Ben Seidman
{{Infobox person
| name=Ben Seidman
| image=Ben Seidman magician.jpg
| imagesize=200px
| caption=
| birth_date={{birth date and age|df=y|1984|12|1}}
| birth_place=Milwaukee, Wisconsin
| death_place =
| occupation=Magician
| spouse=
| children=
| website=https://www.benseidman.com
| footnotes=
}}
Ben Seidman (born December 1, 1984) is an American sleight-of-hand performer, actor, comedian, and creative consultant who has won the entertainer of the year award for Princess Cruises and guest starred on Netflix's "Brainchild".{{cite web|title=TV Guide|url=https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/ben-seidman/credits/535156/1251690/}} He is the only person to have served as the Resident Magician at Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino in Las Vegas.{{cite web|title=Barry Ball Artists|url=http://www.barryball.com/artists/ben-seidman}}{{cite web|title=Summit Comedy Inc.|url=http://www.summitcomedy.com/ben-seidman/}} In 2013, Seidman co-starred in Magic Outlaws on Travel Channel.{{cite web|title=Travel Channel: Magic Outlaws|url=http://www.travelchannel.com/video/bens-broken-beer-bottle}}{{cite web|title=Internet Movie Database|url=https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3111301|work=Internet Movie Database: Ben Seidman}}{{cite web|title=OnMilwaukee|url=http://www.onmilwaukee.com/movies/articles/MagicOutlaws.html|work=Milwaukee native runs with "Magic Outlaws"}} Following the debut of his TV specials, Ben taught Johnny Knoxville magic tricks for his film Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa.{{Cite web |url=http://showcasetalentagency.com/performer/ben-seidman/ |title=Showcase Talent Agency |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140222223012/http://showcasetalentagency.com/performer/ben-seidman/|work=Showcase Talent Agency: Ben Seidman|archive-date=22 February 2014|access-date=23 August 2015}} Seidman’s performances are notable for featuring original magic effects. His inventions are employed in A&E’s program Mindfreak, starring Criss Angel, where Seidman served as writer and adviser for three seasons. Seidman tours globally, bringing his live show—a combination of sleight-of-hand, pickpocketing, and comedy—to colleges, parties and events.
He is currently based in Los Angeles, where he performs at the Magic Castle in Hollywood and The Comedy & Magic Club in Hermosa Beach.{{cite web |url=http://atodmagazine.com/2013/06/18/magic-and-mixed-drinks/ |work=ATOD Magazine: A Taste of Dawn |title=Magic and Mixed Drinks: An ATOD Excursion to The Magic Castle|date=18 June 2013 }}
Performances/TV Specials
In 2011, Seidman starred in a series of hidden camera videos using his pick-pocketing skills to slip computers into people’s handbags without them knowing. The “I Was Framed” project, directed by Jamie Kennedy and Michael Addis, and also featuring Bob Arno, gained online popularity and quickly reached over 900,000 views.{{cite web|work=Little Black Book Online|url=http://www.lbbonline.com/news/toshiba-launches-portege-z830-ultrabook/|title=Toshiba Launches Portégé Z830 Ultrabook}}{{cite web|work=First Wave TV|url=http://firstwavetv.tumblr.com/post/14225565635/kennedy-addis-helm-i-was-framed-campaign-for-launch|title=Kennedy & Addis helm "I Was Framed" campaign for launch of Toshiba & Intel's Portégé Z830 Ultrabook|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140225094548/http://firstwavetv.tumblr.com/post/14225565635/kennedy-addis-helm-i-was-framed-campaign-for-launch|archivedate=2014-02-25}}{{cite AV media|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2l5-ul-Z0kA |title="I Was Framed" The Ryan Setup |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140630080354/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2l5-ul-Z0kA |archivedate=June 30, 2014 }}
In 2013, Seidman co-starred in Magic Outlaws on Travel Channel. The two TV specials, High Noon in Austin and 3:10 to Vegas, follow Seidman and fellow Los Angeles-based magicians Chris Korn and David Minkin, as they travel across the country performing close up magic for onlookers.{{cite web |work=TV Guide |url=http://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/magic-outlaws/cast/533256 |title=Magic Outlaws on Travel Channel}} In 2018, he guest starred on three episodes of the Netflix original series "Brainchild," produced by Pharrell.
