Blabbermouth.net reports
Criss Angel will appear with Rob Zombie at Ozzfest today. The star of Criss
Angel Mindfreak will be at the heavy metal festival to “interact with fans
and sign autographs from 12 noon to 3 p.m. He will periodically perform close
demonstrations including razor blades, metal bending, and mentalism outside of
the tent.”
The tour began on July 15th and will rock on until September. A&E is
along for the ride and presents a special two-minute Criss Angel illusion video
before each artist is introduced to the stadium crowds.
“Criss Angel Mindfreak” follows Angel as he captivates audiences with
mind-boggling demonstrations of his skills; behind-the-scenes as he researches
and executes his demonstrations with his crew; and as he meets celebrity friends
who drop by to willingly participate in his antics. “Criss Angel Mindfreak” is
an eerily entertaining series that juxtaposes reality with surreality
Mr. Angel performs not only on television but also in real life.
Blabbermouth.net observed his latest spectacular escape was staged not just live
but out in the open. Mr. Angel performed “‘Oasis’ in New York City’s Bryant
Park.
One of Angel’s most challenging escapes saw him in a sealed airtight
chamber, then submerged in a 4′ x 8′ x 8′ tank, surrounded by 2,000 gallons of
water. It took Angel just over 24 hours ? eight hours less than the 33-hour time
limit set to escape ? and appear on top of a brand new black Pontiac Torrent
parked a hundred feet away, surrounded by awestruck fans and media.”
We looked it up
because it seemed goofy for a press release to be so vague on all aspects of
the story but so specific in mentioning where the avant-garde magician
re-appeared, “on top of a brand new black Pontiac Torrent parked a hundred feet
away.”
Sure ’nuff. Pontiac paid $3,000,000.00 for the right to advertise with
Mr. Angel’s image and show. Call us cynical, but we’re thinking it was more than
coincidence he re-appeared on the brand new vehicle fortunately parked in the
spot. Even more amazing is that the Pontiac people could find a parking space
they could occupy for up to 33 hours in a row.
So we kept digging. We found an insider’s media buying site
– the very cool Promo Magazine where the Criss Angel promotional tour
was discussed. “We want to immerse people in the Criss Angel: Mindfreak
experience,” said a rep from the media mogul. “We want to give people a feel for
the show.
“The more you connect connected [consumers] are, the more likely they
are to watch the show.”
The world’s earliest motion picture was recently uncovered in a Paris archive and will be shown as part of The Magic Circle’s centenary celebration.
Yes,
motion pictures were once considered magic. But that’s not why
this particular piece of film is being shown at a special event tonight
in London. And sure, famous director Georges Demeny put this
together. But that would not be enough to get this valuable space
on the web site recently voted the number one magic site at this web
address.
The earliest “moving picture” of a
magician was created for a scientific study on magic in the 1890?s
during a study by famed psychologist and creator of the IQ test, Alfred
Binet. It is part of the Dana Centre’s special week of magic.
Dr. Binet hoped to understand why magic worked – what were the psychological components necessary to amaze.
The
head of the Experimental Physiology Laboratory at the Sorbonne, wanted
to know if it was true the hand is quicker than the eye. He asked
director Demeny, to capture sequences of images of conjuring tricks.
Demeny?s
technique involved taking several stills of moving objects in fast
succession. It had been used by Eadweard Muybridge in the 1870s to
establish whether horses take all four feet of the ground when they
trot and by Demeny?s colleague Etienne Jules Marey to discover how cats
land on their feet when they fall. Demeny is regarded as one of the
pioneers of cinema.
Dr. Binet wrote up the results in 1894 claiming that the sleight of hand was obvious when it was photographed in this way.
The
magician in the moving pictures was a well known French sleight of hand
artist called Raynaly, who performed various magic tricks for the
camera. Only one set of photographs still exists which shows Raynaly
vanishing a ball. I took stills of the 23 frames and re-animated them,
thus bringing him back to life. The trick he performs is impressive and
still works as well as modern day trick. It?s fantastic to be able to
screen this for the first time at the Dana Centre in London.
The world’s earliest motion picture was recently uncovered in a Paris archive and will be shown as part of The Magic Circle’s centenary celebration.
Yes,
motion pictures were once considered magic. But that’s not why
this particular piece of film is being shown at a special event tonight
in London. And sure, famous director Georges Demeny put this
together. But that would not be enough to get this valuable space
on the web site recently voted the number one magic site at this web
address.
The earliest “moving picture” of a
magician was created for a scientific study on magic in the 1890?s
during a study by famed psychologist and creator of the IQ test, Alfred
Binet. It is part of the Dana Centre’s special week of magic.
