Dr. Frankenstein and the Monster dancing to Putting On The Ritz is a comedy classic scene in a movie that’s a comedy classic. Just mentioning it brings to mind Peter Boyle’s garbled cry, “Puttonoj unnhhnn ritzsss” 

Gene Wilder wrote that scene. Mel Brooks did not want it in the movie, as he thought it was too silly. They fought over it. Brooks said they almost came to blows over it. Brooks, seeing Wilder’s conviction, said, “OK. I’ll put it in the screen test. But if one person says it’s silly or stupid; it’s out.” 

The screen test happens and the dance number kills. Brooks said, “The audience went crazy. And I said, Gene I apologize. You’re absolutely right. It’s the funniest thing in the whole movie.” 

Even comedy geniuses make mistakes, but they know the bottom line is what the audience thinks. Brooks wasn’t afraid to get this bit in front of an audience to test it.

We need to do the same. Sure, most of our ideas won’t be putting on the Ritz quality, but some might. Don’t dismiss your inner Gene Wilder. The only way we know if a trick, joke, bit, dancing monster, whatever, is good is to get them in front of an audience and test.

Sandwich that new bit between two old dependable ones.
Take the risk of a new bit, because stagnation is far worse.

**************************

BREAKING NEWS:
My New Book On Kids Magic

I’m not going to say much about it now, other than …
1. It’s coming out very soon.
2. It will be useful for you if you’ve done zero kid shows or 1,000
3. And, yes, it’s deeply rooted in my “pack small, play big, and live large” philosophy.

**************************

Until Next Time,

Doc Dixon

PS #1: Be sure to check out the 2023 Labor Day Sales on Reign Man, Maweege, and MonkeyShines. Save up to FIFTY SMACKERS COMBINED!

PS #2: If you’d like to learn to pack small and play HUGE to the back of the room, order my new book, The Show Is The Mother Of Invention. As of August 31, 2023, the first printing is almost sold out with only about less than 20 books left. Act now!

PS#3 If you’re looking for a great packs small plays huge routine that are NO RISK, check out Reign Man, the KING of All Magic Square Routines! (For some reason, probably a Facebook post I’m not aware of, these have been moving off the shelves much faster than normal.)

.

Woofle Dust is what I call posts with no unifying theme, other than it’s a bunch of good stuff I’d think would be helpful for you to know about. For you youngsters out there, woofle dust was once a popular presentational conceit of dubious efficacy. Have something hidden in your right hand you want to ditch while your left hand holds the thingamajig? Then reach inside you right pocket, ditch the doohickey, and come out and mime sprinkling woofle dust on the thingamajig.

Yep. Parts of Tarbell (both the book and the author) didn’t age that well, either.

Hair Ties > Rubber Bands

I’m not talking about rubber band magic, so calm down Joe Rindfleisch. I’m talking about using hair ties instead of rubber band for binding purposes, like the tossed out deck.

From my experience, hair bands last longer, don’t dry out, don’t break unexpectedly, and stay looking clean and neat. They fit in well with my “set it and forget it” prop mentality. Here’s an Amazon link for a near lifetime supply. Try it.

Ryan Pilling Is Not An Axe Murderer

But he does create some very interesting magic. I recently purchased his Square Hole routine. I haven’t yet cracked the nut on what I will do with it, but I am near certain there is something there. Something pretty special, at that. Check that out and other stuff in his store. He’s worthy of your attention.

And just to be clear, as far as I now, Ryan Pilling is (probably) not an axe murderer.

The Appropriate Amount Of Egg Safety

I occasionally do a trick with an egg. In my prop case I carry two eggs. One to use. One for back up. Here’s the challenge: how to safely troupe two raw eggs?

Most magicians use one of the egg carriers made for camping. (On an unrelated to magic note: exactly who are these people camping with eggs?) Most of these carriers are made for SIX eggs, so magicians end up with a carrier that unnecessarily big or altering the egg carrier. I mean, if I need FIVE back up eggs in my case for a one egg trick, it’s time to find a new line of work. Is the bomb squad hiring?

