David Blaine BiographyBirth

David Blaine was born April 4, 1973 in Brooklyn New York.  In his life he has gone by several last names; Blaine is his middle name.  Patrie White, his single mother, raised him while taking on as many as three jobs.  He never met his real father.

Childhood

At age four he saw a magician perform in a subway; he then decided to purchase his first trick, The Pencil Through the Card.  Magic struck him because of its relationship with math and science.  David's grandmother was a gypsy, and passed down some tarot cards to him.  Since he did not have the money to go to a magic shop, he spent countless hours in libraries researching magic.   There he would read every book he could get his hands on and continued fiddling with his tarot cards.  At age five, he learned what his dream was; after showing a neighbor an effect with the tarot cards, he saw for the first time the impact magic can have emotionally on people.  He immediately told his mom he wanted to be a showman.  She encouraged him in everyway.

At ten his mother got remarried to John Bukalo, a banker, and moved to Jerseyville.  His half-brother Michael was born.  He began to develop an interest in acting.  He traveled to Manhattan everyday to attend an acting school.  He did a few commercials and small appearances on soap operas.  At sixteen, David Blaine levitated for his doctor who immediately took him in for examination.  A year later he moved back to New York and lived in Hell's Kitchen. When David was 21, his mother died of ovarian cancer.  She was 48 and they were very close.  It was then that he devoted his life to magic.

Specials

Magic got into David.  He was your regular street magician who got gigs at rich parties.  Because of his talent and uncanny character, he was able to draw up connections to ABC.  After seeing a tape of his magic, they requested an interview and began planning a special.  David Blaine: Street Magic, his first special, was the beginning of a new era. The special was not about disappearing tigers and thick stage lights; it was the streets, real people, and David.  This had never been done before.  The show was an instant success.  People still talk about David Blaine's levitation.  At only 24 years old, David Blaine became famous.  A few years later he releasedDavid Blaine: Magic Man, which showed him performing around the world.  His other two specials, David Blaine: Vertigo and David Blaine: Frozen in Time, only contained a few segments of his street magic.  The specials revolved around the stunts.

Friends & Girlfriends

David has dated Madonna, Fiona Apple, and model Josie Moran. He was last heard dating the German former model Manon von Gerkan.  He told Howard Stern he still seems to be close to all of his ex's.  He has also had a past close friendship with Leonardo DiCaprio.  He has performed magic before and after he became famous to such people as Al Pacino, Jack Nicholson, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mike Tyson, and President Clinton.  He has also made guest appearances on nearly every major talk show of the decade including Oprah, Conan O'Brien, Rosie, Carson Daily, and Howard Stern.  Even Comedy Central's SouthPark has an episode featuring him.

Stunts

David Blaine became a stuntman after his idol, Houdini.  His first stunt, getting buried alive for seven days, had the approval of Houdini's granddaughter.  He did the stunt to promote his second special, David Blaine: Magic Man.  According to a letter Magic Directory received, David Blaine: Magic Man was named after an old website.  Since then, David has been frozen alive, trapped standing on a poll over a hundred feet from the ground, and viewed hanging from a crane over the River Thames bridge in London.  He likes to get trapped in secluded areas with no food.  Each stunt seems to be more dangerous.  David Blaine will probably continue performing magic and stunts to his 'audience' for the rest of his life.

Merchandise

Because of the demand for his specials, a DVD finally came to the market.  David Blaine: Fearless features the best of David Blaine: Street Magic, David Blaine: Magic Man, and David Blaine: Frozen in Time plus unseen footage.  He has plans to release his Vertigo special and the best of his Above the Below on DVD too.  David has also written a book, Mysterious Stranger, which talks about his life, his magic, and other magicians.  There is said to be a code in the book that leads to a hidden treasure.

Career

Burried Alive stunt

David will perform Monday April 5th, 1999. It will be at Trump Park, 68th Street at West End Avenue (Riverside Place) at 10:00 A.M.

David will attempt to be buried alive for one week under six feet of Plexiglas tank filled with 4000 pounds of water, an attempt no other magician has tried. (the 7 day thing)

David did keep his word when he said "in your face pure and undeniable" by allowing the curious to look down in the coffin through the Plexiglas tank to see David in a trance like state only with a torch. David will be fed four tablespoons of water a day, hopefully enough for him to survive.

Houdini has always fascinated David. Blaine notes that he is performing a trick Houdini never accomplished but always wanted to do. Lance Burton also compared himself to Houdini when he was buried alive.

Lets all hope Blaine gets the respect he deserves. Unlike Houdini or Burton, Blaine will be there seven days and seven nights. Is it a trick, or reality?

Day 2

After day one day of the reporters and newspapers David Blaine turned to his side. Masked Magician Valentino supports Blaine. Keep watching Entertainment Tonight and Inside Edition for the latest news.

They say they can get him out in two minutes if something goes wrong. The air tube is critical.

Day 3

Regis came down to view David in the casket. He offered him a hotdog and told him to come out of there. He made David laugh talking through a microphone telling him how crazy he looks.

David was under a blanket at some of the moments he was in there. I think that maybe he has some food hidden down there and the blanket is to hide him. I believe he is down there, but I don't believe everything down there is the way it seems. After all he does keep licking his tongue. A magician stopped by to examine him and states "David is down there." because of the way he moved.

