I grew up in Allentown, Pa. and make a living by playing with people's minds. I have been performing for over 20 years at colleges, casino showrooms and private events. I like performing in Casino Showrooms however, because after my show I get to hit the poker tables. My favorite audiences are those at colleges and universities where I am known as the Psychic Madman. There is nothing better than performing for a theater full of wild and crazy college students and hanging out and having a Blast afterwards!
A few of my career highlights were my appearances on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno, the Rosie O'Donnell Show and the Ellen Show. My most memorable show was performing recently for Steven Tyler.
I really enjoy meeting new and interesting people and would like to have a million friends on My Space!
A Few Photos
Me and Steven Tyler hanging out after my show at Mount Blue
Me with Ellen on her show
Official Alice Cooper Web Site | Official Alice Cooper MySpace Site
Me and Alice Cooper just before we went on stage at his fundraiser.
Official Marcel Luske Web Site
Poker Star Marcel Luske and me after my show at the Morongo Casino
Official McGill MySpace Site | Official Web Site | McGill International
Me and my friend, Bryant McGill
Me and good friend Dennis Haskins, better known as "Mr. Belding."
Me with Matt Lindland and Dan Henderson, about to
kick my ass at the Morongo Casino
Hangin' with the boys from "Breuer Unleashed" on Sirius Satellite Radio.
With Montel Williams
With Annie Duke
Biography
Jim Karol grew up in Allentown, Pennsylvania "James Jonathon Karol". Jim attended a local college there, then ended up working at the local steel mill like the Billy Joel song "Living Here in Allentown". It wasn't until the early 80's that Jim began his career in entertainment. He began as a magician, and word soon spread about this "madman of magic", and before he knew it Jim found himself on the front pages of newspapers across the country for correctly predicting the Pennsylvania Lottery. He was asked to appear on several television shows, and his popularity began to grow.
Jim quickly became a huge hit at colleges and universities throughout the Northeast and was even invited to perform at the White House. Jim was then asked to tour the country with Guinness to promote their Millennium Edition Guinness book which Jim is featured in. The United States Playing Card Company then began sponsoring Jim and together they developed a product called "Cool Card Tricks" which sold countless units throughout the world. Jim then released his own book called "50 Ways to Hustle Your Friends", more as a novelty for his fans. It wasn't until a a few years ago that Jim began to dabble with memory techniques and other feats of the mind which then led Jim to realize that he had finally found his niche. With in just a few months he memorized 75,000 zip codes, every country and capital, the Scrabble dictionary, and thousands of sports facts. Jim actually became addicted to memorizing things. He's a real life combination of "Rocky Balboa" and "Rainman".
Today, Jim is one of the most sought after acts in the entertainment industry, combining extraordinary feats of the mind with comedy. He is also a very unique and highly motivational Keynote speaker and also teaches some of his skills after his presentations in his MindWiz Workshop.
Jim has been seen by millions of people from his appearances on NBC's Tonight Show with Jay Leno, the Ellen Show, Rosie O'Donnell Show, Montel, Fox News, and numerous other television and news programs. He has headlined at the Trump Plaza, the Borgata, the Turning Stone, and the Mohegan Sun, and is closing in on his 4,000th show since his steel mill days, showing no sign of slowing down. In fact, He has just created a new show called Mind, Magic and Madness premiering the talents of Chris Chelko and Michael DuBois two young up and coming stars that Jim has taken under his wing.
Don't be surprised if you see Jim in the final table of the World Series of Poker or the World Poker Tour soon.