May Magic Auction

Johnny Thompson’s Engraved Cups and Balls. Set of three finely engraved silver-plated copper “Miller” cups owned and used by Johnny Thompson – aka The Great Tomsoni – for his well-loved and well-known version of the classic sleight-of-hand routine. Each cup hand-decorated with Egyptian hieroglyphics and fine ornamentation. Height of each cup 3”; mouth diameter 3 ¼”. Sold together with the carrying case, four red cloth-covered balls, and four imitation lemons used as final loads revealed at the climax of the effect. A singular set of props used by one of the era’s great practitioners of the craft. This set is illustrated in The Magic of Johnny Thompson (2018). Thompson’s routine for the cups and balls paid tribute to his forebears: Max Malini, Pop Krieger, Dai Vernon, Charlie Miller, and Jacob Daley. Incorporating their personalities and presentations into a multi-phase routine – complete with imitations of some of the magicians – combined with superb sleight-of-hand made for an engaging and bewildering performance. Thompson owned and used two sets of engraved cups (themselves a tribute to Vernon, whose engraved silver cups are legendary among magicians); the set offered here perhaps the most historically fascinating due to the fact that their shape and design was based on cups endorsed by his close friend, Charlie Miller.