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Expert at the Card Table
| Expert at the Card Table | |
| Author | S.W. Erdnase |
|---|---|
| Illustrator | Marshall Dennison Smith |
| Publication Date | 1902 |
| Language | English |
Artifice, Ruse and Subterfuge at the Card Table: A Treatise on the Science and Art of Manipulating Cards by S.W. Erdnase.
Later published as The Expert At The Card Table , it is a Card Magic Book containing a collection of sleights used, supposedly, by card cheats, including false shuffles, cuts, and deals, culling techniques, palms, and shifts. It also contained a section devoted to card tricks.
It has been in continual publication since 1902
Erdnase, most likely a pseudonym, is one of the enduring mysteries of the magic community.
Book reviewed in Genii 1945 January
Highlights
- The Exclusive Coterie -- a four card assembly
Quotes
- Palming, page 84: " The art of card palming can be brought to a degree of perfection that borders on the wonderful. It is very simple to place one or several cards in the palm and conceal them by partly closing and turning the palm downward, or inward; but it is entirely another matter to palm them from the deck in such a manner that the most critical observer would not even suspect, let alone detect, the action."
Editions
- 1902 First Edition Self-published, HB, green cloth
Frederick J. Drake & Co.
- 1905 Drake Hardback (HB) Pictorial Green Cloth
- 1905 Drake HB, Embossed Plum Cloth
- 1905 Drake HB, Blue Pictorial Cloth
- ~1918 Drake HB, embossed blue cloth
- ~1918 Drake Paperback (pb), green wraps, KH cover
- ~1918 Drake pb, green wraps, KH without pips cover
- ~1918 Drake pb, grey wraps, KH without pips cover, 178 pages
- 1934 Drake pb, orange wraps, KH cover
- 1937 Drake pb, yellow wraps, KH cover
Frost Publishing Co.
- ~? pb 205 pages, KH cover with dark blue titles
- ~? pb 205 pages, KH cover with black titles
- ~? pb, 205 pages, yellow wraps, KH cover
Charles T. Powner Co.
- ~1944 Fleming HB
- ~1944 Fleming HB (Includes Hoffman commentary)
- 1944 pb, 205 pages
- 1945 pb
- 1946 pb, 206 pages
- 1949 pb
- 1953 pb
- 1958 pb, 205 pages
- 1963 pb, 205 pages
- 1968 pb, 205 pages
- 1975 Powner perfect bound / The Charles T. Powner Co.
Wehman
- 1953 pb, 205 pages
Magic Inc.
- ? - Comb bound. Title page is facsimile of 1st edition title page.
KC Card Company
- ? - KC Card Company edition (Chicago)
- 1946 Card Secrets Exposed/ KC Card Company
Gambler's Book Club
The Gambler's Book Club published various editions (which would have been after 1964).
- ? - GBC Comb Bound, white with yellow cover
- ? - GBC Comb Bound, blue cardstock cover with Bee design
- ? - GBC Comb Bound, no price on cover, red cover with Bee design (GBC address includes ZIP code, so it is post 1963)
- ? GBC perfect bound, price 2.50, red cover with Bee design
- ? GBC perfect bound, price 3.50, red cover with Bee design
- ? Hardback GBC edition / Gambler's Book Club
Conjuring Arts
- 2007 pb The Bible editon The Conjuring Arts Research Center - Pocket-size with an all new typeset and numbered lines for reference sleights via the Bible verse method. Printed using the same paper as a bible, gilt edges, a ribbon place holder and bound in soft leatherette. There are three color variations, green, red and black in order of availability.
- 2010 Indestructible Erdnase - pocket sized edition printed on waterproof, tear resistant paper with a sewn binding by the Conjuring Arts Research Center.
Other
- 1945 Fireside Publications, Toronto, Canada. (Same cover as KC Card Company edition/Chicago)
- 1980 Coles SB / Canada
- 1984 Casino Press SB/Casino Press, New York
- 1995 Dover SB
- 2002 Facsimile Edition (unknown publisher) distributed by Michael Canick Booksellers. Gold stamped cover, hard bound
- 2008 Pocket Expert at the Card Table from Houdini.com - The booklet consisting of 218 pages and measuring only 6 x 3.5 inches with space for the readers notes.
- 2008 The Erdnase Scroll by Miracle Factory - The book in scroll form with a handwritten calligraphy font on ivory parchment paper, maple-tone wood ornaments, suede tie cord, and a velour protective drawstring bag. Also includes Todd Karr's extensive research on Erdnase's identity.
