The Magicanada Project

Michael Kras

MENTAL DIRECTORY

Effect: The mentalist accurately predicts a single word chosen at a completely random spot in a borrowed phonebook! There is no secret writing, switches, forces, stooges, and it is completely surefire.

Review: Again, like The Pentalist, Steve is selling a clip from, apparently, an older Party Magic video of his. Therefore, like The Pentalist, the sound and picture quality is very good... and so is the effect.

Mental Directory is based off an old principle in magic and mentalism, invented by Lubor Fiedler. It's very clever, absolutely surefire, and quite foolproof. It allows for a completely free handling by the spectator and everything feels very natural... not in any way suspicious. The effect requires a simple gimmick (and I mean VERY simple) that will take no more than a few minutes to prepare... after that, you're set to go for as long as the gimmick lasts. The gimmick can be handled by a spectator reasonably and it is not likely that anything will be discovered.

The video, as mentioned, is good quality, with good sound and video. It is also quite hilarious. If you enjoyed the celebrity cameo in The Pentalist, wait until you see who shows up this time around. Steve performs the effect in full, then explains it. Similar to The Pentalist, the method description is short but thorough... past construction of the gimmick and the basic handling, there isn't much else to cover. You will have no trouble learning or understanding Mental Directory.

The effect is very flexible... it can be done in 30 seconds or 5 minutes, depending on presentation and build up. It can also be done casually at a party (as it's inclusion in the past Party Magic tape of Steve's implies), or it can be done formally in parlour or even stage settings. It's practical, workable, and can be done with virtually any phone book (as long as the borrowed phone book is the same as your gimmick. You'll see what I mean when you get the download).

I can imagine this having a large impact on your spectators, depending of course on your presentation. If built up, I predict that this effect could be devastatingly powerful to your spectators. However, a few unfortunate variables affect Mental Directory, however, not in too big of a way. With good audience management, these unfortunate possibilities canbe avoided. For instance, the selection of the word SHOULD be done somewhere near the center of the phone book... choosing a word close to the beggining or end of the book may act as a dead giveaway. However, psychology rules that this outcome is quite unlikely. As long as wording and control is used appropriately by the performer, you may never run into this issue.

If you are uncomfortable about putting it all in the spectator's hands, Mental Directory is just as effective in the performer's hands. It does not really diminish the overall impact of the effect and it is a wise choice for uneasy performers that are uncomfortable with "in the spectator's hands" magic.

Overall, Steve Fearson has thought up a great use for a great principle that is seriously worth consideration of any mentalist. It is dead-easy, practical, and very strong. I give Steve Fearson's Mental Directory an overall rating of 8/10. Even if not used for this particular effect, the principle in question is very useful and will no doubt interest those who are unfamiliar with it.

Mental Directory can be purchased for $10 as a video download at http://emagicsupply.com/112.html

Michael Kras

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Michael Kras
Forum Administrator