Dan Meyer (entertainer)

Last updated
Dan Meyer
Sword Swallower Dan Meyer (February 2013).jpg
Born
Daniel Henry Meyer

(1957-04-07) April 7, 1957 (age 67)
Nationality American
Alma mater Waldorf University Indiana State University
Occupation(s)Extreme Sword swallower, Performance artist, Got Talent danger act, TEDx speaker, Motivational speaker, Author
AgentCutting Edge Innertainment
Known forWinner 2007 Ig Nobel Prize at Harvard
Notable work'Sword swallowing and its side effects.' British Medical Journal. 23 Dec. 2006.
Parents
  • David Meyer (father)
  • Malinda Meyer (mother)
Awards2007 Ig Nobel Prize in Medicine, 7 Guinness World Records

Dan Meyer (born April 7, 1957) is an American sword swallower, multiple Guinness World record holder in sword swallowing, global TEDx speaker, finalist on America's Got Talent, Golden Buzzer finalist on Sweden's Talang, and recipient of the 2007 Ig Nobel Prize in Medicine at Harvard University.

Contents

Meyer is president of the Sword Swallowers Association International (SSAI). He has performed in more than sixty countries on six continents, on fifteen Got Talents, at fifteen Ripley's Believe It or Not! Odditoriums, [1] at several Las Vegas casinos including The Mirage and Paris Las Vegas, and on numerous films and television programs including Stan Lee's Superhumans . [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10]

Early Life

In his shows and TED talks, Meyer has cited extreme fear and being bullied as a child as defining moments of his childhood, and a near-death experience with malaria fever as a missionary in India as a major turning point in his life. [11]

Got Talent Auditions

Meyer was one of the Top 50 finalists on America's Got Talent Season 3 (2008) and returned to compete on America's Got Talent Season 11 (2016). Meyer also auditioned on the Italian talent competition Tú sí que vales Season 3 (2016), on France's Got Talent Season 12 (2017), Israel's Got Talent International All Stars Edition Season 2 (2018–19), Australia's Got Talent Season 10 (2021-22), and was a Golden Buzzer recipient and finalist on Sweden's Talang Season 13 (2022–23). Meyer went on to compete on Croatia's Supertalent Season 10 episode 10.1 (2023), Got Talent España Season 9 episode 6 (2023), and Germany's Das Supertalent Season 16 episode 3 (February 2024).

In 2008, Meyer auditioned for the third season of the NBC reality competition America's Got Talent . In episode 303, Meyer swallowed a series of progressively longer swords which he removed by flinging them into the air. As he was swallowing seven swords at once, judge David Hasselhoff buzzed Meyer, causing him to jump and nearly puncturing his stomach. Although Hasselhoff voted "No," claiming the act was too scary and hard to watch, Piers Morgan and Sharon Osbourne both voted "Yes," sending Meyer on to the Las Vegas round. [12]

In his Vegas audition episode 309, Meyer swallowed a curved sword, a flaming sword, and had a sword whipped from his throat while juggling 6 juggling clubs. Meyer was eliminated before being brought back as a Top 40 Wildcard in the Finals in Hollywood, where he was eventually eliminated again in episode 310.

In 2016, Meyer returned to audition for the eleventh season of America's Got Talent , where in episode 1105 he swallowed a car axle and pulled host Nick Cannon across the stage in a 1974 Triumph Spitfire car by swallowed sword. [13] He received a standing ovation and four "Yes" votes.

In October 2016, Meyer auditioned for Season 3 of the Italian talent show Tú sí que vales in Rome Italy, where he swallowed a variety of implements and pulled Argentinian model Belén Rodríguez across the stage in a Triumph Spitfire by swallowed sword. [14] Meyer received four "Yes" votes and a "Yes" vote of 82% from the studio audience.

In August 2017, Meyer auditioned on Season 12 of France's Got Talent , where he had judge Hélène Ségara remove a sword from his throat, before pulling host David Ginola across the stage in a car by swallowed sword. [15] He received 4 Yes votes.

In October 2018, Meyer auditioned on Israel's Got Talent International All Stars Edition Season 2, episode 17. As part of his act, he had judge Uri Geller remove a sword from his throat, and for his finale, he pulled hosts Ofer Shechter and Asi Israelof across the stage in a 1954 BMW Isetta by swallowed sword. [16] He received a standing ovation and four "Yes" votes.

