tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15734132365629938632024-03-12T17:29:46.943-07:00The World of Mr. EscapeSteve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.comBlogger43125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1573413236562993863.post-77631085299887217292017-09-18T21:54:00.004-07:002017-09-18T21:54:48.839-07:00Steve Baker, Mr. Escape Has Made His Final Escape<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Steve Baker, known professionally as Mr. Escape, departed this world at 11:11pm on Saturday September 16th, 2017. He was 79 years old.<br />
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Steve had been suffering ill health for many years and was taken care of by his loving wife Julie and the frequent nurses that would stop in to assist her.<br />
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If you'd like to learn more about Steve, you can review the various articles on this site to learn more about him.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i><b>RIP Mr. Escape</b></i></span></div>
Steve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1573413236562993863.post-75685290370351317152015-02-02T14:41:00.002-08:002015-02-02T14:41:40.158-08:00Two of Mr. Escapes Proteges Meet Up!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Steve Baker, Mr. Escape has had three different proteges over the years. The most recent were Dean Carnegie and Andrew Basso. Any guesses who the third was? Today, Andrew is touring with the highly successful show The Illusionists. They had a great run on Broadway and are now touring across the United States. Dean Carnegie is hoping to revive his escape career shortly after a number of health related issues put him on the sidelines.<br />
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Andrew and Dean met up at the Kennedy Center in January. Andrew was performing in The Illusionists to rave reviews. He presents an Upside Down Straight Jacket Escape in the show and he also closes the first half of the show with a remarkable full view Water Torture Cell Escape.Steve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1573413236562993863.post-14926424910856281522014-05-14T10:18:00.001-07:002014-05-14T10:18:25.062-07:00Steve Baker Birthday Surprise for July!<br />
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Steve Baker is now a retired escape artist. Numerous health issues over the past few years have put an end to his career in escapes. He and his wife Julie enjoy a quiet retirement in a small mid-western town. Steve was interviewed by some local news organizations a year or so ago, and with any luck, I'll get those posted on the site sometime soon.<br />
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We'd like to do something special for Steve this year by celebrating his birthday. Because the Baker's are very private people, I'll include a P.O. Box for you to send cards and letters to. All the cards and letters will then be shipped unopened out to Steve in time for his birthday this year. His birthday is at the end of July, so we'd like to start collecting cards/letters now. The deadline for this is going to be July 18th, 2014. That will give me time to ship the stuff off for Steve to get on or slightly before his birthday.<br />
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Steve no longer has e-mail or access to the internet, so any notes you might post won't be seen and e-mails you may have sent him in the last 7 years have not been read because he has no computer to view them.<br />
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You can send cards to:<br />
Steve Baker Birthday<br />
c/o Dean Carnegie/DAC Productions<br />
P.O. Box 359<br />
Centreville, VA 20122<br />
<br />Steve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1573413236562993863.post-64730725822584931592013-04-10T20:35:00.002-07:002013-04-10T20:36:58.854-07:00Steve Baker and His Storage Retrieval Crew<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKw9W2LGiIOoT3eK5n0q3PA8QcPP_MVPtbKf2aIKh-mqKdCwa1JIh3F3JrRMTVbH8p_lTva5998FE_gGwIRf9ffYa0Jj0DFBBe8ywj9NG53Oq7BCp9cQx6FJeOX5ta_htXEh9Zv8o4oKpJ/s1600/DEW_0092.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKw9W2LGiIOoT3eK5n0q3PA8QcPP_MVPtbKf2aIKh-mqKdCwa1JIh3F3JrRMTVbH8p_lTva5998FE_gGwIRf9ffYa0Jj0DFBBe8ywj9NG53Oq7BCp9cQx6FJeOX5ta_htXEh9Zv8o4oKpJ/s1600/DEW_0092.jpg" height="640" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; line-height: 14px;"> Julie Baker, Steve Baker, Dorothy Clanton, Penny Harbert and Theresa Greenwood</span></td></tr>
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Here is one more photo of Steve Baker with the ladies who went out of their way to get Steve's belongings back from California and drove them in a Uhaul to Illinois. The leader and chief cheerleader and organizer of all the publicity and also one of the two who flew to California, helped load and drive it back is the blonde standing behind Steve, Theresa Greenwood.Steve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1573413236562993863.post-9087247404931879472012-10-09T10:56:00.000-07:002012-10-09T10:56:46.826-07:00The Saga is Concluded<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Well folks, what began a few months ago as a desire to help some friends in need, has now been concluded. The U-Haul truck with the entire contents of Steve Baker's California Storage Unit has been unloaded at Julie Baker's home. AND, the wonderful volunteers who went out of their way to make this happen; Ella Jean Kuhar, Dorothy Clanton, Penny Harbert and Theresa Greenwood were able to hand deliver Steve's career clipping book to him (see photo above).<br />
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Leading the charge on this effort was Theresa Greenwood, who without a public relations background, was able to get the word out to the media and help orchestrate some wonderful news exposure for Steve and Julie. Along the way, the Central Illinois Film Commission read the story and awarded Steve a Lifetime Membership Award to their organization.<br />
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We want to extend our <b>heartfelt thanks</b> to everyone involved for their <b>hard work and selfless dedication</b> to this cause, without these wonderful volunteers none of this would have happened.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMrR2Z8RcVTfN52Bg_dcFh6r5eibkNwbsSUYolLrS0FDIHWBkHKPSucxOPwWHwzE90ruhnlcP-lb6YPdnUpUBW2E2SUf_iI0J6FHOOaYg2c76IpqBwIkg-drNODn4LadGEhcatJYiGnKj5/s1600/DSC00394.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="386" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMrR2Z8RcVTfN52Bg_dcFh6r5eibkNwbsSUYolLrS0FDIHWBkHKPSucxOPwWHwzE90ruhnlcP-lb6YPdnUpUBW2E2SUf_iI0J6FHOOaYg2c76IpqBwIkg-drNODn4LadGEhcatJYiGnKj5/s640/DSC00394.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Left to right: Ella Jean Kuhar, Dorothy Clanton, Penny Harbert and Theresa Greenwood in back.</td></tr>
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<br />Steve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1573413236562993863.post-66857461494185403982012-10-06T14:20:00.000-07:002012-10-06T14:20:50.640-07:00End of an Era, sort ofWell folks, Steve Baker's storage unit is no more, it's all been loaded into a UHaul truck and is currently in Arizona, on it's way to it's final destination at Steve and Julie's house. Below is a photo of the UHaul when they started. <br />
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Next photo is the completed job. There was literally no extra space in the vehicle, they used every available space.<br />
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This final photo is of Russell (purple shirt) Theresa (orange shirt) and another Russell (white shirt) as they were getting the last few items loaded.<br />
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<br />Steve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1573413236562993863.post-15665795485184487822012-09-15T10:26:00.001-07:002012-09-15T10:26:44.269-07:00Fundraising Update<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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As of right now, it looks like Steve's storage unit in California will be cleaned out in early October and brought back to his home in Illinois. The fundraising effort has been slow, though we are all grateful for everyone who contributed. We understand that times are tough for everyone.<br />
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They are a little behind the original schedule due to a lack of funds and the bad storms that came through several weeks ago that caused some damage to Steve and Julie's home. They've not quite raised enough money to cover all the expenses but the fundraising group is going through with the trip regardless!<br />
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We will keep you informed as the date approaches!Steve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1573413236562993863.post-49637743584507787832012-08-30T13:20:00.003-07:002012-08-30T13:20:59.832-07:00Mr.Escape Receives Award<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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On August 16th, 2012, Steve Baker received the first ever Lifetime Membership Award from the Central Illinois Film Commission. A video showing a number of Steve's famous escapes was played during a banquet in his honor. Enjoy the photos and we hope to have a video from the nights festivities shortly!<br />
