Applied Magic — “Real-life” applications of modern magic

When the word “magic” is said to most people they would immediately think of assistants being cut in half, rabbits being pulled out of hats, and death defying escapes. Sure … sure these are part and parcel of the trade, but they’re not what makes up a magician. Underlying any magician’s repertoire of stunts and illusions is a set of skills, concepts and techniques that form the foundation of how her/his illusions are put together and presented. It’s these underlying skills that allow the magician to surprise and mystify an audience. And it’s these skills that are most important to making a good magician. Such methods as sleight of hand, misdirection, deception, collusion, patter, all play an integral roll in magic.

So, if all these skills have been so helpful in the art of magic, then certainly other people have employed them too. Right? ...Yes, they have.

In this article...

1. Theft & Scams
2. Avoiding theft and debunking scams
3. Politics and Public Relations
4. The Arts
5. In Wartime
6. So, where does that leave us?

Theft & Scams

Perhaps one the most obvious places you’ll spot these skills at work is amongst street hustlers and grifters. The old game where a passer by is offered a reward for spotting the pea under one of three shuffled cups is a great example of how sleight of hand can make what looks a simple task for the participant a sure win for the hustler every time. The pickpocket who bumps into you on the street has certainly mastered the art of misdirection, as you apologise for the collision not realising that this was simply a distraction for the real task of taking the contents of your pocket. For as long as card games have existed misdirection, sleight of hand, deception, collusion, and patter have aided the ambitious cheat to get away with all sorts of deceptive tricks to rig the game in her/his favour.

Avoiding theft and debunking scams

On the other side of the coin, the same skills can be used to evade theft or to spot a scammer. In 2006, David Copperfield and two assistants were held up by a mugger, after a performance. Copperfield pulled out his pockets to demonstrate to the mugger that they were empty, successfully concealing a mobile phone, passport and wallet. Copperfield later described what he’d done as “reverse pickpocketing”.

Beginning with Houdini, there has been a longstanding tradition of debunking frauds. In the 19th century, while spiritualism was enjoying popularity many people employed magic techniques to fool people into believe them to be interacting with the spirit realm. Houdini championed the effort to expose these for the scams they were. Since this time other magicians, such as James Randi, P C Sorcar and Penn & Teller. Unfortunately “debunking” is not always carried out in its original spirit. Critics of Penn & Teller’s show “Bullshit!” have accused them of using the same fallacious arguments and underhanded tactics that they are claiming to debunk. Penn & Teller have attacked environmentalists on such topics as global warming and extinction and have criticised claims that passive smoking can cause cancer (a topic they later acknowledge they were wrong on).

Politics and Public Relations

Politics and public relations also seem obvious places where magic skills are employed. At election time politicians pick and chose what to talk about, where to direct focus. Patter may take a different form to that in magic, but is used to the same ends. Public announcements are timed to enhance or distract from particular events. Not to mention collusion … Meanwhile groups like the Center for Tactical Magic use magic techniques for community education and development, as well as social and political activism.

The Arts

Magic techniques are also used throughout other art forms. Perhaps these techniques are most identifiable in cinema and theatre. Mysteries, thrillers, and other plots with twists and turns, in particular, use misdirection, sleight of camera and deceptive dialogue to mislead, surprise or confuse the audience. The recent film The Prestige cleverly plays with magic as a subject, while employing many magic techniques for telling its story.

In Wartime

In 1856 mystics in Algeria were leading rebellions against France. Napoleon III recruited Robert Houdin (often credited as the grandfather of modern stage magic) to prove that French magic was more powerful than that of the mystics. Houdin’s demonstrations were successful managing to terrify the rebels and destroy the influence of the mystics. In one display a local was asked to fire a marked bullet at Houdin. The bullet did not kill Houdin but instead was found between his teeth. In another presentation Houdin used a hidden electro-magnet to change the perceived weight of an iron bottomed box, claiming he could make any man so weak as to not to be able to pick up a box light enough for a child to carry.

During World War II the English magician, Jasper Maskelyne was assigned to the British military counter-intelligence division, A Force, and was asked to head a team of 15 men including an architect, art restorer, carpenter, chemist, electrical engineer, electrician, painter and stage-set builder. Nicknamed the Magic Gang, this team used magic techniques for counterintelligence and deception. In attempts to misdirect German planes the team constructed a fake port of Alexandria, with fake buildings, lighthouse and anti-aircraft batteries, 3 miles away from the real one. They also made it difficult for bombers to find Suez Canal with mirrors on searchlights, which created a wheel of light beems 9 miles wide. Another of the teams biggest feats was at the battle of El Alamein, where, by camouflaging trucks as tanks and tanks as trucks, constructing a fake railway line and water pipe, as well as broadcasting fake radio communications, the team deceived the Germans into thinking that the English attack would come from the South, instead of 30 miles North, and that it would come several weeks later than planned.

So, where does that leave us?

So it would seem that sleight of hand, misdirection, deception, collusion, patter, and other skills from the magician’s toolbox are handy life skills, not just for their own value, but to be able to spot the same tactics being used by others. Then, what might the moral of this story be?...

... Perhaps, beware the magician, for her/his trickery may not get left on the stage, so it’s best to keep on her/his good side.