Back in 1965 Fred Kaps gave a landmark lecture at the Magic Circle and now
this lecture is available on CD together with a booklet containing a transcript
of the lecture. Bearing in mind Fred Kaps' reputation, it is strange that so
little has been written about the man and his methods.
Other than several magazine contributions, little of Fred Kaps' work exists
in the English language. There are two sets of lecture notes, one dealing with
general magic and the other describing some of the coin magic Kaps performed
on a film made for magicians. Both seem to be still in print although the name
of the publisher is not indicated in either and those copies in circulation
today may well be unauthorised.
Although not an inventor, Kaps did have the ability to take any effect and
make it a miracle by moulding it to his own personality; a personality which
made it impossible for others to copy. This was one of the keys to Kap’s
success. He made the trick part of himself. Its presentation was so interwoven
with his own personality that it was impossible to imagine anyone else performing
anything that Kaps had already done.
He did this again and again. The Floating Cork, Homing Card, Salt Pour, Surprise
Stab, Blank Notes to Bank Notes, Chink A Chink and many others. After Kaps had
performed the routine you could not imagine anyone else doing it better.
The whole recording has now been digitized. The booklet has been redesigned
and re-written and the entire package is available on CD with the booklet.
