David Blaine Ascension. A YouTube Original - Live.
Monday 31st August. From the promoters: David Blaine will redefine magic once again for an unprecedented live event at a time when the world could use a positive distraction. He will bring wonder, hope and untethered possibility as he tackles his most ambitious and revolutionary feat yet. Magician David Blaine attempts his first live stunt in nearly a decade live on YouTube. David Blaine's multi-hour livestream event, weather permitting, will be on Monday, August 31st on David Blaine's YouTube Channel CLICK HERE. Coming to you high above the New York City.
"Astrology teaches us one thing and one thing only.... There's one born every minute!" Patrick Moore.
Post by Mr. Jon Donnis on Aug 17, 2020 13:20:21 GMT
I would assume he is going to levitate into the air and disappear. And then stay out of the public eye for years and leave an air of mystery over what happened to him.
A bad ass who will beat you like he's using the fists of god.
Following the sad passing of the Amazing Randi I thought I'd republish this interview that I conducted in 2009......
Background.
The Blackpool Magic Convention is world’s biggest annual convention of its type; regularly attracting over 3500 magicians from around the globe. For three days attendees are treated to performances and lectures from some of the worlds leading conjurors including Jeff McBride, Rudy Coby, Wayne Dobson and James Randi.
I was lucky enough to catch up with James Randi in the main concourse of the Winter Gardens and he kindly answered a couple of questions. Later in the convention he held a lecture where more questions were put to him. What follows are some of the more interesting questions; please note I’m not a journalist and I can’t take shorthand so some of my notes were rushed and subsequently the wording may not be exact but the basis of the answer remains unchanged.
Question = Q James Randi = JR
Q. Have you heard of the Badpsychics website?
JR. Yes.
Q. Do you think that it’s a worthwhile venture or do you think they’re fighting a battle they can’t win?
JR. Unfortunately, I can’t answer that. For me to give a specific answer I’d have to do some research into the website; in order to see how successful it had been in the past at achieving its goals. Having said that, anything that helps to educate people can’t be a bad thing.
Q. Last year Uri Geller was presented with a ‘Services to Magic’ award what do you make of that? (This was a question that I heard several times over the weekend)
JR. Geller would accept an award for being the ‘best dog in show’ if it meant publicity. What you must remember is that it was presented to him by David Berglas (former President of the Magic Circle) who’s a friend of his. What I can’t understand is why David has started to take his side; after all David Berglas was the first person in the UK to expose Geller for what he is… a fake. I’ve not seen David for sometime but I certainly intend to put him on the spot when I do.
It’s also interesting to note that Geller is starting to change his stance. He no longer wants to be called a Psychic instead he prefers the term Mystifier. Personally, I think he’s created a monster that he can longer control. Over the years various governments, companies, etc have spent millions of dollars researching his claims. Just imagine what these organisations would do to Geller if he was to ever admit that he doesn’t have any special powers; that he’d lied to them. I can see the lawyers queuing up now. A similar thing happened to the Fox sisters (spirit rapping) and Elsie Wright & Frances Griffiths (Cottingley Fairies) once the monster was out of it’s cage they couldn’t stop it.
Q. Do you believe in God?
JR. In my view atheists fall in to two categories; those who do not believe full stop and those who are willing to believe should they be presented with sufficient evidence. I would say that I fall into the second category. As it is I don’t see any evidence for an afterlife.
Q. Do you think that there are any special powers be they magic, psychic or esp, that might be proven over the next 15 years and are there any mysteries you can't explain??
JR. Yes, there’s one… Sophia Loren! How the hell she can look so good at her age is a mystery to me (laughs). To answer the first part of your question… no. I don’t believe that anything like that will ever be proven.
Q. What do you make of faith healers?
JR. These are some of the worst kind of Woo merchants. Over the years I’ve had lots of visits from people asking for help after one of their relatives got involved with one of these individuals. The stories are very sad “Mother has given all her money to a faith healer, she’s penniless” etc. I’ll offer advice where I can but often they don’t have a legal leg to stand on. Not only that but many people won’t go to court because it would mean admitting they’ve be duped.
