Chop Cup

A gaffed cup with a built-in magnet in the base (or bottom), allowing the retention of magnetic balls or other loads. Used alone or as part of a cups and balls set.

It was devised by Al Wheatley, a professional magician who performed under the name Chop Chop. His original Chop Cup, created in the mid 1950's, was made out of a section of hollow bamboo and marketed as "Chop Chop's One Cup & Ball Routine. By 1957, Wheatley's company, Excato Magic, was advertising a modified aluminum Chop Cup in magic magazines.

The Chop Cup became a popular magician's tool in part due to the celebrity of Don Alan, who made it a staple of his act. Don Alan performed his Chop Cup routine on the "Ed Sullivan Show" in 1960.

Wheatley saw Larry Jennings perform his chop cup routine at The Magic Castle shortly after it opened in 1963. It was noted for its loading of a big ball and the use of a silk handkerchief and a shot glass. He was so impressed that he asked Jennings to please not reveal his method or routine in print until after his death. Larry kept his promise, and did not publish his routine until a year after Wheatley's death. It was published in Genii Magazine, Volume 29, Number 7, in March of 1965. Don Alan used a version of the Chop Cup on his national TV show and popularized it with magicians everywhere.

The trick has spawned many variations, leading to elaborate routines developed by Larry Jennings, Ron Wilson, Earl Nelson, Alan Wakeling, John Mendoza, Dan Tong, and James Swain. The Nelson and Wakeling routines eventually appeared in The Chop Cup Book (1979). Ron Wilson's Uncanny Chop Cup saw print in The Uncanny Scot(1987).

References

Chop cup routines in print:

1. Adair, Ian. Chop Egg Cup, in: The Magic Circular, June 1994. Vol. 88; No. 946: p. 85.

2. Alan, Don. Bowl or Cup Load, in: Pretty Sneaky. Ireland: Chicago, 1977. p. 42.

3. Ayling, Will. New Look Climax to Cups and Balls...Colombini, in: Magigram, Feb 1982. Vol. 14; No. 6: p. 383.

4. Ayling, Will. Knowing the Chop Cup (and Other One Cup One Ball Routines). The Supreme Magic Co Ltd: , 1989. p 40.

5. Basu, Ajit Krishna. A Street Conjurer of Calcutta, in: The Magician Monthly, September 1932. Vol. 28; No. 10: p. 114.

6. Bauer, Ron. The Complete Don Alan's Chop Cup. Ron Bauer: , 2005. 26.

7. Biro, Pete. Larry Jennings' One-Cup Three-Ball & Chop Cup Routine, in: Fred Kaps Lecture Notes: London, 1973.

8. Biro, Pete. CupChop, in: The Pallbearers Review, April 1974. Vol. 9; No. 6: p. 723.

9. Biro, Pete. The Reel Works: Danny Korem Letter From, in: Genii, June 1980. Vol. 44; No. 6: p. 395-396.

10. Bob, Dr. Dr Bob's Complete Chop Cup Routine

11. Brewer, Doug. The Unexpected Visitor: Coin Magic for the Walk-Around Performer. Magic Smith, 2001.

12. Brodersen, Bill. No Magnet Chop Cup Routine, in: Apocalypse, August 1984. Vol. 7; No. 8: p. 958.

13. Brodersen, Bill. No-Magnet Chop Cup Routine, in: Apocalypse, August 1984. Vol. 7; No. 8: p. 958-960.

14. Brooke, Ken. My Chop Cup Routine, in: Ken Brooke's Magic: The Unique Years. Supreme Magic Co, 1980. p. 216.

15. Donald, Moston. Chop Dixie Cup & Balls, in: The Linking Ring, May 1973. Vol. 53; No. 5: p. 71.

16. Drake, David. Chop Cup Frame Up, in: The Linking Ring, August 1981. Vol. 61; No. 8: p. 67.

17. Fedko, John. Magic Treasures, ed. Clifford, Tom. Fedko Magic Co: Santa Ana, CA, 1996.

18. Fox, Karrell. Imprompchop, in: For My Next Trick... The Supreme Magic Company: Bideford, England, 1986. p. 15.

19. Ganson, Lewis. The Art of Close-Up Volume 2.

20. Ganson, Lewis. Ken Brooke's Magic: 2. High Ball Cup, in: The Gen, July 1962. Vol. 18; No. 3: p. 69-71.

21. Ganson, Lewis. The Gill Chop Cup Routine, in: Magigram, April 1976. Vol. 8; No. 8: p. 17-21.

22. Ganson, Lewis. That Chop Cup Again, in: Magigram, May 1976. Vol. 8; No. 9: p. 3-7.

23. Ganson, Lewis. One Cup - Two Balls, in: The Art of Close-Up Magic Volume 2. L and L Publishing: London, 1996. p. 130.

