Penn & Teller

{{refimprove|date=November 2023}}

{{short description|American illusionists and entertainers}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}}

{{distinguish|Penny Teller}}

{{Infobox person

| name = Penn & Teller

| image = Penn & Teller (cropped).jpg

| caption = Penn Jillette (left) and Teller (right) in 2012

| birth_name = Penn Fraser Jillette

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1955|03|05|mf=y}}


Raymond Joseph Teller{{cite web |title=Teller |access-date=October 20, 2014 |website=Encyclopedia.com |url=http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Teller.aspx}}
{{Birth date and age|1948|02|14|mf=y}}

| birth_place =

| death_date =

| occupation = Magicians, entertainers

| homepage = {{official URL}}

| known_for = Magic, comedy, skepticism

| years_active = 1975–present

}}

Penn & Teller, Penn Jillette and Teller, are American magicians, entertainers, and scientific skeptics who have performed together since 1975. They are noted for their ongoing act that combines elements of comedy with magic.

The duo has been featured in numerous stage and television shows such as Penn & Teller: Fool Us and currently perform in Las Vegas at The Rio, the longest-running headliners to play at the same hotel in Las Vegas history.{{Citation|last=The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon|title=Penn & Teller Give a Lesson in Misdirection Using a Vanishing Chicken|date=2018-06-23|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lo5BRAKvJoA |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/Lo5BRAKvJoA| archive-date=2021-12-12 |url-status=live|access-date=2018-06-25}}{{cbignore}} Penn Jillette serves as the act's orator and raconteur. Teller generally does not speak while performing, and instead communicates through mime and nonverbals, though his voice can occasionally be heard during their live shows and television appearances. Besides magic, the pair has become associated with the advocacy of scientific skepticism and libertarianism, particularly through their television show Penn & Teller: Bullshit!

Career

Penn and Teller were introduced to each other by Weir Chrisemer,{{Cite news|last=Collins|first=Glenn|date=1988-12-04|title=Up to New Tricks|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/12/04/magazine/up-to-new-tricks.html}} and they performed their first show together at the Minnesota Renaissance Festival on August 19, 1975.{{cite tweet|number=104745893533716480|user=pennjillette|title=36 years ago today, Teller and I did our first show together at the Minnesota Renaissance Festival. Had done a few shows together before that|access-date=2013-08-31|date=19 August 2011}} From the late 1970s through 1981, Penn, Teller, and Chrisemer performed as a trio called "The Asparagus Valley Cultural Society", which played in Philadelphia’s Walnut Street Theater, and in San Francisco, California, at the Phoenix Theater.{{cite web|title = Penn & Teller -- What A Team|url = https://www.chicagotribune.com/1985/06/28/penn-teller-what-a-team/|website = Chicago Tribune|access-date = 13 October 2015|date = 28 June 1985|last = Rea|first = Steven|author-link=Steven Rea}} Chrisemer helped to develop some bits that continued, most notably Teller's "Shadows" trick, which involves a single red rose.{{cite web|url=http://www.esquire.com/entertainment/interviews/a15810/teller-magician-interview-1012/|title=Chris Jones on How Teller Got His Magic Back|date=2012-09-17|website=Esquire|access-date=2016-03-18}} The group disbanded in 1981 after Chrisemer quit show business, leaving Penn Jillette and Teller to work as a pair on a show called "Mrs. Lonsberry's Seance of Horror".

File:Penn and Teller (1988).jpg

By 1985, Penn & Teller were receiving positive reviews for their Off Broadway show and Emmy Award–winning PBS special Penn & Teller Go Public.{{cite web|url=http://www.bookingentertainment.com/artists/comedy/booking-penn-and-teller.php|title=Penn & Teller Booking Agent – Book Penn & Teller Comedian For Corporate and Private Events Worldwide|publisher=Entertainment Booking Agency|work=Artists > Comedy|access-date=2013-08-31}} In 1987, they began the first of three Broadway runs.{{Cite news|url=https://variety.com/2015/legit/news/penn-teller-broadway-2015-1201456133/|title=Penn and Teller Conjure a Broadway Run This Summer|last=Cox|first=Gordon|date=March 19, 2015|work=Variety|access-date=August 6, 2017|language=en-US}} The same year, they appeared as three-card Monte scam artists in the music video for "It's Tricky" by Run-DMC. Through the late 1980s and early 1990s, the duo made numerous television appearances on Late Night with David Letterman and Saturday Night Live, as well as The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, Today, and others.

