Magician Tears Up Homeless Veteran’s Sign

Don’t worry, it turns out just fine. A US magician who wanted to test the good nature of a homeless veteran renowned for his sunny disposition despite his hardship has helped the man earn more than $35,000. Street Magician Rob Anderson paid a visit to former soldier Alan McCraken on a Las Vegas street corner late last month and filmed himself appearing to rip up the beggar’s sign which reads "anything helps". As Anderson rips up the sign and tells the veteran, "You said anything helps" Mr McCracken appears somewhat surprised but does not react with anger. Once the illusionist appears to have torn the sign to bits and encountered no resistance or words of protest, Mr McCracken asks if he is a street musician. "You're gonna turn that into a wad of money," Mr McrCraken says. Anderson then unfurls the intact sign, causing banknotes to fall out of it as the veteran looks on in surprise and asks how the magician did it. Anderson posted the footage online on October 1 and the video has already attracted more than 4.6 million views. A GoFundMe page which Anderson started for Mr McCracken and linked to in his video description has so far raised more than $35,000. The prankster said he had set up the page to provide Mr McCracken with an apartment, food for six months, new clothes to wear to job interviews and other basic necessities to help him start a new life.