World’s Greatest Magic – The Last Trick of Dr. Jacob Daley

World’s Greatest Magic – The Last Trick of Dr. Jacob Daley

As one goes through the literature of magic, the name of Dr. Jacob Daley crops up quite frequently, particularly in reference to card magic. Dr. Daley was a New York plastic surgeon but also an avid amateur magician who was skillful enough to keep company with many sleight-of-hand legends of the era, including Dai Vernon, Charlie Miller, Al Baker, and many others. Also a brilliant innovator, Dr. Daley’s original tricks appeared in Stars of Magic, Annemann’s Practical Mental Effects, and many conjuring periodicals. One of the tricks he was working on before his sudden and tragic passing in 1954 at the age of 56 was a transposition of the red Aces with the black ones. He had demonstrated this idea for Dai Vernon who then immortalized it after Daley’s passing in The Dai Vernon Book of Magic as The Last Trick of Dr. Jacob Daley.

On this DVD, you’ll meet six performers each with their own unique take on Dr. Daley’s vision. While all of them begin with Daley’s basic – but very strong – premise of a pair of cards magically changing places with another pair held in a spectator’s hand, you’ll see different techniques and approaches to accomplish the effect. First off, Bill Malone begins with the version he learned when he was 18 years old and still performs to this day – simple, direct and powerful. Then, Daryl utilizes a card count usually associated with a completely different effect to streamline the handling. Gregory Wilson is next with a two-phase version that masterfully sets up an unsuspecting spectator for the astounding transposition while Dan Harlan leads his audience in a guessing game before moving in for the kill. Finally, Michael Ammar presents the effect in its traditional way with some valuable nuances while Martin Nash disguises the startling transposition in a card game presentation.

When two objects magically change places, it’s very surprising. However, when it happens right in the spectator’s hands, the reactions are spectacular – and with the great performances and clear explanations on this DVD, you’ll always be ready to do the impossible with just four playing cards!