Boom Man

Since the beginning of time, humans have gazed up to the sky and wondered, "What the hell was that bird doing?"

Bird training has a long and rich history, though it is worth noting that the most renowned bird demolition experts died in fiery explosions. For centuries, the bird demolition field hit a dead end, and the most anyone expected out of a carrier pigeon was a self-destructing message.

But, in recent years, one man has revolutionized the field of bird demolition. From a young age, "Boom Man" Richard Pryce found birds drawn to him.

"I dunno, there was just something about me," he said in an interview. "I would, you know, be outside playing, and I'd look up, and then just... Just birds, everywhere in the yard. Like, sparrows, crows, robins, cardinals, swans, geese... Just an amazing number and variety of birds."

When asked how he came to be involved in the bird demolitions field, he replied, with a bit of self-deprecating laughter, "I dunno, I guess I got really tired of seeing all these birds following me. I mean, I'd go outside, and if I stood still for ten minutes, BANG! I'd be covered in feathers. Cause they'd just get really excited, you know? And they'd start flying around, and sooner or later, one of them would just, just fly into a window or something. And, you know, that was when I figured out that these birds, these amazing birds, they would explode if they flew into each other hard enough. That's a trade secret. Not everyone knows that, but it's true."

'Boom Man' Richard Pryce has become famous for his work in the field of pyrotechnics, namely for his use of an exploding flock of sparrows.

"Yeah, the Shooting Sparrow. That was the first firebird I ever came up with. I must've been, oh, eight or so when I came up with it. It happened when I saw the most amazing sight. I saw this huge, absolutely huge flock just way up high, kind of wheeling around. And they saw me, so the next thing, you know, BOOM! This massive explosion, from all these birds just... just banging into each other. I was cleaning bird bits out of my hair for a week! But yeah, that really got me thinking."

When asked how he made the jump from bird demolition to pyrotechnics, Pryce had only one thing to say:

"I mean, what else was I going to do with a bunch of exploding birds? Eat them?"