# Penn & Teller: Fool Us (season 5) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 24, 2018, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662 "2018-06-24T12:44:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2018, 6:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/41 "2018-07-14T06:38:48Z")
> [@Wheelz](#): > > The table levitation was a variation on the old ball-and-handkerchief trick that’s been around forever. Still, it was nicely done. I’m guessing the table was made of balsa or some other super light material. Not sure exactly how he accomplished the vanish, but it was the sort of thing we’ve all seen before. A nice visual, but he had zero chance of fooling P&T. [spoiler]I’m reasonably sure that the table leg (note: singular) was just stretched out cloth with a single metal rod down the middle keeping it taught and giving it the central support it needed to stay upright. That rod is probably kept in place by the candle holder and, for example, if you twist the candle the whole thing springs shut and collapses into almost nothing. The table ends up behind him, under the cloth. He’s practiced enough at landing it, so that the bulk ends up hidden behind his body and the whole thing is flat enough that we don’t see a notable hump in the bit of cloth that we can see on either side of him. The whole thing is probably an achievement of construction in the magic realm. The ability to make things which don’t appear collapsible but actually are is probably a key distinction between stage magicians and close-up magicians, and Losander is probably one of the leading experts in that realm. Just, regrettably, that seems to be where he petered out.[/spoiler] ---
**Author:** ![Magic\_Fan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/839c29/32.png) [@Magic\_Fan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magic_Fan)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2018, 11:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/42 "2018-07-14T11:46:26Z")
> [@Wheelz](#): > > It was cool to see a twist on the old money roller trick that practically everybody knows. I’m thinking he pocketed the relevant piece (the one that makes the trick work) when he dismantled the machine. But I didn’t see him do so, and I have no idea how he produced the different-sized bills at the right times. Fun bit! Hi gang! I’m a newcomer but have enjoyed all five seasons of the show and these discussions and I wanted to add something I noticed concerning the money roller trick. It appears that the magician “unloaded” the blank paper when he held the machine close to his chest and untwisted the components. his lab coat had a rather large pocket under his name, high up on the same side as he held the machine. I suspect the pocket had a side opening and the blank paper went in that way. White paper and white lab coat means no risk of seeing the paper even under stage lights. I also have no idea how he “predicted” which bills would be chosen, however. ---
**Author:** ![whitetho](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whitetho/32/1059_2.png) [@whitetho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whitetho)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2018, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/43 "2018-07-14T14:27:30Z")
> [@zombywoof](#): > > P&T’s trick was pretty lame - it was clear from the side shot that the box was suspiciously deep - I guess at this point they’ve done so many of their better tricks on the show already that they’re running out of stuff. I was disappointed that this was a lost opportunity for a historical review. A 1970s traveling show piece obviously isn’t going to be state-of-the-art, so I assumed that Johnny Thompson would “magically” appear, and “The Great Tomsoni” would talk a bit about what the carny circuit was like 40 years ago. During this bit Teller voiced the skull ventriloquism – I believe this is the first time we’ve heard him speak on this show, although I haven’t watched all of the closing routines so I may have missed some earlier examples. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2018, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/44 "2018-07-14T23:42:40Z")
> [@zombywoof](#): > > I agree that the coin trick maybe didn’t technically “fool” them, but they gave him the award for beating them into submission since it was very well done and just kept going and going. But they were fooled. He entertained them so well that they couldn’t keep track of each move he made. That is high order fooling. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Sensitive](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/58956e/32.png) [@Darth\_Sensitive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Sensitive)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2018, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/45 "2018-07-16T21:55:01Z")
> [@zombywoof](#): > > One thought - I wonder if she could have drawn her (simple) flower with her thumb (which is hidden behind the card) AFTER he announced it was a flower? When they came up on the stage, they checked her nails - that was my first guess. Might have been able to stash a thumb tip pen somehow, but I didn’t catch it. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2018, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/46 "2018-07-17T17:05:58Z")
Kostya Kimlat disappointed me. I figured out what P&T did right away, it was just the skill of pulling a card out of the dribble, and he pulled out about 5 cards not just the one. He knew the position of the card in the deck, I wonder how often he can even pull out just the one card. I assume the block levitation was done with magnetic suspension I don’t know why Penn thought the suspended objects needed to be spinning, or what Penn was trying to convey with his guess. ---
