Stranger In Paradise (Peter Warlock)

Description

Effect: Two packs of cards are taken, one with red and the other with blue backs. The blue pack is handed to a spectator while the red is retained by the magician, who places it face outwards in a glass. “As I move one card at a time from the front to the rear of the pack, I want you to stop me whenever you wish,” he says to a spectator.

The cards are moved until the spectator says stop and the card indicated by this means of choice is dropped into another glass so that it faces the audience. The person with the blue pack is now asked to take that pack face up and counting aloud, he is to deal the cards one at a time and allow the audience to see what position the mate of the card in the glass appears. The spectator counts right through the whole pack finding only fifty one cards and no trace of the mate of the card selected from the red backed pack.

“Sir,” says the magician, “forgive me for making you work to no end.” In this pack of red backed cards (at this point the red backed pack is taken from the glass and with the backs to the audience the cards are leafed through or fanned showing that everyone is red backed) I took one card from the blue backed pack placing it among these red backed cards so that it became a Stranger in Paradise.”

“Don’t you think it most strange (at this point the magician looks towards the spectator who chose the card from the red backed pack) and a little more than coincidence, that with all these red cards to choose from you should choose the (name of card in glass) my one little Stranger in Paradise!”

The magician, as he says these words, slowly takes the glass, lifts it and slowly turns it round showing that the card inside has a blue back!

Supplied with the two Bicycle poker-size decks and instructions as pictured. You must supply your own glasses.