Friday, September 19, 2008

The Best Customers!

Greetings from all of us at Hank Lee’s Magic Factory. What an amazing week this has been. I just want to thank the hundreds and hundreds of people who took the time to send emails in response to last week’s Newsletter and the follow-up letter I wrote on Sunday. It was the largest and most immediate response to anything I have ever written. It’s great to know that our customers feel so strongly about the world around them. We have some of the best and brightest customers out there, and there is no question about that.

Last weekend, Bonnie, Bones and I took the ferry to Martha’s Vineyard. When we got to the house, there, in our little (and I do mean really little) pond we discovered three little frogs living among the lily pads. I think this is the third generation of frogs who have inhabited the pond. I honestly wonder how they found the pond in the first place? It was not there until we dug it, and within a very short time of filling the pond, there was Froggie Number One. Perhaps some naturalist out there can tell me what drew the first frog to the pond and what makes new frogs appear every year? It’s really like magic!

I have been working very hard on next year’s Cape Cod Magic Conclave. Once this week, I almost broke a sweat, but I stopped just in time. This week we have confirmed Martin Lewis and David Merry, both long-time Conclave favorites; and I am in the process of booking Britain’s John Archer. So, things are really looking up. I know you get tired of my asking, but have you registered yet? You can do it easily by just clicking on the Conclave Button at www.magicfact.com.

Speaking of asking, are you still getting the Newsletter in text-only format? I hope not, because the html format is so much nicer. Just drop me a note and I will hook you up for html format. You will be amazed at the difference.
One last note, please remember that the new Fall EXTRA is waiting for you online, in pdf format. Just got to this URL: (http://www.hanklee.org/septemberextra2008.pdf). You can either look at the EXTRA on your computer or download it and print it out in full color!

And, now, finally, to this week’s excitement:

DVD GIVEAWAY: With the sheer volume of new DVDs hitting the market, what could be better than a DVD Giveaway! For the next seven days, from right now until Thursday, September 25th, at midnight, you have the opportunity to get DVDs for free! But, you have to get them the old fashioned way. You must earn them.
Here's the way it works. For every order of $100 or more, you get one free DVD (your choice of any single DVD that sells for $35.00 or less). If you spend $200 or more, you get two free DVDs (again, your choice). $300 or more gets you three free DVDs. And on it goes. The more you buy, the more you get for free! It's an incredible deal when you figure that the average price of a DVD is $35.00! In order to claim your free DVD, just put the name of the DVD in the Customer Notes Box at the bottom of the second page of the online checkout (after you fill in your name, address, etc.) at www.magicfact.com. If you phone your order in to our toll free number at 800 874 7400, just let the order-person know what free DVD(s) you want. If you FAX the order to us at 781 395 2034, same thing. Just let us know which ones you want. Remember, the giveaway ends on Thursday, September 25th, at midnight!

Now, let’s take a peek at this week’s Hotlist!

Casino Caper: From the fertile mind of the late Jules Lenier comes this very strong mentalism routine. It's a light-hearted routine about the world of gambling with the odds of your number coming up!
Unlike many other mental routines, you are given the option of creating either a serious or humorous theme! Using three volunteers, a pair of dice, a roulette wheel and a deck of cards, you make three separate predictions.
Explain how the odds of an individual's number coming up increases in each of these games. Yet, in the end, all three of your predictions match each volunteer's thoughts and choices!
Casino Caper comes complete with Roulette wheel, playing cards, pair of 1.5" red dice, reusable prediction cards, performance tray, instructional DVD and deluxe carrying bag.
Casino Caper is strong visual magic that is fun and easy to learn! Great for strolling and/or stand-up performers! $149.95 (40.650)
(http://www.hanklee.org/xcart/product.php?productid=9617&cat=0&page=1)
Golden Shell: The latest European sensation!
Show a Golden Shell to the audience. The shell is about three inches wide. Open the shell to show a beautiful white “pearl.”
Rub the “pearl with your finger and the “pearl” becomes blue!
Another rub and it changes to red!
Finally, the “pearl” becomes gold. And, you can immediately hand the shell with its golden “pearl” out for examination.
Golden Shell is totally self-contained and self-working. Nothing is added or taken away. The method is truly ingenious. $45.00 (10.1470)
(http://www.hanklee.org/xcart/product.php?productid=9620&cat=0&page=1)

