Review: Everything’s A Radio (E.A.R.)
Greetings and salutations to all!
It seems that another month has passed us by and I still struggle writing 2010 instead of 2009 on things. Weren’t we just having Y2K problems?
Regardless of my personal memory issues, I have compiled a month worth of performances and a recipe for this month’s trick, E.A.R. or Everything’s a Radio from Miracles for Mortals Vol. 2, by Geoff Williams.
First let’s get to the nuts and bolts. The required gimmick for E.A.R. has to be constructed. I purchased all of the parts at two places, Radio Shack and Wal-Mart. I found in making my purchase that it was more economical to make two gimmicks for the cost and so Jeff Stone and I shared the costs. The total cost for both gimmicks was just over $32.00. Had I only made one, the cost would have been $22.00.
I was able to construct it easily with the tools that I had at home. I did use a soldering iron, but I can see ways of making it with out one. Time for construction totaled 2 hours. I followed closely Geoff’s instructions and found that I completed the task easier than I expected.
Next, the gimmick has to be worn. I found I wasn’t overly excited by this prospect and had some apprehension. Honestly, it’s a pain to put on, and as a big man I was worried it would show under my clothes. At last I gave in for you the faithful readers! Yes you made me do it!!! It really wasn’t as bad in the long run as I expected. I didn’t have to wear a tie, but I do wear a vest all the time, so it concealed nicely. If you do not want to wear a vest I would strongly suggest you wear a tie. The cover is needed. I wore this gimmick upwards of 8 hours a day, and performed it an average of three times per day. I practiced using the gimmick a handful of times. It was simple and reliable.
Now on with the fun stuff!
I performed it similar to the way Geoff does on his DVD.
The first to be victimized were co-workers at This Is The Place Heritage Park. I got mixed reactions. For the most part they were completely stumped. Some of my co-workers were just astonished and others were looking for a hidden radio.
My family, which consists of 5 children ages 11, 10, 9, 8, and 3, LOVED it! My wife saw me building the gimmick late one evening and wondered what I was doing. However, when I finally got it set up for the kids she watched and was blown away as well. Then later on she admitted that she remembered the night I build it and still was a bit puzzled. My kids freaked out the first time I did it for them. I kept trying other presentations on them. My 3 year old keeps shaking the ketchup bottle trying futilely to get radio sound to come from the opened cap. If we could only get the rest of the audience to have that firm of a belief! My other kids all asked me to repeat it for their friends.
I performed it for a Boy Scout Pack and felt for a moment like David Blaine. The kids all ran away from me screaming! As a whole, strangers just looked completely dumb-founded. I couldn’t decide if it was because they couldn’t believe the trick or if they just thought I was some weirdo. I believe it was a mix of both.
What I finally decided can be summed up in a nutshell.
Used for a smaller, more intimate audience it’s worth the effort. The effect gets lost on groups of more than 15 or so. It was fun and for the most part was enjoyed by all.
I give it 4 out of 5 blisters. It was a pain to wear, but fun to perform.
Next month Jeff Prace’s Orbit. Since there was a lot of controversy over Stone’s review and a request for me to try one of the effects, we will put it to the test. Until then try to catch a radio wave!
Please Take a Moment to Reply To and “like” This Review.