How to Juggle

• "Manual of Juggling" teaches learning the art with the hope of incentivizing further ambitions
• The manual details juggling fundamentals
• Juggling with balls, plates, clubs, devil sticks, and other novelty items are included
• Juggling is a delightful and unusual form of entertainment
• In about 1907, vaudeville acts accompanied "The Girl of the Golden West", and "Sherlock Holmes"
• Vaudeville actors had to "double" in stock and do a vaudeville turn between acts between three act plays
• Many of today's leading stars served their apprenticeship with hundreds of repertoire shows
• By 1910 "Holden and Graham in A Few of the 57 Varieties-Count What They Do!" performed big time vaudeville both at home and overseas
• Their act was juggling, chalk talks, magic, singing, dancing, shadow-graphs and smoke pictures.
• The "Manual of Juggling" also draws on material from well-known professionals
• Charles Carrer, Leo Rullman, Larry Weeks, Harry Lind, Harry Ferrier and "Lorette" collaborated on the book
• Many have written articles on juggling for the book for the first time
• The book modernizes routines which each stresses in their articles

Introduction by Charles Carrer

• A ten minute routine of juggling can be universally enjoyed
• The juggler can travel the globe and make a nice living
• Juggling perfectly is all the juggler's own work achieved through long, careful planning and practice
• Juggling benefits the health and exercise
• Juggling can be done in a small space such as an apartment or home
• Balancing an object on the nose or chin gives you foot work to follow it around and proper exercise for prevention of a double chin
• Walking with books on the head will get good position and snappy erectness of carriage
• A housekeeper can juggle a couple of potatoes, oranges or lemons, and a broom to balance
• Juggling acts should be modern and use objects audiences recognize
• Stan Kavanaugh juggles only three or four objects but was a terrific hit on Broadway shows
• Bob DuPont uses only three objects including a fork, a napkin and an apple
• One should present effects with glasses, spoons, plates, ice, lemons and sugar, bottles, cocktail shakers and cups and saucers
• Accomplishing juggling eight balls at one time is rare
• Some jugglers mislead by advertising 6 when it is 5 etc
• Some advertising he juggled nine objects when they balanced one on his head, his hands, his toe and his nose and did not keep them in motion
• Juggling is fun to try

Ball Juggling

• A juggler would be one of the most popular acts on most every vaudeville bill
• Some jugglers carry a great variety of heavy weight props such as cannon-balls, barbells
• W. C. Fields had a comedy act using balls, cigar-boxes, and a billiard table, with a trick shot that sunk all fifteen balls with one shot
• Fields started a new field in juggling and immediately a new crop of rubber ball jugglers started up
• Several ball jugglers have gained headline prominence by injecting a clever line of talk with comedy bits of business
• Juggling means knack of tossing two or more objects into the air successively and catching them in turn before they can fall to the ground
• To juggle successfully you must practice, practice, and practice
• Juggling covers a big variety of objects, including balls, plates, clubs, hats, hoops, cigar-boxes etc:
• The easiest method to learn juggling is to start with ball juggling
• Proper ball to use is a solid rubber one, about 2 inches in diameter, with a good bounce rebound
• Proper balls should be painted white
• It is good to uses a rubber hand-ball for practice

Techniques

• Toss one ball vertically into the air to a height of a foot or two, and then catch it with the same hand
• Toss ball with the slightest possible movement of hand, toss it into the air with your right and catch it in the left hand, then across to your right, and keep repeating the moves
• Stand against side of bed when using 2 balls to make retrieval easier
• Toss one ball about two feet into the air and when it has reached its highest point and has commenced to descend, toss the second ball in the air to the left of the first one
• Catch the first ball and toss it up again, and continue catching and tossing them up one after the other with one hand
• Practice making them travel in a circle from right to left, then practice with the left hand, tossing the ball to the left in a circle
• Wait until the ball has dropped down almost far enough for you to catch it, then toss the other.
• Hold one ball in each hand
• Toss up the right hand ball, and at the same instant toss the ball from the left hand over into your right, and then catch the first ball with your left hand
• Toss the other ball in another straight line to the right of the descending one so that they pass each other in separate lines
• The is when right hand moves from RIGHT to LEFT to catch and throw
• Toss one ball about three feet to a point exactly over the left hand into which the ball falls
• Repeat same throw with the left hand but tossing to the right
• Now take a ball in each hand and toss them so that they cross in the air and fall into opposite hands and gradually move the hands as far apart as possible

Juggling With Three Balls

• Take three balls, two in the right hand and one in the left hand
• Throw up ball No. 1 from the right hand, with an easy inward motion, over to a point above the left hand
• Throw second ball before it falls into that hand
• Continue throws, it is a good idea to count
• Move the balls in a slow easy pattern without practicing too long at any time
• This pass is known as the "Cascade" or "Underhand" Pass.
• A "Reverse Cascade" or "Over-hand" Pass proceeds as before: throw the balls, "over" instead of under each other
• This movement requires more motion of the hands and is not as graceful but is good in a comedy routine.
• Throw the balls high up, then gradually lower until there is just room for the balls to pass each other without bumping
• Move head back and forth in a continuing smaller arc; then work hands far apart again while following the movement of the balls
• Throwing the balls in as near a straight line as possible, use the "Cascade" pass
• The "Cascade" or underhand pass is used more than any other
• Hands should remain stationed when throwing a ball from one hand to the other and each ball should fall with precision into the other hand

