Nelms, Henning: Magic and Showmanship, A Handbook for Conjurers ©1969 Henning Nelms, Dover Publications, Inc. Softcover, perfect-bound, 320 pages ©2000 Dover Publications Softcover, perfect-bound, 320 pages ISBN 0-486-41087-0

Image courtesy Bryan-Keith Taylor

Comments: Covers the theory and presentation of magic. Includes some tricks dispersed through the book for use as examples. I've put the trick titles in italics, below.

Contents: (from 1969 edition book, updated Apr 2025):

ix Foreword

1 Chapter 1 The Two Magics:
2 Drama As Magic
4 Tricks vs. Illusions
5 The Magic of Meaning
7 Dial Information: coin divination over the phone
8 Meaning, Showmanship, Technique
12 Adding the Meaning
12 The Inseparable String: cut and restored
14 The Strong Man's Secret: a variation of the above
16 Tricks Preferred
17 Conjuring for Conjurers - and Laymen

19 Chapter 2 Deception vs. Conviction:
20 The Singular Singletons: a Bridge card effect
21 Realism Vs. Fantasy
22 I Scry:  performer reveals card selected from three piles
23 Arithmagic: determine selected card using arithmetic
24 Conviction Aids Deception
25 Horoscope: performer links birthdays on papers to the correct spectator
27 Passe-Passe Dice: Jumbo dice transpose between two hats
28 The Haunted Conjurer: a live animal climax for the above effect
28 Atmoshphere
30 Length
34 The Ethics of Conjuring

36 Chapter 3 The Measure of Meaning:
37 The Personalities: who is being involved
39 The Phenomenon: what is being exhibited
39 The Purpose: why is the routine performed
41 The Expanding Rabbit: a stuffed rabbit turns to real in a hat
43 The Best Bet: rapid rope knotting
43 The Proof: how is the purpose achieved
45 Chromavoyance: magician tells what color pencils are behind his back
46 Mental Television: drawing duplication
48 Treatment

50 Chapter 4 Who?:
50 The Conjurer's Role
52 Growing Hair on a Billiard Ball: using a shell
53 Number Please: rapid addition for the stage
54 Casting Yourself
56 Casting Your Audience
57 Sniff-Sniff: a glass of water smells like whisky and ammonia to different spectators
58 The Singing Glass: a glass of water suspended over the cards 'sings' when over the selection
59 Casting Volunteers

63 Chapter 5 Making the Most of Assistants:
65 Applied Magic
66 Shared Effects
66 Fan-Tastic: combining Dye-Tube and Color Changing Fan
66 The Careless Assistant
67 The Sorcerer's Apprentice: version of the Mis-Made flag
67 One Touch of Venus
67 Twentieth-Century Nylon: spectator's stocking ends up between two scarves
69 The Unhelpful Helper
69 The Antigravity Hat: mischievous helper's antics don't work
70 Papa's Little Girl
70 The Unbeatable Drum:  production effect
71 The Assistant As Conjurer
72 Casting Assistants
73 Secret Assistants
74 Booby Trap: addition to Chromavoyance

76 Chapter 6 Casting the Spell:
76 Magic Lore
77 The Methods of Magic
78 The Sympathetic Pendulum: a pendulum card effect
80 Hand Signals: to be used with a confederate
83 The Sigil of Solomon: dead person message reading
85 The Theories of Magic
85 The Voodoo Doll: full stage vanishing effect

89 Chapter 7 Mystery Without Magic:
89 Occult Phenomena
90 The Book of Thoth: Tarot card effect
93 Parapsychological Phenomena
94 Preview: billet reading for a large audience
96 Will Power: pendulum experiment
98 Superinvention and Superscience
99 The Instant Incubator: a Square Circle dressed up

101 Chapter 8 Providing the Proof:
102 Identifying the Effect
103 Productions
104 Vanishes
104 Transportation
104 Transformation
105 Invulnerability
105 Control of Force
106 Identity
107 Divination
109 Character Readings
110 Fishing
111 Significant Selection: finding the chosen card by fishing
112 Answering Questions
115 Eliminating Other Possible Explanations

116 Chapter 9 Devices for Deception:
116 Selecting a Device
118 Sleights
120 Getting and Holding Break: for cards
121 Riffle Shuffle
122 Double Cut
123 Lie Detector: despite the spectator replying no to every question, the selection if named
124 Prearrangement
126 Si Stebbins Setup: deck stack
126 Locating Any Card In A Si Stebbins Deck
127 The Monte Carlo Method: demonstration of the law of averages
128 Secret Apparatus
128 Arcana

