Uppers - Stone Cold Magic Magazine

Inspired by Ed Marlo’s Elevator plot

Effect:

The magician removes the four Kings from the deck and sets them aside. Two cards are then selected and lost in the deck.

Three of the Kings are then fairly placed into three different parts of the pack. The last king is placed on top of the deck. All four Kings instantly rise to the top. One of the Kings is again placed on top of the deck.

The other three are placed under the spectator’s hand. The magician waves the deck over the spectator’s hand. The top four cards of the deck are turned over and are seen to be the four Kings. The spectator lifts her hand and discovers that there are only two cards on the table; the two selections!

Performance:

Run through the deck and up jog the four Kings. Strip them out, arrange them in alternating color order, and place them face up on top of the face down deck.
Spread over the Kings and the two face down cards under them. Square everything up, catching a break under all seven cards.
Lift up all six cards from above in right hand Biddle Grip. Clamp down on the top card with your left thumb and move the packet to the right. Use the left long edge of the packet to lever the King face down on top of the deck. Repeat this with the next King. Drop the remaining four cards on top of the deck and then flip the top two Kings face down.
Take the top four cards into your right hand, without reversing their order, and drop them in a spread onto the table. So on the table are two Kings on top of two indifferent cards. The other two Kings are on top of the deck.
Holding the deck face down, spread the cards and have two selected. Kick cut the top half of the deck into your left hand and have one of the cards replaced on this half. Place the right hand portion on top, maintaining a break, and then undercut half the packet to the top of the deck.
Lift up all of the cards above the break and have the second selection placed on top of the left hand portion. Place the right hand portion on top and then perform a double under cut. This brings both selections to the top of the pack.
With your right hand, slide out the bottom card of the four card spread on the table. Riffle your left thumb down the deck to just below center and slip this card into the break, saying, “We’ll place this King near the bottom of the deck…”
Now pick up the top card of the three card packet on the table. Flash the face to the spectators and as you do, secure a Tilt break under the top card of the deck.
Slip the King into the Tilt break, saying, “This King goes about in the middle…” Release the break.
Slide out the bottom card of the two remaining on the table (Another indifferent card). Riffle your left thumb about a quarter way down from the top and insert this card into the break, saying, “One goes nearer to the top…” Release the break and square up the pack.
Pick up the last card, flash its face to the spectators and say, “And finally, the last card goes on top of all.”
You have apparently placed four Kings into four different parts of the deck.
Snap your fingers three times over the deck. Hold the deck from above in right hand Biddle Grip. With your left thumb, slowly peel the top four cards one at a time into your left hand. As you do this, secure a pinky break between the second and third cards (Fig. 1).
Put the deck on the table.
You will now perform a Larry Jennings Rhythm Count to apparently show four Kings.

Cameron Francis's Uppers - Figure 1 Say, “These aren’t just any four cards. You see, the top one is a King…” Perform a double turnover Showing a King. Turn the double face down and deal the top card to the table.

“This one is also a King…” Slip the top card of the packet into your right hand and then rotate your left hand palm down so they see the bottom card of the packet.

Rotate your left hand palm up and as you display the face of the King in your right hand, deal the top card of the left hand packet on top of the card already on the table, saying, “So is this one…”

Finally snap over the remaining card in your left hand to reveal another King as you say, “And this one as well!”

Drop the last card on top of all.

Pick up the packet and secure a break under the top two cards. With your right hand, pick up the top two cards as one, flash the face and place them face down on top of the deck. saying, “We’ll try it again but this time we’ll make it more difficult.”
Perform an Edward Victor EYE Count (2 as 3 count) to show the two cards in your hands as three.
Place this packet of cards in front of the spectator and ask her to place her hand on top of the three Kings. These cards are really the two selections.
Secure a break under the top four cards of the deck.
Perform Looy Simonoff’s Flipant Move to flip the Kings face up on top of the deck. For those of you who don’t know the Flipant Move, here’s the basic idea: Hold a break under the top four cards of the deck. In one quick, sharp motion, move your left arm down a few inches and then move it back up. This is done very fast so that the air catches the cards above the break. When done correctly, the four cards will flip over on top of the deck.
This done, spread the cards to show the four Kings are now on top of the deck.
Have the spectator lift her hand and turn over the cards on the table to reveal the two selections.

Note From Jeff:

Cameron has been more than generous with his material in the past, and so it’s no surprise that he was willing to give up a free effect to Stone Cold Magic Magazine subscribers, so please take a moment to check out his e-book, Moment’s Notice, where this effect originates. Also, while you’re there you can actually see a video of Cameron performing Uppers. The e-book is only $12.00 and is definitely worth it!

Please take a moment to commentand “like” this effect:

stephen says:

May 2010 at 4:47 pm

Suggested handling to switch in the indifferent cards

Have the 2 selections removed first – this avoids anyone choosing a King

Fan through the cards and explain that for such an honoured guests deserves a Royal Command performance and that your will choose appropriate assistants. Fan the card faces to yourself and spread through and remove each king in turn and drop these face down into a packet. As you square the pack and turn it face down secure a break under the bottom 2 cards. Pick up the King packet and turn it face up and place it into your left thumb crotch and immediately take away all the face down cards above the break. (This is a sort of cross between Marlo’s Jinx switch and Dingle’s NOLAP switch to secretly add on two face down indifferent cads under 4 ace up Kings.)

Now turn each King face-down in turn, and place it under the packet. It appears that you have fairly shown the back and front of each king but the indifferent cards are not seen.

Drop the packet on top of the pack. The top 2 cards are indifferent and can be inserted anywhere. The next is placed via Tilt and the last is shown and tabled and you are back into the main effect.

Cameron says:

May 2010 at 5:09 pm

Stephen,

It might be just me, but I think it’s a bit more efficient to remove the Kings at the begnning and then have the cards selected. No one will pick a King as they are the two top cards of the deck and there are plenty of ways to avoid having someone pick the top two cards. Removing Kings, placing them on the table, then back on the deck and then into your hand is a lot of moves.

Tim Thoelecke Jr. says:

May 2010 at 8:58 am

Agree w/ Cameron. Going back to the deck is a no-no for me too. BTW, I enjoyed Cameron’s performance of this trick very much. I also like Wilder. I May have to pick up these notes.

Jeff Stone says:

May 2010 at 8:59 am

@Tim – Yep . . . Cameron’s a sneaky guy alright. Seeing it performed brought a lot of life to it. Reading it was good, but not near as good as seeing it.