Showing posts with label #HOUDINI. Show all posts
Showing posts with label #HOUDINI. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 21, 2018
Carnegie On French Houdini Documentary
Back in May of 2018, I took part in a documentary segment about the time Houdini testified before Congress. This segment was for the French TV Channel ARTE. The segment finally aired TODAY, November 21st, 2018. It's all in French, so if you don't speak French, you won't understand a word, lol. But it's a pretty good segment and I hope you enjoy it. Below is the french version.
By the way, during the actual event in 1926, Houdini presented the Spirit Slates to the Congressman, and then exposed it to them. He said, "My oath prevents me from exposing magic secrets, but I have no problem exposing the secrets of mediums". I did a quick demonstration of the Spirit Slates during my segment, though unlike Houdini, I did not expose it!
Sunday, November 11, 2018
Houdini the Patriot
Today, Nov 11, 2018, marks the 100th Anniversary of the end of World War 1. The war which began in 1914. Coincidentally, the United States did not get into WWI until the day that Houdini celebrated as his birthday, April 6th, 1917. And, despite the fact that the land in which Houdini was really born, Hungary, was involved on the opposing side in the war, Houdini stayed true to The United States. He was a true blue American. Though Houdini appears to be mostly apolitical, he was certainly quite patriotic. And he was a big supporter of the War effort in WWI. Houdini actually enlisted but was too old to be considered. Instead, he got behind President Wilson and the war effort by selling Liberty Bonds and performed at military bases across the country to support the troops.
The S.S. Antilles, was a US Troop-Transport Ship that was sailing out of France on it's way to the United Stated on October 15, 1917. A German u-boat fired a torpedo at the Antilles the morning of Oct 17th sinking the ship. Sixty Seven sailors lost their lives.
Now Houdini steps into the picture. As a way to raise money for the families of the service members who died, Houdini put together a benefit show. His idea was to bring together theatrical artists and put on a huge show at the Hippodrome Theatre in NYC. The program was dubbed, 'Remember The Antilles' and was presented on November 11th, 1917. Among the artists in the 'Carnival of Wonders' portion of the show were: Charles Carter, Frederick E. Powell, Julius Zancig, Howard Thurston, Theo Hardeen, Adelaide Herrmann, Houdini, the biggest name of them all Harry Kellar.
Kellar's name was important, as he was coaxed out of retirement for the singular event. His appearance was billed as 'positively farewell performance by Harry Kellar, The Dean of Magicians.' He had retired from the stage in 1908, having handed his 'Mantle of Magic' over to Howard Thurston at Ford's Theatre in Baltimore MD. For his portion of the show he presented 'table lifting' and then his version of the Davenport Spirit Cabinet. An account in the Dec 1917 issue of The Sphinx magazine says that Kellar far outshined all the earlier performers. And they added this, "He is just as good as ever and works with the same rare skill that made him not only the dean of magicians, but one of the most finished performers we have ever known."
Houdini followed with his Metamorphosis routine and then the Water Torture Cell. I should also note, to promote the entire event he did his upside down strait jacket escape from a crane on Broadway.
When the event was over Houdini's benefits show raised $10,000.00. This would be a little over $212,000.00 in todays money. I'd say it was a huge success. Speaking of money raised, The Secret Life of Houdini by William Kalush and Larry Sloman says that Houdini sold more than $1,000,000.00 in war bonds and gave away at least $7000 of his own money to soldiers during shows at military bases.
There is more to the Carnival of Magic Show at the Hippodrome, but I'd prefer to include that in an upcoming podcast. For now, I hope you enjoyed Houdini the Patriot!
Tuesday, October 30, 2018
Magic Detective Podcast Episode 6- Houdini's Final Days and Beyond
Episode 6 of The Magic Detective Podcast is about Houdini's Final Days and Beyond. All of this comes from previous articles here on the site, and I'm going to include the links below to the various articles. You'll be able to see a number of photos that help to illustrate the various stories.
But first, I'd like to include the names of the books that I mention in the podcast. These are all biographies of Houdini.
The Secret Life of Houdini -William Kalush and Larry Sloman
Houdini The Man Who Walked Through Walls by William Lindsey Gresham
Houdini His Life and Art by James Randi and Burt Sugar
Houdini His Legend and Magic by Doug Henning
HOUDINI!!! The Career of Ehrich Weiss by Kennth Silverman
Houdini The Untold Story by Melbourne Christopher
Articles
Tracking the Body of Houdini
The Day Houdini was Buried
Last Days of Houdini
More of the Last Days of Houdini
The Manifestations of Houdini
Episode 7 should be up next Monday. It too will be about Houdini and then when I get to Episode 8, I'll explore some magicians you might not be familiar with.
And anytime you want to check out the podcast, you can always just click the link on the far right of the page. Or just go to MagicDetectivePodcast.com. You can also find the podcast in iTunes!
Sunday, October 28, 2018
Episode 5 Magic Detective Podcast The Early Years of Houdini
EhrichWeiss the Champion Runner |
Episode 5 of The Magic Detective Podcast is up and ready to download. I had recently been searching through various podcasts for ones about Houdini. And my search sadly ended with none I could recommend. Actually, there was one, by The Bowery Boys, that wasn't too bad. But I felt that overall there was not a good solid podcast that covered Houdini properly. So I decided to go ahead and begin a series of podcasts about Houdini's life.
This first episode is more a Starter Guide to Houdini and covers his early years up until his marriage to Bess. I rather enjoyed the research on this because there were things I wasn't sure about that I was able to put into perspective. The research into his birthdate, or should I say 2 birthdates was amazing. One thing I left off, was an opinion I have regarding births during those times. I have done a LOT of ancestry work and after having scoured hundreds of Census records, I can tell you that dates of birth change often, as do the year someone was born. This was the case at least in the times before 1940. Usually the year is the thing that changes the most, it may change by a year or two. But the one thing that doesn't change are the places people are born. In that, Houdini is unique. Before 1900 he claimed to be Austrian, after 1900 he claimed to be from Appleton Wisconsin. And he even put this information on legal documents.