On the preview for tomorrow, Inside Edition showed an infrared camera down there. It showed David's body in radar. But that is for tomorrow. Inside Edition seems to be "obsessed" with the story.

Why would David go down there? I don't think it is completely stupid if all is true. David stayed in several different stages. He even had his shirt off. David did this for money and more money. Everyone I know has heard something about some magician being buried alive. Event the local TV stations said something. But there is plenty more to come.

I have some images coming that will be taken by Isabela personally. Come back for updates.

It seems every day the line to see Mr. Blaine gets bigger. It was around the block! Instead of a crowd gathering together to see him, they had no choice but to change the system so that only seven or eight people can go at once!

Unlike the first two days he was awake a lot. Amazing. David is the talk of New York everywhere you go you hear something about him.

Day 4

With the sun in his eyes waking up, David Blaine is beginning to look a little weary. He seems to be hung up on licking his lips and looking at his fingers rubbing the edge of the box. Hopefully not a sign of delusions. I meant to mention yesterday, as his shirt was off, you could see the tattoo David got when he was in love with Fiona Apple. He wasn't wearing his pajamas today anymore so they are probably under the blanket. Two girls set up a camp and had been at the sight for four hours. They probably couldn't stay there long because of the long line to see him. I didn't get any new screen shots from inside edition because I didn't have time and there wasn't anything worth seeing anyway, but I will get some from today and tomorrow, tomorrow.

Oh, Regis talked about David on Regis and Kathy Lee this morning. If you have the newest "People Magazine" there is a small article about David's new special David Blaine: Magic Man. I will probably post it in my "In Print" section tomorrow.

My new front page is up due to the fact that the front page was an illegal image so if you copied it from this website, delete it.

There will be some new images coming up Friday or Saturday taken by Isabella Covino. I think I will also have some magazine articles scanned up and ready... maybe take a little longer to get up.

Day 5

If you have been watching David Blaine from the beginning you would notice it seems he is losing some weight. If you happened to go up there get the crowd to applause. It builds up his esteem. Today it is rainy and moist so there wasn't as many people there as usual. They had to put up a big tarp for the rain. I don't think it affected David physically because his coffin is temperature controlled. He has some kind of black pouch. Maybe water pouch. Who can tell? There are a lot of more people who love this. David is not one of them… at least till he gets out of there and eats a real meal.

Day 6

Sorry for the last minute updates. I haven't been here this weekend. I haven't seen anything on TV about him. I will soon have some pictures up send by Isabella. Come back for them. Barbara Walter and Cathy Rigby stopped by. Rosie O'Donnell says David Blaine will be on her show Tuesday April 13 at 3pm central time. She sent her limo driver and a crew out to do a story on David's burial stunt today. He is also supposed to be on Conan that night. The crowds are the biggest yet in the last couple of days. They say David won't be able to walk because of his muscles softened. They should go back to normal in training.

My brother was telling me that David Blaine is not really under there because he has a perfect goatee. I later found out he was watching Inside Edition. I don't know if he shaves in there, but that is something to think about. I have had so many people email me, so hold up till I can get back to you.

Day 7 - the removal

David gets out finally. There was no big deal like I suspected. I bet there would be if David had so called hit the panic button. But David did look weak. He said a few words and went to the ambulance. He was happy and I bet he was eating like a fatty if all was as he said. Houdini's niece came by and said a few words. David Blaine was happy and she said she is David's biggest fan. Some of the few words he said when asked if it was nice to breath fresh air was "it's amazing".

"What I saw was every race of people, every age group, and every religion all gathered together smiling; and that made all of this worth it." - David Blaine

It seems David is happy to get out. "The first thing I did is take a three hour bubble bath." It seems David is preparing for a new publicity stunt. "Yeah I had plenty of time to think about that."

 

Photo of buried alive

Frozen in time

Who?

Magician David Blaine at age 27, wearing only a pair of pants and boots to protect himself, was frozen alive inside...

What?

...a 6-ton van-sized block of ice, one of the biggest in the world. It is 8ft tall, and completely sealed shut (it lost nearly 1/3 of it's weight in the end).

How?

He was encased between two 8x6x6 ft. halves of the ice. Blaine's body contour was cut into it, welded together, so that Blaine can stand up right with little room to scratch his nose. His only lifeline was a tube running through the ice, carrying air and water, and a catheter to urinate. A medical team was standing by, monitoring his vital signs, throughout the ordeal. He worked out eye signals in case of emergency. 

Where?

Blaine was on display in Manhattan's Times Square at the heavily trafficked corner of 44th St. and Broadway. The site was open to the public during the entire time of the challenge so people can walk in, take pictures, and touch the ice. It was in full view of his security guards, friends, and anyone who wanders by.

The rest of the show features prerecorded stunts filmed on location in Italy, Israel, and Indonesia.

When?

He was incarcerated at 9 a.m. on Monday, November 27, 2000. His goal was 58 hours. David Blaine: Frozen in Time aired at 10 p.m. est. Wednesday, November 29, 2000, on ABC. He was released at the end of the special.

Why?

