Ring Report
January 17, 2010

Minutes for this meeting.

The theme for January was Teach A Trick. All performers taught every effect that they performed. Dr. Wilson told a tale of old China, showing how a merchant would set out for the day with his lunch money (four Chinese coins) and chopsticks tied in a neat bundle. When a volunteer stole his chopsticks, he showed that a skillful thief could even steal the coins by magic. He illustrated a similar magical principle by releasing three wooden beads tied up in cords while a volunteer held them. Finally, he and Danny Baker pulled a ribbon through Alola Morrison. Dr. Wilson revealed that the basic principle is described in Reginald Scot's "Discoverie of Witchcraft" (1584), while the Cords of Fantasia variation is taught in Tarbell and elsewhere.

Professor Miller removed three silver dollars from a coin purse, then caused them to vanish one at a time before removing them from the coin purse once again. While teaching this effect, he showed some variations and small touches that really make it work. Alan Drew wrapped a cord around his thumb, leaving a small loop. After showing that the end of the cord was too large to thread through the loop easily, he did it in an instant using magic. Alola Morrison cut and restored a rope, then taught us how to do this while making it look good!

Danny Baker used a plastic disk to simulate the blade of a circular saw. He threaded an elastic band through the hole in the center of the blade. As a volunteer carefully held the blade, Danny pulled the band through the solid plastic. Danny then showed a bit of coin magic: two quarters traveled mysteriously between his hands before he placed the two quarters in one hand and turned them into a half dollar. Danny followed this with Card Warp, in which a folded card repeatedly turned itself inside out. As Danny taught Card Warp, several members described variations this fine piece of magic, invented by Roy Walton.

Logan Rouse drew a mark on his hand with a marking pen as he directed a volunteer to hold her hands closed. When she opened her hand, there was a mark on her palm to match Logan's! Prashant Srivastava performed Dai Vernon's "Any Card at Any Number." He asked a volunteer to think of a number from one to thirteen, then ran cards off the top of the deck past her, asking her to remember her card. When he spread the deck face down, one card was reversed. The reversed card revealed the location of the selected one.

Full details of the business meeting and photos can be found at www.ibmring362.org.