David Copperfield (born David Seth Kotkin; September 16, 1956) is an Emmy Award-winning American illusionist described by Forbes in 2006 as the most commercially successful magician in history.[1] Best known for his combination of storytelling and illusion, Copperfield has so far sold 40 million tickets and grossed over $1 billion. Copperfield was born David Seth Kotkin in Metuchen, New Jersey,[2][3] the son of Jewish parents, Rebecca, an insurance adjuster, and Hyman Kotkin, who owned and operated a men's haberdashery in Metuchen called Korby's.[2] Copperfield's mother was born in Jerusalem, Israel, while his paternal grandparents were Jewish immigrants from Russia (present-day Ukraine). When Copperfield was 10, he began practicing magic as "Davino, the Boy Magician" in his neighborhood,[6] and at the age of 12, became the youngest person ever admitted to the Society of American Magicians.[7][8][9] Shy and a loner, the young Copperfield saw magic as a way of fitting in and, later, as a way to get girls.[10] As a teenager, Copperfield became fascinated with Broadway and frequently sneaked into shows, especially musicals featuring Stephen Sondheim or Bob Fosse.[11] By age 16, he was teaching a course in magic at New York University. At age 18, he enrolled at Fordham University, and was cast in the lead role of the Chicago-based musical The Magic Man (written by Barbara D'Amato[13] and directed by Holland, MI's John Tammi) three weeks into his freshman year,[14] adopting his new stage name "David Copperfield" from the Charles Dickens book of the same name. At age 19, he was headlining at the Pagoda Hotel in Honolulu, Hawaii.[8] Copperfield's career in television began in earnest when he was discovered by Joseph Cates, a producer of Broadway shows and television specials.[15] Cates produced a magic special in 1977 on ABC called "The Magic of ABC" hosted by Copperfield,[9] as well as several of the "The Magic of David Copperfield" specials on CBS between 1978 and 1998.[15] There has been a total of 20 Copperfield TV specials between 1977 and 2001. Copperfield played the character of "Ken the Magician" in the 1980 horror film Terror Train. He also made an uncredited appearance in the 1994 film Prêt-à -Porter. Most of his media appearances have been through television specials and guest spots on television programs. His illusions have included making the Statue of Liberty disappear, flying, levitating over the Grand Canyon, and walking through the Great Wall of China.Video David Copperfield :
- Death saw
- Laser illusion
- Statue of Liberty disapears
- The great wall of China
- Flying
- Shot through the heart
- Floating mirror ball
- Flying with fire
- Disappearing girl