Seidman was featured on two national comedy tours produced by Just For Laughs in 2010 and 2013. The 2013 tour spanned 21 cities throughout Canada and is the subject of a documentary produced for The Comedy Network. The documentary also features tour-mates Tom Papa, Alonzo Bodden, Jeremy Hotz, Robert Kelly, Orny Adams, and host Darrin Rose.{{cite web|title=Just For Laughs|url=http://comedytour.hahaha.com/index.html#|work=Comedy Tour '13}}{{cite web|title=Canada's National Arts Centre|url=http://nac-cna.ca/en/variety/event/6946|work=Just For Laughs Comedy Tour}}
In his performance career, Seidman has headlined the Atlantis Casino in the Bahamas, performed 120 Shows at The Venetian in Macau, China, and was featured in a four-month run at Harrah’s Hotel and Casino. He has performed for a number of celebrities including Robin Williams, Christina Hendricks, Stephen Merchant, and Carrot Top.{{cite web|title=Ben Seidman: Robin Williams|url=http://benseidman.com/news/news5.php |work=BenSeidman.com}}{{cite web|title=Performing Strolling magic for Carrot Top at Las Vegas Party |url=http://benseidman.com/shows/strolling.html |work=BenSeidman.com}} Seidman, along with Marcus Monroe and Luke Jermay is a founding member of The Optical Delusions, a 2008 touring show that billed itself as "an evening of new-school variety."{{cite web|work=VolumeOne|url=http://volumeone.org/articles/2009/01/08/320_Optical_Delusions|title=Optical Delusions Magician Mini-Trio hits Grand Little Theatre|date=8 January 2009 }} In 2019 Seidman began performing a two-person show with Shin Lim, winner of America's Got Talent: The Champions.{{cite news|title=Ct Post|url=https://www.ctpost.com/entertainment/article/Shin-Lim-winner-of-America-s-Got-Talent-13768788.php|work=Shin Lim, winner of ‘America’s Got Talent: The Champions,’ to appear at Foxwoods |last1=Tuccio-Koonz |first1=By Linda }}
Creative consulting
In 2006, Seidman was hired as a magic consultant for Mindfreak on A&E starring Criss Angel. Seidman created content, invented magic effects, and served as a creative/technical advisor to the show for three seasons.
Seidman spent the summer of 2011 in Stockholm, Sweden writing and directing Helt Magiskt for SVT, the prime television channel in Sweden.{{cite web|work=Theory 11|url=http://media.theory11.com/5559-artist-diary---ben-seidman-in-stockholm|title=Artist Diary: Ben Seidman in Stockholm|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140223052314/http://media.theory11.com/5559-artist-diary---ben-seidman-in-stockholm|archivedate=2014-02-23}} Helt Magiskt, the Swedish adaptation of the BBC show The Magicians, followed Charlie Caper, winner of Sweden's Got Talent, Michael Halvorsen, Star of Cirque du Soleil’s Koozå, and large-scale illusionist Joe Labero, as they performed alongside celebrities.:sv:Helt magiskt Shortly after, Seidman returned to Stockholm to work with Charlie Caper creating a performance piece using iPads.{{cite web|title=d1gits|url=http://d1gits.com/|access-date=2014-02-11|archive-date=2014-01-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140103044442/http://d1gits.com/|url-status=dead}} The video has over 3.36 million hits on YouTube.{{cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=53_qvMQfvOE|title=New iPad Act - Stockholm with Charlie Caper and Erik Rosales}}
In 2013, Seidman taught actor Johnny Knoxville magic tricks for his role in Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa, an Academy Award nominated hidden-camera comedy film written by Spike Jonze, Johnny Knoxville, and Jeff Tremaine. Seidman taught Knoxville a number of tricks and gags for the film, most notably, how to pull flowers out of his pants.{{cite web|work=Internet Movie Database|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3063516/fullcredits?ref_=tt_cl_sm#cast|title=Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa (2013) Full Cast & Crew}}{{cite web|work=The Oscars|url=http://www.oscars.org/awards/academyawards/86/nominees.html|title=Nominees for the 86th Oscars|date=7 October 2014 }}
References
{{reflist}}
- Olig, Nick. "Ben Seidman's Sleight of Hand." Shepherd Express 3 October 2013. [https://web.archive.org/web/20140222170312/http://expressmilwaukee.com/article-21909-ben-seidman%E2%80%99s-sleight-of-hand-%7C-off-the-cuff-%7C-shepherd-express.html Express Milwaukee]
- Hintz, Martin. "Magic Man." M Magazine January 2013. [https://web.archive.org/web/20140221214532/http://www.gmtoday.com/content/m_magazine/2013/January/m_012013_30.asp GM Today]
- Nuñez, Candace. "Magician steals more than show." La Verne Campus Times 1 March 2013. [https://web.archive.org/web/20140222202555/http://laverne.edu/campus-times/2013/03/magician-steals-more-than-show/ Campus Times]
External links
- {{Official|http://www.benseidman.com/}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Seidman, Ben}}
Category:Male actors from Milwaukee
Category:American male comedians
Category:Pickpocket entertainers
Category:Participants in American reality television series