I don't think people are THAT shallow. You talk about Laymen the way the other Pro Magicians talk about Café Members.
Don't fall into that game. Mankind is much smarter than you think.

Magnus, just because the audience smiles and let you get away with some slight doesn't mean they didn't catch it or know how it was done. Most people are polite.

As for randi, his challenge is out there for the publibity taking, so why not?

Silkls from closed fists? Ok well how about palming and cups and balls or the shell game?

By half the logic on here, my sharing of my methods with the magic community would be exposure. I prefer to consider it teachning...

[To the Knight Rider theme music]

[Scene Charleston - the paranormalvan comes speading towards the camera]

The Paranormalist...

A shadowy flight into the dangerous world of a man who does not exist (or has multiple existences). James Callahan, a young loner on a crusade, to champion the cause of the innocent, the helpless, the powerless. In a world of skeptics who operate above the law...

Anyone notice Jim looks a bit like a young David Hasselhoff?

Click here to view attached image.

See?

Click here to view attached image.

Bill Goldman - My Week With a Stripper

You will never say Stripper decks are lame again. Besides, it's all in the presentation, no one gave a rat's a** about the Invisible Deck (saying similar things, like it's kid's magic) until Blaine showed you could effectively blow people away with it.

WOW! Doc, you had milk flying outta my nose on that one.

They are lame. That is just my opinion. I never said they don't work.

And perhaps next week the Vernon revelations video set will be available for 29.99 on special?

How are stripper decks lame? Are marked cards lame? How about Svengali decks? It's just a mechanic, not a routine. It's what you do with it that counts.

I thought the topic also revolved around Jim's upcoming TV show.... here is another pilot for a potential series...

PARANORMAL NIGHTS

[Bizarre mix of Baywatch, X-Files, Miami Vice, and In Search of]

Jim sings the title song as a montage plays of him tracking down the Paranormal and displaying the Truth....

Like a ship that's tossed out
On the ocean
We get caught up swimmin'
In the motion
Hearts were sailing, love was on
The right track
Got out so far that
We can't get back
But darlin we can't
Let our hopes go down
It's tough to find out were
There's solid ground

[Jim surfs out of the local Charleston pool, with a ghost of a pirate clasped between his hands]

You've gotta reach out
Take hold of my hand
You've gotta reach out
Till you're safe on dry land
You've gotta hold on
Baby never give up
You've gotta reach out
When you're caught in the current of love

[Jim examines the supernatural power of bouncing round pairs of objects barely contained within a partial silk/fabric...]


Keep your eye out, search for
The horizon
Life's a struggle,
Full of compromises
There'll be storms but we'll soon
see the sun shine
And I won't quit until I know
You're mine
If I can get you
In my arms tonight
We'll stay together
If you hold on tight

[Jim smacks Terry13 across back of his head again for missing recording the genuine phenomena... can terry be a secret double agent of JHEF?]


You've gotta reach out
Take hold of my hand
You've gotta reach out
Till you're safe on dry land
You've gotta hold on
Baby never give up
You've gotta reach out
When you're caught in the
Current of love

[Jim repels and invasion of deep ones and father Dagon from the "shores" of Charleston

You've gotta reach out
Take hold of my hand
You've gotta reach out
Till you're safe on dry land

A zoom in on Jim - onto his face - into his eye - and spiraling into the unknown


(Lyrics are by David Hasselhoff, Jim's Dopplegnager)

Click here to view attached image.

It is interesting that even with the reading of the first post we still have several parrots/post the lines of those we are prepping for dissection.

It is good that many of those posting here appear to know more than Criss.
(Strange we can see what he cannot. Let us examine why).

He will not be remembered as a great magician because he proves he is not one by exposing what he does.

But why would Criss do this?
Why had he done it in the past?

My thought is this.

He is afraid to take responsibility for his work.
When on stage playing Goth illusion guy he is safe.

But now he has to prove he is that guy.
He has to walk the walk and sling the slang.

How does one get out of it and keep it all a safe theatrical illusion and not have to really think to deep and take responsibility?
Why by doing as he is doing.
Showing it a trick.
Not exposing his stuff directly but a bit of guilt by association.

Even the youngest child knows a magician does not tell the secret of his power if you will.
(Knowledge is power)
When he does so in the spectators eyes he no longer a magician.
How could he be?

No responsibility for reality need be taken from that point on.

But also no hope of ever being remembered or thought of as a great magician.
(Because he has been telling his audience he is not one)

He does not see it himself becouse to do so would be to admit insecurity as a perfromer.
So he does not look at what he does as he ruins his own work.

Jim

I call it "Be careful what character you choose to play - for it will follow you and there is no escape - for do destroy your character destroys you"

Hence why Jim is a Paranormalist - forever - and why I never have adopted anything beyond being a Narrator of Mysteries... you got to live with your choices...

The way to redemption is to reinvent your character through some angle - not let it fragment. Stage a reason for the powers to change - if you a dark supernatural type - have a publicity event where something occurs to demonstrate why you might change over to the side of "light"...

Blaine's water escape is perfect because in theory - it actually allows him a chance to tweek his character - he even hinted to something along the lines of getting married and have kids - but its hard if you are the wandering man of mystery - but after an amazing feat where his life almost ended (real or 'staged') his character has a chance to be slightly rewritten... he can settle down and use his magic in some new way based on this life altering event!

Randi went after Uri Gellar who was just doing what all mentalists strive to do: make it look real.

He was successful, and Randi became well known by exposing him.

But who won? Many people today still believe Gellar was real.

Am I the only person here who loves both Geller AND Randi?

Surely you mean "is real" not "was".

I'm with you Jim, exposers castrate themselves, hurt others and cheapen our art(s) because they are weak minded and can't cope with people believing in them. If they had any fortitude they wouldn't expose.

ade.

Well written Sludge.

Wish I could have made the point as breifly.

thanks

Jim

H.O.A-X

Lame is me saying I don't like them and never use them. Some do and even can perform with them to people in the "know" and they wont realize that it is a stripper deck. All I am saying is it is a good place for a kid to get started with magic and help magic make it into the next generation. I don't see a problem with Wal Mart selling a stripper deck. And I HATE WAL MART!

They were quiet when everyone else was falling about laughing after Uri's vow "not to use his amazing abilities" to help him I'm a celebrity...

Seriously though, Uri's done well for himself. He did some magic, got famous, and drives around in a 1976 black Cadillac Fleetwood covered in over 5000 bent spoons.

It's magicians like Geller, who pretend they have special powers that alienate audiences. If he played it ironically, Geller would have been far more likeable and entertaining.

To invent a new cliché, pretending to have magical powers is just another type of exposure.

Funny you should mention it. I saw them on MindFreak last week and they did the cups and ball routine in clear plastic cups for all to see.

I say no one considers Penn & Teller magicians.

Criss is now in their boat.

Jim

H.o.A-X