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David Blaine!

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Barbara Willett

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May 25, 1997, 3:00:00 AM5/25/97

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We have all voiced our opinions a hundred times over
here in this newsgroup about the David Blaine street magic special. He
did a great job! So what if you can go to the store and buy a trick he
used for 8$!!! WHO CARES! The way he performed them is what made them
better than just 8$ This newsgroup has become nothing but stuff about
David Blaine. Mostly criticizm. But lately a lot of compliments. For
every post voicing an opinion somebody is post something back
disagreeing. This will never end! But enough with David Blaine!!!

Here is an url with a Rudy Coby article. I couldn't agree
more! Bye,
Joel W.

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Hello and welcome to my first article for Magic Show. Richard and I=
have talked for months about me writing a regular column here at the site,=
but my professional duties as a four-legged geek have kept me far too busy=
=2E I really want to do it, however, because I'm a big fan of magic and an=
even bigger fan of the internet. It's important to me that we as magicia=
ns take advantage of the unlimited resources of the worldwide web and use i=
t in a positive, creative manner.
 =

Which is why I'm here today, taking time off, and writing about David
Blaine's "Street Magic" television special. Before I tell you my=
opinion of the show, let me tell you why I'm writing it:

I think that magic newsgroups are a good idea. The same way that I
think magic meetings are a good idea. But, I can't stand to go to most
magic gatherings because they invariably degenerate into two things:
trashing and stealing. You can't walk a few feet in one direction
without overhearing a heated conversation about why some T.V. performer
doesn't deserve his success and how they themselves could do it so much
better. Walk a few feet the other way and you'll hear people talking
about that very same T.V. performer's routines and where you can buy
them at the convention. It's sickening.

Well, I'm proud to announce that the magic world is keeping up with the
latest technology: magicians are now trashing and stealing from each
other over the information superhighway. Yahoo! =

I logged onto the alt.magic newsgroup on Tuesday to see what the magic
world thought of David Blaine. I must admit, even I was shocked by the
unprecedented number of magicians posting really nasty stuff. Then I
skipped over to the alt.magic.secrets newsgroup and wasn't surprised at
all to see countless posts from many of the same people trying to figure
out and steal his material. Like I said before ... sickening.

I posted a response to both newsgroups. A response we can't re-post
here. A profane response. (I swear when I'm pissed.) The reason I'm
writing this review today, is because I often find myself disagreeing
with what's written about and reported in the magic world. When there
are only a handful of publications in any profession, only a few
opinions go on the permanent record. That's fine, except that there's
an unprecedented amount of power in what one person likes or dislikes,
creating a sameness in all the reporting out there. It seems that magic
is very much like high school. Cliques of people writing about each
other and not giving a full view of what's out there. Some people can
do no wrong and others you will never hear about. They're not in the
"cool crowd."

I wanted to make sure that at least one review of David Blaine didn't
just dismiss him because he's not in magic's "cool crowd."

<center>
DAVID BLAINE'S STREET MAGIC=

"a review by Rudy Coby"
</center>

David Blaine's "Street Magic" is the best thing to happen for mag=
ic in many, many years. It's fresh, funny, daring and original. It gave m=
e the same feeling inside when I saw Doug Henning on Broadway, throwing aw=
ay the top hat and tails and making magic relevant again. It gave me the s=
ame feeling when I first saw David Copperfield in the '80s raising the stak=
es and capturing the public's imagination with his
mega-illusions. And, now, David Blaine appears out of nowhere and
raises the bar once again, making magic hip and accessible to a brand
new audience. =

Can you tell that I liked this show? =

Since this site is for magicians, I can hear thousands and thousands of
you scoffing in front of your computer screens, "that hairspray has ma=
de him brain-damaged!" But, I'm right about this one, folks. This sp=
ecial will do more good for magic than anything in recent memory. All of y=
ou people putting David and his special down are just jealous that it wasn'=
t you. I've read your opinions on the web and it just reeks of sour grapes=
=2E Why not just be happy for a guy who worked his ass off and achieved th=
at one-in-a-million goal of starring in his own primetime
television special? =

Ten Reasons Why Street Magic Is A Great Sho=
w:

STRONG MAGIC
 <spacer type=3Dvertical size=3D6> =

I know, I know ... magicians are claiming that the magic wasn't very
good. Wrong! The magic on this special was some of the strongest ever
seen on television. This is a primetime special designed for the
millions of people watching at home - not a magic convention. I think
the choice of material was brilliant. Strong material to get a strong
reaction. The proof is in the pudding: look at the crowd's reaction to
his stuff because that's all that matters.

