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.