It is our intention to show you the royal road to card magic, and the first stage of our journey is to instruct you in the use of the overhand shuffle and to explain the many purposes which it serves.
Anyone who plays cards has learned to execute the overhand shuffle. It is a simple operation, yet it is the first step–and a very important one–on the road to the mastery of card magic. It is essential that you master this first step before continuing on your journey, and for this reason we urge you to learn the various shuffles and perform the many fine tricks which they make possible before you pass on to the other sections.
Each succeeding chapter in this book, except the last, leads to the one which follows and supplements the one which preceded. By resisting the impulse to learn everything at once but by practising each step as you go, you will, with a speed that will amaze you, soon have travelled the entire road; when finally in that way you have reached its end, you will be a far more competent card conjurer than will the more impatient reader.
With this final word of caution, we now start you on your pleasant journey.
Position of the Pack in the Hands
It is essential that the cards be handled neatly and precisely, and the first requisite towards acquiring this neatness of execution is the position of the pack in the hands.
- Hold your left hand half closed, palm upwards, and place the pack in it, face downwards, so that the third phalanx of the index finger is bent against the outer left corner. The middle and ring fingers, slightly bent, rest against the face of the bottom card; the little finger curls inwards so that its side rests against the inner end, and the thumb rests on the top card, its tip near the middle of the outer end.
- The pack should slope downwards towards the left at an angle of about forty-five degrees, its lower side resting along the palm of the hand. In this position the pack can be gripped, as in a forceps, between the index and the little fingers by pressing them against the opposite ends (Fig. 1).
- This position of the pack gives one perfect control of the cards and should be strictly adhered to. The grip should be firm but light; in fact, the lightest touch possible, consistent with security, must be cultivated from the outset.
Execution of the Overhand Shuffle
- Holding the pack as described above, seize the lower half with the right hand between the top phalanx of the thumb, at the middle of the inner end, and the top phalanges of the middle and ring fingers at the middle of the outer end. Bend the index finger lightly on the upper side of the deck, letting the little finger remain free.
- Lift this lower packet upwards to clear the other portion of the pack, then bring it downwards over the other cards until its lower side touches the left palm. Press the left thumb against the top card of this packet and simultaneously lift the right hand so that the card, or cards, pulled off by the left thumb fall on top of the packet retained in the left hand.
- Repeat this action until all the cards held by the right hand have been shuffled off on to those held by the left hand. Pat the upper side of the deck with the outstretched fingers of the right hand to square the cards. Since the overhand shuffle is generally repeated, this action is absolutely essential to a clean execution.
In making this shuffle do not look at your hands and the cards. Practice this from the outset and so form the habit, which is an essential factor in the maneuvers which follow and are done under cover of the action of this shuffle.
The speed at which the shuffle is executed should be about the same as that used by any card player, neither too fast nor too slow, and the tempo should be an even one throughout.
Using the Overhand Shuffle
Controlling the Top Card
- Holding the deck as explained, lift it with the right hand, and with the left thumb draw off the top card only in the first movement of the shuffle.
- Without the slightest pause or hesitation, shuffle the other cards onto this one until the shuffle has been completed. The top card is now at the bottom of the pack.
- Again lift the entire pack and repeat the shuffle you have just made down to the last card, which we know was the card originally at the top. Drop this card on top of all the others in the last movement of the shuffle. After a few trials you will find that this last card will cling to the thumb and fingers without any conscious effort on your part.
In this sleight, as well as in the others to follow, the action must become automatic so that you can look at, talk with, and give your whole attention to your audience. Only in this way can you convince the onlookers that the shuffle is genuine, and you should never forget that it is at this very starting point that illusion begins or is destroyed. If you stare fixedly at your hands while shuffling, suspicion will inevitably be aroused, and if a spectator suspects that you have “done something” the illusion of your magic is gone.
In practicing this shuffle and those that follow, it is a good plan to turn the top card face upwards so that at the finish you can see at a glance if you have made it correctly.
Controlling the Bottom Card
- Lift the lower half of the pack to begin the shuffle, and in so doing press lightly on the bottom card with the tips of the left middle and ring fingers, holding it back and thus adding it to the bottom of the packet remaining in the left hand.
- Shuffle off the cards remaining in the right hand, and repeat the action if desired. Nothing could be simpler than this control, and the sleight is valuable because of its ease and naturalness. [Note: the action of holding back the bottom card is also known as milking the card – RJW]
Retaining the Top and Bottom Cards in Position
- Grip the entire pack with the right hand to start the shuffle, at the same time pressing lightly on the top card with the left thumb and on the bottom card (Fig. 2) with the left middle and ring fingers holding them back so that all the cards except these two are lifted clear, the top card falling upon the bottom card. Continue the shuffle, without pause, until completed.