130 Chapter 10 The Great Secret:
130 The "As If" Principle
132 Portable Echo: demonstration of sound transmission
132 Every Little Bit Hurts
135 Detecting Discrepancies
137 Digressions

141 Chapter 11 Eliminating Departures:
142 Words Betray
143 Concealing Skill
144 Suspicious Apparatus
145 Miniaturization: stage effect where miniature items grow full size
147 Deliberately Arousing Suspicion
148 The Indestructible Match: broken and restored
149 Exposure

152 Chapter 12 Consistency In Characterization:
153 Putting the Character Into the Routine
155 Handling Technical Problems
155 Motivation
156 Negative Motivations
157 Finding Motivations
158 Dowsing Test: a seemingly DIY dowsing rod finds the glass with water
161 Motivating Assistants
161 Motivating Volunteers
162 Keeping The Audience in Character
163 The Silent Script

168 Chapter 13 Concealing Devices:
168 The Polarity Pump: magical liquid transfer for stage
170 Disguise
171 Camoflage
171 Misinterpretation
173 The Clairvoyant Die: the roll of a die locates the card selection
175 What About the Rule?
177 Surprise

178 Chapter 14 Controlling Attention:
178 The Source of Information
180 Psychosomatics: card revelation
182 The Center of Interest
184 The Focus of Attention
185 The Performer's Interest
186 Pointing
189 Contrast
190 Movement
191 Variety
194 Distraction

196 Chapter 15 Misdirection:
196 Mental Misdirection
197 The Prestidigitator's Perplexity: performer names cards as they are removed by spectator's from the pocket
200 Presentiment: magician predicts card chosen by actions of three spectators
200 Deceiving Attention
201 Second Sight: a two person Medium presentation
202 Casual Treatment
203 Contradicting Belief in Confederates
204 Monotony, Its Use and Misuse
204 Optical Misdirection
206 Motion As A Method For Concealment
206 Control As A Device
206 The Magician From Nowhere: for stage

208 Chapter 16 Devising Illusions:
209 Switching A Routine
209 Probability: adaptation of Monte Carlo Method and Arithmagic previously described
210 The Five Basic Elements
210 Starting With the Phenomenon
211 The Enchanted Doll: a Spirit Cloth presentation with a hand puppet
213 Starting With the Effect
214 Starting With the Device
215 The Witch and the Wraith: a themed presentation of the Enchanted Doll
216 Starting With a Prop
217 The Haunted Handkerchief: self-tying knot
218 The Haunted Handkerchief Part 2: levitates
218 Starting With Characterization
219 The Haunted Handkerchief Part 3: animates

221 Chapter 17 Dramatic Structure:
221 Basic Structure
223 Interest-Catchers
223 The Purse of Fortunatus: cigarette from purse frame
224 Climaxes
225 The Vast Void: cord penetration of parts of the body
227 The Warlock's Familiar: climax live-animal ending for topsy-turvy bottles type gimmick
228 Endings
230 Avoiding Requests
233 Ace-In-The-Hole: card selection 'out'

234 Chapter 18 Continuity:
234 The Interest Curve
237 Conversation
239 Techniques for Building Interest
242 The Consolidated Guinea Pigs: Guinea Pigs turn into a rabbit
242 Cumulative Climaxes
244 The Truant Trousers: comedy pants vanish
245 Sequence
247 Planning On Paper
249 Interesting Devices

252 Chapter 19 Material for Entertainment:
253 Strengthening The Theme
254 Expansion
255 Enrichment
258 Touches
261 Inserting Material for Entertainment
262 The Scenario
262 The Peculiar Pellet: marble locates a card

265 Chapter 20 Words:
265 The Playwright's Approach
267 Creating the Script
270 The Rope Mender: cut and restored rope presentation
272 Memorization Vs. Extemporization
273 Words And The Audience
274 Speech

278 Chapter 21 Business:
278 Pantomime
280 Business and Apparatus
282 The Genial Jinni: Card discovered, vanished and recovered with aid of the genie
283 Symbolic Pantomime
285 Gesture
288 Facial Expressions
289 Timing
290 Matching Business and Lines

295 Chapter 22 The Performer and the Stage:
296 Variety and the Stage
297 Position
299 Technique for Assistants
302 Poise
303 Footwork
307 Sitting Rising and Stooing
308 Applause
311 Taking Bows

315 Routines: index of effects
317 Index
325 A Catalogue of Selected Dover Books In All Fields of Interest