the blacks and spread the packet. Square the cards then spread off the top three cards. You apparently turn the reds face down, but in reality the top seven cards are turned over.
3. With the packet in the left hand, thumb off the top red card onto the table (this card is really black due to the seven-card turnover). Transfer the cards to your right hand, apparently flipping them over in the process; however, the Carlyle Paddle Move is used to give the illusion of the packet turning over. Thumb off the top card onto the tabled card.
4. Transfer the cards back into the left hand, again executing the Paddle Move, and deal the top card to the table. Continue transferring and dealing until there are two cards left.
5. Take off the top card, flash its red face, table it, then show the last black card and place it onto the pile. Your patter throughout should simply be, 'Red, black, red, black...', etc.
6. Explain that cutting the packet doesn't change the relative positions of the cards, and as you say this cut the top card to the bottom.
7. Patter about oil and water not mixing, then turn the packet face up to show the separation.
(November 17, 1984).
[I would use the last card in Step 5 to scoop the other cards up, thereby eliminating the cut in Step 6.]
KARD KONTROLS 3 AND 4
In Kardyro's Kard Konjuring (Senor Torino, pp. 4-7) there are a couple of controls described, namely 'T.K.'s Kard Kontrol No. 1' and 'T.K.'s Kard Kontrol Supreme'. Below are two more methods.
METHOD THREE
1. Have a card selected from the deck which is spread between the hands. Cut the deck at the point of removal, without completing the cut, and square each half. Grip the right-hand half from above; the left-hand cards are in the Mechanic's Grip.
2. Have the selection returned onto the lower half, then raise the hands so that the bottom card of each half is visible.
3. Position the left thumb at the top left of its packet, then press hard to the left. Because of the forefinger at the end of the cards, the selection will buckle; there will be a large gap at the right-hand side, the outer end and left side will still be in contact with the deck due to the pressure of the thumb and forefinger. (This action is identical to Harvey Rosenthal's method of obtaining a break under the top card).
4. Place the left side of the right-hand packet under the buckled card at the inner right corner. Smoothly square the packets allowing the selection to ride onto the upper half. The selection is now on top.
METHOD FOUR
1. Execute steps 1 and 2 of Method Three above, the only difference being the left-hand grip: instead of holding the packet in Mechanic's Grip, it is held by the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd fingers at the right side, and the pinkie at the inner end.
2. Place the left thumb onto the centre of the top card at the outer end, then pull down on it towards the pinkie. Due to the pressure at the base of the thumb, only the right side of the selection will buckle.
3. Place the inner left corner of the right-hand packet under the buckled card, then square the packets as before.
Note: Method Four above is almost the same as 'T.K.'s Master Deal Supreme' (Kardyro's Kard Konjuring, Senor Torino, pp. 1-3). The same idea of buckling more than one card can also be used in the controls above by applying more pressure at the appropriate places.
(March 3, 1985)
[Cf. Marlo's 'Topping Thompson's Pass', Marlo Without Tears, pp. 265-266.]
NO-FORCE IMPOSSIBLE COUNTDOWN
The following version of Larry Jennings' 'Impossible Countdown' eliminates the force of one of the packets at the end of the routine. I feel that if a force is suspected, then the whole effect could be ruined. (For the original version see Larry Jennings on Card and Coin Handling, Busby, pp. 48-50).
1. Spread through the deck, faces towards you, and Cull three Fours to the face of the deck. Get any Seven to a position 4th from the top.
2. Turn the deck face down. Spread the cards into the right hand; when the 11th card is reached, in-jog it, then continue spreading the cards for a selection. Once a card has been removed square up, taking a break below the in-jogged card.
3. Have the selection returned 12th from the top. (Use the Bluff Pass or Tilt, so it appears to go nearer the centre). False Shuffle and cut, retaining the top and bottom stocks.
4. With the deck in the right-hand KB Grip, lift up on a third of the deck (making sure that more than 12 cards are lifted) and Swing Cut them into the left hand, using Harry Lorayne's HaLo Bottom Slip Cut to secretly get a Four from under the deck onto the bottom of this packet. Table these cards.
5. Lift up on another third and execute the HaLo Cut, then table the left-hand cards as before, to the right of the 1st pile. Place the last portion on the extreme right.
6. Have a spectator choose a pile, emphasising that any heap may be chosen. Let's go through all the possibilities: if the leftmost heap is chosen, turn it face-up to show a Four on the bottom, then turn face down and assemble the piles, the chosen packet going on top. If the middle heap is chosen, turn it face up and leave it on the table. Place the left-hand portion onto the right-hand pile then execute step 7. If the right-hand pile is chosen, assemble the deck from left to right, show the bottom card (a Four), then go on to step 7.
