02x12 - Penn & Teller Ring Someone's Neck

[bunniefuu]

From the Penn & Teller Theater

in Las Vegas, Nevada,
here's our host, Jonathan Ross.

Thank you very much.

Thank you very much indeed.

How lovely.
Thank you so much.

Whoo!

Thank you.

Hello, and welcome
to Penn & Teller: Fool Us.

Here they are right now.

It's the fabulous
Penn and Teller.

Gentlemen, fabulous to see you.

Mr. Ross, sir,
always such a joy.

Lovely.

Take your seats, gentlemen.

The show can begin.

I like it.

It's time to get excited
because we're about to see

our first magician of the night.

I'm Scott.

And I'm Puck.

Puck is my magic wife, uh...

You know, we...

I don't know if I like
that term, but, um...

I'm the kind of guy
who will throw anything in and try it,

whereas Puck's
the kind of guy who has to know

exactly what steps we're following.

But we both come from
the same school of thought

when it comes to magic,
so we create very well together.

Puck's the serious guy.
I'm the funny guy.

But every once in a while
Puck has a zinger

that comes out
and it's worth writing down.

The funniest lines
in the show come from me.

Really?
Like which ones?

Exactly.

When we first started
putting our magic together,

we wanted to do something
that was different,

and we started just working
at our strengths.

We're from different neighborhoods,
completely different backgrounds,

but yet when we put it together,

it actually works.

Please welcome
Scott Alexander & Puck.

What we're actually
gonna do tonight is an escape.

It's called
the "Escape from Alcatraz."

And to help us out, please
welcome my partner in crime,

it's Puck.

Thank you.

Well, folks, you know, Alcatraz Prison

was almost impossible to escape
from for two reasons in particular.

First off, you had to get
through those solid steel bars,

and, uh, second, you had
to actually make it off the island.

And then, once you got off the island,

you had to swim
a mile and a half

through the icy waters
of San Francisco Bay.

Yeah, plus, add the fact
that the brothers don't swim.

That's true.

We were able to acquire
one of the actual jail cell windows

from Alcatraz Penitentiary.

We brought it in here
with us today.

Yeah, we bought it on Craigslist.

These bars come out

because we want to take them out
into the audience

and have you guys
check them out

and get up close and personal with them

and see that they are in fact legit.

- Here you go.
- I'll take two.

- Let's show the other side.
- Show the other side of the illusion.

Has a screen right here.

This'll become important
a little bit later on.

Just a completely empty frame
and some bars.

You guys,
would you check these out?

You look like you
might be familiar with bars.

I don't know...

Look really good, solid?

Okay, great, hand them back
to me when you're finished.

Look good?
Okay, perfect.

Now I hope you guys
checked them out really well

because after you see us do
what we're about to do,

you may wish you'd looked
just a little bit harder.

Scott's gonna place these back inside.

- There goes, first off, bar number one.
- Bar number one.

Bar number two.

Bar number two.

Bar number three.

Bar number three.

And lastly and finally,
bar number four.

Bar number four.
That's a lot of bars.

We have some more things
we need you guys to check out.

Oh, yeah, we got them over here.

We brought them
in this suitcase.

It's got a couple things
in here I want you to check out.

Uh, first of all, we've got this set
of regulation handcuffs

like you might find laying around
your bedroom at home, you know?

Also inside here,
I have another suitcase.

Inside this suitcase
I keep something very special.

This is my ball-peen hammer.

It's used for, uh...

- Peening ba*ls.
- Yeah.

And if you've ever had your ball
peened before,

you know it's very unpleasant.

Okay.

Also, another suitcase.

And inside this one, I keep
something else very special.

This bowling ball.

That's good.

But this is not just any bowling ball.

This is the Black Onyx Strike Master 3000.

Penn and Teller,
I'd like you to have a look.

Uh, it's hammer time.
There you go.

Ooh, can't touch this.

I know, '90s reference.
And, Teller, would you please

examine the ball?
What I'd like you to do, Penn,

hit the ball, notice its tonality,

make sure it's solid.

Uh, check it for any soft spots.

No hinges...

Watch Teller's thumbs.

