[jazz music]
♪ ♪
- From the Penn
at the Rio Hotel in Las Vegas,
here's our host,
♪ ♪
- Welcome to "Fool Us."
The Emmys, Oscars and Grammys
have nothing on
They practically give
The academy behind this award
and there's no guarantee
that anyone's gonna
Here to possibly present this
[cheers and applause]
♪ ♪
- Not only do winners
they also get to perform
Las Vegas
Let's meet our first
- Hi, I'm Simon Coronel,
and I'm an illusionist
My apartment is kind of
that I also happen to live in.
Its primary function
secondary function,
Good for business,
I hold a kind of unique spot
When it came time
I interpreted Penn's codes
- They know how you did--
So I walked away empty-handed.
A couple of years later,
I get an unexpected call
- So these are
- Yep. These are them.
Turns out Penn and Teller
I had fooled them.
- We were wrong. You fooled us.
- So they gave me a trophy!
You've gotta respect that.
Two magic masters
So let's hope I can fool them
but if I can't,
you know I'm available to come
[cheers and applause]
- Vying for a second "Fool Us"
welcome back, Simon Coronel.
[cheers and applause]
- I want to show you a trick
by nearly
In fact, so many tens
have performed this trick
that there's literally
of hundreds of different
to just this one trick,
and it's a simple trick.
It doesn't use much,
no distractions,
just me, my hands and a bill,
and if you look at this image,
You can see the front of it.
and as I start to fold it up,
so that you can still see
but small enough that I can do
you can also see my empty hands
but if you watch the bill,
[audience exclaiming]
into what looks a heck
[cheers and applause]
But when I say
I mean that literally, right?
knows I didn't
It's an illusion.
It's done through craft
not supernatural abilities,
but because it is an illusion,
like every other version
eventually the illusion
which sucks financially.
But before it fades away,
if what push that craft
we can temporarily
into something
[cheers and applause]
- And I don't want to insult
by pretending I somehow
It's a series of switches,
particularly
switches of exactly what,
and from exactly
And some people might say
that that somehow diminishes
expressing that it's not magic,
that's what makes it amazing,
these illusions
That points to a much
that a lot of the time
the only thing
[cheers and applause]
- Simon Coronel. Whoo!
I mean, I just want to give you
- I mean, I'll take it.
if I gave you a hundred,
- I mean, there's only one way
- So how long have you been
- Since about 2000, 2001,
and I've kept working on it
and refining it
and it's still changing
- That's so incredible.
- Does it change how you do it
- Oh, actually, yeah.
- Because the texture
- Absolutely, and it's
the handling totally changes
are bigger or taller or shorter
or some of them
- Yes. Mm-hmm.
- Can you do this in Australia?
- I can, but it's much harder.
So writers
- Yeah.
magician block?
You've got an idea for a trick.
"All right.
It's gonna be great."
- You've got a method,
and you test it out,
and you can work on something
and just hit this block of,
It's going to be so great
and I can't freaking
And any magician who's creative
in that stage always.
Every now and then one of them
and it's just glorious.
Let's see if you fooled
- Let's find out.
- Simon, we have to be
because last time
in the strangest way
You came out and did a trick
and it was, like, a year later
we found out the poker chips
So therefore we had been
it took us a year to realize
So we had to call you back
and do a public apology
that said that you had won
so we're going to start right
than we start
Anybody else doing that routine
there's a bill
There's some sort of gimmick
It's beautiful craftsmanship.
We'd go that way,
you're not using
because we don't want to be
by you fooling us so bad
we don't even know
so we're protecting ourselves.
That's what we're doing
Now, let's get to this trick.
Your patter is beautiful.
You don't do anything
to obscure the moves.
You lay it out there
and then your patter says
We know the maneuvers
You use words like switch.
You just lay them out there
and then just ask us,
did we know when
That was the simple question
that is not gimmicked.
So if you ask us
we'll give you a simple answer.
and you fooled us,
[cheers and applause]
Yay!
Here is your trophy
- We will not be embarrassed.
- Simon Coronel!