Penn & Teller had national tours throughout the 1990s, gaining critical praise. They have also made television guest appearances on Babylon 5{{cite web|url=http://www.midwinter.com/lurk/countries/us/guide/096.html|title=Penn & Teller on Babylon 5|date=13 July 2004|access-date=2013-08-31}} (as the comedy team Rebo and Zooty), The Drew Carey Show, a few episodes of Hollywood Squares from 1998 until 2004, ABC's Muppets Tonight, FOX's The Bernie Mac Show, an episode of the game show Fear Factor on NBC, NBC's The West Wing, in a two-part episode of the final season of ABC's Home Improvement in 1998, four episodes during season 1 of Sabrina, the Teenage Witch in 1996, NBC's Las Vegas, and Fox's The Simpsons episodes "Hello Gutter, Hello Fadder" and "The Great Simpsina" and the Futurama film Futurama: Into the Wild Green Yonder in 2009. They appeared in the music video for Katy Perry's 2009 single "Waking Up in Vegas", in which they are thrown out of a hotel room by Perry.

Penn and Teller made an appearance on Bill Nye the Science Guy season 2, episode 7 - "Light Optics".{{Citation|title=Bill Nye the Science Guy - S02E07 Light Optics|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8gX6a6yTT4 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/H8gX6a6yTT4| archive-date=2021-12-12 |url-status=live|language=en|access-date=2021-08-04}}{{cbignore}}

From 2003 to 2010, their Showtime television show Bullshit! took a skeptical look at psychics, religion, the pseudoscientific, conspiracy theories, and the paranormal. It has featured critical segments on gun control, astrology, Feng Shui, environmental issues, PETA, weight loss, the Americans with Disabilities Act, and the war on drugs.

The pair have written several books about magic, including Penn & Teller's Cruel Tricks For Dear Friends, Penn & Teller's How to Play with Your Food, and Penn & Teller's How to Play in Traffic. Since 2001, Penn & Teller have performed in Las Vegas at the Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino.{{Cite news|url=https://lasvegassun.com/blogs/kats-report/2013/jan/28/penn-teller-two-decades-real-vegas-magic/|title=Penn & Teller: Two decades of real Las Vegas magic|last=Katsilometes|first=John|date=January 28, 2013|work=LasVegasSun.com|access-date=August 6, 2017}}

Penn Jillette hosted a weekday one-hour talk show on Infinity Broadcasting's Free FM radio network from January 3, 2006, to March 2, 2007, with cohost Michael Goudeau.{{cite web |url=http://www.infinitybroadcasting.com/releases/view_release.php?date=%2F051025 |title=Infinity Broadcasting article on Penn |access-date=2006-03-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060321190915/http://www.infinitybroadcasting.com/releases/view_release.php?date=%2F051025 |archive-date=2006-03-21 |url-status=dead }}{{cite web |url=http://www.pennandteller.com/03/news.html |title=Penn & Teller website |access-date=2006-03-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060317153634/http://www.pennandteller.com/03/news.html |archive-date=2006-03-17 |url-status=dead }} He also hosted the game show Identity, which debuted on December 18, 2006, on NBC.

Their television series Penn & Teller Tell a Lie premiered on the Discovery Channel on October 5, 2011.{{cite web |date=15 April 2011 |title=Penn & Teller Come to Discovery Channel |url=http://blogs.discovery.com/discovery-insider/2011/04/penn-teller-come-to-discovery-channel.html |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110425010226/http://blogs.discovery.com/discovery-insider/2011/04/penn-teller-come-to-discovery-channel.html |archivedate=25 April 2011 |accessdate=15 April 2011 |work=The Discovery Insider Blog |publisher=Discovery Channel}}{{cite web |date=15 September 2011 |title=Can You Guess the Lie? |url=http://dsc.discovery.com/show-news/can-you-guess-the-lie.html |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20111001082534/http://dsc.discovery.com/show-news/can-you-guess-the-lie.html |archivedate=1 October 2011 |accessdate=22 September 2011 |work=Discovery Channel Shows Listing |publisher=Discovery Channel}}

Since 2010, Penn & Teller have hosted Penn & Teller: Fool Us, originally on ITV, moving to The CW in 2015.

