nix - emperybooks.com · The ARCA box is excellent for the two-way prediction. Simply use a white...

.L MANNg'd~ (ZQ1) 431-Z429

POST OFFICE BOX 144 • FREEHOLD, NEW JERSEY 071~8

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(201) 431 -2429POST OFFiCE BOX'.... • FREEHOLO. NEW JERSEY 07728

AReACopyright 1978

arca -ae, f. (arceo), a chest. box.Cassell's New Latin Dictionary

FOREWORD

Gentlemen, I will use this page to plead tothe buyers of this phenomenal secret, to please keepit under wraps. This secret will be worth but 2 centsif it is exposed to the general public. It will endup in children's puzzle books and magic sets.

As it is now, it is priceless to the workingmentalist. The pUblic mind is always mystified b~magician's boxes, so this little box will indeedbaffle them.

This treatise has only scratched the surfaceto the effects possible. However, there are enoughstartling effects in the book to show that it isunderpriced. The 'Secret of the Swami' and the headline prediction are alone worth buying the book.

It is assumed that all the subscribers tothe AlE series are serious students who know how touse a Swami gimmick so no excused is offered in thisrespect. However, the Baffling Bills and the headline prediction do not use the gimmick. Needles tosay that the owner of this secret will spend manypleasant hours enjoying experimenting with the boxand inventing his own effects,

P.S. Best Wishes to you in the coming year~endholidays, 1978.

n- b/Wkfp- tz/nj/kf

POST OFFiCE BOX 144 • FREEHOLD, NEW JERSEY 0772B

ARCA-~1978 by AL MANN EXCLUSIVES

t MANN ~.xd'~ (201) 431 ..24,29

1

A GENESIS

2

B

.- . - - -•

bottom

i:»Fig . J

Fig.

/1

'-----..,/

looks as it should.

Fig. 1A

Top

The billet is now out of sight, hiddenbetween the outside of the inner sectionand the inside of the outer section of thebox. The box proper is empty. The box canof course be shown all around and everything

Before proceeding further, let us first examine theamazin~ concept, created by John Smetana of Morganville, NewJersey, which has resulted in the writing of this book and theincredible effects

that follow.Please examine the

sample box that comeswith this book. Itmeasures roughly 5 byJi by J inches. Itis made up of twoalmost identicalparts as shown in Fig.1, A and B.

Box manufacturersrefer to these boxesas "set-up, full telescope" boxes. The bot-tom section telescopes into the top section.The top section contains a half-moon thumbcut to assist in opening the box.

Please note that the box is a 'covered'box. It is covered with a paper coating.

When the box is closed, it looks like inFig. 2.

Now take a piece of paper, J by 5 inchesand fold it twice, tent fashion, as in Fig.J, and stick it in between the two walls ofthe closed box as shown by the dash linesin Fig. 2, directly over the thumb cut.

The paper must be placed so that the topof the 'tent' (the vertex) is uppermost.

ARCA

A GENESIS .... .... cont •

2

AN AL MANN EXCLUSIVE

Now, open the box by holding it at the thumb-cutsbetween the left thumb and the middle finger, as shown in Fig.4 and pulling upwards on the top half with the right hand. Youwill now see a revelation. After the box is opened you will findthe folded billet insidel The billet has jumped into the boxautomatically and invisiblyl

The maneuver took place while youwere opening the box. The move is caused bysuction rather than friction. 11

Pratice the move several times, with a lfreshly folded billet. The more the box is used _the better it will work.

That, Gentlemen, is the secret ofsecrets. You now have a way of introducinga prediction paper into a sealed containerlAs a matter of fact, the spectator can ~do the move, unknowingly of course. ~----~

NEXT try making the move with twofolded billets, one on each side of thebox. Both billets will now jump into thebox as it is openedl

AReA the box

You have received a box that is large Fig. 4enough to accomodate a deck of cards so thatcard effects may be done with it. If you lookaround your house you will probably find similarboxes of varying sizes. A smaller box can be usedWhen doing billet work, or when using the smalldecks of playing cards.

THE THUMB CUT, For the purpose of writing with a swamigimmick, the thumb-cut can be enlarged. Since these come invarious sizes, no suspicion need be directed to them. The boxsent to you has thumb-cuts the size of a U.S. quarter coin.

For billet work, boxes that have a white bottom are thebest. You will find many boxes that meet this requirement. Someboxes come with a blue top and a white bottom,for example.