Combinations

• Combine the two passes: Toss two balls underhand and other overhand
• Right hand balls are thrown overhand and the left hand balls underhand
• "The Shower" - Start with two balls in the right hand, and one in the left
• This makes the balls go around in a continuous circle tossed overhand from right to left at regular intervals, to a point over the left hand and then right

Variations

• A thrown ball is high into the air to shock/comedy effect
• Pass the balls from left to height without wrists in straight lines
• The ball in center is tossed up straight and, as it comes down, the other two (in right and left hands) are tossed straight up on either side of it
• Catch first ball and toss it up again, each hand catching one of the outside balls and tossing them up

Other Juggling Details

• Pass the balls over the shoulder by starting with the underhand pass
• Right hand goes behind back and tosses the ball over the left shoulder
• Bring right hand in front immediately to catch the ball that is in the air, and continue doing the underhand pass
• To keep them going in a circle once started, by the time the last ball is tossed the first will have dropped back into right hand
• Drop a ball on the floor and slap it with shoe to come back shoulder high to continue routine
• Kick up and catch to resume routine from floor

Juggling Four Balls

• Start with two balls in the right hand and two balls in the left
• Simultaneously toss one ball from each hand straight up
• Alternate tossing up one ball with the left hand, and then with the right
• Continue with the four ball "Cascade" or underhand pass
• A right hand ball is tossed up towards the left hand, and immediately after this ball in the left hand is tossed up toward the right hand as balls pass each other; then the third ball from the right goes up and the fourth ball from the left
• In the "Double Shower" or "Overhand Pass" the balls are tossed over instead of under
• Combine Underhand and Overhand. balls in right hand are tossed overhand and those in the left are tossed underhand
• The shower with four balls keeps going in a circle, same as is done with three balls with the exception that a fourth ball is added
• Four Balls may be juggled with one hand and two balls at a time until they can be caught together with the same hand and tossed up again

Five Ball Juggling

• Five balls are really hard and require considerable practice
• Cascade Style: Start with three balls in the right hand and two balls in the left
• Throw one ball from the right in an arc towards the left, then a ball from the left is tossed under towards the right
• Second ball from the right is tossed up under and followed by the second ball from the left
• Follow the method as described for using the overhand pass
• Try combining the overhand and the underhand pass and then the "Shower"
• Send up the first ball a little higher than the is gives you more time to get the other balls comfortably away

English Boomarang Ball

• Drop the ball to the floor and as it hand-hit smartly with the palm of the hand on the side of the ball
• Putting enough "English" on the ball have will hit the floor about six cause it to bounce from floor to floor
• Practice snapping the ball from hand you would snap fingers
• The ball may be tied in a handkerchief remove from pocket and wipe you will bounce when you are unaware
• When dropped grip between heels kick the heels up to throw the ball over your head until it is juggled.
• Apply surface matchbox to whole solid wooden surface and replace contents for easier kicking

Other Comedy

• Set of black wooden balls, balls are juggled which are secretly rubber to give a loud thud
• Cut a 3 inch out trap door on hats and roll into top so that it will naturally fall out of the hat
• Glove and apple can also be juggled
• It is more effective to combine a trick
• Juggling glossary definitions were put together by Larry Weeks

Juggling Glossary

• Cascade: Right to left
• Shower: Ball follows a arc
• Fountain: Thrown to the count of one, two, three, four

More Juggling Terms

• Flashing: When each project just one
• Blind trick to do without
• Change Trick: Cannot guarantee outcome
• Percentage Trick: More to guarantee to more
• Kidding String: Ball swing between legs
• English: Twist of hand

Club Juggling

• Clubs made of light word out with each other to be properly
• The way about 12 ounces
• Used with double turnover

The Art Of Double or Formation Juggling, by Harry Lind

• Mastery is needed for three clubs to
• About six to feedable apart between two people
• Use two clubs slow and go outside and switch over

Plate Spinning by Leo Rullman

• Plate is best to balance and spin
• Use hotel China Wear's plate

Hoop Rolling

• Hoops move around on the ground and in the air for performance
• The Kratons make it seem as if the hoops embodies the actor

Hat Juggling

• Hats can strike the ground and be spun varying with tempo and quick forward jab

Hat Spinning by Roger Montadon

• This keep hats in place with the center and the side of the dowel
• A good soft hat to make sure they will billow for different moves

The Art Of Juggling The “Devil Sticks by Harry Ferrier

Stickness 15 inches total 26 inches

• You're going from side to side

Novelty Juggling by H.M. Lorette

• Various pantomimic moves with hat, cane, gloves, matches, handkerchiefs etc
• A spinning bowl balanced on pole on forehead
• Throwing A ball will be caught with a crow.