The Not So Lazy Magician Tutorial

Al Koran’s name will always be associated with this card trick. It came to light when he described an evening at the Embassy Club in London. He’d finished his show, and at 3 AM, he was backstage when someone asked Koran to do another trick. He had a trick in mind, but he was tired and thought it a good idea to play up the tiredness aspect.

The result was a presentation that has become known as the Lazy Magician’s Card Trick, a trick in which the spectator does all the work and finds their own selected card. It’s a hands-off miracle.

The Method

The trick depends on a short stack of cards. Koran arranged the Ace to Ten in order, the Ace being the face card of the stack, and set them at the bottom of the face-down deck. He then put another card, Queen of Spades in our example, at the face of the deck (1). Koran alternated Spade and Heart suits, but if you wish, you can have all the cards in the same suit.

The Trick

Begin by false shuffling the deck, keeping the stack in place at the bottom, and then putting the deck face down on the table. Assuming you’re doing this trick late at night, as Koran did, tell the spectators that it’s been a long day – maybe they won’t mind doing some of the work.

Ask one of them to cut off some cards and take the card they cut to (the top card of the lower portion). Tell them to replace the cut-off portion back onto the tabled portion. Then, have them look at the card they are holding and remember it.

This is good spectator management. They can cut the deck with one hand and take the card with the other. Then, they replace the cut portion before looking at their card. On that point, it’s always wise to ask the spectator to show the selected card to someone else in the group. You don’t want them to forget it just as you are bringing the trick to a close.

‘Do you have it in mind? Great. Put it back on the deck. And then give the cards a cut and complete the cut.’

Showing what you want the spectator to do often communicates the message better than words when talking about a deck of cards. Mime the action to make everything clear. The cut loses the selection in the middle of the deck but places the stack directly above it. With a casual air, ask them to cut the cards again and complete the cut. Act as if you’re disinterested in what is happening with the cards. You might even chat with other spectators about something entirely unconnected to the trick. Canadian mentalist Kreskin has a nice presentation where he is playing the piano while the spectator next to him is busy cutting the cards.

‘Turn the deck face up.’

With the deck face up on the table, discretely look to see if one of the stack is at the face. If it isn’t, ask them to cut the deck again. And encourage them to keep cutting the deck until one of the stacked cards appears at the face of the deck. When that happens, tell them to stop.

Whichever card from the stack is at the face, add 1 to the value and that gives you the position of the selection from the top of the deck. For example, if the 6 spot is at the face, the selection will be 7th from the top. The exception to this rule is if you see the QS at the face. This means the selection is on top. When I say top, I mean if the deck was face-down. Turning the deck face down is the next task.

You say, ‘Wonderful. Your card is now 37th from the top.’

Pause, and then add, ‘Maybe we can do better. Turn the deck face down.’

Ask them to put their forefinger on top of the deck, and press.

‘Fantastic! Your card has moved. It’s now 24th from the top. Press harder.’

They do, and you exclaim, ‘Now it’s 13th. Moving higher. Keep pressing. Stop! Your card is 7th from the top of the deck. Your work is done.’

Pick the deck up and deal 6 cards face down to the table. Take the 7th and ask the spectator to name their card. Turn over the 7th card to reveal the selection.

‘I couldn’t have done it without you!’

NOTES

If the selection finds its way to the top, Koran’s advice was to ‘Sell, sell, sell!’ You have a miracle on your hands.

Later, he added one more touch to the method. He crimped the 3 and the 9 spot by bending them a little down the long centre. This makes them easier to hit when the spectator cuts the deck. It’s also useful for the performer if you find the spectator is continually cutting in the same place but not hitting your stack. The crimps, which will be visible to you because you know what you are looking for, tell you where the stack lies in the deck. Cut the stack to the centre of the deck as you turn to someone else and show how you want that person to cut the deck. Involving more than one person in the trick adds to the cheerful mood.

Koran originally described this trick in a 1954 issue of Abracadabra magazine (Vol 18, No 450). He advised sitting back, with your legs extended and adopting a happy-go-lucky air, as if you don't care what happens. Although the trick seemed impromptu, it wasn’t improvised. Koran knew this trick well and had the stack ready to go. He may even have got the trick from Jack Miller whose Traveling Cards, described in Scarne on Card Tricks (1950), used not only the same method but includes a similar presentation in which the spectator presses his card to the top of the deck.

I mention this because there is great value in having a trick like this ready to go. Especially one depending on a stack. Yes, you could cull the stack into position under the noses of the spectators. But a different strategy might be to envisage circumstances under which people will ask you to do a trick and be ready for that occasion. Taking advantage of the time, the environment, and ambience makes for a seemingly spontaneous performance. One requested by the spectators rather than forced on the audience by the performer.

When Koran did this trick at the Embassy Club, the manager saw it and was so impressed that he asked Koran to do it as a second spot on the show. He wanted Koran to do it just as he’d seen it backstage, with Koran relaxing in an armchair and lazily smoking on a cigar. And, for an extra fee, that’s exactly what Koran did.