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<br />Steve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1573413236562993863.post-34174741307128805112012-08-13T07:16:00.000-07:002012-08-13T07:16:05.335-07:00Steve Baker Fundraising InformationIf you have any questions in regard to the fundraising effort for Steve Baker, please contact<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Theresa Greenwood @ 217-710-8470</span></div>
Steve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1573413236562993863.post-12178274340958918802012-08-05T14:02:00.000-07:002012-08-05T14:02:02.858-07:00Steve in State Journal Register NewspaperSteve continues to make news. Check out this article and video.<br />
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<a href="http://www.sj-r.com/carousel/x417563842/Great-escape-Magician-wife-want-to-free-memorabilia?img=1">http://www.sj-r.com/carousel/x417563842/Great-escape-Magician-wife-want-to-free-memorabilia?img=1 </a><br />
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<embed allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" flashvars="file=http://www.sj-r.com/archive/x1489223637/Steve-Mr-Escape-Baker/normalflv.flv&image=http://d2om8tvz4lgco4.cloudfront.net/archive/x1489223635/g1400000000000000007d5916678867f18dd3a53120dd70a24b1cdfea3b.jpg&plugins=gapro-1&gapro.accountid=" height="350" src="http://il-springfield.static.ghm.zope.net/resources/deep_dish/flash/flv_player.swf" width="425"></embed>Steve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1573413236562993863.post-68120539387498805002012-07-25T14:44:00.003-07:002012-07-25T14:44:50.304-07:00Steve Baker on the RadioSteve Baker and his wife Julie and Theresa Greenwood appeared on the radio station WSMI today. Mr.Escape talks a little about his career and about the effort to raise money to bring back his memorabilia that remains in a storage unit in California. You can listen to the podcast below.<br />
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<a href="http://wsmiradio.com/wire_new/podcasts-specials/2012/01476_Mr_Escape_Special_121500.php">http://wsmiradio.com/wire_new/podcasts-specials/2012/01476_Mr_Escape_Special_121500.php</a>Steve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1573413236562993863.post-79030590801235858842012-07-20T19:43:00.000-07:002012-07-22T15:59:53.343-07:00Mr.Escape In the NEWSIf you follow this blog, you know Steve Baker has been having some difficult health issues this year. One of the consequences of these problems is having to go through months of rehabilitation in a Nursing/Rehab Center. He is also apart from Julie his wife of 41 years. They do speak daily and she does see Steve often, but it's a strain on everyone involved.<br />
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Another consequence of his health issues is the fact that his storage unit in California could go into default soon. If that were to happen, he could loose the remainder of his many career mementos, along with a great deal of personal items that are in storage and some escape equipment.<br />
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An effort is now underway to help bring this stuff back home to Steve and Julie. It would remove the burden of another monthly bill and also preserve the artifacts left over from an exciting career. Below is the first of many articles that will be coming in the news few days! (or click the link to read the article on the <a href="http://www.thejournal-news.net/news/funds-needed-to-preserve-escape-artist-s-memorabilia/article_99f13f04-d280-11e1-a4ca-0019bb2963f4.html">Journal News Website</a>)<br />
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<br />Steve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1573413236562993863.post-42342469015534850462012-07-16T16:21:00.001-07:002012-07-16T16:21:14.180-07:00NEWS On Steve Baker Coming Soon...Steve has had a rough run over the past few months. He was out of the Rehab Ctr in early June only to be taken back after a bad fall. He is still there and working hard to recover. Nurses and Doctors are amazed at his progress, but he still has a long way to go.<br />
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There will be another announcement shortly...Steve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1573413236562993863.post-59409311898710091502012-04-19T14:20:00.000-07:002015-09-16T10:01:52.287-07:00Steve Baker Health Concerns<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb0GzQAn9tX0X3ZYbHqjwsyLytAcJRdLYCG8DA2S0397bGDWNYxb0lNP6dKTQWFBMg95cpXTWixdSEd_xQcKqm7eFE23COW3buLfJw6DRcZQQ7QOrb432gqTQsWGY2GuTBSGHG8p7Kx_ip/s1600/baker2007.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb0GzQAn9tX0X3ZYbHqjwsyLytAcJRdLYCG8DA2S0397bGDWNYxb0lNP6dKTQWFBMg95cpXTWixdSEd_xQcKqm7eFE23COW3buLfJw6DRcZQQ7QOrb432gqTQsWGY2GuTBSGHG8p7Kx_ip/s1600/baker2007.jpg" /></a></div>
Dear Friends of Mr. Escape/Steve Baker:<br />
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I just learned from Julie Baker, Steve's wife of 41 years, that Steve had to be put into a Nursing/Rehabilitation Center. He had recently been hospitalized with pneumonia and suffered a stroke shortly after returning home. He was put into a Nursing Home in the hopes that he could go through rehab to build up his strength enough to return home. It's a difficult situation and your prayers and good thoughts are surely appreciated.<br />
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If you'd like to send a card or letter you can reach Steve at the address below. He does NOT have internet access or email access and has not had any in about 2 years so if your emails have gone unanswered, that is the reason. Please keep the contact to cards/letters. Steve does not have a phone in his room and getting to a phone is not easy for him at the moment.<br />
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<strike><b>Montgomery Nursing & Rehabilitation Center</b></strike></div>
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<strike><b>attn: Steve Baker, Patient</b></strike></div>
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<strike><b>South Route 127</b></strike></div>
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<strike><b>P.O. Box 309</b></strike></div>
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<strike><b>Hillsboro, IL 62049</b></strike></div>
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If you have any other questions, please feel free to contact me and I'll do my best to pass them along or get them answered.<br />
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Steve eventually returned home with his wife Julie. His health is still in decline sadly. <br />
<br />
Dean Carnegie<br />
carnegiemagic@aol.comSteve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1573413236562993863.post-36190195359258960732011-03-27T17:54:00.000-07:002011-03-27T17:54:57.226-07:00Happy Birthday Mr. Houdini<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA0ZEeAjMWC3fZTKHNWVG9IBM5yfgIt1aslKvBye2r6BatfnVmFNrW7qAUXwi6aBFaj9tujak94_dcqO4t1HnLJr_8BXZjCP-TbxrKdAzEErDlBsa7taxYdwTQF27GhJRUxVHQnkkkYD2x/s1600/hhhh.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA0ZEeAjMWC3fZTKHNWVG9IBM5yfgIt1aslKvBye2r6BatfnVmFNrW7qAUXwi6aBFaj9tujak94_dcqO4t1HnLJr_8BXZjCP-TbxrKdAzEErDlBsa7taxYdwTQF27GhJRUxVHQnkkkYD2x/s400/hhhh.jpg" width="183" /></a></div><br />
A few days late, so it's Happy Belated Birthday Mr. Houdini. Born Erich Weiss, he would go on to become Harry 'Handcuff' Houdini and possibly the first big celebrity in America. His fame has certainly outlasted most from his time period.<br />
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I built my early career as 'The Man Who Outdid Houdini' and tried to duplicate many of his famous escapes and add my own twists to them. My most famous indoor escape was the Water Torture Cell, a creation of Houdinis. I put that escape back on the map! One day soon I'll share with my readers how the Water Torture Cell helped to propel my career by leaps and bounds.Steve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1573413236562993863.post-62356517855002029622011-03-18T08:00:00.000-07:002011-03-27T17:48:39.953-07:00The Irony of Escape<div align="center"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>The Irony of Escape </b></span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">During my career I have introduced some rather spectacular escapes. The Coffin of Death and Death Race were two exciting escapes that featured a high element of danger. </span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">The Coffin of Death was a wooden crate that I was placed into after being handcuffed to the inside. My legs were also shackled to the inside of the crate. The lid was then nailed on and the entire thing was wrapped and tied with heavy rope. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><a name='more'></a>A paper-covered box with a target on the front was placed over the wooden 'coffin'. Off in the distance was a truck that would come barreling towards the coffin at a high rate of speed. It would take 10 seconds for the truck to reach the coffin. If I were not out in time, the truck would slam into the coffin demolishing everything. I had the good fortune to present this on Dick Clark's Live Wednesday TV program and at the Houston Astro-Dome. In addition I did it countless of times LIVE at other events. I always escaped. </span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">The Death Race used the same plot of a speeding vehicle, but this time I was strapped to the outside of another car. I would present the entire thing out in the open in full view, no covering of any kind. The car would take 10 seconds to reach me. I had to get both my hands and feet free before the oncoming vehicle would crush me. This particular escape often compelled viewers to say, "that guy is just plain crazy!" </span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">On the TV Show, Games People Play, the producer thought an accident occurred. As I dove out of the way of the speeding car, my boot, which was hanging from my foot, caught the bumper of the car. It appeared that my whole foot had been ripped off. In reality it was only my boot. The producer was scared senseless that a terrible accident had happened right before his eyes. To his great relief, I was fine. I always escaped. </span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">These type of hair raising, death defying escape stunts were my trademark. Whether standing before an oncoming vehicle, or strapped to the tracks of a high-speed roller coaster, I always escaped. No taped, edited escapes for me, I did my escapes live and usually left people's hearts pounding out of their chests. That's what I did for a living. For more than thirty years I put my life on the line and succeeded. Now for the irony...</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">On April 1st, 1997 (April Fools Day) I was going through a crosswalk at the grocery store near my home. It was dark and not well lit. As I stepped forward I thought I saw some motion, so instinctively, I planted my right foot and leaned back*. At that very moment, a 1984 Buick, driven not by a stunt driver, but by a 72 year old man, drove over my right foot crushing all the bones. The speed of the car caused my body to twist and the bumper caught my left leg breaking it at the knee.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"> As it turned out, the 72-year-old driver had borrowed his ex-wife's car. He was driving on a suspended license and had no insurance. Throughout my career I stood before speeding objects and escaped at the last second. On April Fools Day 1997, a car only going 30 miles an hour took me down. How is that for irony! </span></div><div align="left"><br />
</div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">*I was about to take a step forward, but instead I planted my foot firmly in place. If I had not done that I would have been hit dead-on by the Buick and probably wouldn't be writing this article today. </span></div>Steve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1573413236562993863.post-9918360351731144882011-03-15T19:05:00.000-07:002011-03-15T19:32:21.667-07:00Article about Mr. Escape<blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><div align="left" class="style76"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Man Who Became Mr. Escape.</span></b></div><div align="left" class="style44"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">by Nick Lewin </span></b></div></blockquote></blockquote><div align="left" class="style96">Back in the late seventies I made a fateful trip Calgary in Canada to film a television show. Along with me on the trip were two men who became very good friends. The pair of wizards whom I met for the first time in Calgary's frosty environment were Piet Paulo and Steve Baker.</div><div align="left" class="style96">While Piet and I have remained close friends to this day I lost track of Steve sometime in the early nineties. It was with delight that I read in Magic New Zealand recently that Steve 'Mr. Escape' Baker was coming out of retirement at a future event.</div><a name='more'></a></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><div align="left" class="style96">Less than a week later I watched an episode of Criss Angel's Mindfreak and there was Baker in person watching as Criss attempted one of Steve's signature escapes. Angel had been inspired by 'Mr. Escape' in the eighties and paid tribute in the perfect way, by risking his life in a truly death defying stunt. It was great seeing Steve again and watching as his influence was acknowledged by the always-generous 'Mindfreaker' himself.</div><div align="left" class="style96">When I first met Steve he wasn't yet 'Mr. Escape' and escapology was just one element of his magical repertoire and audiences had a chance to enjoy his superb comedy magic and other skills. The first time I saw Steve escape from anything tougher than the Calgary cold was in Hollywood. I received a call from Steve who asked if I would assist him while he performed a challenge escape at an event that celebrated Billy Eckstein's star being added to the Hollywood Sidewalk of Fame. Steve had the tough job in<br />
actually having to make the escape while all I had to do was work the microphone, describe what was going on and build theexcitement, What I hadn't expected was that I would be working that microphone for nearly an hour. When Steve worked a crowd<br />
over he took no prisoners and the audience was on the edge of their seats right up until the standing ovation that greeted his eventual escape. A lesser performer might have made their escape faster but not Steve, who is a showman through and through. As<br />
for me, I have never been short of words and I enjoyed every minute of it.</div><div align="left" class="style96">A warm friendship quickly developed between Steve and me; we lived in the San Fernando Valley and together with our wives Susan and Julie we shared the up's and down's of our careers. I guess the downside was the fact that we had very little spare<br />
cash but that didn't stop us from having fun. We knew every good happy hour in the Valley and where the best free appetizers were! I remember once leaving for a cruise gig and I had so little money I really didn't know how we could make it until payday.<br />
Steve drove with us to the Port of San Pedro to wish us 'Bon Voyage' but it wasn't until later that night I realized that Steve had secretly tucked a fifty-dollar bill into my pocket. It<br />
was a lifesaver! A typically generous act executed in a manner that didn't even allow room for thanks and believe me fifty bucks was a small fortune to us in those days.</div><div align="left" class="style96">I watched with fascination (and certain misgivings) as Steve became 'Mr. Escape' and faced ever escalating dangers in the escapes he performed live and on a series of television specials.</div><div align="left" class="style96">When I saw Steve again on 'Mindfreak' a ton of memories flooded back and I was very delighted that Criss took the time and trouble to reintroduce 'Mr. Escape' to the public. If someone out there can let me know Steve's current whereabouts maybe we can<br />
get together again and find a 'two for one 'Margaritas' somewhere and catch up with each other.</div><blockquote><div align="center" class="style59"><span class="style44">(originally appeared in Magic New Zealand www.watson.co.nz/ezine.html reprinted with permission of author)</span></div></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6qimCbaLCaG5zqx_ifJtuBY8C3ctS7pqGifURqT0oaegbTvouQOhgMsAWB5aYyN2wubt3Ui0mbYIEJAQPfBD8Jcv2BLr5d_w7PouWUIiekrk6pQFPOAhSIB39xgDUS7TIT7qDLaylwkVj/s1600/nickyello2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6qimCbaLCaG5zqx_ifJtuBY8C3ctS7pqGifURqT0oaegbTvouQOhgMsAWB5aYyN2wubt3Ui0mbYIEJAQPfBD8Jcv2BLr5d_w7PouWUIiekrk6pQFPOAhSIB39xgDUS7TIT7qDLaylwkVj/s400/nickyello2.jpg" width="288" /></a></div><br />
<blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><div align="center" class="style59"><span class="style44"> </span></div></blockquote></blockquote><div align="center" class="style59"><b><i></i></b></div><div align="center" class="style59"><strong><em>To find out more about the author visit <a href="http://www.nicklewin.com/">www.nicklewin.com</a> </em></strong></div></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><blockquote></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote>Steve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1573413236562993863.post-6435530355594209632011-03-14T18:55:00.000-07:002011-03-14T18:56:16.519-07:00The Coffin of Death<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrb3WOvTXeWFH9FwxSvmi4WCOXKltfr4Ua0hdcsdAwro-_XSXlw1b6mOLVQTMZll17TPkhQp4zq8L13d1kfNnu0ahlpy87tvUaJx33I0LMLKLqjRTC0nfXzIlOA0dtVKxRnN-HYk37x1To/s1600/b4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrb3WOvTXeWFH9FwxSvmi4WCOXKltfr4Ua0hdcsdAwro-_XSXlw1b6mOLVQTMZll17TPkhQp4zq8L13d1kfNnu0ahlpy87tvUaJx33I0LMLKLqjRTC0nfXzIlOA0dtVKxRnN-HYk37x1To/s1600/b4.jpg" /></a></div><br />
