Tony Star presents iSight
August 22, 2011 8:55 AM Subscribe
Illusion or blockhead act? You be the judge. Caution: this performance is not for the squeamish. Tony Star presents iSight. (SLYT)
Well, that was disgusting.
posted by brain_drain at 9:11 AM on August 22, 2011
posted by brain_drain at 9:11 AM on August 22, 2011
i saw a man stick a coin into his eye
i wondered would he scream, or would he cry
but he pushed it round his head
it came out his mouth instead
but who'd wanna do such a thing?
gotta wonder why.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 9:17 AM on August 22, 2011 [3 favorites]
i wondered would he scream, or would he cry
but he pushed it round his head
it came out his mouth instead
but who'd wanna do such a thing?
gotta wonder why.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 9:17 AM on August 22, 2011 [3 favorites]
No votes for 'He does it all with smoke and mirrors' so far then?
posted by PeterMcDermott at 9:19 AM on August 22, 2011
posted by PeterMcDermott at 9:19 AM on August 22, 2011
No Final Countdown?
posted by Marisa Stole the Precious Thing at 9:20 AM on August 22, 2011 [8 favorites]
posted by Marisa Stole the Precious Thing at 9:20 AM on August 22, 2011 [8 favorites]
Sometimes when I'm in a store, in an aisle with lots of racks, the ones that are just a metal rod with packages hanging off of them, I get a feeling like they're all poking into my eyes. It makes me antsy, makes my eyes itchy, I can't stop blinking, rubbing my eyes, can't stand still, just want to get out of the situation as fast as I can. That's the feeling this video gave me. I had to bail on it.
Also, this guy's patter is terrible. But I suppose the overlap between "smooth performer" and "wants to jam things in his own eye" is very, very small and you takes what you can gets.
posted by uncleozzy at 9:27 AM on August 22, 2011 [6 favorites]
Also, this guy's patter is terrible. But I suppose the overlap between "smooth performer" and "wants to jam things in his own eye" is very, very small and you takes what you can gets.
posted by uncleozzy at 9:27 AM on August 22, 2011 [6 favorites]
I pride myself on being able to watch ghastly stuff, but that was difficult to get through. As to the possibility it is 'real', I'd love to hear from someone with medical knowledge; I assumed there'd be a lot of tissue and whatnot getting in the way, basically making it impossible unless this guy has some unique physiology.
posted by stinkycheese at 9:28 AM on August 22, 2011
posted by stinkycheese at 9:28 AM on August 22, 2011
From his odd way of speaking and the fact that he can pass solid items through his body, his nature is clear. This man is a higher dimensional being. I've never been more certain of something in my life.
posted by BeerFilter at 9:29 AM on August 22, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by BeerFilter at 9:29 AM on August 22, 2011 [2 favorites]
No votes for 'He does it all with smoke and mirrors' so far then?
Seriously? He puts the quarter in his right eye, as we all see, then takes it out. Then he does some big show of opening his mouth showing us how the quarter's not in there. Then he "puts the quarter back in his right eye" by slapping his hand to his face--obviously he didn't stick the quarter back in his eye. He's hiding it somewhere. He's hiding it somewhere well, because that's what magicians do. Then he makes some big show of scrunching up his loose face skin and making some poor, hapless audience member poke his finger in his eye goo. Then he produces the hidden coin and makes it look like it comes falling out of his mouth.
Yes, he actually put the quarter in his eye at some point.
No, he did not move the coin from one eyeball to his mouth. That is not how bodies work.
posted by phunniemee at 9:30 AM on August 22, 2011 [14 favorites]
Seriously? He puts the quarter in his right eye, as we all see, then takes it out. Then he does some big show of opening his mouth showing us how the quarter's not in there. Then he "puts the quarter back in his right eye" by slapping his hand to his face--obviously he didn't stick the quarter back in his eye. He's hiding it somewhere. He's hiding it somewhere well, because that's what magicians do. Then he makes some big show of scrunching up his loose face skin and making some poor, hapless audience member poke his finger in his eye goo. Then he produces the hidden coin and makes it look like it comes falling out of his mouth.
Yes, he actually put the quarter in his eye at some point.
No, he did not move the coin from one eyeball to his mouth. That is not how bodies work.
posted by phunniemee at 9:30 AM on August 22, 2011 [14 favorites]
Reminds me of Montag the Magnificent.
