Quotations
 
 
 

“For several decades Sidney Radner of the Houdini Historical Society has organised a seance in an attempt to make contact with Harry Houdini who died 31st October 1926. The seances are held annually usually in a location which is historically appropriate and this year London was the chosen venue and where better than The Magic Circle Headquarters - The Centre for The Magic Arts. To precede the seances a complete evening of Halloween was arranged. In it Satori took place.

Satori is programmed as “The Man Who Knows Almost Everything” and he provided a performance which was a superb demonstration of “mindreading”. Using two members of the audience Satori stood at the back of the stage and asked his assistants to write any country and any colour on two black-boards which were well out of his sight; almost as soon as they were written he correctly divined the words.

He then asked nine spectators to join him on the stage and gave each helper a card. On one side was printed a city and on the other side a number. Standing behind Satori all the assistants changed places and then held up their cards. Satori immediately gave a “world our” of the cities being displayed. The assistants changed places again and held up the number side of their cards which Satori correctly identified. The revelations, it must be said, were given at great speed.

Satori then asked two spectators to blindfold him using dough, cotton-wool pads, a bandage and several scarves. There was no doubt that Satori could not see but he still managed to duplicate words and designs written on the blackboards and to reveal a twenty four (yes, twenty four) digit number chosen by one of his helpers - staggering.

Ten women and ten men were asked to hold small, personal items on their hands, behind Satori's back, who was still blindfolded, and he immediately divined what the objects were. The whole routine was a master-class of “mental” entertainment at its very best - fast-moving with polished patter - brilliant.

Congratulations to Alan Shaxon for planning and organising a show which was first-class in every way.”
Reported by Graham Reed, Magic Circular, London

 
“Next on Satori from Germany. This mental act a number of readers will have seen in Baden-Baden earlier this year, where it created a sensation too. Blindfolded, Satori “reads” numbers and words written on blackboards situated yards behind him, also question billets written by the audience. The act is a skilled combination of numerous methods and therefore all the more baffling. It is certainly one of the strongest mental presentations I have seen.”
Reported by Donald Bevan, Abracadabra, No 94, Great Britain
 
“Psychic Award
The “Psychic Entertainers' Association”, an American-based organization of mentalists, this year held its annual ”Meeting of the Minds” at Valley Forge in June. Satori  the Berlin mentalist who won the mentalism award at FISM in Japan and who is known here from his IBM appearance in Eastbourne, was honoured with the coveted Dunninger Award. Dunninger was the USA's most famous television and radio mentalist.”
Reported by Ron and Nancy Spencer, Abracadabra, No 94, Great Britain
 

 “Satori was next with a devastating mental act. Normally I wince when a mentalist comes on during a Gala performance. Generally they slow the tempo and all I want to do is sleep until it's over, However, Satori wouldn't let me. He kept the pace going and finished with a strong blindfold routine. One of the best I've ever seen. Blindfolded, he was calling out numbers and names written on a blackboard, placed nowhere near where he could have seen, even without the blindfold. Very impressive and most most enjoyable.”
Reported by D. Bevan London, ABRACADABRA

 

“CIVIC RECEPTION
On Wednesday, the 30th September, the Mayor and Mayoress of Eastbourne, Counciffor Maurice Skilton and Mrs. Lindy Coppock, together with the President of the British Ring, Geoff Ray and his wife Pat, welcomed overseas visitors from America, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Canada, Denmark, Holland, Germany, Greece, Channel Islands and Guernsey, HoIIand, India, Ireland and Eire, Italy, Malaysia, a big contingent from Malta, New Zealand, Nigeria, South Africa, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. These visitors were led in by flag-bearers from the Sussex School of Dance.

Mike Gancia introduced, from Berlin, mentalist Satori. With nine member of the audience standing out of view behind him, each holding a placard with a country of the world written upon it, Satori correctly foretold the order of the countries along the line of the helpers. The assistants then changed order, and on the back of each of the boards was a number, and again Satori correctly foretold the new number order in which the members of the audience were standing.

Then using only two members of the audience, each wrote their birthday, a co-lour, and a playing card and a sentence, on two separate blackboards, again out of view, and these were correctly revealed by the mentalist.

Satori then was completely blindfolded and correctly revealed the telephone number and name, and a 24 figure number chosen by one of the assistants.

Finally, various members of the audience were asked to write on pieces of paper their names and addresses and to ask Satori a question. These were gathered up by his lady assistant, and still whilst fully blindfolded, he correctly "read" what was on the cards and answered the various questions. He closed by revealing a Visa number of one of the members of the audience.

Satori was billed as "unbelievable but true" and this was certainly the case and was an extremely baffling and entertaining act.”
Reported by Chris Poole, The Budget, Great Britain

 
“The FISM mentalism award winner, Satori from Germany absolutely stunned the crowd with his uncanny ability of knowing without seeing. He first teased the audience by cor-rectly identifying happenings going on behind his back and then donning a blindfold complete with bread dough and band-ages blew us away with a fast-paced routine. A professional in Germany, he is certainly welcomed here anytime.”
Reported by Bill Tadlock Meeting of the Minds, Seattle, USA
 

“Having read Bob Bluemle's interesting interview with PEA member SATORI of Germany, it was a pleasure to see him on German TV this winter. With covered eyes and great speed, Satori told Dr. Schommer, the German Minister of Commerce, the words and the 24-figure number, which the minister had written on a blackboard behind the back of Satori. Exclaimed the minister : "Wonderful - I'd be happy to have you on my budget committee."

On another TV talk show, Satori had, as his guests, the charming song and dance performers, The Kessler Twins-Alice and Ellen Kessler - well known all over Europe. They were presented with a prediction taken out of a small box - containing the names of the Kessler Twins' favorite dinner courses, the names of their favorite dinner companions, (the men they would like to invite for dinner) and details about the twins favorite countries for vacationing. It was a pleasure to see how Satori captured the audience in the TV studio, keeping them spellbound by perfectly timed executions of his experiments and entertained by his sense of humor. Satori has a relaxed and likable personality that really comes across to the TV viewers. Hopefully we shall see more of him on TV (he speaks several European languages).”
Reported by Peter Borsch Denmark Vibrations

 

“The performance of Satori and Ron and Nancy Spencer were alone worth the trip. I was blown away not only by the mystery of their presentations but by the personality of the acts so different but each powerful in the way they related to the audience. As to the methods, I was absolutely delighted to note that they had brainstormed and appeared to have achieved something unique in method and presentation. It gives us all some-thing to aspire to. I wish to thank them for that-and the conversations and sharing that took place.”
Richard Mark, Coconut Grove FL, USA

 

“As an attendee to the FISM, the first outside of Europe and the first in Japan, I was proud to be present when a PEA member, SATORI, "the man, who knows almost everything," won the award for Mentalism.

Satori, who developed his art in East Germany, despite his clear vision, was unable to penetrate the Berlin Wall, benefited thereby. Isolated, and uncontaminated by "known" techniques of mentalism, he created original methods.

To be able to convey the wonder of mentalism, in its various forms, as did Satori, takes especial talent, in a foreign speaking culturally different environment. He is much to be congratulated.”
Joel A. Moskowitz
, Letter To The Editor, USA

 
 


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