Second Edition Black Ghost Deck NOW RELEASED!
April 22, 2008
The second edition Black Ghost Playing Cards are going on release here in an hour and ten minutes
Don’t forget, the first 52 orders to make it through checkout WILL RECEIVE A KILLER FREE GIFT IN THEIR PARCEL
Good luck!
Collectability, or, Black Ghost Decks and Me.
April 21, 2008
With the release of the much heralded Second Edition Black Ghost Deck now less than 24 hours away, I’ve been thinking about collectability vs function, about just what it is that sets the Black Ghost Deck apart from it’s every rival.
Is it that untill very recently, they’ve never been officially offered for sale? Is it due to the extremely small quanitity ever produced? Or, is it maybe that the deck itself was just *right*?
When I was asked to be the guest blogger for this post, I realised that the timing was perfect for my sphere of knowledge, you see, I’m a collector. I’ve been collecting various things for most of my life (from Autographs to Star Wars Figures, from Trading Cards to Movie Props), and I’m now almost able to tell whether something’s going to take off in a big way, or be resigned to the broken toy shop in the sky.
Or at least, I thought I did.
That all changed with the release of the original Black Ghost Deck Giveaway, back some 3 Christmases ago.
I remember now, reading the forum post that laid out the rules. “If you spend $350 or more, we’ll give you a brand new, extremely limited edition Steel Case Enclosed Black Ghost Deck” was the essence of the post, and I don’t mind admitting that I was a little dubious at the time.
I’d not ordered anything for a while though, and at the time, seeing that I was using the regular Ghost Deck, and wanted to replenish a few other items, by the time I’d finished adding everything up - I wasn’t too far off the target.
Now, the other thing about me is, that if you tell me something’s free - but I have to spend another $50 to get it, I most likely will do. I know it sounds strange, but I’ve got to have it, whether I need it or not.
Order placed, I waited for my parcel to arrive.
Between Christmas and the New Year, it finally did, and I unpacked everything excitedly, unable to contain my joy at managing to get all the giveaway prizes that year.
Any and every concern I had regarding the point of the Black Ghost Deck vanished when I saw it sat nestled in it’s steel frame. It almost sat there winking with a certain gleeful malevolence, just daring me to open it up and take a look.
Honestly, it didn’t take me long to do just that - despite having promised myself that I wouldn’t. After all, there was only ever 5000 of these decks made, surely it had to be worth something one day!
(I wasn’t too far wrong with that, as the decks have sold on ebay for… well, take a look)
I removed the deck from it’s box and sat there agog as I spread through the cards. These were literally only the reverse of the cards I was currently using, but that’s like saying that a Ferrari is only a couple of buckets of parts.
There was just something about the deck that captured me, some part of it’s essence embedded itself within my psyche.
I reluctantly replaced the deck back in the box, replaced the box in the steel frame, and sat the frame on top of my book case in my office. In fact, it’s there now - just 8 feet behind me and to my left. (Please, don’t believe for a second that it remains untouched since then, although I may be able to count on my fingers the times I’ve unboxed it, there’s some certain amount of joy that spreading through that deck brings me - almost like a cocoa on a winter’s day)
Fast forward to near the end of last year, and news surfaces that there *may* be a Second Edition Black Ghost Deck on the horizon.
I didn’t know how to feel.
All in one, I felt elated - that I’d be able to get hold of more of these cards, and I felt upset - that now just *anyone* could own them.
Fast forward a little bit more, to a few mere weeks ago, and I managed to catch a glimpse of the gallery for the Second Edition.
I don’t mind telling you, I’m as excited now, as I was the first time I held the Black Ghosts in my hands three years ago.
For the very first time (in my personal opinion), the Jokers are just *perfect* to the vibe of the deck.
Why though? Simple. They show the Black Ghost himself - the dark phantom who’s power seems to purvade the very fibers of the cards, the apparition who maybe even called the cards into being, and the all powerful mage who’s able to project the name of a spectator’s card into his hands*
The same quality artwork, the same love and care that goes into every deck, and the same awesome quality card stock and finish that goes into every Ellusionist deck is gracing these Second Edition decks too, meaning that I’m even closer to the edge of my seat waiting for tomorrow.
I don’t know how you feel about the new alternative coloured and styled playing cards that seem to hit the markets with an alarming frequency these days, but there’s one thing *I* know.
If it doesn’t say Ellusionist on the box, it doesn’t go in my cart.
Brendon Selley.
*Take a look at the jokers, you’ll see what I mean…
All views in this blog entry are the opinion of the author, and may not necessarily represent the views of Ellusionist or any of it’s employees or subsidiaries.
If this was an Ellusionist bar…
January 17, 2008
When we see something where playing cards are featured we can’t help but ask ourselves ‘how much cooler would this look with Ellusionist cards?’
While this isn’t magic related, it’s pretty cool. There’s a new bar in the Detroit area, the Hardluck Lounge, described as “electric rock-and-Vegas-themed lounge” that has a playing card bar (see the photo).
They’re all casino cards, but scatter some face up Ellusionist Shadow Masters , Bicycle Black Tigers and Vintage 1800 Series playing cards and it would kick-it-up-a-notch.
Our magic minds are thinking of the possibilities with that bar. Get a signed card to appear within the cards in the bar (you know Cyril could make that happen!), have someone think of one of the casinos they see and you tell them which casino they are thinking of and more. If you’re a magician in the Detroit area - look this place up. Who knows, you may get a close-up job out of it.
You can read more about the bar here on Freep.com. The Hardluck Lounge’s website is here.
Ricky Jay Gets Grammy Nomination
January 11, 2008
Expert card magician Ricky Jay has been nominated for a Grammy Award for Ricky Jay Plays Poker [Octone/Legacy Recordings] under the Album Notes category.
The Grammy Awards are scheduled on February 8th, 2008.
If you’re not familiar with this CD/DVD/Booklet/Playing Card package, here’s the official product description:
Ricky Jay combines his talents as a sleight of hand expert, historian of cons and cheats, and lover of poker and poker music in this remarkable CD/DVD deluxe set that celebrates the history, the language and literature, the art and the music of poker. 21 songs of hustlers, reprobates, blacklegs, scallywags and the passions and pleasures of the game. The deluxe gift box also includes a bonus dvd starring Ricky Jay performing some unbelievable deception at the card table, a 72 page color book with an in-depth essay written by Jay and beautiful reproductions from his incredible collection of art and memorabilia and - if all that weren’t enough - a custom poker pack from the U. S. Playing Card Company.
You can purchase this great set here at Amazon.com. The cost is $39.98.
Here’s Your Extreme Card Manipulation
January 7, 2008
How sweet would this stack look using some black Ellusionist Custom Cards?
Imagine Bryan Berg using Black Tiger, or the newest Shadow Masters playing cards.
Professional ‘cardstacker’, Bryan Berg broke all records with his 25ft skyscraper. Bryan creates incredible card sculptures of skyscrapers, stadiums and cathedrals with only playing cards and without using glue or tape to hold the stack together.
His latest creation stands at 25ft 9 inches tall and was made from 1,800 decks of playing cards. It took five weeks to build and was limited only by the height of the building he was working in.
When asked recently if he could build a taller structure, perhaps even 100ft high, he was undaunted. “You bet!” he said.
Berg first started building card houses at the age of eight. He broke the Guinness World Record for the World’s Tallest House of Cards in 1992 at the age of seventeen, with a tower fourteen feet, six inches tall.
Watch Bryan in action:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YvLkjuYunRw[/youtube]
You can see more of this video, including an interview with Bryan by clicking here.