Marucci's Bizarre Bazaar

Staying the Ripper's Hand
by Peter Marucci

Effect and presentation: In 1888, Queen Victoria ruled the biggest empire the world had ever seen or, probably, would ever see; London was engulfed in the classic but deadly pea-soup fogs; and the grandfather of all serial killers, Jack the Ripper, was plying his trade.

He first struck on August 31, killing Mary Ann Nichols; then, just over a week later on Sept. 8, he struck again, killing Annie Chapman.

Three weeks later, on Sept. 30, he went on a killing spree, murdering Elizabeth ("Long Liz" was her nickname, because of her height) Stride and Catharine Eddowes. Five weeks later, in a blood-crazed frenzy, he butchered Mary Jane Kelly in her own home, spraying the place with her blood.

Then, for some unknown reason, the killings stopped.

Here are the names of the women, whose only connection seemed to be that they were all prostitutes. (Magus shows five plaques or cards with a victim's name on each one.)

And you (to a volunteer) have a chance of saving one of them. Please note that I say "chance"; because you can't actually save any of them -- they are all long in their graves.

(The magus assembles the cards and, following his demonstration, the spectator makes several complete cuts of the packet. When she is satisfied that the cards are will mixed, and all are face down on the table, she takes the top card, and looks at it, concealing it from the magician. He takes the rest of the cards and puts them aside, since they are no longer needed.)

Hmmm, the spirit of the Ripper is a bit unclear tonight. It may be because of the fog that is gripping London.

Or it may be due to the horrible amount of blood that he spilled as he killed --- Mary Jane Kelly.

(The spectator turns over her card and it IS Kelly.)

Working: You'll need five cards or thin wooden sheets for the five victims. On each, print or label the names: Mary Ann Nichols, Murdered Aug. 31, 1888; Annie Chapman, Murdered Sept. 8, 1888; Eliabeth Stride, Murdered Sept. 30, 1888; Catharine Eddowes, Murdered Sept. 30, 1888; and, finally, Mary Jane Kelly, Murdered Nov. 9, 1888.

Note that the last names form the anagram (or nonsense word) NECKS, for Nichols, Eddowes, Chapman, Kelly, Stride. Keep the cards in that order; no matter how often the spectator makes single cuts, she will not disturb the cyclical nature of the names; that is, Eddowes will always follow Nichols, Chapman will always follow Nichols, and so on.

When the spectator has finished cutting the packet, and removed the top card (the victim that she "may" save), the magus takes the rest of the cards and puts them aside. But before he does so, he steals an unseen glance at the bottom card. If it is "Chapman", then the card that follows it -- the next card, that is the top card and the card that was chosen -- will begin with "K" -- Kelly.

Don't instantly reveal the victim but draw out the revelation with some details of her life; there are literally hundreds of books on the Ripper and his victims and the Internet "groans" under the weight of Ripper and victim sites.

Second thoughts: To get away from the idea of a card trick, I use 2-inch by 3-inch very thin wooden plaques which I got for about 25 cents each at a craft store.

However, for ease of handling and transporting, you may prefer blank-faced cards.

Enjoy this and enjoy "spooking" the audience.

Peter Marucci