Houdini Preview_Layout 1

 RED
MAGIC
Houdini’s Secret
ED SAMS
Yellow Tulip Press
Copyright 2001 - 2014 by Ed Sams
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced without written permission
from the publisher, except by reviewers who may quote brief passages in a review. Nor
may any part of this book be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in
any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or other without written permission from the publisher.
Published by Yellow Tulip Press
P.O. Box 211
Ben Lomond, CA 95005
www.curiouschapbooks.com
Printed in the United States of America
gh
FOR CLARENCE SAMS
1916 - 2001
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CONTENTS
The Extraordinary Life 1
Houdini’s Incredible Escapes 9
Houdini’s Secret 19
The Blonde Witch 27
Houdini’s Mysterious Return 39
Works Cited 47
THE EXTRAORDINARY LIFE
H
arry Houdini—or Ehrich Weiss—born on March 24 or April
6, 1874—was the greatest escape artist—or most gifted
medium—of the twentieth century, who may—or may not—
have died of a ruptured appendix on Halloween night in 1926.
Such is the fascinating history of this true
man of mystery who charmed, confounded,
and inspired legions of fans, both during
life and after death. Most intriguing of all
was Houdiniʹs secret: the red magic that
was hinted to be both supernatural and
commonplace. Was Houdiniʹs secret his
means of projecting and protecting such su‐
perhuman powers? Or was such power no
more than the secret itself? Misdirection and
mystification, after all, are the heart and soul
of most magiciansʹ tricks.
Harry Houdini
Even so, Houdini was not really a magician. According to magic ex‐
pert Walter B. Gibson, "During the years in which he rose to fame,
Houdini was not regarded by the public as a magician, but rather
as a man of mystery who might be anything from a contortionist to
a stunt artist" (Mastering Magic, 165). Though Houdini was unparal‐
leled as a showman, "some of his magic was comparatively
mediocre...." (Gibson). Gibson concludes, "Today the fame of Hou‐
dini is more exaggerated than ever. From this it may be concluded
that the alchemy of time can transmute gross publicity into golden
legend" (166). Gibsonʹs metaphor is well chosen, for Houdini re‐
searched the ancient alchemists and incorporated their most myste‐
rious allegories in his stage acts and publicity stunts. How then did
his magical transformation take place? That was Houdiniʹs secret!
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Red Magic: Houdini’s Secret
Ed Sams
The secret extends from his uncertain birth date to his mysterious
death to his shadowy life after death. For instance, there is the
knotty question of Houdiniʹs birthday. According to the Amazing
Randi, Houdini was born in a "miniature time warp." The world‐fa‐
mous magician explains, "When the designers of the Gregorian cal‐
endar attempted to reconcile the error in the Julian calendar, they
dropped several days...Houdini had two birthdates—March 24 and
April 6, 1874—a fitting beginning to the life of an illusionist" (17).
Also in question is Houdiniʹs place of birth. The great escape artist
himself claimed Appleton, Wisconsin, but actual birth records show
his birthplace to be Budapest (Christopher, 9‐10).
There, Ehrich Weiss was born to Samuel and Cecilia Weiss, along
with brothers Herman (1863), Nathan (1868), William (1870), Theo
(1876), Leopold (1879), and sister Gladys (1891). Samuel Weiss was
an impoverished rabbi who died in 1892.
The young magician showed the facility for picking locks at an
early age. Stephen Cannell writes:
He never lost his fondness for pastry and in later years
to extract cakes from his wifeʹs cupboard by the same
method he had employed as a boy to help himself to
his motherʹs pastry. More than once his wife found the
cupboard empty although locked, with Houdiniʹs
visiting card on one of the plates (18).
In 1886 the future escape artist disappeared for two years, living
the life of a hobo traveling the rails. By 1888, Houdini was reunited
with his family in New York City, where he worked as a messenger
boy. One Christmas he returned home from work and told his
mother that he was made of gold. Cecilia Weiss took her hand, as
was her custom, to ruffle her sonʹs curly black hair, only to find
gold coins spilling onto the floor. Knowing his motherʹs habits, the
young Houdini had hidden his tip money in among his thick, dark
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Red Magic: Houdini’s Secret
locks as a surprise gift. Instinctively, the young magician knew the
importance of presentation.
Although Houdini worked numerous jobs, from garment cutter to
locksmith, by 1892 he and his brother Theo had a magic act at
Coney Island. They were billed as the Houdini brothers. The name
Houdini was suggested by his friend Jake Hyman, who was famil‐
iar with the reputation of the French magician Robert Houdin.
