Cool!!!

Its fascinating to know the secrets behind magic that seems real like life in such simple and lucid ways

Thank you Teller for this insight. I have just finished reading 'Mischief', by Harling and Nyrup who in a much more wordy book, cover the same premise. I am an enthusiastic amateur and member of the Magic Circle.

Teller, thank you. I have always been interested in psychology and the study of thought and perception from a cognitive emotional perspective. I had not put together the science of magic with psychological therapy before.

"Nothing but free publicity so they can constantly maintain their Name in public. The bait is this story. He keeps his and Penn's name in the public eye. That’s all this is." @Max, because when you want publicity, we all know that you go directly to the Smithsonian Magazine, the very personification of PR hype with an extremely wide readership. Very cagy of Teller to tap into the public consciousness like this.

I can tell you with certainty, Its al B.S. He’s a showman, it’s his shtick, It’s always been their shtick,…. Pretending to tell you how it’s done. Nothing but free publicity so they can constantly maintain their Name in public. Houdini, Madonna, they are all to familiar with how to keep their name in public and Alive. THAT is the underlining trick. Keeping your persona alive. Controversy, exposure, sensationalism. That’s the real secret. The bait is this story. He keeps his and Penns name in the public eye. That’s all this Is.

As I understand it, and this may have slackened in recent years, but magicians are duty-bound among their not so secret society never to reveal their secrets. The best way to never reveal your secrets, is to make everyone believe you already have.

I'm not convinced Teller has given us any of his real secrets. He's described essentially what's already out there in the public consciousness. What magicians learned long ago and have passed down for generations. These are the lessons an aspiring magician picks up along the way in the early years of honing his craft. Not that you can now go be a magician. Any musician will tell you music theory is nothing like picking up a guitar and playing till long after your fingers bleed and you build up callouses.

The descriptions in this article that appear to be of tricks Teller and Penn currently do are either ones done in a different manner from how he explained them, or they are retiring them, or those particular examples are still used because audiences favor them, but have been discerned by audience members already and he feels safe in 'revealing secrets' that are already relatively well-known outside the illusionist 'secret society.'

So one can assume a scientist has 'tricked' Teller into revealing his secrets, but that is not evident. This could simply be yet another illusion. Would Teller admit to that one way or the other? Of course not. Why? That would be telling.

First of all, "magic" is about manipulating and altering people's perceptions. "Science" is about uncovering the darkness of manipulated or altered people's mind. Teller just encountered a master magician clothed as a scientist who convinced Teller into "helping" the "sciences" in exposing his tricks!

Fascinating!!! Any great performer will hook onto the concious minds of the audience so as to play with their perceptions for a little while! Thanks Teller! Hope to see you in Sin city sometime!

Teller's is one of my favorite magicians, he is so clever and so skillful, as a magician I learn all the time but this article has articulated many things i wanted to say ...and could not express myslef
Well done

The "magic" Teller reveals is used everyday by professional salespeople worldwide. Whether the product is diamonds or real estate, the prospect is manipulated into making the sought-after buying "decision".

magic is about domination, plain and simple. Someone who wants to completely alter the way you see and interpret reality is a dominator. In magic there is also deduction. We allow ourselves to be seduced so that we can be dominated. Evil genius.

Hmmm I think this is applicable to modern politics as well- "let them think they have a choice..."

"Choice is not freedom," as every mother of a recalcitrant toddler or child knows. "Do you want your blue shoes or your red shoes" is a good way to get a predetermined outcome of shoes on the kid's feet that day, without it becoming a power struggle. It's probably one of the first tricks of misdirection a mother learns, and a child experiences.

My rule of magic: If there's an assistant, *they* do the trick, and the magician just provides misdirection.

oh yeah? Come on... Teller is saying very little.

Simply Genius

@Darren Nicholls In fact Penn & Teller recently had a British TV show "Penn & Teller: Fool Us" when then invited each week a number of UK magicians to attempt to precisely do that. The prize to be invited to perform with them in Vegas - and there were some weeks that they apparently were fooled (or at least claimed to be - perhaps they had just seen an act which they wanted to invite to Vegas, so were happy to be perceived as fallible (No. 6—The lie you tell yourself)?)