"The mythic magician Harry Houdini has been an inspiration for my work," Blaine said. "In his 1922 movie, The Man from Beyond, there is an image of Houdini frozen in ice, although he never actually tried this challenge. That movie premiered at the Times Square Theater at 42nd and Broadway, so I wanted to be frozen in time here in Times Square."

"What David hopes his stunts to accomplish is to bring all kinds of people together, act out for them their common fears" - he lets them look as long as they like - "and help them see their common humanity," says William Kalush, Blaine's closest friend and collaborator. "Seeing someone do something exceptional gives us hope."

Preparation

He prepared himself by immersing in tubs of ice and attempting to acclimate himself to the cold temperatures. He was only wearing shorts and a pair of boots to protect himself and primitive ointment made for cold climates. He has been learning to sleep standing up, he has practiced 14-hour test in an ice-house in Nyack, New York (afterward, he sat in his car with the heat on full blast; six hours

later he was still shivering), and he was also fasting for 4 days beforehand to prevent himself from going "number two".

Problems

The two inches of air that separate Blaine from the ice will prevent him from freezing to death, although he says matter-of-factly, "the doctors tell me that blood clot could form that could travel to my brain and kill me. If I fall asleep and my face rests against the ice, I could lose my skin or freeze my brain. If my core temperature drops below 87 degrees, my heart could stop." "Hunger I can deal with. When I was buried alive I didn't eat for 13 days!" he boasted.

"The biggest dangers are loss of circulation and frostbite in his fingers and toes, and the threat of falling asleep, in which case his head could slump, bringing his face into contact with the ice, damaging the skin, " said Ronald Rudin, MD, Blaine's medical consultant. "There also is the danger of blood clots which could break loose and move the brain or other vital organs as David is being broken out of the ice." Some of the other serious dangers Blaine could face is Hypothermia and muscle spasms.

Records

57 minutes is the world record for lying down in an ice encasement. Blaine broke that record and set a new record for standing still in the ice (61 hours, 40 minutes, and 15 seconds).

Celebrities

Celebrities that commented on his stunt include Michael J. Fox, Kevin Spacy, Lenny Kravitz, and he performed a trick on The New York Knicks.

Effects

A name "Meagan" is thought of by a girl in New York holding a book. The girl says she is 30 years old. David tells her to open the book to page 30, and an "M" is burned in fire on that page.

The seven of spades is selected by a Knicks basketball player and appears inside a basketball.

David visibly changes the signature of the treasurer on a dollar bill to the spectator's signature.

A young woman's ring is dropped into the sewer and magically appears in a small bottle away from the spectators, and the ring is too big to be placed in the bottle.

A pigeon is brought back to life by a magical touch.

David makes a snake appear out of a borrowed hat.

A guy's girlfriend appears drawn in detail on David's stomach.

JOURNAL

Day 1 (November 27, 2000)

David was put in the ice at 9:00 a.m. live on Good Morning America. There were five cameras you could have watched him at on the davidblaine.com webcam. At 11:45 p.m. David takes a shirt he had tied around his waste and puts it on. His actions cause two wires monitoring his vital signs to come free.

Day 2 (November 28, 2000)

At 3:00 a.m., the ice melts at about 3 gallons an hour because of the November heat. They may have added up to 10 blocks extra to prevent the whole thing from melting. By 9:30 a chainsaw cuts around it the whole thing to balance weight distribution. At 10:00 a.m. David successfully reattaches his heart monitor lead with the help of his workers. Sometime around  noon, David is said to be drinking more than usual, indicating he could be fighting dehydration. At 4:40 they remove and switch cameras to fix another weight problem. 

 

Groups of people have stopped by to say hello and cheer him on, including celebrities, super models, and even a bus full of topless women! He answered tons of questions with a nod or a shake that users asked him online.

Day 3 (November 29, 2000)

The workers chiseled out the last of the ice creating a small hole. David is anxious to get out. He finally does by the help of his stage men. As the audience cheers him on, he is unable to walk on his swelled legs, and he has the look of shock. Blood clots are on the paramedics mind as he gives his girlfriend a kiss. A blanket is wrapped around him while "David... David... David..." is screeching in his ears. "Something's wrong!" he stutters. "My mind doesn't feel right from not sleeping." His feet give him pain from the three day stand. He's put on a stretcher and taken away to the ambulance. Simultaneously, David Blaine gives his fans one last smile.

Departure

After 61 hours, 40 minutes, and 15 seconds Mr. Magic Man David Blaine stayed in a block of ice Frozen in Time. He appeared Thursday, November 30, to Diane

Sawyer on Good Morning America and later on Rosie O' Donnell from his bed in his Greenwich Village, New York, apartment via satellite. His ankles were visibly swollen in pain, but he managed to escape frostbite. 

"It was a nightmare," Blaine said. "When the ice closed around me, I was terrified, I thought, 'I can't do this, no way' After 24 hours, I was pretending I was a prisoner of war. It made me get through it a little bit better. But then I hallucinated, and that was it; I was in trouble. I thought I was dead. I was in this weird place, and I felt the cold ice. I could see Josie through the ice, but no one could hear me, not even when I was shouting."

"Tom Bramlett, the Ice Engineer, saw how agitated I was and told them to just cut me free with the chain saws. I didn't know if I was dead or alive. I thought my mind was gone. I didn't know what I was going to do for work. I thought the biggest disaster ever."

