The Four Card Monte

 Effect: The magician explains the trick called the three card monte where the spectator has to find the ace from a group of three cards on the table. He places the ace, two and three of spades on the table and asks the spectator to follow the ace. The spectator is surprisingly good and always finds the ace. The magician explains that he can make it more difficult using a fourth card, the four of spades, and proposes to play the four card monte. The spectator is asked to follow the ace and he is still able to succeed. The magician explains that this was only a ruse because the goal of the four card monte is to find the four. The spectator can merely guess where it is now. The magicians turns over the cards and there are the four aces! “It is really impossible to win at the four card monte.”

History: This trick is a variation on the trick Have You Ever Heard Of? by John F. Mendoza. It was published on page 47 of The Book of John published by Mendoza in 1978. The other inspiration came from Jackie Flosso’s Three-Card Monte Exposé published in Issue #25 of Harry Lorayne’s Apocalypse (Volume 3, Number 1, January 1980). The Flosso trick, that was first published in the Pheonix in the early fifties, inspired Stéphane to use a combination of lifts with the Mendoza trick. This version is technically simple and very commercial.

Method: From the face of the deck you need: 4 of spades, Ace, the rest of the deck, Ace, Ace, 3 of spades, 2 of spades and Ace of spades. Turn the deck face down and turn the top three cards as a block. Spread the cards to show the 3, 2 and Ace of spades. At the same time, take a break under the first two face down cards of the deck. Square the cards and take all of the cards over the break with your right hand in Biddle grip.

You will now perform a Braue Add-On. Peel the top card (the 3 of spades) with your left thumb and turn it face down on top of the deck. Perform the same action with the 2 of spades. Place the block of three cards that is left in your right hand on top of the deck and display the ace of spades explaining that this is the card they have to follow. Place the ace on the table and at the same time, take a break under the top three cards. Triple lift to show the 2 of spades. Turn the triple face down and table the top card (an ace). Take another break under the top three cards and triple lift to show the 3 of spades. Turn the triple face down and place the top card (another ace) on the table. This display is more convincing than just dealing them to the table as in the original version.

Mix the cards very slowly making sure that the spectator knows where the ace of spades is. After a couple of successful guesses by the spectator, tell him that you will complicate the game. Turn the entire deck face up to show the 4 of spades on the bottom. Take a break under the top two cards while you are explaining that you will now play four card monte. Take the double in right hand Biddle grip and side jog the double towards the right.

You will now switch the four of spades for the other ace while placing the card on the table. To do so, three actions will happen at the same time. You left thumb pulls on the four of spades and squares it with the deck, your left hand turn palm down and your right fingers grip the ace and places it on the table. If the actions are performed naturally, the switch is entirely invisible. Table the deck that is in your left hand making sure not to expose the four of spades that is still on the bottom.

Mix the cards on the table and ask the spectator where the ace is. He will once again be successful. Explain that this was only to distract him from the real game since in four card monte he has to find the four of spades. The spectator will take a guess at this point. You can now turn the four cards to show that you can’t win at four card monte since all off the cards are now aces.

Note: The action of switching the four of spades for the ace can be modified to fit your own style of performance. You might want to experiment with a one hand second deal or another technique which is natural for you. In the original version, the glide was used to  switch the card which, in our opinion, might not be the most convincing solution.

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