Marshall Brodien and the Miracle of Television

"Magic is easy once you know the secret!” conjuring pitchman Marshall Brodien touted in television spots for “TV Magic Cards,” hawked as “the mechanical deck that

works all by itself.” These compelling ad, produced on a shoestring budget, aired almost continually during the 1970s, filling the spaces between segments of reruns of sitcoms and animated series.  In it, Brodien performs the then century-old ambitious card routine using a Svengali deck, which had been hawked for decades.  Yet, under the mantra of "TV Magic Cards," Brodien fused these worn chestnuts with the excitement of television, which had just become a fixture in US households.   Here is a recreation of that revered spot by magic historian Charles Greene:

Brodien's campaign proved unthinkably successful.  In a wonderful biography, The Magical Life of Marshall Brodien, writer John Moehring reports that this media

blitz helped sell tens of millions of rebranded Svengali decks and built a marketing empire.  In economic terms, then, the results were staggering.  

Meanwhile, Brodien produced an incalculable cultural impact.  Through his 30-second performances, Brodien helped instill a fascination with magic in millions of young viewers, including this writer.   Charles Greene's remake of Brodien's commercial (the original can be found on YouTube)  demonstrates the point: in the notes to the presentation, Charles explains that the video "is a 'Thank you' to Marshall Brodien for inspiring him and a whole generation of magicians."  Watch Charles's video to the end, and you'll see that he not only acknowledges Brodien, but scores of other conjurers whose work  influenced his magical journey. 

Ironically, even though Brodien purveyed in excess of a billion playing cards, finding a card featuring the performer was a bit challenging.  The ad card above was distributed as part of the glossy black plastic "TV Magic Card Box and Deck,"which included a deck of standard printed gaffs, like the infamous "Tree of Hearts" gag. These cards bore the back seen here, which is found on many decks of "TV Magic Cards." 

In another 1975 pitch, Marshall Brodien hawked his TV Magic Set, firing 61 words in 17 seconds:

"Yes, now you can put on your own TV Magic show, and have hours of fun entertaining your friends. The TV Magic set comes with all the instructions and equipment for 15 tricks, plus a complete deck of cards and instructions for 25 card tricks and a book of 102 other magic tricks you can learn to do . . ."

The proposition: for only $4.99, you’d learn the 142 secrets comprising the TV Magic Act: vanish a plastic glass of water and a handkerchief, make tiny billiard balls and foam rubber bunnies multiply and handle those self-working cards just like Brodien did. After all, he was a professional magician!  

As the back of the card shows, Brodien sold these secrets -- tricks using cards, water, balls, or bunnies -- urging his customers to never reveal them.  Yet his real secret was stoking a passion in magic in millions of young fans in thirty seconds.