FRESNO, Calif (KFSN) — A Fresno Halloween tragedy is getting international attention again. Netflix’s show “Death through Magic” will characterize a Valley magician who died even performing a “buried alive magic” trick on Halloween night nearly 30 years ago.
About a hundred humans, such as small children, attended that buried alive performance that became placed on to raise money for a local drug and alcohol rehab facility. The magician’s sons inform us that the fundraising event became so essential to their dad that he went alongside it even after realizing a crack in his coffin right before the show. Action news video indicates Joe Burrus, “The Amazing Joe,” being lowered seven feet into the floor at Blackbeard’s Family Entertainment Center in East Central Fresno 28 years ago.
But his buried alive trick quickly becomes tragedy after seven tons of dust and cement are poured at Amazing Joe’s plexiglass casket while he lies handcuffed and chained. The sound of the materials caving in pressured the 32-year-vintage group members to leap into motion… As his two boys and spouse watched frantically nearby. “I in no way predicted that, or I would not have been right here,” said Burrus’ Widow Linda Burrus. Now, guys with children of their own, those boys were both haunted by what they saw at ten and thirteen years old. “I remember it adores it was the day before this, he without a doubt loved what he did, he was looking to be the following large aspect,” said Burrus’ son Josh Burrus.
The entertainer’s oldest son even tells us his father changed into so close to pulling off the not possible. “He become on his manner up while the whole lot came crashing down on him; he simply made it out he simply did not have a risk to get out of the grave because he suffocated,” stated Burrus’ eldest son, Joe Burrus. Jennifer O’Rourke overlays the story as a television information photographer.
“I nonetheless see the shot in which they vividly pulled him out of the cement. I’ve in no way been to erase that shot from my mind,” stated new photographer Jennifer O’Rourke. She says her digital camera light helped first responders at some stage in the rescue. A memory remarkable Joe’s sons can even in no way forget about. But it’s miles from their dad’s legacy that comforts them nowadays because they understand he died doing what he loved.
