Introduction
This is a trick where you predict the order of 5
punchlines to jokes that your spectator will freely
select.
It’s similar to some ESP themed tricks, where you
predict the order of the ESP symbols your spectator
will choose.
Here’s why this trick is more entertaining than the
ESP one: Tension. Sure, predicting a 1 out of 5
choice is cool. Even a 1 out of 4 after that. But what
about when you reveal the 4th prediction? It’s a
50/50. Yawn. And then the last one is just boring,
nobody is even paying attention by then. There’s no
tension left.
In Punchline, you’ll be predicting their choices, but
each reveal gives the spectator a little suspense,
followed by a small payoff. There’s a joke setup,
and they want to discover the punchline. So each of
the 5 reveals has something to offer.
The jokes you have received are just 5 solid jokes
that, as far as I can remember haven’t offended
anyone I’ve told them to. You can definitely use
your own jokes for this trick, and in fact I encourage
you to! I’ll provide a template for making your own
cards at the end of this book.
Setup
You get 11 cards with this trick.
5 joke setup cards.
5 punchlines, one for each setup.
1 blank card.
Each of the jokes (setup + punchline) is secretly
marked on its back, so they’re easy to recognize.
The markings are easy to see even in low lighting.
Joke 1
The 2nd ball dangling from the Joker’s neck is
white.
Joke 2
The 3rd ball dangling from the Joker’s neck is
white.
Joke 3
The 4rd ball dangling from the Joker’s neck is
white.
Joke 4
The 5rd ball dangling from the Joker’s neck is
white.
Joke 5
The 6th ball dangling from the Joker’s neck is
blank.
Method
To begin, grab the blank card along with the 5
punchlines and give your spectator the 5 joke
setups. Don’t let them see you have 6 cards, just
keep the cards in a stack.
To begin, lay the blank card face down on the table
and say “This is the punchline to one of your jokes.
Try to guess which one, and put it on top of my
card.”
Now, by looking at the back of their card, you can
see which joke setup they laid down. Grab your
matching joke and put it on top of theirs, saying
“Ok, here’s another punchline. Use your sense of
humor to guess which joke it goes with and lay it
down on top.”
Do the same thing 2 more times.
Keep the fact that you have 2 cards left a secret, by
either keeping your hands under the table, or
behind your back.
Put the card that matches their 4th card down on
top of the pile, and when they put down their 5th
card, you are going to secretly add a card on to the
pile.
Doing this is very easy. Just palm the last card (it’s
VERY small so this should be easy) and reach over
to grab the pile of jokes and simply add it to the pile
as you’re grabbing it.
This is just an activity involving a pile of jokes at
this point. Not a magic trick. Don’t stress about
getting caught.
After you square up the cards, count them down
onto the table to “make sure they’re all there”. Do
this as quickly as possible, so people don’t count
along with you. The fact that you have 11 cards
should remain a secret.
Counting the cards down onto the table reverses
their order, which is the key to the method. Even if
people realize you’re reversing the order, you’re not
mixing them, so it won’t attract attention. Perhaps
you want to read them face up.
It also puts the blank card on top, which you can
now get rid of in a few different ways:
1. Simply palm it off the top and stick it in your
pocket. Nobody will notice.
2. Just keep it on top and lift the top 2 cards as
1 as you read the first joke.
3. You can put a piece of double stick tape on
the face of it, and when it ends up on top at
the end of the deal, it’ll naturally stick to the
back of the top setup card, and you can
handle it like 1 card.
Now your job is easy. Just read the cards, one by
one off the top.
The jokes match the punchlines, people laugh, they
groan, they roll their eyes, and everyone makes a
mental note to use those corny jokes in the office
tomorrow.
Variations
There are several ways to end this routine, and
they’re each great for their own reason.
Standard
As described above. You match the punchlines to
the setups. Everyone is happy.
Where’s the Punchline?
In this variation, you DO NOT palm and add the
final card to the pile of jokes. You leave it under the
table, where you will stick it to the bottom of the
table, or hold it on your knee.
When you get to the final joke, literally punch or
slap it on the table. There will be no punchline.
Like it mysteriously vanished. Where is the
punchline? It fell through…. The table.
Reach under the table or have your spectators look
under if you stuck it or dropped it and they’ll find it
there. Read it, get the final laughs and take your
bow.
Your Butt
The final card (the last punchline) ends up being
“Your butt” which is a childish answer you may
recognize from kids in your life. Coming from a
sophisticated magician like yourself, it’ll get laughs
for how out of place it is. But then the realization
that the punchline doesn’t make sense will set in.
Perhaps it’s not the punchline, but instructions?
You check “your butt” and lo and behold, the
punchline is stuck to your pants or in your back
pocket.
This sounds like a silly ending, but I find it hilarious.
First it’s funny, then it’s confusing, then it’s a magic
trick, and finally, it’s funny again.
The method, is to write “Your butt” on the blank
card. Then when you’re collecting the pile of cards
on the table, you DON’T palm the final card and
add it to the stack. You just keep it and put it in your
back pocket. When you count out the cards to
reverse them, just remember the deal the FIRST
card from the BOTTOM of the stack, thereby
putting the “Your butt” card on the bottom as the
last punchline.
Conclusion
This trick has lots going for it. Magic, jokes,
mentalism, influence. And because you can
change the jokes to suit your venue, it can really be
as funny or corny or gross as you want!
Here is a template for making your own cards and
jokes:
