Essential Sleights for Mentalists by John Riggs

I originally presented this lecture in 1995 at the Las Vegas Meeting of the Minds, and it became apparent to me, due to the enthusiasm with which it was received, it was a topic Mentalists welcomed. I realized I needed far more than the limited time I was allotted to do the topic justice.

In this TWO HOUR discussion, I cover sleights I consider essential to the working Mentalist. Not useful, not handy—but ESSENTIAL. Some of these sleights are lifesavers if you find yourself in a tight corner, and armed with this toolkit of moves and techniques, a virtual unlimited assortment of effects is possible.

The sleights I demonstrate are equally useful with Playing Cards, Index Cards, Postcards, and Business cards. There is also a section on the use of the shiner, and a section on coin sleights. The book is included as a PDF on the DVD. Put it in the drive on your computer, click on the DATA folder, there it is!

On this DVD, I cover:

Crimps and Bridges
Nail Nicks
The Double-Lift and Turnover
The Key Card and how to use it
Various ways to locate and control cards
The Hofzinser Spread control and several variants
The Classic Pass and Turnover Pass for more advanced applications
A variety of False Shuffles for all skill levels and applications, from maintaining a red-black setup to maintaining a full-deck stack.
A thorough discussion of the Henry Hay False Dovetail Shuffle from the Amateur Magician’s Handbook
Coin switches and their application in Mentalism
The use of a shiner and how to ring the gimmick in and out of play

And more, or course.

Run time over two hours.