A novella (also called a short novel) is a written, fictional, prose narrative longer than a novelette but shorter than a novel. The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America Nebula Awards for science fiction define the novella as having a word count between 17,500 and 40,000. Other definitions start as low as 10,000 words and run as high as 70,000 words.

The novella is a common literary genre in several European languages. English language novellas include Anthony Burgess's ''A Clockwork Orange'', John Steinbeck's ''Of Mice and Men'', Herman Melville's ''Billy Budd, Sailor'', George Orwell's ''Animal Farm'', Truman Capote's ''Breakfast at Tiffany's'', Ernest Hemingway's ''The Old Man and the Sea'', Robert Louis Stevenson's ''Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde'', Charles Dickens' ''A Christmas Carol'', H.G. Wells' ''The Time Machine'', Philip Roth's ''Goodbye, Columbus'', Joseph Conrad's ''Heart of Darkness'', Jack Kerouac's ''The Subterraneans'' and Stephen King's ''Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption''.

The English word "novella" is derived from the Italian word "novella", feminine of "novello" which means new.

Structure

A novella has generally fewer conflicts than a novel, yet more complicated ones than a short story. The conflicts also have more time to develop than in short stories. They have endings that are located at the brink of change. Unlike novels, they are not divided into chapters, and are often intended to be read at a single sitting, as the short story, although white space is often used to divide the sections. They maintain, therefore, a single effect. Warren Cariou wrote:

The novella is generally not as formally experimental as the long story and the novel can be, and it usually lacks the subplots, the multiple points of view, and the generic adaptability that are common in the novel. It is most often concerned with personal and emotional development rather than with the larger social sphere. The novella generally retains something of the unity of impression that is a hallmark of the short story, but it also contains more highly developed characterization and more luxuriant description.

History

The idea of serialized novellas dates back to the ''One Thousand and One Nights'', also known as the ''Arabian Nights'', from around the 10th century. The novella as a literary genre later began developing in the early Renaissance literary work of the Italians and the French. Principally, by Giovanni Boccaccio (1313–1375), author of ''The Decameron'' (1353)—one hundred novelle told by ten people, seven women and three men, fleeing the Black Death by escaping from Florence to the Fiesole hills, in 1348; and by the French Queen, Marguerite de Navarre (1492–1549), [aka Marguerite de Valois, et. alii.], author of ''Heptaméron'' (1559)—seventy-two original French tales (structured like ''The Decameron'').

Not until the late eighteenth- and early nineteenth centuries did writers fashion the novella into a literary genre structured by precepts and rules. Contemporaneously, the Germans were the most active writers of the ''Novelle'' (German: "Novelle"; plural: "Novellen"). For the German writer, a novella is a fictional narrative of indeterminate length—a few pages to hundreds—restricted to a single, suspenseful event, situation, or conflict leading to an unexpected turning point (''Wendepunkt''), provoking a logical, but surprising end; ''Novellen'' tend to contain a concrete symbol, which is the narration's steady point. They are still famous now.

Novella versus novel

:''See the article novel for the historical generic debate.'' :''See the article Length of a novel for comparative word counts.''

In Catalan, ''novel·la'' is the word for "novel" and ''novel·la curta'' means "short novel", so it is a synonym of "novella".

In Spanish, the word "novela" means "novel" and "novela corta" ("short novel") is used for the English meaning of "novella."

In German, the word ''Novelle'' is used for "novella" to distinguish this prose form from ''Kurzgeschichte'' ("short story") and ''Roman'' ("novel").

In Dutch, the word for "novella" is ''novelle'' and the word for "novel" is ''Roman''.

In Hungarian, the word for "novella" is ''kisregény'', which means "little novel", the word for "novel" is "regény", and the word "novella" means "short story".

In Portuguese, the word for "novella" is "novela" and the word for "novel" is "romance".

In French, "novella" is ''nouvelle'' (but a "nouvelle" is actually a short story, not a novella) or, maybe better, "récit" - and "novel" is ''roman''

In Italian too "short story" is ''novella'' and "novel" is ''romanzo'', while "novella" rather corresponds to ''romanzo breve''.

In Romanian, "novella" is ''nuvelǎ'' and "novel" is ''roman''.

In Swedish, "short story" is ''novell'' and "novel" is ''roman'', while "novella" is ''kortroman'', literally meaning "short novel".

In Danish and the Norwegian, "short story" is ''novelle'', "novella" is ''langnovelle'', and "novel" is ''roman''.

In Finnish, "short story" is ''novelli'' and "novel" is ''romaani''.

In Estonian, "short story" is ''novell'' and "novel" is ''romaan''. A novella is usually called ''lühiromaan'' ("short novel").

In Russian, novella is "povest" (повесть), while "novel" is "roman" (роман); short story is "rasskaz" (рассказ) and it is the extremely brief form that is called "novella" ('новелла').

In Polish, "short story" or "novellette" is ''opowiadanie'', "novella" is ''nowela'' and "novel" is ''powieść''.

This etymological distinction avoids confusion of the literatures and the forms, with the novel being the more important, established fictional form. The Austrian writer Stefan Zweig's (1881–1942) ''Die Schachnovelle'' (1942) (literally, "The Chess Novella", but translated in 1944 as ''The Royal Game'') is an example of a title naming its genre.

Commonly, longer novellas are referred to as novels; ''Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde'' and ''Heart of Darkness'' are sometimes called novels, as are many science fiction works such as ''The War of the Worlds'' and ''Armageddon 2419 A.D.'' Less often, longer works are referred to as novellas. The subjectivity of the parameters of the novella genre is indicative of its shifting and diverse nature as an art form. In her 2010 Open Letters Monthly series, "A Year With Short Novels," Ingrid Norton criticizes the tendency to make clear demarcations based purely on a book's length:

Google "novels" and "length" and you will find tables of word counts, separating out novels from novellas, even from the esoteric and still shorter "novelette" — as though prose works were dog show contestants, needing to be entered into proper categories. But when it comes to writing, any distinctions that begin with an objective and external quality like size are bound to be misleading. The delicate, gem-like jigsaw of Thornton Wilder's ''The Bridge of San Luis Ray'' [sic] could not be more unlike the feverishly cunning philosophical monologue of Albert Camus' ''The Fall'', but both novels are about the same length.

