WTF Uri Geller?

Sooo I had heard a lot about Uri Geller but I didn't really know what his shtick was, I had never seen him do a trick, I just knew he bent spoons and stuff like that. I accidentally found a video where James Randi was exposing him:


What I was impressed was how stupid his trick was. I genuinely have no clue how he got this famous. It's awfully boring and it just so clearly looks like something's up from the handle right from the start and that he's pushing it around with his fingers. What kind of a stupid "power" is that anyways, he can bend them using his mind but he also has to rub them a bunch for some reason? It's also so shoddy and suspicious right from the start, like, they offer him to use some other piece of cutlery and he's like "naaaah I'll use this one". And for a moment apparently he got worried that he picked the wrong one because he lifted another one off the tray and looked at the handle. It's ridiculous.

What a talentless hack, I don't mind "magicians" who pretend they're for real too much because, you know, whatever, it's their job and it's kind of like an art form. I prefer the ones who don't pretend, but it is still fine by me. But there's so many people who are so much better than this moron, and the wildest thing is that the other morons at CIA actually took him seriously for some reason. It also doesn't help that he litigated against people who exposed him. What an asshole.

Ι'm speechless at how bad these tricks are:



There's no way to not see it wasn't bent when he was pretending it was, and that he clearly bent it with his hands right in front of the camera when he got up. It so clearly looks like a normal spoon while he is acting like it's bending, and then it looks completely out of shape when he gives it to the other woman. Such a garbage trick. You don't even have to pause and rewind to see this. It's obvious.

Or how about this one:


HE'S JUST PEEKING. THAT'S THE TRICK FOLKS. HE'S PEEKING.

Highly advanced world famous wizard.

Like, again, I'm not surprised because it's fake, of course it is. I am surprised by how awful and shoddy his tricks were and yet he became famous. So many magicians have vastly more skillful and elaborate tricks and they aren't nearly as famous. Hell, I've seen one live, he somehow pulled a goldfish out of a bank note, of course it was fake, but it was actually an impressive trick and I have no idea how he did it, but this just sucks.

Penn and Teller once had a show where they explained tricks or demonstrated tricks or something, can't quite remember.

Anyways one trick they demonstrated in Vegas.  They began by walking up to people and asking them if they were going to see Celine Dion in concert there, seemingly as an ice breaker.  Later they explained that the question is designed to filter out people smart enough to catch onto the trick they were doing.

Remember, these grifters intentionally seek out stupid audiences.

Geller got famous because people WANTED to believe him.

I remember watching him on TV as a child, and I wanted to think it was real because if he could have magic powers, well maybe I could too, and if he could really do those things them maybe all the other paranormal and mystical stuff was real too.

I still knew he was fake, but I wanted to believe. I still do, it's just going to take more than spoon bending on the Tonight Show to make me feel that sense of wonder these days.

Geller got famous because people WANTED to believe him.

I remember watching him on TV as a child, and I wanted to think it was real because if he could have magic powers, well maybe I could too, and if he could really do those things them maybe all the other paranormal and mystical stuff was real too.

I still knew he was fake, but I wanted to believe. I still do, it's just going to take more than spoon bending on the Tonight Show to make me feel that sense of wonder these days.

How did he get famous though and not someone actually competent?

Like, look at this:


It's so sad...

Quote from: JJA on May 20, 2021, 04:02:20 AM

Geller got famous because people WANTED to believe him.

I remember watching him on TV as a child, and I wanted to think it was real because if he could have magic powers, well maybe I could too, and if he could really do those things them maybe all the other paranormal and mystical stuff was real too.

I still knew he was fake, but I wanted to believe. I still do, it's just going to take more than spoon bending on the Tonight Show to make me feel that sense of wonder these days.

How did he get famous though and not someone actually competent?

Like, look at this:


It's so sad...

Competent people who were skilled and knew what they were doing got famous and rich, like David Copperfield.

People like Uri Geller just got on a few TV shows and never really made any serious money.

Those grand magic shows where they dress up and have music and a beautiful assistant (no doubt there to avert your gaze from what the magician is actually doing) is great. We know it's an illusion and an act with smoke and mirrors but like WWE, they put on a great show and we are entertained.

It's the recent trend of 'Street magicians' that I can't stand. Those that try to pass off as actually having some magic power and a crowd no doubt paid to take part to fool the TV audience. Also the ones that do utterly stupid shit that can risk their life (like being buried alive or near drowning).

I don't know this Uri Geller guy but I don't object to people that use illusion to fool an audience as long as the audience knows 'it's just an illusion'. The best ones are where we are kept guessing how the hell their trick works

Got no time for people that want to fool people as if they actually have 'magic' powers. Screw those guys

A true magician is an artist. But a lot of these guys (perhaps like Uri) are con men

Quote from: Pezevenk on May 20, 2021, 04:11:05 AM

Quote from: JJA on May 20, 2021, 04:02:20 AM

Geller got famous because people WANTED to believe him.

I remember watching him on TV as a child, and I wanted to think it was real because if he could have magic powers, well maybe I could too, and if he could really do those things them maybe all the other paranormal and mystical stuff was real too.

I still knew he was fake, but I wanted to believe. I still do, it's just going to take more than spoon bending on the Tonight Show to make me feel that sense of wonder these days.

How did he get famous though and not someone actually competent?

Like, look at this:


It's so sad...

Competent people who were skilled and knew what they were doing got famous and rich, like David Copperfield.

People like Uri Geller just got on a few TV shows and never really made any serious money.

Uri Geller is extremely famous. Almost as much as Copperfield. And he is a multi-millionaire, so I think he did pretty well all things considered.

