Not many people know that Banachek had a troubled childhood.
Before becoming the great Banachek we know today, our favorite skeptic was born Steven Shaw in 1960 in England before emigrating to South Africa.
At nine years old, his parents abandoned him and his two brothers, aged one and three. Our young Steven had no choice but to raise his brothers alone until he was 16.
He found it extremely important to instill the value of fairness and recognizing right from wrong, a value which you’d notice he still upholds today.
As a teenager, he was inspired to practice magic after reading magician and skeptic James Randi’s “The Truth About Uri Geller.”
As his fascination with magic and his frustration with psychic frauds grew, he wrote a letter to Randi. He volunteered to demonstrate the fallibility of parapsychology by fooling scientists into believing that his mentalism tricks were due to genuine psychic powers.
From there, he changed his stage performer name to Banachek, inspired by the American detective TV Show “Banacek.”
Project Alpha
Banachek eventually collaborated with another teenager, Michael Edwards, on Randi’s Project Alpha at the McDonnell Laboratory for Psychical Research of the University of Washington.
Amazingly, the pair demonstrated such believable mentalist tricks in a span of four years that the researchers couldn’t believe they were deceived!
It’s funny when you think about it. A pair of teenagers tricking a whole team of well-funded scientists. After exposing the lack of scientific control and objectivity in parapsychology, the laboratory was eventually closed for good.
Banachek’s Influence and Appearances
Aside from touring all over the globe to perform and give lectures on mentalism, Bancheck is an in-demand consultant for other leading mind readers and entertainers, including David Blaine and Penn & Teller. He was also the lead magical adviser for Criss Angel’s hit TV show “Mindfreak” and “BeLIEve.”
What’s more, he’s a producer and appeared in several TV shows as himself, including:
- Unscrewed with Martin Sargent.
- An Honest Liar
- The Alpha Project Show
Thanks to his passion for skepticism and debunking psychic powers, he penned several literary works and was a featured performer in major motion pictures:
- Dunninger’s Brain Busters (2001)
- Psychophysiological Thought Reading, or Muscle Reading and the Ideomotor Response Revealed. (2002)
- Banachek’s Psi Series (2004)
- Psychological Subtleties 2 (2007)
- Houdini & Doyle’s World of Wonders (2016)
Banachek’s Pseudoscience and Debunking Efforts
In 2017, Banchek launched his tour Bancahek: Telepathy.
He notes his non-confrontational method of educating people on pseudoscience, which he demonstrates on his Telepathy tour.
He’d first come out as a psychic to the audience to draw an emotional reaction. In the second half, he’d surprise his audience by telling them that everything he did was fake!
Banachek is vocal about his disapproval of faith healers and mediums making money off of people suffering from disease, disabilities, or the loss of loved ones.
Banachek says that the purpose of his show is to let his audience know how easy it is to be fooled and that they shouldn’t believe everything blindly. While they don’t necessarily have to change their views, some people will take advantage of their beliefs.
Whoa, talk about going above and beyond the ethics of mentalism!
To add to all that, Banachek was the James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF) “One Million Dollar Paranormal Challenge” director for 15 years. Today he is the president of JREF.
Banachek’s Awards and Recognitions
Because of his game-changing work, Banachek received numerous recognitions from psychic associations and organizations:
- 1997: Psychic Entertainers Association Dave Lederman Memorial Award (for Creativity in Mentalism),
- 2006: Psychic Entertainers Association Dan Blackwood Memorial Award (for Outstanding Contribution to the Art of Mentalism),
- 2007: Psychic Entertainers Association Dunninger Memorial Award (for Distinguished Professionalism in the Performance of Mentalism)
- 2010: Honorary Lifetime Membership at PSYCRETS (British Society of Mystery Entertainers) Tabula Mentis VII
- Elected as a fellow of Committee for Skeptical Inquiry
Banachek’s Mind-Boggling Tricks and Performances
Banachek has come up with hundreds of mentalist tricks. Just to get an idea of his mind-blowing, mind-reading performance, watch him impress the hosts on this local news program:
Not only that but Banachek is also known for performing death-defying mentalist tricks, including being buried alive and Russian roulette.
Banachek Buried Alive
Banachek was one of the first mentalists to complete the buried alive trick. He was chained and locked in a glass coffin buried 9 feet underground.
Banachek has since repeated the feat twice.
It’s a trick even Houdini almost died attempting.
Russian Roulette with Knives
Here’s a video that’ll show you just how much Banchek perfected his craft.
He performs a deadly knife trick that involves five participants.
First, he asks an assistant to seal five flip knives in identical envelopes; three of those envelopes are open “dangerous” knives, and two are closed “safe” knives.
The game’s purpose is to successfully manipulate the five participants to choose the knife Banachek wants them to since he’ll be asking them to stab him by the end of the game!
He calls each participant to the table, showing us how he’s perfected the power of suggestion, reading body language, entertainment, and heightened observation.
He uses a different method each time, subtly turning their bodies, looking pointedly at a knife, and creating distractions. The amazing thing is that he explains each method right after having a participant choose a knife.
By the end of this video, you’ll be amazed at the sheer confidence of Banachek in his mentalist capabilities.
Wrapping Up
What sets Banachek apart from other mentalists is his honesty with his audience. His passion for building up the art of theatrical mind reading while applying critical thinking sets the stage for the most genuine form of mentalism.
So whether you’re a fan of his work or want to be inspired, I hope Banachek’s mentalism story and tricks taught you something noteworthy, whether it’s his mentalism tricks, passion to get rid of fraud, or just his determination.