Desert Island Tricks
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Desert Island Tricks
Stranded with a Stranger: Tom Cerny
Join us for a magical journey with Tom Cerny, a dedicated pharmacist whose passion for magic was reignited by his son Morgan's curiosity. Discover how this father-son duo, nestled in the secluded southern tip of Illinois, delves into the enchanting world of magic, exploring everything from classic books to cutting-edge online lectures. Tom shares his "desert island" list of magic tricks, featuring intriguing favorites such as Autome by Max Maven and the ever-enigmatic Invisible Deck. Each selection reflects his deep appreciation for the creativity and intellect that magic demands, illustrating their unique bond and shared love for performing and learning together.
Find out more about the creators of this Podcast at www.alakazam.co.uk
Thank you, hello and welcome to another episode of Stranded with a Stranger. This is our midweek episode. These go out on a Monday and, of course, our main episodes go out on a Friday. Now this is your opportunity to be a part of the conversation and to send your lists into us Now. If you want to be a part of one of these, and please send your list of eight tricks, one book and one non-magic item that you use for magic to sales at alakazamcouk, please put into the subject matter my desert island tricks. That way it comes through to me. But with that being said, we do have another stranded stranger. Today's stranded stranger is Tom Cerny. This is what he says. He says I am a pharmacist. I'm not a magic performer. I guess I would be an enthusiast or a hobbyist.
Speaker 1:My son Morgan showed an interest in magic about six years ago, about age eight he's 14 now and that rekindled my own interest. I began with some basic effects and some back issues of the Linking Ring from eBay. Over the years I've added a genie subscription, most of Magic Magazine back issues and quite a lot of books. I was already a bibliophile faster than I can read them, but I pick them up on sale or grab one before it goes out of print. I've also gotten a number of DVDs and online lectures and academies. My son does some performing Lions Club, towns, festivals, birthday parties and family get-togethers etc. I work with him and show him things I have read about or watched to help him script and time it for a show. I really enjoy the thinking behind an effect. Studying magic has had an impact on the way I think about things. I can't give any specific examples. It just changes perceptions and the way you look at things. I can't give any specific examples. It just changes perceptions and the way you look at things and the order you might do them in.
Speaker 1:We live in the very south tip of Illinois in the American Midwest, on a farm near the town of Cobden, population 1,200. We are pretty much on our own. The closest magic shop is Brent Braun's about four hours away. We haven't gotten there yet. We got to see Rick Thomas at a local civic centre several years ago and the Illusionists came to our city about an hour away. My son got to go on stage with Paul Debeck for paper balls over the head. We also got to see Abracadabra with Dan Sperry a few years ago also got to see abracadabra with dan sperry a few years ago.
Speaker 1:As I said, I don't really perform. I enjoy learning and do a few effects for my son and family and friends. Some I have talked to my son and he has performed them in parlor or small stage. My knowledge and my list are diverse but not necessarily deep yet, but a couple of years on my island could change that. That being said, here is my list. Wow, so it seems that you've got a little family act going on there as well. Maybe we're going to have a father and son act going on one day. Maybe that's going to be a new America's Got Talent act in a few years time. But of course, at that point we'll already know what you're going to do, because we're about to read out your list of eight tricks.
Speaker 1:So here is what Tom has put in his first position Autome by Max Maven. I love books and I love the idea of a natural forcing book. Max had some wonderfully devious ideas. Also, I get to take three novels along to read crafty and some business cards Excellent choice. Yeah, book tests are always wonderful and Max Maven really was a master at mentalism thinking. So that's a great choice. And yeah, super sneaky, taking three books with you, which is going to be great for you to pass some time.