Since neither Houdini nor Hyman knew French, adding the addi‐
tional letter changed the entire pronunciation—another surprising
transformation in a surprising career (Christopher, 15).
At Coney Island, Houdini found the love of his life, excepting his
mother. Beatrice (Bess) Rahner was a member of a sister act; her big
number was "Rosabelle Believe":
Rosabelle, Rosabelle
I love thee more than I can tell....
Houdini and Bess married shortly after meeting. Legend has it,
they met during a performance. Houdini, in a theatrical flourish,
spilled acid on Bessʹs new dress. She was smitten. When Houdini
called on her home with a new dress, sewn by his mother, he talked
her into slipping away with him to Coney Island. On the way there,
they were married. The date of the wedding was June 22, 1894
(Brandon, 41).
Soon the Houdini Brothers became simply the Houdinis, with Bess
joining the act and Theo leaving it after being bought out by his
punctilious brother. Bess Houdini had an unusual role to play—
and not just in the magic act. As Houdiniʹs wife, she was his main
supporting player, his accomplice in difficult escapes, his chief
mourner when tensions mounted on stage, his partner in abject and
somewhat shameful poverty, his trophy during the long periods of
lonely success, and finally, as his widow, the keeper of the flame at
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Red Magic: Houdini’s Secret
Ed Sams
Houdiniʹs altar. How did she cope? Supposedly, she drank.
Stephen Cannell gives an intriguing picture of this capable, at times
uncanny woman: "She believed in witches and hobgoblins, and
some of her husbandʹs mysterious tricks seriously frightened
her....One such trick was that in which he made the Christian name
of her dead father appear, as though by magic, on his arm" (20‐21).
Her dead father was Catholic; her husband was Jewish. Such a di‐
vide in cultures could not be crossed conventionally in 1894.
An entirely new family and way of life had to be provided for the
new Mrs. Houdini. Houdini did his best. He gave his bride the
world of the midway and the family of circus freaks. They began
promisingly enough, with a limited engagement at Tony Pastorʹs in
New York City. Within a month, though, they were both perform‐
ing as a sideshow act for Huberʹs Museum in Brooklyn. Bess found
this venue sordid. Often, Houdini worked the act alone. When they
quarreled, Houdini resorted to his hat trick. Cannell writes: "If she
became angry, he would leave the house, walk around for awhile,
and then, returning, throw his hat into the room. If it were thrown
out, he would take another short walk and repeat the operation
until his hat was allowed to remain in the room" (22).
Inevitably, the Houdinis took their act on
the road. They joined the Welsh Brothers
Circus in 1895. There they found them‐
selves befriended by San Kitchy Akimoto,
the regurgitationist, and by Mrs. Mc‐
Carthy, a gun‐juggler. Often, they had the
adventures of circus performers surviv‐
ing in the Victorian Age. One Sunday, in
a small town in Rhode Island, the whole
troupe was suddenly arrested for break‐
ing the Sunday Law. Mr. Welsh was in
New York, and with no one to defend
them, the entire troupe was locked up in
jail overnight. "In the evening the Fat
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Harry and Bess Houdini
Ed Sams
Red Magic: Houdini’s Secret
Woman wept bitterly. Her cell was too small, and she was wholly
uncomfortable and miserable. So after the sheriff had gone and
everything was quiet, Houdini picked the locks of the jail and the
whole company stole quietly back to the big tent" (Kellock, 78).
Eventually, the Houdinis found them‐
selves between engagements, in 1897
winding up on the mudflap circuit, per‐
forming for a medicine show. Dr. Hillʹs
California Concert Company traveled the
small towns of the Old West. Among the
performers were Joe and Myra Keaton,
whose knockabout clown act included
their young son who took the brunt of the
fatherʹs physical comedy. "Heʹs some
buster!" Houdini exclaimed after one per‐
Buster Keaton
formance, and the name stuck. Not only
did the soon‐to‐be famous silent film star Buster Keaton owe his
name to the Houdinis, he owed them his life as well. According to
Ruth Brandon, "When there was a fire at the hotel where they were
all staying, [Bess Houdini] rushed up to the room where he [Buster
Keaton] was sleeping and rescued him" (67). It is worth noting that
the rescue was not attempted by the boyʹs own father or by the
great escape artist himself. Instead, the young Buster Keatonʹs life
was saved by the childless Bess Houdini.