- 2010 The Expert At The Card Table - The Classic Treatise On Card Manipulation, Publishers: Obscure Press, Hardback edition, Dover Edition text, 144 pages, 8.6X 5.6 [Print on Demand]
- 2010 - Softcover reprint facsimile of the 1902 first edition by anonymous. 7x4 inches 206 pages. Printed for a gift for friends with leftovers sold for a limited sale.[1]
Annotated Editions
- 1944 Card Mastery, HBDJ, Circle Magic Shop by Michael MacDougall's Card Mastery (contains the complete text of Expert)
- 1975 Card Mastery, Tannens, pb (Back Cover price: $2.50)
- 1975 Card Mastery, D. Robbins, pb
- 1984 Revelations / Magical Publications - contains thoughts from Dai Vernon.
- 1991 The Annotated Erdnase/ Magical Publications by Darwin Ortiz. Contains notes, annotations, photographs, citations and references. Also contains two appendices: "New Moves" and "The Search For Erdnase" by Martin Gardner.
- 2007 - Marlo on Erdnase, Jon Racherbaumer (editor) - A compilation of Ed Marlo's writings, both published and unpublished. This book is a preliminary effort to show how an annotation of Erdnase by Marlo might look like. As it stands, it is a partial, supplemental work.
- 2008 Revelation, Magical Publications, HBDJ - An update to the 1984 version that contains 160 long-lost photographs of Dai Vernon’s hands that were taken in 1961 specifically to illustrate this manuscript. Plus more than 100 pages of added material.
- 2010 The Erdnase Journal - a notebook in the format of a reproduction of the original 1902 publication, with just the 101 drawings by M.D. Smith in their respective positions.
Electronic Editions
- 2011 The Expert at the Card Table [Kindle Edition], edited by Marty Demarest - this Erdnaseum Edition preserves all the quirks of the 1902 First Edition text featuring a fully functional Table of Contents; replicas of the original Contents pages, copyright page, and title page; all 101 original illustrations, remastered and undoctored; a new Foreword and Errata section detailing errors of description.[2]
Translations
- Japanese (1989)
- German - 1991, HB, Der Experte Am Kartentisch
- German - ?, pb, Der Experte Am Kartentisch
- Spanish - 1992, El Experto En La Mesa De Juego
- French - 1992, HB, L'Expert aux Cartes, black cloth
- French - 2002, HB, L'Expert aux Cartes, green cloth
- Italian - 1996, L'Esperto Al Tavolo Da Gioco
- Italian - 2008, L'Esperto Al Tavolo Da Gioco
- Korean - 2023, The Expert At the Card Table
A Man In A Room Gambling
A Man In A Room Gambling is a 1992 ten part series for string quartet and spoken word by Gavin Bryars created with the late sculptor Juan Muñoz, who included texts describing card tricks adapted from "Expert at the Card Table".
Written as ten short pieces for the BBC Radio, Bryars music weaves in and out while Juan Muñoz narrates. Bryars envisioned creating a larger work for the theater based on Erdnase's life for the full music-theater piece called Who Was Erdnase? which has been commissioned by Peregrine Arts to open in 2010.
Expert at the Card Table Deck
These playing cards release in 2010 are printed using the same color green as the original 1902 "Expert at the Card Table" book on Aristocrat stock using the Bee® back design with white borders.
The deck include two custom jokers, a custom Ace of Spades, and two ad cards printed to look like pages from the book. The box looks like a miniaturized version of the book with the same texture.
The Expert at the Card Table — How to Cheat at Cards
Since 2017 a stage show based on the book has been performed by jden redden titled The Expert at the Card Table — How to Cheat at Cards. The show has played a limited engagement at the 2017 Adelaide Fringe Festival and is set to return in 2018.