David thought his career was over and that he possible wouldn't walk again. His feet were swollen, he couldn't move his legs from the knees down, and he needed help to the bathroom. He was mesmerized to see himself on a recording. He told entertainment tonight: "It's weird. I'm really terrified and freaking out. I think I'm not going to make it, I'm telling my guys to get me out." So, why didn't that happen? "I ordered them not to."  Blaine claims his next few feats will be a little calmer and less dangerous. "I learned a lot." Such as? "I'll fight whatever they got."

Abolished Plan

After the "frozen alive", he said he will receive a shot on the chest, with nothing over it, fall on the ground, remove the bullet, and go away walking! Sound a little risky? Not to worry, he explains, “I’ve been working in the gym several hours a day, doing ancient Chinese exercises involving energy transferal through the muscles.” By strengthening his body and mind, he intends to “stop” the bullet with his

body. The following year he hopes to be tied upside down off the side of a building 10 stories above a sidewalk.

Above the below

Who?

Up to 4,000 people turned out to see magician David Blaine at age 30 carrying only diapers, a journal, some pens, lip balm, a pillow and a pad to lie on trapped...

What?

in a clear plastic 7ft x 7ft x 3ft box hanging by a crane 450 feet (135 meters) above...

Where?

the Thames River in London near Tower Bridge.  His first major stunt outside the United States had European traffic backed up during those six weeks by people stopping to take a glance.

When?

David Blaine spent 44 days and 44 nights entering September 5, 2003 and emerging October 19, 2003.

 

How?

He ate no food and had one tube for water and another for urinating.  He was able to watch his girlfriend, former model Manon von Gerkan, who was allowed to go up the crane to clean the outside of the box.  He also had the help of a

picture of his mother he brought with him.

"It's been really cold, and when you are starving your body only produces one-third of its heat. It's been 40 degrees some nights."

Why?

"I think right now I'm in my physical peak, kind of. So I'd like to go as far as I can with it."

"I thought it would be amazing to see a human being framed in a glass case, almost like this butterfly that I have in my apartment that someone gave me that was dead, and then a little clear-from-

all-sides glass frame, I always thought it was amazing."

"It also had to do with the [Franz] Kafka short story called "The Hunger Artist," about this performer that put himself in a little cage and put himself on display and starved himself. So that kind of combination triggered this idea."

Publicity

Paul McCartney visited his site and reportedly scuffled with a photographer.  'Spoon-bending' friend Uri Gellar also had many visits and defended his stunt when skeptics offered theories to how it could be faked.  President Bush even mentioned him in a speech when he said that the last notable American to visit London "stayed in a glass box dangling over the Thames."  Ten British police officers faced disciplinary action after they abandoned their street patrol to watch him.  A British businessman was fined over $1000 for causing criminal damage to his water supply when he threw a plastic water container from the tower, ripping off the feeder pipe and breaking two taps.  The entire Blaine stunt was covered by Sky One and Channel 4 and had a live web cam.

Tormenting

David Blaine had every kind of distraction know to man.  Ladies flashed their breasts.  Men showed their buttocks.  A woman even ran naked underneath him dubbing "Hip Hop Houdini." Eggs, golf balls, and paint where thrown at him.  The smell of barbecue, chips, fish, and even a hamburger hanging from a remote control helicopter is enough to tease anyone.  He awoke one morning by a man banging on drums.

"We were watching him at home on TV and it was really dull so we thought we would come down and liven things up. I wanted to wake him up,'' the drummer Shiraz Azam, 21, told London's Evening Standard.

By the final week, however, taunts were largely replaced by encouraging shouts and handwritten signs stuck along the fence around his riverside enclosure.

 

departure

Thousands of fans cheered him on as he burst into tears emerging from the box.

"I’ve learned how important it is to have a sense of humor and laugh at everything, because nothing makes sense any more. I love all of you forever."

Dr. Adam Carey weight him about 205 lbs before the stunt.  It was recorded to be about 155 lbs after.  He lost around 50 lbs since he entered the box.

"He had a sleepless first night out of his box suffering stomach cramps," according to gastroenterologist Professor Powell-Tuck, who was responsible for his care at the London Independent Hospital.  "However, initial blood tests have proved satisfactory," he added.

David Blaine in the box for Above the Below in front of thousands at City Hall

(London).

On September 5, 2003, Blaine began his 44-day endurance stunt sealed inside a

transparent Plexiglas case suspended 30 feet (9 m) in the air next to Potters

Fields Park on the south bank of the River Thames, the area between City

Hall and Tower Bridgein London. The case, measuring 3 feet (0.9 m) by 7 feet

(2.1 m) by 7 feet (2.1 m), had a webcam installed so that viewers could observe

his progress. During the 44-day period, Blaine went without any food or nutrients

and survived on just 4.5 liters of water per day.

The endurance stunt became the subject of much media attention. The

Guardian wrote, "Blaine has created one of the most eloquent and telling visual

images of our time."] The Times reported that "1,614 articles in the British press

have made reference to the exploit." Former U.S. President George W.

Bush referred to Blaine’s stunt in a speech at the Whitehall Palace in London,

saying “The last noted American to visit London stayed in a glass box dangling

over the Thames. A few might have been happy to provide similar arrangements

for me.”