24. Garcia, Frank. Close-Up Magic of Frank Garcia, Part II.

25. Garcia, Frank. The Soft Chop-Chop or You Don't Have to be Chinese to do this Trick, in: The Encyclopedia of Sponge Ball Magic, 1976. p. 173-177.

26. Gilliland, John M. Do It yourself Chop Cup Routine, in: The Linking Ring, December 1966. Vol. 46; No. 12: p. 77.

27. Hammann-Boretti, Erich. Chop Cup with a Baffling Finale, in: Genii, August 1977. Vol. 41; No. 8: p. 477.

28. Harris, Paul and Mead, Eric. The Bayberry Bag Swindle, in: The Art of Astonishment - Book 1, 1996. p. 63-66.

29. Harris, Paul. Uncanny, in: The Art of Astonishment - Book 1, 1996. p. 225-228.

30. Hemingway, David. Hemingway's 'Simplex' Chop Cup Routine, in: Exclusive Routines Part 2: Preston, nd. p. 42-43.

31. Herman, Frank. Chop Cup Finale, in: The Linking Ring, March 1980. Vol. 60; No. 3: p. 83.

32. Hollingsworth, Scott. Strolling Chop Cup Routine.

33. Hostler, John. A Chop Cup Routine, in: The Linking Ring, July 1987. Vol. 67; No. 7: p. 67.

34. Hostler, John. A Chop Cup Routine, in: The Linking Ring, July 1987. Vol. 67; No. 7: p. 67.

35. Jennings, Larry. Larry Jennings' Famous Chop Cup Routine, in: Genii, 1965. Vol. 29; No. 7: p. 369-372.

36. Jennings, Nina. The Larry Jennings Chop Cup Routine, in: Larry Jennings on Card & Coin Handling. Jeff Busby Magic Inc: Oakland, 1977. p. 57.

37. Johnson, Roy. Chopper!, in: Silver Special: New York, 1989. p. 44.

38. Johnsson, Rick. Chop Cone, in: The Linking Ring, June 1975. Vol. 55; No. 6: p. 73.

39. Johnsson, Rick. The Banbury Extrusion, in: The Linking Ring, June 1975. Vol. 55; No. 6: p. 74.

40. Johnsson, Rick. The Chop Cone Routine, in: The Linking Ring, April 1976. Vol. 56; No. 4: p. 73.

41. Jon, Finn. New Theory Chop Cup, , Minch, Stephen, Editor. L&L Publishing, 1990. p. 111-114.

42. Kaps, Fred. One Cup Three Ball Routine. Denny & Lee.

43. Kaufman, Richard. The Uncanny Chop Cup, in: The Uncanny Scot: Ron Wilson: New York, 1987. p. 78.

44. King, Bob. Bob King's Close-Up Tutorial 6: Chop Cup Routine.

45. Korem, Danny. Korem without Limits. D. Robbins Publication: New York, 1985.

46. Kosky, Gerald. Impromptu Magnetic Cup, in: Genii, December 1969. Vol. 34; No. 4: p. 181.

47. Lawton, Don. Lots of Lawton.

48. Leveridge, Mark. 3rd British Close-Up Symposium.

49. Lewis, Martin. Cheap Cup, in: Martin's Magical Inventions Lecture, 1999.

50. Lewis, Trevor. Children's Chop Cup, in: Trevor Lewis Uncut, 2006.

51. Loomis, Dennis. The Dennis Loomis Routine for the James Riser/Dennis Loomis Micro Chop Cup. Loomis Magic: Bay Point, CA, 2002. p 11.

52. Marcom, Ralph A. Chop Cup Capers, in: Marcom Presents Magic. Magic Inc: Chicago, IL, 1979. p. 59-62.

53. Marlo, Edward. Chop Cup to the Max, in: The New Phoenix, 1962. Vol. 366 2 (?or 36-6-Feb); No. : p. 292.

54. Matsuura, Gene. Tommy Wonder Entertains: Three Novel Routines Based on the Cups and Balls by Jos Bema. Jeff Busby Magic Inc: Oakland, CA, 1983.

