My Favorite Card Tricks: Nick Einhorn
By Alex Robertson - Friday, February 7, 2020
We asked some of the greatest minds in magic to share with us their favorite card tricks to perform. This week we are proud to present Nick Einhorn. You may know Nick from winning the Magic Circle Close-up Magician of the Year (three times!), his many effects including Supreme Nest of Wallets, Bill to Marker, and Pro-Flite, or from fooling Penn and Teller. Over to Nick.
I have been a fan of Vanishing Inc. and Andi and Josh from day one. To me they epitomise class, style and honesty. They appear committed to the constant improvement and excellence in the world of magic. So for me to have been asked to write a blog post and to have recently been the subject of an episode of The Insider podcast was delightful!
My top three card effects are:
Apex Aces -
I believe I saw Bill Malone do this on a DVD many years ago and it looked so good I knew I wanted to learn it.
I use it for walk around close-up gigs and start by classic forcing 4 aces on four individuals which is a very strong opener. I then follow up by having 3 cards peeked and proceed with the Apex Aces routine with a few handling changes to suit my own abilities and preferred sleights. It is a marvellously magical routine with some smart vanishes and the kicker of the three peeked cards appearing between the Aces for the finale. As far as I know, Frank Garcia is the originator of Apex Aces but I believe Jay Ose took advantage of the fact that each face up ace was hidden by a face down card to create a Collectors routine rather than a straight forward vanish of the aces (which leaves the deck in a bit of a mess for any follow up effects).
One of the changes I made to Apex Aces is something I am really proud of...I use Kings.
Panic - Aaron Fisher
I mean, wow! When I first watched Aaron do this it FRIED me! I was caught totally off guard and it looked like a camera trick. Just freaking awesome. It is now part of my most precious A material. The four kings are removed from the deck and clearly placed in your jacket side-pocket. Then, as you hold and display the rest of the deck it literally melts away and all that’s left are 4 cards, the four kings! The rest of the deck? It’s in your pocket where the kings were a few moments earlier!
Now you know why I use 4 kings during Apex Aces! It links rather smoothly to this routine very nicely.
You may have realised from the above two items that I am a fan of visual magic. Mentalism is great but I still think there is nothing as exciting as visual magic, however my final choice does often bridge that gap between mentalism and visual magic. It is a version of "Fusilade" by Eric Mead. In all honesty I had been doing something similar a long time prior to having read Eric’s wonderful manuscript. It is a multiple selection and revelation routine. Eric’s work on it was fascinating to read and so well presented. My version uses a peek and side-steal control for as many spectators as I want to use (Usually up to 10 is enough for everyone’s sake) and then each revelation is a collection of mental revelations, moves and slights I favour and enjoy executing. If I have a dinner table of 10 and I want everyone to feel connected with the magic I perform this and have two endings, One is that the final card appears in my wallet - not signed, but amazing nonetheless. The other ending is something I am most proud of. Perhaps one of my finest ideas and one which literally leads the spectator to stand up and shake my hand at the end whilst everyone else freaks out. I have never discussed it in front of magicians except for a few close friends. Perhaps I will explain it in my lecture it at next year's The Session convention, perhaps see you there!
PRODUCT PLUG
As I write this blog, I am excited about the updates being made for my Digital Force Bag App. Co-created with my business parter and best friend Craig Squires, thousands of magicians around the world now use DFB on a daily basis. It amazes me how many even use it for Virtual Shows!
It is a digital tool (iPhone and Android app) that allows the magician to force any one of up to 100 items on a list. But that’s a bit like saying a thumb tip can make a few grains of salt disappear! It really is a versatile app.
It’s been used on endless TV shows by some big name magicians and if you don’t already have it, then please check it out on the App Store or Google Play. With the latest iOS updates it is going from strength to strength. Constant improvement. Now which two brilliant magicians did I learn that from?
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