If you must enlarge the thumb-cut, be sure that a smoothand clean job is done of it. Any small 'barbs' that remain onthe inside of the box will mar the smoothness of the operation.So use a curbed pair of small scisors or an exacto knife.

The effects that can be done with this principle arelegend and only limited by the performer's imagination. As willbe seen all of the effects will have a profound impact on youraudience.

ARCA

A SECRET CHAMBER

:3


Fig. 5

~----.

\

'~'I I _.d o

EFFECT. The mentalist, standing before his audience onthe night-club floor, platform or stage, calls attention to asmall cardboard box which he holds in his hand. The box is tiedwith red ribbon or rubber-bands.

He informs his audience that inside the box are twopieces of paper with messages which he will show them soon. Hethen asks one spectator to please choose a number between 10and 50. A second spectator is asked to do likewise. A thirdspectator is now asked to add the two numbers called. The audience is told to remember the total of the two numbers.

Three other spectators are next asked to choose andcallout letters of the alphabet, one letter each. From theseletters a word is formed.

Performer then states that he is now going to removethe ribbon or rubber bands from the box but that he is notgoing to touch the slips of paper which are sealed inside.When the box is opened, he states, he will ask someone from theaudience to come forward and remove the two slips of paper andread the messages.

Performer then very slowly opens the box and showseveryone the two slips of paper by tilting the box towards theaUdience. He then calls on any one t~ stick their hand intothe box and remove the slips and r~ad the messages. The twomessages predict exactly the number and word just chosen by theaud i ence!

METHOD. To perform this masterly effect, you must useyour swami gimmick and load the box with two billets folded asper Fig. J, however the billet must contain a long messagepredicting the number and word. One billet on one side of thebox is used for the number and the other billet is used for the:3-letter word. It will be necessary to place the billets sothat the top of the 'tent' points downward. The top of the 'tent'of the billet must be aligned flush with the bottom of the box.As in Fig. 5. Only a small part of the billetshows through the thumb-cut but that issufficient to write in the 2 or J-digitnumber and the J-Ietter word. The spaceof the billet showing is of courseblank and is the correct space that hasbeen left blank to complete the prediction.So you must write the prediction messageaccordingly. The box can be tied with rubberbands or ribbons. The ribbon can hide thethumb-cut if the operator is conscious ofit showing a different color from the box. Bearin mind that at this point your audience does not know whatcolor the inside of the box is. It could be painted in chequers.

4

ARCA AN AL MANN EXCLUSIVE

A SECRET CHAMBER CONT.

THE PRESENTATION. After the lecture about the contentsof the box, the performer calls on anyone to callout any number from 10 to 50. A second person is next asked to do the same.A third person is now asked to add the two numbers called. Thisis only a ruse to give the performer time to write in the totalwhich he already knows before the third person is asked to addthe two numbers.

Performer writes in the total with his swami gimmickon the proper billet that is showing through the thumb-cut. Itis important that the performer knows which is the proper billet.this can be done by secret marks. Writing in the total is aneasy matter as the performer at this time is holding the boxwith both hands. As soon as the number is written. the billetis pushed upwards and out of sight so that when the box is turnedaround that section is unmarked.

Next, while pattering, performer turns the box so thatthe thumb-cut on the other side of the box is now facing him.Performer now calls on three persons to each choose a letterfrom the alphabet in such a manner that a word can be made withthe three letters. This word the performer writes in on theexposed billet and again pushes the billet up and out of sight.

Performer now tells the audience what has been done andshows the closed box all around saying tha~ he must first remove the ribbon or rubber bands to open the box. He then opensthe box slowly and so that everyone can see and tilts the bottomof the box to the audience to show the two billets inside.

For the climax, anyone is invited to reach into the boxand take out the folded papers and read out the predictions.

NOTE. While writing in the word with the swami gimmick.the billet can be moved to the left with the left thumb togive the operator a little more room to write on if needed.

NOTE. The box furnished is of a light grey color. Thebillet is white so that there is a contrast in color. Pleasebear in mind that the audience does not know what is to be doneand therefore does not suspect at the begining any trickery thatwill cause the spectators to look at the thumb-cut. Usually thethumb-cut is slightly covered by the fingers. The rubber bandsor ribbon around the box also distracts from the tiny piece ofthe billet that shows. BUT the performer can get a white boxor paper of the same color as the box if he feels uneasy aboutthe set-up.