55. Mentzer, Jerry. Ultimate Cup Routine, in: Close-Up File. Magic Methods, 1994. p. 131-136.

56. Mentzer, Jerry. Chop Cup and Balls, in: Close-Up File. Magic Methods, 1994. p. 126-131.

57. Miller (Editor), Hugh. Start for a Chop Cup Routine, in: Rink's Magic from Holland. Supreme Magic Company: Bideford, 1978. p. 41-44.

58. Miller (Editor), Hugh. A Chop Cup Prelude, in: Rink's Magic from Holland. Supreme Magic Company: Bideford, 1978. p. 44-49.

59. Mostyn, Donald E. Chop Dixie Cup and Balls, in: The Linking Ring, May 1973. Vol. 53; No. 5: p. 71.

60. Page, Patrick. Transparent Chop Cup, in: Pages from Patrick's Note Book, 1980. p. 85.

61. Polhemus, Tad. Paper Chop Cup, in: Genii, May 1975. Vol. 39; No. 5: p. 220.

62. Racherbaumer, Jon and Marlo, Edward. Chop Cup to the Max, in: Arcade Dreams. Kaufman and Company: Washington, DC, 1997. p. 164.

63. Racherbaumer, Jon. Lean Mean Chop Cup, in: In a Class by Himself: The Legacy of Don Alan. L and L Publishing: Tahoma, CA, 2000. p. 269.

64. Regal, David. My Best Friend, in: Close-Up and Personal. Heretic Press Inc: Seattle, WA, 1999. p. 90-94.

65. Riding, Joe. New Chop Cup Routine.

66. Rink. One Cup - Two Balls, in: The Art of Close-Up Magic: Volume 2, Ganson, Lewis, Editor. Harry Stanley Unique Magic Studio: London.

67. Roth, David. Revised Chop Cup Routine, in: The New York Magic Symposium - Collection Three, Fleischer, Adam and Minch, Stephen, Editors: New York, 1984. p. 21.

68. Sankey, Jay. Chop Cup Subterfuge, in: Sankedelic Magic, 2001.

69. Shute, Merlyn T. The 'How To' Book of the Chop Cup. Morrissey Magic Ltd: Montreal, Canada, 1980. p 45.

70. Simpkins, Bernard E. Chop Cup Climax, in: The Linking Ring, July 1979. Vol. 59; No. 7: p. 84.

71. Sisti, Jim. The Working Professional's Chop Cup. The Confidential Manuscript Series #2.

72. Snider, John. Pockety Chop. Tom Zoss, 1975.

73. Stelzel, Christian. The Instant Chop Cup, in: Genii, November 1980. Vol. 44; No. 11: p. 760-762.

74. Swain, James. Larry Jennings' Famous Chop Cup Routine, in: 21st Century Card Magic. James Swain: Tampa, FL, 1999. p. 149.

75. Thompson, John. Squashing the Chop Cup, in: Genii, September 1986. Vol. 50; No. 3: p. 233-234.

76. Willmarth. Commercial Chop Cup Routine, in: Trevor Lewis - ESOLC (That's Close Up). Standridge Magic: Mesquite, Texas, 1981. p. 95-97.

77. Wilson, Mark and Nelson, Earl. The Chop Cup Book. Mark Wilson Publications: Los Angeles, CA, 1979.

78. Wilson, Ron and Kaufman, Richard. The Uncanny Chop Cup, in: The Uncanny Scot : Ron Wilson, 1987. p. 78.

79. Wilson, R. Paul. Lean Chop, in: The Little Black Book,p. 17.

80. Wolfsberger, Gary. Wolfsberger's Chop Cup and Ball Routine. Magic Emporium: Tarzana, CA, 1976.

81. Wonder, Tommy and Minch, Stephen. Chop Cup Load, in: The Books of Wonder Volume 2. Hermetic Press Inc, 1996. p. 94-97.

82. Yeager, John. Chinese Chop Cup, in: Magigram, April 1978. Vol. 10; No. 8: p. 35-36.

83. Yee, Shaun. Chop Cup Rainbow Routine, in: The Lecture Book, 1998.

Web references:

• Doug Atkinson's Magic Reference Pages
• Clark Wirthlin's collection of Chop cups
• The Cups and Balls Museum (Bill Palmer's huge collection of cups, Chop cups and related props)