"What -- is real?"
posted by stinkycheese at 9:32 AM on August 22, 2011
"What -- is real?"
posted by stinkycheese at 9:32 AM on August 22, 2011
In short, to steal a line from the youtube comments, "the only thing 'magical' about it is that he hasn't developed a eye infection from a germ infested coin."
posted by phunniemee at 9:32 AM on August 22, 2011 [5 favorites]
posted by phunniemee at 9:32 AM on August 22, 2011 [5 favorites]
GOB: How did you do that?
Tony Wonder: Oh-ho-ho. Magicians only. (Whispers.) I folded it up into some squares, and then I put it into a pouch under my shirt, and then I pull it out and I make it look like it came out of my skin.
Buster: Wow, that sounds easy.
Tony Wonder: Keep it to yourself.
posted by shakespeherian at 9:40 AM on August 22, 2011
Tony Wonder: Oh-ho-ho. Magicians only. (Whispers.) I folded it up into some squares, and then I put it into a pouch under my shirt, and then I pull it out and I make it look like it came out of my skin.
Buster: Wow, that sounds easy.
Tony Wonder: Keep it to yourself.
posted by shakespeherian at 9:40 AM on August 22, 2011
Hey - I went to elementary school with that guy! He'd also eat a bag of slugs for a loonie. Magic!!
posted by helmutdog at 9:52 AM on August 22, 2011
posted by helmutdog at 9:52 AM on August 22, 2011
... and making some poor, hapless audience member poke his finger in his eye goo.
Do this trick too often and it runs into a lot of money.
posted by hal9k at 9:52 AM on August 22, 2011
Do this trick too often and it runs into a lot of money.
posted by hal9k at 9:52 AM on August 22, 2011
Could someone describe exactly what happens in this video?
posted by roll truck roll at 9:52 AM on August 22, 2011
posted by roll truck roll at 9:52 AM on August 22, 2011
Actually, it looks like phunniemee's comment covers it pretty well. Nevermind.
posted by roll truck roll at 9:53 AM on August 22, 2011
posted by roll truck roll at 9:53 AM on August 22, 2011
My understanding is that there is a passage between the eye and mouth, but I've never heard of it being big enough for a quarter.
posted by Four Flavors at 10:08 AM on August 22, 2011
posted by Four Flavors at 10:08 AM on August 22, 2011
What you're gonna about to see is a cross between a side show act and a magic trick.
posted by ReeMonster at 10:13 AM on August 22, 2011
posted by ReeMonster at 10:13 AM on August 22, 2011
Also, this guy's patter is terrible.
I really liked that about the act. This guy obviously isn't appearing at some VIP lounge at the Bellagio, or at the Magic Castle. He's pure carny.
"Gimme five bucks and I'll let you see something you've *never* seen before. I promise, If you have seen someone else doing this performance, I'll give you your five dollars back along with five of my own dollars."
I definitely got my five dollars worth.
He's hiding it somewhere. He's hiding it somewhere well, because that's what magicians do.
His audience was an audience of magicians. They seemed pretty convinced by what he was doing. When he has them feel the quarter as it moved around his face, do you think he was tricking them somehow? If so, how?
posted by PeterMcDermott at 10:23 AM on August 22, 2011
I really liked that about the act. This guy obviously isn't appearing at some VIP lounge at the Bellagio, or at the Magic Castle. He's pure carny.
"Gimme five bucks and I'll let you see something you've *never* seen before. I promise, If you have seen someone else doing this performance, I'll give you your five dollars back along with five of my own dollars."
I definitely got my five dollars worth.
He's hiding it somewhere. He's hiding it somewhere well, because that's what magicians do.
His audience was an audience of magicians. They seemed pretty convinced by what he was doing. When he has them feel the quarter as it moved around his face, do you think he was tricking them somehow? If so, how?
posted by PeterMcDermott at 10:23 AM on August 22, 2011
Oh fer chrissakes. Am I going to have to do this? I guess I'm going to have to do this.
His audience was an audience of magicians. They seemed pretty convinced by what he was doing.
Have you watched Fool Us by any chance? There's a difference between being "convinced" that what you saw was a true act exactly as presented with no sleight of hand and being impressed at the skill required to pull it off. I saw nothing in the video that suggested that the audience thought he was really and truly pushing a quarter around his face. The dudes who set up the video ("this is real! it's real!") are trying to get people to watch their video. Of course they're going to say it's real. Also, magician's code, etc, etc.
