Mentalist Oz Pearlman, known for his third-place finish on Season 10 of America's Got Talent, was performing a magic trick for President Donald Trump at the White House Correspondents' Dinner when a shooter stormed the event, plunging the room into chaos.
Performing for the President
Pearlman was brought in as entertainment for the evening. Speaking to Variety, he revealed that Trump, 79, was eager to see his act. "He shook my hand and told me he's heard how great I am, and that he's very excited and he's staying for my show," Pearlman said. "That was a big checkmark because that was never a sure thing. Right away, I texted my wife, 'Great news. The show is gonna be awesome.'"
After trying out some of his routine on Vice President JD Vance, Pearlman was encouraged to perform for the president. "I didn't take one bite of salad," he said. "I got to work."
Guessing the Baby's Name
As the night progressed, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt challenged Pearlman to guess the name of her unborn child. "Karoline Leavitt, the press secretary … goes, 'Can you guess what I'm naming my daughter?' And so this was happening backstage," he told ABC News chief Washington correspondent Jonathan Karl. "We were interrupted because the president walked in. And so I said, 'Let's save it for when we get up on the dais.'"
While mingling with the Trumps, Leavitt, and CBS anchor Weijia Jiang, Pearlman began piecing together the name. "I was coming to say hello to the president and to the first lady, and I was guessing letter by letter how many letters were in (Leavitt's unborn child's) name," he recalled. "Then right at the moment where you see it happen, I wrote down the name and I said, 'How did I do?' And I turned around and that's when you see the first lady go, 'Oh! Is that the name?'"
Chaos Erupts
Before Leavitt could confirm if the name he had written down—Vivian—was correct, the room inside the Washington Hilton exploded into chaos. "Everybody was like, 'Whoa!'" he recounted to Variety. "But at that exact same moment, we saw dozens of people with guns—a SWAT team and military—running into the centre of the room as people started getting under their tables."
Pearlman described it as a pivotal moment in his trick. "It was kind of a pivotal moment in the trick where you're just about to do the reveal … and we hear commotion," he added in a separate interview with CNN's State of the Union.
Locking Eyes with Trump
Pearlman did not hear gunshots but feared a bomb might be inside the venue. While on the ground, he locked eyes with Trump. "We're looking eye to eye from a foot apart, and I'm thinking, 'Oh no, are we about to die?'" he remembered thinking. He was unsure if Trump was scared. "I have to assume there was fear in all of us, because it was a very serious situation," he said.
Aftermath and Reflection
Despite being shaken, Pearlman and his wife, Elisa, attended an after-party. "It was bittersweet," he told Variety. "The sweet thing is nothing really happened. Nobody was hurt. But the bitter part is that it was going to be an amazing night. I had some really unique and exceptional things planned that would have hit strong. I'm sad to not have had that moment, but given the circumstances, that's a very secondary concern."
He mused about how the internet would have reacted if he had died. "If I had been killed, people would forever have said, 'Why didn't you see that coming?'" Pearlman said. "Like, that's the worst way for a mentalist to die, because the memes are just too good."
In an Instagram post, he thanked fans for their concern, writing, "Thank you all for checking on me. I am OK and thank God everyone is alright! Was in the middle of performing for the President and First Lady when I looked up to see a commotion, thought it was a bomb about to go off or shots fired." He described it as the scariest moment of his life.
Suspect Details
According to the Associated Press, Cole Allen, the California man arrested in the shooting, is a tutor and amateur video game developer opposed to Trump's policies. Allen was apprehended after trying to push past a security checkpoint with two firearms and knives. In a message to family, he described himself as "Friendly Federal Assassin."
