Pages from the Great Divide - Lorayne

THE GREAT DIVIDE

by HARRY LORAYNE

ILLUSTRATIONS: ED MISHELL

COPYRIGHT 速 1972 by HARRY LORAYNE ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

THE FANTASTIC DEAL JOG

I honestly feel that this is the first good utility move to come along within the past 20 years. I also tell you honestly that I'd feel that way even if somebody else thought of it!

Although it is a utility move, it can be used as an effect in itself - in many ways. I'll teach it as an effect first. This is a blockbuster. The basic effect is that the reds and blacks separate themselves. It will be easier to just teach it than to describe the effect exactly.

A thoroughly shuffled deck is handed to you. As you nonchalantly spread the cards, face up, between your hands, ask the spectator to name his favorite four-of-a-kind. Say he names 3's. Spot a 3 and cut it to near the top of the deck. Anywhere within the top ten cards will do.

Now - what the following looks like to your audience is that you're dealing through the deck, looking for the four 3's. Hold the face-up deck in dealing position, but the hands are tilted toward you. Start to take cards into the right hand, one at a time and one onto the other. The left thumb pushes off the cards; the right thumb takes them. This is the normal way of taking or counting cards, other than spreading them from hand to hand.

The first card is taken high in the right hand so that the tip of the forefinger rests ON the outer (or upper) end of the card, closer to the left side.

The second and third fingertips are at the lower part of the left long side.

They press the card against the fleshy thumb part of the palm. The card is "locked" in position. (See Fig. 1.) The illustration shows the exact positioning. The forefingertip MUST be resting on top of the card, as shown.

The little finger MUST be free.

Assuming that this first card is black - if the next card is also black, take it flush onto the first card. Now assume that the third card is red. Take it just as you did the blacks, but deal it slightly lower, and the right thumb PUSHES IT DOWNWARD AGAINST THE LITTLE FINGER, as it takes it.

(See Fig. 2.)

You'll find that the second and third fingers, pressing inward, HOLD the FIG. 1 card in stepped, or jogged, position. The little finger keeps the down-jogged cards from going TOO low. The forefinger keeps the up-jogged cards from going too high. The cards stay aligned. The thumb is free throughout.

Keep taking cards this way. The blacks go up and the reds go down. At the same time, you're looking for the 3's, and talking about doing so. Yes this will take a bit of practice!

The practice will help you to keep dealing (or counting) at a steady and fairly rapid pace - as you "deal jog " and find the 3's. When you come to a 3-spot, deal it to the table from the left-hand cards. (See Fig. 3.) Then continue looking for the other 3's, and deal jogging.

When you try this the first time, it may seem impossible for the reds and blacks to remain separated in the hand. After a few tries, you'll get the "feel" of it; your hands will "learn" to do it. The last 3-spot will appear when only a few cards remain in the left hand. That's the reason for placing it near the top in the first place. You need a reason for dealing through all the cards.

FIG. 2 Place this last 3-spot to the table and deal the remaining few cards, deal jogging them, saying something like, "Do I have them all?" or, " I assume that there are only four 3's in this deck," etc.

Flip the deck face down in the left hand (the cards will remain jogged), as you ask a spectator to pick up the four 3's. As he does, separate the colors in this way:- The left thumb and second fingertip are at the outer end, at the jogged ends. The right thumb and second fingertip are at the inner end, also at the jogged ends. (See Fig. 4.)

Break the two halves as in (Fig. 5). This is easy if you hold the cards loosely. Don't try to pull the halves apart without breaking them first, as shown. Now strip out (just as you would with a stripper deck) and place either half on top. This should look like a cut - that's all.

I immediately go into one overhand shuffle. Use any shuffle that keeps FIG. 3 the colors separated. What I do is to undercut less than half the deck, injog COPYRIGHT速 1972 BY H A R R Y L O R A Y N E