When he has them feel the quarter as it moved around his face, do you think he was tricking them somehow?
Yes! Of course! A single fingertip, controlled by someone else, that you can't even move has almost no resolving power. If I held your fingertip, poked it at my face, and said "do you feel that? there's totally a gerbil under there!" and gave you no time to investigate and only a second to respond to my question, you'd probably mumble, "yeah, a gerbil." Also, there's a certain amount of subconscious playing along with tricks like this--when the magician (or hypnotist, for instance) brings you into the act, you could call shenanigans, but most people won't. Most people will play along for the sake of the trick, whether they realize what they're doing or not.
Pay attention--you can't see the coin moving around his face. You see skin folds, and he tells you that you can see the edges of the coins, but there's nothing actually there. (Also, if he's actually pressing a coin around his face, where does it go when he gets to his left temple, hmm? There's less skin thickness around the temple, so you should be able to see the coin even better! Oh wait, there's not actually a coin under his skin.)
And probably the thing that bothers me the most on the "real"/"not real" front: MAGIC IS COOL AND IMPRESSIVE! I have much more respect for someone who can 1) craft an interesting story to build the illusion around and 2) control his hand movements so well that I can't see the sleight of hand actions he makes, even when I know what to look for than someone who can shove a coin through his face. That is why I enjoy magic: the hours of practice you know someone went through in order to expertly present their trick. Be impressed by this guy's palming skills (and the cojones to stick the quarter in his eye at the start of the trick), and not because you think he's some freak of nature. Give credit where credit is due. Just because it's not real doesn't mean it's not cool.
Also, I would like to add, IT IS NOT PHYSICALLY OR MEDICALLY POSSIBLE TO PASS ANY OBJECT, COIN OR BEAN, FROM YOUR EYE TO YOUR MOUTH. THE BODY DOES NOT WORK LIKE THAT.
posted by phunniemee at 10:45 AM on August 22, 2011 [2 favorites]
His audience was an audience of magicians. They seemed pretty convinced by what he was doing.
Have you watched Fool Us by any chance? There's a difference between being "convinced" that what you saw was a true act exactly as presented with no sleight of hand and being impressed at the skill required to pull it off. I saw nothing in the video that suggested that the audience thought he was really and truly pushing a quarter around his face. The dudes who set up the video ("this is real! it's real!") are trying to get people to watch their video. Of course they're going to say it's real. Also, magician's code, etc, etc.
When he has them feel the quarter as it moved around his face, do you think he was tricking them somehow?
Yes! Of course! A single fingertip, controlled by someone else, that you can't even move has almost no resolving power. If I held your fingertip, poked it at my face, and said "do you feel that? there's totally a gerbil under there!" and gave you no time to investigate and only a second to respond to my question, you'd probably mumble, "yeah, a gerbil." Also, there's a certain amount of subconscious playing along with tricks like this--when the magician (or hypnotist, for instance) brings you into the act, you could call shenanigans, but most people won't. Most people will play along for the sake of the trick, whether they realize what they're doing or not.
Pay attention--you can't see the coin moving around his face. You see skin folds, and he tells you that you can see the edges of the coins, but there's nothing actually there. (Also, if he's actually pressing a coin around his face, where does it go when he gets to his left temple, hmm? There's less skin thickness around the temple, so you should be able to see the coin even better! Oh wait, there's not actually a coin under his skin.)
And probably the thing that bothers me the most on the "real"/"not real" front: MAGIC IS COOL AND IMPRESSIVE! I have much more respect for someone who can 1) craft an interesting story to build the illusion around and 2) control his hand movements so well that I can't see the sleight of hand actions he makes, even when I know what to look for than someone who can shove a coin through his face. That is why I enjoy magic: the hours of practice you know someone went through in order to expertly present their trick. Be impressed by this guy's palming skills (and the cojones to stick the quarter in his eye at the start of the trick), and not because you think he's some freak of nature. Give credit where credit is due. Just because it's not real doesn't mean it's not cool.