In June 2022, Meyer auditioned on Australia's Got Talent Season 10 where he received a standing ovation for pulling judges Shane Jacobsen and Kate Ritchie across the stage in a 1964 Triumph Spitfire. [17] He received a standing ovation and three "Yes" votes.

In October 2022, Meyer auditioned on the thirteenth season of the Swedish talent competition Talang . During his audition in episode 13.2, Meyer swallowed part of the microphone stand, a long sword, and a car axle that was verified by a metal detector wanded by Helena Bergström, and removed by judge Johanna Nordström.

At the end of his audition, Meyer pulled judge David Batra across the stage in a 2022 Mini Cooper weighing 3,144 lbs. He received four "Yes" votes and a standing ovation. In the judges’ deliberation, Meyer was given the Golden Buzzer by David Batra advancing Meyer directly to the Finals. Meyer’s audition was broadcast on Season 13 episode 2 on 20 January 2023 on TV4. [18]

On March 17, 2023 during the live finals of Talang , Meyer swallowed the blade of an antique Swedish Sparkstötting kick sleigh which was lowered from the ceiling and down his throat. He then swallowed a serpentine sword, a curved sword, and a large saw before the judges. Meyer finished his act by inviting David Batra onstage to whip a sword from his throat with a whip. Episode 13.10 was broadcast live on TV4 on 17 March 2023.

In June 2023, Meyer competed on Season 10 of Croatia's Supertalent at Nova TV in Zagreb, Croatia. In his audition, Meyer swallowed a long sword, a serpentine sword, a curved sword, and a large handsaw that Croatian popstar judge Maja Šuput pulled from his throat for a standing ovation. For the finale, Meyer had judge Fabijan Pavao Medvešek whip a sword from his throat with a whip. Croatia's Supertalent episode 10.1 aired on 24 September 2023 on Nova TV to an audience of 1.5 million viewers.

In June 2023, Meyer competed on Got Talent España Season 2023 at Teatro Nuevo Apolo in Madrid Spain. During his audition, Meyer swallowed a long sword, a curved sword, a serpentine sword, and a large handsaw that was removed by Spanish popstar Edurne. For his finale, Meyer had judge Risto Mejide whip a sword from his throat with a whip. Meyer received three Yes votes and two standing ovations for his audition, which aired on 14 October 2023 on Spanish TV Telecinco as Season 2023 episode 6. [19]

In October 2023, Meyer auditioned on Season 4 of Canada's Got Talent in Niagara Falls Ontario where before judges Howie Mandel, Lilly Singh, Kardinal Offishall, and Trish Stratus, he swallowed a microphone stand, a sword, a hedge clippers, a hand saw, a car axle, and had judge Howie Mandel whip a sword from his throat with a whip. Meyer received three "Yes" votes for his audition.

In December 2023, Meyer auditioned on Season 16 episode 3 of Germany's Das Supertalent in Cologne Germany where he swallowed a microphone stand, a sword, a hedge clippers, a hand saw, and had Boris Becker’s daughter judge Anna Ermakova pull a heavy car axle from his stomach. Meyer then pulled Russian dancer Ekaterina Leonova in a 1978 Triumph Spitfire Cabriolet convertible across the stage. The act received two "Yes" votes from the female judges and two "No" votes from the male judges Dieter Bohlen and Bruce Darnell. The episode was broadcast on 10 February 2024 on Das Supertalent Season 16 episode 3 on German RTL Television to an audience of 38 million TV viewers in Germany. [20]

Awards and honors

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sword swallowing</span> Performance skill

Sword swallowing is a skill in which the performer passes a sword through the mouth and down the esophagus to the stomach. This feat is not swallowing in the traditional sense. The natural processes that constitute swallowing do not take place, but are repressed to keep the passage from the mouth to the stomach open for the sword. The practice is dangerous and there is risk of injury or death.

America's Got Talent is a televised American talent show competition, and is part of the global Got Talent franchise created by Simon Cowell. The program is produced by Fremantle USA and Syco Entertainment, and broadcasts on the NBC television network. It premiered on June 21, 2006, after plans for a British edition in 2005 were suspended, following a dispute within the British broadcaster ITV. Production would later resume in 2007, following the success of the first season. Each season is mainly run during the network's summer schedule, and has featured various hosts over the course of the program's history. The current host is Terry Crews.

<i>Britains Got Talent</i> Televised British talent competition

Britain's Got Talent is a televised British talent show competition, and part of the global Got Talent franchise created by Simon Cowell. Presented by Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly, it is produced by both Thames and Syco Entertainment, distributed by Fremantle, and broadcast on ITV every year in late Spring to early Summer. The show was originally intended for production in 2005, but filming was suspended in the wake of a dispute between ITV and the programme's originally planned host. Following the success of America's Got Talent that year, production resumed and the programme eventually premiered on 9 June 2007.

