Clock Trick

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Wheel of Extortion ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !

by Bill Abbott

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Wheel of Extortion ! ! ! ! ! !

by Bill Abbott

Cover Photo by Bill Abbott. Thanks to Chris Parsons.

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Copyright Bill Abbott Magic 2017.

All Rights Reserved.

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Wheel of Extortion

The classic "Clock Trick" has been around a long time. I've traced it back to a 1896 German trick Der Mysteriöse Kartenkreis (translated, the Mysterious Card Circle) from the book  Der Moderne Kartenkunstler (or, The Modern Card Artist), author unknown. I have no doubt that it dates even further back then this publication.

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There have been numerous variations over the decades and I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the two versions that I have enjoyed and have influenced the Wheel of Extortion in one way or another. The first is Clock O’ Doom by Bob Farmer & John Bannon and found in John Bannon’s book Smoke and Mirrors, published in 1991. The second is Overclock by Randy Wakeman found in Harry Lorayne’s Apocalypse vol.10 no.10 published in 1987.

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If you dismiss this trick as being too easy, too simple in method, or a ‘kids trick’, you will be doing yourself and your audiences a disservice. Its straightforward delivery and hard hitting barrage of revelations is what makes this such a commercial effect. I encourage to try it on friends or loved ones you trust for honest feedback, and see for yourself.

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Simple Method - Powerful Effect

It's a simple method that is, as magician and author Steve Beam has coined the phrase, semi-automatic. If you explain the actions the participating spectator needs to accomplish and they understand and comply, that’s all there is to it. So much mystery and magic is created from this one single action and all the ‘work’ is done before the effect really begins. With Wheel of Extortion you will give your audience the impression, that you can not only read their personal thoughts, but that you anticipated what they would think before the effect began. 

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Justification for Process

Like my Justified Centre Tear found in the Pack Smart Play Anywhere book/DVD project, I feel it's imperative to create justification for necessary, but sometimes strange, processes in our magic. By creating a justification for the strange but needed moment, we strengthen the moment of astonishment and dial down the suspiciousness sometimes conjured in the minds of our audiences. 

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Because the initial process in Wheel of Extortion is also the method that delivers the magical effect(s) so cleanly and beautifully, it became my mission to find its justification. 

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Silent Justification

Because the thought-of hour is held exclusively in the mind of the participating spectator, no one other than he/she is intimately involved with the effect. To open up the emotional engagement we use the needed process as the reason to involve all of the audience members in the mystery. 

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Performance Requirements

To perform this routine you will need a performing surface that everyone can easily see. The performance surface also needs to be large enough to deal poker size cards into a clock formation. I have worked this at cocktail parties, restaurants, bars and with some minor adjustments, at more formal parlour performances.

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The presentation of Wheel of Extortion is one that should be performed for a minimum of two audience members. As will be revealed in the process section, the routine method needs to involve at least two or more spectators for the procedure to be justified.

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Props & Set-Up

• In addition to the provided set of jokers you will need a regular deck of Bicycle Rider Back playing cards with matching colour backs to your jokers.

• Take the King of Hearts from the deck. This will be your force card. You will need to mark the back of this card in a way that you can easily and instantly see it. I use a an X-Acto or box cutting knife to scratch away the top corners at the border to make an easily seen marking. (See Photos 1 & 2)

• Write out this prediction on the back of a business card. “The king of love knows your special time. And every other hour is a joke to you.” and slide it into one side of the clear wallet.

• Take the 11 jokers (provided) and place the force card at the bottom of the stack. Slide this stack into the side of the clear wallet opposite to your prediction card. (See Photo 3)

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Photo 1

Photo 2

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• You can begin the routine by either;

a) Removing the twelve cards from the wallet and begin the routine, placing the business card prediction in full view (prediction side down) somewhere on the performance surface.

b) Or you can add the twelve card stack to the top of your regular deck and give the impression that you are casually counting twelve cards from the deck to use in the demonstration. And then remove the prediction from a pocket, wallet, etc. and placing it on the performing surface at the outset, before commencing the routine.

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Photo 3

Photo 4

Script & Action

(Script lines are in italics and actions are in bold capitals)

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Performer: “Did you know that a deck of cards is like a calendar? There are four suits and four seasons. Fifty-two cards and fifty-two weeks in a year. And if you add up all the pips on all the cards, they add up to three hundred and sixty-five, like the days in a year. We are going to use some cards, as a clock. Twelve hours, twelve cards. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve.”

