Biographical profile of magician David Blaine with mentions of performances for world leaders

ANIV14 CGIAVG For more than a decade, David Blaine has been attracting the world’s attention with his high-profile endurance stunts. Starting his career as a magician who appeared to do the impossible with a deck of cards, he was soon following in the footsteps of Houdini—seeking out that which seems physically impossible and actually doing it. To that end, he’s been buried alive in New York City for a week, barely survived being encased inside a six-ton block of ice for three days and three nights, stood atop a 100-foot-tall pillar in Bryant Park for 36 hours without a safety net, survived inside a transparent box in London on nothing but water for 44 days, and spent one week submerged in a sphere-shaped aquarium at Lincoln Center, at the end of which he attempted to break the world record for breath holding. A year later, he succeeded live on the Oprah Winfrey show, holding his breath for 17 minutes and 4 seconds. Born in Brooklyn, Blaine discovered his passion for magic at the age of four when he saw a magician perform in the subway. His mother encouraged his passion and he began performing professionally at private parties by the age of thirteen. By the age of twenty-three, Blaine had created, directed, and produced an original television program titled Street Magic, which garnered rave reviews by critics and revolutionized the way magic is portrayed on television. Penn Jillette of Penn & Teller called Street Magic “the best TV magic special ever done” and “the biggest breakthrough in our lifetime.” The New York Times noted that David has “taken a craft that’s been around for hundreds of years and done something unique and fresh with it.” The New Yorker claimed that “he saved magic.” Since then, Blaine has produced nine additional primetime specials. Blaine has performed magic privately for U.S. Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bill Gates, Henry Kissinger, Mayor Bloomberg, Mark Zuckerberg, and Muhammad Ali, as well as President Dmitry Medvedev of Russia and other international leaders. He also performed alongside Michael Jackson, and during the Super Bowl halftime show. In 2010, Blaine performed magic for 72 hours straight in Times Square, raising nearly $100,000 for relief efforts following the earthquake in Haiti. Blaine resides in New York City with his fiancée, Alizee Guinochet. The couple welcomed a magical daughter into the world on January 27, 2011. a = i “ HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_017531