Imagine my happy-happy-joy-joy when I found this bad boy. The perfect egg carrier for magicians. TWO eggs. One for show. One back up. Click on the pic to get one. The page even has a video for readers who are more visual egg learners.

BREAKING NEWS:
My New Book On Kids Magic

I’m not going to say much about it now, other than …
1. It’s coming out very soon.
2. It will be useful for you if you’ve done zero kid shows or 1,000
3. And, yes, it’s deeply rooted in my “pack small, play big, and live large” philosophy.

Until Next Time,

Doc Dixon

PS: If you’d like to learn to pack small and play HUGE to the back of the room, order my new book, The Show Is The Mother Of Invention. As of August 31, 2023, the first printing is almost sold out with only about less than 20 books left. Act now!

PS#2 If you’re looking for a great packs small plays huge routine, check out Reign Man, the KING of All Magic Square Routines! (For some reason, probably a Facebook post I’m not aware of, these have been moving off the shelves much faster than normal.)

.

Shortly after my book, The Show Is The Mother Of Invention, How to Pack Small, Play Big and Live Large came from the printer I realized I could have added one more strategy for playing big from a carryon case. And I kicked myself because it’s something I use in my own work nearly every show.

So I’ll talk about it here.

It packs small.

It is invisible until it’s used.

In fact, it doesn’t need to be packed, as once you have it you have a hard time getting rid of it.

It’s called SKILL.

Skill is what turns a small prop like a deck of cards into an impressive manip¹ segment.

To put more of a point on this, I’m not talking about the kind of skill that goes unseen, like our magic secrets. I’m talking about a particular skill subset and type of routines where the audience openly can appreciate our skill.

When a magician performs a solid book test, the audience may be baffled, but there’s usually not a perception of this kind of skill. The audience is simply amazed.

But …

When a magician performs a well routined card manip segment or …

a juggling type routine like the hoop and glass routine or …

a memory routine (mental skill) or …

a magic square — see Reign Man (more mental skill) …

the magician is showing skill.

In his fantastic lecture notes, the late Denny Haney talked about the placement of a manip piece in his show. He mentioned how he went from opening with a manip routine to following the example of Johnny Aladdin. He performed his manip segment later in his show, after his opener and audience participation routines. He wrote, “This was the formula for the club date act I would follow all my life.”

After following Denny’s advice and performing a skill piece late in my show I noticed an additional benefit. The audience’s appreciation for the skill I displayed was much greater because they already knew me and already like me. All because I listened to Denny. Denny was so great.

This has crossover value to pack big & play big goals, because few things pack smaller than skill.

Additionally, few things give you more bang for your buck on stage than skill. In close up magic, skill is something that is more easily displayed. Even the easiest cutting to the aces routine can get a response of “I wouldn’t want to play cards with you.” The perception of skill gets the performer beyond the crass assumption of “it’s just a trick” that might be in some spectator’s minds.

On stage, a skill piece accomplishes that same thing. Plus, if sold correctly, like any other routine it can share part of the performer’s personality. Denny Haney introduced his manip segment with a memory of watching the Ed Sullivan Show as a kid. This introduction gave the audience a glimpse into Denny’s personality and provided motivation for the manip routine. In his hands, it was more than “watch me show off.” It was “let me share something that is special to me and I’m sure it will be special to you.”

Bottom Line: A skill routine can pack small, play impressive, and add more variety and more you to a show.

Until Next Time,

Doc Dixon

PS: If you’d like to learn many, many MORE ways to pack small and play HUGE to the back of the room, order my new book, The Show Is The Mother Of Invention. As of August 28, 2023, the first printing is almost sold out with only about 20 books left. Act now!

PS#2 If you’re looking for a great packs small plays huge SKILL routine, check out Reign Man, the KING of All Magic Square Routines!

.

¹More formally, a manipulation routine, but I’ve always used and heard the term “manip” when talking with other magicians, so that’s what I’ll use here.