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<div align="center"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">History of the Coffin of Death</span></b></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Friday the Thirteenth conjures up all sorts of images in ones mind. Bad luck and superstitions are the cornerstones of the day. What better time to present the "Thrill Show & Destruction Derby" at the Houston Astrodome? On January 13-14, 1978 that is exactly what took place. On the bill, was a performer who had appeared on TV numerous times and was building his reputation as the most exciting escape artist around, Steve Baker. </span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Steve was going to attempt to break the world record for the fastest hanging straight jacket escape, previously set by Jimmy Dixon. For this stunt, Baker would hang twenty-two stories above the audience. It would take more than seven minutes just to raise him to the starting position. As was his custom, Steve held a handkerchief firmly in his mouth, which he dropped the moment his escape attempt began.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><a name='more'></a> </span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Imagine that, hanging upside down, by your ankles, tightly strapped in a straight jacket , as it takes seven full minutes to get you to the proper height before you can even start the escape. On this Friday the thirteenth, forty seven thousand people were in attendance at the Astrodome. That was more than double the amount that witnessed Steve Baker escape from a straightjacket in Oakland at the Tribune Tower Building eleven years earlier. </span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Steve gave the starting signal by dropping the handkerchief in his mouth. Immediately, his body began to thrash and jerk in mid-air. The audience below him eagerly watched as the seconds ticked by. Steve Baker really milked his performance. Forty Four seconds later he was free of the jacket and the audience cheered in approval. </span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">A trademark move that Steve created for his hanging straightjacket escape, is to reach up to untie his feet, turn himself around vertically in mid-air and place his foot in the loop he was hung with so that as he is lowered he can wave to the crowd below him. This is exactly what he set out to do when his hand slipped on the rope and Steve fell twenty feet backwards. An audible gasp by forty seven thousand people sucked the air out of the Houston Astrodome. But before he became roadkill on the floor of the Astrodome, he caught himself with one hand. He hung by one hand for seven long minutes as they lowered him to the ground. You could hear a pin drop. Not one person spoke a word as Steve descended. The moment he touched down, the audience went wild! </span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Steve did not break the world record that night, nor was it his intention. His plan was to create such a sensation with the hanging escape that people would come back on Saturday, and then he would attempt to break the world speed record for escaping from a hanging straight jacket. </span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Steve had thrown his shoulder out of joint and headed to the hospital after acknowledging the wonderful applause from the enormous crowd. The healthcare professionals in Houston tended to Steve's dislocated shoulder. They taped up his shoulder and his wrist that was badly chaffed by the rope he had been hanging from for so long. Once he was all taped up, he was released. As Steve was exiting the hospital, Chuck Strange one of the Thrill Shows Stunt Drivers was coming in. Chuck it seems had almost been killed trying to make a very dangerous car jump. </span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">When Baker got back to the Astrodome he spoke with the events coordinators and offered to fill in for Chuck. He wanted whatever money they were going to pay him to go to Chuck Strange's medical bills. It turned out the Chuck had no medical insurance. The event producers accepted Steve's offer and he immediately went into action to create a new stunt for the January 14th show. </span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">In his notes, Steve Baker had drawn out an idea that revolved around being handcuffed and locked into a packing case. Off in the distance a vintage Cadillac would come barreling towards the packing case and Steve would have only a matter of seconds by which to free himself before getting smashed to smithereens. This is the stunt he decided to do the next day and construction of the packing case began. </span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">While Baker was in preparation for the new stunt, word got around about the jump accident the night before and the willingness of Steve Baker to fill in and donate the money to help the injured stunt driver. The media swarmed all over Steve and that night they completely sold out the Astrodome to standing room only. Fifty five thousand people came out to watch the show. </span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">The debut performance of the 'Coffin of Death' was at hand. Steve had rehearsed the new stunt with one of the show's drivers during the day. He told the driver, "no matter what you think, you drive towards the packing case as fast as you can. DON'T slow down, no matter what." </span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Steve Baker, also known as Mr. Escape was now handcuffed and nailed into this rectangular wooden packing crate. Chains and locks were wrapped around the crate as well. A cover made up of a wooden framework and paper was placed over the crate. Off in the distance the driver in the Cadillac sat patiently awaiting the signal. A checkered flag was waved and the driver punched the accelerator. The car sped towards the packing box containing Mr. Escape. Steve burst out from the paper cover and got about ten feet away from the box before the Cadillac smashed everything to bits. An exciting escape and the audience loved it. But that was only the start of things. </span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Now it was time for the finale, the attempt to break the world's record by being the fastest person to escape from a straightjacket while suspended in the air. Steve was more than ready. The straightjacket was a borrowed Posey jacket and put on by two of Houston's police officials. Like the night before, it took 7 minutes to raise Steve into position. </span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Once Steve was in position, he mentally prepared himself. A moment later the scarf dropped from his mouth and with blinding speed he gave that jacket the fight of its life. BAAM! Sixteen point two seconds later he was free. January 14th 1978, he beat Jimmy Dixon's record of 19.9 by several seconds. Sadly the Guinness Record people wouldn't allow the record on a technicality. </span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">It should be noted that Guinness didn't recognize his Tribune Tower Escape either. On that day he did set the real record for fastest escape from a borrowed straight jacket while suspended, his time that day in 1967, six seconds*! </span></div><div align="left"><br />
</div><blockquote><blockquote><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Yeah, so that's the official story. But let me tell you something you might not have gathered from reading that. First, I started building the coffin/ crate on January 13th and it took me all night long. I had about an hours sleep before I had to perform. Also, I was not happy with the escape at all. I told the driver to not slow down, no matter what, and you know what? He SLOWED DOWN. He told me because he couldn't see me; he let off the gas a little. I wanted to jump free from the crate not 8 seconds before impact, but only a fraction of a second before impact. In my mind, the stunt just didn't go right. But hey, that was only the first time. </span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">A couple months later, the Coffin of Death made its network television appearance on the Dick Clark Live TV show. All of my stunt drivers were out on a movie, so I hired Geoffrey Brown, a well-known stunt man in Hollywood to be my stunt driver. If you saw the footage from my DVD you know how that stunt played. Again, the driver didn't hit the packing case with the kind of speed I wanted, so it appeared I jumped a few seconds early. </span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Funny side note on the Dick Clark performance. Geoffrey Brown had rented that truck and mounted the battering ram to the front of it just before the show. The impact of hitting the crate smashed in the whole front of the truck, and Geoffrey removed the battering ram and returned the rented truck without mentioning the damage! </span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">The third time I presented the Coffin of Death would be on TV's Games People Play and this time I pulled out all the stops. I added explosives and made the box look like a coffin. That version played exactly as planned and after that time I was fortunate enough to present the Coffin of Death another twenty five times. The most spectacular version was presented at dusk in Japan for a TV special. </span></i><br />