While doing the research I read an interesting piece about Houdini's days training as a boxer in Milwaukee. I included that in the blog, and I found that information in the Houdinifile.com
The main part of the podcast stops at the arrival of Bess Houdini, who in essence ends the run of the Houdini Brothers. I had a chuckle as it's often a love interest of some kind that breaks up a group. But in the case of Bess, she was extremely important to Houdini's future and I will cover that in a future podcast. And Houdini's brother Theo, was not totally at a loss, as Houdini put him to work as Hardeen, and later working for his Film Development Corporation.
The podcast finishes with a CRAZY piece of information I found in an old Linking Ring Magazine from October 1971. The article was titled 'Somewhere West of Budapest, Somewhere East of Appleton' and was penned by magic historian and collector Robert Lund, who was also the curator and owner of The American Museum of Magic. The article deals with Houdini's claim he was born on April 6th. Among the various things discussed in the article are a letter from Gladys Weiss to Bess Houdini, and a statement made my Leopold Weiss about his brother. It's definitely worth listening too.
There will be another Houdini Episode following this one. I don't intend to cover his entire life in this fashion, but I'd like to have a couple episodes that give a good overview of his life. I hope to have the next episode up in a couple days, as I have something important I'd like to promote. Here is the link again for Episode 5.
Saturday, July 21, 2018
Magic Potion #9 Houdini Artwork
I stumbled upon this yesterday. An unusual piece of art using HOUDINI. It reminded me of the Tony Curtis movie, when they referred to the Water Torture Cell as 'The Man In The Bottle'. Here, Houdini IS the MAN in the bottle!
If you're interested in this piece, you can pick it up in various sizes and in various mediums like canvas, wood print, and more. http://studio-v.wingsdomain.com/featured/magic-potion-number-9-patent-pending-20140922-wingsdomain-art-and-photography.html
Friday, July 20, 2018
Houdini Commemorative T-Shirt
Here is something you don't see every day. A Commemorative Houdini T-shirt. This is produced by the Camel City Goods Company, and it commemorates the Nov 24th, 1924 performance by Houdini at the Winston Salem Reynolds Auditorium. I'll be honest, I didn't go back and fact check this to see if Houdini did indeed perform there on that date*. I just thought it was a very cool t-shirt.
You can get one here: https://www.camelcitygoods.com/products/houdini-escape-lieu
I've done a bit more research into this, and apparently this is the second t-shirt. The original was a tan shirt with reddish lettering. There was also a commemorative button issued by the same company.
*I've gone back to see if I could find any proof of Houdini performing in Winston-Salem on Nov 24th 1924, and sure enough, an article in The Frederick News, Nov 25th, 1924 mentions his appearance at The Reynolds Memorial Hall in Winston Salem on the 24th.
Sunday, July 1, 2018
Houdini-opoly The Board Game For Magic Fans!
This is really almost too good to be true. I mean, who would go to the time, effort, and even struggle to produce a version of an Opoly Game with HOUDINI as the focus? Umm, well, Houdini fans and magic historians, that's who! And when it comes to fans of Houdini's and two people who have dedicated their lives to keeping the memory of Houdini alive, you can't get much more dedicated than Dorothy Dietrich and Dick Brookz.
They began the process with a kickstarter campaign and ended up producing an extremely successful campaign! The concept of a board game about Houdini seems on one hand to be very dated. But SO WAS HOUDINI. He's from another time. Yet even though he lived 100 years ago, he is just a relevant and popular today as ever. So I'd say their choice of a board game was sheer brilliance!
I will be honest, when the box arrived, it's so breathtaking I did not even want to open it. It was a struggle in fact to tear open the shrink wrap and see what was inside. It's one of those double edged swords, do I or don't I? But I had to. Curiosity for one was just overwhelming. But secondly, I needed to see if the inside was as spectacular as the outside. The answer....
WOW! It's even more amazing on the inside! Take a look at the board itself. So many incredible details included on the board, so many great photos. And now look at what comes inside the box...many pieces familiar in other Opoly games, the properties, the cards and money. But take a closer look, the cards, the money, they've been Houdini-ized!
I'm not sure I can bring myself to open the bags and money/houses/game pieces though. So that means I might never get to PLAY Houdiniopoly. Wait? What am I saying??? I've GOT TO PLAY THIS GAME NOW!!!! I'm going to contact some fellow magicians and coordinate a Houdiniopoly Night! How cool would that be!?!
There is one more little treat I'd like to share with you. For the folks who contributed to the kickstarter campaign there were some goodies given as a thank you for contributing. This was a bag of extra game pieces, all based on Houdini's career. So you've got an Elephant for the Vanishing Elephant, a couple dogs that are just like Houdini's pets, a Milk Can, some barrels, a playing card, top hats and more! It's just awesome.
If you're wondering how to get one (or two or three) of these board games yourself, it's so easy. Just go to Houdiniopoly.com I'm beyond impressed with the quality of this product. The thought and time and energy that went into this is evident in the final product. I want to thank Dick and Dorothy for including my name among those who helped with this. I'm not sure how much I really did, other than contribute. I was a bit 'out of touch' when this was all being developed. In fact, looking back over the various emails, I see that I had planned to contribute more to put an ad on the back of the game for TheMagicDetective. com but I just didn't get it done. Life has been a little challenging the last couple years, but things are looking up. And things will be looking up for YOU too when you order your own Houdiniopoly Board Game!!! Do it today as I'm sure these are in limited supply.
Saturday, May 26, 2018
Houdini Testifies Before Congress Continued
(Library of Congress Photo) |
During the first day of Senate Hearings on the Anti-Fortune Telling Bill, the big revelation was the members of Congress and their wives often visited and consulted with the mediums and fortune tellers. It was brought up that even the White House was known to consult these folks. Here was information I'm sure the D.C. class didn't want to get out, but it did. I wonder if that's why the second day of hearings wasn't until the end of May, because they were hoping people would forget.
On May 18th, 1926 the Congressional Hearings for HR8989 the Anti-Fortune Bill resumed. The hearings began by hearing testimony from Remegius Weiss of Philadelphia. Weiss, no relation to Houdini's family, was an investigator into mediums and spirit phenomenon. He was another of the many investigators working for/or with Houdini. Weiss shared how he had exposed the famed Henry Slade, and even got Slade to sign a confession. The name of Conan Doyle also came up during the testimony and the Congressman were under the belief that Conan Doyle was a great authority on Spiritualism.