Speaker 1:And that leads us on to Tom's second choice. That's the Invisible Deck. It's a classic, a basic and a powerful effect. My son and I just had a Zoom call with Steve Bedwell and he taught us his shake, shuffle and twist routine for it, which I heard about in your Mark James episode. Taking this version, lets me take a cocktail shaker to my island, just in case. Honorable mention to Bill Malone for his Standing Ovation Invisible deck from On the Loose, volume 3. Excellent choice, of course, the invisible deck. It's got to be one of those tricks which I would say surely over 70% of performers have or have done. It's just a wonderful trick and, yeah, lots of different ways of doing it. Do check out the Mark James episode as well, because it was really, really cool.
Speaker 1:And that leads us on to number three. He says on this Penguin lecture, mark James did an effect he called his big prediction. It makes use of a size, step-in stack in a cyclical nature. It's fun to perform and gets great reactions, and also, being stranded would leave me lots of time to play with the size, step-in stack and see what else it holds. Roberto Giobi has a great three card prediction using the stack, but its name escapes me. Maybe in standup card magic. Again, another really great choice. You mentioned about spending lots of time on there. Yep, I think you'd discover tons with that stack. So it's a great, great choice.
Speaker 1:And that brings us to a number four Daryl's rope routine. I love watching it, I enjoy trying to follow along. I have only performed the professor's nightmare section in front of an audience. In addition to his routine I'll have some rope for other tricks. Great Again. Daryl is just a legend. All of his tricks were super clever, always really well thought through, always had sort of a comedy twist to them which sort of made them a bit more quirky and stand out a bit more. But absolutely superb choice. I'm curious to know why you've only done the Professor Nightmare section. I wonder if that's just something that you're working up to to elaborate on that routine.
Speaker 1:But it does bring us to your fifth choice, tom, which is the cups and balls. I only know a very basic routine for the cups and balls, probably the same moves everybody starts with. I don't even remember where I learned it from. I know some of the other moves and slights, just not another routine. Yet Again, there will be lots of time to practice and develop other routines. While I'm on the island, great choice cups and balls is always going to be up there. I think for magicians it will probably be a classic for as long as time, I would presume, and with great reason. There's always some superb ideas, some superb routines, and it's interesting that all of these years on we're still developing new variations and ideas for it. So it just shows what a versatile routine is. Great choice. And that does bring us to number six. Here's what Tom says.
Speaker 1:Darwin Ortiz was a pleasure to watch and listen to. On his Penguin lecture he did a three-phase routine with two spectators. That involved using a breather crimp to cut the same number of cards they cut and to cut to their cards. I don't remember the name associated with the effect. It taught me that a breather is a great utility to have in your bag, absolutely. I know lots of friends who when you borrow a deck of cards, you can magically cut to a certain card. So I do think a lot of performers have it in there and you're right. It's just one of those things. It doesn't hurt to have it in your deck ready to go should you need it. And it just ups the likelihood of an eventuality that you maybe can take credit for. So excellent choice, and it does bring us onto the tail end of Tom's selection.
Speaker 1:So here we have, in seventh position, cody's comedy book test. So funny, the dual reality aspect is great, like the paper balls over the head which Paul DeBak did with my son. Also, I get to take another book, even if the jokes are corny. My own can be too, so, no worries, it's all in the delivery. The book also has another built-in gimmick that I can use with the novels I have for the Max Maven book test take two of the same trick before that being a book test. So obviously you took Max Maven's and you're taking Cody's comedy book test as well. But I guess that just gives you the opportunity to have different books selected. So maybe you're just going to stick them all together and allow the audience to pick one and therefore you know which route you're going to go down. Who knows? It's a really interesting choice and it does bring us on to your final choice. Here's what Tom has put in his eighth position.
Speaker 1:Tom says John Carey has a dice routine that is like B-Wave in essence. You show a coin purse and have the spectator imagine there four dice of different colors. By elimination they end up with one color. You dump out the contents and there is one die of the color they named and the other three are clear and colorless. It's on his Dice Dice Baby DVD.
