Tyler Henry Koelewyn[1] (born January 13, 1996[2][3]) is an American reality show personality who appears in the reality show series Hollywood Medium with Tyler Henry and Life After Death with Tyler Henry as a clairvoyant medium[4] since 2016.[5] He has published two books.

Tyler Henry
Born (1996-01-13) January 13, 1996 (age 28)
Occupations
Years active2015–present
Television
  • Hollywood Medium with Tyler Henry
  • Life After Death with Tyler Henry
WebsiteOfficial website

Critics state that Henry's readings are performed using deceptive cold reading and hot reading techniques, and not "psychic" powers.

Early life

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Henry is a native of Hanford, California, a small rural city near Fresno.[6] He graduated from Hanford's Sierra Pacific High School and didn't complete college.[6] Henry is gay.[7]

Career

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According to Henry, he noticed that he had clairvoyant abilities when he was ten years old.[8]

In November 2015, Henry appeared on Keeping Up with the Kardashians where he gave a reading to one of the Kardashian sisters.[9]

In January 2016, Hollywood Medium With Tyler Henry premiered on E!. In March 2016, it was announced that E! had ordered a second season of the show.[10] Henry published a memoir titled Between Two Worlds: Lessons from the Other Side the same year.[11][12] In 2022, he published a second book, Here & Hereafter: How Wisdom from the Departed Can Transform Your Life Now.[13][14]

A 2018 People article detailed Henry's claims about his abilities, the development of his "powers", and his reading with La Toya Jackson set to air in the new season of Hollywood Medium, in which he claimed to contact Michael Jackson.[15]

Hollywood Medium ended after four seasons in 2019.

His series, Life After Death with Tyler Henry, premiered on March 11, 2022, on Netflix,[16] and was completed after one season of nine episodes.[17]

Henry has given readings to many celebrities, such as Nancy Grace,[18] Alan Thicke,[19] retired NBA player John Salley[20] and actors Monica Potter, Soleil Moon Frye, Amber Rose,[21] Jaleel White,[22] the Kardashians, Corey Feldman, Carmen Electra, Matt Lauer, Chad Michael Murray, Rick Fox, Megan Fox, Chrissy Metz, Kristin Cavallari, Bobby Brown, Roselyn Sanchez, The Try Guys, and Tom Arnold.[23]

Death of Alan Thicke

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On December 13, 2016, actor Alan Thicke died due to aortic dissection at the age of 69.[24] Several months before his death, Thicke was the subject of a reading done for the Hollywood Medium TV show. Among the many topics discussed by Henry, the concern of possible heart and blood pressure problems was addressed, with Henry suggesting that Thicke had a heart and blood pressure problem like "multiple men" in Thicke's family.[25] After Thicke died, this part of his reading was referenced by Henry's fans as evidence that Henry had actually predicted Thicke's death.[25] Various news outlets reported on this.[26][27][19][28] Scientific skepticism activist Susan Gerbic challenged the claim that this was a successful psychic prediction, arguing that "Henry was again playing the odds" given that heart disease is the "number one cause of death for American males".[25]

Critical analysis

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Scientific skeptics argue that mediumship is a con and that Henry is not an exception.[29][30][31] Skeptical activists and others concerned with Henry's rise in popularity have actively attempted to counter the public perception that what Henry claims to do reflects reality. In particular, they have argued that Henry relies on a mix of cold reading techniques and prior knowledge of his subjects, or hot reading, to make his claims.[32][33][34][35] Specific examples where it is alleged that he used these techniques include sessions with Ronda Rousey,[36] Carole Radziwill,[37][38] Matt Lauer,[39][40] and Nancy Grace.[18]

Critics have argued that Henry's actions are exploitative,[9] and he has been dismissed as one of many mediums who lack training in counseling, resulting in a "tremendous" risk of harm.[41] Henry reportedly welcomes skepticism about his work: "I am content with people asking questions", he stated in 2016.[6]

Bibliography

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  • Between Two Worlds: Lessons from the Other Side. Simon and Schuster. 2016. ISBN 9781501152658.
  • Here & Hereafter: How Wisdom from the Departed Can Transform Your Life Now. St. Martin's Publishing Group. 2022. ISBN 9781250796783.