Penn & Teller credit magician and skeptical activist James Randi for their own careers. During an interview at TAM! 2012, Penn stated that Randi's book Flim-Flam! was an early influence on him, and said that "If not for Randi there would not be Penn & Teller as we are today."{{cite web|title="38 Years of Magic and B.S.: A Conversation with Penn & Teller" - TAM 2012|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=99_upx8URLI&t=100s |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/99_upx8URLI| archive-date=2021-12-12 |url-status=live|website=Youtube.com| date=May 10, 2013 |publisher=James Randi Foundation|access-date=25 August 2017}}{{cbignore}}

In early 2022, Penn and Teller competed in season seven of The Masked Singer as "Hydra" of Team Bad. Because of Hydra's three-legged design and large size, the costume had to be assembled back stage while "Hydra" had to be wheeled out on a special platform to get it to and from the stage.{{cite web|url=https://www.tmz.com/2022/03/23/the-masked-singer-hydra-costume-dangerous-safety-concern/|title=The Masked Singer Hydra Costume Out Of Control ... Celebs Worried About Safety|work=TMZ|date=March 23, 2022|access-date=April 4, 2022}} Penn operated the left side of "Hydra" while Teller operated the right side of "Hydra". They were eliminated on the week of April 6 where it was shown that Teller used a puppet of a rabbit in a hat to "operate" the central head of "Hydra". Teller was given most of the singing due to how rarely people hear his voice and the possibility of people recognizing Penn's voice. Nicole Byer, who was the guest panelist of the night, successfully guessed the duo to be underneath the "Hydra" masks.

Off-stage relationship

Jillette stated in a video where he and Teller responded to questions from members of Reddit, and also in a video interview for Big Think, that while he and Teller share few interests outside magic, Teller is his best friend, and his children treat Teller as a close relative. He stated that while most entertainment partnerships such as Martin and Lewis and Lennon–McCartney were based on a deep affection for each other that lends to a certain volatility when things go wrong, their business relationship and friendship is based on a respect for each other.{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rv_Xkz9zepI |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/rv_Xkz9zepI| archive-date=2021-12-12 |url-status=live|title=IAMA: Penn and Teller | reddit's top ten questions |publisher=YouTube|date=October 4, 2011|access-date=2013-10-23|author=Penn & Teller}}{{cbignore}}{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYcabRJRG54 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/QYcabRJRG54| archive-date=2021-12-12 |url-status=live|title=Penn Jillette: Penn and Teller Are Not Lovers|publisher=YouTube|date= June 13, 2011|access-date=2013-10-23|author=Penn Jillette}}{{cbignore}} Teller has made similar statements. In an NPR interview, Teller said their disagreements often lead to better artistic decisions because they bring out new ideas and expand the range of discussion.{{Cite web |date=August 1, 2015 |title=For Penn & Teller's Magical Partnership, the Trick is Telling the Truth |url=https://www.npr.org/2015/08/01/428169268/for-penn-tellers-magical-partnership-the-trick-is-telling-the-truth |website=NPR}}

Honors

File:PennFraserJillette&RaymondJosephTellerHWOFApr2013.jpg in April 2013.]]

On April 5, 2013, Penn & Teller were honored with the 2,494th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for their achievement in the category of Live Performance. Their star is a few steps away from the star of Harry Houdini and down the street from The Magic Castle.{{cite web |date=April 5, 2013 |title=Magicians Penn & Teller get star on Hollywood Walk of Fame |url=http://photos.mercurynews.com/2013/04/05/photos-magicians-penn-teller-get-star-on-hollywood-walk-of-fame/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130613113251/http://photos.mercurynews.com/2013/04/05/photos-magicians-penn-teller-get-star-on-hollywood-walk-of-fame/ |archive-date=June 13, 2013 |access-date=April 6, 2013 |website=Mercury News}}{{cite web |date=April 5, 2013 |title=Magicians Penn & Teller Get Star On Walk Of Fame |url=http://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2013/04/05/magicians-penn-teller-set-for-walk-of-fame-star/ |access-date=April 6, 2013 |website=CBS News}}{{cite web|title=Magicians Penn & Teller Honored With Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame|url=http://bhcourier.com/magicians-penn-teller-honored-star-hollywood-walk-fame/2013/04/05|access-date=April 6, 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130621181229/http://bhcourier.com/magicians-penn-teller-honored-star-hollywood-walk-fame/2013/04/05|archive-date=June 21, 2013}} However, they were refused membership of The Magic Circle due to their tendencies to reveal how magic tricks are done during performances.{{cite news | url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/theatre/what-to-see/magic-goes-wrong-backstage-penn-teller-mischief-theatre-company/ | title=Magic Goes Wrong: Backstage with Penn, Teller and Mischief Theatre company | newspaper=The Telegraph | date=5 January 2020 | last1=Cavendish | first1=Dominic |accessdate=2023-02-17}}

