It seems to have started with “American Idol.” Sometime in the last decade and a half, audiences around the world have become obsessed with talent shows. It’s fun to discover exciting new talent, regardless of whether or not the entertainers are musicians, dancers, or even magicians. “America’s Got Talent” is a TV show that features talented people of all ages and talents. The show starts with auditions in major cities in the U.S., then it’s trimmed down to quarter-finals, semi-finals, and finally, finals. Judges have the option of pushing the famous “Golden Buzzer.” When a judge pushes the “Golden Buzzer,” the contestants are promoted straight to the live shows without having to go through any more auditions.
One of the most popular performers to ever grace the stage of “America’s Got Talent” is a young man named Shin Lim, a magician, who auditioned for the 13th season of the show. When Shin first takes the stage at “America’s Got Talent,” he seems different from many of the other contestants in the show’s history because he doesn’t seem one bit nervous. Grumpy judge Simon Cowell seems upbeat when he first greets Shin, asking, “What do you do?” However, when Shin explains that he’s a card musician, Simon says, “Whoopee” and adds, “I’m not going to ask any more questions and good luck.” Shin winks at the judges, unphased by Cowell’s cynicism, and gets started. First, a young woman comes out onto the stage, and the crowd cheers.
Shin asks her to pull a card from a fanned deck on the table and write her name on it. As mystical music plays, Shin puts the card back in the deck and reveals that it’s moved to the front. I confess I watched it pretty closely because I love trying to discover the secrets of magicians (note: I always fail….they’re more clever than I am). Then, Shin slips the card, a Queen of Spades with Tara’s name on it, into his shirt. When he pulls it back out, it’s blank. The crowd cheers, but they’re in for a crazy surprise. When Shin pulls his shirt aside, we discover that the Queen of Spades has been tattooed on Shin’s chest!
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Shin continues to boggle the mind and deceive our eyes as he continues with his performance. When he’s done, the audience is on their feet. Shin ended up winning that season of “America’s Got Talent.” In addition to the prize of one million, Shin became a headline act at the Paris Las Vegas hotel. He later began a Vegas residency at the Mirage Casino Hotel in 2019 and tours with “The Illusionists,” a theatrical magician troupe show. Watch his unbelievable award-winning performance below.