One of the worst healers I came across was Peter Popoff who was making approximately $4 million dollars a year ‘curing’ people. I took Steven Shaw (better known as the mentalist Banachek) and a camera team from the BBC to investigate one of his meetings; what we found was absolutely disgraceful. Steven managed to get close to Popoff and quickly reported back that he (Popoff) was using an ear piece. We quickly set up a scanner and started to monitor the venue, within seconds we started to pick up transmissions that were being sent to Popoff by his wife. She was giving him the details of various people in the audience; what their name was, where they were sitting, what was wrong with them, etc all of which Popoff would repeat out loud to the amazed audience. Some of what was broadcast was sickening racist comments that I won’t repeat here. Another thing which emerged was the use of wheelchairs as a gimmick. People would be wheeled onto the stage and subsequently cured; rising from the wheelchair and walking away. Only problem with this was that these people didn’t need a wheelchair; they were just put in one in order to get them onto the stage. Then Popoff worked his magic on them and to the audience it looked like he’d cured them. The final thing we found was possibly the worst of all. In order to gain access to the venue you had to be vetted by Popoff’s security team who were under strict instructions not to allow any seriously ill people in to the building. We filmed a mother with her 8 year old son who was seriously ill being refused entry; she was absolutely desperate and had been following Popoff around in the hope of meeting him but was always denied access. Finally, out of shear desperation she pushed past the security guards and managed to confront Popoff. She pleaded with him to help her child. Placing his hand on the child he said “God cure this child, I know you’re busy so if you can’t do it right now can you do it some time in the future. Whether it’s in half an hour, a week or years from now cure this child’. What a cop out! The woman was then hustled away and thrown outside. We had the whole episode captured on film and were prepared to expose Popoff but then his lawyers contacted the BBC and threatened to sue them if they showed the footage. This would hold up the film for years and would be extremely costly; the BBC backed off and the film was never shown. Fortunately, I was able to arrange for some footage to be shown on the Tonight Show and this time we were able to include the prompting from his wife. In 1987 Peter Popoff filed for bankruptcy.
Q. Have you ever been threatened?
JR. Yes, lots of times usually by telephone or email. I just pass the information on to the FBI. Sometimes I’ll get a call back saying the ‘problem’ has been dealt with.
Q. Can you tell us about the TV series you had in the UK in the 80’s?
JR. The programme was called James Randi - Psychic Investigator which I believe was wrong. I am not a psychic investigator I am an investigator of psychics; but it was their programme so I had to go along with it.
I’m amazed we had so many people apply for the programme considering what it was we were setting out to achieve, i.e., to expose fraudulent mediums etc. Some of the candidates did get quite volatile when things didn’t go their way.
I remember we had a Psychic Medium called Maureen Flynn appear on the show. She did a sitting for one of her clients; it was typical cold reading. Afterwards we interviewed the client to see how accurate she had been and he said how good she was. One of the questions we asked him was ‘how many names did she bring up’. The gentleman was adamant that she had only brought up about 6 names and that most were a hit. We then showed him a transcript of the sitting and pointed out that 37 names had in fact been mentioned. He still wouldn’t listen; which just goes to show how difficult it is to change the views of a believer.
Q. How do I enter the Million Dollar Challenge?
JR. It’s quite simple. You fill out the form on the JREF website and send it in. Basically, you have to tell us what you can do and with what accuracy. If you are accepted to take the challenge you must first take a preliminary test and if you score high enough on that you are then invited to take the main challenge for the million dollars. To date no one has gotten past the first test.
Also, I should like to mention that there have been many claims by psychic, mediums, etc that the million dollars doesn’t exist. Well, I can assure you that it does and anyone can apply for proof just by asking. The fact of the matter is that none of the psychics, etc who are making this claim have ever asked to see the proof.
Apologies for the lack of updates recently and I'm especially sorry that this one brings sad news.
Siegfried Fischbacher of the magic duo Siegfried & Roy has passed away aged 81. His magic partner Roy Horn died in May of last year - a double blow to the magic community - Full Story
David Copperfield - headline interview for The Magic Circle Unlocked celebrating the centenary of the first public performance of the art’s most iconic illusion - Sawing a Woman in Half. On Sunday January 17th The Magic Circle will host the free online event on the anniversary of the day in 1921 that PT Selbit stunned the entertainment world with an illusion that has fascinated audiences ever since. The event will be open to all.
Debbie McGee, Paul Daniels’ partner on stage and in life, will speak of her experience as the woman who found herself dismembered on numerous occasions. As Noel Britten, the president of The Magic Circle, said this week: “Debbie has been sliced, diced, cremated, crushed, divided and decapitated more than most, so has a great story to tell.” The evening will chart the invention, history and development of this effect with magicians, magical historians and social commentators giving their take on the twists, turns and variations that have been seen over the years.