Ryan Stock is a Canadian-based TV stunt man from Beaumont, Alberta who has a show on the Discovery Channel called "Guinea Pig". Stock and his fiancée Amber Lynn Walker travel around Canada and the United States and perform stunts involving electrical shocks, automobile crashes and intentional poisoning. The Guinea pig show is no longer in production but may still air in some countries.

Stephen Wright, better known by his stage name Stevie Starr, is a Scottish performance artist who focuses on professional regurgitation. In his act, he swallows various items, such as coins, lightbulbs, balloons, nails, billiard balls, dry sugar, lighter fluid and goldfish, and then regurgitates them. The implausibility of some of his performances, such as regurgitating a "solved" Rubik's cube, have resulted in some observers believing that he is an illusionist. Starr has a busy international touring schedule for his solo act.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Space Cowboy (performer)</span> Australian entertainer

Chayne Hultgren, known professionally as the Space Cowboy is a world record-holding sideshow, street, and freak show performer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kevin Skinner</span> American singer-songwriter

Patrick Kevin Skinner is an American country music singer from the Jackson Purchase region of Kentucky. He is the winner of the fourth season of America's Got Talent.

<i>SAs Got Talent</i> South African television show

SA's Got Talent (also known as South Africa's Got Talent or shorten to SAGT) was a South African television show that aired on e.tv and part of the Got Talent series. It was presented by Mo Mahlangu, popularly known as Tol Ass Mo. Singers, dancers, comedians, variety acts, and other performers competed against each other for audience support. The winner of each series received R500,000. The first series of the talent show began on 1 October 2009 and was broadcast weekly with a live semi-finals and final on 12 November 2009.

Das Supertalent is a German talent show, part of the internationally successful Got Talent franchise, presented by Victoria Swarovski and Knossi. Just like in all other versions of the franchise, auditions take place and the judges review their talent and then later the home audience votes in an election to deem who wins. The prize money is €50,000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Johnny Strange</span> English performer

Johnny Strange, nicknamed "the man with ears of steel", is an English world record breaking performance artist, producer, street performer and bestselling author based in London, England. He is known for performing daredevil stunts with a comedic twist.

Sarah Patricia Jones is a British salsa dancer, best known for winning the Spanish talent show Tú sí que vales alongside her dancing partner Nico in 2009. In 2014, Paddy and Nico competed in the eighth series of Britain's Got Talent, where they finished ninth overall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jack Vidgen</span> Australian singer and TV personality (born 1997)

Jack Vidgen is an Australian singer and television personality, best known for winning the fifth season of Australia's Got Talent as a teenager. He subsequently signed a recording contract with Sony Music Australia with his debut single, "Yes I Am", and studio album, of the same name, were released in August 2011. The album debuted at number three on the ARIA Albums Chart, and was certified gold. His second studio album, Inspire, was released in April 2012, reaching number 23 on the ARIA Albums Chart. In 2019 Vidgen took part in season 8 of Australian The Voice and was eliminated after the Semi-Finals. He also appeared on America's Got Talent: The Champions. Vidgen has also appeared on I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! in Australia.

Riley Schillaci is an American performance artist, specializing in sword swallowing as one of few professional female sword swallowers in the world.

Nigeria's Got Talent is a Nigerian reality talent show that is part of the Got Talent franchise. It was launched in 2012 on television stations like AIT and NTA, and sponsored by thriving telecommunication company Airtel.

Attraction are a Hungarian shadow theatre group. They rose to fame during a performance at the Hungary Olympic Oath Ceremony for the London 2012 Olympics, in which they did a rendition of many of the traditional sports within the five rings of the Olympic games logo. Less than a year later, they won the seventh series of Britain's Got Talent on 8 June 2013, beating Jack Carroll.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brad Byers</span> American entertainer

Brad Byers is an American entertainer known for his extreme performances, including sword swallowing, lying on beds of nails and inserting various tools into his nasal cavity. For the latter he is also referred to as a "Human toolbox". He holds several World Records. His brother Rod assists him in some performances.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mat Franco</span> American magician

Mat Franco is an American magician best known for his personality driven, skill-based sleight of hand magic. He gained fame as the first magician to win America's Got Talent, in the show’s ninth season. Franco went on to produce and star in his own primetime TV specials on NBC, Mat Franco’s Got Magic. In 2015 he created and debuted his live stage show in Las Vegas, Mat Franco - Magic Reinvented Nightly, and he is currently headlining at The LINQ Hotel + Experience at the Mat Franco Theater. In addition to winning "Best Magic Show" at the Best of Vegas Awards, Franco's live production was the top-rated magic show in Las Vegas according to Billboard.com in 2021. Mat Franco - Magic Reinvented Nightly was awarded Best Show on the Las Vegas Strip again in 2022.

