James Randi Demonstrates How 'psychic' Uri Geller Bends Spoons And Other Magic Tricks On The Tonight Show With Johnny Carson Really Funny Seeing Uri Squirm

Summary

The video script details a skeptic's journey into the world of alleged supernatural phenomena, focusing on the investigations of Uri Geller's claimed psychic abilities. It delves into Geller's fame in the 1970s, his purported mind powers to bend keys and spoons, and the speaker's own efforts to replicate these tricks, suggesting they are illusions. The narrative also touches on the speaker's confrontation with faith healer Peter Popoff, revealing the use of technology to fake divine intervention. The speaker advocates for rationality and the pursuit of a clear understanding of reality, questioning the public's fascination with the irrational.

Takeaways

• 🔮 The speaker is against magical thinking and has exposed many psychics and their illusions.
• 🏆 In 1986, the speaker was awarded a MacArthur award for their investigative work.
• 📚 The speaker faced legal challenges that consumed most of the prize money from the MacArthur award.
• 🔍 The speaker investigated Uri Geller, a famous psychic who claimed supernatural powers, including bending metal and reading minds.
• 🤹‍♂️ The speaker demonstrated that Geller's tricks could be replicated using sleight of hand and preparation.
• 🗣️ Geller was known for his performances on TV, including bending keys and spoons, which the speaker sought to debunk.
• 📺 The speaker was invited to The Tonight Show to help prevent trickery during Uri Geller's appearance.
• 🤔 The speaker ponders why people are drawn to the irrational and is committed to living in the real world.
• 💸 The speaker investigated faith healers, like Peter Popoff, who claimed to cure diseases through divine intervention.
• 🎙️ Peter Popoff's 'miracle healings' were exposed as a scam, with the speaker revealing the use of a radio scanner and pre-prepared information.
• 🔪 The speaker also explored the phenomenon of psychic surgery in the Philippines, showing it to be an illusion based on slight of hand.

Q & A

What is the speaker's stance on magical thinking?

The speaker is opposed to magical thinking and has no reservations about exposing those who claim to have supernatural abilities as frauds.

What award did the speaker receive in 1986?

The speaker was honored with a MacArthur award in 1986.

Who is Uri Geller and what were his claims to fame?

Uri Geller is a young Israeli who claimed to have supernatural powers, including an affinity for metal and psychic abilities such as mind reading and bending keys with his mind.

What was the speaker's approach to investigating Uri Geller's claims?

The speaker decided to duplicate Geller's effects using trickery to show that they could be achieved without supernatural powers.

How did the speaker demonstrate the bending of a key without supernatural powers?

The speaker used a technique called 'ratcheting,' where the key appears to bend while being stroked, but it had been pre-bent and manipulated out of sight.

What was the speaker's opinion on Geller's claim of being able to start broken devices by thinking about them?

The speaker felt that Geller's claim had to be challenged and demonstrated a more reasonable explanation through trickery and preparation.

What happened during Uri Geller's appearance on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson?

The speaker was asked to help prevent any trickery during Geller's appearance. Geller was provided with props that were not tampered with and was asked to perform without touching certain items.

Why did the speaker's book and The Tonight Show episode not affect Uri Geller's career?

Despite the speaker's efforts to expose Geller's tricks, his popularity and career did not seem to be significantly impacted, as his star eventually faded for reasons not directly related to the speaker's actions.

What is the speaker's view on living in the real world?

The speaker values living in the real world as closely as possible, avoiding substances that could impair rationality and reasoning powers, and is willing to give up comforting fantasies for this clarity.

Who is Peter Popoff and what was the speaker's investigation into his activities?

Peter Popoff was a television evangelist who claimed to have divine powers to heal people. The speaker investigated and exposed Popoff's use of a radio scanner and earpiece to receive information about audience members, which he claimed was divine revelation.

What is the phenomenon of 'psychic surgery' and how was it demonstrated on The Tonight Show?

Psychic surgery is a phenomenon where practitioners claim to perform operations without knives. The speaker demonstrated on The Tonight Show that it was merely a trick involving sleight of hand and the use of animal blood and chicken parts to create the illusion of performing surgery.

Outlines

00:00

🔮 Unveiling the Illusions of Uri Geller

The speaker, an opponent of fraudulent psychic claims, discusses their investigative journey into the world of psychics, culminating in a MacArthur award. They recount their most controversial case involving Uri Geller, a young Israeli who claimed supernatural powers, including mind-reading and metal-bending. The speaker challenges Geller's abilities by demonstrating how similar effects can be achieved through trickery, such as 'ratcheting' a key to appear as if it's bending. They also critique Geller's spoon-bending performances and his claim that intention alone could fix broken electronics, emphasizing the importance of rationality and skepticism in the face of such phenomena.