Last Saturday I performed my show at a church marriage conference in my town. About 100 couples were present for a day of speakers talking about how to have a better marriage. Understandably, that discussion can be on the heavy side. I was brought in as tension-easing comic relief at the midway point, right after lunch.¹

Two days later on Monday morning I was leaving the gym after a workout and someone comes up to me and says, “Are you Doc?”

I replied, “Yes, just a much more fatigued, post-workout version.” Then I recognized her. “Oh, you were in the show Saturday. You and your husband Tim were great!”

We chatted for a few minutes and she was very complimentary about my show. “Sunday morning EVERYBODY was talking about what a great time they had and how funny you were.” (Don’t worry, Dear Reader. The self-aggrandizement will end soon. There’s a point to this.) She continued:

“But before the show, so many of us were like (accompanied by a brutal eye roll) — Ugh. What? A magician?!? But you were great!”

It’s that brutal eye roll I want to talk about.
How does a performer overcome
the pre-show brutal eye roll?

When people hear the entertainment for an event is going to be a magician, they frequently think, “This is going to suck.”

I didn’t like typing that, but it’s true. Why? Let me do a brain dump of possible spectator thoughts, opinions, assumptions, and experiences:

magic is a kid thing …magic is cheesy …magic isn’t funny…they saw a cheesy magician once …or eight times …it’s going to be sequins and boas …more cheesy
…possible big hair …pretentiousness …corny jokes …spectator embarrassment …it’ll be boring …dumb, non-deceptive tricks …goofy looking props

I’m sure there are more reasons, but that hurt me enough while writing it.

So what can we do to take them from “this guy sucks” to “this guy rocks” as quickly as possible?

Give the client some pre-show tools to share with the audience. A great sizzle reel can do wonders. Does this mean the audience will watch it? Of course not. In fact, most won’t, but you gotta still try, boss.

Don’t dress like a dork. (Yes, that’s blunt.) How this is defined will vary with performer and venue. An 8pm theater show would probably have more wardrobe leeway than a noon gathering of baptists or accountants. Much of the audience’s fear of cheesiness can be cancelled out with wardrobe.

You open well before the show starts. Dressing rooms are great, and the next time I have one I’ll be sure to tell you about it. For many gigs the audience sees me before the show begins, so I take advantage of that time to chat with several of them like, you know, a normal, non-cheesy human being.

A good introduction helps. Have a few nifty credits that might impress the non-magic public? Those could help your introduction.

Open with you, not magic. I confess, I’ve never understood the appeal of what our tribe calls the flash opening.² Sure, Copperfield came down on the magic elevator, but a Vegas showroom is a long way from a meeting room in Orlando, or a church in Georgia. My preference is to make selling them on me job one. I don’t actually magish until a few minutes into the show.

Get a strong laugh within seconds. Then get more laughs for several minutes.

When you start doing magic, kill. Make it strong. Establish your strong amazement bona fides on the first strike.

Have a script. Deliver it. I think it’s nearly impossible to over rehearse the first few minutes of an act. It’s the golden time when the audience decides whether you’re good or bad (cheesy). Don’t pepper that time with hemming, hawing, awkward pauses.

Be alert for adlib gold and deliver. At the risk of contradicting the last point, sometimes a situation gives you some prize gems and you gotta go for it.

Example: in the marriage conference I mentioned at the beginning of this post the men were dressed casually, as in no jackets, mostly collared shirts, and a few T shirts. One of the husbands was wearing this shirt:

He was wearing a pro-sarcasm shirt at a conference promoting marital communication.
I. Love. This. Guy.

I riffed on it for half a minute early in the show. Good times.

Finally, regardless of how you deal with it expectations of cheesiness, know that those expectations could be there.

Two final points:
One, this was an odd post for me to write. Why? I’m confident in my work, but unless a magician is a egocentric jackwagon³, it feels odd to say “I killed” in a public forum like a blog for other magicians. Ugh. Don’t worry. Future posts will soon return to self-loathing, insecurity, and, you know, the stuff that makes an artist grow. HA!

