Criss Angel Receives Merlin Award

[Gord]

I'm a bit surprised this hasn't been posted yet, so here it is.
Criss Angel received the Merlin award from the International Magicians Society.

Pictures can be found at http://www.starpulse.com/events/3904/0/ ... Award+For+\'Magician+of+the+Year\'/0/

(Sorry, the URL button seems to not be working again.)

On another note, it appears Angel is preparing for a remake of the Grizzly Adams movies.

Gord

[Richard Kaufman]

That's quite a beard!

[Dustin Stinett]

Ohits a beard beard. I was expecting to see a picture of Cameron Diaz.

[Brad Henderson]

Snap!!!!

[Amos McCormick]

Maybe they have a "Lumberjack" category...

[Pete Biro]

Forget the beard, check the BLING

[Mark Paulson]

I think I gave him a quarter while walking down Las Vegas Blvd the other day.

[Rennie]

I saw him standing on a corner the other day with a "I will work for food" cardboard sign...
He just sets a fantastic example of how a magician should look...
Let me compare him to Channing Pollack, Hmmm..
Rennie

[Gord]

You know, I kinda understand the whole "look" thing.
He's trying to attract the younger crowd to his magic by saying "Hey, look at me, the clothes say I'm one of you!"
The problem for me is I don't know any kids who look dress like him.
My nieces, their friends, kids I see on my street, in the malls ... anywhere. NO kids I see look like him ... except for the kids I sometimes see downtown sitting on the curb who ask me for change.
Now if he wants the street kid audience, that's cool, but other than that ...???

Heck, even my niece, who once adored him thinks he dresses like a bum.

Gord

[Rennie]

Originally posted by Gord:
You know, I kinda understand the whole "look" thing.
He's trying to attract the younger crowd to his magic by saying "Hey, look at me, the clothes say I'm one of you!"
The problem for me is I don't know any kids who look dress like him.
My nieces, their friends, kids I see on my street, in the malls ... anywhere. NO kids I see look like him ... except for the kids I sometimes see downtown sitting on the curb who
ask me for change.
Now if he wants the street kid audience, that's cool, but other than that ...???

Heck, even my niece, who once adored him thinks he dresses like a bum.

Gord

Gord,
Thank you, we totally agree on his "SLOB" look he is trying to achieve..
Rennie

[Jonathan Townsend]

Real grungy biker+bling look there.

well... atleast nobody yet as wondered if he's the guy David Blaine gave a coffeecup full of change to on that TV special a while ago.

[The Magic Apple]

how does he keep winning awards??

[Terry]

how does he keep winning awards??

The same way hollyweird "awards" their celeb-rats. They need "names" to lend validation to their ridiculous "awards".

Real question is "Who still cares about the awards?"

[David Alexander]

Since I don't pay a lot of attention to amateur magic I must confess I had never heard of the "International Magic Society," the organization that gave Angel the award.

A few moments on Google and I found that it seems to be, primarily, an Internet marketing scheme by Tony Hassini. Pay a one-time $25 fee and you are a member for life which seems to fly in the face of organizations like the SAM, IBM, and Magic Circle who need sustaining members to pay for on-going expenses.

Given that a one-time payment makes you a member forever, the IMS has become the largest magic society in the world.

The one-time membership cost gives the member the opportunity to become a "Doctor of Magic" and have the initials "D.M." after their names by buying a 50 volume set of DVDs, studying the material, again paying $25 to take a "test."

Absent a few names, the Merlin Award seems to have been presented to every working professional in the world, presumably to those willing to either show up or lend their names to the organizations advertising.

[Mark Paulson]

Tony Hassini! That's who Criss Angel reminded me of when I saw those photos of him with his beard!

A long time ago, I actually watched some of Tony Hassini's instructional videos, which I got from the library. He had the same beard! I knew I had seen that beard before.

[David Alexander]

Originally posted by Terry:

how does he keep winning awards??

The same way hollyweird "awards" their celeb-rats. They need "names" to lend validation to their ridiculous "awards".

Real question is "Who still cares about the awards?"

Johnny Carson used to tell a story about some clothing manufacturers group that called him for being the "Best Dressed Comedian on Television."

He thanked them and then learned that in order to actually receive the award he would have to appear at their banquet and, while there, "do a few minutes."

John immediately understood what was going on and declined the opportunity to perform for free. They were taken aback at his decision and then blurted out the question: Did he know any other comedians who might show up and perform for the award?