Legendary illusionist to perform trick in 2024 to support Save the Children
David Copperfield is taking his powers of illusion to the stars.
In an interview with "Today," the magician announced the plans for his latest stunt.
"I’m going to make the moon disappear," he said.
"It’s taken 30 years of work, that’s literally 30 years of our lives to develop it," he said. "And there’s multiple methods to make it work, and I’m collaborating with Save the Children, an amazing organization to show the world the difference one person can make."
DAVID COPPERFIELD BUYS LAS VEGAS HOME FOR RECORD $17.55 MILLION
David Copperfield announced that in 2024 he will make the moon disappear. (Dave Kotinsky/Getty Images for Ride of Fame)
He continued, "If one person can make the moon disappear from the sky, imagine how together we can make poverty and hunger and danger disappear for our children on Earth."
The illusion is set to take place in February 2024, and rehearsals are already underway.
"They’re going well," Copperfield said. "In fact, I’ve been testing them the past few months and people have reported seeing strange things in the sky at night all around the country."
"So, if anybody [at] home sees anything weird up in the sky, please let me know by tagging me on Instagram or Twitter or Facebook," he added.
View this post on Instagram
Fans will have the opportunity to see the illusion in person by entering an upcoming contest on his social media.
Making the moon disappear is just the latest in Copperfield's more than 40-year career of incredible stunts and illusions. Below is a look back at some of his most memorable performances.
Making a Learjet disappear
David Copperfield appears in his television special, "The Magic of David Copperfield," originally broadcast on Oct. 27, 1978, with guest Cindy Williams. (CBS via Getty Images)
In 1981, Copperfield starred in his fourth magic special, "The Magic of David Copperfield IV: The Vanishing Airplane," on CBS.
In one illusion, blindfolded spectators stood around a Learjet as screens were placed to block the view of the plane and lit so that its silhouette was visible. Copperfield pulled a lever, the screens moved away, and the plane was gone, with the spectators still in place.
Copperfield spoke about his surprise over how popular the trick was in a 2017 Interview Magazine article.
"For one of my specials, I said, ‘I’m going to make an airplane disappear.’ OK! And the next day, everything went crazy — it was like breaking the internet before the internet. Everyone was talking about having airplanes disappear. And I said, ‘Wait, wait, wait, that’s what you like? I’d tell you a story about something like my girlfriend leaving me, and the magic was really hard. The airplane thing was comparatively easy, and people liked that thing?"
He added, "I realized at that moment the power of the simple idea. A simple concept, from a brand-new standpoint, really resonates."
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE ENTERTAINMENT NEWSLETTER
Vanishing and returning the Statue of Liberty
David Copperfield, with guest star Michelle Lee, is shown in a promotional image for "The Magic of David Copperfield V: The Statue of Liberty Disappears." (CBS)
Possibly his best-known illusion was in 1983 when Copperfield made a national landmark, the Statue of Liberty, disappear on live television.
Copperfield raised a sheet over the statue on Liberty Island, and when he pulled the sheet down, Lady Liberty appeared to be gone. Helicopters even flew around to highlight the missing statue, and it appeared to disappear from radar as well.
During the special, "The Magic of David Copperfield V: The Statue of Liberty Disappears," the New Jersey native explained his inspiration for the trick.
He wanted to show "how precious liberty is and how easily it can be lost. I can show with magic how we take our freedom for granted. Sometimes we don’t realize how important something is until it’s gone. So, I asked our government for permission to make the Statue of Liberty disappear, just for a few minutes."
To make the statue reappear, he raised the sheet once more and had it drop back down to reveal the returned statue.
In a GQ interview, Copperfield revealed that Frank Capra helped him with the dialogue for the special and that he asked President Ronald Reagan for permission for the trick after running into issues with the parks departments.
GLORIA DEA, FIRST LAS VEGAS MAGICIAN, DEAD AT 100
Levitating over the Grand Canyon
David Copperfield levitated across the Grand Canyon in 1984. (Getty Images)
In 1984, Copperfield made his way across the Grand Canyon by appearing to levitate through the air, first through a set of statues and then across the great chasm itself.
The trick was one of the first to put him in the path of danger, leading to other performances like going over Niagara Falls.
In a 2013 interview with ABC News, Copperfield spoke about adding more death-defying elements to his performances over the years, particularly in relation to the rise in popularity of other illusionists like David Blaine.
"It is dangerous," he said. "You take educated risks, but things do go wrong, things do screw up. You trust smart people, very well-trained ... [but] people get hurt."
LIKE WHAT YOU’RE READING? CLICK HERE FOR MORE ENTERTAINMENT NEWS
Walking through the Great Wall of China
David Copperfield is shown in a promotional image for "The Magic of David Copperfield VIII: Walking Through the Great Wall of China." (CBS via Getty Images)
Copperfield ventured to China for his next incredible feat, walking through the Great Wall of China.
In the special, "The Magic of David Copperfield VIII: Walking Through the Great Wall of China," he steps onto a platform behind a box and is seen in silhouette going into the wall, and he's gone once the sheet is pulled away.
Copperfield even added a heart monitor for audiences to listen in on, which flatlined just before he appeared on the other side of the wall. He told GQ that "we thought many layers of ideas were important to make it more credible."
Flying onstage
David Copperfield performs a classic version of the levitation trick in the 1980s. He would later wow audiences with an updated version in his 1992 special. (Jim Russell / Toronto Star via Getty Images)
For his 1992 special, "The Magic of David Copperfield XIV: F·L·Y·I·N·G – Live The Dream," Copperfield wanted to live out the dream of many by floating above the stage.
"I think the flying illusion changed magic in many ways because it really became an aspirational thing. You don’t wake up in the morning and want to make an elephant disappear … but flying people do dream about," he told GQ.
He was also determined to prove he wasn’t using wires and magnets, passing hoops over his body to show that he is indeed floating gracefully above the stage.
Copperfield noted that the illusion has been in his stage show for 20 years since its debut.
