MacGregor, Jerry: Real World Magic ©1999 Jerry MacGregor Hardcover, no dj, 304 pages

Image courtesy Bryan-Keith Taylor

Comments (Jim Maloney): Illustrated by Joneile Emery. This is a great book which is split into two sections. The first section is primarily theory - how to put together a show, developing a character, etc. The second section describes the effects of the numerous professional magicians who have contributed items for the book. Both parts are excellent, and there is a lot to learn here. Highly recommended.

Contents: (From book, page numbers added Nov 2023)

7 What are we doing?

13 Part One: Reasons

15 1. Stepping into the Real World Ten Tips for the Real World
16 A Routine, Not Tricks
17 Establish a Character
18 Keep Your Magic Visual
19 Have a Direct Opener
21 Choose Winning Effects
23 Involve the Audience's Emotions
25 Keep it Simple
26 Build Toward a Climax
29 Have a Clear Ending
30 Help Them Like You

33 2. Learning to Entertain My Five Magic Truths: updated chapter from MacGregor's and Jim Pace's The Restaurant Magician's Handbook)
34 The Audience Must Like Me
36 I Always Use Ordinary Props
37 I Work Standing Up
38 I Have to Like It
39 I've Got to Fool Them Badly

41 3. The Meaning of Your Magic Does Your Magic Have Meaning?
44 Have a Strategy
46 Establish Your Personality
47 Choose Your Words Carefully
49 Reveal Your Wonder
50 Practice Your Timing
51 Create Excitement
52 Demonstrate Relaxation
54 Practice Everything

55 4. Magic Words  Five Questions To Ask Yourself
56 What Do I Say?
60 How Do I Say It?
61 How Can I Use Words Effectively?: Pitch, Power, Pace, Pause, Pepper
64 Do I Have to Be Funny?
66 What Do I Not Say?

69 5. Hocus Pocus and Sim Sala Bim Using Words to Your Advantage
70 The Introduction
72 The Conclusion
74 The Transition

77 6. The Magician on Stage  Using Nonverbal Clues to Your Advantage
79 Create a Visual Picture
79 Descriptive Hands and Face
80 Purposeful Movement
81 Clear Blocking
82 Open Up
83 Create Comfort
85 Use Speed (JM - no, he's not saying to do drugs...)
86 Close the Gap
87 Dress in Character
88 Clean Up

91 7. Selecting Tricks for the Real World  My Ten Criteria for Selecting Effects
94 Read Widely
95 Make Sure It Grabs You
96 Choose Visual Effects
97 Prefer Direct Effects
97 Prefer Normal Props
98 Prefect Practical Applications
99 Use Audience Participation
100 Think "Simple"
100 Know Your Audience
101 Know Your Limits

102 8. Preparation and Practice  Ten Steps in Getting Ready to Perform
104 Walk Through It
105 Envision It
105 Get Comfortable With It
106 Have Someone Evaluate It
107 Repeat It
108 Set the Timing
109 Look for Naturalness
110 Focus on Misdirection
111 Check Your Reaction
112 Study the Situation

113 9. Routining Your Show  Moving From Rehearsal to Performance
114 The Notion of the "Show"
115 The Beginning: Start Fast
116 The Middle: Use Variety
117 The End: A Slam-Bang Finish
118 Crescendos
119 The Themed Act
119 The Basic Five
120 Tricks as Tools
121 Varied Venues
122 What Do People Like?

123 10. The Biggest Secret in Magic  Focusing Your Act
123 The Big Goal
125 The Little Goals
126 The Biggest Secret

