Lucky Ducky 🍀🦆

I have created several variations of Jim Steinmeyer's fantastic trick, "The Nine Card Problem". One is "Double Duck and Deal Discovery", designed specifically for two people. It uses eighteen cards and ends with a surprise transposition. This is a one-person version of the same routine with a similar magician-in-trouble ending (actually, it is the spectator who fails to find their card, but the implication is that the magician has messed up when the trick appears to go wrong). 

The inspiration for this particular routine came from David Copperfield's rendition of Jim's trick in his 1993 TV special, Fires of Passion. More recently, I learned "Pure Magic" by Larry Hass, which, coincidentally, has many similarities with "Lucky Ducky". I have since incorporated some of Larry's very smart subtleties into "Lucky Ducky", along with some of my own.

JUMP AHEAD

On This Page

Effect
Background & Credits
Requirements & Preparation
Method & Presentation
Performance Tips & Additional Ideas
Afterthoughts

Effect

The magician offers to perform a "good luck ritual" for a member of the audience. A participant selects one of nine cards, and this becomes their "lucky card". The participant then tries to locate the card but fails, and the "wrong card" is set aside. The participant tries again, but once again, the same "wrong card" is found. However, the audience is surprised when it is revealed that the card put aside earlier is actually the chosen card! The participant is, indeed, a "lucky ducky"!

Background & Credits

This trick is based on "The Nine Card Problem" by Jim Steinmeyer, which was first published in MAGIC Magazine (May 1993, page 56). The trick was reprinted in Jim's book Impuzzibilities in 2002. 

It is important to note that Jim did not invent the trick for David Copperfield. He sold the TV rights to Copperfield before it was published in MAGIC Magazine. Additionally, Jim was not responsible for the handling used on the Fires of Passion TV special. Instead, Copperfield adapted the original handling, as published by Richard Kaufman, to suit his own needs.

The underlying principle is related to the trick "Remote Control", also created by Jim Steinmeyer and published in The New Invocation (No. 43) in February 1988. While "Remote Control" requires eighteen cards, not Nine, it uses a very similar method.

A much earlier application of the same principle can be found in Abbott's Anthology of Card Magic Volume Three, compiled by Gordon Miller. It is used in a trick using the whole pack called "Miracle Mix-Up" by Jack Yates (page 58). Initially, Jack sold the trick as a manuscript in 1953.

The "deal or switch" mixing procedure, also known as the "Swindle Shuffle", was devised by Paul Curry and first published as part of a trick of his called "A Swindle of Sorts" in his book Paul Curry Presents, first published in 1974.

"Pure Magic" by Larry Hass was released by Penguin Magic in 2020 as an instant download. 

Requirements & Preparation

A regular pack of playing cards.

Method & Presentation

Give the cards to Adelaide and ask her to thoroughly shuffle them. Have her cut the deck and complete the cut. 

Take back the pack and then deal one card for each letter in the phrase "LUCKY CARD" into a single pile on the table. This will allow you to deal out nine cards without drawing any attention to the exact number of cards being used. This subtlety is borrowed from "Pure Magic" by Larry Hass. It may seem like a small detail, but avoiding the use of numbers helps conceal the mathematical nature of "The Nine Card Problem".

Inform Adelaide that she will randomly choose a card, which will become her "lucky card." Turn away from your participant so you cannot see the cards. Ask her to shuffle the packet and divide it into two equal piles, as if she were playing a game of cards. Once completed, she should have one card in her hand and two four-card piles on the table. Instruct her to memorise the card she is holding and then drop it onto either of the two piles in front of her. Next, tell her to take the remaining pile, quickly mix the cards, and place them on the other pile (on top of her chosen card). This procedure sets the "lucky card" fifth from the top of the pile. However, since the participant is the one doing everything, it creates a false sense of freedom leading to the belief that you do not know the location of their card.

To further reinforce this misbelief, make the following statement: "You have successfully generated a random lucky card and placed it somewhere within the middle of the packet. Correct?" This statement, the word "somewhere" in particular, aims to create a false memory in the participant's mind that she replaced her "randomly generated lucky card" in an unknown location within the packet.

Next, explain that you will mix the cards using a "deal or switch shuffle used by those automatic shuffling machines you find in casinos." To demonstrate, deal the top card to the table as you say, "Tell me to 'DEAL', and I'll deal a single card to the table." Then, continue by saying, "Tell me to 'SWITCH', and I'll switch two cards like this. Have you got it?" Suiting actions to words, switch the position of the top two cards before dropping them, as a pair, on top of the single card already on the table. Drop the cards remaining in your hand on top of the three-card pile on the table. This brief demonstration has displaced three cards from the top to the bottom of the packet, positioning Adelaide's "lucky card" second from the top.