He needs them
for the sleight of hand.

Okay, cool?

- Having a little too much fun with that.
- Yes.

Wow, your attention
to detail is staggering.

Thank you so much.

I'll take the hammer.
You're starting to scare me.

Okay, good, here we go.

All right, back up here.

Now, this bowling ball weighs
exactly eight pounds.

It's exactly the same size
as a human head.

In fact, it's exactly the same size
as Puck's head.

See? Look, twins.

What? You don't see it?

How about from this side?

All right, we're gonna
try one more thing.

Jonathan, would you help us
for a second? Thanks.

If you would, step behind the jail there.

- Sure. Okay.
- And check the bars first.

- Make sure they don't move again.
- Yeah.

This is a familiar view.

And if you would, try to pass
the bowling ball through there.

Sure.

See, the bars are staggered
in such a way

that no matter how you try to shove it,
it won't go through, right?

No angle works,
it won't go through.

Yeah, the bars
are only five inches apart.

The ball is actually
nine inches in diameter.

Completely impossible.

But now we're going
to actually try to attempt

to pass solid through solid.

Thank you very much.
I'd like you to check this out.

Why don't you get... Ooh!

That one last bit
of security, folks.

Uh, this set of handcuffs,
uh, that was on loan

from the Las Vegas
Police Department.

I'm gonna lock Puck
inside just like this.

Now, you'll notice his hands
are locked through the bars.

That's important.

Now, we've seen an inanimate
object pass through.

Now it's time to see
what happens when warm flesh

meets cold steel.

Scott and Puck,
ladies and gentlemen.

Let's hear it for them.

Great job. Great fun.

Thank you.

You had them with the bowling
ball going over there then.

So, Penn and Teller are gonna
have a think about it.

They're gonna talk about whether
they know how you did that.

It was a great act, I thought.
I enjoyed it thoroughly.

Uh, let me ask you
a few questions about yourself.

- You're both dads, I know that.
- Yes.

You both have children.
So, your kids must love

having dads who do tricks.

Yes, yeah, it's kind of fun
'cause they get to show off

to all their friends, you know,
that their father does magic tricks, so...

His daughter is quite the magician.

- Oh, really?
- Yeah, she's really good.

- She does the cups and ba*ls trick...
- How old is she now?

I got one that's three
and one that's nine.

- Wow, so this would be the three-year-old?
- Yes.

Uh, but the moment
I think that I most enjoyed

and I know everyone did here...
Because I could see

that you were gonna
do something funny on stage

when you tripped
with the bowling ball,

it wasn't just Penn and Teller.

It was, like, everyone
over on that side of the audience.

I think that should qualify

as fooling them right there.

I think you fooled them
in that moment so, you know,

if that's all it takes,
then you've done it.

Okay, I think you're ready.
Are you, guys?

I'm gonna start by saying

the switching the bowling ball
for a balloon

is a gag that I know.

I've seen other magicians do it
and I always laugh with glee

when people fall for it.

I don't know what it was.

Maybe it's your acting,

maybe it's the timing in the bit,

but you...

Got me 100%...

...with the bowling ball.

I tell you, the bowling ball
thing scared the living Jesus out of me.

- That's hard to do.
- And I'm an atheist.

This trick, uh, is a wonderful trick.
You added to it.

You added to it.
I think the handcuffs is yours, right?

And the handcuffs
is a really nice addition.

It makes the topological puzzle
element of it

much more complicated.

That's a huge wrinkle

to add to this trick.

Having said that, pictures sometimes speak
louder than words.

Teller's got a little picture
of the trick to show you.

He's quite a little sketch artist there.

Don't throw any bowling ba*ls
at him yet!

- Yeah, yeah.
- Yeah.

Yeah, I would say,
uh, that's how it works.

Yeah, he's got it.

As always we're gonna
destroy the evidence...

Yes.

...so that it doesn't fall
into the wrong hands.

Let's hear it for our magic
shredder, ladies and gentlemen.

Let's hear it
for Scott and Puck.

Thank you, gentlemen. Great job.

Thank you, Puck.

Fabulous, wasn't it?

