David Peters, (who used to be in the thick of it at Murphy's Magic Supplies) can proudly boast that his great-grandfather was the brain behind the movie clapper.
He was a magician and sound man for TV, going by the stage name Leon-Leon. Not only did he dream up the clapper, but he also invented the Boom-Mic (a true pioneer, if you will).
Fast forward over 20 years, and my good mate Rey Ben had a brilliant idea: the Cut-no Cut scissors, but in the form of a cinema Clapperboard. Sadly, it remained just an idea—nobody bothered to build it or crack the mechanism.
Enter my clever friend Costi, who managed to bring the Clapperboard to life with a nifty little system.
Picture the countless ways to incorporate this cheeky gag into your act:
Simulate filming a magic trick where a spectator has to guess a playing card, only for that card to magically appear written in chalk behind the clapperboard.
Stick a little double-sided tape or Blu-Tac on the back, and voilà! The card—or even the signed card—makes a grand appearance.
Perform a mentalism effect predicting the outcome of a sum, with the final number appearing behind the clapperboard, all while pretending you're directing a blockbuster.
Film the birthday child, and at the end of your comedic routine, have "Happy Birthday" (plus the child's name, of course) pop up behind the clapperboard.
Claim that with the clapperboard, you'll catch a chosen card in mid-air (just like a magician should). The spectator can't open it, nor can they close it. When they throw the cards, nothing happens, yet somehow, the chosen card is waiting behind the clapperboard.
You’ll receive a wooden clapperboard and a downloadable video bursting with ideas that’ll have you chuckling and crafting your own routines in no time!
