--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, Duveyoung <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > Criss Angel has twisted the time honored values of magicians and > sullied the artform. It's true that magicians often employ shills in > the audience, but Chriss uses PAID ACTORS for EVERYONE in the crowds > that seem to witness his "feats." He literally doesn't have any > audience at all. He uses camera tricks to accomplish all the rest. > It takes absolutely no scholarship in the world of > entertaining-magicians for Chriss' tricks -- I can do anything he's > done with a camera too -- he's not even doing anything special with > the camera.
You sound like the old guys I used to meet in Tannen's Magic store in Manhattan who used to goof on Doug Henning's hippie TV shows. Or the guys who used to complain about gimmicked coins because they were pure coin manipulators. Doug had a lot to do with the escalation of effects that now require large groups of shills. It is all part of the growth of magic in popular entertainment on TV. The skill of the magician in misdirection is all part of the personality of the performer "selling" his bit. There are a million guys in local magic organizations with huge magic chops but they have zero personality to sell the effects in a big way. That is the skill that Chriss has, he makes people believe. Not you and not me, but plenty of people who love his shows. Doug just got out of the game before this technique became popular as the stunts escalated. Copperfield is no stranger to the use of this technique, it is necessary for huge effects. He has used it plenty. He also is a great magician who can do lots of great close up stuff. He has the personality to sell the trick, that is what makes it magic. As the network shows came and went the need for bigger and bigger stunts to draw an audience drove magic to this technique. Chriss is the first guy to use it almost exclusively, but that is part of the larger than life show biz reality that is the market today. I'm sure he could sit you down at a table and do all the old school stuff too but that isn't selling right now. Personally I really enjoy close up magic. But even here technology has been pushing the limits for years. At first coin manipulators used real coins. But as people got used to the effects possible this way they started to invent gimmicked coins to produce even more magical effects. Ever see a cigarette pushed through the center of a coin? But it still comes down to the personality of the magician to turn it into a magical effect. That is why you have so many magic geeks with thousands of dollars of equipment who can't amaze anyone. The magic isn't in the effects they bought. It is in personality and people knowledge of the performer. I work with a few magicians on the boardwalk where I play. Some of them are such masters of human physiology and they turn the simplest old time tricks into miracles for the crowd. They have superior language skills. They know that announcing that they are holding an "ordinary deck of playing cards" is a rookie mistake because it makes the audience think about magic decks like the one they are holding. Chriss doesn't float my boat, but he isn't entertaining old guys like us. Doug would never sell today, just as Blackstone had his day and now it is gone. But the advance of the intrinsic technical bullshittery that supports magical effects is unstoppable. TV changed everything. Doug was an innovator in making TV magic cool again. David Copperfield and Blaine both took it to another level. Now Chriss is the rock star magician of the minute. He gets all the hot chicks for now. To his credit, his book is a rant against people trying to sell tricks as real magic. He doesn't approve of people using magical tricks to make gullible people believe a person has actual magical powers like Penn and Teller's education show. That is a time honored value of magic in public education that goes all the way back to Houdini. So roll over Beethoven, and tell Tchaikovsky the news! > > I don't mind if folks are entertained by him, cuz, hell, they're > entertained by "Pro" wrestling, and gulp, I'm entertained by actors > doing all sorts of things that are merely camera tricks. But when > Criss blurs the line between "cheap ass camera tricksters with paid > audience" and "true magician who can so sleight of hand, prop tricks, > and knows all the subtle "diverting the gaze" methods." I don't know > what Criss has accomplished along these scholarly lines that require > thousands of hours of practicing, but he sure isn't showing any skills > if you ask me. > > I wouldn't let this guy marry my sister. > > Edg > > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, nablusoss1008 <no_reply@> wrote: > > > > http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZlIwcVAxZsU&mode=related&search > > > > If not it's definately the best trick I have seen until now. > > >