The kind of magic magicians like is something like Guy Hollingsworth's
torn & restored card trick from last year's World's Greatest Magic
special. I know you're all just dying to buy the book this summer so
you can join the magic crowd in playing with this routine. Well, guess
what? The cigarette through quarter is a stronger trick. The invisible
deck is a stronger trick. That torn and restored card trick is not a
real world trick, it's a magic world trick designed to get other
magicians excited. Don't get me wrong. Guy Hollingsworth is a great,
classy performer and the trick got him on a magic special booked by
another magician, but that trick is for T.V. or magic conventions
only. (I fear that we'll be seeing more magicians trying to copy his
smooth-as-silk Hugh Grant persona than will be able to actually perform
this technically-demanding routine.)

It really upsets me when people try to put David Blaine down by calling
his tricks "store bought," or when they question his skill by say=
ing, "his only skill is writing a check at the magic shop." Anot=
her favorite is, "if David Blaine were a musician, he'd only be playin=
g the scales." Talk about sour grapes! The person saying this - to a =
reporter no less - should really know better. Picking great material is a =
talent in itself. Resisting flashy stuff only entertaining to magicians is=
exhibiting really good will power. This magi has been described in print =
by a well-known performer as, "probably the greatest sleight of hand a=
rtist in the world." You would think he understands the power of hypi=
ng the press! I'm sure he wouldn't appreciate someone else saying similar =
things about him; (" ... greatest sleight of hand artist in the world?=
!? Hmmm ... I don't THINK so."). And, if David Blaine is playing the=
scales, he's playing those 'Riffle Force' and 'Snowshoe Sandwich' notes li=
ke a maestro. =

STRONG CHARACTER
 <spacer type=3Dvertical size=3D6> =

David Blaine is a very strong performer. But, you wouldn't know it from
reading alt.magic:
 
"David Blaine stinks. I have no idea how he got a T.V. special."=

"He just looks like some guy with a bag of tricks and no talent."=
=

"Mediocre at best."

Of course, on the other newsgroups with REAL people:
 
"I'm not done picking my jaw off the floor after seeing this guy! THE=
GUY WAS LEVITATING!"
 
"Beyond belief and possibly beyond mortal...he can actually levitate i=
n public!"
 
"Unbelievable!!! When people start levitating, the end of the world i=
s not far behind!" =

He's playing a character that isn't slick like a normal magician. =

That's the whole point. A few years back a non-magician friend of mine
saw Max Maven perform at the Magic Castle. Afterwards, he asked me if
Max was a better mentalist than Kreskin. I said that he absolutely
was. He asked me why I thought Kreskin was such a household name and
Max wasn't. I replied that I didn't know - it could be any number of
reasons. He told me that he thought it was because Kreskin didn't seem
like a performer. He was this weird, frazzled, geeky guy who "didn't =
understand how this stuff works himself." What made Kreskin memorable=
is that he was a regular guy who always seemed like he might not be able t=
o pull it off. Then, when the experiment worked, it seemed somehow more &q=
uot;real" and just a little bit spooky.

I don't want to get into the whole Uri Geller controversy here - that's
a fight for another time. I prefer Max Maven's style over Kreskin's -
but that's not the point. David Blaine's character is a normal guy that
you could meet in the street. Do I think Blaine is as slick as David
Copperfield? Hell, no. Do I think more people believe Blaine's
levitation on the street than Copperfield's flying on a stage? Hell,
yes.

Again, look at the reaction of the crowd. That's all you need to know. =

How many times do you have to hear people call him scary to believe he's
an effective performer?

ORIGINAL FORMAT
 <spacer type=3Dvertical size=3D6> =

The structure of this show was brilliant. Even though it was close-up
magic, it never seemed small. Going to different cities gave the show
huge scope - much better than looking at the same stage for two hours. =

The kinetic, Cops-style, hand-held camera work gave the show an
electricity sadly lacking in most magic specials. It gave the show a
gritty, surrounded feeling that made everything seem legit - something
lacking since Henning's live specials in the '70s. Real people did not
attribute anything in this show to camera tricks - it just seemed
impossible.

GREAT PRODUCTION
 <spacer type=3Dvertical size=3D6> =

It's hard to be gritty and hip at the same time, but this show pulled it
off. Starting with those subtle, cool-as-hell commercials directed by
Spike Lee; (a man I haven't been a fan of since "Do The Right Thing&qu=
ot; - but these were great). Great choice of music, including Jimi Hendri=
x, Stevie Wonder and the Geto Boys. The camera work was tops. It's hard t=
o imagine that filming in uncontrolled environments with crazy
spectators could look so good. It's a testament to David Blaine's
audience management skills that he was able to keep the spectators and
the camera focused on where they needed to be capture the effects; (for
an example of bad camera work, look at Ricky Jay's HBO special when he does=
his exquisite version of McDonald's Aces with the four queens. It's a goo=
d thing Ricky is such an entertaining speaker, because we certainly
couldn't see the faces of the cards to appreciate the wonderful
sleight-of-hand.)

