Old-school magicians see themselves as part of an ancient tradition of illusions and slight-of-hand. They value, guard and uphold the secrets that have been the mainstay of their profession for hundreds of years. Starting in the 1990s, Penn & Teller, a two-man team of magicians, threw open the doors of secrecy and began revealing how the tricks were done. They were the first in a long series of new magicians who had no loyalty to the secrets of the craft of magic and illusion and were more than happy to reveal secrets when the price was right. Who are these new magicians? What kind of new magic tricks secrets have they revealed? Have the new magic tricks secrets revealed been detrimental to the profession of magic as a whole or have they spurred interest in magic? Let us take a look.
Harry Houdini became a staunch critic of Spiritualism, seances and other tricks claiming supernatural powers. He spent the latter part of his life debunking Spiritualist frauds. He revealed to the public how these hucksters preyed on people who were often in mourning for a lost loved one by faking contact with the loved on at a seance. Houdini did not seem to anger his fellow magicians, probably because he was only exposing people using magic to defraud people, not as entertainment.
Perhaps the most famous pair of new magic tricks secrets revealed is Penn & Teller. By 1996, they had been on television exposing trade secrets. Despite the fact that most of what they were revealing was old magic tricks with their particular spin on them, and the fact that all they revealed was the part they added, other magicians were furious. In their opinion, Penn & Teller were completely out of line.
The Amazing Randi (James Randi) began his magic career in 1966. He has since retired but has a second career of sorts debunking faith healers and other performers claiming their tricks were due to their supernatural abilities. One famous act Mr. Randi revealed as a fraud was the spoon-bending Uri Geller. At the current time, James Randi's educational foundation has a $1,000,000 prize to anyone who can show that they have supernatural abilities. They must consent to these abilities being scrutinized by researchers. So far the foundation still has all of the money in its possession.
One of the more extensive series of shows was that of the Masked Magician who had a television show on the FOX network during the 1990s about new magic tricks secrets revealed. He claimed he wore the mask for his own protection from the wrath of other magicians. He finally removed his mask and showed the world that he was Val Valentino (not his real name). The Masked Magician showed how some of the biggest magic tricks were performed, such as appearing to fly and the lady becoming a tiger. This exposure did not please his fellow magicians.
Val Valentino has born the fury of other magicians claiming that Valentino has ruined their careers. They believe that since people know how the trick works, they will not watch their performances. Valentino claims that his motive for revealing magic tricks was strictly to promote magic as a profession and to get kids interested in doing magic tricks. He did, however, make a tidy sum of money for doing the shows on FOX.
Barry and Stuart, a magic act duo, started a series of television shows in the United Kingdom during the 1990s. In this show they took a look at how biblical miracles could have been just illusions. Barry and Stuart performed the "miracles" on the show. As would be expected, this upset followers of Christianity and Judaism because it called into question the authenticity of the miracles.
So, there we have it, six magic acts who have broken the magician's code and revealed a substantial amount of trade secrets. Have they helped revive magic as a profession? It is hard to tell whether or not the new magic tricks secrets revealed have helped or hindered magic acts. What is known is that the public is hungry for this secret knowledge and magic shows and shows that reveal how magic tricks are done draw large audiences. Regardless if people know how the trick works, they will still always be amazed that the illusion looks so real. And that is what magic is all about. - 30290
Harry Houdini became a staunch critic of Spiritualism, seances and other tricks claiming supernatural powers. He spent the latter part of his life debunking Spiritualist frauds. He revealed to the public how these hucksters preyed on people who were often in mourning for a lost loved one by faking contact with the loved on at a seance. Houdini did not seem to anger his fellow magicians, probably because he was only exposing people using magic to defraud people, not as entertainment.
Perhaps the most famous pair of new magic tricks secrets revealed is Penn & Teller. By 1996, they had been on television exposing trade secrets. Despite the fact that most of what they were revealing was old magic tricks with their particular spin on them, and the fact that all they revealed was the part they added, other magicians were furious. In their opinion, Penn & Teller were completely out of line.
The Amazing Randi (James Randi) began his magic career in 1966. He has since retired but has a second career of sorts debunking faith healers and other performers claiming their tricks were due to their supernatural abilities. One famous act Mr. Randi revealed as a fraud was the spoon-bending Uri Geller. At the current time, James Randi's educational foundation has a $1,000,000 prize to anyone who can show that they have supernatural abilities. They must consent to these abilities being scrutinized by researchers. So far the foundation still has all of the money in its possession.
One of the more extensive series of shows was that of the Masked Magician who had a television show on the FOX network during the 1990s about new magic tricks secrets revealed. He claimed he wore the mask for his own protection from the wrath of other magicians. He finally removed his mask and showed the world that he was Val Valentino (not his real name). The Masked Magician showed how some of the biggest magic tricks were performed, such as appearing to fly and the lady becoming a tiger. This exposure did not please his fellow magicians.
Val Valentino has born the fury of other magicians claiming that Valentino has ruined their careers. They believe that since people know how the trick works, they will not watch their performances. Valentino claims that his motive for revealing magic tricks was strictly to promote magic as a profession and to get kids interested in doing magic tricks. He did, however, make a tidy sum of money for doing the shows on FOX.
Barry and Stuart, a magic act duo, started a series of television shows in the United Kingdom during the 1990s. In this show they took a look at how biblical miracles could have been just illusions. Barry and Stuart performed the "miracles" on the show. As would be expected, this upset followers of Christianity and Judaism because it called into question the authenticity of the miracles.
So, there we have it, six magic acts who have broken the magician's code and revealed a substantial amount of trade secrets. Have they helped revive magic as a profession? It is hard to tell whether or not the new magic tricks secrets revealed have helped or hindered magic acts. What is known is that the public is hungry for this secret knowledge and magic shows and shows that reveal how magic tricks are done draw large audiences. Regardless if people know how the trick works, they will still always be amazed that the illusion looks so real. And that is what magic is all about. - 30290
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