Uri
Geller
Uri Geller (born December 20, 1946 in Tel Aviv, Israel)
is a famous, controversial self-described psychic
and television personality. Originally an Israeli
nightclub performer [1], Geller rose to fame after
a series of televised paranormal performances of telekinesis,
dowsing and mind-reading. In his act he bent spoons,
claiming it was done through will power; and made
watches stop or run faster, seemingly with the strength
of his mind. Geller has numerous critics, especially
in the scientific community, who claim he is a charlatan
and a con-man.
Born to Hungarian and Austrian parents, Geller was
named after a cousin who had been killed in a bus
accident. According to Geller, he first became aware
of his paranormal abilities when he was four. He relates
that he was in the garden of an Arab family's house
when a light from the sky knocked him to the grass.
Shortly thereafter he was having soup during a meal
when his spoon bent and broke.
He lived in Cyprus from age 11 to 17. He claims to
have served as a paratrooper in the Israeli Army,
and was reportedly wounded in action during the 1967
Six-Day War. He worked as a photographic model in
1968 and 1969, the same year he began to perform for
small audiences as a nightclub entertainer[citation
needed], becoming well-known in Israel.
Geller was brought to the United States in the early
1970s, where he captured the attention of scientists
and the media. At the peak of his career in the 1970s
he worked full-time, performing for television audiences
worldwide. Geller semi-retired from public life in
the 1980s, although returned to the screens for the
current affairs show Uri Nation in the early nineties
on satellite TV. He has said he is concentrating on
enjoying wealth accumulated by dowsing, although this
has not been verified; Geller maintains that companies
who use his services to find commodities such as oil,
gold and minerals are reluctant to admit it. In recent
years he has performed demonstrations such as spoon-bending
much less frequently in public [citation needed].
Geller has written sixteen fiction and nonfiction
books.
He now lives in Sonning-on-Thames, Berkshire, England,
on an estate on the bank of the River Thames. He makes
various personal appearances, is involved with art
and design projects, and contributes articles to newspapers,
magazines, and an Internet web column. In 2002, he
became honorary co-chairman of the English Nationwide
Conference football club Exeter City, which was relegated
to the Nationwide Conference in May 2003. He has since
severed formal ties with the club. He is a vegan and
speaks four languages, English, Hebrew, Hungarian
and German.
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