GREAT MAGICAL THINKING
 <spacer type=3Dvertical size=3D6> =

First of all, you can't have better technical consultants than Michael
Weber and Paul Harris. Period. It would be very easy for some magic
critics to point to the things that they liked and say, "well, that mu=
st have been one of the tricks Mike or Paul gave him." Sorry, guys - =
that doesn't wash. This special was one of the best thought-out magic spec=
ials ever. I could talk about this for a long time, but how about a few ex=
amples? This show is the perfect example of Daryl's "Cancelling Out&q=
uot; technique. If you don't know what that is, it's when you use two diff=
erent methods and the strong part of one cancels out the weak part of the o=
ther and vice versa. People at home see David Blaine guessing people's tho=
ughts and think, "normally, I would say those people are stooges, but =
he guessed my card before!" Using signed cards earlier in the show ca=
ncels out - in the home viewers minds - the use of duplicates later in the =
show when they're used for miracles. Showing what seems like dozens of peo=
ple's genuine reactions to his levitation cancels out the idea of any kind =
of tricky camera work ever. There are tons of other examples showing how m=
uch thought went into this show, but I'll let you have the fun and figure t=
hose out.

GREAT GUESTS
 <spacer type=3Dvertical size=3D6> =

The biggest guest star on a magic show ever: Leonardo DiCaprio. It's
hilarious to read people even trying to dismiss him in these magic
newsgroups! For the record, guys, DiCaprio is not some teeny bopper
that only little girls like. He is a big, well-respected movie star who
is the star of the biggest movie in history - this summer's $285 million
dollar "Titanic." An Oscar-nominated actor whose hipness quotien=
t is a 10 out of 10 on the cool scale. And, most importantly, someone that=
would never be on a television special, much less a magic show. Get my po=
int? There's an entire generation of people who would never watch a T.V. m=
agic show that might change their minds if they knew that Leonardo DiCaprio=
regarded it as a "performance art." If Leonardo were on my show,=
the T.V. ads would go something like this: "Tonight on A.B.C., catch =
Leonardo DiCaprio on The Rudy Coby Show! Be amazed - right along with Leon=
ardo DiCaprio - by incredible magic! That's Leonardo DiCaprio at 8:00 toni=
ght, right here on the Leonardo ... er, Rudy Coby show!" =

I'm joking, but you get the point; (by the way, the runner-up for
coolest guest ever on a magic show is back in the '70s when David
Copperfield had Orson Welles on his special. He's definitely the
runner-up, though, because by that time the public only knew Orson as
the fat guy who did wine commercials and boring mentalism on the Merv
Griffin show. Don't get me wrong: I own a copy of "Citizen Kane,&quot=
; but I'm trying to make a point).

And, don't dismiss the Dallas Cowboys' appearance. If it's one audience
that hates magic more than anybody, it's the sports audience. Having
David Blaine doing magic for them impresses a whole other segment of the
population; (I know this from experience. I needed a guest star for a
gag on my first Fox special and the person I wanted wasn't available. =

With time running out, Dick Clark booked basketball star James Worthy. =

I flipped out! I had no idea who this guy was and I was miffed. But,
time was running out and my producer had made a decision. In the end,
he did a great job and even now - years later - sports fans stop me on
the street and ask, "Yo, man! Aren't you that magic guy who had James=
Worthy on that crazy show?!? Wow! James Worthy is great, man!"). =

GREAT REACTIONS
 <spacer type=3Dvertical size=3D6> =

This was my favorite part of the show. The first time in history that
we've seen the powerful reaction that close-up magic can get. If you're
a professional magician, you've probably seen these kinds of reactions
in person, but it's the first time it's been documented on television. =

Real laymen reactions showing people laughing, screaming, running,
crying and otherwise freaking out on camera. Compare these reactions
to the professional actors and models that are cast on every other magic
show and you'll see what I mean. Real people as spectators - what a
concept! David Blaine wisely chose to make these spectators the focus
of the special and it payed off big time.

MULTI-ETHNIC SPECTATORS
 <spacer type=3Dvertical size=3D6> =

Best of all, this show had people of every socio-economic and ethnic
background enjoying the illusions. Gasp! You mean, black people like
magic?!? I would never have known by the magic shows on T.V. whose
audiences are composed only of upper middle-class white people. What a
breath of fresh air this show was! We got to see that magic transcends
culture and language, as evidenced by the stunned reaction on the faces
of Japanese schoolgirls, San Francisco hippies, New York firemen,
football players, punk rockers, Compton homeboyz, senior citizens, =

little girls, and, yes, even white people! It made my heart sing that
there was finally a magic show that actually looked like it's audience
wasn't solely composed of people who like to play golf.