Moments later, Houdini addresses the Congressman in regards to Doyle. Mr. McLeod again reiterates that Conan Doyle was an authority on Spiritualism. Houdini jumps in and says, "Conan Doyle is not an outstanding authority." McLeod responds, "He is accepted as one of the best." And Houdini follows, "No, he is not accepted as one of the best. He is one of the greatest dupes, outside of Sir Oliver Lodge. Conan Doyle stated I posses mediumistic powers, which I deny."
McLeod says, "How can you prove it?" Houdini replied, "I admit that I do not have mediumistic powers. They claim in a London psychic college I dematerialize my body, and that I ooze through and come out again and put myself together." Mr. McLeod follows with, "How do you do it?" Houdini says something which is quite remarkable, "I do it like anybody else would do it. There is nothing secret about it. We are all humans. Nobody is supernormal. We are all born alike."
Then Congressman Bloom, one of the resolutions authors, says, "Have you ever heard of another city in the United States that has a similar law to the one in the District of Columbia in regards to fortune telling?" Houdini then explains that no city gives such a cheap license to fortune tellers and in fact, most cities actually have laws prohibiting it. Of those cities that do offer a license, they have fees like, $1500 per year, $1000 per year, $5 per day, $500 per quarter and $150 per month. Whereas the District of Columbia charges a mere $25 per year.
Next to testify would be Rose Mackenberg. She would again open up that source of embarrassment for quite a few Congressmen which was first revealed in February. Rose had visited two of the key mediums in the audience, Madam Marcia and Rev Jane Coates, prior to the days proceedings. She visited them separately, but a key bit of information was shared by both mediums. That devastating bit of information was that Congressman often visit mediums in town. Not only that, they included the White House among their group of spiritualism devotees. And then, she mentions that Senator Fletcher's wife is a medium herself.
This revelation also includes the clue to a question I have had for a while. That question is, "how did all these mediums and fortune tellers know about the hearings in order to show up?" Well, along with the fact that many Congressmen attend seances or get readings, Rev Jane Coates also mentions that she has been lobbying Congressman and had interviewed 22 of them and 16 were 'entirely favorable towards spiritualism'. Obviously, with members of Congress being so friendly with the spiritualist community, it's easy to see who told the mediums about the hearings, the Congressmen!
Reading Rose Mackenberg's testimony is certainly fascinating, but I'd like to share with you now, testimony from 'the other side'. No, not from the spirits, lol, but rather from one of the spiritualists. On May 20th, 1926, Reverend H.P. Strack, secretary of the Nationals Spiritualists Association of America, gives his testimony. What he tries to do is shred the statements made by previous speakers.
He began with Remegius Weiss's testimony about Dr. Henry Slade. Reverand Strack says, "In the testimony given by the man from Philadelphia (Weiss), he refers to a seance conducted by the medium named Slade. If the committee will remember, in this man's testimony he stated the medium would take his foot and kick a book, and the book would remain floating in the air. That is concrete evidence of mediumship, the law of levitation forcing a book to remain in the air that has been kicked by a medium." Now, let's look at what Weiss really said. "A book extended over the edge of the table, Dr. Slade slyly gave the book a kick with his left foot from under the table. The book turned over like a flap door. There is nothing remarkable in this trick. Still up to this time, spiritists say 'Dr. Slade floated a book in the air.'" So, Weiss actually showed that Slade's attempt to 'float a book' was actually done by secretly kicking the book. And that it merely flipped over. It did not float in the air. And despite this, the spiritists claim the book floated, NOT Weiss, who again, exposed it. So Reverend Strack was misleading in this part of his testimony.
Strack also mentions a curious exchange that took place during the Senate Hearings. The speaker had
mentioned that Houdini claimed that all of these mediums were fakes and frauds and asked if he would include the Davenport Brothers in that statement. Houdini apparently replied, "The reason I have not included the Davenport brothers was because they are personal friends of mine, and I am a student of Dana Davenport." I haven't been able to check this against the actual record, but it's fairly obvious that Houdini simply didn't want to include his friends in all this nonsense. The Davenports never claimed to be real mediums, but they also never claimed that they weren't. Houdini said the Davenports shared their secret rope tie with him. At this point though, they were no longer performing.
I'm not sure who Dana Davenport is though, as it wasn't the name of either of the brothers. Perhaps it's a misspelling or the stenographer didn't take down the name properly. The brothers were William Henry and Ira Erastus. The photo to the right is of Houdini and Ira Erastus Davenport. The other brother had died back in 1877 when Houdini was just a child.
A curious moment happens when President Abraham Lincoln's name is brought up. Lincoln seems to be a favorite 'spirit' among mediums as he has a habit of showing up in many so-called seances. The spiritualists communities often point to Lincoln himself being a devote spiritualist. Houdini at one point decided to squelch this statement by bringing for into evidence a letter, written by Lincoln's son, denying that his father was ever a believer in spiritualism. Mary Todd Lincoln was the one so desperate as to seek out these folks, but not Abraham Lincoln.
Some of the additional highlights from the proceedings include Houdini giving a demonstration of spirit voices speaking through a trumpet, which was well received by the congressman. A bit later, one congressman mentions a stunt that Houdini did where he was blindfolded and drove around town, and he would stop the vehicle and retrieve a missing object. At first this seemed to me like a blindfold drive, but now I think it's probably more akin to a mere blindfold stunt or at the most some sort of hellstromism (muscle reading).
At a later point in the proceedings Houdini gives a demonstration of Slate Writing, which he prefaces that 'anyone can do'. In other words, it's not supernatural. He shows two school slates, and the numbers 1-2-3-4 are written on the respective sides of the slates to show that they contain no other writing. Then the numbers are cleaned off and the two slates tied together with a handkerchief and placed a piece of chalk between them. Next, Houdini produces a dictionary that was purchased that morning and asks a member of Congress to drop a card within the pages of the book, so marking a page. He comically asks the Spirits to tell him the number of the page, the first word in the book and some sentence that he would not know. Sure enough, when he unties the slates, writing is seen, the page number is correct, the words are correct, and there is a sentence which is actually a message for someone in the room.