A number of spectators were mischievous or hostile towards the endurance

artist. The Times reported that eggs, lemons, sausages, bacon, water bottles,

beer cans, paint-filled balloons and golf balls had all been thrown at the box.[31] The Evening Standard reported that one man was arrested for attempting to

cut the water supply to Blaine's box.[33] According to BBC News, a hamburger

was flown up to the box by a remote-controlled helicopter as a taunt.[34]

On September 25, BBC News reported that Blaine announced via webcam that

he was feeling the taste of pear drops on his tongue.] Dr. Adam Carey, who

performed a medical examination of Blaine before he entered the box, said that

the taste was produced by ketones produced by the body burning fatty acids,

which are themselves produced from fat reserves via glycerol.

Blaine emerged on schedule on October 19, murmuring "I love you all!" and was

quickly hospitalized. The New England Journal of Medicine published a paper

that documented his 44 day fast and stated that his re-feeding was perhaps the

most dangerous part of the stunt.[36] The study reported, “He lost 24.5 kg (25

percent of his original body weight), and his body mass index dropped from 29.0

to 21.6. His appearance and body-mass index after his fast would not by

themselves have alerted us to the risks of refeeding. Despite cautious

management, he had hypophosphatemia and fluid retention, important elements

of the refeeding syndrome.”[37] The event was filmed by cult director, and close

friend of Blaine, Harmony Korine.

Promotions

Blaine shocked a group of journalists in London when he appeared to cut off part of his ear at a news conference to promote the plastic box stunt.

Despite much publicity, Blaine's feat was not recognized by the Guinness Book of Records.

VertigoOn May 22, 2002, a crane lifted Blaine onto a 100-foot (30 m) high and 22-inch

(0.56 m) wide pillar in Bryant Park, New York City. Although he was not

harnessed to the pillar, there were two retractable handles on either side of him

to grasp in the event of harsh weather.] The Evening Standard's James Langton

wrote, "He was battered by high winds and unusually cold May weather during

his first night and would have been killed or seriously injured if he had fallen." He

remained on the pillar for exactly 35 hours. The New Yorker’s Adam Gopnik

wrote, “David Blaine, standing up there, is actually as good a magical metaphor

for the moment as Houdini, fighting his way out of the straitjacket of immigrant

identity toward prosperity, was for his." With his legs weak from standing atop the

pillar for so long, he ended the feat by jumping down onto a landing platform

made out of a 12-foot (3.7 m) high pile of cardboard boxes and suffered a

mild concussion.

Mysterious Stranger

On October 29, 2002, Random House published David Blaine's Mysterious

Stranger: A Book of Magic. Part autobiography, part history of magic, and

part armchair treasure hunt, the book also includes instructions on how to

perform card tricks and illusions. Editing director, Bruce Tracy, explains “David

Blaine is the most exciting and creative magician since Houdini, and now,

readers have the opportunity to enjoy Blaine's unique book about magic, and

they can participate by testing their own ability to discover and interpret clues.” [

The treasure hunt, Blaine's $100,000 Challenge, was devised by game

designer Cliff Johnson, creator of The Fool's Errand, and solved by Sherri

Skanes on March 20, 2004, 16 months after the book's publication.\

"There is a fine line between life and death... truth and deceit... dreams an reality.  Magic blurs that line.  This is Vertigo."  - David Blaine: Vertigo Opening

What

After almost 35 hours, ten stories up, and with no water, food, sleep, or something to lean on, David Blaine leaped off a 105 feet tall, 22 inch wide, pillar into some card board boxes only twelve feet high.  There was no harness or safety net had he fallen off or jumped off before the predestined time.

"The pillar that I am standing on is about as wide as my shoulders at most... about as big as a flower pot.  Standing on it I feel a kind of weird piece.  I can't hear any words.  It's quiet up here.  It's as if the city is underwater."

When

He was pulled to the top of the pillars by a crane at Noon Tuesday, May 21.  His special was aired May 22, 2002 at 10/9c on ABC.  At the end of the special, not quite 35 hours, was when he jumped.  An hour before hand the boxes were assembled and some metal bar-handles were raised for him to hold onto to prepare him to jump and because of the pervasive wind.

Why

"The idea for this challenge dates back to the 5th century.  There is a group of ascetics. called Stylites or pillar-hermits.  The most famous one was San Simeon.  The Stylites stood on pillars as an act of protests against the decadence of their time.  San Simeon believed this brought him closer to God."

"This is my way of challenging every fear and using magic as performance."

"The only way to overcome a fear is to challenge it strait on." On ABC's 20/20, David explains how his feat is based on San Simeon and

the pole sitters of the 1920's.

Audience

10,000 people were actually at the pillar site, and millions more watched on ABC.  Celebrity Christopher Reeves visits and talks how David's stunt shows "mind over body."  It also shows David go alone on a street corner, and with nothing but his repertoire, a crowd adamantly builds up.

Uncanny Things David Did

Besides his weird gymnastic feats he learned from his training, the special shows David playing dead on New York sidewalk, jumping around in a puddle of mud, and riding a small tricycle in the middle of New York traffic.  That was crazy.

Tricks

David holds hands with some spectator's at a dinner table, and a glass of wine explodes.