<i><b>STEVE</b></i></blockquote></blockquote>Steve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1573413236562993863.post-8341305022591490342011-03-11T10:27:00.000-08:002020-03-23T19:59:54.310-07:00Ready or Not<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Norman Bigelow strapped in one of my Challenge Belts. My wife Julie took this photo. You'll see he has the neck color on. His hands are strapped down but he also has a pair of handcuffs on which are hard to see in the photo. We thought we were ready to go when the film crew made us wait. This set me off and I let my temper flare in front of everyone. It was not one of my better moments. I am a professional, as is Norman, you can't tell us Ready, Set, Stop! We didn't have to wait very long.Steve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1573413236562993863.post-67694067465024548362011-03-10T00:00:00.000-08:002011-03-10T00:00:04.633-08:00From My Press Kit<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0wvtpkNQYjTAhCjCJIq-IcNBmtmh8QKdVbCpJnLzZ2V5Ri8UfBgjDQHNPyCFoupPj0zttHAocQXKLAyWP-RaViRReNecD4wTlepWsCdL2IuIOBGCjt-5K4cTWpYZ9PIY_eUJMARziBCiI/s1600/collage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0wvtpkNQYjTAhCjCJIq-IcNBmtmh8QKdVbCpJnLzZ2V5Ri8UfBgjDQHNPyCFoupPj0zttHAocQXKLAyWP-RaViRReNecD4wTlepWsCdL2IuIOBGCjt-5K4cTWpYZ9PIY_eUJMARziBCiI/s640/collage.jpg" width="523" /></a></div>Steve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1573413236562993863.post-76041719033286469452011-03-09T00:00:00.000-08:002011-03-09T00:00:07.596-08:00Hollywood Baker<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipiPHMkODc7RIJ8TPCt02eHCgMMNuXxWWl1s5FH4Rqs89_Ff0lmaYVYl5m8Z5Z4TlygwaiXGyrk-g5SYmSJ330YsisANQ7i8IN8thmRYx3-c1Oa_3TJZCn4vsat9UEk1-AKwVwPb8fuESf/s1600/A70-2115.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipiPHMkODc7RIJ8TPCt02eHCgMMNuXxWWl1s5FH4Rqs89_Ff0lmaYVYl5m8Z5Z4TlygwaiXGyrk-g5SYmSJ330YsisANQ7i8IN8thmRYx3-c1Oa_3TJZCn4vsat9UEk1-AKwVwPb8fuESf/s400/A70-2115.jpg" width="262" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGma-Or4VWJot6VMsCbLbvVqQjz8rWzWXwf-gqCXjO_XB2H43XAXKP-OGKwZhMhHYfip4_oET4LUG3Iu3vN014F3I2Q247T-24Gp_D66_yWeKXN9noB253P_TXebFyIZ8AVjEPryaU6Ymt/s1600/f-escape.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br />
</a></div><div align="center"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-large;"><b>Hollywood Baker-The Escape Artist Movie</b></span></div><div align="center"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">(reprinted from my old website, which is why it's not in first person) </span><b><br />
</b></span></div><blockquote><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In the 1970's Steve was asked to present a stunt to help promote the Society of American Magicians Convention in Hollywood. The stunt that he chose to do was his hanging straight jacket escape from the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. Through his connections, he was able to secure permission and get approval from the city police. For the stunt, half of the street would be blocked off in order to contain the crowd. As it turned out, they had to close the entire street because so many people came out to watch the escape. Steve received a ton of media coverage both in the press and television. The hanging straightjacket escape at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel created quite a buzz around town and helped to make the Hollywood insiders aware of Steve. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The P.R. Firm that Steve Baker used during this time was LaMagra & Wood. Because of Steve's celebrity status in the Los Angeles area, his press agents sent him out to several movie premiers. One of those was a movie called, "The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars and Motor Kings" starring Billy Dee Williams and James Earl Jones. It was a star studded affair and Steve was happy to be one of the many celebrities in attendance.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">At the movie premier, a producer by the name of Doug Claybourne came up to Steve and mentioned that he admired his work and had actually been trying to contact him. Claybourne was in the midst of working on a project having to do with escapes or an escape artist. Steve gave him his card and Doug also spent some time talking to Steve's press people.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Some time went by before Doug contacted Steve. Doug invited him to visit his office at the American Zotrope Studios Lot. This was Francis Ford Coppolla's production studio. Doug was executive producer on a new movie called, The Escape Artist based on a book by David Wagoner. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This movie would mark the directorial debut of Caleb Deschanel. Caleb is one of the most respected movie cinematographers in Hollywood. His works include The Black Stallion, Apocalypse Now, Fly Away Home, Anna and the King, National Treasure and The Passion of the Christ. He was also nominated for an Academy Award for his work on The Right Stuff and The Natural.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">At the meeting with Doug Claybourne, Caleb Deschanel and Stephen Zito, they wanted Steve's assistance as a technical advisor. But before they would agree to anything, the group wanted a demonstration. Mr. Escape whipped out a pair of thumbcuffs and went into his signature thumbcuff routine. Though they enjoyed it, they told Steve what they really wanted to know was whether or not he could get out of their handcuffs. Baker told them he could. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Doug Claybourne called the head of security who showed up a few minutes later. The security chief had a pair of peerless handcuffs. They locked Steve's hands behind his back and activated the double lock. Facing the four people present Steve began his work. Seconds later he brought his left hand to the front of his body, free of the restraints. Next he brought his right hand, still handcuffed to the front, and right there before everyone proceeded to slowly, gradually pull his hand free from the cuffs. They were floored! Mr. Escape got the job.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">They gave Baker the script and told him to go through it and notate anything he thought would be a problem or would not be something feasible for an escape artist to do. After the meeting the group spent some time talking to Steve about his career accomplishments.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">At the next meeting, Steve brought the script with him that he had reviewed. It was full of red markings, slashes and notations. They asked him to work with Stephen Zito, the head writer. Basically the two went through the entire script fixing all the problems.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Steve's next duty was to train young Griffin O'Neil, the son of actor Ryan O'Neil and the brother of Academy Award Winning Actress Tatum O'Neil. Griffin wanted to learn how to pick the locks on handcuffs which Steve taught him to do. Baker also convinced Griffin that there was a more effective way to get out of the cuffs that would be more visually interesting. He taught Griffin how to make it appear that his hands pulled free out of the tightly ratcheted handcuffs. Baker also worked with Griffin on breathing exercises because several of the key scenes took place underwater.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The movie relied heavily on the theme of magic. Though he felt he could handle it, Steve met a young magician who specialized in card magic named Ricky Jay, that might be perfect for the job. On a flight back from Canada to Los Angeles Steve asked Ricky if he'd be interested in working on the magic portion of this movie. At this point in his career, Ricky had no involvement in motion pictures and jumped at the opportunity. Steve contacted the movie's producers and suggested Ricky and he was brought on board.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Interestingly, Ricky and Steve were not the only magicians in the project. The roll of the father had not yet been cast. Steve Baker suggested another young magician who was breaking into acting, his name was Harry Anderson. Harry later gained fame as Judge Harry Stone on Night Court.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The Escape Artist movie didn't do particularly well at the box office but over the years has garnered a cult-like following because of some of the people in the cast. The cast included: Teri Garr, Raul Julia, Dezi Arnez, Huntz Hall, Josh Hamilton, Jackie Coogan, Harry Anderson, and Ricky Jay even had a bit part. Incidentally, since that time, Ricky Jay's movie career has blossomed.</span><br />
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</blockquote><ul><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><b>Commentary by Steve Baker</b></span> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>I had a great time working on this movie. I was initially the technical advisor. When the producers first showed me the script it was clear there were somethings that were just not within the scope of reality for a magician. So I helped with the rewrite.</i></span> <i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">While working on the movie, I had gotten a call from the folks at the Alan Thicke Show in Canada asking me to come up and appear on their show. I flew to Canada and did the show along with magician Ricky Jay and actor Raymond Burr. Ricky and I shared a flight back to Los Angeles after the show. I felt he was ideal to consult on the magic portion of this project. I really wanted to stick to the escape portion only as I felt it fit my persona much better. Not that I have anything against magicians, but at that time in my life, I wanted to be known as an escape artist and not as a magician. I suggested Ricky to Doug Claybourne, one of the other producers of the movie.</span></i> <i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I was kept on retainer even though my part of the movie had been done. Much to my surprise I received a phone call from Doug Claybourne a while later informing me that they wouldn't need me any longer and they were going to keep Ricky as the Technical Consultant. </span></i> <i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">When you watch the movie credits Ricky Jay is named as the Technical Consultant. However, near the very end of the credits there is a short paragraph written to me, by the producers, expressing their gratitude for my contributions to the movie. To be honest, I liked that more than getting the T.C. title.