Let's find out a little bit
about our next magician.

My name is Eric Jones
and I live in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Now, when I first got into magic,

I kind of used it
as a social crutch.

I was severely overweight.
I was dorkier than I am even now.

No, let me do it again.
I'll do it again.

But since then I've learned
how to communicate

and connect with people.

For me, there's absolutely
nothing more fulfilling

than finding and creating
the moment of astonishment.

And you'll notice one card

comes rising out of the pack.

I do not understand that.

- Yeah, that one I thought...
- It's called magic.

I still consider myself a student,

but people do look to me
for techniques that I've devised

and my handling of coin magic.

Not only am I excited
about being on Penn & Teller: Fool Us,

but I'm really looking
for the opportunity

to share my magic
on a grander scale.

This next magician is known
for his close-up magic with coins.

I met him earlier today.

I couldn't make heads or tails of him.

Let's see if you can.
Please welcome Mr. Eric Jones,

ladies and gentlemen.

Tonight, I'm gonna share
something that's very dear to my heart.

The problem with this illusion
that you're gonna see

is that it's designed
for just a few people,

and since there are so many
of you, I'd like to get

a couple of volunteers to come
upstage to keep me honest,

to make sure what everyone else
is about to see looks fair.

Now, here's the thing, guys.

If I choose you, you might think
that we have something worked out.

So, if you don't mind, Penn,
would you mind

- just choosing a couple people at random?
- Oh, sure.

Oh, boy. Oh, boy.

Who have I got that'll...

There's a big guy with both hands up.
Get on up here.

Yeah, one more.

Are you waving at me
behind the camera?

- Yeah.
- Get on up!

Give these guys
a round of applause

as they make their way up.

Guys, thank you so much
for joining me.

- My name is Eric. Your name is?
- Kent.

Kent? And?

Molly-Ann.

- Molly-Ann?
- Yes.

Now, what I want you guys to do

is pay very close attention
to everything you're about to see.

I'm gonna use a little bit
of imagination.

- Ooh.
- Awesome.

Isn't that kind of crazy?

Now here's
the interesting thing.

This is kind of like a...
A magic marker.

It's actually where I keep my money.

You know, in Vegas,
you got to be safe, right?

- Okay, right.
- All you have to do is watch...

...and you see a couple little coins.

These are four solid silver,

American half-dollars
from the turn of the last century.

You guys can examine them,
make sure they are exactly

what they seem to be, yeah?

Everything look good?

Looks good to me.

You guys will be the eyes
and the ears of the audience.

And so it'll be your job, Kent,

to make sure nothing
goes up the sleeve.

It'll be your job to make sure
nothing goes up the sleeve.

Watch everything you can
as close as possible.

First, let me ask,
can you see all four coins?

- I see all four.
- And you can see all four?

- Yes, sir.
- Make sure the camera can as well.

Watch close.

- Oh, wow.
- Whoa.

That's the first one.

- Okay!
- That was good. That was nice.

That was nice.

Now, I know
what some of you might be thinking.

I can almost sense it.
You're saying, "Eh,

"it's just some
of that sleight of hand crap."

There could be some truth to that.

However, the entire
dynamic changes when the magic

comes out of my hands
and into someone else's.

- Yeah.
- Are you willing to help?

- Sure.
- Let me ask you,

- are you left or right-handed?
- I'm right-handed.

Would you mind opening your right hand?
Place it above the table.

I'm gonna get you to leave
those three coins

right about there.

So, you've got three,
I've got one.

If you could,
take your other hand

and cover the coins,
creating, like, a cave

so you can see all three inside, yeah?

- Okay, like that?
- Perfect, and there's mine.

In a moment, I'm gonna
have you shake your three coins.

I'm gonna shake mine.
You guys will actually hear

the moment the magic happens.

- Okay.
- Are you ready?

- Yes.
- One, two, and three.

Shake the coins and listen
to the sound the silver makes, Kent,

not in your hands...

But in mine.

If you could,
dump the contents onto the table.

Show them what you've got.

Wow!

- Whoo!
- Now, I know what you might be thinking.