Two, this is how I deal with it. It’s not how you have to deal with it, but however you deal with it, you will have to deal with it. Knowing is half the battle.

Until Next Time,

Doc Dixon

PS: While you’re here, check out the store. These routines definitely don’t suck.

.

¹ Catered by Chick-Fil-A. Yes, I live in Georgia.

² Exception: the flash opening of the great Paul Kozak back in his comedy club days. In defense of my preference, his flash opening was 50% flash and 100% cajones. You can find video of it online, but to see it live, as I did several times, was a thing of beauty …Closer your eyes – BOOM – Told you so!

³ Be honest — AT LEAST four different magicians came to your mind when you read that.
Like ____ _______ and ______ ________.

Would You Try Not To Bleed On People, Please?

It will happen. You will get cut on stage. I don’t know how it will happen, but it will. An unexpected sharp edge on a prop, an exposed nail, whatever, and BAM, you’re bleeding. It won’t be bad enough to cause you to scream “it’s just a flesh wound” with a British accent, but it will be enough that it needs to be bandaged immediately so you can move on with the show. 

SOLUTION: Have a bandaid at the ready. Have a few. Keep them in your wallet, prop case or any place that is quickly and easily accessible

What, First The Bleeding, And Now Mucus?!

Thankfully my awesome bodily fluid series is ending with this entry, so let’s finish it big with a truth bomb:

There will come a time on stage where you will have to blow your nose.

SOLUTION: Always have a handkerchief in your pocket. 

Better to blow your nose than repeated sniffles, or even worse, well, that’s just too gross to type, so just blow your nose.

Road Story: That’s Just Too Gross To Type

Well, here we are.

I was performing the miser’s dream in an elementary school assembly, concluding the routine with the classic bit of the coins coming out of the kids’ nose. 

Don’t get ahead of me. 

The kid blows — I mean actually blows — out her nose and …

IF YOU’RE READING THIS WHILE EATING, PLEASE SIGN THIS WAIVER.

…and a footlong string of mucus comes out of her nose and hangs there. 

I am embarrassed to say I just froze. Froze. Me. The guy that got the nickname Doc from working as an EMT on an ambulance as a teen. The guy who gave aid to car accident victims, assault victims, murder victims (Wow, Doc. Rough neighborhood much?) just froze. 

Thankfully, after about two seconds …two super long seconds …a teacher raced up on stage with a tissue. 

Epilogue (Thank you, Quinn Martin): I was booked back for the next year.

Until Next Time,

Doc Dixon

PS: While you’re here , check out the store. This tricks are nothing to sneeze at. (See what I did there?), feel free to check out the store:

.

In an effort to share some close-up magic and Every Day Carry (EDC) love, here’s a variation on a Roth/Slydini routine I’ve done for a million years.

In the original routine, a half dollar (or for EDC, a quarter would be fine) vanishes and reappears several times, then transforms into a jumbo coin as it lands on a spectator’s palm.

Here’s the great coin master David Roth performing it. One difference is he does the large coin appearance in his hands, not the spectator’s hand.

My EDC version:

Coins are something I carry every day. A jumbo coin? Not so much.

As you might expect from a guy that wrote a book on packing small, playing big, and living large, I’m not a fan of carrying a bunch of extra stuff in my pockets just for the chance of EDC amazement. So if not a jumbo coin, what??

I want the coin to transform into that is:
1) the right size
2) makes theatrical sense
3) is something I usually carry

I use my wallet.*

The scripting is simple enough, as this routine is fun, quick eye candy, not Atlas Shrugged. “Fifty cents here. Gone. Fifty cents. Fifty cents. (Wallet) Fifty bucks.”

For deception’s sake, try not to put your wallet in the same pocket you stole it from. And to be clear, this works with a hip pocket wallet, not the larger wallets, like the classic Seabrooke or Kaps wallets.

If you want to learn the Roth routine, track down a copy of David Roth’s Expert Coin Technique by Richard Kaufman. I’m sure there are other sources on video, but my copy of the book was literally 12 inches from me as I typed this post.