The mediums all say that Houdini simply demonstrated what they knew, that he himself was actually a spirit medium. Houdini denied the accusation. He said he was bound by his art not to reveal magic tricks, but he had no problem exposing spirit tricks. And then shared how he knew in advance the various words and numbers and how he eavesdropped on an earlier conversation and used that as his secret sentence on the slates. At the finale, he exposed the full secret of the slates. (By the way, the photo above has a blemish on it. Houdini is not holding a cigar in his mouth, despite the way it looks.)
Oh, but there was one more thing. Madame Marcia, whom Houdini called Madame Marchia, and it was recorded that way in several publications. Madame Marcia made a prediction that Houdini would soon die. She wasn't the only medium to predict that, or wish that. And in this instance, that prediction would ultimately come true.
In the end, despite 4 days of testimony from Houdini, his investigators, Madame Marcia, Reverend Coates and others, there would be no Anti-fortune telling bill. The bill rode too closely to the line of infringing upon religious liberties. Reading through the transcripts from the House Hearings, I think Houdini missed his calling as a lawyer!
The Government Printing Office published a booklet entitled, FORTUNE TELLING Hearings Before the Subcommittee On Judiciary On The Committee Of The District of Columbia House of Representatives 69th Congress First Session H.R. 8989. The last word that appears in the official transcript from the House of Representatives published by the Government Printing Office........the final word.........HOUDINI.
In case you missed it, please go back and read part 1 of this story http://www.themagicdetective.com/2018/05/houdini-testifies-before-congress-day-1.html
Tuesday, May 22, 2018
Houdini Fake News Or Laurel/Yanny 1926?!
Houdini leaving Congress (Library of Congress Photo) |
The story appeared in a number of newspapers on Feb 27th, 1926. It was put out by the Associated Press (AP) and picked up all over the country. One of the things that is mentioned in the various articles is the fact that Capital guards had to be summoned to stand ready to prevent any physical combat between the spiritualists, fortune tellers and Houdini. This I believe, though it was not recorded in the Congressional record. You see, a booklet was published by the Washington Government Printing Office called 'Fortune Telling-Hearings Before The Subcommittee on Judiciary of the Committee on the District of Columbia House of Representatives-69th Congress First Session on H.R. 8989'. This is the complete transcript of events that took place during the hearings. And, it's basically an eye witness source for what took place that day.
Before I go to the source, let me give you the essence of the 'fake news story'. Houdini, according to the stories, says that persons claiming supernatural powers were nothing but fakers. This part is true, and is reflected in the transcripts. Though a couple papers put down the word 'fakir' instead of 'faker', which is something different altogether.
Next, the stories say that Houdini offered $10,000 to anyone who could tell him what was in a telegram he tossed upon the table. Representative Reid, Republican from Illinois, spoke up and said, "Why it says, 'I can't be there today'." Houdini replies, "That's a guess, and you are not clairvoyant." Reid responds, "Oh yes I am!" and the audience bursts out laughing. The articles further state, that it turned out the Illinois representatives quotation of the telegram was correct, but Houdini insisted it was all an accident. Wow. how embarrassing for Houdini. This was reported by the AP and went out to newspapers all over the country.
There is one small problem. It's not clear that it happened that way. Here is the dialog straight from the transcript:
Mr. McLeod: It is possible to have a genuine clairvoyant, is it not?
Mr. Houdini: It is impossible, I claim. I will give $10,000 to any clairvoyant in the world that will do one test.
Mr. Reid: What is the test?
Mr. Houdini: Any test I want them to do.
Mr. Reid: Let us get the $10,000
Mr. Houdini:Unfortunately, I didn't bring it with me. But I can telegraph for the money, if you wish.
Mr. McLeod: There are witnesses here.
Mr. Houdini: They will say under oath and swear to it; I tell you I would not believe a clairvoyant or fraudulent medium under oath, so help me God.
Mr. McLeod: Wood you by proof?
Mr. Houdini: By proof, yes: certainly by proof.
Mr. McLeod: Here is a witness that can prove it.
Mr. Reid: How long have you been fighting them?
Mr. Houdini: About 35 years.
Mr. Reid: Have you been fairly successful?
Mr. Houdini: I have had more mediums arrested in two years than have been arrested in seventy, because I know their tricks; I know how to catch them.
Mr. Houston: You have never tried to catch them on a test, have you?
Mr. Houdini: On a test (turning to the audience) Tell me the name my mother called me when I was born? {no response from audience} Tell me the pet name my father used to call me? {no response from audience} (At this point Mr. Houdini threw on the committee table the crumpled up piece of paper.)
Mr. Houston: We ought to know something about the subject matter.
Mr. Houdini: You asked for a test?
Mr. Houston: Sure.
Mr. Houdini: Here is a telegram (turning to the audience). Read that, you clairvoyant mediums and show me up. Tell the contents of the telegram. {no response}
Mr. Reid: I will tell you what it says: " Please send more money."
Mr. Houdini: Does anybody want to read that wire?
Mr. Reid: I have made a guess.
Mr. Houdini: She {indicating one of the audience members} is a clairvoyant.
Mr. Reid: I said, "Please send more money."
Mr. Houdini: You can make your own deduction. That is just what it is. You are not a clairvoyant?
Mr. Reid: Oh, yes I am (laughter from audience)
Mr. Houdini: All right, if you are clairvoyant, tell me what this wire is. Go ahead {producing another telegram}
Mr. Reid: It is asking if you didn't come?
Mr. Houdini: No, sir. Everybody guesses at it.
The sections in red are the most important. The newspapers record that Reid said, "I can't be there today." But what Reid actually said was, "Please send more money." So they got that wrong. Houdini doesn't admit that Reid correctly guessed the message in the telegram either. What he says to Reid is: "You can make your own deduction. That is just what it is." Then he adds, "You are not clairvoyant."
Congressman Reid was making light of most of the days events, and here is another example. But I don't see here where Houdini replies, "ok you guessed that correctly, let's try again." NO, he says basically,"that was a guess". But he pointed out that Reid was not clairvoyant and really the question was to the crowd. When Reid would not stop, Houdini hit him with a test all his own, which he got wrong.