They are also recipients of a Hugh M. Hefner First Amendment Award.{{Cite web |last= |first= |title=Penn and Teller Speaker Biography |url=https://www.executivespeakers.com/speaker/penn-and-teller |access-date=July 21, 2024 |website=Executive Speakers Bureau |language=}}{{Citation |title=Penn and Teller |date=2002 |work=Center for Performing Arts Memorabilia |url=https://opus.govst.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1212&context=cpa_memorabilia}}

In 2014, they were nominated for a BAFTA Award for their documentary Tim's Vermeer.{{Cite web |author=Guardian Staff |date=2014-02-16 |title=Baftas 2014: full list of winners |url=http://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/feb/16/baftas-2014-winners-full-list |access-date=2022-12-18 |website=the Guardian |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Gray |first=Tim |date=2013-12-03 |title=Oscars: 15 Documentary Features Make Shortlist |url=https://variety.com/2013/film/awards/oscars-15-documentary-features-make-shortlist-1200913986/ |access-date=2022-12-18 |website=Variety |language=en-US}}

For their contributions to the West End production Magic Goes Wrong with Mischief Theatre, they were nominated for a 2020 Olivier Award.{{Cite web |last=Duizabo |first=Eléonore |date=2020-10-27 |title=The winners of the Olivier Awards 2020 |url=https://www.baguetteonbroadway.com/en/les-gagnants-des-olivier-awards-2020/ |access-date=2024-07-21 |website=Baguette on Broadway |language=en}}

Tricks

{{more citations needed section|date=March 2023}}

Penn & Teller perform their own adaptation of the famous bullet catch illusion. Each simultaneously fires a gun at the other through small panes of glass and then "catches" the other's bullet in his mouth. They also have an assortment of card tricks in their repertoire, virtually all of them involving the force of the Three of Clubs on an unsuspecting audience member as this card is easy for viewers to identify on television cameras.[https://web.archive.org/web/20071228042704/http://pennandteller.com/sincity/penn-n-teller/faq.html#Show Penn & Teller on force trick]

In one of their most politically charged tricks, they make an American flag seem to disappear by wrapping it in a copy of the United States Bill of Rights, and apparently setting the flag on fire, so that "the flag is gone but the Bill of Rights remains". The routine may also feature the "Chinese bill of rights", presented as a transparent piece of acetate. They normally end the trick by restoring the unscathed flag to its starting place on the flagpole; however, on a TV guest appearance on The West Wing, this final part was omitted.{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20041024212611/http://www.westwingepguide.com/S6/Episodes/120_ITR.html#quote120 Guide to West Wing on Penn & Teller]}} The methods of the trick were revealed by the duo in an episode of Fool Us.

One trick{{Cite episode |series=Penn & Teller: Fool Us |episode-link= |network=ITV |date=July 16, 2011 |season=1 |number=5 }} involves a powered nail gun with a quantity of missing nails from the series of nails in its magazine. Penn begins by firing several apparently real nails into a board in front of him. He then proceeds to fire the nail gun into the palm of his hand several times, while suffering no injuries. His pattern builds as he oscillates between firing blanks into his hand and firing nails into the board, and fires one blank into Teller's crotch. Near the end of the trick, he says that it is a trick and that he and Teller believe that it is morally wrong to do things on stage that are really dangerous—it makes the audience complicit in unnecessary human risk.[http://www.crackle.com/c/Penn_Says/Nail_Gun_Trick/2480512 Penn Says: Nail Gun Trick]

A trick introduced in 2010 is a modern version of the bag escape, replacing the traditional sack with a black trash bag apparently filled with helium. Teller is placed in the bag which is then pumped full of helium and sealed by an audience member. For the escape, the audience is blinded by a bright light for a second and when they are able to see again, Teller has escaped from the bag and Penn is holding it, still full of helium, above his head, before releasing it to float to the ceiling. The duo had hoped to put the trick in their mini-tour in London; however, it was first shown to the public in their Las Vegas show on August 18, 2010. In June 2011, Penn & Teller performed this trick for the first time in the United Kingdom on their ITV show Fool Us.[https://twitter.com/MrTeller/status/21560011542 Twitter / MrTeller: Helium went in tonight. It]

