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DVD Review: Strip by Jon Thompson

About.com Rating 3.5

By Wayne Kawamoto, About.com

If you’ve long shunned the lowly stripper deck, Jon Thompson may change your mind with the techniques on his new DVD, “Strip.” As you’ll see, a stripper deck in the hands of a skilled magician can form the basis of some astounding effects. The deck is not just for beginners.

Lose and Cruise

As the DVD shows, there are things that you can do with a stripper deck that would be difficult using a regular deck and sleight of hand. For example, with a stripper deck you can lose the four aces or any card or set of cards in the deck and with careful selection and guidance, allow a spectator to freely shuffle the cards. At the end, you locate the cards.

The DVD offers some powerful card control techniques. Instead of the well known beginner’s method where a card is returned to the deck and the “magician” simply runs his fingers along the sides to bring out the selected card, the DVD teaches you how to cut the selected card to the bottom or top of the deck, as well as control cards through various shuffles and other moves. This is great material.

Find the Ace

Most of the routines deal with four aces that are lost in the deck and then found again. There’s an amazing effect where the magician is able to cut a shuffled deck and locate an entire straight in a single suit. The DVD also offers variations on classic card sandwich and more.

The instructions are first rate and the DVD comes with a Bicycle stripper deck. Because of all of the cutting and controls, most of the effects require a table.

Blow 'Em Away With a Trick Deck

As the DVD shows you, there are some amazing effects that you can perform with a stripper deck that you can’t with a regular one. And you’ll probably blow away your magician friends who would never suspect that you would use a trick deck.

-Wayne N. Kawamoto

MSRP: (US) $35

Dealers can purchase from Murphy's Magic Supplies, Inc.

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