7. After step 6 above there will either be a complete deck on the table, or about two-thirds of the cards face down and a small packet face-up. Pick up the face-down pile or deck and count off three cards (one less than the card at the bottom of the chosen pile). Turn the 4th card face-up to show a Seven. Turn the Seven face down onto the dealt cards then deal seven more cards. Turn the next card face up to show the selection.
(January 21, 1985)
THE CRANDALL ASSEMBLY
This version of Dai Vernon's 'Slow-Motion Four Aces' (Stars Of Magic, bound edition, pp. 90-95) was inspired by my 'Elmsley Count Assembly' (Abracadabra 2023, pp. 472-473), which used the Elmsley Count as a switching technique. (This is a Bro. John Hamman idea, and originally appeared in 'The Elmsley Assembly', Kabbala Vol. 1, No. 8, p. 61.) The following Assembly also uses the Hamman idea.
1. The deck is face down in the left hand; the Aces are face up and slightly spread in the right-hand KB Grip.
2. Take a break below the top card of the deck, then square the Aces against the base of the left thumb, secretly adding the top card beneath them. Execute the Braue Add-On Move to flip the Aces face down onto the deck, at the same time positioning an X card 2nd from the top.
3. Deal the top card to the Leader Position, the 2nd (X) card goes to the top right, then deal the next two Aces to the left of this card, to complete the usual ?T? Formation.
4. Execute a two-card Block Push-Off and take the double with the right hand from above. Push off the next two cards under it, spread to the left, then turn the right hand palm up to show three X cards. Turn palm down, square against the base of the left thumb, then place onto the Leader Ace.
5. Place three cards onto the left and middle Aces, showing them as in the step above. When three cards are taken to be placed onto the right-hand Ace (?), they are squared against the left thumb base and the lowermost card is stolen back onto the deck. These two cards are placed onto the last Ace (?).
6. Pick up the packet at the top left and Elmsley Count it, the last card, apparently the Ace, being placed onto the table instead of onto the packet. (This is the Hamman idea mentioned earlier.) Take the packet with the right hand from above, flash the bottom card, then place the cards onto the tabled Ace (?).
7. Pick up the Leader Packet, turn it face up, and spread it to show three X cards and an Ace. Square these cards and hold them above the packet at the top left. Tap or flex the cards then Single Buckle Spread to show two Aces. Transfer the back Ace to the face of the packet, then turn the cards face down and table them.
8. With the right hand take the top card of the Leader Packet and use it to scoop up and turn over the cards at the top left of the layout. However, the Crandall High-Pressure Mexican Turnover is used, the right thumb gripping the top card of the turning packet, and at the same time the original right hand card is left on the bottom of the pile. There will be four face-up X cards on the table and an Ace face down in the right hand. Place this card onto the Leader Packet.
9. Execute step 6 using the middle packet.
10. Execute step 7. This time two Aces and two X cards will show before the 3rd Ace arrives. Once it has appeared, place it onto the face of the packet, so the order is Ace, Ace, Ace, X card, X card, from face to back.
11. Turn the Leader Packet face down and table it. Now execute step 8, this time flipping over the middle packet.
12. Pick up the packet at the top right and execute a 3-as-4 Elmsley Count [sic - Stanyon Count]. As before, the last card of the count, apparently the Ace, is placed onto the table. Flash the bottom card of the right-hand packet, then place these cards onto the last Ace (?).
13. Take the Leader Packet and turn it face up. Spread the top three cards to show three Aces and one X card. Turn the packet face down and hold it over the cards at the top right. Flex the packet then turn the top card face up to show the last Ace. Immediately execute a two-card Block Push-Off and take the double with the right hand.
14. Pass the right hand over the last face-down pile, secretly dumping the lower card of the double on the tabled pile. Immediately use the Ace in the right hand to flip over the tabled cards, showing four X cards. Turn the other three Aces face up to complete the routine.
I think I'll describe that move in step 14 in a little more detail: three cards are face down on the table, a double card is in your right hand, held between the thumb and 1st and 2nd fingertips at the right long side. The right hand passes from left to right over the tabled cards. The double in the right hand slightly spreads the tabled cards at the same time adding the lower card of the double to the tabled cards. This is done by pushing with the right 1st and 2nd fingers. Four cards will be visible on the table. Immediately the right-hand Ace goes over to the right side of the cards and flips them face-up.
(January 31, 1985)