In one of their TV appearances on The Tonight Show, they performed a trick that involved all members of the audience. Each person received four cards which were torn apart and "mixed" so as to have two out of the eight halves selected in a process that seems random, as each person has freedom of moves throughout the process. Yet in the end, everyone ends up with two halves of the same card. Some mathematicians made a deep analysis of the trick and generalized it so it would work with any number of initial cards, using mathematical induction; their complete analysis was published in the Journal of Magic Research.{{Cite journal|last=Teixeira|first=Ricardo|date=September 8, 2020|title=Mathematical Explanation and Generalization of Penn and Teller's Love Ritual Magic Trick|journal=Journal of Magic Research|volume=8|pages=21–32}}

Politics and personal lives

On Bullshit!, the duo described their social and political views as libertarian. In addition to disbelief in the paranormal and pseudoscience, Penn & Teller also take a view of doubtfulness to government authority.{{cite web |last=Shermer |first=Michael |author-link=Michael Shermer|date=May 22, 2009 |url=http://media.libsyn.com/media/pointofinquiry/POI_2009_05_22_Michael_Shermer.mp3 |title=Michael Shermer - Science, Skepticism and Libertarianism |work=Point of Inquiry |access-date=2010-01-29}} In various episodes of their show, they have heavily criticized both the Internal Revenue Service and the Environmental Protection Agency, as well as taken stances against circumcision and gun control, and in support of ideas such as freedom to eat fast food, private property, and lower taxes. Penn & Teller were both H. L. Mencken research fellows with the Cato Institute, a libertarian think-tank and research organization.{{cite web |url=http://www.cato.org/people/penn-jillette |title=Cato Institute fellow's page: Penn Jillette |access-date=2010-01-29}}{{cite web |url=http://www.cato.org/people/-teller |title=Cato Institute fellow's page: Teller |access-date=2010-01-29}} Penn disavowed libertarianism in 2020 and is no longer affiliated with the Cato Institute.{{cite web |url= https://www.cnn.com/2020/11/09/opinions/post-election-roundup-what-now-america-opinion/index.html |title='You have one job, Joe' |website=CNN |date=9 November 2020 |access-date=2023-02-01}}

Penn & Teller have shown support for the Brights movement{{cite web|url=http://the-brights.net/people/enthusiastic/index2.html|title=The Brights' Net – Enthusiastic Brights (Page 2)|publisher=The-Brights.net|access-date=2013-01-10}}{{better source needed|date=July 2019}} and are now listed on the movement's website under the Enthusiastic Brights section.{{Cite web|url=http://www.the-brights.net/people/enthusiastic/index2.html|title=The Brights' Net - Enthusiastic Brights (Page 2)|website=www.the-brights.net}}

They have described themselves as teetotalers.{{Cite web |last=Mangu-Ward |first=Katherine |date=2016-12-21 |title=Interview: Penn Jillette |url=https://reason.com/2016/12/21/penn-jillette/ |access-date=2024-07-21 |website=Reason.com |language=en-US}}{{Cite news |last=Beard |first=Alison |date=2016-10-01 |title=Life's Work: An Interview with Penn Jillette |url=https://hbr.org/2016/10/penn-jillette |access-date=2024-07-21 |work=Harvard Business Review |issn=0017-8012}}

Filmography

class="wikitable"
style="background:#b0c4de;"| Year

! style="background:#b0c4de;"| Title

! style="background:#b0c4de;"| Role

! style="background:#b0c4de;"| Notes

1986

| My Chauffeur

| Bone & Abdul

|

1987

| Penn & Teller's Cruel Tricks for Dear Friends

| rowspan=3 | Themselves

| Direct-to-video

1989

| Penn & Teller Get Killed

|

1991

| The Eyes Scream: A History of the Residents{{Cite web|url=https://bampfa.org/event/eyes-scream-history-residents|title=The Eyes Scream: A History of The Residents | BAMPFA|website=bampfa.org|date=22 December 2014 }}

|

1994

| Car 54, Where Are You?

