Welcome to the world of magic! Did you know that some of the oldest magic tricks are still performed today? One classic trick involves a magician making three balls move through three cups, making them vanish and reappear. This trick dates back to around 45 CE in Roman times. Another ancient trick, from as far back as 3000 BCE, involves making a bowl appear to refill on its own.
Magic hasn’t always been seen as entertainment. In the past, people often thought magic was witchcraft. In the late 15th century, Giovanni Battista Della Porta wrote a book explaining that magic tricks were not witchcraft but skills you could learn. Despite this, it took time for people to accept magic. For example, King James I reportedly burned many magic books in the early 17th century.
Magic became more popular in the mid-1800s in Europe. This was when magicians adopted the classic look of a top hat, goatee, and coattails, a style still used by some magicians today.
Magicians have played interesting roles in history. During World War II, a magician named Jasper Maskelyne helped the British Army by using his skills to fool the Nazi army. He was great at camouflage and even helped hide a 150,000-man army in the Egyptian desert.
Another magician, Cardini, practiced his tricks in the cold trenches during World War I. He became famous for performing card tricks while wearing gloves.
Magicians are experts at understanding human psychology. For example, when a magician asks you to pick a card from a deck, they often have a good idea of which card you might choose. Many people tend to pick one of four cards: the Ace of Spades, Queen of Hearts, Ace of Hearts, or King of Hearts.
In 2014, a computer program was created to guess the card you picked, similar to how magicians do it. Magicians also know how to direct your attention during tricks. Studies by neuroscientists Stephen L. Macknik and Susana Martinez-Conde showed that people focus on what the magician appears to focus on.
Humor is another tool magicians use to misdirect attention. Raymond Teller, from the famous duo Penn & Teller, explained that it’s hard to think critically when you’re laughing. Magicians often follow a secret move with a joke to keep the audience from figuring out the trick.
No discussion about magic is complete without mentioning Harry Houdini. He was famous for escaping from handcuffs and cells. Houdini often hid a key in his long hair or shoe. Interestingly, he thought he would be famous for aviation and was the first person to fly over Australia in 1910.
Many famous people have been interested in magic. Orson Welles wanted his own magic TV special, and JJ Abrams was inspired by a mystery box he bought from a magic shop. Charles Dickens performed magic tricks under the name “The Unparalleled Necromancer.”
The World Championships of Magic, held every three years, is a big event for magicians. In 1988, Swedish magician Leonard Green impressed judges with a card trick so much that they thought he cheated. He returned in 1991 and proved his skills by winning the championship.
In 2008, a magician duo set a Guinness World Record by pulling 300 rabbits out of one hat. In Hollywood, the Magic Castle is a famous clubhouse for magicians, where only members and guests can enter. London has the Magic Circle, and even Prince Charles is a member.
Sometimes, magic tricks don’t go as planned. In 1936, a magician named George LaLanne was injured on stage when an audience member tried to “save” his assistant. Luckily, everyone survived. The bullet catch trick is one of the most dangerous, with about 12 magicians having died attempting it.
Let’s end on a positive note with some successful magic tricks. In 1983, David Copperfield made the Statue of Liberty disappear and reappear in front of a live audience. Harry Blackstone was famous for his floating light bulb trick, which his son continued to perform after his passing.
In 2000, David Blaine amazed people by freezing himself in ice for over 63 hours in Times Square. He couldn’t walk for a month afterward, but it was an incredible feat.
Thanks for exploring the world of magic with us! If you have a favorite magic trick, share it and let’s keep the magic alive. Remember, always be awesome!
Choose a famous magician from history, such as Harry Houdini or Jasper Maskelyne. Research their life, their most famous tricks, and their impact on the world of magic. Create a short presentation to share with the class, highlighting interesting facts and any challenges they faced.
Using simple materials you have at home, invent a magic trick that you can perform for your classmates. Think about how you can use misdirection or psychology to make your trick more convincing. Practice your trick and be ready to explain the science or psychology behind it.
