But in my half century plus of magic there are not one but three magicians who impressed me the most -Dai Vernon, Fred Kaps and John Ramsay, particularly the latter. I saw Dai Vernon when I was in my twenties and whilst I was nowhere in that league I was impressed with the sheer breadth of his knowledge and ability and particularly with the fact that he was not just a specialist in one faction of magic technique. He was as adept at doing a bottom deal as he was in using a hook coin, a faked card or a pull to achieve the miracles that he presented. All credit to Harry Stanley who first brought him over to this country.

Then Fred Kaps. His perfection in thinking and handling was superb and whatever he turned to was the result of outstanding natural ability and technique at which he practised much more than most. To present the floating cork on television with Michael Parkinson, so casual, so natural and then hand the cork to Parkinson was masterly and made you believe in magic. And if you see his tapes note his facial expressions both on and off stage. He showed real surprise and enjoyment in what he was doing and that emotion was conveyed to the audience who joined in. He was magic.

And lastly Johnny Ramsay. I was privileged to see this Scottish grocer and amateur magician in many private sessions in our hotel bedroom at conventions along with other Ramsay fans Jack Avis, Roy Walton and Bobby Bernard.An event that was photographed and published by the national press. But it was Johnny’s naturalness, timing and misdirection that would beat you, long before such strategies blossomed in the USA. Vernon praised Ramsay as the finest close-up magician he had seen and many overseas magicians travelled to his little town on the West coast of Scotland just to witness first-hand his unique and very personal magic. I could write reams about Johnny Ramsay (and probably will) for he was well ahead of his time with outstanding magic that was disguised with his Scottish mannerisms and quaint ways. There are a few (very few) films of him working around today but if you want to get a very good idea of his magic and his way of working get hold of a tape of his magic performed by Scottish magician Andy Galloway (available from International Magic U.K.) who was a protege of Johnny and who was taught his methods and presentations for over a period of seven years. You’ll be fooled (as you always were with Ramsay) and its the nearest thing you’ll see to the original. Or if you fancy diving into the very special world of Johnny Ramsay and his routines, Galloway has published many of his original  effects in several books available from Andy Galloway and dealers.

You’ll probably gather from the above wordage that I am a great fan of Ramsay but I also would count as great close-up workers Vernon and Kaps. There aren’t so many around like that today. They had a very special charisma. They were something special that made them stand out in the crowd. More about Ramsay later and a few routines perhaps that I published based on his style.

Until.

As a fan  of Jeff Hobson I once saw him do a 30 minute spot in a London West End theatre and get a standing ovation with just two tricks – one of which was the egg bag. It was then I realised that it was what the magician could add to the effect that made it a classic effect and with Hobson ’s unique camp patter and mannerisms it became an outstanding piece of entertainment.

Following that I saw Johnny Thompson achieve solid success with the prop but using the Malini version of the bag with its superior design, smooth fabric and careful needlework and of course Thomson’s handling and humour. Then a good friend, Tom Whitestone who presents the bag close-up at the table showed it to me  and made it very convincing and magical. He said he was influenced the day he saw Fred Kaps do the routine informally in Ken Brooke place with minimal patter but very convincing handling as you would expect from Kaps. Tom was so struck with how mysterious this age old prop could be made that he adopted it and today works the Malini design bag. A magician for whom I have a very high regard is Wayne Dobson and I saw a recording of one of his TV spectaculars before he was clobbered with M.S. doing the bag sitting quietly alongside a lady from the audience. No  endless crash banging the bag to prove its emptiness but a sheer piece of magic that used just three phases climaxing with the spectator making the egg reappear herself after proving that the bag was empty. It is a  real mystery and easy now to understand why it has been a classic for centuries…..when in the hands of a real artiste.

What’s this all about. It’s about taking a backward look at some of the magic we all met and passed by on our way to being a contemporary performer. It’s why some of the great entertainers who worked for big bucks like Al Flosso did Miser’s Dream, Cards Across, Paper Hat Trick and other considered hoary old tricks with big success. It ain’t what you do …………

Any Okito or Boston Box routine requires the magician to replace the lid and at the same time secretly turn the box over. The standard move is to rest the box on your left palm and the left fingers secretly turn the box over as your right hand replaces the lid. Another method is to rest the lid on the edge of the box on the table and in the act of replacing the lid and picking the box up, it is secretly turned over in a one hand movement.Fred Kaps did it this way.

Some magicians do this well but many fumble the move so that the spectator knows that “something” has happened. Using Dai Vernon’s expressed philosophy that all movements should be natural, Jack devised this beautifully simple and natural move to turn the box over without raising suspicion.

HANDLING

1. Place the Boston Box containing four coins to the left of your table just in front of your left hand. (In using the Boston Box a fifth coin is in the recess in the bottom).

2. The upturned lid is similarly placed in the same position just in front of your right hand. Both hands are palm down and relaxed.

3. Cross your hands, placing your left over the right in preparation to pick up the coin box and the lid.

4. The extended fingers of both hands momentarily cover the box and lid. Grasp the sides of the lid between your left thumb and fingers as your right hand simultaneously grips the box in the same manner.

5. Immediately uncross your hands and turn your right hand palm up to freely show the box. The box is held in a natural position and the audience see the single coin nested in the recessed bottom but everything appears normal. In this simple, natural movement you have turned the box over. 

6. Pivot the lid downward and place it on top of the box.

If you use a regular Okito Box, keep your right hand cupped or turned inward so that the spectator cannot see the solid brass bottom, then replace the lid as your hands pass each other.

This is a stunning move that has revolutionized the Okito Box routine for many magicians that was devised with a simplicity that was the hallmark of Jack Avis’s work. The move is described and illustrated in greater detail in a excellent book by Jack Avis called “Vis a Vis”, published by Richard Kaufman, Kaufman and Company, 4200 Wisconsin Avenue, NW,  Suite 106 – 292, Washington D.C. 20016, USA.