This month, we are Bonkers About Bessie! (sorry John, I couldn't resist). Yes, episode #115 of my podcast is about Bess Houdini. Below is the transcript from the episode, along with some great photos.
Wilheminia Beatrice Rahner was born January 23rd, 1876 in Brooklyn NY. She came from a family of nine sisters and one brother. We know precious little about her family. Her father was Gebhard Rahner and her mothers name was Balbina. We know her older brothers name was John Rahner. and she had a younger sister named Sophia, a sister named Marie, a sister named Stella who may also be Pauline. The rest are pretty much a mystery.
In the Harold Kellock biography of Houdini there is a much romanticized version of how she met Harry. Some story about him doing a show at her school and spilling acid on her dress which left a stand. Last time I checked, acid would do more than leave a stain, it would burnt a whole in the fabric. He apologizes profusely and asks to have the dress so his mother can repair it. And thus, their first meeting.
The most popular account however, Bess had been bitten by the showbiz bug and had joined a song and dance act called The Floral Sisters. She was 18 at the time. She was using the name Bessie Raymond. Some accounts claim that Bess was actually Theo’s girlfriend or at least date.Theo was Houdini’s younger brother, also known as Dash. Upon being introduced to Houdini by Theo, the two locked eyes, Harry and Bess, and Harry basically stole Bess away from him. Two weeks later, they were married.
Marie Blood, Bess’s niece tells a very different story. From the pages of The New Tops Magazine, Sept 1985, she says the following, “There was no such thing as The Floral Sisters! Bess joined a traveling carnival and she did not start out as an entertainer. She did some sewing, washed dishes, and whatever else she could do to make herself useful. They didn’t have her singing right away.” So according the Marie Blood, Bess ran away with a circus and that’s where she met Harry.
In the same article, she mentions how Bess had been done wrong by the various movies as they often show Bess as having a fierce temper. According to Marie, this is just not true. She was very sweet tempered, and she never knew any of the Rainer’s to be high-strung in any way. Once again, I think she was mistaken, at least in regards to Bess. There is a story related of Houdini and Bess getting into arguments and Harry would walk around the block. As he returned he would throw his hat through the front door. If the hat came flying back, he would walk around the block again. When he was able to throw the hat into the house without it coming back, he knew Bess had calmed down. I don’t think Marie was lying, I just think the Houdini’s were on their best behavior when guests were present, which was sort of standard practice back in those days. Im not sure people behave that way anymore, rather they let it all hang out, so to speak.
Curiously, Bess refers to herself as the most married woman in America, having been married at Coney Island, and then by a Catholic Priest and then a Rabbi. There is only one problem with that. An April 1991 story in Genii Magazine poses the question of whether or not she and Harry were ever married. According to Bess, John Y. McKane of Coney Island conducted the first, initial marriage. However, in 1894 when she claims to have been married, John McKane was an inmate in Sing Sing Correctional Facility. He had been arrested and convicted of election fraud and padding the registry rolls. He was not released until april 30th, 1898. There is no record of the Catholic Priest whose name was given as Reverend G.S. Loui, and the Rabbi who is claimed to have married them would have been 14 years old, so he couldn’t have married them. Then the biggest stickler of them all, Catholics forbad marrying outside the faith at that time, as did the Jewish religion. So it really throws into question whether they were officially married. Certainly she could have been his common-law wife. Houdini seems to be pretty much a straight arrow, so Im sure he was married at some point to Bess even though no marriage certificate survives to this day.
Unlike some of the movies, Bess was welcomed into the Weiss Family. She and Cecelia got along well, at least at first. There may have been some moments in the course of their lives when it wasn’t so smooth, Houdini was the epitome of a Mama’s Boy and that may not have always sat well with Bess.
The reverse however wasn’t so good. Bess and Bess’s mother were not speaking. It would be sometime before that rift was repaired.
