Dec 02 2011
Nothing Up My Sleeve…..Presto

Hey Rocky, Watch Me Pull a Rabbit out of my Hat

But that trick never works.

I can’t remember a time when I didn’t love learning magic tricks.

Libraries used to be the best place to source new stuff- classic texts such as ‘The Rpyal Road to Card Magic’ and the ‘Tarbell Course in Magic’ haven’t been surpassed.

Magic tricks have always been expensive to buy – most of the cost of a trick is the secret, rather than the equipment itself. It has also been difficult to access in Australia. When I was growing up, Sydney’s only magic shop was ‘Weirdo’s’, in the Windsor Arcade – now long gone. Hey Presto (84 Pitt St) has taken its place.

The Internet has completely changed the way magic is sold. DVDs and ‘gimmicks’ can be purchased easily from the USA, or in some cases downloaded ‘instantly’. Even when buying locally, you can preview tricks online, and read reviews by professionals at sites such as The Magic Cafe.

Penguin Magic is to magic as Amazon is to books. It is the big daddy of online magic shops – with thousands of tricks. Most have video previews.

At the moment, Penguin Magic is offering ‘The Greatest Beginner Magic DVD Ever‘ for free! The downloadable DVD features well known magic teacher Oz Pearlman, and runs for fwo hours. All the equipment needed is readily available at home – and you can download it instantly.

That is most definitely good value.

Penguin know that half the fun is the anticipation of waiting for a trick to arrive once you have ordered it. They add to the excitement by providing a link to a video of your own order being packed in their warehouse. This is the video of my recent purchase being packed. Now I really can’t wait for Santa to arrive.