05:02

🎩 Debunking the Deceptions of Peter Popoff

The narrative shifts to the world of faith healing, focusing on a television evangelist named Peter Popoff, who claimed to heal people through divine intervention. The speaker expresses their skepticism and investigates Popoff's methods, revealing that he was using a radio scanner and information from prayer cards to 'miraculously' know details about his audience members. The speaker arranged for Popoff's 'miracle crusade' to be broadcast on The Tonight Show, exposing the use of wireless prompting during the performance. The speaker concludes with a reflection on the allure of the irrational and the importance of maintaining a clear and rational perspective on the world.

10:05

🩺 Exposing the 'Miracles' of Psychic Surgery

The speaker delves into the phenomenon of psychic surgery in the Philippines, where practitioners perform operations without surgical instruments. They investigate this practice and demonstrate on The Tonight Show how these 'miracles' are actually elaborate deceptions involving sleight of hand and props such as animal blood and chicken parts. The speaker emphasizes the importance of critical thinking and the exposure of such charlatanism to maintain a realistic and genuine understanding of the world.

Keywords

💡Magical Thinking

Magical thinking refers to the belief that one's thoughts or actions can influence the external world in ways that defy conventional understanding of cause and effect. In the video, the speaker is critical of magical thinking, especially when it is presented as genuine psychic or supernatural phenomena. The speaker's opposition to this type of deception is evident as they expose the tricks behind the illusions.

💡Psychics

Psychics are individuals who claim to use extrasensory perception (ESP) to perceive information hidden from the normal senses. The video discusses the speaker's investigations into the claims of numerous psychics, challenging their authenticity and revealing their methods. The term is used to describe individuals like Uri Geller, who the speaker scrutinizes for their alleged supernatural abilities.

💡Uri Geller

Uri Geller is a well-known figure who has claimed to possess supernatural powers, particularly in telekinesis and mind reading. The video script details the speaker's skepticism and investigation into Geller's claims, demonstrating how Geller's tricks, such as bending spoons, can be replicated through ordinary means, thus casting doubt on the supernatural explanation.

💡Spoon Bending

Spoon bending is a purported psychic ability where a person claims to bend a spoon using only their mind. In the video, the speaker exposes this as an illusion, showing how it can be achieved through sleight of hand and preparation. The example of spoon bending is used to illustrate the deceptive practices that some claim to be psychic powers.

💡Ratcheting

Ratcheting is a magician's technique where an object, like a key, appears to bend or move under the influence of the performer's touch, but is actually manipulated in a way that is not immediately apparent to the audience. The video script uses the term to explain how the illusion of bending a key can be achieved through trickery, as opposed to supernatural abilities.

💡MacArthur Award

The MacArthur Award, also known as the 'Genius Grant,' is a prestigious fellowship awarded to individuals who show exceptional creativity in their field. The speaker mentions being honored with this award in 1986, highlighting their credibility and the significance of their work in investigating and debunking pseudoscience.

💡Trickery

Trickery in the context of the video refers to the use of deceptive techniques to create illusions that mimic supernatural phenomena. The speaker demonstrates various tricks to show that what is often attributed to psychic powers can be achieved through skillful manipulation and preparation, thus challenging the authenticity of such claims.

💡Faith Healing

Faith healing is a practice where people believe that prayer and religious rituals can result in physical or mental healing. The video discusses the speaker's investigation into faith healers, particularly Peter Popoff, revealing that the seemingly divine knowledge of the healers' ailments and personal details were actually obtained through more mundane means, such as pre-show information gathering.

💡Peter Popoff

Peter Popoff is a television evangelist and faith healer who the speaker investigates in the video. The speaker uncovers that Popoff's apparent ability to know personal details of his audience members and perform 'miracles' was actually facilitated by his wife, who provided him with information through a concealed earpiece. This revelation challenges the authenticity of faith healing.

💡Psychic Surgery

Psychic surgery is a form of alternative medicine where practitioners claim to remove diseased energy or matter from a patient's body through psychic means. The video script includes the speaker's exploration of this phenomenon, revealing it to be an illusion involving sleight of hand and the use of animal blood and chicken parts to simulate the appearance of performing surgery.

💡Skepticism

Skepticism in the video represents a critical approach to claims that lack empirical evidence, particularly those related to the supernatural or paranormal. The speaker embodies skepticism as they investigate and debunk various psychic phenomena, advocating for a rational and evidence-based understanding of the world.

Highlights

Opposition to magical thinking and commitment to exposing illusions.

