783: Dana Daniels - Disney Deceptionist

Dana Daniels was one of the famous Long Beach Mystics when he was growing up in California and later found a career with Disney at Disneyland where he took on many roles before ending up in the Golden Horseshoe. In recent years, he and his bird, Luigi, have enjoyed the Hawaiian lifestyle as performers at Warren & Annabelle’s, a magic dinner theater in Lahiana, Maui, Hawaii.

As many of you know, a fire ravaged the island and destroyed homes and businesses across the island wreaking havoc, death and devastation. One of the businesses that was affected was Warren & Annabelle’s which burned to the ground. Warren Gibson, owner of the club, has started a Go-Fund-Me which is set up to financially assist the families of employees who have lost their jobs, homes, and everything. You can visit the Go-Fund-Me site by Clicking Here. Please help if you can with any amount of financial support you can give.

This week Dana talks about his magic roots as he joined the Long Beach Mystics and how they supported and helped him grow to the success he is today. He also talks extensively about his time at Disney and how his career careened and veered into many areas. Finally, Dana wraps up this episode talking about his involvement with Warren & Annabelle’s. This episode was recorded just 24 hours before news broke about the devastating fire, so it is timely and appropriate that you listen to his excitement and fondness for the club where he expected to work indefinitely.

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261: Project Alpha with Mike Edwards

After viewing the highly acclaimed documentary, "An Honest Liar" about the career of James "The Amazing" Randi, I wanted to talk with Mike Edwards, the "psychic" who was "tested" along with Steve Shaw (Banachek) over a three year period in the late 70;s to the early 80;s. I have discussed Project Alpha with Banachek many times privately, on the podcast and on an L&L Video (Psi Series Volume 4 - Psychokenisis) but I had never met or spoken with, Mike Edwards, his partner on the project.

The stars aligned with my travel plans to Phoenix, Arizona and Mike's availability so we were able to find a relatively quiet corner in an otherwise busy restaurant and record this chat. It is a completely different perspective from the one I have heard from Banachek and the revelation during the last few minutes of our conversation figuratively "bowled me over". I was not expecting that news. You might be surprised and excited once you hear it, too.

Recorded: 5/27/2010 Original Alpha Kid, Michael Edwards pays a visit to the foundation and recalls some of the behind the scenes tricks that he and Steve Shaw (Banachek) did during the MacLab test. From Wikipedia: Project Alpha was an elaborate hoax orchestrated by the stage magician and skeptic James Randi.

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#203: Banachek - The Mentalist on "The Supernaturalists"

As a friend and business partner, The World's Number One Thought Reader, Banachek has joined me on dozens of podcasts over the years on The Magic Word. But I don't think I have ever had him as an exclusive guest. I just never think about recording our conversations; however, I have heard from listeners who have asked for "more Banachek". So, this one is for you.

Criss Angel recently announced the new show "The Supernaturalists" which is slated for a three week debut in June 2015 in Foxwoods Casino in Connecticut. The show will feature some of the magicians that filled in for Criss Angel in the "BeLIEve" show earlier this year during his shoulder surgery. This show is supposed to be something completely different and nothing like the other magic touring show, "The Illusionists". This show promises to do for magic shows what Cirque du Soliel did for the circus. They hope and plan to take the show on an international tour after their Foxwoods run.

For those few of you living under a rock who are not familiar with Banachek, here is a short bio from "The Supernaturalists" website:

“THE MENTALIST” BANACHEK (SOUTH AFRICA)
Lifetime Achievement award recipient, two time Entertainer Of The Year, awarded Outstanding Contribution To The World Of Mentalism, Banachek is the only man to fool scientists with the power of his mind, and is known by his peers as the greatest mentalist alive. He has performed all over the world, is an author of eight best selling magic/mentalism books, has appeared in countless TV specials and has been the magic producer of the most successful magic series in television history, MINDFREAK.

Banachek begins his chat with a short discussion and appeal for magic donations to his favorite charity, The College of Magic in South Africa. He also talks in detail about the upcoming show The Supernaturalists" which will include: "The Illusionist" Brett Daniels (U.S.), "The Mystfier" Cosentino (Australia), "The Mentalist" Banachek (South Africa), "The Street Magician Phenom" Adrian Vega (Spain), “The Femme Fatale Of Legerdemain” Krystyn (U.S.), “The Dog Whisperer Of Magic” Johnny (Columbia), “The Joker” The Great Maestro (Mexico)

He also talks about James Randi, The Amazing Meeting (TAM), The Million Dollar Challenge and his new documentary which trailer you can view below. For more information about "An Honest Liar"" then visit http://AnHonestLiar.com

Live Q&A Session: November 19th - Banachek - Mentalist (Wednesday 4pm ET 9pm UTC 9pm UK) Hosted by Paul Draper

On this podcast, Banachek also talks about his early years of working hundreds of shows annually the college circuit which he still does a dozen or so dates a year. He then talks about how he first met Criss Angel and started working with him on television. He talks extensively about his TV experiences and work in Las Vegas and his view of the future on what he wants to do and where he wants to go.

Download this podcast in an MP3 file by Clicking Here and then right click to save the file. You can also subscribe to the RSS feed by Clicking Here. (please note: this RSS Feed subscription system may not work with Android systems). Remember, you can download it through iTunes. See the preview page by Clicking Here.