Watch Box – Deluxe Mahogany: Our new Watch Box is beautifully made by the same craftsman who makes our Solid Mahogany Square Circle, Card Star and TV Card Frame. It is an absolutely gorgeous piece of work, complete with beautiful wood inlay.
The Watch Box enables you to secretly remove or load items into an apparently locked box. The gimmick is absolutely brilliant. A slight press on the bottom of the box, and the side door springs open, wide enough to load a watch instantly! You’ve got to see this one to appreciate it.
Comes complete with lock and instructions. The box measures approximately 4-1/2” long, 3-1/2” wide and 3” tall. Made in the U.S. Extremely limited production. $149.95 (10.1469)
(http://www.hanklee.org/xcart/product.php?productid=9611&cat=0&page=1)

Rat’s Riddle – John Kaplan: A tantalizingly twisted and ingeniously insane routine that's perfect for MCs, comedy magicians, and any performer wanting to add a light moment (with a truly magical impact) to their shows!
Imagine if Dr. Seuss wrote the patter for a "Monkey Bar" routine:
“A dead rat and 3 strings, tied onto a stick
To make him change places is the point of this trick
He starts on the left, then goes out of sight
A snap of the fingers, and he's jumped to the right”
Right from the opening line, the whimsical rhyming patter hooks your audience, as a rat (yech!) jumps back and forth from each end of the stick and winds up tied to the middle string for the routine's impossible finale.
* Self working
* Resets in under 2 seconds
* Easy and fun to perform
* Guaranteed laughs and applause
* Performance-proven in front of hundreds of audiences
Comes complete, ready-to-perform with “Monkey Bar” prop (richly stained 9" hardwood, painstakingly handcrafted by a master finishing carpenter to which a realistic rubber rat is attached with soft white rope), illustrated instructions, original rhyming patter with royalty-free use Performance Rights Certificate. $97.50 (60.1545)
(http://www.hanklee.org/xcart/product.php?productid=9612&cat=0&page=1)

"It's about time! When I first saw Rat's Riddle, I wondered how soon it would be on the market because it's clever, practical, and fun and a natural for any family or kids performer. A solid routine that takes an old classic and makes it new again." - Murray Hatfield

New York Coin Magic Seminar DVD Vol. 5 - Productions, Penetrations, Vanishes:
Productions And Vanishes leads off with Dr. Michael Rubinstein's three coin production and vanish sequence, called Triple Play. Batting second is Bologna Debut, Rubinstein's wild four coin production that ends up with a coin at each corner of your close up pad. Two Card Reverse Matrix is an uber-clean version that includes, for the first time ever, the patter Rubinstein has held back for years! David Roth follows with his reputation making Hanging Coins routine. Mike Gallo joins the party with a startling Four Coin Production, and to finish strong, special guest Dr. Kainoa Harbottle demonstrates not one, but two versions of Hanging Coins using his own innovative techniques.
Penetrations begins with Rubinstein's Coins Through the Table, revealing for the first time his startling kicker ending. Roth shows a classic version of Coin in the Bottle, with some beautiful touches of Slydini. International Penetration and Coins to Espresso Cup come out of Gallo's professional repertoire, and Spectator Boy Dan Watkins is back to help! Closing this section is a World Premiere performance of Cylinder and Coins by none other than special guest Giacomo Bertini, the Italian coin Maestro.
Twelve routines might be enough for some, but not the New York Coin Guys! The Bonus section starts off with a performance of Rubinstein's professional act, utilizing routines taught in all of the Seminar DVD's. Roth follows with an in depth discussion of the Classic Palm. In a snippet from his New York Coin Magic Seminar workshop, Rubinstein teaches the wave change and a few new variations. Closing out the DVD is a performance by Gallo called The Bottomless Cup. $34.95 (DVD00926)
(http://www.hanklee.org/xcart/product.php?productid=9621&cat=0&page=1)

