Making the Statue of Liberty

Statue of Liberty

The Statue of Liberty is a colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, designed by Frédéric Bartholdi and dedicated on October 28, 1886...

 seem to disappear on live television (in 1983) is the creation of Jim Steinmeyer

Jim Steinmeyer

Jim Steinmeyer is an internationally respected designer of magical illusions and theatrical special effects. His best known illusions include Origami, Interlude, and Walking Through a Mirror. He is also an author, consultant and producer....

 and Don Wayne

Don Wayne

Don Wayne is a designer and consultant who has developed illusions for some of the world's most famous magicians. He has also created and marketed smaller illusions used by many professional performers...

, and it is still unpublished. In the illusion, Copperfield

David Copperfield (illusionist)

David Copperfield is an Emmy Award-winning American illusionist, and was described by Forbes as the most commercially successful magician in history. Copperfield's network specials have been nominated for 38 Emmy Awards and won a total of 21 Emmys...

raises a giant curtain on Liberty Island before lowering it again a few seconds later to reveal that the space where the statue once stood is now empty. A helicopter hovers overhead to give an aerial view of the illusion, and indeed the statue appears to have vanished and only the circle of lights surrounding the statue remain. To prove that it is really gone, Copperfield then passes two searchlights through the space where the statue stood, to show there is nothing blocking the way. A live audience sits in an enclosed viewing area, and most of the camera shots are from the same area.

Method

Unknown to the audience, they (along with the home audience cameras) are seated on a large rotating stage. After the curtain is brought up to obscure the view, the stage is rotated into a new position overlooking empty water. The movement is very small as the statue is to be hidden behind one of the brightly lit towers. Moreover, the lights are extinguished from the Statue of Liberty, which now cannot be seen in the darkness. The helicopters fly into a new position while a second ring of lights, identical to the ones around the statue, are lit in the open water. The curtain is then lowered, allowing the audience to observe the empty ring of lights, completing the illusion.