129 Part Two: Routines

131 11. Grab-Them-By-The-Throat Openers
133 Bottle Opener (Carey Heim): Bottle Production with Silver Dollar opening
141 Two Step Aces (Bob Wallace): Quick Ace location
146 Sweet Smell of Success (Steve Mayhew): Flower Production, very simple, yet VERY commercial (JM)
149 The Logic Cup (Jerry MacGregor): Chop Cup routine using a mug
154 Jim's Close Up Miser (Jim Pace): Coin production with flash paper
158 Arnold (Mark Benthimer): Produce bullet, ribbon from a dollar bill, and finally change it to a $100 bill
162 Rush Lintball (Steve Taylor): Sponge ball routine; includes Steve's tips on getting work
169 The Fantastic Bird Production (Carey Heim): The title says it all
175 Opening Prediction (Jerry MacGregor): Card prediction with kicker ending
178 MacGregor's Vanishing Wine Glass (Jerry MacGregor): Vanishing wine glass (duh)

181 12. Fool-Their-Pants-Off Middle Routines
182 Watch Out (Richard Levin): Two coins disappear under a handkerchief. One returns, and when you try to bring the second one back, you produce a pocket watch.
188 The Pill Box (George Olsen): Okito Box routine
193 John's Photography (John Greene): Presentation for Hull's Mental Photography Deck; also John's philosophy of magic
973 Pick a Key, any Key (Toby Wessel): Ring Flight, and Toby's tips on interacting with an audience
203 Star Ring (Jerry MacGregor): Borrowed finger ring is continuously threaded on string, only to appear on the magician's finger
208 The Tearable Trick (Jim Pace): Both magician and spectator tear a napkin into pieces. The spectator's napkin restores itself, while the magician's refuses to.
211 Coincident (Jerry MacGregor): Coin routine
214 Four-Ace Followup (Bob Wallace): Ace location. This is a followup to Two Step Aces
216 Quick Aces (Chip (Jerry) MacGregor): Aces are placed in differentparts of the pack. The spectator selects a card, and then counts down to that value. The aces are found at the chosen number.
218 Short Changed (George Olsen): Funny effect about being given the wrong change. The cashier always counts it right, but when the magician tries, he comes up short.
221 E-Z Watch Steal (Carey Heim): Watch steal routine

227 13. Leave-Them-With-Their-Mouths-Open-Mental Magic
229 Thought Suggestion (Mark Allen): Magician reveals a thought of number.
236 Close-Up Mentalism (Bob Cassidy): Several effects by Bob Cassidy
237 - The Black Lipstick #1: A die is placed in a 35mm film canister and peeked at by several audience members. The magician then reveals the number on the face of the die.
238 - DyCypher 2: Bob's handling and presentation for the DyCypher2 prop, available from Chazpro.
239 -  The Black Lipstick #2: The magician writes the numbers one through five a pad of paper. A spectator is then instructed to write down a name, place, etc. next to any one of the numbers. Then, he is asked to fill in 'dummies' for the rest of the numbers. The magician is able to determine which one the spectator is thinking of.
241 - Psychokinetic Powers: Key bending, followed by a psychokinetic pen routine
243 - The Name/Place Routine: Billet routine
245 - Perfect Voodoo: Perfect Pen routine. The magician magically 'heals' a wound on a figure drawn on a piece of paper after piercing it with the pen. The magician has predicted which area he will heal.
249 The Walk-Around Mentalist (Jerry MacGregor): Jerry's 3-phase mentalism routine.

255 14. Haymaker Closers
257 Decked (Kirk Charles): Kirk's combination of Ambitious Card, Everywhere and Nowhere, Dunbury Delusion, and a Four Ace trick. Whew!
264 The Ultimate Floating Bill (Rick Anderson): An amazing Floating Bill routine. This is one I'm going to work on.
274 Stealing Time (Tony Eng): Another watch steal. This one uses a Hades Finger Chopper as great misdirection.
282 Six Card Climax (Jim Pace): A multiple selection routine. Six cards are selected andthen revealed in a burst of energy.
286 The Other Scotch and Soda (Jerry MacGregor): No, this isn't a coin trick. It's a card under glass routine.
291 Coin Fantasy (Jim Pace): A Matrix Routine that ends with the production of 13 coins in a nice formation on your close-up mat.
297 Impossible Closer (Carey Heim): A card is selected and returned to the deck. The magician pick out the card he thinks was chosen, but is wrong. He tears it up, and the pieces magically change places with the spectator's card. The card is then restored.

303 Finis