Whether Bess was a show person as part of the Floral Sisters, or not she wasn’t involved in it very long before she married Houdini. Bess writes, “Within a few days after my marriage, I began to realize that I had stepped into a world far different from my former well-ordered and sheltered life, a world of strange duties, strange contacts, and inexplicable happenings which my superstitious nature magnified into terrors.” (pg 46 Ruth Brandon’s book)
Then we come upon this anecdote from Bess. “Houdini asked his brother and me to take a walk with him after the evening’s work was over. He led us into the country on a dark lonely bridge spanning some swiftly running black water. It was a weird looking night, with a split moon that seemed to be dodging in and out behind heavy clouds. In the middle of the bridge he halted us, and there we waited for a time silently, I at least in growing trepidation. Finally, a distant bell tolled solemnly twelve times. As soon as the last beat ceased to reverberate, Houdini clasped his brother’s hand and mine together, raised them aloft and cried, “Beatrice, Dash, raise your hands to heaven and swear you will both be true to me. Never betray me in any way, so help you God!” His brother and I repeated the vow after him. Then Houdini kissed me and shook Theo’s hand. “I know you will keep that sacred oath,” he said.
Their life together was interesting. They spent most days together. She was part of the act after all, at least early on. And even later, she was often at the theater with him. One thing we do learn through various biographies is that Houdini wrote many love letters to Bess. Ruth Brandon, author of The Life and Many Deaths of Harry Houdini, concludes that he was over compensating for something. Perhaps he was impotent, perhaps he just simply didn’t know how to deal with women. I believe the truth is much simpler. Houdini was at heart a romantic. In 1992, many years after both Harry and Bess had passed away, Gary Chapman would write a book called, The Five Love Languages. It was and is a popular self help book that identifies five ways people express and receive love. These include: Words of Affirmation, Quality Time, Receiving Gifts, Acts of service and Physical Touch. Clearly Houdini was a ‘words of affirmation’ guy and throughout his entire life would send notes of love and adoration to Bess, even when they lived in the same house, he would have the maid take notes down to Bess who might be in another part of the house. Or he would leave notes for her to find. On the contrary, that doesn’t seem to be how Bess expressed her love, as the love letters back to Houdini are rather devoid. Her method of expressing her affection may have been through Quality Time.
There can be no doubt they were affectionate towards each other. In the book, Houdini His Legend and His Magic, by Doug Henning and Charles Reynolds, there is a section in that book called A Houdini Scrapbook. it contains mostly photos of Bess and Harry. And they are often holding hands, hugging, even dancing with each other. These photos show them when they were young, and nearly up until the time of Houdini’s death. They never stopped their public displays of affection, in photos. And frankly, couples that fall out of love, you can often tell in photos, as one partner will stand slightly away from the others, or something about them just seems off. But in the case of Harry and Bess, they always have this bond of love between them.
Sadly, the Houdini’s never had children. There have been many theories about this. One stated that Houdini was sterile thanks for the effects of too many X-rays from his brother Leo’s machine. Marie Blood, Bess’s neice says that “Aunt Bess never had a period in her life, she never menstruated. Hence, she couldn’t have children.” In the recent book by Brad Ricca, Lincoln’s Ghost, Houdini’s War on Spiritualism, he devotes a chapter to Bess’s health issues and that she might have had something called Turner Syndrome. But without being able to examine the body and without blood test and such, it’s impossible to know if that was the case. All we know is they did not have children.
There is a story I came across of a party that the Houdini’s attended. It may have been at their home, I don’t remember. But there was a colonel there who flirtingly told Bess to come sit on his knee as they shared a glass of champagne. Bess does it just to get a rise out of Houdini. But when he steps into the room, the look upon his face is one that she would never forget. It was much more severe than the gut punch he would later take from Gordon Whitehead. This image nearly brought Houdini to his knees. It was days before Houdini was consolable.
Back to their earlier days, In 1895, Houdini and Bess become part of the Welsh Brothers Circus. They have many duties in this Circus besides doing their show. Bess became a singing dancing clown, she learned how to present a second sight act with Harry, and of course did the trunk trick with him as well.
