WINNER: A&E TELEVISION FOR CRISS ANGEL MINDFREAK CEMENT BLOCK DEMONSTRATION

A&E had a few tricks up its sleeve when it tapped a network star and mystifier to perform a 24-hour demonstration in New York’s Times Square, kicking off the third season premiere of Criss Angel Mindfreak in June 2007. The A&E team executed the stunt — Angel being shackled and placed in a 4-by-4 Plexiglas box encased by concrete and hoisted 40 feet high and challenged to escape before it crashed to the ground at the 24th hour — to conclude the morning of the premiere. The live event offered media and consumers the opportunity to experience the power of illusion exposed each week on the series. The team implemented a comprehensive campaign to drive maximum press coverage in every possible arena, including television, radio, print, online and blogs. Outlets were invited to cover the event before, during and after the stunt — and, of course, were reminded to point to the third-season premiere.

Fast Facts

  • The AETV.com Web site streamed a live 24-hour webcast of the event, updating on-site activities in blog-type fashion.

  • Season three’s premiere episode garnered 2.7 million viewers — the most-watched episode in series history.

  • More than 7,000 people attended the live Times Square event, which was covered by 14 national television programs.

Honorable Mentions:

Outdoor Channel’s DockDogs Unleashed — With a mere nine days to plan a public DockDogs event, Outdoor Channel made a splash in New York’s Bryant Park. City dwellers watched the world’s top-ranked sporting dogs sprint down a 40-foot dock, go airborne and land in a 25,000-gallon pool in pursuit of a target.

Oxygen Media for The Oxygen Fight Girls Upfront Street Event — Ten feisty female fighters battled it out to become the World Muay Thai Championship winner, but top media-buying agency employees threw their own punches when Oxygen’s mobile boxing rings swung into Manhattan.

Back to CableFAXIES main page

The Daily

Subscribe

AMC’s ‘Nautilus’ Explores the Origins of Captain Nemo

Captain Namo is one of the most famous characters in all of sci-fi. Yet, while Jules Verne’s ill-fated explorer has starred in many adaptations, none has dived so deeply into Nemo’s origin story as AMC’s “Nautilus.”

Read the Full Issue
The Skinny is delivered on Tuesday and focuses on the cable profession. You'll stay in the know on the headlines, topics and special issues you value most. Sign Up

Calendar

Sep 11
2025 Faxies Awards Faxies Nominations Open! Final deadline: 4/4/25
Full Calendar

Jobs

Seeking an INDUSTRY JOB or hiring for one?
VIEW JOBS

In conjunction with our sister brand, Cynopsis, we are offering hiring managers a deep pool of media-savvy, skilled candidates at a range of experience levels and sectors. The result will be an even more robust industry job board, to help both employers and job seekers.

Contact Carley Ashley, [email protected], for more information about posting a job on the website and our Jobs newsletter, sent twice weekly to 85,000 media professionals.