Houdini Challenged!

 

I have had this talk with numerous people and yet have never put it in print. There are many reasons Houdini became famous but one, was paramount. The Challenges. Back in the Vaudeville Days, you would pay one price to see many acts. And even though they performed daily, you would likely only see them once. Why? Because they did the same act. Some artists did the same material for their entire careers. 

But then along comes Houdini. And he flips everything on it's head. When he comes to town, Monday night he will be doing his Needle Swallowing and Metamorphosi act. But before he finishes, he tells the audience that on Tuesday, he won't be going these things. NO! Because you see, he has been challenged by the local brewery to escape from a beer keg filled with beer! But hold on. Wednesday, a group of local sailors claim they can tie up Houdini with rope in a way he cannot escape! Thursday, oh Surprise, he's hanging upside down from a Straitjacket at the local newspapers office and then he will announce the Thursday night challenge. You see, every night was something different. So audiences would have to come back, again and again and again. No two evenings were the same!

The more impossible the escape, the more people would show up. If there was danger involved, well, that could bring out recording setting numbers of people. His bridge jumps for example, brought a huge crowds. It was outdoor theater and as he said, everyone wants to come out and see someone die. Small playbill were handed out and distributed all over town announcing these various challenges. Who would do the challenging? Local businesses. The local brewery, the local newspaper, a nearby dairy farm. In the case of the image at the top of the page, this was from the Weed Tire Company. They made tire chains for tires that had to go through dangerous weather conditions like snow, ice and high water. 

The challenge took place April 10th, 1908 at Keith's Theater in NYC. The success of the event did two things. It brought much press to Houdini. But it also promoted the Weed Tire Companies new brand line of Tire Chains. The cross promotion was so successful, that Houdini repeated the challenge escape in Philadelphia.  It certainly created an iconic image.