David hammers a nail all the way through a board with his bare hand. A woman's watch is stolen by David and appears in a jewelry store

window.  David then puts his hand through the glass and grabs the watch.

Two girls cigarettes are lit with David's fingers and then he eats a cigarette.

A stranger's empty crushed beer can is visually changed into a full beer. A young boy's fear is snakes is overcome by David eating a small snake

and it reappearing in the boy's backpack.

Crew

Bob Brown, the high fall expert, talks of how David has not done falls near the height of the boxes.

Tom Bramlett, production designer, explains how the pillar is very secure. John Epstein, professional stuntman, describes the boxes as a 16/ x 28

foot box catcher.  Each layer is tied so that the layers will slowly de-accelerate his fall.

William Kalush, co-executive producer and magician, tells about how worried they will be and how it is very dangerous.

Result

And David jumps into the boxes landing in the correct spot, a blanket with an X on it, without protection or padding, he gives the audience the perception he is ok.  After they lift him out of the boxes, he desperately tries to speak to the audience and thank them for their support; he is then rushed to the hospital in an ambulance.  "This is just the beginning," he said. "God bless us all," he added.

 

Drowned Alive

David Blaine prepares to hold his breath on the final night of Drowned Alive

at Lincoln Center, New York.

On May 1, 2006, Blaine was submerged in an 8 feet (2.4 m) diameter, water-

filled sphere (isotonic saline, 0.9% salt) in front of the Lincoln Center in New York

City for a planned seven days and seven nights, using tubes for air and nutrition.

During the stunt, doctors witnessed skin breakdown at the hands and feet, and

liver failure. The New York Times' Kenneth Silverman wrote "his feat of

endurance brought a diverse crowd of thousands of New Yorkers together,

renewing for a while the city's waning spirit of democratic community."

He concluded this event by attempting to hold his breath underwater to break the

then-current world record of 8 minutes, 58 seconds held by Tom Sietas for static

apnea—holding one's breath without the aid of breathing 100% oxygen

beforehand, although Blaine's attempt would not have qualified as static apnea

under AIDA International rules.[  Due to his producers' request to make the show

more exciting, Blaine attempted to free himself from handcuffs and chains put on

him upon coming out after the week in the sphere. [  He seemed to have trouble

escaping from the last of the handcuffs. Around the 7 minute mark, he showed

some signs of distress. He was pulled up and out of the water by his support

divers after 7 minutes and 20 seconds underwater—one minute and fifty seconds

short of his goal Although he did not take home the record for breath holding, he

was called “an everyday hero for an everyday age,” by The Boston Globe,[43] and The Washington Post stated, “Blaine represented an opportunity to see

something unbelievable.”

Blaine did claim to succeed in setting a record for being fully submerged in water

for more than seven days straight (177 hours), and has since broken the record

for holding one's breath using oxygen beforehand (as permitted by the Guinness

book of records).[45]

Blaine underwent multiple short hospital visits after the stunt ended and has

entered an agreement with doctors from Yale University to monitor him in order

to study the human physiological reaction to prolonged submersion.] In an

interview on The Howard Stern Show on Sirius satellite radio, Blaine spoke of the

week-long fasting he did before the "drowning alive" stunt, to avoid having to be

concerned with defecation.

Water, Water for a Week, Nor Anything to Eat

Michael Nagle for The New York TimesDavid Blaine has been immersed outside Lincoln Center since last Monday, attracting fans and people just curious about the spectacle.

It is as if someone packed up the Coney Island of a century ago and sent it on a

time-traveling subway up to Lincoln Center. For there, now, is David Blaine, the

modern-day Houdini whose latest feat involves living for seven days in an eight-

foot sphere of water in the reflected majesty of the Metropolitan Opera house and

the site's other august performance halls.

Michael Nagle for The New York TimesDavid Blaine is surfacing tomorrow and then plunging back into a sphere filled with water in an attempt to beat a record for holding one's breath underwater.

Mr. Blaine, whose previous stunts include encasing himself in a block of ice for

62 hours, standing atop an 80-foot pole for 35 hours and burying himself in a

plexiglass coffin for seven days without food or water, seems to love nothing

more than making a spectacle of himself. Since about 1 p.m. on Monday, he has

been living underwater and breathing through an air tube, taking in only Gatorade

and other liquid nutrients.

Already pruny but otherwise in decent health, Mr. Blaine is scheduled to stay in

his aquarium until about 9:30 p.m. on Monday, when he will be taken from the

water, locked in chains and placed back in the tank. Then he will simultaneously

try to escape from the chains and break the world record for holding one's breath,

currently 8 minutes and 58 seconds. All of it, on live television, as part of a two-

hour ABC special.

If the performance seems a bit out of character for the environs of Plácido

Domingo, Yo-Yo Ma and Suzanne Farrell, Mr. Blaine's feat could also be said to

explore the boundaries of art and commerce, encompassing the culture's

obsession with reality television while experimenting with the limits of human

achievement. For a society growing tired of celebrities eating bugs and aspiring

actors playing mind games with one another on a deserted island, Mr. Blaine's

placidly floating figure elevates spectacle to a sort of performance art.

