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David Blaine picks Pete Davidson for ice-pick tricks

Updated June 3, 2023 - 5:45 pm

David Blaine told his audience participants Friday night, “The game is simple. All you have to do is guess where this thing is.”

Pete Davidson looked over three cups, one of which covered an ice pick. He and his buddy Alex Panagos were each to grab one of Blaine’s wrists and push his hands down onto the cups. The game is that the two guest stars would have guessed correctly, sparing Blaine from stabbing himself — again — on a Las Vegas stage.

“Ride or die,” Davidson said as he grabbed Blaine’s right wrist. “Let’s go.”

Now I’m (expletive) nervous!” said Blaine, whose eyes were covered by black gaff tape, which Davidson had clumsily applied.

“Vegas!” Davidson shouted.

Blaine slammed the two empty cups, avoiding the mishap in January, when he pierced his left hand during a show at Resorts World Theater.

Davidson and Panagos were in town for a Vegas weekend getaway. Panagos’ IG story feed indicates as much as the entourage also visited SpeedVegas Motorsports Park.

Davidson created and currently stars in the Peacock autobiographical drama-comedy “Bupkis.” Some theorists feel the eight-episode series is actually based on Panagos, his longtime friend and assistant. Our buddy Brad Garrett plays Davidson’s Uncle Roy (who is not really an uncle, but is treated as such).

Davidson and Panagos were called up during Blaine’s return performance to Resorts World, where he has headlined his “In Spades” show since last September. The magician, theater performer and stunt artist has suffered multiple injuries onstage, including the ice-pick incident in January, and a separated shoulder in March after his show-opening drop from 80 feet into a stack of moving boxes.

That routine is not in the show, for now. Something about needing to secure insurance coverage.

During his time as an unbilled assistant, Davidson also pushed the ice pick through Blaine’s left biceps. The crowd shrieked, but not Davidson.

“No blood!” the actor said, smiling. “Magic man!”

Pucks in the mix

NHL stars and TNT Stanley Cup Final broadcasters Henrik Lundqvist, Eddie Olczyk, Keith Jones, Darren Pang, Anson Carter, Kenny Albert, Jackie Redmond, Liam McHugh and Paul Bissonnette, were at the Blaine show. The showman impressed the group with some nifty card tricks after the performance.

Celine’s son? Yes!

Rare is the time you are in a room with a couple dozen VIPs, one is Celine Dion’s son, and you don’t even realize it. But that was the case at the Blaine show when I ran into, sorta, Rene-Charles Angelil.

The 22-year-old recording artist is the son of Dion and the late Rene Angelil. It wasn’t until I left that I learned he was in the mix. Never met the young man, but I can plug his 2021 EP “Casino 5.”

John Katsilometes’ column runs daily in the A section. His “PodKats!” podcast can be found at reviewjournal.com/podcasts. Contact him at jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @johnnykats on Twitter, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.

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