name	Placebo
background	group_or_band
origin	London, England
genre	Alternative rock
years active	–present
label	PIAS (current, international)Vagrant (current, USA and Canada)EMI (1995-2007)Virgin (2004-2007)Hut (1996-2004)Caroline (1996)Deceptive (1995)
associated acts	Hotel Persona, Love Amongst Ruin
website
current members	Brian MolkoStefan Olsdal Steve Forrest
past members	Robert SchultzbergSteve Hewitt
additional members	Bill LloydAlex Lee }}

Placebo are a British alternative rock band from London, England, formed in 1994 by singer and guitarist Brian Molko and bass guitarist Stefan Olsdal. The band was joined by drummer Robert Schultzberg, who was later replaced by Steve Hewitt after conflicts with Molko. Hewitt left the band in October 2007 and was replaced by Steve Forrest in 2008. To date, they have released six studio albums, six EPs, and twenty-nine singles and have sold over ten million records worldwide.

Since their formation, the band have attracted popularity and notoriety in equal measures for their subversive musical content and androgynous image. Their style has progressed since their first album, which featured raw guitar riffs and a fairly minimalistic line-up, with following albums featuring a more diverse and polished sound, including experimentation with synthesizers and other less traditional forms of sound production.

History

Formation (1994-1996)

Brian Molko and Stefan Olsdal had both attended the American International School of Luxembourg, but didn't cross paths properly until 1994 in London, England. At the time, Olsdal was taking guitar lessons and was on his way home, when he met Molko at the South Kensington tube station. Molko, observing that Olsdal had a guitar strapped to his back, invited Olsdal to watch him perform at a local bar. On the strength of Molko's performance, Olsdal decided that they should start a band. The two formed Ashtray Heart, a lo-fi duo, playing mostly on toy instruments. They wrote four songs, but decided to try out as a serious band and started to scout for a drummer.

Originally, the two were unable to decide on a drummer. Molko had some experience playing with Steve Hewitt, making him the ideal choice. However, Hewitt had prior commitments to the London band Breed, and only had time to play on occasional demos with Molko and Olsdal. This led Robert Schultzberg to assume the position of drummer when the band signed its contract with Caroline Records. Schultzberg had known Olsdal from boarding school in Sigtuna, Sweden as well as from an earlier Swedish band, Elevating Addiction, which they had both been members of.

The name "Placebo", Olsdal remarked in an MTV interview, was chosen because of its Latin origins; “placebo” literally translates from Latin as “I will please". Frequently in interviews, Molko has stated that the name is a satirical reflection of the 1990s cliche of naming one's band after a drug, though Olsdal claims this was not the original motivation for naming the band "Placebo". When asked about naming a band, Molko said:

It’s a complex question to answer, really. As musicians you try to find a name for your band that represents you and you never really do, because, basically, names for bands lose their meaning after a while. They become a series of sounds that you associate with people in music. The most important thing for a name is that you can imagine forty-thousand people screaming it in unison.

Debut album, lineup change and glam connection (1996-1998)

Placebo's self titled debut album was released 16 July 1996 and was a major success, peaking at five on the UK Albums Charts at the height of the Britpop era. The album featured ten tracks (eleven including the hidden bonus track "Hong Kong Farewell"), their most popular being "Nancy Boy". In 1998, ''Q Magazine'' readers voted ''Placebo'' the 87th greatest album of all time. The band remastered and reissued the album on 18 September 2006 for its tenth anniversary.

Tension with Schultzberg began to rise. The band initially let him go in September 1995, but he was rehired to record the first seven inch single "Bruise Pristine". After an argument in August 1996, right before doing their first TV show, Molko decided that it would be best for the band if Schultzberg left. But Schultzberg suggested playing together until they finished the promotion of their first album, ''Placebo'', and the band accepted.

Eventually, Schultzberg did indeed leave the band in September 1996, on a United States tour. Before going on stage for their first show in New York state, Olsdal informed Schultzberg that he wasn't going on the tour in Germany that was following the US one. At the manager’s request, Schultzberg did two more shows with the band in Paris after the US tour, the last of which was a performance on “Nulle Part Aillleurs”. Molko has said that he was "tired of being the focus of Robert’s rages against the world." While Schultzberg was with the band, several early works were recorded, including their first 7" single "Bruise Pristine", the "Come Home" EP, the single version of "Nancy Boy" (with B-sides "Slackerbitch", "Miss Moneypenny", and the Smiths cover "Bigmouth Strikes Again") and their eponymous debut album. On the track "I Know", Schultzberg played didgeridoo as well as drums. His departure left many fans disappointed, because the band switched to a softer sound in the following albums. In the same year, however, they were able to convince Hewitt to return to Placebo as their full-time drummer. Molko remembers: “Even at the beginning, Robert and I couldn’t be in the same room with each other without wanting to be violent."