**Author:** ![Oneilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3e96dc/32.png) [@Oneilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oneilla)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2018, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/47 "2018-07-17T18:20:26Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > Kostya Kimlat disappointed me. I figured out what P&T did right away, it was just the skill of pulling a card out of the dribble, and he pulled out about 5 cards not just the one. He knew the position of the card in the deck, I wonder how often he can even pull out just the one card. > > I assume the block levitation was done with **magnetic suspension** I don’t know why Penn thought the suspended objects needed to be spinning, or what Penn was trying to convey with his guess. I think you might be right about that. [Here he is performing the trick on a floor without the table and he leaves a block underneath the floating blocks.](https://youtu.be/ggndUt5g8gA). There’s probably something underneath the table. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2018, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/48 "2018-07-17T19:31:43Z")
I assume very strong magnets in the table and the two lamps add some stabilization without being directly over the blocks. The little string of lights between the lamps may be nothing but a distraction or perhaps help line up the blocks because he only gets one take. Without magnetic attraction/repulsion above and below it may require a spinning object to remain stable, I don’t recall a definitive answer about that. I do recall a suspended ball effect that depended on a combination of paramagnetic base super magnets above. Back to Kimlat, that was quite a gamble on his part that the guys would get led astray by a red herring. I think he could have pulled off with a better patter and not revealing what he would do before hand as the guys mentioned. Instead it sounded like “look what I can do with my fingers”. Also should give some props to the rope guy for a creative and entertaining act although it was pretty obvious how it was done. Sometimes the how isn’t all that important. On Fool Us it’s all about the how but that’s not the only way to rate a magician. ---
**Author:** ![Oneilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3e96dc/32.png) [@Oneilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oneilla)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2018, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/49 "2018-07-17T22:42:03Z")
I didn’t quite understand the point of the two audience members during P&T’s trick. Either they didn’t do a very good job at inspecting the box or the section of the box to allow for the switch was well hidden. At the end of the trick when the stagehand is removing the black “kevlar” he made a big deal of folding it to let Teller make his way in from the side of the stage. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2018, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/50 "2018-07-17T23:28:55Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > I assume the block levitation was done with magnetic suspension I don’t know why Penn thought the suspended objects needed to be spinning, or what Penn was trying to convey with his guess. My thought was that there was a piece of glass in front of the trick and the fronts of some of the blocks were sticky enough to adhere to the glass. The lamps and light string were just there to disguise the edges of the glass. In the version on the tiled floor, the bottom edge of the glass is disguised by the grout line between the tiles. When he starts stacking the blocks, the first two are behind the grout line a bit, then the rest of the blocks are pushed forward just enough to touch the glass and stick to it. ---
**Author:** ![zombywoof](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/9e8a1a/32.png) [@zombywoof](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zombywoof)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/51 "2018-07-18T00:06:51Z")
After listening back a couple times I’m pretty sure Alyson Hannigan can be heard inadvertently swearing during the intro of Kostya Kimlat’s trick, LOL. KK: I have to be clever AH: Ooh KK: I have to be sneaky AH: Mmm KK: I might even have to lie just a little AH: Huh! Shit. KK: I know! ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/52 "2018-07-18T00:11:28Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > My thought was that there was a piece of glass in front of the trick and the fronts of some of the blocks were sticky enough to adhere to the glass. The lamps and light string were just there to disguise the edges of the glass. > > In the version on the tiled floor, the bottom edge of the glass is disguised by the grout line between the tiles. When he starts stacking the blocks, the first two are behind the grout line a bit, then the rest of the blocks are pushed forward just enough to touch the glass and stick to it. That’s a good explanation, and now I think probably the correct one! In review I can see he never penetrates the area where the glass would be. At the beginning of the trick he reaches around the lamp on the left to grab a block even though the simplest motion would be to reach through where the glass is. ---