To Mr. Nichols above, you pose two very thought provoking questions and I do hope that Teller reads these comments. I know they have a television program in the UK called "Penn & Teller: Fool Us" where other magicians attempt to stump P&T. The winner gets a trip to their show in Vegas. I grew up with a performing magician for a father and am also keenly interested in what Teller's answer would be to the "long standing tricks" question. Being a television engineer myself, I cannot watch TV without my mind going to the critical. I would think the same of magicians - to see someone else perform a trick would immediately cause me to try and deduce the answer. Great article. Thanks to all.

I saw P&T in Vegas a few years back and loved the show. I was even more stunned at how approachable they were after the show.

As I recall I stammered out how much I appreciated Teller's articles and work in the skeptical community. I was probably incoherent and starstruck.

So let me say it now clearly: Mr Teller, I appreciate your articles and work in the skeptical community. This article is a great addition to it.

Teller, I am good friends with a magician. Yes, he has played tricks on me, and even though I could find out how he, and you, do it, I am not interested. Because what you magicians do is true illusion and misdirection. And I enjoy that.

One man's magic is another man's science.

Do they have to kick Teller out of the Alliance now?

Teller is amazing. His presentation is flawless and entertaining.

I've been a fan of P & T since "P&T Go Public", and have never been disappointed. My brother-in-law and I still snicker over the "Is THIS your card?" video trick they taught back in the 80's. I've seen them multiple times, and got to be on stage for one trick about 15 years ago (no, I didn't catch the 'swap' they used). Thanks, Teller, for another peek behind the curtain!

Very nice work. As is all your work on stage.

And you were a good fit to your character in LONG GONE, way back a long time ago.

Wow, this stuff totally applies to marketing! Except with magic, people expect to be tricked. With marketing, they expect to be...um, told the truth?

Yeah, that's it. No, seriously, these secrets can definitely be applied to marketing ethically.

The most important take-away: "No 7 - Choice is not freedom." Great article. Brilliant man.

Excellent article and thank you for your insight.

Jon Hughes, you're clearly not a magician.

The purpose for having three cards is that you can riffle through the deck and make the spectator see the illusion of a complete deck. He sees different cards and automatically assumes that the deck is fair and complete. If there was only one card replicated through it (which you could get by buying a fixed deck (yes; they sell those for magicians, you don't need to buy 52 decks)), you couldn't be able to show the deck to the spectator, let alone let him examine it afterwards (which constitutes a mayor part in the trick).

Teller you are a Legend :-) I cant wait to see you in Vegas one day.

excellent stuff. thanks for "speaking."

A brilliant article. also thank you sir for the wonderful performance at the University of Arizona Friday.

Excellent article, very well written. Especially appreciate the bonus magic trick at the end. I'm not sure if Mr. Teller would read these comments but I'd be interested to know, does he often see tricks by other magicians that stump him? And if so does he immediately try to figure out how it's done and replicate it? Are there any long standing tricks that he has no idea how they're done?

Penn & Teller make both magic and show business in general so much better for their contributions. And they've busted their butts for years to get where they are. Well done, guys.

Strange, he spoke, yet I did not hear a thing.

Giving choices provides a feeling of freedom. Teachers of very young children use this all the time. Would you like to ___ or to ___?

Generous of Teller to give us a glimpse . . . I've enjoyed his bullet and gun routine in Vegas. WAY too much trouble, fooled me.

An intriguing article, but I can't say that I agree with the tone in Teller's introduction. Perhaps MRI's and other technology won't make him a better magician, but the SCIENCE of psychology and the study of human perception can only enhance our understanding of what he, and other magicians over the centuries, have learned to take advantage of only by trial and error, or by the passing down of tricks from professional to novice. Many practitioners know HOW to do something without actually knowing WHY it works; science and magic can work together to reveal the bigger picture, but not if people from one side denigrate the usefulness or contributions of the other.

Great piece Teller. I have always been a huge magic fan, even as a young child. What an interesting write-up of Tellers secrets. Who would ever think of the connection between neuroscience and magic? Very generous piece. Thanks for sharing.

