To promote the opening of a new tattoo parlor, magician Steve Wyrick added daredevil to his resume and advertised plans on Saturday to be dropped from a locked box onto flaming spikes. Here is how the trick was advertised to go down (with the assistance of rock star Chester Bennington):

"Bennington ... will lock and shackle Wyrick into one of the band’s equipment boxes. Connected to a crane by only a few thin ropes, the box will be dangled over a bed of 500 flaming spikes 80 feet below. The ropes will then be set on fire, forcing Wyrick to make his escape before the last rope breaks and sends him plummeting to a fiery death. Wyrick will have to jump 20 feet off a burning box to a safety rope and rappel down while avoiding the spikes and tremendous heat. This type of escape has never been attempted by an illusionist anywhere in the world."

Nothing like that actually happened. But a press release went out that night describing the result with breathless enthusiasm, as if something even more amazing happened despite no actual drop being part of the "Death Drop." Instead of a fall onto burning spikes, Wyrick made a safe landing by helicopter:

"Tonight (7.4.09) at the south entrance of  Miracle Mile Shops daredevil magician Steve Wyrick attempted  'Death Drop.'  After magician Steve Wyrick was locked in the box for 'Death Drop,' the ropes were attached to the box, that were attached to the crane and were lit on fire. The fire flared up  and it was put out before it was raised up in the air. The box was opened to make sure Wyrick was safe,  but magically  he wasn't in the box. He then instantly appeared in a helicopter that flew and landed on Las Vegas Boulevard."

And, yes, Wyrick was safe. But the press release left out that at least one other person was not at all safe but being treated by paramedics.

Norm Clarke got part of the story in his column, noting that it was Wyrick's stunt double who was hurt. After Norm started reporting, a revised statement was issued:

"Obviously, when you undertake a stunt of this magnitude, there is a risk of someone getting injured.  We took every precaution to insure the safety of Steve, Chester, the crew and audience.  One of the crew members in the stunt suffered minor injuries.  He was treated immediately on site by paramedics.  We anticipate a speedy recovery."

I guess that injury was too small a point to make in the triumphant initial press release, and any other possible injuries were not mentioned at all.

But by that point, I already had heard that more than one person was injured and that a photographer on site caught shots of someone in a stretcher. Is that "minor"?  Plus, being treated by paramedics is only the start of the process; I wanted to know if there was more treatment required.  I had some questions:

1. Was the person treated by paramedics on the scene taken to the hospital, and is the person still there? 2. How many people were injured? 3. Does a speedy recovery mean a full recovery or will there likely be scarring, say, from burns?

After asking these questions, I received a reply that again pointed out that the person was treated by paramedics but not telling me anything else. And this time I was told a "swift" recovery was expected, which again is not the same thing as a full recovery. As to how many people in all were injured in some way, there was no direct answer.

Finally, on Tuesday, I spoke to Steve Wyrick himself,  who was very friendly and personable but managed to avoid answering my questions. He said  he had to protect the secrets of the stunt. That didn't make sense to me: Who wants the secret of a stunt that doesn't work safely? At the end of our conversation, after he had essentially failed to clear up any of my questions, I made that point to Wyrick. As you'll read below,  he told me he was considering getting back to me with answers.

Meanwhile, I hope someone is investigating what happened and how seriously at least one person was injured,  especially since Wyrick says he plans to try this stunt again.

Wyrick began our interview by explaining to me that the stunt was to be filmed for a television show and he wanted a live feel by doing a single shot. "We were filming and so there is one time and one take and there is an inherent risk to that."

Abowitz: How many people were hurt, and did anyone need to go to the hospital?

Wyrick: Right now, I can't get into the details of the people who were injured and what happened. I know everyone is expected to have a speedy recovery.

Abowitz: Do you mean with burn scars? Will it be a speedy recovery or a full recovery?

Wyrick: Right now, I would say speedy recovery. The injuries are very minor; I can say that.

Abowitz: Can you say what went wrong?

Wyrick: It is still under investigation. But what I can say is that it was without question one of the most horrifying events in my life. It was a very difficult evening to get through.

Abowitz: And probably an even worse evening for whoever was injured. When did you find out someone or more than one person was hurt? Did you know when you were in the helicopter?

Wyrick: I can't get into the specifics of the trick, because I am an illusionist.

Abowitz: But don't you think when someone is injured we have left the realm of illusion and entered reality?

Wyrick: Obviously my greatest concern that evening was for the public safety, my safety, my staff's safety and Chester's safety. I can say it was minor injuries.

Abowitz: Will you be doing this again?

Wyrick: I am definitely going to reattempt Death Drop.

Abowitz: It was my understanding that magic is supposed to only look dangerous and not be dangerous?

Wyrick: You don't need a death-defying challenge to get hurt. Every single working stage in the world has challenges that can become dangers. Even a show like "Jubilee!" there is so much going on that it is easy to get hurt. You can easily get hurt on a stage elevator. Stage elements create danger. And, now let's take it outside a normal stage and put it in public and it becomes a wild and crazy ride in terms of the danger and what can happen. That is why Death Drop was so well attended. There must have been 15,000 people watching when I looked from the helicopter. But to focus on your question, any time you do a trick like Death Drop, you depend on a lot of machines and cables. There were chain motors and a crane. God forbid if the crane lifted the box in the air, what if a cable snapped, what if a rope burned through quicker than anticipated? There are so many elements that can take place in a challenge like this, because you are depending upon machinery.

Abowitz: I appreciate all of this. But I wish I could convince you to be more specific about the injuries: How many people were hurt and how they were hurt? I understand that this is a trick, but I think after injuries it is time to come clean with people about what happened.

Wyrick: Right now I can't. But I will speak to a couple people and get back to you.

Photo: A stunt by illusionist Steve Wyrick on Saturday apparently did not go as planned.