In early 1996, Placebo opened several concerts for David Bowie in Italy, France, and Switzerland as part of his Outside Tour after he had only heard one of their demos. Bowie also invited the trio to play at his 50th birthday at New York's Madison Square Garden in 1997. The party also included luminaries such as Billy Corgan of The Smashing Pumpkins, Robert Smith of The Cure, and Lou Reed.

The band's glam connections continued. In 1998, Placebo recorded a cover of T. Rex's "20th Century Boy" for the ''Velvet Goldmine'' soundtrack. The band also had minor roles in the film. Bowie made a special appearance on-stage with Placebo during a tour stop in New York. A version of the song "Without You I'm Nothing", which originally appeared on the album with the same name, featured a duet containing both Molko and Bowie. Placebo played "20th Century Boy" live with David Bowie at the BRIT Awards show in 1999.

''Without You I'm Nothing'' and ''Black Market Music'' (1998-2003)

In 1998, Placebo switched to the major label Virgin Records, and issued their album ''Without You I'm Nothing'' in November. It was another large seller in the UK and initially appeared to be the group's breakthrough in the US market, where MTV embraced the album's lead single "Pure Morning", but subsequent singles and videos failed to match the success of its predecessor.

The first two singles from ''Without You I'm Nothing'', "You Don't Care About Us" and "Pure Morning", were the peak of their British success, both charting in the top ten. Since ''Without You I'm Nothing'', the band have received less positive coverage from the British music press who, on occasion, have mocked the perceived pretension of frontman Molko. However, the band has retained a huge popular and critical following in continental Europe. By way of their English-accented fluent French front-man, France has become their first target market in Europe, which has led to them gaining a huge popularity there, even in excess of their British fan base.

The band's third album, ''Black Market Music'', released in October 2000, further experimented with genres outside of their tense rock sound. A re-sequenced version released in the United States featured a slightly different track listing, adding the aforementioned Bowie version of "Without You I'm Nothing" and the band's cover of Depeche Mode's "I Feel You". The recording spawned additional UK hits such as "Taste in Men" and "Slave to the Wage".

Placebo encountered resistance from the British music industry upon release of the single "Special K" due to its reference of a ketamine high as a simile for love. The song was released in Australia as a single before eventually being made available in the UK as an EP featuring the B-sides and remixes that would have filled out a conventional two-disc single release. At the time the band claimed this was due to dissatisfaction with the two-disc single format, a claim somewhat undermined by their subsequent single releases all being made available in two-CD formats accompanied by a 7" vinyl.

Their style altered little from ''Placebo'' to ''Black Market Music'', based around fairly straightforward guitar playing, often influenced by the style of 1970s British and American rock, and Molko's high-pitched vocals. The first single for the album, "Taste in Men", was one of their most popular, with a trancy synthesiser in the background and wailing distorted guitars. ''Black Market Music'' did not receive the same level of long term recognition and media hype as ''Without You I'm Nothing'' did, but its peak sales outperformed those of its predecessor in both the UK and France.

''Sleeping With Ghosts'' and ''Once More with Feeling: Singles 1996–2004'' (2003-2006)

In spring 2003, Placebo released their fourth album, ''Sleeping with Ghosts''. The album went to number 11 in the UK and sold 1.4 million copies worldwide. Australian tour dates with Elbow and UK shows with Har Mar Superstar followed in 2004. ''Sleeping with Ghosts'' was more adventurous than ''Black Market Music'', because it experimented with dance tunes, electronic music and a less rocky—more polished—guitar sound, though it kept the traditional sound for several songs, including the first single "The Bitter End".

In autumn of 2004, Placebo's singles collection, ''Once More with Feeling: Singles 1996–2004'' was released (on both CD and as a DVD featuring the band's videos). The nineteen song compilation included their biggest UK hits and two new tracks, "I Do" and the single "Twenty Years".

That same year, they played a one-night-only gig at Wembley Arena in which Robert Smith of The Cure made a guest appearance on two tracks, "Without You I'm Nothing" and a cover of The Cure's "Boys Don't Cry". This performance was to be their last UK gig until 2006. After the Wembley gig, Placebo went on a short ''Once More With Feeling'' tour in South America. On 2 July 2005, the group performed "Twenty Years" and "The Bitter End" at the Live 8 concert, at the Palais de Versailles in France (see Live 8 concert, Paris). Their 2006 tour of the UK sold out in one weekend.

