Chapter Two: Daley Defects

The Effect is Too Direct

When a magician describes an effect as being “direct”, this is usually positive. This is because such effects move forward in a straight line; they don't take detours and stay on the main road until they reach their destination. Al Baker's effects are good examples of this “straight-line thinking” (a term coined by the late, great Eugene Burger). However, an effect can be too direct, and I think Dr Daley's Last Trick falls into this category. The trick is a classic example of Rick Johnsson's Too-Perfect Theory in action; the transposition is so strong that it will lead some onlookers straight to the actual method.

This weakness is exacerbated when you deal the cards into a spectator's hands. I think the moment you put a face-down card into an intelligent person's hand, they will start to question the identity of the card and, worse still will be tempted to turn it over. The way to avoid this is to engage their brain with another thought, e.g., ask them a question, such as, “How heavy is that card?” This new thought acts as mental misdirection and knocks the previous one out of their mind.  As Daley did, you can also deal with this issue by simply placing the cards on the table in front of you. In this situation, a person is much less likely to turn the cards over prematurely because they have to invade your personal space to do so. (Of course, you can only take this approach if you're standing or seated at a table.) Applying these touches will improve the effect's impact, but they won't address the “too perfect” issue.

One way to handle this particular weakness is to introduce a mixing procedure. By delaying the revelation of the transposition, you raise the possibility that sophisticated sleight of hand was used to switch the cards after they were placed on the table. Such a delay needn't be long. Simply switch the position of the two “black Aces” (?) a few times (three times is usually enough). This manoeuvre makes locating the Ace of Spades more of a challenge, which strengthens the internal logic of the trick (that it is a short con like Three-Card Monte). More importantly, the mixing of the two tabled cards acts as a red herring, leading your audience away from the truth, moving the trick out of the “too perfect” category.

However, this mixing procedure does present a slight complication; it must be done one-handed as your left hand is already occupied holding the two “red Aces” (?). To make this strange behaviour a little less suspicious, I explain that I'm only going to use one hand in an attempt to prevent myself from cheating (this absurd concept usually gets a laugh). Alternatively, you can free up your left hand before the mixing procedure begins by discarding the two “red Aces” (?) to one side. You can even place them face up on the table, and most people will not notice that they're the wrong cards because everyone is focused on tracking the location of the Ace of Spades. (We'll expand on this idea later in the book, see “Big Bullet Monte”.)

I think this solution works well because it transforms Dr Daley's Last Trick into a demonstration of an impossible-to-win street scam rather than a pointless guessing game.

Suppose you don't have the luxury of a tabletop to perform on. In that case, you can use John Bannon's extremely clever blocking of the routine, which can be found on his Bullets After Dark DVD under the title “Doctored Daley”. 

The idea has seen print several times and can also be found in his excellent book Dear Mr. Fantasy. I recommend that you watch a performance of it on YouTube to see how John has solved this particular weakness. Although uncrossing your participant’s hands appears to be a lame joke, it provides enough misdirection, both mental and physical, to distract curious helpers and usually generates laughter. In addition, John’s clever approach reduces the likelihood of your participant questioning the identity of the two cards they hold and introduces a subtle red herring that enhances, rather than damages, the effect.