Stephen King, in his introduction to ''Different Seasons'', a collection of four novellas, has called the novella "an ill-defined and disreputable literary banana republic"; King notes the difficulties of selling a novella in the commercial publishing world, since it does not fit the typical length requirements of either magazine or book publishers. Despite these problems, however, the novella's length provides unique advantages; in the introduction to a novella anthology titled ''Sailing to Byzantium'', Robert Silverberg writes:

[The novella] is one of the richest and most rewarding of literary forms...it allows for more extended development of theme and character than does the short story, without making the elaborate structural demands of the full-length book. Thus it provides an intense, detailed exploration of its subject, providing to some degree both the concentrated focus of the short story and the broad scope of the novel.

In his essay "Briefly, the case for the novella", Canadian author George Fetherling (who wrote the novella ''Tales of Two Cities'') said that to reduce the novella to nothing more than a short novel is like "saying a pony is a baby horse."

See also

List of novellas

Novelette

Chain novel

References

Category:Fiction forms Category:Italian loanwords

be-x-old:Навэля bs:Novela bg:Новела cv:Новелла cs:Novela (literatura) da:Novelle de:Novelle et:Novell el:Νουβέλα es:Novela corta fr:Nouvelle gd:Nobhaileag hr:Novela it:Novella he:נובלה ka:ნოველა kk:Новелла lv:Novele lb:Novell lt:Novelė hu:Kisregény nl:Novelle (proza) ja:中編小説 no:Novelle pl:Nowela pt:Novela ro:Nuvelă ru:Новелла scn:Cuntu (cumpunimentu) simple:Novella sk:Novela (literatúra) sl:Novela (književnost) sr:Новела sh:Novela sv:Kortroman ta:குறுநாவல் tr:Novella uk:Новела wa:Novele (pitit roman) bat-smg:Nuovelė zh:中篇小說

name	Funeral for a Friend
background	group_or_band
origin	Bridgend, Wales, UK
years active	2001–present
genre	Post-hardcore, emo,
label	Mighty Atom, Infectious, Atlantic, Ferret, Join Us, Roadrunner, Distiller Records, Good Fight Music
associated acts	Hondo Maclean, Ghostlines, The Secret Show, January Thirst, Desecration, Moments in Grace, Attack! Attack!, Dopamine, Everfade, This Is Menace
website	www.funeralforafriend.com
current members	Matthew Davies-KreyeKris Coombs-RobertsRyan RichardsGavin BurroughRichard Boucher
past members	Matthew EvansJohnny PhillipsAndi MorrisKerry RobertsDarran SmithGareth Ellis-Davies }}

Funeral for a Friend are a Welsh post-hardcore band, from Bridgend. Formed 2001, they have released five studio albums, five EPs, sixteen singles, one DVD, and one compilation album.

History

Formation and EPs (2001–2003)

When Michael Davies, one of January Thirst's original vocalists, quit in December 2001, Matthew Evans (vocals) and Johnny Phillips (drums) invited Matt Davies (later Davies-Kreye) to try out for the vacated singer position. Soon afterward the band reformed as Funeral for a Friend, named after a song by Planes Mistaken for Stars.

During the start of the New Year they parted ways with second guitarist Kerry Roberts (Kris Coombs-Roberts's brother) and found a suitable replacement in Darran Smith (ex-Tripcage). The band recorded four tracks at Mighty Atom Studios for a proposed self financed EP with another Welsh band ''From This Moment On''. Upon hearing the tracks, Mighty Atom Records approached the band and offered a two album deal, resulting in their debut EP, ''Between Order and Model'' (2002). Before the EP's release, Andi Morris (bass) quit, with Phillips and Evans also leaving. The band then recruited Gareth Davies (later Ellis-Davies) on bass and Ryan Richards on drums. Matt Davies became the band's only primary vocalist, with Gareth Davies performing backing melodies and Richards taking over Evans' screaming role.

In 2003, Funeral for a Friend recorded their second EP, ''Four Ways to Scream Your Name'', produced and mixed by Colin Richardson.

In mid-2003, the band secured their first ''Kerrang!'' award, winning the award for "Best UK Newcomer", beating The Darkness, who won in all other nominated categories. Funeral for a Friend's win was largely attributed to their fervent fan base, as the awards winner was decided by public vote online at the official ''Kerrang!'' Web site.

In August 2003, Funeral for a Friend opened the Concrete Jungle stage at the Reading and Leeds Festivals.

''Casually Dressed & Deep in Conversation'' (2003–2005)

On 20 October 2003, after recording for the duration of the summer, Funeral for a Friend's full-length debut album was released. ''Casually Dressed & Deep in Conversation'', produced and mixed by Colin Richardson, was released to critical acclaim in the UK. The album did not see a concurrent release in the US (eventually released there on 13 July 2004); instead, a seven-track "mini-album", entitled ''Seven Ways to Scream Your Name'', was released, and featured songs from the band's ''Between Order & Model'' and ''Four Ways to Scream Your Name'' EPs.

''Casually Dressed & Deep in Conversation'' saw three top-twenty singles including "Juneau" (#19), "She Drove Me to Daytime Television" (#20) and "Escape Artists Never Die" (#19).

Funeral for a Friend toured feverishly to promote ''Casually Dressed & Deep in Conversation'', including a series of European dates in which they opened for their idols, Iron Maiden. This was met with a mixed reception, as their style and fan base bore little resemblance to the heavy metal background of Iron Maiden. In 2004, the band headlined the second stage of the Reading and Leeds Festivals.

''Hours'' (2005–2006)

On 14 June 2005, the band released their second album ''Hours'' through Atlantic Records. The album was produced by Terry Date and was recorded in two Seattle studios owned by the grunge band Pearl Jam. The album featured unusual methods of recording, for example Matt Davies' vocals were recorded whilst in a moving car and on a crowded Seattle street, for the song "Drive".

In August of the same year, the band won a Kerrang! Award for "Best British Band".

Funeral for a Friend performed several low-profile shows in Wales, including Bangor University and Bridgend Recreation Centre, prior to the release of ''Hours''. This contrasted against their subsequent shows, which included playing alongside bands such as Atreyu, Saosin, Hawthorne Heights and Thrice on the 2005 Vans Warped Tour. The band also performed on the main stage of the Reading and Leeds Festivals, having to leave the Warped Tour early to do so. The band also played on the main stage of the Taste of Chaos tour in the US in 2006, alongside bands such as Story of the Year, Deftones and Thrice.

Funeral For a Friend closed the promotional jaunt for ''Hours'' in the Summer of 2006, with a series of UK shows rescheduled from February. Most of the original dates had been canceled because Matt Davies had suffered from a bout of laryngitis. Several other shows were scheduled in the UK to complement these rescheduled dates, and the tour culminated in a slot below headliners Guns N' Roses at the Download Festival at Donington Racetrack.