Also, I would like to add, IT IS NOT PHYSICALLY OR MEDICALLY POSSIBLE TO PASS ANY OBJECT, COIN OR BEAN, FROM YOUR EYE TO YOUR MOUTH. THE BODY DOES NOT WORK LIKE THAT.
posted by phunniemee at 10:45 AM on August 22, 2011 [2 favorites]
Is it the mystical power of flashing the words "THIS IS REAL!" over a video? One part geek stunt, one part extremely obvious slight of hand. Decent enough, as ultra-low-budget viral advertisements for magic stores go.
posted by nanojath at 11:32 AM on August 22, 2011
posted by nanojath at 11:32 AM on August 22, 2011
No votes for 'He does it all with smoke and mirrors' so far then?
This is for reals. Squinting at coins is the new magick, yo.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 11:42 AM on August 22, 2011
This is for reals. Squinting at coins is the new magick, yo.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 11:42 AM on August 22, 2011
I can pull something out of my ass and make it appear on the internet.
posted by TheRedArmy at 11:46 AM on August 22, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by TheRedArmy at 11:46 AM on August 22, 2011 [1 favorite]
IANAM but the sleight of hand was pretty damned obvious to me.
posted by Doleful Creature at 11:54 AM on August 22, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by Doleful Creature at 11:54 AM on August 22, 2011 [1 favorite]
Yeah, but can you put something in your ass and then make it appear on the internet?
On second thought, don't answer that.
posted by It's Never Lurgi at 12:04 PM on August 22, 2011 [1 favorite]
On second thought, don't answer that.
posted by It's Never Lurgi at 12:04 PM on August 22, 2011 [1 favorite]
I don't think he really put the quarter in his eye at all. Before and after he sticks it in his eye the first time about 2:50 he makes fairly obvious switches when he puts the quarter in his mouth and takes it back out. The second time he does it after the eye part, but before anyone gets to look for the signature on the coin. And, as noted, the coin-eye-insertion before the finger-pushing is obviously fake. I'm looking closely and I don't see the edge of the quarter. Then, the last reveal of the quarter, he fairly obviously releases it from wherever he's got it palmed.
The kid's good at palming and hiding, but not very good at the actual sleight of hand part. His off-kilter patter, though, was pretty effective. During the buildup I wasn't sure what he was gonna do, and I thought he was gonna dislocate and relocate that guy's finger or something because his speech patterns made me unsure whether he was just crazy.
posted by cmoj at 12:33 PM on August 22, 2011
The kid's good at palming and hiding, but not very good at the actual sleight of hand part. His off-kilter patter, though, was pretty effective. During the buildup I wasn't sure what he was gonna do, and I thought he was gonna dislocate and relocate that guy's finger or something because his speech patterns made me unsure whether he was just crazy.
posted by cmoj at 12:33 PM on August 22, 2011
Pay attention--you can't see the coin moving around his face.
Yeah, just watched it again. You're so shocked by what he does by sticking the coin and the finger into his eye, that you're kinda relieved by the whole coin around the face deal, so you really don't pay that much attention to it.
And the coin/finger in the eye thing doesn't actually go in very deep. It's still kinda gross though.
posted by PeterMcDermott at 2:03 PM on August 22, 2011
Yeah, just watched it again. You're so shocked by what he does by sticking the coin and the finger into his eye, that you're kinda relieved by the whole coin around the face deal, so you really don't pay that much attention to it.
And the coin/finger in the eye thing doesn't actually go in very deep. It's still kinda gross though.
posted by PeterMcDermott at 2:03 PM on August 22, 2011
His trademark will be making you feel so squicked out you will not EVEN LOOK at the magic trick, and just go along with whatever he says to get it over with.
posted by roboton666 at 5:11 PM on August 22, 2011
posted by roboton666 at 5:11 PM on August 22, 2011
Sometimes after I've watched something like this, I think "ok, need to clear my head, why did I even watch that, etc . . . need to go somewhere safe . . . maybe metafilter will help . . . " and then I'm like, oh, wait, that's where I found it.
posted by treepour at 10:43 PM on August 22, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by treepour at 10:43 PM on August 22, 2011 [1 favorite]
Hey Rocky! Watch me pull a fart out of my ass!
posted by Goofyy at 9:29 AM on August 23, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by Goofyy at 9:29 AM on August 23, 2011 [1 favorite]
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posted by phunniemee at 9:06 AM on August 22, 2011 [4 favorites]