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TAKE THE CLEAR WALLET FROM YOUR POCKET CONCEALING THE KING OF HEARTS PIP WITH YOUR THUMB. (See Photo 4)

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REMOVE THE CARDS FROM THE WALLET BY OPENING IT BOOK-WISE TOWARDS YOU, SO YOU DON’T SHOW/FLASH THE WRITTEN PREDICTION OR THE FACE OF THE KING OF HEARTS. (See Photo 5)

Photo 5

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IF YOU ARE REMOVING THE CARDS FROM THE WALLET, PLACE THE WALLET WITH PREDICTION CARD NEAR YOU, IN VIEW OF THE AUDIENCE PREDICTION SIDE DOWN, ONTO THE TABLE. NOW COUNT THE CARDS FROM HAND TO HAND WITHOUT DISTURBING THE LOCATION OF THE MARKED FORCE CARD AT THE BOTTOM OF THE STACK, AND DROP THEM IN A PILE ONTO THE PERFORMING SURFACE.

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THE ACTION IS THE SAME IF YOU ARE REMOVING THE CARDS FROM THE TOP OF THE DECK. COUNT THE CARDS FROM HAND TO HAND WITHOUT DISTURBING THE LOCATION OF THE MARKED FORCE CARD AT THE BOTTOM OF THE STACK, AND DROP THEM IN A PILE ONTO THE PERFORMING SURFACE. PLACE THE DECK AWAY AND REMOVE YOUR PREDICTION FROM YOUR WALLET/POCKET AND PLACE IT ONTO THE TABLE, IN VIEW.

! ADDRESS SOMEONE CLOSE TO THE TABLE. ! Performer: “What is your name?” ! Spectator: “Stephanie.” !

Performer: “Stephanie, I would like you to think of an hour in the day, an hour that you have some personal connection to. Like the hour a loved one was born, for example. Or maybe just a favourite hour for you. Don’t tell me what that hour is, just think of it. Do you have one?”

! Spectator: “Yes.” !

Performer: “In order to let everyone else know the hour you’re thinking of Stephanie, without letting me know, I want you to do something really covert. I don’t want you to whisper your thought, because I may hear you. If you write it down, I may be able to sneak a peek at it. So we are going to do this. I’m going to turn my back and I want you to slowly and silently deal the number of cards, from the top, onto the table that matches the hour that you’re thinking of. This way everyone will be able to count along and know exactly the hour you’re thinking of, okay?”

! Spectator: “Yes.”

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Performer: “For example 5 o'clock means you would deal five cards, 8 o'clock 8 cards, etc. And as soon as you’ve dealt the number of cards that match your hour, I want you to drop the remaining cards onto the cards you’ve dealt onto the table.”

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DEMONSTRATE WHAT YOU WOULD LIKE THE PARTICIPANT TO DO WHILE YOU SAY THIS, MIMING THE ACTIONS, SO AS NOT TO DISTURB THE FORCE CARD ON THE BOTTOM OF THE STACK.

! Performer: “Take the cards, and wait until I turn around.” !

PLACE THE CARDS INTO THE SPECTATORS LEFT HAND, READY FOR DEALING, AND TURN YOUR BACK TO THEM.

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Performer: “Okay Stephanie remember, slowly and silently so everyone watching will understand which hour it is. Start dealing when you want and let me know when you’re done.”

! SPECTATOR COMPLIES AND COMPLETES THE DEALING PROCEDURE. ! Spectator: “All done.” !

Performer: “Thank you, have you dropped the rest of the cards in your hand on top of the cards you dealt?”

! Spectator: “Yes.”

! Performer: “Square those cards up so they look perfect, before I turn around.”

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SPECTATOR COMPLIES AND DOES THIS. PAUSE A BEAT AND THEN TURN AROUND AND FACE THE TABLE AND LOOK EVERYONE IN THE EYES IN A LONG SWEEP.

! Performer: “Does everyone know what hour Stephanie is thinking of?” !