And, yes, it is a black thing.
You'll never understand it.

Yeah...

But would you like
to give this a try?

- I would love to.
- Excellent.

Are you left or right-handed?

- Let's do the right.
- Let's do the right.

Excellent. If you don't mind
showing the palm of your right hand

to your audience.

Allow your middle finger
and thumb to slowly come together.

Turn the hand at the wrist
and then bring it above the table.

Perfect.

Then if you could,
turn your left hand palm up

and place it about to inches
under the right.

Now, guys, you'll notice how
I'm holding on to these two coins.

By their edges.

That way I can't manipulate
the coins in any way.

If you don't mind opening
your middle finger and thumb

of your right hand.

Excellent, and grab
these two coins by their edges,

- just like this.
- Okay.

Excellent.

Now, can everyone see her too?

Yeah, and mine?

In a moment, I'm gonna
have you drop these two coins

onto the palm of your hand.

- It's important that you catch the coins.
- Okay.

Make sure they don't hit
the table or the floor.

I'll do the same with my two.

One coin will become invisible,
travel across the table

to arrive inside of my hand.

Does that sound
like a frigging miracle or what?

- I'm trying to see.
- Right?

It's gonna happen after three,

meaning, "One, two, three,
Geronimo," okay?

Okay, one, two, three, drop.

One, two, three.
Ah, if you could,

Ah!

If you could slowly bring your hand
towards the center of the table,

and one finger at a time,
dump the contents on

and show them what you've got.

- Whoa! Hey!
- She's got one coin.

That's pretty good.

You see, the thing about this
is it means absolutely nothing

unless...

Unless...

There's one, two...

And three coins here.
High five?

- Yeah.
- Wow.

- One coin left to go.
- Wow.

Now, guys, up until this point,
I've tried to move

as slowly as I possibly could
to keep everything fair.

But I want to make a pact
with you guys.

If at any point, anyone,
including you guys,

sees anything that looks tricky
or suspicious...

- Yes?
- Be a jerk.

Look me right in the eye
and say, "Eric, slow the hell down."

Can we agree to that?

- Yes.
- Four coins.

Kent, if you don't mind,
just open your hand

one more time for me, bro.

- Can you see all four coins?
- Yes, I do.

Please, show
your left hand empty.

And then if you could, gather
the coins on the palm of your hand

like a stack of poker chips

and then show
your left hand empty again.

If you could then, sir,
use just your middle finger and thumb,

grab that top coin,
place it onto the palm of my hand.

It's a lot of instructions,
isn't it?

And close your hand around
the rest of them.

I'm gonna bring your hand
to right about here.

But squeeze tight.
Don't let me in no matter what I try.

- Oh.
- And I might, all right?

The last one.

- The last one.
- Oh, okay.

All you have to do is watch.

Kent, if you don't mind,
slowly turn the hand like so

and allow the contents
to fall from the hand.

That's one, two, three, four.

Give these guys
a round of applause!

Thank you so much,

- and be careful on your way back.
- Awesome.

Eric Jones,
ladies and gentlemen.

- Eric, fabulous, mind-blowing.
- Thank you.

- Such a great show.
- Thank you. Thank you.

When did you start doing this?

'Cause I know this is the kind
of illusion, this is the kind of magic,

that takes real dedication to the craft.
So, how old were you?

Um, I started magic when I was 19,
but this particular illusion

I've been working on
for about eight years now.

- Wow, wow.
- Yeah.

And you know what?
I thought it was incredible.

I know the audience,
you loved this performance, didn't you?

So, either way it goes,
you've made a lot of new fans right here.

Okay, Penn, Teller?

Boy, I love the close-up,
finger flinging stuff.

I really love it.

We have seen this kind of stuff done,

uh, using the method we think
you used a bunch of times

but not in spectators' hands.

And using what you're using
takes such incredible skill

and handling
of the audience members,

and I must say,

gonads the size of South American cities.

But do you like pets?

- I love pets.
- Do you like cats?

- I do love cats.
- Do you like dogs?

- I do, yeah.
- Yeah? I don't.

But my children
really wanted to have pets.

So, you know what we got?
We got a turtle.

