ABC Blocks by Homer Hudson

The Travelling Blocks, Baffling Blocks, or ABC Blocks began life as The Filtering Block Illusion manufactured by Floyd Thayer c. 1929 and invented by William Wisnewski c. 1928. It has been a popular item with many craftsmen and dealers ever since including: Conradi-Horster, Okito, Abbott’s, Mel Babcock, and Viking Mfg.

This set was built by Homer Hudson in Southern California. It looks great and works perfectly.

Homer Hudson was a prolific builder of magic props for most of his life. He was best known for his silk screened novelty side tables and die boxes. He originally worked for Floyd Thayer in the 1930’s and 1940’s. He created most of the props marketed by Golden’s Magic Wand of Southern California during the 1950’s and 1960’s and then sold directly as himself and through major dealers from the late 1960’s until his retirement in 1995.

The video shows a Speed Demo of a routine by Duane Lafin which is perfect for any set of ABC Blocks.

Effect: This classic effect involves three different colored wooden blocks painted with the letters A, B, and C. They are stacked on a pedestal with a vertical rod that penetrates a hole in each of the three blocks. The stack is covered with an empty square tube. Upon removal of the tube, the center block (that’s the “B”) has vanished. You can easily produce the vanished block from a hat, box, etc.

(Notice: Includes copy of Mel Babcock instructions, not the original ones.)

Found something wrong? Help us improve things by clicking here!