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Details

Heist

Wise, Jack

Vanishing Inc.

(Based on 1 review)
It's rare to find practical, visual parlor magic, and rarer still to find good opening effects. With "Heist" you have a perfect, magical and impressive opener for your parlor show. Based on Tommy Wonder's classic "Ring, Watch, Wallet" effect (a trick with a one-hundred year history), Irish stand-up comedian and magician Jack Wise has reimagined the workings of this trick so that they are far more practical and reliable than previous versions. After years of honing this trick in comedy clubs and stages across Europe, Vanishing Inc. Magic is proud to present "Heist." A quick, impressive opener using props that you wear! Perfect for close-up and stand-up performances Includes all required props (including good quality gimmicked watches and wallet) Features three handlings and two funny, fully-scripted, professional presentations Complete with everything you need all inside a beautiful storage case Detailed instructional DVD featuring Jack Wise and Andi Gladwin The plot is simple and stunning: You place your watch, ring, and the money from your wallet inside an envelope. In a flash, you tear up the envelope and allow the pieces to flutter to the floor! Then you instantly show the watch back on your wrist, the money back in your wallet, and the ring back on your finger. A quick, impressive opener for stage or close-up!

Along with Jack Wise's full presentation and handling, you'll learn two strong methods from Andi Gladwin (please note that one requires a PK Ring) and his "Modern Crime" presentation that makes the opening of your show interactive, funny and jaw-droppingly magical.

Some of the top professional magicians in the world have already been using "Heist" as a feature of their show. It is now finally available.

"If Occam took a razor to Tommy Wonder's masterpiece, Heist would be the result! A tiny amount of method creates a massive effect"
- Steve Thompson

"One of the most practical, thought out, and fooling versions of Ring, Watch and Wallet. I've been using Heist in every show."
- Kyle Marlett

Reviews

Dr. J. M. Ayala De Cedoz

Official Reviewer

Jul 20, 2015

I have long been a fan of the Tommy Wonder 'Ring, Watch & Wallet' from his Volume 1 book of 'The Books of Wonder'. It makes a great (nay, perfect) opener becauser it is direct, to the point, easy to understand and very magical. Heist fits neatly into that category because the effect is the same, but the method is different.

My first impression upon seeing the box was, "Wow!" Usually when you have a quality product, their boxes reflect that aspect. That is very much the case here - the Heist box is a great quality box what is contained therein is also of great quality. You get everything you need to perform Heist - The watch, a nice brown leather Himber wallet, the gimmicks, a DVD with performances and explanations and an extra bit for an alternative handling idea by Andi Gladwin. Everything seems to be very well made and all of the pieces should last you forever with proper care.

Also in the box you get a DVD which is just over 22 minutes long. The contains a stage and close-up performance by Jack Wise himself, followed by an introduction, a quick run-through of the method and another look at the method and handling in more detail. You also get to see Andi Gladwin performing his take on Heist at the Hollywood Magic Castle, followed by an explanation. The explanations were all shot from a one-camera perspective, but both Jack and Andi explained everything clearly and they did not leave anything to be desired. A few close-up shots were used where applicable.

The DVD was well lit and the volume was good. The menu was easy to use, but there is no 'play all' option because once you click on a chapter, it plays the rest of the way through the disc from that point, returning to the menu only at the end.

Also in the box is a little card with a link to a video explanation. In this video Andi explains how to use the extra bit that comes in your box, as well as telling you the small changes he had made to his setup, which differed slightly from the way he taught it on the DVD. This video runs about 5 minutes with a single camera and no close-up shots, but that is not needed as this video is for those that have watched and/or used his handling from the DVD (and they state exactly that at the top of the webpage where the video is).

You will certainly need to come up with your own presentation for this effect and since I have been doing the Tommy Wonder handling for years, I already have my own. Jack Wise uses one akin to the Wonder presentation, but it is still his own and is unique to him. A perfect example of this the Andi Gladwin - he did not feel the "I got mugged" presentation would suit him, so he uses a different one.

To make this effect as smooth as it can be, it will take some experimentation on your part to figure out what has to go where so that you do not have any hangups. Something that was not mentioned in the DVD but is blatantly obvious enough that it need not be mentioned: This effect requires you to wear a jacket. Waistcoats will not work and long sleeved shirts will not work.

This is not a cheap item, but it is far, far less (did I say far less?) expensive than the authorized manufactured sets for the Wonder handling (most of which start around $1500/USD for great quality sets). This is not a bad thing or a good thing necessarily, but it does make a great piece of magic more accessible and affordable for most magicians. I think the pricing on this for what you get is very fair.

You get some very good quality props for a very strong and magical routine, a DVD with just under 30 minutes of clear video instructions and a link to an extra handling idea - VERY highly recommended!

Suggestions

Look up the Tommy Wonder handling in his book, Volume 1 of the Books of Wonder to get a better in depth look at where Heist comes from. Jack does credit Tommy and Tommy's predecessor, but does not give any history on the effect.
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