Conduct a small experiment with your friends or family. Ask them to pick a card from a deck and see if you can guess which card they chose. Record your results and analyze whether certain cards were chosen more frequently. Discuss how magicians use psychology to predict choices.
Write a creative short story about a magician who uses their skills in an unexpected way. Your story could be set in the past, present, or future. Think about how the magician’s tricks could help solve a problem or create an exciting adventure.
Imagine you are promoting a magic show featuring famous tricks and magicians. Design a colorful and eye-catching poster that includes the names of the magicians, the tricks they will perform, and the date and location of the show. Use your creativity to make the poster appealing and informative.
Here’s a sanitized version of the transcript:
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Hi, I’m Elliott Morgan. Welcome to The Salon! This is a Mental Floss video. Did you know that two of the oldest magic tricks are ones we still use today? You’ve probably seen the trick where a magician makes three balls move through three cups, periodically making the balls vanish and reappear. There’s a reference to this trick in a Roman work from around 45 CE. There’s also evidence that people have been performing a similar trick, making a bowl look like it refills on its own, since 3000 BCE.
That is just the first of many fascinating facts about magic that I’m going to share with you today. If you know anything about history, you won’t be surprised to learn that magic tricks haven’t always been popular. Often, they were considered witchcraft. In the late 15th century, an author named Giovanni Battista Della Porta wrote a book called “Natural and Unnatural Magic,” in which he explained that magic tricks weren’t witchcraft but something you could learn. Still, it took a while for people to come around. King James I supposedly had a bunch of magic books burned in the early 17th century.
Then, around the mid-1800s, stage magic boomed in Europe, and this was when magicians developed a signature look that many still use today, which included a top hat, goatee, and coattails.
Magicians are surprisingly intertwined in our history. For instance, in the early 1940s, a magician named Jasper Maskelyne assisted the British Army by fooling the Nazi army during crucial battles. He was an expert at camouflage. One of his most famous feats was in 1942 when he helped conceal a 150,000-man army in the Egyptian desert from the renowned German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel.
Another magician with an interesting story is Cardini, who was in the army during World War I while perfecting his magic tricks. He practiced in the freezing cold trenches and was unique among magicians for mastering card tricks while wearing gloves.
Magicians need to be quite clever, as much of what they do relies on understanding human psychology. For example, have you ever had a magician ask you to name a card from a deck? They often have a good sense of what card you might choose, as 50% of people tend to pick one of four cards: the Ace of Spades, Queen of Hearts, Ace of Hearts, or King of Hearts.
In 2014, programmers created a computer program that could guess the card you picked, similar to a real magician using tricks like the one I just mentioned. Magicians are also skilled at knowing where you’re looking during tricks like the cup and ball trick. Neuroscientists Stephen L. Macknik and Susana Martinez-Conde have conducted studies tracking eye movements during magic tricks. They found that the best way to get a participant to focus on something is for the magician to appear to be focusing on it.
Another way magicians misdirect attention is through humor. Raymond Teller of the famous magician duo Penn & Teller explained that it’s hard to think critically when you’re laughing. They often follow a secret move with a joke, making it difficult for the audience to backtrack rationally.
People also have a phenomenon called reconstructive memory, meaning our memories aren’t entirely accurate. Magicians use this to their advantage, as people tend to remember magic tricks as even cooler than they were in the moment.
It wouldn’t be right to have a whole episode about magic without mentioning Harry Houdini. He was well known for his ability to escape from handcuffs, cells, and other situations. Houdini often hid a key in his long hair or shoe. Interestingly, he believed he would be famous for aviation rather than magic and was the first person to fly over Australia in 1910.
Many famous performers and personalities have taken an interest in magic. Orson Welles wanted to have his own magic special for television, which didn’t happen, but you can see him in one of David Copperfield’s specials from 1978. JJ Abrams, as a kid, bought a mystery box at Tannen’s Magic in Manhattan, which he claimed represented infinite possibilities and inspired his career in directing.
Charles Dickens was another famous creator and aspiring magician, performing tricks under the name “The Unparalleled Necromancer.” He did magic both on stage and as party tricks for much of his life.
