Page 29 - 201004 - The 'X' Chronicles Newspaper - April 2010

April 2010_june_july_2009.qxd 22/04/2010 11:27 PM Page 29 What Ever Happened To..... 29 Another Blast From The Past to forfeit his $50,000 to charity, after all he had does not claim to have paranormal or clairvoyant powers, and is annoyed to be eye-witnesses on film testifying to seeing UFOs In the Eyes of the over Nevada. He got his message across about lumped with psychics.[4] He teaches classes for Beholder: the Al Quaida, there was disappointment, and law enforcement groups, which "focuses on psychological methods such as jogging lost even anger, from some of the crowd who On Kreskin's UFO expected a show, and we learned an important memories through relaxation techniques or Prediction lesson to value our own judgement and detecting lies through body language and voice inflections." opinions. Things are not always what they Continued from Page 28 seem, life is not safe and cozy, and we are The 2008 movie The Great Buck subject to a myriad factors that may affect our Howard is based on the experiences of writer- The event was well organized with perception and our judgement. [] director Sean McGinly who worked briefly as amenities and water for sale (essential in the the road manager for Kreskin. desert - the evening temperature was in the 90s) So, What Else Do We and a podium had been set up. I noticed dry ice Know About Kresge, er.... Whatever happened to "smoke" drifting around the podium and The Amazing Kreskin? wondered if the "event" was going to feature a I mean Kreskin? holographic display. Press and TV media were The Chicago Tribune everywhere, interviewing kids and anybody By Kevin Pang, Tribune staff reporter who looked "interesting". Our quiet little group The Amazing Kreskin (born January 12, didn't warrant attention from the press as we 1935), George Joseph Kresge, who had his Jan 7 2008 : Young George Joseph Kresge -- were not sporting any alien headgear or name legally changed to The Amazing Kreskin, anyone from the 1970s would know him as The antennae. We did obtain some neat flashing is a mentalist who became popular on North Amazing Kreskin -- read comic strips during his pins, made from beer bottle caps, and glow American television in the 1970s. He was New Jersey youth. His favorite was about a sticks from the Silverton vendors. There was a inspired to become a mentalist by Lee Falk's superhero named Mandrake the Magician. The definite party atmosphere, like July 4th before famous comic strip Mandrake the Magician, "magician" title, though, was just a convenient the fireworks. which features a crime-fighting stage magician. alliteration device, for Mandrake's skill set was At around 9 oclock Kreskin's show Kreskin was born in Montclair, New more in channeling his hypnotic abilities to was over and the remaining audience solve crimes and defeat evildoers. members and Kreskin arrived at the field in a Now in 2008, Kreskin is inserting wave of energy and excitement. Kreskin led himself back in the news, this time with the group up the podium and requested that Mandrakian intentions. the audience members from the show have He has offered to help investigators in the front row spaces around the podium. He the search for Stacy Peterson, the asked for aisles, so that he could run up and Bolingbrook woman missing since October. down between the people. He produced a While it whiffs of publicity baiting (the white handkerchief, waved it around, and let Illinois State Police turned him down), it fall to the ground. He then did this again. Kreskin believes he offers something law Some people though that this was a signal to enforcement officials can't -- his decades of some lighted blimp or other UFO lookalike to experience reading minds and discerning come floating overhead. Actually, it was a liars from truth-tellers, he said. prearranged cue for the audience members, from his show, to enter a trance state. He had Detective work is a relatively new venture cued them that when they saw the white for a man better known for his public acts of handkerchief drop that they would see UFOs. prognostication. (Fittingly, or redundantly, he About this time, several planes out of claimed to have predicted the winner of the McCarron Airport flew overhead and were Lifetime reality series "America's Psychic easilly identified as aircraft. However, the Challenge.") entranced folks started seeing UFOs! They got Jersey George Joseph Kresge to Jewish parents. "If publicity leads to the solution of a so excited and Kreskin had them up on stage From 1971 to 1975, his television series The crime, then maybe the publicity wouldn't be a describing the UFOs to the audience. Some of Amazing World of Kreskin was broadcast negative thing," he said. the crowd were angry at Kreskin and started cat- throughout Canada on CTV and distributed in (A question: Do we call him Mr. calling and saying "Da plane, da plane!" Many syndication in the United States. The series was Kreskin? Mr. The Amazing? "No," he insists, walked away in disgust. produced in Ottawa, Ontario at the CJOH-TV "just Kreskin.") It was fascinating to see the folks on the studios. An additional set of episodes was Nearly four decades after the name stage, bright eyed and excited about actually produced in 1975, billed as The New Kreskin Kreskin entered the cultural vernacular, the 72- "seeing" a UFO. One man said he had come as Show. He appeared on The Tonight Show 56 year-old still performs more than 200 shows a a skeptic and was now a believer! A clinical times from 1970–1980. Then in the 1980s and year. hypnotherapist in our group said this was a 1990s, he came to prominence again through He also pops up annually on New Year's classic example of post-hypnotic suggestion. I several appearances on Late Night with David Eve news programs to make predictions for the did see a shooting star, during the event, but no Letterman. In 2009 he became the first guest to following year. On Dec. 31, 2002, for instance, UFOs. Just lots of planes, make three appearances on the new Late Night he predicted on CNN that Rudy Giuliani would Why did Kreskin do this? His with Jimmy Fallon. run for president in 2008 -- and win. justification and message was that Bin Ladin He is still active as a live performer, About 18 months ago, Kreskin began and the Al Quaida were capable of pulling the appears regularly on WPIX in New York City, teaching a course called ICOPS, which stands same stunt on unsuspecting Americans and we and appears annually on the Fox News Channel for Intuitive Cops Observational Preparedness should be aware of this and be prepared. and CNN to give his New Year's Day Seminars, for law enforcement groups. Its name Whether his justification held any merit, I am predictions for the coming year. One of his best and association with the Kreskin brand name not sure. Was it worth going to the event? Sure! known tricks is finding his check for a might suggest attendees walk away with I met some old friends that I hadn't seen in a performance, which he instructs the audience to psychic abilities. while, and made some interesting new friends. hide while he is escorted off stage and into After the event a group of us went over to the seclusion by other members of the audience. (Continued on Page 31) Silverton for coffee and desert. I eventually got While finding the check on most occasions, he home around 2 a.m. In the light of a new day, has failed to find the check nine times. Dare To Believe, Dare To Be Heard what actually happened? Kreskin did not have Though Kreskin makes "predictions," he www.xzoneradiotv.com