The rest of 2006 was spent writing and recording the band's third album, ''Tales Don't Tell Themselves'' released in May 2007.

''Tales Don't Tell Themselves'' (2007)

Funeral for a Friend mentioned the writing of this album during their UK shows in summer 2006 and they started writing and recording at the end of the tour. ''Tales Don't Tell Themselves'' was released on 14 May 2007 in the UK, having been leaked to the internet on 10 May 2007. The band released video diary updates of the recording on their MySpace page.

On 19 March 2007, ''Into Oblivion (Reunion)'', the first single from the album, premiered on the Zane Lowe Show on Radio One. It was given a 7 May physical release, and the video can be seen and the song heard on their MySpace. It reached number 39 in its first week of release on downloads and reached number 16 in the Official UK chart on 13 May 2007.

A selection of intimate shows to promote the album were played on 12, 13 and 14 April 2007 in intimate coastal venues in the south of England. Only 200 tickets were available for each show and these had to be applied for via an e-mail sent to members of the FFAF mailing list. Names were then picked out of a hat and the selected people were offered the opportunity to buy a pair of tickets to the gig, exclusive t-shirts were given to anyone paying using paypal mobile.

On 8 May 2007 the band released ''Tales Don't Tell Themselves'' in its entirety for fans to preview via their MySpace page. This album is the first on which Matt plays guitar.

On 10 May 2007 the band played another intimate gig for Kerrang! 105.2 at the Wolverhampton Civic Hall Bar, in which they played "Walk Away" for the very first time. This is one of the tracks which Matt plays guitar on live, alongside "Raise The Sail" and "The Sweetest Wave", which were debuted on the full tour in May 2007.

The album was their highest charting yet, reaching Number 3 in the UK Album Charts though to date it is also their lowest selling album.

On 16 July 2007 ''Walk Away'', was released as the second single from ''Tales Don't Tell Themselves'' and reached number 40 in the UK singles charts.

It was announced in a newsletters that "The Great Wide Open" would be the next single and would be released as an EP. The EP, ''The Great Wide Open'' was released on 15 October 2007 through Atlantic Records, negating the release of the single itself.

''Memory and Humanity'' (2008–2009)

On 26 January 2008, drummer Ryan Richards made an announcement on the band's forum, stating that FFAF were to spend the first few months of the year recording, with a view of releasing a four or five track EP in March or April 2008. After writing more material than originally planned, the band decided to scrap plans for the EP and released a full-length album instead. Ryan also announced that the new album would contain screaming vocals, riffs and would be closer to ''Casually Dressed & Deep in Conversation'' than any of their other albums, although would still be significantly different and more technical, citing that they want to move forward, and never back to any old style.

On 11 May 2008, it was announced via a MySpace bulletin that the band would be shooting a video for the first single from the album, "Waterfront Dance Club", on 17 May. "Waterfront Dance Club" was played exclusively for the first time on Radio 1's Rock Show on 2 June 2008, where it was also announced that the single would be released as a double A-side with the track "Beneath the Burning Tree". Both singles were also released as a limited edition 7" on the same date.

The album's title was confirmed as ''Memory and Humanity'' by Rock Sound magazine on 30 June 2008, and that its release would take place in October 2008.

On 2 July 2008, the band announced the UK tour of ''Memory and Humanity'', commencing 14 October 2008.

9 August 2008 saw the debut of the video for the single "Kicking and Screaming" on MySpace. Later that month on the 27th, it was announced that the band had licensed their new record to Victory Records for the U.S. and Canadian releases. The album was released via the label on October 28, 2008. It was also released via Roadrunner Records in the rest of the world, apart from the UK, where it was released through the band's own label, ''Join Us''. The release was followed by a tour in Britain, Ireland and northern Europe, supported by Canadian metalcore act Cancer Bats.

On 4 September 2008, it was announced via a MySpace blog post that Gareth Davies had left the band, to be replaced by Gavin Burrough (Hondo Maclean, Ghostlines, The Future). "As some of you may know, Gareth has been living in America for the past couple of years, and recently got married. Ultimately, the strain of travelling between continents has taken its toll and Gareth made the decision that it would be in the best interests of himself, his family and Funeral to leave the band. We totally respect and understand his choice, wish him all the best in his future and we thank him for being part of our lives for the past 6 years." The first interview to surface with Burrough in the band appeared on the Rocklouder webzine in the week of the ''Memory and Humanity'' release.

In the 24 January 2009 issue of Kerrang! magazine, it was stated that the band were currently filming the video for the third single off the album, ''Rules and Games''. The single was released on 23 March 2009. They will also be going on tour with We Are the Ocean supporting to coincide with its release.

''Your History Is Mine'' (2009)

It was initialy revealed in Kerrang! magazine on 24 June 2009 that the band were to release a greatest hits album, entitled Your History Is Mine: 2002-2009 on 28 September 2009. the Compilation album was released by Atlantic records because the record deal between the band and the label allowed the Atlantic records to release a compilation CD at any point in the bands career. the band then decided to record four brand new tracks in order to give the greatest hits value to fans.

On 21 July 2009, Funeral For A Friend debuted one of the four new songs from the greatest hits album titled ''Your History Is Mine: 2002-2009''. The song was called "Wrench" and premiered on Radio One's Rock Show with Dan Carter. Zane Lowe credited them as "one of the best British bands of the last decade" upon the release of ''Your History Is Mine''.

''The Young and Defenceless'' and ''Welcome Home Armageddon'' (2009–present)

On 17 November 2009, Funeral for a Friend noted on Twitter that they had begun work on a new album.

On 23 April 2010, Funeral for a Friend announced on Facebook that guitarist Darran Smith would be leaving the band, but not before playing his final shows. He wrote a farewell message on the band's website.

On 26 April 2010, Funeral for a Friend wrote on their forum about their lineup change, paying homage to the departure of their friend Darran Smith, but also announcing the new member. Gavin Burrough changed instrument from bass to guitar, taking over Darran's place as guitarist, and the new bassist of Funeral for a Friend will be Richard Boucher (Hondo Maclean, Hurricane-Joe, Ghostlines). The band noted: "He's SO good on bass that we let someone with blonde hair join our band. That ought to be an indication of how great he is." The band stated that they are excited for the new material being made and can't wait to show the fans what they have: "The creative well, is well and truly overflowing. Exciting times. Stay tuned, and be ready."