Until Next Time,

Doc Dixon

*Recent change after having gone wallet-less. I use a wad of bills folded in half in a bill clip.

PS: While you’re here and you have your wallet out (See what I did there?), feel free to check out the store:

.

In this blog I talk a ton about the power of audience interaction, but I never want to give the impression that the interaction road isn’t one without the occasional pothole or detour. And so when you perform one of the Dixon Magic routines, like Maweege or CHZ, it helps to make the interaction pothole tolerant.

Here’s a technique to deal with one of those potholes.

Sometimes people interrupt your show with remarks and those remarks are funny
Sadly, this will often encourage them to say something else later in the show that is not funny. With this in mind, I give you …

The Kobyashi Maru¹ technique.

Audience member says something funny.
You: “Now that’s the way to heckle. It added to the show. Thank you. (Though this states the obvious, the observation and particularly the “thank you” will get a laugh.) But let me caution you. Your success may prompt you to comment aloud again and that comment may not be funny, creating …the awkward pause.” (See previous parenthetical insertion.)

One of two things can happen if the spectator comments again.

One, the second comment is funny. Everyone wins, as your show just got a bonus funny moment.

Two, the second comment is obviously not funny. Then all you have to do is look at the audience and shrug with a “see what I mean” expression. Now the audience laughs, resulting in another funny moment. Either way, everybody wins.

It’s important to remember, this technique, at least when I’ve done it, does not come off as mean. Rather, it’s perceived as playful teasing. I don’t use it that often, maybe once every two to three years, but it’s nice tool to have in comedy toolbox.

Best,

Doc Dixon

PS Now that you are ready with the power of Kobyashi Maru, keep it next to these routines and you’re double ready.

Only a few days left in the Corn Hole Zero presale and the $45 savings!

PS#2: While you’re here, be my guest and check out the store:

__

.

¹ It’s a Star Trek reference. Google is your friend.

Wow! The pre-sale of Corn Hole Zero began less than 24 hours ago and BOOM!

Our most popular release EVAH!

With that mind, here are a few of the questions that have come up from the launch.

#1 Can you tell me more about Jerry Andrus’ Zone Zero?

The CHZ page goes live.
Then a few questions came in and I realized, “Whoa, Magic Dude. Not everyone has an obscenely large magic library built over decades.” In other words, not everyone is familiar with the late great Andrus effect, Zone Zero.

In Zone Zero a rectangular board of roughly 20 x 10 inches is shown. There’s a 4 inch hole in the middle. A rubber ball is placed in the hole and the board is flipped to show both sides and the ball is gone. The process is reversed and the ball reappears. This happens, with minor variations, 2-3 times.

Now you know.

#2 I want to give away the teddy bear each show. Do you sell the bears?

That’s the way I perform the routine. I give the teddy bear to the assisting spectator. It’s a wonderful “oooo ahhhh” moment. The expense is about that of doing a hat tear, and it’s much, much cuter.

If you’d like to have a 30 pack “Bag O’ Bears”, go to the CHZ page and scroll down to the Bag O’ Bears purchase link.

I do share non-giveaway bear options in the script.

#3 Do I need to wear a jacket to perform CHZ?

Nope. A short sleeve T shirt and jeans would work fine.

# 4 Is CHZ difficult to perform?

Difficulty is a subjective thing to rate, but I’m going to say it’s very, very easy. If you have ever performed the sponge bunnies, you have performed a routine more difficult than CHZ.

#5 Is this a kid trick or an adult trick?

YES! Meaning, CHZ is one of those gems that plays great for ALL ages.
The playful fun of this routine, coupled with the teddy bear ending, make it a routine that crosses generational lines.

#6 Does it fit in a carryon bag?

You did not just ask me that. lol Of course, it does. The CHZ board is 19.5 x 11 inches.

#7 Is that YOU on the one side of the CHZ board?

No, although with that mustache and my mustache I can see why you would think that. The script for CHZ refers to the carnival game origins of corn hole, and the mustached, top hatted graphic is a carny barker.