If you like this article, look up the BBC show, "Penn and Teller - Fool Us." It's great, filled with really neat magic and revelations (without losing the awe and reverence of the craft).

I love it!!!

P.S. I know a lot of magicians and some of them definitely come on the other side of 'sexier than lab rats'!

Absolutely brilliant observation. I have always believed that magic is not about tricks but about psychology and perception. Misdirection is a perfect example, as is comedy as misdirection; asking somebody to think of a card and knowing that the Ace of Spades or Queen of Hearts are likely. All this is to do with the mind rather than the trick and the spectator doesn't even know it. I love the way the brain works and I love the way that we can take advantage of this. I know some brilliant technicians with cards but I also realise that magic should be entertainment first and foremost and those that get invited back are those that made the audience laugh and have a good time. No question.

even though magic is full of tricks,some aspect of it applies basic scientific principles such as perception and optical illusion. this is the part i like most- proper application makes every move seems so real.

It'd be totally awesome if you wrote this article in preparation for a trick you'd do some weeks later hhahahah...

Great insights... we tend to place Science at an altar that only experience, passion and practice can 'afford'.

Best Article Ever

My friend Teller fails to inform his readers that the famous and well-informed magician David P. Abbott - who he says developed the principle of the Floating Ball which Teller so masterfully performs - was himself completely fooled back in 1922 by a "psychic" named Eugenie "Gene" Dennis, under Teller's Rule #6 - "the lie you tell yourself" - and the copy of the book which I have in my library describing this deception is inscribed by Teller himself with his proposed solution to the mystery: "Sex appeal?" Yes, even magicians can be tricked...!

Magicians such as Penn & Teller have declared themselves very firmly on the matter of "psychics" who lie to their victims to extract their money - often vulnerable, grieving or needy persons who seek solutions but receive only cruel promises of surcease. I'm proud to be in this battle with them. We conjurors are proud artists, and we resent the swindlers who use our technology to cheat rather than amuse and entertain.

So, curtain up, lights, applause, and delight...!

Please tell me how ACAAN is done. Please. I get the whole perception thing and the amount of time, skill and focus generations of musicians have put into their craft, but ACAAN just seems impossible. Did I say please? Please.

My sweetheart took up with me in the early 1980s. I won an oyster-eating contest on Block Island in the mid-1980s. Teller spoke to me after his show in Times Square in the late 1980s.

It was a great decade.

Yep that's how we do it. When Mr. Teller "talks", he drops some gems.

I love how Teller slips in a jab at Democracy and the farce we all believe in that "voting" means we are free...or have a choice in our government.

Great article. I really like how he ties the manipulative techniques he exploits to shape audience choice perception with the two-party system and it's manipulation of a voter's sense of choice.

Really enjoyed the article. I rarely share articles - I read them for my own enjoyment most of the time - but this one is definitely worth sharing. Thanks.

Great "misdirection" Teller. You're saying that, sure magicians "talk" to scientists, but scientists don't have anything of value to add to magic. After all Magic is a simple art developed from hard work and subtle gestures. No, science is not necessary.
Will knowing this to make us a more informed and intelligent audience, so that we will never be fooled again... or set us up for the next deception?

Excellent. I had the pleasure of meeting Jerry Andrus many times. He knew more about human perception (including visual perception) than any neuroscientist. His illusions, as well as his magic tricks, were incredible.

So, what if your mark for the card trick lies and says a random card other than one of those you have hidden?

I've seen your show in Las Vegas when I was there for TAM and while I enjoyed just about all of the tricks, the one I enjoyed the most was your walk-through on slight-of-hand and misdirection. I think the best lesson of that is that no matter how simple the act may seem at first blush, the careful practice, preparation, and presentation all take significant time and effort on behalf of the magician. That and, of course, that any of us can be fooled :-).

What is the purpose for having three cards to choose from, as apposed to one? The most obvious reason is because it would only take 18 decks rather than 54 (incl. Jokers) -- I can understand a less successful magician wanting to cut down on cost, but even at $10 a pack (which is high), 54 decks is only $540, not exactly cost prohibitive.

A really magnificent article. Never disappointed when I hear Mr. Teller "speak".