![]() ![]() (Photo: Harry Houdini chained up ready to jump into Charles River, Boston, Massachusetts in 1906. Harry Houdini, born Ehrich Weiss on April 6, 1874, in Budapest, Hungary, was the son of Dr. Produced by Fiona Clampin for the BBC World Service. Rajan Datar charts the life and career of the legendary Houdini, with writer and biographer Adam Begley, whose book Houdini: The Elusive American was published in 2020 Dr Matthew Solomon, Associate Professor at the University of Michigan and the author of Disappearing Tricks: Silent Film, Houdini, and the New Magic of the Twentieth Century and Dr Katharina Rein from the University of Potsdam in Germany, who’s published widely on stage magic in the 19th and early 20th centuries, including Techniques of Illusion which will be available in 2022. So what motivated this complex man who spent a lifetime ‘deluding’ the public with his illusions, and how did he reconcile that with his campaign against the Spiritualist movement which he regarded as a racket? Harry Houdini, Actor: The Man from Beyond. Whether it was escaping from handcuffs, a straitjacket or from a box filled with water, Houdini wowed audiences with his seemingly death-defying performance. The great American escape artist and magician Houdini (immortalized by a memorable performance by Tony Curtis in. Houdini’s decision to make escape the focus of his act was well-timed, chiming with the public mood for sensational trickery. Harry Houdini, Actor: The Man from Beyond. Captivated by magic shows, he began performing tricks on stage with one of his brothers, and then with his wife. He was born on March 24, 1874, in Budapest, Hungary. ![]() Perhaps it is this early hand to mouth existence in a large family which explains his extraordinary drive to succeed. Harry Houdini was one of the most famous magicians and escape artists in history. ADVERTISEMENT Unfortunately, so is his death. Whether it be for his legendary illusions or his thrilling escapes from handcuffs, water tanks, and straight jackets, the magic man’s name is synonymous with mystery. According to an AugNew York Times article, titled “Collection of Houdini Gear is for sale”: Much of the paraphernalia used by Harry Houdini in 35 years as a stage magician and escape artist lies in dusty trunks and crates in a storage warehouse in New Jersey…It is up for sale…According to the sale catalogue, “The buyer of collection will unpack thousands of shackles, locks, keys, torture instruments (heavy medieval cat-o’-nine-tails, metal head devices, iron instruments of restraint), straightjackets, an electric chair, all used by Houdini in his incredible stunts.”…The collection includes a “very crude can that was probably the first one Houdini made” for the milk-can trick… “The collection will not be broken up under any circumstances”…”It belongs in a museum or institution.”.The collection is owned by Joseph Dunninger, the magician and mind reader, who estimated that it included “90 per cent of Houdini’s small objects and 40 to 50 per cent of his major devices.” He has used some of the things in his own shows.Harry Houdini’s story is the classic American tale of an immigrant who from impoverished beginnings made it big in the United States. Although he’s been gone for nearly 100 years, most people know at least a thing or two about Harry Houdini. ![]()
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