Kenton Knepper's "Completely Cold" -- does it work?

[Senex]

A large gathering of pagens is going to happen near me between May 16-18. It is inexpensive to gain entrance and I have performed somewhat successfully last year at this venue during a Beltaine festival. For some reason I have a strong desire to understand how woo performers work. I possess an essay by Kenton Knepper called "Completely Cold." This essay gives you an insight into doing a cold reading but it removes all of my insights into probability. His method is unbelievably simple. I wonder if anyone reading this has experience with such a simple cold reading technique.

I have the knowledge but not much experience (except metal bending) at performing many mentalist illusions. I believe I can get past my living as a hermit recently and put on a disguise and pretend to be psychic for a day before i expose myself as a fraud as a jump in my car and drive away.

Luke Jeremy's psychic reading advice makes me wonder if he isn't publishing woo. Some of his illusions require suggestion on a subliminal level that I don't believe may be possible. If i do this I will go all the way and face humiliating defeat. I will say patter with stress on certain words, but i will not be able to practice on a real audience before my performance.

Any advice?

 

[CFLarsen]

mmmmmmmm..................does he know what "knepper" means in Danish? (NSFW)

 

[Senex]

mmmmmmmm..................does he know what "knepper" means in Danish? (NSFW)

No, I don't know what knepper means in Danish, but I do know you wish to mock me. I guess you have enough friends.

 

[JonWhite]

I'm also not convinced by a lot of NLP type stuff in itself, such as promoted by Knepper and Jermay. Works great as the presentational spin but I wouldn't want to rely on it and I'd still want a trusty trick at the heart of the effect.

If I recall isn't "Completely Cold" based on giving readings using the reduced but still general mediumistic areas of Health, Wealth and Relationships, with yesses = yes,and and turning no's = but? As it's not so very different to what works for the psychic slimeballs out there anyway I don't see why it wouldn't work for a Senex of your skills.

It might help to use a prop based system to give the readings from (so if you get it wrong it's down to the prop giving the inexplicable message that will only become clear sometime in the future and not you). Perhaps using a Tarot deck - there's a couple of excellent m****d decks out there that could also really help sell it!

There are some other good system based resources for readings that may help such as by Richard Webster or Craig Browning.

 

[Senex]

I'm also not convinced by a lot of NLP type stuff in itself, such as promoted by Knepper and Jermay. Works great as the presentational spin but I wouldn't want to rely on it and I'd still want a trusty trick at the heart of the effect.

I agree, but I have manuscripts describing affects that would be perfect if I could pull them off. It's three days of woo -- you start off with meditation or yoga at 9:00AM and then you can take a class on shamanism or henna drums (?) and move onto scented beadmaking or herbal healing or dragon centered meditation then some acupressure, Reiki, Ru Valdr, Dynamind, Quanatum Touch, Silva Mind Control, Therapeutic Touch, Polarity, EFT. Chakras, auras and meridian theories. I'm not making this stuff up. One guy will teach me how to use a divining stick and I will win the million before Randi pulls it away!

I'm not going to be a listed performer but I know how this day will go, and if I want to give some people "a reading" for free I will have no problem finding spectators. Unlike in the real world when you give a performance you may have a skeptic or two in the audience -- at this place every time I work my finger over a bent key and say it's bending more I will have two or three people gasping and backing up. You can't buy a more naive audience.

If I recall isn't "Completely Cold" based on giving readings using the reduced but still general mediumistic areas of Health, Wealth and Relationships, with yesses = yes,and and turning no's = but? As it's not so very different to what works for the psychic slimeballs out there anyway I don't see why it wouldn't work for a Senex of your skills.

Your recollection is perfect. I never had the nerve to do a reading, but according to the instructions "Completely Cold" was written for a person to be able to perform after only reading the material three times through. I did that -- I believe in the material but I'm uncertain if I believe in my ability to perform such a crude affect with a straight face.

It might help to use a prop based system to give the readings from (so if you get it wrong it's down to the prop giving the inexplicable message that will only become clear sometime in the future and not you). Perhaps using a Tarot deck - there's a couple of excellent m****d decks out there that could also really help sell it!

