Rick Smith Jr. was a card thrower from Season 5 of America's Got Talent. He was eliminated in the Vegas Round.
Background[]
Rick Smith Jr. is an entrepreneur who has taken his love and talent for magic and turned it into a successful business. He caters to both young and old, working children's parties, local restaurants, corporate events, professional athletic organizations, and even national trade shows. He is recognized across the nation for his stunning card-throwing abilities and magical talent. He has also recently started a local entertainment agency, Cleveland Entertainers, which serves as a referral resource with a comprehensive database local entertainment and includes everything from Balloon and Caricature Artists, Clowns, DJ's, Blow-Up Amusements, Tarot Card Readers and everything in between.
Rick Smith Jr. discovered the wonder of magic at a very early age and began performing for family and friends when he was just seven years old. A quick study with an amazing curiosity, Rick continued to hone his magic skills, entertaining and mesmerizing his subjects throughout his school years and, as an early teen, began booking small shows at kids' birthday parties, family affairs and other social events.
Rick's love for magic, games and sports all came together in college where he pitched his 90-mile-per-hour fastball with the Cleveland State University Baseball Team. Taunted one day by a teammate throwing socks at him from across the locker room, Rick grabbed the only thing he had, a deck of normal playing cards he kept in his locker, and wielded a card across the room with such speed and precision that he cut his teammate's arm. Amazed by the stunt, Rick's teammates asked where he learned to do that. Still bewildered himself, Rick admitted he had never done "that" before!
Rick practiced and practiced, refining his new-found skill to the point that in 2002, Rick Smith, Jr. broke the world record, for throwing a playing card 216 feet 4 inches, landing him international recognition and an entry in the Guinness Book of World Records. Today, Rick incorporates his card-throwing feats into his act, slicing celery, bananas and carrots in half, wedging cards in watermelons, turning on food blenders or popping huge balloons filled with confetti, hitting targets up to 90 feet away. 1
Audition[]
Rick Smith Jr.'s audition in Episode 510 consisted of throwing playing cards from a few feet away toward celery being held by Nick Cannon, slicing the celery into three pieces. Piers Morgan, Sharon Osbourne, and Howie Mandel all voted "Yes," sending Rick to the Vegas Round.
Vegas Round[]
Rick Smith Jr. was one of the Standby Acts in the Vegas Round. He was sorted into the "Novelty Acts" category. His performance in Episode 512 consisted of throwing playing cards at balloons positioned near the judges' table and attempting to pop them. Unfortunately, he failed to pop the third of three balloons despite multiple attempts. His audition was not strong enough for the judges to send him to the Quarterfinals, eliminating him from the competition along with Erin Barylski, Jeffrey Vinokur, Max Winfrey, and Eric Koloski.
After the Show[]
In 2015, Smith Jr. appeared on the second season of the Italian competition series Tu Si Que Vales [1]
In August 2018, Smith Jr. appeared on ABC's The Gong Show.[2]
In 2022 Smith Jr. appeared on Season 8 of Penn & Teller: Fool Us where he fooled the duo.[3]