We actually got 12 turtles
that live in a little pond out back

- and those turtles...
- Penn, I'm sorry.

Can we please get back to magic?

Because it's lovely hearing

about your home life
but no one knows

what the hell you're talking
about right now.

Well, I think Eric does.

I love turtles, too.

Uh, there was one turtle
that we could've used here tonight...

- Yep.
- ...but only for one aspect

of the entire routine.

Right, I will just say this.

There are certain turtles
that are very, very rare and valuable.

And if I had those turtles,
with their quality,

I might keep them safe from other people.

I might lock them up.

No?

No, you'd leave that turtle
just out there wild?

Why are we talking
about turtles still?

Everything on the table is examinable.

You say examinable.

- Yes.
- Does that mean un-gimmicked?

- It does not.
- It does not.

It becomes a judgment call
for the booth, I believe.

Johnny knows how the trick is done.

Johnny knows what we've said.

Via my earpiece, I'm hearing
from Johnny right now,

and he's asked me to say...

And it kind of breaks my heart
'cause we're going back to turtles.

I'm warning you now.

He said the turtle,

whatever the hell that is,

was only used
at the end of the act...

Right.

And he does not believe
you have successfully identified

how the remaining part of the act is.

So, that means Eric Jones
has fooled Penn and Teller!

Beautiful, beautiful work.

- You like all my talk about turtles?
- I love the turtle thing.

Teller's gonna give you your trophy.

Look at that.

And that means Eric
doesn't only get the trophy,

he gets to come back here
and perform

as part of Penn and Teller's
stage act is Las Vegas.

- Yes! And we can't wait.
- That's incredible.

What a great performance.
Congratulations.

Okay, off you go.

Wow.

We have collected the best
magicians from around the world.

And remember, we buy in bulk
and pass the savings on to you.

Let's meet our next performer.

Hi, uh, my name is Mark Calabrese.

I'm from Palisades Park,
New Jersey.

I have been doing magic since I was
about seven or eight years old.

When I was younger, magic
actually helped me,

uh, make a lot
of friends and break the ice.

I like to call myself a magic lifer.

I didn't really choose magic.
Magic chose me.

I also got into wrestling
and mixed martial arts

and I've competed
and grappled in tournaments.

About two years ago,
I almost quit magic.

I felt like a ballerina
on a stripper pole.

Uh, I felt like I was just trying
to make ends meet

and I wasn't enjoying it.

My outlook changed
when I realized

that I'm not curing cancer
or doing brain surgery,

and I just looked at it as,
if I could make someone happy

and forget their day
for just one moment,

I've done my job.

Fooling Penn and Teller
would change everything for me.

I'm looking to use
my fighter mentality

to beat Penn and Teller.
I respect Penn and Teller

with everything they do,
but I'm also looking to take them down.

Our next performer
will be jumping off the top rope of magic

and dropping an atomic elbow
on your imagination.

Will you please welcome Mark Calabrese?

Thank you, Jonathan.

Thank you, Penn and Teller.

As a close-up magician,
I've always been envious

of the big-time stage performer
because of, you know,

the beautiful stage,
the lights, the... The pretty girls.

You really don't get
that as a close-up guy.

And I figured, since I'm in Vegas,

I want to do a card trick,
uh, Vegas-style.

So, Jonathan, if you
don't mind helping me out.

Sure.

Jonathan, what we have
here is a deck of cards.

Please verify that's brand-new.
I haven't opened it or anything.

Looks new to me, yeah, it's unopened.

All right, and take that out
and just get rid

of the advertisement cards
as well as the jokers on the bottom.

Perfect.

Now if Jonathan chose a card
and I found his card,

that's a one-in-52 chance.

It's impressive,
but I'm a magician.

I'm expected to do
these kind of things.

So, I'm gonna do
you one better, Vegas-style.

I'm gonna not just do
a one-in-52 chance.

I'm gonna do
a one-in-2704 chance, chance.

But first, will you give it
a good shuffle, okay?

Perfect, yeah.

And what I'm doing here,
Mark, is learning on the job.

That's what I'm doing.

As long as you're
getting paid, right?

