Illusionist David Blaine has been snubbed by Guinness Book of Records for his forthcoming feat of being suspended in a clear plastic box over London's River Thames for 44 days. Guinness World Records chiefs told the UK's Press Association they had been contacted by the U.S. magician asking for his feats to be recognized. But compilers of the book say they would not actively endorse fasting records -- and the size of his temporary plexi-glass home is not even as small as current record holders. (CNN (http://edition.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/europe/09/04/uk.blaine/))

Anyone see that "stunt" where he cut off part of his ear? I'm assuming (from the lack of follow-up stories) that the journalists are too embarrassed to admit they were tricked in to reporting it?

What does anyone else think of Mr Blaine?

(PS. I rearranged CNN's paragraphs so they flow better :P)

I've got the book 'David Blaine: Mysterious Stranger' and it's very good.

I like David Blaine and feel that although his methods of illusion and human achievement aren't always authodox, they are very good and entertaining.
One of my fav's being the pulling the head off a chicken and reattatching it afterwards its great.

Good luck to him. Since he's gonna be in country for a few weeks, i may take a trip down to london to see his latest test of human strength.

Good Luck David!

And yes I think he should go in the Guinness Book of Records!

Originally posted by DaBouncer
And yes I think he should go in the Guinness Book of Records!

what for though? hes not actually broken any records :lol: i wouldnt mind being in the records book, but as ive not broken any record i wont be allowed in ;)

What about the time he spent on top of that tower in Downtown NYC?

What about being buried alive in a block of ice?

Are these not worthy?

And this feat he is attempting 44 days and nights with no food, company or anything.... just water!

The Guiness Book of Records wont endorse it because of the risk aspect. What about all the stuntment that are in the record books for movie stunt. anyone of those could have been killed. Yet they appear in the book.

he was good when he did tricks like throwing cards at windows and making the chosen card be on the other side of the glass but now he's nothing more than a stuntman.

There is no illusion or magic in fasting for six weeks. Even Penn and Teller were better than that.

Originally posted by alchresearch
he was good when he did tricks like throwing cards at windows and making the chosen card be on the other side of the glass but now he's nothing more than a stuntman.

There is no illusion or magic in fasting for six weeks. Even Penn and Teller were better than that.
And that's the simple trick of buying 2 decks of cards, pick one from deck a and stick inside a car window, on the ceilin etc, then use the deck b to force a card on an unsuspecting mark.

Originally posted by DaBouncer
What about the time he spent on top of that tower in Downtown NYC?

What about being buried alive in a block of ice?

Are these not worthy?

And this feat he is attempting 44 days and nights with no food, company or anything.... just water!


nope!

he never broke the record for either, and the "buried alive in a block of ice" wasnt as fancy as you call it, it was basically not even as cold as the ice hotel in scandinavia and people stay for weeks there :lol:

he'd have to beat the record set on tomorrows world for being in iced water to get in...

but that'd not be an illusion ;) not that im saying hes not cool, he is, very infact. but hes not a record breaker!

Originally posted by RPG
nope!

he never broke the record for either, and the "buried alive in a block of ice" wasnt as fancy as you call it, it was basically not even as cold as the ice hotel in scandinavia and people stay for weeks there :lol:

he'd have to beat the record set on tomorrows world for being in iced water to get in...

but that'd not be an illusion ;) not that im saying hes not cool, he is, very infact. but hes not a record breaker!
Whatever RPG! The whole thing about him being a record breaker was for the feat he is undertaking right now! Whether or not he broke records for the other stunts is irrelevant.
Guiness wont accept his stunt/illusion/test of human willpower because they don't want to condone the danger aspect of it.

They're being hypocritical which ever way you slice it!

just read a news statement from GB of R stating they have better and longer records.....didn't Bobby Sands (IRA) last 63 days on hunger strike?

Whatever the truth about David Blaine, one thing is for sure, he is a very brave man, who else, would have the guts to pull off these dangerous stunts? whether he is doing it for publicity, fame, money, memory of his Mother or whatever he gets my vote and long may he reign.

"We have records on our books which are both better and longer", said a Guinness Book of Records spokeswoman.

She said the starvation record was held by Briton Dennis Goodwin, whose hunger strike in Britain's Wakefield Prison ended in July 1973 after 385 days.

The isolation record is held by Texan Bill White, who lay buried in a box of 54 cubic feet for 141 days, two meters underground.


makes blaines "records" look laughable

David Blaine: the Master of Illusion and Magic.
Get in the Guinness Book of Records? What for fooling us?
Ha, he's good, in fact he's brilliant at what he does. Most of it isn't real. It's all an illusion!!
Being buried in a block of ice?? WOW!
Do you believe in UFO's? They're real too!! Yes, really!

Actually I do believe in UFO's... by definition they are just Unidentified Flying Objects... there could be thousands in your life that you couldn't accurately Identify ;) .

Either way on the david blaine issue... if he hasn't broken any records then there is no argument really. It's the way Guinnes pointed out that they would even endorse it due to it being dangerous. Hypocrites spring to mind.