There are World Championships of Magic every three years run by the International Federation of Magic Societies, held in Italy. In 2015, about 3,000 magicians attended. In 1988, a Swedish magician named Leonard Green competed in the World Championship of Magic. He performed a close-up card trick, which involved an audience member shuffling the cards to prove he didn’t have a stacked deck. The trick was so impressive that the judges disqualified him for having one of his friends pose as the audience member. In 1991, he returned and had the judges shuffle the cards, proving he hadn’t cheated; he was just that good, and he won the championship that year.
In a different but still impressive feat, a magician duo pulled a whopping 300 rabbits out of one hat in 2008, setting a Guinness World Record. In Hollywood, there’s a famous magician clubhouse known as the Magic Castle, where only members and guests are allowed. There are about 2,500 members, and to become a member, you must audition by performing magic for the Membership Committee. Many celebrities have performed there, including Neil Patrick Harris, Cary Grant, and Steve Martin. Similarly, London has the Magic Circle, and Prince Charles is a member. In 1975, he proved to Magic Circle members that he could perform the cup and ball trick, which allowed him to join.
Now, let’s talk about some magic tricks that went wrong. In 1936, a magician named George LaLanne was on stage in Montreal preparing to saw his assistant in half when an audience member jumped up on stage and stabbed him in the neck in a misguided attempt to save the assistant’s life. Luckily, everyone survived the incident.
A famous magic duo known as the Penn & Teller had an accident in 2006 during a rehearsal when one of them fell onto an arrow, piercing multiple internal organs. He completely recovered afterward. One of the most dangerous tricks a magician can attempt is known as the bullet catch, where they catch a bullet in their mouth or hand. About 12 magicians have died trying to perform this trick, so if you’re an aspiring magician, maybe just avoid that one!
Let’s not end on a negative note, though. I want to finish with some tricks done right, like in 1983 when David Copperfield made the Statue of Liberty disappear and reappear in front of a live audience. We now know that while the statue was behind a curtain, he probably rotated the live audience slightly to hide the statue behind a pillar they were near.
In the early 20th century, Harry Blackstone rose to fame as a stage magician for his signature trick where he floated a light bulb, making it fly through a hoop and back to the stage, even over the audience. When he passed away, his son, Harry Jr., continued performing the floating light bulb trick.
Finally, I want to tell you about the time David Blaine froze himself in ice for 63 hours, 42 minutes, and 15 seconds in November 2000, right in Times Square. Blaine later mentioned that he wasn’t able to walk for a month after doing that illusion.
Thanks for watching Mental Floss, which is made with the help of all these wonderful people. If you have a favorite magic trick video, feel free to share it, and let’s entertain ourselves for a while. And don’t forget to be awesome!
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This version removes any inappropriate language and maintains the informative nature of the original transcript.
Magic – The art of performing tricks to entertain people, often making things appear or disappear in a mysterious way. – In ancient times, people believed that magic could influence the outcome of battles.
History – The study of past events, particularly in human affairs. – Learning about history helps us understand how past societies have shaped the world today.
Psychology – The scientific study of the human mind and its functions, especially those affecting behavior in a given context. – Psychology can help explain why people behave differently in various situations.
Tricks – Actions or schemes intended to deceive or surprise someone, often used in magic performances. – The magician’s tricks left the audience in awe as he pulled a rabbit out of his hat.
Audience – A group of people who gather to watch or listen to something, such as a performance or speech. – The audience was captivated by the historian’s lecture on ancient civilizations.
Attention – The act of focusing the mind on something, often requiring concentration and interest. – The teacher’s storytelling captured the students’ attention during the history lesson.
Magician – A person who performs magic tricks for entertainment. – The magician amazed everyone with his ability to make objects vanish into thin air.
Skills – The ability to do something well, often as a result of practice and knowledge. – Developing good study skills can help students succeed in their history exams.
Famous – Known about by many people, often for notable achievements or characteristics. – Albert Einstein is famous for his contributions to the field of physics and his theory of relativity.
Competitions – Events in which people compete to demonstrate their abilities and win prizes. – History competitions encourage students to research and present on important historical events.
