Photo: Clinton W. Gray

Clinton W. Gray plays with fire.

It was more a whim than ambitious plan, but it landed him on stage in front of two magic icons.

That's how Clinton W. Gray describes his initial entry for the American game show "Penn and Teller: Fool Us" where performers from around the world try and trick legendary magicians Penn and Teller. Later this month his performance on the show will be broadcast on the CW network.

"It was interesting, a friend of mine who has been on the show was in town in November," he tells Castanet. "We went to see Piff Magic Dragon."

The opening act for Piff was Matt Donnelly; he's the writer on Fool Us. The group went for a post-gig pint.

"I just mentioned I should do Fool Us, but I didn’t have anything specifically that was a fooler in mind," he says.

The group convinced him that he should put together something for the producers and send it in. He had a life time of tricks to pick from.

Gray, who grew up in Williams Lake, has spent his entire adult life as a performer. In fact, he spent his teenage life as a performer, too.

"I’ve been a full time pro since I was 12," he says. "I started out as a stand-up comedian."

He had a solid five or eight minute set and built upon that. In the late-80s and early-90s lots of towns had small clubs dedicated to comedy.

While still young he moved into the comedy magician niche and has been doing it ever since, with up to 500 shows a year. Over the years he's built up a solid career doing a variety of tricks, including stage and close- up magic. He's now based in Kamloops, working regularly all over the place (well, until the pandemic).

Over that time one trick he's performed likely thousands of times is chopping someone's arm off. Luckily, he's performed it at a TEDx event and had a good video with a very excitable woman.

With his panache and mix of danger, comedy and magic producers quickly said yes after he sent in his tape.

"That’s a trick I can’t do anymore, because it requires people to be right next to me," he notes.

Because it's an older trick based on a device developed around 75 years ago, Gray got to work on modifying it. However, he worked to make it look like the original, to throw an extra curve ball into the mix — he even got Kamloops Makerspace to help out.

March rolled around, and just a couple of days before the global pandemic was declared he jetted off to Las Vegas. There he went through the routine over a couple of days, where they rehearsed his trick with a fake Alyson Hannigan (the host) and a fake Penn and Teller so the camera crew could get their angles. They also shot a piece about his backstory.

Photo: Clinton W. Gray

Clinton W. Gray with more than one ring.

Then on March 12, it was his turn to perform...the day after the pandemic had been announced. He says it added some uncertainty to the show, since no one was sure what to do, but the show went on.

"I was the last act to play on their stage," he notes. "I was the last act on the last day."

With all the rehearsals he says it went off without a hitch, but he's not allowed to say whether he fooled Penn and Teller. Hannigan, he notes, was great at reacting to his act. After the show things ended fairly quickly, because of the uncertainty due to the pandemic.

"They were doing their best to keep everyone safe, but your all in the same makeup room using the same makeup brushes," Gray notes, explaining how the hotel was shutting down around them over the few days he was there.

He came home, and waited. Then a few days ago a producer called, telling him when his act will air (Penn & Teller Fool Us, Aug. 17, 9 p.m. on the CW Network). 

"I’m not doing anything," he says. "I actually had a neighbour who wanted to do something on our block."

However, with the pandemic, and the fact a lot of people watch the show after it airs on YouTube he decided against it.

He adds that the timing of the episode was perfect, if it weren't for the pandemic.

"In an ordinary year, this sort of thing will be reflected in more bookings, it’s not going to happen this year," he explains. "It airs at a perfect time for my Christmas season."

The pandemic has hit acts like his particularly hard, since a lot of it involves audiences, or close up magic, or borrowing things from people in a crowd. All of that is frowned upon now he says, for good reason.

"My world is just decimated," he says. "Nobody is having events."

He's performing a bit up at Sun Peaks, but he's not expecting much once that wraps up. He is hopeful about the show though. Even though Gray is a 20+ year vet who's lived off his performances, having appeared on a network TV show will give him more legitimacy in some people's eyes, he says.

If you want to watch the episode live, Gray will appear on Penn & Teller Fool Us, Aug. 17 at 9 p.m. on the CW Network.