History Channel - Lost Magic Decoded (2014)

Lost Magic Decoded

Some magic effects are so mysterious; they’ve confounded illusionists for hundreds of years. How can a mechanical man defeat a world chess champion? How can a live bullet be stopped in mid-air? Magic has an ancient history, and one master magician, Steve Cohen, is on a quest to uncover the secrets behind these legendary feats and more. In Lost Magic Decoded, a new two-hour special on HISTORY, Cohen tracks down, decodes, and resurrects ten of the most thrilling and shocking magical illusions ever witnessed. He gains access to the ancient incantations, secret sorcery, and mysterious contraptions that have gripped audiences for centuries. As he explores these legendary effects, he uncovers how they were influenced by their times, and how the illusions themselves changed the course of history. And the more he discovers, the closer he becomes to taking the same death-defying risks that conjurors have been taking since magic began more than a 1,000 years ago for the sake of an illusion. Intertwining the fascinating history of magic with the thrill of the highest caliber magic performance, Lost Magic Decoded is a unique roller coaster ride into the deepest crevices of history and back again to the present day, where Cohen proves that even the most mysterious lost magical effects can be performed and shock audiences hundreds of years later.

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