"Palms of Steel 4: Cashablanca" DVD by Curtis Kam
Suggested Retail USD$35.00
Available direct from The Magic Bakery
In a Blink: 10 Out of 10

"Palms of Steel 4: Cashablanca", the latest DVD in the "Palms of Steel" series by Curtis Kam, is a collection of some of the cleanest, magical, striking coin magic to come down the pike since somebody got the idea of making money out of metal, making this a must-have for the avid coin worker.

I'm biased here because I love Curtis Kam's work. I always find it entertaining and, when he's hitting his stride, brilliant. Same goes for Reed McClintock, who I still owe a drink for making so many killer coin sleights so easy to learn and for creating some of my favorite coin routines. Put both of those geniuses on one disc and I'm perfectly content, thank you, and I know I'm in for a magically good time.

And that's what "Cashablanca" is: it's a fun disc packed with material that is so good it's downright scary. True, they are the more classical routines -- a flurry here, a three-fly there, the ever-present "coins across", and so forth -- but Kam has twisted them around either in routining or handling to the extent that these are truly a sight to see.

The disc begins with "Ilsa's Appearance". This is a three-coin production. Wait, wait. Hold on. Don't go thinking this is your standard, one-coin-at-a-time production; this is Curtis Kam we're talking about, after all. And the way Kam does it is this: the hands are shown to be apparently empty and suddenly there's a fan of three coins at the fingertips of one hand. The economy of movement here is excellent, the appearance unexpected and flashy, and this is the perfect lead-in to other three-coin effects. Very good stuff, this is. The handling is not that difficult, but you'll need the experience to watch your angles on this one. Get it down and you've got a magical opening effect.

"The Greatest ($3) Show On Earth" is next and, brother, is this a monster. Three coins and the ever-present coin purse are shown. A swift little "coins across" is done, then a fast "two-in-the-hand" bit which ends with one coin appearing under the purse, one on top of it, and one in it. This is gorgeous stuff and quickly became the routine to learn on this disc. Beautiful stuff. It's got some difficult pieces, but nothing so daunting that the average coin worker can't get this one down.

"Cashablanca Coins Across", plain and simple, nailed me to the wall. I would have sworn -- and did -- that Kam had broken out shells and flippers for this one. Then I saw the explanation and was doubly-nailed when all Kam used was the coins with no gaffs or gimmicks in sight. This is direct, straight-forward, and entirely magical. It's also fairly easy, moreso if you've been around the sleights Kam teaches here. But that handling makes this one solid gold.

After some easy routines, Kam goes insane with "Play It Again Kam (Another Hard Way/Excellent Birds). Another monster, this one begins with the production of seven coins a la McClintock's "Seven the Hard Way" but with a handling that's a little easier. After that, Kam goes into his version of "Flying Eagles" which is much more direct than the original and includes some nice touches like the coins traveling under a spectator's hand and the final two coins going at once. This one is a real bugbear to learn, probably suitable for the expert worker, but it would be worth the strain. You'll also need a lot of table space for this one, which likely limits where it can be performed, but for those special situations, this is a killer.

"Triple Alliance 2.0" is a handling for the Copper-Silver-Brass. There's a brief segment of the typical handling before Kam breaks out the purse, puts the copper and brass coins inside and has them trade places with the silver coin in his hand. Honestly this one left me a little cold, but I do like that purse transposition, and it can be tacked on to an existing routine if desired. The handling here is fairly simple, especially if you're familiar with working with the set.

Last, but definitely not least, is Reed McClintock's offering, "International Solid Three-Fly". This has got to be the easiest "three-fly" around and with a kicker to boot that makes this "three-fly meets Solid Deception". In this one, three coins of different nations (meaning, copper, silver, and brass) are held that the fingertips and travel, one at a time and very cleanly, to the other hand... where they are dropped to the table, fused into a solid block of coins. Alright, so color this one worth the price of the disc; it's simply great.

But then everything on this disc is. There's no filler here, no pipe dreams waiting to happen. There is nothing here that is not good, solid stuff.

Being a Magic Bakery release, the production values are solid all the way around. Being Kam, everything is taught with loving detail. It just doesn't get better than this.

For any coin worker, this one comes highly recommended... as in you'll kick yourself if you don't get this one.

"Palms of Steel 4: Cashablanca" DVD by Curtis Kam
In a Blink: 10 Out of 10

Material: 10
This is one of the finest coin magic DVDs out there, and for my money you can drop the "coin". Excellent routines for virtually all skill levels, some downright brilliant thinking, and handlings that are simply gorgeous... yep, that pretty much sums up the material here.

Practicality: 10
While sometimes a table is needed, the actual real estate needed is minor. The routines are all great stand-up effects, requiring a minimum of set-up and reset. This is extremely practical coin magic.

Quality of Production: 10
The Magic Bakery crew has been hitting a lot of homeruns in the production department and this one is no exception. Great sound and camera work and easy navigation. What else can you ask for?

Quality of Instruction: 10
I'm a huge fan of Kam's teaching style, at once detail-oriented and yet so easy-going is his manner you're learning much more than appears to be taught. Both he and McClintock are perfect instructors for this material.

Presentation: 10
The verbal components are sometimes so traditional it hurts, other times so corny it aches, but what is said here is much, much less than what is seen: incredibly clean coin magic that will have spectators gasping.


Shane

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