To apparently mix the cards, perform two Swindle Shuffles while being guided by your participant, as explained previously. The shuffles will only reverse the order of the cards twice, which will result in the "lucky card" ending up second from the top again. However, this will create a strong illusion of the cards being randomly mixed, thereby reinforcing the idea that you have no knowledge of where the "lucky card" is located in the packet.

Next, ask your participant to spell out her name, dealing one card to the table for each letter. Adelaide can choose to spell out her name in full or a shortened version, such as Addie. They can also opt for a nickname if their first name is very long. This trick will work as long as the spectator's name is spelt with more than two letters.

Once they've done this, get your participant to shuffle the remaining cards and drop them on top of the pile on the table.

Take the cards back and use the same procedure to spell-deal the word "MAGIC" (like David Copperfield and Larry Hass, I spell my name instead because it also spells in five letters). After that, give the remaining four cards a controlled mix to ensure that the target card remains third from the top of the packet. Finally, drop the four cards on top of the pile on the table.

Hand the cards back to Adelaide and ask her to slowly deal cards to the table. When she's dealt three cards, say, "Please stop dealing whenever you wish." When she stops, tell her to mix the remaining cards in her hand and then drop them on the tabled pile.

Ask Adelaide if she knows where her lucky card is in the packet. Then, say, "If you happen to find your lucky card, you will be blessed with good fortune for a whole month. You have three opportunities to locate it. Otherwise, you'll be cursed with bad luck for the rest of your life!" 

Next, talk Adelaide through the "duck and deal" elimination process. First, the top card of the packet is "ducked" under it. Then, the next card is dealt onto the table. This process is repeated, with each card being alternately "ducked" and dealt to the table until only one remains. Your participant will think that the last card left in their hand is their "lucky card," but it will actually be a random card without any special significance. Turn to your participant and say, "Oh, you picked the Seven of Diamonds. That's a very lucky card." Wait for them to tell you that the Seven of Diamonds, or whatever card happens to turn up, is not their lucky card. Continue by saying, "Oh dear! Maybe it isn't your lucky day! Let's try again..."

Take the indifferent "wrong card" from her and perform a Top Change or Illogical Double Lift to switch it for the chosen card. Place this "wrong card" aside (a little distance away from your performance area).

Get Adelaide to repeat the "duck and deal" procedure on the now eight-card packet. Much to her surprise, she'll be left holding the same "wrong card" from before (in our example, the Seven of Diamonds). Say, "Oh dear, you only have one chance left to find your lucky card. Where do you think it might be?" If your participant fails to make the mental leap, tap the indifferent card put aside earlier. Wait for a beat or two, then reveal that the indifferent card is, in fact, her chosen "lucky card". Bring the routine to a triumphant conclusion by saying, "Third time lucky! You'll now have a month full of good fortune, you lucky ducky!"

Performance Tips & Additional Ideas

I really enjoy performing Jim's original version of "The Nine Card Problem". However, this variation allows for a more personal connection with the participant because their name is incorporated into the trick. Larry Hass has also added the ability for your participant to freely shuffle the cards at various points during the routine. This, along with the two Swindle Shuffles, makes the trick much more challenging to reconstruct when performing it in person rather than remotely. It also makes the trick more difficult to remember from the performer's point of view, which is something to consider if you struggle to remember lengthy sequences of moves. In this situation, I think you'd be better off performing Jim's original handling with the "lucky card" presentation.

Here's a fun way to have the card selected that fits with the "lucky card" presentation. After you've dealt out the nine cards by spelling the phrase "LUCKY CARD", instruct your participant to shuffle the packet. Then, say, "The number seven is considered to be the luckiest one-digit number. Deal seven cards to the table, look at the top card of the pile, remember it and replace it on top. This is your lucky card. Now drop any cards remaining in your hand on top of the pile." This patter nicely justifies why you're asking your participant to think of a card in a specific location in the packet. However, it also subtly positions the thought-of card third from the top of the packet; exactly where it needs to be when you're using Jim's original handling for "The Nine Card Problem". When you get to the end of the routine, spell the word "LUCKY" to reveal the chosen card.

You can use the phrase "LUCKY DUCK" rather than "LUCKY CARD". In the UK, a "lucky duck" refers to someone incredibly fortunate or lucky. In "Pure Magic", Larry Hass locates the chosen card by spelling/dealing the word "FORTUNE". This word works well with the "lucky card" presentation if you prefer this ending. You can also use this option if you don't have enough time for your participant to complete two duck and deal eliminations.

Afterthoughts

Presenting Jim Steinmeyer's "The Nine Card Problem" as a good luck ritual is a great idea, even if you don't use the handling described here. Jim's original method would work just as well. At the end of the routine, the chosen card will always be fifth from the top of the packet. This means you can spell-deal the word "LUCKY" instead of "MAGIC" because it also spells with five letters.