>>> BEFORE & AFTER <<<
I spent nearly 24 hours in Times Square for Criss Angel's "Cement Block" escape, to confirm my own belief in how good he is, and to hopefully convey and prove to non-believers just what an amazing talent this mind-blowing illusionist is. I stayed, I observed, and I photographed. I saw everything from all aspects. I watched the stunt and his fans, and I spoke and spent time with his family and crew on a personal level, because I wanted to be able to express everything in my Aquarian article from a genuine perspective. It was really an amazing experience, and I'm sure anyone else who was there will agree. For those of you who don't believe what he did to be real, I can and will confirm that he was in that box from start to finish. I watched him get in, I watched him sit inside for hours upon hours upon hours, waving to us and expressing his love through writing on the windows of the box. I watched until his face disappeared as the last pane of glass filled with cement, and the big screen continued to show him inside the box contemplating, trying to break out, and sleeping. Then I saw the box plummet to the ground, before Angel appeared high above us on scaffolding seconds later, to sighs of relief from his family and fans. How did he do it? No one knows.
Below is a Timeline of sorts.
(* Taken from http://www.aetv.com/criss_angel/cementblock/)
Monday, June 4th 2007
3:30am: My alarm rings, and I drag my ass out of bed.
5:20am: I'm on a bus making my way into the city.
5:54am: I'm in port authority, about to walk over to 46th between 8th and Broadway.
6:15am: I check in at the Paramount Hotel across the street from the event and receive my press laminate. Then I walk back across the street, in the press/v.i.p entrance, and up onto the scaffolding to set up.
6:45am: Criss arrives with his entourage, walking down 46th near fans who have gathered.
7:03am: Criss is doing interviews with the press. Hundreds of people are gathering to see the demonstration. *
7:30am: The countdown clock has officially started. Criss has 24 hours starting now to make his escape. *
7:35am: Criss Angel's mom and two brothers are up on stage saying goodbye to Criss in case he doesn't make it. *
7:37am: The buckets of cement are being prepared. Cement is being poured into the bottom of the cube. *
7:47am: The inner cube has been placed into the outer box. items that Criss will have with him are being loaded into the box - a small camera, a blanket, an ipod, and a sharpie. *
7:49am: The block is being lifted off the ground. *
7:58am: Criss is being searched and shackled by an NYPD officer. *
8:05am: Criss is in the box. The lid is being secured. *
8:27am: Criss Angel's brother has poured the first bucket of cement onto the box. *
8:50am: Buckets of cement are being poured by VIPs and Criss is giving press interviews from the box. *
9:24am: It is really raining here now. But the diehard Loyal fans are toughing it out. * I am completely soaked, despite the hood and umbrella, and I'm having trouble keeping the rain off of my camera body and lens.
9:30am: Due to the production of the event there will be intermittent audio drop outs. *
10:38am: I don't know if it is showing on the web, but we are getting pounded by the remnants of Tropical Storm Barrry. It has been raining all morning. Some water is dripping into the box so Criss is trying to stay as dry as possible. *
11:01 am: Criss was given some towels through the air hole in the lid. He is using these to mop up the water that is dripping into the box, but he just said in an interview that he is concerned this effort and movement is going to take up too much energy, and he wants to save as much of his energy as possible for the escape. *
11:24am: The block is on the move. Criss is being lifted 40 feet into the air. The rain is still pouring down. *
11:39am: Now that the block has been raised, the press and cement pour platform is being taken down. This will make more space for fans on the ground. Soon there will be some press people going up in a lift to talk to him at 40 feet. *
12:20pm: Sorry for that downtime. We temporarily lost the satellite feed. But now we are back. *
1:20pm: The rain is finally letting up a bit. Banachek is talking to the crowd. *
1:30pm: You can send a text message for Criss from home. We are not able to display the messages on this page, but Criss can read them from inside the box, until all the cement is poured. Text the word "ANGEL" to 334455 to send a message. *
2:03pm: It has finally stopped raining, at least for now, and the crowd is starting to build again. *
2:18pm: So far we have heard from people in the crowd that have travelled from Michigan, Massachusettes, Georgia, Florida, and Toronto and Ontario Canada. *
2:35pm: Johnny and Bro Gilbert are interviewing some of the Loyal who stood in the rain all morning. The crowd is cheering and sending their love to Criss. *
3:00pm: I ran home to change my rain-soaked clothes and warm myself up.
3:35pm: The second round of cement pouring has begun. People are going up in the lift with buckets of cement. They are pouring it in one wall at a time until Criss will be totally enclosed. *
3:36pm: I just got a report that we now have people in the crowd from Wisconsin and Tennessee. If you are watching this from far away write in to Brian on the discussion board and tell him where you are watching from. *
5:06pm: Criss' team have been filling up the cement on the sides of the boxes for the past two hours and Criss is now almost totallly encased in cement. Only one side remains unfilled, and they are working to fill it right now. *
5:41pm: It looks as though the box is just about filled with cement; there is just a small window left for Criss to peek out. It has started to drizzle again, but that hasn't dampened the crowd's enthusiasm. *
6:03pm: The cement is now being spread over the roof of the box. Criss is about to be totally sealed in. The crowd is singing along to Criss' songs being played. *
8:43pm: Criss just escaped from the handcuffs. * He drank some water and threw up a latex balloon containing the key.
