Andy Martin

It wasn’t until Dave Powell released his beautiful Victorian Drawer Box that there was anything even close to the Cleveland Drawer Box commissioned by Martin Breese in the UK. This one is from the original run that Martin Breese had made c. 1984.  The newer run from 2005 are actually quite a lot smaller so if you wanted the most useful Mini Drawer Box the original run is what you want. This bad boy will hold TWO full Poker sized decks in their cases 🙂

It is an exceptionally beautiful and well designed Drawer Box. The workmanship is absolutely flawless and from every angle there is nothing to see.

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Another wonderfully crafted Vintage Abbott’s recreation from the talented Rocky Clements. This time Rocky has created one of my favorite effects: the Vampire Block.  This looks and works almost identically to Abbott’s original version.  I love the new color scheme and although I was in two minds about the heart shaped hole when I look at these photos it does look quite cute 🙂

One of the benefits of this new version is Rocky has made the gimmick out of the same material as the block itself to ensure even close-up everything looks correct.

An amazing recreation Rocky – great job 🙂

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The original idea for this effect was Herz aus Glas by Robert Farchmin in German c. 1938.  The routine featured here was first published by Punx c. 1977 and this was translated into English by Bill Palmer c. 1987 with the release of Punx’s book Once Upon A Time.

In 1988 George Robinson Jr. of Haenchen and Co./ Viking Mfg. Co. was given manufacturing rights by Punx to produce this amazing and beautiful version. It is very solid and looks perfect.  Whilst the mechanism is easy to operate, if you really want to do justice to it you’ll need to put on your acting cap.  But if you do a good job there won’t be a dry eye in the house 🙂

Even if you don’t want to perform this it will still look beautiful in your collection which is often all that counts.

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This beautiful and practical utility device was first manufactured by Thayer c. 1936 as the “Wu-Ling” Pagoda Mystery and was originated by Englishman Wu-Ling (aka Mr. Richard C. Ritson, MMC, The Magical Mandarin).  In the Thayer literature it is also often referred to as the Pagoda Cabby. Owen’s carried on with their version and dropped the “Wu-Ling” from the title.

This one from Owen’s is very much Carl Owen’s style and looks beautiful.  For the most part the operation is very smooth and slides easily.  It is possible to put the sliding door back into the wrong track for the slider and this can cause the door to stick, but keep your wits about you and you’ll have a beautiful utility item whenever you need to vanish or appear or even exchange a large number of items 🙂

The routine in the video allowed me to vanish items twice instead of the normal single vanish or appearance you are used to.  By choosing a matching silk I could go back in and vanish two silks after I vanished the silk and the bottle to begin with. I thought this really maximized the use of the apparatus.  If you want to see an appearance instead of a vanish you can look at the video for this effect.

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This beautiful utility device is based on the Thayer Pagoda Mystery that was also created by Owens Magic Supreme as can be seen here.

Homer’s version is a fraction larger than the Owen’s one but otherwise is very similar (look at the last three photos for comparison). However, one significant difference is that the door is made of tin instead of wood so it is slightly thinner and can move more smoothly.  The Owen’s one works beautifully but if wooden props have one flaw it is that they are known to warp and expand just enough to make a sliding movement more difficult.

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The Escaping Vampire (or Vampire Block or Vampire Die or Visible Vampire as this type of block penetration is often known as today) was created by Ben Wallace c. 1945.

This beauty was built in 2020 specially for Hocus Pocus in a limited edition of just 12 units by a good friend and craftsmen.  It is a real beauty and works perfectly.  The tower is sturdy and interesting, the block is heavy and solid with a strong brass chain, and the spike is also hefty and memorable.

The tube is a little taller than many  versions (e.g. Homer Hudson’s) which I prefer because it aids in hiding the method. Also, when looking for versions of this effect you should always seek one with a chain or cord to pull the block out, as they are normally the most visual and are easiest to perform.

This is very convincing version of the vampire block illusion and I hope to track down more items from this craftsman.

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Disecto was invented by Lester Lake (Marvelo) c. 1938 and it was first marketed by Abbott’s c. 1942.  It is one of my favorite mini-illusions and certainly one of the most convincing magic choppers.

This is Tannen’s version and is easily as well made and smooth as the early Abbott’s versions.  I personally prefer the red and white color scheme too and if I was performing Diescto this is the version I would use.

This was first advertised by Tannen’s as “Abbott’s Disecto Illusion” but over time the Abbott’s was dropped 🙁

When it comes to chopping things off Magician’s have no end of methods and contraptions to do this. The problem often is that the method looks obvious. For the small stage and parlor show I don’t think there is a more convincing and reasonably priced version than the classic Disecto. It just looks impossible.

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If you ever wanted to freak out your audience these Ragged School Slates would be a fine way to achieve it 🙂

Although they have lots of programmable features, for me the routine that is included called The Foundling is just the ticket. I created a story about a tragedy that happened to the orphanage and kept the lights down low and the rest is solid freak out.

These slates work very well, but you do have to get used to the hands off triggering of the mechanism.  Lebanon Circle Magic have just released a remote control and I could see that being preferable for some performers.

Bizarre magic is not really what I perform, but the Porcupine is a perfect place for this type of story and these slates look very much at home here.  Hope you enjoy the video.

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This effect was invented by Marvillo and you can see his original one here.

It sounds like a great effect and I would love to see this performed over the counter such that you would instantly purchase it 🙂

I think the routine is a little weak. As written you are expected to show clearly only two dice and not the third (gimmicked one) because in the instructions it says:

“The spectator has seen the first two dice and will not expect anything different of the third gimmicked die.”

Maybe this would true if you allowed the spectator to examine all three dice at the beginning.  But if you don’t and instead show the first two dice clearly and partially hide the third one, all the spectator is going to think – what the heck is going on with that die?

So you need to start with the three normal die, switch out for the gimmicked one, then switch it back again at the end.  None of this is the end of the world, but it does make performing this in a convincing way quite a bit harder.  In addition the locking of the dice with the pins is not very clean and I’d like to see that done smoothly.

All in all I am not impressed with the routine.  But as the advert says the prop itself is beautifully crafted and that is true and they were made by the close-up master manufacturer himself: Per Clausen 🙂

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This beautiful effect was inspired by Eddy Taytelbaum’s Cork Penetration.

Colin also produced a different version with a wooden peg, however, I like how he uses the nut in this version it adds credibility to the bolt and provides cover should you want to switch out the nut. You don’t need to do this, but it is quite a nice touch.  I also like how he breaks down the props piece by piece handing each for examination, it seems to flow better than the standard cork penetration.

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