Now, I've read this numerous times. Perhaps: "You can make your own deductions. That is just what it is." could be interpreted to mean, 'You can make your own deductions. Your statement is correct'. But I tend to think, IF that is what was meant, then it would have followed with a notation about laughter from the audience or the audience getting out of hand. Because the next line has that. And surely if someone guessed correctly after Houdini made such a grand statement, the audience would have gone crazy. Not to mention the fact, that Reid doesn't say anything about claiming the $10,000 prize. And given his antics during the day, I can't see how he would have missed such an easy joke. Later sections of the report do show when the proceedings had to be stopped because the audience was getting out of hand. Don't you think a room full of fortune tellers and mediums would have gone wild over someone apparently beating Houdini at his game? I am unclear now. At first when I read it I didn't think that was the case. Now, after having read it numerous times, I can see the other side of the argument. One this for sure, it makes for a funny story and that's why the papers ran with it. Is it fake news? Probably not, although I did think so at first.
Tell me, what do you think? Do you think Reid guessed it correctly? Or do you think he got it wrong and Houdini just moved on to another test? Maybe it's a case of Laurel/Yanny from 1926, you hear it one way or hear it another, lol?!
Part 2 of Houdini In Congress will be coming in a couple days.
Friday, April 6, 2018
About Houdini's Character On His Other Birthday
Sure, the article isn't quite politically correct by today's standards. But I'm not one of those that judges people from the past by the standards of today. I tend to think that those who do, will find themselves eventually judged quite harshly by history. What we find here is someone describing a kind, very considerate, and thoughtful Houdini. This is much the same as Dorothy Young described him. With that I'll say Happy Birthday Harry, again!
Saturday, March 24, 2018
Happy Birthday Houdini #144
Well our ole friend Houdini turns 144 today. Strangely, he doesn't really look it. Another year older and another year for more revelations into a guy you'd think we would already know everything about. But through the tireless work of sites like: WildaboutHoudini, HoudiniFile, harryhoudinicircumstantialevidence, and of course my site, TheMagicDetective, we keep learning new facts about this iconic showman. I think the most astonishing thing is how new photos of Houdini keep showing up. Of course, they aren't truly new photos, just unseen or previously unknown photos. Then there are the countless books that come out about this great magician. I'm really looking forward to the new book by Joe Posnanski, once it's published. Despite my best efforts to reach Joe, I keep missing him or catching him at the wrong time, lol. I know he reads me blog though, so that's very cool.
Now, as an added bonus to help celebrate Houdini's birthday, I'm including a video clip of an escape I presented earlier this year. This was actually a demo-video shot for a project I'd been working on. I've re-edited it. Looking at it, I probably should have reshot it, because this was 30lbs ago, lol. I hope you enjoy it! Happy Birthday Houdini!!!
Sunday, November 19, 2017
The American Queen of Mystery
And taking this name game a step further, in July 1908 Minerva was involved in a lawsuit, and her name is listed in the newspaper as Minerva Minna Riedel of Germany. Yeah, I have no clue where that one came from, but it's definately Minerva American Queen of Escapes that is involved in the lawsuit. Was this just another stage name? It was a full year before her divorce.
In the Eau Claire Leader Newspaper Feb 17th, 1910, she is mentioned in an article as being married to Prof. Chas. M.J. Haugeros. A later article March 20, 1910 mentions that she married her manager. So Chas Haugeros was her manager and her second husband.
One of the keys to figuring out Minerva, the escape artist, is her first husband Edward Vano, or real name Edward VanDorn. I've been able to date his act back as far as 1900. He is usually listed as a Handcuff Expert. At one point he is doing a dual act as Vano & Anvo: The Transatlantic Wizards of Handcuffs. This comes from the July 1900 issue of Mahatma. I'm curious who the Anvo might be. They are listed again in the May 1901 issue of Mahatma. Then in June 1903, there is a mention that Vano is moving to Coney Island. In a 1903 edition of The Sphinx, it says that Vano will appear in a new act called 'Vano The Mystery', and he will be assisted by Sadie Gibney. So no sign of Minerva, yet.
However, an ad in the Boston Post, May 25th, 1904 lists him as appearing at Austin and Stone's Museum as The VanDorns King and Queen of Handcuffs, so it's likely that Minerva is in the act at this point.
By September 1907, Minerva was appearing solo with her husband acting as manager. Her billing at this time was Minerva Vano: Queen of Handcuffs. It wouldn't be long before she dropped the last name Vano and just went by Minerva. And as we learned above, she would also drop Mr. Vano.
There is a bit of excitement in July 1908 when Minerva is contracted to perform at The Merryland Park in Cumberland Maryland. She is set to be paid $75 for the week. The manager of the park asks if she can add something sensational to promote her appearance, which she does with no additional fee. She is handcuffed by the Chief of Police and jumped from The Blue Bridge into the Potomac River. The newspaper article which features the jump, also points out that Minerva has escaped from 173 jails, 63 of which were in America. That sounds exciting, but it wasn't the excitement I was referring to. Apparently on Wednesday of her week at Merryland Park, Mr John Kirk, the park's manager, went to Minerva's hotel. Here is how the Cumberland Evening Times newspaper describes the event..."Mr. Kirk came to the hotel and after some discussion with Mr. Johnstone, her assistant, came to her and using very insulting language, but not complaining of the act, made a most insulting proposal which she resented and warning him of arrest if he continued to insult her, walked away. He followed her and said, "Ill fix you for this." Then on Thursday, she showed up at the park to fullfill her contract but was prevented from doing so. She was told to go to the box office to pick up her money and leave. But they only paid her a portion of what she was owed. So she sued him. Minerva won the lawsuit.
The following month Minerva appeared at Luna Park DC in Arlington VA. I found this personally fascinating because I had never heard of Luna Park DC. Apparently, there was an Amusement Park in Arlington along Four Mile Run Road and was quite popular until it eventually burned down and was razed in 1915. While performing at Luna Park, Minerva also did a handcuffed bridge jump. She jumped from the New Highway bridge into the Potomac River at 5pm on August 10th 1908. The newspaper account says that she may try to duplicate the feat later in the week but instead of wearing handcuffs she would be put into a straitjacket and attempt the dive. I could find no report of that taking place however.
