The Best Magician in the World

Okay, so here is an "out-of-the-blue" post. I actually wrote it and saved it as a draft back during my leg surgery. Now, it goes public.

Most of my readers probably know I'm a magician. I have been doing magic since I was five. I used to have doves and rabbits, and I still have several large tricks packed away in my basement to make people appear, disappear and move to random places.

Now, as a magician, I'm rarely (never?) fooled by stage magic. I have never seen an illusion I didn't know how it was done; but that's okay as that is not the point. The point is that I love magic. I love the "show."

So let me chime in.

David Copperfield is the best magician in the world.

Now, if you haven't seen him, you ought to spend some time watching the links I'm providing in the following post. If you have seen him, then in my humble opinion you have seen the best. I have had the good fortune of seeing literally hundreds of magicians live or on TV.

Copperfield is the best, hands down.

Now, why am I writing this? Well, I have a friend who is a music snob. He really knows rock. He owns a recording studio, a coffee shop, what he touches turns to gold. And he knows music. And he says the Beatles were the best band in the world.

I don't like them.

Now, there are a number of reasons for this, which I won't get into right now. But here's the thing... I can't give you a good reason for why I don't like the Beatles other than personal preference. Chris, on the other hand, will tell you they were innovators, used different recording techniques, he will drone on about their musicianship, etc. And he is right. It is pretty much undisputed that the Beatles were the best band ever. Even if I don't personally like them.

David Copperfield is the best magician in the world. Now, don't drone on to me about David Blaine. I know I have been in a "positive post" mood lately, but let me just say this for the record, David Blaine is to magic what the Spice Girls are to music. You may like them, just don't tell anyone who knows anything about music. David Blaine is not a good magician. Yea, he's fair, but he doesn't do anything that any magician worth his salt couldn't do. He just has developed this personality that Gen X and Gen Y (for some reason), like. The street magician. And don't even talk to me about Mr "Mind Freak" Chriss Angel. No thanks.

Now, these guys are fine for what they are. You can even like their style more than Copperfield. But please, don't try to convince anyone the Backstreet Boys are better than the Beatles. And don't try to convince magicians that Blaine and Angel could stand in the same room as Copperfield.

What makes Copperfield great:

1. He is an inventor. He is involved in the creation of most of his illusions on some level. It's the difference between someone who sings, and someone who writes their songs as well. The singer can be really good... but it helps to write.

2. Copperfield is the MASTER of showmanship. Every illusion he preforms is flawless and perfectly timed. Every move is thought out. Every light perfectly placed. Smoke doesn't drift without him knowing where every smoke particle goes. He knows exactly how the crowd will respond when. And trust me, as someone who does magic and speaks before people, etc, this takes a TON of work to pull off. Now, when people criticize Copperfield, it is because of this. But he leaves nothing to chance.

3. Copperfield has done more to promote magic than anyone else alive or dead. He ushered in a new era of magic. Although he was not the first to do a TV special, he certainly opened more doors and make it commercially successful.

4. Copperfield also does amazing closeup magic. He is known for his stage stuff, but he is certainly no slouch when it comes to doing the smaller stuff.

5. Project Magic is pretty cool.

So I'm limited in what I can show you... much of the stuff I really like is not on utube, but...

This first trick is called, Elevator or "Heaven on the 7th Floor" and it is one of my all-time favorite magic tricks. It is one of the best opening illusions you could ever want... a magicians dream. I love the music, the timing and the lighting. (I love how the light seems to push up the curtain at the beginning in an explosion of light.) It is, in my humble opinion, a perfectly executed illusion. (I saw this live and yes, it is just as good live.)

This is the same trick, done by Tobias and Jared.

This is another favorite called origami. I actually did this trick for a while. Copperfield makes it look so smooth.

blade This is just an incredibly unique trick. It is actually a really hard trick for the assistant, and she does it well. I love the way he rides the blade to the top of the illusion. And how the music fits the trick so well, especially when the box splits.

Laser is one of the most original effect in magic and one of the only tricks that involves a "new" principle for magic. It's weird, but I really like it.

Water is what makes Copperfield unique. Okay, it's a levitation. Everyone does this. But he turns it into a show. Fire, smoke, water and a really unique twist to the illusion (the woman wrapping around him) makes this "common" illusion, uncommon. For the record, what I don't like about Copperfield is how his illusions often have a sexual theme... and I think his assistants are always painted in a certain sexual light. Yea, that could be toned down. But I will say this... the assistant from origami has worked with David for 15 years and makes a ton of money. I think he treats his people well.

So this post was a bit off from the normal. Hope it was educational and fun for you.

Now, back to writing about our new theological statements. Now where is that KJV bible?