Hi,

This question is about dangerous magic. I was very excited about performing a roulette (blindfolded slamming of the hand on a bag or cup that contains a nail or knife) trick, but after viewing accident videos on youtube I have decided that this trick is a tool for idiots to harm themselves or others.

What other tricks besides roulette and the bullet catch have a dangerous reputation? I ask in part because I’m investigating the razor blade on string trick.

TAJ

Most any trick involving fire can go south on you real fast, plus in some places you are in violation of local fire codes for using them.

Lol, the muscle pass makes me sore! HEHEHE! ^.^

Almost anything can hurt you if not used properly.

I Lost my nail from an arm chopper.
I have a friend that cut open his ****ing finger, with a bill in lemon routine. and I mean like really cut it open.

haha, same here

Perhaps you should add just "cutting open an orange" to the list.

Bob

I guess I am just funny, I do not like to do magic that Hurts. I just don't see the reason why you should have to. But this does not mean hurt by practice, like the muscle pass or palming or things like this. Just me, though.

I am assuming you actually mean a dangerous reputation, and not actually dangerous. Here's what I came up with:

Guillotine trick; swords basket; Hindu rope trick (for the assistant anyhow...); most escapology has an element of danger; most circus geek tricks; needle thru arm; spirit mediumship can be played up as "dangerous".

And, of course, using cards as weapons.

Thanks, gaddy, I meant tricks that have actually injured the performer. When magicians take a real risk of injuring themselves. Roulette, in my opinion, has that reputation, and I consider it a dangerous trick. I suppose tricks that have a “dangerous reputation” and tricks that are “actually dangerous” go hand in hand.

TAJ

I have seen a video in which the magician was doing the trick with the paper cups and a knife, and he thought it was the right cup...boom! Knife went right trough his hand and blood was gushing everywhere.

I saw another video in which the magician was playing the same trick, only the spectator was the one to get hurt.

As everyone has stated, dangerous magic can go south very fast, or it can get a major wow.


If you want to see the videos, they're posted on YouTube somewhere.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=GCmjwR8Y_q4

Ouch.

That's the video! I can't believe the one where the spectator got stabbed. That alone probably ruined the poor man's career.

Chainsaw juggling.

GlenD! I can't even image chainsaw juggling. I don't know how they do it or knife juggling! I would never risk it. That's why I remain a kid show performer, funny and safe.

I disagree.

I cannot understand why someone would do a trick that could kill them. It's foolish in the extreme. If you perform a trick long enough, you WILL screw it up - that's called the law of averages.

Ever screw up a card trick? It sucked, didn't it?

The professionals who have screwed up and DIED from doing the bullet catch all thought the method they used was foolproof. The trick that they though was safe but looked very dangerous was actually the one that killed them. I suppose THAT'S called irony, but I just call it stupidity.

Being a stuntman is one thing, being a magician is another. Stuntmen sometimes spend months in a traction harness in the hospital as an occupational hazard. That's not in my job description as a magician. Whatever those guys make in $$$ it's still not enough, in my opinion.

Good Luck, and choose your occupation wisely...

TAJ... Love the avatar, man! John is by far the best L&L spectator there is. lol

PS- Razor blades on the string is quite safe, IMHO. Maybe not the best trick to do while dancing or jumping around, but safe enough.

I saw a TV show recently about GOOD STUNTS GONE BAD. Part of the segment was showing magicians that injured themselves and/or spectators. Two of the errors involved the SPIKE UNDER CUP ROUTINE. The first time a magician slammed his hand down very hard on the spike, possibly tearing ligaments and leaving permanent damage to movement. UNBELIEVABLY, the second magician was using a spectator's hand to slam down on the cups!!!! HOW INSANE IS THAT?!?! And yes, the spike went right in her hand. After they rushed her off to the hospital, the video showed the magician pick up the last cup to see if there was a second spike. He couldn't believe he messed up.
I also read an article by Tony Robbins on his side show. In it, he talked about the fire eaters getting terrible digestive problems at times because they were performing 8-10 shows a day. He said that small drops of lighter fluid would end up dripping on their tongues in which it ended up being swallowed. He said it would inflame (no pun intended) their liver/kidneys and the guys would have to quit the eating for a few months.
I'm not saying "it's all bad,"...just be careful and use wisdom.

Fire-eating will also cause cancer, petroleum products are a known carcinogen.

I plan to take up fire-eating when I'm about 70 or so and not too worried about that sort of thing...

Flash paper can be dangerous, but you just have to be careful.

Zach