**Author:** ![Oneilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3e96dc/32.png) [@Oneilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oneilla)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/53 "2018-07-18T00:18:01Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > My thought was that there was a piece of glass in front of the trick and the fronts of some of the blocks were sticky enough to adhere to the glass. The lamps and light string were just there to disguise the edges of the glass. > > In the version on the tiled floor, the bottom edge of the glass is disguised by the grout line between the tiles. When he starts stacking the blocks, the first two are behind the grout line a bit, then the rest of the blocks are pushed forward just enough to touch the glass and stick to it. It could be glass. It might explain the extra props on the table and why he covers it before and after. At about 3:37 i think maybe I can kinda see what might look like glass or some sort of panel. [https://youtu.be/ufpoQmsvJEg](https://youtu.be/ufpoQmsvJEg) (I think Penn busts the idea of magnets but I don’t know what the lights comment was suggesting) When he waves the pencil around he does push forward. In the earlier version on the floor it sure looks like some of the blocks are held together with magnets by how the move independently (ie. the bottom 2). ETA: just watched his performance again and he pushes the bottom blocks forward a bit so an adhesive to glass sure seems likely ---
**Author:** ![Oneilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3e96dc/32.png) [@Oneilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oneilla)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/54 "2018-07-18T00:28:12Z")
> [@Oneilla](#): > > When he waves the pencil around he does push forward. Apologies, I’m new (only signed up because of these P&T Fool Us threads) and didn’t realise there was a short edit window. I meant to say he **doesn’t** push the pencil forward. ---
**Author:** ![Magic\_Fan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/839c29/32.png) [@Magic\_Fan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magic_Fan)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/55 "2018-07-18T01:50:18Z")
Now that I know it’s done with a sheet of glass I can’t NOT see the panel. It’s most obvious on the right side, where it’s clearly supported vertically by the brass lamp’s white upright. Also, notice the tight corner of the Christmas lights at the upper right. It really defines the shape of the rectangular pane of glass. So it seems the two lamps are there mainly to hold the glass. Possibly the light itself helps hide the edges of the sheet. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/56 "2018-07-18T02:09:59Z")
> [@Magic\_Fan](#): > > Now that I know it’s done with a sheet of glass I can’t NOT see the panel. It’s most obvious on the right side, where it’s clearly supported vertically by the brass lamp’s white upright. Also, notice the tight corner of the Christmas lights at the upper right. It really defines the shape of the rectangular pane of glass. So it seems the two lamps are there mainly to hold the glass. Possibly the light itself helps hide the edges of the sheet. I know it was my idea, but it was just a theory. Would it really work in person without showing any reflections or anything? ---
**Author:** ![Magic\_Fan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/839c29/32.png) [@Magic\_Fan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magic_Fan)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/57 "2018-07-18T02:20:38Z")
Possibly the light from the desk lamps comes from behind and helps conceal any reflection. It may be my imagination but I thought I DID catch a couple of glints of reflection on the show. I also suspect the glass panel does not extend all the way down to the table surface but ends a couple of inches above. It really only needs to go as low as the red E block. He really doesn’t do anything exceptional with the block below that one, the one he allowed to be inspected (so no sticky stuff to be discovered). There are a couple of shots where his shirt and tie look slightly distorted above the glass. But once again this could be my imagination. I am convinced, however, there is a sheet of glass involved. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/58 "2018-07-18T02:26:17Z")
The first two blocks are legitimately balanced. They are stacked on two decks of cards so they are at the right height to reach the glass sheet. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/59 "2018-07-18T02:34:08Z")
> [@zombywoof](#): > > After listening back a couple times I’m pretty sure Alyson Hannigan can be heard inadvertently swearing during the intro of Kostya Kimlat’s trick, LOL. > > KK: I have to be clever > AH: Ooh > KK: I have to be sneaky > AH: Mmm > KK: I might even have to lie just a little > AH: Huh! Shit. > KK: I know! I think it’s just a “tsk” not “Shit”. ---
**Author:** ![Magic\_Fan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/839c29/32.png) [@Magic\_Fan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magic_Fan)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2018, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/60 "2018-07-18T02:37:26Z")
Exactly. And those were the only two blocks that were inspected, so they don’t need any special sticky treatment. I thought in one shot I saw the bottom edge of the panel, which would be level with the base of the left lamp. Notice it’s higher than the base of the brass lamp at right. I suspect the face of the gimmicked blocks have some kind of micro suction cups that he presses against the glass panel. They’d have to be concealed so we don’t see them “flatten” as he compresses them. I have to watch again up close to see if I can spot anything, maybe camouflaged into the letter itself. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662.md?page=4)