In late 1908, Minerva heads to England for a tour that would last 14 months. touring England and having a very successful run. While in England she does handcuffed bridge jumps, jail escapes, challenges and finished her act with her signature Water Filled Barrel escape. This was similar in effect to Houdini's Milk Can Escape, but used a wooden barrel instead. Also, Minerva was heavily shackled and handcuffed when put into the barrel.
According to the Jarrett Book, it was while Minerva was in England that she encountered 'the Houdini people'. Her accusation is that they put acid into the water of her Barrel and she was badly burned when she entered. She stopped the escape immediately upon feeling the burning sensation. I don't see any newspaper articles which refer to this or any other form of documentation other than Jarrett's account in the Jarrett book.
By October of 1909, Minerva is back in the United States presenting her act. Her name regularly appears in The Sphinx Magazine as touring the U.S.. The article I mentioned earlier from 1910 where she marries her manager, also states they were in Russia. But the way the article is written, it doesn't give the exact time they were in Russia, so it is possible this was 1910 or earlier.
According to Jim Steinmeyer in the Jarrett Book, Minerva marries Guy Jarrett sometime around 1913. So if all of this is correct, Jarrett is actually her third husband. They remained married for seven years until she divorced him for abandonment. Minerva appears to have given up her career when she married Jarrett and there is no record of her after this time that I can locate.
Saturday, November 4, 2017
The Day Houdini Was Buried
We often hear about Oct 31st 1926 at 1:26pm, as the time when Houdini died. But it wasn't until November 4th that he was buried. I'm going to explore this slightly, and steal content from one of my own articles I wrote a while ago.
On the morning of November 4th, 1926, the bronze casket containing Houdini's body, made it's second to last stop, this time at the Elks Clubhouse on West 43rd near Broadway. It took three cars to move all the flowers from the funeral parlor to the Elks Clubhouse. Houdini would have been proud as the room was packed for his funeral. Close to two thousand people showed up for the service.
The service began at 10:30 a.m. and was officiated by Rabbi Bernard Drachman and Rabbi B.A. Tintner. Eulogies and remembrances were given by numerous fraternal groups, magicians and others in the theatrical community. The very first Broken Wand Ceremony was conducted by a member of the Society of American Magicians. This is where a magician breaks a wand to signify that the magic of the deceased individual has ended. It's a great ceremony, but I'm actually not sure how fitting it was for Houdini as his magic kinda continued on, even till today.
Kenneth Silverman's book HOUDINI!!! says that Bess held up well until the casket was sealed at which point she broke down in tears. Incidentally, the casket that Houdini's body traveled in from Detroit to NYC was actually a bronze casket liner. It was placed inside a larger casket and the entire thing hermetically sealed before it was carried out to the hearse. Houdini's male assistants acted as the pallbearers, with some very notable individuals being listed as honorary pallbearers; Martin Beck, his former manager and theatrical impresario, Bernard Gimbel, one of the originators of the Gimbels Dept. Store, William Morris, of the famed entertainment agency, and Adolph Zucker, a film mogul who started Famous Players Film Company which eventually became Paramount Pictures. These were just a few of the high profile names listed as honorary pallbearers.
As the casket was carried to the hearse, the mourners could see for the first time that the streets were jammed with 2,000 spectators who had all come out to say their last goodbye to the master of mystery.
According to The Secret Life of Houdini, the funeral procession to Macapelah Cemetery contained twenty five vehicles. How long it took to travel from the Elks Clubhouse to the cemetery, I do not know. Silverman's book HOUDINI!!! says that the funeral procession was scheduled to drive through the theatrical district before heading to the cemetery.
Finally at the cemetery, two rabbis were present at the grave site as well as Houdini's family and widow Bess and 500 hundred mourners. Rabbi Isadore Miller conducted the graveside service. The newspapers said that Bess Houdini collapsed at the graveside. She had been ill and under doctors supervision ever since her husband passed away a few days before. Houdini made it clear in his final burial instructions that he was to be placed next to his mother. After the final words and prayers were given by the rabbis, the casket was lowered into the ground. According to the Silverman biography, Theo Weiss, Harry's brother tossed a flower onto the lowering casket and as if by magic a shower of flowers were tossed by the grieving graveside friends.
To learn more about the grave and cemetery, go to Mysteries of the Houdini Grave
Wednesday, November 1, 2017
Houdini Documentary Available on DVD
About 15 years ago, I purchased a VHS tape of a documentary called simply HOUDINI. It was by Gene Gamache and put out my Unipix. It quickly became my favorite documentary on Houdini. It was well written, had great interviews and they had the perfect narrator, Hal Douglas. Mr. Douglas was famous for his many movie trailer narrations. He did a superb job on this documentary. There is an original musical score by which moves the story along in an amazing way. Well finally, this documentary is available on DVD.
Some of the interviews include: Larry Weeks, Stanley Palm, Ken Silverman, Dorothy Young, Sid Radner, Whit Haydn, and more. You even get to see the tiny paw cuffs that Houdini had made for his dog.
Below you'll see an image of the front and back of the VHS version and below that, the front and back of the DVD. The DVD cover is similar to the VHS cover in that they used a picture of Houdini in the Russian Manacles. But that is where the similarities end. I really like this new cover.
The original cut had a 41 minute run time. However, this new DVD version was recut in 2013. The new version has a 60 minute run time. I'm curious to see what was added. Repertoire Films is selling the DVD and they also have a poster available. You can purchase this direct from them at http://repertoirefilms.com or you can also purchase it from their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/PeopleCameToSeeHimDie/
I know WildaboutHoudini.com posted this as well and I don't usually duplicate what John has done, but I really want to get the word out on this documentary!
Tuesday, October 31, 2017
Houdini Month Bonus: The King Breakers
If you've never heard the term King Breakers, you're not alone. It's a term known by most escape artists, but not really a popular term outside of the genre. In the book, Houdini The Untold Story by Milbourne Christopher, the term used is 'defeaters'. King Breakers/defeaters usually refers to a set of handcuffs that have been gimmicked, reworked, faked or mechanically altered in some way that prevents them from being opened by normal means. Some King Breakers are simply impossible to open once closed. Others have been reworked to open with a different key or with a different device other than the standard key. And still others, might not be faked in any way but for one reason or another are extremely difficult to get out of even with a key.
