You're on T.V.!

[Josh Burch]

Imagine that you have been contacted by an agency and they are going to pay for you to have your own television special. I'm curious, if you had an unlimited budget, who are the 5 living magicians you'd have on your creative team?

For me I think I'd have to go with Jim Steinmeyer, Daniel Garcia, Rick Lax, Franz Harrary and Paul Harris for my fifth spot.

Who would you have and why?

 

[WitchDocIsIn]

Hmmm.

Alain Nu, Lewis Le Val, Peter Turner, Paul Brooks, and Daniel Madison.

Alain Nu is an underrated genius, and also a friend of mine. He's done TV before and I really enjoy how he melds himself into his presentations. He's a little goofy and a little spiritual and I like it.

Lewis Le Val is not super involved in the magic world so he has off the wall ideas. He's also very comfortable with suggestion and hypnosis and that's my wheel house. Also a good bit of TV experience.

Peter Turner has an off the wall way of thinking that would push my boundaries and provide ideas that I'd never think of. Also lots of TV consulting experience.

Paul Brooks is one of the only people in the world who has written material I would perform as written in the book. He's also good at creating emotional hooks with his performances.

Daniel Madison is a genius at creating content that hooks people. Whether you like his character or not, it is undeniable that he knows how to make a splash and get a ton of attention, and extremely loyal fans. He also has cool, off the wall ideas that I wouldn't think of otherwise. He has also been involved in TV, though apparently the show fell through eventually.

So there you go. Fun idea to think about.

 

[Gabriel Z.]

Jason England, Richard Turner , Steve Forte, David Blaine, Bobby Flay

Jason England- Due to his fast hand and undeniable deep knowledge of the subject of magic.
Richard Turner- Card Mechanic to the extreme if we are asked to play a game of poker after the show ends he will always win.
Steve Forte - Once again quick hands , and his abilities to handle cards transcends that of the average persons reach.
David Blaine- You need some entertainment here is the place to go , he can spit frogs out of his mouth.
Bobby Flay - Yes I know I know; NOT a magician but he can cook one hell of a meal.

 

[Maaz Hasan]

My List:

Daniel Madison - Really knows how to capture the essence of whatever you need and expand it, and as Christopher said, he is a brilliant creator. Has a pretty great personality too (or at least from what I can tell lol).

Brian Brushwood - As I have been following him outside of his magic stuff too, he has a very amiable personality, and is quite the character. If you haven't seen Night Attack (on Twitch w/ Justin Robert Young), or The Modern Rogue (a fantastic YouTube channel w/ Jason Murphy), go check them out. You'll see what I mean (and be entertained at the same time). Plus go see his Twitter, some stuff on there is absolute gold. He also performs brilliantly. I've also spoken with him many times, and he is downright helpful and nice.

Calen Morelli - Just looks at stuff in such new ways.

Peter McKinnon - Fantastic Photography & Filmography, really knows how to condense something into what you need it to be. Also a very ingenious thinker.

Mac King - Fantastic Comedic Personality.

This was really hard! I was gonna go for some of the guys you guys listed, but then I would wipe the slate clean and think of a new idea. I guess it also depends on what the special is actually going to be about. I mean, obviously magic, but you can take it in so many different ways. Who knows, maybe you put together an hour long magician/comedy sitcom special? Also, if anyone wants to make a magic themed Sitcom, that would be amazing (if it's funny).

Honorable Mentions:
Daniel Garcia, Apollo Robbins, Paul Harris, Gregory Wilson, Juan Tamariz, Joshua Jay, Shin Lim, Blake Vogt, Paul Gertner, Peter Turner, and Justin Wilman (for the TV experience).

Side note:
I'm wasn't gonna answer this question directly first, because I don't have an answer yet but...

I was gonna make a little joke about Jibrizy, but then I realized putting him on would be a genius move. Giant Ego, thinks he is MTV reincarnate, hating on "the all haters", gets caught, and the randomness that's happening rn (idek what he's doing right now. KOI Gang...? WUT?), etc. This stuff would get so much views. The ratings would be insane. It's like Kanye.... but a bigger ego.

 

[Rise Above]

1. Shin Lim - Beautiful routines, great for tv
2. David Blaine - He's David Blaine
3. Richard Turner - His sleights are perfect
4. Mac King - Great comedy magician
5. Pigcake - Not Politically correct, tells things like they are, and he hasn't done a face reveal yet.