Okay, let's see.
Jonathan, take one card out.

- Any one?
- Any one you'd like.

Okay, I like that one there.
Perfect, okay.

And with this marker,
if you don't mind,

sign the face of the card.
Show it to the audience.

Show it to Penn and Teller, of course,
and do not show me. I'll look away.

Place it back
whenever you're ready.

All set, okay.
Please give the deck

a nice thorough mix-up as well,

and then when you're done,
we'll place that back into the box.

I'm learning on the job.

Professional, there you go.

There. Hold it. There were go.

Stuff, all right, so... And then we'll
get back to that deck in a second.

Now, I told you
a one-in-2704 chance,

and the way that we're gonna do that is,
uh, with, you guessed it,

- 51 other decks of cards.
- Wow.

And these are all identical

to the deck that's on the table.

What I'm gonna have you do
is hold on to those cards.

- Okay.
- Okay, I'm gonna take your deck of cards

and toss it into, uh, the bunch, okay?

Now I want you just to give 'em
a good, thorough mix-up,

making sure
not to drop anything.

Now, since this is Vegas,

what better way
to do a Vegas card trick

with, uh, something
from Vegas itself?

And what we have over here
is the Penn and Teller wood chipper...

...of death, death, death, death.

Wow.

By the way, I'm also gonna
do one other thing.

And that's going to be
I'm gonna blindfold myself.

Okay, now...

Is that wise near a wood chipper?

Basically you're gonna dump
the decks onto the table...

- Okay.
- All right.

And I'm going
to commit my decisions.

What's gonna happen is
I'm gonna pick up the decks,

and if I don't think your card
is in that deck,

goes right to the wood chipper.

Okay, so should I...
You want to do this now?

Yeah, dump it, just
making sure that it doesn't...

- Uh, nothing drops on the floor.
- Okay.

- Beautiful, perfect.
- Okay.

- All right.
- That's all of them.

Now we have some ear protection.

This thing is loud.

So, if you guys are, uh...
Have sensitive ears,

please put your fingers
in your ears.

Can you also verify
that this blindfold is exactly...

I didn't hear you. I had these on.

Can you please verify
this blindfold

is exactly what it says to be?

- Can't see through it, fair?
- Can't see anything.

All right, all set.
So, I'm turning it on now.

Cover your ears.

Now I'm gonna try to talk
as loud as possible.

Hopefully this is loud enough.

But, uh, you ready, Jonathan?

Cool.

- Jonathan?
- Yes.

- Hold these.
- Hold these?

- Yeah, hold them.
- Okay, I got them.

- How many decks are left?
- Huh?

- How many decks are left?
- Oh, I don't know.

Quite a few.

Give me the cards
that are in your hand.

- About 25.
- Okay.

These... We don't need these.

Hold this deck.

How many decks are left
on the table?

That's it. You got the last decks
in your hand

- apart from this one.
- Okay, these are it?

Are there any more?
Are there any more?

- One in my hand left.
- Hand me the deck.

- Is the deck face down in my hand?
- It is face down.

Okay.

I know it's been
a long time, Jonathan,

- but do you remember your card?
- Not really.

Okay, well, here's the thing.
That's okay.

- Because that's why I had you sign it.
- Well, I signed it.

- That's a good thing.
- You remember your signature, right?

- Yes.
- Okay, good.

That is my signature.

That was my card, ladies and gentlemen.

Mark Calabrese!

Nice job, Mark.
Come around the front here.

Okay, you know how this works.

Penn and Teller
are gonna talk to each other.

They're gonna discuss
what they've just seen

and whether they know
how it was done.

Uh, let me ask you a bit
about yourself.

So, you're a wrestler,
but you're kind of a real wrestler.

This isn't the kind
of entertainment wrestler

where it's all fixed in advance?

Yeah, I mean, mixed martial arts, uh,
jujutsu, and basically beating people up

is, yeah, my thing.

I don't think I've met any other magicians
who do that as well.

- You must be in the minority.
- Yeah, I mean,

I'm still nerdy, but I like...

- you know, I like to...
- You're nerdy?