"No one would analogize what David Blaine does to what occurs on our stages,"

said Reynold Levy, the president of Lincoln Center. "But the emotions he evokes,

the feelings he has engendered, are universal. He is doing to New Yorkers what

almost no one can. He's stopping them in their tracks. I look at their faces, and I

see complete wonder and bewilderment."

Ann Sheridan, a Manhattan resident who took in Mr. Blaine's watery world about

10 p.m. on Thursday with several friends, drew comparisons to the public art

project by Christo and Jeanne-Claude that swaddled Central Park in sheets of

saffron last year. "It's like 'The Gates,' " she said. "Nobody understood what 'The

Gates' meant, but everybody went and saw them."

That is what New Yorkers and others are doing, and in droves. Each of the past

few nights, thousands of people have stood and gawked, many lining up to walk

past the elevated sphere on one of two viewing ramps. There they snap pictures

with cellphones, wave to Mr. Blaine and touch the glass, usually evoking similar

responses from Mr. Blaine's bubbling, ghostly presence.

Some of the witnesses are nonplussed. "I don't understand what it's all about,"

said Irwin Hersh, 83, who came from North Woodmere, N.Y., on Thursday to

take in the New York City Ballet with his wife, Norma, and who could not resist

standing in line for a close-up view. (Mrs. Hersh declined, explaining, "I don't like

to stare at other people.")

Mr. Hersh concluded: "I don't know if it's art. The fact that someone is doing this

is strange. It seems to make everybody feel good. But why is this being

sanctioned by Lincoln Center?"

Mr. Levy explained that space was rented on Josie Robertson Plaza to Mr.

Blaine's production company to draw attention to Lincoln Center, whose outdoor

space is frequently used for festivals, dances and other activities at the same

time that performances are scheduled for indoor halls.

The event is being staged by Mr. Blaine's production company, which will

produce a DVD of the stunt and sold ABC a license to broadcast it. This will be

the fifth such special featuring Mr. Blaine's stunts that ABC has televised since

May 1997.

"These specials always rate well for us," said Andrea Wong, an executive vice

president for alternative programming, specials and late night at ABC. The most

popular, the "Frozen in Time" ice stunt in November 2000, drew an audience of

15.9 million viewers. The most recent, "David Blaine: Vertigo," drew a smaller

audience, 8.9 million viewers, in May 2002. Both shows drew well among young

male viewers, an elusive and valued part of the television audience.

How much Mr. Blaine makes for his stunts is unclear, and his handlers would not

discuss it. But one media buyer said ABC was asking $120,000 for a 30-second

commercial during the special, a respectable figure for nonregular programming

on a Monday night. Assuming about 15 minutes of commercials per hour, that

would generate revenues of more than $7 million. People involved in the

production said the special was costing more than $1 million to produce.

Given that ABC has come back to Mr. Blaine for the fifth time, it is probably safe

to assume that his shows make some money. In April Mr. Blaine bought a $1.67

million apartment in TriBeCa.

Of course, Mr. Blaine is not in it for the money. "This is about his journey," said Shelley Ross, an ABC producer who is overseeing the show. "He has the soul and the DNA of Houdini and P. T. Barnum. But Houdini never did anything of this scale."

As with any showman's entourage, it is not easy to tell if the people around Mr. Blaine are being anything but promotional. Dr. Murat Gunel, a neurosurgeon and associate professor at the Yale UniversitySchool of Medicine, who is monitoring and advising Mr. Blaine, expressed grave concern about his health. But after drawing blood for diagnostic tests on Thursday night, Dr. Gunel said on Friday that Mr. Blaine's medical condition was fine.

Obviously, there are medical concerns. Being immersed in water is much like being in a weightless atmosphere; the body's fluids start to increase, an effect that can trick the brain into thinking that the body is well hydrated, while it continues to release fluid. Dehydration and kidney damage are potential results. Also, as the body loses fluid, the blood thickens, which can lead to a heart attack or a stroke.

The lack of physical activity causes muscles to deteriorate, something that Mr. Blaine said on Thursday that he could feel happening, and that could affect his effort to free himself from the chains. In an interview — he responded to questions piped into the water through a speaker by writing answers on a magnetic board — he said, "All my muscles have atrophied."

His hands and feet are beyond pruny. Because the skin in those areas is particularly sensitive, he is wearing boots and gloves that are treated with a special cream, and he receives periodic foot and hand massages by floating to the top of the tank and sticking his hands or feet out a port at the top of the sphere, where his assistants use a laddered platform to reach him. He tries to sleep while wearing a special diving helmet, but, he said in a written message, he is getting almost no lengthy spells of sleep.

Then there is the breath-holding, for which Mr. Blaine trained with a team of divers led by Kirk Krack of Performance Free Diving International, a diving school. Mr. Krack said that in training Mr. Blaine had held his breath "just shy of eight minutes," or about a minute less than the record. (Whether Mr. Blaine's attempt will qualify for official diving association record books is unclear, given that his challenge is complicated by escaping from chains and his weeklong stay underwater.) Holding one's breath, of course, deprives the brain of oxygen, which can cause the subject to black out — not advised when chained underwater.

If Mr. Blaine is successful in his attempt, he hopes to address the crowd and his television audience when he emerges from the tank. A hospital visit, if only for a checkup and recovery, is also likely.