In 1896, Harry and Bess were working for Professor Dooley in the Marco Magic Company in Canada. Bessie would have another dual role, she of course worked with Harry but she was also part of the Trilby routine presented by Professor Dooley. Trilby was a very popular Gothic Horror Novel of the time and it quickly became incorporated into shows, plays, and in this case into a magic act. A historical note, Alexander and Adelaide Herrmann were doing their version of Trilby before Dooley, and it included a levitation. So Dooley was riding the coat tales of not only the Trilby story, but also the Herrmann’s illusion. In the show, Bess would be hypnotized and placed upon a wooden board suspending by two chairs. Suddenly, she would raise up into the air in the horizontal laying position. So Bess was also one of the early Floating Ladies. According to Bruce MacNab’s book, Metamorphosis The Apprenticeship of Harry Houdini, the Trilby illusion was very well received. But it was still Harry and Bess’s Metamorphosis Mystery that stole the show.
Unfortunately, they had little success in Canada with the Marco Magic Company and Professor Dooley. When it was all over, they left with the clothes on their backs and the same trunk that they started with. But they didnt even have enough money for hotels or the money to buy passage back to the states. Here is where Bess Houdini comes to the rescue, not once, but twice.
With no money at all. And Houdini having harsh memories of previous seasickness, Bess took it upon herself to speak with the captain of the SS. Yarmouth. It was bound for Boston, but they had no money. The captain listened to hear heart felt story and agreed to give them passage in exchange for having them entertain the passengers!
When it came time for the show, the boat had already been enduring some severe sea storms. Houdini was green and could barely stand. His always powerful voice was barely heard and he nearly fainted. Then his nose started to bleed uncontrollably. He was is no condition to perform. Houdini headed out to the deck to throw up for the forceable future. The audience laughed hysterically. Bess was beside herself. THIS was a condition of their trip. that they perform. What to do? Being the real trooper that she was, she decided to do the magic act. Keep in mind, she never had done the act herself, though she knew how the tricks worked. She fumbled her way through.
Someone in the audience took his hat and took up a collection for the brave young woman. Bessie had just earned more than $25. It might as well have been a million dollars, as they had nothing. But now they had something. She ran to find Houdini. who was leaning over a railing, sick as they come. She excitedly showed him the money! She asked if she could use some to buy some food. He yelled at her NO! According to Bruce Macnab’s book, this was the only time in 33 years of marriage he ever raised his voice to her. He was consumed with seasickness and the humiliation of not being able to perform. She was consumed with hunger. Thankfully, she was offered some food by a crew member and she took full advantage of it. Clearly, in this instance, Bessie saved the day!
Through the start and into 1898, times were tough for The Houdinis. But their break was soon to come. In 1899 Houdini would meet Martin Beck and it would change his life and Bess’s life forever. The act would no longer be The Houdini’s however. It would only be him, even though Bess still assisted and was part of the Metamorphosis routine. The act went from sort of a standard magic act, to a very specific act, an escape act. And as this was a relatively new thing, he was charting new ground.
Bess always travelled with Houdini, whether she was IN the act or not. Eventually, he would add other crew members to the show, so her responsbitiies on stage dwindled. When the Metamorphosis was taken out of the show, that was pretty much it for Bess’s involvement in the stage act.
There is a curious yet charming story that Burling Hull would tell of his first encounter with Harry and Bess Houdini. This is from the March 2007 Linking Ring. “Once a month the SAM in New York City would hold a meeting. But the meetings back then were nothing like magic clubs of today. They were more like our yearly banquets that many clubs hold. A short meeting was first held in private, and then the guests and partners were invited into the meeting room for dinner and dancing afterward. Burling was a very young man, just old enough to be invited to the meetings and basking in his glory from his two magic books on billiard balls and escapes. After the meeting, a band started to play, and Houdini walked away from Bess leaving her alone. He joined another group of magicians to talk business. Burling saw Bess sitting like a wallflower and asked her to dance. Burling then, and until his death, was a very attractive person. In his eighties, he had thick white hair and always dressed like the owned the city. As a late teenager, he drew attention walking the streets of NY in his all-white suit and panama hat. Bess accepted the dance offer, and the two of them danced across the floor. Either Houdini or someone in his group noticed what had happened, but it was a very quick Houdini who stepped out onto the dance floor and cut in on Burling. He then escorted Bess back to her seat. There he left her and returned to his gentlemen friends. The next month, brought a repeat of the SAM meeting. But this time, when the band started to play, Houdini escorted Bess over to where Burling was standing. He apologized for not knowing who the young magician was the month before and mentioned he admired his writings. He also apologized for taking Bess from the dance floor and wondered if he would mind dancing one number with her. Burling and Bess were a dapper couple that evening dancing about the floor.”
