Pickpocketing


Anyone know anything about REAL pick pocketing? Can I learn?

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[deleted]

Hi Mika! I happen to know quite a bit about it because my adopted son who is now 19(I am 34) actually was a pickpocket in the streets of Worcester MA before he got arrested for picking an Undercover cop--(doh!)--lol---he's gone straight now though. However, since I have always been fascinated in magic, I had him teach me how mhe does it, even though I would never do it to anyone in real life. If you have any questions you can e-mail me at [email protected]. Hope to hear from ya

Ed

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It depends on a lot. The scene in "Harry in your Pocket" of the coat will the bells is really how you learn, it is known as the "Bell School". Any good book on Magic (The Tarbell series, "The Armature Magician's Handbook"...etc) will have all sorts of good advice.

However, I don't recommend it as something you should try. Having someone discover your hand in their pocket might result in broken bones...Yours.

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Seems like a dubious way to make a living and a more dubious way to seek thrills, but, a useful if outdated book--more about the culture of pickpockets than a how-to--is "Whiz Mob: A Correlation of the Technical Argot of Pickpockets with Their Behavior Pattern" by David W. Maurer. Written in the 1950s, it still gives a lot of insight into the history and social psychology of pickpockets. The author interviewed a lot of pickpockets, at first interested in just compiling a dictionary of technical terms. (A lot of those terms are used in this movie as well as in "Pickup on South Street.") But Maurer realized he couldn't get away with not describing the society of pickpockets, which is a good thing, because if you can stand some of the technical jargon of the social scientist, he relates some really interesting stories that pickpockets told him. Something to think about: Maurer notes that pickpockets are pretty near the bottom of the criminal hierarchy. One could set one's sights higher in life.

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Sure you can learn about pickpocketing. Just run for public office. Your fellow politicians will show you the ropes.

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