Ah! The truth will out! Before you said that he was indeed very good but not as good as Osterlind. Not a great rating but not bad.

It appears that he has now been demoted further to "he stinks"

I must say that I am highly amused that Canadian politeness has now collapsed under British directness.

But wait! I am not sure if Quebec is part of Canada or not. I have always been a trifle puzzled by that one.

As a performer, he's good...but the guy is in love with his own shadow, Business...thats what I meant. LOL!!!!! Yes, Quebec is still part of Canada, but you'd never know it ! R.O. is a very humble performer, a gentleman performer and that's because he has nothing to prove, he's the best brain in Mentalism today...but he dosen't make love to himself like Brown does. Brown's motto should be..."I love me, who do you love" ?

~Rick~

I am no fan of Derren but if lack of ego was a requirement for showbusiness success I would venture to say there would be rather a scarcity of people left in the business.

Showbusiness and big egos go together like Bacon and Eggs. In fact it is almost a requirement. Since showbusiness is a tough business you need the big ego to keep going when things are hard. I bet even mentalists from Quebec have big egos! I get a psychic feeling regarding this!

Dunninger himself who you admire so much was no slouch in the ego department. I even have an audiotape of him admitting to the fact.

I don't care about how much ego a person has. I do care about how much talent they have.

Derren can build a monument to himself for all I care. The trouble is that I suspect that the monument would have marginally more personality than he has himself.

I won't say he stinks. A lot of people seem to like him. However I will say that he bores the crap out of me. But then he is a mentalist. He is supposed to be boring.

Tradition you know.

Hi Business, I agree with you, I tell my wife all the time that we, as performers, have to have an ego. But thank god, most of us know how to handle it and how to project confidence with out looking like an ego maniac.

Yes, my ego is big...why ? This business has cost me 2 wives, several friends, thousands of dollars, on 2 occasions my health and the loss of respect with some family members...and you know what ? I survived it all, I just finished a 12 year stint at a resort that was only supposed to last 3 months, I'm still healthy and I'm happily married to a wonderful woman ...Plus...Richard Osterlind said he loved my book test !!!!! That is why my ego is big.

I predict that within the year, D.B. will no longer be as popular with the general public as he is now..."flash in the pan" he won't have the staying power Kreskin, Geller or Dunninger have and had.

~Rick~

I'll let you into a little secret. I made Derren Brown famous in the first place.
Indirectly I'll admit. I will also admit that he has no idea who I am or even that I am responsible for the idea of his TV series.

I am not going to explain why. Too complicated to explain. A bit like the average mentalist's performance.

Ok...this is turning into a mystery novel...LOL!
~Rick~

Oh. Forget I said it.
I wish I hadn't mentioned it now.
The post was a figment of your imagination everybody.

Rick, first of all, I completely respect your opinion and, having not had the chance to see DB on video (or in person), I withold judgement until I do (unlike others). That being said, however, I must admit I was extremely impressed with the range of his thinking in his two books. His philosophy and theory stimulated and challenged me. How do you feel about his writing?
Regards,
Ruben

Hi Ruben, nice to meet you...I have not read his writings, I have only seen him on video. I don't like how he presents himself as a performer. He just dosen't have the "ummpff" that kreskin, Osterlind, Dunninger, Fogel, Koran or Ireland have or had. that's all, it's like seeing a movie you don't like...well, this was a mental show...some actors you like/dislike...some mental workers you like/dislike.

Now, all of you Derren Brown fans, get used to the fact that some people don't like your idol...and lets drop this thing or I'll start sticking pins in my D.B. doll !! LOL...just kidding.

~Rick~

Well, I like him, I think he's quite balanced in personality and an angle that's unique.

I did enjoy watching an effect that took me a second to say to myself "hey, wait a minute, that's in 13 Steps to Mentalism"

Jason

I have recently completed reading DBs books and I think the key to why he is succesful is partly in the books and partly perhaps luck and timing.

HOW HE THINKS ABOUT MAGIC
He thinks about magic in terms of the people watching it, and he really knows what makes an audience scratch. He is fairly irreleverent about 'classic' magic that leaves him cold (as effects) and I must say I can see his point. So he seems to think 'outside the traditional magic box'

IMHO he would have been succesful in any age, because he understands how to create the effect that triggers a strong emotional response - the sort that people talk about for years.

TIMING AND TV
Timing is also v. important - his image as a brand, fits extreamly well with the brand image of one of UKs terrestial TV channels, whether his band image was in place before Channel4 got him, or whether it was near and it evolved to fit the Channel branding is an interesting question - if someone 'in the know' could elucidate I would love to know.

Now we are in a TV age, I wonder if many of our magic heros would have risen to the top in terms of TV exposure if TV in its current form was around when they were? I think of many great theatre actors now who have control and persona in the theatre who cannot covert to big name TV or films?

Since I can't compare DB with other greats other than through thier writings, I find DBs journey through the classics of magic, into his own understanding of what makes an audience respond, very compelling.

In the end, I think it boils down to the following maxim (sounds like a proverb?):

"Only a fool ignores someone who IS sucessful, when they are explaining WHY they are sucessful"

Rick, just out of interest, what video have you seen? Are you talking about his mentalism TV series or the Devil's Picturbook, which is a card magic tutorial with a touch of mentalism?

There are two very different Derrens out there in video land!

Business, if you are one of the catalysts for putting him in place would you consider part of what you are saying a little bit of jealousy? (That is a serious question - I hope you have the courage to answer honestly)

Rick, Derren Brown has plenty of Umpff in his stage show. In fact I find mentalism boring to watch, yet was entertained - and in fact I didn't stop laughing (excpet when he slaughtered the chicken, which I thought was a bit much - oops we aren't meant to talk about the second part) a very entertaining and amusing performer. I have no idea how he compares to Dunninger as I have never seen Dunninger in action. I have heard some audio and it sounded a bit pompous, but I could have got a misrepresentation from that.

If you are going to get into a discussion about something you can't tell people to 'leave it' when they start to question or disagree with you. You open the can, you play with the worms.

I read that Mark Lewis is with us again