Penn and Teller and the magic bullet

Do any of you remember Ernie Kovacs? This trick has been around for a long time, a real long time. Ernie had a tv special on magic tricks once and the catch the bullet trick was one of them. (As an aside for those who don't know, EK was a comic.) On the shoe Ernie had a group of people that were on stage with him. After each trick Ernie would try to duplicate it only to lose another of his groupe of people. In the catch to bullet trick duplication, Ernie went to a rifle and not the revolver..... .30-06 if I remember correctly.

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Ne Conjuge Nobiscum
"If there be treachery, let there be jehad!"
 
Hi guys,

I am normally a lurker here but I noticed this thread so....

Look, if anyone really wants to enjoy these magic bits it is better not to know. I have seen a tape by "the masked magician" who exposes how various tricks are performed. He is masked, supposedly, so magicians don't get even with him.

I don't plan on explaining this one in detail as I don't even remember all of it. All I can say is there is never a bullet fired at anyone in the trick. In fact, there is never a bullet fired at anything. Forget it. Too dangerous. No magician with half a brain would do that. The trick is pure sleight of hand. The reciever already has the bullet in mouth prior to the gun going off.

Sorry to burst any bubbles. But with magic, most tricks aren't as entertaining once the secret is known.

James
 
Hmmm....maybe. Tortuga is probably close. However, don't they have lines on the stage that they don't cross after the trick begins, so they can't pass anything to one another? As for the wax bullet, it makes sense to me, but in the interview I heard, Penn cited it as an earlier method with several shortcomings which he and Teller had replaced with something else.
Of course, I don't put sleight-of-hand past magicians. In fact, rather than try to pass the bullets to assistants, opening the guns twice to unload the originals and load the "trick" cartridges, they'd probably just have four identical guns so they could pass the guns intact.

Whatever, I still love it!
 
I saw a special on tv once about magic and they told how this trick has taken many magician's lives. Once this one magician performed this trick to an audience in the 1800's and after successfully performing the trick a person from the audience yelled out "Catch this" then fired his weapon at the magician. Guess what, he didn't catch it and died. Sorry I can't remember the specifics, it may have been on that Penn & Teller special mentioned earlier where they talk about this trick.

45er
 
This trick has been done for the last hundred years or so, the first being with muzzleloaders. The priming channel to the barrel was plugged, with a new channel drilled into a dummy chamber. The cap detonated a powder charge loaded in the ramrod sleeve. No ball was ever discharged, until the last trick, when, because of bad maintenance, corrosion had eaten a hole into the barrel proper. The priming detonated both charges, and the poor magician was killed, his last words being something like "Something's gone terribly wrong." I saw this on the Discovery channel, and later they had an interview with Penn and Teller.

Penn & Teller are famous for telling folks how they do their tricks. They make a point of emphasizing how they refuse to do dangerous tricks. On the show they didn't say anything about this trick, I guess to avoid lawsuits.

They've got a great book out called "How to Play With Your Food."
 
I've seen the "Masked Magician" show and the Penn and Teller Show(Twice Live, Once in Boston, Once in Phoenix)

The Masked Magician crap is nothing like the Penn and Teller trick.

I like Tortuga's answer. Both times I saw it, both P and T shot each other. REALLY IMPRESSIVE. I thought about the low power loads, and gave up on it as a possibility. Too much risk. Crimp to tight, extra .1grain of powder, whatever and you've got a dead magician.

Eric
btw: Both Penn and Teller are libertarians. (Note, small L) Both write/work for the libertarian think thank, The CATO institute. Both are really, really great performers. Both times I saw them, they waited after the show in the lobby signing autographs and whatever until everyone was happy. Teller spoke outside and both were nice as HECK. I'd suggest their show to anyone!
 
Eric,

You missed the point I was making. At no time is a real bullet fired on stage. No downloaded ammo, no misaligned laser sights. It is stupid to do so. I don't think Penn and Teller are stupid. And the masked magician shows how glass is supposedly shot without a real bullet, etc.

Tortuga sounds right on with the assistants backstage copying the writing on the bullets. Simple enough to do. But after that, it is all special effects and showmanship. No one needs the goggles, the guns fire nothing.

And maybe I'm wrong.

James
 
JimmyBCool: Thanks for clarifing.
Yes, you are probably correct in that no bullet is fired. However, a primer(or something loud) is definatly ignited.
When I said the Masked Magician stuff was crap, what I ment was: I've seen P&T Twice and I saw the MM on his special with the "Magic Bullet" trick. They are different tricks. The way the MM does it would not work with the P&T trick.
No doubt slight of hand and diversion has a lot to do with it. Heck, that's why they call it an illusion.

Everyone should see the trick live if they can, it is cool.

Eric
 
I'm not saying that this is how Penn and Teller do it, but I have heard of this trick being done with a special composite bullet, that breaks the glass and then breaks up into powder.

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Sic semper tyrannis!
 
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by 45er:
after successfully performing the trick a person from the audience yelled out "Catch this" then fired his weapon at the magician. [/quote]


That's an occupational hazard when performing in front of drunk rednecks. Would not be at all surprised if that happened here in OK.


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What can YOU do? Take a kid shooting, join NRA & GOA, and VOTE!
-Danny Stoner, NRA Life, GOA, SAF, ORA, OKCGC
 
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