Effect:

This isn’t a new effect. Rather, it’s a way of getting into another one of my effects, "Shuffle-bored," directly from the Aronson stack.

I’m going to assume that you already know "Shuffle-bored." (If not, the complete "Shuffle-bored" manuscript can be found in Bound to Please). Indeed, I’m going to assume further that you’re familiar with the popular presentation for "Shuffle-bored," the multiple prediction ending, usually utilizing a sheet of folded paper that, when unfolded, reveals successive predictions, each stronger than the former. (If you’re not familiar with this effect, you’re missing one of the strongest pieces of magic that I’ve ever created. See comment 1 for some history).

The prediction version of "Shuffle-bored" requires a partial deck stack, so normally you would have to either carry a separate stacked deck with you, or set it up on the fly. This "transition" eliminates the need for a separate deck, and makes "Shuffle-bored" practical and always available for the commercial performer (if you use the Aronson stack). You can now do whatever sequence of memorized, jazz, or built-in effects you want with the Aronson stack, and then climax with "Shuffle-bored." It makes for a very strong set.

Working:

All you’ll need to prepare is your folded prediction sheet, which, when opened, should reveal the following successive predictions:

1. There will be 23 cards face up.
2. The face-up cards contain 16 black cards.
3. All of the face-up Red cards are Hearts
4. ...except the Six of Diamonds.

The precise choice of words used to write the prediction is up to you, depending on your particular choice of presentation. (I don’t actually label the folded paper as a "prediction" because I want to preserve the surprise until after the various shuffles, exchanges and turnovers are complete).

 

Whenever you’re ready to present "Shuffle-bored," it’s very easy to get your deck into the necessary arrangement for "Shuffle-bored." Here’s how.

 

1) Hold the deck (in Aronson stack order) face up in left-hand dealing position.

 

2) Casually start to spread the cards from left hand into right, until you spot the JD. Obtain a left fourth-finger break above the face up JD (i.e., between the JD and the 4S) as you close the spread.

 

3) Hold the deck with the back of the left hand toward the audience. Rest your left thumb on the top card of the face-up deck (the 9D) in readiness for a slip cut of this single card. You’re now going to apparently give the deck one cut, as follows. With your right hand, grip the upper portion (the cards above the break) from above. With your left hand, undercut all the cards below the break and deposit them onto the right hand packet – but as you perform this cut, your left thumb applies a slight pressure on the face of the 9D and peels it off onto the left-hand cards. (It’s sort of a backward slip cut, where the uppermost card (the face-up 9D) remains as the top card, both before and after the cut. That’s why you’ve held the deck with the backs facing the audience). Situation check: the deck is still face up, with the 9D still the uppermost card. Immediately below the 9D is the JD. The top card of the deck (the one whose back is closest to your left hand) is the 4S. That’s it. As far as the audience is concerned (assuming they’re even watching) you’ve simply given the deck a single cut.

 

4) Casually spread through the face up deck, until you spot the 6C. It will be slightly beyond the center of the deck. Injog this 6C slightly, square up the cards and flip the pack face down bookwise. Table the deck face down, with the injog toward the rear end of the deck.

 

5) When you’re ready to perform "Shuffle-bored," casually cut the deck by lifting up at the injog (so the 6C becomes the face card of the upper half). Hand that top half to Spectator 1 and give the rest of the cards to Spectator 2. Believe it or not, Spectator 1's packet contains the requisite 23 cards that exactly fit each of the prediction requirements. So, during the course of the various "Shuffle-bored" shuffle, exchange and turnover procedures, all you have to do is make sure that Spectator 1's half is the one that ultimately winds up face up. This is virtually automatic, and of course is completely under your control.

 

Naturally, you could omit the step of tabling the deck, and simply divide the cards into two portions while they’re in your hands. I prefer to leave the deck on the table for a moment, just because I think the time delay and the dead cut on the table makes it seem a bit more "hand’s off."

 

6) Once you run through the above steps a few times you’ll see how easy it is. But in fact it can be done even more efficiently. You see, in the above description I’ve broken it down into several separate actions so that you can see exactly what needs to be done, but in actual practice these actions can be combined so that all of steps 2 - 4 occur in one smooth cut of the deck to the table. Try the following: With the deck held face up in original Aronson stack order, quickly spread through and injog the 6C (you’ll know exactly where to find it, at position 8 from the top) and then spread the cards near the middle to obtain your left fourth finger break between the JD and 4S. Now perform the slip cut/peeling action described in the text – but, instead of depositing the left-hand cards onto the face of the right hand packet to complete the cut, simply turn your left hand palm down and place the left hand’s packet face down onto the table. Your left hand now takes the right-hand cards, turns them face down, and drops them onto the tabled packet, to complete the cut. The 6C will remain secretly injogged at the rear of the tabled deck.