On 3 May 2010 the band announced that they will be releasing a special new EP to fans who "pledged" through website pledgemusic.com, the "pledge" options include the EP, a signed EP and even an acoustic performance by the band at a fan's residence. On 1 July 2010 the band revealed that the EP will titled ''The Young and Defenceless'' and also revealed the cover art. It was also announced via ''Kerrang!'' that the newly recorded EP would be released on 1 September 2010; however, in actuality, the downloadable version was released on 6 September 2010 with the physical copies being planned on being released sometime in the third week of October. On the 9th of November, Funeral For a Friend released a music video for the track Serpents in Solitude.

Towards the end of October 2010 they finished a session of recording for a new album for which a name and date were yet to be announced. On the 2nd of November, they played two new songs, confirmed to be on this album (which was announced as due for release in March 2011), called "Man Alive" and "Front Row Seats to the End of the World". Another song title was confirmed as "Spinning Over the Island".

During a performance in December, Davies stated that the album will be titled ''Welcome Home Armageddon''. On the 10th of January 2011, the band released the official video for the album's leading single "Front Row Seats to the End of the World." On the 17th of January, they released the album's artwork and track list On the 24th of January, it was announced that the album was to be released by Good Fight Music, a move that would reconnect the band with the original label team that released ''Seven Ways to Scream Your Name'' and ''Casually Dressed & Deep in Conversation''. On February 9, the band released the video for their newest single, "Sixteen".

On the 5th of March 2011, the band played their first ever show in South Africa, at the RAMFest in Worcester, outside of Cape Town alongside Alkaline Trio and Die Antwoord. They concluded their South African tour by playing in Durban and Johannesburg on the 9th and 12 March 2011 respectively.

''Welcome Home Armageddon'' was released 14 March 2011 in the UK and March 15 in the US.

Musical style and influence

Funeral for a Friend have shown a progression and maturity with each record. Although their music has developed around post-hardcore and melodic hardcore. They have been cited as alternative rock, emo and screamo as well as being a fusion of metal, rock and emo. Deftones, Iron Maiden and The Get Up Kids has been said to be their primary influences. They have been said to be a prominant influence on the British post-hardcore scene, influencing acts like: Fightstar, The Blackout, Kids In Glass Houses, We Are The Ocean and Asking Alexandria primarily with their debut album ''Casually Dressed & Deep in Conversation''.

Their earlier EPs and their debut album ''Casually Dressed & Deep in Conversation'' are considered their heaviest work, they have been catagorised as post-hardcore, emo and even screamo.

While their next two albums followed a different musical direction. With ''Tales Don't Tell Themselves'' they use a more pop-rock and post-hardcore style with classic rock, alternative country and 80's heartland rock The band and critics alike have said that because they released the two on indie labels they had more creative freedom from when they were signed to Atlantic Records. When ''Welcome Home Armageddon'' came out, critics were quick to compare and contrast it to ''Casually Dressed & Deep in Conversation''.

Members

;Current members

Matthew Davies-Kreye – lead vocals

Kris Coombs-Roberts – guitar, backing vocals

Gavin Burrough – guitar, backing vocals (previously bass)

Ryan Richards – drums, unclean vocals

Richard Boucher – bass

;Former members

Kerry Roberts – guitar

Matthew Evans – vocals

Andi Morris – bass

Johnny Phillips – drums

Gareth Davies – bass, backing vocals

Darran Smith – guitar

Discography

;Studio albums

''Casually Dressed & Deep in Conversation'' (2003)

''Hours'' (2005)

''Tales Don't Tell Themselves'' (2007)

''Memory and Humanity'' (2008)

''Welcome Home Armageddon'' (2011)

References

External links

Official website

Category:British post-hardcore musical groups Category:Welsh rock music groups Category:Emo musical groups Category:Screamo musical groups Category:Musical groups established in 2001 Category:Musical quintets Category:Kerrang! Awards winners Category:People from Bridgend

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Name	Steven Novella
Birth date	July 29, 1964
Nationality	American
Field	Clinical Neurology
Work institutions	Yale University School of Medicine
Alma mater	Georgetown University
Footnotes	}}

__NOTOC__ Steven P. Novella (born July 29, 1964) is an American clinical neurologist, assistant professor and Director of General Neurology at Yale University School of Medicine. Novella is best known for his involvement in the skeptical movement.

Professional background

Novella's academic specialization is in neuromuscular disease, including more specifically, neuropathy, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, myasthenia gravis, and the treatment of neuropathic pain.

Novella received his medical degree from Georgetown University School of Medicine, completed his residency at Yale-New Haven Hospital, his fellowship at Yale University School of Medicine, and was board certified in 1998.

Medical skepticism

Novella is a medical advisor to Quackwatch, an associate editor of the ''Scientific Review of Alternative Medicine'', and the executive editor of the blog ''Science-Based Medicine''. Among other topics, Novella has published on homeopathy and AIDS denialism. In 2009, he was the board chairman when the Institute for Science in Medicine was founded. He has also taught a course for The Teaching Company titled "Medical Myths, Lies, and Half-Truths: What We Think We Know May Be Hurting Us."

Skepticism

Novella is president and co-founder of the New England Skeptical Society and hosts that organization's podcast, The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe. He writes the monthly Weird Science column for the New Haven Advocate and contributes to several blogs. Novella has also appeared on several television programs, including ''Penn & Teller: Bullshit!''.

Steven Novella was one of the first 200 to sign the Project Steve petition, a tongue-in-cheek parody of the list of "scientists that doubt evolution" produced by creationists.

In January 2010 Dr. Novella was elected as a Fellow of the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry

Novella keeps a blog, ''Neurologica'', "your daily fix of neuroscience, skepticism and critical thinking".

See also

New England Skeptical Society

The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe

Quackwatch

Rebecca Watson

References

External links

Skeptic Blog - Home of the Skeptologists

Novella's professional website

Science-Based Medicine

Neurologica Blog

"Taking the Wind From Silly Sails" — Michael Pollak, ''New York Times'', August 24, 1997.

"'Steve' profs. collaborate to support teaching evolution" — Jessica Tom, ''Yale Daily News'', February 25, 2003.

"'Skeptical' neurologist works to separate science from sham" — Jacqueline Weaver, ''Yale Bulletin & Calendar'', October 7, 2005.

Interview with Steven Novella — interview published on Astroseti.org, May 3, 2006.

"HIV Denialists Spread Misinformation Online: Consequences Could Be Deadly" — ''Science Daily'', August 22, 2007.

