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Zig Zag Girl
The Zig-Zag Girl illusion is a stage illusion akin to the more famous sawing a woman in half illusion. In the Zig-Zag illusion, a magician divides an assistant into thirds, only to have them emerge from the illusion at the end of the performance completely unharmed. Since its invention in 1965 by magician Robert Harbin, it has been hailed as one of the greatest illusions ever invented due to both the apparent impossibility of the trick and the fact that, unlike many illusions, it can be performed while surrounded by spectators and withstand the scrutiny of audience members. Harbin was frustrated by his illusions being pirated by other magicians, and this inspired him to publish the method in his book ''The Magic of Robert Harbin'' (1970). The book was limited to 500 copies, and owners of the book were granted permission to build or have built the Zig Zag Girl (or indeed any other of the items in the book). The rights to the book and the Zig Zag illusion were then in time passed to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sawing A Woman In Half
Sawing a woman in half is a generic name for a number of stage magic tricks in which a person (traditionally a female assistant) is apparently cut or divided into two or more pieces. History There remains a debate about the origin of sawing illusions, with some sources saying a magician named Torrini may have performed the first version in front of Pope Pius VII in 1809. However, it is more likely that the story is a fiction which has its roots in the writings of the famous French magician Jean-Eugène Robert-Houdin. In his ''Memoirs'', written in 1858, Robert-Houdin described a sawing illusion performed by a magician named Torrini. Modern magic inventor and historian Jim Steinmeyer has concluded that there was probably no real Torrini and the story was merely a way for Robert-Houdin to play with ideas. It was suggested during a court case in 1922 that the trick can be traced back to ancient Egypt; however, this claim has not been substantiated.''Goldin v. Clarion Photoplays'', ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Elly Griffiths
Elly Griffiths is the pen name of Domenica de Rosa (born 17 August 1963, in London), a British crime novelist. She has written three series as Griffiths, one featuring Ruth Galloway, one featuring Detective Inspector Edgar Stephens and Max Mephisto, and the Harbinder Kaur series. Early life After reading English at King's College London, Griffiths worked in publishing for many years. Writing career Griffiths' first series features as a main character forensic archaeologist Ruth Galloway, who lives in a remote seaside cottage near King's Lynn in Norfolk and teaches at the University of North Norfolk. This character was inspired by Griffiths' husband, who gave up a city job to train as an archaeologist, and her aunt, "who lives on the Norfolk coast and filled her niece's head with the myths and legends of that area". Griffiths released the first book in this series, ''The Crossing Places'' (Ruth Galloway, #1), in 2009. Griffiths' second series, set in 1950s Brighton, focuses on ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Clearly Impossible
Clearly Impossible is a variation of the illusion of sawing a woman in half devised by Jonathan Pendragon.Schneider, A., "A New Clear Sawing", ''Genii'' magazine, June 1993 (Vol 56, No 6). Description The illusion is very similar in principle and performance to the older " Thin Model" versions of sawing a woman in half, with the exception that the boxes used to cover the assistant being divided are clear, rather than opaque. In basic concept, it is very similar to the transparent sawing developed by Les Arnold in the late 1970s. However, in the Pendragons version, the boxes are much smaller, and are never covered at any point during the illusion. As a result, the assistant within the boxes remains in full view throughout, making this a particularly baffling illusion for the audience. Performance The illusion usually begins with the magician showing the audience a low table, designed to split into two halves. The main assistant is then introduced, and lies down on the table. Other ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Inside No 9
''Inside No. 9'' is a British black comedy anthology television programme that first aired in 2014. It is written by Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton and produced by the BBC. Each 30-minute episode is a self-contained story with new characters and a new setting, and all star Pemberton or Shearsmith (usually both). Aside from the writers, each episode has a new cast, allowing ''Inside No. 9'' to attract a number of well-known actors. The stories are linked only by the number 9 in some way, typically taking the form of a door marked with the number 9, and a brass hare statue that is in the background of all episodes. Pemberton and Shearsmith took inspiration for ''Inside No. 9'' from an episode of ''Psychoville'', a previous project, which was filmed in a single room - this in turn was inspired by Alfred Hitchcock's ''Rope''. Themes and tone vary from episode to episode, but all have elements of comedy and horror or perverse humour, in addition to a plot twist. The first serie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bob's Burgers
''Bob's Burgers'' is an American adult animated sitcom created by Loren Bouchard that premiered on Fox on January 9, 2011. The show centers on the Belcher family—parents Bob and Linda and their three children, Tina, Gene, and Louise—who run a hamburger restaurant and often go on adventures of many kinds. The show was conceived by Bouchard after he developed '' Home Movies''. ''Bob's Burgers'' is a joint production by Wilo Productions and 20th Television Animation. While reviews for the first season were mixed, feedback for subsequent seasons has been much more positive. The series premiere, "Human Flesh", drew in 9.39 million viewers, making it the highest-rated series premiere of the season and finishing ninth in the ratings for the week it aired. Since then, the show has grown to be a critical and cultural success. In 2013, ''TV Guide'' ranked ''Bob's Burgers'' as one of the 60 Greatest TV Cartoons of All Time. The series has been nominated for several awards, including ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Full House