The questions most often arising around Mr. Blaine are the obvious ones. Because he stopped eating solid food several days before entering the sphere, his body is not producing solid waste. So how does he urinate? He is wearing a condom catheter that funnels urine through a tube attached to his leg. The water in the sphere is being constantly circulated, so he releases the urine from the tube into the sphere's suction pipe, which sends it to the water filter.

For the most part, New Yorkers and tourists have been respectfully supportive, unlike many of the Londoners who visited Mr. Blaine in 2003, when he endured 44 days without food while suspended in a clear plastic case from a crane near the Thames. There, detractors threw eggs at his plastic bubble or tried to tempt him with the smell of food grilling beneath his lair.

Mr. Blaine said he was grateful for the support in New York, where many have been mesmerized, some even love-struck.

Nancy Washington, visiting from Scottsdale, Ariz., tried to get Mr. Blaine's assistants to hand him two pink roses on Thursday night. "He has an attraction to me," she told a reporter after security officers beckoned her to leave the viewing stand. "He stopped and he looked at me. Maybe a long time ago we met."

Revolution

On November 19, 2006, Blaine announced his next stunt: he would be shackled

to a rotating gyroscope. His goal was to escape from his shackles after the

gyroscope had been spinning for 16 hours. The gyroscope was constantly

spinning at a rate of eight revolutions per minute while hanging above an empty

lot in Manhattan near Times Square.

The stunt began on November 21, 2006, with Mr Blaine declaring, "This one's

exciting for me. This one's a fun one." 52 hours later, without food or water, a

dehydrated and weakened Blaine, landed on a wooden platform 30 feet below

after jumping from the hanging gyroscope.

As a result of his success, Blaine led 100 children selected by The Salvation

Army on a shopping spree at Target, after each child received a $500 gift

certificate from the retailer. Blaine said the stunt was particularly important since

The Salvation Army had provided him with clothing while he was growing up.

"This challenge is close to my heart," Blaine said.

Guinness World RecordsAfter failing to surpass the then-current record of unassisted static apnea in his

previous attempt Drowned Alive, Blaine appeared on the April 30, 2008 episode

of The Oprah Winfrey Show, announcing that he would attempt to break

the Guinness World Record for oxygen assisted static apnea set by Peter

Colat of Switzerland on February 10, 2008.

Before entering his eighteen-hundred gallon water tank, Blaine spent 23 minutes

inhaling pure oxygen; up to 30 minutes of "oxygen hyperventilation" is allowed

under guidelines. His heart rate remained above one hundred beats per minute

during much of the attempt, rising to one hundred and twenty-four bpm. in the

fifteenth minute. A faster heart rate increases oxygen consumption leading to

painful carbon dioxide buildup. In the final minute, his heart rate became erratic

and he started rising from the bottom of the water-filled sphere; however, he kept

his head submerged for a half minute longer than the previous record. Ultimately,

Blaine held his breath for 17 minutes 4½ seconds, surpassing Colat's previous

mark of 16 minutes 32 seconds. This was Blaine's first Guinness recordand it

stood for almost four and a half months, until surpassed by Tom Sietas on

September 19, 2008.

During the following interview, Blaine stated: "I really thought I was not going to

make it," claiming that he did so by staying in a meditative state which was

helped by the studio lights reflecting off of the sphere According to Blaine,

besides the pressure of performing on television, the heart-rate monitor

happened to be close enough to his ear so that he heard its beeping, and he had

to keep his feet locked in holds at the bottom of the sphere — instead of just

floating freely, as he did in the pool on Grand Cayman months earlier. Back then

he said he was so relaxed he "wasn’t even there" during most of the breath-hold.

But when he emerged from the sphere today, he told Oprah, "I was pretty much

here the whole time."

Dive of Death

Donald Trump with David Blaine announcing Blaine's next event in the atrium of

the Trump Tower.

On September 18, 2008, Donald Trump and Blaine held a press conference at

the Trump Tower in New York City to announce his latest feat, “The Upside

Down Man.” Blaine was to hang upside down without a safety net for 60 hours

above Central Park’s Wollman Rink, with a predicted end for 10:45 p.m. on

September 24. Reportedly, Blaine risked blindness and other maladies in the

stunt. Trump has helped finance this and other Blaine events. Blaine hung over

the Wollman Rink and interacted with fans by lowering himself upside down. At

the press conference, Blaine stated he had already gone without food for over a

week and would continue to do so throughout the act. In order to drink fluid and

restore circulation, he would pull himself up, all the while contending with muscle

spasms and lack of sleep. Blaine began the stunt on Monday September 22, but

was widely criticized when, only hours into the endurance challenge, he was

seen by fans to be standing on a waiting crane platform, and not upside down, as

expected. He reportedly would come down once an hour to receive a medical

check, stretch and relieve himself.

When the "Dive of Death" took place, Blaine came down from the platform on a

cable, and lightly touched the stage. He was then pulled back up into the air, and,

in the words of the New York Daily News, "hung in the air like a sack of potatoes

with a goofy grin on his face, occasionally kicking his legs as though he were

running." The plan had been for Blaine to be pulled up into the air by helium

balloons and disappear into the atmosphere.] Blaine attributed the problem to

changes in weather conditions that occurred after the stunt was delayed due to

an address by President Bush.