There is a fantastic commentary in the April 2012 edition of MAGIC Magazine by Gabe Fajuri. It's called "Not Available in Stores" and it's on page 78. In the article, Gabe talks about how the old time pros rarely purchased props at a magic shop but instead had their items specially built.
Reading the article made me think about a complaint I've heard from some bookers that 'magicians all do the same act' and then they list the items that they see every magician do. Funny thing is, they never list the 'classics' anymore. Tops of the list are the Kevin James Bowling Ball Production, Torn & Restored Newspaper, Scott Alexander's Paintball Bullet Catch, the vanishing Ketchup Bottle, the Losander Floating Table, and Snowing. All fantastic tricks sure, but when they are in everybody's act, there is a problem. On top of that, when everyone does them all the same way, more problems.
I guess if I have a pet peeve it's with so many people doing the same material. I avoid popular items like the plague. I feel bad sometimes too because I want to support brick and mortar magic shops, but I can't buy these things, UNLESS I've figured out some way to present them differently. For the record, I don't present any of the above routines. Though, I will admit to using dealer tricks in the past, in fact many times. But in the last few years I've gotten away from it. Instead, I've gone the route of either creating my own effects, or taking much older things and trying to give new life to them. It's a much harder route to go, but I think the rewards are greater in the end.
If you don't feel you are super creative, one method I use is to browse through old magic books and try to just read the effect and then think about how it could be updated. Sometimes, if you find something in an old book, it might not need to be updated. Often, there are gems just waiting to be rediscovered. If you feel the trick does need to be updated, then consider keeping the basic effect, but changing the props or items involved and see what new combination it creates.
Sid Lorraine created a trick called "Lemon Crush" which Bert Douglas altered and turned into "Watch the Lemon". The later routine appeared in the Tarbell Course. Lemon Crush and Watch the Lemon all have a lemon vanishing in some unusual way and turning into lemonade. I stumbled upon this a few years ago and loved the trick but didn't like the props involved. The routine called for several specially prepared props, a tube, a glass and some lemons. I did not like the tube at all. So I sought out a change of props. I introduced a prop called a Niffon Tube (which is not a tube at all) to provide the finale. A prop that some might think is out of date but it's not when you refer to it as a thermos. This new prop altered the method of the trick so I had to come up with additional methods to do the 'dirty work'. The end result was something I called "Lemon Transpo" and I published it in the KIDabra Journal and also in a set of lecture notes. It was an incredibly strong trick.
But publishing it in a magazine and then lecture notes meant I was giving away my updated version. The reason I did that was I wanted to try and force myself to create something even better. It took a while and it didn't come together quickly, but I eventually came up with a new routine which I called "Organic Magic". All of the props are different, even the fruit. There is much more magic in the routine than what was in the original "Watch the Lemon" trick. But it was my desire to try and create something unique that took me down the road less traveled and the end result was a signature piece of magic in my show that no one else is doing but me.
Now if you are up for a challenge, I'll tip you off on a great routine that is in Tarbell right now, which I don't think anyone is doing. It's in Volume 5 and it's called "Watch and Geranium". The trick is attributed to Ed Reno, but that's only because he was performing it. I believe the originator of the effect was the Austrian magician, Ludwig Doebler. The patter described in Tarbell needs some serious updating. The method is fantastic however. The effect is a borrowed watch vanishes and reappears tied to the roots of a potted plant. It's a beautiful illusion with simple props and one that is waiting for a smart magician to make his or her own. The trick has issues, the biggest one of all, it's going to be messy. But it's a hidden gem just waiting for someone to reintroduce it to 21st century audiences!
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