</span></i> <i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Doug Claybourne and Caleb Deschanel have remained friends over these many years.</span></i> <i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Steve</b></span></span></i></ul>Steve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1573413236562993863.post-60309007205532003412011-03-08T00:00:00.000-08:002011-03-08T09:25:59.556-08:00One Take Baker, Almost<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAfpBOj9lurrjYvRM80whNSomOM3x0TxIxpWeqS67hyyn5N-FAW7NewpzjKL4aeckuK2KweWuDc_w9AuaaXF80vVSs7VuKASOxKBq0GlpzhgeI_WDyDYOCda-Wq8xlBOl7GQyPt6UAdhlD/s1600/moon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAfpBOj9lurrjYvRM80whNSomOM3x0TxIxpWeqS67hyyn5N-FAW7NewpzjKL4aeckuK2KweWuDc_w9AuaaXF80vVSs7VuKASOxKBq0GlpzhgeI_WDyDYOCda-Wq8xlBOl7GQyPt6UAdhlD/s400/moon.jpg" width="281" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">One Take Baker, Almost</span></b></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">I have always been known in the industry as 'One Take Baker', mainly due to my penchant for getting the escape right the first time and not resorting to camera trickery. I have had heated discussions with producers and directors over the years who wanted to edit my escapes instead of presenting them on TV just as they appeared live. Usually directors in the entertainment community acknowledge my expertise in the area, not just in doing the escape but also how it should be shot for maximum visual impact.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">With that in mind let me tell you about a trip to Japan. I was hired by the biggest television station in Japan to present a TV Special made up of several of my thrilling escapes. One of the escapes that I was hired to present was escaping from the tracks of an oncoming roller coaster. Both hands and both feet would be shackled and my job was to get free before the roller coaster ran me over.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Before I tell you the story of the stunt, let me back track somewhat. Previously I had escaped from an amusement park roller coaster for the TV show 'Games People Play'. The Japanese Television Executives heard about the escape and wanted to bring me to Japan to escape from the world famous Japanese Bullet Train. The negotiations for my trip to Japan took over a year and weren't totally finalized until about two weeks prior to our leaving for Japan.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Luckily I was able to procure the services of a lawyer who was familiar with Japanese law. I won't go into the details suffice to say the contract was ripped apart on both sides of the ocean several times before we came to an agreement. One of the stipulations in the contract that I included had to do with outdoor stunts and the weather. I told them I would not do any type of outdoor stunt if the temperature was below sixty degrees. There were certain conditions they put into the contract, one for example had to do with the proper packing of a certain item required for our performance. But that is another story for another time.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Once we arrived in Japan we learned the Japanese Government would not give permission for us to escape from their Bullet Train. Their reasons were sound. If a chain or a handcuff or anything were left on the track, due to the speed of the train it would derail. It would be a National disaster.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">So instead we traveled to Kyoto Japan where the Japanese also had one of the fastest roller coasters in the world. When we arrived and my crew and I got out of our vehicles we noticed right off that something was wrong. It was snowing! And it was bitter cold. Remember, my condition about not doing outdoor stunts if the weather was below 60 degrees. I brought this fact up with the film crew and the producers. Because we had driven all the way out to Kyoto, I told them I might consider doing the stunt, but first I wanted to see the coaster and test the speeds.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"> We had traveled half way around the world, and it really would have been a shame not to do the stunt, so I decided to go ahead and consider it. The first thing we did was run the coaster through its course several times. I knew that as the coaster went over the tracks, the tracks would gradually heat up and the speed at which the coaster would reach me would increase. In other words, the warmer the tracks were, the less time I would have to free myself.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">The first test run of the roller coaster was a minute and a half. The second run was the same. On the third run the time was one minute and twenty seconds. Eventually the time was one minute 12 seconds and this seemed to be the point in time that the coaster speed remained. Knowing this crucial bit of information, we broke for lunch.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">We were treated to a wonderful feast of western food. The Japanese went all out to make us feel at home with pizza, hamburgers and Kentucky Fried Chicken. Where they found KFC in Japan is beyond me. Let's just say there was all sorts of food including rolls, butter, you name it. It was a feast. We enjoyed it and even snagged some of the butter patties and other food for later.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">While still inside, I decided to test out the chains and shackles I would be using. Due to the cold the metal bit into my skin and wouldn't move. It was if the chain became part of my wrists and this would not do. My crew and I realized that this could possibly slow down my escape if not make it impossible. I had to come up with a solution to give myself more freedom of movement. Thankfully, though it was bitter cold, my brain was still warm enough to figure out a solution, we dubbed it the 'Montekia solution'.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">It was time. Lunch was over and we headed back out to the coaster. I asked that the roller coaster run through the course several times so as to heat up the tracks again. While this happened a huge foam matt was placed below the area that I would be chained, this would be my landing pad if everything went smoothly.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">The Japanese film crew was in position. My safety team were all in position, everything was ready to go. The restraints went around each wrist and there were chains for each leg. Laying against the hard cold steel tracks was extremely uncomfortable, but I had agreed to do this so there was no turning back now.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">The signal was given to start the coaster. I began the countdown in my head. Besides being known as 'One Take Baker' I also had another moniker, I was called 'Split Second Baker'. I was going to take this stunt down to the very last moment of safety. That ratcheted up the fear factor pretty high, and made things more dangerous, but my training as a stuntman gave me the experience to pull off this kind of thing. </span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">My liberation began, first I freed one wrist and then the second. I continued the countdown in my head as the time ticked away. Next I started to release my right ankle from the shackles. I took a split second to look up to see the location of the coaster. Tic toc tic toc. As I looked up the track I attempted to release my left ankle but oddly, saw no coaster, so I decided to take my time. It was important to my timing that I see where the coaster was. At one minute eleven seconds in my head, I released my left ankle, stood up to make my run for the rail, looked up the track, still no coaster. I reached the rail and came to a dead stop. I put both my hands on my hips, with a look of utter disgust on my face, because still there was no coaster. Next I did a fence vault over the rail and landed with a thud. I should mention it was a flat full body fall towards the matt. In case you don't know this, foam matts and cold weather don't go together too well. I might as well have fallen 18 feet onto the pavement, that's how hard the matt felt.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">As, I recovered from my momentary daze, I heard the sound of the approaching coaster. Seconds later the roller coaster roared over my head, long past the time it should have arrived. What on earth happened?</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">I was very upset, er, no I was livid!. Immediatly I called a meeting with the producers to find out what went wrong. They assured me that it was fine, they would fix it in the post production editing room. "NO WAY! NO ONE EDITS MR.ESCAPE!" I forcefully declared to them. We argued back and forth. Eventualy, I convinced them to shoot it again. I would repeat the escape. In the meantime though we still had to find out why the timing calculations were all wrong.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Here is what happened. When we were eating lunch and working with the chain, the fellow who operates the roller coaster overheard us saying that the chain was going to slow down the escape. He feared that I would be killed during the stunt, so he purposely slowed down the speed of the train to be sure I had enough time to escape. The producers made the man apologize, I accepted his apology, no harm done.