Some fine points about handling the box so that thebillet does not show at all will be discussed later besidesthe fact that the performer will develope his own ideas abouthandling.

ARCA

5


THE SECRET OF THE SWAMI

EFFECT, The master mind claims that he can influencethe mind of any person although that person may be thousandsof miles away from him. He asks anyone in the audience to callon the telephone anyone whom he knows anywhere in the worldand to tell that person to choose any number from 100 to 10001

The person called is of course a total stranger to theperformer yet he will prove beyond doubt that a rapport exists between the two. After the person chooses the number andmakes it known, the performer asks if the person had a freechoice? He of course says that he did. Performer then states"Not sol Please notice that I am holding a sealed box in myhands and that this box has been in sight at all times evenbefore the number chosen was known. Inside of this box isan envelope. And inside the envelope is the same number thatthe person over the telephone just chose. You see. I influencedhis choice as I too was thinking of the same number!"

The box is then opened and some one is asked to takeout the envelope inside and to remove the message and read it.The message states that the person would indeed be influencedto think of that number which is marked on the paper inside theenvelopel

METHODI Only one side of the box is prepared. A pillenvelope is used, 2-7/8 by 1-3/4 inches. Its flap is tuckedin. A billet is folded like in Fig. 3 andonly partially inserted into the envelopeas shown in Fig. 6. This set up is placedbetween the walls of the box with the billetflush with the bottom of the box. The billethas been prepared with a long message leavinga space to fill in the number.

IN THE PRESENTATION, after the numberis known and written in,the billet is pushed Fig. 6up and it automatically goes into the envelopewith just a small piece sticking out. When thebox is opened the performer shows the insidesand shakes the box a bit and the billet willgo into the tiny envelope entirely.

Fig. 7 shows a way of handling thebox so that it looks like the whole box isshown but actually the four fingers on oneside hide the billet that may show. The boxcan be handled quite freely as practice willshow. The thumb in Fig. 7 is over the thumbcut.

Do not make the mistake of turning theflap of the envelope back and under it. Thatwill cause friction and may foul the operation.The flap must be tucked in and the address side

6


THE SECRET OF THE SWAMI cont.

of the tiny envelope must be towards the inside of the box asshown in Fig. 7.

Bear in mind that only the one person who takes outthe envelope will ever notice that the envelope is not properly closed. The rest of the audience will be amazed about themessage appearing inside of an envelope and inside a sealedbox!

The box can of course be prepared for a double effectby using two envelopes. Both envelopes will jump into the boxwhen the box is opened, however the directness of the presentation used in The Secret of the Swami using only one envelopeis as profound as any effect can be.

NOTE, The proper way to open the box so that theenvelope or envelopes go into the box is to open it slow butwith a continuous motion. If the box is opened too fast theenvelope may jump high and fall outside the box. An easy pullupwards does the trick. The pull must be exerted on the centerof the box directly over the thumb-cuts.

Do not worry about the audience seeing any movementinside the box as it is opened. Since the line of sight ofyour audience is not parallel with, the top of the box, chancesare the audience will see nothing. If any movement is noticedby anyone, it will not disclose the amazing principle.

STRANGE COORDINATES

~FFECT, Performer shows a sealed box and states thatinside the box is a deck of cards tied with rubber bands. Hefurther states that there is also a paper with a message ontop of the cards. He also says that he will not touch the deckof cards or the message again. Then anyone is asked to callout a card. After the card is called performer opens the boxand shows the inside to all~ Anyone is then asked to take outthe message and cards and to read the message out loud. Themessage reads, "The card just named is in position 18 fromthe top of the deck." The person holding the deck is thenasked to deal to the 18th card and to turn up that card. Itproves to be the card that was called!

METHOD. You will need a deck of cards stacked in theSi Stebbins stack so that you can immediately tell the position of any card called. Or the operator may use any stackthat he is familiar with. It is best to secure the deck withrubber bands instead of placing the deck in its case. Thiswill minimize the chance of accidental droping the cardswhile taking them out of the case. The rest is only a matterof writing in the correct number on the billet.

ARCA

SPIRIT ANSWERS

7


EFFECT, The private reader openly places a blankbusiness card into a box and closes it and ties it withrubber bands. He then asks the sitter to state any importantquestion. The good spirits are then summoned to give the desired and truthful answer. When the box is opened and the business card taken out by the sitter, an answer to the questionis found written on it!

