Comments on: Levitation Secret Revealed (70 years ago)

By: tom

tom — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 00:12:35 +0000

I know it’s an illusion using
photography, but please explain how
Cris angel does this on the street in
broad daylight ?

He doesn’t – not in the sense of just doing the trick in front of a group of people, and a camera happening to be there. His illusions require cameras, cutting, and paid actors, and he confirms this in interviews.

By: Levitation? People were this gullible wi … | digital!

Levitation? People were this gullible wi … | digital! — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 12:54:03 +0000

[...] Levitation? People were this gullible with things related to photography some 70 years ago. (0) [...]

By: Rags ‘n Ram » Blog Archive » Always wanted to Levitate above the ground? It’s easy, actually.

Sun, 06 Sep 2009 13:48:59 +0000

[...] Source: Forgetomori [...]

By: Mori

Mori — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 19:00:54 +0000

Indeed, Loren, I must admit I was surprised to find that a psi investigator of the time obviously knew what was going on, and that some sitters also seem to have realized it too.

By: Mori

Mori — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 18:54:12 +0000

Tmara and all: as some folks have already noted, those “street magic” also made famous by David Blaine should be taken with giant lumps of salt because not rarely what you see is just acting, with fake spectators faking their fake surprise faces.

On Blaine’s levitation without strings, for instance, apparently he did use the Balducci effect (which involves going up with one feet while hiding it with another) and that surprised some real people in the streets. That was filmed. But what was shown on TV also included a short take of Blaine being elevated around a few feet high, which was actually done with cables. Video editing put those things together.

Those are not exactly hoaxes, as illusionism, mentalism and all have always involved the blurring of illusion and reality, though one can certainly question if what they do is ethical. I don’t think it’s a crime, but I much prefer Penn & Teller and their cynical/skeptical/humorous approach. Blaine and Criss Angel seem to take themselves too seriously.