Congratulations.
Simon Coronel just fooled Penn
Will anyone else
Sick around and find out.
[cheers and applause]
- Welcome back to "Fool Us,"
for all things mystifying
like this next performer.
[cheers and applause]
- And now magic spoken in
by none other
[cheers and applause]
- Hi, everyone.
So this year has been a bit
for all of us,
I challenged myself
and now, thanks
Eleanor,
I'm an expert
Oh, yeah,
the "Can You Find" book
Let me show you how it works.
So basically,
They look at the main item
and they have to point
and this is the same
It's not exactly
Now, I played this game
so much I know this book
For example,
each one has
Below that, nine other images,
The other eight are different
It's probably the most
so of course when my little
I kept it.
I made it into
So basically,
Two of the biggest names
for 1-year-olds.
[laughter]
So I know you guys like
so I'm gonna break one, too,
you're going to need
So the first rule, never
So I've sent you the props.
You should have the books
Okay. Penn, we're going to
- Okay.
would you turn to any page.
Look at the main item on top,
call out left to right,
top to bottom
Now, at some point,
obviously you're going
When you do, make sure
because if you sort of go up,
So when you're ready,
- A dog, a teddy,
Moon,
tree, tractor,
- Okay.
- Tractor.
- And tractor was what I went
Fantastic.
never give them a clue
So I'm going to break
I'm going to give you a clue
So maybe you're thinking I'm so
I know exactly
when he says the main item.
So this time
Alyson, get ready with a page.
- Okay.
- Maybe you think I can see
So help you out,
Also my daughter's.
Okay.
the other thing that people
is maybe the order
gives me a clue
So call them out
the nine images below,
and when you're ready,
- Okay. Telephone, chair,
tractor, butterfly,
- Okay.
just so I can see
and I'm going to go--
Now, to explain
basically what I have to do
is I have to mentally picture
sort of in my mind and play,
ticking off the images
until I'm left with one image,
So what image did you go for?
- Butterfly.
- Butterfly is what
[cheers and applause]
- Excellent. So rule breaking
the last one: never do a trick
Well, I've already done it
This time I would use you,
So I'm not gonna use
Now, Teller, if you would,
♪ ♪
Okay, so you don't get to be
in Las Vegas on the Strip
without speaking, without being
so what I want you to do is
Now, to make it easier for you,
you're only going to have
Okay. Obviously one of them
The other three can be any of
When you're ready, go for it.
[laughter]
Okay, yeah.
Okay.
Oh, okay.
Teller, if you would,
what it is you went for?
The dog. So the question is,
[cheers and applause]
Thank you very much.
That was fantastic.
with a kid's book,
- Exactly. I mean, it is
and my little girl
- Yeah. You've said
that you don't care much
- I'm just as happy
the wonder as much as if I am.
I really am.
It's all about how the
feel at the end of it.
It's not about
Creating that moment
that's what's important to me.
I have actually had one of my
presented by another magician.
- Okay, John. Well, let's see
has earned you
- We can only hope.
- John. It's a good trick.
Really nice style.
Really good all
Really entertaining.
You made Teller do stupid mime,
I enjoyed that very much.
This is not your child's book,
There's no author on it.
You made this book.
Let me tell you something else.
We know it's a code,
but everybody
Seems like we should
Now, this would take us, like,
two weeks to learn this code,
To perform this,
What do you mean?
- How long does it take you
- About 30 seconds
- [laughs]
[laughter]
- Well, 30 seconds is time
and in 30 seconds,
I can tell you
and I have 30 seconds
- Whoo! We have a fooler!
- 30 seconds?
- Yay!
- [laughs] Fantastic.
My little girl
- Great book.
[cheers and applause]
- Penn and Teller have been
and they might
We still have more magicians
[cheers and applause]
♪ ♪
[cheers and applause]
- Welcome back.
you missed Penn and Teller
Don't worry. You might see
[cheers and applause]
- I'm in the mood for Italian.
Luckily,
[cheers and applause]
[mysterious music]
♪ ♪
- Oh!