<i>Pilipinas Got Talent</i> season 6 Season of television series

The sixth season of Pilipinas Got Talent is a talent reality competition that aired on ABS-CBN from January 6 to April 29, 2018, replacing Little Big Shots Philippines. It aired on Saturdays at 7:00 p.m. and Sundays at 7:30 p.m. (PST). In March 2020, the season temporarily returned to air on Sundays, filling the second half timeslot of The Voice Teens, due to the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon done in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines. However, the re-runs were abruptly cut after ABS-CBN was forced to indefinitely stop operations.

The second season of Asia's Got Talent (AGT) premiered on October 12, 2017 at 8:30 pm (UTC+8) across 27 countries in Asia. The winning act received a grand prize of US$100,000.

Kodi Taehyun Lee is an American singer-songwriter, pianist, and savant. At 22, he rose to fame on the 14th season of America's Got Talent.

References

  1. ↑ "World Sword Swallowing Day Celebrated: Ripley's Believe It or Not! Features 22 Performers Swallowing 138 Feet of Solid Steel | Ripleys Newsroom". Ripleysnewsroom.com. 2010-03-03. Retrieved 2012-08-02.
  2. ↑ "Will Season 4 Of 'American Horror Story' Have Sword Swallowing? Pro Dan Meyer Says Stunt Is Too Dangerous, Even For 'Freak Show'". ibtimes. 7 April 2014.
  3. ↑ "Ripley's Believe It or Not celebrates 10th annual World Sword Swallowers Day". attractionsmagazine.com. 30 January 2017.
  4. ↑ "'Hot Winter' thrills; Sword Swallowers". bransontrilakesnews.com.
  5. ↑ "AGT: Sword Swallower Dan Meyer Helped By World's Shortest Man (22")". 2paragraphs.
  6. ↑ "Overeating at the Super Bowl Is Bad, World's Least Surprising Study Finds". gizmodo.com. 3 February 2017.
  7. ↑ "5 Penetrating Facts About Sword Swallowing". time.com. 28 February 2015.
  8. ↑ "Dan Meyer Swallows Sword While Pulling Car At Ripley's Baltimore On Sword Swallowers Day 2013". huffingtonpost.com. 24 February 2013.
  9. ↑ "Oral Hygiene Habits of the Interesting: America's Got Talent Sword Swallower Dan Meyer". huffingtonpost.com. 13 September 2012.
  10. ↑ "Juryn i total panik när svärdslukaren Dan tar över scenen".
  11. ↑ "Cutting through fear: Dan Meyer at TEDxMaastricht".
  12. ↑ "America's Got Talent 2008 - Dan Meyer Swallowing Swords". YouTube .
  13. ↑ "America's Got Talent 2016 Auditions - Dan Meyer Sword Swallower Pulls Car With Only His Mouth". YouTube .
  14. ↑ Witty TV. Retrieved April 21, 2023.
  15. ↑ "Dan Meyer - France's Got Talent 2017". YouTube .
  16. ↑ "פסיכי לגמרי: הנאמבר המלא של דן מאייר שבולע חרבות". YouTube .
  17. ↑ "65-year-old Swallows A Sword... THEN Pulls A Car With His Mouth! Australia's Got Talent 2022". YouTube .
  18. ↑ Talang 2023: Se Johanna Nordström få panik Aftonbladet. Retrieved January 21, 2023.
  19. ↑ Spain's Got Talent: This sword swallower manages to get down... a saw! | Audition 6 | Spain's Got Talent 2023. Retrieved November 6, 2023.
  20. ↑ "Dan schluckt… ein Auto?". YouTube .
  21. ↑ "Ripley's Believe It or Not! Sword swallowing with sharks". YouTube .
  22. ↑ Witcombe, Brian and Meyer, Dan. ' 'Sword swallowing and its side effects.' ' British Medical Journal. 23 Dec. 2006. Retrieved 16 Sept. 2009
  23. ↑ "The 2007 Ig Nobel Prize Winners".
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.