''Full House'' is an American television sitcom created by Jeff Franklin for ABC. The show is about widowed father Danny Tanner who enlists his brother-in-law Jesse Katsopolis and childhood best friend Joey Gladstone to help raise his three daughters, eldest D.J., middle child Stephanie and youngest Michelle in his San Francisco home. It aired from September 22, 1987, to May 23, 1995, broadcasting eight seasons and 192 episodes. While never a critical favorite, the series was consistently in the Nielsen Top 30 (from season two onward) and continues to gain even more popularity in syndicated reruns, and is also aired internationally. One of the producers, Dennis Rinsler, called the show "''The Brady Bunch'' of the 1990s". For actor Dave Coulier, the show represented a "G-rated dysfunctional family". A sequel series, '' Fuller House'', premiered on Netflix on February 26, 2016 and ran for five seasons, concluding on June 2, 2020. Premise After the death of his wife Pam, sp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Our Very First Telethon
The third season of '' Full House'', an American family sitcom created by Jeff Franklin, premiered on ABC in the U.S. on September 22, 1989, and concluded on May 4, 1990. The season was partially directed by Franklin and produced by Jeff Franklin Productions, Miller-Boyett Productions, and Lorimar Television, with Don Van Atta as the producer. It consists of 24 episodes, most of which were directed by Bill Foster. Set in San Francisco, the show chronicles widowed father Danny Tanner, who, after the death of his wife Pam, enlisted his brother-in-law Jesse Katsopolis and his best friend Joey Gladstone to help raise his three daughters, D. J., Stephanie, and Michelle. In this season, Danny and Rebecca's talk show takes a spike in popularity, meanwhile Jesse and Rebecca continue dating while Jesse prepares to leave his rebellious ways in the past. Initially, it was planned that Becky would appear only in six episodes of season two, however, the producers found that the Tanner gir ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Monk (TV Series)
''Monk'' is an American mystery comedy-drama television series created by Andy Breckman and starring Tony Shalhoub as Adrian Monk. It originally ran from 2002 to 2009 and is primarily a police procedural series, but also exhibits comic and dramatic tones in its exploration of the main characters' personal lives. The series was produced by Mandeville Films and Touchstone Television in association with Universal Network Television. The series debuted on July 12, 2002, on USA Network. It continued for eight seasons, with the final season concluding on December 4, 2009. The series held the record for the most-watched scripted drama episode in cable television history from 2009 through 2012 (broken by '' The Walking Dead'') with " Mr. Monk and the End – Part II", its series finale, with 9.4 million viewers, 3.2 million of them in the 18–49 demographic. The series was critically acclaimed, winning eight Emmy Awards, one Golden Globe Award, and two Screen Actors Guild Awards. Pre ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Quercus Publishing
Quercus is a formerly independent publishing house, based in London, that was acquired by Hodder & Stoughton in 2014. It was founded in 2004 by Mark Smith and Wayne Davies. Quercus is known for its lists in crime (publishing such authors as Elly Griffiths, Philip Kerr, Peter May, Peter Temple), its MacLehose Press imprint (formerly headed by Christopher MacLehose), which publishes translated (often prize-winning) works by authors such as Philippe Claudel, Stieg Larsson, and Valerio Varesi, its literary fiction titles (including by Kimberley Freeman, Prajwal Parajuly) and its Jo Fletcher Books imprint, which publishes science fiction, fantasy, and horror. Details Smith and Davies had previously worked together at the Orion Publishing Group. In 2011, Quercus was chosen as the Bonnier Publishing Publisher of the Year at the Bookseller Industry Awards in London. American imprint SilverOak was co-owned with Sterling Publishing Sterling Publishing Company, Inc. is a publisher o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Misty Rowe
Mistella Rowe (born Misty Rose Thornton; June 1, 1952) is an American actress. She is best known for portraying the perky, squeaky-voiced blonde on the American television series ''Hee Haw'' for 19 years, often appearing as Junior Samples's assistant during used-car comedy segments. Rowe and other "honeys" on the series were notable for performing in cleavage-inducing halter tops, tight shorts, and country-style minidresses. Rowe starred in the 1978 ''Hee Haw'' spin-off ''Hee Haw Honeys'', cast with then-newcomer Kathie Lee Gifford (then known as Kathie Lee Johnson) as the singing daughters of country music diner owners portrayed by Lulu Roman and Kenny Price. Rowe later appeared in a national road show version of the series entitled ''Hee Haw Honey Reunion''. Television On television, Rowe portrayed the carhop Wendy in early episodes of the sitcom ''Happy Days'' and Maid Marian in the Mel Brooks-produced ''When Things Were Rotten'' (1975). Rowe's 1980s television appearances incl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Magician's Assistant
A magician's assistant is a performer in a magic act who is not billed as the magician or principal name in the act. The role of an assistant can include holding the props that are used by a magician, shifting props onto and off the stage, and serving as a living prop in illusions that involve manipulation of the human body. Other aspects of the role can include dancing or acting as visual ornamentation, sometimes for simple aesthetic purposes and sometimes to misdirect audience attention. The figure of the glamorous female assistant has become a stereotype or icon in art, popular media and fiction. Although magicians' assistants appear to play a supporting role and receive a lesser billing than the magician who appears to be the source of illusions, the assistant is often the one making the mechanics of the illusions work. In the words of Joanie Spina, who worked for 11 years as principal assistant, choreographer and artistic consultant to illusionist David Copperfield, "I did ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
