THE BLURB:
Danny Archer goes Mental is a collection of some of my
favorite effects with a mentalism or mental magic flavor.
Some of the strongest effects you can do are mental effects,
and I use at least one mental effect in every performance I
do. I have gathered these tricks from my previously
published lecture notes and my notebooks. There are
predictions, direct mind-reading and my takes on some
classic plots like Bank Nite, Seven Keys to Baldpate, and
Add-a-No.
In each case I have taken the material as it was originally
published and updated it. Then I wrote a new page for each
effect that I called Archer's Additions. These were new
thoughts and ideas about the routines that I have had over
the years. A lot of the material is for parlor or stage
performers, but there are close-up and impromptu effects as
well.
MENTAL MONOPOLY - A stand up mental effect using the
classic board game Monopoly as its theme. Strong mentalism
that plays big and that everyone can relate to. Close-up and
stage versions explained.
OUT FOXED - An incredible card effect. Five spectators
shuffle five parts of the deck and then merely think of a
card from the ones they have. You never touch their cards.
All five cards are dramatically revealed. Yet it's easy to
do (no sleights, math or memorization), a genuine
showstopper.
PAR FOR THE COURSE - Tiger Woods, look out. Several
people record a score for an imaginary round of golf.
Totaled score matches a prediction you've never touched. A
great version of Add-A-No.
THE DATING GAME - A truly diabolical method, offers you a
version of the Seven Keys to Baldpate. Uses an un-gimmicked
lock and keys and it's unbelievably deceptive.
HEARTBEAT - Spectator selects a card, holds it to their
heart and then shuffles several times. The magician finds
the card by taking their pulse.
INSTANT STOOGE - A total stranger helps you perform an
astounding mental miracle. An impromptu classic that will
knock their socks off.
BIG BILL - A commercial version of Bank Nite that has loads
of comedy potential and audience involvement.
DSP - A headline prediction with no chance of predicting a
disaster. The performer mails a box in advance, which
contains a digital voice recorder which correctly predicts
the results of a sporting event.
STAR SEARCH - The Mentalist makes two predictions before
showing his autographed collection of movie star pictures.
Both predictions are wrong but then a unique twist proves
them right.
JOKER MENTAL - An incredible mental card effect that has a
killer climax!
TRIPLE THREAT - An El cheapo, entertaining version of
Mental Epic performed in 3 stages, that strengthens the
final choice by using a word selected from a book.
A WEIGH OUT PREDICTION - Another great version of Add-A-No,
where you predict the combined weight of a number of people
from the audience
"Your e-book material is among the very best available to
working (and non-working) performers of mental magic and
mentalism. Very direct and devoid of knuckle-busting
sleights that enables almost total emphasis on the
entertaining premises you so neatly wrap them in. Highly
recommended."
Larry Becker
MY COMMENTS:
Danny Archer, co-organizer of the annual Mindvention in Las
Vegas, is not a mentalist, but he does do mental effects.
Over the past couple of decades, he's released some very
strong mental work. Most of them are his takes on classics,
such as Add-A-No, Mental Epic, and Bank Nite, but they
represent some very strong, experienced thinking.
I also appreciated that Danny published his original
write-ups and then added revised handlings and comments. As
an example, he understood that his presentation for The
Dating Game is quite, ah, dated, and supplied a newer
presentation. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this and the
material in this is solid. There are twelve routines with
illustrations in this 47 page e-book and they are all
described in the blurb.