Investigation of hundreds of psychics and the impact on their credibility.

Receiving a MacArthur award in 1986 for investigative work.

Controversial investigation of Uri Geller's supernatural claims.

Geller's fame in the 1970s as the world's most famous psychic.

Geller's demonstrations of mind reading and key bending.

The use of trickery to duplicate Geller's spoon bending.

Explanation of how to prepare a key for the 'bending' trick.

Doubts about Geller's abilities to influence inanimate objects.

Appearance on The Tonight Show to test Geller's abilities.

Use of sealed envelopes and independent props to prevent trickery.

The decline of Uri Geller's career despite skepticism.

The pursuit of rationality and the avoidance of narcotics.

Investigation into the world of faith healing and its abuses.

Peter Popoff's faith healing practices and the use of radio scanners.

Exposing Popoff's methods by replicating them on The Tonight Show.

Investigation of psychic surgery in the Philippines.

Demonstration of how psychic surgery illusions are performed.

Transcripts

magical thinking you know is a slippery

slope sometimes it's harmless enough but

other times it's quite dangerous

personally I'm opposed to that kind of

fakery so I have no reservations at all

about exposing these people and their

Illusions for what they really

are I've investigated the claims of

hundreds of Psychics people aren't

always happy with my conclusions but I

do have my supporters in 1986 I was

honored with a MacArthur award

unfortunately most of the prize money

went into defending myself against a

series of liel Suits related to one of

my earliest and most controversial

investigations the subject was Erie

Geller a young Israeli who claimed to

have Supernatural

Powers his remarkable affinity for metal

and his psychic abilities are well

documented all over the world in the

early

1970s Geller became a superstar the most

famous psychic in the

world okay just a second look at me

visualize everything that you drew once

more he claimed to read people's

minds I'm going to show what I got and

if I'm wrong then I'm wrong but I really

came very strong

in it could be two mountains with a

round thing on or two people

I I can I show yeah I'd like to am I

wrong you're right I'm right good that's

what I

got

oh he claimed to bend keys with his mind

I know you're going to think this is a

setup fors and old Tom has never conned

you on anything this this guy is bending

this key by rubbing it it was bent at

about a one Dee angle when you started

out and it's coming up on 45° now and

still moving you thinking Bend is that

what you're doing yes I'm saying Bend

you're saying Bend hard soft no I'm

saying Bend Bend Bend and sometimes I

say Bend baby but Geller was best known

for his way with spoons hold the tip of

the phon very very gently okay what I'm

doing is I'm trying to melt the metal

down yes you see I feel it it's going

getting loose yeah and there's no Force

at all in my

hands yes look what this there's no

Force at all look the whole you see it's

BEC whole thing ready to fall off it's

and touch it here where I'm stroking it

there is absolutely no that is

eering I have a wisdom

tooth if you can see the metal is

beginning to crack here it's breaking

yeah see look it's it's becoming it's

like py Wax you see look and keep keep

stroking it

here you see the no don't don't you see

the crack is becoming bigger y i melt

the metal down so so I wanted to bend I

just say Bend yeah you melted see now

wait a minute wait a minute keep

stroking your keys more and people at

home want you watches to start working

or if there is it radio that is broken

want it to start working television

broken just wanted all those broken

things now what Geller was saying

effectively was that wanting things

could make

them started I felt that claim had to be

challenged

the media even some scientists were

taking the Geller phenomena seriously so

I decided to show for starters that I

could at least duplicate these effects

using trickery now a key can be

displayed in such a way that it looks

like it's bending for example just by

stroking it you'd swear that it's

bending right up before your

eyes magicians call this process

ratcheting but to do this the key has to

be bent in

advance the hard part of course is how

to go about bending the key without

letting them catch you now there are

several ways I could for example take it

and press the tip against the top of the

table that would do it or in shifting my

chair backwards or forwards as I just

did I could have taken it and dropped it

below the level of the table and press

the tip on the chair I'm sitting on

which is exactly what I just did

did that fool

you mentalists have been duplicating

hidden drawings for

years if Mr Geller had chosen to use

trickery he could have used any of a

number of techniques one favorite

involves turning your back and covering

your eyes while the drawing is being

made now I've always wondered why you

would cover your eyes while your back is

turned

[Music]