METHOD, There are two ways of presenting this effect.First, as per the effect above, a blank card is shown to thesitter. This blank card is a double card which has a razorblade embedded between the two cards. This card is placed into the ARCA box by the sitter. Performer then closes the boxand places rubber bands around it. The rubber bands are usedto give the performer an excuse for handling the box.

After the sitter states his question orally or otherwise, the performer writes an answer for it on a second businesscard on his lap. Secretly of course, during the conversation.

Performer next places a small writing pad of paper,that has been prepared with a magnet near its back cover. overthe box between the rubber bands so that the pad is right nextto the cover of the box. Performer then tilts the box or turnsit upsidedown. This gets the card inside to attach itself tothe inside top of the box due to the magnetic attraction.

Sitter is told that the spirits will be summoned toassist in the answer. The rubber bands are removed and the boxis placed next to the edge of the table in front of the performer. Spectator is told to place the tips of his hands onthe top edge of the box. Performer then writes out the question on the writing pad with his right hand and his left handgets the card on his lap and alignes it with the bottom ofthe box is preparation for inserting it between the walls.

After the question is written, the performer and thesitter both consentrate on the question. Performer is nowholding the box with both hands and in the process slips themessage card in between the walls.

Performer next shows the box all around and turnsit upside down again. This gives him a chance to tell if thecard is attached to the pad which is still on top of the box.

Next the box is opened, the message card jumps inside,and the sitter is told to take out the card.

NOTE, The rubber bands need not be removed until theend. The rubber bands can help to hold down the writing padplaced on top of the box which will make it easy for the performer to write with one hand. Place two rubber bands vertically around the long side of the box and one around the lengthof the box, vertically. The rubber bands must be spaced so that

8


SPIRIT ANSWERS cont.

the second business card with the answer can easily be slippedin between the walls of the box.

After the sitter removes the card from the box, thepsychic simply removes the note pad from the top of the boxand lets the dummy business card fallon his lap. The topsection of the box is then flashed to show that it is empty.

PSYCHIC KNOWLEDGE

This is the same effect as the spirit answer but herethe psychic claims that he already knew the sitter's questionand wrote an answer to it long before the sitter came in.

WORKING, Before the sitter comes in, the psychic prepares the ARCA box by simply closing it and tying it withrubber bands. The closed empty box is placed aside and noattention called to it until after the psychic has learned ofthe sitter's question and has secretly written the answer forit on the business card on his lap.

While pattering the psychic places the closed box before himself and secretly inserts the answer card in betweenthe walls. Then he says, "This sealed box has been sitting heresince yesterday. I knew you were comming and the question youwould ask. I know you find that hard to believe. But I wrotean answer to your question on my business card and sealed itin this box."

Psychic then shows the closed box from all angles andremoves the rubber bands and opens the box. He then directsthe sitter to reach in and take out the answer cardl

TECHNIQUE, In using a business card instead of a foldedbillet, the technique is a bit different. The business

card is more affected by friction than by the suction force.In order to get the card into the box, the operator must exert a little pressure with the right thumb at position "x"shown in Fig. 8, in the act of opening the box.

the box will

OPENING THE BOX. While practicing theopening moves with a business card, you will nodoubt notice a very audible noice caused by thecard as it drops inside the box. This noice ismost undesirable so instead of opening the boxas in Fig. 4, the box is opened by turning it onits side with the card at the bottom. That

way when the box is opened the card is alreadyon the bottom side of the box which in thiscase is its side. The card will not make asmuch noise when the box is opened.

Just a few practice sessions in openinggive the operator the necessary technique.

I -.J I

l/',• I- -:~ -

Fig. 8

ARCA

9


THE BAFFLING BILLSMaterialization of matter

The following effect is quite profound as it involvesunknown psychic forces.

The effect is credited to Willane and was publishedin ABRA #841 under the title of "The Baffling Notes" described by Fabian on March 10th, 1962.

The effect was also a favorite of Al Koran and appearedunder his name in Magick #100 for May Jrd, 1974.

In EFFECT, The performer borrows two one-dollar billsfrom the audience and openly tears them in half. One half ofeach bill is returned to the owners and the other two halvesare given to anyone to burn.

