The Caught Card – Mark Leveridge (Schwarzman Limited Editions)

This item was distributed in the USA by Howard Schwarzman under his “Limited Editions” brand. The magician poses the question of why it is that despite all the precautions taken at prisons to prevent inmates from escaping, some still manage to break out. the answer, the performer suggests, is that there is always an unknown factor involved which cannot be foreseen or anticipated in advance and yet which enables the escape to take place. he offers to demonstrate how this works…. A length of flat colored ribbon is examined by a spectator and placed on the table. Three cards are shown, a court card and to indifferent cards, each has a hole at one end. The two indifferent cards represent wardens and the court card is the prisoner. The court card is positioned between the two wardens and the top warden is turned face down so that both wardens face inwards towards their captive. The cards are fanned to show the position quite clearly, with the court card face up and in view. The cards are squared and the ribbon is threaded thru the lined up holes. The cards are spread to show that the ribbon clearly through all three cards! Having squared the cards again, the pile is placed onto the table and a spectator places his forefinger on the back of the top card of the pile. Clearly the court card is trapped between the wardens but things are not always what meets the eye….the magician takes the ends of the ribbon and gives it a sharp pull. The court card frees itself and is left under the spectators finger while the two warden go with the ribbon. The trick is made in from Austrian “Piatnik” cards which is fine when you present this as a stand alone “packet trick”. It would not be hard to use the set as a sample and gather the needed card made in Bicycle card stock and make the necessary holes in case you wanted to incorporate this into your larger routine. This comes with detailed illustrated instructions and has a strong impact on the audience. Color of ribbon varies as do values of cards.