The Standard By Diamond Jim

Described by Jeff Stone

This is one of those groovy things we call a presentation piece. This one is all about the patter and presentation. You do that right, and you’ve got a gem of a trick! The effect is based on the new box design for Bicycle playing cards.

The short version is this: a three climax effect of a spectator choosing the only red card in a blue deck. And the bicycle card box has a prediction pre-printed on it from the factory.

Setup:

You’re going to need to take a trip to Walmart and pick up the new version of Bicycle Cards. They are no longer called “Rider Back.” They are called “The Standard.” Study the 2 images below. These are the fronts and backs of the new boxes. Click on them to enlarge them. Once you are familiar with the layout of the decks, then proceed with the rest of the effect.

The Front:
You’ll notice that the cards are now called “The Standard.” Also, if you click on the image to enlarge it, you’ll see that it says “Trusted since 1885.”

These two facts are an important part of the presentation. So hold that thought, and let’s move to the next image.

The Back:
On the back, you’ll see that there is a Ten of Hearts showing along with a red back and a blue back. This will also play an important part in the presentation and patter.

And if you’re really bored, click on the image to enlarge it so you can read the back of the box regarding Bicycle’s history.

Deck Set up:
The decks are set up with the blue Ten of Hearts face down 4th from the top of the red deck, and the red Ten of Hearts face up in the middle of the blue deck. Put the red deck in the red box, and put the blue deck in the blue box. You’re set to go. See figures below.

Moves:
The only move of any significance is the glide. For those unfamiliar, you simply use the middle finger of your left hand to slide back the bottom card of the deck while using your right fingers to draw out the second from the bottom card from the deck.

The actual bottom card is glided back. The illusion, of course, is that you are taking the actual bottom card of the deck.

We will be using it as a force for the purposes of this effect. The illustration to the left shows the actions of the left hand. from a bottom view. Also note that the card being glided back is a blue backed card on a red deck. That will become clear in a moment as we walk through the handling.

Basic Handling:
What follows is a simple walk through of the handling of the cards. Hang in there. At the end we will be going through the presentation and scripting which is the critical component of this effect.

1. Show the boxes (only the front)
2. Patter about the new design, etc (patter is found at the end of the description of this effect)
3. Ask spectator, “Which deck do YOU want to use?”
   1. If she says “Red,” pick up the red and proceed with the red deck
   2. If she says “Blue,” have her hold onto the blue deck. Then proceed with the red deck.
4. Hold the deck face up in the left hand position for the glide.
5. Remove the card at the back of the deck and place it face up on the table.
6. Repeat with the next card.
7. Repeat with the next card.
8. As you are doing this, ask the spectator to say “stop” any time she wishes.
9. On the fourth card, glide it back (this will be the blue card), and take the next card.
10. Continue holding the blue card glided back and taking the next one until she says “stop.”
11. On stop, remove the blue card face up, and place it onto the table.
12. Turn the red box over to show the Ten of Hearts printed on the box – Climax #1.
13. Show the backs of all the surrounding cards to be red (Photo Below)
14. Next turn over the Ten to show the blue back (Photo Below) – Climax #2.
15. Next have the spectator open her blue deck to find the face up red Ten of Hearts – Climax #3.

That’s it. The handling is extremely simple bordering on self-working. As with most effects, however, the key is in the script. So first, take a moment to walk through the handling above a few times to become familiar with it. Next go back to the first section and revisit those images and study them.

Then, move on to the presentation below. It is listed as bullet points. Each bullet is a line that you are delivering. I’ve put in parenthesis the moves needed at the moment of the presentational patter.

Presentation:

• You’ve heard of “The US Playing Card Company” right? They make Bicycle Playing Cards.
• Most card players and gamblers recognize Bicycle as “The Standard.”
• In fact, Bicycle recently changed the design on their box to reflect this very fact.
• As you can see here (point to the word “Standard” and the date) they’ve been the standard since 1885.
• What most people don’t know, however, is that Bicycle is also “The Standard” for Magicians.
• Of course Bicycle didn’t want to be left out of the Magic “Standard” any more than the Gambling “Standard.”
• I’ll show you what I mean. Which deck would you like to use (“Force” them to have the Blue Deck).
• As I put the cards on the table, say “stop” any time you like.
• The card after the stop will be yours (Steps 4-11).
• As I mentioned, Bicycle wanted a piece of the magic action…
• As you can see (turn over red box) they knew what card you would stop me at (Pause for effect).
• You’ll notice however that they have a red card and a blue card on the back as well.
• That represents the current situation. You could have chosen any of these red cards (Step 13).
• … but you chose the one blue card (Step 14… Pause for effect).
• Of course, that can only mean one thing…
• Open your box and find the Ten of Hearts (Step 15… Pause for Effect).

That’s the presentation. The key is to really “sell” the idea that Bicycle was sort of “in on” the secret to the effect. This is a very strong effect and gets reactions much greater than you might think. In fact, so strong are the reactions that a local dealer here in Utah started selling the written instructions for the effect along with the cards.

After pillaging all of the local Walmarts for inventory, he sold out in just a few days. You, however, as a subscriber of the Stone Cold Magic Magazine get it for free! Try this out.

Final Thoughts:
One question you may be having is how to ring in the decks. Well because the boxes are different, there’s no need for a deck switch. You can perform a few effects with your “Standard” (see what I did there…) deck of cards (the old box design).

Then when you’re ready to perform The Standard, openly start the patter and bring out the two decks. Also, you can make it the first card trick in your set (after starting with a few non-card items). Then you can just continue to use the cards for the rest of the set. For strolling, the reset takes a few seconds.

This is not the best opener because it is a bit on the long side for the presentation. However, I have seen Jim, many times, perform this as the only trick that he does. So I’ll leave that part to you.

Enjoy!

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