David Penn Lecture DVD:
David Penn is one of Europe's leading corporate magicians. He has been awarded the title of 'Magic Circle Close up Magician of the Year' and the International Brotherhood of Magicians 'Close Up Magician of the Year'. David's magic has been seen in the UK on four major TV series including 'FREAKY' on Channel 4, 'Astounding Celebrities' on ITV1 and 'The Sorcerer's Apprentice' on the BBC. His creative accomplishments include the critically acclaimed 'Coinvexed' and 'Refraction' that are now used regularly by top performers all over the world.
Contents include:
* Glass of Water Production
* Biz Card Transpo
* Design Duplication
* The Black Eight
* Tine Bend Subtlety
* Psychological Spoon Bend
* Salt Inspector
* Linking Laces
* Circle to the Forth Dimension
* Penn's Vanish & Color Change
* V.D.C.C.A.W.
* Coinvexed Discussion
For the first time on DVD, David tips his favorite routines and presentation concepts including knockout close-up effects like 'The Black Eight,' two killer tricks that will get your business card into the hands of potential clients and routines directly from his competition act such as 'Circle to the Fourth Dimension' and V.D.A.C.C.A.W.' For the incredible 'Glass of Water Production' you will learn the real work on Patrick Page's effect in which an un-gimmicked glass of liquid is produced form inside the sleeve of the spectator's jacket.
In all, twelve effects are preformed and explained with nothing held back and, as a DVD bonus, David sits down with the UK's leading coin magician, Craig Petty, and discusses new presentation ideas for the coin bending effect 'Coinvexed'.
Filmed entirely on location in China including such sites as The Great Wall of China, Tiananmen Square and the Olympic 'Bird's Nest' Stadium. $40.00 (DVD00925)
(http://www.hanklee.org/xcart/product.php?productid=9619&cat=0&page=1)

Two Way: Show a small brass cylinder. There is a prediction inside.
Place two decks on the table. One is red-backed, and the other is blue-backed.
A spectator chooses either of them, no force or magician’s choice.
Take the chosen deck, and mix the cards well. Some cards become face up, and the others face down. The cards are spread on the table.
Remove all the face-down cards to leave the face-up cards only. The remaining face-up cards are given to the spectator.
Then spectator then does the same as you. This is repeated until only one face-up card is left.
When the box is opened, inside is a chip having the same suit and value as that of the randomly chosen card! $28.00 (30.1373)
(http://www.hanklee.org/xcart/product.php?productid=9618&cat=0&page=1)

Cryptext - Haim Goldenberg:
Double meaning never had a better meaning
Explain that you sense a strange feeling of familiarity with an audience member and ask for their name. The audience member's name is written and placed onto the stage for everyone to see.
Take a calculator out and pass it around the audience. Ask the first member with the calculator to input any four digit number that has meaning to them and then pass it along. Numbers and equations are entered into the calculator by each passing audience member. The final digit is totaled.
Pull out a sealed envelope with a prediction, written before the show. The sealed envelope is passed to an audience member who checks the seal, then opens the envelope and reads the prediction out loud. The prediction is a name. The name matches the first audience member’s name, previously written on the board.
The last audience member holding the calculator is comes on stage and is asked to read the number.
Ask a spectator to turn the board with the audience member's name upside down. It is revealed to be a perfect match of the number just given.
Cryptext is a custom designed True-Type font with an interesting property. Type anything you want and adjust the font size to suit your needs. After installing Cyptext on your computer, you will be able to print off special characters quickly and easily. However, it is more effective if you learn to write in this style yourself. This allows you to prepare messages anywhere, even in front of the audience. It also lends an impromptu feel which is not present with type written predictions.
Comes with Glossy, 20-page Photo-Illustrated, Instruction Booklet and CD. $29.95 (40.649)
(http://www.hanklee.org/xcart/product.php?productid=9616&cat=0&page=1)