| Luther and Luther

| Cameo appearance

1999

| Fantasia 2000

| rowspan=4 | Themselves

| Presenting The Sorcerer's Apprentice segment

2005

| The Aristocrats

| Penn also co-directed the film

2013

| Tim's Vermeer

| Directed by Teller, Produced by Penn

2014

| An Honest Liar

|

2016

| Director's Cut

| Herbert Blount and Rudy Nelson

|

=Television=

class="wikitable"
style="background:#b0c4de;"| Year

! style="background:#b0c4de;"| Title

! style="background:#b0c4de;"| Role

! style="background:#b0c4de;"| Notes

1985

| Miami Vice: The Prodigal Son

| Penn's character was Jimmy Borges

|

1987

| Miami Vice: Like a Hurricane

| Teller's character was Ralph Fisher

|

1985

| Penn & Teller Go Public

| rowspan=12 | Themselves

| Filmed at and first aired on KCET Los Angeles{{cite news|title=New Honor For Penn, Teller|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-05-15-ca-5374-story.html|work=Los Angeles Times|access-date=4 May 2012|date=15 May 1986}}

1985–86

| Saturday Night Live

| 7 Episodes

1987

| Invisible Thread

| Also known as Penn & Teller's Invisible Thread

1989

| Exploring Psychic Powers... Live

| "Healed" a fake blister on Teller's thumb

rowspan=2 | 1990

| The Magic of David Copperfield XII: The Niagara Falls Challenge

| Guest appearance during the illusion "Camera Trick"

Don't Try This at Home!{{cite web|title=Don't Try This at Home! (TV Movie 1990) - IMDb|website=IMDb|url=http://imdb.com/title/tt0099451}}

|

1991

| Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego?

| Presented one of the clues for where the villain had gone.{{cite web|title=WitWi Carmen Sandiego? (1991) | PILOT #1: The Purloined Pooch | Jerrylynn vs. Prashant vs. Mike|website = YouTube| date=March 26, 2015 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJ4kIlB5vA0&t=10m9s |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/VJ4kIlB5vA0| archive-date=2021-12-12 |url-status=live}}{{cbignore}}

1992

| Behind the Scenes

| 10 Episodes

1993

| Live from AT&T Bell Labs{{cite web|title=AT&T Archives: Live from AT&T Bell Labs (1993)|url=http://techchannel.att.com/play-video.cfm/2012/4/27/AT&T-Archives-Live-From-Bell-Labs-1993|work=AT&T|publisher=AT&T Tech Channel|access-date=30 April 2012|author=AT&T Archives and History Center, Warren, NJ|year=1993}}

| Aired only to American Schools via satellite

1994

| Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman

| Romick

| 1 episode, "Illusions of Grandeur"

| https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0635159/?ref_=ext_shr

1994

| The Unpleasant World of Penn & Teller

| Channel 4

rowspan=2 | 1995

| Phobophilia{{cite web|title=Phobophilia: The Love of Fear (1995) - IMDb|website=IMDb|url=http://imdb.com/title/tt0259504/}}

|

The World's Greatest Magic II

| Performed the "Bullet Catch" illusion for the show finale.

1995, 1997

| The Drew Carey Show

| Archibald Fenn & Geller

| 2 Episodes: "Drew Meets Lawyers" and "See Drew Run"

1995–2008

| The Tonight Show with Jay Leno

| rowspan=2 | Themselves

| 4 Episodes: 14 November 1995, 27 November 1998, 13 May 2004, 25 November 2008

1996

| Space Ghost Coast to Coast

| Episode: "$20.01"

1996, 1997

| Sabrina, the Teenage Witch

| Drell & Skippy

| Episodes: "Pilot", "Terrible Things", "Jenny's Non-Dream", "First Kiss"

rowspan=2 | 1997

| Muppets Tonight

| rowspan= 3 | Themselves

| Episode: "The Gary Cahuenga Episode"

Penn & Teller's Home Invasion{{cite web|title=Home Invasion (TV Movie 1997) - IMDb|website=IMDb|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0138496/}}

| ABC Special

1997–2003

| Late Night with Conan O'Brien

| 3 Episodes: 16 October 1997, 7 June 2000, & 23 January 2003

1998

| Dharma and Greg

| Vincent & Mr Boots (Uncredited)

| Episode: "The Cat's Out of the Bag"

1998

| Babylon 5

| Rebo & Zooty

| Episode: "Day of the Dead"

1998–99

| Penn & Teller's Sin City Spectacular

| rowspan="5" | Themselves

| 24 Episodes

1998, 2000

| The Daily Show with Jon Stewart

| 2 Episodes: 13 August 1998, 5 June 2000

1998–2004

| Hollywood Squares

| 60 Episodes

1999

| Home Improvement

| Episode: "Knee Deep"

1999, 2011

| The Simpsons

| 2 Episodes: "Hello Gutter, Hello Fadder", "The Great Simpsina"