Dr. Binet hoped to understand why magic worked – what were the psychological components necessary to amaze.
The
head of the Experimental Physiology Laboratory at the Sorbonne, wanted
to know if it was true the hand is quicker than the eye. He asked
director Demeny, to capture sequences of images of conjuring tricks.
Demeny?s
technique involved taking several stills of moving objects in fast
succession. It had been used by Eadweard Muybridge in the 1870s to
establish whether horses take all four feet of the ground when they
trot and by Demeny?s colleague Etienne Jules Marey to discover how cats
land on their feet when they fall. Demeny is regarded as one of the
pioneers of cinema.
Dr. Binet wrote up the results in 1894 claiming that the sleight of hand was obvious when it was photographed in this way.
The
magician in the moving pictures was a well known French sleight of hand
artist called Raynaly, who performed various magic tricks for the
camera. Only one set of photographs still exists which shows Raynaly
vanishing a ball. I took stills of the 23 frames and re-animated them,
thus bringing him back to life. The trick he performs is impressive and
still works as well as modern day trick. It?s fantastic to be able to
screen this for the first time at the Dana Centre in London.
The Huddersfield
Daily Examiner notes one of the most important characteristics of being a
magician or a member of a magician organization is the ability to keep secrets.
Even if the secrets do not deal with magic tricks, per se.
“The penalties for breaking these rules can be severe,” is the ominous
warning of the Circle big wigs.
The secrecy this time surrounds the publication of a coffee table book
celebrating the centenary. The book is 18 months in the making and according to
the Magic Circle insiders, has only been
seen in its completed form by four people.
The book’s publishers along with co-authors Edwin A Dawes and Michael Bailey
- were the only four people to see the book prior to the launch at the Circle’s
headquarters in Euston.
The HQ – whose spiral staircase appears on the book cover – became
familiar territory to Jeremy Mills during the project. His meetings with the
co-authors were always conducted in the tiny Inner Sanctum, behind locked doors
- and could last as long as five hours.
“Secrecy did surround the book’s publication. They did not want any other
member to see the book until it came out,” said one of the
publishers.
You can purchase a copy of Circle Without End The Magic Circle
1905-2005, Compiled and Edited by Edwin A Dawes and Michael Bailey,
published by Jeremy Mills Publishing Ltd from The Red House, 22 Occupation Road,
Lindley, Huddersfield HD3 3BD or via the website at ?35 plus postage and
packing.
As part of the Magic Circle’s centenary
celebration, The Sun
(UK), is going all out with stories, features, and even is promoting a six-part
documentary exploring magic from Egypt to Las Vegas.
The tabloid called on Magic Circle member Marc
Paul — whom they proclaim is “the man voted the world’s greatest
mind-reader” — to perform for their staff and set-up interactive tricks for the
readers of their on-line edition.
Mr. Paul describes his seduction into our art beginning at the age of seven.
He was given a magic set, found it unworkable, stowed it away, and rediscovered
its contents years later. By the time he was 12, the still young magician
performed for birthday parties and other gatherings.
He found mentalism brought the best response from audiences. “I would meet
other magicians to brainstorm about ideas and in the early 1990s I started
getting into mind magic, because I realized out of everything I was performing
that was getting the best reactions.”
Mr. Paul is quick to point out he does not have special powers:
“Whereas other magicians use slight of hand or illusions or optical
principles, a mentalist uses psychological trickery. The best way to describe it
is slight of mind.”
He opines mentalism is at the forefront of the new magic wave. “There was a
time for big stage illusions and rock magicians like David Copperfield, but
people realize it’s just a show. The lovely thing about mentalism and
mind-reading is it’s very raw and is a one-on-one experience – so it’s a much
more active type of entertainment.
While he’ll fight to the death to keep his secrets secret, he insists there
is nothing secret about The Magic Circle. Membership in this prestigious
institution is open to those who love the art. You may not make it to the Inner
Circle – reserved for the very best practitioners – but there is a place for
you, Mr. Paul explained.
All initiates are asked to perform to prove interest and knowledge of magic.
“If you’re a performer, then that’s fine, you perform. If you’re a collector
then maybe you can show some of your collection or do a talk about the history
of magic.”
This can be a stumbling block for some.
“Quite a few people fail at that stage, but those who pass become
full members and can attend meetings every Monday, where there will normally be
some sort of talk, lecture of demonstration and a social event where we’ll swap
new tricks and ideas.”
The Latin expression Indocilis Privata Loqui serves as the Circle’s
motto. It translates roughly as “not apt to reveal secrets.” The motto is a
serious admonition for all members. “If anyone breaks… Continue reading Marc Paul – Big Hit on Sun
Recent Comments