Interview on the Books and Ideas Podcast 2009

Category:Living people Category:American bloggers Category:American podcasters Category:American skeptics Category:American neuroscientists Category:Georgetown University Medical Center alumni Category:Yale School of Medicine faculty Category:1964 births

es:Steven Novella fr:Steven Novella se:Steven Novella

name	James Randi
birth name	Randall James Hamilton Zwinge
birth date	August 07, 1928
birth place	Toronto, Ontario, Canada
occupation	Magician, writer, skeptic
website	www.randi.org
nationality	Canadian-American
religion	None (Atheist)
residence	}}

James Randi (born Randall James Hamilton Zwinge; August 7, 1928) is a Canadian-American stage magician and scientific skeptic best known as a challenger of paranormal claims and pseudoscience. Randi is the founder of the James Randi Educational Foundation. Randi began his career as a magician named The Amazing Randi, but after retiring at age 60, he began investigating paranormal, occult, and supernatural claims, which he collectively calls "woo-woo."

Although often referred to as a "debunker," Randi rejects that title owing to its perceived bias, instead describing himself as an "investigator." He has written about the paranormal, skepticism, and the history of magic. He was a frequent guest on ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' and was occasionally featured on the television program ''Penn & Teller: Bullshit!''. The JREF sponsors The One Million Dollar Paranormal Challenge offering a prize of US$1,000,000 to eligible applicants who can demonstrate evidence of any paranormal, supernatural or occult power or event under test conditions agreed to by both parties.

Early life

Randi was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and has a younger brother and sister. He took up magic after reading magic books while spending 13 months in a body cast following a bicycle accident. He confounded doctors who expected he would never walk again. Although a brilliant student, Randi often skipped school, and he dropped out of high school at 17 to perform as a conjurer in a carnival roadshow. In his twenties, Randi posed as a psychic to establish that they were actually doing simple tricks and briefly wrote an astrological column in the Canadian tabloid ''Midnight'' under the name "Zo-ran," by simply shuffling up items from newspaper astrology columns and pasting them randomly into a column. In his thirties, Randi worked in Philippine night clubs and all across Japan. He witnessed many tricks that were presented as being supernatural. One of his earliest reported experiences is that of seeing an evangelist using the "one-ahead" routine to convince churchgoers of his divine powers.

Career

Magician

Randi worked as a professional stage magician, or "conjurer" as he prefers to be called, and escapologist beginning in 1946, initially under his birth name, Randall Zwinge, and then as The Amazing Randi. Early in his career, Randi was part of numerous stunts involving his escape from jail cells and safes. On February 7, 1956, he appeared live on ''The Today Show'', remaining in a sealed metal coffin submerged in a hotel swimming pool for 104 minutes, breaking what was said to be Houdini's record of 93 minutes.

Randi was the host of ''The Amazing Randi Show'' on New York radio station WOR in the mid 1960s. This radio show, which filled Long John Nebel's old slot with similar content after Nebel went to WNBC in 1962, had frequent pro-paranormal guests, including Randi's then-friend James Moseley. Randi, in turn, spoke at Moseley's 1967 Fourth Congress of Scientific Ufologists in New York City, stating, "Let's not fool ourselves. There are some garden variety liars involved in all this. But in among all the trash and nonsense perpetrated in the name of Ufology, I think there is a small grain of truth."

Randi also hosted numerous television specials and went on several world tours. Then Randi appeared as "The Amazing Randi" on a television show titled ''Wonderama'' from 1967 to 1972, and as host of a failed revival of the 1950s children's show ''The Magic Clown'' in 1970. In the February 2, 1974, issue of ''Abracadabra'' (a British conjuring magazine), Randi defined the magic community, saying, "I know of no calling which depends so much upon mutual trust and faith as does ours." In the December 2003 issue of ''The Linking Ring'', the monthly publication of The International Brotherhood of Magicians, ''Points to Ponder: Another Matter of Ethics,'' p. 97, it is stated, "Perhaps Randi's ethics are what make him Amazing" and "The Amazing Randi not only talks the talk, he walks the walk."

During Alice Cooper's 1973–1974 tour, Randi performed as the dentist and executioner on stage, and designed and built several of the stage props, including the guillotine. Shortly after that, in February 1975, Randi escaped from a straitjacket while suspended upside-down over Niagara Falls in the winter on the Canadian TV program ''World of Wizards''.

Randi was once accused of actually using "psychic powers" to perform acts such as spoon bending. James Alcock relates this incident, which occurred at a meeting where Randi was duplicating the performances of Uri Geller: A professor from the University at Buffalo shouted out that Randi was a fraud. Randi said, "Yes, indeed, I'm a trickster, I'm a cheat, I'm a charlatan, that's what I do for a living. Everything I've done here was by trickery." The professor shouted back: "That's not what I mean. You're a fraud because you're pretending to do these things through trickery, but you're actually using psychic powers and misleading us by not admitting it." The famous author and believer in spiritualism Arthur Conan Doyle had years earlier made a similar accusation against the magician Harry Houdini. A similar event involved Senator Claiborne Pell. Pell believed in psychic phenomena. When Randi demonstrated viewing a hidden drawing by using trickery, Pell refused to believe that it was a trick, saying, "I think Randi may be a psychic and doesn't realize it."

Author

Randi is author of ''Conjuring'' (1992), a biographical history of noted magicians. The book is subtitled: ''Being a Definitive History of the Venerable Arts of Sorcery, Prestidigitation, Wizardry, Deception, & Chicanery and of the Mountebanks & Scoundrels Who have Perpetrated these Subterfuges on a Bewildered Public, in short, MAGIC!''. The book selects the most influential magicians and explains their history in the context of strange deaths and careers on the road. This work expanded on the 1976 book ''Houdini, His Life and Art'', co-authored with Bert Randolph Sugar, which focused on Houdini and his cohorts. Randi also wrote a children's book in 1989 titled ''The Magic World of the Amazing Randi'', which introduced children to magic tricks. In addition to his magic books, he has written several educational works about the paranormal and pseudoscientific. These include biographies of Uri Geller and Nostradamus as well as reference material on other major paranormal figures. He is currently working on ''A Magician in the Laboratory'', which recounts his application of skepticism to science, though in January 2011, he expressed doubts as to whether it would be finished. He is a member of the all-male literary banqueting club the Trap Door Spiders, which served as the basis of Isaac Asimov's fictional group of mystery solvers the Black Widowers.

