The following article not only shows you how to make a box for the disappearing doll trick, it also explains the magician’s act.
Originally published in 1912.
The Disappearing Doll Trick for the Boy Magician
Every boy is greatly interested in conjuring, but today there is such a variety of things to keep him busy that he hasn’t the time ti give up to this subject that he would have had a few years ago when there were fewer pastimes for boys. In the same way that newer pastimes are occupying the attention of boys, later novelties in entertainment are crowing out stage magic. But magical stunts are about the simplest acts to prepare for a boys’ show, and they are always greatly appreciated by an audience, so they should occupy a prominent place upon the program.
It is not my intention at present to go into the subject of conjuring beyond the point of describing how to make and operate the apparatus for a very unique stunt “The Disappearing Doll.” This trick is a modification of one of the so-called “cabinet” tricks, which is extremely simple to carry out and always mystifying to an audience.
In the professional act, the magician places a woman inside of a cabinet that stands upon a table, after having exposed all sides of the cabinet to view of the audience, then he closes the front, binds the cabinet lengthwise with heavy rope, sets it down upon the floor, and places it inside of a sack which he ties. Then after the use of his wand and the utterance of some words of magic, the operations are reversed, the cabinet is removed from the sack, the ropes are cut, the front is open, and behold! the lady occupant has vanished.
You will understand this trick when I explain our disappearing doll stunt, which is carried out in the same way but on a small scale. Fig. 2 shows the completed cabinet. This should be made out of a box about 6 inches deep, 7 inches wide, and 11 inches long. Remove one end of the box, being careful not to split it in doing so, and pivot it between the sides as shown at A (figs. 3 and 4), driving a brad through each side into the center of each end edge. This piece must be carefully placed so it will swing up into its former position in the end of the box, without showing any indication of being pivoted. A nail head should be driven in each side of pivot nail A, as at B (figs. 3 and 4), to give the appearance of a solidly fastened end. It may be necessary to plane off a trifle of the back edge of the end piece to make it turn easily. To provide for locking the end so it will not turn, make a small hole through the back of the box (C, fig. 4) and in the back edge of the end piece (D), and push a small brad into these holes for a locking pin (E). Hinge on the cover of the box with strips of leather, and the constructive part of the work will be finished.
The doll used in the trick must have a small enough head and body to slip through the rear opening in the end of the cabinet. Line the inside of the cabinet with cloth of a bright color, gathering it around the edge and stuffing in a little cotton or cloth underneath to give it a soft padded appearance.
The boy magician needs an assistant for this trick, who must be concealed either underneath a table by means of a drapery fastened around the legs, or in a box of a table made out of a packing case similar to that shown in fig. 1. The cabinet must first be turned around so the audience may inspect all sides, then the doll must be placed within, the cover closed, and the cabinet tied with a heavy cord. Upon the tying of this cord much of the success of the trick depends, for with a cord passed around the box both lengthwise and crosswise, it will appear to the audience impossible for any portion of the box to open. However, you will see by fig. 4 that the pivoted end opens very easily when the cord tied lengthwise of the cabinet comes just to one side of the center of that end.
While passing the twine around the sides and ends, the cabinet should be kept near the center of the table. If a cloth has been spread over the table, the audience can plainly see that there is no possibility of the doll disappearing through a trap door in the table. When the ends of the cord have been brought around to the top, the cabinet can be rested upon the edge of the table without arousing the suspicions of the audience, for they have seen the cord passed around all sides; the is the time for the assistant to act quickly. He must reach out from his position under the table (fig. 1) withdraw the locking pin E (fig. 4), turn the pivoted end of the cabinet, pull out the doll, and then close and lock the pivoted end. In the professional trick, the occupant of the cabinet escapes similarly through a trap door in the stage floor, after the cabinet has been tied up and stood upon the floor. The cabinet should now be placed inside of a small bag, a wand passed around it and a few magic words spoken; then it should be taken from the bag, untied, and the empty interior exposed to the view of the audience. After making the doll disappear, you can bring it back into the cabinet by having the assistant replace it in the same way that he removed it, while the magician is tying the cord around it; and by preparing two cabinets, it is a simple trick to make the doll pass from one cabinet to the other, and back again.
Source: Iron County register. (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.), 31 Oct. 1912.