A box that had previously been shown empty is now openedand the two half-bills are found inside. The two halves aregiven back to their owners and of course they fit perfectly!

This is indeed the easiest way of performing thepseudo-materialization or teleportation of matter, since nosleight of hand is used and the whole thing takes place longbefore the show starts.

PREPARATION, Before the show take a one-dollar billand tear it in half. Place the two halves together and foldthem once and stick them in between the walls of the ARCA boxas shown in Fig. 5, so that the bills show through the thumbcut. Place the box aside.

THE PRESENTATION, Pick up the boxand place it in your left hand with the loadedside ~owards you so that no one can see thebills as they show through the thumb-cut, andplace the left thumb on bills, as you say,

"Ladies and Gentlemen. May I call yourattention to this box. It is empty." Nextopen the box and turn the top section over Fig. 9and place it along side the bottom section sothat the folded bills are covered as in Fig. 9.

Pinch the two parts of the box at "x" with the rightthumb and middle finger and show the box all around and turnit upside down so that everyone can plainly see that it isindeed empty. The left thumb keeps the bills in place whileopening and closing the box. Close the box keeping the halfbills in place and tuck them up out of sight. Place a rubberband around the box and give it to some lady to hold.

Next borrow two one-dollar bills from the audience andopenly tear them in half. Go to the person on your right and

10


THE BAFFLING BILLS .....• cont.

give him the right half of one bill as his receipt. Go to theperson on your left and give him the left half of the same bill.AS the half-bills are given to their owners, performer foldsthem once with the serial numbers inside preferably and so thatthe folded halves will resemble the halves tucked into the wallsof the box.

A lady is next called forward and is given the two otherhalf bills. These two half bills are actually one of the billsthat was torn in half, but the audience believes are two nonmatching halves. The lady is asked to burn the bills.

For the climax, the box is opened and the two halvesare found inside. Performer takes the two halves and goes tothe person on his right holding one half bill, takes the halfbill from him and tries to match it. In the process, performerchanges the persons right half for the right half that came fromthe box and gives it back to him together with the left halfthat came from the box and says, "There you are Sirl A perfectmatch! "

Performer then walks to the person on his left and giveshim the right half of the bill that he took from the firstspectator and says, "Will you please see if the halves match?"

End of Miracle.The strong point of this presentation with the box is

that the box is first shown empty. Later the bills show upinside the box which points to something strange indeed.

One of the bills is destroyed by fire, but the otherbill is not. Which means that the second bill may be marked orsigned by anyone, but on one end only.

The bill in the box is of course a stranger bill thatis palmed off as one of the original torn bills.

If by chance one of the bills borrowed from the audienceis too new, it must be rejected by collecting more bills andthen returning the too-new bill to its owner saying that itis not needed. * * * See page 16.

THE WINGED HORSE

This is the Pegasus Page mystery. It is worked insimilar fashion as the Baffling bills. That is, the duplicatepage is loaded into the box as in Fig. 5. Two duplicate booksare needed. Use paper backs. A page is removed from one bookand folded twice and tucked into the walls of the box. The pagefrom the other book is first forced and then torn out andburned, and while the page is burning the performer switchesbooks. When the box which has been shown empty is opened themissing page is found inside and it matches the book exactly!

Here is a good book force. One of the duplicate booksis given to a spectator and is told to just hold on to it. The

ARCA

THE WINGED HORSE cont.

11


other duplicate book is out of sight easily within reach forthe switch. A third book that has been prepared by cuttingshort two pages after the force page,is offered to a spectatorwho is told to stick his finger anywhere in the book as theperformer riffles the pages. The book is opened where thespectator's finger is and the magician calls out the forcenumber, but as he turns around to tell the other spectatorholding one of the duplicates to open the book to that pagenumber, the performer closes the book and then flips to theforce page and then turns around and shows the page number tothe spectator. who supposedly just chose that pagel

The spectator with the duplicate book is told totear the page out. The page is then burned, etc.

THE BOOK TEST

The book test is quite easy to perform with ARCA.The box is loaded with a prediction paper as in Fig.

5. and tied with rubber-bands. Spectator is asked to chooseany book and open it to any page and to choose any short word.If the word chosen is too long, Spectator is told to choosetwo more short words of 3, 4 or 5 letters then the spectatoris told to choose just one of the words in the hope that hechooses a short word. In any event a short word is desiredand can be easily had simply by asking for it. The chosenword is then written on the billet, etc.

