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.

The first mention of the 'ghost house' in a Houdini bio would be in the Kellock biography, when he describes the Mirror Handcuff Challenge. But I think perhaps one of the best descriptions comes from the more recent biography, The Secret Life of Houdini by William Kalush and Larry Sloman. They describe an event that took place June 27th, 1900 in London and the report comes directly from Inspector Melville's Diary. The event took place at the Alhambra, and the manager Dundas Slater had invited and encouraged members of the press to come and bring their own restraints to try and defy Houdini. I'll spare you the various details of his escapes however, this is how the ghost house is described, "a small waist high enclosure consisting of metal piping and black fabric that hid Houdini on three sides and could shield him totally by drawing a curtain in the front." This quote says the 'ghost house' was made of black fabric. However, Pat Culliton mentioned that he thought the 'ghost house' was red. I also found reference to the red fabric in the book, The Great Houdini by Derek Tait.

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.

Houdini Month Contest 3b

The previous Contest 3 didn't seem to garner any interest, OR the question was too hard. (If you're interested, the answer could be found in Pat Culliton's book, Houdini The Key.)

So to make it simple, I'll just take the 31st entry. The winner gets a brand new Houdini Mug, pictured above, still in it's original packaging.

CONTEST STARTS OCT 29th (NOW)

• Only 1 entry per person
• To enter: Send me an email, with the subject heading 'Houdini Contest 3B' to info@carnegiemagic.com    
• Please include your full name in the email. 
• On Saturday Oct 31st, 2017, I will announce the winner.

We have a winner. C. Nicholson of Sterling is the winner. Thank you to everyone who participated. 

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.

Houdini's Money Was Always Safe!!!!

One of Houdini's unique strategies to get people interested in his escapes was to offer a money challenge. He'd offer a certain dollar amount as a reward to someone who could find, discover, or uncover something related to his escapes. A perfect example is the poster above for the Prison Cell and Barrel Mystery. Look closely at the wording at the lower part of the poster (see below)

100 pounds Will Be Paid To Anyone Finding Traps, Panels, Or False Doors In the Cell. And I'm sure there were none, otherwise he would not have risked a financial loss.

The flyer to the left is interesting. It actually contains two monetary challenges. But it's also different from most of Houdini's offers of this kind. In this poster, his first offer is $100 to anyone who can release themselves from all the cuffs that he carries, and from which he releases himself. This is pretty bold and like many of his challenges covers himself fairly well. He points out that he allows the key holes to be stamped and sealed and will bring out all the cuffs interlocked, proving he does not slip the cuffs of his wrists without unlocking them.

He further ads, he carries a very rare curious and costly collection of torture, antique and modern handcuffs. This line is likely to deter any would be takers. Finally, at the end Houdini offers a second challenge of $50 to anyone who can escape from the Bean Giant cuff with those cuffs strapped behind the person's back. This challenge is not quite as safe as the previous, so the reward is less.


One of his most unique money offers was with the Water Torture Cell. The exact wording on the poster, "...Reward To Anyone Proving That It Is Possible To Obtain Air In The UP-SIDE-DOWN Position In Which Houdini Releases Himself From This Water-Filled Torture Cell"

In England the reward was 200 pounds. In Germany, the reward was 5000 marks, In the United States it was $1000.  And the truth was, he could have offered any amount of money as the money was never in any danger of being lost. The reward doesn't say to prove it's possible to obtain air while inside the cell, it says prove its possible to obtain air IN THE UPSIDE DOWN Position. That's the key phrase and it's the one that keeps his money safe!

The allure of winning money is a very power motivator for people. Look at all the people who buy lottery tickets. Well, Houdini wasn't gambling with his money. He clearly worded things very carefully to keep his money safe.

Houdini didn't restrict his Money Challenges to his act. Below is an ad for his movie, The Grim Game where he offers yet another reward. This time, it's a $1000 reward to anyone who can prove that the airplane accident in the movie didn't take place.

Later in life, he did step it up a bit. When he launched his campaign to fight fraudulent spirit mediums the offer became $10,000 to any Medium who could produce any Physical Phenomena that he cannot reproduce or explain by Natural means. Houdini's wife Bess kept this $10,000 challenge going after Houdini's death. According to Joseph Rinn, friend of Houdini's and fellow paranormal skeptic, Bess Houdini offered the reward to any medium able to prove, to her satisfaction, the survival of her husband in the spirit world. It looked like in 1928 Arthur Ford might have won the reward after revealing the Houdini code. Even Bess came out and said it was genuine. But days later, after the media fire storm, they began to debunk it, along with Dunninger and others, Bess finally recanted saying there were ways Ford could have discovered the code. She continued doing her Seances to reach Houdini until the Final Houdini Seance in 1936. After that, fans and friends of Houdini have picked up the ball, and though no reward is offered, Houdini has yet to show up.

The Search for Boudini

I must admit I am fascinated by this story. The event takes place September 20th 1905 and is a challenge between Houdini and someone who is referred to in newspaper articles as 'his erstwhile pupil, Jacques Boudini, or as the paper printed his name Bondini.

