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As a magician, I'm always interested in performances that incorporate elements of illusion.

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And one of the most remarkable was the tanagra theater, which was popular in the

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early part of the 20th century.

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It used mirrors

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to create the illusion of tiny people

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performing on a miniature stage. Now, I won't use mirrors,

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but this is my digital tribute to the tanagra theater.

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So let the story begin.

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On a dark and stormy night -- really! --

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it was the 10th of July, 1856.

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Lightning lit the sky,

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and a baby was born.

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His name was Nikola,

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Nikola Tesla.

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Now the baby grew into a very smart guy.

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Let me show you.

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Tesla, what is 236 multiplied by 501?

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Nikola Tesla: The result is 118,236.

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Marco Tempest: Now Tesla's brain worked in the most extraordinary way.

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When a word was mentioned,

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an image of it

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instantly appeared in his mind.

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Tree. Chair. Girl.

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They were hallucinations, which vanished

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the moment he touched them.

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Probably a form of synesthesia.

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But it was something

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he later turned to his advantage.

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Where other scientists would play in their laboratory,

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Tesla created his inventions in his mind.

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NT: To my delight, I discovered I could visualize my inventions with the greatest facility.

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MT: And when they worked in the vivid playground of his imagination,

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he would build them in his workshop.

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NT: I needed no models, drawings or experiments.

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I could picture them as real in my mind,

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and there I run it, test it and improve it.

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Only then do I construct it.

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MT: His great idea

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was alternating current.

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But how could he convince the public that

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the millions of volts required to make it work were safe?

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To sell his idea,

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he became a showman.

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NT: We are at the dawn of a new age,

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the age of electricity.

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I have been able, through careful invention, to

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transmit, with the mere flick of a switch,

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electricity across the ether.

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It is the magic of science.

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(Applause)

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Tesla has over 700 patents to his name:

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radio, wireless telegraphy,

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remote control, robotics.

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He even photographed the bones of the human body.

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But the high point was the realization of a childhood dream:

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harnessing the raging powers of Niagara Falls,

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and bringing light to the city.

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But Tesla's success didn't last.

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NT: I had bigger ideas.

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Illuminating the city was only the beginning.

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A world telegraphy center -- imagine news,

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messages, sounds, images delivered to

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any point in the world

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instantly and wirelessly.

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MT: It's a great idea; it was a huge project. Expensive, too.

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NT: They wouldn't give me the money.

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MT: Well, maybe you shouldn't have told them it could be used to contact other planets.

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NT: Yes, that was a big mistake.

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MT: Tesla's career as an inventor never recovered.

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He became a recluse.

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Dodged by death,

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he spent much of his time

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in his suite at the Waldorf-Astoria.

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NT: Everything I did, I did for mankind,

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for a world where there would be no humiliation of the poor by the violence of the rich,

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where products of intellect, science and art

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will serve society for the betterment and beautification of life.

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MT: Nikola Tesla died on the 7th of
January, 1943.

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His final resting place

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is a golden globe that contains his ashes

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at the Nikola Tesla Museum in Belgrade.

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His legacy is with us still.

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Tesla became the man who lit the world,

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but this was only the beginning.

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Tesla's insight was profound.

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NT: Tell me, what will man do when the forests disappear,

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and the coal deposits are exhausted?

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MT: Tesla thought he had the answer.

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We are still asking the question.

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Thank you.

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(Applause)