The purist collector still hunts for factory-sealed VHS copies of Michael Ammar's Easy to Master Card Miracles . There is a tactile romance to the clamshell case. However, the pragmatic collector moves to digital.

A collection of magic videos that sits on a shelf is just a library. The ultimate collection is a living archive.

Invite your friends. Turn off the phones. Watch David Copperfield: The Great Escapes from 1992. Watch the way the audience gasps at the flying—before CGI ruined our sense of wonder.

Here is your blueprint for the vault.