2001

| The Tick

| Fiery Blaze & Friendly Fire

| Episode: "The Big Leagues"

rowspan=3 | 2002

| ¡Mucha Lucha!

|

| "The Return of El Maléfico"

Grand Illusions: The Story of Magic

| Discovery Channel documentary (6 episodes)

Fear Factor

| Episode: "Celebrity Fear Factor 3"

rowspan=3 | 2003

| Las Vegas

| Episode: "Luck Be a Lady"

Penn & Teller's Magic and Mystery Tour

| Three-part mini-series

The Bernie Mac Show

| Episode: "Magic Jordan"

2003–10

| Penn & Teller: Bullshit!

| 89 Episodes

2004

| The West Wing

| Episode: "In The Room"

2004–10

| Last Call with Carson Daly

| 6 Episodes: 13 July 2004, 16 November 2005, 5 April 2007, 16 June 2008, 5 April 2010, 5 May 2010

rowspan=2 | 2005

| Penn & Teller: Off the Deep End

| Made for NBC, shown November 13, 2005

Listen Up

| Episode: "Last Vegas"

2007, 2008

| Late Show with David Letterman

| 2 Episodes: #15.32, #15.113

2008

| Numb3rs

| Episode: "S5E6"

rowspan=2 | 2009

| Futurama: Into the Wild Green Yonder

|Both are credited as voicing themselves, but only Penn speaks

The Great American Road Trip

| Guests

rowspan=2 | 2010

| Fetch! with Ruff Ruffman

| They taught one of the show's contestants, Rubye, to perform magic tricks

Hell's Kitchen

| Episode: "9 Chefs Compete Part 1"

rowspan=2 | 2011

| Cash Cab

| Guest contestants playing for charity

Penn & Teller: Tell a Lie

| 6 Episodes, Discovery Channel

2011–present

| Penn & Teller: Fool Us

| 70 Episodes, ITV1 (Season 1) and The CW (Seasons 2+)

2012

| The Apprentice

| rowspan=2 | Penn competed and Teller appears for support

2013

| Celebrity Apprentice

rowspan=2 | 2014

| Wizard Wars

| Main judges in all of the 12 episodes to date, SyFy

Blue PeterArchived at [https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211205/E2ZrTYJN3aE Ghostarchive]{{cbignore}} and the [https://web.archive.org/web/20140618112318/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2ZrTYJN3aE&gl=US&hl=en Wayback Machine]{{cbignore}}: {{cite web| url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2ZrTYJN3aE| title = Penn and Teller Magic Trick on Blue Peter - CBBC | website=YouTube| date = May 9, 2014 }}{{cbignore}}

| Guests

rowspan=3 | 2015

| Modern Family

| Edward LeGrand

| Season 6 Episode 15

Whose Line Is It Anyway?

| Himself

| Season 11 Episode 10

StarTalk

| Season 2 Episode 4

2016, 2018

|Who Wants to Be a Millionaire

| Season 15 Episode 27 and Season 16 Episode 104 and 105

2018

|The Grand Tour

|Season 2, Episode 9

2018

|Deception

|"Pilot"{{cite tweet|number=973018867021774848|user=DeceptionABC|title=Oh! Hi, @pennjillette and @MrTeller!...|date=12 March 2018}}

|Cameo appearance

2019

|Scooby-Doo and Guess Who?

| Rowspan= 3 |Themselves

|Episode: "The Cursed Cabinet of Professor Madds Markson!"

rowspan= 2 | 2021

|Earth To Ned

|Episode: “Alien vs. Nedator”

Hell's Kitchen

|Guest. Episode: "Young Guns Going Big"

2022

| The Masked Singer

| Hydra

| Season 7 contestant

2022

| Young Sheldon

| Pimple & Pus

| Episode: "A Clogged Pore, a Little Spanish and the Future"

2022

| The G Word

| Themselves

| Episode #3: "Money"

=Books=

Penn & Teller:

  • Penn & Teller's How to Play in Traffic (1997, {{ISBN|1-57297-293-9}})
  • Penn & Teller's How to Play with Your Food (1992, {{ISBN|0-679-74311-1}})
  • Penn & Teller's Cruel Tricks for Dear Friends (1989, {{ISBN|0-394-75351-8}})

Penn without Teller:

  • Sock (2004, {{ISBN|0-312-32805-2}})
  • How to Cheat Your Friends at Poker: The Wisdom of Dickie Richard (2006, {{ISBN|0-312-34905-X}}; Co-author: Mickey D. Lynn)
  • God, No!: Signs You May Already Be an Atheist and Other Magical Tales (2011, {{ISBN|1451610378}})
  • Every Day is an Atheist Holiday!: More Magical Tales from the Author of God, No! (2012, {{ISBN|1469276887}})
  • Presto!: How I Made Over 100 Pounds Disappear and Other Magical Tales (2016, {{ISBN|1501140183}})

Teller without Penn:

  • When I'm Dead All This Will Be Yours: Joe Teller—A Portrait by His Kid (2000, {{ISBN|0-922233-22-5}})

Other media

=Music=

  • "Penn & Teller Present: Music to Look at Boxes By" (With Mike "Jonesy" Jones)
  • "It's Tricky" by Run–D.M.C. (Penn & Teller shown throughout the video and at the end appear to take over the persona of Run–D.M.C.)
  • "Something to Believe In" by The Ramones (Penn & Teller are seen supporting the fictitious "Hands Across Your Face" charity)
  • "Waking up in Vegas" by Katy Perry (Penn & Teller are kicked out of their hotel room by Perry and her boyfriend.)
  • "This Time I've Got It" by The Great Tomsoni & Co. (Penn & Teller in lab coats, Penn playing bass guitar)
  • "Donna Everywhere" by Too Much Joy (Teller directed the video which features the band spending their entire budget as the video plays out. Teller features as a security guard and Penn as the band's representative)

=Video games=

The 1995 video game Penn & Teller's Smoke and Mirrors featured a mini-game called Desert Bus in which the player drove a bus route between Tucson and Las Vegas. Once reaching the destination, the player gets one point and, if desired, can then drive the return route. The game was considered by some to be long and boring yet found a cult audience.{{Cite web|url=http://www.gamesetwatch.com/2006/03/penn_jillette_discusses_unrele.php|title=Penn Jillette Discusses Unreleased Sega CD Game|access-date=2012-10-13|archive-date=2021-11-08|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211108143412/http://www.gamesetwatch.com/2006/03/penn_jillette_discusses_unrele.php|url-status=dead}}

The entire set of games was actually more of a collection of tricks and pranks, rather than games meant to be actually good to play.{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFi2vcseEz8|title=Desert Bus (Sega CD) - Angry Video Game Nerd (AVGN)|date=May 28, 2014 |via=www.youtube.com}} Both in-game and in interviews Penn states that Desert Bus was a reaction to the controversy of violent video-games going on at the time.{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2fbj7XJTJ8|title=Comic-Con 2010: Penn & Teller discuss their videogame 'Desert Bus'.|date=July 27, 2010 |via=www.youtube.com}} In essence making fun of this controversy, by creating a simulator "stupefyingly like reality".

The game has since been used in an annual charity event called "Desert Bus for Hope" run by the Canadian internet comedy troupe LoadingReadyRun. The fundraiser involves members of LoadingReadyRun (and occasional guests) playing the game and streaming that live online, while interviewing celebrities via Skype and accepting challenges for the audience, with all proceeds being donated to Child's Play. On November 14, 2011, an iOS port of Desert Bus was created and released in the iTunes Store. The game was developed in conjunction with the Desert Bus For Hope event and all profits from the game are donated to charity.{{Cite web|title=Desert Bus|url=https://apps.apple.com/us/app/desert-bus/id470288016|access-date=2020-11-19|website=App Store|date=15 November 2015 |language=en-us|quote=Originally conceived by Penn, Teller, and Eddie Gorodetsky, this game was made in support of the annual Desert Bus for Hope charity fundraiser for Child's Play, hosted by the crew from LoadingReadyRun.}}

=Attractions=

  • "Penn & Teller: New(kd) Las Vegas 3D" was a 2012 Halloween Horror Nights maze collaborated at Universal Orlando. It featured a backstory of Las Vegas being destroyed by Penn & Teller's latest magic trick involving a nuclear warhead gone wrong.{{Cite web|url=https://insidethemagic.net/2012/08/penn-and-teller-newkd-las-vegas-haunted-house-revealed-for-halloween-horror-nights-2012-at-universal-orlando/|title='Penn and Teller New(kd) Las Vegas' 3D haunted house revealed for Halloween Horror Nights 2012 at Universal Orlando|first=Ricky|last=Brigante|date=August 3, 2012|website=Inside the Magic}}

= Theatre =

References

{{reflist}}