Got more questions? Please send your question by replying to my email newsletter.
Not a subscriber? Oy! Sign up here.

Are your questions answered? Then get your CHZ here!

There was a TV commercial from an eyeglasses chain a few years back whose pitch was “two pairs of eyeglasses for the price of one.” In the commercial a big, shy looking guy would sheepishly say, “I lose things.” Somedays I feel like that guy could be my spirit animal. 

We have all been there. Two minutes from show time — or worse, ten minutes INTO our show — and we realize we forgot that little fill-in-the-blank.

While having a backup thin model sawing is a bit pricey, there are many small props where the investment in a backup is very small in dollars and space and the reward in peace of mind and competence is very big. Here’s a quick list of those props. If you use them, have two. 

Thumb tips
Nail clippers
Nail writers
Gimcracks (or whatever around the neck wireless microphone holder you prefer) 
Dye tubes
Silks
Sponge balls
Shot glass (Wait staff can take these thinking they’re bussing a table.)
Shot glass covers
Electronic doodads (you know, USB cables, adapters, etc)
Batteries 
Lighters 
Decks of cards
Markers
Miser’s dream coins
The adhesive-backed fake gems that stick on Audio Ape remotes that enable them to be activated in the pocket through the material of the trousers.¹
Under lapel match lighters.²

And whatever is in your case, costs less than twenty bucks, and fits in your hand.

Until Next Time,

Doc Dixon

PS: Check out the Corn Hole Zero Pre-Sale and the CHZ FAQ.

¹  There is a distinct possibility that this was added to the list 10 seconds after the stick on gem fell off my Audio Ape remote.
² I’ve never used an under lapel match lighter doo-hickey, but I’ve seen enough acts use them that if I did use one in my act I’d have at least three under my lapel.

No, not when Lemmy said it. I’m talking about back in 2019 on Fool Us when I said it. It began with me inviting Penn & Teller on stage to play the shell game and ended with the FU trophy. In between those two moments I chatted with Alyson Hannigan, and said this about the shell game,

“It’s not just a show or a trick that you watch,
it’s a trick that you PLAY.”

That element of play, whether real or pretend, is one of the most POWERFUL presentational hooks a magician can have in his tool box.

WWDRD

What Would Del Ray Do?
Arguably the greatest close-up act of the 20th century, his act featured several routines where he would play card or dice games with the spectators.

Not cheating demonstrations. Nope. Del would actually play blackjack, poker, or his own incredible dice game, offering spectator’s a chance to win a “fifty dollar bill. I apologize for it lookin’ so shabby. I’ve had it for seventeen years.”

A part of Del Ray’s appeal was the game element. It made his magic so incredibly entertaining and engaging.

WWTSD

What Would Terry Seabrooke Do? Seabrooke originated the classic routine where a signed banknote is put in one of four identical envelopes. The envelopes are mixed up. The spectator guesses which envelope has his signed money. In other words, the spectator plays a game. That envelope is set aside. The other three are burned. The chosen envelope is opened and …it’s empty. Later, the signed bill is is found in a sealed envelope inside Seabrooke’s wallet.

It’s the game element — even a pretend game like Seabrooke’s — that makes the magic so incredibly entertaining and engaging.

What routines of yours — routines you already do — can benefit from adding the game element?

A few possibilities off the top of my head: shell game (doh!) three card monte, mental effects, cups and balls, card routines (Paul Harris’ Whack Your Pack is a great one) the ten card poker deal, etc.

Now to be clear, I don’t thinks this works with all magic tricks. Of course not. But I do think the game presentations can so be fun, so playful, so naturally interactive, that it is something definitely worth exploring.

And that brings us to …

Our Newest Magic Routine Release:
Corn Hole Zero

Years ago I began with a modern classic of stage magic, and transformed it from head to toe.

I turned it into a game. And I added a prize.

Corn Hole Zero adds a game to the magic.
A fun, interactive, magic game with real, visible & magic results.
Pre-Sale Begins Wednesday, July 26th, 2023.