Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Times Square Announces
The Unbelievable Talent Contest Winner
“Lucky the Painproof Man” is the winner of our Unbelievable Talent Contest! The finalist competition was held Wednesday, April 13th right here at Ripley’s Times Square Odditorium.
To prove his extreme resistance to pain, “Lucky” kicked off his routine by eating a glass light bulb, wowed the audience when he lay on a bed of nails, followed by a daring climb up a staircase of sharpened swords barefoot.
To prove his extreme resistance to pain, “Lucky” kicked off his routine by eating a glass light bulb, wowed the audience when he lay on a bed of nails, followed by a daring climb up a staircase of sharpened swords barefoot.
Four finalists, chosen by the public, traveled to New York City to compete in front of an esteemed panel of judges for the chance to win the grand prize of a summer (July-August) job as a Sideshow Performer at Ripley’s Times Square or the choice of $1,000 cash prize.
“It was a tight competition, but after seeing the array of Lucky’s talents, we knew we had our winner,” said Michael Hirsch, General Manager of Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Times Square. Hirsch was among the panel of judges which included Edward Meyer, VP Exhibits and Archives of Ripley Entertainment Inc.; Albert Cadabra of Ripley’s Sideshow Wonders; and Buck Wolf, Senior Correspondent of AOL Weird News.
Top finalists competing in Ripley’s Times Square Unbelievable Talent Contest included Jim Stilianos, whose talents ranged from walking on sharp pieces of glass to juggling fire; Zack Anthrax, who amazed the crowd by breaking two wooden arrows with his throat, and the Braggart Family trio – Hans Braggart, Jay Braggart and Uncle Lushklutz, who performed a three way knife juggling act while balancing on top of rola bolas.
Throughout the month of March, contestants submitted videos displaying their unbelievable talents to the Ripley’s New York Facebook page at where public voting determined the competitions top finalists.
