Jim Karol

Jim Karol (born on April 10, 1953) is an American memory expert/mentalist and entertainer known for his participation in the NBC television show, Phenomenon and his cameo appearance in Jackass Number Two. Known as "Mind Over Man," Jim's extraordinary mental abilities have been seen by millions of people around the world. He has made numerous appearances on national television and has performed live at hundreds of corporate and private events. In his live shows, Karol performs such feats as memorizing a shuffled deck of playing cards in less than a minute and identifying information about audience members. He’s known for his high energy, sense of humor, infectious personality and passion for teaching others how to tap into their mental potential. Karol has earned two Guinness World Records, one of which was for tossing a standard playing card 201 feet, and he has toured the country with Guinness.

Early Career

Born and raised in Allentown, Pa., tough times quashed Karol’s aspirations of becoming a policeman, and he found himself working at a steel mill. While there, Karol was inspired by “The Mighty Atom,” a man who could bend spikes with his bare hands. Karol quickly learned how to bend spikes, too. Married, with one child and another on the way, Karol was laid off. He opened a magic shop in his home with a loan from his father and began studying mentalism and card tricks, such as throwing playing cards.

When his wife was pregnant, Karol took over her Avon route and entertained customers with his card skills, receiving rave responses. At the age of 29, he performed his first shows for Avon and for the Boy Scouts in Allentown. Around the same time, the street performer Cellini was astounded by Karol’s feat “the trap,” during which he inserts his hand into a steel, double-jawed animal trap and withdraws it unharmed, so Cellini invited Karol to perform with him in New York. Word of Karol’s unusual talents spread across Pennsylvania and New Jersey, and he quickly began entertaining throughout the region. After performing at colleges nationwide, Karol started headlining at comedy clubs and casinos.

Previously called “The Wild and Wacky Jim Karol,” he earned the moniker “Psychic Madman” at age 37 when the Pennsylvania Lottery numbers that were drawn matched his prediction.^[1] As a result, the numerous people who had taken Karol's advice ended up dividing a $12 million payout into small shares. The story drew national attention, and individuals began flocking to Karol, begging him to help them win the lottery. In the interests of his wife and children, Karol and his family moved to upstate New York, and Karol stepped out of the limelight for about 10 years.

Contemporary Career

In 2000, Karol picked up his career where he left off. He earned a Guinness World Record for throwing a playing card 201 feet, and Guinness approached him to go on a national tour for the book “Guinness World Records 2000: Millennium Edition.” On that tour, Karol met a producer for “The Rosie O’Donnell Show.” Because the producer was initially unconvinced of Karol’s talents, Karol asked him to pick a card from a deck and place it face-down on a table. Karol then had the man call Karol’s 8-year-old son, Justin, who was at home across the country. The boy then correctly identified the man’s card, and the producer immediately booked Karol for the show, which was his first national television appearance.

Karol went on to “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno,” where he performed his bear trap trick with a larger trap than ever. Appearances on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” and NBC’s “TODAY Show” soon followed, and Karol was chosen as one of 10 mentalist contestants on NBC’s “Phenomenon,” starring Criss Angel. While filming that show in Los Angeles, Karol was voted the World’s Greatest Mentalist at the World Magic Awards. He also appeared on “The Howard Stern Show” twice, and Karol assisted in creating the blockbuster movie “Jackass Number Two,” in which he had a cameo.

Mental Prowess

At age 49, Karol was diagnosed with cardio myopathy and an enlarged heart. He adopted a strict diet and exercise regimen, which included many hours on the treadmill and stationary bike. Looking to entertain himself while working out, Karol began playing memory games, such as writing celebrity names or elements on flash cards and trying to memorize them. The more Karol practiced, the sharper his memory became, and he soon began memorizing 100 digits of Pi a day. Karol has since learned enormous amounts of information, including 80,000 zip codes, every word in the “Scrabble Dictionary” and the day of the week for every date since the beginning of the calendar.

After 10 years of Karol’s healthy new lifestyle, not only did his mental functioning improve but his heart problems disappeared. At age 60, Karol lifts weights and plays full-court basketball regularly, also crediting his consumption of dark chocolate and Advil (for anti-inflammatory purposes) for his peak condition.

Recently, research discovered that Karol’s brain has reached unusually high levels, three standard deviations from average, and many organizations have approached Karol to study his unique cognitive functioning.

Charitable Activities

Over the years, Karol has used his brain training techniques to help individuals with cognitive issues. Karol has worked with the Wounded Warrior Project, aiding injured soldiers with brain damage and even helping one to speak again. Karol also works with autistic children, and he was able to help one 10-year-old boy learn every country and capital in the world in a day and a half. He has even returned to his hometown of Allentown to help struggling high school students learn facts like the American presidents.

Television and Movie Appearances

“The Rosie O’Donnell Show”
“The Tonight Show with Jay Leno”
“The Ellen DeGeneres Show”
“TODAY Show”
“Phenomenon”
“The Howard Stern Show”
“The Montel Williams Show”
“Good Morning America”
“CBS This Morning: Saturday”
Fox News Channel
E! Entertainment Television
MTV
CNN
“Jackass Number Two”

Celebrity Clientele

Ben Affleck
Matt Damon
Howard Stern
Carmen Electra
Jay Leno
Steven Tyler
Ellen DeGeneres
Alice Cooper
Merv Griffin
Cheech Marin
Dennis Hopper
Faith Hill
Neil Diamond

Corporate Clientele

Subway
Cadbury Schweppes
Barnes & Noble
Coca-Cola
Rotary International
Waldenbooks
Guinness
Verizon Wireless
AT&T
McDonald’s
Sears

Books

“The Psychic Madman”
“50 Ways to Hustle Your Friends”
“Useless Memory Skills”

References

External links

• Jim Karol's site
• Sourced Media Book's Publisher site
• Card Geniuses Official
• Poker Training Network (PTN)