♪ ♪
[cheers and applause]
♪ ♪
[cheers and applause]
♪ ♪
- Alberto Giorgi!
[cheers and applause]
Hello.
- Is your goal in your
to transport the audience
- Yes. I love to bring
are watching a magician
and to feel the same emotion
who saw the magic
- Oh, it was so beautiful.
All right, Alberto.
Let's see if Penn and Teller
- Well, Alberto, you know,
try that mad
and they go part of the way.
You've really gone all the way.
The tone of that, the texture
and, you know,
you don't have a magical cause
but that you really had
to another and with lights
and showing
was really a kind of
that nobody seems
and you can see
it really pays off.
I mean, it's heavily
but really had
and we loved the ambidextrous
That was something
and so nice and so convincing,
and just loved
We feel like other people have
with that style and illusions,
and they're pikers
You really did it full out
but we don't think
- Yes. Thank you anyway,
and thank you for what you are
and I'm very happy
- We're very happy to have you.
- Just wonderful.
- Your Victorian magic
Thank you, Alberto Giorgi.
[cheers and applause]
- We've got to give Penn
They'll have to figure out
and perform a trick
[cheers and applause]
♪ ♪
[cheers and applause]
Welcome back. You're in luck.
I've found the perfect magic
- Hi, I'm Makoto Halverson,
When I was younger, I watched
with my grandparents.
I loved Penn and Teller's
and I saved up
to buy their magic books.
I learned the art
I'm fascinated
use language and psychology
exploits the way people see
You can make them believe
that was never there.
My grandparents are still
and encouraged me to get
I'm out there working
There's no better way
This is my first time
and it's
Hopefully my street smarts
will be enough to outsmart
[cheers and applause]
- Ladies and gentleman, give
[cheers and applause]
- Thank you.
Have you ever walked down
thought you recognized
but it turned out
I have. It can be embarrassing.
I've hugged
- Aw.
[laughter]
- I learned on the Internet
for this phenomenon
They're called dopplestrangers.
It's like a doppleganger,
Instead of being
it just kind of
Basically what happens is your
like the person's hair
and it fills in the gaps
creating a very
We can actually recreate
using a pack of cards.
Alyson, in a moment
a playing card from the pack,
I'd like to clarify something
I didn't meet you backstage
and ask you name
to help out
- No.
- I asked the wrong person.
Why does this keep happening?
It's okay.
Would you please name a card
- Three of clubs.
Do you want to
That is Penn and Teller's card
- Yes.
- Okay. The three of clubs.
There it is,
Now, just like the person
when you think
we're going to isolate
from the other cards
by placing it inside--
no, actually before I put it
I should show you guys the
No slits, no extra compartments
Now, we're going to isolate
from the pack
but in our minds.
would you please touch any card
That one there.
- Oh.
the three of clubs, naturally.
Just missing the pip
It's pretty much the same card,
in a glass elevator
perhaps as it was ascending
you might think it looked like
[cheers and applause]
- That was a lot of fun.
Let's see if we can
It's always better
so I've been told.
Watch.
another for us from the pack,
any one you like?
- Okay.
- Yes.
Now, the 10 of hearts
is quite a bit different
but it does have
so maybe if it was dark
and you pass them by
when they turn the corner
that the 10 of hearts
and that's what
We can't do it
Would you touch
- That.
- Yes.
Well, the 10 of clubs
the 10
and it's wearing the same suit
so if you saw the 10 of clubs
perhaps at an airport you might
just like the three of clubs.
which is impossible.
- So we've had three cards
and they all looked like the
but of that's impossible
was in the pocket
so these three cards could not
and in fact, they never were.
[cheers and applause]
- Ah!
Makoto Halverson!
[cheers and applause]
- That was very impressive.
- Thank you, Alyson.
What's your favorite
- I really love Harvard Square.
I used to street perform
It's right
and because street performing
for 20, 30 years,
watch, have fun
When I was a kid, I'd visit my
and see people with huge 200,
and now those people
and I think it's really fun.