The newspaper, The New York Times. reports, "When recently Houdini returned to this country, he found, Bondini, his erstwhile pupil, was usurping his field here." So basically, Houdini challenged this guy name Jacques Boudini to an underwater escape challenge. They were on the Fred B. Dalzell tug boat, along with a group of reporters.  Both had handcuffs and leg irons placed on and were tied with a rope around the waist and lowered into the water below. They both went under at the same time and then, silence. At least for one minute and a half when Houdini's head bobbed above the surface of the water. He asked, "Is Bondini Up Yet?", and the crowd replied NO! Houdini showed he was free from the cuffs and went back underwater. A minute later, Bondini came out of the water and reports say he didn't look well. He was still shackled as before. Then, he drifted back in the water. Houdini, came back up and again asked, "Is Bondini Up Yet?" again the crowd replied no. Then Houdini went back down for a third time but this time showed his ankles were free as well, as he went back into the water. I wonder, if he was looking for Bondini? There was no reason to go back under at this point. A minute later Houdini emerged and asked to be pulled up by the rope. Then the men grabbed the other rope and pulled out of the water a lifeless Bondini. He was rolled around (that sounds very medically sound) and he did come to. But he was still stuck in all the cuffs and ankle restraints. Houdini was  clear winner of the contest. 

Who was this guy? Erstwhile pupil? There are theories. Probably, two of the most current are from Pat Culliton who thought at one time Boudini might have been Jacob Hyman. He has since changed his thought on this and thinks it might be Leonard Hicks. It's possible, but I'm struggling with this theory only because when Hicks left performing, he was done. Yet. Boudini, shows up in 1912, and later. Still, the theory is plausible.

Let examine this theory further. The original showdown with Houdini and Boudini takes place in 1905. Hicks meets Houdini in 1906 in Chicago and is invited to be his protege.  a year after the apparent Boudini/Bordini event. However, the meeting in Chicago was actually the second time they met. Originally the two met in Richmond VA years before.

Then in 1907 Houdini and Boudini both appear in Boston, at different venues but at the same time (see image left). In fact, Houdini's billing says "HOUDINI -NOBODY CAN HOLD HIM"and if you look to the lower left of the image you'll see it says "BOUDINI NOBODY CAN HOLD HIM." And this would be about the time Houdini would be training Hicks.

But the one surviving photo of Boudini and Houdini doesn't really look like Hicks. However, it's such a poor copy of the photo, it's hard to tell who it is. It could very well be Hicks. I'm pretty certain it is not Hyman though.

Dec 1912 The Sphinx reports on page 349, that a team who went by Boudini and Stone were performing at the New Theatre, and presented magic and escapes. This was Washington D.C..  I found a second report of Boudini & Stone from a later date, also doing escapes and magic, but now I can't track it down. I want to say it was the 1930s after Houdini had died. It's possible that it's just another person named Boudini and NOT the one who was involved in the 1905 challenge. But if this is the same Boudini that Houdini challenged then he is not Leonard Hicks.  The reason I say that is due to the fact that Hicks was a hotel owner in 1912 and quite involved in that business at that point. So then, Boudini, if not Hicks, would likely be someone from the east coast, because he only appears in NYC, Boston and Washington DC. Maybe Oudini, the guy from Boston who wrote the booklet on escapes and was working the area in 1900?

One thing puzzles me, ok a bunch of things do, but the newspaper article says, "When recently Houdini returned to this country, he found, Bondini, his erstwhile pupil, was usurping his field here." There is a problem with this statement. There is NO record of a Bondini, or Bourdini, or any B-ini that I can find prior to 1905. NO newspaper reports, nothing. He surely wasn't 'usurping Houdini's field' then. Many folks were led to believe, including some reporters that this whole thing was a stunt created by Houdini to showcase Houdini. That could be and probably was the case.

Going back to the original theory, it could have played out like this. Houdini meets Hicks in Richmond and is aware of his interest in escapes. A few years later, Houdini invites the young Hicks to help him in a stunt in 1905, a one time deal. You'll notice by the report that Houdini keeps popping his head above water asking about Boudini. I think this has less to do with the challenge and more to do with the fact he is concerned for this person's safety. In the end, Boudini survives and goes back to Chicago to work at the Saratoga Hotel that his father owned. Then Houdini comes to Chicago in 1906, stays at the Saratoga Hotel, invites Hicks to his show, the two get to talk, Houdini is grateful for Hick's help in 1905 and offers him the spot to be protege. Why? Because Houdini is heading to Europe in the later part of 1908 and having 'Houdini presents The Great Leonard' keeps his name in the press. Of course, Hicks can't use the Bordini/Boudini name, which is why he goes by Harry Leonard. And the rest is history. The later Boudini and Stone is then not the original, just a coincidence. THAT is one possibility. A clear photo of Boudini might help a lot more figure out his identity but I've scoured a ton of newspapers from that time and have come up with nothing.

Who do you think this Boudini guy was???? Any thoughts? Please leave them in the comments below. Perhaps someone out there has a photo that we don't know about. Maybe together we can figure out this mystery once and for all.

To read a bit more about the Houdini Boudini Challenge, go here.