*talks

Adding video to channels (Talks) - requested by Hybrid.

Perhaps he has always been like this, but he sounds as if he has held his breath one too many times.

This guy is so talented, its amazing. But ill be damned if every time I hear him, I picture him holding a joint saying "heyyy maaaannnn, you want a hiiiit?"

If he has the drive to push himself to the limit in all these ways, he should be able to figure out how to become a competent public speaker

I always thought he was a total douche, but after hearing about his dedicated training for each of his stunts, I have a lot more respect for him.

Hey may have a voice that's a cross between Vin Diesel and Stephen Wright, but he has interesting photos, well prepared material and is actually doing a good job.

Sure he could be more animated, but I think he does a lot better than most.

Also... I too have far more respect for him... I just cannot fathom not breathing for that long... can't even comprehend it. I used to do it in the swimming pool and to get to 2 mins was a hell of a struggle... 17! Wow.

I don't think he got that the British were taking the piss out of him , it wasn't about challenging or saying that he couldn't do it, it was simply people taking the piss because its funny to do so.

When did feats of endurance, like staying in a box for 44 days, become magic? Or for that matter, entertaining to watch?

>> ^osama1234:
Perhaps he has always been like this, but he sounds as if he has held his breath one too many times.


If he has the world record for breath holding then. . . yeah there's an excellent chance of that. For a short time as a teenager I was curious to see how good I could get at holding my breath. Within a few days I could go for a little over 3 minutes. Shortly after I read that brain damage can set in after you've been deprived of oxygen for as little as 3 min 30 seconds. Then I stopped and got a proper hobby.

I'm sure Blaine and others are able to substantially increase the period of time they can go before being harmed, by increasing breath capacity, red blood cell count, ect. But when you train to be on the absolute edge of what humans are capable of, it seems almost certain he fried part of his brain in the process.

that's the thing i don't think it is Magic in the traditional sense as far as i understand all forms of magic involve trickery of some kind.

doing something that is 100% observable by the audience and in actuality is 100% what you said you were doing in my mind is not magic.



Magic is esentualy the use of illusions or an illusoin within a broader context.

>> ^MaxWilder:
I always thought he was a total douche, but after hearing about his dedicated training for each of his stunts, I have a lot more respect for him.


my thoughts exactly

It was good to hear how much work he'd put into these stunts. I hope they haven't taken too much of a toll on him.

David Blaine is an extreme example of a human being, and long may he, and others, continue to push the boundaries. I don't particularly agree or disagree that his endeavours are of any significant use. However, looking at great explorers,climbers,scientists etc, who had the passion and endurance to attain their individual goals, i think it is a tribute to these men and woman that we, atleast, acknowledge their committment.

Whoa.

He could be Vin Diesel's brother...

Gotta say that was pretty touching at the end. He may come across like a stoned knucklehead but you can't argue that he set a goal for himself and he dedicated himself 100% to reaching it. He accomplished what most people would have thought was impossible, and that's pretty cool, even inspirational.

>> ^mentality:
When did feats of endurance, like staying in a box for 44 days, become magic? Or for that matter, entertaining to watch?


when people died from not eating for 44 days or from staying underwater for 17 minutes. duh.

>> ^Fade:
>> ^mentality:
When did feats of endurance, like staying in a box for 44 days, become magic? Or for that matter, entertaining to watch?

when people died from not eating for 44 days or from staying underwater for 17 minutes. duh.


Maybe you think holding your breath is magic, but psssst: it's not. But hey, maybe you also think the Guinness World Records is a book of magic tricks. Duh.

His voice has seemed to change from when he use to do Street Magic. He was a smoother talker then.

Any sufficiently advanced feat is indistinguishable from magic.

>> ^gwiz665:
Any sufficiently advanced feat is indistinguishable from magic.


I hope you're misquoting Arthur C. Clarke deliberately for the lulz, and not actually trying to be serious =P

>> ^mentality:
>> ^Fade:
>> ^mentality:
When did feats of endurance, like staying in a box for 44 days, become magic? Or for that matter, entertaining to watch?

when people died from not eating for 44 days or from staying underwater for 17 minutes. duh.

Maybe you think holding your breath is magic, but psssst: it's not. But hey, maybe you also think the Guinness World Records is a book of magic tricks. Duh.


pssst, magic isn't real.

anyway you bringing up magic is meaningless in this context. This was a stunt. Nobody but you is claiming that this was magic.

I hated david blaine before watching this video, now i still think he's a tosser but a little less so. Damn good video, gave me a lot more respect for him, but i felt the tears were a little contrived in lieu of the sympathy ovation.

@Fade:
pssst, magic isn't real.



Pssst. Magicians aren't actually trying to do real magic.

anyway you bringing up magic is meaningless in this context. This was a stunt. Nobody but you is claiming that this was magic.



It's quite relevant since Blaine gained fame through his magic specials, and his stunts are often televised along with his magic performances. Besides, you're not the only one to engage me in this conversation about magic in this thread. But I agree, Blaine has morphed into more of a stuntman lately.

@gwiz665:
And to me holding your breath for 17 minutes means you're in league with some dark forces for certain.



The problem I find with all these stunts is that when David Blaine does it, he gets huge publicity because he is a celebrity, and when other people do bigger and better things, nobody gives a f*. For example, Tom Sietas beats Blaine's record not long afterwards. Does he get a TED talk even though he's been breaking static apnea, static apnea w/ O2, and dynamic apnea records for years? There's so many feats of human accomplishment out there. Do they all need David Blaine to make an attempt before they get some recognition in the media?

Maybe I'm just too cynical about our celebrity obsessed culture.

That story about the kid in the ice, I was six, and still remember seeing him regain conciousness on the news.

Very interesting