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David Blaine!
Hi
Has anyone been to see the latest tourist attraction in London - David Blaine suspended in a clear box (swaying in the wind) surviving on water only for 44 days. I have SOOOO many questions! Can you get a good view of him from the ground? |
Apparently so - but it depends how many eggs have been thrown at the box overnight.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertain...io/3100550.stm |
You can get a good view of him in the box from the ground as it's only about 30 feet up in the air. I was amazed at how many people were there when I passed, given that once you are there, there's not really a lot to do.
I think they may have tightened security this week (he went in last Friday) since people have been throwing eggs and golf balls at the box. I don't know if that's made it harder to get a good view. |
The British are poking fun at this arrogant phoney. The newspapers have had a brilliant time ridiculing him (and showing photos of his friend Harmony passing him something through the box). Perhaps London and the UK was not the best place to choose for this stunt as the British are very sceptical anyway and this man just gives us the excuse of something to laugh at and then forget about.
His street magic is fun and he performs it well, but that's all it is - illusions, and most are easily explained anyway. |
I heard somewhere that people would gather around his box and beat on drums while he tried to sleep! I'm glad the British can see through this stunt. When he encased himself in ice in NYC, people stood around mesmerized by what he was doing.
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My husband was soooo disappointed when he saw the size of the box on TV. He was expecting David Blaine to hang upside down in a coffin! Maybe next time.
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Well, I thought I was the only one who was uneasy about this stunt!! It reminds me of Tudor times in England when traitors and criminals were hung up to be gawped at. I hear that people have been taking pot shots at the 'cage' with golf balls. It certainly seems to be pulling the crowds though, but maybe they are locals rather than tourists?
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Anyone watch the TV show South Park? They skewered Blaine beautifully a while back.
They also totally destroyed Crossing Over "psychic" John Edwards. |
Respect mah authoritay!
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You can see him in his box clearly from the River Thames between Tower Bridge and the new mayor's office. I passed three times last weekend and was surprised by the size of the crowd of spectators. The box is not far above the ground and is very easy to see. I think people are fascinated by the practical details of what he does and how he goes to the toilet. Everyone I've spoken to thinks he's mad, but presumably it'll earn him lots of money.
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I must say that if I was in London I'd be tempted to throw an egg myself! This guy drives me nuts! Does anyone really think he's going to be in a box for that long? They've already debunked his other tricks by showing how they sneak body doubles in and out!
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You say he's sneaked body doubles in.
The whole point of these exercises are to enchance his already very spiritual take on life, not to defraud, or deceive anyone - he genuinely wants to be the one staying the 44 days. Furthermore, he is filmed twenty four hours a day and there are always people below his perspex box. Perhaps he is different in wanting to accomplish this feat, but don't suggest it won't be a genuine attempt. |
Re: <i>They've already debunked his other tricks by showing how they sneak body doubles in and out!</i>
Who are "they", swalter, and can you direct us to some authoritative source where we can read how "they" debunked Blaine's feats/stunts? Thanks. |
Actually, it was on last night, I believe Bravo, the show was on debunking magic tricks and it showed how when he was packed in ice, a cleaning crew came once a day to spray off the box and at that time the bottom released and he switched with a body double. If it wasn't Bravo, it might have been FX.
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I read on coasttocoastam.com several months ago how David Blaine used trick photography to levitate. Darn, I can't find it now! It was really interresting!
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Google results for: "david blaine" +"body doubles" +debunk - "did not match any documents"
Google results for: "david blaine" +"body doubles" brought up only this comment on a website: "(<i>Apparently</i> he uses body doubles and hidden food supplies when pretending to be trapped in ice, although the underground burial was completely genuine)" |
Wow here!! He may not be able to remove himself from the box, but he's refused to let his "water" supply be checked to deny that it may include nutrients and glucose. All the commentators have agreed that the only "survival" aspect of the stunt is the isolation.
As for the levitation, you notice that Blaine does not show it on his street magic programme, but only shows the audience reaction. This is easily achieved by placing yourself about 10 ft away from the audience and standing at an angle of 45 degrees. Lift the foor nearest the crowd whilst standing on the other tip-toe and it appears that you are levitating. This is the Balducci method. When he does show himself levitating on TV, it is done by wires. |
Obviously levitation is not real - he's only human after all!
Starving yourself in isolation for 44 days is hardly a magic trick, just a test of endurance! The water comes from a water tower, which I believe is filled, if not used in general supply. |
Well, we're going to cruise by there next weekend just to see what's up. I personally think he's a freak. I'll go because there is no fee, I would never pay. My question is - HOW does he make money from these stunts? TV appearences before and after? I think I lost any possible interest/respect when I heard him mention Bobby Sands and tthe hunger protests.
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The water is controlled by his team. Dr Hilary Whatshisname from GMTV was refused access to it to get a sample. I will say again - the only impressive part of this stunt is the isolation. There is no absolute starvation.
What the hell does he know about Bobby Sands? |
Personally I have seen David Blaine's "magic" explained on both TLC and "E" Channel. A search on Google using "David Blaine phoney" yields 1170 results. Or substitute "explained" for "phoney" and you'll get 12,000 hits. Perhaps Capo should read Google's search tips before blasting Waslter with his "facts".
