Verso
Bicycle Ride
It’s time for another brief intermission from the LCPP to stretch our legs, attend to the ins and outs of biology class, and truth be told simply make the series last just a tiny bit longer. Here’s one more beautiful puzzle box from our friend Eric Stevens, the Las Vegas magician who has invented a set of playing card puzzles. To be clear, these are not merely puzzles that use playing cards in a puzzling way, they are actual puzzle objects made out of playing cards. I’ve previously featured the pretty little Tumbler Box, a clever puzzle box with a surprisingly well hidden secret, and the Champion, a novel sequential discovery puzzle lock with some great tricks to discover. But here is the box that first caught my eye and remains the most beautiful of the set to me, the “Verso”.
Verso by Eric Stevens
Eric had an epiphany of sorts at some point early on during the pandemic, and thought of a clever and creative way to create something for his friends who, like him, were locked down at home. For so many around the world, it took a huge toll on his lifestyle. From Eric: “I am indeed a magician. I have been involved in the magic community for nearly twenty years, performing and inventing tricks. I have written and released seven books on magic as well as designed and published several more for other members of the magic world. Books are my first love, so anything to do with them makes me extremely happy. I am a self-taught graphic designer, an actor, musician, singer, and dancer (though it has been years since I did anything with the latter skill set). Magic, though, is what I have been focusing on most lately besides the puzzles. It has affected myself and my friends in a horrible way, as entertainment has been shut down for months. The average amount of time an individual spends in their artistic career field is twenty years, and COVID-19, ended everything we had all worked for in one month. Living in Las Vegas as I do made it worse, because our entire social existence here depends on large groups of people getting together to be entertained. We are doing what we can, such as shows or lectures over the Zoom platform, but it just feels wrong. I despise it. Magic (and entertainment in general) is meant to be seen live. If I can't perform for real, what's the point?”
Concerning the matter of: Verso
Eric watched online videos about puzzles and applied what he learned to what he already knew about magic tricks to create the set of new puzzles. The Verso, a nicely sized box with a handle in front and little feet on the bottom, is exactly the kind of magic box you might expect from a magician well versed in misdirection. Stevens spares no detail on his playing card creations and uses elements from each type of deck in the designs. These are fragile items, only a few playing cards thick in places, so bend and flex with pressure. Undue force will only break something, and is not needed. The opening mechanism is simple and elegant, but may fool you for some time and functions with perfect smoothness. It is certainly not the most difficult puzzle box in the world, but like many well crafted boxes can be appreciated for its beauty, elegance, and uniqueness. These are all hand made to order by Stevens and are a wonderful conversation piece on any shelf.
La Bicicletta
In keeping with the playing card theme and to celebrate the most widely used cards in the world, I’m toasting the Verso Box with La Bicicletta. My own copy of Verso uses the beautiful gold and silver Aurora line of Bicycle cards. Founded in 1872, the Russel, Morgan & Co. printed its first deck of the famous playing cards, which featured mirror imaged bicycles on the backs, in 1881, before it became known as the United States Playing Card Company in 1894. Over the years many secrets and codes have been incorporated into the images on these playing cards, only furthering their appeal to magicians and puzzle lovers alike.
The classic Italian spritz
La Bicicletta is a classic Italian spritz made with Campari, white wine and soda water. Named (like all good classics, the name provenance is suspect) for the typical Italian elderly male swerving on his bicycle after one too many afternoon drinks, it is a traditional aperitivo composed of two very popular evening appetite stimulants – dry white wine, and the ubiquitous Italian red bitter Campari. A true spritz is simply this combination of a bitter liqueur, wine and some bubbles which soften and lengthen the drink, which is already low in alcohol content, to make it even less potent and last longer. It’s a perfect drink to sip at an afternoon café with a view. Jeff Morgenthaler makes a great version that I once featured with Cynar rather than Campari that he carbonates and bottles ahead of time. Try your own variation depending on what bitter liqueur and wine you have on hand. Cheers!
Tandem Bicycle
La Bicicletta
2 oz Campari
2 oz dry white wine
Club soda
Pour Campari and wine into a tall glass. Add ice and top with soda. Orange slice garnish is traditional.
For more about Eric Stevens: