U.F. Grant pictured above in the middle.

Ulysses Frederick Simpson Grant
January 12 1901
Millerton, New York
Died
March 01, 1978 (age 77)

'Gen', or 'The Little General' as he is sometimes referred to, was a descendant of General U. S. Grant and is named for the General as well as the General's son.[1] Grant started in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, where he created his first tricks. Later he moved to New York City joining the Abbott Magic & Novelty Co., eventually settled in Columbus, Ohio creating his own firm, "U.F. Grant Magic".

U.F. Grant is definitely one of my favorite creators of all time. He has created and published hundreds of magic tricks. And he is responsible for creating some of my favorites.

Most modern day "book tests" performed by mentalists are based on the principle that Grant created when he published his "tru test" nearly 80 years ago.

Are you familiar with the famous card deck the "cheek to cheek " deck? This brilliant gaffed deck allows you to do one of the most magical looking triumph effects possible!!! This is a UF Grant creation!

Grant was known for coming up with magic tricks in every category. Card magic, coin magic, stage magic, pickpocketing, mind reading and the list goes on.

He also was known for his brevity and simple descriptions. Sometimes magicians would make fun of the fact that his descriptions and explanations were so short and to the point. I honestly love this....I love the simplicity in his writing. And I think it's a skill to take something difficult and explain it in a few simple words.

Luckily for you there are still dozens and dozens of Grant books and booklets available both physical copies and PDFs available online

I would like to bring your attention to a little booklet called "50 crazy card stunts". It's a booklet that I purchased for a dollar. And is full of great ideas. Some that are so old that no one has ever seen them before.

Imagine finding a selected playing card by having a lightbulb examined and then put in its socket.... when it turns on the name of the card glows in the lightbulb!

In another effect a card is selected and then the deck shuffled by the spectator. You then slowly deal thru the deck and try and find their card by "looking for their fingerprints". You do finally find their card successfully and when you touch the card to a candle flame a big black thumb print appears!!!

There are also dozens of great ways to reveal I selected card... like putting a duplicate on someone's front porch. Force the card that matches the duplicate, then tell them that you think you hear someone at the front door :-)

One of my favorite gags that Grant explains is by a magician named Eddie Hatch.

Eddie has the deck shuffled and placed in his pocket then he has anyone name any card. He then reaches in his pocket and pulled out a random card. If it hits, it's a miracle, if not, Eddie just says "one day it's going to work and it will be a miracle!".
Which will get a big laugh. I love this because it's worth trying and you never know when you are going to get a hit. And if it doesn't. It's really funny and it's a great laugh in my show. :-)

That is one thing that is always evident in any Grant trick or script. He is always worried about entertaining first. And that's all. He is not worried about how the effect is done or difficult methods. Just being entertaining to the audience.

This is a good thing to focus on :-)

Here is a clip of one of my favorite Grant creations followed by a list of some of my favorite Grant Tricks.

* Cow Trick (1943)
 you can watch it here: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=eMoaQdseZZ0

* Temple Screen (1944)
* Chen Lee Water Suspension (1945)
* Cheek to Cheek (1948)
* Bengal Net Illusion (1954)
* 100 Tips & Gags (1936)
* 100 More Tips and Gags (1937)
* 50 Kute Koin Tricks (1940)
* 50 Crazy Card Stunts (1940)

National thanks to "magicPedia" for some info.