9:15pm: The hosts are giving away Criss Angel prizes to fans who can answer Criss Angel Mindfreak trivia questions. *
9:30pm: I walk down to where Criss' mom Dimitra is, and I give her the two photos I enlarged from 7:30 that morning. She lights up and profusely thanks me, while calling over her sons JD and Costa, who thank me as well. I talk to Dimitra for a few minutes before returning to the press area to keep an eye on the box with camera in hand. There is no one up there except a few A&E camera men and V.I.Ps.
9:45pm: It looks like Criss has made some progress on the box. One of the window panes appears to be cracking, and it appears that a small area of the cement has been chipped away. *
10:05pm: Criss has broken through one of the panes of the box. The handcuff he was using to help break the wall is now poking out through to the outside of the box. The crowd is being moved back in case any pieces of cement or glass fall down into the area. *
10:22pm Criss has gotten the handcuffs all the way through the wall of the box and has dropped them out. *
10:27pm: Criss' hand is out of the box. You can see his whole hand, it looks to be his right hand. It looks like he might be using the towel to help protect his hand from the glass. *
10:35pm: The event team is continuing to move people farther back from the box to ensure that no one is injured as Criss starts to break out. *
10:48pm: Criss is attempting to stretch out his legs while he continues to chip away at the wall of the box. He is starting to look uncomfortable. *
11:30pm: I am alone with the camera men, relaxing and enjoying the weather and atmosphere, sometimes talking on the phone to keep me busy.
11:45pm: Criss has succeeded in making two small holes in the box, on adjacent sides. *
Tuesday, June 5th 2007
2:57am: There is still quite a large crowd gathered down here. The area under the box has been cleared of people, but the dedicated fans are still watching from the remaining area and from across the street. *
1:55am: Criss curls up in the box to take a nap.
2:30am: I am asked to leave the press area until 5:30, so I walk down to the ground where a chair is brought over to the V.I.P area for me to sit next to his family.
3:30am: Criss is still asleep, and his family is getting worried. He has only 4 hours left to find a way to escape. Costa walks over to see how I'm holding up and makes sure I'm okay. I've officially been awake for 24 hours.
4:00am: I talk with Dimitra about the possibilities of why he is still asleep after 2 hours.
4:45am: They are starting to set up the blast shield right now. This is a clear barrier wall that will protect the crowd from any flying pieces of glass, cement, or steel when the box drops. * I am fighting sleep.
5:40am: I am back up in the press area.
6:53am: With less than an hour left to go the pressure is really on for Criss. The crowd just gave a huge cheer because he has dropped the rope out one of the holes he made last night. *
6:55am: The safety cables securing the box are being unhooked, as are the cables for the air conditioning unit above the box. *
7:18am: We're entering the final minutes this morning. The crew is getting the box centered in within the safety barrier and lined up over the drop zone. I hope Criss is making progress on those walls. *
7:22am: The crowd is cheering encouragement up to Criss. The box is swinging from the Crane. Criss is really cutting it close on this one. He's kicking the walls of the box as with all of his remaining strength. *
7:26am: Less than four minutes to go there is still no sign of Criss getting out of this box in time. The crowd is really cheering for him. *
7:37am: The block dropped. But there is Criss! On top of the scaffolding. He is all right. Criss is down on the ground, talking to the fans who stayed with him all night. Congratulations Criss! * I am shooting like crazy to get every shot possible, from the box hitting the ground and breaking, to Criss appearing high above us screaming and out of breath.
7:45am: Criss runs up onto the scaffolding where we are, doing interviews with the many news stations there.
8:10am: Closing in on 29 hours of no sleep. I start saying goodbye to his mom and his brothers who are now up here with us, sitting at a table near the stairs. Unbeknown to me, I am also on Good Day New York, behind Criss (to the left above his shoulder). I then realize I should introduce myself to him, so I wait with his family until he is done with all of his interviews. His mother and I walk over because she is ready to go home and wants to say goodbye. Costa follows and grabs my arm, telling Criss that he must meet me, and introduces us. We talk for a few minutes, take a photo, then I say goodbye to all once again, and find my cousin in the crowd below. Time to continue my day.
9am: My cousin and I eat breakfast around the corner, where at least 10 crew members mosey on through from the back. Must've been a secret passageway I wasn't privy to?
10:15am: We're in Queens running errands, as I doze off sitting down... and standing up (seriously).
4:30pm: Finally home, uploading photos and checking e-mail.
5:15pm: In a deep, deep sleep.
10:02pm: Woken up by a text message as I rush to turn on A&E. After all, it's the season 3 premiere of Mindfreak. Are you ready?
3:36am: Back to sleep I go, after getting some work done.
Remember, "Reality is just an Illusion."
No comments:
Post a Comment