Skeptic

Randi entered the international spotlight in 1972 when he publicly challenged the claims of Uri Geller. Randi accused Geller of being nothing more than a charlatan and a fraud who used standard magic tricks to accomplish his allegedly paranormal feats, and he supported his claims in the book ''The Truth About Uri Geller''. Geller unsuccessfully sued Randi for $15 million in 1991. Geller's suit against the Committee for Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP) was thrown out in 1995, and he was ordered to pay $120,000 for filing a frivolous lawsuit.

Randi was a founding fellow and prominent member of CSICOP. During the period when Geller was filing numerous civil suits against him, CSICOP's leadership, wanting to avoid becoming a target of Geller's litigation, requested that Randi refrain from commenting on Geller. Randi refused and resigned. However, he still maintains a respectful relationship with the group and frequently writes articles for its magazine.

Randi has gone on to write several books criticizing beliefs and claims regarding the paranormal. He has also demonstrated flaws in studies suggesting the existence of paranormal phenomena; in his Project Alpha hoax, Randi revealed that he had been able to orchestrate a three-year-long compromise of a privately funded psychic research experiment. The hoax became a scandal and demonstrated the shortcomings of many paranormal research projects at the university level.

Randi has appeared on numerous TV shows, sometimes to directly debunk the claimed abilities of fellow guests. In a 1981 appearance on ''That's My Line'', Randi appeared opposite psychic James Hydrick, who claimed that he could move things with his mind and demonstrated this ability on live television by apparently turning a page in a telephone book without touching it. Randi, having determined that Hydrick was surreptitiously blowing on the book, arranged packaging peanuts (polystyrene foam shapes) on the table in front of the telephone book for the demonstration, preventing Hydrick from demonstrating his abilities, which would have been exposed when the blowing moved the packaging. Many years later, Hydrick admitted his fraud.

Randi was awarded a MacArthur Foundation Genius award in 1986. The money was used for Randi's comprehensive exposé of faith healers, including Peter Popoff, W.V. Grant and Ernest Angley. When Popoff was exposed, he was forced to declare bankruptcy within the year.

In 1988, Randi tested the gullibility of the media by perpetrating a fraud of his own. By teaming up with Australia's ''60 Minutes'' program and by releasing a fake press package, he built up publicity for a spirit channeler named Carlos who was actually artist Jose Alvarez, a friend of Randi's. Randi would tell him what to say through sophisticated radio equipment. The media and the public were taken in, as no reporter bothered to check Carlos's credentials and history, which were all fabricated. The hoax was exposed on ''60 Minutes''; Carlos and Randi explained how they pulled it off.

In the book ''The Faith Healers'', Randi explains his anger and relentlessness as arising out of compassion for the helpless victims of frauds. Randi has also been critical of João de Deus (John of God), a self-proclaimed psychic surgeon who has received international attention. Randi observed, referring to psychic surgery, "To any experienced conjurer, the methods by which these seeming miracles are produced are very obvious."

In 1982, Randi verified the abilities of Arthur Lintgen, a Philadelphia physician who is able to determine the classical music recorded on a vinyl LP solely by examining the groove on the record. However, Lintgen does not claim to have any paranormal ability, merely knowledge of the way that the groove forms patterns on particular recordings.

James Randi stated that Daniel Dunglas Home, who allegedly could play an accordion that was locked in a cage, without touching it, was caught cheating on a few occasions, but the episodes were never made public, and that the accordion in question was a one-octave mouth organ that Home concealed under his large moustache. James Randi writes that one-octave mouth organs were found in Home's belongings after his death. According to Randi 'around 1960' William Lindsay Gresham told Randi he had seen these mouth organs in the Home collection at the Society for Psychical Research. Eric Dingwall, who catalogued Home's collection on its arrival at the SPR does not record the presence of the mouth organs. According to Peter Lamont, the author of an extensive Home biography, "It is unlikely Dingwall would have missed these or did not make them public."

James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF)

In 1996, Randi established the James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF). Randi and his colleagues update JREF's blog, Swift. Topics have included the mathematics of the one-seventh area triangle. Randi also contributes a regular column, titled "'Twas Brillig," to The Skeptics Society's Skeptic Magazine. In his weekly commentary, Randi often gives examples of what he considers the nonsense that he deals with every day.

He has regularly featured on many podcasts that can be found online, including The Skeptics Society's official podcast Skepticality and the Center for Inquiry's official podcast Point of Inquiry. From September 2006 onwards, he has occasionally contributed to The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe podcast with a column titled "Randi Speaks." In addition, "The Amazing Show" is a podcast in which Randi shares various anecdotes in an interview format.

Views on religion

In his essay "Why I Deny Religion, How Silly and Fantastic It Is, and Why I'm a Dedicated and Vociferous Bright", Randi, who identifies himself as an atheist, has stated that many accounts in religious texts, including the virgin birth, the miracles of Jesus Christ, and the parting of the Red Sea by Moses, are not believable. For example, Randi refers to the Virgin Mary as being "impregnated by a ghost of some sort, and as a result produced a son who could walk on water, raise the dead, turn water into wine, and multiply loaves of bread and fishes" and questions how Adam and Eve "could have two sons, one of whom killed the other, and yet managed to populate the earth without committing incest." He writes that, compared to the Bible, "''The Wizard of Oz'' is more believable. And more fun." In ''An Encyclopedia of Claims, Frauds, and Hoaxes of the Occult and Supernatural'', he looks at a variety of spiritual practices skeptically. Of the meditation techniques of Guru Maharaj Ji (Prem Rawat) he writes: "Only the very naive were convinced that they had been let in on some sort of celestial secret."

The One Million Dollar Paranormal Challenge

The James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF) currently offers a prize of one million U.S. dollars to eligible applicants who can demonstrate a supernatural ability under agreed-upon scientific testing criteria. Similar to the paranormal challenges of John Nevil Maskelyne and Houdini, in 1964, Randi put up $1,000 of his own money payable to anyone who could provide objective proof of the paranormal. Since then, the prize money has grown to the current $1,000,000, and has formal published rules. No one has progressed past the preliminary test, which is set up with parameters agreed to by both Randi and the applicant. He refuses to accept any challengers who might suffer serious injury or death as a result of the testing.

On ''Larry King Live'', March 6, 2001, Larry King asked Sylvia Browne if she would take the challenge and she agreed. Then Randi appeared with Browne on ''Larry King Live'' on September 3, 2001, and she again accepted the challenge. However, she has refused to be tested and Randi keeps a clock on his website recording the number of weeks that have passed since Browne accepted the challenge without following through. During ''Larry King Live'' on June 5, 2001, Randi challenged Rosemary Altea to undergo testing for the million dollars. However, Altea would not even address the question. Instead Altea, in part, replied "I agree with what he says, that there are many, many people who claim to be spiritual mediums, they claim to talk to the dead. There are many people, we all know this. There are cheats and charlatans everywhere." Then on January 26, 2007, Altea and Randi again appeared on ''Larry King Live''. Once again, she refused to answer whether or not she would take the One Million Dollar Paranormal Challenge.

