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Sacrilegerdemain
by Tyler Wilson Tyler
Wilson was unknown to me until I read his deviously devastating book,
"Dominatricks". As soon as I saw the cover, I knew this Wilson
guy had my sense of humor. Reading it, I fell in love with his entertaining
style of writing ("entertaining" sounds so much more palatable
than "warped", doesn't it?). I also knew I wanted him writing
for Visions. As luck and some film negatives would have it, Tyler agreed.
I think you'll get a kick out of Tyler's thinking like I did. -Shane.
Out of This World - Card Warp - Open Travellers - Shuffle-Bored - The Signed Card - The Last Trick of Dr. Jacob Daley - Reformation - Twisted Sisters - Raise Rise - Cosmosis: The Original Floating Match - Matrix - Himber Wallet - Zone Zero - Crazy Man's Handcuffs - Cigarette Through Quarter - Top Shot - Mechanical Reverse - Zarrow Shuffle - Elmsley Count - Charlier Cut * What do these iconic routines and techniques have in common? Look over the list and see if you can spot the similarities between them. Other than the fact that most close-up performers have probably used everything on the list at least once (with maybe the exception of Raise Rise, which we've all used twice), their real connection is that they were all created by amateurs. That's right; amateurs. So I'm sending a message out to all the amateurs out there: Thanks! You guys have been given the short end of the stick for far too long, and I, for one, would like to show my appreciation for all that you do. You truly are the lifeblood of the industry. Regardless of how many pros like to wince at your material only to put on a smiley face when they want you to buy their new product, you help keep the magic community alive and fresh. Here here! Many a pro I have seen sleep through their performance of Color Monte, Ambitious Card, and Sponge Balls simply because it's "safe." Many of you amateurs I have met, on the other hand, treat magic as a labor of love and therefore dedicate whatever is necessary in terms of time or effort into creating something you can be proud of. It should be noted that there is a major distinction between a beginner and an amateur. It's true that the gentlemen who created the items listed at the outset of this article are amateurs; however they are/were far from being beginners. They simply have a primary source of income other than magic. This means creating or perfecting magic is a release that takes them away from their "ordinary" world. And man am I glad these gentlemen needed a release; their creations are nothing short of brilliant! And the list could have been a lot longer! I recently saw a huge named and incredibly highly respected magician say that no one should publish material until it has been performed in the "real world" for at least twenty years. And the kicker? He's an amateur himself! So according to him, he should not have been publishing his own darn books. But count me in as someone who is glad he did decide to release his material despite not being in the repertoire of a professional for twenty years; it's great stuff. Just think of all the magic we'd lose if these rules were followed. It would be nothing short of devastating. One of the biggest myths when it comes to publishing material is that every item has to be a completely polished performance piece. Sure, they're very nice to read and I'm always eager to see how magicians structure their material from beginning to end, but sometimes it also helps to get the juices flowing by reading an effect that you might need some alone time with. Just look at Paul Harris' Art of Astonishment trilogy. It is awe-inspiring to read the creative plots he developed and how he chose to attack the problems. Were they all performance-ready? Hardly. Sure, Paul Harris was a professional for years, in Las Vegas no less, but do you think each of those routines made it into his repertoire? Heck no. Yet am I incredibly thankful he took the time to write them all down instead of trying to polish only a couple of them? Oh yeah baby! I would much rather see some fantastic ideas that are still half-baked (such as the material that was published in Ryan Pilling's sadly now-defunct Half-Baked magazine) than derivative material that can get published simply because the guy has a name attached to him. It's like Michael Jackson: decades have passed since he's had a good song, but people still buy his albums because he's Michael Freakin' Jackson. Let's look at the material on its own standards, rather than making judgments based on where it came from. Great magic is great magic, regardless of its source. Both amateurs and pros prove this day after day. So regardless of where your income is embezzled from, you are most certainly capable of creating some of the most stellar magic out there. Now get to work you slackers! Tyler |
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