Monthly Update #12 (December 2023)

Impuzzibilities, ten variations of "The Nine Card Problem", some tasty sandwich routines and a true crime card trick based on the Axeman of New Orleans!

Hello, fellow magic fans! I hope the beginning of the New Year has been treating you kindly. This Ruseletter will be brief as it serves as the last monthly update for 2023, even though we’re already in 2024! I’m making one New Year’s Resolution this year: maintaining a more consistent publishing schedule. I hope I can stick to it. Wish me luck! 😉

What Makes a Trick an Impuzzibility?

I recently wrote a short blog post about the Impuzzibilities series of booklets written by Jim Steinmeyer, the well-respected illusion designer from Burbank, California. If you’re unfamiliar with this series, I recommend you take a look at them. They’re full of excellent self-working magic effects.

Six of the books in the Impuzzibilities series by Jim Steinmeyer. Photo Credit: Pegani.

So far, Jim has written ten booklets, and I’ve managed to collect all of them apart from two (Impuzzibilities and Subsequent Impuzzibilities). Hopefully, they’ll be republished by Hahne Publications soon.

In this article, I discuss the characteristics that make a trick worthy of being called an Impuzzibility. If you like self-working magic tricks, then the post should make for an interesting read.

Ten Variations of The Nine Card Problem

One of the most popular impuzzibilities is “The Nine Card Problem”, first published in MAGIC Magazine in May 1993 (see pages 56-58). It subsequently appeared as the first trick in the Impuzzibilities series in 2002.

Over the past year or so, I’ve published ten variations of the effect on my blog! Most recently, I created a lie-detector presentation for the trick based on the Lie Speller plot, invented by Martin Gardner in the 1930s. In “Nine Card Polygraph”, you use nine playing cards to dispel the polygraph or lie detector myth.

There’s also a version of “The Nine Card Problem” based on the famous English Christmas carol, “The Twelve Days of Christmas”. This is especially relevant today, as it is the ninth day of Christmas, and I’m presenting you with multiple variations of “The Nine Card Problem”. Although, I should probably be gifting you nine Vegas showgirls instead. Sorry about that! 😉

Links to all of the secret pages on my blog can be found below:

• Elaborative Encoding -  This is, essentially, Jim’s original handling of the trick with a memory-inspired presentation. This is my favourite way to frame the effect.

• Lucky Card - Another alternative presentation for “The Nine Card Problem” framed as a “good luck ritual”. 🍀

• Nine Card Polygraph - Based on the Lie Speller plot by Martin Gardner. Includes an alternative selection procedure that’s worth knowing about.

• The Truth Will Out - A seven-card version of Jim’s trick also using the Lie Speller plot. Based on “Steinmeyer's Nine Card Problem With Seven Cards” by David Solomon

• Bad Password - “The Nine Card Problem” combined with the Princess Card Trick.

• Hello, My Name Is - A variation designed to be an effective icebreaker when meeting strangers.

• Lucky Ducky - Another good option to build a more intimate connection with a person. Like “Lucky Card”, this one also has a “good luck ritual” presentation. 🍀

• Double Duck and Deal Discovery - An unusual two-person version of the effect. 🦆🦆🃏

• Spell the Magic Words - A three-person version of the trick, perfect when performing for parents with young children.

• The Twelve Cards of Christmas - A festive version of “The Nine Card Problem” using twelve cards and words from the popular English Christmas carol, “The Twelve Days of Christmas”. 🎄

Let’s Make Sandwiches!

If you read my October monthly update, you’ll know that I’m in the middle of writing a couple of magic books. The first is called Developing Daley and features multiple versions of “The Last Trick of Dr. Jacob Daley”. The other is called Great Magicians Grow Moustaches and will feature a collection of unconventional card tricks with offbeat presentations.

The first chapter of this book, titled “Let’s Make Sandwiches”, was released as a standalone manuscript a few years ago. I have now revised and expanded the text and intend to include five of my most preferred sandwich routines in this chapter.

The Axeman of New Orleans

Finally, I’ve been working on a simple prediction trick based on the old 10-20 Force, also known as the Countback Force. The routine has a novel presentation based on a real-life serial killer called the Axeman of New Orleans.

The Axeman was a notorious, Jazz-loving serial killer who terrorised the inhabitants of New Orleans and the surrounding area from May 1918 to October 1919. He reportedly killed six people and was never caught.

This might not seem like an obvious theme for a card trick, but the presentation is an integral part of the method (enabling the performer to expand the range of cards used in the force). Since researching the history of the Devil’s Bedpost and studying the Discoverie of Witchcraft, I’ve been inspired to develop more bizarre Magick routines like this one. With the continued popularity of true crime TV shows and podcasts, the idea of performing a “true crime card trick” is very appealing to me.

Danny Huston playing the part of the Axeman in American Horror Story: Coven. Image Credit: IMDB.

While researching the history of this gruesome topic, I came across the third season of American Horror Story, subtitled Coven, from 2013. The series follows a coven of witches residing in New Orleans, and the Axeman plays a crucial role in the story. If you are a fan of the horror genre, I strongly recommend watching it.

The show boasts excellent writing and acting, but be warned; it is not suitable for the faint of heart as it deals with sensitive topics such as racial prejudice, sexual assault and extreme violence. However, as an amateur magician, I found the show’s portrayal of witchcraft and voodoo fascinating. The series also includes a remarkable performance by Kathy Bates—most famous for her role in the motion picture Misery—as Madame LeLaurie, another controversial public figure from New Orleans’ dark history.

Expect a detailed blog post on this topic at some point soon.

Yours Magically,

Marty