David Copperfield testifies on show safety in Las Vegas trial
Before David Copperfield made people “vanish from the face of the earth” and sent them “straight to hell,” he tried to ensure they would be unharmed, the illusionist told a Las Vegas jury Tuesday.
A tourist, Gavin Cox, sued the magician, MGM Grand and others after he fell while volunteering for a trick, known as “Lucky #13” or simply “13,” in which a baker’s dozen of audience members appear to disappear from the stage on Copperfield’s command.
Cox’s lawyer, Benedict Morelli, asked Copperfield if volunteers were encouraged to leave the stage as quickly as possible.
“Safety would always come first,” Copperfield testified. “Safety is more important than the illusion.”
The 61-year-old’s testimony came during a jury trial over Cox’s injuries suffered during a late 2013 performance at MGM Grand.
Copperfield said he was surprised when he learned Cox was hurt during the performance.
Audience members were screened for about five minutes with at least seven tests — including how they navigate stairs, the stage and the seating area of theater — before they’re allowed to participate in the illusion, Copperfield said.
He asked participants questions designed to examine how they reacted to knowing the “worst-case scenario.”
In court, as a video of the performance played on a TV near the witness stand, Cox looked down from his seat near his lawyers’ table, while Copperfield bobbed his head to the music.
Copperfield stopped performing the illusion about two years after Cox’s injury.
The 58-year-old slipped in an area of the resort that was under construction as stagehands with flashlights guided him offstage and into dark walkways.
A chef in England at the time, Cox had flown to Las Vegas for a birthday celebration and to see Copperfield perform. When Cox and his wife returned to Britain after the November 2013 visit, he suffered from chronic pain, headaches and confusion, and a scan showed a lesion on his brain, his lawsuit contends.
District Judge Mark Denton closed the courtroom to media for more than an hour during portions of Copperfield’s testimony that discussed trade secrets. While the particulars of the “Lucky #13” illusion have been exposed, the Nevada Court of Appeals has ordered the courtroom closed if lawyers probe into the revelations about other tricks.
With an estimated net worth of $900 million, Copperfield is the richest magician on the planet and one of the wealthiest entertainers in the world, according to Forbes.
On cross examination from his own lawyer, Copperfield delved into his career, saying he was initially attracted to ventriloquism but struggled. He traveled to New York “to find a better dummy,” when he fell in love with the craft of magic.
He said his shows often carry themes, the way “my life has a theme,” such as romance, or inspiration based on musicals, dreams and nightmares, “living the impossible.”
Copperfield’s testimony is scheduled to resume next week because he is unable to testify the rest of this week.
Contact David Ferrara at dferrara@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-1039. Follow @randompoker on Twitter.