TWO WAYS

The most popular predictions today are the two-waypredictions. Not only can this type of prediction result ina lot of newspaper publicity, but the whole world goes bananaswith it. Whether the masses realise that the magician has a50-50 chance of being correct does not matter, the fact is thatthe whole world adores the man who can tell them who will winthe World Series, or a price fight or the presidential elections. There are fortunes to be made.

The ARCA box is excellent for the two-way prediction.Simply use a white full telescope box and load it with oneprediction paper on each side as in Fig. 5 and seal the boxall around with masking tape or stamps but do not cover thethumb cuts. Then wrap the box in heavy paper with instructionsnot to open the box but to await further instructions. Whenthe box is opened simply hold back the losing billet!

AReA

12


THE MYSTERY OF THE TRINITY

Telling a spectator what the third card is from thetop of a deck after it is shuffled mystifies everyone. Inthis version of it with the ARCA box, the performer nevertouches the deck so the mystery is more baffling!

Use a box that measures 2 inches high by 3 or 4 longand 2i or 3 inches wide. Get also a deck of playtime cardswhich measure 1-3/4 by 2!.

For some unknown reason this size of card works quitewell in the presentation that follows while larger cards donot.

Load your box ~ placing three cards faces inwardon one side of the box between the walls. The box can be showncasually and all seems well. The thumb covers the cards as theyshow through the thumb cut.

Now have anyone shuffle the tiny deck of cards andthen open the box, holding the three hidden cards back withthe left thumb. Watch the angles so no one can see the threecards and show the box empty top and bottom. Then have thespectator place the deck into the box and close the box.

Now the performer can have an easy time by naming thethird card down or the second or all three top cards.

Next to open the box, performer must place the tip ofhis right thumb under the lower edges of the three hidden cardsas he lifts off the top of the box. The cards will make alittle noice as they drop but this can be disguised by shaking the box.

The strong point of this effect is that the box isshown empty and after the effect no trickery can be found. Thebox is not a magical looking apparatus that may cause suspicion.

THE THREE WATCHES

Place three watches (not running) inside the box andprepare the box with a prediction paper. Tell specs that insidethe box are three watches. One is silver color pocket watch.The second is a gold color pocket watch and the third is a wristwatch. They are to choose one. Inform them also of the prediction inside. Performer knows at what time each watch stoppedbut the audience does not know this. The prediction predictsthe time on the chosen watch!

MINDING TH~ STOR~1 If the reader owns the effect,"Minding the store" by Ned Rutledge he can work it with theARCA box. A piece of merchandize chosen by the audience appearsinside the box plus the price of it!

ARCA

SEVEN KEYS

1)


If the reader likes the Seven Keys to Baldpate effect,the ARCA box can be used not only to tell what spectator willget the correct key but also to tell the choice of what cardthat spectator chose. Use as many as 10 keys and have spectatorschose one card each from cards Ace to ten. Performer can tellwhat spectator got the right key and what his card was so thepredictions appear inside the box.

ESP DESIGNS

With ARCA the predicting of the choice of ESP designsis quite easy. Use 10 or more different simple designs andload the box with two prediction papers. If marked cards areused, performer pretends not to know the cards chosen but instead opens the box to read the predictions and then tells the. spectators to turn their cards over.

THE SWAMI GIMMICK

Every magician and mentalist has his own idea asto what a swami gimmick should be. This write~ has two veryclumsy thumbs so that the only proper writer to use in mycase is a metal thumb tip (one inch long) with a band typethick lead gimmick cemented to it. This type of gimmick nevergets lost and is easy to find and never falls off which ismore important.

BOXES BOXES BOXES=

The reader can get all the boxes he wants simply byasking for them. Write down the sizes of boxes you need andthen go to one or more box manufacturers and tell them thatyou are interested in buying several hundred boxes. Some willnot sell less than 1000. Some want an order for 3000 boxes.

But they are glad to give you one sample of each. Theywill mail you the sample free of charge. Be sure to ask forwhite covered full-telescope set-up boxes. Also ask for a2/3 telescope box.

These manufacturers are listed in the yellow pagesof your telephone book under "Boxes-paper."

ARCA

JOANNA SOUTHCOTT'S BOX

14


,"----_....

