Encased by Mark Strivings

This effect was originally created by Mark Strivings c. 1998 based on an idea by Paul Noffsinger.  It took twenty years to arrive at the final version that is presented here.

Effect: The performer tosses a paper ball into the audience and has whoever catches it think of a word in the English language. He then produces a large card and says it is his prediction. Asking is the spectator knows what he has written on the card, naturally the spectator answers ‘no’. The performer then turns the card around to reveal a large “No”, except he insists that the spectator is wrong, uncovering a period after the word and informing everyone that it is the abbreviation for the word ‘number’. Needless to say this will get a variety of responses.

The spectator is told to toss the paper ball elsewhere in the crowd. The person who catches it is then asked to think of a number between one and four and concentrate on it. They are told to toss the DaDer ball elsewhere and whoever catches it is told to concentrate on a Dlavina csrH The performer has two more large cards. Asking the first spectator what number they are thinking (let’s say they select 4) and the second spectator what card they are thinking of (8H for ^xamDle) the Derformer announces that he has two more oredictions. Turnina the cards around they show all four numbers, 1, 2, 3 & 4 on one card and all 52 playing cards on the other. Groans and lauahter abound.

Once the pandemonium dies down the performer points out a box that has been on display throughout the performance. The box is opened and is shown to contain four decks of playing “-rHs. Aaain usina the ‘numbers’ card as a visual aid. the decks are shown to be numbers 1. 2. 3 & 4, and that deck #4 is the one that has been randomly selected. That deck is then displaced within its slot in the box to set it apart from the other three decks.

Deck number one is then uncased and the audience is instructed to look for the selected card, the 8H. The performer spreads slowly through the cards, showing each and every card. When he reaches the end of the deck he turns it over and spreads once again, showing the back of each and every card to be blue. Once done, he inquires if anyone saw the freely named card. Everyone in the room acknowledges that they did indeed see it. Then the performer asks if anyone in the room saw the back of the 8H and once again everyone acknowledges they did. This invariably gets a chuckle.

This procedure is then repeated with deck #2, showing every single card in the deck as well as its back, and acknowledging that everyone saw the freely named card.

This procedure is then repeated one more time with deck #3, showing front and back of every card, and everyone seeing the 8H.

Finally, the performer uncases deck #4, the chosen deck. Once again he spreads the cards slowly from hand to hand, instructing everyone to look for the freely named card, the 8H. Suddenly in the middle of the deck a single reversed card is found. This is placed aside in full view, and the spreading of the deck continues, showing every single card in the deck. The deck is then turned over and the back of every single card is shown to be blue. But something is different! When asked if everyone saw the freely named card, no one did! It wasn’t there. PLUS there was a single reversed card in the deck. BUT then the performer points out that when the backs of every single card in all four decks was shown, they were all blue, and this single reversed card has a RED BACK!

It is only then that performer reveals that before he came to the show he removed a single card from one of the four decks and replaced it with the very same card from a completely different Hock!

Not only did the spectators pick the only deck of the four that had anything different (reversed card and the freely named card is missing) but when the single red back card is turned around, it’s THE EIGHT OF HEARTS!

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