Speaker 1:This was my introduction to the use of equivocation. Get Dan Harlan's masterclass for much more on that. I chose this effect instead of B wave itself so that I would have the dice with me. I just learned about Eugene Berger's gimmickless version on Dan Harland's director's cut lecture from Magifest. I really like that as well. Excellent choice. Yeah, those equivocation routines are always great. Routines are always great, and Equivogue Equivocay whatever you want to say is just a wonderful, wonderful routine and tool to have in your bag. It can play in so many different ways. So absolutely great choice. And no doubt on your desert island you'll find some more objects that you can use that technique with.
Speaker 1:So we've gone from Autome by Max Maven Invisible Deck, we've got the Mark James Big Reaction, daryl's Rope Routine, cups and Balls, darwin Ortiz's Routine, cody's Comedy Book Test, john Carey's Dice Routine, and now we have some honorable mentions. So let's see what you put in your honorable mentions. We've got Zodiac Code by Rachel Wilde Colombini A great way to force a color. This is a fun and colorful. This is fun and colorful and can be used with lots of reveals. I would also have had some small paper bags in case I needed them on the island. Great choice.
Speaker 1:Number two in your honorable mentions Ultimate Three Card Monty by Michael Skinner. I just like doing it. Yeah, three card montes are always amazing. Uh, number three you've got filled as a flyer from daryl's penguin lecture. Number four big reaction by andy nyman an excellent, excellent trick. I have a big reaction. It's superb. Anything by andy is going to be incredible. Um, also, maybe andy should come to the island soon, if only.
Speaker 1:Moving on. Number five we've got the Mental Epic Board. Great choice, it's just a classic, but for a good reason. Number six Getting to Know you by David Corsaro, another one that gets great reactions and will provide some blank cards for Eugene Berger's B-Wave. And finally, in his final honourable mention, he's put to Paparazzi Deck by Caleb Wiles A great use of the Gemini Twins effect and it's a very adaptable in presentational premise. You know, caleb Wiles is a wonderful, wonderful card creator. His tricks are always super quirky and I'm a big fan of his.
Speaker 1:So let's move on to Tom's book. So I'm interested to see where he's going to go with this. As I mentioned, I have picked up quite a few books and have read several and dabbled in others. The reason I've settled on this one it's a collection of essays compiled by Joshua J called Magic in Mind essential essays for magicians. Joshua J called Magic in Mind Essential Essays for Magicians. I've only dipped into this a little so far and my time on the island would allow me to really get into it. There are some wonderful magicians presented in it.
Speaker 1:Oh, interesting choice. So almost like a theory-ish book going on there, which is great. I guess we had Notes of a Fellow Traveller a couple of times. We've had maximum entertainment a couple of times. So great choice.
Speaker 1:That's a nice new one for our island. And it does bring us to your non-magic item, tom. So Tom has said straight sided, tall, stemmed wine glass to display playing cards. For instance, in Mark James's big prediction, two cards are freely chosen and displayed to the audience. A third card is then created by a free choice of the suit and one of the value of the second, wine glasses are great for holding the cards and, of course, they can be used for their original purpose, for holding wine. Absolutely great choice. Yep, just a wine glass really can elevate a card trick. It just takes it from a close-up routine all the way to a parlour and even stage. You know, cards across, presented in glasses is a great choice and, again, I don't think we've had that on our island yet, so a great new one.
Speaker 1:So thank you so much, tom, for your list. That's an excellent, excellent list. Please do get your son to write in as well. It'd be great to hear his list as well and that means we'll have had a father and son on our island, other than, of course, pete and Harry in the past. So that was a great list. Thank you, tom. Of course you are a stranger, no more. We know everything that we need to know about your desert island and your list. Now, if you guys want to be a part of this and have one of your lists read out, please send them in to sales at alakazamcouk. In the subject line, please put my desert island tricks, of course. Give us a little bio, like tom did beautifully at the beginning there. Give us your tricks and the reasons for them as well. With that being said, we're going to see you this friday for another episode of desert island tricks, but for now, have a good week when I perform at gigs, I look at effects that tick these three boxes.
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