This is a new approach to the Headline Prediction.The reader may be surprised to know that the principle

of the ARCA box can be used as a headline prediction just byaltering the box a bit. Ye~ the box is totally ungimmickedand once it is mailed it is never opened again until a memberof the committee opens it in his own hands while the mentalistis several feet away, and finds the latest events predictedon a piece ~f paper

Needed is a box that is similar tothe full telescope set-up box except thatit is only one-half or two-thirds telescopeas shown in Fig. 10.

(This box is excellent for slippingin a card or prediction while sitting at atable as for doing the "Spirit Answers" and"Psychic Knowledge.")

PREPARATION. Place a piece of paper Fig. 102i by 3 inches, folded twice one way and oncethe other way to make a small pellet 1t by3/4 inches, and with the message of the date of the sealingof the box, inside the box and close the box. Then seal theends of the box with 'removable' red of blue labels. The removable labels are used so that the box can be used again.Then place two or three rubber bands vertically along thelength of the box.

The box can then be wrapped in heavier paper orlocked into a chest.

Also needed is a metal thumb tip that is about 1t inchlong.

THE SHOW. Write the day'snews on a piece of paper the samesize as the one described aboveand fold it in the same way andtuck it into your thumb tip.WE will assume you will usethe tip on your left thumb.

When the box is unwrappedtake it and patter and askanyone to come forward to open Fig. 11it. Mention the seals, the dateit was sealed and what you predictedwould come true. The box is held with both hands as shown inFig. 11. Behind the scenes, the right thumb pinches the thumbtip while the left thumb takes out the prediction billet andtucks it in between the walls of the box. The thumb tip isput back on the left thumb and the trick is done.

*** See page 16.

ARCA

JOANNA SOUTHCOTT'S BOX ... ' .. CONT.

15


After the billet is in place remove the stickersand the rubber bands and give the box to anyone to open.When the spectator opens the box, the billet will jump intothe box and two billets will be found inside.

NOTE, It is impossible for anyone to see the secretmoves with the thumb tip as shown in Fig. 11. No one can seeyour thumbs unless they are looking over your shoulder. Yourthumbs are completely covered by the box and your hands. Oncethe billet is in and the thumb-tip back on your left thumb,the box can be held at the finger tips while the rubber bandsare removed.

The moves necessary to load the billet can be donein seconds and the rest of the time devoted to showmanship.

NOTE, When the billet is loaded into the thumb-tipit should stick out of the thumb-tip about 1/8 or 1/4 inchto make sure it will come out easy and will not get stuckinside the tip.

If the reader does 'Headline Predictions', he shouldnot hesitate to do this test even if he has to open the boxas nothing can be seen amiss all during the presentation.

Your author has done considerable research intoprediction boxes even to the extent of having a collectionof 12 boxes and I consider the AReA concept one of the mostamazing. The 'box' can be left behind after the event.

A good question is, "Why do we need such a largecardboard box to hold such a small piece of paper?"

The box can be filled with confetti, or gum drops, ora nice gift for the committee lady or man, but this wouldonly distract from the awesome implications of the prediction.But the box can be filled with soft paper which will fill thebox for some mysterious reason and also minimize the noiceof the falling pellet. Fill the box with your own publicity!

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

AME FLASHES

10/9/78. As this book is being written, ALLEMANN themindreader, has accurately predicted that the New York Yankeeswould win the World Series 1978 on the 6th game. The predictions were sent to seven newspapers in the New York-New Jerseyarea, written on single sheets of paper and enclosed in ungimmicked envelopesl The envelopes were opened before thegames startedl

ARCA

NOTES

16


~ ~ ,)

\ ~~

The Baffling Bills. Another way of showing the box emptyis as shown in Fig. 12. The top of the box is remomed andplaced alongside the bottom, covering the bills, withoutturning the top over. The left thumb keeps the bills inplace. The top is next removed and shown empty.

When collecting the bills, collectthe first bill from the person on your rightand right away tear the bill in half andgive him the right half. This proves to theaudience that you indeed gave him half of thebill, his own bill. With the person on yourleft, take his bill and tear it and give himthe left half of the first person's billl

Joanna Southcott's Box. Using the half- Fig. 12telescope box, the performer simply palmsthe prediction billet behind the four fingersof his left hand, then picks up the box and places it on hisleft hand, back of fingers to audience. Then performer turnsthe box around as he patters about the box being sealed andeasily maneuvers the billet into the walls of the box withhis left fingers! The Swami gimmick is not used here. Anybillet can be introduced in this fashion, even a billetfrom pocket indexes.