 

Clean Up (after "Shuffle-bored):

There really isn’t one. When this effect is over, the deck has been shuffled many times by the spectator, so don’t plan to get back into Aronson order – nor do you need to. "Shuffle-bored" is something I regularly use as a closer, and it doesn’t need anything to follow it (but see comment 2).

Comments:

(1) Background and Credits. The idea of creating a transition from the Aronson stack directly into "Shuffle-bored" is the brainchild of my friend Alain Nu. Several years ago Alain showed me the simple slip cut described at steps 1-3, that accomplishes pretty much all you need. I thought it was a wonderful idea, and told Alain so – and he replied, "Hey, it’s just a combination of two of your own effects!" That may be true, but it makes "Shuffle-bored" so much more accessible.

 

After doing the slip cut, Alain took a different route from that described in the text. Instead of dividing the deck at the 6C, Alain split the deck at the AS, and used the following set of predictions:

1. There will be 21 cards face-up.
2. 6 of them will be red cards.
3. All of the Red cards will be even numbered cards...
4. except the 9H.

I worked out the variation described in the text, which has a couple of benefits: the 23/29 card split is a bit more even, and it’s easier for the spectators to instantly recognize that the red cards are all Hearts, instead of having to think about their individual numerical values. It’s also a nice subtlety to mention the Black cards in prediction 2 instead of the red cards, because this focuses attention away from the Red cards until you get to the supposedly final prediction 3.

 

I discussed a number of specific methods for performing "Shuffle-bored" as a prediction in my original manuscript (1982), but the dramatic and entertaining idea of revealing several successive predictions on a folded piece of paper is the creation of Ali Bongo. Ali’s presentation has quite deservedly caught on, and has been used (and even lectured on) by certain professionals – often justifying their exposing my "Shuffle-bored" procedures and secret on the pretext that "their" multiple prediction ending is what makes it so commercial – with no credit to Ali Bongo. I thought Ali deserved to get the credit for this presentation, so I expressly mentioned him in Try the Impossible (interview, p. 278).

 

(2) Retained Groupings. Surprisingly, after performing "Shuffle-bored" the deck is NOT fully randomized. Indeed, it’s in a "divided deck" condition that could be used for some very strong locations. If you visualize the Aronson stack cyclically (i.e., stack number 1 follows 52), you’ll see that the two separated halves at the end of "Shuffle-bored" in fact comprise two groups, easily distinguished by stack numbers: one half contains stack numbers 37 through 8 inclusive, and the other includes stack numbers 9 through 36 (with the sole exception of stack number 52, which is the only card in the "wrong" half. That’s the 9D that you slip cut). As long as you remember this 9D exception, you can use this secret division to advantage. (See, for example, my essays "General Observations on the Memorized Deck" and "Memorized Math," my discussion in the "Shuffle-bored" on memorized deck and selection applications, and my multiple selection "High Class Location").

 

(3) Eliminating the Slip Cut. I developed an alternative way of making the transition from Aronson stack into "Shuffle-bored" that completely eliminates the slip cut. Indeed, this method produces a multitude of possible sets of predictions. The price you pay is a slightly more convoluted prediction.

Just cut the Aronson stack so that the 10C is at the face. That’s it. Now, believe it or not, you can divide the deck anywhere above the KD (which is now located 31st from the top of the deck) and you will be able to use the upper portion for the multiple predictions in "Shuffle-bored." Let me give you an example. Let’s suppose you divide the deck below the AS. Since the AS is (now, after cutting the 10C to the face) the 23rd card from the top, obviously the predictions will take this into account. Here is the set of predictions, for this particular cut:

1. There are 23 cards Face Up.
2. 15 of the Face Up cards are Black.
3. All of the face-up Red cards are Spot cards...
[or, alternatively, None of the face-up Red cards are Picture cards...]
4. ... except for the Jack of Diamonds.

The neat thing is that there exists a comparable prediction for the top portion of cards no matter where you divide the pack (as long as it’s above the KD). That’s because, with the 10C cut to the face, there’s only one red picture card among the top 30 cards, the JD, and since it’s the very top card, it will always be included in the top portion. The fact that the pack can be cut anywhere (above the 31st card) presents an intriguing possibility – you could theoretically allow one of the spectators to "divide the deck in half." Once she does, if you glimpse the bottom card of the packet she cuts off (or the top card of the remaining half) you’ll know just where she cut, and can calculate the correct prediction accordingly. (I consider this flexibility somewhat theoretical because, frankly, if you’re doing the folded paper prediction, you’d undoubtedly want to have the prediction prepared beforehand).