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">We prepared the escape for a second time. I jokingly said to my crew, "anyone know how I escaped the first time?" and they all laughed and said loudly, "Montekia!". Indeed the 'montikia solution' was intregal in assisting me. </span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">For a second time I was chained to the tracks. The signal was given to start the coaster. Cameras were rolling. I began my escape. This time, 'Split Second Baker' pulled off the stunt the way it was supposed to appear! Everyone was ecstatic!</span> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">And for a second time I fell flat onto the rock hard matt to break my fall, <b>ouch</b>! The entire group was thrilled at how the escape played out.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">And I once again I asked my crew, "Anyone know how I did that?" This time however the Japanese crew as well as my safety team, all cheered "Montekia!" The Japanese thought it was some sort of chant or good luck cheer that my crew and I said. In truth, montekia is Spanish for butter!</span></div>Steve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1573413236562993863.post-66987648677642409302011-03-07T00:00:00.000-08:002011-03-07T00:00:09.406-08:00World Records, Bah humbug!<blockquote><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Much discussion has arisen over the Guinness Book of World's records and how they accept escape records. A few years ago Harley Newman mentioned on themagiccafe.com that he was rejected by Guinness because they told him his stunts were too dangerous. He had the last laugh by using the rejection letter to promote his act and it worked quite effectively.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;">I didn't get into escapes to break world records. My goal was always to give the audience the best entertainment I could deliver. In the process however, I have broken records. Sadly, none of the records have been accepted by the Guinness people. Whenever we submitted my escapes for possible inclusion in the their book, they would send me a letter explaining why I had been declined. Always a minor technicality and always one that by the nature of the event, could be fixed. Still no world records hold my name.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;">In 1967, I hung suspended by my ankles ten stories in front of the Tribune Tower Building in Oakland California. Using a borrowed Posey straight jacket, complete with crotch strap, and having it placed on, not by anyone from my crew but by two security guards from the Tribune building. The Mayor of Oakland held the stopwatch. The signal to start the timer was when I released a scarf that I'd been holding between my teeth. The Mayor clocked me at just nine seconds! However, I had my time at six seconds. Why the discrepancy? The Mayor was flirting with the very beautiful Dawn Wells, aka MaryAnn from Gilligans Island. However, the entire thing was filmed by numerous television news teams as well as by British Pathe Limited, which was a newsreel company. You can visit their site at www.britishpathe.com and then type in the name Steve Baker, under the search area and you will see many still photos from the event. They also have the original video footage of the event recorded for history available to view on the site. Guinness declined this escape attempt as well.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;">In 1978, in front of fifty-five thousand people at the Houston Astrodome I hung twenty two stories in the air with another borrowed straight jacket complete with crotch strap. I was again, put in by people not in my employ. On January 14th, I set out to beat the previous record set by magician Jimmy Dixon, of 19.9 seconds. I did beat the record by escaping in 16.2 seconds. Guinness rejected my attempt, they said there were not enough witnesses. Fifty-five thousand people watching don't count. So in June of 1978, Bill Shirk using a straight jacket with no crotch strap, set the record that Guinness accepted at 18.83. At this point, I no longer submitted anything to Guinness feeling they were nothing but a frivolous organization. I set records, I just didn't GET the acknowledgement.</span></blockquote><ul><blockquote><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><b>Some of my other records:</b></span> </blockquote><ul><li><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;">First person to jump out of an airplane in a straight jacket, June 1966 in Vietnam (14,000 feet).</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Largest amount of television footage by an Escape Artist, over 32<br />
hours.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Largest amount offered for a single challenge escape $50,000 in Las Vegas</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Largest LIVE audience to view an escape 1967- twenty two thousand people 1978 fifty five thousand people.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Longest career as a full time escape artist. (I was not a part time performer with a full time real world job, escapes was my only job.)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Set a record on <b>The Guinness Game Show</b> for my Tug of War Rope Tie. I never received the award even though it was set ON their TV show.</span> </li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Created a Close Proximity Stunt with an automobile for his DEATH RACE routine, that has never been properly duplicated by anyone in the Stuntman industry. And they have tried countless times</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Worlds Oldest Escape Artist, and still going... </span> <br />
</li>
</ul><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;">All I have to say is, how many of these world record holders are still working? How many of them performed full time to begin with?</span> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;">To illustrate the ridiculousness of world records, let me share with you a little information gathered by Ed Levitt, the sports columnist for the Oakland Tribune Newspaper. Mr. Levitt had contacted the AAU asking them if they would sanction my record for the Tribune Tower Escape. This is how an AAU Representative replied, "There should have been seven or eight watches. Then the record would be official."</span> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;">He contacted Guinness and they gave him the same song and dance. The entire escape is still available on video from the original newsreel footage. You can time it yourself!</span> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;">I've had an extremely successful career and don't need to share any of the credit with GBWR. So to all the world record recording companies I say, "Bah Humbug. "<b> </b>(But if you've got a record, by all means flaunt it.)<b></b></span> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS5UNMJsnHE77VHixEE1sE43dlGPqj6NrvnOtahliXoGYJOT83-vIJLbzYfZS5n_Pjh7tXLv_31w4vbubMcJXQ_Cqyk1NUH3HzpmY8Jg4JyQshXtbMRlEj2PyGTzkRnBH1HwFTtK1LeLCf/s1600/astrolet.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS5UNMJsnHE77VHixEE1sE43dlGPqj6NrvnOtahliXoGYJOT83-vIJLbzYfZS5n_Pjh7tXLv_31w4vbubMcJXQ_Cqyk1NUH3HzpmY8Jg4JyQshXtbMRlEj2PyGTzkRnBH1HwFTtK1LeLCf/s640/astrolet.jpg" width="424" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><b> </b></span></ul>Steve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1573413236562993863.post-42005450752439918802011-03-04T00:00:00.001-08:002011-03-04T00:00:15.451-08:00The RC Cola Challenge<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPonXdyU8X8XzuPg_rAmyJG2OFECFgtrrbkCc_CJ4qO3NuIMdpYD01Xd1MZbcJyMPOseKmNrVvi-WqvpC5JBE4GyRXZsOg6JgaHU0NaS06484BAaHMsB9Y6Rs9ArmAarp7_T08iZzb4FIT/s1600/rcb1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPonXdyU8X8XzuPg_rAmyJG2OFECFgtrrbkCc_CJ4qO3NuIMdpYD01Xd1MZbcJyMPOseKmNrVvi-WqvpC5JBE4GyRXZsOg6JgaHU0NaS06484BAaHMsB9Y6Rs9ArmAarp7_T08iZzb4FIT/s400/rcb1.jpg" width="378" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">The Royal Crown Cola Escape</span></b></span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;">One of the benefits of being a performing artist is the unique opportunities that arise. In 1968, Royal Crown Cola was putting together a marketing campaign with the slogan "Escape to the Mad World of RC". I was hired to kick off the add campaign.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;">As an enterprising young performer, I designed a prop to look exactly like a carton of Royal Crown Cola . It looked exactly like the ones you'd buy at the store with bottles of RC in them. I built the carton and painted it all myself. I left no stone unturned in regards to detail. Every letter, every little symbol that could be found on a carton of RC Cola was on my giant reproduction.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;">To begin my performance we showed the large carton, then chained and locked it shut, and curtained it off. Next I was strapped into a torture rack. The RC Cola Carton was next to me in the curtained cabinet. In full view I proceeded to escape out of the torture rack and then I stepped into the curtained cabinet. As soon as I was out of site, the curtain would fall free to the floor revealing the giant sized RC Cola Carton.