Kreskin - Has He Gone Over to the Dark Side

[Foolmewunz]

Randi did a little double-dig today. One to Sylvia, and the other to someone who's been heading off in a bad direction (IMHO) for a few years, now.

Kreskin's an unabashed self-promoter, but his list of New Year's predictions is getting silly. I found the list of 2006, and it's just a mish-mash of the same sort of crap Dixon or any other "seer" used to come up with. There might be a hit or two on there, and there are a whole bunch that will be easy to claim some sort of a win on, and then a whole bunch of definite misses. As I said, the usual psychic lists.

(Rounding out the The Amazing Trilogy, I don't know if anyone can remember The Amazing Criswell and his Criswell Predicts segments... but he'd come up with stuff like... "Bed Bugs in Boston"... He became a sort of anti-hero and minor celebrity and hanger-on with Ed Wood's crew.)

Kreskin used to be, or at least appeared to me to be, one of the good guys. He always stated that his act as a mentalist was not magic and that it was based on years of honing a particular talent. Now, while he officially still takes that stand, he's performing stunts that definitely seem to be pulling him to the dark side. If it's all just for money, while some might take exception to that, I'm okay with it - as long as he stays clear that it's nought but a well-honed trick or two.

His presidential locked box prediction? Sealed up in December of '07, ... still could have been an educated guess. But his Giants +3 Super Bowl prediction? I don't have enough details.

I think on one of those he even actually bet like ten thousand bucks of his own money that he would be correct. Are these locked box routines a bit of conjuring or is he now seriously in the business of prophetic visions? (Insert here usual disclaimer about not revealing magic tricks.)

Now he's trying to sell a pilot for a reality show that sounds just like The Mentalist, and saying all those Sylvia-ish things about it being nice to bring closure to the families. (This is still in the talking stages, as apparently they haven't found anyone to buy the idea.)

I have to admit a soft spot for him, personally. Has he always been on the borderline and I just missed it, or is this really a recent shift?

 

[kittynh]

OK OK, cut the guy some slack!

I am going to do my own Kreskin prediction!

In the early part of 2009, many people will mysteriously still write 2008.

 

[kittynh]

oh and a "Kreskin Prediction" is any prediction that is so obvious that it HAS to be true. That way you can have a success rating of 100%! Imagine, being a psychic with a 100% or 98% success rate! Other psychics give you crazy over the top predictions, so nutty that if even ONE comes true, they think they will look "real" ("Oh wow, Brittney Spears DID become a nun in 2009, Sylvia is a genius!")

But Kreskin is my psychic hero! From now on I'm calling myself a psychic, ohhh I feel another prediction coming on!!!

In 2009, there will be a crash in every NASCAR race. At least one, but in many of the races, perhaps more.

Now somebody send me money and put me on Larry King.

 

[Foolmewunz]

I couldn't actually find the full list for this year, but of the one list that I could find - 2006, I agree that they're more like observations and or wish lists than predictions. http://www.amazingkreskin.com/?p=50 But even Sylvia would have difficulty claiming more than 50% "hits" on that list.

If you were to actually score them, the few with finite details, like the renaissance of Baton Rouge,.... how would you score it? Renaissance of what?

(He was apparently on a kick about cell phones back then, too. I think he just has this thing about the rudeness quotient of many mobile users.)

 

[Gord_in_Toronto]

I had created a thread recently
http://www.internationalskeptics.com/forums/showthread.php?t=127289
about an article on Kreskin in the Toronto Star.

He certainly leaves the impression that he has psychic abilities. His claim of prediction of 9/11 is an out-and-out lie and the Star reporter swallowed it hook-line-and-sinker without a minimal degree of verification.

He is certainly no Angel.

I'm with Randi on this.

 

[Foolmewunz]

Thanks, Gord.

Hadn't seen your thread. So, then he's been walking that psychic/mentalist tightrope for a while, then. Really a shame. I guess the lucre is all on the woo side.

His self-promotion has made him a little hard to pay attention to over the past while, so I was going by his earlier years. Most anything I saw on his CJOH/CTV series was generally either mnemonics-based or sealed envelop/telephone book tricks. But he was always clear to, while not explaining the effect, tell the audience (at least heavily emphasized to the TV audience) that it there was nothing psychic involved.

Oh, well... scratch another potential for the good guys. I guess he'll be bending cutlery any day, now.

 

[firecoins]

!

In the early part of 2009, many people will mysteriously still write 2008.

I for some reason keep writing 1967 which is weird because its 1983 now.

 

[grunion]

I think on one of those he even actually bet like ten thousand bucks of his own money that he would be correct.

IIRC a standard part of his routine was for a member of the audience to hide the envelope containing his paycheck, and he would have a specified time limit during which to find it or he wouldn't get paid for the gig.

 

[Rrose Selavy]

In the 70s I l always remember Benny Hill once did a very funny sketch obviously mocking Kreskin doing the trick where he correctly identifies what is written by another - but when he has written the answer as soon as it's revealed we get to see the long false arm and hand behind the board he uses.
Pity its not on Youtube.

 

[Questioninggeller]

I have to admit a soft spot for him, personally. Has he always been on the borderline and I just missed it, or is this really a recent shift?

See what Randi wrote about him in his 1995 encyclopedia:

http://www.randi.org/encyclopedia/Kreskin.html

and a 1992 article from www.tampabayskeptics.org :

...
And TBS had delivered for him, at the Showboat, our Jan. 8 "Press Release" in which we offered "to pay $10,000 (10 times our usual standing offer) to 'The Amazing Kreskin' for a successful demonstration of even one of his 'mentalism' feats, under conditions that eliminate the possibility of a non-'Amazing' explanation. . . . " We received no response from the media or from Kreskin.
...

http://www.tampabayskeptics.org/Kreskin.html

 

[tlsimpson]

I predict that somewhere someone is going to predict something that is going to come true. Make the check out to: >>>

 

[The Atheist]

I just read that article.

I really enjoy the way it starts: "George Kresge, now known as The Amazing Kreskin ..."

Cute.