Starting on April 1, 2007, only those with an already existing media profile and the backing of a reputable academic were allowed to apply for the challenge. The resources freed up by not having to test obscure and possibly mentally ill claimants will then be used to more aggressively challenge notorious high-profile alleged psychics and mediums such as Sylvia Browne, Allison DuBois and John Edward with a campaign in the media.

JREF maintains a public log of past participants in the Million Dollar Challenge.

Legal disputes

Randi has been involved in a variety of legal disputes but claims that he has "never paid even one dollar or even one cent to anyone who ever sued me." However, he says, he has paid out large sums to personally defend himself in these suits.

Eldon Byrd

A Baltimore District Court found Randi guilty of defaming Byrd for calling him a "convicted child molester" because although Byrd had been found guilty of child pornography offences and admitted to molestation, the admission was part of a plea bargain so he was not actually convicted. No damages were awarded to Byrd.

Uri Geller

According to Randi, Geller tried to sue Randi a number of times, but never won, save for a ruling in a Japanese court that ordered Randi to pay Geller one third of one percent of what Geller had demanded, but this ruling was canceled, and the matter dropped when Geller decided to concentrate on another legal matter. Randi later stated that the phrase "shot himself in the head" was a metaphor that had been lost in translation. He had made a similar statement in English three years earlier in a Toronto newspaper: "The scientist shot himself after I showed him how the key bending trick was done." In 1991, Randi commented that Uri Geller's public performances were of the same quality as those found on the backs of cereal boxes. Geller sued both Randi and CSICOP. CSICOP argued that the organization was not responsible for Randi's statements. The court agreed that including CSICOP was frivolous and dropped them from the action, leaving Randi to face the action alone. Geller was ordered to pay substantial damages to CSICOP. Randi and Geller subsequently settled their dispute out of court, the details of which have been kept confidential. The settlement also included an agreement that Geller would not pursue Randi for the award in the Japanese case or other outstanding cases.

Other

Allison DuBois, on whose life the television series ''Medium'' was based, threatened Randi with legal action for using a photo of her from her website in his December 17, 2004, commentary without her permission. Randi removed the photo, and now uses a caricature of DuBois when mentioning her on his site, beginning with his December 23, 2005, commentary.

Late in 1996, Randi launched a libel suit against a Toronto-area psychic named Earl Gordon Curley. Curley had made multiple objectionable comments about Randi on Usenet. Despite prodding Randi via Usenet to sue (Curley's comments had implied that if Randi did not sue, then his allegations must be true), Curley seemed entirely surprised when Randi actually retained Toronto's largest law firm and initiated legal proceedings. The suit was eventually dropped in 1998 when Earl Curley died at the age of 51.

Sniffex, producer of a dowsing bomb detection device, unsuccessfully sued Randi and the JREF in 2007. Sniffex sued Randi for his comments regarding a government test in which the Sniffex device failed. The company was later investigated and charged with fraud.

Personal life

In 1987, Randi became a naturalized citizen of the United States. Randi has said that one reason he became an American citizen was an incident while on tour with Alice Cooper where the Royal Canadian Mounted Police searched the band's lockers during a performance. Nothing was found, yet the RCMP destroyed the room.

In February 2006, Randi underwent coronary artery bypass surgery. In early February 2006, he was declared to be in stable condition and "receiving excellent care" with his recovery proceeding well. The weekly commentary updates to his website were made by guests while he was hospitalized. Randi recovered after his surgery and was able to help organize and attend the 2007 Amazing Meeting in Las Vegas, Nevada (an annual convention of scientists, magicians, skeptics, atheists and freethinkers).

Randi was diagnosed with intestinal cancer in June 2009. He had a ping pong ball-sized tumor removed from his intestines during laparoscopic surgery. He announced this a week later at the July 2009 The Amazing Meeting as well as the fact that he was scheduled to begin chemotherapy in the following weeks. He also said at the conference: "One day, I'm gonna die. That's all there is to it. Hey, it's too bad, but I've got to make room. I'm using a lot of oxygen and such—I think it's good use of oxygen myself, but of course, I'm a little prejudiced on the matter." Randi also said that after he is gone he does not want his fans to bother with a museum of magic named after him or burying him in a fancy tomb. Instead, he said, "I want to be cremated, and I want my ashes blown in Uri Geller's eyes." Randi underwent his final chemotherapy session on December 31, 2009, as he explained in a January 12, 2010 video in which he related that his chemotherapy experience was not as unpleasant as he had imagined. In a video posted April 12, 2010, Randi stated that he has been given a clean bill of health.

In a March 21, 2010 blog entry, Randi came out as gay, a move he explained was inspired by seeing the 2008 biographical drama film ''Milk'', in which Sean Penn portrayed Harvey Milk, the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in California.

Awards and honors

In 1981, asteroid 3163 Randi was named after Randi, whose friend Carl Sagan influenced him to become an amateur astronomer. MacArthur Foundation Fellowship 1986 American Physical Society Joseph A. Burton Forum Award 1989

Richard Dawkins Award 2003

Philip J. Klass Award 2007 Independent Investigative Group IIG awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award, August 2007, previous recipients Carl Sagan and Harry Houdini.

Committee for Skeptical Inquiry In Praise of Reason Award, 2009

Elected a Committee for Skeptical Inquiry Fellow, 2010

World records

The following are Guinness records:

Randi was in a sealed casket for an hour and 44 minutes, which broke Harry Houdini's record of one hour and 31 minutes set on August 5, 1926. Randi was encased in a block of ice for 55 minutes.

