The America’s Got Talent judge, a known germaphobe with obsessive-compulsive disorder, was hypnotized by Jones, 28, to believe that shaking hands was OK. The contestant – who closely resembled Drake – then performed a special procedure (which couldn’t be shown on TV for fear that the entire distant audience would be affected), which made Mendel noticeably powerless against Jones.
After a slow climb to the climax of the act – which Judge Howard Stern noted with a buzz – Jones told Mandel he was wearing gloves and invited Mandel to shake his hand. When it happened, the audience screamed in disbelief. Jones took it a step further and convinced Mandel that all of his fellow judges were wearing gloves that were thin as hair that was safe to the touch, and he shook hands with them as well.
When he learned the trick, Mandel said, Are you serious? You are laughing at me ? His fellow judges were blown away – but he himself felt “taken advantage at the time.
The host admitted to reporters after that day of filming in April that he had to undergo therapy following the surprising act. “I’ve spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on drugs, and in five minutes on ‘AGT’ this guy made me hit everyone,” Mandel said.
I was upset, but it’s pretty amazing how I survived it. And I have OCD, which is no laughing matter, but it says a lot about the reality of how good hypnotism is and how good it is, and the extent of things that are happening, has he continued. You will see things this year that you have never seen before.
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