Ricky Jay - Amazing Card Trick/Manipulation
Why Hacker News recommends it
HN people share it as a classic example of sleight-of-hand mastery whose ending is mind-blowing.
What it is
A three-minute clip of magician Ricky Jay performing a card manipulation routine, including table faro shuffles. The routine builds in intensity and ends with a surprising finish.
Recommended by 2 HN commenters across 2 different months, 2015 to 2023.
What Hacker News said
Strong rec duxup · 2018-11 · on “Ricky Jay’s Magical Secrets (1993)”
I didn't know who Ricky Jay was but ages ago i ran across this youtube video and was just floored, the whole thing just builds and builds and builds. [this video]
Strong rec onychomys · 2023-07 · on ““Cards as Weapons” by Ricky Jay (1977)”
I am not 100% convinced that this isn't just actual magic. The manipulations are pretty amazing and then at the end it's mindblowing. [this video]
Cites greghendershott · 2015-08 · on “Show HN: Learn Magic Tricks Online”
52Kards on YouTube has many free tutorials at beginner, intermediate, and advanced levels: [LINK] Although I just dabble I think they're mostly very good. They're definitely easier to grasp than the books I remember as a kid. Recently he's moved to doing non-free material: [LINK] In my limited experience YouTube has almost everything. Search for, I don't know, "table faro shuffle", and you'll find a few meh results and one gem. (Table faro shuffles are arguably what Ricky Jay is doing at the start of this classic, if you don't believe it's just a camera edit: [this video] )