If you don't like my card tricks,

I just punch you
in the face and that's it.

Kick me in the head,
yeah, there you go.

I'm gonna like your tricks
in the future then.

Will you do me a favor?

- 'Cause I love your accent.
- Sure.

Would you say,
"Are you looking at me?

"Are you looking at me?
'Cause there's no one else here?"

- Uh, really?
- Yeah.

You looking at me?
You... You looking at me?

I don't see anybody else here.
You looking at me?

Wow, that's pretty good,
isn't it, ladies and gentlemen?

- Great job.
- I'm here.

I've got no idea how you did it,
but of course, I'm not a professional.

Penn and Teller are
at the very top of their game,

so let's ask Penn
what the duo thought.

Well, if we were doing this trick,

we would've done it
with, uh, cards that were marked,

which you could've brought out
at the beginning...

- Okay.
- And then it's very, very easy

to do a blindfold peak
down your nose.

And Teller and I love, love,
love blindfold peeks,

and we love, love, love
marked cards.

But we don't think you did it that way.

- Okay.
- We don't think you did it

with a blindfold peek.

We think you
actually did it tactilely.

We think you were
actually feeling around.

- Okay. Okay.
- And even though where you were

feeling around would
still give you a blindfold peek,

we don't think you did.

We don't think the cards
were gimmicked when you brought them out.

- Okay.
- We think that happened later.

And I think the one thing I can
say is I like this trick quite a bit,

but if Fred Flintstone
were watching this trick,

if Fred Flintstone
had seen this trick,

and if Fred Flintstone knew...

...an awful lot about magic,

and if Fred Flintstone was taking a guess,

I think Fred Flintstone
might have said,

"Yabba, dabba, do."

Would Fred Flintstone have said,
"Yabba, dabba, do?"

For a second, I thought you
just liked The Flintstones...

...but he would say, Yabba, dabba, do.

The rest of us feel like
we're just at a meeting

of overly keen Flintstones fans...

...but presumably there's a code in that,

uh, that you got.

They're talking in code
so we don't get the tricks too easily,

but yeah, you're fairly happy
that they've busted you here?

I did not fool Penn and Teller,
but I'm happy to be here

and I'm happy to perform
in front of you.

And you did a great job.

- Mark, you did a great job.
- Thank you.

Super fun to watch,
and I loved being onstage with you.

- Thank you.
- Mark Calabrese, ladies and gentlemen.

Great work. Nice to meet you, sir.

Let's meet our next act.
We'll see if they've got what it takes.

My name is Paul Vigil.

I live in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Some people call me a magician,

others a mind reader,

and some perhaps maybe
even some kind of psychic.

I grew up working
in a magic shop.

Later on in my life,
I traveled around the world

studying shamanic medicines.

Once the curtains open
or they introduce me,

that's like "once upon a time"
and all bets are off.

Point to me a spot
like right here or right here or...

Magic can have a consciousness
expanding effect on people.

Look at that.
I just don't understand.

Mind blown.

Part of what I'm interested
when I perform magic

is a moment that transcends
to help people know that mystery

is still alive where even smart people
will begin to doubt.

Will you please
welcome Paul Vigil?

Oh, no.

Can I ask you to ponder
something for a second?

Do you think it's possible
that somebody,

maybe even, like, myself,

could stand here
in front of a group of strangers

and predict exactly
what they may or may not do?

- I'm gonna start with you, Penn.
- Okay.

Now, please, I have some
specific statements

with which I'm going to attempt
to influence you with.

I'm gonna start with you
and I'll use a few more.

The response that I want
from you is a single digit

between zero and 10.

Not zero and 10,
between zero and 10.

Now, you know that I'm
attempting to influence you

and my statement is,

"One, two, buckle my shoe,

"blank, four, unlock the door."

You know what the obvious digit
would be to put in this blank spot,

but if you had a choice,
you would say?

- Two.
- Two.

I'll record that here for later.

And perhaps this gentleman
right here in the red plaid?

Again, we haven't set anything up,

nobody's approached you
and asked you to help me out in any way,

and I promise, if you listen carefully,

I'll make you look good, all right?

