David Blaine's 44 Day Starvation Stunt (1 Viewer)

[Scott L]

Looks like that dude in back of him should be the next one into the box.

Haha, the new Jenny Craig.

 

[Cees Alons]

44 days without food? Is that possible?

Easily - as long as you drink.

Cees


PS: And Steve, please don't post whole articles here. They carry copyrights.
C.

 

[Steve Christou]

It wasn't the whole article Cees, it was my condensed version of the whole article.
Don't worry it's the last one.

 

[Dominik Droscher]

It wasn't the whole article Cees, it was my condensed version of the whole article.

I hope that doesn't mean that you stop posting uncondensed Monty Python sketches?

 

[Dave Poehlman]

But where's the magic trick? Wasn't he supposed to turn into something at the end...like a lion.. or Roy Horn?

How lame.

 

[MarkHastings]

So now he's in the hospital:
http://story.news.yahoo.com/fc?cid=3...t=David_Blaine

I'm with Dave P, where's the magic trick??? So the guy nearly kills himself by starving for 44 days, how is this considered magic? or an illusion?

I don't get it.

 

[Jed M]

He should be arrested for attempted suicide, that would be a heck of a surprise ending.

 

[Tony Whalen]

Dunno if this is true or not, but I heard on the radio this morning that Blaine did this because a British newspaper (or mag or something) challenged him to. And offered to pay him 2 million to do it. That would explain a lot.

Would I hang out it a clear box for 44 days for a couple million? Probably.

 

[Christ Reynolds]

So the guy nearly kills himself by starving for 44 days, how is this considered magic? or an illusion?

am i the only one who realizes this guy didnt eat for over 6 weeks? try not eating for a few days, you will see what is so amazing about it. its not a magic trick or illusion, but it is quite an incredible feat, especially becuase his body was not accustomed to no solid food. i'm sure he prepared in advance, but i think its quite an accomplishment. a publicity stunt? sure it is, as much of a stunt it is, it is also that funny to see all those people getting angry at him for doing it. if they dont like him that much, just stay home, right?

CJ

 

[MarkHastings]

But 15-year-old Stacey Harper was disappointed that Blaine merely shuffled out of his box. "It's quite impressive what he's done but me and my friends were expecting a big stunt at the end. He is meant to be a magician," she said.

I was just expecting a trick of some sort, not a starvation thing and that's it.

I wish I can remember it, but the featurettes on "Cast Away" talk about how long you can go without food. The guy was saying something like the first few days are the hardest, then you're body gets used to it? I forget how long he said a body can go without food.

I guess the whole thing with Blaine is, people were probably expecting something 'magical' and are confussed now that we realize it was just a starvation thing that now has him hospitalized. Most of his tricks are supposed to make you think "How the hell did he do that?" - I guess you can say the same here, but I'd be more amazed if he just walked away like it was no big deal. Being hospitalized kind of ruins the whole mystery behind it (which is what he's all about).

 

[Matt Pelham]

Apparantly your desire for food sort of goes away after 10 days without eating and it becomes much easier. (Got this from the Cast Away supplements)

 

[Christ Reynolds]

Apparantly your desire for food sort of goes away after 10 days without eating and it becomes much easier. (Got this from the Cast Away supplements)

who did they get their info from? it very well may be correct, but how do they know? did they have a doctor on the set, or are we to believe it because its a popular movie? i havent seen the supplements, so if they had a doctor or someone else qualified to answer that question, i'm not sure.

CJ

 

[Steve Christou]

Here's an extract from BBC news...

"Blaine will have suffered significant muscle wastage during the stunt, say experts - and even his heart is likely to have been weakened.

However, while the natural instinct is to start eating again quickly to replenish the body, dieticians say this is extremely dangerous.

During starvation you cannibalise body muscle and parts of your organ tissue, like the liver, kidney and heart.

If the blood electrolyte levels fall too low, this imbalance, on top of the fact that the heart is already wasted, can induce a heart attack.

In addition, Blaine's immune system is likely to be extremely weak with even minor infections causing far more significant problems."

 

[MarkHastings]

who did they get their info from?

They had some "Survivalist" who knows a great deal about starvation. He basically took the cast and director out and practically starved them so they'd know what it felt like to be without food for so long.

 

[Gregg Shiu]

I, for one, admire that he did this and saw it all the way through. I'm not entirely sure why he did it, but his challenges he keeps coming up with aren't exactly something I'd attempt anytime soon. Hopefully he'll be better soon to do another new special that's NOT dedicated almost entirely to this latest stunt.

 

[Brian Lawrence]

If he is an illusionist, He should of stepped out of the box 5 pounds heavier, making people wonder how how in the hell did it. Something that would of made us wonder if he was even in the box all of that time.

Frankly I don't rank this as being any more admirable than the average stunt pulled on JACKASS.

I mean hell, If I jammed a 6" long screwdriver through my eye and not only survived but walked around for a few days with a screwdriver handle, sticking out of my bloody socket, would that be considered an accomplishment ???

 

[MarkHastings]

Brian, you make a good point. As someone who has recently lost a good friend, it amazes me why people do these "Death Defying" stunts. So many people are struggling to stay alive in this world and others just go around mocking it. :frowning:

All this stunt says to me is "Look at me, I can almost kill myself" :rolleyes

 

[wally]

It has been floated that Blaine may come out in a week or so and state that he wasn’t in the box the entire time (he left for breaks), thus the illusion. Having visited London at the beginning of the stunt I doubt he would have been able to leave and return to the box.

 

[Alex S]

I also heard that the rumor that he wasn't in the box the entire time.

 

[Prentice Cotham]

I heard he was being fed sugar water thru the tube.