Giving a plate full of walnuts to a spectator, the performer asks him to pass them out to the others in the audience, retaining one for himself. This having been done, the magus hands the assistant a pack of cards for mixing. Taking back the cards, the performer says “I want you to select a card from this pack in the following manner: you may deal the cards onto my hand, one at a time, until you have a desire to stop; or I can deal the cards onto your hand until you say ‘Stop’; or, if you wish, you may insert this knife into the pack, and the card at that spot will be the one used”. The card is thus chosen as the spectator wishes, and shown to the audience.

The patter continues “You passed out to various spectators of this audience a score or more of walnuts, keeping one for yourself. You also shuffled the pack and chose one in the manner best liked by yourself. Now I want you to take the walnut you have, place it in your right hand, gaze at it, and try to visualize how the card you chose would look inside that walnut. Have you done so? I’m sure that you have really made a clear mental picture, the walnut you have selected will not disappoint you. Just crack it open” (giving him a nutcracker) And inside the cracked walnut is found a miniature of the card picked out! Finish “I want to congratulate you on an extraordinary power of visualization. You should do something with it”.

Here again we have an effect that people remember and talk about because of the object used. The working is a matter of ease because the walnuts are freely selected both by the audience and spectator, none of the audience nuts have anything in them, and the deck is a regular one with no duplicates.

The nut chosen by the assisting spectator is exchanged. There are two methods to suit individual taste. When the spectator brings back the empty plate, the performer may take it in the left hand, and at the same time ask for the walnut, taking it in the right. No one knows what is to happen anyway. Pattering, as he places the plate aside “Your assistance is greatly appreciated, I can assure you, and in return I’d like to autograph this for you. Baseball players autograph balls, movie stars autograph pictures, and it is rather in keeping that a magician autographs a nut”.

As the performer puts this aisle filler gag over, he puts down the plate with the left hand and the right hand goes to the pocket with the nut, bringing out a duplicate nut and pencil stub. The nut is written upon and returned to the spectator as the patter is concluded, the same having been delivered slowly and pointedly.

The walnut substituted for that selected from the plate by the assistant during the audience distribution has been prepared by splitting it cleanly with a knife and hammer. The miniature photo of a card (all magic dealers have these repros) is then inserted and the halves of the shell then glued together. It is possible to open the nut partway, slit the kernel inside with a sharp blade, slip the miniature in, and make a perfect job of the gluing.

The cards are unprepared except for the one you must force. This is a short card and found upon the return of the shuffled deck by saying “Did you cut the pack?” Regardless of the reply, you cut the cards to bring the short to the top, and your cutting appears subconsciously done and is never noticed. If the spectator wants to do the dealing, you side steal the card from the bottom of the pile in your hand under the cover of “Were you influenced to stop at this particular card?” As you say “particular card?” you place the stolen card on top of your heap. If the spectator wants you to deal onto his hand, deal seconds if you can. If not, shuffle the top card to the bottom of the deck. Now deal fairly onto his flat palm. When stopped, look directly at him and say the same thing as in the other variation, side steal card from the bottom of your pile, reach out and add to his pile and openly draw it away as if you were only taking off his top card. This is very cute when done deliberately and cleanly. If he wants, to insert the knife, keep the card on top, and in opening deck book fashion slip the top card to the top of the lower half.

Having been forced, the card is now shown to all and the effect concluded. Try this out a time or two and you’ll see the value of it. If you wait until you see the one night spot performer who is using it at this writing, you’ll certainly want to do it then, but you’ll be a bit behind time.