Surfaced DVD– Chad Nelson:
Imagine if you could:
* Vanish, produce, or control any card
* Have a card visually travel through the deck
* Perform a one handed top card cover pass
* Perform a double color change with one hand
* Find a four of a kind with one hand behind your back
What you will learn:
In addition to the numerous sleights and subtleties Chad has to offer, you will learn the Clip Shift, a move kept underground for nearly a decade and talked about all over the world. Plus its variations and 7 highly visual effects.
The Clip Shift is a utility move, like a double lift. It can also be used to palm a card, as a color change, a control, a pass and more. It's a move with infinite possibilities. The DVD contains some of Chad's favorite applications and tricks:
Freefall
A protruding face-up selection slowly and visually sinks through the entire deck landing in the spectator's awaiting hand. In a blink, the whole process is reversed, bringing the card instantly to the top.
Rum Jungle
Two selections are lost and a random card is removed and held face up. With a quick shake, it visually changes into the first selection. The spectator is then asked to shake the card, which changes into the second selection.
Tricycle
A single selection viewed by three spectators is buried in the pack. After shuffling, three random cards are removed, shown, and handed out to the three spectators who are asked to confirm they are not the selection. With a snap, each spectator is instructed to turn over his or her card, and each card is seen to have changed into the selection. Each card is different.
Clean Hook
After explaining sleight of hand will be used to find the spectator's selection, a one-handed flourish swirls the selection from the center of the deck. The cards are taken behind the back with one hand. A second later, the hand is brought out, showing the selection's three mates all protruding from the edges of the deck.
Criterion
The four Kings are produced in mid-air. Three selections are shuffled back into the pack. One at a time the Kings slowly and visually vanish only to re-appear with the three selections sandwiched between them.
Fourplay
A puzzling effect where a selected card shows character. Straight away a returned face-down selection appears face up and upon removal it turns face down, visually. The inversions continue, leading to a chaotic climax, which must be seen to be disbelieved.
#@*! Off
A double color change with one hand that begins by showing the Aces buried throughout the pack. By waving the cards, the two blacks Aces instantly appear face up on top and bottom. This is followed by another magical appearance of the two reds Aces face up on top and bottom.
Chad goes into intense detail explaining the Clip Shift and then brakes each effect down to its core. Chad's expert instruction was shot with two cameras in high definition for a crystal clear learning experience. Includes a 24 page booklet explaining the Clip Shift in full detail and more. $39.95 (DVD00924)
(http://www.hanklee.org/xcart/product.php?productid=9615&cat=0&page=1)

Chico The Monkey Puppet: If you always wanted to perform Bill Abbott’s fabulous Chico The Mindreading Chimp, but couldn’t locate the right puppet for the routine, you are in luck!
We have the exact puppet that Bill uses, now in stock!
And, the price is absolutely right! Just $24.95 (50.959)
For Bill’s complete routine, check out Bill Abbott Performs Magic For Kids DVD Set.
(http://www.hanklee.org/xcart/product.php?productid=9614&cat=0&page=1)

Bag-O-Lites: The Miser's Dream done with D'Lites! What a great idea! What a concept! Produce up to ten bright spots of light, using your D’Lite gimmick.
One by one, toss the spots of light into a paper bag. The audience sees the lights fall into the bag one at a time! The lights settle into the bottom of the bag, until the audience sees ten bright lights shining through the bag! With just one puff of your breath, the lights all blow out!!
This wonderful effect takes the D'Lite concept to a much higher level. Big enough to play in the largest theater, yet it works really well in a living room! Imported $34.95 (60.1546)
(http://www.hanklee.org/xcart/product.php?productid=9613&cat=0&page=1)

And, that’s this week’s Garden of Goodies, otherwise known as the Hotlist. A quick note, all of the above items are currently in stock for immediate shipment, just so you know!
I hope you have a wonderful weekend, and I sincerely hope you will find some time in your busier than busy schedule to visit us either online at www.magicfact.com or in person at our brick-and-mortar (and it really is brick and mortar) showroom at 102 North Street in Medford. Either way, we love the company
Hank