Of course, that's not what magicians thought. Here's a gem from
alt.magic:

"Maybe if I had an audience composed of street people and bozos just
barely functional enough to put a dozen rings through their eyebrows I
could have a network special too."

Nice one, Beavis!

GREAT PUBLICIST
 <spacer type=3Dvertical size=3D6> =

Magicians try to dismiss David Blaine's success by saying, "it's not
what you know, it's who you know." As if that explains how he landed =
a primetime special. Or, they explain his success by saying that he must h=
ave a powerful publicist trying to make him into a star. Guess what? I'm s=
ure he has a great publicist. But, here's a surprise for you: you can hav=
e the best publicist in the world and it doesn't mean squat
unless you've got something intriguing to promote! This would seem
obvious, but some people don't understand this business at all.

There was a TON of publicity about this show. David Blaine was on every
T.V. show in sight in the last few weeks. Nearly every major newspaper
and magazine did a piece on him. And, like all the Ricky Jay press a
few years ago, it's great to see magic talked about in the media because
it's good for all of us. Oh, you're right ... I'm sorry. He wasn't in
every newspaper and magazine: somehow all the magic magazines felt this
guy wasn't worth paying attention to. I'm sure David Blaine was
broken-hearted that he was only interesting enough for Time and U.S.A.
Today, but not good enough for some magic magazines. =

BREAKING THE RULES
 <spacer type=3Dvertical size=3D6> =

We magicians all know that you never repeat a trick. Yet, this guy
David Blaine dared to repeat several! Oh, my gosh, the world is going
to end! Didn't this guy read the Magician's Rulebook?!? Let's throw
him out of the magic societies! Maybe he really is Satan!

Seriously, folks, this seems to be the magic world's biggest complaint
about the special. And, I admit, the concept of repeating things on the
same show seems to be skating on thin ice. But, once again, David
Blaine pulled it off like Scott Hamilton. By repeating a few tricks, he pu=
lled the home viewers even further into the show and onto his side. We all=
remember the thrill of watching someone be surprised by something that we =
knew was going to happen. We felt like we were part of the show and though=
t, "wait until this guy sees this next part - he's not going to believ=
e it!" The tricks that were repeated didn't suffer from a second look=
=2E You either know what a folding quarter is or you don't. What's the di=
fference with repeating something if it adds dimension to the show? People=
have a little thing called a V.H.S. recorder that takes the choice out of =
our hands anyway.

(And, don't tell me it's because he doesn't have any other material. He
did plenty of different routines that weren't on this special in his
other T.V. appearances. Sorry to shoot that theory down, but it had to
be said.)

MIRACLES, MAN, MIRACLES
 <spacer type=3Dvertical size=3D6> =

Max Malini would have loved David Blaine. This show should have been
called "The Water Cooler Show" because that's where people were t=
alking about it the next morning. The jealous types are going to be really=
pissy when laymen are constantly asking them about David Blaine and his ma=
gic. And, like David Copperfield before him, these magicians will tell peo=
ple that it was all accomplished with camera tricks; (and, we all know how =
that killed Copperfield's budding career).

David Blaine understands the difference between magic convention tricks
and real miracles. It's the difference between doing billiard ball
moves and a little girl finding her card in her own back pocket. It's
the difference between the vanishing dove cage and having a card appear
behind the glass inside a store window. It's the difference between a
levitation in front of a mylar curtain and floating in the middle of a
city sidewalk. =

In closing, let me just explain that I don't know David Blaine. This is
not a case of someone's friend coming to their defense - I've never even
met the man. This special made me proud to be a magician again. It's
that simple. If something I've said has offended you, you can always
send me more nasty e-mail. But, just this once, why not be happy for
another magician's success instead of tearing him down? Why not use
that same time it would take to write me a nasty letter and, instead,
write David Blaine a letter of congratulations. That would be using the
web in a positive manner and make some people very happy. Especially
me.

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udy coby" width=3D563 height=3D80 vspace=3D0 hspace=3D0 border=3D0></a>
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© 1997 by <a href=3D"http://www.bobself.com/rudycoby/index.html">Rudy =
Coby</a>.
 
Magic Show is © 1997 by Robinson Wizard, Inc. All rights reserved. All=
copyrights, service marks and trademarks are the property of their respect=
ive owners and are used for descriptive purposes only.

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