The statement I have
to influence you is,

"Snow White and the blank Dwarfs."

And the digit
you would give me is?

- Four.
- Four.

So, we're starting off
with a two and a four.

And lastly, Teller.

Please, again, listen carefully.

I don't think that these
statements will work on everybody,

but I think that
this one will work with you.

And the statement is,

"Blank blind mice, see how they run."

Please, can you hold up
some fingers for me?

One.

So, 241.

Do you think there's any way
I could come out here

and predict
that I would get this number,



Please, can I have
you come up here, Penn?

Let's give him a big round
of applause, please.

- How's it going today, pal?
- I'm doing very well, Paul.

- How are you doing?
- Great, it's good to see ya.

- Good to see you.
- Yeah!

So, before I came out here tonight,

- I took a business card.
- Uh-huh?

I wrote three numbers
on this business card

and then I put it somewhere
where everybody would know

I wouldn't be able to touch it.
Any idea where that's at?

Uh...

Please, let me turn around.
Can you see that,

pinned onto the back of my jacket?

- Now, please don't touch it yet.
- Okay.

That is legitimately
pinned on there

and I am gonna have you verify that.

- You can pull on that, please.
- Okay.

It is pinned...

- Yes?
- Very securely.

Go ahead,
you take the pin out.

If I was to do that, they'd think
that's when I'm doing the sneaky stuff.

And as you turn it over,
can you keep your thumb

over those three numbers
that I've written on the other side?

- Okay, I've taken it...
- I'd like you to be

about surprised as everybody
else here, all right?

- Open safety pin.
- Yeah.

Dangerous, open safety pin.

I don't trust you with this,

and they don't trust me with that.

- Okay.
- So, again, I asked you

for a single digit between
zero and 10.

- The number you gave me was a?
- A two, I believe.

Two. Can you just slide over
to the first number,

- and what number is...
- Two!

Yes!

- Can you see that?
- No, wait, hold on.

There's two chances
for me to mess up.

Sir, the second digit
you gave me was a?

- Four.
- What's the second number on that pa...

Second number there is a four.

Two, four.

And lastly, Teller, you could've named
any number in the universe.

Well, any number
between zero and 10, yes?

The number you gave me
was the number one.

One and... Oh.

What's the last number
I put on there?

Two, four, one.
Written there...

Let me show
that to the camera and everybody

will get a chance to see that.

Thank you, Paul.

- 241.
- 241.

Give yourselves
a big round of applause!

Paul Vigil,
ladies and gentlemen.

- Nice work.
- Thank you so much.

- Thank you.
- Good.

Mmm-hmm.

Okay, I think Penn and Teller

- have discussed.
- They've deliberated.

I think they've come
to a conclusion.

Uh, you can tell us whether
they're right or not. But, Penn?

One of the greatest tricks
in all of magic is that trick.

It is simple, it is direct,
and it is absolutely impossible.

It absolutely destroys.
Love it.

Love it. Love it.

Did you see the movie Patton?

- Patton?
- George C. Scott.

- Yes.
- You did?

And there's a line
from that movie that I think will mean

something very strong to you.

At one point, he says about Rommel,

"You magnificent b*stard!

"I read your book!"

Ah!

"I read your book,
you magnificent b*stard!"

Okay.

Paul put out one
of the greatest magic books ever.

In that book is this trick.

Teller and I both read it.
Teller and I both loved it.

And we sat in the dressing room
and talked about

how we could possibly use it.

So we would never, ever,
ever have figured that trick out

if we hadn't read your book,
you magnificent b*stard!

Wow.

That's good enough for me!

- Bravo.
- Perfect for me.

Thank you, thank you.

One last thing. Hi, Mom.

There he goes.

Well,

now, Penn and Teller have
deceived and delighted audiences

for over four decades,
but there's one trick

performed by Teller on his own

that has never been seen
on television until now.

Ladies and gentlemen, "Shadows."

Oh!

Oh, wow. Oh!

Maybe later.

Well, that is all the magic
we can cram into one hour

and my wand
is limp from the effort.

So, good night from all of us at Fool Us

and good night from Las Vegas.