Glossary of Magic (illusion) - M

M

• M5 - Neodymium magnet, used for PK effects, balances, stopping watches, and vanishes.
• Magic dust - invisible substance stored in magician's pocket that supposedly makes tricks work. Excuse for going to a pocket to get rid of a vanished item. Also called "Woofle Dust." See Misdirection.
• Magician's choice - see Force.
• Magician's rope - soft, usually white rope used for rope tricks.
• Magician's wax - wax used to temporarily attach objects. The earliest known magician's wax is beeswax.
• Manipulator - a magician with a showy sleight of hand act, often set to music.
• Mark - a subject for a con game.
• Mechanic - an operator who is very skilled at sleight of hand, usually with cards.
• Mechanic's grip - a way of holding the pack in the left hand ready for dealing. The forefinger is on the front of the deck to help square the pack and control the cards. A lay person will hold the deck with the fingers all underneath or down the side.
• Mercury Fold - a card move in which the magician secretly folds a card under the deck.
• Misdirection - psychological techniques for controlling attention.
• Monte - a famous con game where three cards are thrown down and the mark has to follow a chosen card* due to a sleight of hand, the mark never wins.