Marathon guest performer: Keith Bindlestiff

I promised variety at our Tenth Anniversary Quiz Marathon Spectacular—a week away, for the love of all that is holy—and I deliver. Prepare for perhaps NYC's premier variety performer, Keith Bindlestiff of the fantabulous Bindlestiff Family Cirkus.

The BFC is an old-timey yet unstoppably spectacular variety-arts troupe that has thrilled millions worldwide. They juggle, they clown, they stilt-walk, they acrobatize, they ventriloquize, they contort, they eat and spit fire—variety is indeed the proper term. All the fun of classic carnival entertainment, without the risk of swindle-by-loathsome-carny. (Though no, despite the members' surnames supposedly all being "Bindlestiff," they are not a true family. I'm reminded of a story the Ramones once told a reporter, about how they all met by happenstance in an elevator one day and decided to form a band when they realized they all had the same last name.)

Keith Bindlestiff is the cofounder of the company, its driving force, and a man of numerous talents. I've seen him juggle vegetables, spin plates, block his head, and change water into wine (quite possibly, that part is hazy). The man is fascinating to behold, and he'll be thrilling us with a set of I-can't-tell-you-what during one of the Marathon's performance breaks. Check him out at the Bindlestiffs' monthly variety show in Brooklyn (which I've taken part in a few times with a unique quiz challenge or two) in the video below:

 
I cannot do this, I have no idea why anyone would decide to learn to do this (other than to entertain people); then again, I am quizmastering for ten hours straight. Learn more about the Cirkus here; more about the Marathon here, and tickets are still on sale here.