- Pat the upper side of the deck square and repeat the moves exactly as before by lifting out all but the top and bottom cards, then shuffle off to the last card of those held in the right hand, the card originally at the top, and drop it back again on the top. Be careful not to pull the cards away sharply in the first movement of the shuffle, making the top and bottom cards come together with a “click.” Use a light touch. Note that by placing two known cards at the bottom and a third at the top, all three cards can be controlled by this valuable artifice. Practice the sleight in this way until you can do it with ease and certainty.
[Note: Of course you could also simply pull off the top card and continue to shuffle until you are left with one card, the original bottom card. Throw that on top. The top and bottom cards have simply reversed locations. Repeat that shuffle and they are back to their original positions – RJW]
Top Card to Next to Bottom and Back to the Top
- Lift the pack for the shuffle, retaining the top and bottom cards in the left hand as in the preceding sleight. Shuffle the cards in the right hand on to the two cards in the left hand without hesitation. The card originally on the top is now next to the bottom card.
- Again lift the pack, retaining the top and bottom cards in the left hand. Shuffle off the cards in the fight hand upon the two in the left, allowing the bottom card to fall last, thus returning the top card to its original position.
Later you will find that this sleight is useful for showing that a chosen card which you are controlling is neither at the top nor at the bottom of the pack.
The Run
In magical parlance, this term means the pulling off of cards one by one from the right hand packet with the aid of the left thumb in the course of the shuffle. To make the run, press the left thumb lightly on the back of the top card of the right hand packet while holding this latter packet just tightly enough to allow one card only to escape.
It is very important that the single cards be drawn off at the same tempo as the rest of the shuffle, so that there will be no hesitation at the start of the shuffle or its end. A few minutes’ practice with cards that are in good condition will prove how easy the sleight is, yet it is one of the most useful in the card man’s arsenal.
The Injog
This term is applied to the subterfuge of causing a card to project about one quarter of an inch from the inner end of the deck. It is one of the oldest stratagems in magic, having been in use for three and a half centuries. It was first mentioned in Scott’s Discouverie of Witchcraft, published in 1584.
The action of jogging a card is a simple one. In the course of the shuffle, when a card is to be jogged, move the right hand slightly towards the body, draw off one card with the left thumb, then move the hand back to its former position and continue the shuffle in the usual way. The card thus jogged should rest on the little finger tip, which enables you to know, by sense of touch alone, that the card is in the proper position (Fig. 3).
It is advisable at the start to make the card protrude about half an inch and, in shuffling off the remaining cards from the right hand, to make them lie irregularly so that the protruding card is covered and concealed. With practice the jogging of the card can be reduced to approximately a quarter of an inch. Here again it is most important that there shall be no alteration in the tempo. The card must be jogged and the shuffle continued without the least hesitation.
[Note: Typically you would start with the selected card on top. You undercut about half of the deck from the bottom with your right hand. As you bring the right hand down to start the shuffle, you draw off one card with your right thumb, injogging it. You then complete the overhand shuffle. Your right hand comes over the deck to square it up and your right thumb can find and lift up on the injogged card. Your right hand then lifts all of those cards and cuts them to the table. It then comes back to get the remaining cards and completes the cut, bringing the selection back to the top – RJW]
[Note: The book does not mention the other “jog”, the outjog.
What is an Outjog?
An outjog is a way of marking a card’s position in the deck by letting it stick out slightly from the outer (front) end of the deck, rather than the inner (back) end as with an injog. During shuffling or dealing, you simply let the card you want to mark project forward, so it’s visibly or tactically separated from the rest of the cards.
As you shuffle or deal, when you reach the card you want to outjog, move it forward so its outer end sticks out from the rest of the deck. The outjogged card will rest on the left first finger.
Why Use an Outjog Instead of an Injog?
- Naturalness: In some situations, an outjog looks more natural than an injog, especially when spreading or squaring the deck.
- Audience Management: If you want the audience to see where a card is, or you want to make a “mistake” that you later correct, an outjog is more visible and can be used as a convincer.
Use an outjog when you want to mark a position more openly, or when the handling of the trick calls for it.
Use an injog when you want to secretly mark a card’s position and keep it hidden. – RJW]
The Undercut
This sleight is used to bring the cards directly under a jogged card to the top of the pack, in the following manner: A card having been jogged and the shuffle completed, bring the right hand upwards from a position a little below the left hand so that the point of the thumb will strike against the face of the jogged card, lifting it and the cards above it slightly; then move the right hand outwards with the lower packet, the thumbnail scraping against the face of the jogged card while the middle and ring fingers close on the outer end of the packet.
Lift the packet clear and throw it on the top of the deck. This action brings the jogged card to the bottom and the card directly below it to the top of the pack.
To undercut to a jogged card is a very simple action if the right thumb strikes upward, not inward (Fig. 4).