— whose legal name at the time was Raymond Joseph Teller — and the duo eventually formed Penn & Teller .
For more than 40 years , they ’ ve been performing around the globe , and they still like to delight fans with tricks they ’ ve done for almost half a century . Today , Penn & Teller perform each week in various cities . Their shows run from Saturday to Wednesday at the Rio in Las Vegas , and they hit the road on Thursdays and Fridays for multiple touring shows . However , they don ’ t rely on previous success to get by . Penn is continuously practicing , and he and Teller are constantly brainstorming new ideas for their act , never growing bored of it .
“ All I ever wanted was to put shows together and have people want to see them ,” Penn says . “ Now , I ’ m 64 years old , and I have that . And I want it more than I did when I was 16 .”
The only magic in the secret to their success is a powerful formula of connectivity as partners and dedication to their craft . The latter is a belief Penn adheres to diligently .
Penn will practice , refine , and tweak his tricks thousands of times , at the very least . To him , the development of a craft isn ’ t something that happens overnight . You can ’ t pick up a deck of cards and expect to “ wow ” an audience with your first trick . Likewise , you can ’ t launch your business with the first idea you brainstorm and expect it to be the billion-dollar idea that rockets you into success . You can ’ t even dump a top hat full of cockroaches on Letterman ’ s desk without rehearsing the trick for months on end .
“ I believe there is something you get from doing something thousands of times that you can ’ t get any other way ,” Penn says .
Because of his skill and composure with the craft , there are times when his body goes into autopilot mode . He doesn ’ t know what he ’ s saying , but his body remembers what to do . His partner , Teller , also knows what the next move will be . Without actively engaging , Penn knows what to anticipate and how to get the end result audiences rave about .
“ I know when I ’ m going to touch my nose . I know when I ’ m going to swallow . I know when I ’ m going to touch my forehead . I know every breath that I ’ m going to take for that six minutes ,” Penn says . “ The very thing that you would think gets boring and gets robotic actually becomes unique and beautiful and mindful in that moment because everything is moved into autopilot .”
But the only way to find that mastery is to keep practicing . Mastering a craft boils down to dedication and perception . It ’ s about finding the place where you can anticipate problems and engineering your business to respond in the exact way you would expect it to when you need it to .
To get to that automatic state takes constant practice and adjusting the techniques — possibly thousands of times — to predict the needs your clients may not even know they have . It takes repetitions , mistakes , and adjustments to push an MSP to the point of beautiful automatic success .
The Power Of Partnership
Penn couldn ’ t reach autopilot in this act alone . After all , he is Penn of Penn & Teller . After years of mastering his craft , he ’ s a clear professional , but his career has been far better with Teller , even if it ’ s purely business .
“ Most partnerships , especially in show business , are romances . Those all end in a great deal of sadness because when love goes away , there ’ s disillusionment to that . It ’ s really ugly ,” Penn says . “ Teller and I had no clicking whatsoever , but we felt that we did better stuff together than we did separately . It was a cold business decision , and it was a love of the art and a love of the show . So , when Teller and I didn ’ t get along , it was no surprise . We didn ’ t expect to .”
Despite how their relationship changed and conflicts arose within it , a powerful connection built on mutual respect and courtesy propelled them forward . The duo coordinates together more like business partners than best friends . They spend upward of eight hours every day performing together and quite literally put their lives in the hands of one another .
Penn believes Teller is the “ best magical mind in the world today .” Teller coordinates the visuals and picks up on the little , key actions that make their acts powerful and mysterious . In a simplified sense , Penn writes the act , Teller directs the bits , and they come together in complete partnership and understanding .
The bond between the pair has created an air of mutual honesty and dedication to their craft that allows them to show up for one another as business partners . They do what the other expects of them , and when tensions flare up , they have learned to let the anger and frustrations hang there before moving on .
After spending more than 40 years together traveling the globe , picking up new projects , and perfecting new acts , the duo has found a way to blend their original apathy with respect and friendship in a beautiful state of business partnership .
“ Now , after 45 years of it , it ’ s disingenuous to not admit to friendship ,” Penn said . “ When our parents have died , when we got health diagnoses , through marriage , when kids were born — when my mom died , he was the first one I talked to . But we are cordial , and we are separate .”
It ’ s not the friendship that fuels success , Penn explains . It ’ s finding a dynamic that ’ s going to propel a business forward and best serve the needs of customers . Eventually , that support and friendship will fall into place , and a natural order to the relationship will form . But in order to survive and provide powerful results for clients , your business relationship has to be nurtured first .
“ But he is perfect ,” Penn explains of Teller . “ He ’ s always on time . He does what he says he ’ s going to do . He doesn ’ t make mistakes . It ’ s an ongoing partnership .”
When Your ‘ Brand ’ Is Just You
After every performance , Penn & Teller talk with any audience members who want to meet with them or ask questions . They engage with their audiences for as long as necessary , signing items and sticking around until the final fan has taken their last photo . In fact , when the duo plays the Eventim Apollo , formerly the Hammersmith Apollo , in London , due to local ordinances and crew union regulations , their entire crew and the staff of the Eventim Apollo leave long before Penn & Teller are done signing autographs and talking to fans . The lights come down on the theater , and every employee goes home . Yet , Penn & Teller continue meeting with fans .
It ’ s been called a genius marketing tactic — a ploy that brands the duo as genuine and authentic to sell tickets and get the “ average Joes ” to come to the show . Penn admits that while it ’ s flattering that people have found skill in their madness , it ’ s not why they do it . In reality , it ’ s a practice that was born out of necessity and habit .