Criss Angel on David BlaineInside MagicMagic News Updated Daily for the Professional Magician

The Television Critics Association conclave promoted new cable shows recently
and Criss Angel made quite an impression:

Swishing the foreign objects (needles in a glass of wine) around in
his mouth for added effect, the “edgy illusionist,? whose new TV show begins
Wednesday on A & E, swallows hard. Then he pulls a long piece of thread off
a spool and downs that, too.

“You’re probably wondering where I’m going with this,? Angel said.

Heck no. Everyone in the room knew where Angel was going: to basic cable,
where he’ll join all the other freaks with television shows. If you watch any
reality TV on cable, you know that “reality” is as fungible a concept to, say,
Britney Spears and Kevin Federline as it is to a professional magician.

On one episode of his show “Criss Angel Mindfreak,” Angel makes himself and
other people appear to float in mid-air. It’s a trick he says he’ll do anywhere
there’s a crowd; indeed, his willingness to perform on street corners, in food
courts and at other everyday venues is part of his shtick.

But someone at A & E must have alerted Angel to the deeply cynical nature
of journalists, because we’re getting a safer, less thrilling variation on the
old Harry Houdini needle trick instead.

Angel inhaled, pulled at his belly button and extracted a long piece of
thread, with five needles neatly tied to it, one every few inches.

Dangling the string, he said, “Whoever does the best review of the show gets
to keep this.”

GRRRRROOOOOOOSSSSSSSS!!!!!!

It was interesting to get a non-magician’s view of not only Mr.
Angel but also magic today.

The world of magic is certainly mystifying to the outsider. Not least of the
mysteries is why so many magicians hate David Blaine. Penn and Teller, the
thinking person’s magic act, will be appearing on “Criss Angel Mindfreak”
(starting Wednesday on A & E) this season. They hate Blaine, too.

“The guy has been very successful in what he has done,” Angel said, “but he’s
never done a live show in his life. I’ve performed 600 times on Broadway and
Times Square. I’m not a creation of television.”

Unfortunately there isn’t any further discussion on why Penn and Teller
feel so strongly about David Blaine.

All we know is, according to the television
critic, “They hate Blaine, too.”

The Television Critics Association conclave promoted new cable shows recently
and Criss Angel made quite an impression:

Swishing the foreign objects (needles in a glass of wine) around in
his mouth for added effect, the “edgy illusionist,? whose new TV show begins
Wednesday on A & E, swallows hard. Then he pulls a long piece of thread off
a spool and downs that, too.

“You’re probably wondering where I’m going with this,? Angel said.

Heck no. Everyone in the room knew where Angel was going: to basic cable,
where he’ll join all the other freaks with television shows. If you watch any
reality TV on cable, you know that “reality” is as fungible a concept to, say,
Britney Spears and Kevin Federline as it is to a professional magician.

On one episode of his show “Criss Angel Mindfreak,” Angel makes himself and
other people appear to float in mid-air. It’s a trick he says he’ll do anywhere
there’s a crowd; indeed, his willingness to perform on street corners, in food
courts and at other everyday venues is part of his shtick.

But someone at A & E must have alerted Angel to the deeply cynical nature
of journalists, because we’re getting a safer, less thrilling variation on the
old Harry Houdini needle trick instead.

Angel inhaled, pulled at his belly button and extracted a long piece of
thread, with five needles neatly tied to it, one every few inches.

Dangling the string, he said, “Whoever does the best review of the show gets
to keep this.”

GRRRRROOOOOOOSSSSSSSS!!!!!!

It was interesting to get a non-magician’s view of not only Mr.
Angel but also magic today.

The world of magic is certainly mystifying to the outsider. Not least of the
mysteries is why so many magicians hate David Blaine. Penn and Teller, the
thinking person’s magic act, will be appearing on “Criss Angel Mindfreak”
(starting Wednesday on A & E) this season. They hate Blaine, too.

“The guy has been very successful in what he has done,” Angel said, “but he’s
never done a live show in his life. I’ve performed 600 times on Broadway and
Times Square. I’m not a creation of television.”

Unfortunately there isn’t any further discussion on why Penn and Teller
feel so strongly about David Blaine.

All we know is, according to the television
critic, “They hate Blaine, too.”