I'm going minimalist. A thumb tip, pen and paper for a center tear, a clip board. I will bend some metal and then strictly through (gulp) NLP, I will try to get a young woman to state that the lines on her palm are moving (god help me).

There are some other good system based resources for readings that may help such as by Richard Webster or Craig Browning.

Thanks, but I only have time to believe in this one easy to learn system.

 

[CFLarsen]

No, I don't know what knepper means in Danish, but I do know you wish to mock me. I guess you have enough friends.

I was talking about Knepper, not you.

 

[NoZed Avenger]

Luke Jeremy's psychic reading advice makes me wonder if he isn't publishing woo. Some of his illusions require suggestion on a subliminal level that I don't believe may be possible. If i do this I will go all the way and face humiliating defeat. I will say patter with stress on certain words, but i will not be able to practice on a real audience before my performance.

Any advice?

The Completely Cold booklet is useful -- but was over-hyped and over-priced. You can get by without anything else if you are fairly glib, but I would definitely try out your techniques on a few friends before uncorking it for real. Like any other effect, you don't want to be trying out for the first time in front of a real audience (IMO).

Cold reading (from my attempts at it a few years back) is deceptively simple, but you have to have a certain confidence level and you can show no doubt or uncertainty (except in those areas where you do it consciously for effect).

Treat it like your other effects, except this one is all presentation and no props.

 

[JonWhite]

I agree, but I have manuscripts describing affects that would be perfect if I could pull them off. It's three days of woo -- you start off with meditation or yoga at 9:00AM and then you can take a class on shamanism or henna drums (?) and move onto scented beadmaking or herbal healing or dragon centered meditation then some acupressure, Reiki, Ru Valdr, Dynamind, Quanatum Touch, Silva Mind Control, Therapeutic Touch, Polarity, EFT. Chakras, auras and meridian theories. I'm not making this stuff up. One guy will teach me how to use a divining stick and I will win the million before Randi pulls it away!

I'm not going to be a listed performer but I know how this day will go, and if I want to give some people "a reading" for free I will have no problem finding spectators. Unlike in the real world when you give a performance you may have a skeptic or two in the audience -- at this place every time I work my finger over a bent key and say it's bending more I will have two or three people gasping and backing up. You can't buy a more naive audience.

Sounds like a hoot. Go easy or we'll soon be adding Guru Senex to the psychic slimeball assembly!

Your recollection is perfect. I never had the nerve to do a reading, but according to the instructions "Completely Cold" was written for a person to be able to perform after only reading the material three times through. I did that -- I believe in the material but I'm uncertain if I believe in my ability to perform such a crude affect with a straight face.

Yeah, there's the rub - gotta be suitably convincing. Having hysterics as they gobble it all up might just upset the applecart.

You're braver than I. I've only played at readings based on using a simple three card Tarot deck spread. (one card each for Past, Present & Future). Kinda helps as well knowing what each card is in advance without even having it turned over.

I'm completely confident in your ability to pull it off un-propped though. Positive thinking, self-belief and a healthy dollop of bluff and bullcrap. No problem.

I'm going minimalist.

...but clothed this time I hope.

A thumb tip, pen and paper for a center tear, a clip board. I will bend some metal and then strictly through (gulp) NLP, I will try to get a young woman to state that the lines on her palm are moving (god help me).

Ah, that. It's in a Jermay book isn't it? Maybe package it after a brief permissive hypnotic induction to help it along?

Thanks, but I only have time to believe in this one easy to learn system.

No worries. You'll be great. The Emperor card dealt denoting your future courage, authority and success in this matter tells me so.

 

[Vater_Araignee]

A large gathering of pagens...

I have the knowledge but not much experience (except metal bending) at performing many mentalist illusions. I believe I can get past my living as a hermit recently and put on a disguise and pretend to be psychic for a day before i expose myself as a fraud as a jump in my car and drive away.

Any advice?

I am compelled NO FORCED to say that "Pagan does not equal idiot." You will find many skeptics amongst them. If I where there I would be one of them.
Sure there are many Pagans that believe in psychics, tarot and ouija but there are many more Christians that do. To most pagans "magic ritual" is just a form of prayer and the supposed supernatural is a load of "expletive implied".