This phenomenon of having a cuff that could defeat an escape artist came about because of the numerous so-called Handcuff Kings of the early 20th Century. Competitors would use King Breakers to basically try and humiliate or destroy the reputation of fellow escape artists and magicians. Chief among them, HOUDINI. Quite possibly he was the originator of the King Breaker, I do not know for sure. But I do know he used them against fellow handcuff kings. And it's quite possible that their invention came about by sheer accident. Houdini was once caught in a pair of cuffs that had been tampered with, even with the key they would not open. This was early in Houdini's career, and he had to have the cuffs sawed off. He thought his career over, but he soon found there was little coverage of his failure and what there was came down on Houdini's side. After the humiliation of having to have the cuffs sawed off, Houdini vowed to never have cuffs put on that he didn't first examine and make sure were in working order. This is why he often refers to 'regulation cuffs.' If he felt for any reason a cuff wasn't legit, he could claim it was not regulation and could dismiss the challenge. Of course, he could also use this type of strategy of having king breakers against competitors.
What pair of cuffs were the first King Breakers? That's a tough question. As for regulation cuffs that have not been gimmicked, I would say the Bean Giants. Once these cuffs were put on, they were quite rigid, restricting hand movement. Even with a key, it was virtually impossible to open them. Houdini came up with his own method to escape from Bean Giants and I think it remained the go-to method from his time forward. In fact, he even produced a challenge flyer to anyone who get out of the Bean Giants with them placed on behind their backs. For this he offered a $50 reward.
It might be said that the Mirror Cuffs (photo top of page) were specifically designed to be King Breakers. Or at least that is what the publicity about them made you think. Over time, the theory behind the origin of the Mirror Cuffs is that perhaps the entire incident was concocted by Houdini. One clue is the fact that Houdini didn't have the cuffs tested beforehand. If you recall his embarrassment of being stuck in handcuffs. Well after this he always checked to make sure cuffs were in working order, but with the Mirror Cuffs he didn't. He surely did use the Mirror Cuffs later in his career, as his own personal set of King Breakers that he could challenge others with. In one instance, a young man took Houdini up on the offer to escape from the Mirror Cuffs. Houdini noticed the young man had thin wrists and would likely just slip the cuffs rather than open them. So Houdini locked the cuffs and handed them to the young man and told him to open them. After several frustrating minutes, the challenger gave up.
I recall a conversation I had with the late Norman Bigelow about a pair of King Breakers he made. They were basically ratchet cuffs that had a pop rivet through the keyhole that prevented a key from being used. I assume they could be double locked and then the only way off is to saw them off, or possibly drill out the rivet, which could not be done during a challenge. Clever guy ole Norm.
The photo above is from the recent Potter&Potter Auction. It's a pair of Lily Irons that have been turned into King breakers. They use a different key from the regulation one. Any would-be escapist with a hidden Lily key would be completed stopped cold with this particular handcuff.
Another famous pair of king breaker handcuffs used by Houdini were the French Letter Cuffs. Now
in the collection of escapist Jon Oliver, these cuffs have a unique origin.
French Letter Cuffs (Jon Oliver collection) |
The following day the circus manager visited Houdini with an offer of a challenge. In the process, the manager asked if Houdini would allow Kleppini to escape from an unusual set of French Letter Cuffs owned by Houdini. As he examined them, he asked Houdini the combination, which Houdini gave him. The word, 'clefs' which translated meant 'key' would unlock the cuffs. Houdini swore the manger to secrecy. The truth is, Houdini knew that the business manger would tell Kleppini the key-word and when faced with the French Letter Cuffs, Kleppini would be victorious. But, as fate would have it, that was not the case. On the night of the challenge, Kleppini was unable to remove the cuffs. Why? Houdini changed the key-word. Houdini later let the manager and Kleppini know what he had done and that the new key-word was 'fraud'. Ouch!
Pat Culliton in his fine book, Houdini: The Key, refers to the French Letter Cuffs and The Mirror Cuffs as SUPER CUFFS. I think it's a fitting description. He also adds that the Russian Manacles, Houdini Bell Lock Cuffs belong in this class and there is evidence some of them might have been made by handcuff manufacturer Thomas Froggatt. This means these special cuffs were made for Houdini and used both as a way to promote himself and as a way to defend himself.
My old friend, the late Steve Baker, shared a technique he used when confronted with what he knew were king-breakers. He had them placed on between a number of other cuffs. In other words, they joined two pair of other handcuffs, but never went on his wrists. This technique was also used by Houdini.
I can attest to being stuck in handcuffs and it's not a pleasant feeling. The night I was stuck, I did eventually open the cuffs, but not without some severe bruises to my wrists. A painful lesson, but fortunately something done privately for a friend and not publicly where it could have been embarrassing. Due to that one incident, I am very cautious about cuff escapes. I wouldn't have believed it, but Norman Bigelow assured me there are still folks out there, (mostly a-holes and angry escape artists) who might show up with a pair of king-breakers. The chances are slim, but like Houdini's early career embarrassment when he had to have handcuffs sawed off his wrists, the danger still lurks in the shadows.
Houdini Month on Instagram & Final Thoughts
Over on my Instagram account I've been posting Houdini books every day this month. Sadly, I still have more books to go and I've run out of days. There were a few books I couldn't locate, but I have them....somewhere. Above are all the ones I posted except for one. The last one, which will go up later today, is below. My very first book on Houdini. Houdini the Untold Story by Milbourne Christopher. Notice how wrecked the copy is. I actually have a pristine copy of the book as well(thank you ebay). But this one was the one I took with me everywhere as I studied all I could on Harry Houdini. Looking at the photo above however, I'm realizing there are a lot more missing than I first thought. Some are different editions of the same book. No problem, I'll find them and save them for next time.
I hope you enjoyed Houdini Month. I will let you in on a secret, the plans I had for the month did not come together the way I wanted. Yes, you read that right. What I had in mind for Houdini Month was vastly different than what you saw. A couple of snags along the way, and a busy performing schedule, caused me to put those ideas on hold. I still have half a dozen articles that I've not had time to finish. But the good news is, I'll be doing another edition of Houdini Month, down the road.
Keep watching, keep reading TheMagicDetective.com. The content doesn't stop just because Houdini Month has wrapped up. There will always be more to come!!!