References

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  1. ^ Farber, Lindsay (May 24, 2017). "30 Things You Should Know About Tyler Henry". BuzzFeed. Retrieved September 9, 2017.
  2. ^ Cohen, Jess. "9 Things You Didn't Know About Hollywood Medium's Tyler Henry". eonline.com/news. E! News. Retrieved October 31, 2024.
  3. ^ Life After Death with Tyler Henry, episode 4, 2022
  4. ^ Rees, Alex (January 22, 2016). "This Celebrity Medium Once Channeled Brittany Murphy's Spirit During a Reading, No Really". Cosmopolitan. Retrieved January 30, 2016.
  5. ^ Petski, Denise (July 29, 2015). "Teen Clairvoyant Delivers Messages From Beyond In E!'s 'Hollywood Teen Medium'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved January 30, 2016.
  6. ^ a b c Bentley, Rick (January 16, 2016). "Hanford's Tyler Henry shares gift on new E! TV series 'Hollywood Medium'". Fresno Bee. Retrieved January 29, 2016.
  7. ^ "TV star Tyler Henry opens up about coming out as gay and 'Hollywood Medium'". The Desert Sun. May 10, 2018. Archived from the original on January 4, 2020. Retrieved January 5, 2020.
  8. ^ "This Celebrity Medium Once Channeled Brittany Murphy's Spirit During a Reading, No Really". January 22, 2016. Retrieved September 9, 2017.
  9. ^ a b Delbyck, Cole (January 25, 2016). "We're Not So Convinced This Guy Is Channeling The Spirit Of Brittany Murphy". HuffPost. Retrieved April 15, 2016.
  10. ^ Wagmeister, Elizabeth (March 7, 2016). "E! Renews 'Hollywood Medium With Tyler Henry' for Season 2". Variety. Retrieved April 1, 2016.
  11. ^ Zavala, Julissa (February 14, 2017). "Tyler Henry stays between two worlds".
  12. ^ "Matt Lauer's emotional sit-down with Tyler Henry: 'My hands were shaking'". today.com. August 2, 2016.
  13. ^ Grossman, Cathy Lynn (July 28, 2021). "Books to Heal, Energize, and Enchant: Mind, Body, Spirit Books 2021". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved April 2, 2022.
  14. ^ "'Hollywood Medium' Tyler Henry Talks About Growing Up, Skeptics And Memoir 'Here And Here After'". Greeley Tribune. March 25, 2022. Retrieved April 2, 2022.
  15. ^ Corinthios, Aurelie (February 28, 2018). "Why Hollywood Medium's Tyler Henry Says Connecting with Michael Jackson Was 'Really Humbling'". People. Archived from the original on March 4, 2018. Retrieved March 4, 2018.
  16. ^ White, Peter (February 11, 2022). "Hollywood Medium Tyler Henry Lands Netflix Reality Series". Deadline Hollywood.
  17. ^ "Life After Death with Tyler Henry". netflix.com. Netflix, Inc. Retrieved October 31, 2024.
  18. ^ a b Gerbic, Susan (April 20, 2018). "Nancy Grace Should be Ashamed of Herself!". CSICOP.org. CFI. Archived from the original on April 20, 2018. Retrieved April 20, 2018.
  19. ^ a b Cohen, Jess (June 2017). "Tyler Henry Urges Alan Thicke to 'See a Doctor' on Emotional Hollywood Medium Episode Filmed 3 Months Before His Death". E!. Retrieved September 24, 2017.
  20. ^ "Hollywood Medium With Tyler Henry Recap: NeNe Leakes, Bella Thorne and 5 OMG Moments From the Series Premiere on Hollywood Medium". E!. January 25, 2016. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