Truly the book The Secret Life of Houdini by William Kalush and Larry Sloman reveals the most scandalous information about Bess. Much of it comes from her own Diary entries and other from a letter from Bernard Ernst to Conan Doyle. We learn Bess had been drinking heavily during the last year of Houdini’s life and even more so after he died. In truth, she had consumed alcohol for years, and it only got worse over time. Besides drinking she also smoked both cigarettes and marijuana.
Imagine her life. For her entire married life, she had Houdini. Yet, she suffered from bouts of loneliness and even jealousy as he became ever more popular and in demand. She was relegated to the shadows. On top of this, her health was not the best and her temperament also something to be weary of. Houdini would mention her poor health in letters to friends. They would often ask how Bess was feeling.
During Houdini’s last days on this earth, while he was in the hospital he is reported as telling the doctor, “Please keep that woman out of my room all the time, because she is the most peculiar woman I have ever known in my life.” I think at this point, Houdini just couldnt deal with her manic mood swings. It wasn’t long after this that he was gone. And as for Bess, she would be alone for the first time in over 30 years.
One of the more shocking revelations was that Bess had attempted suicide. And not once, but on multiple occasions. Her drinking, after Harry died was so bad, that she wanted to go be with him. Her life was a mess. Add to this, Reverend Arthur Ford, who basically wooed Bess Houdini. He took her to parties. He likely used her alcoholism to his favor, he too was an alcoholic. It was claimed that Bess was in love with him. This is another thing I question. I think she just wasn’t in her right mind at this point. The Ford Seance didn’t help. Now her reputation was in question.
Dai Vernon knew Houdini, and he always made no bones about not being a fan. Not sure he could be a friend either, maybe acquaintance. But he did seem to have a friendship with Bess. According to Genii Magazine, Nov 1983, in the Knights of the Magic Castle Column, it says, “Dai once told of visiting Bess the night after Houdini had died and how she felt terrible and related to him that two well-known magicians had already been there to load up a suitcase with Houdini’s belongings!” From the book, Dai Vernon a Magical Life by Bruce Cervon, we have this story by Vernon. “We were on our way up the boardwalk towards the Episcopal Church in Atlantic City, when we saw our friend Bessie Houdini. She asked where we were going and we told her that we were off to have our son christened. Bessie asked us if we had a Godmother for our little boy. We told her we were just down from NY and hadn’t had time to find godparents as of yet, when she immediately offered to be our son’s godmother. We accepted her touching offer and headed off to the church. A short time later, we were standing in front of the minister as he was christening our son. The ritual proceeded with sprinkling water on our boys head and giving the blessing. Then he asked us, “The fathers name?…the mothers name?….the godmother?. Bessie said, Bessie Houdini.
The minister looked up from our son and said, “What was that last name?” HOUDINI said Bessie, H-O-U-D-I-N-I.
The ministers eyes widened and he said in an excited voice, You’re not related to THE Houdini; the wonderful man who…” And Bessie beamed back, “Im his wife.” This man of God nearly fell apart for a few moments forgot why we were all there. But Ted finally received his christening even though he played second fiddle to Bessie.
From the Episcopal church our little christening party proceeded over to the Traymore Hotel for a little celebration honoring this important day in my young son’s life. We put Ted in a high chair and ordered him some sort of soup and a regular dinner for Bessie, Jeanne and myself. Sometime later as we sat finished and well fed, the waiter came and began cleaning the table. As he lifted Ted’s plate, there was a $100 dollar bill under the plate. THATS for the Baby, Bessie said in a firm voice. He was just christened. It was a wonderful and thoughtful thing to do and I still remember it with much emotion. “
And speaking of giving away things that belonged to Houdini. I learned from a May 2003 interview with sir Fleischman in MAGIC Magazine that Bessie gave Houdini’s Die Box to a kid magician Bob Gunther who later gave it to the Magic Castle. And Jim Conley was given Houdini’s own copy of Elliott’s Last Legacy.
