Bad Astronomy

Those Randi 80s

Back in the 1980s James Randi was on a TV show called “People Are Talking”, where he debunked all sorts of psychic nonsense. In the clip below he debunks telekinesis, Uri Geller, spoon bending, and more.

The appearance was to promote his wonderful book Flim-Flam!, which is as good a read today as it was when he wrote it. The chapter on dowsing was particularly fun. Sadly, the second part of this video ends in the middle, but you’ll get a good taste of what’s what.

Randi is a wonder to watch; he cracks me up. At the James Randi Educational Foundation in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, there is a treasure-trove of videos he has made or of TV shows he’s been on. A lot of these videos are being put up on YouTube, and I expect my readers will have quite an enjoyable time browsing through them.