RPG... if they are sooo laughable... I'd love to see you doing something similar. But I suspect you wouldn't have the strength of mind and body to attempt such a feat?

i wouldnt want to :P

if i wanted to get my name in the book id simply join the design team and have my name as an Art editor :lol:

Originally posted by RPG
i wouldnt want to :P

if i wanted to get my name in the book id simply join the design team and have my name as an Art editor :lol:
Not bad! I like the thinking there batman!
I'd like to go for the record of beer mat flipping and catching. Think the recordis summat like over 300 in one hand.

I'm on 67... still working on it!:lol:

In relation to his latest stunt...

"A fool chooses to starve himself and we choose to watch. One billion people have no choice, and we ignore them."

:?

The way I see it is this...

David Copperfield said he'd walk through the Great Wall of China... and he did - with an audience - but it was just an illusion. He never actually said "OK, OK... I didn't really do it, did I!?" He led us to believe he did it - even though we knew it wasn't really possible.

David Blaine says he'll go for 44 days and 44 nights locked in a box with only water to survive on... and he'll do it - with an audience - but it's just an illusion. He'll never actually say "OK, OK... I didn't really do it, did I!?" He'll lead us to believe he did it...

See how alike they are?

Just because he's done some other stunts previously that are pretty impressive and believable - i.e. standing on that pillar, going for a few days "buried alive" - doesn't mean he'll always actually do what he says without cheating... does it? I think he's basically been working up to this stunt. Now we "trust" him, he's trying to take us for a ride! :roll:

That's my €0.02 anyway. ;)

Originally posted by Geoff
In relation to his latest stunt...

"A fool chooses to starve himself and we choose to watch. One billion people have no choice, and we ignore them."

:?

Food for thought - pardon the pun

Whilst I like David Blaine and his illusions, I dont agree with making a TV serial out of it, who want s to watch a box swinging above the Thames day after day.

Which box tucker trial is he gonna do today
or
Which boxmate is he gonna have a bust up with today
or
Are we gonna get a glimpse of flesh when he takes a shower

Oh sorry theres no boxmates, no food and no shower


Not exactly riviting TV.

I think they should can this along with the Games.

Originally posted by mikey
Food for thought - pardon the pun

Whilst I like David Blaine and his illusions, I dont agree with making a TV serial out of it, who want s to watch a box swinging above the Thames day after day.

Which box tucker trial is he gonna do today
or
Which boxmate is he gonna have a bust up with today
or
Are we gonna get a glimpse of flesh when he takes a shower

Oh sorry theres no boxmates, no food and no shower


Not exactly riviting TV.

I think they should can this along with the Games.
nononononono wait - David Blaine has got a supply of nappies up there. This could get exciting. <stifles yawn>

I found it hilarious that someone stood on a nearby bridge and started firing golf balls at the box he's in. Typical Brits - they see someone doing something bizarre so go out of their way to try to mess it up.

I wonder what was going through David's mind when he saw golf balls bouncing off his cage.

Eggs too......

:lol:

I think David Baline is great...... :?

Infact I think the best place he could be is 6ft below ground in a box!

1Man&HisBMW

Originally posted by Geoff
In relation to his latest stunt...

"A fool chooses to starve himself and we choose to watch. One billion people have no choice, and we ignore them."

:?


A very valid point.

He's a con (a good one mind) I saw a how he does it program and there are loads of camera 'cuts' and he learns many trick answers by doing it wrong the first time (enabling him to get a look at somthing etc etc) and then the camera starts rolling to do the SAME trick only he has prior knowledge etc etc.

Clever but a fake!!

Al :)

I read somewhere that his next illusion is to sit in front of a PC for 55 days writing meaningless posts on various threads with nothing to sustain him but pizza and diet coke.

How does this man do it?

I take my hat off to him and will certainly be glued to the TV watching him achieve that record.

I defy the Guiness Book of Records to deny him his rightful place for what will undoubtedly be a major, groundbreaking achievement.

This is on the BBC website today.


http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/tv_and_radio/3099350.stm

david blaine is probably one of the best illusionists ever
but what hes doing at the moment is neither clever or magic, apparently 5 million is what he will be getting if he pulls this off and i'ld have a lot more respect for him if he was doing it for charity

I'd do it for 5 Mil!!!

I thuoght this was quite amusing :

http://www.bbc.co.uk/threecounties/competitions/2003/09/nrdb_comp.shtml

David Blaine has just given up after being told that 44 days doing nothing in the box wasn't enough to beat the world record.

The record is currently held by Emile Heskey at 4 years.
:roll: Football joke if no one got it

:lol: :lol: :lol:

Arrest over Blaine box 'sabotage'


Blaine is a quarter of the way through his 44-day stunt
A man has been arrested after allegedly trying to cut cables coming out of showman David Blaine's box.
The man climbed a tower and scaffolding next to where Blaine is being suspended from a crane in London early on Tuesday morning, said Scotland Yard.

After throwing water bottles and other objects from the tower he tried to cut power and water lines - without success - a police spokesman said.

He came down at 0518 BST and a man in his 40s was held for criminal damage.

The unnamed man is currently being held in custody at a south London police station.

Blaine is taking part in an endurance test, staying 30 feet (nine metres) off the ground in his plastic box with only water for 44 days.

Blaine, 30, who has taken part in similar endurance tests in the US in the past, is 11 days into the London stunt.

He has also been taunted by people hitting golf balls at his box, throwing eggs and bananas and even sending a burger up on a remote controlled helicopter.

You could just shoot him down :D

http://www.brianmung.com/blainegame.htm