BOXES. It is recommended that only simple looking boxesbe used. Some boxes come with a beautiful velvet coveringbut the beauty of the box will surely distract from the impact of the effect.

A tall box creates more suction than a low one. Theowner must experiment for his own benefit. Some 'mailing'boxes are loosely wrapped and should not be used. The samplebox sent with this book is just right. The box must have aloose but close tolerance between the walls. If the box istoo tight it will cause trouble and if it is too loose itwill fail at times. That is why a sample box has been sentto you.

AM~ FLASH, Al Mann will lecture at the MagicCastle in Hollywood on Jan. 14th, 1979!

17

(201) 431 -2429POST OFFICE BOX 1," • FREEHOLD, NEW JERSEY 07728

ARCA--COpyright by Al Mann Exclusives

A HISTORY

John Smetana from Morganville, New Jersey, is amember of the AME think tank. John, a young bank officialin New York City, is a master magician and mentalist whoperforms for a close circuit of bank festivals and receivesa high fee for it.

In 1971, John became interested in otis Manning's"Ghost of a Chance" principle that appeared in Jinx #137and also in Practical Mental Effects. The principle expoundeda Shrafft's candy box with a slot on top for depositingbillets. The innocent looking candy box has a smaller secretbox pasted under the slot at the top of the box and is usedfor switching billets.

John prophetically surmised that Mr. Manning's ballotbox should have more and better uses besides the simple forcing of a number or question.

John's improvement to the Manning ballot box wasan origianl concept as follows. Performer pretends towrite out some predictions on a piece of paper and folds itand drops it into the ballot box. Next three persons areasked to callout items like, names, cities, words, etc. Whenthe box is opened the performer's predictions prove correctt

John's idea was to get the folded prediction papersecretly in between the walls of the box and then by the aidof the thumb push the paper into the box in the act of openingitt Toying with the box, John discovered that it was not neces-sary to use the thumb to push the paper into the box. The

box did that automaticallyt And what's more, the billet wouldjump into the box no matter who opened itt

The real problem was how to· get the folded billet inbetween the walls of the box unobserved. John shelved his'gem'for the time being.

In 1976, your author was collecting notes for "Pandora'sBox" and I asked John if he had ideas on boxes. He then mentionedhis 'ballot box' and said "anyone can open it," etc. But I didnot catch the thought at all. I thought John was talking about'The Devil's Devise' (Jinx #89) so I told John that we couldgive that some thought later as I too had been thinking aboutit.

In September 1978, I spoke to John about boxes againas I was preparing a second book on prediction boxes to be

18


A HISTORy .....•.. cont.

called "Pandora II." I asked John if he had any thought oninexpensive prediction boxes. He said, "I still have thatballot box that I mentioned to you before." That last sentance activated a haunting memory about something he hadsaid years before, so I said, "John come on over and bringthe box with you."

On 9/1J/78, John and I had a hefty session at theAME office. He demonstrated his principle with the 'ballot'box. Unbeknown to him, I sat across the table completelystunned.

John said, "It isn't much AI.""What do you mean? It isn't much. That is the most

remarkable piece of mental business I have seen for many ayear. Do you realize how much thought, time and effort hasbeen spent by magicians looking for a method to introducea prediction billet into a sealed box? You have just shownme a move that does that automatically!"

John and I spent the next half hour trying to inventsome way of placing the billet between the walls of the boxin the act of handling it. We failed utterly. We could notcome up with any sleight-of-hand move that would stand up tothe caliber of the presentation needed. So we decided tosleep on it. John went home very gratified that I had thoughthighly of his discovery.

That night, I had no sooner laid down to sleep whenthe whole concept of ARCA came tumbling down before my eyeslike a house of cards. I called John right away. "John, I'vegot it!" "Got what? AI." -- "The solution to your ballot box!"

"we can load the prediction billet between the wallsof the box before the showl simply by enlarging the thumb cutand writing on the billet with a swami gimmickl"

The rest of the story in included in the book. Oneeffect led to the other culminating in the headline predictioneffect in "Joanna Southcott's Box."

The AME offices salute John Smetana for the discoveryof this amazing and fabulous principle that has led to theformulation of some potent weapons for the mentalist and theenchantment of their audiences.

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