There was a bit of controversy while the band was on their promotional South American Tour. As revealed on the ''Once More With Feeling'' DVD extras, whilst on tour in South America, Placebo and Limp Bizkit played on the same evening. Trouble occurred when Placebo's manager would not let Fred Durst on stage as he did not recognise him and thought he was simply a fan trying to get an autograph. After eventually getting on stage, Durst began the chant "Placebo sucks". Later, Placebo's roadie Adam Okrasinski was charged with aggravated battery when he allegedly punched a member of Durst's entourage in an altercation that took place after the show between members of both band's camps. Charges were later dropped in lieu of community service.

''Meds'' and lineup change (2006-2009)

In September 2005, the band finished the recording phase of ''Meds'' which was released 13 March (delayed in the US until 4 April). The first single on the new album to be released in the UK was "Because I Want You". "Song to Say Goodbye" was the first international single (released simultaneously with "Because I Want You"). The album was remastered from October to January. Two songs, recorded on the album, feature duets with American singers: "Meds" with Alison Mosshart of The Kills and "Broken Promise" with Michael Stipe of R.E.M.. Frenchman Dimitri Tikovoi (Goldfrapp, the Cranes) who mixed select songs on ''Once More with Feeling'', produced Placebo's fifth effort. The band has stated that the album is an attempt to capture the feel of a first album, though the album has not forgotten many of the techniques used in their previous ones.

''Meds'' was leaked to the internet on 17 January 2006. The official release date of ''Meds'' was 13 March 2006, making the leak almost two months early. It was projected by the band's record label to potentially cause a very dangerous loss of profit upon the album's release. Nevertheless in most countries the album debuted relatively well, at number 4 in Australia and number 7 in the UK. The second single from ''Meds'' was "Infra-Red". It was released on 19 June 2006 in the UK.

In 2006, Placebo switched labels in the US to Astralwerks and re-released several revisions of their earlier works. In October their debut album ''Placebo'' was digitally remastered and re-released with the sub-title "10th Anniversary Collectors Edition"; the box set also included a DVD containing music videos, concerts, and TV performances. Three additional songs: "UNEEDMEMORETHANINEEDU", "Lazarus", and "Running Up that Hill" were added to the US version of ''Meds'' (and the song "In the Cold Light of Morning" was taken off of the album).

Placebo joined Linkin Park and various other acts for 2007's Projekt: Revolution tour. The tour is an annual event and, in 2007, Linkin Park decided to make the tour green by donating $1 of every ticket to American Forests through their charity Music for Relief.

In 2007, after the Projekt: Revolution tour had been scheduled, Virgin released the ''Extended Play '07'' EP as a simple introduction for new fans to the band's past decade of music. The compilation featured eight songs, namely: "Nancy Boy", "Every You Every Me", "Taste in Men", "The Bitter End", "Meds", "Pure Morning", "Infra-Red", and the cover Kate Bush's "Running Up that Hill".

On 1 October 2007, Steven Hewitt left Placebo. Brian Molko commented "Being in a band is very much like being in a marriage, and in couples—in this case a triple—people can grow apart over the years. To say that you don't love your partner anymore is inaccurate, considering all that you've been through and achieved together. There simply comes a point when you realise that you want different things from your relationship and that you can no longer live under the same roof, so to speak." In mid-2008, the band acquired new drummer Steve Forrest. Hewitt went on to form his own band, Love Amongst Ruin, switching to guitar and singing lead vocals.

Molko gave two performances in 2008. The first was in late October, when he performed on the Serge Gainsbourg tribute show that was recorded and posted on the Internet; this was the only video of any Placebo member since Projekt Revolution ended in 2007. The second was with the rest of the band, when they gave one live performance in 2008, as part of an MTV Europe Foundation event, a campaign against human trafficking held in Angkor Wat in December 2008.

Placebo left EMI in 2008, but the label released the complete Placebo recordings on 8 June 2009, including all the studio albums, DVDs, and B-sides. including all the studio albums, DVDs, and B-sides. It holds ten discs.

''Battle for the Sun'' (2009-present)

In January 2009, Placebo confirmed that they had finished working on the follow-up to 2006's ''Meds'' and planned to release it in June 2009. The full track list was announced on the band's website in March 2009. The album, ''Battle for the Sun'', is the first to feature new drummer Steve Forrest. It was released on 8 June 2009, through the PIAS Entertainment Group. The album was recorded in Toronto, Canada, with producer David Bottrill.

The album's title track "Battle for the Sun" debuted on Zane Lowe's BBC Radio 1 show on 17 March 2009. Subsequently, it became available for free download on the band's official website. On the same day, they played a secret concert in London, performing some of the material from the album, including the tracks "Ashtray Heart", "Julien", "Kitty Litter", "Speak in Tongues", and "Devil in the Details". In their review for the gig, ''Rock Sound'' wrote that the new album is a heavier-sounding record compared to its predecessor ''Meds'', and recalls the atmosphere of ''Without You I’m Nothing''. There are also string arrangements present on the new tracks.