Contents
PREFACE
INTRODUCTION
PROFESSIONAL SECRETS
* Hold-Outs
* Prepared Cards
* Confederacy
* Two Methods of Shuffling
* Primary Accomplishments
* Possibilities of the "Blind"
* Uniformity of Action
* Deportment
* Display of Ability
* Greatest Single Accomplisment
* Effect of Suspicion
* Acquiring the Art
* Importance of Detail
TECHNICAL TERMS
ERDNASE SYSTEM OF BLIND SHUFFLES
POSITION FOR SHUFFLE
BLIND SHUFFLES
* To Retain Top Stock
* To Retain Top Stock and Shuffle Whole Deck
* To Retain the Bottom Stock and Shuffle Whole Deck
ERDNASE SYSTEM OF BLIND RIFFLES AND CUTS
BLIND RIFFLES
* To Retain the Top Stock
* To Retain the Bottom Stock
BLIND CUTS
* To Retain Bottom Stock--Top Losing One Card
* To Retain the Complete Stock
* To Retain the Top Stock
* To Retain the Bottom Stock
* To Retain Bottom Stock. Riffle 2 and Cut 4
FANCY BLIND CUTS
* To Retain the Complete Stock-1
* To Retain the Complete Stock-2
FANCY TRUE CUT--ONE-HANDED
TO INDICATE THE LOCATION FOR THE CUT
* This is Located by the Crimp
* This is Located by the Jog
* This is Located by the Crimp
* This is located by the jog
BOTTOM DEALING AND SECOND DEALING
* Bottom Dealing
* Top and Bottom Dealing with one Hand
* Second Dealing
ORDINARY METHODS OF STOCKING, LOCATING AND SECURING
STOCK SHUFFLE
ERDNASE SYSTEM OF STOCK SHUFFLING
* Two-Card Stock
* Three-Card Stock
* Four-Card Stock
* Five-Card Stock
* Twelve-Card Stock--For Draw Poker
* Euchre Stock--Four-Handed Game-1
* Euchre Stock--Four-Hande Game-2
ERDNASE SYSTEM OF CULL SHUFFLING
* To Cull Two Cards, Numbers 8, 4
* To Cull Three Cards, Numbers 7, 5, 9
* To Cull Four Cards, Numbers 3, 6, 2, 5
* To Cull Nine Cards, Numbers 5, 1, 1, 1, 3, 1, 1, 7, 1
ERDNASE SYSTEM OF PALMING
* Top Palm--First Method
* Top Palm--Second Method
* Bottom Palm--First Method
* Bottom Palm--Second Method
* Bottom Palm--When Cards Are Riffled
* Bottom Palm--When Cards Are Riffled-Second Method
TO MAINTAIN THE BOTTOM PALM WHILE DEALING
TO HOLD THE LOCATION OF CUT WHILE DEALING
SHIFTS
* Two-Handed Shift
* The Erdnase Shift--One Hand
* Erdnase Shift--Two Hands
TO ASCERTAIN THE TOP CARDS WHILE RIFFLING AND RESERVE THEM AT BOTTOM
MODE OF HOLDING THE HAND
SKINNING THE HAND
THE PLAYER WITHOUT AN ALLY
* Dealing Without the Cut
* Replacing the Cut as Before
* Holding Out for the Cut
* Shifting the Cut
* Dealing Too Many
* Crimping for the Cut
* Replacing Palm When Cutting
* The Short Deck
THREE CARD MONTE
MEXICAN THREE CARD MONTE
LEGERDEMAIN
SHIFTS
* Single Handed Shift
* The Longitudinal Shift
* The Open Shift
* The S. W. E. Shift
* The Diagonal Palm-Shift
THE BLIND SHUFFLE FOR SECURING SELECTED CARD
FORCING
PALMING
THE BACK PALM
CHANGES
* The Top Change
* The Bottom Change
* The Palm Change
* The Double Palm Change
TRANSFORMATIONS--TWO HANDS
* First Method
* Second Method
* Third Method
* Fourth Method
* Fifth Method
* Sixth Method
TRANSFORMATIONS--ONE HAND
* First Method
* Second Method
BLIND SHUFFLES RETAINING ENTIRE ORDER
* First Method
* Second Method
* Third Method
* Fourth Method
* Fifth Method
METHODS FOR DETERMINING A CARD THOUGHT OF
TO GET SIGHT OF SELECTED CARD
THE SLIDE
FAVORITE SLEIGHTS FOR TERMINATING TRICKS
CARD TRICKS
* The Exclusive Coterie * The Divining Rod * The Invisible Flight * The Prearranged Deck * The Travelling Cards * The Row of Ten Cards * The Acrobatic Jacks * A Mind Reading Trick * Power of Concentrated Thought * The Acme of Control * The Card and Handkerchief * The Top and Bottom Production * The Three Aces * The Card and Hat
Film adaptation
A film based on the life of the mysterious author, adapted by German director Hans-Joachim Brucherseifer, is currently in production. The magicians Yann Yuro (S.W. Erdnase) and Alfonso Rituerto (himself) play the lead roles. It is scheduled to be released in November, 2019.
References
|
This page incorporated content from The Expert at the Card Table,
a page hosted on Wikipedia. Please consult the history of the original page to see a list of its authors. Therefor, this article is also available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License |
- Information about different editions available at Erdnase.com
- http://www.geniimagazine.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=148220#Post148220
- www.EverythingErdnase.com, created by Julie Eng and Jason England, explores all of the different editions of The Expert at the Card Table, a book which has been perpetually in print for over 100 years.
- Erdnase Film - Official Website of the feature film about the book
- https://magicandcards.com/the-expert-at-the-card-table-by-s-w-erdnase/
See this page as a MindMap