OH WAIT. There are two more bonuses coming later today. One is a video, the other another article!
Houdini Month
Article 1: An Escape Revelation
Article 2: Houdini and Queen Victoria's Dress
Article 3: Steve Baker Interview
Article 4: A Houdini Card Mystery
Article 5: Houdini's Detractors
Article 6: Houdini In Ice
Article 7: The First Statue of Houdini
Article 8: Houdini in Ukraine
Article 9: Houdini: The Latest Bust
Article 10: The Men Who Fooled Houdini
Article 11: Houdini & Dunninger Together, Again.
Article 12: Houdini in Baltimore 1916
Article 13: Houdini in Nashville 1899
Article 14: A Poem about Houdini from 1916
CONTEST 3: Third Houdini Month Contest
Article 15: Houdini's Official Protege
Article 16: 104 Years Ago Today In the Life of Houdini
Article 17: Houdini and His Ghost Houses
Article 18: BONUS My Original Invention
Artilce 19: BONUS Houdini and The King Breakers
Article 20: The Day Houdini Was Buried
Monday, October 30, 2017
Houdini and His Ghost Houses
Houdini and ghosts are connected by way of the spirit mediums, spirit photography and all things associated with the haunted genre. But there is another connection. Something he traveled with and relied upon for years. That something was called his 'ghost house'.
The ghost house was the small cabinet he would often use to escape from handcuffs. He would kneel inside the house and it prevented people from seeing exactly what he was doing, but wasn't so large so as to hide an accomplice who could secretly let Houdini free.
Ghost house can be seen on the left. |
In a newspaper article from The Pittsburgh Daily Post May 19th, 1907, a reporter says to Houdini, "the secret in your powers lies in the fact that you are probably the most expert locksmith in the world, does it not?" Houdini answered, "Practically yes, but not entirely. I can open the ordinary handcuff by simply rapping on the floor. I understand the mechanism so thoroughly that I know exactly how to tap it to make it open. For such easy tricks, I don't mind for the spectators to watch me. It is when I have something particularly difficult to perform that I retire to my 'ghost house' to preserve my secret."
There is an interesting article in a Sept 26th 1906 article from The Washington Times that describes a challenge Houdini faced by escaping from a packing crate on stage. According to the article, the ghost house was placed over the top of the crate and then he began his escape. Later, the article mentions the 'red curtain' obscuring the box from view. This account makes me think that perhaps in this case, it was not his ghost house, but rather another fabric cabinet of a larger size, like the curtained cabinet for the Metamorphosis for example.
A similar escape from a Paper Bag also describes Houdini's ghost house, but again, I think this was a larger version again. In the Silverman book, there is a description of the Milk Can escape, and again they mention bringing in the ghost house to cover the can.
I believe that Houdini called all his cloth cabinets 'ghost houses', as a throwback to the old spirit cabinets that mediums used. A Spirit Cabinet began with the Davenport Brothers as a large wooden cabinet, usually several feet off the ground on saw horses or mounted on 4 legs. Over time it was replaced with a large curtained cabinet. But the use was the same, this is where the mediums would do all their dirty work to cause various supposed manifestations of spirits. Houdini was using it for a different sort of dirty work, to escape. And I believe he had more than one. The small fabric cabinet for handcuff challenges. And then the larger red ghost house for the Milk Can, and any challenge where he would require more room, or more space. I also believe these ghost houses were likely gaffed to the hilt, to use magic jargon. The larger red ghost house may have even had a roof on it to prevent folks in the balcony looking down into the cabinet. Either that or it could have been quite tall, but I'll bet it just had a covering/roof.
Sadly, I do know if any of the ghost cabinets survive today. My guess is they do not. The only picture I know if is the one above of the Mirror Challenge that just happens to have the small ghost cabinet in the picture.
UPDATE: I can't believe I missed this initially. Houdini's Escapes and Magic by Walter Gibson actually has a chapter on Houdini's Cabinets. The first thing I read really stands out, "The cabinet must not only be unsuspicious in appearance; it must stand an examination by committee members, who go through it before the escape takes place." YES!!! Besides being easily portable, easy to construct, they also had a perfect innocence to them, at least in their appearance. Forgive me, as I do not like to give out secrets here, so I will be stopping short before I give away too much. I will add though, that Houdini described several different cabinets, some were quite elaborate and it doesn't look as if he ever constructed the more elaborate cabinets. What he had worked for what he needed.
Saturday, October 28, 2017
104 Years Ago Today In The Life of Houdini
used with permission of John Hinson |
This very large punchbowl/trophy was given to Houdini by his assistants on his 30th Anniversary as a performer, Oct 28, 1913. 30 years before that would have been 1883, and Houdini was born in 1874 so according to the assistants he was 9 when he became a performer. Using standards I should be celebrating my.......oh never mind.
The names engraved on the punch bowl below to his assistants: F. Kukol, J. Vickery, J. Collins and one name not family J. Zwettler. I began to try and dig up information on this unknown assistant. There is a brief mention of him in the book Houdini Laid Bare, page 164 item 25. It mentions that Josef Zwettler swore an oath to be an assistant on Nov 30, 1912. Below is the oath:
I hereby swear by God the Almighty , not to reveal in any manner to
anyone, no matter who it might be, nor even to give the smallest hint
of the secrets, instructions, plans, apparatus, constructions you have
confided in me in reference to the execution of your numbers.
Should I any manner directly or indirectly act against this oath you will
have the right at any time to begin court action against me for perjury.
In addition, the above mentioned oath above also refers to the following:
that even should I leave my position with you, I will nowhere and never
permit myself to copy any of your numbers...or even work as an assistant
in [an act] similar to yours.
(from Houdini by Kenneth Silverman)
I can find no other mention of Josef Zwettler. He was hired in Germany during Houdini's tour in 1912-13. He may possibly be pictured among the magicians on the top of page 244 in Houdini The Key by Pat Culliton. But beyond the above I've come up pretty much empty. World War 1 broke out the following year 1914, and it's possible this is the reason we don't hear any more from Zwettler. Though, there is a huge brewery in Austria with the name of Zwettler, so maybe he is connected to that some how? We may never know.
By the way, the punch bowl trophy is owned by Houdini's great nephew John Hinson.
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