 

[Hgagnon]

Brian Brushwood- Super dynamic and fun

Jason England- Incredible knowledge

Richard Turner- Sleight of hand is next level stuff

Shin Lim- Has grace and beauty

David Blaine- Entertainment is amazing because he shoot a bullet in his mouth, etc.

 

[CWhite]

My list...

Justin Flom - I just love the effects he does and his performance style.
David Williamson - Created some amazing tricks and routines. A class act.
Yigal Mesika - Just to help with thread work. lol
Mr. Teller - A legend, his tips would be invaluable.
Mark Calabrese - Again I love the effects he's come out with.

Side note - Why is everyone picking David Blaine? Aside from him being famous... I don't think he'd be a good consultant imo. Same reason I didn't pick Criss Angel. To direct or produce... for sure! I'm not sure he's created anything. He comes up with an idea and has talented people to make it possible.
I was gonna say Jibrizy but Maaz beat me to it lol
Surprised no one mentioned that ass clown from Disturbed Reality...
Pigcake being mentioned is awesome. I find him to be extremely funny. My type of humour.
Cool thread.. Cheers!

 

[Maaz Hasan]

My list...

Justin Flom - I just love the effects he does and his performance style.
David Williamson - Created some amazing tricks and routines. A class act.
Yigal Mesika - Just to help with thread work. lol
Mr. Teller - A legend, his tips would be invaluable.
Mark Calabrese - Again I love the effects he's come out with.

Side note - Why is everyone picking David Blaine? Aside from him being famous... I don't think he'd be a good consultant imo. Same reason I didn't pick Criss Angel. To direct or produce... for sure! I'm not sure he's created anything. He comes up with an idea and has talented people to make it possible.
I was gonna say Jibrizy but Maaz beat me to it lol
Surprised no one mentioned that ass clown from Disturbed Reality...
Pigcake being mentioned is awesome. I find him to be extremely funny. My type of humour.
Cool thread.. Cheers!

David Blaine has possibly the most personal (to the spectator) performing style.... ever. Its a really "humble style". He essentially created the idea of MODERN street Magic. And he takes tricks and resorts them to be different and much more organic.

 

[CWhite]

David Blaine has possibly the most personal (to the spectator) performing style.... ever. Its a really "humble style". He essentially created the idea of MODERN street Magic. And he takes tricks and resorts them to be different and much more organic.

Good point. I guess his television expertise would be pretty valuable also..

 

[WitchDocIsIn]

Blaine does strolling/close up magic. That's been around for centuries.

I would say the majority of magic performed in all of history has been that kind of magic. There's just far more opportunity for that than stage work.

As for organic - Max Malini was known for being able to create magic out of what appeared to be whatever was at hand. Robert Houdin, on top of being a masterful mechanical creator (he was first a clock maker), was also known for creating seemingly organic miracles. Like when he caught a bullet in his teeth and made a wall bleed, thus stopping a war.

I suspect that Blaine would have fit right into mid-18th century styles of performance.

The reason he stood out was not that he was the first to do what he does - it's because he popped onto the scene at a time when Grand Illusion had reigned supreme for two or three decades, so he was a breath of fresh air from that, and because he turned the cameras on the audience to show their reactions. We are better at empathizing with people like us, rather than the oddball with strange skills performing.

 

[Ziad Khayat]

1: everyone's talking about out of the box thinking, yet no one's mentioned lennart green. Really?

2: Ricky jay. Probably the most knowledgeable card guy out there. Possibly the best living card magician.

3: helder guimeraes. Another brilliant creator.

4: Daniel Garcia. More creative power.

5: michael Weber. Again, more creative power.

 

[Josh Burch]

1: everyone's talking about out of the box thinking, yet no one's mentioned lennart green. Really?

2: Ricky jay. Probably the most knowledgeable card guy out there. Possibly the best living card magician.

3: helder guimeraes. Another brilliant creator.

4: Daniel Garcia. More creative power.

5: michael Weber. Again, more creative power.

Ooh, Michael Webber should be on my list!

Lennart's great!

 

[RealityOne]

Jim Steinmeyer
Robert Neale
Gaeten Bloom
Marc DeSouza
and one spot empty for Eugene Burger.