ketth CIARKS
CELEBRATED
•x
H A R O L D
R I C E
Presents
CLARK'S
EDITED
BY JOHN BRAUN
Harold R. Rice
Foreword by
Ilustrations by
NELSON HAHNE
LEADING MAGICAL ILLUSTRATOR
published by
SILK KING STUDIOS Cincinnati, Ohio 45220
Copyright, 1943
By HAROLD R. RICE Cincinnati, Ohio
A L L RIGHTS RESERVED No part of this book may be reproduced in any f o r m without permission in writing from the publ ishers. The manufacturing rights for all of the devices described or illustrated herein are reserved by the publishers.
Printed in the United States of America First Printing 1943 Second Printing 1952 Third Printing 1965
CONTENTS page Foreword
4
Thumb-Nail History of "Celebrated Cigarettes"
5
Introductory Remarks
6
"Celebrated Cigarettes" As The Spectator Sees I t
7
Props and Preparations
8
"Cigarette to S i l k "
8
"Water Drinking Routine"
II
Sleights.
"Cigar and Pipe Finish" The Public Performance of "Celebrated Cigarettes" Preparation Presentation . . . . . "Extra Deluxe Routine" "Water Drinking Finish" "Cigar and Pipe Finish" Special Note
II
II 12 12 12 . . . . 19 20 20 21
FOREWORD This is the f i r s t time that a CIGARETTE ROUTINE used by a professional entertainer of the caliber of Keith Clark has been made available to magicians. It is, therefore, with a feeling of pride that I present Keith Clark's Celebrated Cigarettes to the magic f r a t e r n i t y . No foreword to t h i s work could be more f i t t i n g than a few of Ted Annemann's own words which f i r s t appeared in Keith Clark's Encyclopedia of Cigarette Tricks:
"Keith Clark has always been a man quite sure of himself, and satisfied that his slant on things magical is solid enough to stand by itself against the chipping efforts of those who think otherwise. He has his detractors, as has everybody else who succeeds through his own efforts and individual theories . . . . I have listened for forty minutes straight while he explained the reason for putting something down or picking something up at a certain time and in a certain manner. I say THE reason rather than HIS reason because it became increasingly obvious that it was the natural thing, but Keith was the first I ever heard expound it . . . . Certainly no man alive today is as conversant with his subject as Keith Clark. .. .Keith has worked his way slowly forward, first gaining the background of all known wri tings on the subject of tobacco and cigarettes, and then refining, improving, and inventing according to his own ideas of psychological and artistic presentation. He who studies these pages . . . . can have no better authority"
Harold R. Rice, January 24, 1943
THUMB-NAIL HISTORY OF THE "CELEBRATED CIGARETTES" ROUTINE The nucleus o f t h i s c i g a r e t t e t r i c k i s found in a comic i n t e r l u d e played by a French clown a t the Nouveau Cirque in P a r i s in 1885. He would throw h i s c i g a r e t t e away ( r e a l l y reversing i t i n s i d e h i s mouth) and a moment l a t e r he would b r i n g i t o u t , smoking, between his l i p s . This t r i c k o f " t o n g u i n g " a c i g a r e t t e i s o f French, or perhaps Spanish o r i g i n .
At the t u r n of t h e century a s t r e e t performer c a l l e d Le Zouave manipulated, j u g g l e d and tongued c i g a r e t t e s f o r t h e amusement o f t h e passers-by promenading along the boulevards o f P a r i s , sometimes s t o p p i n g in f r o n t of the ROBERT HOUDIN t h e a t r e , owned by magician Georges M e l i e s , now u n i v e r s a l l y recognized as one o f t h e most i n f l u e n c i a l pioneers o f t h e Cinema, and who recorded t h i s c i g a r e t t e magic in one of h i s e a r l y f i r m s .
Then came Florence, (Florence and Sel ika) a Spaniard, t o whom i t seems t h a t f u l l c r e d i t should be given f o r gathering and combining c i g a r e t t e t r i c k s i n t o a complete t h e a t r i c a l r o u t i n e . He made several v a u d e v i l l e t o u r s o f the U.S.A. A passing thought must be given t o Z i r k a , b e a u t i f u l w i f e of L'Homme Masque, f o r her i n t r o d u c t i o n o f a complete r o u t i n e w i t h u n l i g h t e d c i g a r e t t e s at the P a r i s ' F o l i e s Bergeres in 1905.
Frakson and I f o l l o w e d and w i t h us ends the s t o r y o f the c i g a r e t t e t r i c k as an e v o l u t i o n from the o r i g i n a l "Phoenix" p l o t , which c o n s i s t s o f d e s t r o y i n g a l i g h t e d c i g a r e t t e , and causing i t t o reappear again and again j u s t l i k e the f a b l e d Phoenix, always r i s i n g from i t s own ashes. The succession o f s u r p r i s e s caused by t h e v a r i e t y o f ways in which the c i g a r e t t e reappears makes f o r a cumulative e f f e c t , which i s climaxed by a f r e s h new s e n s a t i o n , such as the production of a p i p e or a c i g a r , or both.
In 1926 Frakson a r r i v e d in the U.S.A.. At t h a t time T e n - K a i was also p e r f o r m i n g c i g a r e t t e t r i c k s in q u i t e a n o t h e r s t y l e , and on t h e "Big T i m e " . Cardini was doing h i s now famous act i n t o which he incorporated a production o f l i g h t e d c i g a r e t t e s , a f t e r which a l l newcomers have p a t t e r n e d . Cardini's p r o d u c t i o n , b e a u t i f u l and s e n s a t i o n a l as i t i s , d i f f e r s e n t i r e l y from the o r i g i n a l Phoenix p l o t t h a t I use.
T h i s o r i g i n a l Phoenix r o u t i n e , s t a r t e d i n 1885, and which I have improved, and performed c o n t i n u o u s l y f o r 17 y e a r s , i s so s i m p l e , so e f f e c t i v e , t h a t i t seems miraculous. I t now appears in p r i n t for the f i r s t t i m e . Please do i t j u s t i c e by l e a r n i n g each p a r t c o r r e c t l y and the whole t h o r o u g h l y , and by r e f r a i n i n g from performing i t in p u b l i c u n t i l you can do i t p e r f e c t l y . It w i l l pay you w e l l f o r your t r o u b l e