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Actually, SirG (that't not too informal for a knight, is it?) a search on Google using "David Blaine phoney" yields this:
Your search - "david blaine phoney" - did not match any documents A search on Google using "David Blaine phony" yields this: Your search - "david blaine phony" - did not match any documents A search on Google using "David Blaine baloney" yields this: Your search - "david blaine baloney" - did not match any documents A search on Google using "David Blaine Balogna" yields this: Your search - "david blaine balogna" - did not match any documents And, finally, a search on Google using "David Blaine pastrami" yields this: Your search - "david blaine pastrami" - did not match any documents Perhaps SirG should use the real Google instead of the Parallel Universe Google before blasting Capo (if Bob Dole can always speak in the third person, so can Capo!) with his search "facts". |
P.S. Perhaps Capo should remember to use "<>" tags rather than ezboard "[]" tags when posting on Fodors.
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Stangely enough, in my Perpendicular Universe these were my Google results:
david blaine phoney ------- 243 david blaine explained ----- 12,400 david blaine hoax -------- 1,280 david blaine debunked ----- 142 |
It all depends where you put the quotes. I didn't get any results for the exact phrase "david blaine phoney" either, but "david blaine" AND phoney gave me 86 results - that's on google.co.uk
BTW the latest I heard, the actor who plays the Grim Reaper at the London Dungeon tour visited him the other day in full regalia and waving his scythe at him. Apparently DB was not amused. Virgin Radio's breakfast show is asking people to ring in with a new idea each day to try and break him down. |
WhoAmI, I was using SirG's string just as he/she typed it, entirely within quotes, as in "David Blaine phoney".
If that is not, in fact, what SirG did, perhaps SirG needs to go back to the drawing round table. :) Levon, "Perpendicular Universe"...nice! |
He He. They've started throwing tomatoes and bananas at him now. Apparently his girlfriend threw an egg back into the crowd. I love the idea of the grim reaper though.
Perhaps all this will (hopefully)persuade him never to visit the UK again. |
I hope I can join in the fun next week! (snicker) From the David Blaine web site: "A prank by spectators wielding laser pens has sparked fear at the site of David Blaine?s endurance feat. Security officers accosted three people yesterday after Blaine spotted tiny dots of red light on his body. The three were aiming the pens directly into the illusionist?s eyes ? presumably in a bid to irritate him or keep him awake. But the prank backfired when Blaine feared the lights indicated a gun being aimed at him. Blaine?s security team took the incident seriously enough to call the police, but after questioning the culprits were released. Crowds at the site of Blaine?s feat have so far proved a mixed blessing. Before entering the box, the illusionist was hoping for support from spectators. But while many have turned out to encourage him, others have thrown missiles in a bid to get his attention. Girlfriend Manon Von Gerkan, Blaine?s girlfriend, has been seen cleaning the side of his box after spectators threw eggs. More recently Blaine was woken in the early hours of yesterday morning by a group of off-duty soldiers. The serenading squaddies regaled the magician with their version of ?Swing Low Sweet Chariot?. Despite being shaken from his slumber, Blaine seemed amused and commented, ?what a funny way to be woken up?. Another group encouraged the illusionist with a chant of ?We love you David, we do?. |
September 15, 2003: "Disillusionment Over the Thames", by Sarah Lyall
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/15/in...OND.html?8hpib Ms. Lyall begins... "To the extent there was a consensus among those watching the illusionist David Blaine's latest endurance feat, it was that Mr. Blaine did not deserve to be pelted with eggs, attacked by golf balls, harassed with laser pens or jolted awake by people banging on drums, as has happened to him since Sept. 5. But that doesn't mean that Mr. Blaine's latest stunt ? living in a see-through box suspended from a crane near Tower Bridge ? was winning lots of new fans among the hard-to-please Britons gathered below." more at link above... |
Well, we went out of our way to see the show over the weekend. Not much to see, I'm afraid. The area below his box has a small chain link fence around it - supporters have hung signs on it - facing him. Then, there's another ring of fencing around that. To get in there - security looks through your bags before you can go. We didn't bother.
He can be seen quiet clearly - enough to tell if he's smiling or not and he waves to the crowd a lot. I still don't get it. |
Lots of questions: How does he make money on this (is it sponsored)? How does he eliminate or urinate? (Granted the prior shouldn't be much of a problem if he isn't eating). I have heard suggestions that if he wanted he could have some kind of nourishment mixed with his water source.
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I heard he magically absorbs the nutrients from the tomatoes, bananas and eggs which are pelting his perch!
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How does he make money? Look at all the publicity this has given him. From his point of view he must be loving the pranks. It makes him far more likely to be invited onto chat shows afterwards than if everyone had just forgotten about him or wasn't interested. He once came onto a UK chat-show and just grunted when asked questions.
There's no such thing as bad publicity! |
and he wears a diaper.
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Does the word "mirrors" ring a bell? |
Hey Its FREE! Nobody is being forced to see it and nobody is getting their money ripped off. Judging by all the chatter on this thing there must be a few people getting a charge out of it. |
What is the day that he is coming down?
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ttt
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BBC radio reported this morning that his "management" were considering ending the farce as someone had been caught trying to interfere with his water supply.
Things dont seem to be going as planned, but surely if he can take the p*** out of us, we should be allowed to stop his water. |
He's only on day 17 of 44, so he's still got nearly 4 weeks to go to meet his target.
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