Those grand magic shows where they dress up and have music and a beautiful assistant (no doubt there to avert your gaze from what the magician is actually doing) is great. We know it's an illusion and an act with smoke and mirrors but like WWE, they put on a great show and we are entertained.

It's the recent trend of 'Street magicians' that I can't stand. Those that try to pass off as actually having some magic power and a crowd no doubt paid to take part to fool the TV audience. Also the ones that do utterly stupid shit that can risk their life (like being buried alive or near drowning).

I don't know this Uri Geller guy but I don't object to people that use illusion to fool an audience as long as the audience knows 'it's just an illusion'. The best ones are where we are kept guessing how the hell their trick works

Got no time for people that want to fool people as if they actually have 'magic' powers. Screw those guys

A true magician is an artist. But a lot of these guys (perhaps like Uri) are con men

Some street magicians are very neat. Even some people who make very neat and polished videos mostly utilizing very clever editing, where even if you know they are doing that it can be incredibly hard to figure out what exactly they did. But Geller's tricks are just stupid.

Geller got famous because people WANTED to believe him.

I remember watching him on TV as a child, and I wanted to think it was real because if he could have magic powers, well maybe I could too, and if he could really do those things them maybe all the other paranormal and mystical stuff was real too.

I still knew he was fake, but I wanted to believe. I still do, it's just going to take more than spoon bending on the Tonight Show to make me feel that sense of wonder these days.

JJA hit the nail on the head here.

I know Pezevenek sorta gets off on his own, "I'm smart, but a condescending ass about it," shtick, but what JJA said really is the answer. People saw what they wanted to see and believed it.

And then more skeptical people like myself you, and James Randi saw straight through it fairly quickly.

Quote from: JJA on May 20, 2021, 04:22:06 AM

Quote from: Pezevenk on May 20, 2021, 04:11:05 AM

Quote from: JJA on May 20, 2021, 04:02:20 AM

Geller got famous because people WANTED to believe him.

I remember watching him on TV as a child, and I wanted to think it was real because if he could have magic powers, well maybe I could too, and if he could really do those things them maybe all the other paranormal and mystical stuff was real too.

I still knew he was fake, but I wanted to believe. I still do, it's just going to take more than spoon bending on the Tonight Show to make me feel that sense of wonder these days.

How did he get famous though and not someone actually competent?

Like, look at this:


It's so sad...

Competent people who were skilled and knew what they were doing got famous and rich, like David Copperfield.

People like Uri Geller just got on a few TV shows and never really made any serious money.

Uri Geller is extremely famous. Almost as much as Copperfield. And he is a multi-millionaire, so I think he did pretty well all things considered.

Huh, well I stand corrected.

Seems like he duped the Aussies out of some serious dough:

“By the mid-1980s, Geller was described as "a millionaire several times over", and claimed to be performing mineral dowsing services for mining groups at a standard fee of £1 million.[20] In June 1986, the Australian Skeptic reported that Geller had been paid AU$350,000 and granted an option of 1,250,000 Zanec shares at AU$0.20 each until 5 June 1987.[21]“

My personal favorite magician:

JJA did nail it. Also, people forget just how high everyone was in the 70’s (especially the ones high at the time).  The cia was clearly also consuming the same drugs they were flooding the market with; good dealers/pushers know not to use their products...  However the morons in foreign governments also fell for this trash, so it is conceivable that a lot of it was legitimate psyop.  Remote viewing is the ultimate glass prison if you fall for it...

In any case, studying magic is extremely important and highly relevant to independent research (flat earth research being one example).  People like penn and teller and randi can help immensely.

In fairness to uri, his methods were not always the same and he has dropped the “i’m really a magical wizard” routine.  He now bills himself as a normal magician.  Derren brown and many other douchebags are still out there though.

Does anyone remember “crossing over”? Or know who joel osteen (or what televangelim) is?

Also, as others have pointed out “he was an earner” and so is a success in his (and sadly ours as well) morally bankrupt “culture”.

Seems like he duped the Aussies out of some serious dough:

“By the mid-1980s, Geller was described as "a millionaire several times over", and claimed to be performing mineral dowsing services for mining groups at a standard fee of £1 million.[20] In June 1986, the Australian Skeptic reported that Geller had been paid AU$350,000 and granted an option of 1,250,000 Zanec shares at AU$0.20 each until 5 June 1987.[21]“

My personal favorite magician:

He even duped the CIA apparently, so...

Quote from: Stash on May 20, 2021, 02:58:00 PM

Seems like he duped the Aussies out of some serious dough:

“By the mid-1980s, Geller was described as "a millionaire several times over", and claimed to be performing mineral dowsing services for mining groups at a standard fee of £1 million.[20] In June 1986, the Australian Skeptic reported that Geller had been paid AU$350,000 and granted an option of 1,250,000 Zanec shares at AU$0.20 each until 5 June 1987.[21]“

My personal favorite magician:

He even duped the CIA apparently, so...

Yep, there's that too.

That time the CIA was convinced a self-proclaimed psychic had paranormal abilities
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2017/01/19/that-time-the-cia-was-convinced-a-self-proclaimed-psychic-had-paranormal-abilities/

I'm a believer in general. My favorite is Chris angel climbing through a solid window. Uri Geller has a neat video on his website that shows him bending spoons and melting them - also their were the stanford (sri) positive test results where he did remote viewing. I think you might consider that they probably are not allowed to prove it to a non believer.

Criss Angel the illusionist and stage magician?  You really think he can fly and bring people back from the dead?

Geller is a third rate hack.