Magic Card

A magic card is one of the most popular gimmicks in the performance of magic. A magic card is a card which is rigged somehow to trick an audience. It looks like a regular playing card, but it has some subtle difference that allows the magician to do what seem to be extraordinary things with it. The magic card is a part of most magicians' bag of tricks.

The Oversized Card
A magician's deck of cards may have one or more cards marked by being slightly larger than the others. It is not a visible difference, and the tactile quality is even very subtle. The magician must practice finding the magic card in a deck, using his finger tips to identify it. Using this deck, a magician can amaze the audience by producing a specific card in a seemingly random deck. A deck in which every other card is slightly smaller is called a Svengali deck, making it easy for a magician to pull the "magic card" from the deck.

The Marked Card
Another kind of magic, the marked card, must be used subtly as well. Audiences know to look for marked cards, such as cards with a corner missing or with a mark on the back. A magician will use a deck of cards with a single card having a slightly different design. It will be difficult to notice, and a skilled magician will keep the card out of sight and move it quickly when it is in the audience's field of vision, giving the illusion of a magic card.

The Irregular Card
Known as a Stripper deck, this deck includes one or more cards which are not perfectly rectangular. Like the oversized card, this magic card seems to be just like the others in the deck. However, with practice, the magician can learn to identify this magic card with his fingertips has he performing his tricks.

Card Tricks
Many card tricks can be performed using sleight of hand rather than trick decks. It is truly the magician's preference, given that both methods require a great deal of practice in order to keep the audience form seeing the trick behind the magic. Whichever method the magician chooses, once he becomes deft at performing a couple of card tricks, the sky is the limit as far as how many tricks he can learn and perform. Spectators are repeatedly amazed when a magician reaches into a deck and pulls out their magic card.