So the circus I’m in, odd child uprising, just shot a short promotional video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yB-A_xbJtXY Check it out, and myspace us http://www.myspace.com/oddchilduprising if you want.
There is actually no unicycling featured in this anywhere, maybe in the next one?
Great stuff and lots of fun to watch.
Awesome, that contortionist was great…I’m curious, how long does the strait jacket escape take? Because Criss Angel was on Oprah the other day (I was watching because he was on, not because I watch Oprah), and he apparently broke Houdini’s strait jacket escape record of five minutes, doing it in only two minutes.
That time probably needs an asterisk because as all of us who’ve been around for a while or have spent any time institutionalized know, they don’t make straight jackets like they used to.
And as for the contortionist, I stand by my comment that the entire production was great and fun to watch and, in fact, I’d love to see them live. But if I were to offer any criticism, I’d say she should work on making her lines more symmetrical. When she has her legs over her head they tend to point in asymmetrical ways that, I think, take just a little away from the act visually. (Mind you I can’t touch my toes, so I’m only saying this from the pure perspective of a viewer somewhat familiar with circus acts.)
Ah…another victim of meaningless magician patter.
Houdini and the others use a very special straightjacket built specifically for magicians. There is a gimmick involved. Anyone with $400 can “beat houdini’s record.” He could have escaped in about ten seconds…but that’s not very entertaining.
Ok, so on the subject of strait jackets:
I’m the one doing the escape, so I’m passionate about the topic, Chris angel is a jackass.
Modern institutional straitjackets have 4 straps holding the back together. The arms travel through a center arm loop, and then each has another loop at the side, before being strapped behind the back. And of course, there’s a crotch strap. They use only heavy cotton canvas, have at least a few size options, and use friction buckles. The best jackets are made by posey medical restraint company and are somewhat difficult to purchase (legally they can only be sold to a physician, but ebay has them every now and then, as do a few magicians supply houses.)
I am one of a very few people who use modern, 3 loop, fiction buckle, posey jackets. Mine is a factory original, non-tricked, non-gaffed, size medium (you can tell by the green collar).
I did not see the Chris angel escape, but I would be shocked if he used this jacket. It is in fact the only jacket approved by Guiness for the world record. (I believe they allow a jacket without arm loops to be used in an under water escape attempt, I’m not sure why)
Beyond that:
I believe the world record is below 30 seconds, mid 20’s maybe, currently held by “Danger Nate.”
I think I use the same method he does (I’ve only seen one video of him, the one where he breaks the record), and on a good day, my times are below 40 seconds. That time really depends on who’s putting the jacket on me too. To keep me in for 40 seconds the jacket needs to be on correctly. If someone hasn’t practiced putting me in the jacket, I’ll actually be out much sooner.
Anyways, on stage I stretch the escape out to 4 minutes or so, it’s much more exciting that way.
As for our contortionist, Eve, she knows about her problems with form, it’s tricky I think, but I’ll definitely pass that on. I really appreciate your comments! Thanks!
The key word here is “magicians”. We are not magicians, and neither was Houdini. There is absolutly no evidence pointing to him using a gimicked straitjacket, and I sure as hell don’t use one either.
According to this site: http://www.davidescapes.com/records.htm
David’s world record are listed and published by - The Guinness Book Of Records and the Alternative Book Of Records…
The World’s Fastest Straitjacket Escape:
David Straitjacket currently holds the world record for the fastest ever straitjacket escape. This was completed in a time of 81.24 seconds. Easily beating the target of 90 seconds…
D.S. lives locally, and I have seen him perform ( I cannot confirm his world record personally) . But I wonder how many people in total actually claim this record?
Nao
That might be the “official” record, recorded by Guinness, but I bet someone’s done it faster.
Nick, for example.
Yeah, I’m pretty sure I’ve seen a video of this escape on youtube, it was recorded during a Guinnes TV show. He uses a diffrent method than I do. Pretty easy to spot, If you watch the video. Instead of crossing his arms under each other, one arm goes under, and one over. this gives him enough extra slack that he can actually undo the arm buckle behind his back.
Still really impressive though. I’ve tried doing it that way, and I can’t manage it.
I’m pretty sure that danger nate guy’s record was set more recently and is the true world record, but I’m not positive. From the video I saw it looked like the real deal.
Fiction buckle, eh? Must be why it’s so easy to undo. 
Point taken.
But I’ve read and studied alot about Houdini and he would Gimmick up everything he could to ease his escapes, Nothing wrong with that. He was very clever in his alterations. I would be very suprised if he did not alter the straight jacket in some way.
Good luck with the shows…or should I say “break-a-leg?”
Nick, are you dislocating your shoulder to get out of the jacket?
You’ll have to come to a show to find that one out.
No I don’t.
I understand your point.
But I have read several books on Houdini’s life, and have worked with stage magicians for over twenty years. As a juggler you are allowed “in” their sappy little secret society.
Just think about it for a moment. How do you think Houdini escaped from the milk-can? or from the Chinese water torture cell or sub-trunk. He obviously didn’t use magic. He had to use some form of gimmick and misdirection.
HE was a very gifted performer and was in amazing shape, he could untie knots in thread with his toes. I don’t mean to bash him here, or say he wasn’t the best ever. He did do many “actual” escaping using skills and not gimmicks… But he had no problem with using a gimmick either.
He may have done it “for real” and he may not. I have never seen or heard evidence to account for either presumption. Here’s what I do know. I have seen the staright-jacket escape too many times to count, by scores of magicians. They all use the patter of “houdini’s record” and make up different times as to what that time was. (If he ever held a “record” or not) and it is all BS…it’s just patter to make the trick seem more amazing.
The books say he did it by expanding his chest and arms as they tied him up, and then dislocating his shoulders to escape.
BTW: How come no one does this escape upside down, hanging from the burning rope, like Houdini did?
No doubt that escaping from a “real” straight jacket takes some skill and practice. It sounds like their are now some sort of escape artist purists out there doing just this. Magicians who are paid to entertain would very likely never go this route when they can entertain just as well using a gimmick instead.
My point was Houdini was an entertainer, first and foremost. He WAS a magician (best ever) and an escape artist (best ever) Like most magicians he would use any means possible to create the impossible. including Gimmicks and falsehoods.
Yeah…and we know THAT ^^^would never happen. 
here’s one available at the magic store that anyone can escape from:
available at : http://tophatmagicsupply.com/
This is the one I have played with:
Back on topic…I finally got to see your video Nick and enjoyed it. The five-club juggling is nice. Keep at it and your circus could go far!
Criss Angel has done the escape hanging upside down, not with a burning rope, but I’ve never heard that Houdini did it with a burning rope either.
Nobody should talk about Chris Angel cause he is the worst illusionist evahr. He has actors go “oooh” and “Ahhh” in some of his skits, it’s sad.
If he was the worst illusionist ever, I don’t think he would be world famous.
I’m not saying there aren’t more skilled performers who aren’t nearly famous enough, but it never works that way, does it?