  21. ^ "Amber Rose Has a New Man in Her Life! Find Out Who!". Us Weekly. March 8, 2016. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
  22. ^ "Hollywood Medium's Tyler Henry Has No Idea Who Jaleel White Is". August 7, 2017. Retrieved September 9, 2017.
  23. ^ "Tyler Henry's Most OMG Moments on Hollywood Medium on Hollywood Medium". E! News. February 15, 2018. Retrieved May 21, 2018.
  24. ^ Dugan, Christina (December 21, 2016). "Alan Thicke's Cause of Death Has Been Confirmed". People. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
  25. ^ a b c Gerbic, Susan (September 15, 2017). "The One Where "Psychic" Tyler Henry Reads Alan Thicke". CSICOP.org. Center For Inquiry. Archived from the original on September 24, 2017. Retrieved September 24, 2017.
  26. ^ Lisa Respers France (June 2017). "Tyler Henry warned Alan Thicke about his heart". CNN. Retrieved September 9, 2017.
  27. ^ Bernardini, Gabrielle (May 30, 2017). "Tanya Thicke: Alan Thicke 'Had the Cleanest Bill of Health' Two Months Before Dying". Us Magazine. Retrieved September 24, 2017.
  28. ^ Lippe, Jeryl (June 2, 2017). "Tyler Henry Eerily Predicts Alan Thicke's Death on 'Hollywood Medium'". lifeandstylemag.com. Retrieved September 24, 2017.
  29. ^ Radford, Benjamin (October 20, 2010). "Here to Hereafter: Can Psychics Really Talk to the Dead?". Livescience.com. Live Science. Retrieved September 9, 2017.
  30. ^ Propatier, Stephen. "Susan Gerbic: Vampire Slayer". Skeptoid. Skeptoid Media. Retrieved September 9, 2017.
  31. ^ Swiss, Jamy Ian. "Jamy Ian Swiss - In Pursuit of Psychics: For Good Reason". James Randi Foundation. Retrieved September 9, 2017 – via YouTube.
  32. ^ Gerbic, Susan (March 23, 2018). "Ten Tricks of the Psychics I Bet You Didn't Know". CSI. Committee for Skeptical Inquiry. Retrieved March 23, 2018.
  33. ^ Hill, Sharon. "Real-deal "boy next door" medium? Or Hollywood hype?". Doubtful News. Retrieved February 7, 2016.
  34. ^ "The Hollywood Medium has a secret". The Outline. Retrieved December 17, 2016.
  35. ^ Mehta, Hemant. "Hollywood "Medium" Tyler Henry, Whose Show Premieres Sunday, Wants to Specialize in Suicide Victims". Friendly Atheist. Patheos. Retrieved February 7, 2016.
  36. ^ Fowlkes, Ben (April 10, 2018). "Ronda Rousey discusses father's suicide on show called 'Hollywood Medium,' and we have questions".
  37. ^ Finger, Bobby (August 25, 2016). "Hollywood Medium Cemented Its Status As the Worst Show on Television Last Night". Jezebel. Archived from the original on June 12, 2022. Retrieved September 21, 2016.
  38. ^ Gerbic, Susan (September 20, 2016). "Return of the Grief Vampire Tyler Henry". Committee for Skeptical Inquiry. Center For Inquiry. Archived from the original on August 8, 2017. Retrieved September 24, 2017.
  39. ^ Horton, Adrian (February 25, 2019). "John Oliver on psychics: 'A vast underworld of unscrupulous vultures'". The Guardian. Archived from the original on February 25, 2019. Retrieved February 25, 2019.
  40. ^ "Psychics: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)". LastWeekTonight. Retrieved February 25, 2019 – via YouTube.
  41. ^ Novella, Steven (January 21, 2016). "Grief Vampires". Neurologica. NESS. Retrieved February 7, 2016.
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