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;">However, I was no where to be found. And for good reason. Remember, the marketing campaign slogan was "Escape to the Mad World of RC." What I had done in a split second was basically do a reverse escape. I broke into the giant carton. The locks were still in place, everything was still quite secure. Now it was time for my assistant to come over and unlock the carton.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;">One thing I didn't mention. The carton itself was empty except for a single bottle of RC Cola that they wanted me drinking when the carton was opened revealing me inside. So as I was waiting for them to unlock me I picked up the bottle. Suddenly to my great discomfort, I realized I had forgotten to bring a bottle opener. I tried everything I could think of to open the bottle. Finally by pounding the bottle cap against a bolt repeatedly, the bottle cap came free and just in time. About the same time the bottle cap flew off, the carton lid opened revealing me inside holding a foaming bottle of RC. Then </span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"> I took a nice swig of the cola and felt like I had pulled off another great routine.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;">My father was with me at the time. He was my head male assistant and my biggest supporter. He asked me what all the loud pounding was. I was about to explain to him that I couldn't get the cap off the bottle when my eyes spotted something that threw me for a loop.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;">If you recall, I hand painted the giant RC Cola Carton. One of the things that I personally handpainted myself was two red circles with arrows and the words "featuring our brand new twist off cap!" We had a good laugh about it later.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Just another day in the life of a busy professional escape artist!</span></div>Steve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1573413236562993863.post-53252929195817246632011-03-03T00:00:00.000-08:002011-03-03T00:00:07.878-08:00Heeeeeere's Steve Baker!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKnXhGgFOAEgom2n6MR9L89SQ2SjzSDyeefsA-CVsjClqi6tu-TTb_PE7Xvts5_yybJIFoZVI-3sKTZ1E4kCCp6TexuFQgGJhS5xyj1B77nHY8yvQID9-9GNMVEIgNvIyXdBNrZPHT36tw/s1600/artlink_jpg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="376" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKnXhGgFOAEgom2n6MR9L89SQ2SjzSDyeefsA-CVsjClqi6tu-TTb_PE7Xvts5_yybJIFoZVI-3sKTZ1E4kCCp6TexuFQgGJhS5xyj1B77nHY8yvQID9-9GNMVEIgNvIyXdBNrZPHT36tw/s400/artlink_jpg.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">Heeeeeere's Steve Baker!</span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">(reprinted from my old website, which is why it's not in the 'first person') </span></div><blockquote><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Television has been an important part of Steve Baker's career. It began back in the early 1960's and continued onward into the 1990's. Art Linkletter, famous for his show in which kids said the darndest things, had a show for a while called, House Party. He invited Steve to be a guest. On the show, Steve presented his straight jacket escape and his own version of the mail bag escape before a live audience. (see photo)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Remember Mike Douglas? Steve was a guest on his show as well. He presented his French Transport Chain escape with Mike and another guest watching closely. At the conclusion of the routine, Mike Douglas ends up chained together with the other guest. It was a great comedy escape and served Steve well over the years.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Steve had a reputation not just as an escape artist, but also as a first class magician. He started his career performing as the world's most neurotic magician. On occasion, talk shows would contact Steve and ask if he could do a little magic as well. This happened one night when he got a last minute call from the Tonight Show. David Brenner was guest hosting and they wanted Steve to present his challenge 4 Ace routine over a glass table. It stunned everyone and Brenner was instantly a fan.</span></blockquote><blockquote><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In the late 70's Steve was invited to be a guest on the Dinah Show with Dinah Shore. This was another example of a show that wanted Steve to do a little magic. He began his set with his Straight jacket escape which was well received. Next, Dinah was going to sing the song, "It's Magic". The producer wanted Steve to do a little magic while Dinah sang. The decided upon a dove appearance, then later Steve would make the Dove vanish. It did not go as planned, and only Steve can properly relate that story! Check out Steve's commentary below. </span></blockquote><blockquote> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Who can forget Merv? Good ole Merv Griffen had Steve Baker on in the 1970's. Steve presented his Austrian Torture Rack before a live audience. It should be noted that on all of Steve's Talk Show appearances, he would present some stunt and that would be followed by an interview later in the show.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mr. Escape didn't just appear on American Talk Shows, he was also a favorite world wide. In Canada, Alan Thicke had his own Talk Show. Same format as Mike Douglas and similar shows. This was before Alan Thicke came to the U.S. to star in his own sitcom. On that show, Steve was really allowed to shine. He did his thumb cuff routine, the straight jacket escape his 100 foot rope challenge and his Tug of War Rope Tie. Alan really got into what Steve was doing and added some very funny comedic moments along the way.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In Australia, Steve was booked to do the Don Lane Show. This was Australia's answer to the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. He presented his French Transport Chain routine which was one of his favorite personality routines. The audience loved it and in true Steve Baker fashion, he ended the routine by having the announcer and the host Don Lane chained together.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The Don Lane Show was also almost the end of Steve Baker's career. He was closing the show with his signature Water Torture Cell and something went terribly wrong. We'll save that story for another day though because it deserves much more space to tell. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The Mike Douglas Show, DINAH, The Tonight Show, House Party, The Don Lane Show and the Alan Thicke Show are just a few of the many talk shows Steve Baker appeared on.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">He also appeared on countless Variety Shows, like Dick Clark LIVE Wednesday, That's Incredible, Games People Play, his own HBO Special and many other variety shows across the globe. In the future we will cover a series of appearances by Steve on a Venezuelan Variety TV Show.</span><br />
<br />
</blockquote><ul><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><b>Commentary by Steve Baker</b></span>
<i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I really only have on regret in all my years performing on television and that's that I didn't get to work with Johnny Carson. I was on the Tonight Show, but David Brenner was the guest host the night I was on. Because I used to do a lot of work over at the NBC Studios, I would run in to Johnny Carson all the time. He really enjoyed my work and always stopped to chat when we'd see each other in the hallway. I told Johnny, I'd love to present my Tug of War Rope Tie and let him bring in the two biggest guys he could find to tie me up. You should have seen the smile go across Johnny's face. He said to me jovially, "Steve, let's do it!" Unfortunately that day never came.</span></i>
<i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Being on the Dinah Show was a hoot. First off, Dinah did not like my wife Julie at all. At one point, I thought a cat fight was going to break out between them. Dinah wanted to be the beauty on the set and no one else.</span></i>
<i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The incident with Dinah Shore and the song, "It's Magic" is very funny. I told Dinah before they started filming what I was going to do. I was going to make a dove appear, vanish and then reappear. I warned her not to do anything to scare the birds. While she was singing the song, I produced my bird, 'Starbuck' and she gestured for me to put the bird on her hand while she sang. I did reluctantly do that. But she ended up scaring the bird, even though I warned her against that. The bird, in his already nervous state, crapped on Dinah's hand, it ran down her arm and the audience went in hysterics! She was livid, though she continued to sing. Being the true pro that I am, I magically produced a scarf so that she could wipe her arm clean.</span></i>
<i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Side note to that story. Years later when my friend Dick Clark was doing his Bloopers and Practical Jokes Show, I called Dick and told him the story about Dinah. Search though they did, no footage of that episode remains. Too bad too.</span></i>
<i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Steve</b></span></span></i></ul>Steve Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06260442254835074683noreply@blogger.com0