but melting metal is something else

again it's done something like

this and it gets soft so I say to it

Bend Bend Bend and it

bends of course it does take a little

preparation in fact it takes a lot of

preparation now this isn't proof

positive of that other demonstrations

aren't the result of Supernatural power

but isn't this a more reasonable

explanation and then of course there was

Mr Geller's appearance on The Tonight

Show I got a call after they booked him

to

appear would you welcome please URI

Geller Johnny had been a magician

himself and was skeptical

I was asked to help prevent any

trickery nice to see you thanks we um we

have only this scares me this scares you

well this is we just got some things

together here and I told them to provide

their own props and not to let Geller or

his people anywhere near them also one

of our staff members um did some

drawings which have been sealed in an

envelope uh and I'd like you to take

your own pace when you feel like you

want to try anything you want to try

that particular experiment first when

I'll feel for it

sure we'll start eliminating the ones

that do not have the water all right

without touching them he is really

suspicious you know I'm having a hard

time with you I don't mean to be you

right I really don't just just keep

looking okay let me er a little all

right all

right you know I'm surprised because

before this program your producer came

and he read me at least 40 questions

you're going to ask me well I can ask

you all kinds of questions if you like

if You' like me to ask you questions I

have to have time and uh

um D we are back your erri was telling

me you you you don't feel what strong

tonight is I don't feel strong it's not

all tonight right now I'm feel I'm

feeling being pressed and then I can't

I'm not trying to fresh you I really not

but no you're only telling me well will

you try that or or that well I thought

that was the idea of

uh of uh no I'm not I'm not trying to

push you

[Music]

down much to my surprise the tonight's

show episode didn't have much effect on

Erie Geller's

career neither did the book that I wrote

about

him but eventually his star

Faded why people are so drawn to the

irrational is something that has always

puzzled me I want to be if I can ass

sure of the world the real world around

me as is possible now you can only

attain that to a certain degree but I

want the greatest degree of control I

don't I've never involved myself in

Narcotics of any kind I don't smoke I

don't drink

because that can easily just fuzz the

edges of my rationality fuzz the edges

of my reasoning powers and I want to be

as aware as I possibly can that means

that giving up a lot of fantasies that

might be comforting in some ways but I'm

willing to give that up in order to live

in an actually real world as close as I

can get to

[Music]

it during the 1980s I entered a world

that I found filled with fantasy and rif

with abuse the world of Faith

human I developed a special interest in

a television evangelist named Peter poof

and God told me he said you smite that

cancer with your

fist at the time popof was pulling in

nearly $4 million a year healing people

on his Miracle Crusades you've got

cancer of the

stomach are you ready for God to burn

that cancer

out here it goes in the

mighty devil back

off back off

devil

hallelujah

hallelujah you really believe you're

healed yes say Jesus I you think your

cancers are gone now yes I believe that

because God never lies and we stand in

his word praise the Lord I'll tell you

from now on you're going to have a song

of victory in your heart Amen to his

followers pop off seemed to have Divine

Powers Al is it g Alice

G he knew their names stand up Alice as

well as the afflictions they' come to

cure God is touching that thyroid

condition right now God is touching your

nerves right now God is touching your

eyes just lift up your hands get ready

here it comes he also knew the personal

details of their lives going to hear

good news from Charles before everything

is over I'll tell you he's going to be

completely delivered because of your

prayers because of your faith here it

comes complete healing in Jesus mighty

name right now right now right now amen

it's all right to praise the Lord I

suspected that papos Revelations were

other than

Divine radio scanner we brought to the

hall picked up a decidedly worldly

Source hello pety can you hear me if you

can't you're in trouble John is it pop

off was being prompted by his wife

through a wireless

earpiece

John Deary

Johnson she'd gotten her information

from prayer cards filled out by the

faithful before the show

began she about to get rid of the

Walker you want to get rid of this

walker

sister Oh Glory How long how long have

you been walking on that walk about 3

years 3 years she lives at

16271 Street 1627 10th Street is that

right that's right she has Earth all

over burning this

arthritis right out of your

body take a few steps just to make the

devil mad Hallelujah that's it just move

around a little bit there she goes just

walk with me oh glory to God God she's

not going to need that Walker anymore

God's just putting new Strength new

health burning that arthritis out of her

body just keep going hallelujah

hallelujah I was able to arrange for

another broadcast of the miracle Crusade

on The Tonight Show but this time the

wireless prompting was

included in 1987 Peter popof declared

bankruptcy greater is

he greater is

he the laying on of hands takes on new

meaning in the Philippines where psychic

surgeons perform miraculous operations

without

knives I investigated this phenomenon

then went on The Tonight Show to

demonstrate what I'd learned believe me

what you're seeing is strictly special

effects it's slight of hand and nothing

more and this is the way it looks

a little animal blood and a few chicken

parts complete the

illusion a

[Applause]

bonus that's a bit better better just a

second just one second now maybe better

for

you you don't feel any

better oh no that doesn't come out

[Applause]