The first single, "For What It's Worth", made its radio debut on 20 April 2009. It became available for download on iTunes and eMusic from 12:00am GMT on 21 April 2009, and the video for the single premiered on Myspace at the same time. It was physically released on 1 June 2009.

In May 2009, Placebo went on to perform three concerts in the United Kingdom, at relatively intimate venues in Sheffield, Bournemouth, and London, before departing to the 2009 summer festival season in Europe and Asia. Unveiling the new album with a full track-by-track rundown, Molko told the Scottish News of the World's ''A-Listed'' magazine: "It feels like a new beginning...we're reinvigorated, refreshed and ready to take on the world."

On 13 May 2009, the band's official website, "Placeboworld", was launched in a revamped version with more interactive features and an online shop. From 29 to 31 May 2009, Placebo streamed the new album on their official website. Fans signed up for the official mailing list received a unique code for logging in to 5 listenings of the album in its entirety.

In July 2009, "Every You Every Me" was voted number 83 in Triple J Hottest 100 of All Time countdown, voted by the Australian public.

On 5 November 2009, Placebo won the MTV Europe Music Awards for Best Alternative.

In December 2009, Placebo released ''iTunes Live: London Festival '09'', a live album recorded at the iTunes Festival at The Roundhouse, Camden, on 14 July 2009. The album contains 19 live songs and a digital booklet. It is only currently available through the iTunes Store.

Following the summer festival season (and a cancellation of the American tour), Placebo went on a series of arena-sized concerts across Europe, in October – December 2009. That leg of the tour culminated in a concert in London's O2 Arena which was Placebo's largest gig ever in the United Kingdom. In February – April 2010, they toured Southeast Asia, Australia, and South America.

The final leg of the tour saw Placebo play Israel and Lebanon, before returning to Europe for a series of festivals and featured concerts. All Placebo concerts have not been hugely successful, though; in Thessaloniki, Greece, in September 2010 the band performed a mere 50 minutes show, sparking boos from a crowd of thousands. The last shows of the tour took place in London's Brixton Academy on 27–28 September 2010, coinciding with the release of the last album's Redux Edition.

In August 2011, Placebo went on a mini-tour of two shows in Berlin and Stuttgart.

The band's second live DVD, ''We Come In Pieces'', was recorded at Brixton Academy and is to be released on 31 October 2011.

Molko and Olsdal both stated on various occasions that they are working on material for the next studio album.

Style and songwriting

Influences

Due to their penchant for androgynous attire/makeup and raw guitar riffs, Placebo have been described by some as a glam version of Nirvana. The multi-national band were influenced by the likes of David Bowie, Sex Pistols, Sonic Youth, Pixies, Depeche Mode, The Cure, and Nirvana.

Drugs

Molko has been open about his use of recreational drugs; in a 1997 interview with ''New York Doll'', he admitted at one point that heroin was "probably the only drug on this planet I haven’t tried." However, he later admitted to experimenting with heroin as well. The band holds that the drug references within their music reflect the nature of current times, and the removal of such references would deteriorate the meaningfulness of their work.

Members

Current members

Brian Molko – lead vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards (since 1994)

Stefan Olsdal – bass, guitars, keyboards, backing vocals (since 1994)

Steve Forrest – drums, percussion, backing vocals (since 2008)

Additional live members

Bill Lloyd – bass, keyboards, synthesizers, piano (since 1998)

Fiona Brice – violin, keyboards, theremin, percussion, backing vocals (since 2008)

Nick Gavrilovic – guitar, keyboards (since 2009)

Former members

Steve Hewitt – drums, percussion (1994, 1996–2007)

Robert Schultzberg – drums, percussion, didgeridoo (1994–1996)

Xavior Roide – keyboards, synthesizers, backing vocals (2003–2005) (touring member)

Alex Lee – guitar, keyboards, backing vocals (2006–2007) (touring member)

Discography

''Placebo'' (1996)

''Without You I'm Nothing'' (1998)

''Black Market Music'' (2000)

''Sleeping with Ghosts'' (2003)

''Meds'' (2006)

''Battle for the Sun'' (2009)

Notes

External links

Category:Astralwerks artists Category:Musical groups established in 1994 Category:Musical groups from London Category:Musical trios Category:LGBT-themed musical groups Category:English alternative rock groups Category:PIAS Recordings artists Category:Virgin Records artists Category:Kerrang! Awards winners

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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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