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Who Is Criss Angel?
Criss Angel is a popular magician, illusionist, and actor who has a USD $50 million net worth. On December 19, 1967, Criss Angel was conceived as Christopher Nicholas Sarantakos in Long Island, New York. He is from a Greek family that owns a restaurant and a doughnut shop.
He was first introduced to magic at the young age of 7 through his Aunt Stella who showed him a simple card trick. This sparked his interest in magic and eventually became bigger as he grew.
When Criss went to East Meadow High School and while in school, he worked as a magician at restaurants and eateries. After he graduated, he has decided to pursue a vocation that focuses on performing magic.
Criss Angel has two siblings, Costa and J.D., all of which created the BELIEVE Charitable Foundation back in 2007 to honor the memory of their father who passed away sometime in 1998. The charity is mainly to support children, especially those that are suffering from serious illnesses.
He was married twice, first to his long-time partner, JoAnn Winkhart, and then to Sandra Gonzalez. Before his relationship to Gonzalez, he dated Holly Madison, a well-known Playboy Playmate, for about a year.
Aside from being a great magician, Criss Angel is also a musician, stuntman, illusionist, actor, and a hypnotist.
Earnings and Net Worth
Currently, Criss Angel has a reported net worth of USD $50 million. You may wonder how it reached that high. While he made most of his fortune from his magic performances, Criss Angel also had multiple projects that contributed to his net worth. So, let’s take a look at his earnings.
Criss Angel Mindfreak
He is the creator and star of A&E Network’s Criss Angel Mindfreak. It is a magic show that was broadcasted in multiple television networks. It premiered last July 20, 2005, and had 96 episodes until 5 years after, 2010. The first two seasons were shot at The Aladdin, which is located in Las Vegas, while the third season was shot in Luxos, Las Vegas. The show had an IMDB rating of 6.0.
Because of his magic shows, Criss Angel has achieved various world records and was named the “Magician of the Century” in 2010 and “Magician of the Decade” in 2009. Both awards were given by the International Magicians’ Society.
Earnings From Other Projects
In addition to his work as a magic performer, Criss Angel had many special guest appearances in TV shows. These include The Oprah Winfrey Show, WWE RAW, CSI:NY, The Late Show With Craig Ferguson, The Megan Mullally Show, Larry King Live, and The Ellen DeGeneres Show.
Criss Angel was also a judge on several occasions, which added to his already million-dollar net worth. With Uri Geller, he was a judge on the Phenomenon Show in 2007.
Stage Show Earnings
While performing at the Luxor, Criss Angel partnered with Cirque du Soleil to for the live performance of “Criss Angel Believe.” This show premiered last October 31, 2008, and has a lot of mixed reviews. A lot of critics considered the show as the weakest of Cirque de Soleil Vegas performances.
Even having negative reviews, over USD $5 million of tickets were sold several months before the show. “Believe” is scheduled to have 4,600 performances for more than a 10-year run in the Luxor theater.
The concept of “Believe” was inspired by Harry Houdini. After his death, the show received fundings worth USD $ 100 million from the American Global Hospitality and MGM Mirage, an entertainment company.
In addition, Criss Angel had excellent earnings from various live shows, such as “Mindfreak Live!,” “Criss Angel Magicjam,” and “The Supernaturalists.” In “The Supernaturalists,” he was a creator, executive producer, and director for this show. Performers include Krystyn Lambert, a magician, and London Swank, an illusionist.
Music Earnings
Criss Angel is multi-talented so it’s no surprise that he is also into music. In the late 1990s, he was the frontman for “Angeldust,” a heavy metal band. The albums that the band has released include Musical Conjurings From the World of Illusion (1998), System 1 in Trilogy (2000), System 2 in Trilogy (2000), System 3 in Trilogy (2000), Mindfreak (2002), Supernatural (2003), and Mindfreak the Official Soundtrack (2006).
Book Earnings
Criss Angel is also a famous author. He wrote the book, “Mindfreak: Secret Revelations” that was published in 2007 by Harper Entertainment. The book talks about one of his most alarming performances ever. He was connected to four fish hooks and was raised through a helicopter more than 1,000 ft. into the air. It also talks about his past and how we got interested in magic.
The book also focuses on other performances of his, such as “Submerged,” which he demonstrated in 2002 and was locked in the water for one day, and “Burned Alive,” referring to when he was trapped in a barrel. Apart from magic, he also shares his other passions, such as riding motorcycles, making music, and martial arts.
The book has inspirational quotes from his mother, Dimitra, two brothers, Costa and JD, his cousin George, and many others. To summarize, the book is all about a man who has will power, perseverance, a strong work ethic, and relentlessness. He emphasizes how important family is and how it played a role in all of his achievements. The book is currently sold at $14.28 for paperback, $18.00 for hardcover, and $7.99 for Kindle on Amazon.
Criss Angel surely made a huge fortune from his magic shows. His talents as a magician and illusionist have surely paid off. But, these are not the only means that caused his net worth to reach USD $ 50 million. He is an actor, director, producer, musician, judge, author, and so much more! To top it off, Criss Angel is hardworking, resilient, and has a strong dedication, all of which helped him to get where he is today.
