Jason Garfield

Jason Garfield (born August 9, 1974) is a juggler and entertainer from Norfolk, Connecticut.[1] He is the founder and president of the World Juggling Federation (WJF).

Sport Juggling

Garfield despises the concept of "artistic juggling," promoting the idea that juggling should also be regarded as a form of sport.[2] He disagrees strongly with the belief that juggling is something only performed by clowns and other circus acts. Garfield's stage performances can often be seen as a mixture of stand-up comedy and demanding juggling routines. He has said "I hate most jugglers.",[3] and is openly critical of jugglers he sees as relying on unchallenging routines to entertain, occasionally performing parodies of specific acts, the most famous of which has come to be known as the Chris Bliss Diss, a parody of a performance by Chris Bliss. Jason is regarded as one of the most controversial members of the juggling community.

Appearance on Cheap Seats

Garfield was ridiculed on ESPN Classic's show Cheap Seats where he was depicted as a psychotic egomaniac who talked to the props he used while performing and proceeded to blame them for mistakes made during the act, all the while being heckled by the audience, who continually referred to him as a "slaphead." The episode focused on whether certain activities were sports or hobbies, and included juggling and ultimate frisbee.[4]

During 2004, Garfield coached Vova and Olga Galchenko, widely considered to be the best juggling passing duo ever.[2]

Awards

Jason has received the following juggling awards:

References

  1. ↑ Jason Garfield. "Biography". jasongarfield.com. Archived from the original on October 18, 2000. Retrieved December 25, 2010.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Lev Grossman and Agoura Hills (July 16, 2006). "Up In the Air". Time Magazine (New York, NY: Time Inc. (Time Warner)) 168 (2). Retrieved December 25, 2010.
  3. ↑ Garfield, Jason. "The Theory and Practice of Juggling" 2004. P. 1
  4. ↑ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eyRfbDKJDXM&feature=related
  5. ↑ "Championships Results - 41st IJA Summer Festival". International Jugglers' Association. Retrieved December 25, 2010.
  6. ↑ "Championships Results - 43rd IJA Summer Festival". International Jugglers' Association. Retrieved December 25, 2010.
  7. ↑ "Championships Results - 51st IJA Summer Festival". International Jugglers' Association. Retrieved December 25, 2010.
  8. ↑ "Championships Results - 53rd IJA Summer Festival". International Jugglers' Association. Retrieved December 25, 2010.
  9. ↑ "Championships Results - 54th IJA Summer Festival". International Jugglers' Association. Retrieved December 25, 2010.
  10. ↑ "Championships Results - 55th IJA Summer Festival". International Jugglers' Association. Retrieved December 25, 2010.

External links