- And so is hard to move
- It's very different actually
no one show matters
so if I mess up then
I could just do another show,
you know, you've got
- Well, let's see if the boys
- Oh, absolutely.
- Boys.
Really, really nice.
It's a version,
it's a takeoff of everywhere
which is a wonderful
and the choices that you had
You really were making
You were getting where you had
which takes a great deal
without setups,
You're just totally there,
the theme was really nice about
You know, sometimes--
but sometimes people
"Hey, are you Teller?"
they'll say to me
and I've even heard that Teller
even though
but he wears lifts
He gets him up really tall.
I guess we could
but it was a wonderful routine,
really nice card handling
and I think I probably slipped
that gave you some information
- Does that code
Do they know
- I didn't use a fully
but I don't know what Mike's
- Fair enough.
we give you completely
and once again for people
is listening
He's heard us talk
So we'll go to Mike Close,
whether he believes that
Let's see what Close says.
- Okay. He's talking to me now.
I'm sorry, Makoto, you did not
- Well, that's to be expected.
They're my heroes.
- Thanks, guys.
[cheers and applause]
- Has it been too long
Penn and Teller perform?
Don't worry.
will take the stage
Don't miss it.
[cheers and applause]
♪ ♪
[cheers and applause]
- Welcome back.
Penn and Teller rarely dabble
yet here they are
and they're looking
Hmm. Seems suspicious.
Tell us what gives,
- Well, you know,
for being skeptics.
We're so skeptical
but there are two things
tarot cards
They've been tested by science
and proven accurate
We wanted to see how much truth
we could personally squeeze
out of these two
We've made a special
As you see, there's the fool
We've replaced that
There's a "Fool Us" trophy card
we're going to put
and we have a bunch of people
We have Jonio.
that you had pulling stuff
- Mm-hmm.
And you also had Dan Sperry.
You loved Dan Sperry
and the pulling blood
- Yeah.
oh, Riccardo Berdini.
- Oh.
Yeah, we've got
We've got Magical Katrina
We've got Piff.
and we've got Ryan Stock
seeing suck milk up his nose.
None of these people fooled us,
so we've got the "Fool Us"
and we have nine people here
Now, we know, Alyson,
you've always wanted
and you've kind of shared
with other magicians
but you never got one of your
We're going to play
We'll give you a chance
"Fool Us" trophy of your own.
It's not going to be easy,
in 10 chance of hitting
If you hit it,
One in 10 is around
everyone comes on the show
You saw us put down
If you were paying attention,
just remember where it is
All you've got to do
and point to the trophy card
Now, we're going to
- Okay.
- So the first one
Just to get a feel for it,
- All right.
put the fortune cookie
Now you can move it
Where would you like it to go?
- Right there. Go ahead and
Beautiful.
Now, you've got two more for--
Now, this will be
This is the one. You can win
Where do you want it to go?
- I'm going to go right there.
- Yeah.
- I'm going to put it
and if you get the "Fool Us"
Let's see.
Turn it over here,
You got Piff
You did not win the trophy,
but remember at the beginning
there were two things that have
One is the tarot cards.
The other is
Well, we were lying.
They aren't
and we don't believe in them.
We know they're bull[bleep].
Tarot cards and fortune cookies
but Penn and Teller can.
Inside this fortune cookie
I'll crack it open, and inside
You picked Piff
So the fortune cookie
but you had a one in 10 chance,
because we really wanted you to
So we said you could pick
The other nine cards,
well, they aren't people
They are all "Fool Us"
- Oh, man.
totally in your favor.
Don't know how you missed it.
You had nine in 10 chance
and you still picked
but you know something, Alyson?
It's our show,
to get a "Fool Us" trophy
then Alyson Hannigan
Bring it down. Bring it down.
Bring it down.
There you go, Alyson.
- What? What? For real?
Here is your "Fool Us" trophy.
- And I still have no idea
I have no idea
- I'm not going to let go
It's been another impossibly
but we'll try to outdo
Until then,
I'm not going to let go.
- I'm not.
[indistinct chatter]