The Mysterious Puzzle of the Missing Dollar Bill by Nick Einhorn – A Review

Reviewed by.. Rick Carruth

This is a classic puzzle first brought to life in magic circles by Daryl, who performed the first version in London. Known as A Puzzling Bill Vanish, It inspired Nick to create this version. Nick also discovered Gregory Wilson also performed a couple of similar effects. That said… here’s the Ad Copy from Murphy’s Magic….

“Three guys go out for lunch. They pay. Yet each time they count their change, there is a missing dollar bill. So, they try it again. Another dollar is found missing. Each time they count the total dollars, one always goes missing.

Nick Einhorn (winner of Penn & Teller: Fool Us) breathes life into a classic riddle that you have to see to believe. Count the dollars, one is missing. Count again, there goes another.

It’s a smashingly fun puzzle that you will show at dinner parties and gatherings, where they will scratch their heads in disbelief. Open and honest deception has never been so much fun.”

Works in all currencies
Easy to learn and perform
Instantly repeatable
Carry it and perform it anywhere
Inspired by Daryl’s original routine ‘A Puzzling Bill Vanish’ and released with his blessing.

My Thoughts:

First, there is nothing in this description deceiving in any way. The puzzle is a fooler, the effect is a fooler, and it IS quite easy to learn and perform.

Let’s get this out the way… Like many magic effects.. it requires a gimmick. Most folks know i dislike DIY magic effects. I think magicians should give me what I need to perform the effect I’m purchasing. In this case, I can understand NOT supplying the necessary gimmick. There are way too many types of currency to provide everyone what they need. Fortunately, the gimmick for this effect can be created in a couple of minutes with the two notes you intend to use and a little glue and scissors. It’s so easy to create I’ll give it a pass, particularly considering the many countries and the many different type notes.

The riddle itself is confounding. If you give it a little thought you can figure it out, but probably not in the midst of battle. Even -if- you can solve the puzzle, you still have the gimmicked effect to contend with…

You will have to ‘learn’ a simple count that requires a bit of sleight.. but the visual that accompanies the sleight hides it nicely. Trust me.. it’s simple.

Aside from these necessities, I like The Mysterious Puzzle of the Missing Dollar Bill. It’s simple to perform and entertains the audience… the key word being ‘entertain’. Unlike many card effects that leave the audience perplexed and uncaring, this one leaves the audience with a true smile. They don’t ‘get’ it.. but they don’t care. They’ll think about it on the drive home. They’ll figure out the puzzle.. but not the effect. (Well, at least some will figure out the puzzle.)

For the cost.. you can’t beat it. It’s something you’ll actually add to your repertoire and carry with you for that moment when someone asks you to ‘..do something..’. It’s available as an instant download and total running time is about 21 minutes.

$7.98 – Instant download from Murphy’s Magic and dealers who carry their line of magic products.
https://www.murphysmagic.com/product.aspx?id=63537