It has been the cause of numerous feuds, deceptions and downfalls over the years. Would PT Selbit, sawing through a seemingly simple wooden box have envisaged Copperfield sawing himself in half in full view on a Las Vegas stage with a massive circular saw? Magician Simon Drake and historian Mike Caveney among others will give their perspective. The event will be streamed on The Magic Circle Unlocked Facebook page (open to all) at 6pm GMT on Sunday, 17th January - CLICK HERE
The History Zone: The Houdini Myth, from 6th March 2000. Harry Houdini. Born Erik Weisz, later known as Ehrich Weiss or Harry Weiss. March 24th 1874 – October 31st 1926. With Al Hirschfeld, Ken Silverman, David De-Val, Ruth Brandon, E L Doctorow, Don Wilmeth, David Copperfield, James Randi and Dorothy Young.
"Astrology teaches us one thing and one thing only.... There's one born every minute!" Patrick Moore.
Free online event for all, this Friday! March 19th sees the 100th anniversary of the birth of Tommy Cooper. An icon in the world of both magic and comedy, his influence is still felt today and his appearance and catchphrases very much a part of popular culture. The Magic Circle, of which Tommy was a Gold Star Member of The Inner Magic Circle, is celebrating this anniversary with a special online event with contributions from Anita Harris, David Berglas, Tim Vine, Raymond Crowe, Charlie Frye along with many more including writers, prop suppliers, actors and producers.
With a view to warmly remembering and acknowledging his immense contribution to the world of magic, this 2 hour event will be shown on The Magic Circle Unlocked Facebook page CLICK HERE (open to all, membership not required). This Tommy Cooper celebration will remain online for just one week; but watching live will give you the opportunity to win a unique "Tommy Cooper" prize! Friday, 19th March at 7pm GMT worldwide.
"Astrology teaches us one thing and one thing only.... There's one born every minute!" Patrick Moore.
I remember when this was originally screened - the Houdini Society claimed it couldn't be done that fast (15 seconds from the time Paul lifted the curtain for the last time to Martin appearing on the top). They were finally given a private showing to prove it could.
The Century of Deception: The Birth of the Hoax in Eighteenth-Century England by Ian Keable.
In 1749, a newspaper advertisement appeared declaring that a man would climb inside a bottle on the stage of a London theatre. Although the crowds turned up in their hundreds to witness the trick, the performer didn’t. Over the following decades, elaborate jokes and fanciful tales would continue to bamboozle people across England.
In The Century of Deception, magician and historian Ian Keable tells the engrossing stories of these eighteenth-century hoaxes and those who were duped by them. The English public were hoodwinked time and time again, swallowing whole tales of rapping ghosts, a woman who gave birth to rabbits, a levitating Frenchman in a Chinese Temple and outrageous astrological predictions. Not only were the hoaxes widely influential, drawing in celebrities such as Samuel Johnson, Benjamin Franklin and Jonathan Swift, they also inflamed concerns about ‛English credulity’. ‘Fake news’, ‛going viral’ and ‛social media’ may be modern terms, but as this entertaining, eye-opening book shows, these concepts have been with us for centuries.
Author Ian Keable obtained a first-class degree from the University of Oxford in Philosophy, Politics and Economics, qualified as a chartered accountant and then became a professional magician. A member of The Magic Circle with gold star, he has won several awards for his unique brand of comedy magic and has made numerous appearances on television and presented programmes for BBC Radio. Keable is the author of three books for the general public as well as three works for professionals including Stand-Up: A Professional Guide to Comedy Magic and Charles Dickens Magician: Conjuring in Life, Letters and Literature. This new title, The Century of Deception, will be published on September 7th, 2021 and is now available for pre-order from Amazon
"Astrology teaches us one thing and one thing only.... There's one born every minute!" Patrick Moore.
I remember when this was originally screened - the Houdini Society claimed it couldn't be done that fast (15 seconds from the time Paul lifted the curtain for the last time to Martin appearing on the top). They were finally given a private showing to prove it could.
I was gutted when i saw the Secrets of the Magicians show and they showed how easy this was to do.
A bad ass who will beat you like he's using the fists of god.