AUDIENCE WILL RESPOND VERBALLY AND BY SHAKING THEIR HEADS IN AGREEMENT. PICK UP THE CARDS AND START DEALING THE CARDS, FROM THE TOP OF THE STACK, INTO A CLOCK FORMATION STARTING AT THE 11 O’CLOCK POSITION AND DEALING IN A COUNTER CLOCKWISE DIRECTION.

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BE SURE THE CLOCK IS ORIENTATED TO THE AUDIENCE’S PERSPECTIVE, SO THEY CAN EASILY UNDERSTAND WHEN YOU SHOW THEM THE POSITION OF THE HOURS IN A MOMENT. WHILE YOU ARE DEALING WATCH FOR YOUR MARKED CARD AND NOTE AT WHAT HOUR IT FALLS INTO POSITION AT. THIS IS THE HOUR THEY ARE THINKING OF. LET’S SAY, IN THIS PERFORMANCE, IT LIES AT THE 5 O’CLOCK POSITION. (See Photo 6)

Photo 6

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Performer: “The first thing I’d like you to do Stephanie is to imagine this as an actual clock. With the twelve o’clock at the top here, one o’clock, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten and eleven.”

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TAP THE BACKS OF THE HOURS WITH YOUR FINGER AS YOU WORK YOUR AWAY AROUND THE CLOCK.

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Performer: “Close your eyes and imagine the hour hand resting on your hour. Can you see this in your minds eye?”

! Spectator: “Yes.”

! PAUSE FOR A TIME BREATHING DEEPLY. ! Performer: “You are thinking of 5 o’clock.” ! Spectator: “Yes, I am!”

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Performer: “That’s what you were imagining right now. What does 5 o’clock mean to you? Does it mean something to you?”

! Spectator: “My daughter was born at 5:05 in the morning.” !

Performer: “Wow, that’s memorable. A beautiful moment. Stephanie, we have never met before tonight so it would be a stretch for me to know that your daughter was born at that hour, right?”

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Spectator: “Right, of course.”

Performer: “And there’s really no way that you knew beforehand that you would be thinking of this special memory at this very moment?”

Photo 7

! Spectator: “No, I suppose not.” !

Performer: “This will come as a shock then. I knew you would be thinking of 5 o’clock before we began. In fact before I stepped into this room. Before I got into the car to drive here. I wrote something on the back of this card that I placed here from the beginning. Please, would you pick it up and read what I wrote?”

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Photo 8

GESTURE TO THE CARD IN THE CLEAR WALLET THAT YOU PLACED ON THE TABLE THAT IS IN FULL VIEW OF EVERYONE. (See Photo 7)

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DON’T TOUCH IT. WAIT UNTIL THE SPECTATOR PICKS IT UP AND EITHER REMOVES IT FROM THE WALLET OR JUST TURNS IT OVER. READING FROM THE CARD… (See Photo 8)

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Spectator: “The king of love knows your special time. And every other hour is a joke to you.”

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Performer: “Cryptic isn’t it! Stephanie, turn the card over at the five o’clock position on our clock here.”

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SPECTATOR TURNS OVER THE CARD AT THEIR THOUGHT OF HOUR, IT IS THE KING OF HEARTS.

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Performer: “The king of hearts. The king of love…and every other hour is a joke to you. Stephanie turn over the cards at all the other hours…”

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SPECTATOR TURNS OVER ALL THE OTHER CARDS AND SEES THE FACE OF JOKER AFTER JOKER IN AN OVERWHELMING CONCLUSION. (See Photo 9)

Photo 9

THE END.

! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Reset! It’s an quick and easy reset. Turn all the jokers face down and slip the king of hearts beneath the stack and slip it back into the clear wallet along with the prediction card in the opposite side. Ready for the next performance.!

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Final Thoughts! I trust you can see the power in linking the hour you ask them to think of with a personal, private and powerful emotional memory. This is what brings it all to a jaw dropping conclusion. You may be tempted to do a centre tear, use an impression device or other secret info retrieval system to know the subject of their memory. Feel free of course, but know that the routine structured in the way it is, with the working of the prediction, etc. is strong enough to bring the house down. Try it.!

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As an alternate handling you could have your participant pocket the prediction at the outset until the time of revelation.!

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If you find the effect plays well for you, you may want to get a business card case, that can hold poker size playing cards, and have it engraved with the two line prediction.