Penn and Teller Explain Sleight of Hand

You know what I am talking about? Looks simple, does not it? But when you are dealing with the ‘master of sleight of hands,’ like my partner Teller—even the simplest activity maybe a complex deception. Let us watch that routine again. Is he really crushing out a cigarette? Is he really adjusting his hat? Is he really pulling out a fresh cigarette? Is he really bothered by that itch in his left eye? Is he really just lighting a cigarette? To understand the complexity of Teller’s life you need to know the seven basic principles of magic. 1. Palm—to hold an object in an apparently an empty hand. 2. Ditch—to secretly dispose of an unneeded object. 3. Steal—the opposite of ditch, to secretly obtain a needed object. 4. Load—to secretly move a needed object to where it is needed. 5. Simulation—to give the impression that something that has not happened, has. 6. Misdirection—to lead attention away from a secret move. 7. Switch—to secretly exchange one object for another. Teller needs nothing—but a pencil, one lit cigarette, and a flash light. Let us watch that original routine again but this time from the other side. He palms the cigarette! He simulates crushing it out! He steals the palm lit cigarette! Ditches the lit cigarette in his ear! He exhales smoke to misdirect from the smoke coming out from around his hat. He steals the pencils! He simulates taking the pencil which is simulating a cigarette from a non-existing cigarette pack and put a simulating the cigarette in his mouth. He rubs his eye to misdirect as he loads the burning cigarette from his ear. He simulates a light of the flashlight plus the lit cigarette from the unlit pencil and the cover of misdirection from the flashlight! Palm—simulation—steal—ditch—misdirection—steal—simulation—misdirection—load—simulation—switch—misdirection. Look simple, does not it?