Bibliography

''An Encyclopedia of Claims, Frauds, and Hoaxes of the Occult and Supernatural'', 1995, St. Martin's Press ISBN 0-312-15119-5 (Online Version)

''Conjuring'', 1992 St. Martin's Press ISBN 0-312-09771-9

''Flim-Flam! Psychics, ESP, Unicorns, and Other Delusions'', 1982, Prometheus Books, ISBN 0-87975-198-3

''Houdini, His Life and Art''. Putnam Pub Group (November 1976) ISBN 0-448-12552-8

''James Randi: Psychic Investigator'', 1991, ISBN 1-85283-144-8

''Test Your ESP Potential''. Dover Publications Inc. (December 31, 1982) ISBN 0-486-24269-2

''The Faith Healers'', 1987, Prometheus Books, ISBN 0-87975-369-2. (ISBN 0-87975-535-0 1989 edition) (Foreword by Carl Sagan)

''The Magic of Uri Geller'', 1982, ISBN 0-345-24796-5 (later renamed ''The Truth About Uri Geller'' ISBN 0-87975-199-1)

''The Magic World of the Amazing Randi''. Adams Media Corporation (September 1989) ISBN 1-55850-982-8

''The Mask of Nostradamus: The Prophecies of the World's Most Famous Seer'', 1990, Charles Scribner's Sons ISBN 0-684-19056-7 or ISBN 0-87975-830-9.

''Wrong!'' (Forthcoming) ''A Magician in the Laboratory''. (Forthcoming)

TV and film

Actor

''Good to See You Again, Alice Cooper'' (1974) as the Dentist/Executioner

''Ragtime'' (1981) (stunt coordinator: Houdini)

''Penn & Teller's'' Invisible Thread'' (1987) (TV)

''Penn & Teller Get Killed'' (1989) as the 3rd Rope Holder

''Beyond Desire'' (1994) as the Coroner

Himself

''Wonderama'' (1955) (TV) as The Amazing Randi

''I've Got a Secret'' (1965) (TV) as The Amazing Randi

''Happy Days'' – "The Magic Show" (1978) as the Amazing Randi

''Zembla'', 'De trucs van Char' (''The tricks Char uses''). (March 2008)

''ZDF German TV'' (2007)

''Wild Wild Web'' (1999)

''West 57th'' (1980s)

''Welt der Wunder – Kraft der Gedanken'' (January 2008)

''Today on NBC'' (1980s)

''The Don Lane Show'' (1980)

''That's My Line'' (1980) (Appeared with James Hydrick)

''The View'' ABC TV (1999)

''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' (32 appearances between 1973 and 1993)

''The Secret Cabaret'' (produced by Open Media for Channel 4 in the UK)

''The Power of Belief'' (October 6, 1998) (ABC News Special) (TV)

''People are Talking'' (1980s)

''The Patterson Show'' (1970s)

''The Art of Magic'' (1998) (TV)

''The Ultimate Psychic Challenge'' (Discovery Channel/Channel 4) (2003)

''Spotlight on James Randi'' (2002) (TV)

''Secrets of the Super Psychics'' (Channel 4/The Learning Channel), produced by Open Media, 1997/8

''Scams, Schemes, and Scoundrels'' (A&E; Special) (March 30, 1997)

''Raitre TV'' Italy (1991)

''Politically Incorrect'' with Bill Maher

''Penn & Teller: Bullshit!''

* End of the World (2003) TV Episode

* ESP (2003) TV Episode

* Signs from Heaven (2005) TV Episode

''Oprah Winfrey''

''NOVA'': Secrets of the Psychics (1993)

''Mitä ihmettä?'' (Finland) (2003) TV Series

''Midday Show'' (Australia) (1990s)

''Magic or Miracle'' (1983)

''Magic'' (2004) (mini) TV Series

''Larry King Live'' of CNN (June 5, 2001, September 3, 2001, and January 26, 2007)

''James Randi: Psychic Investigator'' (1991) (Open Media series for the ITV network)

''James Randi Budapesten'' – Hungarian documentary (free download for schools)

''Inside Edition'' – (1991, 2006, and 2007) TV

''Horizon'' – Homeopathy: The Test (2002) TV Episode

''Houdini Dead Men Talking'' (Biography Channel)

''Fornemmelse for snyd'' (2003) TV Series (also archive footage)

''Extraordinary People – The Million Dollar Mind Reader (September 2008).

''Exploring Psychic Powers Live'' (June 7, 1989) (Hosted by Bill Bixby)

''CBS This Morning'' (1990s)

''Anderson Cooper 360'', CNN (January 19, 2007 and January 30, 2007)

''A Question of Miracles'' (HBO) (1999)

''20/20'' ABC TV (May 11, 2007)

''Dilbert (TV series)'' parodied in "The Infomercial" (1999) TV Episode

Other media

James Randi can be heard speaking an introduction on Tommy Finkes song "Poet der Affen/Poet of the Apes", released on the album of the same name in 2010. The message was recorded by James Randi and sent to Tommy Finke via email.

See also

Pigasus Award

Project Alpha

Robert Todd Carroll's ''Skeptic's Dictionary''

Notes

External links

Official

James Randi Educational Foundation – Official website

James Randi Educational Foundation official YouTube channel

Video of short talk by Randi in 2007 at TED

Supportive

James Randi in the Skeptic's Dictionary

Project Alpha in the Skeptic's Dictionary

How Randi and fake psychic Carlos fooled millions

Media

James Randi interview (May 2009) from the podcast of MagicNewswire.com in which Mr. Randi discusses his career in magic, his feud with Uri Geller and more

James Randi interview (November 2007) from the BSAlert.com radio show where Mr. Randi discusses the TV show "Phenomenon," the current status of Uri Geller and his thoughts about whether society is becoming more or less superstitious.

"20 Major Aspects of Liars, Cheats, and Frauds" by James Randi"

The Power of Belief (Video clip) from ABC News

Randi's Internet Audio Show from the James Randi Educational Foundation

Skepticality Internet Radio

Transcripts (Sylvia Browne and Randi) (Sylvia Browne's manager and Randi) (Altea and James Randi) (Rosemary Altea and Randi) (Sylvia Browne and Randi)

Criticism

A Skeptical Look At James Randi ''Michael Prescott''

James Randi's response to criticism ''James Randi Educational Foundation''

Benveniste, Jacques, and Peter Jurgens. On the Role of Stage Magicians in Biological Research ''The Anomalist'' 1998

Thalbourne, Michael A, “Science versus showmanship: A history of the Randi hoax,” ''American Society for Psychical Research'' 89 (4) October 1995

Category:1928 births Category:Living people Category:American atheists Category:American magicians Category:American people of Canadian descent Category:American people of German descent Category:American skeptics Category:Atheism activists Category:Canadian atheists Category:Canadian emigrants to the United States Category:Canadian magicians Category:Canadian people of German descent Category:Canadian skeptics Category:People with cancer Category:Gay writers Category:LGBT writers from Canada Category:LGBT writers from the United States Category:MacArthur Fellows Category:Naturalized citizens of the United States Category:People from Toronto Category:Professional magicians Category:American humanists

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