There is a story that Frances Marshall relates in the pages of Abracadabra Magazine, June 25, 1977. She says that she went to visit Bess in her Laurel Canyon home in Los Angeles, here is that the article says, “The home was a Houdini shrine, with countless posters and photos hung about, programs, etc. laid on the tables for guests to examine. Bess was a charming hostess but a careless one. Several hundred people were at a magic convention in the nearby city. She invited a dozen to visit the home and partake of a buffett. She did not explain that it was a private invitation, and I’m sorry to say, she was overrun by the uninvited to the point where she was ready to leave the house herself. I had been there and left before the deluge, but the next day she was still trying to figure it out.” Another quote from that same article Frances Marshall says, “In my conversations with bess Houdini, she showed that she thought a great deal of the husband who had died, but she didn’t act as though she had lost the hero of the Second Coming. Time does work wonders-if you stay dead long enough, you might get to be important!”
Here is another nice story. This time from 1936 and it appeared in The New Tops Magazine. It’s an article by Henry B. Valleau called “My friend Bess” “In 1936 I was working inside Harry Giman’s World of Mirth Illusion Show on the Foley and Burke Combined Shows in California. One day, Mrs. Houdini visited the lot and in particular my boss Mr. Gilman. Being from the East Coast, Mr. Giman had known both Houdini and his wife very well. Before leaving our show, she invited me to visit her if I ever got to Los Angelas. About a year later, I was in LA and gave her a telephone call and made an appointment to see her. She was one of the most gracious and charming women I have ever met. She living in a small tastefully furnished apartment. She took me about and showed me many glass covered cases lined in velvet. In each one was Houdini’s original handcuffs, lock picks, various keys and other paraphernalia that he used to perform his outstanding escapes. She then pointed to a beautiful walnut cabinet with two doors in front. She asked me if I would like to see, “Houdinis Shrine”. Of course I replied in the affirmative. She opened the doos and inside was a splendid oil portrait of Houdini. It was lighted. She went on to say that it was a perpetual light and that she never turned it off. We of course talked of Houdini for a long time.”
We know, thanks the Final Houdini Seance in 1936, that Bess finally extinguished that light for good. AS she was quoted as saying, “Ten years is long enough to wait for any man”
Bess would eventually meet Edward Saint, who would become her partner, traveling companion, some even say husband, but I don’t think it was official. Together they worked to further the Houdini name. Saint helped to keep Bess on track, he brought order to her life. Also, kept her out of trouble. When Saint passed away, Bess’s health deteriorated fast. She spent some time at Cedars of Lebanon Hospital before returning to her apartment. Her sister Marie Hinson came to live with her. Bess wanted to fly to new york but was refused airfare by the airline because of her heart condition.
Instead, she would take the train to NY. Before leaving she met with her dear friends William Larsen Sr and his wife Gerrie. She told them that once her NY trip was over she’d be back for a proposed party they were all having in July of that year. But Bill and Gerrie knew this was going to be their last moments with Bess.
While on train, with her sister, Bess passed away. She died May 11th, 1943 in needles california, a fitting end for a Houdini. According to her sister Marie, Bess returned to her Catholic faith in her last days. Though, she has a plot and a gravestone in Machpelah Cemetery, Bess is actually buried in the Gate of Heaven Cemetery in Hawthorne NY.
I found where Marie Blood, Bess’s neice was asked by Bess to carry on the tradition of keeping the Houdini name alive, which she did until her death in 2004. Today, it seems that John Hinson, Bess’s great Nephew carries on that tradition. He owns a few very special Houdini artifacts as well as numerous unpublished images of Bess and Harry, and some needlepoint embroidery done by Bess herself.
I think that is going to do it for my look into the life of Bess Houdini. There is a lot I didnt cover as I wanted to just give a good overview of her life. It’s hard to separate Bess from Houdini, even after death, because she did all she could to promote him. Granted when he was gone, SHE was THE Houdini, and people treated her like royalty. Well, at least those who weren’t out to exploit her for some nefarious reason.