By 1898 the Houdinis were in Chicago performing the challenge
handcuff act at Kohl and Middletonʹs Museum (Gibson Scrapbook,
10). After making a successful impression on showman Martin
Beck, the Houdinis appeared on the Orpheum vaudeville circuit
starting at $60 a week. Soon, the pay was doubled to $120 weekly
(Gibson Scrapbook). Here, Houdini came into his own, with Bess rel‐
egated to the part of stage dressing and head cheerleader. Soon, the
challenges became wilder and more dramatic. Often, he would be
bound and chained, completely naked, in some local prison where
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Red Magic: Houdini’s Secret
Ed Sams
the police could authenticate that his escapes were performed with‐
out tools or keys. Whether dressed au natural or de rigeur in matinee
clothes of cutaway coat and breakaway sleeves, Houdini cut an im‐
posing figure, mesmerizing audiences with his smoldering eyes or
charming them with his dazzling smile. For most of his half‐hour
vaudeville act, he was offstage. Music alone would be the entertain‐
ment as the public waited breathlessly for his escapes. "Asleep in
the Deep" was played during the famous Chinese Water Torture
act, though something louder, like "The Chariot Race," was pre‐
ferred for the Boiler Escape to drown out banging noises. Usually,
Houdini escaped within the first 10 minutes of the performance,
and then waited backstage reading a newspaper until the audi‐
enceʹs frenzy reached a fever pitch. Only then would he dash on
stage, drenched in sweat, as if escaping death itself.
Within two years, Houdini had the world
at his feet. In 1900, there was a successful
European tour in which Houdini defied
the prisons of the German Kaiser and the
impenetrable Black Maria of the Russian
Czar. In 1906 Houdini successfully es‐
caped in Washington, DC, the death cell
that once held President Garfieldʹs assas‐
sin, Charles Guiteau. In 1907, Houdini
leapt into San Francisco Bay bound with a
75‐pound ball and chain. By 1913, Hou‐
dini was astounding his public with his
famous Chinese Water Torture Cell.
Despite his great success as an escape artist,
Houdini Suspended
Houdini never gave up on his magic act. In
1914, the year he was elected president of the
Magicians Club, Houdini astounded audiences by walking through
walls. In 1918, he caused an elephant to vanish on stage.
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Red Magic: Houdini’s Secret
Soon, Hollywood beckoned. Houdini appeared in three serials dur‐
ing 1919: Master Mystery, Terror Island and The Grim Game. These at‐
tempts were followed in 1921 with two full‐length silent movies,
Haldane of the Secret Service and The Man from Beyond. Though neither
movie was a critical success, both helped promote the Houdini leg‐
end, for Houdini was known to have a secret and many believed the
man from beyond was someone who had pierced the material world
to enter and to return at will from the spiritual realm.
The years directly after World War I saw a rise in spiritualism,
which had grown in popularity since the mid‐1800s. Even the mag‐
azine The Scientific American investigated spiritualism to learn if
there were any legitimacy to mediumsʹ claims of ghosts, ectoplasm,
and phantom pseudopods. Houdini himself attended séances
shortly after his motherʹs death in 1913 to learn the meaning of her
final word: "Forgive." Time after time, Houdini found himself hurt
and humiliated by the false pronouncements of fake fakirs. In 1924
he wrote A Magician Among the Spirits, his attack on spiritualism.
He also agreed to edit a weekly supplement, Red Magic, for the New
York World. As he once wrote to Henry Ridgely Evans, "Let our time
start the accurate magic age" (Brandon, 228). According to Cannell,
"One of Houdiniʹs obsessions was to reproduce by normal means
the wonders of fakirs and fraudulent mediums. He was always an‐
noyed if anyone suggested that an
achievement in this category must be
supernatural" (47). This was also the
year of his great feud with the medium
Mina Crandon, known professionally
as Margery, the Blonde Witch of
Boston. The battle royal between the
wizard and witch ended in a draw,
though spiritualists began to predict
that Houdini would soon die an early
death. He was to live a little more than
Mina Crandon
a year.
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Red Magic: Houdini’s Secret
Ed Sams
By 1926, Houdini testified before a Congressional committee on the
fraud perpetrated by spiritualists. Then, in the fall of that year,
came his strange and mysterious death. While Houdini was per‐
forming in Montreal, an undergraduate admirer punched him hard
in the stomach in a fit of fanatic fandom. What resulted from the
blow was peritonitis brought on by a ruptured appendix. "His body
was taken to New York in a stage coffin in which he had been mak‐
ing experiments under water." He was buried with his family in
Machpelah Cemetery in Brooklyn. One of his pallbearers, theatrical
impresario Florenz Ziegfeld, was heard to say as the coffin was
lowered into the grave, "Suppose he isnʹt in it!" (Brandon, 293).
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