Granted I took the title Warlock as part of my stage name because of the few fools that called me a betrayer but many more love that fact that I wont let a person with knowledge in our art make him/her self a cult leader.

Seriously, I don't go to churches and multiplied loves and fish, walk on water or turn water into wine.
I guess what I'm boiling down to is, don't try to make a mockery of of somebodies religion just because you have misconceptions.

Don't as you say "i expose myself as a fraud as a jump in my car and drive away" just simply hang around and expose all psychics as frauds, that way you're not mocking people. You're creating knowledge rather than hatred.

 

[Senex]

Don't as you say "i expose myself as a fraud as a jump in my car and drive away" just simply hang around and expose all psychics as frauds, that way you're not mocking people. You're creating knowledge rather than hatred.

In my defense this really is ground zero for woo. You are going to need to take a bakery ticket and wait in a long queue to spend $30 for a fifteen minute psychic reading from any of the half-dozen psychics or 'intuitives' that are going to be on hand in private booths. Some of the classes I didn't mention are walks in the wood so you can find certain weeds to spruce up your altar (yes, many classes are aimed at helping you perfect personal alters undoubtedly stashed under many beds) or herbs for your potions you need to cast spells (fear not, no evil spells will be taught -- in fact the locals have a motto that whatever bad spell you send at someone will come back to you three times as strongly -- a mantra I will hear often, but not as often as I will hear the word "blessings." Pagans love the word blessings. The most expensive candles in the world will be sold at booths. They are worth it because these are magic candles made from the most exotic ingredients on earth. Lots of exotic soaps will be sold (that I can't figure out). Crystals and charms will also be available for purchase.

I'm not going there to take anyones money or mock them. I'm going there for the experience of entertaining an enthusiastic audience. I honestly like the people who are very friendly. Last year I passed out some paper and pencils to the crowd and asked the audience to write down an image. Next thing I had a pretty young woman in a pesant skirt up front. She picked a piece of paper and drew what was on it and I had my back to her and did the same. Wouldn't you know we both drew black cats with a witch's hat on just like in the Banachek video! Except I got a bigger hand than Banachek did because the black cat with witch's hat was just perfect for the crowd.

There is going to be a professional magician there on Sunday night who works with fire a great deal. I checked his website out and he does occult style shows so I know that guy is going to be pushing the woo way more than I will. You can hire this guy to do sceances for small parties.

I'm not going to expose psychics as frauds, certainly not in public. That would be very unwelcome because many people there are earning lots of money doing readings. Expose them and my picture will be at the registration gate for future festivals as a person non grata. Anyway don't worry, unlike I am here, in real life I am painfully polite and respectful.


NoZed Avenger:

The Completely Cold booklet is useful -- but was over-hyped and over-priced. You can get by without anything else if you are fairly glib, but I would definitely try out your techniques on a few friends before uncorking it for real. Like any other effect, you don't want to be trying out for the first time in front of a real audience (IMO).

That's easier said than done. I'm pretty outspoken about psychics with people I know and they wouldn't take me seriously enough to practice on, and finding willing strangers wouldn't be easy unless I was willing to embarrass myself at bars using a line similar to "what's your sign? Want a reading?"

I'll only try out doing readings one on one with no more than one or two witnesses.

No=But Yes=Yes and "awareness word." Sounds pretty easy.

JonWhite:

No worries. You'll be great. The Emperor card dealt denoting your future courage, authority and success in this matter tells me so.

Thanks for the kind words

 

[Michael C]

Check out "My Psychic Adventure" by Kari Coleman. She very successfully posed as a psychic a few years ago and wrote up the experience for Randi's "Swift".

 

[Senex]

Check out "My Psychic Adventure" by Kari Coleman. She very successfully posed as a psychic a few years ago and wrote up the experience for Randi's "Swift".

I enjoyed reading that and took it as a cautionary tale. Fortunately "Completely Cold" is narrow in scope and doesn't involve talking to dead people or locating missing people.

I remember the Seinfeld episode Kari Coleman was in. She was one of George's ex-girlfriends who became a lesbian and then became George's most recent girlfriend's (Susan) lover. George was losing confidence big time. One of the classic episodes.