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Warden at jail where David Blaine performed magic act is fired

Warden at jail where David Blaine performed magic act is fired

By Jamie Schram for the New York Post..

The warden wasn’t laughing at David Letterman’s “Top Ten List.”

The boss in charge of The Tombs was fired over the David Blaine magic show for inmates — because the city Department of Correction commissioner was furious it became the butt of jokes by the late-night funnyman, sources told The Post.

Commissioner Joseph Ponte gave the ax to Warden Antonio Cuin on Tuesday forallowing Blaine to give a free Houdini-like performance to some of the city’s most dangerous inmates. Tickets for Blaine’s shows usually go for $100 a pop.

“Ponte was pissed about the magic show publicity and that it was on David Letterman,” a correction source said of the performance, which was exclusively reported by The Post.

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Welcome to Colon, Magic Capital of the World..

Welcome to Colon, Magic Capital of the World..

Very in-depth article by Kyle Chayka for The Verge..

On a high school auditorium stage in front of a packed house on the evening of August 6th, a goth magician named Dan Sperry dressed in ripped black jeans and platform boots swallowed a few razor blades, then pulled them from his mouth daisy-chained on a string. He picked up a grotesque baby doll, made it pee on his face, then spat the pee back on the baby before throwing it away. Doves appeared from nowhere, vanishing to bursts of flame and a grinding soundtrack of Incubus. During the finale, Sperry sawed through his own neck with a piece of floss. At some point during the emo-metal haze, it occurred to me that I might actually prefer a stuffy old man in a tuxedo waving a magic wand.

This surreal performance happened in Colon, Michigan, a sleepy, one-streetlight town somewhere between Detroit and Chicago that proudly bills itself as “The Magic Capital of the World.” (The name comes from a pair of nearby lakes shaped like the punctuation mark.) It’s home to around 1,000 residents and holds at least 30 dead magicians in its single small graveyard. The Colon High School mascot is a giant bunny rabbit. Though it lacks the soaring Gothic cathedrals of Hogwarts, it just might be the most magical place in the United States…

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National Geographic Channels Int’l goes “Beyond Magic”

National Geographic Channels Int’l goes “Beyond Magic”

Beyond Magic

National Geographic Channels International (NGCI) has commissioned a seven-part series featuring magician Drummond Money-Coutts from Argonon-owned Windfall Films and So Shoot Me TV.

Beyond Magic with DMC (pictured)will follow the magician as he performs tricks in assorted cities such as London, Paris, Barcelona and Singapore, while also exploring the history and science behind magic. The series, airing across 170 countries on National Geographic Channel beginning in November, will kick off with the performance of a death-defying escape stunt performed before a live audience.

Read more: http://realscreen.com/2014/09/24/national-geographic-channels-intl-goes-beyond-magic/#ixzz3EOWcSnDh

How does Derren Brown do it? TV illusionist’s secrets explained..

How does Derren Brown do it? TV illusionist’s secrets explained..

By James Rodgers for Coventry Telegraph..

Social media was set alight last night after TV illusionist Derren Brown showcased his brand-new stage show Infamous on Channel 4.

The event, which succeeds his other stage shows Svengali, Something Wicked this Way Comes and Enigma, has already been an acclaimed success with viewers lauding the showman for producing yet another unique and gobsmacking performance.

Brown is an illusionist and performer who – by his own admission – combines elements of traditional magic, suggestion, psychology and misdirection to achieve things which seem impossible to the everyman on the street. From mind reading to stopping pulses, Derren’s tricks have given him all manner of success over the past decade and they famously culminated with him predicting the Lottery numbers.

What is more refreshing, though, is that Brown openly claims to hold no supernatural abilities whatsoever. In fact, Brown has proved scornful of supposed psychic mediums and charlatans.

So, have you ever wondered how Derren Brown creates his headline-grabbing stage shows? Read below to find out…

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